Summer Reading

I'm off to Canada (Vancouver and Vancouver Island, returning via Dublin) tomorrow. I'll miss the slow pace of my day that I've relaxed into; a morning run, sometimes a swim, time for a Crabbie's ginger beer, reading- with the odd trip to Glasgow and Edinburgh. My body has relaxed; runs are getting tougher, shocked at the sudden movement, my trot is more of a slog now, but my mind is still turning and churning. I'm looking forward to a change of scene, to seeing friends and exploring new places.

I've been devouring books, a true sign of holiday hours. I love hearing and reading recommendations, so thought I would write a bit about a few of the books I've read recently and what I'm taking with me on my holidays.

Gone Girl Gillian Flynn - I started this on a long train journey. I had it on my list for a while- just because it was mentioned so often. I bought it straight away for a friend in need of a thrill(er). I loved the pace, the plot and the sides to the story, but the quick ending was frustrating.

The Accidental Tourist Anne Tyler - This was part of a summer reading list on A Wee Bit of Cooking and it appealed to me. I had never read an Anne Tyler book before but I don't think I will seek any more of her novels out. Macon, the main character, is a dull, unlikeable man, set in his routines, but as he is forced out of his habits I became more involved with the characters in this slow paced story.

Red Dust Road   Jackie Kay -  I have just finished this wonderful book. Wendy, again on her blog, says she keeps  telling everyone she knows to read it and I'm going to be doing the same (my parents don't need to read it though as I've pretty much retold it to them at meal times word-for-word!). Jackie Kay takes the reader back and forth in time, on her journey to find out more about her birth parents; her birth mum from the Highlands of Scotland and her Nigerian father. Jackie Kay's real Mum and Dad are mentioned constantly throughout the book, and her love for them both is obvious- I can understand why, her Mum sounds amazing and I just loved her sense of humour. I just loved this book- in capital letters!

 The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry   Rachel Joyce - A friend called me the other day and started with, "You have 5 euros"...he was in a pay phone. I love the fact that he made time to recommend me a book. This has actually been on my list for a while and I'm looking forward to reading about Harold's unplanned adventure.

Wolf Hall   Hilary Mantel - I still have not read this and since I have suggested it as a book club read in Kuwait I will make sure I get round to reading this period drama this summer.

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother  Amy Chua - Again this book has been on my list for a while, I even bought it for a friend as I thought it sounded so interesting. More than a guide to raising children (if there is such a thing) a book of cultures and family. (I'm starting this one on the plane!)

Better get on with my packing, I'm squeezing in a couple of soft-back books as well as my Kindle...that might result in one less pair of shoes going in my bag, but I don't even think my Kindle battery would last my first flight! Happy reading!

What I've been reading lately

I am in between 4 books at the moment. I read for the average of 3 minutes in bed and then fall asleep. One book, titled, 'Running is Easy', is by my bed, inspiring, yes, makes getting out of bed at 4.35am that bit easier, but I have gotten into the (bad) habit of reading Joy the Baker in bed. (You can read this book, it is not just a flicking recipe book).

Anyhow, I found my new hands-down favourite banana loaf recipe: Chocolate Bourbon Banana Bread (even minus the Bourbon it was great!).

Seriously need to stop reading this book and read more about running.

Book description from Amazon -

In her first cookbook, popular caterer and blogger Joy the Baker brings together a celebration of sugar and butter as she approaches baking with inspiration and heart. Joy the Baker's website is extremely popular as is her Los Angeles based catering company. Now in JOY THE BAKER COOKBOOK, she shares her incredibly delicious recipes for all kinds of sweet dishes: pancakes, cupcakes, brownies, cookies and much more. All this is achieved with her usual warm, humorous and irreverent style.

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My thoughts -

Love it-my new favourite recipe book.
Totally indulgent recipes that always turn out well. I read Joy's blog, but I still can't wait for her to publish another book! I love this one that much. My favourite recipes are the banana and bourbon loaf and the browned butter cookies. Joy writes little stories among some of her recipes which I love  - I also think the photos are great...I always love photos in recipe books. Another thing - all recipes measurements are in American cups. I LOVE this...so much easier than faffing around with scales...and from now on am going to purchase American versions of recipe books. (Lazy...maybe. I haven't even owned a set of scales for 3 years!). Get it. I like this book. My neighbours are also happy with it!

