Reading with Style discussion
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10.4 SeriesInvoluntary Witness by Gianrico Carofiglio
This is the first in the Guido Guerrieri series. The GR description says More than a perfectly paced legal thriller, this relentless suspense novel transcends the genre. I did like this well enough, but I found it neither a thriller nor a suspense novel. Have I read too many of the genre?
I liked Guerrieri as a character. The GR series description calls him jaded. With this novel, we can see why. A man - a "non-European", most specifically a man from Senegal - is accused of the murder of a 9-year old boy. It is pretty obvious that the prosecutor didn't really investigate the case. When it comes to trial, Guerrieri thinks that the principal judge (I forget what his actual title is) believes the accused to be guilty and perhaps 1 or 2 members of the jury. If judges and juries aren't willing to consider the basic requirement of "beyond a reasonable doubt", then defense lawyers and society at large should also be jaded. I hope no one finds the above a spoiler. I thought it was pretty obvious from the beginning.
I liked the writing style in this. I managed to pick up one of his stand alone novels at my Friends of the Library bookstore. I also have shelved it as mystery-thriller. I have no idea whether or not it will live up to expectation, but I know it won't be the first in a series for which I have such expectations. I think I will enjoy my time with it, though, and find both the writing and the characterizations interesting. This one? Probably 3-stars at best.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+ 5 Combo (20.10 - 2002)
+10 Lit (Italian)
Task total = 35
Season total = 245
20.1 JemisinSisters of the Forsaken Stars by Lina Rather
+20 task Sister Ewostatewos is a person of color
+20 Combo 10.2 (born in USA), 20.8 (soup with noodles, tofu and fish), 20.9, 20.10 (pub 2022)
Post total: 40
Season total: 360
20.9 ABC's The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk
I first read this book as teenager (found it in the attic and smuggled it into my room, and read it with a dictionary and encyclopedia nearby so I could look up everything, at the time, I had no clue about). I rarely re-read, but it had been so long since I read it that I barely remembered the story. This one was well worth the repeat.
Wouk uses his own life experiences, during WII in the U.S. Navy, to tell the story of Willie Keith. Willie enlists in the Navy in late 1942 and is then assigned duties on an old minesweeper. Some may say that Keith is the main character, but there are others in the story who take main stage throughout. We see the action through Willes's eyes, but Wouk's talent of telling a tale makes every other character vital to the story. A the end Wouk leaves the reader informed, but leaves the reader to decide who was right and who was wrong(ed).
In the copy I read (A Readers Digest publication with brilliant art work included from The Bluejacket's Manual) has an afterword that tries to explain the phenomena the book became. Wouk won the Pulitzer for this book, and many say that happened because of the time it was published. Who's to say? Wouks' character studies and the moral compass of humans define his writing. I say he deserved the prize.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+5 Oldie
+5 combo (10.2)
Task Total 40
Season Total 325
10.4 Series (Ed's Task)Due or Die. Jenn McKinlay
An early entry in the Library Lover's series where we meet Heathcliff and learn more about Lindsey, her staff and friends, and her budding love interest, Sully. Although I've already read eight of the later books, this was interesting because it gave me background that I didn't know. If i had read the print edition, it probably would have a four star read for me, but the audio book narrator's voice on a few characters just didn't work as well for me.
Task Total: 10
Review: 10
Combo: 25 (10.2-US, 10.3, 10.9-CT, 20.8 - Ham & Potato, 20.9 )
Total: 45
Season Total: 435
10.2; 10.3; 10.4; 10.9
15.1; 15.2; 15.3; 15.4; 15.5; 15.6
20.2; 20.3; 20.6; 20.8; 20.10;
20.8 Soup's On!Shadowfell
before I could say much at all he was ladling mushroom broth out of his tiny pannikin
This author came to my attention through her Sevenwaters series, of which I enjoyed 2 of the books. She has a good handle on world building and her magical systems, in the books I have read, are based on nature/environment.
I enjoyed this Y/A story of young girl out to find her rightful place, as she travels a journey marred with evil. Along the way she uncovers the small magic she was born with isn't really small at all. She has a place in the world where she will be welcomed, she just has to find it.
