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Read, Reading Now and Reading Next (Oct-Dec 2016)
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Black Beauty
– Anna Sewell – 4**** I had a copy of this book when I was a child, but for some reason I never read it, even during my “horse crazy” phase. I’m so glad I finally got to it. It’s a timeless tale with a simple message: Be kind to everyone (and everything). Sewell manages to convey this through Beauty’s experiences, both good and bad. The hardcover text edition I got from the library was also beautifully illustrated by Lucy Kemp-Welch.
LINK to my review
People of the Deer
– Farley Mowatt – 4**** Farley Mowatt examines the various factors that led to the demise of The People of the Deer in this fascinating book. He went into the vast Barren Plains of North central Canada to study the caribou, and the Ihalmiut people who depended on “the deer” for their very existence, living among them in the late 1940s, when their tribe had dwindled from several thousand in about 1900 to less than 50 individuals in 1947.
LINK to my review
The Ex-Debutante
– Linda Francis Lee – ZERO stars Where to start? Cardboard characters. Tortured dialogue. Ridiculous plot. “Clever” writing devices that aren’t. This is just a disaster.
LINK to my review
Malinche
– Laura Esquivel – 4**** Malinalli was a Native woman from Tabasco, whose ability to speak Spanish as well as two native languages brought her to the attention of Hernan Cortes. In this lyrical, poetic novel, Esquivel gives us a strong woman with deeply held beliefs who wanted to free her people, and realized her mistake far too late. I love Esquivel’s writing. Her imagery is vivid and tangible. This is a decidedly Mexican novel. Esquivel infuses the story with magical realism, mysticism, and spirituality. It reminds me of the oral story traditions of my grandparents.
LINK to my review
C is for Corpse
– Sue Grafton – 3*** I love Kinsey Millhone; she’s smart, determined, hard-working, loyal to her friends, and strong in mind and body. I also like that Grafton occasionally gives us a little humor to ease the tension of some very dark situations. It’s an entertaining series, and I’ll keep reading it.
LINK to my review
Summer
– Edith Wharton – 3.5*** Wharton’s novel of a young woman’s awakening sexuality shocked readers when it was first published in 1917. Wharton knew the social makeup of turn-of-the century America, and used her novels to explore the nuances of the “rules” – spoken and unspoken – by which people, especially women, had to live. It’s a slim novel, and a great introduction to Wharton’s writing.
LINK to my review
Money, Money, Money
– Ed McBain – 3.5**** This is the first book by McBain that I’ve read, and it will not be the last! Fast-paced, intricate plotting and colorful characters make for a quick and enjoyable read, despite the high body count. It may be Christmas but the criminals are busy, and so are the police. I was interested from page one to the very end.
LINK to my review
I just read 
by Charles de Lint I really enjoyed this YA story, but not as much as I have loved others by him. He is, however, one of my top favorite writers, he does such wonderful Urban Fantasy.I am now going for a short Christmas one so just started
by John GrishamIt wasn't until I started it that I realized this is the book that was the basis for "Christmas with the Kranks"
Long Man
– Amy Greene – 4**** Greene delivers a riveting story that explores the question: What cost, progress? The Dodson’s loss of their home is representative of the hundreds of families displaced by such projects. The novel is peopled with strong characters, with tangled relationships. Their competing loyalties are what made the decisions so difficult: to stay or to go, to delay or to embrace change
LINK to my review
Dan vs Nature
– Don Calame – 2** When Dan’s mother buys him a “survival week experience” so he can bond with her new fiancé, Dan and his friend Charlie concoct a plan to scare Hank away. This sounded like a decent premise for a YA novel but Calame’s reliance on scatological humor and descriptions that only a 13-year-old boy will find funny just lost me. It should have been a fast read, but it didn’t hold my attention, and it took me a full week to finish it.
LINK to my review
The Anteater of Death
– Betty Webb – 3*** As cozy mysteries go, this is a pretty good one. A zookeeper is an interesting – and different – occupation for an amateur sleuth. Webb gives tidbits of information on the animals Teddy cares for, as well as the joys and challenges of living aboard a refitted trawler. There were plenty of suspects to keep me guessing, and a reasonably satisfactory ending. I’ll definitely read more of this series.
LINK to my review
Our Souls At Night - Kent Haruf - 5*****
In the small (fictional) town of Holt, Colorado, Addie Moore drops in on her neighbor, Louis Waters one evening, and asks if he isn’t as lonesome for conversation and companionship as she is. What follows is a beautifully written story of a mature couple in a different, but very loving, relationship. The strength and dignity with which they faced life endeared them to me.
LINK to my review
A Lone Star Christmas - William W Johnstone w/ J.A. Johnstone - ZERO stars
I was seduced by the title, but should have quit with the book jacket. It seems that the writers threw everything they’d ever come across in a Western into this book. It was a pretty fast read, and fit several challenges, but there’s really very little Christmas to this story.
LINK to my review
Book Concierge wrote: " Our Souls At Night
- Kent Haruf - 5*****
In the small (fictional) town of Holt, Colorado, Addie Moore drops in on her neighbor, Louis Waters one evenin..."
I was surprised by how much I liked this book!
I finished
today and wondered why I had taken so long to read it! I enjoyed the story line and the characters. Now I'm reading
which has been a bit of a sluggish read up until about now (75% into the story). Things are starting to pick up quite a bit now...
Hyde has been in my tbr for a long time also. So hard to getTo everything.
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The Challenge Factory
Books mentioned in this topic
The Woman in Cabin 10 (other topics)Hyde (other topics)
Our Souls at Night (other topics)
A Lone Star Christmas (other topics)
Our Souls at Night (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Charles de Lint (other topics)John Grisham (other topics)
Naguib Mahfouz (other topics)
Bram Stoker (other topics)
L.M. Montgomery (other topics)
What a wonderful story; I was engaged from beginning to end. Every mouse of Redwall Abbey has taken a solemn oath to never harm another living creature, unless it is an enemy seeking to harm the Order by violence. I love this message of peaceful coexistence and tolerance. The mice are willing to live-and-let-live, but they will defend to the death against those who seek to overtake their peaceable kingdom. Jacques filled the book with detailed descriptions which serve to really put the reader right into Mossflower County. It’s entertaining, scary, exciting, and inspiring. I think I’ll read more of this middle-grade series for the sheer joy of it.
LINK to my review