Well a good week again. Again I went into the city one day during the week and we crossed the harbour on the ferry – went for a bush walk and then a swim. The weather wasn’t as warm as last week but still okay. I would hate though to travel into the city every morning in that traffic and I was only hitting the tail end. This week I plan to see the movie Little Women before it totally disappears from theatres. Just takes me awhile to do these things!
What I read last week:
What I am reading now:
I read very few cozy mysteries but Katherine over at I wish I Lived in a Library, reviewed the most recent one in the series and I decided why not give it a go. I’ll hopefully read through the series all going well!
I am about to start listening to…
Up next:
Decisions! Decisions! As I stand in front of my TBR shelf. Ignoring my Kindle! I think I’ll read
Last Week’s Posts
An unusual book, it tells the story of Tom an Australian farmer and his love for Hannah and Peter. Hannah has suffered and lost so much and her story of Auschwitz is heartbreaking. Tom too is not a stranger to sadness yet he is extraordinary in his quiet way. I loved his way with people and animals and his ability to work and craft beautiful bookshelves. I really enjoyed the Australian flavour to this book. I laughed aloud at some of the recognised colloquilisms. Hannah is a difficult character, but she has been through so much, her struggle understandable. I liked her determination to gather and sell books to make up for the many destroyed by the Nazis. My heart went out to Peter, so young and yet so much heartbreak for him. It had a lot more appeal for me than I thought it would.
I listened to this one on audiobook and I found that at times I had to push myself to pick it up to listen to. I may have liked this a lot more if I’d just read it. Nina works in a book shop, is a total book nerd, loves her cat and is a trivia expert. She has never known her Dad, but when he dies she finds out she has lots of family -some lovely some not. There is also a little romance and Nina finds herself wondering is it better to be alone or is it better to be alone with someone who loves her as she is.
This one is a true bookish book. It is about a bookshop and the people who own it and work in it. It has lots of bookish talk and yet its about so much more. It’s about relationships and what makes them, its about valuing and loving people in spite of what might appear on the surface. We often judge, but are we making that up in our heads, is it really what’s happening? I loved the explorations and paths this book took me down. Its definitely one for my keeper shelf.
The Ten Thousand Doors of January is not immediately bookish, but it is still about the power of story and words and captures much of the magic of books. It is fantasy but often feels very real. January the young heroine of the book loves to read and write. There are doors that lead into other worlds, and there are those who want to lock them up tight and keep the world safe and to their order and power. Safety at the cost of freedom and choice. January stands at the centre, she is key. Magic, time travel, a coming of age story. It’s thought provoking. The characters, especially January and Sam and Bad really appeal. Maybe not for everyone but I am pleased I gave this one a chance. If you want to know a little more read this 
The Book Charmer has a small town approach with a librarian – Sarah who often has books that “talk” to her and she gives books to people because she “knows” they need them. And most often she is proved right. Grace turns up in town and Sarah knows that Grace is destined to stay in the town but Grace is not inclined. It was a good read although I didn’t entirely warm to it. However other readers I follow did award it 5 stars so it could have just been me. I gave it a solid three stars.
Back in 1994 it all began for me. I was teaching and I can’t remember how I chose this book, but I did. On the staff another teacher was hooked too and we often talked about that Scottish Highlander Jamie. It’s time travel at its very best.
The Troubleshooters is fast paced romantic suspense. The characters carry on from book to book, with one character mostly to the forefront. There are about seventeen main books in this series – I have them all. I want to do a reread at some point. Navy seals – what’s not to like!
Once I was stymied what to read. Nothing satisfied me. I’d read a little online about Virgin River and I thought well I’ll take a chance. This was pre-Kindle days. So I bought a second hand copy I think on the Thriftbooks website. The rest is history. I was hooked and ever after that I bought every one that came out. Mostly via Amazon I think
The Pay/Changeling series I was slow to take up. I read others comments on the SEP board and was semi tempted. I thought it would be too hot for me. I saw a copy of one of the books in a staff members bag and I asked her about the series. She lent me some of the first ones.
I like all things royal and this one sounds interesting. Of course we are still with the British monarchy here and so I’ve been interested since early times. Our magazines always carry something royal! I heard a review of this book on the radio.
I love all things Obama too! How come I just haven’t read this one yet. I have it in hardback and audio form. I need to get onto it!
This is a memoir and while I haven’t really read much of Pat Conroy’s books I thought I’d give this a go. The title draws me in. At the same time I also bought the memoir by his wife.
Nancy Zieman had a quilting TV show for years. I didn’t see them but have seen some of her videos on You Tube. She strikes me as a very gutsy woman who overcame challenges. She died far too young but I think left a huge amount of inspiration.
