But wait, there's more...

The next batch of books is when I was still stuck on the couch, but had my wonderful mother staying with me. One of the best books in this batch was recommended by her. I will start with that book as I know some of you don't read the whole blog!

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett.

This was a wonderful epic story to get lost in. Fascinating story of science, mythical tales and adventure - and beautifully written. Other Ann Patchett stories that I have read and loved include Bel Canto (brilliant) and Run (good, but not as good as Bel Canto). I really enjoyed State of Wonder  - 4 ****.

The next books in this instalment, were  / are all very popular but they didn't resonate with me - not sure whether because I wasn't in the mood (due to injury etc) or they just weren't for me.

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion.

This was a very sweet, romantic story and I know others (K Buckley I'm looking at you) who have loved this book so please read it and judge it for yourself. My rating - 2/12 **+ stars.

Five Days by Douglas Kennedy

I have read other Douglas Kennedy books that I really liked (The Moment) and others that left me feeling disappointed (The Women in the Fifth). Sadly this one falls in the latter category and I'm not sure I will rush to read another one of his novels. Only 2** stars for me.

The hand that first held mine by Maggie O'Farrell.

To be perfectly honest, I had to go and reread bits of the book to remind myself what this one was about. Written by the same author as 'The vanishing act of Esme Lennox' (which I loved), this one did not grab me and I didn't love the women depicted in it and obviously my brain has completely wiped out any knowledge of the book! Once again, only 2** stars for me.

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton.

Kate Morton writes consistently good, easy reading novels. I have really enjoyed all her books that I have read - The Distant Hours, The House at Riverton and The Forgotten Garden (follow the link to see my earlier review). They are not challenging to read and have a lovely old-fashioned quality to them. 31/2 stars - ***+.

Lastly, Looking for Alaska by John Green

Ok probably not the best one to read when you are feeling emotionally frail but beautifully written. John Green also wrote The fault in our stars which I reviewed earlier. These books are supposedly aimed at teenagers but I found them very intense and sad but once again it could just have been in the emotional state I was in at the time. I also found it hard to believe that young adults would actually talk they did in the book - intrigued? Maybe you should try reading it and let me know what you think. 3 *** stars for me.

The next instalment I definitely steered away from anything deep or sad, so if you like your books light and easy to digest, please check in again soon.

The Woman in the Fifth

In my newly found appreciation for the local library (cost cutting tip #1 for me) - I am reading all sorts of not so new releases.

First cab off the ranks was Douglas Kennedy's 'The Woman in the Fifth'. You may remember me reviewing The Moment (here on the blog) a few months ago and raving about his book. So it was with a high level of expectation that I took The Woman in the Fifth home from the library.

Harry Ricks is a man who has lost everything. A romantic mistake at the small American college where he used to teach has cost him his job and his marriage. And when the ensuing scandal threatens to completely destroy him, he flees to Paris. He arrives in the French captial in the bleak midwinter, and ends up having to work as a night guard to make ends meet. Then Margit, a beautiful, mysterious stranger, walks into his life. But their passionate and intense relationship triggers a string of inexplicable events, and soon Harry finds himself in a nightmare from which there is no easy escape.


I really like Douglas Kennedy's writing - its easy, unpretentious and yet tells an exciting page turning story. This book has all these hallmarks and was easily read in a couple of page-turning nights.


However, about 9/10ths of the way through the book, I was horribly let down. Unfortunately I can't divulge too much because a) it may inadvertently turn you off the book or b) completely ruin the gripping finale. What I will say is that I was very unhappy with where the book went and I'd REALLY love to hear if anyone else has read the book and felt the same way.


I will now hunt down another Douglas Kennedy book (there appears to be quite a few) and see if any of them can live up to The Moment for me.

The Travel bug

Yes I know its been ages.

I haven't been feeling like writing for a while now as I've been sad. When I'm sad I'm not very good at writing (unless you all want to hear my morbid thoughts), running, cooking, sleeping or parenting - so its been an interesting few weeks but I'm beginning to feel the sun on my face and the joy of the simple things again.

So this post (and probably the next couple too!) are a retrospective look at some of the books I've read since October....

