This month, I finished 11 books. A total of 3,691 pages. An average of 119 pages a day. I have a feeling I’m going to crush my
Goodreads challenge. I might even need
to up it. But we'll see. But let’s get on to what I read.
Don’t Get Arrested in South Carolina by
J.B. Simms (250 pages). Popsicle handed
this book off to me after he finished it.
He said I’d find it interesting because I would know most of the players
involved (which I did). He also said it
was one of the most poorly written books he’d ever read (again, he was
correct). In 2000, Dr Harry Sunshine, a
pediatric dentist in Columbia, was killed by a hit and run driver while he was
riding his bicycle very early one morning.
JB Simms was the private investigator for the defense. Or rather, for one of the defendants. And what he found was a little frightening-
that the couple charged with the crime were innocent and had been set up to take
the fall for the real criminals. The
facts are pretty strong for his case. If
that’s true, then shame on everyone involved.
Because that means innocent people went to jail. If it’s not true, it’s quite a conspiracy
theory. I finished in 4 days.
City of Girls by
Elizabeth Gilbert (671 pages). So I accidently
purchased the large print addition.
While my eyes appreciated it (ugh, I’m getting old), it made for a LONG
book. But it was a great book! In 1940, 19 year old Vivian Morris arrives in
New York City. She’s been expelled from
Vassar, so her parents send her to live with her aunt. But her Aunt Peg is eccentric and fun. She owns a slightly rundown theatre with a slightly
motley crew. And Vivian’s world gets
turned upside down. Showgirls, playboys
and bad decisions fill her life. Until
one huge scandal almost destroys it.
When Vivian finally figures out the life that she wants rather than the
life that she’s been told she should have, she finally achieves success and
satisfaction. And finds the love of her
life. The novel is a letter from Vivian
at age 89, reflecting on her life and her choices. I finished in 3 days.
Invitation to the
Classics edited by Louise Cowan and Os Guinness (365 days). Popsicle got me this book as well. The contributors are all Christians (many of
them professors at Dad’s alma mater of Wheaton College) and they examine classics
(over 50 of them discussed) with an eye to who the author is, why it is
considered a classic and what can be taken away from a reading. Many of them I’d read, a few of them I’d
never heard of. Certainly not a page
turner (2-3 columns per page makes for a tough read), but a very good reference
point for classic literature. I finished
in 7 days.
The Most Beautiful Woman
in Florence by Alyssa Palombo (296 pages).
Yes, historical fiction!
Simonetta Cattaneo was 16 years old when she married Marco Vespucci
(cousin to Amerigo) and moved with him to Florence. Florence of 1469 was a Renaissance city- full
of art and music and poetry, thanks to the patronage of the infamous
Medicis. Marco is close to the Medicis
and Simonetta, with her beauty and love of the arts, is immediately swept into
their inner circle. But of all the politicians
and artists she meets, the one who intrigues her the most is Sandro
Botticelli. Simonetta quickly becomes
his muse (and allegedly the inspiration and model for one of his most famous
works, The Birth of Venus). While Simonetta
only lives to 22, succumbing to tuberculosis, her beauty lives on. I finished in a day.
The Last Piece by
Imogen Clark (305 pages). This was my
Book Club Box book. One Monday morning,
66 year old Cecily, matriarch of the Nightingale family, up and goes to a Greek
island. With no explanation to anyone
but her husband. Daughters Felicity,
Lily and Julia are completely at a loss.
Felicity relies on Cecily for childcare for her one child; Lily relies
on Cecily to keep her sane as she cares for her own brood of 5 sons; and Julia,
well Julia is unfulfilled with her life.
But Cecily got an invitation to go to Greece. And she will return with the culmination of a
story 50 years in the making. It was a
great chick lit book. And the gifts were
perfect. The only thing I found a little
weird was that the Greek portion took place at Hotel Aphrodite, which just made
me picture Mamma Mia. I finished in a
day.
