OK -- things
aren't really rotten over here in book blogging land...they are just very, very
tired.
Very little
reading has been done of late. After
being diagnosed as anemic, low Vitamin D, and borderline diabetic (something
that can be controlled through diet and if I stop eating so much dang
watermelon!) I've been focusing on health issues -- beginning with an early
morning (as in 5:30am) 4 mile walk to start my day, as well as an occasional
tennis match (which has shredded my shoulder, that now requires surgery, but
that is another post entirely).
The 4 mile walk
is great -- the time of day, not so much.
By 10am I need a nap. But curling
up in the stacks at the library is not an option. So the first thing I do when I get home,
before the kids arrive from school, is sleep.
Normally that time has been when I get the majority of my reading
done...but I can't even turn a page before completely crashing.
I have read 2 books
since my last post -- neither of which were particularly memorable:
The Maid's Version by Daniel Woodrell (3 out of 5 stars)
Best known for
his book, Winter's Bone (and probably
the movie starring, Jennifer Lawrence), I was eager to start this slim
novel based an actually catastrophic
event, the explosion of the Arbor Dance Hall in 1928 (in SW Missouri). Although the writing was spectacular --
really, the first 2 pages of the book were probably some of the most vivid,
descriptive pages I've ever read -- but I got lost in the narration, and who
was telling the story - was it Alma the maid? Her grandson, whom she's telling
the story? For such a short book
(170+pgs), it's hard to imagine being confused...but alas, I was. However, I gave it props (3 stars) for the
writing alone. I'm determined to read Winter's Bone too.
Divergent by Veronica Roth (2 out of 5 stars)
This book suffered from nothing other than I am experiencing
dystopian fatigue. It seemed the same, or variations
on similar themes, as all other
dystopian lit I've read - nothing particularly unique. Divergent particularly appeared to rely heavily on themes in Lois
Lowry's The Giver -- but in a much
more violent/YA way. I only finished it a few days ago and it's already been
forgotten. Book 2 is not in my future.
My current reading venture is The Corner of White by Jaclyn Moriarty. After reading and loving The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty -- I thought I would give her sister's YA novel a go. So far I'm intrigued -- time travel elements mixed with modern day -- I can't quite figure out where she's going with the storylines and characters -- but I'm invested and interested enough to find out.
In other news...I have an article about
Mother Daughter book clubs set to publish in Little Rock Family, our local
family magazine, in November. If I could
do nothing else it would be to write about community reading and book clubs, in all
their various forms.
Hope your reading endeavors are
progressing along better than mine.
Embrace the cooler temperatures and brilliant
fall colors by curling up with a good book.
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