When we returned from our amazing trip to Africa I had been inspired by this lovely lady, Sue - we met on a sunset cruise on the Zambezi (as you do) - who told me that she was a travel writer and was writing a piece on travelling through Zambia and Botswana with her mother. Well - of course that seemed like a dream job and anyone who knows me, knows that I love a new career idea and I went into full research mode as soon as we came back to Australia.

Two books were recommended to me - firstly, Lonely Planet's guide to travel writing (recommended by Sue when I stalked her via email) and secondly, Travel Writing 2.0 - Earning money from your travels in the new media landscape by Tim Leffel (which was highly recommended by Book Depository).

Lonely Planet's guide to travel writing is a fantastic read about how to go about the business of travel writing, the styles to adopt, what to avoid and many, many useful tips.

Travel writing 2.0 on the other hand was a practical look at the realities of the 'business' of travel writing and promptly brought my idea crashing back to earth. It is a very difficult, competitive business with only a handful of writers around the world truly making a decent living out of it (my new friend Sue being one of them).

The realities of my life are of course that we are very settled in our home town, husband's business is here (and without which we couldn't travel!) and most importantly our children are settled here.

Instead I will indulge my love of travel and adventure sporadically. I just no longer expect to make any money out of the venture!

I do have lots of lovely ideas for places to visit in South Africa with children, so please don't hesitate to pick my brain....

Apologies

I'm so sorry I haven't written for so long - I just haven't been inspired of late. I've been reading lots of books lately,but unfortunately they have been mostly (ok, all) trashy novels picked up at the surf shop on our summer holiday.  I am now truly out of books to read and am waiting for my new arrivals from book depository that I will review as soon as I get them (will have to keep you in suspense until then).

There was one book of note during the whole of January though - Kate Atkinson's 'Started Early, Took My Dog'. This was given to me by a very brave friend for my birthday - I had seen it in the shops and it had been recommended by the book shop, but I hadn't got around to getting myself a copy.

The book was ok - I'm sorry Kate, but I didn't love it - I enjoyed it and it certainly ticked all the boxes for a good holiday read, but it didn't tick all my boxes.

The book is essentially a detective story with a few twists. There were lots of interesting side stories within the story (such as cases of child disappearances and the detective work required to try and find them), but none of these issues were further explored. I didn't find the main detective story to be gripping or madly interesting. The main character was a man that I didn't really connect with or feel much empathy towards. I really wanted to love this book, but it just wasn't what I thought it would be and was a bit disappointed.

I do still love getting books as presents though!!!! You just never know what you might discover....

The Shifting Fog

Summer is upon us here in Australia (41C for new year's eve!). So, what better time to lie around and read - any excuse I say!

I have just finished Kate Morton's The Shifting Fog. It took longer than it should of but only because I was constantly interrupted by mince pies, gin & tonics, pavlovas and children - perfect holiday mix.

The Shifting Fog was a lovely read. It ambled along with just the right amount of suspense, intrigue and romance. It was beautifully written and was basically just a very pleasant read that I would definitely recommend, especially to those with a touch of romance in their souls.

Summer 1924: on the eve of a glittering Society party, by the lake of a grand English country house, a young poet takes his life. The only witnesses, sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford, will never speak to each other again. Winter 1999: Grace Bradley, 98, one-time house-maid of Riverton Manor, is visited by a young director making a film about the poet's suicide. Ghosts awaken and memories, long consigned to the dark reaches of Grace's mind, begin to sneak back through the cracks. A shocking secret threatens to emerge; something history has forgotten but Grace never could. Set as the war-shattered Edwardian summer surrenders to the decadent twenties, The Shifting Fog is a thrilling mystery and a compelling love story.

Kate Morton is an Australian author (she was born in South Australia in fact) and is one of those horrible people who are beautiful and young (born in 1976), have a wonderful talent (writing) and are raising children to boot! Yes, jealousy is a curse...

I look forward to reading some of Kate Morton's other books now too. The Shifting Fog was her first published book back in 2006. The Distant Hours is next on my list of her books, but only once it is released in paperback - very hard to hold a heavy book up whilst drinking aforementioned gin & tonics and pretending to watch the children practise their bombing in the pool!