Everything Everything
by Nicola Yoon (306 pages). Madeline Whittier
is 17 years old. And has never been out
of her house. She has Severe Combined
Immunodeficiency Disease, which means she is allergic to literally everything. But when new neighbors move in next door,
Maddy’s world is completely rocked by the appearance of Olly, the teenaged
son. And Maddy begins to wonder if life
is worth living if you aren’t really living.
The chapters were short and easy to read. And the story was sweet. I finished in 3 days.
The Little Shop of
Found Things by Paula Brackston (386 pages). From a young age, Xanthe Westlake has found
that antiques speak to her- literally, they sing to her until she learns their
story. When Xanthe and her mother leave London
and purchase a small antique shop in a small town, Xanthe finds herself drawn to
a Victorian chatelaine. And the
chatelaine itself draws her back in time to the seventeenth century. She quickly learns she must correct an injustice
or else the spirit inhabiting the antique shop will harm her mother. While back in the 1600’s, Xanthe must rely on
a new acquaintance, an acquaintance who makes her question returning to her own
time. I really liked this one and immediately
put the other books in the series on my list.
I finished in a day.
Tru & Nelle by G. Neri (323 pages). This was more of a children’s book. But enjoyable nonetheless. Truman Capote and Nelle Harper Lee became
best friends when he moved in with his family right next door to her. As children, they had adventures and stories
galore. This was loosely based on some
of those adventures and woven into one great story. Tru and Nelle’s friendship has always
intrigued me- two phenomenal writers growing up next to each other in a very
small town in Alabama? What are the
odds? This book was very sweet and wholesome. I finished in a day.
The Engineer’s Wife
by Tracey Emerson Wood (335 pages).
Historical fiction again. Y’all
know it’s my jam! Emily Warren met
Washington Roebling when he was her brother’s aide de camp during the Civil
War. A whirlwind romance quickly led to marriage. Emily learned that Wash’s family business was
building bridges. And he and his father
have the ultimate goal- the Brooklyn Bridge.
When Emily and Wash moved to Brooklyn to begin the project, Emily filled
her days with caring for their son, befriending PT Barnum, marching as a
suffragette, and helping out in her husband’s office. But when Wash develops an extreme case of
caisson disease and is unable to complete the project, Emily must step up and
become the lead engineer on the project.
It wasn’t easy for her- she was a woman in a man’s world and didn’t have
the necessary qualifications (although she certainly had the on the job
training). After complete of the bridge,
Emily went on to law school (unheard of at that time) and continued her
suffragette work. I’ve never one given
any thought to who designed and built the Brooklyn Bridge. But never would I have imagined how large a
role a woman would have had in its completion.
Fortunately, Emily’s name is listed with her husband and father-in-law’s
on the plaque on the bridge. I finished
in 6 days.
The Sound of Things Falling by Juan Gabriel Vasquez (298
pages). When Pablo Escobar was killed in
1993, he left behind a legacy of unrest in his native Colombia. He also left behind 4 hippopotamuses, among
other animals. Those hippos eventually escaped
his derelict zoo and began procreating. This
novel begins with lawyer Antonio Yammara reading about the death of one of
those hippos. And the memories that it
brings up. Namely, the death of his
friend Ricardo Laverde. Antonio wants to
learn why his friend was killed and so begins a journey to learn the truth
about his friend. I didn’t enjoy this
book too much. I finished in 5 days.
The Bookshop by
Penelope Fitzgerald (198 pages). In
1959, widowed Florence Green decides to invest her inheritance in something she
feels her little town needs- a bookshop.
But after she buys the Old House and converts it to a little
bookshop/lending library, she soon learns that just because YOU want a bookshop
doesn’t mean your town does. This book
was turned into a movie, which I haven’t seen.
If the movie is as unenjoyable as the book, that would explain why I’ve
never even heard of it. I finished in 2
days.
This month’s favorite was……The Engineer’s Wife. Historical
fiction for the win darn near every time.
City of Girls came in a very
close second though.
