Finished March 9
Without Reservations by Alice Steinbach
This memoir of a journey through Europe is a winner. Alice, with her sons off living their own lives, feels like she is in a rut. She looks a the things that she wanted to do and didn't and decides to take a leave from her job as a journalist and travel for several months. Because she wants to immerse herself in her surroundings, she chooses a few places in Europe and makes her plans in advance for accommodation and, in some cases, activities.
Throughout she sent postcards back to her home near Baltimore telling her impressions of her journey. She takes a break from her journalistic outlook and tries to look at things with fresh eyes. She makes friends, both longer-term and temporary, gains new ideas, and revisits old skills and attitudes. In making this jourey she rediscovers her own independent identity, not as a journalist or as someone's mother, but as a person.
She begins in Paris, where she begins a wonderful friendship; goes on to London, where she explores both new and old; Oxford, where she takes a course on the history of English villages, and rediscovers dancing; and Italy, where she spends time in many places, including Milan and Venice. This is a great memoir and a book full of interesting thoughts and insights.
Saturday, 14 March 2009
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
Vancouver Mystery
Finished March 2
Death on a Short Leash by Gwendolyn Southin
This mystery is part of a series featuring Margaret (Maggie) Spencer, a woman who has left her middle class banker husband to be more independent. She has two grown daughters and is now working in a detective agency, where she is romantically involved with the detective, a former police officer. The book is set in the early sixties, and Maggie is tackling her new life with gusto and an open mind.
What starts off as a missing persons case, soon becomes one of murder and intrigue. Elements include a strip club, a suspicious commune, a possible puppy mill, and threats against Maggie herself. The character is an important part of this novel, as are her relationships with family and friends. The plot is interesting, and of the time, and the action varies in intensity as Maggie and Nat follow different sets of clues.
Death on a Short Leash by Gwendolyn Southin
This mystery is part of a series featuring Margaret (Maggie) Spencer, a woman who has left her middle class banker husband to be more independent. She has two grown daughters and is now working in a detective agency, where she is romantically involved with the detective, a former police officer. The book is set in the early sixties, and Maggie is tackling her new life with gusto and an open mind.
What starts off as a missing persons case, soon becomes one of murder and intrigue. Elements include a strip club, a suspicious commune, a possible puppy mill, and threats against Maggie herself. The character is an important part of this novel, as are her relationships with family and friends. The plot is interesting, and of the time, and the action varies in intensity as Maggie and Nat follow different sets of clues.
Teen Novel
Finished February 27
The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer, read by Robertson Dean
A companion novel to Life as We Knew It, this novel takes place over the same time period only in a different place, New York City. Here we have 17-year-old Alex Morales, dealing with the chaos unleashed by the asteroid hitting the moon offcourse. Alex lives with his parents and two sisters in an apartment in upper Manhattan. His father is in Puerto Rico for his grandmother's funeral and Alex has no idea whether he has survived. His mother works at a hospital in Queen's and was called in to work after the event, but hasn't been heard from since. Alex doesn't know for sure what happened to her, but is worried that she may have been drowned in the subway. His older brother Carlos is a marine, stationed in California and manages to communicate to the family that he has been mobilized. Alex is left alone with his two younger sisters, Brianna and Julie. They do have some things going for them. They are strong Catholics, with all three going to Catholic schools and involved in their local church, which offers some respite. They also have an uncle who owns a bodega and get some food initially from him. Since Alex's father is the apartment building manager, they also have limited access to some of the other apartments in their building.
As Alex struggles to take charge of his family and do what is necessary for their survival, he also struggles with his faith and how that impacts on the things he needs to do. This is a story of desperation and hope, of community and change. Alex is challenged, but finds the courage and support to deal with those challenges.
