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Wednesday, March 05, 2008

A good read or two or seven

My car looked like a glazed donut when I arrived home from the east side yesterday evening. Despite the wind blowing my car all around the Shoreway on the way home, I had to make a stop at the library because I absolutely needed something else to read. Can't be snowed in without a good book.

The Bay Village branch of Cuyahoga Public Library leaves much to be desired, but I did manage to pick up two novels I've long wanted to read. First I grabbed Barbara Kingsolver's "The Poisonwood Bible." I must be one of the only people not to have read the book. But then I looked at its size and realized that since I'm flying on Friday, I needed something a little slimmer, a little more travel friendly. So I picked up Zora Neale Hurston's, "Their Eyes Were Watching God."

The first line of the book immediately sucked me in:
"Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board."
Last night, while awaiting election returns, I surfed a bit on Amazon for some other books that I've either seen, held or had recommended to me. If you have recommendations, feel free to send them along.

Snow Flowers and the Secret Fan, by Lisa See (recommended by Kristen)
Suite Francaise, by Irene Nemirovsky (read about it in PD)
Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace…One School at a Time, by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin (have picked this one up a number of times)
What the Gospels Meant, by Gary Wills (love his renegade, smart way of writing about faith)
The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett (friend and running partner Lisa recommended this and she's always dead-on on her book recommendations)
A Long Way Gone, by Ishmael Beah (picked this up a few times, too)
People of the Book, by Geraldine Brooks (heard her tell the story of this book on NPR and was mesmerized)


Word of the day
momentum: strength or force gained by motion or through the development of events

4 comments:

contemporary themes said...

I loved The Poisonwood Bible and I ABSOLUTELY LOVED Their Eyes Were Watching God.

A Long Way Gone is very good too. Miraculous story of fortitude and survival.

I want to read The Pillars of the Earth. I rec. it to my book club, but they wanted to read STIFF so that's what we are reading.

Enjoy all your books.

Wendy A. Hoke said...

Thanks, La La! I'm totally hooked on the ZNH book already. Hope you're feeling better. :)

1A said...

I haven't read The Poisonwood Bible yet either. I just read Three Cups of Tea. The writing is a bit over the top, but, well, so is the story ... so I forgave that. It's an incredible story. Other books I've read recently that I'd recommend: The Glass Castle and The Girls. I just started reading Tales of a Female Nomad, and she's got me sucked in.

Wendy A. Hoke said...

Hey Becky,
I just started The Poisonwood Bible. I read The Glass Castle in a day. What an amazing story.

Thanks for the reccs!