I seem to be reading a lot of novels at the moment involving crime, war, or other acts of violence. Now normally I say I could happily subsist on a reading diet of mysteries, but the books I seem to be picking up lately are not what I'd consider cozy reads (not that they're not good, they are, just on the heavy side). I've taken to reading small doses of Denis McKail's Greenery Street in between the other books for something cheerful and optimistic to keep things in perspective. Lovely book by the way.
There was a time when every other book I picked up was historical fiction, but I've not read much this year with the exception of a few books set in the Victorian era. I've been looking longingly at my piles mentally picking out my next historical fiction read. Expect a list soon. I'm particularly contemplating something set in the 17th or 18th century. We'll see, though.
Have you heard of Google Alerts? I've just discovered this little service. Do you sometimes feel like Google is taking over the world without our realizing it? Anyway, you sign up for alerts on whatever subject you're interested in and when someone writes about it, they email you the link. It's kind of cool. I'm not sure how I received this link, though I have to say the books are very nice indeed. More crime, but of the classic bent this time. Atlantic Press is a UK publisher designing them, and Grove/Atlantic the US version (not sure who owns who, though, of course we don't get them over here). Anyway, very cool covers and I might have to invest in one or two.
While I've not been reading much historical fiction, I seem to be drawn to novels in translation lately. I've already given Europa Editions a try (and have a few more of their books on my piles to read), and I've noticed that The New York Review of Books offers a respectable list of works in translation as does Hesperus Press. What other presses specialize in foreign works? Small presses always seem to publish more titles than larger publishers, which is why I like them so much.
One more small but important note. I think I'm going to manage to get in my five books for my public library's reading program. I'm not sure why I've been so rigid about this, as it's caused havoc with my reading in general, though I have discovered a few really good and interesting books (which I'll write about later). I was all ready to fudge my list, but I might not have to now. I don't generally read so many library books at one time, so I'll be happy to get back to normal when this is over.