The last few months have been a bit of a blur for me. I’ve spent a lot of time away from home and when I have been back it is chaos because we’re having a lot of work done on our house. We’ve basically knocked down all the internal walls and restructured everything. This means I’ve been without electricity (and a kitchen or anywhere to sit!) a lot of the time and so I’ve found it difficult to blog. The end is now in sight, so hopefully things will get back to normal soon. Reading has also been at a slower pace, but I’m sure it will pick up again once the dust has settled!

Book of the Month: The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

Vivid story about a family trying to survive in the swamps of Florida. It beautifully describes an almost forgotten way of life and should be more widely known. Read it!

Books Reviewed in August/September:

The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings 

Flight of Passage by Rinker Buck 

Nine Parts of Desire by Geraldine Brooks 

H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald 

Fourth of July Creek by Smith Henderson 

The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton 

Confessions of a Ghostwriter by Andrew Crofts 

The Rabbit Back Literature Society by Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen 

Chocolat by Joanne Harris 

Plans for October

I’ve read (or tried to read) all the books currently in my sidebar so will be reviewing them when I get the chance. I’m afraid I haven’t got any other reading plans at the moment – I’m just going to grab whatever takes my fancy!

I hope you have a great month!

Sea Creatures by Susanna Daniel

Five words from the blurb: Miami, domestic, drama, scandal, disappointment

I bought this book to read in Florida, but unfortunately being in this book’s setting didn’t add to its appeal. The writing was nothing special and the characters were so ordinary/flat that I didn’t care about them. Recommended to those who enjoy relationship based reads of a lighter nature.

DNF

Nine Parts of Desire by Geraldine Brooks

Five words from the blurb: women, Middle East, veils, research, intimate

Fascinating insight into the lives of women living in the Middle East. Much of this book feels dated, but I learnt so much that this didn’t matter. Recommended to anyone who’d like to learn more about Islamic women.

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Fourth of July Creek by Smith Henderson

Five words from the blurb: social worker, American, wilderness, family, conflicts

I loved the first half of the book in which we see a social worker performing his difficult, but rewarding work. The writing was outstanding – Henderson has the rare ability to make even the simplest scenes spring to life. Unfortunately I lost interest towards the end. It became more of a police procedural thriller and much of the initial intimacy was lost. Recommended to anyone who appreciates good writing.

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Orfeo by Richard Powers

Five words from the blurb: music, research, police, hysteria, audience

Fantastic writing and wonderfully original concept, but as I’m not very knowledgeable about music I felt that much of the wisdom of this book went over my head. If you’re a fan of music, particularly classical, then you’ll love this.

DNF

Sorry for the extended blogging break – I’ve been too busy enjoying myself on holiday in Florida! We packed a lot in to our time there – visiting the theme parks, enjoying the wildlife and cooling down in the water parks. My highlight of the trip was snorkelling with manatees in Crystal River, but the boys preferred stroking the dolphins at Discovery Cove. We all agreed that the Harry Potter sections of Universal stood out above all the other theme parks and I especially recommend the new ‘Escape from Gringotts’ ride in Hogsmead.

Another highlight of the trip was meeting Sandy. We started our blogs within weeks of each other, way back in 2008, and have been blogging friends ever since. It was great to finally meet her in person.

I didn’t read much on holiday, but The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings is the perfect book to read in Florida and I’ll tell you all about how fantastic it is soon.

I hope you’ve had a wonderful August!

Red Leaves by Thomas H Cook

Five words from the blurb: son, suspect, murder, brother, family

This reads like a watered down version of We Need to Talk About Kevin. It reminded me The Good Father by Noah Hawley and numerous other books that have tried to copy Lionel Shriver’s outstanding novel. Recommended to those who are too disturbed by Shriver’s powerful writing and would like to approach the subject in a lighter way.

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Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl

Five words from the blurb: Holocaust, survivor, hope, life, human

Powerful book about how man can find hope in even the darkest of places. Written by a man who survived Auschwitz, this is a poignant reminder of the strength of the human spirit. Disturbing in places, but positive overall. Recommended.

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The Sunne In Splendour by Sharon Penman

Five words from the blurb: Richard, loyalties, royal, battle, betrayed

I went to see the fabulous re-enactment of the Battle of Tewkesbury a few weeks ago, but because I knew nothing about the battle I decided to do a little research before going. I discovered this book contained the details and so bought a copy. It started really well, but the number of characters ballooned (to 50+?) and because I don’t know my history very well I found it impossible to keep up. If you love your historical fiction then this is for you, but I’m afraid I didn’t have the interest required to complete all 1000+ pages. I highly recommend going to The Battle of Tewkesbury though! 

DNF