Finished April 25
Darkness and Light by John Harvey
This is the second book I've read featuring Frank Elder, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Elder has left the force and lives in a cottage in Cornwall. His ex-wife asks him to do a favour for a friend of hers whose sister appears to be missing, and he returns to check out what might have happened to the woman. He also spends some time reconnecting with his daughter Katherine.
When the woman eventually turns up, dead and in her own bed, Frank is reminded of a case eight years earlier and teams up with the local police force to investigate. Lots of interesting characters and a good story kept my interest going.
Wednesday, 25 April 2007
Sunday, 22 April 2007
4 Kids books
Finished April 21
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
This inventive book might throw a reader off due to its size, but that is definitely misleading. It is told in a combination of text and black and white pictures, all by Selznick (except those that are really movie stills as told in the book). The tale is set in 1931, and because the story comes around to the early movies, the black and white nature of the pictures fits very well. Hugo is young boy whose father was a clockmaker and who now lives in the railway station with his uncle who looks after the railway clocks. When his uncle fails to return one day, Hugo keeps doing his work as well as trying to fix an automaton his father was working on when he died. As Hugo begins to be noticed by others and starts to venture beyond the station more and more, he discovers others have secrets too.
Recommended, particularly for boys, 8-12
Curious George Visits the Library by Margaret and H.A. Rey's
This is the usual sort of Curious George story where he gets into trouble without trying to, in this case at the library. The Man in the Big Yellow Hat leaves him at the storytime and looks for books for himself, but the monkey gets bored and starts looking for books that appeal to him, borrows a book cart and ends up crashing it. All his new friends from the storytime chip in to help tidy things up and get books too, and George gets a library card and gets to take books he likes home to enjoy.
The Librarian from the Black Lagoon by Mike Thaler, pictures by Jared Lee
This Scholastic title is another classic. A child's class is going to the library and he says that they've been told lots of scary stories about the library, the librarian and her authoritarian rules. The pictures of these are very amusing. When they actually go to the library they find they are welcomed, they can touch the books to their heart's content, and the librarian is friendly and helpful. It even ends with a knock-knock joke, which should appeal to most kids.
The Wolves in the Walls by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Dave McKean
This is a wonderful book from the same duo who wrote and illustrated Coraline.
When Lucy begins to hear noises in the wall and attributes them to wolves, she is given other explanations by her mother, father, and younger brother. But when the wolves do come out of the wolves the family grabs what they can and runs to hide in the garden. The wolves take over the house and the family's possessions. But Lucy has left her beloved pig puppet behind and goes back to rescue it. She must go in the walls herself so that the wolves don't see her. When she gets back to the rest of the family, they decide to live in the walls as it is warmer than the garden. As they watch the wolves make messes they get upset, and come out of the wolves. Now it is the wolves turn to run!
Wonderful, funny and great pictures.
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
This inventive book might throw a reader off due to its size, but that is definitely misleading. It is told in a combination of text and black and white pictures, all by Selznick (except those that are really movie stills as told in the book). The tale is set in 1931, and because the story comes around to the early movies, the black and white nature of the pictures fits very well. Hugo is young boy whose father was a clockmaker and who now lives in the railway station with his uncle who looks after the railway clocks. When his uncle fails to return one day, Hugo keeps doing his work as well as trying to fix an automaton his father was working on when he died. As Hugo begins to be noticed by others and starts to venture beyond the station more and more, he discovers others have secrets too.
Recommended, particularly for boys, 8-12
Curious George Visits the Library by Margaret and H.A. Rey's
This is the usual sort of Curious George story where he gets into trouble without trying to, in this case at the library. The Man in the Big Yellow Hat leaves him at the storytime and looks for books for himself, but the monkey gets bored and starts looking for books that appeal to him, borrows a book cart and ends up crashing it. All his new friends from the storytime chip in to help tidy things up and get books too, and George gets a library card and gets to take books he likes home to enjoy.
The Librarian from the Black Lagoon by Mike Thaler, pictures by Jared Lee
This Scholastic title is another classic. A child's class is going to the library and he says that they've been told lots of scary stories about the library, the librarian and her authoritarian rules. The pictures of these are very amusing. When they actually go to the library they find they are welcomed, they can touch the books to their heart's content, and the librarian is friendly and helpful. It even ends with a knock-knock joke, which should appeal to most kids.
The Wolves in the Walls by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Dave McKean
This is a wonderful book from the same duo who wrote and illustrated Coraline.
