Better Than Starbucks discussion

Karin
The Woman Who Walked in Sunshine by Alexander McCall Smith4 stars
Precious Ramotswe takes a holiday (in the US, a vacation :) ), something strongly suggested by those around her and something she has never before done. Not that she sits idle day by day. She cleans out the food cupboard, ends up finding a troublesome child who is himself in trouble and ends up taking on a case. I have to say that this was a lovely trip back to these people and was up to fine form. Perhaps after one or to prior books a few books back, it might have seemed time for this series to end, but I thought this one fresh for a number of reasons. As always, I enjoyed Precious, but this had a new level of personal growth and realizations for her as she worries, doubts and frets over this whole holiday and why those around her are so concerned she take one.
It was a pleasure to read, but since I save 5 stars for those few books that have something very stellar, amazing or something incredible for me in the reading of a book, it's a solid four stars. Plus, it's not entirely perfect (but then, what book is?)
No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency fans, I recommend this to you. 2 months ago.
mita
Hi Karin. Will get this for my husband who has read most of the books in this series and is a fan of Ma Ramotswe. 2 months ago.
Karin
Great, I hope he enjoys this one, too. 2 months ago.
Ellen S
I'm on a Henning Mankell kick. Mysteries, perfect for this dark time of year.
posted 2 months ago.
Beginnings
Hi Ellen,
The daylight time is less during winter. Is this what you mean?
posted 2 months ago.
Ellen S
Yes. 2 months ago.
Karin
The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Fabe3 stars
Peter Leigh is sent off as a missionary to a faraway planet dubbed Oasis, not to preach to the earthlings there, but to the indigenous sentient population. His wife has to stay home. Once he meets the natives, he is surprised that they not only have heard of Jesus, but converts call themselves Jesus Love followed by a number in the order they converted. A former missionary had simply disappeared, walking off one day, never to be heard from again. Meanwhile, back on earth, multiple catastrophes occur, leaving his wife questioning her faith, despondent and more lonely than ever for Peter.
Michel Faber writes well, does an excellent job of developing his characters for the most part, and does a great job of helping us to see the setting. And yet, it was just a like. It didn't keep me up all hours reading, or grab me in any meaningful way. Faber has obviously done a great deal of research into various peoples around earth that he has used to help develop his aliens; perhaps almost too much at times. The planet was rather unbelievable at moments, particularly the rain and weather. Nevertheless, if you are a fan of scifi books that examine faith and strains on a marriage, or if you love Michel Faber's writing, I recommend it. I'm glad I read it even if it wasn't a favourite. 2 months ago.
Beginnings (edited)
Finished Reading:
1 )I Thought I Could Fly
Portraits of Anguish, Compulsion, and Despair
Published by the Bellevue Literary Press
2) The Road / Cormac McCarthy
3) Finishing up the last few pgs. tonight:
Smoking Cigarettes, Eating Glass : a psychologist's memoir / Annita Perez Sawyer, PhD.
Most likely will begin serious reading tonight: (since it is a LinkPlus book)
4) A Cat, a Man, and Two Women : [stories] / Jun'ichiro Tanizaki ; translated by Paul McCarthy
http://www.shelfari.com/books/3903915...
In addition: Library Requests with moderate/long Holds I am waiting for:
1) Dark Corners : a novel / Ruth Rendell.
2) A Man Called Ove : a novel / Fredrik Backman.
3)The Nightingale / Kristin Hannah
4) The Housekeeper and the Professor / Yoko Ogawa ; translated by Stephen Snyder.
5) Humans of New York : stories / Brandon Stanton.
The 1st four books on the above hold list are part of the 2015 Best Book lists on the Shelfari group- Play Book Tag. I thought I'd try a few new authors on Shelfarians recommendations, although I have read one Ruth Rendell book, which I thoroughly
enjoyed reading. Plus a few other reads on Shelfari in the waiting... 2 months ago.
Karin
I really liked The Housekeeper and the Professor. A Man Called Ove is also good. 2 months ago.
Beginnings
Hi Karin,
The Housekeeper and the Professor is waiting for pick up-looking forward to reading the book! 2 months ago.
mef
I didn't care for the housekeepr and her professor, gut I just bought Ove inSweden, to read on the plane home. And then I read something else! So I still have it to look forward to.
posted 2 months ago.