This is a slow moving book. at times too slow for me. However, I enjoy Marillier's style and will continue to book # 2:
+20 Task
No Style points due to rating being below 800
Task Total 20
Season Total 345
15.4 Eyes on the Prize ReduxTwo Trains Running by August Wilson
15 task 1993 Washington State Book Award
5 oldie
____
20
Running total: 325
Task 10.9 NFL (Anika's Task)Chrysta was born and raised in the Los Angeles Metropolitan area.
Normal Family: On Truth, Love, and How I Met My 35 Siblings (2022) by Chrysta Bilton (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover 288 pages) [176.209]
Review: Normal Family is a memoir of Chrysta’s childhood. She was a donor-conceived child of a lesbian mother. Unlike the majority of donor-conceived children, Chrysta’s mother Debra knew Chrysta’s father. Debra chose him because he was handsome, artistic, and from a high-achieving family. She convinced him to go to a clinic and make his deposit, with insemination happening later that day. Four years later, Debra conceived a second child with the same man, outside of the clinic and with the help of a turkey baster. Chrysta’s homelife was very unstable. Every few months to few years, Debra changed romantic partners. Additionally, Debra’s finances veered from millionaire to living in her car. Somehow Chrysta and her sister survived to adulthood, and became functioning adults. (Therapy helped a lot with that.) Then, surprise!, Chrysta discovers that her father had a side business of donations to the Clinic, spanning several years. With the advent of 23andMe and other consumer DNA companies, donor-conceived people are discovering their half-siblings. As of this book going to press, 35 of her father’s other children have contacted Chrysta. There are probably more half-siblings in existence who haven't contacted Chrysta.
Most of the book was about Chrysta’s remembrance of her unconventional upbringing. I would have liked more details about the whole donor-conceived processes. Despite that, I would recommend this book.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 80 + 20 = 100
Task 20.10 Birthday (Elizabeth (Alaska's) TaskRead any book whose original publication year is 2 consecutive digits.
Publication year: 2006
Heroine Eden Moore is described as ‘biracial’. It was a major plot point in the first book of the series that her mother was African-American while her father was white. In this book, the second in the series, Eden being biracial is mentioned in passing, blink and you’ll miss it.
Wings to the Kingdom (Eden Moore #2) (2006) by Cherie Priest (Goodreads Author) (Paperback 399 pages)
+20 Task
+15 Combo (#10.4 Series; #20.1 person of color; #20.9 Alphabetic order)
Task Total: 20 + 15 = 35
Grand Total: 100 + 35 = 135
20.9 ABCs (Kate S's Task)The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing
+20 task
+ 5 oldies (first published 1950)
+10 combo (20.2; 20.5)
Post Total = 35
Season Total = 215
10.8 House (Ann's Task)Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson
+10 task
+ 5 oldies (first published in 1980)
+ 20 combo (10.2; 20.2; 20.8 - 3 mentions of soup including "She would switch on the radio and hum domestically while she heated our soup and toasted our sandwiches."; 20.9)
Post Total = 35
Season Total =250
15.2 EoTP ReduxInterWorld by Neil Gaiman
Lexile: 830
+15 Task (St. Louis Literary Award 2023)
Task total: 15
Grand total: 325
20.10 BirthdayFree Food for Millionaires by Lee Min-jin
I've been wanting to read this book forever. I actually had an ARC copy at one point and I remember discussing it with an employer when it came out in 2007. But I'm actually glad to have read this with a little more distance from the world described here.
The book traces the post-college trying to figure out what to do period for the protagonist, as well as trying to delve into the thoughts and feelings of those in her circle. It felt very true to life to me--I knew a lot of people who went to an Ivy-league school, moved to New York City to work in a high-powered, high-stress, high-paying job, but didn't really know whether the life being offered made any sense. I found a path more easily than this protagonist, and this book gave me a real feeling of "there but for the grace of God go I."
I can see why for many readers this book felt insufferable. If I didn't know real people similar to these, if I hadn't lived some of this experience, I think I might have hated everyone in this book. But, as one of my other friends said, "scarily true-to-life, except for all the adultery."
The narrator for the audiobook was excellent, which is especially important since the book runs over 24 hours.
+20 Task (pub. 2007)
+10 Review
+5 Jumbo (577 pp)
+20 Combo (10.3 - approved in thread, 10.9 - NYC, 20.1 - Korean immigrant family at the center of the story, 20.2)
Task total: 55
Grand total: 380
20.9 ABCsLes enfants terribles de Bonaventure by Cecile Hennerolles
+20 Task
Task total = 20
Points total = 130
... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; 10.6 ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ...
