Currently reading
Roman Blood
Progress:
171/401 pages
Dearie: The Remarkable Life of Julia Child
Progress:
208/557 pages
Avant-gardes du XXe siècle: arts & littérature, 1905-1930
Caesar's Commentaries: On the Gallic War and On the Civil War
Les bûchers de Bocanegra
The Songs of the Kings
Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Stories: Volumes I and II
The Hobbit
Memoirs of a Geisha: A Novel
I remember reading this over a labour week-end and being completly captivated by the story of this young girll, sold into, well, slavery even if that's not the word they are using. The manner in which she made her way through life from her virginity being sold to the highest bidder to her retirement in America and coming through WW2 and finding some kind of peace. I'm not gonna reread this again But it's associated with nice memories of reading in the sun on the shore of a very nice river on a holiday week-end.
The Handmaid's Tale (Everyman's Library)
This book still haunts me after all these years. I read it in my early 20 and it made quite an impact on what kind of speculative fiction I liked : disturbing, scary in the best possible way and makes you think. Handmaid's Tale has all three of these. I've never reread this one. Probably won't again mainly because somehow I can see glimpses, sometimes it's more in your face shouts of this society where women are propriety in our reality and it scares me. A lot.
The World According to Garp (Modern Library)
This is still my favourite Irving novel. I remember staying up very late one night to finish it because it was that good and intense. I know I laughed so hard (even if it was anything but funny really) at the parking incident. I don't know how it would measure up to the memories if I read it again now.
L'île mystérieuse (French Edition)
Along with Michel Strogoff this is another novel of Jules Verne that I read and reread without being bored and every time I find new things to be amazed about. The amazing and extraordinary adventures of this mix and match crew of people who escape in a hot air balloon a fortified city during the American Civil war and are caught in an hurricane and crash on this mysterious island. This is survival through wits, work and a little bit of luck. The original survivor. I still love this story to pieces and how it's connected to other of Verne's work by some mysterious and wonderful threads.
The Autobiography of Alice B Toklas
I really fell in love with Stein writings with this book. I had read Three lives before and liked it on an intellectual level but didn't love it. The autobiography of Alice B. Toklas is more accessible and a wonderful journey and view into the lives, loves and entourage of the Stein-Toklas. How Gertrude and Alice set up home in Paris, held court with painters, writers, poets and along the way collected essential pieces of art of the modern era. Picasso, Matisse, Braque... you name the artist, he or she made at least one visit to Alice and Gertrude's home. It's a wonderful introduction to the time and places of Paris in the early 20th century, it combines a few of my favourite things : history, art, modern art and literature. What's not to love.
Consuelo: A Romance of Venice
Consuelo along with La Comtesse de Rudolstadt are among my favourite nineteen century novels. It's George Sand's masterpiece and bizarrely they were the books she wrote in the worst of times, always on the run, always on deadline. Writing in the dead on night, after all the visitors were asleep, sitting in her little cupboard, writing, writing until 4 am, sending the pages barely edited to Paris from Nohant to be published in the paper. Consuelo started out as a novel about music, opera and Venice. It gives the reader a wonderful view of the time, the people who had power and how a diva was made. But it went sideways because Sand needed money, because she was an amazingly curious writer and she became enamoured with Bohemia, its history, its legends. And Consuelo took a turn for the gothic and dramatic with her lead character on the road with a very young Haydn finding refuge in a very mysterious castle. There's a star cross love story, a dramatic ending, a wonderful, wonderful female lead, a mysterious, gothic lead male character full of angst, music, mysticism all mixed to form an operatic kinda novel. I still love it to pieces.
La comtesse de Rudolstadt (French Edition)
This is the conclusion of Sand's operatic, dramatic music, mystical novel Consuelo where our heroine after an ill fated marriage finds herself at the Prussian court being the centre of intrigue and being courted by a very mysterious character. Less than the original but still quite good even if it has more mystic undertones and political intrigues than the original.
 - George Sand)
The Secret History
I loved this right until the last 50 pages or so. Where things went pear shape. I loved the academic settings, the classical culture the characters are immersed in. I loved how the plot was brought on, we knew who, we kinda knew how, we just didn't know why. Yes, it has a touch of pretentiousness, a little, tiny bit of look how erudite I am in the style, in the way the story is offered. This was Tartt first novel and what a first novel it is. I've read her subsequent novel and liked it well enough but this is by far my favourite.
Interview with the Vampire (Vampire Chronicles)
I wanted to like this so much. I only read this after I saw the movie (which despite Tom Cruise, I liked). I wanted to be swept away with all the angst of Louis and the dilemma of killing to survive. Alas. Nope. This was a pain to read. I've learn to give Rice a pass. Not that it's a bad book, just not my cup of tea.
