The Vintage Caper by Peter Mayle is a wonderful ‘armchair’ travel mystery with lots of info about wine included. So “what’s not to like”? The mystery involves the theft of some very expensive wine. Peter Mayle writes a good tale about the exploits of Sam Levitt, former lawyer and wine connoisseur, who follows leads to Bordeaux and Provence. It had been awhile since I’d read one of Mayle’s delightful stories. I am reminded to read more.
The World’s Strongest Librarian is a fantasic book!! In my mind it ranks right up there with The End of Your Life Book Club. As a young boy, Josh Hanagarne loved books and reading. In fact, he was a voracious reader before he started kindergarten. He also started experiencing rapid eye blinking, facial tics, and other odd behavior which was later identified as Tourette’s Syndrome. Josh is raised in a loving, Morman home, but as he tries to complete his education, falls in love, and finds a job–in a library, of course, he confronts his confusion and questions about Mormonism. This is a true story in which the reader gets an education about the Mormon faith, Tourette’s Syndrome, weight lifting, and attempting to overcome severe adversity. Most of all it is a tribute to the human spirit and the importance of books and how the love of reading can help us all. My favorite quotes from the book–“Many librarians lament the idea that we might simply be competitors for Netflix or iTunes. I’m past caring about that. I want people walking through the doors. I don’t care what their reasons are. Once they’re they’re here, we’ll work on why they return.” In talking about his son, “I’ll never forget the first time I took him in, and he said, ‘And I can take any book, Daddy!’. He quivers when we walk into the library. I’m still that kid at heart.”
I had always been fascinated by the stories of the real life so-called ‘orphan trains’ which carried abandoned children from the cities of the eastern coast of the U.S., in the early part of the 20th century, to the farmlands of the Midwest. I was anxious to read Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline, which knits together the past and the present by juxtaposing an account of Vivian Daly, a young Irish immigrant orphan, with that of modern day foster child Molly Ayer. There is an interesting story line, but I found quite a bit of the dialogue to be a bit melodramatic. I also found it hard to believe that a supposedly indigent foster child had her own cellphone and laptop–complete with internet service! One part that I really did like was that Molly’s favorite book, which she stole from the library, in order to own it, was Jane Eyre! It seemed so ‘appropriate’ for the foster child Molly to love the story of the orphan Jane Eyre–which of course led me to re-read Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.
It was interesting to read this story again. I think the last time I read it I was about 14! The telling of the loneliness of and cruelty to the orphan Jane, did seem to relate to the character of Molly Ayer in Orphan Train. The misadventures and the ultimate triumph over adversity by the lowly governess of Thornhill into the arms of Rochester provide a romantic and mysterious Gothic adventure. Now on to the movie–the version released in 2011. I watched it this past weekend. The Gothic romance is set in the Moors of England providing a bleak and eerie visual setting for the movie drama. I thought the actress (Mia Wasikowska) who played Jane was very good, as was Judi Dench who played the housekeeper. However, Michael Fassbender, as Mr.Rochester was far too good looking to be the ugly Rochester described in the book. There was too much violin music, but overall, it was a fairly good classic made into a movie.
The final book I’ll write about this time is The Book of Someday by Diane Dixon. I read an ‘advance’ copy. The book is due to be released in September 2013. There is a quote before the preface of the book which is very thought-provoking: “Traveler there is no road, the way is made by walking”–Antonio Machado. The beginning of the book is difficult because there are descriptions of abuse. As the little girl grows up, she writes a Book of Someday in which she imagines what it will be like when she has a ‘normal’ life. If the reader sticks with it, the story of three women mysteriously connected, is told with enough mystery to keep one engaged and wondering how the story will be resolved. This was advertised (by the publisher) a lot during the recent BEA (Book Expo America ) convention, so I’m guessing they have high hopes for it.
Happy summer reading to all!!
bibliomaven 