15.1 ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ...
... ; 20.2 ; 20.3 ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; 20.9 ; 20.10 (x2)
10.1 TBREn quête d’un grand peut-être : guide de littérature ado by Tom Lévêque and Nathan Lévêque
+10 Task
Task total = 10
Points total = 140
... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; 10.6 ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ...
15.1 ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ...
... ; 20.2 ; 20.3 ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; ... ; 20.9 ; 20.10 (x2)
20.5 FaulknerNight Walks by Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens was a talented journalist, and most of the eight essays in this collection are works of social journalism. A few works are more nostalgic in nature. The essays were originally published in the journals, "Household Words," or "All the Year Round." The themes of walking and observing run through the collection.
The title work, "Night Walks," is a semi-autobiographical essay about a man who walked the streets of London when he suffered from insomnia. The walker was very observant, noticing the poor, the homeless, the mentally ill, and the dangerous people that he passed during the night. Many of these experiences were later incorporated into other literary works. Using beautiful imagery, Dickens wrote an excellent essay of nostalgic thoughts and social concerns. This five-star title essay is imaginative and sensual, and my favorite essay in this volume. I reviewed the other essays in a longer GR review.
+20 task (on list)
+ 5 combo 20.9 ABCs
+15 oldie (pub 1869)
+10 review
Task total: 50
Season total: 370
Task 20.2 KingRead any debut novel.
The Space Between the Stars (2017) by Anne Corlett (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover 368 pages)
Review: The Space Between the Stars is Anne Corlett’s debut novel. According to goodreads, it is her only published novel to date. The novel had potential but, in my opinion, the potential was unrealized.
The Space Between the Stars is science fiction, set a few centuries in the future. Mankind has started spreading to nearby star systems. Then, a particularly virulent epidemic hits, killing 99% of all humans. Our heroine is one of the 1% of survivors.
I’ll start with what I liked: the characters. Most were sympathetic, and all had flaws as well as virtues. What I didn’t like: the coincidences – I can roll with one or two but there were too many. I also was irritated by the whole outer space aspect. The novel, as written, could have taken place completely on Earth, with an ocean-going ship (like the late Titanic) instead of a spaceship. The different planets in the novel were like Earth islands. The human culture was identical from planet to planet, as was gravity, food production, and the environment. If there isn’t going to be a variation between planets, why set it in outer space? Just set it on Earth, and go forward with the story of the survivors.
Overall, the novel was OK. I wouldn’t recommend it, as there are better novels in print handling the same kind of story as this one.
+20 Task
+05 Combo (#20.9 Alphabetical Order)
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 05 + 10 = 35
Grand Total: 135 + 35 = 170
And, just as an aside, I’ve now read 3 books in a row with nobody eating soup!!
10.7 GeocachingCaptain Blood by Rafael Sabatini (Adventure)
See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rafael_... for date published and series
+10 - Task
+15 - Combo (10.4, 20.9, 20.10)
+10 - Oldies (1922)
Task Total- 35
10.10 Group ReadsA Dirty Job by Christopher Moore
If you can make me laugh out loud that hard, many times, it’s a free pass to a 5* rating. I’ve enjoyed Moore’s absurdist humor in the past, but this book kicked it up a notch. At first (the first few pages), I wasn’t sure if I would like it or if it would annoy me. However, there were so many things for me to (really) like in this novel – the hellhounds, Mr. Fresh and the rest of the characters, Charlie’s mix of bravado and haplessness; and most importantly the heart. Under the humor (and the absurdist premise) is a very humane look at death and grief. Well done, Mr. Moore.
10 task
10 review
20 combo 10.2, 10.9, 20.9, 20.10
_____
40
Running total: 365
20.10 BirthdayThe Dinner by Herman Koch
"The Dinner" started with satirical social humor as two brothers and their wives dine at a posh restaurant. But the disturbing story gets psychologically darker and totally riveting as it moves on. What secrets is this unreliable narrator hiding? How far will the two couples go to protect their sons who are responsible for a terrible event? Why do they have such a strong sense of privilege? I couldn't put the book down!