What I've been reading lately

What the book is about (from Goodreads) -

Catherine Bailey has been enjoying the single life long enough to know a catch when she sees one. Gorgeous, charismatic and spontaneous, Lee seems almost too perfect to be true. And her friends clearly agree, as each in turn falls under his spell.

What I thought about the book -

I was determined to read this book during the summer, while I was at home and not sleeping alone in an apartment. I read it 24 hours...staying up until 2am to finish it. 


Did I enjoy it? I'm not sure. It was similar a feeling to when I read Before I Go to Sleep. It is gripping, but at times the writing was dragged out and quite repetitive. I did enjoy the style of writing; Haynes jumps back and forth in time, from before Catherine's 'final' attack and to a more recent time in Catherine's life. Although, I didn't like the fact that there were no chapters in this book, (This is probably why I was up so late finishing it!) as there is no natural place to stop reading.


If you like thrilling page-turners, you'll love this. If you are a wimp (like me!), don't read it when you are alone in the house at night!

What I've been reading lately

Synopsis from Goodreads - 

At Westish College, a small school on the shore of Lake Michigan, baseball star Henry Skrimshander seems destined for big league stardom. But when a routine throw goes disastrously off course, the fates of five people are upended.

My thoughts about the book - 

Now that I have finished the book I have been reading some reviews and am surprised it has not been more highly regarded. Are they reading a different book? I can understand why it has done better in the States, with the American college setting, but it seems a lot of UK readers found the writing tedious and the baseball theme boring.
I know nothing about baseball. During one summer, when I was working in America, I went to a Portland Sea Dogs baseball game. I had no idea about the rules of the game, still don't, but I just wanted to be part of the atmosphere. This book is not a 'sports' novel, not a book just about baseball, it is about people.


I quickly was attached to the characters and when I wasn't reading found my thoughts turning back to their lives. I was engrossed. 


I loved reading about the passion of the sport, but more about the relationships of the main characters.There was not one character that I did not enjoy reading. The relationships between Owen and Guert, Henry and Mike, Pella and Guert and the emotional friendship between Pella and Henry. 


I am sure the characters in this book will stay with me for a long time. In short, I would highly recommend it.

What I've been reading lately

Book description (from Amazon)-

Newly arrived from Ghana with his mother and older sister, eleven-year-old Harrison Opoku lives on the ninth floor of a block of flats on an inner-city housing estate. The second best runner in the whole of Year 7, Harri races through his new life in his personalised trainers - the Adidas stripes drawn on with marker pen - blissfully unaware of the very real threat all around him. With equal fascination for the local gang - the Dell Farm Crew - and the pigeon who visits his balcony, Harri absorbs the many strange elements of his new life in England: watching, listening, and learning the tricks of urban survival. But when a boy is knifed to death on the high street and a police appeal for witnesses draws only silence, Harri decides to start a murder investigation of his own. In doing so, he unwittingly endangers the fragile web his mother has spun around her family to try and keep them safe. A story of innocence and experience, hope and harsh reality, Pigeon English is a spellbinding portrayal of a boy balancing on the edge of manhood and of the forces around him that try to shape the way he falls.

My thoughts-

I really enjoyed this book. I read a review and someone said that the publishers had missed a trick, that it shouldn't be an adult book, but be pushed into schools. I don't know if I agree. It has a child's voice, similar to 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time', but I don't think that necessarily means it should be for young-adults (Room wasn't). I guess the reason why it may not be selected as a course book in schools or promoted as young-adult reading is because of the often 'bad' (or colloquial) language .

Saying that, the playful language used by Harri, his sister and other characters, is so important, showing how they were flung into this new life in the estate and they are still trying to make sense of it all and follow the rules of the estate; 'asweh' (I swear), 'Gowayou' (Go away, you) etc. 

