Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-eight Nights, by Salman Rushdie

Once again, I've left it too long between the reading of a book and the writing of my thoughts. Blame it on summer days, or 1,001 other reasons.

Rushdie's novel is set in a New York City of some time in the future. (How far in the future becomes rather uncertain, as at points in the novel, our time period is referred to as if we are ancestors, but the world seems relatively unchanged in the interim-- could be 200 years, could be next week.) Strange things are happening: a gardener finds his feet no longer touch the ground; an abandoned baby can identify the corrupt, which is problematic as she was left at the mayor's office and adopted by the mayor. A child falls on the railroad track and the rails melt like ice cream, so she is able to be rescued. An artist's work becomes real. There's a weird firestorm, and the world seems to be coming unhinged.

It all stems, according to Mr Rushdie, from the union centuries ago, of Dunia, a Jinn princess and a human. She slipped between the cracks of reality from her world to ours, fell in love, and produced scads of children with her mortal husband, the descendants of whom scattered around the world and are at the center of this firestorm battle of dark and light.

Though the book seems to be billed as magical realism, I think there's a heavy element of fantasy (after all, there are Jinn) and even urban fantasy (Jinn and their offspring living in NYC) as well. The story was periodically captivating, and alternatively less so, but ultimately worth the read for me. The backstory of the two lovers, and the world Rushdie created for the Jinn was fun. And I really liked the character of Mr Geronimo, the gardener. I also found new words to use for furious and frequent copulation (which apparently is a big part of Jinn existence), that maybe, some day, I can slip into a sentence. But it may be two years, eight months and twenty-eight nights (add it up, folks, and you'll find the link to Scheherazade and the story-telling in the book) to do so.

Many thanks to Library-Thing and the Publishers for sending this book my way.

Tags: advanced-reader-copy, early-review-librarything, an-author-i-read, made-me-look-something-up, magical-realism, fantasy, read-in-2015, taught-me-something, urban-fantasy, vampires-ghosts-and-other-creatures 

Firecombe Manor by Kate Riordan

Sometimes you need just a book that  borders on gothic romance, something with the flavor of those books I eagerly pulled off the shelves when I would race to the library after school to find something new to read; historical novels by the likes of Daphne Du Maurier or Mary Stewart. The kind that leave many readers today, accustomed to fast pace and fast living in their books get twitchy and stop reading. The kind where the setting, usually an English manor house, or lonely house on the cliffs/moors/highlands, or a rose twined cottage in a sleepy hamlet, is as much a character as the people in the tale are. the kind where dark secrets are hinted at, maybe a mysterious death or two.

I like that kind of book, occasionally, especially when life has forced me to slow down and recuperate, which it has of late.

I believe the book went under a different title originally, Girl in the Photograph. Either way, it's two stories several decades apart, in the same setting. In the latter tale (1933) Alice has gotten herself "in the family way" without benefit of a husband, and is shuttled off to an estate in the country where a friend of her mother's works as housekeeper, until the birth of the baby. But while there, she becomes fascinated by a former mistress of the estate, Lady Elizabeth Stanton, and the mysteries that surround her life and disappearance.

The stories are well told, and do intertwine to some degree. There is also an interesting running theme exploring postpartum depression and how it was handled  at the end of the Victorian era into the early Edwardian era.

Tags: i-liked-it, made-me-look-something-up, read, read-in-2015, taught-me-something

Fallen Women by Sandra Dallas

Normally, I like the glimpses Sandra Dallas gives us into times past. Through her writing, I've explored the days when the west was a new land, still being shaped and discovered. The women in her books have character, strength that they might not be aware of, but that helps them live in the raw, new land where they are settled. I usually learn something, too, which is always an added bonus. But this book just didn't make the cut for me. The writing didn't come to life. I abandoned it at page 114.  Beret, and her dead sister, and all the other surrounding characters just couldn't hold me. Sorry.

Learn to Draw Calligraphy Animals by Andrew Fox

There are things I'm supposed to be doing today. But my to-do list has been shoved rudely aside. Why? Because I had to, simply had to dive into playing with pen and ink, and the designs in this book.

I've been captivated by Andrew Fox's designs since discovering his art on Instagram. When I learned that he had a freshly minted book, I think I actually made that "squee" sound. And, thanks to the artist and his publisher, my very own copy arrived at my door yesterday afternoon. Within 5 minutes, I began reading, and unable to control the creative impulse, grabbed my Pilot Parallel pen and cranked out a gleeful
                                                            

Today, I've been playing. And playing. And smiling. And having a grand time. The beauty of this book is that Fox provides both clear instructions for drawing a variety of animals (mammals, crustaceans, reptiles, insects, mollusks, birds; I think amphibians are missing, but that's probably only because the book is 70 pages) but also gives a great launching place for creative work. I tend to think, "I could never draw a (cat, camel, crab, critter)" and often don't try. But with a few simple strokes of the pen, I can. With my confidence whetted, I can branch out and try my own design. Or I can stick to the simple elegance of Fox's minimalist calligraphy animals. It's a win-win.

