WWW Wednesday – January 12, 2022

WWW Wednesday is hosted by Taking on a World of Words.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?

I just began The Path to Power by Robert Caro, the first of his five (planned) volumes about Lyndon Johnson. Last week, my former-law-clerks book group discussed a New Yorker article by Caro about LBJ with our judge, which motivated me to begin Volume 1, purchased about ten years ago, at the recommendation of my father.

The Gilded Girl by Alyssa Colman is another I just began, recommended by someone who often likes the same books. It’s set in a New York boarding school that teaches magic to tweens and has A Little Princess-vibe. That should be a plus, given it’s one of my favorite books of all time but so far the book is just annoying me.  Also, the plot reminds me of Rival Magic by our own Deva Fagan.

What did you recently finish reading?

I recently finished The Best House in the School by Dorita F. Bruce, a school story author who has many fans but I don’t find her characters or plots very original or memorable. It is part of her Springdale series (set in Scotland) and is about Peggy, Captain of the Rowans House, and her friend Diana, former House-Captain, who are determined to win the Banner of Merit for their House. It’s a tired little book originally published in 1930, perhaps reprinted during the war. I found it at a church in Rye on my last trip to Britain. Somewhere I have the first book in the series so should find it.  I didn't mean to read the series out of order, which is shocking behavior.

I also just completed Starfish for this month’s de Grummond book discussion. This is a heartbreaking story beautifully written in free verse from the perspective of 12-year-old Ellie who is fat-shamed non-stop by family and classmates and slowly learns coping mechanisms. Those of us who were smart kids and bad at sports can identify with the bullying but what she goes through is appalling, especially from her own mother.

Her Secret War, set during WWII, is another I just finished. As I said in my review, I keep telling myself I need a vacation from this sub-genre which was exploded in recent years and is not uniformly worth reading, but then I see one that sounds interesting . . .  I had to change that from "looks interesting" as they are all starting to look the same.  Silhouette of heroine on cover looking alone but decisive.

What do you think you’ll read next?

I bought a sweet little cart at the Container Store last month to help organize my library books and my TBR. I am not sure it is completely effective as there is now a pile of books on the floor beside the three-level cart!

In December, a lot of my library holds came in at the same time and I had to read some books quickly that could not be renewed (I even returned a few unread, which is unlike me). I will clearly go on reading The Path to Power throughout 2022 but I think my next book may be Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult, set during the pandemic, although I am a bit turned off by the warning that it is “a deeply moving novel about the resilience of the human spirit in a moment of crisis.” Maybe these faceless copywriters should let the reader decide if they are deeply moved or not!

Of course, I suddenly realize that the mystery I meant to read next is in the car, and as it is apparently 10 degrees out there I am not going outside unnecessarily!  I stopped at the central Boston Public Library today and passed on the new Amor Towles because I didn't want the pressure of having to read it in a week.  Instead, I got a new Marcia Willett called The Garden House.   Fans of Rosamunde Pilcher would like her books, many of which are loosely connected.