Now I have NOTHING to read - quelle horreur!!! I am currently forced to read trashy magazines which will do very nicely for a week but then I will definitely need something more substantial. Any recommendations???

Tinkers

Tinkers by Paul Harding is the story of two "tinkers" - George, the son, who "tinkers" with clocks. And his father Howard, who is an itinerant tinker, leaving each morning from home with his horse and wagon, and returning each night from his futile attempts to make a living. 

The story is well-told, moving back and forth between George, who is dying in a hospital bed in his living room, and Howard, an epileptic, who tries to keep his infirmity from his children (although I have to admit I did get a bit confused at times as to which character was being discussed, but this was due to my need to rush through the book without slowing down to allow the book to unfold as it should).

The book is full of wonderful language (each word is critical to create a scene or feeling), although at times I found myself skimming through the description and musings and descriptions of epileptic seizures to get to "what happens next." Despite the sometimes tedious language and descriptions of types of clocks, I found myself moved by the two stories. 


This book was full of smells, nature, beauty and death. Three generations of men experiencing confusion and amusement are fused together with words of nature, grief and soul. There are probably depths I couldn't actually grasp or understand, as it was hard for my brain to consistently concentrate on the story and descriptive narrative. 


Despite the hard-going nature of the read I can still appreciate that the book is wonderful. I wouldn't normally choose this sort of writing as I don't have the patience for it. But this is a book to be read slowly, take the time to absorb the poetry and use of the words, savour the images created and allow the book to take you on a journey.


Winner of the Pulitzer Prize 2010, this is not an easy read (thinking of death is never easy), but is a beautiful book that felt more like a long, very descriptive and unusual poem. 

Finally!

Most of you have probably already read this book, but I have to admit that this book took me two attempts to complete. The first time I started to read it, I didn't give the first couple of chapters enough of my attention and by the third, I had no idea who was who, why there were so many 'Thomas's and generally had lost the plot (literally).

The book was put down and forgotten.

But then, I kept hearing from all my well read friends how much they had LOVED the book and they all seemed to have found it fascinating and brilliant and it also won the Man Booker prize 2009! I was obviously missing something....

The book was relaunched in the last couple of weeks and, what with Christmas shopping, pretending to work and kids finishing school, I have only just finished it!

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel is a truly epic story.

England, the 1520s. Henry VIII is on the throne, but has no heir. Cardinal Wolsey is his chief advisor, charged with securing the divorce the pope refuses to grant. Into this atmosphere of distrust and need comes Thomas Cromwell, first as Wolsey's clerk, and later his successor. Cromwell is a wholly original man: the son of a brutal blacksmith, a political genius, a briber, a charmer, a bully, a man with a delicate and deadly expertise in manipulating people and events. Ruthless in pursuit of his own interests, he is as ambitious in his wider politics as he is for himself. His reforming agenda is carried out in the grip of a self-interested parliament and a king who fluctuates between romantic passions and murderous rages.


I'm really glad I persevered with the book and did end up really enjoying it. It reminds me a lot of 'The Other Boleyn Girl' by Phillipa Gregory - which I found a much lighter read but still historically fascinating.

Apparently, now I need to watch 'The Tudors' and my history lesson will be almost complete.

Sarah's Key

Another book that I can highly recommend. I loved this book (right up until the end, but I'll get to that) - it was a great page turner and an easy read on a topic that still haunts and fascinates me - the holocaust.

Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay is the story about two women Sarah and Julia separated by sixty years. Sarah's story is based in Paris 1942 during the war - her story is compelling, horrifying, fascinating and haunting (I felt drained through each of her chapters, but couldn't stop reading). Her story is interwoven with Julia's story also based in Paris but 60 years later. Julia's story is much lighter and easier to read but I was disappointed in the ending of her story and its predictability and unlikeliness (I won't spoil the book for you).

"Paris, July 1942. Sarah, a ten-year old girl, is taken with her parents by the French police as they go door to door arresting Jewish families in the middle of the night. Desperate to protect her younger brother, Sarah locks him in a bedroom cupboard - their secret hiding place - and promises to come back for him as soon as they are released.


