Out of Step with Others

There are times when I find myself out of step. Sometimes it's just that I'm not up to date with the latest trends or slang. Sometimes it's because I haven't been watching the latest 'must see' TV show. Sometimes it's because I have chosen to stay on the outside because I don't want the stress of being on the inside!

Lately I have been struggling with reading. No, I haven't forgotten how to do it! I've been trying to plough through a book that I'm just not into because everyone who has read it is raving about it. What am I missing? I don't know but the darn thing isn't resonating with me and I'm avoiding picking it up.

I can hear my sister's voice shouting at me 'Life's too short for bad books' and I do agree with her. It's not like I've never stopped reading a book before the end in the past, as I remind myself every time I see Captain Corelli's Mandolin on a bookshelf.

So with reluctance I have decided to close the book and donate it. I'm just not getting the vibe that everyone else is and I have so many other books to read.

Bye bye unloved book and hello to all the other books on my To Read pile!

A Thousand Paper Birds by Tor Udall

Some books are easy to sum up. Almost as soon as I have finished reading them I know what I want to say about them and how they made me feel. I crack a review out, press 'publish' and pass the book along to my sister or the charity shop.

A Thousand Paper Birds is not a book like that.

I finished this book several weeks ago and it has taken me a while to process what I read. Don't get me wrong, I adored the book and would recommend it to everyone. It is a contender for Book of the Year, if I was awarding such an honour. So why couldn't I write a review straight after I finished it?

This is a complex book, tackling serious and important issues. It deals with love and grief, longing and loss, relationships and friendships. All very 'big' topics and ones that always make me think when they are the bedrock of a book. So I was very aware that I needed to take these themes seriously when I wrote my review.

I don't want to give too much away about the plot of the book because there was a moment when I was reading when everything shifted for me, literally took my breath away and left me staring at the page in disbelief. I don't want to spoil that moment for anyone else so l won't give away any secrets or important moments.

The novel centres around five characters and how their lives intertwine, sharing love and loss and struggling to understand each other and themselves. Jonah is a widower who is trying to piece together his life again after the loss of his beloved wife, Audrey. Audrey's story is told in a parallel narrative in the past. She is the link between all the other characters, touching their lives and changing them. Chloe is an artist who works in paper. She starts a relationship with Jonah that isn't easy for either of them. Harry and Milly live within Kew Gardens, a young girl constantly searching for her place in the world and a gardener whose whole world revolves around the plants he tends.

The way Tor Udall weaves the narrative through Kew Gardens and binds the characters together is wonderful. I have never visited Kew Gardens but I was transported there by the beautiful descriptions. Here is a small example: 

'Half-hidden among the cool green of the reeds, a heron stands on one leg, watching the sun glint on the water. Its wings are the colour of a bruise as it waits silently, like an old man wearing a coat of straggly feathers. There are four wooded islands on the lake, undisturbed by humans; stamping grounds for coots, moorhens and Canada geese. The air thrums with birdsong and damselflies darting between the campion and blanketweed.'

Can't you just picture the scene? I'm transported to the side of the lake, sitting and enjoying the tranquillity.

This book is a marvel, so beautiful, so sad and heart-breaking. The love between Jonah and Audrey shines through, his pain is almost too much to bear when reading yet there is hope for the future too. I was in tears at the end but it is a satisfying ending, everything left in a way that felt right.

I have not moved this book on. I know I will return to it again and read with tears in my eyes. This is a book that I will cherish, that I will re-read, a book I wish I had written. And that seems to me to be the highest compliment I can pay to any author.

A to Z of Reading

So Debbie over at www.mychaoticallyeclecticlife.com tagged people to take part in an A - Z of Reading. Well that was too good to be true so I put my hand up and here we are! So sit back and enjoy finding out about my reading life.

A - Author you've read the most number of books from
Either Charles Dickens or Thomas Hardy, although I think as I've read all of Hardy's it's probably him.
B - Best sequel ever
I'll go for Lord of the Rings. I loved The Hobbit and was keen to read more about Middle Earth, even though it was a very long read and rather daunting for a teenager!
C - Currently reading
I've just finished a book and have yet to decide what I'll tackle next. Any ideas?
D - Drink of choice while reading
Tea. Isn't everything better with tea?
E - E-Reader or physical book?
Physical book. I love the feel of the pare, the smell of a new book, the weight of it.
F - Fictional character you would have dated in high school.
I'd have chosen Heathcliff - always wanted to date a bad boy!
G - Glad you gave this book a chance
Moby Dick - took ages to get into but I'm glad I stuck with it.
H - Hidden gems
The Bees by Laline Paull - such a wonderful book. I was stunned that a novel about a hive of bees could be so gripping and have me weeping at the end.
I - Important moment in your reading life
The moment when it all clicked and I realised that reading was a joy and a pleasure, not a chore. I was about 8, a real late bloomer.
J - Just finished
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng.
K - Kinds of book you won't read
I'm not interested in erotica so have given 50 Shades a miss. I'm also not into any of the self help type books.
L - Longest book you've read
War and Peace. a real slog at times, hard to get into but some fascinating characters.
M - Major book hangover
I'm not sure what this refers to but I sometimes feel sad when a book I've enjoyed comes to an end. Recently I loved reading The Testament of Vida Tremayne by Sarah Vincent and was sad when it ended and I had to say goodbye to some beautifully written strong women characters.
N - Number of bookcases you own
Eight, not counting the space over the bed.
O - One book you've read multiple times
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. This is my all time favourite book and never disappoints.
P - Preferred place to read
Sofa, bed, train, coffee shop - is there a bad place to read?
Q - Quotes that inspire you
'We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars' Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde
R - Reading regrets
No regrets - I love reading!
S - Series started and not yet finished
The Thomas Covenant series by Stephen R Donaldson. I enjoyed the first three but struggled to get into number 4.
T - Three of your all time favourite books
Wuthering Heights, Tess of the D'Urbervilles and 1984
U - Unapologetic fangirl for
Dickens. The master of plot and character.
V - Very excited about this release
The third Thomas Cromwell by Hilary Mantel. I loved the first two and can't wait to see how she handles the downfall of this fascinating man.
W - Worst bookish habit
Breaking the spine of paperbacks, drives my sister dotty!
X - X marks the spot: start at the left and pick the 27th book on your shelf
A View From the Bridge by Arthur Miller.
Y - Your latest book purchase
The Forgotten and the Fantastical 3 - an anthology of modern takes on fairy tales.
Z - ZZZ snatcher: book that last kept you up late
Sadly I love my sleep too much to give it up, even for the best book!

So there we are, some questions answered and few new ones posed. What answers would you give?