So...
Over the weekend my paid account status was up for renewal, and since I went ahead and paid for it, I guess I ought to utilize it, huh?
Life continues its usual pace for me. Going to quilt guild meetings several times a month. Going to yoga several times a week. Reading whenever I get the chance, which isn't always as often as I'd like. And, looking back through my posts, it looks like I haven't talked about books I've read since... January 2011?! *facepalm* Guess that's a good thing to post about then, but rather than list the 100 or so books I've read since then, I'll just talk about the ones that I remember the most about.
People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks I really enjoyed this novel about preserving an ancient Hebrew manuscript and the reasons behind various artifacts discovered during the process. It's based on a true story, which made it that much more interesting to read.
City of Thieves by David Benihoff If I remember correctly, my future d-i-l recommended this book to me. If not, I know she also read and enjoyed it. Anyway, it's set in WWII Leningrad, a time of which I knew very little, and is the story of a young/teen boy who has to steal something for a Soviet colonel in order to save his own life. Sounds simple, except there's no supplies in town, or anywhere else for that matter, and he has to survive frigid weather and enemy fire on top of everything else. So, yeah, quite an interesting read.
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier I really enjoy Ms Chevalier's novels, and this one caught my eye on the bargain table at the bookstore. It's about a young woman who finds a pterodactyl fossil on the beaches of Lyme Regis in the 1800's, her friendship with another woman of science, and their efforts to be recognized for their accomplishments in a time when women generally weren't. Again, this one is based on fact, which made it even more interesting.
The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown This one's not in my usual style, being a contemporary novel, but it sounded interesting so I gave it a chance. So glad I did! It's about three sisters who were named for Shakespearean characters by their professor father and their interactions throughout their lives. I don't have sisters, but others I've recommended it to do, and they said the author got those interactions right. The thing that really sticks with me about this novel is that it's written in 1st person plural! You wouldn't think that would work, but it really does. After a while, I didn't even try to figure out which of the sisters might be relating a particular event and just enjoyed the story. I've recommended this one to lots of people, and they've all enjoyed it, too.
A History of the World in Six Glasses by Tom Standage This one was a book club book, and if you've been following me for any length of time, you know that book club and I don't always agree. This one was very interesting, though. It tells the history of civilization in the context of six drinks: beer, wine, alcohol, coffee, tea, and cola. I think the author even threw in water at the end. It's been one of the few book club books I've enjoyed and can recommend to others.
Amity & Sorrow by Peggy Riley I found this novel on the library shelf and it sounded interesting. It's the story of a woman and her 2 daughters escaping their life in a fundamentalist cult. Heavy stuff, yeah? It had a somewhat ambivalent ending, and there's incest involved, but on the whole, I did find it a good read.
I Fired God by Jocelyn R. Zichterman This one, on the other hand, is a factual account of a woman in the same situation. It was a hard read at times - animal and child abuse - but definitely worth reading. The scary thing, for me, was how many names I recognized from my days homeschooling my kids. Some I knew were fundamentalists, but others I had no idea! Made me glad I hadn't gone down that rabbit hole.
11/22/63 by Stephen King Okay, first? I don't read Stephen King. Horror is so not my thing. Second? This was another book club book. However... I thoroughly enjoyed this! Not a horror novel at all. More of a sci fi, since it involves time travel, and that's right up my alley! :) So, for those who don't know, 11/22/63 was the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated, and this novel posits the question - What if he hadn't been? So, there's more sci fi, what with it being AU and all. :) Anyway, this is an 800+ page story, but it reads so easily that I finished it in no time. There's really very little focus on JFK. It's more about the man who travels back in time to change history and what happens to him while he's there. All in all, an enjoyable read!
Moloka'i by Alan Brennert We read the author's book, Honolulu, for book club, and while I didn't particularly care for it, this one was recommended as being better. I tend to agree. In Honolulu, when historical things happened to the main character, it felt forced. This one, however, tells the story of the Leper Colony established in Hawaii by Father Damien. Or, rather, the story of one little girl who is sent there when it's discovered she has leprosy, and her life from then on. Because she was on an isolated settlement, the historical aspects felt much less contrived. Again, this was a time I knew very little about, so it made for a very interesting read. I've since read two other books by the author: Time and Chance, an alternate reality sci fi that didn't impress me all that much, and Palisades Park, another fact-based historical novel that told the story of a former New Jersey amusement park that I did enjoy.
