Reading is my oldest and favorite hobby.  I literally can’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t love to curl up with a good book.  Here are my reads for May, 2012…

The Marriage Plot, by Jeffrey Eugenides: Jeffrey Eugenides is awesome, but he gives me the sads.  Eugenides’ newest book, the story of three college graduates in the 1980s, is not an easy read.  Madeline and Leonard are a young couple who move to a Cape Cod bio-research facility where Leonard has a fellowship, but can’t escape Leonard’s frightening mental health problems.  Mitchell, Madeline’s friend-who-wishes-he-was-more, meanwhile, travels the world and tries to stop pining for Madeline.  I wanted to love this book, but it was hard.  There was nothing off-putting at all about Madeline, the main protagonist – in fact, her selfless decision to care for Leonard when everyone else is deserting him is commendable.  But for some reason, I just felt low the entire time I was reading.  It’s a beautifully written and structured book, with fascinating, complex characters.  But it’s a downer.  There’s room for that, of course.  But know it going in.

Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman, by Robert K. Massie: I loved Massie’s no-holds-barred biography of the last Russian Imperial family, Nicholas and Alexandra, and he delivers again with this masterful book.  Massie explores Catherine the Great’s rise to power in the mid-1700s and discusses her reign in detail, with all its fascinating complexities.  A “philosopher queen” who wasn’t above crushing a rebellion if she had to, and a married woman who turned from an unloving husband to take a string of ever-younger lovers, Catherine was an enigma.  Perhaps Massie is the only biographer who could truly do her justice, and he does.  Fully reviewed here.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, by Jonathan Safran Foer: This was a heart-wrenchingly sad story about a young boy who takes on a quest that he believes will bring him closer to his father, who died on September 11th.  Nine-year-old Oskar travels the five boroughs of New York, seeking the lock that fits a mysterious key found amongst his father’s possessions.  Since this is Safran Foer here, the book was poignant and sweet, with creative wordplay and pictures scattered throughout.  I liked it as I was reading it, and after it settled I decided I loved it.  Fully reviewed here.

Mr. Rosenblum Dreams in English, by Natasha Solomons: I read Solomons’ newest book, The House at Tyneford, last month and decided to pick up her debut.  The story of Jack Rosenblum, who decides to move his family to Dorset and build his own golf course after being rejected from every golf club in the greater London area due to his Jewish background, is sweet and funny with a touch of sadness.  Jack’s wife Sadie is unable to understand his dream, or his desire to become English; Sadie simply wants to remember the old days and her lost family.  Jack, meanwhile, doesn’t see why Sadie won’t just snap out of her depression and get on board.  Watching them come to some understanding of one another as Jack pursues his dream was a lovely journey, and Jack’s eventual charming of the Dorset natives is a fun counterpoint.  The book was more simplistic and not as gripping as Tyneford, but was an enjoyable read nevertheless.

Midnight in Austenland, by Shannon Hale: This follow-up to Austenland, which I read in early April, was a great improvement over its predecessor.  Charlotte Kinder, a wealthy divorcee, decides to escape reality through a two-week trip to Pembrook Park, the ultimate Jane Austen immersion experience.  However, something dark is afoot in Austenland and Charlotte is drawn into the investigation of a murder.  Meanwhile, she flirts with the actor cast as her love interest, Mr. Mallery, and grows close to her “brother,” Mr. Grey.  But Charlotte’s determination to unearth a murder only she believes happened might place all of Austenland in danger.  I liked Hale’s first Austenland book okay, but I had some complaints about the proofreading and I thought the narrative was too simple.  This one was a definite improvement and a lot more fun to read.  I’m definitely hoping for more Austenland books in the future.

The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien: I’ve been meaning to read the Lord of the Rings books for some time now, since everyone from hubby to my sister-in-law to my brother to Katie has told me I should.  Plus, they’re classics, and I tend to want to give most classics a fair shake.  Since I have a thing about reading series books in their proper order, I decided to start with the backstory and read The Hobbit first.  And I’m glad I did, because I really, really liked it.  Bilbo Baggins’ transformation from cushy-hole-dweller to hero was such fun to read, and it definitely made me want to continue on with the Lord of the Rings trilogy.  (See, Katie?  I told you I’d get around to it!)

