Saturday, June 25, 2016

Summer Time! back at it. June 25, 2016

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's SorryMy Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Heather lent me this one, and I gobbled it down in two days. Megan wasn't a huge fan, and I can see that it might be an acquired taste: I skimmed a goodly amount of the fairy tale part (with no ill effects that I can see) and Granny herself is a difficult character to like, so the first part of the book, when Elsa is 100% pro-Granny, is challenging. However, soon Backman's multi-faceted pictures of human nature develop fully, and his picture of the beauty and pain of life makes the book powerful and moving. I'll admit it: I laughed, I cried! Backman's willingness to reveal the good in all people of all personality types is unusual and refreshing. He seems like he'd be a great friend as well as a wonderful author!

This is a novel for patient readers who love words, grammar (Elsa has a red pen that she uses to edit poorly-written signs), and other people.

'We want to be loved. Failing that, admired; failing that, feared; failing that, hated and despised. AT all costs we want to stir up some sort of feeling in others. The soul abhors a vacuum. At all costs it longs for contact.' Doctor Glas, quoted in MGAMTTYSS

"The mightiest power of death is not that it can make people die, but that it can make the people left behind want to stop living."

The Grand SophyThe Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Supported by Ann's glowing reminder, I got this on audio and it romped me into vacation and through quite a bit of cleaning up and various yard chores. Heyer is at her funny, fluffy, rambunctious best in this story of the fearless, dauntless Sophy and her high-handed management of the family she comes to stay with. Predictable, madcap, and completely entertaining. BRAVA!


I stopped posting for a bit: busy and just not feeling it. But: here are two I'd like to share beyond the windows of Goodreads. And: summer. I have to share some summer. It's just lovely.