The Rebellion of Miss Lucy Ann Lobdell by William Klaber Another library shelf find that I thoroughly enjoyed! The titular character was a real person who was born a girl, but in 1855 decided to live the rest of her life as a man named Joseph Lobdell. This is another fact-based historical, and was a fascinating read. I hesitate to use today's gendering pronoun system, because we can't know for sure if she was transgendered or bisexual. As a young girl she married a man and had a child, but in later years she fell in love with at least a couple of different women - and married one of them. She also suffered many hardships when it was discovered she was genetically female, including being committed to an insane asylum. Although fictional, everything I've read says the author stuck as close to fact as possible, and I definitely recommend this book.
The King's Hounds by Martin Jensen Another library find. This is a Danish historical mystery recently translated into English. It takes place in pre-Norman Britain - another time of which I am unfamiliar. :) I can't say that the mystery aspect of it was any great shakes - I can't even remember what it was besides solving a murder, but I did enjoy the history. I see that a 2nd book in the series is now available, so I'll probably get that one from the library soon.
Shakespeare's Restless World by Neil MacGregor Similar to the Six Glasses book above, this tells the history of a time using objects - specifically, 20 objects in the possession of the British Museum, some of which were discovered during excavations of The Globe Theater. While I did learn some things from this book, it was an exceedingly dry read. Still, glad I read it.
A White Wind Blew by James Markert This was recommended to me by one of my quilting friends. Given that she is a Southern Baptist, when she told me she had a book she just knew I'd love, I had my doubts. Fortunately, she was right. :) This is another fact-based historical novel (are we sensing a trend here?), and tells the story of a tuberculosis hospital here in Louisville during the 1920's and 30's. I had no idea such a place existed, and to read this while trying to put its location in the context of places I now know was really fascinating. And the story was good, too. ;) So, yes, a good read that I've recommended to others, and do to anyone else interested in the subject.
That about catches me up to my most recent reads, which I will save for another post. I've also read the Nikki Heat and Derrick Storm novels (fun reads & I enjoy the DS ones more than the NH ones - slightly less meta), finished the Sookie Stackhouse novels (got a little tedious by the end, and called the final pairing a long time ago), am still reading the Stephanie Plum novels (although they're getting old) and gave up on Fifty Shades after 100 pages or so (what a piece of crap, the less said about which the better).
Oh, hey, lookitthat, I remember how to html. :) And, seeing how long this post is, if you've read it all - you're awesome!
Life continues its usual pace for me. Going to quilt guild meetings several times a month. Going to yoga several times a week. Reading whenever I get the chance, which isn't always as often as I'd like. And, looking back through my posts, it looks like I haven't talked about books I've read since... January 2011?! *facepalm* Guess that's a good thing to post about then, but rather than list the 100 or so books I've read since then, I'll just talk about the ones that I remember the most about.
People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks I really enjoyed this novel about preserving an ancient Hebrew manuscript and the reasons behind various artifacts discovered during the process. It's based on a true story, which made it that much more interesting to read.
City of Thieves by David Benihoff If I remember correctly, my future d-i-l recommended this book to me. If not, I know she also read and enjoyed it. Anyway, it's set in WWII Leningrad, a time of which I knew very little, and is the story of a young/teen boy who has to steal something for a Soviet colonel in order to save his own life. Sounds simple, except there's no supplies in town, or anywhere else for that matter, and he has to survive frigid weather and enemy fire on top of everything else. So, yeah, quite an interesting read.
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier I really enjoy Ms Chevalier's novels, and this one caught my eye on the bargain table at the bookstore. It's about a young woman who finds a pterodactyl fossil on the beaches of Lyme Regis in the 1800's, her friendship with another woman of science, and their efforts to be recognized for their accomplishments in a time when women generally weren't. Again, this one is based on fact, which made it even more interesting.
The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown This one's not in my usual style, being a contemporary novel, but it sounded interesting so I gave it a chance. So glad I did! It's about three sisters who were named for Shakespearean characters by their professor father and their interactions throughout their lives. I don't have sisters, but others I've recommended it to do, and they said the author got those interactions right. The thing that really sticks with me about this novel is that it's written in 1st person plural! You wouldn't think that would work, but it really does. After a while, I didn't even try to figure out which of the sisters might be relating a particular event and just enjoyed the story. I've recommended this one to lots of people, and they've all enjoyed it, too.
A History of the World in Six Glasses by Tom Standage This one was a book club book, and if you've been following me for any length of time, you know that book club and I don't always agree. This one was very interesting, though. It tells the history of civilization in the context of six drinks: beer, wine, alcohol, coffee, tea, and cola. I think the author even threw in water at the end. It's been one of the few book club books I've enjoyed and can recommend to others.
