For a short work week it's felt like a long week indeed--you know how that goes. Too much anticipation maybe? I wanted to post about a book I've just recently finished but wasn't feeling very inspired to finish writing about it, so I'm being lazy instead. Maybe you know how that goes, too.
I've got a few new books (well, old but new to me) to share. The top three are Bookmooch books. Fay Weldon had come up in discussion not too long ago--finally an author whose books I can find on Bookmooch. I have no idea really where to start (had hoped to get her autobiography, but no luck) so I requested the easiest titles that I could find--The Life and Loves of a She Devil and She May Not Leave. The Peter Dickinson mystery, The Old English Peep Show, is just a bonus. I've not read his work yet, but I think I might like him. The nice thing about Bookmooch--no real risk taken. If I don't like something I'll just put it back up for mooching and pass it on to someone else.
The bottom book is the sequel to Lynn Reid Banks's The L-Shaped Room, which I really enjoyed. The Backward Shadow picks up where the first book left off, though now Jane is living in the country and not London. The blurb calls it a "bittersweet sequel". I'm looking forward to revisiting Jane's world and hope to start it soon.
I have started a couple of other books, however. I couldn't quite wait for my break to start, so I decided to just dive right in rather than wasting precious reading time later choosing. I will likely finish reading From the Land of the Moon by Milena Agus soon as it is such a slender novel. It's books like this that I always have to tell myself to slow down and enjoy the story as it goes too quickly otherwise. You barely blink and it's over with. Did I already mention I want to read more Italian fiction/classics next year? It's not too soon to be thinking about next year, is it?
And for a little comfort read (because I don't get in enough of those sorts of reads...) I've started The Heart of the Night by Judith Lennox. This is one I will likely not finish during my break, but it's one to read slowly I think. These sorts of books are my guilty pleasure. I know I should probably be reading someone like Roberto Bolaño or Philip Roth or the latest Booker Prize winner, but the Lennox is the sort of book that I can escape into and loose myself for a while. I probably can with the other books as well, but they require a bit more effort and consideration--not at all a bad thing, but everything has it's moment. I'm still eyeing my pile for other reading possibilities, too.
Also over my break I want to think about where exactly I'm going with this space. I feel like I talk too much about the quotidian details of my reading life and how exciting can that be for anyone out there to read? I've not been feeling especially inspired or creative lately and I'm sure that must show. If you blog, what do you do when you're feeling blah? Where do you find inspiration? And if you don't blog but read blogs, what appeals to you? Time is limited and there are so many blogs to choose from, so what makes you click through to someone's space?
So, I'll leave those questions for you. I'm off to go read something good and will be back later this weekend. If you are celebrating Thanksgiving I wish you a very safe and happy holiday. If you aren't celebrating have a great rest of the week. And happy reading everyone.