It didn't take me long to like Harri, the voice of the book. He is caring and loving, wants to please his family and wants to be liked by his peers. He is funny and innocent  (the passages about his 'bo-styles' Diadora trainers that he got from the Cancer shop, made me giggle) and that makes the novel a memorable and enjoyable one.

I didn't really get the passages with the conversations with the pigeon, possibly just showing how lonely Harri was in his new home. I skimmed these to be honest.

I would recommend this book. It shows the harsh realities of the gang cultures in estates contrasted with the young, playful and innocent characters. It was gripping, but remained a light read.

What I've been reading lately

The Olympic athletics started today! As if I am not watching enough TV at the moment, ironic really! Bloody exhausting though! It will be a safe bet to say you will see a lot of the Kenyan flag.

Book description (from Amazon)  -

After years of watching Kenyan athletes win the world's biggest races, from the Olympics to big city marathons, Runner's World contributor Adharanand Finn set out to discover just what it was that made them so fast - and to see if he could keep up.

Packing up his family (and his running shoes), he moved from Devon to the small town of Iten, in Kenya, home to hundreds of the country's best athletes. Once there he laced up his shoes and ventured out onto the dirt tracks, running side by side with Olympic champions, young hopefuls and barefoot schoolchildren. He ate their food, slept in their training camps, interviewed their coaches, and his children went to their schools. And at the end of it all, there was his dream, to join the best of the Kenyan athletes in his first marathon, an epic race through lion country across the Kenyan plains.

With global attention on both the London Marathon in April 2012 and the London Olympics in the summer, there has never been a more exciting time to experience what it is really like to train and race with the stars of distance running.

My thoughts -

I knew very little about this book before I read it. I started it two weeks after I ran Lewa and as I read it I kept thinking, 'See, it was OK to find Lewa tough!'

Running my first half marathon in Uganda a couple of years ago, I will always remember the sound of the elite, mostly Kenyan, runners pass as they looped me, thinking, 'How do they do it?'

Kenyan runners are beautiful to watch, even as I struggled on the Lewa run, I cheered on the Gladys Otero who passed me to be the first female in for the full marathon in 2 hours 48 min.

Although Finn is a very good runner, he too is always in awe of these Kenyan runners, who continue to break records and make it look so easy. Although Finn starts his research and his time in Kenya researching the barefoot strategy, to find out if that is the reasons why Kenyans are such good runners, it is quite obvious from early on that it is a number of factors, not one, that make Kenyans so fast: The drive and hunger to do well, the simple fat-free diet, the altitude, the understanding of 'rest' in the day, the hard-working lifestyle from a young age etc.

I saw a young muzungu (foreigner) wear a pair of 'barefoot' running shoes in Lewa and I cringed. I wondered if she knew how the terrain changed from sand to rocks and wondered if her feet were strong enough for it. I have a friend who relearned how to run, so that she could run 'barefoot', but I didn't think it would be good for the  hilly Lewa course. Who knows? Even Finn went back to trainers during his time running in Iten.

The book is entertaining and well written. Finn focuses on the running in Iten, but he also gives you glimpses into the simple lives of these amazing athletes. The book made me excited to run again, I wanted to get on my shoes and get outside. I love Kenya and enjoy running, so I may be biased, but I don't think you have to be fanatical about running to enjoy this book.

With Olympic frenzy reaching a peak, it is a great time to read this book!

What I've been reading lately

I needed some advice...

On the weekend I caved in and bought a couple new books. (I said I wouldn't, I don't have money, have reports to write, yadda yadda yadda). Anyhow, I went straight to the balcony of a cafe and started reading it. And didn't stop.

The book description (from Amazon) -

A new way of looking at feminism from one of our funniest writers

My thoughts -

 I read this book not long after reading Tina Fey's book. Quite similar in style, Caitlin often putting herself down for the sake of humour. But there are less 'in' jokes in this book, even men don't have to be 'in' the women camp to find it funny, plus it is British- therefore funnier (to me...).