When Lucy begins to hear noises in the wall and attributes them to wolves, she is given other explanations by her mother, father, and younger brother. But when the wolves do come out of the wolves the family grabs what they can and runs to hide in the garden. The wolves take over the house and the family's possessions. But Lucy has left her beloved pig puppet behind and goes back to rescue it. She must go in the walls herself so that the wolves don't see her. When she gets back to the rest of the family, they decide to live in the walls as it is warmer than the garden. As they watch the wolves make messes they get upset, and come out of the wolves. Now it is the wolves turn to run!
Wonderful, funny and great pictures.
Finished three in a day
Finished April 20
The Sunday List of Dreams by Kris Radish
This was a great book and very positive and uplifting.
Connie Franklin Nixon, divorced mother of 3 grown daughters is just about to retire from her career as a nurse. Before starting as a medical consultant, she has three months in which to fulfill some of the dreams she has been adding to her list since she was pregnant with her first daughter. As she goes through her household, getting rid of things, she discovers that her oldest daughter has a business making and selling sex toys. This launches her into her list faster than ever and takes her to a new relationship with all of her daughters, a new awareness of herself, new friends of many ages, and a new career that she never dreamed of.
I highly recommend this book and am buying a copy for my own mother.
Once by Morris Gleitzman
This young adult book follows a young boy, Felix Saint Stanislaus as he leaves the Catholic orphanage that his Jewish parents entrusted him to when he thinks he might be able to help them. As he gradually discovers the reality of the situation for Jews in Austria he meets other young children, a Jewish dentist who is helping them and a variety of Nazis. He learns different ways to survive and function in the world he lands in, and how to help others. He is a natural storyteller and this makes it easier for the others he is with to deal with their realities.
Christine Falls by Benjamin Black (aka John Banville), read by Timothy Dalton
This great crime novel stars Garret Quirke, a Dublin pathologist who was adopted out of an orphanage as a young boy by a leading Dublin judge. He has grown up with the Judge's own son and the two married sisters from Boston. Quirke's wife, Delia, died in childbirth 20 years ago.
Now Quirke discovers that his adopted brother has falsified a record for another young woman who has died giving birth and this sets him off on a quest for the truth that leads to other deaths, beatings, and back to Boston.
The Sunday List of Dreams by Kris Radish
This was a great book and very positive and uplifting.
Connie Franklin Nixon, divorced mother of 3 grown daughters is just about to retire from her career as a nurse. Before starting as a medical consultant, she has three months in which to fulfill some of the dreams she has been adding to her list since she was pregnant with her first daughter. As she goes through her household, getting rid of things, she discovers that her oldest daughter has a business making and selling sex toys. This launches her into her list faster than ever and takes her to a new relationship with all of her daughters, a new awareness of herself, new friends of many ages, and a new career that she never dreamed of.
I highly recommend this book and am buying a copy for my own mother.
Once by Morris Gleitzman
This young adult book follows a young boy, Felix Saint Stanislaus as he leaves the Catholic orphanage that his Jewish parents entrusted him to when he thinks he might be able to help them. As he gradually discovers the reality of the situation for Jews in Austria he meets other young children, a Jewish dentist who is helping them and a variety of Nazis. He learns different ways to survive and function in the world he lands in, and how to help others. He is a natural storyteller and this makes it easier for the others he is with to deal with their realities.
Christine Falls by Benjamin Black (aka John Banville), read by Timothy Dalton
This great crime novel stars Garret Quirke, a Dublin pathologist who was adopted out of an orphanage as a young boy by a leading Dublin judge. He has grown up with the Judge's own son and the two married sisters from Boston. Quirke's wife, Delia, died in childbirth 20 years ago.
Now Quirke discovers that his adopted brother has falsified a record for another young woman who has died giving birth and this sets him off on a quest for the truth that leads to other deaths, beatings, and back to Boston.
Tuesday, 17 April 2007
A Mixed Bag of Reading and Listening
Finished April 16th
The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult
I've been reading this one slowly for some time, as it never really grabbed me. I found it disappointing compared to some of her others. Comic book artist Daniel Stone ran from his past as a young man, and reinvented himself to become the husband of Laura and the father of Trixie. Has this denial caused his marital problems and the harm come to his daughter as she is apparently drugged and raped by her boyfriend at a party. Will Daniel's suppressed violence reemerge as he reacts to the situation. Will the two parents reconnect as they focus on helping their daughter? The suspense seems unnatural and many plot moves seem very manipulated by unlikely opportunities. The inserts of graphic novel did not add anything to the story from my point of view.
Finished April 14th
The Virgin of Small Plains by Nancy Pickard
This suspense novel focuses on a night that changed many lives in a town forever, and what happened seventeen years later to bring out the truth of the events of that night.