El Club Dumas/ The Club Dumas (Spanish Edition)
This was my first Arturo Pérez-Reverte but definitely not my last. I quickly acquired the back list of his books for the library and we started promoting his novels. He's one of my all time favourite writers and a new title by him is always welcome with smiles. This caper of a novel has lots going for it. Suspense, supernatural happenings, dark evil characters lurking in the background. What sets it apart is the subtext that the reader is being drawn into a world where Mylady, Rochefort and the musketeers are still around. If Dumas' classic is one of your favourite, like me, you will really enjoy every page of Pérez-Reverte take on the classic and how this lost, forgotten, missing chapter of the beloved classic is the key to an evil plot. Or is it? Perez-Reverte plays on what is believable, what we are made to believe and what we want to believe. It's an amazing ride of a read and a good introduction Perez-Reverte style of writing.
La peau du tambour
What does the Vatican do when a church set to be close starts to kill? Miracle, possession or foul play? This is the beginning of a sticky investigation for the Vatican's envoy, the dashing priest who must fight off romantic overtures, villains and the local catholic establishment to get to the truth. In keeping true to his style of storytelling, Perez-Reverte brings to life old Seville, the streets, the people. He draws the reader into a probably false sense of comfort and delight. Beware but do enjoy the ride, it's a good one.
Les trois mousquetaires (French Edition)
This I read after I read the Queen Margot series. Dumas and Maquet wrote characters that have become archetypes and have passed the test of time. Porthos, Athos, Aramis and D'Artagnan have had many iterations and incarnations since their real life counterparts lived, fought and died. Inspired by the memoirs of the real D'Artagnan but remixed, turned sideways and cooked with a lot of spices by Dumas and Maquet this tale of coming of age, friendship, courage, cunning and bravery is still one of my favourite classics. Dumas knew what would please the readers of his time and ours.
 - Alexandre Dumas)
Reine Margot, La (French Edition)
Read this in about a week one summer. This began a summer of Dumas' take of this 'cursed' family. Marguerite, Charles, Henri (all three of them), Catherine, the powerful iron hand behind the throne who after the death of her philandering husband, Henri II, took over and mostly ran France all during her sons' reigns. (François, Charles and Henri). This is a tale of love, hate, betrayal, war, power and how it corrupts absolutely. What I remember the most are the three Henris. Henri de Guise, doomed from the start, too ambitious and somewhat Marguerite's first love. Henri D'Anjou, second son of Catherine, exiled to be king of Poland, tragic and complex figure and of course Henri de Navarre, good king Henri IV who in the end will be the victor of this twisted war between him and Catherine but not without huge costs. La Reine Margot focuses on Marguerite's parts from her forced marriage to Henri de Navarre to the death of her brother Charles IX. Dumas portraits her as a tragic figure and a woman who loves too much. The whole De La Mole affair is pure fiction but adds to the whole tragic atmosphere. Still one of my favourite.
 - Alexandre Père Dumas)
Les Quarante-cinq. English
Third and last novels in Dumas' retelling of the Valois cursed family history, Les Quarante-cing is an unfinished tale which is kinda of frustrating but then again if the reader wants to know how it ends, we can read all about it in history books. The appeal for me in this one is still the political games, much more important than in the first two, Henri de Navarre plays possum but moves his chess pieces behind the scene, Henri de Guise still wants to be king and Henri III is a lonely, lonely king who is bored out of his skull. Dumas probably had a fourth book planned in this series but it never came to be, which is a shame.
Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix
I read it during my summer trip vacation on the porch of an hotel facing the St-Lawrence river somewhere in Charlevoix. It was a beautiful two days of relaxing, reading, doing the tourist thing in the morning and enjoying a high adventure tale of magic, competition, betrayal in a beautiful setting. This fourth book definitely started the turn to a more adult tone in the books. I enjoyed it but this was the last one I actually enjoyed for the story. The next I read in three weeks times when the last book came out.
La Reine Margot, La Dame de Monsoreau; Les Quarante-Cinq
I started reading this as soon as I finished La reine Margot that faithful summer. I was still very much under the Henris influence and the second tome this cursed family is a high game of political chess where Henri d'Anjou, now King Henri III with his 'mignons' face his brother François and his gang of gentlemen. Henri de Guise is still intriguing and trying to gain power. There is a 'love' story in there between of the king's men and a married Diane de Monsoreau but you read the second novel because of the political chess game and where the king's buffon, Chicot, is a lot more than he seems.