I seriously laughed out loud at parts. A favourite being when she was talking about a woman's choice to have a baby and her experience as a young mum, juggling life as a journalists with being a parent.
'And we were so exhausted that we had to simply give up the project, downgrade to something easier, and less vital,' I continued, eating dry coffee granules, for energy.'

This book has been on the best-seller chart for a while, but reviews are very mixed. I can understand why. In some ways it was quite repetitive; explaining what a feminist is, not a man-hater you see. Someone who wants equal rights, not who thinks they are better than men. See-easy to understand. No need to repeat it, or even stand on a chair and shout it out (as suggested in the book). I am a feminist. I bet you are too.But no need to shout about it.Moran also uses capital letters QUITE A LOT...gets the point across though! But hey, the book was funny (did I mention that?)

What I've been reading lately

Book description (from goodreads ) -

Tony Webster and his clique first met Adrian Finn at school. Sex-hungry and book-hungry, they would navigate the girl-less sixth form together, trading in affectations, in-jokes, rumour and wit. Maybe Adrian was a little more serious than the others, certainly more intelligent, but they all swore to stay friends for life.

Now Tony is in middle age. He’s had a career and a single marriage, a calm divorce. He’s certainly never tried to hurt anybody. Memory, though, is imperfect. It can always throw up surprises, as a lawyer’s letter is about to prove.

 My thoughts -

This is a tough book to review, but here goes...
The writing is beautiful. The words poured off the page seamlessly, flowing and rippling like a gentle stream. In many ways I can understand why this book won the Man Booker Prize in 2011.

Tony is forced to recall events of his younger days (school and university) and it is interesting how he selectively remember events. Then realises that he may have been remembering them wrongly, emphasising different aspects. Something that we probably all do. Making some snap seconds seem more important than they were/are, which we obsess over. (A theme in The Museum of Innocence by Orhan Pamuk, one of my favourite books).

There was no hurried or rushed page turning and I took my time reading this, happy to float along the stream. I didn't think the plot was overly exciting or thrilling; the main character, Tony, was a content divorcee and was a 'nice' man.  But, the lack of a thrilling plot doesn't even matter. I still felt a massive lump in my chest at the ending. (I was blown away by the sad ending actually and totally surprised by it.) This is in no way a feel-good book (I am ready for one of those), but it is a wonderful story written by a wonderful story teller. I would highly recommend it.

On a side note, the edges of all the pages are unusually black and makes out like it is blurring onto the cover design. Interesting. Why? Is it because the book is quite dark and depressing? Or do you think it is just to be different? I am thinking about getting a Kindle...but I think I would miss holding a book, looking at its cover, being enticed by the book to read it.

This was my last book from my recent package to Nairobi. I don't really feel like I can justify buying anything at the moment (as the cost of moving is way beyond my means as it is!)-but I just don't feel like reading any of the ones on my shelf at the moment. Are you reading anything good at the moment?

What I've been reading lately

Book description (from Amazon)-
Memories define us. So what if you lost yours every time you went to sleep? An original, haunting and deeply chilling debut thriller, and a Sunday Times bestseller in hardcover.

My thoughts-
I began this on Friday night and could not sleep...(told you, scaredy cat!) but I had finished it by Saturday afternoon.It was recommended to me and I am glad, as I probably would not have normally bought it...since the word 'thriller' is used on the cover!

 The central character in the book is Christine, who starts every day a fresh, free of memories. (I have seen a film similar to that in the past-where the character tattoos memos to his body...can't remember what it is called.) Christine begins to take control of her life and her memories by keeping a journal, a suggestion made by Dr Nash, and the novel is written in the form of these journal entries. Pretty early on you know something is not right and the truth is being hidden from Christine. Even though I think the plot was pretty obvious, ( I guessed what had happened to Christine quite near the beginning...but  I won't spoil it for others) I still enjoyed the novel.(I am tempted to put a 'really' in front of enjoyed!).

This was S J Watson's debut novel, who, after working in the NHS for years, went on a "Writing a Novel" course. The book is now being made into a film, which I will definitely seek out and watch.