In a small farming town in Kansas, 18-year-old Rex Shellenberger helps his father, town sheriff, and older brother, Patrick, look for newborn calves as a blizzard hits. He discovers the body of a naked teenage girl. Meanwhile Mitch Newquist sneaks down the stairs from the bedroom of his girlfriend, Abby Reynolds, to get a condom from her father's doctors office for their first time. As the events unfold and Mitch disappears from town by morning, Abby's father grows distant with his family, the town's reverence to the unknown dead girl known as "The Virgin" grows, time moves on. Seventeen years later, Mitch is drawn back to town and the secret harbored by his father, Rex's father, and Abby's father unfolds in dramatic fashion.
A great read.
Finished April 13th
Queen Emma and the Vikings: A History of Power, Love and Greed in Eleventh-Century England by Harriet O'Brien
This history of Queen Emma of England, born in Normandy and married to two English kings, Aethelred, the Anglo-Saxon and Cnut, the Dane, is fascinating. Emma had children with both kings, including a son from each that also became King of England, Hrathcnut by Cnut, and Edward (the Confessor) by Aethelred. Her great-nephew William from Normandy also ushered in the next radical change to the country. Emma is brought alive here from her introduction to England as the young bride of a king two decades older than her through the consort, and partner, of a decade-younger Danish warlord, to the Queen Mother. She is a strong figure and her influence is shown through the political actions of her second husband and her strong will to have her children maintain control of the country after his death.
Finished April 12th
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, read by Stephen Fry
Unabridged audiobook
Another classic that I never got around to reading. I really enjoyed this audiobook, and found it very amusing, with lots of wry humour. Earthman Arthur Dent is rescued from his about-to-be destructed planet by friend, and non-earthling, Ford Prefect.
After being forced to endure bad poetry and being set loose in space, the duo find themselves rescued, improbably. They join galaxy president Zaphod Beeblebrox, on the lam for stealing the spaceship containing the improbability computer, and his girlfriend Trillian (former earthwoman and astrophysicist Tricia McMillan). The ship also has on board a robot, Marvin, with a depressive personality. The humour is great, the stories unexpected and imaginative and great fun. Sorry I didn't catch it sooner.
The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult
I've been reading this one slowly for some time, as it never really grabbed me. I found it disappointing compared to some of her others. Comic book artist Daniel Stone ran from his past as a young man, and reinvented himself to become the husband of Laura and the father of Trixie. Has this denial caused his marital problems and the harm come to his daughter as she is apparently drugged and raped by her boyfriend at a party. Will Daniel's suppressed violence reemerge as he reacts to the situation. Will the two parents reconnect as they focus on helping their daughter? The suspense seems unnatural and many plot moves seem very manipulated by unlikely opportunities. The inserts of graphic novel did not add anything to the story from my point of view.
Finished April 14th
The Virgin of Small Plains by Nancy Pickard
This suspense novel focuses on a night that changed many lives in a town forever, and what happened seventeen years later to bring out the truth of the events of that night.
In a small farming town in Kansas, 18-year-old Rex Shellenberger helps his father, town sheriff, and older brother, Patrick, look for newborn calves as a blizzard hits. He discovers the body of a naked teenage girl. Meanwhile Mitch Newquist sneaks down the stairs from the bedroom of his girlfriend, Abby Reynolds, to get a condom from her father's doctors office for their first time. As the events unfold and Mitch disappears from town by morning, Abby's father grows distant with his family, the town's reverence to the unknown dead girl known as "The Virgin" grows, time moves on. Seventeen years later, Mitch is drawn back to town and the secret harbored by his father, Rex's father, and Abby's father unfolds in dramatic fashion.
A great read.
Finished April 13th
Queen Emma and the Vikings: A History of Power, Love and Greed in Eleventh-Century England by Harriet O'Brien
This history of Queen Emma of England, born in Normandy and married to two English kings, Aethelred, the Anglo-Saxon and Cnut, the Dane, is fascinating. Emma had children with both kings, including a son from each that also became King of England, Hrathcnut by Cnut, and Edward (the Confessor) by Aethelred. Her great-nephew William from Normandy also ushered in the next radical change to the country. Emma is brought alive here from her introduction to England as the young bride of a king two decades older than her through the consort, and partner, of a decade-younger Danish warlord, to the Queen Mother. She is a strong figure and her influence is shown through the political actions of her second husband and her strong will to have her children maintain control of the country after his death.
