I got sidetracked on my Carol Shields short stories. Although I do plan on finishing the book before the end of the year, I won’t make it by the end of June to count it for the Canadian Challenge. I’ll just use it for Canadian Challenge #2 and substitute something else for the first Canadian Challenge.
I have started on another book of short stories that I’m excited about. I’ve read the first two stories in The Secrets of a Fire King by Kim Edwards, and I enjoyed both of them very much.
“The Great Chain of Being” is about the power of a person’s name. If a person’s name is changed to one with a good meaning (or a bad meaning), does it change who the person is inside? When Eshlaini’s brothers and sisters are all given a special name by their father, she wants one, too — until one is given to her that brings her dishonor. Can she rise above the stigma her new name brings? I loved this one!
“Spring, Mountain, Sea” are actually the names of the three children of an American man and an Asian woman — I think she was Vietnamese. This story chronicles the lives of the couple and how they deal with others’ prejudice of her background and also how Jade Moon battles with her isolation, loneliness, and homesickness. This one was also very good.
This book’s writing has pleasantly surprised me. I hope to write about 2-3 stories from it each week on Mondays.
Books of Mee had a challenge idea similar to mine. Basically, it’s to read at least one book from each group of 10 books in the first 100 of the 1001 list. You’re allowed to skip if you’ve already read books from a group. Guess what! I only have 3 groups of ten that I need to read from, so I decided I can easily read at least three before the deadline of October 31. I also have 4 books that I might read for ‘extra credit.’
Here’s my list:
[01-10] skip – I’ve read Never Let Me Go and The Sea [11-20] skip – I’ve read The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time extra credit:#18 What I Loved [21-30] #27 Unless – Carol Shields [31-40] skip – I’ve read Middlesex [41-50] skip – I’ve read Atonement extra credit: #49 Life of Pi [51-60] #52 The Devil and Miss Prym [61-70] skip - I’ve read The Blind Assassin [71-80] #75 Fear and Trembling OR #77 Disgrace OR #80 Intimacy [81-90] skip – I’ve read The Hours and Veronika Decides to Die extra credit:#86 The Poisonwood Bible [91-100] skip – I’ve read The God of Small Things extra credit: #99 American Pastoral
“And what stood in their way? Their personalities and pasts, their ignorance and fear, timidity, squeamishness, lack of entitlement or experience or easy manners, then the tail end of a religious prohibition, their Englishness and class, and history itself. Nothing much at all.”
Didn’t care for it. I liked Atonement only marginally better. I read On Chesil Beach because it was short and I could use it for the Novella and Notable Books challenges. I also wanted to give Ian McEwan another chance.
Edward and Florence are both novices to s*x on their wedding night, and the experience doesn’t turn out too well for them. The consequences of this event have serious repercussions for the couple, even life-changing ones. I enjoyed the back-stories of the couple, but the wedding night scene was too graphic for my taste. Really, can’t the same thing be said in a more understated, tasteful way? I realize I’m in the minority on things like this, but certain language and descriptions just really don’t do it for me. Your mileage probably varies.
2007, 203 pp. Rating:
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I have started on another book of short stories that I’m excited about. I’ve read the first two stories in The Secrets of a Fire King by Kim Edwards, and I enjoyed both of them very much.
