In a Sunburned Country

I just finished a 350 page book about the dangers, wonders and comedy of the forgotten country of Australia. It's by the author of "The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid" which I enjoyed reading, but doesn't hold a candle to "In a Sunburned Country." I've always looked for a book that combines enough comedy, with the right amount of information without being daunting and overwhelming. I found that in this book.

I found myself being so intrigued by the subject matter, that I actually read the scientific names of the flora and fauna. I couldn't put this book down, and it gave me a new perspective on the country, people and enormous treasures of the Australian country. It made me want to visit, never venture there, and meet the people all at once.

Turning Angel

My friend, Barbara at work, bought me this huge paperback called "Turning Angel." She said that it was an intense read, but definitely not appropriate for our work book club.

"Turning Angel" takes place in a small town called Natchez, in Mississippi. The epitome of perfection, Kate Townsend, a local high school student has been killed. Kate held such a bright future that the whole town is shocked by her murder. Penn Cage is a retired lawyer, who currently writes novels. When his best friend, Drew comes to him telling him that Kate and Drew had an affair, Penn is thrown into the center of a huge tangled mess. Penn is through practicing law, but his love for his friend quickly make him Drew's lawyer and begin a journey he will never forget. This murder opens up a whole side to the town that Penn has never seen before, a town he thought he knew.

This book definitely isn't for the faint of heart, as it contains nudity, sex, violence, a lot of drugs and anything else. What I liked about this book was the good balance of a crime novel and a drama, but it had enough suspense and pull that I couldn't put it down.

Thanks Barbara, it's going in my collection!

January's Book

As you probably guessed by my rave review for The Thirteenth Tale, that is our book for January.

"Settle down to enjoy a rousing good ghost story with Diane Setterfield's debut novel, The Thirteenth Tale. Setterfield has rejuvenated the genre with this closely plotted, clever foray into a world of secrets, confused identities, lies, and half-truths. She never cheats by pulling a rabbit out of a hat; this atmospheric story hangs together perfectly.

There are two heroines here: Vida Winter, a famous author, whose life story is coming to an end, and Margaret Lea, a young, unworldly, bookish girl who is a bookseller in her father's shop. Vida has been confounding her biographers and fans for years by giving everybody a different version of her life, each time swearing it's the truth. Because of a biography that Margaret has written about brothers, Vida chooses Margaret to tell her story, all of it, for the first time. At their initial meeting, the conversation begins:

"You have given nineteen different versions of your life story to journalists in the last two years alone."

She [Vida] shrugged. "It's my profession. I'm a storyteller."

"I am a biographer, I work with facts."

The game is afoot and Margaret must spend some time sorting out whether or not Vida is actually ready to tell the whole truth. There is more here of Margaret discovering than of Vida cooperating wholeheartedly, but that is part of Vida's plan. The transformative power of truth informs the lives of both women by story's end, and The Thirteenth Tale is finally and convincingly told."

--Valerie Ryan