What I'm reading this week (5/28/18)

Well, last week was a week of finishing books. I finished six , leaving only one more May book to finish (and that was one I added when I realized I could squeeze another audiobook in). So this long three-day weekend included starting several new books, and I could not have been happier, since temperatures were in the 90s. We also cleaned out the dryer ducts and had my brother stay over Saturday night, which is a yearly tradition (my brother, not the dryer ducts).

What I finished last week:

I'm a fan of Anna Quindlen's writing. Although I would say I enjoy her nonfiction more than her fiction, she has a sure-footed way of telling a story. Her latest, Alternate Side, is darker than her Still Life with Bread Crumbs, which was a light and breezy romance, but perhaps on a par with her last novel, Miller's Valley, which was a sad family story that focused on the environment and the meaning of home. In Alternate Side, we meet Nora and Charlie, a middle-aged couple with twins about to graduate college. Their relationship is not healthy, and their marriage seems to be disintegrating. A violent act on their close dead-end New York City block shakes up the residents and proves as a catalyst for Nora moving forward. Guys, this book was depressing. I can imagine this is how a lot of marriages go down: lack of communication, built-up resentments, resistance toward a spouse instead support. They pick and jab and make passive aggressive and downright hostile comments to and about each other. It was hard to "watch" them come undone. It's also hard to "listen to" the couple's mouthy daughter. I think we as readers are supposed to focus on the crime committed as a racial crime because it involves violence by a white man of means on a minority handyman, but that whole plotline just felt contrived, and I think it got in the way of the real plot: the disintegration of a marriage. If anything good came out of my reading of this book it's a renewed understanding of how marriage requires constant vigilance, and that resent and lack of communication are deadly to a relationship. Unless you're into character studies about mean middle-aged couples, this might not appeal to you. It's plot-light, which never bothers me, but did make for some low reviews on Amazon. It's not a bad book, but it's depressing. It might make a good book club pick, though. My rating: 3 stars.

I've already declared my membership in the Fredrik Backman fan club. I've now read all of his novels (or at least all of them available in English), including his novellas, and I cannot wait until his newest novel comes out next week. But regardless of my love of Backman's writing, it took me a long time to get to My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She's Sorry (his second book). Knowing that it had fantastical elements really turned me off, but one of my unofficial goals for this year was to read this book before his new book was released, so I checked it out on audio. Here we have the story of seven-year-old Elsa who adores her unconventional granny and her visits to the Land-of-Almost-Awake and the Kingdom of Miamas. When granny dies (not a spoiler, she dies rather early on in the book), she leaves Elsa with a set of letters to deliver to the various people who live in their building, bringing together the pasts of the characters and tying the story up into a nice, neat bow. (One of the characters, in fact, becomes the main character in Backman's third novel, Britt-Marie Was Here.) Choosing to listen to this one, I knew, was a risky idea, since I'd heard that you move between fantasy and reality in the book, but I didn't have much trouble with that. I did have trouble, however, figuring out if Miamas was a fantasy within a reality story or a reality in a fantasy book. Was the wurse real or imagined? Perhaps this would have been cleared up if I'd have read the book, but knowing Backman's writing and my literal mind, it very well may not have been. In spite of my distaste for fantasy plots, I liked this book quite a bit. Backman is a masterful storyteller, something of a genius with words and plots and characters and motivations and tying things together. So, I'm glad I read it, but I will always prefer his more straight-forward books like Beartown and A Man Called Ove. If you love fantasy elements in stories, do give this a try. I think you'll like it. My rating: 3 stars.

