More August reading

I have mentioned previously that I'm not really a fan of Anne Tyler, but I persisted and now I am. I've found a book of hers that I really enjoyed. This is the story of family and ageing and our lifetime evolution. It looks at how we might push away from family but still be entwined regardless, how we might live a life different to family expectation but still fall into the patterns on our own. It follows a couple and their lives from youth to great grandparenthood, and their children to grandparenthood. I did find it quite sad, which was not the intent of the book, but more a reflection of my stage in life and diminishing role as a mother. There is a beautiful part where one couple get to look after their grandchild during Covid, and when the family moves back to normality, one spouse asks if they'll be better at the empty nest stage a second time around. It really struck me that it's not necessarily just a single stage in life. Lots to recommend in this book, I found it engaging and enjoyable. I listened to it from the library on Borrowbox.

This book is a mystery thriller style book and we know as much as the main character and narrator. Her husband disappears after a strange text message (and something else - no spoiler) and she sets out to track him down when the police won't help. It is not a brilliant must read but I was interested and engaged and it's light entertaining fun. I listened to it from the library on BorrowBox. It was perfect to make the 2 hour drive to & from the hospital each day fly by.

Dipped into a Miss Marple Christie - as a kid I read the Poirot and others, but for some reason veered away from Miss Marple. No idea why. All the charm of the other Christie books, with a meta moment when a character mentions the famous author Agatha Christie in a list of celebrated novelists, which made me chuckle.

I am listening to this in the car to brush up on my French - rather unsuccessfully. I understand a bit but seem to get lost quickly. I know some of the words they test you on. It's little discussions on places and events in France, like a film festival etc, and then they ask the meaning of words that were used in French, and then ask in English the French word for something. They're short little block lessons, so good for driving about on errands. From the Library on Hoopla.

Lastly, on books. At the hospital, they had a huge borrowing library, which given all the waiting around time for both patients and visitors, I thought this was a lovely idea. It did amuse me that one set of books needed to be returned. Obviously the donator was still attached to them.

We are funny about our books....

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