Phew! I made it across the country in once piece, and while I catch my breath I thought I'd share with you another installment of Blogger Book Love. This one comes to us from Lynne of Tea for Joy ---and the way Lynne describes her favourite books makes me want to run to the library and snag a copy of each one! But of course if you're familiar with Lynne's blog, you know how spot-on her taste is. She constantly delights us with her fabulous Etsy finds, simply stunning interiors, and the occasional tasty recipe. So it's no surprise that her book list is equally lovely...
What is the What? by Dave Eggers. I saw Dave Eggers interview Valentino Achak Deng, the subject of this book, at the ICA in London, and their mutual affection really showed. This is a semi-fictional account of Deng’s harrowing childhood as a ‘Lost Boy’ in Sudan, and his eventual emigration to the United States – where the promised land is far from everything he expects. I liked his earlier books too, but this one is simply remarkable, if a little slow in parts. Its lyricism and series of events had me in tears all over the place.
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. This is the most amazing book I have ever read. Set in India, this is another massive tome of a book, almost 600 pages long. It took me a while to get into it, but then I couldn’t put it down. I was so traumatised by this book that I will never read it again. If you only read one novel in your life, I think this must be it. It will change you, I promise.
An Evil Cradling by Brian Keenan – it has been a long time since I read this account of hostage Brian Keenan’s stay in Beirut as a hostage, but it’s still on my list. I have just checked it on Amazon, where 26 out of 29 people gave it a 5 star review, and one describes it as the ‘greatest non-fiction book ever written.’ I don’t think that is an exaggeration – this man is a poet.
Velvet Elvis, by Rob Bell. This may not stay on my favourites for ever, but I already know I will read everything he ever writes. This book challenges my Christian faith to be something different. Some might find the anecdotes of his perfect family a little too hard to stomach (something I struggle with a little in the blogosphere – is there anyone out there who doesn’t have a perfect husband and a perfect life?) Still, I am a total sucker for sentimentality. I love this book for this paragraph alone, where he talks about jumping on a trampoline with his boys.
“When we’re too exhausted to jump anymore, we’ll lie down on the mat and stare up at the vast blue sky above us and watch the clouds go by and listen to the breeze as it moves the leaves overhead. I’ll be there on my back, and I’ll say a short prayer: “God, I can’t believe I get to live this life.”
I’m desperate to trap some friends into forming a Velvet Elvis discussion group.
Moonfleet by J Meade Faulkner. A childhood tale of diamond smuggling and childhood romance, full of suspense and intrigue. There is a paragraph at the end, where the character is reunited with a childhood friend, which made me sob uncontrollably the last time I read it (as an adult – how did my childhood self cope?) There have been at least two men in my life who I thought were perfect for me, because they had had significant encounters with this book (I was wrong). Has anyone else had that experience with a book? Still, if there is one thing I can say for certain, it is that if any man ever takes me to The Wash, in Dorset, where this book is set, I will be his for life.
P.S. Please can I have one more? Lest you think every book I read needs to bring me to tears, can I just say that I LOVE, almost more than anything, every single book in the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series (by Alexander McCall Smith.) They are the happiest books I have ever read.
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Thanks so much to Lynne for sharing her must-reads with us. I can't wait to give some of these a go--and I'm all up for a discussion group once I read Velvet Elvis...If you're just tuning in be sure to check out previous installments here, and stay tuned for holiday goodness post later today!
