OK. Let's get to books. It's been a bit of a slow month so far, with the election stuff... both Jo and I have even watched both the French and English debates. I spend lots of time on Blue Sky chatting with other Canadians who are just as concerned as I am about what's happening down South and how it might impact us.. and the rest of the world. We've got some personal stuff as well going on, that involves many doctor's appointments. I'll leave it at that. So, like I said, it's been a slow reading month, even though I have completed 4 books thus far, with another that I gave up on. So I'll move on from my last post and update my reading, current reading and new books that have arrived.
Books Completed
"The Abominable Man is the 7th book in Maj Sjöwall & Per Wahloo, Swedish crime series focused on police detective Martin Beck and his squad in Stockholm. I've not read any of these stories in any particular order and I don't believe it really matters. They refer to the Roseanna case within this story (#1 in the series) but it doesn't really impact on the story.
So basically, an ex cop, who is recovering in a hospital room is murdered, stabbed with a bayonet, many times. Beck is called on the scene by one of his men, Ronn, for that reason, as the ex - cop, Inspector Nyman, had a reputation for abusing prisoners (many complaints filed, with no resolution) and for also abusing his men. One of Beck's men Kollberg tells horrific stories of what Nyman did to his men when they all served in the paratroopers, while in the army.
This case deals in great deal with police abuse and as Beck and his men investigate, they start to narrow down who might have wanted Nyman dead, and as it turns out, many other police officers. It's an eminently readable story. Beck and his team (we basically follow Beck, Ronn, Kollberg and Larsson) are all interesting characters, each unique and with their own well-developed personalities. They make an interesting group. They don't necessarily like each other, but at the same time, they do feed off each other.
The case moves along at a steady pace; the whole group are extremely fatigues as they work through the night and next day. The story ends with a climatic, fascinating and shocking conclusion. You're kind of left hanging a bit at the end, but all in all, it's a great example of Scandinavian crime novels. (3.5 stars)"
"The Snowman is the 7th book in the Norwegian mystery series featuring police inspector Harry Hole by Jo Nesbø. I've previously enjoyed 3 other books in this entertaining series. I've had Snowman on my shelves the longest of the other couple books I currently own and still have to read. Snowman was also turned into a movie in 2017, with Michael Fassbender playing Harry Hole.
So enough preamble. The story starts in November 1980 when a woman goes to meet a lover in a vacant house. In the back seat she has left her young son. When they depart the home, the boy says, "I saw him." And adds, 'The Snowman."
The story jumps to the present and Harry Hole will soon be investigating the disappearance of a woman from their relatively isolated home. Another woman will also have disappeared, leaving her son alone. Into Hole's team comes a young woman cop from Bergen, Katrine Bratt. She's mysterious (and played by Rebecca Ferguson in the movie, if you're interested)
As the team begins to investigate, they realize that over the past years a number of women have gone missing. Harry has also received an anonymous letter from someone called The Snowman. Oh and Harry's apartment is being torn apart by some guy who showed up saying he's investigating mould. Yup.
It's an investigation that goes back many years, leading Harry and Katrine back to Bergen where they discover the body of an ex cop, suspected of murdering women in the past. There turn out to be many suspects; a flashy newspaper owner who seems to have been fathering children everywhere, including the children of the two most recent missing women; a couple of doctors, involved in exploring blood links between children, mothers and their 'fathers'. And who is Rakel's new boyfriend (Rakel is Harry's ex, but they continue to meet clandestinely for sexual evenings).
Harry is troubled, as always. He's an alcoholic, trying to stop and the pressure makes it even more difficult. The case keeps turning this way and that and they keep finding more bodies, especially of their suspects! It's all very interesting and comes to a thrilling, tense conclusion. I like how the story starts with one small incident and then at the end, concludes from that incident going through all the follow-on events. Neat way of resolving a mystery / thriller. All in all, even though I did keep putting the story aside at the beginning, it was another entertaining Harry Hole mystery. Harry is always good value for money. (3.5 stars)"
"I find it amazing how unobservant I can be. I've enjoyed the first 4 volumes of the Heartstopper series by English author, Alice Oseman and I'm almost embarrassed to admit that it wasn't until I was almost half way through Heartstopper: Volume Five that I finally realized that the series was set in England! *sigh* And the clues were all there; the school uniforms, the Volume 3 trip to Paris, the school rugby!! Then in Volume 5, Nick, who will graduate after this school session is going to visit possible universities and he goes to Oxford, Loughborough (*sp). The local university is Kent University, but I was thinking Kent State.. Duh!! And if I'd only looked as he drove his car, the steering wheel is on the other side!!!
Anyway, my lack of observing skills doesn't take away from the fact that Volume 5 is as good as the previous 4 volumes. In this latest volume (the final volume, #6 is still TBA, at least in Wikipedia), Nick and Charlie are working towards the next stage of their relationship, will they take the next step (Sex). Charlie is regaining his self-confidence after his traumatic last couple of years; trying overcome his eating disorders and other issues. He still won't remove his shirt when he's alone with Nick, but he's working on it. His guidance counselor wants him to apply for the position of Head Boy (another clue this is set in England... doh) because he feels Charlie has been through so much he can offer something to the younger kids. He's also been drumming and some chums want him to play with them.
