The Silkworm, by Robert Galbraith Monday December 22nd 2014

The Silkworm, by Robert Galbraith Monday December 22nd 2014

I thoroughly enjoyed "The Silkworm" by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K Rowling) for its twists, turns and tale.

Robert Galbraith writes an adult crime fiction returning with Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott, his assistant.  There is so much pent up sexual tension to their relationship.  It is great to see Robin's emotional responses throughout the novel.

The structure is classical detective/crime fiction providing clues along the way.  There are so many possible suspects that may have a motive in the murder of Owen Quine an author. What makes this book so credible is the author's insight into the publishing industry.

This book is also full of potentially distasteful sexual exploitations that may have some of her Harry Potter followers cringing at J.K. Rowling's creativity.

I love the fact that Robert Galbraith is the author of this book.  This appears to be another joke up her sleeve.

The quotes at the beginning of each chapter are so appropriate and are worth revisiting as you conclude each chapter. 

There appears to be moments of homage to other famous novels.  There are a few connections to the brutality of "American Pyscho" by Bret Easton Ellis.

This series of "Cormoran Strike" books will make terrific movies and I cannot wait for the third instalment.

A good read.

Overall: 7.5/10

The Time Keeper, by Mitch Albom. Monday November 5th 2014

The Time Keeper, by Mitch Albom. Monday November 5th 2014

"The Time Keeper" by Mitch Albom has the obvious theme of time, but death is again a major theme in his book. 

I enjoyed "The Time Keeper" and savouring Mitch Albom's words over time, rather than rushing through his work.  Doing so, allows me to ponder and meditate on his story and the messages.  Even though his books all have messages I liked this as it did not ram the messages down my throat. 

In the acknowledgements at the end of "The Time Keeper", Mitch thanks his "faithful readers, the ones who do without asking what this book was about."  It is so true, as he is a reliable author with a passion for good story that blends with a strong message.

Mitch Albom's writing gets better.  Not only is he more succinct, but his stories get stronger.

Time is the key theme of this book and we are introduced to the mythical Father Time called Dor.  Mitch Albom gives many examples of the way people use the word time.  In doing so, he also ensures that we think about our relationship to time.  He does not preach about whether we are irreverent or respectful of time, but has us consider what time means to us.

There are two other main characters in the book: Victor and Sarah.  Victor is wealthy and dying and wants to live forever, while Sarah is heartbroken and wants to suicide to rid herself of her pain.  Father Time is named Dor and he is on a mission to help these two voices that he hears from his cave, where he has been exiled to.  In the latter third of the book, Dor assists both Victor and Sarah.  Without giving too much away it is how he helps them that is more important. 

It is the gratitude and appreciation of life that Mitch Albom is so respectful of.  Mitch assists us with our troubles and our own internal quest.  Surely each reader will identify with either Victor or Sarah's aim.  Maybe some readers will identify with both of their aims, maybe not at the same time but at some stage in their own life.

There are so many wonderful messages of love, hope, despair, rejection, passion, mortality, obsessions and relationships in "The Time Keeper."

"The Time Keeper" is a book that I will re-read in the future.  I used a highlighter whilst reading it to remember some key moments and some magnificent quotes from the book.  Repeating some of these quotes is unfair as they are personal to me, plus it may spoil the book for others.

On page 8 I disagreed with an aspect that Mitch Albom wrote when he said "Yet all around you, timekeeping is ignored.  Birds are not late.  A dog does not check its watch...."  I have had dogs and they know the time for a walk, a meal, a cuddle, time for bed each night etc.  Dogs even know when there is an alteration to a time shift or their routine, as with the annual Day-Light-Savings time changes.  I think his main message is that dogs teach us about a gratitude to live in the moment but dogs also like routine.

Page 22 has a typographical error.  I am curious if it is an error as each chapter and section begins with bold type.  If it is not a typographical error - then I would like to know why.

I love how Mitch Albom moves through time and we are introduced to various ways that time has been captured throughout the ages.  For example language, paintings, memories and objects.  Obviously watches and time pieces will be introduced throughout the story.

I would be surprised if readers are not touched by this story.

I highly recommend "The Time Keeper"  as a wonderful tale of hope, appreciation and gratitude.  I think it is also a book about self worth and love.

I highly recommended reading "The Time Keeper"  and I gave it 8.5/10.

For one more day, by Mitch Albom, Monday 20th October 2014

For one more day, by Mitch Albom, Monday 20th October 2014

I happened to see the movie version of "For one more day" by Mitch Albom and wanted to read the book.  After reading the book, the movie is a great adaptation.  It should be, as Mitch Albom wrote both the book and the screenplay.

"For one more day" is a book about love, family and regrets.  The book is also about death, letting go and acceptance of self.  So many levels of respect for self and others pervade this book.  It is about mortality and immortality.  Immortality in the sense of love and connection with one's mother or a loved one.

"For one more day" brought up many wonderful memories of my own life.  The book is like a meditation on life.  How far would you go to reach your goals and dreams?  What would you do if your dreams and goals failed?  At what cost is your family to your career? Do you live to work or work to live?  Is life a journey or a destination?  So many questions to ponder and consider, therefore I would consider reading it over several sittings to allow the messages and stories to waft over you, and to allow you to reflect on your own life.