Sixty years later, Sarah's story intertwines with that of Julia Jarmond, a journalist investigating the round-up. Sarah's Key is an emotionally gripping story of two families, forever linked to, and haunted by, one of the darkest days in France's past."


Although it was hard to read (bit reminiscent of 'Boy with the striped pyjamas' type of angst) it was a fascinating story of an event I knew nothing about - the great Velodrome d'Hiver round-up that took place on 16 July 1942, in the heart of Paris. The story highlighted the evilness of the human race along with extraordinary braveness, kindness and compassion. It still terrifies me that something this awful could have occurred only 70 years ago - and the people were capable of inflicting such misery on people just like themselves and more frighteningly, on children.


Julia's story was welcome relief between the chapters of Sarah's story  - a bit of a detective, drama and love story - but they didn't grip me in the same way and I felt really let down by the end of her story - I'm not sure what I expected but it was a bit too predictable and saccharine after the emotional roller-coaster of the rest of the book.


My better half tells me (and I've confirmed through the trusty internet) that they have already made a movie of this book and Kristin Scott Thomas plays Julia and Melusine Mayance plays Sarah. All the reviews I have read say the movie has stayed quite true to the book - which makes me wonder whether I could watch Sarah's story without dissolving into a mess of tears.

I do recommend you read this book as I thought it was brilliant and fascinating and its a story that we should not forget. "Sakhor, Al Tichkah. Remember. Never forget. In Hebrew."

The Sisters Antipodes

An Australian book, written by Jane Alison, The Sisters Antipodes recounts Jane's story of her childhood. When she was young and living in Canberra, her family met another that seemed like its mirror: a father in the Foreign Service, a beautiful mother, and two little girls, the younger two - one of them Jane - sharing a birthday. With so much in common, the two families became almost instantly inseparable. Within months, affairs had ignited between the adults, and before long the pairs had exchanged partners, divorced, remarried, and moved on.


I found many of the themes in the book really resonated with me - the difficulties Jane encountered moving schools multiple times and trying to develop a self (and self esteem) through bad choices in her teenage years. I felt that reading the book made me a bit too introspective and I felt on occasion that I was hosting my own 'pity party'. My growing up was nothing compared to this Jane's, but it brought back many memories that serve no purpose in dwelling on!


I think the story itself is fascinating, especially how all the individuals coped so differently. However, I kept waiting for something to happen. Once the split had occurred, it seemed to dwell on this and the mirrored lives for much of the novel. I realise that is what the book was meant to be about, but I kept expecting more.


Overall I found the book interesting but a bit depressing and non-eventful. Once again I may be tainting the book with my own childhood experiences and views, so would, as always, be interested to hear your views.

A Gate at the Stairs

I've had a bad week. We were broken into and robbed again. This time during the night while we slept. Its an awful disturbing and frightening feeling - and also has made me feel a bit down and angry. Fortunately no-one was hurt and nothing of significant value was taken but it has left a bad taste in my mouth (and resulted in very light sleep!).

The events of the week coincided with me starting A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore. I often wonder about how much your mood or current situation impacts on your experience of a book (or movie or event) - do you think this too?

I found the book odd, maudlin, depressing and unsatisfying whilst admittedly beautifully written - the book was however, shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction 2010 and also voted by the New York Times Book Review as Book of the Year - so what would I know!

With America quietly gearing up for war in the Middle East, twenty-year-old Tassie Keltjin, a 'half-Jewish' farmer's daughter from the plains of the Midwest, has come to university - escaping her provincial home to encounter the complex world of culture and politics. When she takes a job as a part-time nanny to a couple who seem at once mysterious and glamorous, Tassie is drawn into the life of their newly-adopted child and increasingly complicated household. As her past becomes increasingly alien to her - her parents seem older when she visits; her disillusioned brother ever more fixed on joining the military - Tassie finds herself becoming a stranger to herself. As the year unfolds, love leads her to new and formative experiences - but it is then that the past and the future burst forth in dramatic and shocking ways.


