Roald Dahl was the most amazing storyteller. He had a knack for always using just the right word or turn of phrase to enthrall, amuse, or disgust his reader. Boy is the story of his early life, from birth until leaving school to work for the Shell Oil Company as a salesman prior to World War II. Somehow he turns even a typical British childhood into something truly special. Dahl grew up in Wales but was educated in England, per his father’s wishes. The most […]
Precocity, Poison, and Pie
I think every review of the Flavia de Luce books contains the word “precocious” in it somewhere. Flavia is no ordinary 11-year-old. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie is the first book in this mystery series, and introduces chemistry whiz, poison-obsessed Flavia, her widowed father, her two sisters, their retainer Dogger, and their housekeeper Mrs. Mullett. The de Luces own a slightly dilapidated country home in 1950s England. At the start of the novel, Flavia overhears her father arguing with a strange man, […]
“Life is a public performance on the violin, in which you must learn the instrument as you go along.”
I’ve always confused A Room with a View with A Room of One’s Own. I recently reviewed a book about how to understand literature, and it recommended one or both of those two books. I can’t remember which. I’ll read them both! Amazon recently released a free version of A Room with a View, so I downloaded and gave it the old college try. ARWAV, as the kids call it (no they don’t) is clever, cheeky, romantic, and Romantic. I may not be the target audience for the book, but […]
Mint means good.
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to live in England. I mean, really live here, when you’re done eating crumpets and scones and marveling at the beautiful buildings and the kindest, most wonderful people (though I can only speak for the North). When you’re done with that and you almost become one of the English people then it just you riding the train. A lot. And you still get lost a lot. And the places you get lost are hillsides down to train tracks […]
Is That All There Is?
I read the first 5 books in the Agatha Raisin series as a stress reliever during a busy summer. I liked them, but I didn’t love them. I read 6-10 (and actually I’m up to 12, now) out of ennui, because they’re always available from the library and they’re easy listening for my frequent long car trips. Six through 10 were not as enjoyable as the first five, unfortunately. Books 6-10 see Agatha leave her small village in the Cotswolds and do some traveling (which […]
Flavia the Mystery Solver Goes to Canada (Half Cannonball Completion!)
Alan Bradley’s Flavia de Luce novels are one of my favorite book series at present. As such, I space out reading them to savor the goodness, so this year I ordered a new one for my birthday, which I quickly devoured. Also, I wanted to read something special for the completion of my half cannonball (Huzzah! Hip Hooray!) But enough about me, on to the book! Bradley has created a precocious and endearing detective in Flavia. Much like I consider Phryne Fisher of the Miss […]
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