What I've been reading lately

Synopsis (from Amazon)-
Just before 3am on January 24th, 1941, when Britain was preoccupied with surviving the Blitz, the body of Josslyn Hay, Earl of Erroll, was discovered lying on the floor of his Buick, at a road intersection some miles outside Nairobi, with a bullet in his head. A leading figure in Kenya's colonial community, he had recently been appointed Military Secretary, but he was primarily a seducer of other men's wives. Sir Henry Delves Broughton, whose wife was Erroll's current conquest, had an obvious motive for the murder, but no one was ever convicted and the question of who killed him became a classic mystery, a scandel and cause celebre. Among those who became fascinated with the Erroll case was Cyril Connolly. He joined up with James Fox for a major investigation of the case in 1969 for the SUNDAY TIMES magazine. After his death James Fox inherited the obsession and a commitment to continue in pursuit of the story both in England and Kenya in the late 1970s. One day, on a veranda overlooking the Indian Ocean, Fox came across a piece of evidence that seemed to bring all the fragments and pieces together and convinced him that he saw a complete picture.

My thoughts-
 This is basically a book about a case that shows that (some) white colonials thought they were above the law. That possibly the heat and (gin) and quinine had gone to their heads. So...has much changed in the last 60 years?? (Fox kept mentioning  that this trial was really the start of the end of the well-known Happy Valley in Kenya. Really???  Since I moved to Nairobi I've been to plenty of parties where we threw keys into a bowl! Only joking!!)  I have never seen the film or previously read the book, but I am pretty sure I might be the only European in Nairobi not to have, until now. (Duh, duh, duhhhhh!)

As Fox retells the story of Broughton's trial, I actually began to grow quite tiresome of the case. I felt quite frustrated and angered at the 'characters' and was not sure if I would continue to read the book. Then there was a shift in style. Fox began to continue Connolly's search for key players in the case, such as Hugh Dickinson, the pace seemed to speed up and become a thrilling detective novel. I couldn't put down the book...and one night I had to sleep with my duvet over my head (true...am a scaedy cat!!). My own theory of 'who killed Erroll' changed by the chapter, but generally swung back and forth between Broughton and Diana, (then Caldwell, later Delamere...well, the Delamere family are known for being fine shooters...right!!??) until the end, when Fox reveals some important evidence.

I think the book is particularly interesting to those that know Nairobi and know Karen (the, still, predominantly, white-Kenyan suburb of Nairobi were Karen Blixon had her farm) and the characters that live there and strive to fit in to that community. (How can I even start to explain that...without offending anyone...lets just say, it is a whole world of its own. A great quote from the book was from a letter written by Francis Wyndham to Cyril Connolly and he talks of the main players in Happy Valley and the trial; 
"I find it hard to believe these people were (and are) real - they seem more than real, like characters in fiction...")

I was staying in Karen on the weekend and at the junction of the Ngong Road I kept thinking, 'Was it here? Was this where Erroll was shot?' I wouldn't say it is a topic of conversation around the table anymore, but there is a bit of a fascination to it, the fact that I live round the corner from the popular Lord Erroll bar shows the name is still used! (Anyhow going off subject...)

The book itself is filled with fantastic quotes, one of my favourite being said by Broughton in jail during his trial when he was visited by a friend;
"He looked happier than I had ever seen him before. He even told me, "Wilkie, I'm much happier here than I ever was in Karen." Haaaaaaa! Love it! I could go on...but that is boring...just read the book yourself!

Basically, this was the best read I have had for a while and would recommend it to anyone interested in colonial Africa or just anyone who likes a good detective story. I now am going to try and hunt down the film. Is the film any good?

What I've been reading lately

Book description (from Amazon)-

Lacey Yeager is young, captivating, and ambitious enough to take the NYC art world by storm. Groomed at Sotheby's and hungry to keep climbing the social and career ladders put before her, Lacey charms men and women, old and young, rich and even richer with her magnetic charisma and liveliness. Her ascension to the highest tiers of the city parallel the soaring heights--and, at times, the dark lows--of the art world and the country from the late 1990s through today.

