Dewey Noon Hour: Karl Ove Knausgaard's My Struggle Vol. I

Late this morning I turned to My Struggle, the Norwegian writer Karl Ove Knausgaard's first volume of his vast autobiographical novel. I learned about this book from a fellow blogger, and I must find out which blogger so I can give proper credit. I'm nearly 50 pages in, and I've found this book is full of the type of writing I love: it's acutely introspective, rich in detail, unsparingly honest, and above all, rivetting. If you love reading the journals of writers, you will appreciate this book. It's been translated into 30 languages and has been extremely popular in Europe. Knausgaard lives in Sweden now. This link will take you to a fascinating interview with Knausgaard in The Paris Review.

First Book of the Day, Dewey-Style

Well, I'm snuggled into the loft bed with a cup of strong darjeeling by my side. I started Dewey just past eight this morning by reading something easy, which I'm already in the midst of, and that would be The Fate of Mercy Alban by Wendy Webb. A gothic to start the day sounds about right.
If you scroll down, you will find the photo of the drippingly gothic book cover.
Thank you to everyone who's following me!

Dewey's Readathon Starts for Me at 8am Sat.

I have decided at the last minute to try doing Dewey's tomorrow. I've got lots of choices of reading material on hand, which I'll mention tomorrow morning. We're having some rain tomorrow, which helped push me toward trying Dewey, but I'll admit it right now. I must exercise, I must eat, and I must sleep--all for health reasons. Other than that, I'm all set.

Good luck to everyone and have fun!

Do Read The Lie, If It's on Your 2014 List!

I loved the experience of reading The Lie by Helen Dunmore. (Please see my previous entry for the book cover, links, and other comments.) I've heard comments from people who have not liked the ending, but I can sweep the ending aside, because it was only a few lines long and not the point of the book, not at all! But, you folks are right, I would've completed this novel in a different way, and I like to think of that ending so much that I can forget the few words about the real ending.

But I implore you not to cross this book off your list, solely because of the ending. I think it's exquisitely written, sensitive, incredibly "subtle," as one reviewer noted, and well worth the time spent. I liked it nearly as much as her previous novel, The Greatcoat, which is high praise from me, because it was one of my top reads of 2013.

Where do I head next?
I'm working on the gothic I mentioned a couple of weeks ago--The Fate of Mercy Alban by Wendy Webb. I'm reading it on the Nook and must say that it is very well done. Set on the wild, windy shores of Lake Superior in the U.S.  Marvelous setting and plot!

And I'm continuing to be enthralled by books revealing 17th-century colonial New England. This is my first time examining this period of time, and it is so fascinating. I'm particularly interested in the cataclysmic event of that century, King Philip's War, the Indian war that killed more English colonists (percentage-wise in terms of population) than Americans in the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and World Wars I and II). Furthermore, this war, sadly, decimated the Native American population in New England. To think I studied American history in junior high school, high school, and college and never heard it mentioned. What a heinous omission.

Helen Dunmore's The Lie was waiting for me at the library much sooner than I expected. And the book is due on April 23rd with no renewals! I would so like to read it and finish it, if not by the 23rd then soon after. But I've been overwhelmed by more projects--writing jobs, leading many nature hikes at Garnet Hill in April and May that involve research and scouting beforehand, and preparations for my Children's Lit summer class that begins May 19.

Back to the book: The Lie, as many UK readers already know, is set in France in the First World War and in England afterward. It has received excellent reviews. I so loved Dunmore's The Greatcoat, which I read last summer, that I'm very eager to read this book. I can't believe the vast number of books published this year about World War I. At my library, there's an entire six-foot-long bookshelf dedicated to new nonfiction focused on this war. If I were an historian and expert on this war, I would not want to publish a book in 2014. All these titles are getting lost in the crowd.  I feel so badly for the authors, who've put so many years of work and research into them. Have you read any of the nonfiction that you would recommend, or do you know of any that have been highly recommended?

What about other fiction focusing on the First World War? Do you know of any or have you read any to be published this year? And of course, there are the reissues of older titles.

Truly Gothic Reads Heating Up and a Bit of Nonfiction

The traditional gothic is gaining in strength and numbers, I've observed. As I've mentioned before, Victoria Holt's Mistress of Mellyn, which I read as a high school sophomore, was my introduction to modern gothic and that was in 1968. Little did I know then that "gothic suspense" and "gothic romance" were on their way OUT. It was too bad, because after a few more Victoria Holts, some Joan Aikens, and Mary Stewarts, I was certain I wanted to write one myself. But that was in my immature years, and when I finally had the wherewithal to actually apply myself to writing one, the genre was dead and gone.

So my latest contemporary gothic read is The Fate of Mercy Alban by Wendy Webb. I adore the cover, and it's all too possible that I've shown it to you before. All the same, I'm thoroughly enjoying the book on my Nook. It's a very satisfying read for a modern gothic nut.

