fairywhispers's "Books I Recommend"

I read about Nightfall when it was mentioned in passing in New Scientist magazine. Their description interested me, so I borrowed the book from the library. This is the first Isaac Asimov I have read and I can see why he has such a great reputation. Living on a planet with just one sun, we do tend to take darkness and stars for granted. But what if we had never seen either? How would a people, used to eternal light, cope with their first exposure to night? How would someone who had never seen the night sky deal with all those millions of stars? Nightfall is a riveting account of how one society faced just such a challenge and it is an account that is well worth reading.

I picked this book up fully intending to read a chapter before bed. Nine hours and six glasses of coke later, I was finished. The story this book tells is sad and tragic, and the writing hooks you from the beginning. Betrayed details the doubts and uncertainties most parents feel at some point, especially when dealing with what appears to be a problem child, and highlights the lack of help available to such families. The fact that Sarah and her family had to endure such horrible events for so long is an inditement of our society, where parent’s concerns are dismissed as nonsense, and illnesses and psychosis are diagnosed for convenience. Betrayed is a difficult book for parents to read, but I highly recommend it.

Written in diary form, Life As We Knew It tells of one family’s struggle to survive while the world collapses around them. Told from the point of view of sixteen-year-old Miranda, this story brings home just how reliant we are on all the modern conveniences. How would you survive if you were suddenly without electricity, natural gas, air-con, phones, running water? If gas and food were no longer being transported? If medicines were running out? It’s a scary prospect for us as adults, how much scarier for children and teenagers?

This is an apocalyptic novel that is all the more frightening for it’s feasibility.

The Thirteenth Tale is an amazing journey into one woman’s hidden past. Filled with beautiful language and wonderfully descriptive passages, this is an extraordinary first work by an incredibly gifted author.

Book lovers will relate well to the narrator Margaret Lea, and will enjoy the timeless gothic atmosphere and the enchanting prose as Vida’s life slowly unfolds. The Thirteenth Tale is a remarkable story that will be enjoyed by all.

I loved the language in this novel so much, I am including two of my favourite quotes:

“What succour, what consolation is there in truth, compared to a story? What good is truth, at midnight, in the dark, when the wind is roaring like a bear in the chimney? When lightning strikes shadows on the bedroom wall and the rain taps at the window with it’s long fingernails? No. When fear and cold make a statue of you in your bed, don’t expect hard-boned and fleshless truth to come running to your aid. What you need are the plump comforts of a story. The soothing, rocking safety of a lie.” Vida Winter in The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

“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.” The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

Love in the Time of Cholera is a moving tale of love, constance and devotion. Told in the third person flashbacks this story reveals the lifelong consequences of a brief, but passionate, love affair between young Florentino Ariza & Fermino Daza. Fermina Daza moves on from this affair, marries Doctor Juvenal Urbino and lives a full life. Florentino Ariza, who never stops loving Fermina, moves through a series brief affairs until old age, when the death of her husband leaves Fermina free to be wooed once more.

Some parts of this book were a little drawn out and hard to get through, which is why I haven’t given it full ratings. Overall, however, this was a wonderfully moving story of the constance of the human heart. This is not a romance novel but it is romantic – not with the impetuous passion of youth, but the comfortable, familiar love of old age. I highly recommend it.

This book begins with a shockingly graphic account of the brutal rape of ten-year-old Tonya Hailey. It then tracks the fallout of this crime before reverting to a highly charged courtroom drama. This is the first book John Grisham wrote and the first of his books that I read. In my opinion, it is also the best.

The controversy in Clanton after Carl Lee’s action causes us to search our own hearts and souls. What would we have done if Tonya were our daughter? How would we vote if we were on the jury? Would we, in our deepest souls feel differently if he were white?

I am not a big fan of Grisham generally but I love A Time to Kill. I have read it several times and still feel the thrills and suspense long after other novels become old hash. This is a book that should be on everyone’s reading list.

This book contains so much more than the movie. In fact, the movie doesn’t even cover the first half of the book. The Neverending Story is a great adventure that will be loved by kids and adults alike. It chronicles the coming-of-age of ten year old Bastion and demonstrates what can happen when all our wishes are granted. The importance of imagination (which I have always advocated) is highlighted in this book – in fact Fantastica depends on it. I would highly recommend this book to everyone – no matter the age.

Letter to D is a touching look at a couple’s life together, spanning half a century. The love Andre feels for his beloved wife Dorine comes through, loud and clear, in every word he has written. Even people who don’t usually enjoy romance novels (and I count myself amongst this number) cannot help but be captivated by the depth of feeling contained in this open letter from a man to his dying wife. This novel is all the more poignant for the events which followed. Letter to D is a definite must-read.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is a unique glimpse into the mind of an autistic child. His single-minded attempt to ‘detect’ who killed his neighbour’s beloved dog is both logical and inspiring. Some parts of the story are very sad, others are amusing, and little pictures throughout the book give a small insight into how this boys mind works. This is one book that ought to be on everyone’s reading list.

This is a minute by minute account of the terrible fire in the Worcester Cold Storage facility that killed six fireman, and changed the lives of many more. Despite knowing the outcome from the beginning, this book is an exciting, edge-of-the-seat read. I found my heart pounding during the account of the fire and I cried as I read of the families being informed. One cannot help but admire the courage of these men, who willingly put their lives on the line to save lives and protect property as a matter of course. Most of the time the gamble pays off, but rare as it is, sometimes the fire wins. This account of one of those times is a definite must-read.