Finished April 12th
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, read by Stephen Fry
Unabridged audiobook
Another classic that I never got around to reading. I really enjoyed this audiobook, and found it very amusing, with lots of wry humour. Earthman Arthur Dent is rescued from his about-to-be destructed planet by friend, and non-earthling, Ford Prefect.
After being forced to endure bad poetry and being set loose in space, the duo find themselves rescued, improbably. They join galaxy president Zaphod Beeblebrox, on the lam for stealing the spaceship containing the improbability computer, and his girlfriend Trillian (former earthwoman and astrophysicist Tricia McMillan). The ship also has on board a robot, Marvin, with a depressive personality. The humour is great, the stories unexpected and imaginative and great fun. Sorry I didn't catch it sooner.
Tuesday, 10 April 2007
A Variety of Fiction
Finished April 9
Everyman by Philip Roth
I can't believe I've never read a Philip Roth book before. This book is wonderfully written and just flowed. The main character tells the story of his lifelong battle with mortality. From his hernia operation at the age of nine, through to his multiple arterial surgeries, he has had issues with his health. He discusses his life from the beaches of his childhood, through his three marriages and sexual affairs. He talks about his relationship with his older brother, Howie, who was his first hero, an athelete and successful businessman. He talks of his childhood helping out in his father's jewelry store. He has an unhappy relationship with his two sons from his first marriage, and a very good one with his daughter from his second marriage. He looks back at what he had in life that he did not value until it was too late and the loneliness he deals with now. This is a moving book.
Finished April 6
A Good Death by Gil Courtemanche, translated by Wayne Grady
The story begins on Christmas Eve, with the gathering of a large family. The father, who has always been a tyrant to his children, is 86 and is ill with Parkinson's. He has difficulty talking and takes comfort in food. The narrator, Andre, is the oldest child and while he has always had issues with his father, finds himself able to take a step back and look at his father's decline and his mother's situation and to think about their deaths. Various family members try to either control their father's diet, in the interests of his long-term health, or let him do what he likes in the interests of his short-term happiness. But how do their decisions affect their mother? Andre finds himself aligned with one of his nephews, teenage William, also known as Sam, in helping his father find a good death.
This is an amazing book and I could barely put it down. I highly recommend it, especially to those with a loved one who is dying.
Finished April 5
Blind Submission by Debra Ginsberg
This is chicklit set in the publishing world. The main character, Angel Robinson, loves to read books. The bookstore she works in is closing and her boyfriend, a writer, urges her to find work in the office of a literary agent. He has his own agenda in wanting her to get them to accept his work. Angel gets a job with the famous agent Lucy Fiamma, and finds Lucy to be a difficult boss. She also has issues with the other employees, who are not especially helpful to her. Kelly, whom everyone calls Nora against her wishes, is unhappy and ignores Angel for the most part. Anna appears helpful at times and undermines Angel at other times.
Angel finds she has a talent for spotting winning writing and Lucy acknowledges this skill while further undermining her relationship with others in the office. There is also a mystery character who is sending Angel chapters by email that correspond uncannily to what is happening in her life. Is someone stalking her?
Finished April 4
You Don't Love Me Yet by Jonathan Lethem
I listened to the audio version of this which was read by the author. Lucinda Hoekke has quit her job in a coffee shop to work in a performance art gallery answering a complaint line for an old boyfriend. Lucinda has also broken up, again, with her boyfriend Matthew. They remain good friends, and still play together in a band. Matthew is the singer and Lucinda plays bass. The real genius of the band is Bedwin who plays guitar and writes the songs.
Matthew works at the zoo, where is has a special relationship with one of the kangaroos.
Lucinda grows interested in one of the callers to the complaint line, who she refers to as The Complainer. His musings interest her and when the band gets invited to perform an actual gig, and needs more songs, she suggests some of The Complainer's words as lyrics. Bedwin is inspired and writes several more brilliant songs using the words as inspiration for lyrics.
The band is a hit and gets several offers including a spot on a live radio show. When The Complainer finds out, he insists that he should be part of the band since his words have been used, and the disaster begins.
I don't know whether this book would have held my interest as well in text form. I definitely got a bit tired of Lucinda and her lack of direction in life.
Finished April 3
Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
This psychological thriller features Camille Preaker, a reporter for a newspaper in Chicago. Her editor asks her to investigate a case back in her home town of Windy Gap, Missouri, where two young girls have gone missing. The body of one has been found, and there is much worry over the other. Camille has to gear herself up to return to Windy Gap, as she has bad memories of her childhood there. She does not get along well with her mother, and has practically no interaction with her stepfather. The last time she saw her stepsister, Amma, who is 13, Amma was just a baby. She also has difficult memories of her other stepsister, Marion, who died at the age of 9, when Camille was just 13.
