2 Years!

That's how long it's been since I've last posted here. I'm certain you've all abandoned me --but I hope to win you all over once again with new reviews and observations and general talk of BOOKS! To update: I'm in the process of 'getting ready to' move from Illinois, USA to Tanzania, East Africa! The Good Lord willing and the creek don't rise, I'll be leaving in late July. Not to worry about my disappearing again, though -- with no television, restaurants, movie theaters, or (gasp!)shopping venues in my future, I should have plenty of time for reading and writing about books.

Remarkable Creatures

...by Tracy Chevalier

In this book, Chevalier tells the story of Elizabeth Philpot, and her friendship with Mary Anning in Lyme Regis, in or near the time of Jane Austen. Elizabeth and her two sisters have not married, and their newly wedded brother sends them off to live in Lyme, since there will no longer be a place for them in the family home. At first, Elizabeth considers this a death sentence; a place to be locked away and out of the way. But it is in Lyme that she discovers her first fossil along the beach. She becomes fascinated with it, and soon fills her days scouring the beach for more, becoming more and more knowledgeable as time passes. She befriends Mary, a young girl of lesser standing who has a talent for finding fossils, and this is their story, spanning several years, as told from their points of view.


This story is about many things. First of all, it’s fiction based on actual people and actual prehistoric finds. We see the women behind the history; the women who got none of the credit, of course, this being nineteenth century England. But more than that, we see how unmarried women, specifically those interested in science, were viewed during that period, and how they saw themselves and each other. Elizabeth almost sees herself as a fossil of sorts; maybe that’s why she’s so fascinated with them. We also see the birth of what would become a lifelong friendship between Elizabeth and Mary, and how social status, jealousy and thirst for fame nearly tear them apart.


There’s not a lot of suspense in this novel, as these are ordinary women, but at the same time remarkable creatures. This book was a joy from the first few pages as a quiet look at ordinary people who contributed greatly.


Loved it.

Housekeeping--better late than never...

Well, since we're well into February, I suppose it's time to do a little blog housekeeping. The "LibraryThing 50 Book Challenge" counter, at left, has been removed (shamefully, with my head hung low). Reading only 20 books in 2009, I prefer to remove any trace of my woeful attempt. I doubt seriously that there will be a similar counter in it's place for 2010, but I WILL keep reading and writing about what I read here. Please do me a favor, and don't keep count....I won't be.

Read much, but not many books.
~ Benjamin Franklin ~

The Book of Fires

...by Jane Borodale (a debut novel)

Rec'd as an Advanced Readers Copy
356 Pages
Release Date: 01/21/10


This is the story of a young, naïve country girl who, given the worst of circumstances, sets out to make the best of her life anyway. Her innocence is touching, making her very likeable from the start.


The eighteenth century isn’t such a good time to be unwed and pregnant. In England, it is a hangable offense, and poor Agnes is left to her own devises, each day drawing nearer the time she would be found out. It’s in desperation that she leaves her home and finds herself in London. Borodale is an excellent storyteller, and the characters that Agnes meets along the way are colorful; I could “hear” all their voices as I read, and could practically feel Agnes’ anxiousness that they may find her out. All the while, she is working as assistant to a brooding fireworks maker, whom I have decided should definitely be played by Alan Rickman in the movie, should there be one. It is with him, in his workshop, that Agnes learns that she has a talent, I think; potential that makes her realize that she matters and is truly worth saving, despite what the world is telling her. This is a story about making one’s way; finding not only survival, but also purpose, friendship, and a place to belong.


The last chapters, instead of winding down the story, as many books do, is filled with twists and surprises that make you want it to go on and on. It gave me the impression that Borodale didn’t want it to end as she was writing. It was absolutely wonderful clear up to the last page, and not once did I find myself saying, “but what about…..?”. I was able to put this down, finished, with satisfaction, and I can’t wait to read something else from this writer, when it becomes available (this is a debut novel).

The Book of Fires will be available in late January, 2010.

