Here is my report of my July & August 2015 Reading. Lack of interest and summer activities kept me away from reading time. However, I did stumble upon the book Florence Gordon by Brian Morton in my local (e-)library about an intelligent cantankerous 75-year old woman and her relationships with her family, friends, and herself. I greatly enjoyed this book because it was so believable and I was able to relish, understand and empathize with each character’s perspective (and a few days after I finished it, I realized that Florence reminded me of my grandmother).
I usually end my reading posts by selecting my favorite, but this month is different. It’s two months’ worth of reading and I’ve already shared the book I liked the most!
The others…
July & August 2015 Reading
I have had Penelope Fitzgerald on my To Read list for awhile, so I downloaded The Knox Brothers (a Sample) and The Bookshop (a Sample). I enjoyed neither sample and was very happy I didn’t make a full purchase of either!
I also continued my Paris fascination by finishing The Paris Architect and purchasing A Paris Apartment (that I had seen someone reading at a community pool) and The Little Paris Bookshop. They went from Good to Okay to Un-finishable, respectively. The Paris Architect was good until the author didn’t know how to end it. That just cast a pall on the rest of the story. A Paris Apartment was a light summer read. I wouldn’t recommend it. I had been looking forward to The Little Paris Bookshop from a book review. Yet, I was not drawn to any of the characters and the story became so preposterous that I stopped after the first third. How disappointing.
Consider the Fork: A History of How We Cook and Eat was on my Want to Read list for some time. I really like reading about how necessity becomes tradition & how common behaviors are influenced by our surroundings. Unfortunately, a lot of these food/society/tradition histories read like college thesis dissertations – which I’m betting many of them originally were. I just can’t get into that style of writing, and had to put it down.
I was drawn to The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession because it was about a man who stole valuable old books. In the introduction, the author speaks about people stealing books from their libraries. GASP! I can’t imagine! Well, actually, I have a very old copy of Mrs. Gaskell’s account of Charlotte Bronte.
I looked at it the other day, and in the back there was the little envelope where the date due card is inserted. For the life of me, I cannot remember if I “just never returned it” (they won’t miss it!) or if I bought it or some other scenario. I guess I could take it back and see if they want it.
I did not enjoy The Man Who Loved Books Too Much because there was just too much detail and not enough action or interaction so I did not finish it. I was very disappointed because I really wanted to like it.
Then and Always – the worst book ever! I borrowed it from the library’s e-collection. One of the problems with e-books is that you can’t pick them up and leaf through them. I felt like I was reading someone’s high school English creative writing paper. (It reminded me of a really bad paper my BFF and I wrote in high school! [You know who you are, and you also know to which paper I am referring!]) The ending was so stupid that I realized it WAS probably self-published. I sometimes judge myself of being a snob because I try to read only books that are published by a large company, but then I remember that at least those books have been edited and reviewed before being released. Not to say that all books published by a large publishing house are good, but at least they’ve already been vetted.
Books Bought July & August 2015
| Title | Author |
|---|---|
| The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing | Marie Kondo |
| The Little Paris Bookshop | Nina George |
| A Paris Apartment | Michelle Gable |
| I Am Pilgrim | Terry Hayes |
| Mastering Herringbone Stitch: The Complete Guide | Melinda Barta |
| Mastering Peyote Stitch | Melinda Barta |
| Favorite Bead Stitches, 2013 | Beadwork Magazine Compilation |
| Stringing, Fall 2015 | Magazine |
| Thai Slow Cooker Cookbook: Classic Thai Favorites Made Simple | Rockridge Press |
| Flight of Passage | Rinker Buck |
I was looking to expand my beading skills so picked up a few more books and magazines. A report on the beading is coming soon…
The good news is that I read more books than I bought. Some months it’s been the reverse! The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing is compelling. I am reading it bit by bit, activity by activity. So far I’ve cleaned out the clothes in my house. I got rid of 7 garbage bags of clothing, purses and shoes. Finally, my closet has only the clothes I really wear and/or really love! Books are next.
I Am Pilgrim is a venture into new territory. My book club is reading it for our October session. It’s a thriller and it’s longer than what we usually read. My take on it so far (and I’m only at page 96 out of 785 at this point) is that I must like it a little because I haven’t picked up anything else to read at the same time.
Hi Julie,
I look forward to reading your posts and would still enjoy getting together sometime-
I just moved from Nyack to Haverstraw .
Hope all is well with you and your family, text me and we will set up a meet!
Donna
Donna, I was wondering about you the other day! I will get in touch!