 My thought -
I am not a Steve Martin fan, but loved Shopgirl and he wrote the screenplay for that and thought this sounded similar in style. I think I started this book with too high an expectation. I opened it with the thought, "You are going to wow me!"

The beginning was interesting enough, but the plot seemed too weak and was just woven in and out of an Art History text book. (It is very art heavy, too heavy for me, although I did at times google images of paintings or artists, which was interesting.) The chapters are very short and this means the plot is often disjointed. However, near the ending, when I feel Steve Martin spends more time on revealing his characters to his readers, I started to enjoy the novel more.I thought Lacey was a believable character, doing anything she could to make it in the money driven world that she lives in. The plot seemed to flow with more ease as the book neared the ending, although when it ended, I still wasn't sure what had happened. 

I did enjoy this book. It was interesting and the context of the story was a little different, however I wouldn't rush to recommend it.SHAME!

What I've been reading lately

About the book (from here):

The day her gifted twins leave home for university, Eva climbs into bed and stays there. For seventeen years she's wanted to yell at the world, 'Stop! I want to get off'. Finally, this is her chance. Perhaps she will be able to think.

My thoughts:

A year in bed! Doesn't that sound great! Well, this turned out to be a looooong year!

I remember loving the Adrian Mole books and have been thinking that they are due a re-read. Then I came across this in a bookshop in Nairobi.

The book started well; quickly introducing comical characters and I thought I was in for a real treat.But as the weeks turned into months and Eva became more demanding and loopy, she becomes so unlikeable that you don't even want to read about her being in bed. Brian, her awfully boring husband  and her twin children, kept me amused with their story lines longer than Eva, who was busy concocting plans of how to dispose of her waste without leaving her bedroom.

Overall the book started well, was about 100 pages too long and then just ended. Just like that.

But interesting fact-Sue Townsend didn't learn to read until she was 8. (Maybe that fact shouldn't end such a poor review...?)

I've got mail!

Look! It's like Christmas!

I ordered some  an excessive amount of goodies with Amazon vouchers and they are arrived today! Exciting! (The novel by Steve Martin is first on my list!)

What I've been reading lately

Book description (from Amazon)-

'This book is a novel in the form of variations. The various parts follow each other like the various stages of a voyage leading into the interior of a theme, the interior of a thought, the interior of a single, unique situation the understanding of which recedes from my sight into the distance. It is a book about laughter and about forgetting, about forgetting and about Prague, about Prague and about the angels.' The Book of Laughter and Forgetting is the most secret of Kundera's novels. This new translation is the first to be fully authorized by Milan Kundera.

My thoughts-

I need to read more short stories, I love them and so enjoyed this book that were recommended to me by a friend. I didn't understand everything Kundera wrote, but it didn't matter. The words were still magical. The stories were painful and beautiful, sad and loving. One of my favourites was Litost (a word that cannot be translated) about the young poet and his ugly lover from the country. Now that I have found this book, I will re-read these stories again and again.

What I've been reading lately

Book description (from Amazon)-

To five-year-old-Jack, Room is the world. . . . It's where he was born, it's where he and his Ma eat and sleep and play and learn. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits.

Room is home to Jack, but to Ma it's the prison where she has been held for seven years. Through her fierce love for her son, she has created a life for him in this eleven-by-eleven-foot space. But with Jack's curiosity building alongside her own desperation, she knows that Room cannot contain either much longer.

Room is a tale at once shocking, riveting, exhilarating--a story of unconquerable love in harrowing circumstances, and of the diamond-hard bond between a mother and her child.

My thoughts  -

Honestly, I still don't know if I enjoyed this book or was just gripped because I needed to know that things for Jack and his mum turned out well. The content of the book is seriously disturbing. Every detail into life in the room was thought of, which makes the words harder to digest. (Actually-here I have to admit, that the breastfeeding part-won't tell you more-was really too much for me.)

