Thursday, August 01, 2013

Books, Books, Books

And I've read some really good ones this summer.  These are the books of June:

The Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times - Jennifer Worth.  The BBC series is based on this book and even though I've watched the entire series, the book was still wonderful.
Caught - Harlan Coban.  Sometimes one needs a little bit of escape reading.
Foreign Affairs - Allison Lurie.  This was a second read for me and I liked it even better.  I can see how it won a Pulitzer.
Fire Knife Dancing (Jungle Beat- John Enright.  I borrowed this second in a series from the Amazon Prime Lending Library.  It's a combination mystery and social history of Samoa. I've liked both books.
Inferno (Robert Langdon, #4) - Dan Brown. Another beach-read romp.

Now for July.  As much as I love to read, I'm a slow reader and usually only read about four books a month.

Yes, Chef: A Memoir - Marcus Samuelsson.  If you're a Top Chef fan, Marcus needs no introduction.  Ethiopian born and adopted by Swedish parents, he went all the way to TV fame and his own restaurants - great journey, great read.
Me Before You  - Jojo Moyes.  This showed up on reading lists everywhere. What caught my attention was 4 1/2 stars out of nearly 1300 reviews on Amazon, so I got it from the library.  I was worried that it would be maudlin but quite the opposite.  It's a book that sticks to your ribs and pages turn themselves.
Fahrenheit 451- Ray Bradbury.  I read this for the third time, this time for book club, and it was better than ever.  Last time I read it, the ubiquitous iPod ear buds weren't hanging out of every teens ears.  The ear seashells suddenly had a name.  Timely in spite of being 60 years old.
Star Island - Carl Hiassen.  This isn't his best but it was still entertaining.  Another romp.
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail - Cheryl Stayed.  This is another book that was showing up on book lists everywhere and finally I saw it in Costco.  I got it on library checkout on my Kindle.  It's another page turner and also first person accounting of the damage that adults leave on their children.  Strayed set on the journey to recover from the loss of her mother but the loss was much deeper.  I was left with much to think about.
The Secret Servant (Gabriel Allon,- Daniel Silva.  I think his genre is considered to be political thriller.  I never meant to get hooked on the series because it's much too thought provoking to be a romp or page turner.  That said, the next book is sitting on my nightstand. 

2 comments:

weavinfool said...

I always smile at Charlie when I open your blog. Thanks for keeping his picture there. It makes me happy.

I find the Gabriel Alon books thought provoking. It isn't the plots, but the views of the conflicting sides in his descriptions of the Israelis and Palestinians and others. I get the books on CD from our library. It's nice to know to be on the lookout for a new one.

Do you listen to the Donna Leon series with Commissario Guido Brunetti? They take place in Venice. I love the reader, and after listening to one I feel like I can speak Italian - or Venician- when all I can really say are Cuestura and Aqua Alta. if you haven't found them, give them a try.

I'll be at the fair on Wed. and Sun. Will I see you?

Diane said...

You always say you are a slow reader. I don't think reading a book a week makes you a slow reader. Would you have to read a book a day to be a fast reader?