Sunday, February 24, 2008

The Whole World Over by Julia Glass

This is the story of Greenie who lives with her therapist husband, Alan, and young son, George, in New York City. She owns a bakery and is recruited by the governor of New Mexico to become his personal chef. Dissatisfied with the stagnant state of her marriage, Greenie moves out to New Mexico with her son. The book goes back and forth between Alan and Greenie, plus a handful of other quirky characters, who all end up being kind of connected.

I was quite captured by this book. Mostly for the writing. I did enjoy some of the characters too. However, I can tell how much I like a book by whether or not I want to keep it or pass it on for someone else to read. This is not a book that I need to have in my personal library. So there you have it. It's a nice read, but not a book that I foresee myself re-reading again.

Monday, February 18, 2008

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

By the way, thanks for all of your condolences about Mimi. I miss her and am adjusting to life without her. It's amazing how empty the house feels without that little cat walking around.

Not much to say about Northanger Abbey. I read it because I have not yet read all of Jane Austen's books. Northanger Abbey was pleasant enough, but without the complexity and richness of Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice. There are those lines though that make me appreciate how accurately Austen describes emotions.