The story is narrated by twenty year old Tassie which I found difficult to believe. The language and thoughts used by Tassie just seem to me far too mature, intelligent and philosophical to make me really feel like she was truly a twenty year old and I found this an enormous distraction to me while trying to follow her story. Perhaps, this is once again a reflection of my shallowness, lack of intelligence and education at the age of twenty - I'm pretty sure I was just at university, drinking at the pub and hanging out with friends! Perhaps I am just being cynical and there really are twenty year olds that think and speak like this, I just don't know any.....


I found the story a bit weird and as I said before, a bit unsatisfying and I am struggling to think of an audience to recommend this to. Would love to hear anybody else's thoughts on this book if they have read it - particularly if you loved it and I have completely missed the point. Until then, save your money and I will continue to find another un-put-downable read.

A Reliable Wife

My new book arrived on Tuesday. It is now Thursday. What the hell happened to Wednesday? It went something like this...I woke bleary eyed from going to bed too late (started the book), got nothing done all day (reading the book), stayed up way past my bedtime (engrossed in the book) and now am writing about the book instead of working!

Wow - what a great story - it's passionate, gripping, sensual, exciting and beautiful. I couldn't stop reading it and when I put it down, I couldn't stop thinking about the characters. What a great way to lose a day of your life....

A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick is the story of two people Catherine Land and Ralph Truitt and how their pasts have influenced the decisions they are currently making that will profoundly affect them both in ways neither of them have planned.

'He placed a notice in a Chicago paper, an advertisement for a 'reliable wife'. She responded, saying that she was 'a simple, honest woman.' She was, of course, anything but honest, and the only simple thing about her was her single-minded  determination to marry this man and then kill him, slowly and carefully, leaving herself a wealthy widow. What Catherine Land did not realise was that the enigmatic and lonely Ralph Truitt had a plan of his own.'


The story is brilliant - it has intrigue, it has sex (yes, sex!), it has twists, it has sadness, brutality and death and it also has a gripping story line that I was instantly addicted to. I can't tell you too much about the story for fear of ruining its brilliance, but I would describe it as a mixture of a mystery and romance.


I like what the author has said about his four main characters - 'I think the only thing that matters in life is goodness. It is all we have to leave behind us when we go, all we will be remembered for. It is our soul's wallet. These characters are not good people.'


Read it.


Loved it.

Island Beneath the Sea

Isabel Allende has been a prolific writer and I have only read a handful of her books - 'The House of the Spirits', 'Of Love and Shadows', 'The Infinite Plan' and 'Paula' (I think that's all). Each of her book that I've read, I've really enjoyed as they take you on a journey to another country and another time and I always emerge from the book believing I've learnt something about each.

Island Beneath the Sea is another epic novel that spans 1770 through to 1810 in Saint-Domingue, (what is now known as Haiti), Cuba and New Orleans following the life of Zarite - known as Tete.

From the sugar plantations of Saint-Domingue to the lavish parlors of New Orleans at the turn of the 19th century, Isabel Allende's latest novel tells the story of a mulatta woman, a slave and concubine, determined to take control of her own destiny in a society where that would seem impossible. Born a slave on the island of Saint-Domingue, Zarite - known as Tete - is the daughter of an African mother she never knew and one of the white sailors who brought her into bondage. Though her childhood is one of brutality and fear, Tete finds solace in the traditional rhythms of African drums and the voodoo loas she discovers through her fellow slaves. 


When twenty-year-old Toulouse Valmorain arrives on the island in 1770, it's with powdered wigs in his trunks and dreams of financial success in his mind. But running his father's plantation, Saint Lazare, is neither glamorous nor easy. Against the merciless backdrop of sugar cane fields, the lives of Tete and Valmorain grow ever more intertwined. When the bloody revolution of Toussaint Louverture arrives at the gates of Saint Lazare, they flee the island that will become Haiti for the decadence and opportunity of New Orleans. There, Tete finally forges a new life - but her connection to Valmorain is deeper than anyone knows and not so easily severed. 


Spanning four decades, Island Beneath the Sea is the moving story of one woman's determination to find love amid loss, to offer humanity though her own has been so battered, and to forge her own identity in the cruellest of circumstances.