The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer, read by Robertson Dean
A companion novel to Life as We Knew It, this novel takes place over the same time period only in a different place, New York City. Here we have 17-year-old Alex Morales, dealing with the chaos unleashed by the asteroid hitting the moon offcourse. Alex lives with his parents and two sisters in an apartment in upper Manhattan. His father is in Puerto Rico for his grandmother's funeral and Alex has no idea whether he has survived. His mother works at a hospital in Queen's and was called in to work after the event, but hasn't been heard from since. Alex doesn't know for sure what happened to her, but is worried that she may have been drowned in the subway. His older brother Carlos is a marine, stationed in California and manages to communicate to the family that he has been mobilized. Alex is left alone with his two younger sisters, Brianna and Julie. They do have some things going for them. They are strong Catholics, with all three going to Catholic schools and involved in their local church, which offers some respite. They also have an uncle who owns a bodega and get some food initially from him. Since Alex's father is the apartment building manager, they also have limited access to some of the other apartments in their building.
As Alex struggles to take charge of his family and do what is necessary for their survival, he also struggles with his faith and how that impacts on the things he needs to do. This is a story of desperation and hope, of community and change. Alex is challenged, but finds the courage and support to deal with those challenges.
Greek Mystery
Finished February 26
Murder in Mykonos by Jeffrey M Siger
A young female tourist disappears on the island of Mykonos and no one takes notice until a body turns up on top of the bones in a crypt of a remote church. The island's new chief of police, Andreas Kaldis, is still finding his bearings in his new job and teams up with Cycladic Islands homicide chief Tassos, who is near retirement, to solve the murder.
They discover what no one wants to hear about, a serial killer gone undetected for years.
When another young woman disappears, things get more intense and the police are working against time to find her. With too many suspects and none at had to keep an eye on, they must follow the clue of the churches to lead them to their killer.
Starting out relaxed, and intensifying with the disappearance of the second woman, this is a fast moving book, taking into account politics and island rivalries as well as the realities of corruption.
Murder in Mykonos by Jeffrey M Siger
A young female tourist disappears on the island of Mykonos and no one takes notice until a body turns up on top of the bones in a crypt of a remote church. The island's new chief of police, Andreas Kaldis, is still finding his bearings in his new job and teams up with Cycladic Islands homicide chief Tassos, who is near retirement, to solve the murder.
They discover what no one wants to hear about, a serial killer gone undetected for years.
When another young woman disappears, things get more intense and the police are working against time to find her. With too many suspects and none at had to keep an eye on, they must follow the clue of the churches to lead them to their killer.
Starting out relaxed, and intensifying with the disappearance of the second woman, this is a fast moving book, taking into account politics and island rivalries as well as the realities of corruption.
European Mystery
Finished February 23
Blacklight Blue by Peter May
Enzo MacLeod, Scottish, former forensic scientist now teaching at Cahors, is betting that he could use his expertise to solve seven unsolved murders described in a book by Parisian journalist Roger Raffin. He's solved two of them as the book begins and is now working on the third, the murder of a Parisian rent boy more than fifteen years earlier. He is distracted from the case as he has just been told by a specialist that he has a rare form of leukemia with only months to live.
Also, someone seems to be intent on destroying his reputation and his relationships. Enzo finds himself the suspect in a murder investigation, and his daughters, Sophie and Kirsty, are targeted with violence. Enzo tries to protect his family by putting them in a safe place while he tries to work out who is after him. Taking us from France to England and Spain, the pace of this mystery is fast and the plot is gripping.
The only detail that bothered me was Enzo's ability to travel to other countries while out on bail.
Blacklight Blue by Peter May
Enzo MacLeod, Scottish, former forensic scientist now teaching at Cahors, is betting that he could use his expertise to solve seven unsolved murders described in a book by Parisian journalist Roger Raffin. He's solved two of them as the book begins and is now working on the third, the murder of a Parisian rent boy more than fifteen years earlier. He is distracted from the case as he has just been told by a specialist that he has a rare form of leukemia with only months to live.
Also, someone seems to be intent on destroying his reputation and his relationships. Enzo finds himself the suspect in a murder investigation, and his daughters, Sophie and Kirsty, are targeted with violence. Enzo tries to protect his family by putting them in a safe place while he tries to work out who is after him. Taking us from France to England and Spain, the pace of this mystery is fast and the plot is gripping.
The only detail that bothered me was Enzo's ability to travel to other countries while out on bail.