+20 task (pub 2009)
+10 combo 10.3 9, 10, 11 (K); 20.9 A, B, Cs
+10 review
Task total: 40
Season total: 410
10.9 NFLA Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
A famous play from 1959 showing the struggles and dreams of the different members of the African American Younger family (mother, adult son and daughter, daughter-in-law and grandchild) living in a small apartment in the South Side of Chicago, but dreaming of using an insurance payment to buy into a "White neighborhood”. A Nigerian man, Agasai, is a friend of the adult daughter and serves to point up the cultural gulf between 20th-century Black Americans and Africans despite their genetic links.
The author, Lorraine Hansberry, inspired the song 'Young, Gifted and Black' but suffered from cancer and died in her thirties.
Note: This book is listed as NP at Lexile.com but I think styles have been claimed for it in the past…?
+10 Task (set entirely in Chicago)
+10 Review
+10 Combo (10.2 USA, 20.1)
+ 5 Oldies (1959)
Post total: 35
Season total: 405
10.10 Group ReadsThe Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War by Ben Macintyre
Oleg Gordievsky was 30 years old and moving up the ranks of the Soviet secret intelligence agency, the KGB, when the Russian tanks rolled into Czechoslovakia in 1968 to quell a rising reform movement. With other factors, it pushed him into offering to spy for the British. The information he gave over the next 17 years had effects that rippled through many of the countries involved in the Cold War.
This is a gripping true story - I found it slow to start, with a lot of detail and many names to remember in the beginning, but from the half way point the pace steps right up. I think what astonished me most was how close the reality was to the novels of John Le Carré and similar writers of the time.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+ 5 Combo (20.9)
Post total: 25
Season total: 430
Rosemary wrote: "10.9 NFLA Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
...
Note: This book is listed as NP at Lexile.com but I think styles have been claimed for it in the past…?"
Correct. This is Lexile qualified and all styles will be counted.
20.9 ABCsA Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers
This is the second instalment in the charming and heartfelt ‘Monk and Robot’ series. This world (a small moon) has passed through disaster and learned some hard lessons about ‘doing the right thing’. These novels take place well after humans have implemented the lessons. Chambers has built a very optimistic vision of a post-disaster world which I can only wish we lived in. Sibling Dex is accompanying Robot on his quest, so this novel is kind of a road trip. I particularly enjoyed seeing their world through the eyes of Robot, who is a noticing sort and full of wonder and appreciation. 5*
20 task
10 review
10 combo 10.2, 20.10
_____
40
Running total: 405
I’ve just joined and this is my first attempt. Please let me know if I've done something incorrectly.20.1 Jemison
'Round Midnight by Laura McBride
+20 task (three of the main characters are a Black woman, a Filipino woman and a Mexican woman)
+5 combo (10.2 Octoberfest - USA)
+5 combo (10.5 Autumn Colors - Midnight)
+5 combo (10.9 NFL - Las Vegas)
+5 combo (20.9 ABC’s L M)
Task Total 40
Season Total 40
10.4 SeriesNona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
Major departure from the previous two books. Yes, it’s initially just as confusing as Gideon and Harrow, but aside from some characters that’s all this book has in common with the prior two. If all you want is sapphic space necromancers, you’re not going to find (much) of that here.
What you will find is a peak-pandemic book. The fear and loneliness and desperate love of early Covid hangs through this book - and even though the plot of it was planned pre-pandemic, I think at least some of the writing happens during. Maybe that’s why the first act of Alecto turned into it’s own novel.
And ooh, besides the BIG WARM EMOTIONS of this book, there’s so much other stuff going on… we get some rather huge reveals that were hinted strongly at earlier but are confirmed here. So much backstory, and oof. The stage is set for some pretty righteous fury… and possible forgiveness.
I don’t even want to spoiler some of my thoughts because I want to see where the fourth book takes us, but DAMN, JOHN.
+10 task
+5 20.10
+10 review
Task total = 25
Season total = 165
20.1 This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno
I was seeing this everywhere on social media, so chances were 50/50 that I’d hate it. I’m happy to say that not only did this not suck, it brought the scares. And more.
The synopsis makes it sound like this is about a haunted Alexa (here, an “Itza”) and that would be a really creepy setup for a horror book. But that’s not really what’s happening. In fact, by the end the entire book is open to a variety of interpretations. Was the condo cursed by the displaced former owner/bruja? Is the device possessed? Is it even worse - a cosmic infection in a family line? Or is it more mundane and the insanity of grief?
