As I reported last week, reading books by women in translation was something I wanted to do this summer, and I did it! Four of those were in August, plus one by a man in translation (I had been confused), and three mysteries. I do seem to gravitate to those in the summer.
What I read this month
- Temple Alley Summer by Sachiko Kashiwaba – Women in Translation
- A House without Mirrors by Marten Sanden
- The Zig Zag Girl by Elly Griffiths
- The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths
- Murder by the Book, edited by Martin Edwards
- The Ingenious Language by Andrea Marcolongo – Women in Translation
- Barbara Isn’t Dying by Alina Bronsky – Women in Translation
- A Single Rose by Muriel Barbery – Women in Translation
How one book leads to another
Last month, I had a moment of Book Serendipity when I closed Magpie Murders and picked up Storybook Ending – which starts out with a character putting a note into a copy of Magpie Murders she’s dropping off at her favorite bookstore, hoping a particular bookseller will find it.
At the end of the book, one character recommends The Stranger Diaries to another, and I thought I might as well follow up with that. I actually tried a couple of books by Elly Griffiths, and enjoyed them both, so was glad to have been introduced to a new author by chance.
Have you experienced such chains of happenstance in your reading?
Currently reading
After loving Kitchen Table Wisdom some years ago, I don’t know why I waited to long to read Rachel Naomi Remen’s follow-up, My Grandfather’s Blessings, but I’m glad to be reading it now. Full of pithy wisdom drawn from real life and deep feeling, I could read such “little stories” forever. They model the kind of person I would like to be, and I don’t think I can praise a book more highly than that.
Sacred Reading
Speaking of books as food for life, this month also saw my experiment in exploring reading as a sacred practice, as I offered free online meetings each day for a week. It was a wonderful experience, and I am continuing with less-frequent offerings, as well as a podcast for those who can’t attend in person – see the Sacred Reading page for details. It would be lovely to have more friends join us!
On the blog
- On the Matterhorn Trail, in which I visited one of Switzerland’s major tourist attractions
- Women in Translation and Ten Books of Summer, a review of summer reading
What’s on your shelf this month?
Linked at The Sunday Post at Caffeinated Book Reviewer, the Sunday Salon at Readerbuzz, and the Monthly Wrap-up Round-up at Feed Your Fiction Addiction