Good evening, fellow Salon Members! I'm sorry to be here so late. My weekend has simply escaped from me, and I just realized that it is still Sunday, and I hadn't posted yet today.
My vacation to Florida proved to be very relaxing but busier than anticipated, so I wasn't able to read everything that I wanted to. I did start and finish Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None on the plane ride down, and I have to admit, that of the little Christie that I have read, this wasn't my favorite. I feel some of the murders were a bit too contrived and forced to fit the story. However, it is a sign of a great author when I can say that even though this is my least favorite to date, I still enjoyed every page of it! I expected to have more reading time while I was actually in Florida, but I was able to spend more time with my family than I had previously thought able, so more family time meant less reading time. I did start Katharine Kerr's Daggerspell and have loved what I've read. Only 60-ish pages in, and already she has begun to weave so many plot threads together, I know I'm going to have to pay close attention to this series!
While I was in Florida, I did a little book shopping. I came home with:
- Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
- Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh
- Sunset at Blandings by P.G. Wodehouse
- The Fourth Bear by Jasper Fforde
- The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry
- Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis (more on this later!)
August was a fairly good reading month for me with eight books read:
- Farworld: Water Keep by J. Scott Savage
- Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
- Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
- Encounter in April by May Sarton
- Michigan's Most Haunted by Sandy Lyons
- The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien (via audiobook)
- And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
- Briar Rose by Jane Yolen
I'm not even going to try to speculate on my reading for the next week, let alone month, as I will be organizing and packing in anticipation of moving in October. I'm already setting aside the books that I will want to keep available so they aren't swept up into boxes for the next 2 months. I've gotten so many good books over the last couple of weeks, I won't know where to start!
And now for a contest! While I was in Florida and browsing the used book shops, I found a (I think new) copy of one of my favorite books and decided that I wanted to share it with someone. Patrick Dennis' Auntie Mame may be one of my favorite books, ever. I have read it several times (along with it's sequel, Around the World with Auntie Mame) and it never fails to delight. The book is about young Patrick, who is sent to live with his Auntie Mame when his father passes away. What follows is one of the most outrageous, funny and heartwarming books that I have ever read. It has also been the basis for several stage and film adaptations over the years.
It is one of a handful of books that I have read so often, I consider them to be old friends (E.M. Forster's Howards End, Helene Hanff's 84, Charing Cross Road and Fannie Flagg's Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café come to mind immediately). So here's the contest: I want to know about what books you read over and over again and are old friends for you. Mention this contest on your blog, and I'll put in another entry for you. Keep in mind, this is a used copy of Auntie Mame, but it looks to be in unread condition. I just thought this would be a good way to share one of my favorite books with someone who may have never read it before! I think I'll keep the contest open until next Saturday, September 6, and I'll draw a winner and post it on my next Salon posting.
I hope everyone has a wonderful reading week, and I'm thinking of everyone down south right now. I truly hope Gustav proves to be kinder than his predecessors.
Happy reading everyone!
2 comments:
If you're having problems with the plot lines in the Kerr after 60 pages get a notebook now, it gets way more complicated as you go on. I loved 'The Fourth Bear'. You being you, I'm sure you will turn out to be a Friend to Bears and thus able to spend your afterlife in the Eternal Forest. I for one find this a very comforting thought. Have a good week.
A notebook might not be such a bad idea! I'm sure once I get into the rhythm of the story, it will flow smoothly, but I was surprised by how fast I was thrown into the story.
And I'm looking forward to The Fourth Bear as well. I've still got the last couple Thursday Next books to read as well, so I've still got some Fforde to last awhile before the wait for the next book.
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