Category: Bookshelf

An Acceptable Time

A nice enough story about Polly, one of Meg and Calvin’s kids, but it doesn’t have quite the magic of A Wrinkle in Time or the other books in that series.  I’m not entirely sure what makes the difference.  It might be that the science is more fantasy than science.  It might be that the world-building relies a bit too much on the reader having read the other books–I didn’t feel as fully immersed in the story here.

However, if I weren’t comparing it to the amazing experience of Wrinkle, this book would do quite well.  It’s well written, with great characters and complex problems that come to a satisfying, not too simplistic, resolution.  A good book.  Not, perhaps, one I’ll keep coming back to, but one I’m glad I read.

Writing Stories

This slim little volume packs a lot of good advice, and it contains a fair few writing exercises that would seem like good ways to get going on a story if I didn’t have a plethora of stories I’m already going on.

It focuses a bit too much on journaling (an occupation that I’ve never found productive), and on getting ideas (a part of writing I’ve never had problems with), and it’s a touch too patronizing (as if the author doesn’t realize that young people are even more sensitive to that kind of thing than older ones.  As a writer for young people, doesn’t he know better?)

Still, there’s lots of good solid stuff on how to make memories into more; how to show not tell, and how to do the important stuff, like characters and setting and plot, well.  I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it as a good starting place for someone who wants to get into story-writing.  Especially if they do have trouble coming up with ideas.

Burial Rites

Extraordinarily well written, with fascinating characters, and lush details. I’ve never visited Iceland (and certainly not in the 19th century), but I feel like I’ve been there now.

Not a happy story, though. It has redemptive elements, but not that touch of joy and hope that makes me want to read books over and over. Glad I read it once, though.

The Goblin War

As I’ve probably mentioned before, one of the great things about RMFW conferences is the number of books we get in the swag bag. I love, love, love going home with enough to keep me busy–for a bit anyway.

The Goblin War is one of these.  I certainly never would have picked up only book three of a series if I’d been choosing the book myself.

All the same, I wasn’t too lost when I got dropped into the middle of a story that follows trio of young people and their goblin friends as they tramp through a couple of connected worlds, restoring balance and justice. In fact, I was interested enough that I’ll probably try to track down the first couple of books, so I can get a better idea of the whole picture.

The Finishing Touches

K. gave me this one for a birthday a couple of years ago. As I understand it, she picked it up off some bargain table to fit it into her budget, so I had some qualms starting it. I was pleasantly surprised to discover a well-written, sweet-yet-modern romance (real world, fairly modern problems, but it’s PG at the most). I love returning to this book when I’m stressed out and want something hopeful and not too straining on the brain, and I keep looking for sequels. Alas, nothing new so far as I can tell.

Catch 22

This has been on my to-read list forever (at least since sometime in college), and it is every bit as good as everybody says it is.  On the other hand, it’s super, super depressing.  I don’t think I’m going to keep it around.  I’m glad I’ve read it, but I have no desire to do so again.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

I thoroughly enjoyed this, though I must admit I found it less satisfying than the original seven. The story line is great; it’s lovely to get to know some of these characters as adults, and I’m interested all the way through. However, I miss the inimitable style (and punny humor) of the originals, to say nothing of the rich descriptions. I dare say that like most scripts, it’s better seen than read. Even as it stands, however, the book is well worth the fairly short time it takes to read.

Rest and Be Thankful

My mother had (and as far as I know still has) an old battered copy of this book which I read and fell in love with back when I was in high school.  I recently re-read it, and fell in love with it all over again.

Rest and Be Thankful is about Sarah (Sally) Bly and Mrs. Peel, long-term traveling companions, who by accident happen upon a ranch in Wyoming, love it, and sponsor a writing retreat there.  The setting is gorgeous, the characters well-developed, and the pacing restful while still maintaining interest.  When I sit down with this book, I find I can truly relax.

I love the descriptions of people.  I love the way Sally and Mrs. Peel let Wyoming-inspired independence help them let go of their insecurities and break free from bad patterns of relating to people.  I love the way the book (gently but firmly) champions the idea that the second half of life can be every bit as interesting as the first.  I love that there’s romance–love blooming in midlife.

I also love the glimpse this gave me of a writing life–or rather several writing lives–and opened my eyes to the possibility that this was a career path real people might tread.  (I get the irony of it being fictional characters showing me that, but isn’t that what well-done stories are about–immersing us in worlds we might not have the opportunity to experience without them?)

There might be just a touch too much communist-bashing in here–but even that is often quite funny, and the critique of literary snobbishness, whether connected to communism or not, is spot on. ( I also completely agree with MacInnes’ main characters that the “realist” school of fiction selected only very depressing realities to depict, and that true “realism” should embrace good as well as bad.  Of course, I usually stick to writing sci-fi and fantasy, so what do I know about realism?)

Anyway, I’d highly recommend this book, particularly for folks who like romance and who aren’t too set on breakneck pacing in their stories.

Signs of You

I pre-ordered this book months ago when I first heard it was coming out in part because I’ve met Emily France, and she’s lovely, but mostly because I had seen or heard just a bit of the story at some RMFW event and was longing to read the rest.

It does not disappoint. Riley and her three best friends are vividly drawn, complex people, all of them sympathetic, all of them flawed. I find myself fascinated by the adventure they go on together to unravel the paranormal puzzle that is further tangling their already complicated lives, and I’m fully involved in the story right to the very end. The love story is sweet, and even the present tense doesn’t grate on me the way narrative present usually does–at least not after the first page or so.

Definitely a read I’d recommend. (But probably for kids a bit older than mine.)

The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

I must have read some Sherlock Holmes stories before–I’m sure I must have.  But I can’t recall doing so.  I’ve seen movies and TV shows, serious takes and spoofs.  But this might be the first time I’ve read the real thing.

The real thing doesn’t disappoint. Sherlock is brilliant and quirky, Watson grounded and real.  The problems are ingenious, and though I still prefer novels to short stories, I enjoyed every one of these. I believe I’m keeping this book.  I may even keep an eye out for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s other collections.