Who nowadays isn't enamored with Joanna Gaines? Design guru, businesswoman, long-suffering wife to Chip, mother to (almost) five, Christian, and one of the few Asian American women on primetime television. She's created a design and home empire complete with television shows, a restaurant, a magazine, a line of goods at Target and Pier 1, etc. Although farmhouse chic is not necessarily my thing, I'd enjoyed Fixer Upper and the occasional views of the Gaines' home life. And I admit, I'm one of the oddballs that always wondered what Joanna Gaines ate. I pegged her as an organic-produce-and-quinoa kind of gal. So when her cookbook Magnolia Table came out this year, I was cautious. But when I bought my copy (was there ever a question I would?) and began reading, I was so excited to find that the recipes are my favorite kind: uncomplicated, hearty home-cooking. She includes her recipes for biscuits, chicken and dumplings, mashed potatoes, lots of salads, and gobs of breakfast dishes. I can't fathom how a woman as busy as Joanna Gaines has time to cook meals for six on top of everything else on her plate (no pun), but she apparently loves cooking and does it to relax at the end of a busy day. I highly recommend this one for anyone looking for good, simple meals for a family. My only disappointment (other than there not being a picture for every dish--there were photos for most dishes) was that there weren't many recipes for Korean dishes. I believe there was only, and I would have enjoyed more, but it seems her family didn't eat Korean food at home while growing up. A great cookbook, and the photos throughout are lovely, too. My rating: 5 stars.

Thinking I'd likely never again read a huge chunkster collection of a single poet's work after finishing Pablo Neruda's All the Odes earlier this spring, I decided I couldn't swear off all of them without reading Mary Oliver's Devotions. This is a collection of about 240 selected poems from Oliver's long poetry writing career. It includes her famous Wild Geese and The Summer Day, which even non-aficionados of poetry know. But in addition to all the old friends I encountered here, there were dozens more that blew me away. There are a handful of poets who can consistently stand me still, time after time: William Stafford, Billy Collins, Max Garland, and Mary Oliver. I'm so glad I didn't chicken out on this one due to size. The pages flew by, and I was delighted over and over. It's a very hopeful and cheerful collection. Check it out if you're interested in adding some good nature poetry to your reading life. You'll be the richer for it. My rating: 5 stars.

I love me some Jen Lancaster, and I've read all of her more recent memoirs: The Tao of Martha, I Regret Nothing, Stories I Tell in Bars, all of which I highly recommend, but of her older work, I've only read My Fair Lazy (also very good). I own most or all of the rest, so when I was looking for my last Kindle read, I decided to give Pretty in Plaid a try. I came out in 2010, I believe, and it's the only book of hers I've read that talks about her parents and childhood. In this memoir, Jen (I don't know why I feel I can call her Jen, but I do) writes about pivotal moments in her life by telling us what she was wearing. We go back to childhood, through high school days and college rush week, the suit she wore to her first job interview, etc. I had a college professor once who when asked how long our papers should be said, "cut it by a third." No matter how long or short it was, always leave them wanting more. Lancaster is more of a "more is more" writer, and while this usually doesn't bother me, this one seemed at least a third too long. It might have been the subject matter. I have a very low tolerance for egomaniacal teen stories, and stories about drinking and being irresponsible and ditzy and smart-mouthed, and most of the stories here were of that variety. It got old and grated on my nerves. I dragged myself through the last half of the book. I definitely enjoy the Jen who learned from these experiences to the Jen who lived them. My rating: 3 stars.

You know how much I adore Clementine, Sara Pennypacker's spirited little protagonist. I find the books hilarious and true to life. Clementine and the Family Meeting is the fifth in the Clementine series (there are seven books total). In this one, Clementine is told that she'll soon have a new sister or brother, and she's N-O-T not happy. What finally brings her around to the idea? You'll find out. There are also subplots about losing her rat for the science fair as well as other plots involving change and upheaval of the eight-year-old variety. I enjoyed this one as much as the four that came before it. If you're looking for family read-alouds or good middle-grade readers for your kids, check out these books. I seldom see them on lists of suggestions, and I simply cannot fathom why. They're great. My rating: 4 stars.

 

Last week I started my first June reads:

I'd been interested in Chasing Hillary since it came out because I've always wondered about those imbedded journalists who follow political candidates around the country for the entire election cycle. What must that be like? How close do they get to the candidate? Do they necessarily support the candidate? To what degree do they have to put their normal life on hold? I was not, however, a fan of Hillary Clinton's campaign, so I hemmed and hawed over this one until a very conservative television personality admitted to being enthralled by it. I immediately bought my copy. We'll see.

I also started Chip Gaines' Capital Gaines last week, and it's wonderful. I expected to like it, but I'm loving it.