The book comes with a pen and paper, but I must admit, I pulled out my own pen, because I'm simply in love with the ease and elegance of Pilot's Parallel Pen (and no, I have no commercial association with Pilot). The instructions Fox gives are simple, clear, and pictorial, and include a diagram for the direction to hold your pen nib with each stroke. Follow the instructions, or apply your own imagination.

This is a lovely little treat of a book for any level artist, wanna-be to established.  Now excuse me. The critters are calling.

Pysanka inspired by Andrew Fox's art

Our Man in Charleston: Britain's Secret Agent in the Civil War South by Christopher Dickey

I live in Charleston. We've been famous for many things: birthplace of the Civil War, "that" dance, a wretched reality TV show, and, just a few short weeks ago, a horrible slaying of nine churchgoers at Mother Emmanuel AME Church. In the aftermath of that shooting, which was purported to be an attempt to start a race war, the citizens of Charleston rose together to say, "wrong church, wrong city, wrong people"; we took a stand together to fight hatred with the strength of love. We're healing still, and learning to reconcile the differences that do keep us apart as people, learning to, indeed, practice what we've proclaimed; to live the words "love over hate" and "Charleston strong". In that tender setting, I found it difficult to start to read Our Man in Charleston, because the Charleston of the pre Civil War days is not the Charleston I know; not the Charleston I love.

Yes, it was difficult, especially since I could not only picture the locations described, or walk past some of them, but because I know the descendants of many of the people mentioned in the book, some who actually bear the same names. We are a town of history and heritage, and names as well as genes are passed along the family tree. But the Charleston in the book, while I have no doubt is a realistic description of the time, is not the same town of today, thank God. We are not perfect, but we are building a bridge to unity of people.

What got me past my discomfort was the excellent writing of Christopher Dickey. It's safe to say his father, James Dickey, was not the only talented writer in the family. Mr Dickey crafted a window to take the reader back in time, to observe the mounting tensions and passions of the Confederacy. Though the view is predominantly of the upper echelons of white society, there is ample descriptions of the practice of slave trading. To be honest, I thought I knew a great deal about the Civil War, but this book brought me a new viewpoint to consider: that of Britain. Focused primarily on Robert Bunch, the British Counsel of the time, Dickey used correspondence, dispatches, and other documents of the time, to take the reader through the implications of the North/South conflict beyond the boundaries of our country. I'm embarrassed to admit that I hadn't fully comprehended how the volatility had nearly caused war again with Britain.

Beautifully written, complete, and fascinating, this is a grand book for anyone wanting to deepen their knowledge of the Civil War. It is not an easy read if you love the Charleston of today, but it certainly is an enlightening one. Many thanks to Blogging for Books and the publishers for sending me a copy.

Tags: charleston-sc, made-me-look-something-up, made-me-think, made-me-uncomfortable, nonfiction, read, set-in-my-stomping-grounds, taught-me-something

Peaches for Father Francis (aka ' Peaches for Monsieur le Cure') by Joanne Harris

Note: This book also goes by the much better title of  Peaches for Monsieur le Cure.  

I picked this up to read strictly based on my love of the book Chocolat. There have been others by the author that I have picked up for the same reason, and liked with mixed results. This story features many of the same characters from Chocolat, with many of the same delicious flavors and overtones, but little of the magic that grabbed me in the original (published in 1999). It was a good enough story, but hasn't touched the memory that is still strong in my heart after 16 years, several re-reads and a wonderful screen adaptation.

True, Harris has managed to create (and maintain) some remarkable characters, and touch on some very key elements of human nature, both good and bad. But I wanted magic, too.

Tags: a-favorite-author, made-me-look-something-up, part-start-of-a-series, read, rounded-up-in-star-rating

The Moment of Everything

I picked this up because it was about a bookstore, more or less. It didn't grab me, at first, so I put it aside, but picked it up again after reading the reviews of others on goodreads. Those reviews told me two things -- the book got better as it went along, and apparently, a lot of people picked it up because of the cover (which I'm embarrassed to say I didn't really look at until I read it charmed others. Okay, yeah, it's pretty cute.)

The book did get better on the second pick-up. In fact, I went from thinking I'd abandon it, to curling up on the sofa and reading till there were no more pages. So, yes, I liked it. I think there are enough reviews online that cover the plot, but things I liked were the reverence some of us have of independent (used) bookstores, the idea that romance can, indeed, live on the pages of books, characters that were believable in their quirks and flaws (despite the gay best friend scenario that cropped up), coffee and books go together, and a setting in Mountainview, CA. There were other likes, too, but that's enough for now.