A Reader's Call for Help/Minor Rant

I'm still on the road and looking for a good book. Kate Atkinson's newest doesn't come out until July 31 in the U.K., by which time I'll be back in the States and will have to wait another six weeks for it. Here's what I'm looking for today:

• adult fiction
• novel

Here's what I'm not looking for:

I just finished reading two well-received novels and can I just say that I'm officially over the 20th century protagonist. You know the type: New York (usually), drinking problem, alienated from family, usually some connection to an Eastern European country, misanthrope, sees an Analyst/is an Analyst*, wife leaves him (usually for perfectly understandable reasons), hates dogs and/or children, makes wry comments on the failings of (usually other) human beings.

I do not want a novel featuring/narrated by this type of protagonist.

Maybe my increasing intolerance for the 20th century anti-hero is the reason why detective fiction has become a consoling feature in my reading life. Adam Dalgliesh, Jackson Brodie, Paddy Meehan, and Kurt Wallander aren't perfect people. But they mean well, have some minor hope in humanity, and, in their own ways, think they're making a difference.

So, help me out here, readers. I'm desperate for a good read.
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*Does anyone still see an Analyst in this day and age? I'll just add that I'm totally over Freud/Freudism in literature as well.
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Please excuse the Nabokov movie image. Nabokov did the 20th century anti-hero right, in my opinion, but it's also time to move on. Seriously.

Wildly OT, but I need your help!

Please excuse the OT post, but I really need your help.

Does anyone have any pet turtle recommendations? We (I use this term lightly!) want one that lives primarily on land, not in water.

Helping our own

Our Sorceress of Fantasy, Michele at Scholar's Blog, has been downsized. That's right, friends, she's out of a job. She can continue to earn some money online for her former company (I'm avoiding swear words here), but she can't afford broadband at home. Especially now as she has no income.

Let me just say, to borrow a term from MotherReader, that Michele has been a BFF (blog friend forever) for two years. She's one of the original members of the kidlitosphere and the go-to woman on MG/YA Fantasy and new books in the U.K. I've had the pleasure of meeting her in person and she's every bit as brilliant, wonderful, and funny as she is on her blog.

She's helped me out of a tight spot more than once--sending a book I've pined for or writing an extra piece for The Edge of the Forest. She's just that type of woman.

So here it is. I've never raised money on the blog before, but I'd really like Michele to keep on blogging, to keep on writing, and to be able to earn her keep. If you have a few dollars (or any other currency outside sickles and knuts), would you please direct them to my PayPal account (kidslitinfo@yahoo.com)? Let's keep Michele in business and in our world.

A call for help

I've hit rock bottom, folks. I can't go on. If I have to read another non-fiction title about rocks and minerals...

So, please, if you know of an interesting book about rocks and minerals for, say, a six-year-old child, leave a comment. Please.