A Walk With Jane Austen

...by Lori Smith

Smith takes readers along for the ride as she travels to Jane Austen’s England; visiting all the significant locations in Austen’s novels, as well as to where Jane spent her real life. This read very well, as Smith wrote of her own life’s journey as it unfolded along the way. With wit and insight, she explores the landscape of Austen’s life and those in her novels; looking for Jane, but finding pieces of herself along the way. Beginning in Oxford, Smith travels through English countryside, from Steventon, where Jane’s father was a rector, on through Lyme, Bath, and Pilsley (what Jane Austen fan could help but go in search of Mr. Darcy’s home…), among others. What I like most about this (aside from all the Austen-y stuff), is that we are along for the ride of Smith’s life. We watch her grow as a person, becoming surer of herself. She starts out on this journey, not really knowing who she is, or why she’s found herself in sort of a funk, and as she travels, and looks at Jane’s life, it helps her sort out her own. Historically, I learned much about Austen the author, and intimately, I learned much about Smith the author. Her search for life’s meaning, love, good health, and faith are familiar to me.


I was able to relate to this in a few ways, as I am usually in a funk of sorts (it’s my normal state, really), and I still have no idea who I really am, or who I’m meant to become. It was very much a sort of “girl-bonding” in an unusual way. Not so much with your best “living” friend, but with one who lived in another era, to whom you are relating just by following her footsteps and looking at life through her eyes…but not in a creepy way.

Leaving A Trace

...On Keeping A Journal, by Alexandra Johnson

I don’t need inspiration as much to keep a journal as I do to know what to journal, what to skip, and how to sort it all out once it’s on paper.


What a pleasant surprise this book was! I picked it up from the clearance rack at Barnes & Noble, thinking I’d get a couple tips on keeping my journals current. What I got instead was chapter after chapter, each led by quotes from the likes of Virginia Woolf, Annie Dillard, and Gail Godwin, among others, examining the importance of writing about key life events as well as the day-to-day. In reviewing your journals, you reveal your life story. She urges going back and re-reading what has been written, and more importantly, what was omitted, because there, often, are where the stories are. After reading this book, I really realize that anyone who considers themselves to be, or wants to be, a writer, must journal. She talks about why one should journal, the forms that journals can take (milestone journals, crisis journals, thankfulness journals, travel journals, etc..),dealing with your own internal censor, learning to view the world in detail---“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes”---Proust, as quoted in Leaving A Trace. This, specifically, appealed to me, as I have begun, in the past 10 years, to look at everything with “new eyes”. Johnson also talks about finding inspiration, and connecting the patterns in your journal that tell your story. She also includes very useful (and just plain fun) exercises at the end of each chapter, designed to train the writer to pay attention to the details, look for omissions, find “missing links”, and shape your daily writing into a meaningful story.


I’ve read other journal-keeping books in the past, but none of them come close to packing so much useful information into one place. On top of the information itself, Alexandra Johnson is a gifted storyteller, so she presents it all in a way that keeps your attention. I got more out of this than all the other books on this subject that I've read, combined. And the quotes and tips from the known writing community that she includes are inspiring. My copy is highlighted and written in the margins from the first read-through, and I’m sure I’ll keep using it and making more notes as I re-read it again and again.

The Glassblower of Murano

....by Marina Fiorato


This story begins in the 1600’s, in Venice. Corradino Manin makes one last attempt to make things right. In present-day, we meet Leonora, who moves to Venice after a bitter divorce, in search of her ancestor, famed maestro Venetian glassblower Corradino Manin. She has a bit of talent with the glass, too, and hopes to find a fresh start there, following in his footsteps. We learn his story along with Leonora, as she discovers there is more to her beloved ancestor’s history than she may care to know. But she has come this far, and must find out, or she will never be at peace with her own life. She has a connection with him that borders on obsession, and she can’t seem to live her own present day life without considering him in every detail.


As Corradino’s history unfolds, Leonora discovers who he really was, and just how important family was to him, and still is to her. In reading this book, we learn a little bit about the history of Venetian glass, and to what lengths the powers that be went to keep the secrets of its making in the 1600,s. We also learn to what lengths a man will go for the love and safety of his family. For Leonora, it is about putting the pieces together; glass, family, love and forgiveness.


I really enjoyed the word pictures in this story. Glass is presented as a metaphor, and the connection is made to the reflective surface of the water in the canals. Well done. I would read more from this author.


I give it 4 shiny chandelier droplets out of 5.