Amity & Sorrow by Peggy Riley I found this novel on the library shelf and it sounded interesting. It's the story of a woman and her 2 daughters escaping their life in a fundamentalist cult. Heavy stuff, yeah? It had a somewhat ambivalent ending, and there's incest involved, but on the whole, I did find it a good read.
I Fired God by Jocelyn R. Zichterman This one, on the other hand, is a factual account of a woman in the same situation. It was a hard read at times - animal and child abuse - but definitely worth reading. The scary thing, for me, was how many names I recognized from my days homeschooling my kids. Some I knew were fundamentalists, but others I had no idea! Made me glad I hadn't gone down that rabbit hole.
11/22/63 by Stephen King Okay, first? I don't read Stephen King. Horror is so not my thing. Second? This was another book club book. However... I thoroughly enjoyed this! Not a horror novel at all. More of a sci fi, since it involves time travel, and that's right up my alley! :) So, for those who don't know, 11/22/63 was the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated, and this novel posits the question - What if he hadn't been? So, there's more sci fi, what with it being AU and all. :) Anyway, this is an 800+ page story, but it reads so easily that I finished it in no time. There's really very little focus on JFK. It's more about the man who travels back in time to change history and what happens to him while he's there. All in all, an enjoyable read!
Moloka'i by Alan Brennert We read the author's book, Honolulu, for book club, and while I didn't particularly care for it, this one was recommended as being better. I tend to agree. In Honolulu, when historical things happened to the main character, it felt forced. This one, however, tells the story of the Leper Colony established in Hawaii by Father Damien. Or, rather, the story of one little girl who is sent there when it's discovered she has leprosy, and her life from then on. Because she was on an isolated settlement, the historical aspects felt much less contrived. Again, this was a time I knew very little about, so it made for a very interesting read. I've since read two other books by the author: Time and Chance, an alternate reality sci fi that didn't impress me all that much, and Palisades Park, another fact-based historical novel that told the story of a former New Jersey amusement park that I did enjoy.
The Rebellion of Miss Lucy Ann Lobdell by William Klaber Another library shelf find that I thoroughly enjoyed! The titular character was a real person who was born a girl, but in 1855 decided to live the rest of her life as a man named Joseph Lobdell. This is another fact-based historical, and was a fascinating read. I hesitate to use today's gendering pronoun system, because we can't know for sure if she was transgendered or bisexual. As a young girl she married a man and had a child, but in later years she fell in love with at least a couple of different women - and married one of them. She also suffered many hardships when it was discovered she was genetically female, including being committed to an insane asylum. Although fictional, everything I've read says the author stuck as close to fact as possible, and I definitely recommend this book.
The King's Hounds by Martin Jensen Another library find. This is a Danish historical mystery recently translated into English. It takes place in pre-Norman Britain - another time of which I am unfamiliar. :) I can't say that the mystery aspect of it was any great shakes - I can't even remember what it was besides solving a murder, but I did enjoy the history. I see that a 2nd book in the series is now available, so I'll probably get that one from the library soon.
Shakespeare's Restless World by Neil MacGregor Similar to the Six Glasses book above, this tells the history of a time using objects - specifically, 20 objects in the possession of the British Museum, some of which were discovered during excavations of The Globe Theater. While I did learn some things from this book, it was an exceedingly dry read. Still, glad I read it.
A White Wind Blew by James Markert This was recommended to me by one of my quilting friends. Given that she is a Southern Baptist, when she told me she had a book she just knew I'd love, I had my doubts. Fortunately, she was right. :) This is another fact-based historical novel (are we sensing a trend here?), and tells the story of a tuberculosis hospital here in Louisville during the 1920's and 30's. I had no idea such a place existed, and to read this while trying to put its location in the context of places I now know was really fascinating. And the story was good, too. ;) So, yes, a good read that I've recommended to others, and do to anyone else interested in the subject.
That about catches me up to my most recent reads, which I will save for another post. I've also read the Nikki Heat and Derrick Storm novels (fun reads & I enjoy the DS ones more than the NH ones - slightly less meta), finished the Sookie Stackhouse novels (got a little tedious by the end, and called the final pairing a long time ago), am still reading the Stephanie Plum novels (although they're getting old) and gave up on Fifty Shades after 100 pages or so (what a piece of crap, the less said about which the better).
Oh, hey, lookitthat, I remember how to html. :) And, seeing how long this post is, if you've read it all - you're awesome!