What are you readiing?: July 27, 2024.

Wrapping up Mitsubishi Babs (that title is so absurd out of context), and will be moving on to Jumpnauts and Out Here on Our Own.

I'm reading and enjoying The Estate by Isaac Bashevis Singer. I'm probably going to be at it a while, as it's another long novel. It's not quite as long as the Proust novel I read recently, and Singer's prose certainly moves along more swiftly than Proust's, but it is almost 400 pages in length.

Enjoying this audio via Libby ~

The Comfort of Ghosts (Maisie Dobbs finale)
by Jacqueline Winspear
(Orlagh Cassidy has made this series an audio delight)

I'm reading Fairy Tale by Stephen King and it's off to a good start.

One Hundred Saturdays – Michael Frank
4****

Subtitle: Stella Levi and the Search for a Lost World

In February, 2015 Michael Frank attended a lecture, where he had a brief conversation with an elegant elderly woman. The next morning, he received a call from the woman who had organized the lecture. Stella Levi, she told him, had enjoyed meeting him and wondered if he would be willing to help with a bit of writing she had done. Stella was not a native English speaker and wanted to ensure her piece was accurately written. Thus began a series of meetings over one hundred Saturdays and six years, as Stella told her story to Frank.

This is a marvelous tale of a very strong woman. She was a strong girl and teenager when growing up in the Juderia in Rhodes, and she was a strong young woman when she was “evacuated” to Auschwitz. She survived the camps, by using her intelligence and being prepared and willing to do what was necessary to stay alive. She managed to get to the United States where some of her relatives had gone before World War II. And she found her own path here as well.

Her memories, as related by Frank, and forthright and clear. She shows great courage in recalling and reliving some of these episodes in her life. She also shows her strength of character. But make no mistake, her experiences during the Holocaust did NOT define her. She did not forget or forgive, but rather she focused on moving forward. Stella made herself into the woman she always wanted to be and ensured that she LIVED her life.

>5 BookConcierge: Oh, I bought this book for my wife for, I think, Hanukkah last year and she liked it a lot. I'm sure I'll be reading it relatively soon, too, and I'm looking forward to it.

I just finished a great retelling of the story of Lady MacBeth, by Val McDermid, Queen MacBeth. Very good although I knew I could depend on Val McDermid to tell a great story. I received a free copy from netgalley in exchange for a review. I've failed at netgalley so many times but this time it was a pleasure to write it. :) The novel comes out in later September. I truly do recommend it!

I've just started I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai. It's very good, so far. This novel has been sitting in a huge tbr pile for quite a while. It feels so great to pull out a book I already own and read it!

I've also just started The House on Rye Lane by Susan Allott. It seems like a mystery novel but I think the house might be the villain! Spooooooky!

I just finished up Ukraine, War, Love: A Donetsk Diary by Olena Stiazhkina. It's compendium of her personal diary and stories told about her friends during the outbreak of war in Ukraine in 2014.

Now I've started In Their Own Words: How Russian Propagandists Reveal Putin's Intentions by Julia Davis. It's a collection of Ms. Davis' essays and news articles over the last six years. Julia Davis is a Russian media watchdog who monitors and writes about Russian TV news and talk shows.

Friend of My Youth
Alice Munro
3/5 stars
A wonderful collection of ten short fictional stories written by Alice Munro who reaches into the soul of her characters and bring out the best and the worse of them.

>6 rocketjk: I hope you enjoy it, too, rocketjk!

A Study in Scarlet – Arthur Conan Doyle
Audiobook performed by Frederick Davidson
3***

This novella introduced the reading public to Sherlock Holmes and his trusty sidekick, Dr Watson. The case hinges on a dead body found in a locked room; although the corpse shows no signs of having been attacked, Holmes is convinced it was murder.

I found it a slower read than today’s mystery novels. But I was interested in getting to know Holmes and Watson. We learn how Holmes came to his method of deduction, and begin to see the fast friendship that will develop between these two men.

I did find the interlude set in America rather jarring. I wondered if perhaps my copy of the book had inadvertently included a completely different story. But, of course, I was wrong, and this did serve to give a detailed background of the chief suspect. And, eventually, Holmes explained it all to both Scotland Yard and the reader.

Frederick Davidson did a fine job of narrating the audiobook. He set a good pace, and I did like the way he interpreted Holmes and Watson.

As is my habit when listening to an audiobook, I also had a copy of the text handy. In this case, it came with an introduction (dated 2009) by mystery writer Mark Billingham. I’m so glad I took the time to read that introduction. Gives me a whole new appreciation for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Holmes, Watson and their legion of fans.

Four Seasons In Rome – Anthony Doerr
4****

Subtitle: On Twins, Insomnia, and the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World

This is Doerr’s memoir of a year he spent as a fellow at the American Academy of Arts and Letters. The award came with a studio in which to write, an apartment, and a stipend. And, of course, the experience of a year in Rome. It also came at a time when his wife had recently given birth to twins. Undeterred, Anthony and Shauna set off for Rome with four-month-old twin boys, who were not yet sleeping through the night.

I was completely delighted by this memoir. I have no children, but have witnessed the absolute exhaustion brought on in new parents by days (weeks? Months?) without adequate sleep as they try to care for a newborn. Caring for two simultaneously? And yet …

Doerr and his wife managed to find some time for themselves (thanks to a great babysitter), to explore some of Rome’s less-well-known treasures and even to venture in the Umbrian countryside for some “alone time.” He recounts his efforts to write, his explorations of the city and surrounding area, his neighbors, his struggles to learn and speak serviceable Italian (asking for “grapefruit sauce” was a highlight!), and the experience of all new parents as these small bundles slowly become independently mobile and show signs of the individuals they will become.

Everything, Everything – Nicola Yoon
Book on CD performed by Bahni Turpin & Robbie Daymond
3.5***

From the book jacket: My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla. But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window and I see him.

My reactions:
This YA romance had some significant serious issues to discuss. Can love (even teenage love) conquer all? Yoon certainly makes a good case.

I really liked Maddy (Madeline Whittier). She’s intelligent and mostly serene. She’s come to accept her very limited world and hasn’t really “missed” what she can’t have. Until now, of course. Olly is more complex and guarded. His family situation is fraught with drama and it’s understandable that he’d want to keep some things to himself. Still …

What starts as messages taped to windows, and progresses to texting and IM-ing, must inevitably lead to meeting in person. Each of these teens has some significant issues to deal with on their own, and sharing their struggles brings them closer together. They come to trust in and support one another in a very nice, somewhat naïve way. Of course, things can’t possibly go smoothly for these star-crossed lovers.

There were some things that bothered me in the plot, mostly dealing with the reality of how things might happen. But I was willing to go along for the ride because I really liked both Maddy and Olly. I guessed the big secret ahead of the reveal, but still liked how Yoon handled it. And I liked the way these teens interacted with one another and their families.

Bahni Turpin and Robbie Daymond do an excellent job of voicing the audiobook. They really brought these teens to life for me. I’m glad, however, that I had the text handy, which includes a number of illustrations which just don’t translate well to audio format.

New Thread is up: here