I wonder what people think when they read this small book in one sitting or in a short space of time?  Maybe they are so caught up in the story and the lessons involved.  The lessons I find are more subtle than Mitch Albom's other books.

Having nearly died from a work accident myself, I found the book a beautiful tale oscillating between his memories of his mother standing up for him, his memories of not standing up for her, vignettes from his past, his car accident, the miraculous event and the final build to the denouement.  The conclusion makes sense.

Having my own 88 year old mother in a nursing home with dementia brings the message home even clearer.  My mother used to have the most incredible memory for stories and events.  Sadly she cannot remember what she had for lunch, let alone five minutes ago.  What has this got to do with Mitch Albom's book?  A lot.   Thankfully I had asked my mother many questions over the years and kept a journal of notes from my questions.  The notes are in my heart and head are more valuable than those written down. 

I too will probably have some regrets of not doing more for my mother.  But my mother taught us about letting go from a very young age.  In my family we had been surrounded by death or the prospect of death with my very sick father.  So we were brought up that we would not live forever.  That is why we were encouraged to have pet rabbits and birds so that we could learn about the life cycle.

Various threads weave throughout Mitch Albom's book. The book designers have made it easy to decipher the different aspects of the book with the use of italics and fonts. 

The ending reminded me of William Horwood's "Skallagrigg" with a twist about the narrator's voice.

The ghosts in the book will not haunt you, but provide you with comfort and a feeling of gratitude for life.

I highly recommend his writing and gave this 8/10.

WHEN I FOUND YOU

Review written on April 21 2014.

I finished this book on April 21 2014, a memorable day, Easter Monday in fact.  Why so memorable?  Because of Catherine's writing is such a page turner and I completed this nearly 500 page book in four days.  Memorable?  Because it is such a reflective book.

The story is a Nathan who finds a baby in the woods when he is on a duck hunting early morning expedition with his beloved dog Sadie.

The book is like a mentoring book of life.  Questions to ponder and reflective.

Silence is a huge part of this novel.  Though the silence is palpable and speaks louder than a thousand words.  The silences are like the possibilities of a lifetime flashing in front of your  immediate future with future consequences.  Reflective, reflecting, reflection.

I found this book to be emotional in that it speaks in various aged voices: a young persons , a middle age and also an older voice.  The language, the thinking, the pauses and the relationships between each of the characters speak more than location, action or telling a story.  Catherine's  story melds a philosophical question about life's purpose.  What would you do in these circumstances?  Not only finding the baby, but in many situations throughout her novel.

I also found this emotional personally as each chapter is dated.  To open on my birthday when I was one year old was very scary.  That child could have been me!  I doubt and am grateful it was not me.  But that was the impact of just the chapter one title.

Other significant dates in the book are February 20th 1990 when my mother turned 64.  She had sung The Beatle's tune "When I'm 64" many times as a child.  What has this got to do with the novel you may ask?  It reminds us of our significant times in our lives,  for example where were you the day JFK got shot? Or Princess Diana's death? Or 9/11?  Not these public dates but the very personal dates which I have ingrained into my brain.

I also found this book so emotional as it confronts dreams, ambition, honour, truth, mortality and other themes.  It is also not as didactic as "Tuesdays with Morrie" by Mitch Albom (which I loved).  Catherine's style is gentler and less obvious in its message making journey.  It bears similar relationship to the "Tuesdays with Morrie" in that there is a relationship with an older person and what eventuates.  Like the silences, there are so many unanswered questions.  I adored this as we do not always get reactions, answers or reasons in life.

The brave voice of young Nat echoes so loudly in my head as he learns to articulate himself.  The last few chapters and the lost opportunities of obtaining answers are haunting.   I had tears streaming down my face knowing what it is like to sit with someone dying who had cared for me and was not a relation.   The succinct and very carefully chosen sentences in some of the final chapters spoke volumes.  There was so much space in the words written.  Space to allow us to reflect.

There were too many similarities in young Nat and his ambitions to be a boxer and my personal ambitions in being an actor.  The journey is more important than the destination: learning from mistakes and learning to help yourself.  Also to relearn  to be yourself and to be true to yourself and helping  others to reignite that spark of inner peace and happiness was so powerful.

Maybe these are not the themes of the book.  But boy they screamed at me like "Jimmy Cricket's" song "Give a little whistle" that my mother sang to me when I was troubled.  This book was like my mother re-teaching my childhood lessons to prepare with my own fears and insecurities.  It was like an enormous maternal bear hug of love.

I adored "When I Found You" and could not see how Catherine could surpass "Chasing Windmills" that I had read in the two days prior.  Being a musical theatre fan the parallels to "Romeo and Juliet" and "West Side Story" were easily identified.  More importantly it told a terrific story. 

Like "When I Found You" Catherine Ryan Hyde has an amazing facility to speak to many people in many voices.  Not speak:  Sing out loud and proud. Her words ring in my ears to a point that I have to sleep overnight to really savour the journey.  I do not want her books to end.  The best part is that I know there will be another.

Thank you.

Much love