April 2023 in Books

A pretty good reading month, although I realized as I put this list together that I neglected to read a non-fiction book this month.  Working on fixing that for May.  Lots of historical fiction this month though.  Read on for the recaps:

Remarkably Bright Creatures - Shelby Van Pelt - fiction - five stars - About a friendship between Tova, the elderly custodian at Sowell Bay Aquarium, and Marcellus, the aquarium's giant Pacific octopus.  Marcellus is highly intelligent and he and Tova form a bond.  When she is injured and can't come to clean in the evenings, the aquarium has to hire a interim cleaner who proves to have a connection with Tova.  Marcellus figures all this out, and then has to get the humans to make the connection.  Loved the relationships and characters in this book.  All about friendships and community, and making the most of the time you have.  Highly recommended!

Dust Child - Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai - historical fiction - four stars - This one was closer to three and a half stars, rounded up.  In general it's out Dust Children, children fathered by American fathers who were serving in Vietnam who were left behind when the US left.  The book has several storylines: Phong, a Dust Child fathered by a black father who is trying to emigrate to the US; Dan, a vet returning to Vietnam to try and deal with his past; and the past tense story of Trang and Quynh two sisters from the countryside who go to Saigon during the war to earn money to help pay their parents debts.  This is such a sad topic, I thought each story was compelling in it's own way, but combing them all together seemed to take something away from the individual pieces.  I thought it was a little too muddy and the way that the stories came together in the end seemed almost like one of those shows where you have to wrap up all the loose ends in the last episode and everything is very rushed and too convenient.  In addition there were some conflicts between characters which I felt like were a big deal and then just weren't, again almost like you needed to speed things up.  

Earth's the Right Place for Love - Elizabeth Berg - fiction - five stars - I'm a huge fan of Berg's Arthur Truluv series.  This book isa prequel to the series and tells about Arthur's growing up years, and how he and Nola came to be together.  Just loved this.  Arthur's character is consistent from start (here) through the end.  I love how his quiet, dependable, kind spirit shows through and how even early in life he was making a difference in the lives of those around him.  If you love the Truluv books you'll love this one too, and if you haven't read them, this is just as good a place to start as the original 'first' book.

Wide Sargasso Sea - Jean Rhys - fiction - three stars - This was my 'classic' for the month.  It's essentially a prequel to Jane Eyre but while the original was written by Bronte in 1847, this prequel, focused on the first Mrs. Rochester, Antoinette Cosway, was written by a British author in 1966.  It's a really interesting premise - how the first Mrs. Rochester came to be insane and locked up - but for me it was a bit of a dud.  First of all it's hard to follow.  The narrative skips between Antoinette and Rochester, but sometimes mid chapter in a way that is confusing as to who is narrating.  Antoinette is definitely protagonist.  The daughter of a former slaveholder in Jamaica whose family is shunned following British Abolition.  Madness is portrayed as running through her family as her mother loses her mind following the burning of their family home by their former slaves and the death of her younger brother.  Antoinette is married off to Rochester by her step-brother in what appears to be more of a business transaction than anything else.  Rochester is portrayed very unflatteringly. Besides the difficulty in following the narrative, there are very few characters to like in this book.  While you feel bad for Antoinette, her actions/non actions are frustrating/annoying, and no one else is likable either.  Just meh. 

The Perfumist of Paris (The Jaipur Trilogy, #3) - Alka Joshi - historical fiction - five stars - The conclusion of Joshi's series, this book picks up the story of Radha who went to Paris after school.  While she moved there with her husband, in many ways it was to put her old life behind her, particularly her son Niki, who she gave up for adoption.  Radha now has two daughters with her husband, and is working for a master perfumist.  Radha is having difficulty juggling her work and family life and in the midst of this receives her biggest assignment ever.  It requires her to go back to India, meanwhile Niki has turned 18 and is coming to find her.  I have so enjoyed this series, and I really enjoyed how this brought closure to Radha's story.  If there's one criticism I have it's that the book was heavy handed with the feminist overtones, but that was a minor nit.  Overall a great ending to this series.

The Watchmaker's Daughter: The True Story of World War II Heroine Corrie ten Boom - Larry Loftis - historical fiction - four stars - I read the Hiding Place many years ago, so am familiar with the story of Corrie Ten Boom.  Loftis' retelling provides a bit more background with the story.  You learn more about the network the ten Booms were involved with and provides more general historical context, for example he folds in references to Anne Frank and Audrey Hepburn....to let you know what was going on in their lives when this or that particular event was occurring.  I also like that he provided a recap at the end of what happened with the various individuals referenced in the book.  The writing itself for me was only so so, but the story itself is so inspiring it overcomes those deficiencies.

Loot (Loot, #1) - Jude Watson - juvenile fiction - four stars - This was a book I had borrowed on CD a while back to listen to with Ellie on one of our long car rides, but she apparently does not like to listen to books.  Since we had made it through a whole CD, I was somewhat invested in the story so went ahead and borrowed the book.  It's about March, son of renowned jewel thief.  When his father dies, he sends him on a quest to 'find jewels.'  He learns that his father actually said 'Jules' the twin sister he did not know he had.  After finding her, they are sent to an orphanage, where they meet some friends, and then escape to complete the task/heist their father left for them.  A fun decent read.

The Last Russian Doll - Kristen Loesch - historical fiction - four stars - This one is another 3 1/2 stars that I rounded up.  It had a lot of promise, but was pretty flawed.  It's another dual timeline story centered on Rosie, who was born in Russia but fled to the US with her mother when she was a child.  She has been trying to get back to Russia to close the book on her past life.  Meanwhile, the historical story follows Tonya, a noblewoman who falls in love with a communist revolutionary.  Of course the two stories connect but the reason why just seemed ridiculous once it was revealed.  There were also a number of other pieces of the story that either weren't explained enough, or were a weird distraction.  At the end of the day this story needed a lot more editing and focus.

Foster - Claire Keegan - fiction novelette - five stars - A short little novelette about a girl who spends a summer with a couple in the country.  Her mother is pregnant with yet another child, and to lessen the burden at home, she's sent to stay with some distant relations.  Life with the couple is kinder, and softer, and more loving than anything she has ever experienced.  Her interactions with then as she gets used to this different life are sweet, and it is heartbreaking when she must return home. 

Sting (Loot, #2) - Jude Watson - juvenile fiction - four stars - The sequel to Loot, here the kids are talked into another heist.  In the process the realize that they have been cheated out of their life savings.  They now have to complete the multi-part heist they began, despite having many misgivings.  Their friendships are tested as the gang starts to fall apart, and old enemies resurface as well.  Predictable, but still a fun read.

Favorites this month were Remarkably Bright Creatures and Earth's the Right Place for Love.  I'm currently reading the newest Kate Morton book Homecoming as well as long term non-fiction read, The Warburgs (long term because it's 700+ pages) which  I'm reading a bit of each day along with my 'regular' fiction books.