As we move through the book, we discover Camille's way of dealing with her mother, and the lack of maternal attention she received. She forms a relationship with a special investigator from Kansas City partly as an attempt to discover more information for her story. This is a dark story with lots of heartbreak.
Everyman by Philip Roth
I can't believe I've never read a Philip Roth book before. This book is wonderfully written and just flowed. The main character tells the story of his lifelong battle with mortality. From his hernia operation at the age of nine, through to his multiple arterial surgeries, he has had issues with his health. He discusses his life from the beaches of his childhood, through his three marriages and sexual affairs. He talks about his relationship with his older brother, Howie, who was his first hero, an athelete and successful businessman. He talks of his childhood helping out in his father's jewelry store. He has an unhappy relationship with his two sons from his first marriage, and a very good one with his daughter from his second marriage. He looks back at what he had in life that he did not value until it was too late and the loneliness he deals with now. This is a moving book.
Finished April 6
A Good Death by Gil Courtemanche, translated by Wayne Grady
The story begins on Christmas Eve, with the gathering of a large family. The father, who has always been a tyrant to his children, is 86 and is ill with Parkinson's. He has difficulty talking and takes comfort in food. The narrator, Andre, is the oldest child and while he has always had issues with his father, finds himself able to take a step back and look at his father's decline and his mother's situation and to think about their deaths. Various family members try to either control their father's diet, in the interests of his long-term health, or let him do what he likes in the interests of his short-term happiness. But how do their decisions affect their mother? Andre finds himself aligned with one of his nephews, teenage William, also known as Sam, in helping his father find a good death.
This is an amazing book and I could barely put it down. I highly recommend it, especially to those with a loved one who is dying.
Finished April 5
Blind Submission by Debra Ginsberg
This is chicklit set in the publishing world. The main character, Angel Robinson, loves to read books. The bookstore she works in is closing and her boyfriend, a writer, urges her to find work in the office of a literary agent. He has his own agenda in wanting her to get them to accept his work. Angel gets a job with the famous agent Lucy Fiamma, and finds Lucy to be a difficult boss. She also has issues with the other employees, who are not especially helpful to her. Kelly, whom everyone calls Nora against her wishes, is unhappy and ignores Angel for the most part. Anna appears helpful at times and undermines Angel at other times.
Angel finds she has a talent for spotting winning writing and Lucy acknowledges this skill while further undermining her relationship with others in the office. There is also a mystery character who is sending Angel chapters by email that correspond uncannily to what is happening in her life. Is someone stalking her?
Finished April 4
You Don't Love Me Yet by Jonathan Lethem
I listened to the audio version of this which was read by the author. Lucinda Hoekke has quit her job in a coffee shop to work in a performance art gallery answering a complaint line for an old boyfriend. Lucinda has also broken up, again, with her boyfriend Matthew. They remain good friends, and still play together in a band. Matthew is the singer and Lucinda plays bass. The real genius of the band is Bedwin who plays guitar and writes the songs.
Matthew works at the zoo, where is has a special relationship with one of the kangaroos.
Lucinda grows interested in one of the callers to the complaint line, who she refers to as The Complainer. His musings interest her and when the band gets invited to perform an actual gig, and needs more songs, she suggests some of The Complainer's words as lyrics. Bedwin is inspired and writes several more brilliant songs using the words as inspiration for lyrics.
The band is a hit and gets several offers including a spot on a live radio show. When The Complainer finds out, he insists that he should be part of the band since his words have been used, and the disaster begins.
I don't know whether this book would have held my interest as well in text form. I definitely got a bit tired of Lucinda and her lack of direction in life.
Finished April 3
Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
This psychological thriller features Camille Preaker, a reporter for a newspaper in Chicago. Her editor asks her to investigate a case back in her home town of Windy Gap, Missouri, where two young girls have gone missing. The body of one has been found, and there is much worry over the other. Camille has to gear herself up to return to Windy Gap, as she has bad memories of her childhood there. She does not get along well with her mother, and has practically no interaction with her stepfather. The last time she saw her stepsister, Amma, who is 13, Amma was just a baby. She also has difficult memories of her other stepsister, Marion, who died at the age of 9, when Camille was just 13.
As we move through the book, we discover Camille's way of dealing with her mother, and the lack of maternal attention she received. She forms a relationship with a special investigator from Kansas City partly as an attempt to discover more information for her story. This is a dark story with lots of heartbreak.
