So I recently started reading two books and didn't finish them. First was Arcadia, which was on The Washington Post list of best books of the year. I just didn't like it. It's about hippies on a commune in the early 1970's, and it just didn't draw me in.
The second was Voyager, the third book of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander time-travel series. I did like this book, I love the characters and the story really draws you in. It goes back and forth between 1968 and 1748ish Scotland, where Claire and Jamie are living their separate lives. But it's almost 900 pages long, and my library checkout expired before I could finish it and there is, of course, a wait list. So at some point in the future I'll put a hold on it so I can finish it.
For now I'm trying to decide between 3 books - two library books that look interesting, and The Hobbit, borrowed from my friend Shari. You'll find out soon which one I picked!
Arcadia
Voyager
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Friday, December 14, 2012
The Third Angel
Okay, I am a huge Alice Hoffman fan, but I have to say I had a really hard time getting into this novel. Having said that, by the time I got to the end I couldn't put it down. So... take from that what you will.
The Third Angel is three inter-connecting stories about three women in long with the wrong guy, in three different eras. The connecting thread is The Lion Park Hotel and Lucy Green. The story moves back in time, from present day to the 60's hippie era to the prim 1950's. I have to say, I didn't like the present-day characters as much as I liked the other characters, and I found the older stories slightly more in keeping with the mystical realism that I love so much from Ms. Hoffman.
I also liked the way the stories are connected, it's not an obvious connection, and there are some lovely little surprises... like a certain young man from Liverpool. At any rate, a hard-to-get-into but ultimately enjoyable read.
The Third Angel
The Third Angel is three inter-connecting stories about three women in long with the wrong guy, in three different eras. The connecting thread is The Lion Park Hotel and Lucy Green. The story moves back in time, from present day to the 60's hippie era to the prim 1950's. I have to say, I didn't like the present-day characters as much as I liked the other characters, and I found the older stories slightly more in keeping with the mystical realism that I love so much from Ms. Hoffman.
I also liked the way the stories are connected, it's not an obvious connection, and there are some lovely little surprises... like a certain young man from Liverpool. At any rate, a hard-to-get-into but ultimately enjoyable read.
The Third Angel
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand
I really enjoyed this debut novel from Helen Simonson. I recently saw The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and this novel reminded me of that movie in a few ways.
Major Pettigrew is a very proper English gentlemen living in a small village in Sussex, where he's lived all his life. When his brother dies, the Major goes through a rough patch and develops a friendship with Mrs. Ali, the widow who owns the village shop, who is of Pakistani descent. The novel explores the ideas of Englishness and otherness, and of what it really means to be "proper." It's also a really enjoyable read.
The Major is a really likeable character, proper but not uptight, with a biting sense of humor and a great deal of humanity. The townspeople are straight out of central casting, and I have some great ideas for who might play them in the movie. But maybe most importantly the story is a warmhearted and humorous love story about people of a "certain age," of a type that we don't see very much of these days.
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand
Major Pettigrew is a very proper English gentlemen living in a small village in Sussex, where he's lived all his life. When his brother dies, the Major goes through a rough patch and develops a friendship with Mrs. Ali, the widow who owns the village shop, who is of Pakistani descent. The novel explores the ideas of Englishness and otherness, and of what it really means to be "proper." It's also a really enjoyable read.
The Major is a really likeable character, proper but not uptight, with a biting sense of humor and a great deal of humanity. The townspeople are straight out of central casting, and I have some great ideas for who might play them in the movie. But maybe most importantly the story is a warmhearted and humorous love story about people of a "certain age," of a type that we don't see very much of these days.
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand
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