Call It Horses by Jessie van Eerden . This one was listed in July, but I'd barely started it so didn't really have anything to say about it. Now that I finished it, I wanted to give a quick review. It was not at all what I expected from the blurb on the cover. And, (disappointingly to me) it doesn't have much to do with horses at all, they only come in at the very end of the book. It is not a light read, nor does it have a cute happy ending. That doesn't mean it was a bad book, it just means its not one you want to pick up if you are currently weighed down by some heavy life circumstances. (Which I wasn't, so I read it, but if I were I don't think I would have had the mental bandwidth to finish the book.)
On to August's list!
Saturday the Rabbi Went Hungry by Harry Kemelman. This is the second in the series, and I loved it just as much as I did the first. I got ahold of it from the library via the state library interloan system, and was surprised by how old this particular copy was: 1966! It actually had the old original due date slip taped on the page inside the back cover with due dates from the 60s and early 70s, then on the inside of the cover itself was a pocket with the due date card which had more stamps from the 70s, 80s, and early 90s. So I not only enjoyed the story itself, but also got great joy seeing a book older than myself still in circulating condition! Really stood out as to the durability of books printed back then versus books made in this century. On the other hand, it also made me realize that these stories have fallen out of fashion and tend to languish in library storage rooms these days rather than out on the shelves where browsing readers can see them. Let's bring them back into popularity because this is a great series and I fully intend to read all of them.
The old blue cloth bound covers of the 60s.
Stitching that held the pages together (stitched, not glued!)
A Dark Path by Linda Castillo. This is a now-in-print version of several short Kate Burkholder stories that were previously released on Kindle only. Since I don't Kindle (or any other form of reading books on a screen instead of on paper) I was really happy to see that stories I knew about but wouldn't ever read if they were electronic-only were going to be compiled into an honest to goodness book. And I wasn't disappointed, either! Each story is stand alone and roughly 60 pages long. Perfect for a time when you don't have hours available daily to devote to reading. They are all well written, with no rushed or sloppy feeling to them. Really makes me hungry for a whole novel; I hope the author has got a new full-length Kate Burkholder story in the works.
Nantucket Second Chances by Pamela Kelley. This one was suggested to me by the library's automatic book picking system when I requested a different (not in print yet) novel recently. Looking on Amazon for the blurb, it sounded like it could possibly be something I'd enjoy reading, so I put a hold on it. It was okay; although if I were to be brutally honest, I didn't like it. I had a hard time getting into the characters, not just because they were so obviously from a different economic class than me, but also because many of them seemed to be shallow stereotypes. Similarly, I felt that every drama point resolved too easily and quickly to be realistic.
Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie. This is her third novel, and in my on-going personal project to read/re-read all of her mysteries (since I read the majority of what I could get my hands on of hers as a teenager, it's been a long time), it was next on my list. It did not disappoint. She most definitely was and still is, in my opinion, the queen of murder mysteries.
I love holding books, in general, especially old ones. I can't get behind a Nook or Kindle. I, too, read so many Agatha Christie books as a teenager! Right now I am moving along at a good clip on my 6th Liane Moriarty book. Easy to read.
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