June Reading

Witness for the Prosecution - This came up on a few blogs so I thought I'd track it down. I have read it and seen the play so I just listened to it. It's a short 1 hour story. I really liked it, though it sort of came back to me as it went along. I think Agatha Christie was really ahead of her time in her thinking. And she was on point with this one. I also discovered Agatha Christie surfed. She was an early adopter, thought to be the first British woman to surf standing up (not 100% sure this can be proved). She tried prone surfing (lying down) in 1922 in South Africa but in Hawaii she learnt to stand up surf. She also visited Australia and New Zealand in her 'British Empire Mission', visiting Melbourne and Tasmania.

Taboo - I really enjoyed this. So much to think about. Very measured I thought, but aware of how and why things are the way they are. And what we need to work on to change. Great book.

Calypso - I normally love David Sedaris but this one felt a bit mean. Just before the end I discovered I was listening to it at .8 normal speed. The drawn out drawl disappeared and the timing and intonation was quite different, more the Sedaris I know. So I think the flippant remarks and jokes took on a nasty tone when said in this slow twang. I feel I had the wrong reaction to much of the book, though a lot is about hard ageing and suicide and very difficult dynamics, so it is also more difficult topics than his usual books. The thing I will take away is the Bulgarian saying 'May you build a house from your kidney stones.'

Beloved - I was sure I'd read this but couldn't remember it so I read it again. Bits seemed very familiar but also not familiar so I've really no idea if I read it or it's just heard it talked about so much that I knew the names and events. It's very sad and at times confronting, but I will admit also at times I drifted off and wanted it to end. But that may have been me at the time rather than a reflection of this multi-award winning book. It's very tough going. What a terrible insight into the lack of humanity in that history.

Give unto Others - we are doing a Donna Leon for bookclub. I do really enjoy her crime. Strong sense of place, usually about topical current events and an insight into the political side of Italy. This one is no different. The funniest part of this book is that it was obviously written during or just after the lockdowns. It took me a while to work out Brunetti wasn't just weirdly obsessed with masks and lockdown. So it's set in that time where we are all out and about but it was still all in our minds. When I first started reading Leon (or when she first started writing the crime books), I had just spent 2 weeks in Venice for Carnivale. I knew all the streets she mentioned and I had a strong map in my head of the places action took place. Even the outer suburbs and islands. Now I'm just the average tourist - knowing the main sights but little more. It's funny to think I've been growing up with these characters for 30 years! This is the 31st book in the series but by no means the latest. The first one was published in 1992 and I believe there's one due soon, though her 33rd book in the series came out in 2024. So she's sort of the modern day Agatha Christie, but Venice is the locked room.

What have you been reading?