My audiobook:

I'm currently listening to Jessica Fellowes' The Mitford Murders. It was a little slow to start, but I'm enjoying it more now.

What I'm reading this week (5/21/18)

Last week I finished:

I made a goal this month to read a number of current "it" books, and I chose Tayari Jones' An American Marriage as one of them. You've probably seen this one around as it was an Oprah Book Club pick. This is the story of Roy and Celestial, who are married for 18 months when Roy is sent to prison to serve a 12-year sentence for a crime he didn't commit. He's released early, but by that time his marriage has fallen apart. Frankly, I'm not sure what to think of this one. On the one hand, it was very readable, and the chapters that alternated between Roy's, Celestial's, and Andre's--Roy's friend and Celestial's fiancé while Roy's in prison--points of view, made for an interesting read. On the other hand, there isn't a single character in the book that didn't cheat on someone or have a baby out of marriage or abort one, which made it hard for me to find much in the story to hold on to. The focus of the story never seemed to be on the right things. It didn't seem particularly important to the plot that Roy was wrongly accused. There wasn't much in the way of specifics about Roy's five years behind bars. And folks just hopped from one bed to another without a lot of thought or feeling. I think one is supposed to come away from the book thinking about how quickly and easily a marriage can unravel or how one event can change the course of several lives at once, but the book just didn't engage in these ideas well enough for me to come away thinking about them. Instead I wondered how the characters could be so careless with one another, how their love could be so fickle and shallow. I kept waiting for a plot twist (that never came) or to find out one of the characters was unreliable and that this would explain the lack of humanity amongst the three main characters (that didn't happen either). I didn't hate the book, but I felt that it could have been so much better. My rating: 3 stars.

I don't have kids at home, yet I love to read books about raising them. I also love books about being passionate about something. Sarah Mackenzie is passionate about reading aloud to her six kids, and about parents reading aloud to children in general. I'd seen her book, The Read-Aloud Family on several blogs lately, as her podcast has a lot of listeners. It's gotten high praise amongst mothers I know. So when I bought a copy for our library, I decided to check it out myself. It truly is a wonderful book. Mackenzie talks about the importance reading aloud has for children's language acquisition skills and vocabulary building, in teaching empathy for others, for family togetherness. But she doesn't spend too much time citing studies or trying to convince readers of its importance. (Don't you hate it when books get hysterical in their mission?) She talks about what reading aloud looks like in her family, emphasizes the importance of reading aloud to children even after they can read proficiently themselves, makes a case that audiobooks count as reading aloud, and ends the book with 20 suggested read-alouds for each age group (0-3, 4-7, 8-12, and teens). I enjoyed this book tremendously. When I used to read to my youngest grandson, I used to think about what a leap of faith it was to create a reader. I used to think, okay, read to them, keep books around, have them see you read, let them read what they want, but...that's enough? Really? I'd likely get more uptight about it if I had the responsibility, and I was glad I didn't. So this book is perfect for people like me. It has a laidback, friendly quality to it that is comforting. Mackenzie assures parents that reading aloud anything for any amount of time is better than nothing. Also, Mackenzie is not shy (though never obnoxious) about the fact that she and her family are Christians, and although it doesn't seem to limit what the children read, it informs their reading. I highly recommend this book to parents who want to create a read-aloud culture in their homes, educators and librarians, and those interested in literacy regardless of whether they have children or not. My rating: 4.5 stars.