As described above, the novel is an epic and a long story but well worth the effort. I found it fascinating (and horrifying) to read about the conditions of slaves in that time - and the abuse they suffered under various different occupying forces. I know the story isn't true, although I'm sure there is a lot of truth in the historical aspect, but I  was always terrified for the children in the story and intrigued at the lengths parents will go to and the bravery required, to improve the lives of their children. One example of this, was when slaves got pregnant they attempted to forcibly abort the babies so that they wouldn't have to grow up in slavery - ok, that's a very extreme example and doesn't really improve the child's life, but it stuck in my mind.


Fascinating story, a bit long in places, but as I said before, well worth the effort.

The Glass Castle

Another winner! This is a difficult review to write only because I would love everyone to read it and I don't want to give too much of the story away here.

I love talking about this book with my friends that have already read it as it inspires us, shocks us and appalls us all. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is an amazing true story that beggars belief.

'This is a startling memoir of a successful journalist's journey from the deserted and dusty mining towns of the American Southwest, to an antique filled apartment on Park Avenue. Jeanette Walls narrates her nomadic and adventurous childhood with her dreaming, 'brilliant' but alcoholic parents. At the age of seventeen she escapes on a Greyhound bus to New York with her older sister; her younger siblings follow later. After pursuing the education and civilisation her parents sought to escape, Jeanette eventually succeeds in her quest for the 'mundane, middle class existence' she had always craved. In her apartment, overlooked by 'a portrait of someone else's ancestor' she recounts poignant remembered images of star watching with her father, juxtaposed with recollections of irregular meals, accidents and police-car chases and reveals her complex feelings of shame, guilt, pity and pride toward her parents.'


This book is not only an amazing story about how children survive adversity, poverty and neglect, it also made me think about issues I often consider with my own parenting style (or even the way our parents raised us). Do we 'helicopter parent' too much, do we give our children too much so they no longer need to strive to achieve more, do we simply have too much stuff?


I did find the beginning of the book a bit difficult as she rapidly went through some childhood memories without giving the reader a very clear picture of the family characters and a sense of continuity. I would have liked to know more about each of the family members and why they were that way, but as it is a true story and she is writing it from her own perspective, I guess its good that she isn't second guessing what goes on in everybody else's head.


This is a great book for book club discussions and as I've already recommended this book to several people, I won't go into any further detail. I strongly recommend you get a copy of this book and read it soon.

The Legacy

I've been putting off writing this post about one of the books I've just finished reading as I just didn't really love it and probably wouldn't recommend you rush out and get it. So, it seems kind of pointless to be writing a review on a book that I didn't enjoy but there may be many of you that disagree with me and I'd be interested to hear your perspectives.

The Legacy by Katherine Webb is the story of two sisters, Erica and Beth returning to their now deceased grandmother's home where they used to spend their summer holidays as children. As Erica searches through her late grandmother's belongings, a secret emerges, reaching all the way back to a beautiful heiress in turn-of-the-century Oklahoma. As past and present converge, Erica and Beth must come to terms with two terrible acts of betrayal - and the heartbreaking legacy left behind.

The book was an easy read but I just felt that the present and past stories didn't connect up as well as I'd hoped and the characters were all a bit one dimensional and unsympathetic. I don't like to criticize a book as I certainly could not do any better, but as I said before -  I probably wouldn't rush out to get it but at the same time, it certainly wouldn't tax you too much to read it either.

The next book I've read and will post about soon was brilliant!!! I haven't stopped thinking about it and discussing it with others who've read it - so you'll have to come back soon to see what it was....

The Children

Staying with family during the holidays can often bring back childhood tensions, memories and bonds. I do not know of any family that is without it's issues - resolved or usually, unresolved and simmering. The dynamics and personalities within each family is so different and unique, but all are equally fascinating to me.

Whilst staying for a week with my parents (plus my two boys) I read, 'The Children' by Charlotte Wood. I haven't read any of her books before and really enjoyed the easy style and gentle moving pace of this book.

