I’m almost packed now, and thinking seriously about what books to load into my Kobo. I’ve already borrowed two from the library, both inspired by suggestions made here. I’ll tell you more about those whenever I manage to post my April reading, but if you want to spend some imaginary time in Sicily, you could pick up a copy of Caterina Edward’s The Sicilian Wife. I downloaded it as reading for our flight tomorrow, but turns out I couldn’t wait, and now I’m a third of the way through. It’s that good! Thanks for mentioning it to me, Caterina.
But now to tell you about March’s reading. As usual, I’ve transcribed the handwritten entries from my Reading Journal, numbered from the beginning of the year. Transcriptions in italics with the occasional added comment in regular font as well as links to posts on my Instagram books account. (Last month, though, there were few such posts — my Instagram Books account was sadly neglected)
12. Something to Hide, Elizabeth George. Mystery; Police Procedural; Inspector Lynley series;
I was lucky enough to get this, the latest Lynley novel, from the library — just in time for our Whistler getaway!
The topic is a difficult one — female genital mutilation among Nigerian-English families living in London. I had some qualms about how George would handle this, but on the whole she manages a thoughtful and respectful treatment, nuanced and obviously well researched. She’s careful to balance this topic with a broader picture of African culture and her plot includes the African-British women working to protect girls from this practice.
As well, there are several white men in the narrative — Lynley included — who have to examine their own consciences and realize that they, too, are asking or pressuring women they love to be something other than who they are, for “love’s” sake.
Some delightful characters of whom I hope we might see more, particularly Winston Nkata’s parents. Havers continues to fend off Dorothea’s efforts to sign her up for a variety of activities with match-making potential, and something interesting/promising happens right at the end, so that now I’m waiting for the next volume in the series.
If you haven’t read any of the Inspector Lynley, I would not recommend this title. Instead, I will enviously recommend that you go all the way back to the beginning, with A Great Deliverance. I occasionally think that someday I’ll do the same and read right through the 21 books again. . . Those of you who had been waiting, these last four years, for the “new Elizabeth George” are likely to find much satisfaction here, enough, at least, that you might join me in waiting impatiently for the next. . .
18. The Glass Room, Ann Cleeves. Mystery; Police Procedural; Vera Stanhope series; Set in Northumberland. Female detective. Meta-mystery.
Another in the Vera Stanhope series — this one a version of the “English country house / one of us is a murderer” plot. This one features the “hippie couple” who have been mentioned in the last two Vera books, her neighbours whom she sometimes counts as friends, particularly when she is reassuring herself that she has any. . .
Most diverting in this book is the focus on writing, particularly on crime-writing — as the sprawling home/estate where the murder happens serves as a writer’s retreat, and the theme of the current workshop is mystery-writing. Cleeves will have had fun with this one! Instagram post here.
19. The Hero’s Way: Walking with Garibaldi from Rome to Ravenna. Tim Parks. Travel memoir; Hiking/Walking Memoir; Creative Non-Fiction; History of Garibaldi; History of Italy; Walking Across Italy.
I read this because I heard Parks had a new non-fiction book out and I’d enjoyed Italian Ways, found it useful for getting a sense of the country, people, culture, etc. the first time we visited Italy. thought I’d enjoy this because I’ve enjoyed “walking memoirs” — accounts of walking across France or around England or along the Camino in Spain. In this case, Parks and his (second, decades younger) wife are following the footsteps of Garibaldi and his troops as they escape the Austrian and French forces who have closed in on them in Rome in 1848. Refusing to surrender (and thus give up on any immediate hope of a sovereign united Italy), Garibaldi decides to lead his men (and his astonishing wife, fellow revolutionary Anita) to Ravenna, and from there, by sea. . .
Parks imparts much historical and biographical information as he and Eleonora try to mesh their footprints with the revolutionary garibaldini, and he also sketches the historiographic conversation, controversies, in the century and a half since that first bold and costly and iconic push through the Appenines.
Honestly, I would have liked more interaction with the country and people in the present, nor did I find the fractured approach to telling the history as engaging emotionally — although I concede its academic interest. I did come away with what I think will be a lasting sense of what Garibaldi did in this phase of his life’s project. Also confirmed a sense of Parks’ character and sexism: encountering a young man who, wanting temporary housing, hopes to be jailed for a short period, Parks speculates the young man might get arrested if he kisses the policewoman. Having observed the policewoman admonishing the young man’s behaviour, Parks suggests that “She seemed to like you,” so that the kiss might be worth a try. Ugh! To be able to joke lightly about having given such advice — I find this revealing rather than amusing. Certainly wouldn’t write about it hoping to elicit a chuckle from my readers.
