Does My Head Look Big in This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah – I really enjoyed this one – a good, light-hearted young adult-ish novel told from the perspective of a Muslim girl in Australia who is deciding how to live out her faith (specifically, wearing a headscarf) – and responding to other people’s reactions to it. Good stuff. Well recommended. The Joys of Love, by Madeleine L’Engle – Also on the girl-coming-of-age theme is this posthumously published novel written in the 1950’s by one of my very favorite writers. Snuck into print by her granddaughters and her publisher this spring, it tells the story of a week in the life of an actress who was part of a summer theater company in the 1940’s (like ML’E herself). Deb and I, both big fans, were delighted. Title kind of makes you want to throw up, though, doesn’t it? Comes from a song. Do you think it sounds more treacly, or less, in the original French ("Plaisir d’Amour")?
A Severed Wasp, by Madeleine L’Engle – Wanting to spend some more time with ML’E, I brought this on my trip with me. Made myself read it slowly so it would last a whole week, including keeping me engaged during 24+ hours of travel back home. I read each chapter twice, went back and marked parts I liked, etc. Delicious. Earlier in the summer I tried to reread the book to which this is billed as the sequel, The Small Rain, and ended up just skimming it. (The well-written but dismal story of a young musician trying to find herself). Skip it and just read this one about Katherine as a grandmother, recently retired from life as a concert pianist and reflecting back on what the journey held. Both Joys and Wasp have a lot to say about what it is like to be dedicated to one’s craft.
All Seated on the Ground, by Connie Willis – This (slightly) SF novella is not as good as D.A., my favorite so far; but I will keep picking up Connie Willis books until I’ve read them all, I think. She’s fun! Local too; apparently one can run into her by frequenting the coffee shops of
A Wodehouse Bestiary, by P.G. Wodehouse – A collection of Wodehouse stories mostly from other books, all in which animals in some way figure – usually pet dogs and cats. Wodehouse is so funny. And I love reading short stories. Some of these featured Bertie Wooster and other popular characters.
The Franchise Affair, by Josephine Tey – Another satisfying mystery from a wonderful author; no two of her books are alike. (My favorite is Miss Pym Disposes.)
A Place to Belong, by Nancy Moser and Vonette Bright – This is one of several I read recently from that genre called “Christian fiction,” which seldom produces great work, alas; more along the lines of “mostly harmless.” I didn’t jot down the titles of all of them. I’ve enjoyed the series of which this one is the latest, though, and consider it well executed. Characters are fairly multi-dimensional, plots reasonably satisfying.
The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett – A number of people I care about have enjoyed the epic story of the ins and outs of a medieval community and their process of building a cathedral. I enjoyed it too. In fact, the page-turner quite took over a weekend for me – love, revenge, and other passions figure prominently. But… It just wasn’t a good thing for me, trying to somehow manage this thing called purity, to put into my head. I’d say the same about The Other Boleyn Girl; read it for book club a while back. How much do I really need to know about how people have sex, for example? Really, not this much. But that may be just me; most of you are in a different life situation than I am.
This summer I also read:
- The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, by John LeCarre
- Predator’s Gold, by Phillip Reeve
- Short and Tall Tales, by Lilian Jackson Braun
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