Oh, what a good month February was for reading. I started working on my Christmas pile. I got so many great books in my book bags this year, but then again, I get great books every year. I always take all of my books upstairs when Christmas is over. I take each book out of the bag and read the back and inside cover. I love doing that. It’s almost like another gift. Then I write in each book who gave it to me and the year. It’s the most relaxing day after the rush of preparing for the holidays. My time, my bed, my books. All warm and cozy with a cup of tea and my stack.
The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton This was the most surprising book I’ve read in a long time. The cover threw me, also. Seventeenth-century Amsterdam. In the Fall of 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman arrives in Amsterdam to begin a new life as the wife of a merchant trader named Johannes Brandt. But her new home is not so welcoming. Her husband ignores her and leaves her in his sister's hands, the fearsome Marin. One day he presents Nella with a cabinet-sized replica of their home as a wedding gift. Then weird things start happening, and as they do, tiny pieces of the stuff in their house and the people in their lives start to show up to go into the miniaturist's house. It is quite a mystery and has lots of intrigues. I really enjoyed this historical novel. Four stars
The Paris Bookseller by Kerri Maher I bought this book for myself before Christmas, so I wanted to read it before starting my new book pile. I knew I would like this book because it was about one of my favorite bookstores in Paris, Shakespeare and Company. It also had such a beautiful cover. It’s the story of an American, Sylvia Beach, a young, bookish girl who goes to Paris and opens a bookstore that will change the course of literature. I liked the book, but it started to get bogged down in the problems of getting Ulysses’s by James Joyce published. Her most cherished relationships are tested as Paris is plunged deeper into the Depression, and many of her American friends move back home. Then Ulysses is banned in Paris, and Sylvia takes it into her own hands to get it published under the store’s name. Another banned book that eventually turned into a huge success. I liked the book, but it did get so slow in the middle, then picked up again towards the end. Three and a half stars.
The Book of Goose by Yiyun Li Back to the book pile. This one is from my son. He is the one who gives me the most unusual books and ninety percent of the time, I love them. This was one of those books. I don’t think I would have bought this for myself, so I was pleasantly surprised. From the front cover, “Fabienne is dead. Her childhood best friend, Agnes, receives the news in America, far from the French countryside where the two girls were raised-the place that Fabienne helped Agnes escape ten years ago. Now Agnes is free to tell her story.” It’s a tale that winds from an English boarding school to a quiet Pennsylvania home where a woman can live without her past. It’s about intimacy and obsession, exploitation and strength of will. The writing is beautiful. I had not read any books by this author before and had never even heard of her. I will now seek her out. Beautifully written. Four stars
Labor Day by Joyce Maynard I love Joyce Maynard’s writing. I’m working my way through all of her books. This one was a gem. As the summer fades and a long, hot Labor Day weekend looms, the life of a lonely thirteen-year-old Henry Wheeler is changed when he and his fragile mother show kindness to a stranger with a terrible secret. So much depth to this book and story, and it leaves you asking, “what would I have done?”…Terrific story about love, sex, adolescence, sadness, and treachery. Five big stars.
Foster by Claire Keegan This was another little gem from Chris…Claire Keegan is an Irish writer, and if you have never read one of her little books, treat yourself as soon as possible. When a little girl is taken away after church one Sunday by her father to visit distant relatives, she does not realize that there is no end set for her visit to end. So starts the story of her summer with the Kinsellas, her mother’s relatives. They live on a farm, and the girl receives warmth and affection that she has not been shown in her own house. Everything is well taken care of; she fits in and loves being there. And then the summer ends. This story is an Irish classic. A story full of emotional depth. Five stars…
The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama If you like Michelle Obama, you will love this book. She is an excellent writer, and her words are uplifting and soothing in these trying times. It’s a book full of beautiful stories and insightful reflections on change, challenges, and power. She is wise and knowledgeable and learned so much being First Lady for us. With her humor, candor, and compassion, she also explores issues connected to race, gender, and visibility to work through fear, find strength in the community, and lives a bold life. She says we all have our own light and must learn how to use it. Four stars.
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver Right out of the gate, I loved this book. I love all of Dickens's books, but David Copperfield was a favorite. One of those riding around in the car stories that Jim and I read together back in the day when money was scarce. When I read that this book was loosely based on it, I added it to my Christmas list and was delighted to receive it in my book bag. This is the story of a teenage boy born to a single mom who live in a single-wide trailer. The only assistance he was born with was his dead father’s good looks and red hair. The plot never pauses as we follow him through the perils of foster care, child labor, derelict schools, addiction, love, and loss. Many years ago, Charles Dickens wrote of a survivor of institutional poverty and its damage to children in his society. The problem has yet to be solved in ours. It is a fast-paced book with many themes running between today and Dickens's days. Her writing is brilliant as she weaves both stories together. At the end of the day, she and Dickens manage to keep faith in the transformative power of a good story. I give five stars for this significant accomplishment. I think Dickens would approve.
“You can’t buy happiness but you can buy books and that is kind of the same thing.”