'You bring your children up to escape sorrow. You spend your best years trying to stop them witnessing it on television, in you, in your neighbours' faces. Then you realize, slowly, that there is no escape, that they must steer their own way through life's cruelties. In The Children, Charlotte Wood one of Australian fiction's rising stars, delivers a short, sharp shock of a novel that takes us into the heart of a family as normal, and as broken, as any other. When their father is critically injured, foreign correspondent Mandy and her siblings return home, bringing with them the remnants and patterns of childhood. Mandy has lived away from the country for many years. Her head is filled with images of terror and war, and her homecoming to the quiet country town - not to mention her family and marriage - only heightens her disconnection from ordinary life. Cathy, her younger sister, has stayed in regular contact with her parents, trying also to keep tabs on their brother Stephen who, for reasons nobody understands, has held himself apart from the family for years. In the intensive care unit the children sit, trapped between their bewildered mother and one another.'

I really enjoyed this book and found it an easy and quick read- although it was slightly depressing and real - but the events and the characters appealed and kept me turning the pages. I can't explain too much about the book without giving too much away but I do recommend you read it.

Bird by Bird

Have you got a story in you that's just dying to get out? Have you ever wondered whether you could write a book and be the next JK Rowling? Maybe its just a short story, an article or even a poem.

If your inner writer is trying to be heard, you should definitely read this funny, clever, humbling and inspiring book Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott.

I'm not sure whether this book has inspired me (and my little story wanting to come out) or provided me with a very real wake-up call. Every now and then I think writing a book wouldn't be that hard and then I read something like Bird by Bird and realise I haven't got a clue and the most beautiful books are extremely cleverly composed by very talented writers - and I am not one of them.

Anyway the journey continues and I highly recommend reading this book to anyone interested in the art of book writing - whether you dream of writing your own or just appreciate the skill required and are interested in finding out more about how it is done.

Three cups of tea

OK back to the real blog topic. It's been a while between book reviews as I've found this last book slow to get through. Don't let that put you off though! It was an incredible story.

If you've ever wondered whether one person truly can make a difference in the world - this book answers that question brilliantly. If you've ever wondered whether you should embark on any philanthropic ventures in your life - this book is for you. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

"In 1993, after a terrifying and disastrous attempt to climb K2, a mountaineer called Greg Mortenson drifted, cold and dehydrated, into an impoverished Pakistan village in the Karakoram Mountains. Moved by the inhabitants' kindness, he promised to return and build a school...Over the next decade Mortenson built not just on but fifty-five schools in remote villages across the forbidding and breathtaking landscape of Pakistan and Afghanistan, just as the Taliban rose to power."

The basic concept of what Greg Mortenson is doing to bring peace is so simple but beautiful. He believes that children (no matter where they are from), if given the opportunity for an education, will grow up with options beyond a predestined future of violence or crime. I loved this excerpt from the book as I think it summed up his philosophy perfectly:

"You have to attack the source of your enemy's strength. In America's case, that's not Osama or Saddam or anyone else. The enemy is ignorance. The only way to defeat it is to build relationships with these people, to draw them into the modern world with education and business. Otherwise the fight will go on forever."

The book was slow going for me as I found it a bit disjointed and due to the foreignness of the Pakistan and Afghanistan names of people and places. However this just demonstrates my (embarrassingly) complete lack of any knowledge of these countries. My knowledge of what happens in these countries and the issues that the predominantly innocent people face, is limited to what I learnt as a result of 9/11 and the recent floods in Pakistan.

I'm glad I read this inspiring book and I hope there are more people like Greg Mortenson in the world.  I wish I had just a little of Greg's guts and determination - the limit of my philanthropic gestures are to donate to World Vision, Cancer Council, Medicine sans Frontieres and other charities from the comfort of my home!

The Help

The Help by Kathryn Stockett was a fantastic read - it should be compulsory reading for all people living in countries where they still pay for hired help to help them in bringing up their children and keeping their houses clean.


'Enter a vanished and unjust world: Jackson, Mississippi, 1962. Where black maids raise white children, but aren't trusted not to steal the silver...There's Aibileen, raising her seventeenth white child and nursing the hurt caused by her own son's tragic death; Minny, whose cooking is nearly as sassy as her tongue; and white Miss Skeeter, home from College, who wants to know why her beloved maid has disappeared. Skeeter, Aibileen and Minny. No one would believe they'd be friends; fewer still would tolerate it. But as each woman finds the courage to cross boundaries, they come to depend and rely upon one another. Each is in a search of a truth. And together they have an extraordinary story to tell...'


