2018 has obviously not been a great year for book reviews thus far but I am sneaking in lots of reading time. Here’s what I read in February and the quickest reviews I can manage at this moment:
The Hut Builder – Laurence Fearnley (Penguin Books, 2010
New Zealand novel. I likely would have abandoned this one partway through if it hadn’t been a gift. Quite frankly, I found this one boring and the characters uninteresting.
Night Film – Marisha Pesl (Random House, 2014)
Definitely creative. Fairly creepy. Character development and voice, etc are fairly limited but the mystery at the heart of the novel will keep you reading.
Rest, Play, Grow – Deborah MacNamara (Aona Books, 2016)
I hope to find the time to write a more detailed review of this parenting book because it’s been hugely helpful to me. I highly recommend this to parents of toddlers.
What every young child would tell us if they could is to please hold on to them, to not take their actions personally, and to love them despite their immaturity.
- Deborah MacNamara, Rest Play Grow
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress – Day Sijie (Anchor Books, 2002) (translated from the French by Ina Rilke)
Easy read. Nothing terrible but nothing amazing here.
The Professor and the Madman – Simon Winchester (Harper Perennial, 1999)
Fascinating read if you’re interested in history and/or language and/or dictionaries.
The Weight of Glory – C.S. Lewis (Harper Collins, 2001)
I believe in Christianity as I believe that the Sun has risen, not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.
- C.S. Lewis, “Is Theology Poetry?”
Collection of sermons by Lewis. I always enjoy Lewis’ work, whether fiction or non. His perspective and wisdom are endlessly valuable.
It is written that we shall “stand before” Him, shall appear, shall be inspected. The promise of glory is the promise, almost incredible and only possible by the work of Christ, that some of us, that any of us who really chooses, shall actually survive that examination, shall find approval, shall please God.
- C.S. Lewis, “The Weight of Glory”
Moonglow – Michael Chabon (Harper Collins, 2016)
Pseudo-memoir of the author’s grandparents. Or is it? What’s fact and what’s fiction here? And does it matter when it’s well written and fun to read? 20th century history, World War II, space race, and a giant snake.
Indian Horse – Richard Wagamese (Douglas & McIntyre, 2012)
Why did it take me so long to read this book? Beautiful and heartbreaking. Every Canadian should read this book. And if you’re not Canadian you should read it too.
CURRENTLY READING:
The Silmarillion – j.R.R. Tolkien
…there were green things even among the pits and broken rocks before the doors of hell.
- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion
When I Was a Child I Read Books – Marilynne Robinson
My current reading habits mean I generally have three books on the go. The first is a classic that needs a decent amount of focus to be read. (Example: The Silmarillion) I read this in the evening after the girls are in bed. The second is something of a thoughtful nature, usually non-fiction, maybe something religious in nature. (Example: essays by Marilynne Robinson) The third is a more compulsive read. Almost always fiction, hopefully paperback. Something that I can read in the middle of the night while struggling to stay awake and feed a baby. (Just finished Indian Horse and will probably start The Night Circus tonight since I got it from the library today.)
What are your reading habits like? How many books do you typically have on the go? How do you decide what to read and when?
Karissa Reads Books 
The Chabon sounds like fun! And I’ve been meaning to read The Professor and the Madman for ages… maybe one day! I usually have three on the go too – a factual, a ‘proper’ fiction and a genre novel – crime, usually.
I think you would really like the Professor and the Madman. I’ve found Winchester to be a little hit and miss but this was very enjoyable.
I loved Indian Horse, it’s such a tragedy we won’t have any more Wagamese books to enjoy!
Yes, his death was a definite loss for the literary world. He was at our local writers’ fest a couple of years ago and was so lovely.
I actually just saw some news that there is one book being released from him posthumously!
http://www.cbc.ca/books/richard-wagamese-s-final-novel-starlight-to-be-released-in-august-2018-1.4557942
Interesting…I had heard rumours that there was a sequel to Medicine Walk planned but this sounds like something different. I’m always skeptical of posthumous works and whether or not the author would really want it published. But it’s hard to resist one more book from a great writer.