3 posts tagged “history”
June's nearly over, and I'm just now getting around to posting May's books.
Favorites: Doomsday Book, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, and Finding Nouf.
I read fewer books than usual this month, but enjoyed them all.
Favorites: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and Predictably Irrational. On This Earth takes the visual cake for its breathtaking photography.
THE BEST:
The Zookeeper’s Wife: A War Story
This nonfiction account of heroism in Nazi-occupied Poland is my top
pick of the month. I am deeply moved and inspired by individuals who
match their wit and courage against tyranny in order to save their
fellow man from injustice, injury, and death. While the majority is
silently swept along with the tide, these few brave souls stand apart
and risk everything. Diane Ackerman has a unique gift for bringing a
story to life with robust and pictorial language.
The Hummingbird’s Daughter
My favorite Feb. fiction. This sweeping novel recounts the life of
Urrea's famous relative Teresita, the "Saint of Cabora", a girl
renowned for healing powers, unshakable faith, and revolutionary ideas
that attracted a following of thousands and the enmity of Mexico's Diaz
government in the late 1800s. Extensively researched, and written with
a buoyant, irresistible style.
THE REST:
On Chesil Beach
As the book jacket states, "...a story of lives transformed by a
gesture not made or a word not spoken." McEwan excels at portrayals of
complex relationships and consequence.
New Moon and Eclipse (books 2 & 3)
The Twilight series is accurately classified as YA fiction, but offers a light and fast-paced reading escape for all ages.
Running in the Family
Ondaatje's dream-like memoir of life in Ceylon provides a peek into an
exotic time and place far removed from the average reader's experience.
The Boleyn Inheritance
If you have an interest in stories of Tudor England, you'll likely find
this enjoyable, although, in my opinion, it doesn't quite measure up to
The Other Boleyn Girl. My, that Henry was a tyrant!
The Nature of Monsters
A bit slow at times, but it provides an intriguing look at social
structure, superstitions, and the state of science and medicine in the
early 1700s.
The Gathering
This unflinching story of an Irish clan in the aftermath of a death is
the 2007 winner of the Man Booker Prize. The writing is, of course,
top-notch, but I found it a rather depressing read.
The Cleft
My first taste of the work of prolific writer and Nobel Laureate, Doris
Lessing. The novel tells an alternate human origin story centered
around an ancient community of women, the advent of men, and the
resulting challenge of gender relations. Perhaps it wasn't the best
introduction to Lessing's work. I'll have to give her another try one
of these days.