Friday, 20 February 2009
Interesting Fiction
Finished February 20
Lark & Termite by Jayne Anne Phillips
This novel takes us back and forth between Corporal Robert Leavitt in Korea in July 1950 and the town of Winfield, West Virginia in July 1959.
In West Virginia Lark, 17, and her brother Termite, 9, live with their aunt Noreen (Nonie). Termite is Leavitt's son, born hydrocephalic and unable to walk or talk. In the West Virginia portion of the story, we see things from the points of view of Lark, Nonie, and Termite. We see the children's mother Lola from many viewpoints, including Nonie's and Leavitt's, that let us understand her motivations and actions. Termite and Lark are very close and Termite communicates with sounds, sometimes parroting those around him, and very much in tune with the sounds of his environment, reacting to things before those around him hear them.
Leavitt is caught up in an action in South Korea involving refugees. Leavitt, injured, has taken shelter in a tunnel with many of the surviving refugees and is unable to contact the rest of the men in his unit.
Back in West Virginia, Lark and Termite like to watch the world from a tunnel near them. It took me a while to get drawn into this but once I was it fully engaged me. The characters are what drives this book for me. Although there are certainly major events that take place in both settings that change the course of lives and matter deeply, the characters are what makes this book come alive.
Lark & Termite by Jayne Anne Phillips
This novel takes us back and forth between Corporal Robert Leavitt in Korea in July 1950 and the town of Winfield, West Virginia in July 1959.
In West Virginia Lark, 17, and her brother Termite, 9, live with their aunt Noreen (Nonie). Termite is Leavitt's son, born hydrocephalic and unable to walk or talk. In the West Virginia portion of the story, we see things from the points of view of Lark, Nonie, and Termite. We see the children's mother Lola from many viewpoints, including Nonie's and Leavitt's, that let us understand her motivations and actions. Termite and Lark are very close and Termite communicates with sounds, sometimes parroting those around him, and very much in tune with the sounds of his environment, reacting to things before those around him hear them.
Leavitt is caught up in an action in South Korea involving refugees. Leavitt, injured, has taken shelter in a tunnel with many of the surviving refugees and is unable to contact the rest of the men in his unit.
Back in West Virginia, Lark and Termite like to watch the world from a tunnel near them. It took me a while to get drawn into this but once I was it fully engaged me. The characters are what drives this book for me. Although there are certainly major events that take place in both settings that change the course of lives and matter deeply, the characters are what makes this book come alive.
Wednesday, 18 February 2009
Childhood Memoir
Finished February 17
The Dangerous Edge of Things: a village childhood by Candida Lycett Green
This book takes you through just over a year in Candida's life in the small village of Farnborough in Berkshire. From January 1949 through February 1950, Candida describes her life in the village, her relations with the other children, the adults in the community, and village life. Candida lives with her father, the poet John Betjeman and her mother Penelope Chetwode. Her brother Paul is off at boarding school most of the time. Candida has a best friend, June, who lives in the village with her parents and older siblings. Many of the men in the village work on farms. Nearby is the Harwell Atomic Research Centre, where some in the community work. Candida's knowledge of her fellow villagers grows during the year and she finds that many have hidden depths she didn't realize. This is a memoir of a year that Candida becomes more aware that people are complex and in which she loses some of her innocence.
Well told and giving a good sense of village life, this memoir is very readable and engaging.
The Dangerous Edge of Things: a village childhood by Candida Lycett Green
This book takes you through just over a year in Candida's life in the small village of Farnborough in Berkshire. From January 1949 through February 1950, Candida describes her life in the village, her relations with the other children, the adults in the community, and village life. Candida lives with her father, the poet John Betjeman and her mother Penelope Chetwode. Her brother Paul is off at boarding school most of the time. Candida has a best friend, June, who lives in the village with her parents and older siblings. Many of the men in the village work on farms. Nearby is the Harwell Atomic Research Centre, where some in the community work. Candida's knowledge of her fellow villagers grows during the year and she finds that many have hidden depths she didn't realize. This is a memoir of a year that Candida becomes more aware that people are complex and in which she loses some of her innocence.
Well told and giving a good sense of village life, this memoir is very readable and engaging.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)