The Little Paris Bookshop - Nina George

I really wanted to love this book. The jacket description sounded irresistible: a book seller travels down the river in a book barge giving people the exact book they need to help make everything right for that particular person.

There was a small amount of this in the book, but not enough to justify the description and most of the rest of the story was about a lost love. This tale and the rest was quite disjointed and tended to meander aimlessly in many parts. Not sure if the novel was lost in translation but it made for a rather slow read.

There were a few lovely quotes about books and reading but not enough to ring true.

"Reading - an endless journey; a long, indeed never-ending journey that made one more temperate as well as more loving and kind. "

The worst part is that I  accidentally bought this book twice before I read it, because of the enchanting book jacket summary. Anyone want a copy?

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Helene

The Speed of Light - Elizabeth Rosner

I can't even remember where I heard about this book but so glad I found it. It brings together three individuals who all have their own tragedies to deal with and who are all broken in some way. Through friendship and bearing witness to the struggles each character faces, all gain some strength and a new start, while still honoring the past. Poignant yet powerful.

The Miniaturist - Jessie Burton

After a brief  hiatus I'm back at it, sorry for the absence.

So this book was a page turner for me and was very well written. It's historical fiction and one thing it taught me is I'm glad I wasn't alive in this time period. There were some very dark themes and the social norms in this time and place are horrifying. The treatment of LGBT people is simply shocking. The story was great though and I will watch for other work from this author, great writer.

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Helene

The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell

I read this after hearing about it on the "Books on the Nightstand" podcast. I did like this book and though I knew going in it was about Jesuit priests in space (I kid you not) having the first contact with an alien planet and race, I was still not expecting a huge underlying theme to be about faith in god. I am not religious at all (pretty much a flaming atheist), so some of that brought on some internal eye rolls, but I tried not to let it overshadow the book as a whole. Interesting commentary on our treatment of other people, other races, and other species..and though some of it may seem shocking there are an alarming number of parallels to present day life. The question is...do I read the sequel?

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Helene

Food Rules: An Eater's Manual by Michael Pollan (Illustrated by Maira Kalman)

This is a quick but informative little guide but the author of The Omnivore's Dilemma, Michael Pollan. It has eighty-three little rules for eating food, many of which the average person would probably love to have printed on a nice little poster for the kitchen. They all revolve around the summary statements from his books on nutrition. Quite simply...Eat Food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

Some examples include: Eat close to the earth, and Don't eat anything your great grandmother wouldn't recognize as food. All are accompanied by an explanation if necessary and most have charming illustrations.

Not too much to say here, it will always have a place on my cookbook shelf. Enjoy. 8/10 from this reader.

Food writing rules!

Helene

Close your Eyes, Hold Hands by Chris Bohjalian

I've only read one previous book by Chris Bohjalian, The Sandcastle Girls. That was about a 9.5/10 for me and I started to collect his books as I love his writing style. Sometimes the next book by an author is not what you expected but this one delivers and I now have a favourite author whose books I plan to savour, slowly. Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands is a relatively short read at just under 300 pages but there is so much in here. It's been a while since I've read one that makes me stay up late to squeeze in a few more pages.

It's about a teenage girl named Emily whose father may be responsible for a meltdown in the nuclear plant where he works. Suddenly orphaned (her mother also worked at the plant) and afraid the world would hate her because of her parents, she becomes a street kid and invents a new identity for herself. She frequently references her favourite poet Emily Dickinson so fans of her poetry will like the regular references. As expected, she has a frightening existence on the street and toss in a minor child she starts to care for, some dangerous people and an undisclosed mental illness to contend with, Emily manages to survive her self-imposed exile. Almost everything that happens in this book is poignant and relevant and the most memorable part for me was the revelation of the source of the book title. Enjoy the mastery of Mr. Bohjalian and the life of Emily.

 9/10 for this reader.

What to read next...

Helene

10% Happier - Dan Harris

I first heard about this book on Gretchen Rubin's podcast "Happier", where Dan Harris was a guest.  Gretchen is the author of " The Happiness Project" and often reviews and introduces books and other items that she thinks may contribute to the happiness of her readers.

This book is about Dan's path to reducing his stress after a live melt-down on a national TV show. He goes through many avenues to search out a way to calm his anxiety and focus, and includes interactions with such noted gurus as Depak Chopra, Eckhart Tolle, and even the Dalai Lama. The first third was engaging as he described his life leading up to the wake up call for things to change. The middle felt a bit repetitive and self-indulgent (but what memoir isn't) and the last part was surprisingly useful with tips and steps that many people could incorporate into daily life. Meditation and Buddhist practices play a large part in his self-help methods and I think provide an incentive that would appeal to more average people, than other books that may appeal to those who need to be all or nothing in their approach. This is one book I will listen to again as learning how it all came together in the end can help bring focus to the methods he found most useful. The book was narrated by Dan himself in the audiobook so it's more like storytelling than reading. 8/10 from this reader.

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Helene