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| A little fall reading (2011) |
In September, I only finished reading one book. Chalk that up to Jewish holidays, political activity, and a lack of concentration. In October, I picked up the pace, and finished 6 books. Here are the first lines:
Book 1
A Conversation about Rain
Nineteen years before she decided to die, Nora Seed sat in the warmth of the small library at Hazeldene School in the town of Bedford. She sat at a low table staring at a chess board.
Book 2
September 1953
Turtle Mountain Jewel Bearing Plant
Thomas Wazhashk removed his thermos from his armpit and set it on the steel desk alongside his scuffed briefcase.
Book 3
Growing up with parents who’d fled Europe as refugees, I was raised with stories of the heroic nation that helped defeat Hitler’s armies and usher in an unprecedented era of liberal democracy in the West.
Book 4
Chapter One: Enlarged Pores
Ulf Varg, of the Department of Sensitive Crimes, drove his silver-grey Saab through a landscape of short distances.
Book 5
Chapter 1: Blue Nines and Red Words
I was born on January 31, 1979 – a Wednesday. I know it was a Wednesday, because the date is blue in my mind and Wednesdays are always blue, like the number 9 or the sound of loud voices arguing.
Book 6
Eugenia Lincoln was a practical person, a sensible person. She did not have time for poetry, geegaws, whoop-de-whoops, or frivolity.
Book 7
The accused, Chelsea Liew, was in court. She sat on a wooden bench in a wooden box, handcuffed to a police woman.
The titles and authors revealed:
Book 1
The Midnight Library, by Matt Haig. Published 2020. 299 pages.
About a despondent woman who finds her purpose. It took me a while to get into this book. The plot is rather predictable, but I liked the main character. The names of the characters make it nearly an allegory. This was for book club.
Book 2
The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich. 464 pages. Published 2020. (Pulitzer prize winner)
It took me a while to get into this book, but I think this was me, because the same thing happened with the previous book. I seem to have lost my powers of concentration in Sep-Oct.
The characters in this book are just what one wants in a novel – flawed but likable. And this book reveals a part of our nation’s history that I never learned about – the termination of treaties between the US Government (i.e. the colonial power) and Native American tribes (i.e. the people who were here first). The story shows how the government pushed around and pushed again on Native Americans, destroying their livelihoods and denigrating their personhood.
Book 3
How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them, by Jason Stanley. Published 2018. 240 pages.
This book seems to include great descriptions and examples of the current politics which are dangers to our (US) democracy. But I am not sure every one of those dangers qualifies as fascist politics.
Book 4
The Talented Mr. Varg, by Alexander McCall Smith. Published 2020. 241 pages.
Short, light, and enjoyable for me.
Book 5
Born On A Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant, by Daniel Tammet. Published 2007. 208 pages.
An interesting memoir. for book club.
Book 6
Eugenia Lincoln and the Unexpected Package, by Kate DiCamillo. Illustrated by Chris Van Dusen. Published 2017. 112 pages.
A practical person learns joy.
Book 7
Inspector Singh Investigates: A Most Peculiar Malaysian Murder, by Shamini Flint. © 2008. 293 pages. This is the first book I have ever read that takes place in Malaysia. A gripping murder mystery.
Three books I started in Sep-Oct, but haven’t finished.
Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows, by Balli Kaur Jaswal. Published 2017. 299 pages. I hope to return to this book some day.
Hamnet, by Maggie O’Farrell. © 2020. 384 pages.
The writing is exquisite. Wonderful characters. I could not finish due to my own quirks and emotional state at the time I was reading it.
Biodiesel: Growing a New Energy Economy, by Greg Pahl. Published 2008 (Second Edition). 320 pages.
I’m supposed to be learning about this topic, but I’m having trouble concentrating. And it’s a problem that the book is 13 years old - it does not address the rise of natural gas fracking, nor the upcoming increase in renewable diesel production. I’ll have to find a more recent book on the subject. This one was practically free, which should tell me something.
1 comment:
I found the concept of The Midnight Library enchanting but was disappointed by the book - can't quite articulate why, except it kind of overshot charming and verged into a little cheesy for me, maybe? I bought Hamnet (my copy was actually called Hamnet and Judith) on a friend's recommendation and read it months later and agree about the wonderful writing and finely-drawn characters.
I've mainlined books this year, but the past few weeks I've slowed down due to a sudden and unforeseen need to obsessively clean and organize the house. I expect this to subside any minute and I'll get back to the books.
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