Monthly Archives: January 2017

Before she wrote To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee wrote Go Set a Watchman. She was given advice to change it. The real story was just a tiny part of what she had written. Thank goodness she followed the advice! Go Set a Watchman does a lot of lecturing. The points about racism and bigotry get rather muddled up and lost in those lectures. The good parts are when Jean Louise (Scout) is remembering things that happened in her childhood. The biggest value I see in this somewhat polished rough draft is in studying how a writer can take the story they planned to tell and transform it into a very different, yet still with a few basic similarities, amazing, prize-winning, enduring novel.

2 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 11
Pages Read in 2017: 3608
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Birthstone Bookology (G in GARNET)

Summer and Graham are engaged and preparing for their free wedding (a prize from a bridal show contest) at Sunset Havens (the retirement community where Graham’s parents live). Mixing Beth’s parents, Graham’s parents, and Sunset Havens is guaranteed to create some real craziness.

Summer at Sunset is even funnier than the first book, Summer at Sea. I laughed so much. It’s a quick read and truly enjoyable brain candy. Mostly it’s told from Summer’s point of view in her wonderfully sarcastic way, but occasionally it switches to Graham so we get to see into his (possibly not quite as neurotic) mind. I highly recommend reading this book. Reading the first book is not completely necessary, but will add to the enjoyment of this one.

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 4
Pages Read in 2017: 1603
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: I really enjoyed the first book

Toru Watanabe hears the song Norwegian Wood and begins reminiscing to a time 20 years before when he was a college student in the late 60s/early 70s in Tokyo and was in love with a broken girl, Naoko. When he meets Midori, he begins questioning just how his love can be split in two.

A coming of age story, Norwegian Wood includes lots of casual sex (with some somewhat graphic descriptions) and drinking. Mental illness and suicide figure prominently. While I didn’t find it to be a horrible book, I also didn’t find it to be great either. It was just kind of there. I was left somewhat depressed. I can’t say I really recommend it to anyone.

3 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 3
Pages Read in 2017: 1349
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: BAW Read Along

It’s the late 1980s and Katie has left the home of her birth (America) to join her new husband in a strange land (Norway). Katie’s not completely happy and needs a change of scenery so she jumps at the change to teach English at a school in England for a month. There she meets David and is very attracted to him, making her question just how strong the vows she made to Olaf really are.

Blue-Eyed Arabs of the North is a fictionalized memoir. Sometimes it was very meandery and things were repeated over and over, but in a way, this added to its charm. I often felt like I was sitting down with a grandmother and she was telling me a little part of her story. I think it could have been edited down about 300 pages, but that might remove some of the charm. It is obvious the author was an English teacher. The grammar and vocabulary are excellent. The timeline was sometimes confusing even with repeatedly mentioning what day it was. The bits of ex-pat confusion with a new culture were quite funny (and would probably be even funnier to someone who is an ex-pat themselves). The bits of mangled English from Katie’s husband were utterly adorable. Overall, I enjoyed this book and recommend it to adults who enjoy romances or are American ex-pats.

4 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 2
Pages Read in 2017: 837
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: