Thursday 1 March 2018

Books read in February


Happy 1st. of March, we've woken up to a covering of snow and it's still snowing, so I don't think Spring is quite here...

*Update* we have about six inches of snow this morning... certainly not Spring!

Anyhooo, books read in February - all four of them. That doesn't seem like a lot and yet I feel as though I read steadily right through the month. Ah well, no matter. These are the books:


6. The Birdwatcher - William Shaw

7. Snowblind - Ragar Jónasson

8. Seeking Whom He May Devour - Fred Vargas

9. The Grasmere Journal - Dorothy Wordsworth.

While this was interesting in places I was not as smitten as I thought I would be. A few things struck me though. Firstly, how ill Dorothy and William seemed to be a lot of the time. Practically every day one or both of them was sick... she doesn't really say what with or how serious it was, but still. Also, depsite all this sickness, they walked endlessly around the countryside for pleasure. Mind you, The Lake District is ideal for that sort of activity. The other thing is how many people were destitute. Again, every day they had people come to the door begging or came across some very sad cases on the roads. Anyway, some beautiful descriptions of the area but all in all slightly too repetitive for my taste.


So apparently I had a slow reading month even though it didn't feel like it. (Plus I am partway through three more books at the moment.) It might have been slow but it was graced with three excellent crime reads (books 6, 7 and 8) so you can't really ask for more than that. It's hard to choose a favourite from those three as they were all terrific but by the very slightest of margins it's this:



Loved how very French this was, and amusing, and just a bit weird. Getting back to this series has been a revelation and I'll be reading a lot more of them this year.

~~~oOo~~~


7 comments:

DesLily said...

LOL.. your "slow" month was the same as my "good" month! Four! lol.. I just started number 7. The book on Robert Kennedy.

I put on my wish list. It sounded pretty good. lol.. sure don't need more on that list! I seriously need to read more of what has been here for so long!

Kay said...

Well, I guess spring is not there quite yet if you are getting snow. Do you often get snow? I was thinking not so much, but not sure you've said. We've had a lot of rain, which is a good thing for spring wildflowers. I'm very ready for those. I've enjoyed hearing about your latest crime reads.

Kailana said...

It is not supposed to go below freezing even at night here for the next bit, so I am going to pretend spring is here. lol

Cath said...

Pat: Will be interested to hear about that book on Bobby Kennedy. I'm the same, trying to read a few of my older tbr books this year but not sure I'm getting very far.

Kay: Noooo... LOL! But today the snow is melting because of heavy rain in the night and sunshine today. No, we don't often get snow. We might get a tiny bit most years but snow on this scale, probably once in ten years. The last heavy lot was in 2009/10. That Christmas we had about six inches of snow still lying on the ground.

Kelly: That sounds like a good plan to me. :-)

BooksPlease said...

Dorothy Wordsworth's Journal interests me - pity it's a bit repetitive, but I suppose that does reflect daily life.

Seeking Whom He May Devour is weird - and French - and intriguing. Glad you enjoyed it too.

We've had snow since last Tuesday. The roads are clear but we made the mistake of not moving the car to the end of our drive and it's been stuck in snow ever since (our drive is gravelled and has a right hand bend) - we're hoping to get it out today,the snow is gradually retreating.

TracyK said...

That sounds like a good month of reading, Cath. I want to read Birdwatcher and Snowblind someday. I have read Seeking Whom He May Devour, and I agree it is "just a bit weird." I have more of that series, I just have to get back to it.

Cath said...

Margaret: I was lucky enough to find a beautifully illustrated copy of Dorothy's journal a few years ago, illustrated with gorgeous paintings and drawings so that made the book more interesting than I possibly said in my review. Worth looking for that if you can find it.

I must thank you for reintroducing me to Fred Vargas. It's been such a pleasure.

I hope your snow has now melted and you're able to get your car out. Interesting to hear how it is there as a friend has just moved to your area and I've been wondering about her.

Tracy: Glad you agree with me about Seeking Whom He May Devour. I loved it though.