I know it has been ages since I posted here. I just don't seem to have a lot of time for blogging lately. I am still reading as much as ever (as if I could ever give it up) and have been keeping a list of everything I've read. So, I'm going to break with tradition a little bit and just write about most of the books I've read lately in this one post. I'll probably write individual posts about a couple of books, the ones I liked especially well. So, here goes:
The Magician's Assistant by Ann Patchett: Yes, I still like Ann Patchett. She's probably becoming one of my favorite authors. This one is about a woman who's husband dies. When his will is read she learns that his parents are still living, even though he had told her they were dead. So, the woman sets out to learn who her husband really was. I wouldn't recommend this one as an introduction to Patchett but if you're already a fan you'll probably like this one too.
The Human Stain by Philip Roth: I read this book for my book club last month. I did not enjoy it. Actually, I haven't read anything by Roth that I've enjoyed. I don't even have anything good to say about it so I'm not going to say anything at all.
The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber: I liked this novel about Victorian era England. I liked the way Faber dealt with the contradictions of that time. I liked the way he dealt with relationships between men and women and the strange expectations that people had for each other. A fair warning, one of the protagonists is a prostitute and there are some fairly detailed descriptions about her line of work. Still, I thought it was interesting but I did really dislike the ending!
The Last Town on Earth by Thomas Mullen: This book was recommended by one of the other members of my book club. It is a novel about a town in Washington toward the end of World War I. When the influenze epidemic started sweeping across the state the town voted to quarantine itself in hopes of avoiding the flu. They posted armed guards at the edge of their town to keep outsiders out and they did not allow any residents to leave. The plot was inspired by a brief newspaper mention of a town that actually tried this. Anyway, Mullen's story is interesting and the way the townspeople devolve when flu actually comes to the town is especially interesting.
Summer by Karen Kingsbury: I borrowed this one from my mother in law when she visited last. It is the second in a new series about the Baxter family. It was predictably Kingsbury but a good read nevertheless.