Saturday, 31 March 2007
A Romance
Finished March 29
The Edge of Winter by Luanne Rice
Mickey Halloran lives near the beach in Rhode Island, with her mother Neve, and loves the nearby wildlife sanctuary. She is particularly taken by a sight of a snowy owl. Her best friend, Jenna, is started to be interested in a boyfriend and is growing away from her. Her father, Richard, is having issues of his own and has stopped paying child support.
When Mickey meets Shane West, they discover a common love of wildlife. Shane also lives with his mother as his father died when he was a toddler.
The local ranger, Tim O'Casey, loves the wildlife refuge he works to protect. His estranged father, Joe, helps injured birds recover.
Together, the characters come together to fight for the protection of the refuge and the World War II German submarine sunk off its coast.
Interesting situations, with good character growth.
The Edge of Winter by Luanne Rice
Mickey Halloran lives near the beach in Rhode Island, with her mother Neve, and loves the nearby wildlife sanctuary. She is particularly taken by a sight of a snowy owl. Her best friend, Jenna, is started to be interested in a boyfriend and is growing away from her. Her father, Richard, is having issues of his own and has stopped paying child support.
When Mickey meets Shane West, they discover a common love of wildlife. Shane also lives with his mother as his father died when he was a toddler.
The local ranger, Tim O'Casey, loves the wildlife refuge he works to protect. His estranged father, Joe, helps injured birds recover.
Together, the characters come together to fight for the protection of the refuge and the World War II German submarine sunk off its coast.
Interesting situations, with good character growth.
Wednesday, 28 March 2007
Three works of fiction
Finished March 28
Death Comes For the Fat Man by Reginald Hill
The latest in the Dalziel and Pascoe series brings in the element of terrorism. When a police officer thinks he's seen a gun in a video shop, assistance is called in. Dalziel is on duty and Pascoe is called from home in case it is a hostage situation where his negotiation skills might be needed. When the shop explodes, Dalziel is hit badly, but Pascoe has less severe injuries. With Dalziel in a coma, Pascoe is determined to find out what was behind it, but sees intrigue and suspects everywhere. The existence of an anti-Arab group called The Templars that may have support in high places adds more danger to his search for answers. This is a real pageturner.
The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde
Read by Simon Pebble, 10 CDs
I've been listening to this one on my commute. The first in Fforde's Nursery Crime series, this book introduces Jack Spratt and Mary Mary in their first adventure, searching for the cause of Humpty Dumpty's death. Fforde's imagination inspires so many twists and nursery elements and characters that the listener is spellbound. I love his sense of humour and both his outrageous and subtle uses of allusion and farce. From Prometheus to Willie Winkie, this book will keep you guessing and laughing right until the end.
David Golder by Irene Nemirovsky
Translated by Sandra Smith
This 1929 second novel by Nemirovsky was lauded at the time of its initial publication. The author based the work partly on her own experiences and knowledge of the financial world. The main character is a Jewish financier, disregarded by his wife and valued only for his gifts of money by his daughter. He does not have any remorse for those in need and refuses to help his partner when he comes to him for help. As he fights for his business to survive in a difficult economic time, he also finds that the strain has undermined his health. He has to decide how he really feels about those closest to him and what this means for him in terms of actions.
Death Comes For the Fat Man by Reginald Hill
The latest in the Dalziel and Pascoe series brings in the element of terrorism. When a police officer thinks he's seen a gun in a video shop, assistance is called in. Dalziel is on duty and Pascoe is called from home in case it is a hostage situation where his negotiation skills might be needed. When the shop explodes, Dalziel is hit badly, but Pascoe has less severe injuries. With Dalziel in a coma, Pascoe is determined to find out what was behind it, but sees intrigue and suspects everywhere. The existence of an anti-Arab group called The Templars that may have support in high places adds more danger to his search for answers. This is a real pageturner.
The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde
Read by Simon Pebble, 10 CDs
I've been listening to this one on my commute. The first in Fforde's Nursery Crime series, this book introduces Jack Spratt and Mary Mary in their first adventure, searching for the cause of Humpty Dumpty's death. Fforde's imagination inspires so many twists and nursery elements and characters that the listener is spellbound. I love his sense of humour and both his outrageous and subtle uses of allusion and farce. From Prometheus to Willie Winkie, this book will keep you guessing and laughing right until the end.