As you know, I love memoirs. I know of no better way to learn what it's like to be someone else. I've always been deeply curious about things but even more curious about people, what do they think, what's important to them, what made them who they are, what brought them to this place in their lives, what do they know better than nearly anyone else. That's why I pick up books like Scott Kelly's Endurance, about his career as an astronaut and his year spent in space. The differences between a guy like Kelly and me are, excuse the pun, astronomical. Not only would I never consider a career in space science, but I have never thought much about those who did. Kelly was an adrenalin junky from the time he was little. He craved adventure and loved to push to the limits of himself. After reading Tom Wolfe's The Right Stuff, his directionless life came into sharp focus. He wanted to fly, and he wanted to go to space. He worked to turn himself around academically, got into the U.S. Navy, went to flight school, spent time as a fighter pilot, and was accepted to the NASA space program. He made several space missions and eventually was selected to be the first American to spend a full year in space. He writes about his career and in depth about his year aboard the International Space Station. Several things struck me about his experiences. First, just how much the ISS is an international effort. Americans and Russians (as well as Japanese, Italians, etc.) all work and live together, and while their missions are run by separate ground crews, the work is done in very tight quarters and barely a generation after the Soviet Union fell and the iron curtain was lifted. Remarkable. Also, it was impressed upon me just how different it would be to live with no gravity. Duh, right, but I'd never thought about how hard it would be to fix a complicated piece of machinery while you and your tools are drifting about. I'd also never thought of the fact that carbon dioxide levels could be dangerously high in an enclosed capsule with several bodies. Lastly, think of all the things about Earth you'd miss after a year in space. Kelly writes about missing running water, nature, rain, fresh food, and lying down. I found myself fascinated with the details of space living more so than the missions themselves, but it was all rather fascinating. Kelly also writes about his sister-in-law, Gabrielle Giffords, being shot at a political event while he was in space, and the horrible feeling of being away from family at a time like that. I listened to this one on audio, and it was narrated by Scott Kelly himself. While I applaud Kelly for doing the reading, he is not a particularly good reader, and I think this might be better read in paper. My rating: 3 stars.

 

Next up:

I've read the last several novels Anna Quindlen has written, and while I don't enjoy them as much as her nonfiction, I do enjoy her writing. I've been excited for Alternate Side since before it came out.

Last week I began:

I wasn't sure I was going to get to Joanna Gaines' cookbook Magnolia Table this month, but I came to the end of several books at once, and it suddenly felt possible again. I started it this week, and I'm loving it.

This week I'll finish:

I've slowed my pace with Pretty in Plaid. I'm very much ready to finish it.

I'm still loving Mary Oliver's Devotions (poetry) and my latest Clementine book.

 

 

My next audiobook:

After I listen to this one, I'll be up-to-date on my Fredrik Backman reading. I'll have read all of his novels (a new one out early next month) and his novellas. I haven't particularly looked forward to this one as it has magical elements, and I just don't care for magical realism, but I'm going to be brave and hope for the best.

 

What I'm reading this week (5/14/18)

 

Last week I finished

I'd seen it everywhere, and I'm a memoir junkie, so I just had to pick up a copy of Educated by Tara Westover. You've probably seen this one around, but there is never much information about it. All I knew going in was it was the memoir of a woman who grew up without formal education in a family of survivalists in rural Idaho and who later went on to college. I believe it is the author's wish to keep the fact that her family were fundamentalist Mormons on the down low. I had not seen that mentioned anywhere where the book was discussed, but it's essentially what the book is about. I suppose there is a fear of prejudice against fundamentalist (and mainstream, for that matter) Mormons when you read about this woman's horrific childhood, but I really wish the reader would have been given more credit for being able to suss out what's a traditional Mormon belief and what's been twisted to the point that a family lives by extremes. Because this family was living the violent, paranoid extreme end of a traditional belief. There is so much violence, some person and person, but most just careless accidents, it's almost hard to believe all of that could happen to one family. Not until Westover is in college at Brigham Young University does she realize her father was mentally ill, if not manic depressive or schizophrenic, and that accounted for many of the revelations he turned into law in the Westover home. This is a sad, troubling book. It never lets up. I've read scores of books about young women escaping fundamentalist Mormon families (usually of the polygamous Warren Jeffs variety, though), and this is very similar. Its one main difference is how well-written it is. Though Westover had zero education when she took the ACT and started college, she caught up very quickly. With less than 100 pages left, I wasn't sure I'd finish the book without feeling like I was missing the redemption that would make it all worth the horrifying experience. Luckily, it all came together, though it didn't necessarily end happily. Overall, I think the underlying themes here are: families have a strong pull, whether for goof or bad, and education is not necessarily just about learning about the world and how we live in it, but it's also about how the world lives in us, how education shows us ourselves. I've never read a book that showed that as explicitly. Bottom line, if you can stomach to grim story and the violence and the mental instability, it's a worthwhile read. My rating: 4.5 stars.

