The idea for this post comes from Stuck in a Book. A brief look at five books currently or recently on your shelf. It’s a great idea and here are my five books.
1. The book I’m currently reading - War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. This is part of my reading for the East European Reading Challenge. I did read War and Peace decades ago, but this is a new translation by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky. I am enjoying the book immensely, though at over 1,200 largish pages it will take me ages to finish - I am only at page 182.
2. The last book I finished - The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi de Lampedusa. I don’t normally read so many classics at the one time, but this was the book of the month for our Reading Group. I felt it did not fully succeed as a novel, but did enjoy much of the flowery baroque writing.
3. The next book I want to read - Ritos de Muerte by Alicia Giménez Bartlett. This is part of my own personal challenge to read at least one book a month in another language. Mostly these will be in Spanish. I came across Giménez Bartlett via José Ignacio Escribano’s bilingual blog. It is a crime novel and the first of her series featuring Inspector Petra Delicado. Looking forward to this very much.
4. The last book I bought - Italian Shoes by Henning Mankell. I have not read many of Mankell’s novels, though I have been an avid follower of the various Wallander series on TV. This is a bit of departure for Mankell, as Italian Shoes is not a crime novel. It is rather a bittersweet, though at times tender account of how a 66 year old recluse is forced to confront his past and come to terms with himself and the future. A lovely book.
5. The last book I was given - Dark Blood by Stuart Macbride. I was given this book some time ago, but have yet to get round to reading it, though I have it pencilled in for June. Macbride is another in a long line of great Scottish crime writers. In his case the crimes are set in Aberdeen. This will be my first Macbride book and I am looking forward to it.
If you want to find out what others have been reading then please go to Stuck in a Book and check everyone out. I would also recommend that you all try this fun little meme for yourself and post it to Simon at Stuck in a Book. Good reading.
Your first to make me feel very inadequate, as they are both books I dimly intend to read at some point... but I tend to read short books by preference, so... W&P will have to wait!
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