Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

I know it does not sound as if it would be, BUT this is a wonderful book.

Back when I first saw this title I was hesitant, almost bought it, didn't, almost bought it again, and then a friend came to me saying, "I know this does not seem like the type of book we usually read, but I loved it!"  I took it from her and devoured it in two nights. A week or so later my cousin called. She said, "I just read this wonderful book! I know the title sounds like something you might not be interested in but . . ." Yes, it was 'Memoirs of a Geisha'.

This is the story of a fisherman's daughter and her long journey to becoming a Geisha. It is also the story of Japan, before, during and after WWII. There is suspense, romance and heartbreak.

Don't hesitate. Read it. This is a great story, well written and historically informative. I am so happy I read Memoirs of a Geisha. It is now on the list of my all time favorite reads.

This is the only book written by the author that I could find. Disappointed . . .

The Forgotten Garden

     No, I am not stuck in a garden rut.  The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton is just another wonderful read with the word garden in it's title.

     This is Cassandra's story, but it is also the story of her Grandmother Nell.  Nell took Cassandra in as a child, giving her a true home and security that her mother never had.  When Nell passes away, Cassandra discovers that her grandmother had been found as a small child, alone on the wharf in Queensland, Australia clutching a book, not knowing who she was.  She was lovingly raised by a dock worker and his wife.  The granddaughter also finds that her grandmother had never stopped looking for her real parents.  After Nell's death, Cassandra continues the search.

     What we find in this book is the stories of three women and those stories connect, even to the end, in a forgotten garden in a Cornish village in England.  We learn all we need to know from three perspectives, in three time periods, carefully interwoven information, past and present.  Oh yes, and we also get a fairytale!  The mystery is not easily solved and kept me riveted to the end.

     Kate Morton's books, The House at Riverton and The Distant Hours, were equally as satisfying.

The Winter Garden

            Kristen Hannah never fails to make me cry, at least once, while reading one of her books.  As I read The Winter Garden, I actually sobbed!
 

This book retells the life of a Russian-born woman who suffered unbearable hardship in Stalinist Leningrad.  Meredith, her eldest daughter, must try to fulfill her fathers dying wish that she take care of her mother, not something she wants to do. In flash backs we find out, as do Meredith and Nina, why their mother has always behaved distant and cold to them.  We also see how this has shaped the daughters and affected their lives.
 

            I learned much about Russian history from this book, thanks to Hannah’s careful research. And, as always, each and every character came to life on the pages.

    A tearjerker, but I loved it.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

       The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield is the best books I have read in years.

     Margaret Lea, who has already written one biography but who's life is mainly books and her fathers book store, is asked to write the life storey of Veda Winter, a famous writer. Veda does not always tell the truth and the story is not what Margaret had expected.  And why was the book titled The Thirteen Tales on  the first edition when there are only twelve in future publications?

    But it is not the mystery uncovered at the old house where Veda lives that makes this book wonderful. It is Setterfield's writing. Her use of words and mood kept me on the edge of my seat and glued to the pages long after I should have been in bed on a work night. The story within a story was incredibly well done. 

     Before I gave the book to my daughter to read, I placed a sticky note on the page containing the following paragraph, asking her to call me so we could talk about it when she finished reading that page.

"I have always been a reader; I have read at every stage of my life, and there has never been a time when reading was not my greatest joy. And yet I cannot pretend that the reading I have done in my adult years matches in its impact on my soul the reading I did as a child. I still believe in stories. I still forget myself when I am in the middle of a good book. Yet it is not the same. Books are, for me, it must be said, the most important thing; what I cannot forget is that there was a time when they were at once more banal and more essential than that. When I was a child, books were everything. And so there is in me, always, a nostalgic yearning for the lost pleasure of books. It is not a yearning that one ever expects to be fulfilled."

     She was also moved by the words. This so completely described our own experiences with reading we were amazed.  I read the paragraph several times on discovery and find myself, years later, still picking up this book, just to reread this and other parts I have marked throughout.

"There is something about words. In expert hands, manipulated deftly, they take you prisoner. Wind themselves around your limbs like spider silk, and when you are so enthralled you cannot move, they pierce your skin, enter your blood, numb your thoughts. Inside you they work their magic."

     Sigh! Diane Setterfield, you have expert hands.  I impatiently await your next book.

My Own Blog

     I read so many Book Blogs I decided today was the day I would begin my own.  I am a simple person, so this will be a simple blog with short reviews. I once wanted to be a writer, but I am, as my blog title indicates, a reader.  Perhaps not just 'a reader', but a book person with . . . well, a possible problem.
     I sit at my desk in my study and behind me are four book cases crammed with books.  There are history books, biographies, commentary, health and fitness, bible study, childrens books, popular modern fiction, classic fiction and the worn, but dearly loved, Holt, Stewart, Whitney and other gothic romance books of my youth.
     On the floor beside my reading chair are stacks of books aquired from freinds.  These books are in limbo.  Are they good enough reads to stay? Should I rearrange them again, placing the new mystery from Patterson on top for a quick read? Do I even want to read the two picked up at work from the book exchange?
     Beside this chair is a small table that once belonged to my maternal grandparents. In memories my grandfather keeps his paper and crossword books on it.  At my house it holds the books I am now reading and my Kindle.
     Sometimes I come to this room, sit in my chair and just look at my books.