I highly recommend this book - I couldn't put it down. The way it was written using the voices of the individual characters, the beauty she has been able to describe in situations that made me feel uncomfortable and the suspense towards the end of the book that made me so tense and nervous - I loved it all. I especially connected with the characters of Minny and Aibileen - Kathryn Stockett describes them so vividly that I have a perfect image of who they would be in my mind and they are tough, beautiful women who will stay with me for a long time.


As a child growing up in South Africa, I am vaguely aware of being looked after by 'nannies' as a small child. I don't remember much of these relationships - either good or bad - and now wish I'd paid more attention to those lovely ladies who were leaving their own families back in the townships or country to look after us for what would not have been much money (I am assuming a lot as I've never discussed these women with my mother and wonder whether she knew much about their personal lives either - should find out I guess!).


This book would make a great book club selection - there are so many issues in this book to discuss and I wonder how we would all go living in that environment. 


There is one part of the book that resonated with me ( and also I note in the back of the book, with the author herself) and that was for people to come to the realisation that "We are just two people. Not that much separates us. Not nearly as much as I'd thought". 

The Book of Salt

The Book of Salt is the first novel-length work by Monique Truong. It has a fascinating concept and I'm daunted by the fact that she is the same age as me and has written such a beautiful debut novel.


"[He] came to us through an advertisement that I had in desperation put in the newspaper. It began captivatingly for those days: 'Two American ladies wish...'" It was these lines in "The Alice B. Toklas Cookbook" that inspired "The Book of Salt", a brilliant first novel by a talented young Vietnamese American writer about the taste of exile.


We know from history that Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas whilst they were living in Paris during the late '20s/early '30s had at different points two chefs from "Indochine". Nothing more is known. Truong picks up that point of unknown and spins it into a novel about love, identity, home and food. It is such a different book - extremely visual and sensual. The descriptions of cooking and eating are as visceral as the descriptions of the books' lovers.


It is a very slow moving novel with Binh (the vietnamese cook) recollecting his past in Vietnam, his present day loves in Paris and his constant discussions with his deceased father. My only complaint about The Book of Salt is that I thought it was less successful at investing Binh with enough of a character to really give the book depth. We read a lot about his thoughts about other characters and events but I never got a real feel for Binh himself. Nonetheless it was a lovely journey Although this book was not a great page turner for me, it was a lovely journey and I'm glad I read it (thanks to Kate B).


(The book is not to be confused with the Angelina Jolie movie 'Salt' as one of my friends did!)

The Swan Thieves

I have just finished reading The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova and it was a fantastic book - in fact I feel like I have just finished reading at least 4 books. The story involves several love stories, a couple of separate mysteries, stories in modern day time and stories from the 1800s all set in multiple locations including New York and Paris. Linking all these stories and settings is several artists and the art they either created, were influenced by or were attempting to destroy.

'Dr Andrew Marlow has a perfectly ordered life, full of devotion to his work and the painting hobby he loves. This order is destroyed when renowned artist Robert Oliver attacks a canvas in the National Gallery and becomes his patient. As Oliver refuses to speak, Marlow's only clue is the beautiful, haunted woman Oliver paints obsessively, day after day. Who is she, and what strange hold does she have over this tormented genius? Desperate to help, Marlow embarks on a journey that leads him into the lives of the women closest to Oliver, and to a dark story at the heart of the French Impressionism - a tragedy that ripples out to touch present-day lives.'

I loved this book and all the characters and never wanted the book to end. I am now inspired to go and visit art galleries again - something I have been meaning to do for ages and am especially inspired to go and see the Rupert Bunny exhibition currently on display at the Art Gallery of SA (I'm sure I could interest a couple of you in that outing?).

I think this would be a great discussion book for any book club - it's a very easy read but a fascinating history and mystery rolled into one. (Thank you Nikki for the recommendation - would love to hear of any others you have enjoyed as well.) I have only one complaint about the book (other than it had to finish) and that is the final treatment and the subsequent results for the patient, Robert - but I don't want to spoil the ending as I'm hoping you'll all read it and tell me your thoughts.....