The Man in the Red Coat, by Julian Barnes. Pub 2019 A great start to 2020! Being a total Barnes-ophile, when I saw that this book was coming out in England in November, but not in Canada until end of February, I could not wait. I ordered two copies of the lovely first edition (one... Continue Reading →
Tackling the Tsundoku
Amazon tells me that I bought this book in 2015, which is likely shortly after I read about it at BrainPickings. This word in particular spoke to me, as my own book collection resembles the artist's rendering, down to the leaning piles on the floor. I have always loved books - both having them and... Continue Reading →
By Gaslight, by Steven Price. Book report #25 (2019)
By Gaslight, by Steven Price. Pub 2016 I have Steven Price’s most recent book (Lampedusa) on my “to read” list for 2020 (since I’m not allowed to buy it in 2019). I almost picked up By Gaslight during my trip to Munro’s in Victoria in September but was scared off by its size – at... Continue Reading →
The Raw Shark Texts, by Steven Hall. Book report #12 (2019)
The Raw Shark Texts, by Steven Hall. Pub 2007 Like Wild Dogs, I’ve at last gotten to this long-ago recommendation. I can’t believe I waited so long. This book was fantastic – literally. Part The Matrix, part Griffin & Sabine, with definite shades of David Mitchell, this adventure paranormal mystery love story is a page... Continue Reading →
Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston. Book report #7 (2019)
Vacations makes such a lovely time to read... (books 7, 8 and 9 all read on holiday.) Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston. Pub 1937 It took me a bit to get into this book, partly because of the colloquial dialogue but more because of the main character -... Continue Reading →
The Enchanted April, by Elizabeth Von Armin. Book report #4 (2019)
The Enchanted April, by Elizabeth Von Armin. Pub 1922 I’ve been thinking about this book (as in thinking about reading it) for several years. I remember the film from 1991, and although I have not seen it since the late 90s, I recall that it was part of the era of “period” films based on... Continue Reading →
Smut, by Alan Bennett. Book report #2 (2019)
Smut, by Alan Bennett. Pub 2011 Another point-of-purchase purchase, I had planned this as a Christmas gift, but decided after starting to read it that it was now mine. I have only read one other Alan Bennett (The Uncommon Reader), but have also seen the film based on his semi-autobiographical The Lady in the Van... Continue Reading →
The Only Story, by Julian Barnes. Book report # un-numberable (2018)
The Only Story, by Julian Barnes. Pub 2018 "Sometimes you see a couple, and they seem bored witless with one another, and you can't imagine them having anything in common, or why they're still living together. But it's not just habit or complacency or convention or anything like that. It's because once, they had their... Continue Reading →
The Elements of Eloquence, by Mark Forsyth. Book report #1 (2018)
The Elements of Eloquence: Secrets of the Perfect Turn of Phrase, by Mark Forsyth. Pub 2013 I found this book after seeing a Facebook post about the section on hyperbaton (defying the logical/grammatical order of words in a sentence). Hyperbaton covers three areas: prepositions (Shut up!), vowel order (tic-tac-toe), and word order (esp. adjectives and adjective-noun).... Continue Reading →
A Mixture of Frailties, by Robertson Davies. Book report #16 (2017)
A Mixture of Frailties, by Robertson Davies. Pub 1958 This completes the Salterton Trilogy for me, and I was delighted with all three books. I don't know if other authors previously had worked in the trifecta format, but Davies does it masterfully, allowing the old and new characters in the newer books to blend pretty... Continue Reading →
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