20. White on White, Ayşegül Savaş. Literary fiction; Women’s lives; Fiction about art.
Beautiful, strangely. such limpid prose. Two women, both involved with art — one as a scholar of nudity in medieval sculpture, the other as a painter. One rents an apartment in an unidentified (European? British?) city from an established academic in a related field; the other is the wife of the academic, using a space connected to the apartment as her pied-à-terre/studio. “The wife” is a generation older than the scholar and has adult children to whom, however, she cannot speak as freely.
She tells her story in stages, and as the younger woman gets to know her better, her interest in the woman, in her story, changes. To say more would be to spoil the next reading, but I can say I loved this also for the discussion of art, of the medieval period, of women’s lives, marriage, etc.
21. Cloud Cuckoo Land. Anthony Doerr; Literary Fiction; Speculative Fiction; Historical Fiction; Environmental Fiction; Coming-of-Age.
I loved this book, highly recommended by my daughter in Rome as well as by several blog readers over the last few months. This one I bought in hardcover — 621 pages, but they turn very quickly! — a big narrative, absorbing and satisfying. I’ll take pleasure lending this and/or giving copies of it.
Five parallel narratives, spanning centuries — and one fantastical narrative from an ancient and fragmentary text, a quasi-apocryphal codex, that links the young protagonists of each story. Seymour, in present-day Idaho (and 80-year-old Zeno, whose coming-of-age story is told in counterpoint to Seymour’s — they meet dramatically in a library); Anna, 13, inside the walls of besieged Constantinople in the 15th century, her imagination unleashed as she surreptitiously (against the possibility of punishment; reading arousing suspicion in her environment) learns to read; Omar, not much older than Anna, conscripted with his oxen into the army that’s besieging her city; and in a not-so-distant future Konstance tries to find hope, alone on an interstellar ship after some cataclysmic event has apparently made our planet unliveable . . . .something Seymour’s misguided, desperate terrorism is trying to prevent in that Idaho library.
All of these young people (Zeno, as a boy, included) are inspired to hope by stories, especially those preserved in handwriting or print, materially transmissible. On the verge of adulthood, they’re connected to humanity, to the positive in our long lineage, by a shared appreciation — passion! — for the written word.
Highly recommended! I did manage an Instagram post about this book.
And that’s it for my March reading. I suspect I might be later than usual posting my April book list, but since I have some long flights and train rides over the next few weeks, you know I’ll be adding titles to my journal. So your suggestions will be very welcome, and I’ll be reading all your comments although I may not answer them as promptly as usual.
Ciao,
Frances
Loved, loved, loved Cloud Cuckoo Land. I could not put it down!
Author
So good, wasn’t it?!
So many interesting and very different books!
From your list I’ve read Cloud Cockoo Land (I’ve finished it in April ,so it is a little bit cheating )-it is an utterly excellent book- and Ann Cleeves
And I love Ravenna….
My others March books to mention:
Min Jin Lee’s
Free Food For Millionaires
As she herself says :” This book is clearly one person’s limited point of view” (of the life of Korean Americans.
This book features Korean immigrants (first or second generation) ,as well as (white) Americans,their challenges,dealing with another culture,….class,gender,race,education….and a lot more. The book is long-ish), but I couldn’t wait to read it all,although some characters were annoying from time to time
There are many characters,with many virtues and flaws,trying to find their place and way in life
I’ve read her second book, Pachinko , a couple of years ago (it was Lisa’s-Amid Priviledge- recommendation) and loved it very much
Frederik Backman’s Us Against You
“Lies are simple,the truth is difficult”
How hartred started and,like a snow ball, gets bigger and bigger…. Politicians playing with people,the city and the club….characters that made you laugh (from time to time) and events that made me cry a lot
Donna Leon’s latest, Give Unto Others, is meeting old friends again,Commissario is patient as ever (but angry as well),dealing with people’s hypocrisy and evil,innocent are hurt…….. here we spend more time with gentile Contessa Falier, his MIL. Signorina Elettra wears sequines and is perfect as always.
Caleb Azumah Nelson’s Open Water ( Winner of Costa First Novel Award 2021.)is quite short,but very intense and elegant, written in the second person, novel.
“The music drew you all inside…….what it was like? She said” The ancestors visit us and we let them take over”…..
“You’re not thinking.
You’re feeling. ”
It’s about love and music and freedom and being Black and young in London, about finding your place,about breathing,about asking:” Which came first,the violence or the pain?”,about under what conditions unconditional love breaks…..
Zakiya Dalila Harris-as former editor,she got the idea for her novel The Other Black Girl.
Said Alsanousi’ The Bamboo Stalk,very interesting story about life of José/Isa ,the legitimate son of a rich Kuwaiti young man and (his mother’s) Filipino maid,first in Philippines and,after that,in Kuwait. The novel got International Prize for Arabic Fiction
Dottoressa
Author
So many good suggestions here, thank you!