Karin
I liked Ove, but having read it after his second book, I have to say it wasn't quite as good for me as his second one.
posted 2 months ago.
tapbirds
“All the Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr ★★★★
“So really, children, mathematically, all of light is invisible.” Or is it? Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer-prize winning novel sheds visible light on the dark era of Hitler Youth and French resistance. The author skillfully weaves together the story of two youth who grow up during these traumatic times: one a Parisian girl blind since the age of six, the other a German orphan boy who excels in electronics and mathematics. The girl, Marie-Laure, is left by her father with a mysterious precious stone to protect, while the boy, Werner, is left with a sister who will not acquiesce to Hitler’s “sieg heil” vapidity. Both seek their own destiny, and both must overcome an inherent blindness to be able to seek that which is meaningful. The novel reaches a crescendo as the two adolescents coalesce geographically in the fortified French coastal town of Saint-Malo. This novel was a page-turner . . . well crafted and riveting! It is one of the better Pulitzer Prize winners since “Tinkers” and “Gilead.” However those earlier novels possessed a depth lacking in Doerr’s work.
posted 2 months ago.
Karin
Another fan of this book? I am so torn over whether or not I should read this. One of my aunt's first husband (okay, the only aunt to have had two) was enough older than her that he was required to be in Hitler Youth. I was too young to hear the stories, but my mother said he knew kids who would have turned in their own parents if they'd heard them listening to the BBC.
posted 2 months ago.
tapbirds
Yes, I guess you could add me to the Doerr fan list. However I could see why this novel might be somewhat traumatic to someone who had personal experiences with Hitler Youth. For my part, I had an aunt who was a war crimes stenographer in Nuremberg during the infamous war crimes trials following the war's end. She shared many stories with us when I was growing up as a child visiting her in small town Texas - many of which my parents felt were a bit too adult in nature (gruesome facts) for such a tender age. Much later, I visited the Sachsenhausen concentration camp near Berlin with Dutch friends who had young children at the time. We are currently visiting these friends, and last night after supper I asked the youngsters (the oldest is now 18) if they still remember that trip. Each one exclaimed, "Yes! We will never forget what we saw and learned!" I think that there is educational value in regurgitating the past on behalf of the next generation.
posted 2 months ago.
uplandpoet
My favorite doerr is Harriet!
posted 2 months ago.
Karin
I prefer things like The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom now, since I have read and seen so many things about WW II, nonfiction and fiction. But, while it's a great history of how a Christian family helped many Jews and people in the resistance hide and escape, end up in a concentration camp for some time but then get out and later move on to help found the first post-concentration camp rehab centres, it is unmistakably Christian in outlook due to the author's strong convictions, so may not be everyone's cup of tea.
posted 2 months ago.
tapbirds
I loved Corrie Ten Boom's "The Hiding Place!" I occasionally show the movie (I only wish there was a newer version) to my class when we discuss heroic conscientious objectors of faith. Many years ago, my wife and I were visiting friends in Lisse Netherlands. Our Dutch friends knew how much I liked Corrie Ten Boom, so they arranged to take us through a tour of her house in Haarlem. It was probably the best tour I've ever taken. They have left all of the Ten Boom belongings intact, including the closet where the family successfully hid Jews from the Nazis. The highlight was when our two families (including two children) had to hide in the closet for about 10 minutes along with the tour guide who eloquently spoke to us of the nature of faith and fear.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZdW7...
(Sorry, it's in Dutch, but the photos are interesting)
posted 2 months ago.
Karin
Wow, what an experience! I'm going to check out that Youtube video even though I'm supposed to be getting ready for Christmas. I am just not in the mood for all the work this year (Ms Scrooge????)
posted 2 months ago.
tapbirds
Karin: Also, you might enjoy this excellent film about German hero, Sophie Scholl, a member of the White Rose underground resistance. The acting is incredibly good, and there are English subtitles:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXtC0...
posted 2 months ago.
Beginnings
Greetings,
For all the talk about transparency in govt.,personal relationships etc. there is something to be said for the underground, the subtext, the mysteries, uncertainties and always the hope hidden. Merry Christmas BTS