When I think of books to compare Himself to, nothing springs to mind. When I think of how to describe Himself, the first word that comes to me is "Irish". This book is very Irish. From the setting to the dialogue, maybe even to the mystical elements it contains. Mahoney, an orphan from a young… Continue reading Book Review: Himself by Jess Kidd
As August quickly approaches its end, we've started to look ahead to the fall in our household. Peter's work schedule changes to its more regular hours in a couple weeks and so the rhythm of our days will revert back to its more ordinary flow. In the meantime, we are enjoying our last days of… Continue reading The Rest of the Summer (So Far)
If you ever thought that the Scooby Gang probably needed therapy as adults, this book is for you. Set in the 1990s, the action of Meddling Kids takes place a decade or so after the final case of the Blyton Summer Detective Club. Four kids (and their dog) foil the plans of a grown man… Continue reading Book Review: Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero (Blumhouse Books, 2017)
I really enjoyed this novel from first time author Ayobami Adebayo. Stay With Me is set in Nigeria, beginning in the early years of marriage between Yejide and Akin. They meet in university and have an instant connection. Despite polygamy being a common occurrence in Nigeria at this time, they agree that this will not be the… Continue reading Book Review: Stay With Me by Ayobami Adebayo
Woefully lately but in the interests of keeping track (for myself because I'm sure no one has been waiting with baited breath), here is what I read in July: The Lonely Hearts Hotel by Heather O'Neill (Harper Collins Publishers, 2017) Stay With Me by Ayobami Adebayo (Knopf, 2017) Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero (Blumhouse Books, 2017) Himself by Jess… Continue reading What I Read – July 2017
My boss handed me a copy of Teardown after I detailed my weekend to her recently. Namely that, while in Vancouver, Peter and I went to IKEA with Pearl in tow. We hadn't been since I was about seven months pregnant with Pearl and had looked forward to the visit. We smugly wandered through the living… Continue reading Book Review: Teardown by Clea Young
I've long been told that I should read Isabel Allende so I happily picked up this second hand copy at Powell's Books when in Portland. The Japanese Lover wasn't exactly what I expected but Allende didn't disappoint. Her writing is effective, dense, and infinitely enjoyable. Allende packs a lot into this book. The story encompasses a lot… Continue reading Book Review: The Japanese Lover by Isabel Allende
I've previously read Chesterton's The Man Who was Thursday (review here), Orthodoxy, and some of his Father Brown mysteries and generally enjoyed Chesterton's writing. So I thought it might be interesting to read his autobiography, first published in 1936. Autobiography is, perhaps, a misleading title. What this book really is is a series of essays,… Continue reading Book Review: Autobiography by G.K. Chesterton
I've read all of Heather O'Neill's published work and reviewed two of them here. (Daydream of Angels and Lullabies for Little Criminals) Obviously, I enjoy her work and thankfully her latest novel didn't disappoint. If you like O'Neill's previous work, then I think you'll be pleased with The Lonely Hearts Hotel. Using Montreal once again as her setting,… Continue reading Book Review: The Lonely Hearts Hotel by Heather O’Neill
I was inspired to re-read Agatha Christie's famous mystery novel And Then There Were None after reading FictionFan's book review. I'd read this short mystery story a couple of times before, years ago, but it had always stuck in my memory as one of the finest mystery novels I've read. Years ago, reading it for the first time,… Continue reading Book Review: And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
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