Category: Books
The Year of Living Danishly by Helen Russell – Book Review
Another I-moved-to-another-country book, this one by a London woman who moved to Denmark after her husband got offered a job with Lego – and rather than exchanging one capital city for another, they move to the “real” Denmark, a tiny town of 6,100 in the rural Jutland (the European peninsula part of Denmark). Unlike many other books of the similar sort, which are rather rambling in nature and simply concern themselves with the author’s experiences in a foreign country, this one has an actual focus: uncovering the secrets of Danish happiness.
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley – Book Review
I first read this book when in high school, and had only vague memories of it, so when I spotted it in friend’s book collection while housesitting I was curious to read it again.
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell – Book Review
What a book. Its scope and ambition made me feel like I’ve read multiple books and been away on a very very long journey.
Harbour by John Ajvide Lindqvist – Book Review
I absolutely loved Let the Right One In, Lindqvist’s brilliant, original and macabre first novel, which offered a new take on the well-beaten vampire story, so when I saw this one at my local op shop I grabbed it immediately. While I didn’t think that Harbour was quite as strong, it’s got some of the same haunting power and memorable imagery that made Let the Right One In unforgettable
The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman – Book Review
I’ve read this book in a bizarre pattern – read the first 50 pages, got distracted and put the book away, decided to start over, re-read the same 50 pages, got distracted again for a shorter period, picked up the book where I left it, then finished the whole thing in a day while staying at home with a cold. It started off in an intriguing enough fashion, but at one point it becomes such an emotional rollercoaster it was simply impossible to put down. It’s not without faults, but it’s a powerful read about love, family and good people making bad decisions.
Quote of the Day
“Are you a devil?”
“I am a man,” answered Father Brown gravely; “and therefore have all devils in my heart.”
– G.K. Chesterton
Dark Places by Gillian Flynn – Book Review
Gillian Flynn has a fascination with the bleak side of life, for sure. Gone Girl was dark and cynical, and this one had all that plus a whole lot more blood, poverty and Satanism on top. I’m glad I read it in an overall good mood, otherwise my mental state might have spiralled down a tad.
Wicked by Gregory Maguire – Book Review
The full title of the book is Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, and it’s less of a prequel and more like a complete re-imagining of the world known from the classic children’s story by L. Frank Baum and the 1939 Wizard of Oz. I wonder if at this point it got overshadowed by the mega-successful musical – I haven’t seen it but I imagine it reworked the hell out of what is ultimately a very pessimistic, even bleak, story.
Pelagia and the White Bulldog by Boris Akunin – Book Review
I’m a big fan of Akunin’s Erast Fandorin mysteries, so I was very interested to check out his other series, once again set in the 19th century Russia and featuring Pelagia, a ginger-haired, bespectacled young nun who lives in a small town of Zavolzhsk.
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