Anne Michaels is, to me, a favourite and not nearly prolific enough writer. Her Fugitive Pieces remains an all-time favourite novel (might be time for a re-reading). Her second novel, Winter Vault, was not as good, both empirically and by comparison. With Held, she has burst out again as brilliant IMHO. Her writing style is not for everyone. It... Continue Reading →
Four Thousand Weeks, by Oliver Burkeman. Pub 2021
Oliver Burkeman was, for many years, a columnist at The Guardian, wrote "This column will change your life." I recall reading several of his columns, and then in 2020 he stopped. As he expands on in this book, he had a bit of an epiphany: that all his efforts to be more efficient/productive/happy (and the... Continue Reading →
Payback, by Margaret Atwood. Pub 2008
I've owned this book for several years, and thought that I had previously read it. I recall (now) reading at least part of the first chapter, as I remembered the elements of the modern history of mortgages, credit cards, and government loans. However, I realized very quickly that I had stopped reading at about page... Continue Reading →
The Last Devil to Die, by Richard Osman. Pub 2023
I am grateful to my fellow book-clubber for many things, not the least being her generous, thoughtful, and timely sharing of books. I have read the previous three books in this series, all of which were gifts from her, and I have enjoyed every one of them. This most recent one is very special for... Continue Reading →
The Psychology of Money, by Morgan Housel. Pub 2020
This book was a 2021 Christmas gift from a colleague, and I read it in early 2022, but somewhat superficially, looking for the key takeaways. I recall some of the points as being adjacent to areas of management, leadership, and life besides money, so decided to read it again. Through a series of 20 chapters,... Continue Reading →
The Absolution, by Yrsa Sigurdardóttir. Pub 2016. English translation by Victoria Cribb.
This was the third of a trio passed on to me by a friend during a visit in 2023. This series features the detective Huldar and the child social worker Freyja, brought together to investigate and get caught up in various horrific crime sprees in Reykjavik. There is the de rigueur romantic tension between the... Continue Reading →
Item #31: Robyn Mug
In a holiday tidy-up of my desk, I repatriated some mugs from their roles as pen-holders to their proper place in the kitchen cupboard. This one I call the Robyn Mug for obvious reasons. The mug comes from one of those paint-your-own-pottery places called Crankpots (the Vancouver location is no longer operating). As a team... Continue Reading →
Women Talking, by Miriam Toews. Book report #4 (2024)
Women Talking, by Miriam Toews. Pub 2018 I was interested in this book after learning about the movie version from 2022 that won an Oscar for best adapted screenplay. The premise I’d heard was that a group of women in a Mennonite community who are usually mostly silent have some special circumstance to gather and... Continue Reading →
The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, by Dorothy L. Sayers. Book report #3 (2024)
The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, by Dorothy L. Sayers. Pub 1928 Another enjoyable mystery with Lord Peter Wimsey. This time, an elderly gentleman makes real the saying that London’s men’s clubs are so stodgy that a member could die and no one would notice. The sleuthing is conducting with Wimsey’s usual whimsy, with old... Continue Reading →
Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel. Pub 2014
Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel. Pub 2014 I chose this book based on a recommendation in the acknowledgements of a book I read last year (The End of Men)*. It was interesting to read a second post-apocalyptic book so close after the previous one (Moon of the Turning Leaves), especially one set in... Continue Reading →
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