I read this in two days, purely so that I would be able to get a good nights sleep once I finished it. I did however, really enjoy Donoghue's style of writing, through Jack and his view on the world and the 'outside'. I would like  to read another book by Donoghue, possibly The Sealed Letter, as Slammerkin also seems a bit too depressing for me.

What I've been reading lately

I ordered this book using some Amazon vouchers (most useful gift, by the way!) and by the time it arrived I had forgotten that I wanted to read it. I think it must have been recommended to me by someone. (Whoever it was, thank you!)
Anyhow-I haven't been able to concentrate or relax or sit very still recently and this book eased me into holiday mode.

The synopsis (from Amazon)-
1968. The year Paris takes to the streets. The year Martin Luther King loses his life for a dream. The year Eleanor Maud Portman is born.

Young Elly's world is shaped by those who inhabit it: her loving but maddeningly distractible parents; a best friend who smells of chips and knows exotic words like 'slag'; an ageing fop who tapdances his way into her home, a Shirley Bassey impersonator who trails close behind; lastly, of course, a rabbit called God. In a childhood peppered with moments both ordinary and extraordinary, Elly's one constant is her brother Joe.

Twenty years on, Elly and Joe are fully grown and as close as they ever were. Until, that is, one bright morning when a single, earth-shattering event threatens to destroy their bond forever.

Spanning four decades and moving between suburban Essex, the wild coast of Cornwall and the streets of New York, this is a story about childhood, eccentricity, the darker side of love and sex, the pull and power of family ties, loss and life. More than anything, it's a story about love in all its forms.

What I say (from me)-
At the start I thought the narrative would annoy me. It is written in first person and we first meet Elly at the very start of her life. But actually, I loved the way it was written through Elly. Even as a child she is witty and wise. I also liked the disjointed sentences and thoughts.
A lot happens in this book, but not many events are written about in detail. The writer skims over actions and lets the audience make up the rest. But again, I liked this. It is not too 'busy' to make it unbelievable. It is just the most memorable parts of a life, pulled together in 320 pages. The characters and relationships in this book were funny, real and loving. Some of the plot was obvious from the start; the continual mention of New York and the Twin Towers gave a little too much away, but then the story twists and turns until it finds its way home at the end.
I find film adaptations of books are never satisfying, but I keep thinking that this would be great on screen. I would definitely go to see it.


Thanks Heather for hosting the book club.

What I've been reading lately

I had heard a lot about Bossypants, Tina's Fey's autobiography, around the Christmas period and wanted to pick it up. I'm sure most have you have read it by now, but I only spotted it on my friend's bookshelf the other week, so borrowed it for a weekend read. Turns out you only need a morning to read it.

Book description (from Amazon...doesn't tell you much!)
Tina Fey is one of the world's greatest comic writers and performers. Bossy Pants is her first book.

My thoughts -
Bossypants is a perfect, light 'term time' read, but, I am glad I just borrowed it, as it is not a book that I am likely to re-read. I know of Tina Fey through her famous Sarah Palin impersonations. However, I have never seen 30 Rock and this meant that the latter part of her book had less meaning for me. By the end of her book, I felt she was just filling in pages when she wrote down parts of scripts used in episodes. I did however enjoy her stories of her childhood and years working at the YMCA. I have to say, I didn't laugh out loud once though. I think she tired quite hard and I was a bit bored of her negative outlook on herself...(mm-did you see how great he looked at the Oscars!) Saying all that, it was an enjoyable Saturday morning read and I will for sure hunt own a copy of 30 Rock to find out what she was talking about!

What are you reading at the moment? Any recommendations?

This is a book club blog link-Heather is hosting it.

What I've been reading lately

I am not yet involved in a book club in Nairobi (my friend and I are starting one soon!) and I miss my group in Kampala- but I just found a wee blog-book hop.

The Zanzibar Chest by Aidan Hartley.

(book cover)

Book description (from Amazon) -
Hartley, a frontline reporter who covered the atrocities of 1990s Africa, embarks on a journey to unlock the mysteries and secrets of his own family's 150-year-colonial legacy in Africa, and delivers a beautiful, sometimes harrowing memoir of intrepid young men cut down in their prime, of forbidden love and its fatal consequences, and of family and history, and the collision of cultures that defined them both.

