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Normally, my not posting this on Wednesday means I don't get to post it at all, but since we're inhabiting the Darkest Timeline this year all the old rules have gone out the window. And so, the status of my reading as of Wednesday, July 15:
What I Just Finished Reading
The Satapur Moonstone - Sujata Massey
This remarkably entertaining, extremely well-written book finds one of India’s first female solicitors, Perveen Mistry, headed to a remote microkingdom to settle a dispute between its newly widowed queen and her embittered mother-in-law regarding the crown prince’s education. Mistry soon finds herself smack-dab in the middle of intrigues involving the British Raj, local businessmen, competing palace factions, and a possible threat to the crown prince’s life.
Massey excels at writing complex, three-dimensional characters: Mistry, for instance, has scratched and clawed her way into a legal career in 1920s India, but still frets when finding herself unchaperoned with an unrelated male. The rest of The Satapur Moonstone’s cast is similarly complicated. Indeed, Massey seamlessly incorporates a host of social tensions, any one of which could have been the book's focus in its own right—British versus Indian, Hindu versus non-Hindu, urban versus rural, patriarchy versus gender equality, upper versus lower caste, tradition versus modernity—into the novel with a deft touch. It’s a nuanced, rollicking mystery and a real treat to read.
The Drunken Botanist – Amy Stewart
First of all, this book is an extremely pleasing physical object. The page layout, typesetting, graphic design, flyleaves, and color scheme—which extends to the book's binding—are beautiful. The pages are silky smooth. It’s just a lovely thing to hold in one’s hands and flip through.
The content is also enjoyable. Equal parts herbal, history lesson, scientific text, cookbook, and trivia compendium, The Drunken Botanist discusses a few hundred of “the plants that make the world’s great drinks.” Stewart is an author who knows how to present facts to entertain as well as inform. I would have enjoyed the book solely on the merits of the information Stewart presents (did you know that the majority of the world’s star anise crop is destined not for the spice cupboard but for Tamiflu?), but her lighthearted presentation, which is amusing without being cutesy or cloying, adds an additional layer of enjoyment. I will definitely check out her other books.
What I Am Currently Reading
The Angel of the Crows - Katherine Addison
I’ve love everything this author has previously written, but for some reason I just can’t get into this one.
House of Leaves - Mark Danielewski
As creepy and frustrating as the first time I read it.
The Sisters Grimm - Menna Von Praag
I'm currently a fifth of the way through and although it’s a little wordier than I generally like my fiction, the story is compelling.
Follow Me to Ground – Sue Rainsford
This novel also looks set to be pretty creepy, so I paused after chapter 1 to focus on House of Leaves.
What I'm Reading Next
This week I picked up Sue Rainsford’s Follow Me to Ground.
これで以上です。
What I Just Finished Reading
The Satapur Moonstone - Sujata Massey
This remarkably entertaining, extremely well-written book finds one of India’s first female solicitors, Perveen Mistry, headed to a remote microkingdom to settle a dispute between its newly widowed queen and her embittered mother-in-law regarding the crown prince’s education. Mistry soon finds herself smack-dab in the middle of intrigues involving the British Raj, local businessmen, competing palace factions, and a possible threat to the crown prince’s life.
Massey excels at writing complex, three-dimensional characters: Mistry, for instance, has scratched and clawed her way into a legal career in 1920s India, but still frets when finding herself unchaperoned with an unrelated male. The rest of The Satapur Moonstone’s cast is similarly complicated. Indeed, Massey seamlessly incorporates a host of social tensions, any one of which could have been the book's focus in its own right—British versus Indian, Hindu versus non-Hindu, urban versus rural, patriarchy versus gender equality, upper versus lower caste, tradition versus modernity—into the novel with a deft touch. It’s a nuanced, rollicking mystery and a real treat to read.
The Drunken Botanist – Amy Stewart
First of all, this book is an extremely pleasing physical object. The page layout, typesetting, graphic design, flyleaves, and color scheme—which extends to the book's binding—are beautiful. The pages are silky smooth. It’s just a lovely thing to hold in one’s hands and flip through.
The content is also enjoyable. Equal parts herbal, history lesson, scientific text, cookbook, and trivia compendium, The Drunken Botanist discusses a few hundred of “the plants that make the world’s great drinks.” Stewart is an author who knows how to present facts to entertain as well as inform. I would have enjoyed the book solely on the merits of the information Stewart presents (did you know that the majority of the world’s star anise crop is destined not for the spice cupboard but for Tamiflu?), but her lighthearted presentation, which is amusing without being cutesy or cloying, adds an additional layer of enjoyment. I will definitely check out her other books.
What I Am Currently Reading
The Angel of the Crows - Katherine Addison
I’ve love everything this author has previously written, but for some reason I just can’t get into this one.
House of Leaves - Mark Danielewski
As creepy and frustrating as the first time I read it.
The Sisters Grimm - Menna Von Praag
I'm currently a fifth of the way through and although it’s a little wordier than I generally like my fiction, the story is compelling.
Follow Me to Ground – Sue Rainsford
This novel also looks set to be pretty creepy, so I paused after chapter 1 to focus on House of Leaves.
What I'm Reading Next
This week I picked up Sue Rainsford’s Follow Me to Ground.
これで以上です。
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