Wendy Webb wrote an interesting post on her publisher's blog last year concerning her gothic-novel writing.

Nonfiction: I'm whizzing through HRC: State Secrets and the Rebirth of Hillary Rodham Clinton.
I managed to borrow this from the library and that's why I'm zipping through it. It's about Clinton's transformation from New York State senator and 2008 Democratic presidential candidate running against Obama to a position that she never saw herself filling: U.S. Secretary of State. Yes, there's political intrigue, here, but lots of detail of her management of the State Department and all the crises that arose during Obama's first term. Love her or hate her, it doesn't matter, this is a very, very interesting book. I'm learning lots about the State Department and the U.S. handling of foreign affairs, and ok, a little about political dynasties.

I'm also reading lots of books about 17th-century New England, but I won't bore you with that!!

We still have lots of snow, but this week we'll have temps in the 50s all week. I went on a snowshoe trip today with Sasha, but our days as winter adventurers could be counted on one hand.

Going Back to Reading

Just the briefest of posts to say that I've finished two projects that have kept me from reading: one was a writing project and the other an editing job. I'm returning to reading immediately, but to which book I'm not definite--hence, the abbreviated post. I'd like to read one of my TBRs, but I have more than $60 in Barnes and Noble credit to divert me. Now that is exciting! I'd like a fun, frivolous read to start.

Spring is trying to approach, but temps will fall to 22 degrees tonight, then up to the 40s tomorrow, a bit on the cold side for April, but not unheard of. We hope we stay in the 40s and low 50s for a while so that all the snow can melt gracefully. Also praying for no big storms. We've had huge snowstorms in April. I will return soon with something much more substantial, I hope.

Dealing with Utter Blog Neglect and The Ivy Tree

In truth, what I'm dealing with is what I'm hoping will be a temporary divergence from reading for pleasure. I do read before bed for about a half hour, but that's nothing compared to my January and February reading.

 I became immersed in several projects this month, during this so very long month of waiting for spring in the North Country, where we have continued to have near zero and zero nighttime temperatures. But the sun! The glorious sun warms the house in the afternoons. This weekend and next week we will be boasting about temperatures in the 40s. I pray we don't become too warm too soon, so that we can have our multi-feet of snow melt gracefully.

I'm nearing the end of The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart. I was perplexed with the characters at first, and I'm still at sea with Mary Grey who is posing as Annabel Winslow, one of the likely heirs to Whitescar in Northumberland. It is summer there now, which is lovely. I am enjoying it, though I have been scratching my head over all the characters who remain elusive, even at this late point of the novel. There's Con, the cousin, who is determined to inherit the estate,  his sister Lisa the housekeeper, Adam Forrest on the neighboring estate, Lisa (Annabel's cousin and another likely inheritor), and Mary Grey herself posing as Annabel. Who is Mary Grey, anyway? Have you read this book? What were your thoughts? Yes, I recommend it wholeheartedly, though you'll be perplexed the entire time!

Reading Upheaval and Flynn's Sharp Objects

When you pick up a novel and the back cover includes a lengthy blurb from Stephen King, explaining how terrifying the book was for him, you know you have a horror novel in your hands. I did not even see the quote until I was more than halfway through the book, because I was reading so compulsively. Gillian Flynn's Sharp Objects is very accomplished and extremely well-done, a much finer novel than Gone Girls, to my mind. The horror toward the end--well, yes, it gave me the heebie-jeebies, but I was prepared. Mind, I can't even get near the third chapter of a Stephen King novel, so Sharp Objects was definitely not a Kingish or Kingian-Horror type of novel. Just good ol' family horror and very well done. Please refer to my previous post as well. Do note: I don't read horror, but I could so appreciate Flynn's considerable skills--character development, strong plot, well-handled setting. Yes, I recommend it, without doubt. If you tend to be a squeamish reader, though, I would recommend reading a detailed synopsis before trying it.

March Priorities and Reading Upheaval:
I am most certainly reading March, the Civil War novel by Geraldine Brooks for Caroline's month of March Literature and War Readalong  I must post my thoughts by March 31. Geraldine Brooks's The People of the Book is a peak favorite of mine. So incredibly well done. I adored it. So I have high hopes for March, which won??? Was it a Pulitzer or the National Book Award? It won something big.

My reading upheaval is that I've catapulted myself into a children's book writing project, so I'm spending lots of time reading children's books. No question about it: This cuts into my adult book reading time, but carry on with grown-up books I will! Currently I'm reading The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart. The novel feels strange to me, 70 pages in, because I don't find any of the main characters likeable, including the protagonist, Mary Grey. Yet what I'm noticing is that I'm becoming more interested in her as the pages fly by.

We were dumped with 18 inches of snow and frigid temperatures on Wednesday and Thursday. The snow will extend the winter sports season, which is fine with me, but near zero temperatures are not welcome.