I had a good May in books!  Catherine the Great took up a good two weeks of the month – 625 pages of extremely dense biography (and small print) is no joke, especially when you combine it with an ongoing tendency to fall asleep for three hours or more on weekend afternoons.  (When does the second trimester energy bump kick in?  I’m 20 weeks, still narcoleptic and starting to think people have been lying to me.  I mean, I like naps as much as the next knocked-up girl, but this is getting silly.)  But I savored every meticulously researched page – I just love Massie’s work.  The rest of early May was devoted to some intense fiction – The Marriage Plot and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close weren’t what I’d call giggle-fests.  So I made up for it with sillier, lighter choices later in the month and especially enjoyed The Hobbit.  Not sure what to expect out of June, since I’m either traveling or hosting houseguests most weekends of the month.  But I’m planning to squeeze in some more fun reads wherever I can, so stay tuned for more reviews and recommendations coming your way…

I had never heard of Jostein Gaarder until college.  And even then, it was only by chance that I stumbled across him.  I’d gone the “practical” route as college majors were concerned, choosing a major in the social sciences that I thought would set me up for law school.  And while I loved my labor economics and collective bargaining classes, I was secretly a little jealous of my friends who were studying literature and philosophy while I  read labor history.  (In retrospect, I could have branched out and taken more “just for fun” classes, but I was quite single-minded back then.  If I had it to do over again, I would have encouraged my younger self to take literature and French.)

So I heard about Jostein Gaarder from a dorm friend who was assigned Sophie’s World for a philosophy class.  One night, as we were hanging in her room, she handed me her copy and told me it was a novel about a girl who is mysteriously enrolled in a philosophy correspondence class.  I was intrigued and my friend loaned me her copy of the book, which I read quickly.  I loved Gaarder’s style of writing a “story within a story” – you know that the narrative is shifting when the typeface changes, which was something I just found incredibly charming and engaging.  And then it was all over for me – I started looking for more Jostein Gaarder books in every bookstore.  Here are some of my favorites…

Sophie’s World: Already mentioned, of course.  Sophie is a young girl who finds a letter in her mailbox one day, enrolling her in a correspondence class on the history of philosophy.  The book alternates between telling Sophie’s story and detailing the history of philosophy through the letters that Sophie receives.  The end of the book is truly mind-boggling (but I’m not going to spoil it for you; you’ll just have to read).  Sophie’s World is probably the most difficult to read of all Gaarder’s works – just because it’s dense – but it’s a gateway drug.

The Solitaire Mystery: This was the second Gaarder book I got my hands on, and to this day it’s my favorite.  Young Hans and his father set off on a road trip through Europe to search for Hans’ mother.  On the way, Hans receives a deck of cards and a magnifying glass.  When Hans examines the cards, he finds that each card is a chapter in a fantastical tale about a group of playing cards who come to life and inhabit a magical island.  It’s a colorful, mystical book.

The Orange Girl:  “If I’d chosen never to the foot inside the great fairytale, I’d never have known what I’ve lost. Do you see what I’m getting at? Sometimes it’s worse for us human beings to lose something dear to us than never to have had it at all.”  This one is heart-wrenching.  Georg receives a letter from his dead father, in which his father details his search for a young girl who sells oranges in Seville and Oslo.  Again, as is typical of Gaarder’s work, the typeface changes as the story alternates between Georg’s life and the letter.

The Christmas Mystery: It’s become a tradition of hubby’s and mine to read The Christmas Mystery out loud, one chapter each day starting on December 1st, until Christmas Eve.  The book is structured like an Advent calendar, and it is in fact the story of a boy who acquires a magic Advent calendar.  Each morning, Joachim opens his calendar to find a new chapter in the fantastical story of a young girl, Elisabet Hansen, who disappeared from his town fifty years before.  Elisabet’s magical Christmas journey will touch the lives of Joachim, his family, and several other residents of their town.  I love-love-love The Christmas Mystery, and my holiday season isn’t complete without it.

Have you read any Jostein Gaarder?  What’s your favorite of his books?

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A few months ago, I told you all that I had been tapped to be a Book Giver for the first U.S. celebration of World Book Night.  I picked Bel Canto as my book to give away and started to get excited.  I love Bel Canto, I love books in general, and I love sharing my love of reading with anyone who will listen.

World Book Night came around on April 23rd and my situation was less than ideal.  I was leaving that morning for a business trip, so my choices were: lug the box o’ books on the plane and give them away when I reached my destination, or go to the airport early and give them away before clearing security.  I chose option 2, because I didn’t want to check a bag, tote a heavy box with me halfway across the country and cut into time I really needed to work once I reached my destination.  I was bummed that I couldn’t give my books away at the metro stop near my office as I had originally intended, but I figured I’d get rid of them quickly.  After all, everyone needs reading material for the plane, right?

Man, was I in for a surprise.  Actually, make that several surprises.

