BOOKS AS GIFTS
Happy New Year! I hope that you had fun and relaxing holidays and made it to to your intended destination. We survived two cold weeks in Manhattan and were fortunate not to have any snow. We gladly welcomed in the new year in Florida with fog and the return of temperatures around 70!
I’m always delighted to receive books as gifts, and this year was no exception. I vow every year that I will give priority to my Christmas books and read them all before mid-year. Sounds like a simple goal to accomplish, but I admit to getting sidetracked by other books that have been languishing in my stack or by new books that call out loudly to me. Pictured are the books I received on paper, and here are the titles.
April in Spain by John Banville (crime novel by a noted Irish author)
The Grimkes: The Legacy of Slavery an American Family by Kerri Greenidge (biography)
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver (novel inspired by David Copperfield)
Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson (novel by a favorite author)
The Orphan of Salt Winds by Elizabeth Brooks (gothic tale set in a mysterious house)
In addition, I have four Kindle gift books. I’m happy to report that I’ve already read three of them!
KINDLE READING
Works by Claire Keegan
Claire Keegan is an award-winning Irish writer known for her short stories and novellas. She has received considerable publicity of late given her nomination for the 2022 Booker Prize. Her writing is spare and exact and yet presents the quotidian details of life in an understated way.
I received two of her recent works and found them both quick reads, but powerful in the sense of the community she creates and the impressions they left on me as reader. I highly recommend both!
Small Things Like These
It’s 1985, just before Christmas in a small Irish town. Coal vendor Bill Furlong is making deliveries to the locals and to the convent. When he stops at the convent, he sees something that gives him pause, but he continues with his rounds. What he saw at the convent and his dealings with the sister in charge haunt him and present him with a complex dilemma. This is a quiet story and a demonstration of one man’s provocative courage. It was shortlisted for the 2022 Booker Prize.
Foster
In the summer, a father takes his little girl to the country to stay with relatives. She is one of many children in her family, and no one tells her why or for how long she will be away from home. She doesn’t know what to expect, but with the Kinsellas, she finds kind attention, respect, and even affection. But there’s also a mystery in this house. This is a story of love and loss as perceived by a young girl. It’s poignant and sad.
Domestic Suspense
The End of Her by Shari Lapena
The End of Her was my first exposure to the works of Shari Lapena. A Canadian novelist, she writes domestic suspense fiction. Patrick and Stephanie have been married for several years. He’s an architect and they have twins. Stephanie knew that Patrick’s first wife had died in a car accident, but not much more. Erica, a woman from his past, appears and has all sorts of damaging information to share with Stephanie about how his wife really died. Patrick proclaims his innocence, but Stephanie, and the reader, are unsure what the truth is and who to believe.
This was a real change of pace after Keegan’s works. I found it gripping and I raced to the finish. Some of the actions or lack of action by Stephanie aren’t quite convincing, but the book is a heart-pounding rollercoaster ride.
Still awaiting me on my Kindle is: The Night Singer by Johanna Mo. It’s the first book in a Scandinavian crime trilogy.