And I thought of how much you liked Ravenna when I saw the title of Tim Parks’ book 😉
I’ve read the last two Inspector Lynley books, but I plan read the rest of them from the beginning. How I’ve missed these books is beyond me … I’m an avid reader and have a particular enjoyment of British crime fiction. Thank you for sharing your reading lists with us.
Author
Reading from the beginning, you’ll develop a stronger attachment to Lynley, I think. . . He’s deeper emotionally than the later books suggest.
And you’re very welcome — I feel privileged to facilitate this little community of readers.
Cloud Cuckoo land is currently on my nightstand. passed on to me by my daughter . I have been reluctant to get into it based on a review by a good friend . We both loved his last book, All the Light You Cannot See, but she had a negative review so I’ve been reading other books. Now I am looking forward to it based on your review and some other readers. I only managed to read three books last month. One was the rather long fictionalized biography of Thomas Mann by Colm Toibin. Not an easy book but beautifully written. Toibin is perhaps best known for Brooklyn, on which the popular movie was based. there was so much history in this book, told through the eyes of the writer. It is a family saga, a man coming to terms with his own sexuality, the writing process, the rise of Hitler and World War Two. It took me a while to finish it but it was a rich book. On a completely different note, I read State of Terror a colabaration between Hillary Clinton and Louise Penney. A thriller. Not usually my style but I admire both of these women. I have read many of Penny’s Gamache mysteries. the third book was for my book club, The Wonder by Emma Donaghue. It takes place in Ireland just after the famine. a young girl may be a miracle, having not eating anything but the communion host. A Florence Nightingale trained nurse is sent to a small town in Ireland to verify the authenticity of the situation. it did take me a while to get onto the story, I am not sure why. maybe the darkness of the story. Thank you Dottoressa for reminding me about the new Donna Leon. I am also excited that a new Anne Tyler is now out, French Braid, and I am on the list! One of my very favorite authors.
Author
A great reading list here, Darby! If you like Anthony Doerr’s fiction, you might also like his wonderful memoir about his year in Rome with very young twins. There’s a Pantheon scene I love!
I’ve considered Toibin’s The Magician, but a bit daunted — you might have pushed me closer. I loved Blackwater Lightship, Heather Blazing, Brooklyn, and most recently House of Names. What a writer!
Also read The Wonder — yes, it was dark! Complex and compelling.
I just finished The Magician and loved it. (I also really liked Toibin’s The Master, a portrait of Henry James; this made me want to go back and re-read that earlier book.) When reading The Magician, I found myself imagining scenes from Mann’s wife’s point of view.
Cloud Cuckoo Land is next up for me.
Frances, as always you’ve gifted me with several ideas for reading choices. I looked at the Sicilian Wife and would like to read it but £24.59 for a paperback at Amazon is rather steep and there’s no Kindle choice so will head off to see if it’s available at the local library. Have a wonderful time on your travels.
Author
I got an e-copy from our public library on the OverDrive platform/app. It’s available for $8.09 CAD o Kobo (an alternative to Kindle, originally Canadian — I started with it years ago, preferring to avoid Amazon — You can use the Kobo app on phone, desktop, tablet etc.without buying a Kobo device). No idea why Amazon is charging that price for a paperback. Publishing these days! 😉
I forgot to say that the Toibin book was called “The Magician”
Author
I thought that must be the one you meant
Quickly, as I must dash out to get some suddenly-preferred cat food before the spring blizzard of a quarter-century arrives tomorrow…
I will digress once again I’m afraid but wanted, before I forget, to chat with you about the film adaptation of ‘The Lost Daughter’. I am in the minority and of course committed the grave error of watching the film after reading the book (several times) but it wasn’t quite…although Olivia Coleman is lovely and a wonderful actress…the flashbacks were excellent (excellent! doubly so!) and I was so happy so see one of my favourites Alba Rohrwacher appear briefly (her beautiful face)…but…
For me, the turmoil of the character Leda was internal. Internal. Isn’t that the way Ferrante writes her women? I don’t want teary eyes and quivering lips! So I was turned off from the beginning. Tried to tell my daughter about this and as soon as I said it I realized that a movie about a woman sitting on a beach looking calm and remembering things would not work for many people. We had a good laugh, I’m clearly not a filmmaker. I had to go back to the book and read my favourite passages to soothe myself.
So looking forward to seeing whatever you can give us on your trip…buon viaggio…
Author
I know this book was/is very important to you, and I can imagine it would be tough to watch the changes a screenplay requires. I resisted the TV series version of My Brilliant Friend until last year, mainly because it eliminated what I see as a crucial framing, the older Lenu writing. . . And I still think that’s integral to what the books are doing, but I’ve grudgingly accepted that the series works in its own way. Grudgingly. . .