The Power of a Good Book

"Cutting For Stone" - it's FANTASTIC!

I'm re-reading "Abide with me" by Elizabeth Strout - MOving...

I am just about finishing Small Wars by Sadie Jones(author of Outcast). It is a richly imagined and atmospheric story demonstrating that small wars( Cypriot war of 56), like all wars, are hell. The family dynamics of war's effects are so relevant in today's Iraq and Afghanistan..

I have just finished 'The Swan Thieves' by Elizabeth Kostova. I found it much harder to get into then her last 'the Historian' mainly because I was expecting to be caught right into the story from page 1.
It takes it sweet time drawing you in, it is not a book that can be classified as fast read. You have to be wiling to give the writer as much time as she needs to draw out the narrative. Due to its long drawn-out pace it was easy for me to set the book aside for lengths of time and and not grab it my first available free minute. That was not the case with 'the Historian'.

I have a distinct memory of once finding a person reading it in my local library. It was early evening and the library was humming with activities, carts being pulled around nosily by the teenage staff, loud excited voices heard over form the kids' story time session, rustling of newspapers being read mostly by seniors, the clicking noise of the computers keys and in the middle of it all was a woman, mid 30's, reading "the Historian". It was the very last chapter and she was completely oblivious to the world around her. I watched her for some time because it is always a pleasant sight to see some one enjoying the same work that you yourself have so much admired. What held my attention was her total disconnect from her surroundings and her complete and utter absorption in what she was reading. I imagined her wanting to enjoy the climax of the that very thick book in as peaceful and comfortable setting as should could... she has already served dinner to her family, helped her kids with their homework, asked her husband what kind of day he had at work but the evening is still young and it will be couple of hours before at least one person in her family won't be clambering her attention. She really has no choice, she has to get back to her book, find out how the story ends, and she has to read it with as much absence of distraction as she can manage. It might be a cafe/restaurant around the corner, the kind not frequented by loud voiced patrons or shrill music or in my lady's case it was the branch of the local library.

The Swan Thieves did not grabbed me as The Historian did but don't get me wrong. It is an excellent read and I will recommend it to anyone who loves book for the simple pure joy of reading. It might start and stay slow paced but the it is worth the read, specially the last one third. While 'The Historian' was about the timeless character of Vlad III (Dracula) 'The swan thieves' evoke the familiar yet not universally appreciated French Impressionist art. It gave me a hankering to go to National Gallery of Arts and revisit the French 19th century Collection.
That's what a good book does-it does not end at the end of last chapter

I have just finished Embers by Sandor Marai (1942). Translated in 2001 from Hungarian to English by Carol Brown Janeway. Two men who loved the same woman meet again after 41 years apart to have one last conversation about their reflection on the one day they both understood their fate. Very intimate conversation over a glass of wine and a fireplace.