Whatever is “really” going on, there are some truly scary scenes and really awful ones. But also - this book packs a huge emotional punch. I felt bereft at the end, and then I read the afterword and cried a bit. This was written from a place of real pain, and love.
+20 task
+10 review
+20 combo 10.2, 10.9 (mostly Chicago), 20.2, 20.9
Task total = 50
Season total = 215
20.9 ABCsThe Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal
+20 task
+5 combo (10.2 Octoberfest - USA)
+5 combo (10.3 9, 10, 11, letters I, J, K)
+5 combo (10.9 NFL - Minnesota)
Task Total 35
Season Total 75
20.8 Soup's On! (Owlette's Task)Paradise of the Blind by Dương Thu Hương
(When the translator discusses how important food is in Vietnam in the introduction you just know you are going to get soup!)
"She had also made my favourite dish, a pork-filet soup with lily buds."
+20 Task
+10 Lost in Translation
+15 combo (10.2; 20.1; 20.10 - first published in 1988)
+5 oldies
Post Total = 50
Season Total = 300
10.2 OctoberfestTormented by Em Brown
This third book in this erotic romance trilogy is substantially better than the first two, but not enough to make it worth starting this series. Also, this book won't stand alone without the backstory from the first two books. By focusing on just the two main characters, the book was able to give them actual motivations and dialogue outside of the spicy scenes. I liked both the characters better at the end of this book than I had during either of the first two books.
The books also are chopped into short novella-length bits with abrupt endings, I guess as a way to sell what is essentially one book in cheaper installments instead of having people buy a full-length book. Moderately annoying, but not uncommon in this genre.
The author narrates the audiobook and does a better job than many author-narrators.
+10 Task (b. USA)
+15 Combo (10.4, 10.9 - San Francisco, 20.1)
+10 Review
Task total: 35
Grand total: 415
15.1 EotPHomegoing by Yaa Gyasi
+15 Dayton Literary Peace Prize Nominee for Fiction (2017)
Task Total 15
Season Total 90
20.9 - ABC'sStillwater Island by Gregg Olsen
+20 task
+10 combo - 10.2 - US, 10.4
Task total: 30
Grand total: 175
20.8 - Soup's OnForests, Fishing & Forgery by Tonya Kappes
+20 task - camp fire chili at the monthly campground get together
+15 combo - 10.2, - US, 10.3, 10.4
Task total: 35
Grand total: 225
20.8 - Soup's OnChristmas, Criminals, and Campers by Tonya Kappes
+20 task - camp fire chili at the monthly campground get together
+15 combo - 10.2, - US, 10.3, 10.4
Task total: 35
Grand total: 260
20.8 - Soup's OnMotorhomes, Maps, & Murder by Tonya Kappes
+20 task - camp fire chili at the monthly campground get together
+15 combo - 10.2, - US, 10.3, 10.4
Task total: 35
Grand total: 295
20.8 - Soup's OnCanyons, Caravans, & Cadavers by Tonya Kappes
+20 task - camp fire chili at the monthly campground get together
+15 combo - 10.2, - US, 10.3, 10.4
Task total: 35
Grand total: 330
20.9 - ABS'sFalse Witness by Karin Slaughter
+20 task
+10 combos - 10.2 - US, 10.3
Task total: 30
Grand total: 360
20.7 CervantesOffering to the Storm by Dolores Redondo
+20 task
+15 Combo 10.4, 20.8 (fish soup), 20.9
+10 Lost in Translation
Post total: 45
Season total: 405
15.7 EoTPR 1983 - 1992
1991 Bram Stoker Award
Boy's Life by Robert McCammon
+15 pts - Task
+ 5 pts - oldies
+ 5 pts - 625 pages
Task Total - 25 pts
20.9 author's initials appear in alphabetical orderDragonsong by Anne McCaffrey (Lexile Score is 950)
An uncomplicated coming of age story, mini-dragons (called fire lizards), their kin, the large dominant dragons. All proved to be just what I needed, for myself and quite a few of the challenges I am doing. So, all in all, a winner for me.
