Sometimes a letter in the April A-Z blog challenge lands on just the right day and today is one of those. It's the first Thursday of the month and I usually share what I've read the month prior on this date, joining Joanne (Slices of Life) and Dara (Not In Jersey) for Share Your Shelf.
Conveniently my word of the day going along with my theme of The Things We Keep is books.
Day 2-B is for Books
I used to buy a lot of books, but it's rare these days I actually purchase one. I love the public library and that's mostly the way I read. I also subscribe to Audible because we're on the road a lot and I like to have something to listen to when I drive.
I don't typically hang on to novels unless they have some special meaning. I have some here on my bookshelves that guests can pick up if they're so inclined, but usually I read and then pass them on.
Most of the books I hold on to are older and spark a memory.
Many relate to travel.
We've traveled a lot and I love buying books, coffee table or otherwise, from the places we visit. When we lived abroad I especially loved getting my hands on the DK Eyewitness Guides to various cities and countries we were visiting. Seeing them lined up on my book shelf makes me smile still.
I have a lot of books that would fall under the category of 'religious' too, commentaries, Bible Study aides, lots of topical books, and these I hold on to because I sometimes want to refer back to them or because they taught me something. I have the Bible I was given when I was nine years old and its another book treasure I hold on to. It's the KJV so not my go-to on the daily, plus the cover is coming apart, but I won't part with it.
I have a collection of children's books too, many of which belonged to my girls when they were little that I now read to my grandchildren. Some of the series we owned I've passed on to them to have in their own homes, but it's nice to have books here to read when there are littles in the house.
I'm so glad my girls both love to read, and sometimes one of us will tell the others they need to read a particular book because it must be talked about with someone asap. Part of the fun of reading for me is talking about the book with other readers when I'm through.
I think books are meant to be shared. But! There are some books that hold the memory of a place in time, or the person who gave it to me, read it to me, or lived it with me, that I cherish and those books are for keeps.
Now let's talk about what I read in March, all from the local library-
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
I feel like I was on the wait list for this one forever, but finally snagged a copy and read it in a day and a half. Then I gave it to my daughter and she read it in a day. And, my younger daughter also happened to be reading it at the same time too. I was a little worried that by the time I read this one I'd find it over hyped, but that was not the case at all. Five stars for me.
Such a wonderfully original story told in the form of letters written by a woman who had a successful career in law and now spends her days corresponding with all manner of people-family members, authors, corporations, university deans and more. I loved it.
I'm not going to spoil anything for those who haven't read it yet (I definitely recommend), but in her letters to various people she and the recipient of the letter often share what book they happen to be reading. This appealed to me, and I found a list of the books mentioned. My plan is to read them all. Most are well known, some are classics, and there are about forty in total. As it happens I've read quite a few on the list already, but I'm going to see if I can get to them all.
Also, read The Correspondent. So good!
Bel Canto by Anne Patchett
This is one of the novels mentioned in The Correspondent and since I like Anne Patchett's writing and hadn't read this one I thought I'd start here. It was published in 2001.
I loved this book. Ann Patchett writes beautifully and her characters are fully known.The novel is very loosely based on an actual event, when terrorists took over the Japanese ambassador's residence in Peru in 1996/1997. I didn't remember that happening so it didn't impact my reading, but there are some who have strong feelings about basing a novel on the incident.
Bel Canto (beautiful singing) tells the story of a group of party goers taken hostage in an unnamed South American country. The group were guests in the Vice-President's home where a birthday party was being held for a wealthy Japanese businessman, Mr. Hosokawa. The world renowned and much loved soprano, Roxanne Coss, was also there as the invited entertainment. Mr. Hosokawa has a love of opera, and the voice of Roxanne Coss in particular.
Terrorists storm the party with a plan to kidnap the country's president, not realizing he was a no-show at the event. They now have a large group of captives, and end up releasing all but the wealthiest men and also Miss Coss, so are left with about 50 in total.
The hostages are held for four months and in that time bonds are formed, relationships develop, and above all we see music connect people very different from one another.
The Engine House by Rhys Dylan
I think there are about twenty books in the series featuring this same detective and I plan to read more. This one came out in 2021 and had been on my Goodreads list ever since. I need to read a good mystery now and then and this fit the bill.
A landslide on the Pembrokeshire coast of Wales reveals the remains of two bodies, and as a result DCI Evan Warlow is called out of quiet retirement back in to police work. He was the original investigator on the case of the missing persons eight years prior.
He's working with a new young team now, and carries the burden of wondering what he might have missed in his earlier investigation. There are enough twists and turns to keep you guessing, plus the Welsh coastline makes the perfect backdrop for this slightly dark, atmospheric mystery.
James by Percival Everett
This is a reimagining of
The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn told from the point of view of Jim, an escaped slave. In this telling Jim becomes the central figure and we hear about his experiences as a slave, and his life as he journeys down the Mississippi.
I revisited Huck Finn last month in anticipation of reading this one, and I liked having read the two close together. The first half of James follows the Huck Finn storyline pretty closely, but then takes a very different turn a little more than halfway through.
While I enjoyed the story it felt like something was missing. The women were not given enough attention (based on the little bit we are told there should have been more) and there was a depth of emotion overall that I was missing. Still a clever flip on a classic tale.
Party of Liars by Kelsey Cox
A debut novel that kept me reading til the very end. At times it felt like a YA novel, but it was still a very good read.
Party of Liars is described as a psychological thriller with a broad audience. The plot centers around a death that occurs at an over the top sweet sixteen party in the Texas hill country.
Sophie Matthews wealthy father (and his young second wife) are throwing a huge party to celebrate her big day in their supposedly haunted mansion. There's a large cast of characters, and the whodunit aspect of this one kept me guessing. The story is told using multiple points of view, which in this instance I really enjoyed. The author has another book releasing in July (Pretty Dead Things) and I'll definitely read that too.
