A brief summary of what I’m currently reading or have recently finished, why I read it, and whether I’d recommend it. Although really, it’d have to be truly terrible for me to bother writing about a book I wouldn’t recommend……
By Pike and Dyke (G. A. Henty) – Henty wrote historical fiction for an intended audience of primarily adolescent/young adult males. This particular volume, set in the 1570s, is subtitled “A Tale of the Rise of the Dutch Republic”, and relates the conflict between not just the Netherlands against their Spanish overlords, but also between Protestants and their Catholic ruler. Also called the “Eighty Years’ War”, it was one of the first successful European secessions, and many believe that it was upon this foundation that other revolutions, including that in America from English rule, were built. Not a bad book overall, though it’s prone to the flaws of all historical fiction (blurred lines between the history and the fiction).
Salt to the Sea (Ruta Sepetys) – More historical fiction, this one set in 1944-45 and relating the stories of various individuals whose lives all came together on the MV Wilhelm Gustloff. I won’t spoil the ending, but I will forewarn you that the narrator changes with each chapter. Some people enjoy that varied perspective; I am not one of them. However, of all the ink spilled – both fiction and nonfiction – about World War II, comparatively little is about eastern European countries, those caught between Germany and Russia. This one does, and that is one reason I found it worth the time. Bonus (for me, anyway): I love a good unsolved mystery, and this pulls in the disappearance of the Amber Room.
American Priestess (Jane Fletcher Geniesse) – Horatio G. Spafford is likely best known for his contribution to every hymnal I’ve ever seen: “It is Well With My Soul”. Many know the heart-wrenching story of his penning those lyrics, and the loss of all 4 of his daughters in a shipwreck. If you treasure that perception of Spafford and want to cling to it, don’t read American Priestess. Less well known are his…..unique theological views (some might call them heretical), and his later removal to Jerusalem, where he and his wife co-founded the American Colony. This book is less about him than it is about his wife, who outlived him and was the more dominant personality between the two of them. Informative on a topic of which I was largely ignorant at the outset, it’s not a quick read. I would characterize it as a bit of a slog, actually, but informative nonetheless.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (William Shakespeare) – The requisite high school study of “Romeo & Juliet” did little to endear Shakespeare, or plays in general, to me, and I’m not sure I’ve read one since. I picked up this one partly because of a reading challenge, and also partly out of feeling that my reading has been inadequate and paltry. (The time-sucking checklists of “70 Classics – How Many Have You Read?” widely available on the internet have done little to assuage these feelings.) Shakespeare surely appears on every list of books that one “should” have read by the age of 30 at least, and thus I’m behind. (Never tell an accountant that they’ve missed a deadline.) The Folger edition not only included notes regarding antiquated language that may not be obvious to the modern reader, but was also inexpensive – under $10, as I recall – and so I bit the bullet and gave it a whirl. Perhaps the most helpful aspect of the notes was the overall plot summary, particularly that there are 3 stories contained in one. On one hand, it’s worth the time simply because of the influence that Shakespeare has had on culture in general. On another, it’s worth the time because it really does contain some quite beautiful language – “I know a bank where the wild thyme blows / Where oxlips and the nodding violet grows / Quite over-canopied with luscious woodbine / With sweet musk-roses and with eglantine” for example. But it’s also worth the time, for me anyway, because one of the main characters (Hermia) is short, as I am, and I appreciated some of the dialogue that invoked her height. That’s likely not a broadly attractive aspect to the play, but nevertheless one that I enjoyed immensely.
So there you have it: 4 books I’m reading right now or have recently finished. If you’ve read any of these (or decide to after reading this post), drop me a note and let me know what you thought of them! And let me know what you’re reading right now too.