If Miss Marple were real, this would be a very important clue.

I'm reading one of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple books (specifically, The Body in the Library) that I acquired at one of the 2 major local annual charity booksales at some point within the last 2-3 years.

At some point, a previous owner used an old picture as a bookmark. The picture has a youngish couple leaning against what I think is an old streetlight in front of a somewhat Mexican-styled building. (I forget what this style is actually called, but people from the southwest will know what I mean.

There's writing from 2 different people on the back. The first is old, blue, and faded and says:

"The kids"
Jack 'n Jenny
March 31, 1940

The second is newer, in black ink and in a shakier hand, and says:

Our apartment
Modesto, Ca.

(Ok, actually, "apartment" is "apartman," but I suspect it was one of the people in the photo a number of years later.)

While I doubt either of the people in the photo are still alive 70 years later, this is the kind of thing people like to have for family albums/scrapbooks? Sadly, it'd be pretty much impossible to track down. Even assuming the person who donated the book was also the last person to read it, these booksales are the largest ones in the area and people drive for an hour of mostly highway to come, and the donation area is pretty wide, too. (Given the age of the book and the photograph, it wouldn't surprise me if the children/grandchildren of one of the people in it donated their books after they died.)

And just to add to the interesting things:

1. I am reading a mystery novel written in 1942.
2. This particular printing is front 1982.
3. I'm reading a UK edition, though this doesn't mean the book has ever actually been owned by anyone living there.

So, at some point in the last 28 years, a photograph taken in California ended up in Texas in a mystery novel released in the UK that was originally written in 1942.

Unfortunately, I basically have no idea how to find out who it would belong to, assuming they'd even be interested.

(I would totally provide scans if I had a scanner.)

manga: Takeru Opera Vol 1-4 (complete series)

As near as I can tell, the proper title for this is Takeru Opera: Susanoh: Sword of the Devil. Mouthful much?

Based on a stage play, Takeru is based on Japanese mythology and is about three men-Takeru-no-Oguna (the angsty one with a secret), Takeru-no-Izumo (the fake-smiley/brainy one with other secrets), and Takeru-no-Kumaso (the angst-lite, less-bright, secret-free-ish one) who join together to seek out the sword of Susanoh. Also seeking out the sword is the evil empire that rules the world.

It starts a bit slow, but picks up speed once the Takerus reach Jagara, a matriarchal society based on the Amazons that’s one of the few matriarchal societies I’ve encountered in fiction without institutionalized rape or a “Look! Just as bad as a patriarchal society! Maybe worse!” undertone to it. There’s also a rather, uhm, interesting reveal later in the series regarding the cutting off of a breast.

Some of it relied on a deeper understanding of the mythology its based on than I have, but it was pretty fun overall, though I think it could have used another volume to flesh things out. The art is similar to a softer, less-stylized Kazuya Minelura, which resulted in my frequently being completely wigged out by forgetting that Izumo was not actually a cheerful, friendly Sanzo, but a totally unrelated character.