As usual, I had a pretty lengthy book list on my Christmas list this year.
Lone Traveller by Anne Mustoe
Nine hills to Nambonkaha by Sarah Erdman
A Half Forgotten Song by Katherine Webb
Stoker's Manuscript by Royce Prouty
Paris Enigma by Pablo de Santis
Blythewood by Carol Goodman
And then the vulture eats you by John L. Parker
Running with the Kenyans by Adharanand Finn
George Washington's Secret Six by Brian Kilmeade & Don Yaeger (I've started this already!)
That is it! I'm really excited for all these, as they all look amazing. I'm trying to sneak in chapters in between work, school, and packing for vacation. :)
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Monday, January 13, 2014
Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
Blind Assassin is on The List, and I've been meaning to read it for awhile after my sister fell in love with it. I have read Atwood's A Handmaid's Tale, which I sort of liked. I wasn't nearly as interested in distopian societies when I read it probably 5 years ago, so it did not hold my attention well.
Blind Assassin held my attention very well. The book cover is full of hype, which frustrates me to read since books really hold up to their stellar, one line reviews. Iris is the older sister of Laura, a beautiful, pragmatic child who Iris helps raise, along with their housekeeper Reenie, after the early death of their mother. Iris and Laura are the heiresses of a large button factory located near Toronto that reaches its pinnacle of glory post WW1. In the intervening years, the sisters are schooled at home by tutors, mostly oblivious to the social changes happening in Canada, and all over the world, post WW1.
Iris marries young after the factory burns down and leaves the family with little options. She has little feelings for her husband, or his controlling sister who takes over Iris' life, but she dutifully does her wifely duties, including having one daughter. After their father dies, Laura moves in with Iris and her husband and is not so silent about her observances of her sister's marriage.
The book is interwoven by another story, The Blind Assassin, which is told by two unknown lovers who meet in secret. The female forces the male to tell her a story, which becomes The Blind Assassin, a book published after the death of Laura.
I love the writing in this book. It's so intelligent, thought provoking, and engaging. The ending was beautiful; simple, and somewhat unexpected. I know little of Canada, especially the history of social life in the time period between the two world wars. That was interesting for me. The book fluctuates between Iris telling the story as an old woman to Laura and Iris as children in the mansion. Changes in time and perspective can get confusing and boring if not done well, but Atwood does it beautifully.
One of my favorite books I read in 2013.
Blind Assassin held my attention very well. The book cover is full of hype, which frustrates me to read since books really hold up to their stellar, one line reviews. Iris is the older sister of Laura, a beautiful, pragmatic child who Iris helps raise, along with their housekeeper Reenie, after the early death of their mother. Iris and Laura are the heiresses of a large button factory located near Toronto that reaches its pinnacle of glory post WW1. In the intervening years, the sisters are schooled at home by tutors, mostly oblivious to the social changes happening in Canada, and all over the world, post WW1.
Iris marries young after the factory burns down and leaves the family with little options. She has little feelings for her husband, or his controlling sister who takes over Iris' life, but she dutifully does her wifely duties, including having one daughter. After their father dies, Laura moves in with Iris and her husband and is not so silent about her observances of her sister's marriage.
The book is interwoven by another story, The Blind Assassin, which is told by two unknown lovers who meet in secret. The female forces the male to tell her a story, which becomes The Blind Assassin, a book published after the death of Laura.
I love the writing in this book. It's so intelligent, thought provoking, and engaging. The ending was beautiful; simple, and somewhat unexpected. I know little of Canada, especially the history of social life in the time period between the two world wars. That was interesting for me. The book fluctuates between Iris telling the story as an old woman to Laura and Iris as children in the mansion. Changes in time and perspective can get confusing and boring if not done well, but Atwood does it beautifully.
One of my favorite books I read in 2013.
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