Meanwhile, his bf, Nick, who's a year older is now having to think about applying to university. (and another clue, they do say uni!). Does he go to Kent so he can stay close to Charlie or does he go further away and work around the distant relationship thing. It's all very well laid out and no issue is brushed over, but rather presented thoughtfully and sensitively; discussions with friends and family, the issues of other friends. I admit that I've had this Volume on my shelf for awhile now but I'm glad I took it down and continued with Nick and Charlie's stories. My kids are all grown up and have moved away years ago but I still enjoy this series very much. Check it out and let your kids read as well. There may be things they want to talk with you about? Now when will the final volume come out?? (4.0 stars)"
"Many, many years ago, I enjoyed William Golding's story about a planeload of young boys who crash land on an island in the Pacific and have to survive until help arrives. I've read it a couple of times at least and also have watched movie adaptations of the book. I was pleasantly surprised to see this graphic novel based on the book; Lord of the Flies: The Graphic Novel, adapted and illustrated by Aimée de Jongh.
Let me start off by saying that this adaptation is every bit as excellent as the original story. It's respectful to the ideas being presented by Golding, that being the ease with which a modern, society can descend into brutality and lack of any concern or feelings for their fellows (even as presented with young children). The basic story is that a group of school children are in a plane that crashes on a deserted island. Two of the older boys, Ralph and Jack, try to become leaders of the group. The younger boys vote for Ralph, angering Jack. Ralph wants to build shelter for the boys, who are afraid and miss their homes. He also wants to keep a fire going to attract passing ships. Ralph is helped by a bespectacled, chubbier boy, nicknamed Piggy, who is not liked by Jack and his gang.
jack wants to hunt, to have adventures and does what he can to usurp Ralph's authority. As the days pass, the boys' lives become more and more primitive; the physical attributes that show this is longer hair, dirtier faces, torn and worn school outfits.
A series of incidents happen that will drive wedges even more so between the groups, even death. It's a fascinating and shocking story that is beautifully illustrated and colored by Aimee de Jongh. She presents a story that superbly displays the feelings described in the book. The story flows along nicely and progression, or more accurately, I guess, the regression of the boys' attitudes and actions is sharply described. Excellent story, presented in a new format. (4.5 stars)"
Currently Reading
"“The Body Farm novels have become bestsellers because of their attention to the fine details of forensics combined with great plot lines.” — Deseret News (Salt Lake City) The latest Body Farm novel from New York Times bestseller Jefferson Bass, The Bone Thief is a must for fans of Patricia Cornwell and TV’s C.S.I. The hero of four previous thrillers— Carved in Bone, The Devil’s Bones, Flesh and Bone, and Bones of Betrayal —Dr. Bill Brockton must stop a grisly black market dealing in body parts and cadavers in this white-knuckle adventure written by the man widely considered to be the world’s foremost expert in forensic anthropology. Read The Bone Thief and discover why Kathy Reichs calls Bass, “The real deal.”"
"When the inhabitants of a peaceful world are conquered by the bloodthirsty yumens, their existence is irrevocably altered. Forced into servitude, the Athsheans find themselves at the mercy of their brutal masters.
Desperation causes the Athsheans, led by Selver, to retaliate against their captors, abandoning their strictures against violence. But in defending their lives, they have endangered the very foundations of their society. For every blow against the invaders is a blow to the humanity of the Athsheans. And once the killing starts, there is no turning back."
Life as a chicken girl isn’t so bad, but Mella wants more. Though girls can’t be official apprentices to artists in Florence, Mella has been secretly teaching herself to paint while tending to artist Sandro Botticelli’s chickens.
When one of Botticelli’s actual apprentices discovers Mella’s work, he threatens to take full credit for it. Why does it matter who drew it if it’s good?
With the help of unexpected allies, an important patron, and a tenacious stray dog named Blue, Mella must summon all her courage, smarts, and skills to prove her worth and demand the recognition she deserves."
The year is 1888, the clockwork British Empire is crumbling, and young writer Ivy Savage has literally received a heart in the post. Terrified, her father sends her north to a strange sanitarium in Lancashire where the brilliant but unpredictable “Mad Lord of Lasingstoke” makes his home.
Here, Ivy finds the dead are as dangerous as the living, and she is immediately swept into a world of manners, mystery, and supernatural intrigue, uncovering a secret that will lead both her and the Mad Lord back to London and the dark streets of Whitechapel."
A portrait of race and class, innocence and injustice, hypocrisy and heroism, tradition and transformation in the Deep South of the 1930s, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird remains as important today as it was upon its initial publication in 1960, during the turbulent years of the Civil Rights movement.
Now, reborn as a graphic novel. Scout, Jem, Boo Radley, Atticus Finch and the small town of Maycomb, Alabama, are all captured in illustrations by artist Fred Fordham."
The actions of Hitler, Stalin and Thatcher had epic, resounding consequences, but there are other ways to shape the course of history: those like Samuel de Champlain, the dreamers, explorers or adventurers who stand out in history for who they were as much as for what they did; or observers like Michel de Montaigne, who kept the notes and diaries that bring the past to life for us.
History’s People is about the important and complex relationship between biography and history, individuals and their times, and the transformative moments that have shaped the world.
Margaret MacMillan is the author of the international bestsellers The War that Ended Peace, Nixon in China and Paris 1919: Six Months that Changed the World, which won many major awards including the Samuel Johnson Prize and the PEN Hessell Tiltman Prize. She is also the author of The Uses and Abuses of History. She sits on the boards of the Mosaic Institute and the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. The past provost of Trinity College at the University of Toronto, MacMillan is now the warden of St Anthony’s College and a professor at Oxford University."
No comments:
Post a Comment