Surprise #1 – It took me 45 minutes to give away 20 books.  Granted, my location wasn’t ideal.  I chose to stand in the Metro stop that lets off into the airport – I was pretty sure it would be okay to stand in the airport itself, but I wasn’t 100% positive that I didn’t need a permit of some kind.  Rather than potentially getting myself into a sticky situation with the airports authority, I decided to stay where I was certain I had every right to be – in the Metro.  And yeah, it wasn’t the busiest Metro stop by far.  But I really expected that I’d get rid of those books early.  Nope… I started checking my clock and trying to figure out where in my stuffed luggage I could stash the extra books if I needed to call it off and head for my plane.

Surprise #2 – Hardly ANYONE took books.  One person declined because they already had a copy of Bel Canto, and that I get.  As a matter of fact, I have a copy of Bel Canto myself, so I may not have taken the book either.  (Or actually, to be honest, I probably would, and then given it away.  I can rattle off five family members who would love the book.)  But plenty of people brushed me off, mumbling “No, thanks” or just shaking their heads as they hurried away from me.  The most insulting?  That’d be the people who said “I would, but I don’t have room in my luggage,” while toting a less-than-half-full bag.  C’mon people.  I might be weird enough to stand in a Metro station trying to convince strangers to take free books from me, but I’m neither blind nor stupid.

Surprise #3 – I was NOT prepared for the unwelcome reception I got.  Oh, there were a few friendly people.  Some people were genuinely excited to get a free book.  Some appeared bemused at an eccentric with a suitcase shouting things like “Happy World Book Night!  I’m celebrating by giving away FREE copies of Bel Canto!  F-R-E-EEEEEEEE!”  A few tried to skate by me and appear as though they hadn’t seen/heard me (a strategy I’ll admit I’ve employed when confronted with someone taking a survey or collecting for a political candidate on the DC streets… but then, no one’s ever tried to give me a book).  But a sizable chunk of the people I encountered looked at me with expressions of complete disgust, as if I was something smelly they’d scraped off their shoe.  I would never have expected glares – unfriendly, bordering on hostile – for the simple act of trying to give people a free book.  I mean… WOW.  Really, people?  I’m trying to give you something free.  No strings attached.  Just a wonderful book that you can HAVE for NOTHING.  I mean, sheesh.

Despite the less-than-friendly response I got from a lot of people… would I sign up for World Book Night again?  Yep, absolutely.

If anything, those people convinced me how important it is to spread the love of reading far and wide.  During the book-giving ordeal, I emailed hubby that I would never have thought it would be this hard to GIVE SOMEONE A FREE BOOK.  Why weren’t more people excited?  Why weren’t they taking my books?  I mean, don’t people WANT to read a great book?

People who love books need to spread the word.  Books can’t die.  They can’t.  We need to spread the word to people who’d rather zone out in front of a screen… or who think they don’t have time to read.  We need to be book evangelists.  Tell people that books will enrich their lives in indescribable ways.  They’ll open up entire new worlds.  There’s nothing like the feeling of falling deep into a well-spun story and just losing yourself.  I want everyone to know that joy.  World Book Night is a good start, and I do try to spread the word via my blog (but I do realize that the people who find their way here tend to be readers already).  But I want to figure out other ways to get the word out there.  Because if I learned anything from my #WBNAmerica experience, it’s that the word isn’t really out yet.

I’ll conclude on a hopeful note.  I really believe that someone who would never have picked up a book like Bel Canto might have decided to read it because of me.  And I hope that Bel Canto leads them to pick up another book by Ann Patchett.  (Like Run, which I also loved.)  And then maybe explore some other authors.  And… maybe, just maybe… become “a reader.”  And I was the catalyst.  I have no way of knowing if that will ever happen, because I can’t follow these books.  But I gave 20 of them away, and I hope that at least one had that effect.

Did you participate in World Book Night?  What did you learn from the experience?

Reading is my oldest and favorite hobby.  I literally can’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t love to curl up with a good book.  Here are my reads for April, 2012…

The Winter Palace, by Eva Stachniak – I enjoyed this tale of two strong women in Imperial Russia – one being Varvara Nikolaevna, a “Ward of the Court” and palace spy, and the other being the young woman to whom Varvara ties her fortunes, a young German princess named Sophie.  Sophie comes to court to marry the future Tsar, but finds intrigues and enemies abound there.  With Varvara by her side, though, Sophie has one true ally to help her on the way to becoming Catherine the Great.  The Winter Palace wasn’t a perfect read, but it was enjoyable and fun.

