my ignorant opinion of the books I read
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is a beautiful book. But I liked the cover better than I liked the story. A beautiful cover design that has influenced me greatly. I don't even think there were little red shoes in the story at all. The seamstress had white tennis shoes.
Next up: The Weight of Water by Anita Shreve. I like some of Anita Shreve's books better than others. I liked The Pilot's Wife better than this one but I like this one better than I liked The First Time They Met. But like all of her books she taps into that dark side of love and betrayal. It was tricky going back and forth between the narrator's story and the historical murder she writes about... but it was good. Maybe I should watch the movie. It's a good thing I didn't even know there was a movie of it before I read the book. It would be hard for me to imagine Sean Penn as any of the characters.
It's book report time. I'm so behind blogging about all the books I read. I go through books like food. But I read quickly and I don't digest them very well so it's not all good.
First up: Purple Hibiscus by Chimamnda Ngozi Adichie. This was a book given to me by Mykull. That in itself is a good reason to read the book. Mykull is brilliant. Too bad he doesn't blog anymore.
It's been a while since I read the book but it did leave an impression on me. The most memorable part is the relationship between the daughter and her Christian father. How he pours scalding hot water on her feet to cure her of her sins. I will never forget that picture. It's a sad book but important. I think if I was African it would mean even more to me. A lot of the names and places were unfamiliar to me and difficult to pronounce. But still a beautifully written story of pain.
How am I ever going to find another book to read? I knew I was reading it too quickly. It's been a long time since I altered my day to fit around a book that I had lost myself in. I saw this book on a lot of favorite book lists. Now I know why. Such a heartfelt tale of growing up. Not preachy, not corny, not depressing, not fake just straight out of 1917.
I even cried at page 345. The part about her dad leaving her flowers for her graduation... wow.
It makes me want to tell my own story. One of these days.
I love this book! It's written by an Australian journalist and maybe that's what makes it so interesting. She's doing what I love to do, put myself through new experiences and then write about it.
Except Sarah MacDonald goes to India and I go to little coffee shops in other towns. Maybe that's why I find this book so incredibly interesting. I would like to travel and adventure to places like that but I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon.
She covers many topics, from her feelings as a degraded woman in India to searching for her own spirituality to the contrasts of India, which are great and many. There's extreme wealth and poverty, extreme kindness and cruelty, extreme filth and cleanliness... and somewhere in this place of craziness, you are forced to find out who you are and what you really hold dear.
Her voice is casual and not overly stuffy. She's well educated and informed. Sometimes I'm surprised by her use of the word "dude". But that's not enough to ruin the book for me. Right now I am very wrapped up in it.
This book sucks. I mean I'm reading it but I feel like I'm reading one of my mom's romance novels that I used to sneak when I was 14. I like the personalities but like another reviewer said on amazon, they change. I'm also thrown off by the author's photo on the back, she looks like she does botox once a month just like her main character. But I'm still reading. Reading it a lot more than the other books I have on my shelf. It's like a bag of chips. I hope I finish it soon so I can stop feeling guilty.
I'm also reading Enslaved by Ducks as my back burner book. I can't just read one book at a time, oh no. This book is hilarious. I completely relate. But it's just as easy to put down as it is to pick up. Definitely a coffee table or back of the toilet kind of book. The author is as charming as his pets.
Oh man. It's been so long since I updated this blog I'm completely ashamed. How many books have I read since I last posted? I've lost count. The ones that stick out in my memory are:
Life of Pi (really good--in a slow thinkerly way)
Girl's Poker Night (good in a fast non-thinkerly way)
Right now I'm reading The Olive Farm by Carole Drinkwater, the actress from All Creatures Great and Small. I completely expected this book to be stupid. First because do we really need another Under the Tuscan Sun after they made a completely sappy dud of a movie out of it? And secondly actors can't write. All they can do is act.
I WAS WRONG!!! I actually like The Olive Farm better than Under the Tuscan Sun I liked how Under was scrap-booky like a trip journal with little bits of things here and there, recipes, a little history, tales of dealing with the local contractors... but The Olive Farm has most of that AND a plot. Plus it has a lot more personality. There haven't been any recipes, but I don't really cook with recipes much so I'm not missing them.
I'm completely impressed with Carole Drinkwater. Then again I'm a speed reader and my opinion is ignorant.
I was clicking around google the other day and somehow I found some page that had all kinds of statistics for my different blogs and I found that somebody had actually linked to this site! Now I can't find that link again so it is probably lost forever because I don't think anyone actually reads this. Since I haven't updated in like... FOREVER. But if you do read this and you are the guy who linked "Secret Agent Josephine's Reading List", email me!
I've read a ton of books since Harry Potter... hmmm... what were they? I finaly read Lovely Bones, which was amazing. It really makes me think about death in a different light. Which is nice, for a change.
Now I'm reading The First Time They Met by Anita Shrieve. It's going slowly but pleasantly. I can really get inside Thomas' head. I feel for him... especially since I have so many feelings for my ex who is in the PAST and will stay in the PAST. It's also interesting that the main character is older. Older usually isn't glamorous. And she isn't writing it that way but she is anyway. I'm not sure what I mean by that. I like the way she talks about Linda becoming overweight but convincing herself that she is not. Kinda like how I view myself.
Just not into Harry Potter as much as I thought I'd be. I'm worried that I'm getting the book cover ruined because I keep carting it around with me hoping I'll have a spare moment to catch up. All the reading I've been doing lately I've been doing in the laundromat while I wait for my laundry. Last while I was reading and sitting on top of a washer, a man challenged me on the morality of Harry Potter and the affect it has on children especially regarding witchcraft and satanic worship. Far out. I told him it didn't seem at all real to me and I don't think even an 11-year-old would have trouble telling the difference between the fantastical world of Harry Potter and reality. Anyway... I'm glad I'm not still in the meeting where I might even entertain such an argument.
I'm also tag teaming Lovely Bones by Alice Seabold. Loved Lucky so I'm sure I'll love Lovely Bones just as much. So far I'm finding her version of heaven to be very very interesting.
I'm also reading Knitting Pretty. A book Mykull sent me! I love it already. I can't knit but this pretty picture book makes it seem simple and almost possible. I can't wait to knit a snake scarf as well as one-piece for Olive, the cat. I highly reccommend this book for Art Girl Night reading material. I doubt you're reading this but if you do THANK YOU MYKULL!!! My husband is mad at me because I talk about you so much, he wants to kick your ass.
Have started Harry Potter... just like the rest of the world, although the rest of you have probably finished it by now. I'm just borrowing it from a friend. I don't want to buy a big fat hard back book. That book is thick!
I love this book! Three Junes by Julia Glass. I am utterly absorbed in all the character's lives. Just a few more pages and I'll have gobbled it up!
Finished off The Secret Life of Bees on the airplane ride to New Orleans and then polished off Sea Glass by Anita Shrieve on the airplane ride to Eureka. Both great books. I'm now reading Three Junes. It seems very good too. So many good books to read lately.
I also picked up A Tree Grows in Brooklyn after it got such raving reviews from Boogie's Mom and Sassy.
I need to pick up Perfume by Patrick Suskind, a tip from my new friend Juli who I met on the plane ride to New Orleans!