For decades historians have hypothesized that Eleanor Roosevelt had a long-term lesbian affair with a journalist named Lorena Hickok. Hickok spent many of FDR's twelve years in office living in the White House, which was not altogether unusual as the Roosevelts generally kept the spare rooms in the White House full of family and friends. I've never read a book by a historian that definitively confirms the affair--Doris Kearns Goodwin did not in No Ordinary Time, and Ken Burns did not in his documentary series The Roosevelts: An Intimate History. I've always been on their side unwilling to confirm the lesbian infidelity without hard proof, though others are more willing to rule with emotion or probability. The Roosevelt children themselves were not in agreement about which of the "known" affairs their parents were said to have had actually happened. The letters between the two women do seem like love letters--if read a certain way, and scandal certainly sells these days. So, I was kind of disheartened to see Amy Bloom had written a fictional history of the affair from the point of view of Lorena Hickok called White Houses. I avoided the book for months thinking it distasteful to imagine what does on in other women's bedrooms, especially a First Lady's. But then--and I'm kind of ashamed of this--curiosity got the better of me. I'm infinitely interested in how a story or book is put together, and I wanted to know how this unconfirmed romance would be treated, so I picked up a copy. I have to say that I was quite impressed with the book as a whole. The writing was engaging, and the voice and persona of Hick (Lorena Hickok) felt "right." Many reviews I've read complained about the lack of plot, but that is never something that bothers me. And here, I don't think plot was Bloom's point. I think her main concern was showing the relationship of a long in love "mature" couple. And it excelled at that. I did feel that the interplay, and specifically the dialogue, between Hick and Eleanor was odd, stilted, coded. It was oddly unnatural. In all, I was pleased with the book, though I do think Bloom is a little too sure about who was carrying on with whom, especially when it came to Missy LeHand and FDR. LeHand's biographer, Kathryn Smith, determined that there was no evidence of an affair, no matter the outward appearance of their relationship. (See my review of Smith 's book here.) My rating: 4 stars.

I needed to find an audiobook to swap in for one that was not going to be in when I needed it. On the new audiobook shelf, I found Code Girls and snapped it up. I love reading about World War II and adore books that are about any one tiny aspect of American history. I also love learning about things I know very little about. So, win, win, win, win. Code Girls is the story of the female code breakers during World War II. These women were mostly recruited from the best colleges to learn how to decipher coded enemy communications. The information gathered from these messages was essential to naval and ground commanders in planning their strategic operations. Because a majority of the able-bodied men were involved in the fighting in the European or Pacific theatres, women were given the chance to pick up the slack. And they did it marvelously. There was a time when I'd have read anything about women throughout American history. As my world view has changed over the years, however, I have cooled in my love of rah-rah women's history books. This book is a good example of why. I find it intellectually dishonest, or at the very least, ignorant, to make determinations of racism or sexism using today's standards against yesteryear's events. All of the instances of "sexism" put forth in this book drove me crazy. If the accusations were viewed in context--the 1940s were nearly 80 years ago!--the things we would view as sexist now were not sexist then. Take pay disparity, for instance. In the 1940s, very few women worked, and men's wages provided for their families. When scores of single women with no dependents went to work for the war effort, they were sometimes paid less than their male counterparts, in part, because they did not have dependents at home to pay for. This is a perfectly reasonable practice--for the time. Today, of course, many families are headed by women, and a disparity of pay for the same work with identical qualifications is unforgivable. But to use today's standard to judge yesterday's events is dishonest, and that's my main beef with this book. There weren't a lot of instances, but there were enough to make me lose trust in the author's ability to set forth an unvarnished truth, so I felt the need to listen to the book against the grain. My perspective was this: women had only had the right to vote for 20 years when they were given the opportunity to step into a man's job and do work that was instrumental in bringing the war to an end and bringing their brothers, boyfriends, and husbands home. Had Mundy stuck to this positive message, I think it would have been a stronger book. Still, a good book, and a good audio version. My rating: 3 stars.

Last week I began

I L-O-V-E love Clementine. Period.

This week I continue with

I'm working my way through Pretty in Plaid, and I'm feeling that it's maybe too long.