David Golder by Irene Nemirovsky
Translated by Sandra Smith
This 1929 second novel by Nemirovsky was lauded at the time of its initial publication. The author based the work partly on her own experiences and knowledge of the financial world. The main character is a Jewish financier, disregarded by his wife and valued only for his gifts of money by his daughter. He does not have any remorse for those in need and refuses to help his partner when he comes to him for help. As he fights for his business to survive in a difficult economic time, he also finds that the strain has undermined his health. He has to decide how he really feels about those closest to him and what this means for him in terms of actions.
Saturday, 24 March 2007
Two Novels
Finished March 23
18 Seconds by George D. Shuman
This first novel is a good thriller. One of the main characters is Sherry Moore. Sherry is blind and has the ability to see the last 18 seconds of someone's thoughts in image form by touching them after death. Sherry is an orphan, found at the bottom of hospital steps in winter, almost frozen to death and with a skull fracture as a preschooler. She has no real memory of her past, just a couple of images. Her skill was discovered by accident and she now makes money by answering private requests for her skill. She also occasionally works with police, but the supernatural nature of her power dissuades this. She is friends with John Payne, the first policeman to discover her power.
Serial killer Earl Sykes has been released on parole after 30 years in jail for vehicular homicide. His serial killer past is not what put him in jail. He is dying of cancer, likely contracted by growing up near a toxic waste dump in New Jersey and playing there as a young person. He wants to find his old girlfriend to make sure she doesn't talk about his past. He moves back to his hometown and resumes killing.
Local police lieutenant Kelly O'Shaunessy is trying to find young women who've gone missing in suspicious circumstances. These three storylines come together for a dramatic plot.
Finished March 21
The Dressmaker by Elizabeth Birkelund Oberbeck
Claude Reynaud is a dressmaker living in a small town outside of Paris. He grew up being trained in his career by his father, and has the uncanny ability to take his clients' measurements by looking at them, is a great judge of the right look for his clients, and fashions every dress by hand. He has grown in popularity and now has fashionable clients from Paris who come to him for special events such as weddings. One day, the bride-to-be Valentine de Verlay comes to him for her wedding dress and he finds himself falling for her. He has difficulty keeping the relationship professional and thinks she may have feelings for him too.
Meanwhile he remains close to his nephews who stop in his shop after school, where he does a puppet show for the younger ones and encourages the older to enhance his drawing skills and perhaps follow in his footsteps. The plot is unpredictable and interesting, but I found the characters lacked depth.
18 Seconds by George D. Shuman
This first novel is a good thriller. One of the main characters is Sherry Moore. Sherry is blind and has the ability to see the last 18 seconds of someone's thoughts in image form by touching them after death. Sherry is an orphan, found at the bottom of hospital steps in winter, almost frozen to death and with a skull fracture as a preschooler. She has no real memory of her past, just a couple of images. Her skill was discovered by accident and she now makes money by answering private requests for her skill. She also occasionally works with police, but the supernatural nature of her power dissuades this. She is friends with John Payne, the first policeman to discover her power.
Serial killer Earl Sykes has been released on parole after 30 years in jail for vehicular homicide. His serial killer past is not what put him in jail. He is dying of cancer, likely contracted by growing up near a toxic waste dump in New Jersey and playing there as a young person. He wants to find his old girlfriend to make sure she doesn't talk about his past. He moves back to his hometown and resumes killing.
Local police lieutenant Kelly O'Shaunessy is trying to find young women who've gone missing in suspicious circumstances. These three storylines come together for a dramatic plot.
Finished March 21
The Dressmaker by Elizabeth Birkelund Oberbeck
Claude Reynaud is a dressmaker living in a small town outside of Paris. He grew up being trained in his career by his father, and has the uncanny ability to take his clients' measurements by looking at them, is a great judge of the right look for his clients, and fashions every dress by hand. He has grown in popularity and now has fashionable clients from Paris who come to him for special events such as weddings. One day, the bride-to-be Valentine de Verlay comes to him for her wedding dress and he finds himself falling for her. He has difficulty keeping the relationship professional and thinks she may have feelings for him too.
Meanwhile he remains close to his nephews who stop in his shop after school, where he does a puppet show for the younger ones and encourages the older to enhance his drawing skills and perhaps follow in his footsteps. The plot is unpredictable and interesting, but I found the characters lacked depth.
Tuesday, 20 March 2007
Two quick reads
Finished March 19
Living with Books by Alan Powers
This examination of books as decorative elements in homes provides some interesting ideas for book storage. It is divided into different types of room from home offices to bathrooms, and I got some ideas from it. I preferred the quirky to the traditional. It would have been nice to see more addressing small spaces as I have lots of books and a small house.
