January 2008

January 2008

December 07 - listened to at work. Follows a family through a few generations by letters written at christmas time.

This is the third book in the Molly Murphy series. It reminds me a lot of the Fremont Jones series by Dianne Day. Both protagonists are spunky women at the turn of the century, unwilling to accept the traditional marriage track and pursuing detection instead. Lots of historical detail about what people wore and ate, what women were allowed and not allowed to do, and interweaving of actual events into the stories. While Fremont Jones is based in San Francisco, Molly Murphy lives in New York. There is plenty going on in both of these cities during that time period to provide the basis for some great stories.

In this particular book, Molly works undercover in a shirtwaist factory.

A must read for everyone who loves classic literature. Beautifully written, descriptive prose. The characters, settings, sounds and smells, all seem to come alive. Starting with the village life in Turkey, continuing on to london and ending on the shores of America. The tragic character is caught in between the torment of the old culture and the overriding morality he feels in the depths of his soul. Definately not light reading.

This book was captivating. It was so well written, I had to keep reminding myself that it was fictional. A great drama with conflict and unusual resolution. The introduction clearly prepared me to visualize the village where the story originated. Throughout reading this book,I felt his great pain and torment. The story made me wonder what I would do, given this same suitation. The ending I thought was unpredictable and powerful. A great drama and literature that should evolve into a great movie.

A very classic type of tale of a man's troubled life, and how he searches for redemption. The most interesting parts were the beginning details of Turkish life in a small village with the local culture and lore. From there, the character flees to a second and third stage of life, always seeking to escape the trauma of his boyhood. The ending is highly surprising and leaves you with questions to ponder later, much as a work of literature should.

Interesting, but a little long.

I loved it! Of course I did, it's Phillipa Gregory! I love the romantic spin she put on the whole story of Princess Catherine of Aragon and Prince Athur, Prince of Whales. Such a good book! I cannot get enough of these crazy Tudors!

this is the second philippa gregory novel i've read, and unfortunately it took me two months to complete! that's a bit of shame considering it's not a bad story, it's just not as gripping as _the other boleyn girl_.

i do enjoy the way gregory portrays her historical characters and makes them real; funnily, it's always exactly how i perceived them to be. i can just imagine katherine to be goal-driven, determined, and infallible.

i never believed katherine's "lie", and i liked that gregory based the novel around it and gave it a new dynamic. it was interesting to learn more of catalina the infanta of spain too. sometimes i think katherine is the forgotten queen of king henry viii's reign, since history seems focussed on anne boleyn. it was nice to read of a different perspective of the tudor court and it's wayward king.

recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction!

i look forward to reading more oh philippa gregory in the near future.


" 'Katherine of Aragon, Queen of England, come into court!'
This is me. This is my moment. This is my battle cry.
I step forwards."

An amazing historical work. I look forward to reading more from this author.

I'm am absolutely loving this book. I have about 100 pages left of it and while from history I know what happens, I am still excited to finish.

I think what I like most is the brazen, non apologetic portrayal of Catalina (Catherine of Aragon). She is strong and forceful without being a bitch. When she goes into her thoughts I can really hear her voice which is difficult to do in writing. I truly get a sense of who she is.

I also find it difficult to get connected to a romance in a novel. Getting a picture of the love between two people is hard to feel but I definitely felt the love between Catalina and Arthur.

Her love for him and her religion is unwavering. She knows who she is without question even after Arthur dies and she has lost her place in the court. She has one goal and continues to work towards it until she succeeds.

I admire Catalina very much.

Quite an eye opener about the state of science today, with a very compelling completely alternate perspective on everything science. It claims to be the literal Theory Of Everything sought by science, and as dubious as such claims are, after reading it I have difficulty refuting the claim. Highly recommended read!

Sept - Oct 2007

Book 5 in Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series.

October 23-24, 2007 - audio