I'm loving The Read-Aloud Family and Devotions.

My next audiobook

My hold for Endurance has finally come in, so I'd better listen to it quickly so the next holdee can have it. I've been looking forward to this for a long time.

 

 

 

What I'm reading this week (5/7/18)

Spring is finally here! Actually, it might be summer that has arrived. The grass greened up overnight, and the daffodils on campus are blooming. I finally got the bushes trimmed and flower beds cleaned out this weekend. Then we had a wonderful thunderstorm, and the whole yard breathed a sigh of relief.

Last week I finished:

The last time I was looking for a book to begin on Kindle, I surprised myself by choosing Inside Camp David. I generally like to read lighter things on my Kindle and leave my nonfiction for paper, but I settled on this book and was sucked in. It's something I'd had my eye on since before it was released, and when it went on sale for Kindle, I snapped it up for $2.99. That's three dollars well spent. You all know how much I love reading about presidents, first ladies, and the White House. And in all that reading, Camp David, the president's mountain retreat, has come up time and again, but never have I gotten much detail about the place, shrouded as it is quasi-secrecy for security reason. This book tells about as much as you can about the place without exposing anything that would challenge presidential security. A half hour north of Washington, D.C., by Marie One (helicopter), Camp David is sits on a mountaintop in Thurmont, Maryland. Over the past 75 years, it has served 13 presidents. It was established for FDR when wartime meant his yacht was no longer a reasonable getaway. His ship's staff were removed to the mountains to what FDR called "Shangri-La," and the camp improbably became a naval installation way up in the mountains. It has provided a place for presidential retreat and relaxation ever since. President Truman was the only president who didn't care for Camp David (Bess Truman called it "boring"). President Eisenhower renamed it for his grandson, David, and no president has renamed it since. President Johnson used it as just another place to get some work done. Betty Ford called it the "best thing about the White House." Jimmy Carter made history with his Camp David Accords, where he brought together leaders from Israel and Egypt and they sought peace. President Reagan used the Camp more than any other president (see Movie Nights with the Reagans for an idea of what he did there). President George H. W. Bush used it as a family retreat; played horseshoes there with Mikhail Gorbachev; and it was also the place where he decided to go to war in the Gulf. President Clinton didn't use the Camp much, but when he did, he always brought a party; he also joined the church choir at the Camp. President George W. Bush, having already grown to love Camp David through his time spent there when his father was president, made full use of the Camp as a retreat during war time; he convened his war cabinet there and also did some fierce mountain biking. President Obama was more of an, as Michelle Obama said, "urban guy," and didn't use the Camp much, but enjoyed his time there nonetheless. The book is full of facts and reminiscence of various Commanding Officers (COs), and was written by CO Michael Giorgione who served at Camp David for Presidents Clinton and Bush 43. Sailors and Marines are stationed there (though I missed just how many), and COs usually serve a two-year term with family in tow. The book is full of wonderful stories that give a feeling not only of Camp life, both with and without presidents in residence, but also of who the presidents were in their down time. I enjoyed it so much. The book, like the Camp, is necessarily non-political, and at no point does it make any president or presidential family member look bad. It was a breath of fresh air, and I loved it. I learned so much, and now I'll be buying a paper copy because the e-version is simply not enough. I will never again read the words "Camp David" in a presidential memoir without thinking of this wonderful book. Thank you, Michael Giorgione. My rating: 4 stars.

I first read Pride and Prejudice in 2009. I wasn't blogging yet, and at the time I wrote one-line reviews of books for my own reference. Here's what I wrote after reading the book nine years ago: I can’t believe how much I enjoyed this book. I have to read all of her work now! Can’t believe how much better this is than current fiction. The characterizations, suspense, humor. Couldn’t put it down. I ask you, how can any re-read live up to that? I have to say, I entered into this book these years later with trepidation. I was concerned that it wouldn't live up to my memory of the book. And to be honest, it kind of didn't. I was bored for about the first third, and I contemplated putting it aside. The mother and younger sisters were much sillier and more annoying; Mr. Darcy was much ruder and Wickham was more charming, which was disconcerting. Darcy had too much pride, and Elizabeth had too much prejudice. Blah, blah, blah. I wasn't nearly as interested. But as the novel went along, and I got used to the slow pacing of an Austen novel, I warmed to it. I didn't come away with nearly the love of the book I did all those years ago, but that's okay. That just reminds me to savor the first read of every book, because you only ever get to read a book for the first time once. Many women I know call Persuasion their favorite Austen novel, and I remember loving that book but being afraid to admit it because of my strong feelings for Pride and Prejudice. Now I can't wait to re-read it to compare the two. I guess I've learned something about pride and prejudice myself! My rating: 3.5 stars. 