My thoughts -
During the term time I find it hard to get into books, however I read this African memoir in a couple of weeks. It has always been on my list, as 'essential Africa reading' and it deserved its spot there.

Hartley jumps back and forth in time and countries, from his own recent history as a journalist, to that of his colonial family and to a discovery he made (diaries of a dear friend of his father's, Davey) and his journey into Davey's past in Arabia.

I didn't find Hartley a particularly likeable person, but his writing is beautiful, honest, powerful and at times (especially when he was in Rwanda) harrowing-I was in tears reading sections of The Zanzibar Chest. At first I was drawn more to the stories of Hartley's interesting colonial family history and his journey to Davey's past, opposed to the stories of Hartley's Africa, which were woven amongst them throughout. But  it was the latter, Hartley's experiences as a journalist in East Africa, that I ended up enjoying more. Stories of experiences showing the rawness of Africa, but written in a way that shows faith, not in a 'hopeless nation' kind of way. Africa is Hartley's home and heart. The only negative thing I have to say, is that I feel that he could have used his stories in this one book, to write a small handful.

I would recommend this book to anybody who is has journeyed to Africa or would like to, from the comfort of their bed.

The host

Something has to give

Over dinner, quite some time ago, I became involved with a conversation about time. Now that we have music to download, i-pod shuffles to set, Facebook accounts to check, e-mails to write, Twits to make (whatever!); there must be something or someone that loses out?
Do our friendships suffer for this?
Is time in techno-land taking us away from the reality of relationships?
One guest stated that his commute  in London gave him  time to do all his 'tinterneting'! Fair enough.

But something surely has to give or do we just stay awake for longer?
Mmm no, anyone that knows my sleeping habits(bro, Tania) knows that I am no night-owl!

Running is usually time where I can catch-up with friends and have a gossip.
I don't own a TV, I don't clean (a perk of living abroad, one that I will not easily give-up) and I don't have a long drive to work. So, maybe I gain a bit of extra time on the clock by living in this time zone!

Therefore, how did I still not manage to finish my book-club book for this month!!??

My excuse is that my version of Faulkner's "As I Lay Dying" did not come with Cliff notes!

Last night, as I tried to skim-read the remaining 20 chapters (!), I realised I wasn't willing to miss out on an evening in the American South -so I went to our meeting anyway; wearing my pearls and cardigan, I drank iced tea, ate cheese grits and soda dread ...and talked about... the cover! "Do you think the horse symbolised death?"

So -I found my thing that I lost!
I am now going to step away from the computer and get out my Orhan Pumak novel!

We need to talk about...books!

I am in a book club. I am not sure how I managed to get into this elite book club, because that is exactly what it is, elite. We have 6 regular members, myself being counted and more than a couple are Literature majors (since I haven’t been educated in America, I can consider myself in the minor league!) and some even have Literature degrees. Yet, I have managed to give people the false belief that my input in discussions on Austin ,McEwan, Roy and so on, are valid.

I have not yet admitted to the group that my English Literature teacher once told my class that I was dyslexic (which I am not…ro os I evileb!!) or that my Dad still spell checks my e-mails (NOT by choice!!). Anyhow, in the club, I am! I love it…but little beads of sweat drip on my forehead when it comes to choosing the our book to discuss, we take it in turns to do so-and I feel it always reflects on our readership and belonging in the group! I luckily managed to choose a ‘good’ discursive book last time round, one that, thankfully, no one had the previous desire to read (!!!) and the book, We Need To Talk About Kevin, led to the usual heated discussions over wine and cheese.

The bar, however, has been raised and we have to try to choose a book that nobody has read before, including ourselves. Since the top 100 books often include the likes of Jodi Picoult and Bill Bryson as well as other well know artists with great penmanship and spelling; Katie Price, David Beckham etc etc (!!!!), I am stuck! My suggestions of books I would love to read usually belong to an A-level book reading list (or in worst case scenarios Alison, as toilet paper), so please… help me..!!!????