This is the start of a sub-series of McCaffery's Dragonriders of Pern series. However, the "how-to-read" list I am following indicates this book was the next I should I read, followed by the rest of this trilogy. Worked for me as I learned more about the Harpers (think bards) of the Halls of Pern and the Seaholder group of Pern. Our protagonist Mellony is dedicated to an older Harper in their Hold and longs to become a Harper. Unfortunate, that in this world, women are not allowed to be Harpers.
Very enjoyable
+20 Task
+5 oldies (1977)
+10 Combos (10.2, 10.3)
+10 Review
Task Total 45
Season Total 390
10.2 Octoberfest Take Out by Margaret Maron
Review: I never intentionally start a series halfway through. Always with book 1, even if they don't need to be read in order. This book popped up on some reading list somewhere, I decided I wanted a paperback read and voila, in I dove. Considering I broke my hard and fast rule, it didn't bother me overly much. There are lots of mention to the detective's late husband but it wasn't so central that I felt I missed out.
Take Out lands somewhere between your typical mystery and a cozy mystery. The book wasn't bad but wasn't amazing. The writing is solid, the plot makes sense, the characters well developed but it was missing the spark that would have elevated it to great. It was short and I was intrigued enough to finish it but any longer I probably would have let it go incomplete.
+10 Task - Author born is US
+5 Combo 10.4 Series - book 10
+5 Combo NFL - set in NYC
+10 Review
Task Total: 30 pts
Grand Total: 235 pts
10.1- TBR Sitting on my TBR since April 2014
My Man Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse
Task : 10
Oldies: 10(first published in 1919)
Post total : 20
Season total: 120
15.1 - EOTPR Winner of Pulitzer Prize in 1981
A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
Task : 15
First published in 1994 - 5 points
Post total : 20
Season total: 140
20.1 JemisinKehinde Wiley: A New Republic by Eugenie Tsai
20 pts 20.1 Jemisin
Task Total: 20 pts
Season Total: 20 pts
… … … … … … … … … …
20.1 … … … … … … … … …
… … … … … … … … … …
10.2 - Oktoberfest Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Author born in Mexico
Task : 10
Post total: 10
Season total : 150
Post 245 Tawallah wrote: "15.1 - EOTPR Winner of Pulitzer Prize in 1981
A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
Task : 15
First published in 1994 - 5 points
Post total : 20
Season tot..."
I'm sorry, Tawallah, the Pulitzer Prize is not one of those that qualify for EotPR. However, this book was a nominee for the PEN/Faulkner in 1981. I hope you can use it there and adjust your plan accordingly. Let us know if you want to claim this book for other than the PEN/Faulkner.
15.7 - EOTPR2016 Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize (US, women authors)
As Close to Us as Breathing. Elizabeth Poliner
Task Total: 15
Total: 15
Season Total: 450
10.2; 10.3; 10.4; 10.9
15.1; 15.2; 15.3; 15.4; 15.5; 15.6; 15.7
20.2; 20.3; 20.6; 20.8; 20.10;
10.2 OctoberfestThe Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
Born in the US
+10 task
+ 20 combo (10.3; 10.9 - New York and Los Angeles; 20.6; 20.10 - first published in 2005)
Post Total = 30
Season Total = 330
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Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout
"Like many others, I did not see it coming.
But William is a scientist, and he saw it coming; he saw it sooner than I did, is what I mean."
It was March in the early days of the pandemic, and Lucy's ex-husband takes her up to Maine to escape the threat of infection in New York City. William has rented a home on Maine's rocky coast. It was lockdown for them, punctuated with walks along the shore. Lucy and William had a complicated history, both together and apart. Now they were together 24/7, and their past connection helped them get through the stress of the pandemic and their worries about their daughters' health and marriages.
"Almost always, there was that sense of being underwater; of things not being real."
Much of the book takes place in Lucy's thoughts, and her insecurities from her damaged childhood are still with her. Lucy's voice is conversational, and the reader feels like they are with an empathetic old friend. Lucy is especially kind to people who are experiencing poverty or living alone, such as a woman she meets while volunteering at the food pantry.
This is a thoughtful novel about relationships, resilience, and understanding other people in challenging times. Author Elizabeth Strout has voiced the fears and insecurities we all felt during the pandemic's first year.
+20 task
+20 combo 10.2 Octoberfest (USA); 10.4 Series (Amgash #4); 10.9 NFL! (Maine in New England); 20.9 ABCs
+10 review
Task total: 50
Season total: 320