I have enjoyed all of Jan Karon's Mitford series so far, but book five, A New Song, might be one of my favorites. In it, Father Tim Kavanaugh has retired from his calling at Lord's Chapel in Mitford, North Carolina, and he's taken an interim post in coastal Whitecap Island, NC. He loads up wife Cynthia, dog Barnabus, cat Violet, and heads for the wonders of ocean living. But of course, life gets in the way. There are hardships both at Whitecap and at home in Mitford, including Dooly, his stepson, being in the wrong place at the wrong time and being arrested; severe storm damage to his temporary home and church; ailing former parishioners; seasickness; homesickness; a lawsuit; and the theft of a beloved bronze angel. What I love about these books is their ease. They're light and fun and take me back to small-town life (I love books about small towns). But they're also full of real-life events both good and bad, minor set backs, and character flaws. Karon brings us into Father Tim's faith and relationship to God in a very real way, and even though I am not what you'd call a mainstream Christian, and don't believe some of the things Episcopalians do, and even though faith journeys vary, the books are a safe place to see how others (even fictional others) lead a life of faith in the modern world. The writing is a series of vignettes that weave together dozens of characters into the tapestry that is Father Tim's life. If you are unfamiliar with the series and are looking for good Christian literature, try them. I read the first one in paper and have listened to the next four on audio because the reader, John McDonough, is stunningly good, and even when I read the books in the future, I will assuredly hear Mr. McDonough's voice. My rating: 4 stars.

Last week I began:

I was looking for something light and funny for my next Kindle read, so I settled on one of Jen Lancaster's earlier books, Pretty in Plaid, which pairs up various outfits she's worn through the years with the stories that go with them. It's fun. And funny.

I also began The Read-Aloud Family. Yes, even though I don't have children at home. I just can't resist any book by and about voracious readers. It's very good.

I'm continuing with:

 

I'm continuing with Amy Bloom's White Houses, which I'm liking even more than I'd hoped to. And I'm really enjoying Mary Oliver's Devotions.

My next audiobook:

It appears that one of the audiobooks I'd hoped to listen to this month (The Alice Network) won't work out for me, so I picked up Code Girls the last time I was at the library to replace it. I promise you that if it's boring, I'm going to bail, but I thought it was worth a try.

May 2018 reading list

My May list of books was pretty easy to put together. I decided to take a month off from reading a long book (well, I do have a long poetry anthology on the list...) and have my yearly Austen re-read (Pride and Prejudice, this year) this month instead. And I decided to focus on reading some of the new releases that are causing a lot of buzz. I'm really happy with the list, and I'm excited to start reading. As always, though, the list is subject to change if I abandon a book or an audiobook needs to be swapped out due to unavailability. Also, I haven't chosen my other Kindle book yet, preferring to chose those by inspiration.

Classics

Fiction

 

 

Memoir

Nonfiction

Poetry

Children's

 

Audiobooks

 

 

April 2018 wrap-up

April was another good month for reading. I finished 16 books that ran the gamut. There was biography and historical biography, lots of fiction, lots of poetry, memoir, essay, and a couple of books that will likely be on my favorites lists at the end of the year.

One-word reviews link to full reviews below.

 revealing

4.5 stars

okay

2.5 stars

fantastic

5 stars

irritating

3 stars

superb

5 stars

weird

3 stars

good

3 stars

fun

3 stars

amusing

3.5 stars

self-help-ful

4 stars

 

wonderful

4.5 stars

smart

3.5 stars

average

3 stars

immature

2.5 stars

 

entertaining

3 stars

uneven

3 stars

 

What did you read in April?