I admit to feelings of confusion, bewilderment and frustration upon finishing Haruki Murakami’s The Strange Library. I shut the book and thought to myself, “What the hell was that?” Not an altogether unusual reaction to reading his fiction, or so I hear from people who dislike his novels. But there is a raving fan for…
It’s been one of those weeks when literally every piece of news or email I’ve been waiting for arrived at the same time. Not in a trickling, gentle sense, but in the PROCESS IT ALL NOW NOW NOW way. As such, I’ve been sitting and dealing with these matters but combined with writing, too, I’ve been…
Here I am, squeezing in a ‘What I’m Reading’ post for May! I missed last month’s due to being away and didn’t want to miss another. This is an interesting turnaround because, looking back two weeks or so, it was looking like I wouldn’t write this one either. I’ve been feeling a bit lost when…
I had a really good library visit last week. You know those magic days when you walk in and stroll along the shelves and pluck down titles you’ve known about for a long time but haven’t gotten around to reserving or finding some other way. Past the Shallows by Favel Parrett is one of those titles….
A few months after putting a hold on it at the library, Poems that Make Grown Men Cry finally came in. I can’t confirm first-hand that it indeed makes grown men cry, but what I can say is that it made me cry. Several times. Many inclusions are poems that I am familiar with and…
Goodness, look at the date – I’m running late for my regular ‘What I’m Reading’ post. With the kids at home on holidays still, and my playing around with new video software, I’ve been preoccupied! Things will return to normal (or our version of normal!) next week when school goes back. So – books! To…
Wow, it’s a big month for books around here. First there was the big Christmas round up and now this post! Next, I think I’ll take a break from book talk for a while. Rest up and read – hey, that sounds like a plan. I’ve got a few on the go. Here they are. Fahrenheit 451…
Michael Cunningham is an exquisite writer, one of my favourites, but I’m struggling with The Snow Queen for some reason. Granted, I’ve only just started, but my interest hasn’t quite been captured yet. Acute Misfortune: The Life and Death of Adam Cullen is a fascinating profile of the Archibald-winning artist, although I finished feeling disappointed….
Read / September 16th, 2014
The first book I read was Farther Away by Jonathan Franzen. Franzen tends to be a rather polemic writer and as I was reading I felt a kind of… tension within myself, from piece to piece, that was interesting (if a little off-putting). I adored the title essay, an exploration of his grief following the death…