The End of the Alphabet by C.S. Richardson
This short novel examines the last few days in the life of Ambrose Zephyr, who discovers that his is fatally ill and has less than a month to live. On the spur of the moment, he decides to travel to places in alphabetical order, with his wife, Zappora (Zipper) Ashkenazi, beginning with Amsterdam. The novel addresses the relationship between the two of them, their best friends, their careers, and their emotions facing this sudden crisis. A moving account.
Living with Books by Alan Powers
This examination of books as decorative elements in homes provides some interesting ideas for book storage. It is divided into different types of room from home offices to bathrooms, and I got some ideas from it. I preferred the quirky to the traditional. It would have been nice to see more addressing small spaces as I have lots of books and a small house.
The End of the Alphabet by C.S. Richardson
This short novel examines the last few days in the life of Ambrose Zephyr, who discovers that his is fatally ill and has less than a month to live. On the spur of the moment, he decides to travel to places in alphabetical order, with his wife, Zappora (Zipper) Ashkenazi, beginning with Amsterdam. The novel addresses the relationship between the two of them, their best friends, their careers, and their emotions facing this sudden crisis. A moving account.
Monday, 19 March 2007
2 Novels
Finished March 19
I Have a Bed Made of Buttermilk Pancakes by Jaclyn Moriarty
This fascinating look at a family and its "secret" is set in Sydney, Australia. The Zing family is a busy one. Marbie has just moved in with her boyfriend, Vernon, and his younger sister, Listen. She is worried that everything is so wonderful that something must go wrong.Fancy, a writer of erotic fiction, lives with her husband Radcliffe and their exuberant seven-year old, Cassie. Fancy writes a lot of notes to Cassie's teacher, often unnecessarily.The family meets every Friday night at the home of Marbie and Fancy's parents. The meeting about the family secret takes place in the backyard shed. Cassie is too young to participate, and Listen stays in the house watching movies with her.The point of view switches around between Marbie, Fancy, Listen, and Cath Taylor, Cassie's teacher. Much is going on: affairs, spells, projects, many of which we only partially understand. Then there is Fancy's Canadian neighbor. All of it adds up to confusion and self-realization.A good one.
Finished March 18
A Stain on the Silence by Andrew Taylor
This psychological thriller is typical of Andrew Taylor. James receives a call from his past one day. Lily Murthington, the stepmother of his best friend as a teenage, whom he had an affair with at the age of seventeen wants him to call. She is dying and wants him to look after her daughter, Kate, who she says is also his daughter.There is much more to his past relationship with the Murthingtons, with his friend Carlo, his sister Felicity, their father Hugh, and Lily than he is prepared to deal with. He agrees unhappily to help Kate, who believes that she is under suspicion for the murder of her boyfriend, whom she says Carlo has killed. As James becomes more deeply involved, and discovers lies, deceits, and as his wife becomes suspicious of events, things get more and more complicated. In the end, you are not really sure what happens to the characters. No happy endings.
I Have a Bed Made of Buttermilk Pancakes by Jaclyn Moriarty
This fascinating look at a family and its "secret" is set in Sydney, Australia. The Zing family is a busy one. Marbie has just moved in with her boyfriend, Vernon, and his younger sister, Listen. She is worried that everything is so wonderful that something must go wrong.Fancy, a writer of erotic fiction, lives with her husband Radcliffe and their exuberant seven-year old, Cassie. Fancy writes a lot of notes to Cassie's teacher, often unnecessarily.The family meets every Friday night at the home of Marbie and Fancy's parents. The meeting about the family secret takes place in the backyard shed. Cassie is too young to participate, and Listen stays in the house watching movies with her.The point of view switches around between Marbie, Fancy, Listen, and Cath Taylor, Cassie's teacher. Much is going on: affairs, spells, projects, many of which we only partially understand. Then there is Fancy's Canadian neighbor. All of it adds up to confusion and self-realization.A good one.
Finished March 18
A Stain on the Silence by Andrew Taylor
This psychological thriller is typical of Andrew Taylor. James receives a call from his past one day. Lily Murthington, the stepmother of his best friend as a teenage, whom he had an affair with at the age of seventeen wants him to call. She is dying and wants him to look after her daughter, Kate, who she says is also his daughter.There is much more to his past relationship with the Murthingtons, with his friend Carlo, his sister Felicity, their father Hugh, and Lily than he is prepared to deal with. He agrees unhappily to help Kate, who believes that she is under suspicion for the murder of her boyfriend, whom she says Carlo has killed. As James becomes more deeply involved, and discovers lies, deceits, and as his wife becomes suspicious of events, things get more and more complicated. In the end, you are not really sure what happens to the characters. No happy endings.
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