Austenland, by Shannon Hale – This was a cute, fluffy read about a woman who lets her fantasies for Mr. Darcy get in the way of her real-life relationships.  When Jane’s rich great-aunt dies and leaves her a three week vacation to an exclusive resort where wealthy women dress up as Regency ladies and pay to be romanced by actors playing gentlemen (and servants), Jane considers it the perfect opportunity to get some immersion therapy and then leave her fantasy behind once and for all.  But she starts to have trouble distinguishing between fantasy and reality and as she flirts with guys at the resort, she wonders if any of these flirtations might actually be real.  I liked this book – it was silly, but fun.  One thing annoyed me – the rich great-aunt’s name kept changing (from Carolyn to Caroline and back again).  It was a proofreading error that really bugged the heck out of me.  Otherwise, I liked the book and it was a fast read.

Messenger of Truth, by Jacqueline Winspear (Maisie Dobbs #4) – I continue to be completely enamored of Maisie and her friends.  This wasn’t my favorite Maisie mystery, but it was a great read nonetheless.  In Messenger of Truth, Maisie and Billy undertake an investigation into the death of an avant-garde artist.  The police say it was an accident, but the victim’s sister – and Maisie – aren’t so sure.  As with all Maisie books so far, the answers lie in the wounds that are still festering from the Great War.  The worldwide Depression is underway, though, which introduces a new plot wrinkle as Maisie sorts out her own feelings about working for, and being one of, the “haves” while still relating more to the “have-nots” of the world.

Death Comes to Pemberley, by P.D. James – Meh.  I thought this was going to be really good.  A murder mystery set at Pemberley, starring Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth and all of their friends?  How can you go wrong?  But it was only okay.  I felt that the characters I loved so much in Pride and Prejudice were missing from this book… especially when Elizabeth reflects that she wouldn’t have married Darcy without money.  The true Elizabeth married for love and got money as a fun bonus – that’s the Austen way.  This Elizabeth was not the same Elizabeth that I rooted for in Austen’s masterpiece.  That sort of ruined the experience of Death Comes to Pemberley for me – which was a shame, because it could have been quite the fun romp.

The House at Tyneford, by Natasha Solomons – I had very high hopes for this book, and they weren’t disappointed.  The House at Tyneford is the story of a young Jewish woman who flees Austria during the years before World War II, heading for the safety of England on a “domestic service visa” in which she will take up a position as housemaid in one of England’s great houses.  Elise isn’t an ordinary housemaid – the daughter of an opera singer and a famous novelist, she’s used to parties and champagne and silk dresses and being waited on by her own maid, not to hard work and sacrifice and disrespect.  But as Elise grows into her own in England, she befriends the son of the master of the house in which she works, and their friendship will blossom into a romance that will have profound effects on everyone who lives at Tyneford.  This was a lovely story – well-written, heart-wrenching and uplifting all at once.  I was really afraid it would stink, because it’s exactly the type of book I build up in my head until there’s no way it can meet my expectations.  Happily, this one did.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, by Mindy Kaling – So.  Much.  Fun.  After Tyneford I needed some laughs so I turned to someone that I think is absolutely hysterical – Mindy Kaling, better known as the shallow, dippy customer service representative Kelly Kapoor in the American version of The Office.  You wouldn’t know it to watch her none-too-bright character, but Mindy is actually brilliant (Dartmouth grad – almost as good as Cornell!) and has been a writer/producer on the show since the first season.  Mindy’s book is part memoir, part stream-of-consciousness-random-goofiness and I laughed until I cried.  I knew that Mindy was smarter than Kelly, but after reading about her journey from a childhood as a “timid chubster afraid of her own bike” all the way to the glittering lights of Hollywood, I had a whole new respect for her and enjoyed Kelly that much more the next time I tuned into The Office.  (Also, Ryan – LEAVE KELLY ALONE.  She deserves better than you!  So says Pam, and so say I.)

Village School, by Miss Read (Fairacre #1) – I’ve been meaning to dive into the Fairacre books for years and finally made the time.  If the first book is any indication, these stories about life in a tiny English village during the 1950s, as narrated by the village schoolmistress, are sweet and witty.  I loved my first visit to Fairacre and will be going back at the earliest opportunity.

Below Stairs, by Margaret Powell – This memoir of a kitchen maid serving in England’s great houses during the early 20th century was fascinating.  It ranged from funny to tragic, and there was always an undercurrent of mild bitterness at the fact that some people are born into lives of ease and leisure, while others – perhaps more deserving – have to work hard from cradle to grave.  Margaret Powell started her life “in service” at age 13 and continued to read and seek knowledge until she finally married out of the “downstairs” life and into a home of her own.  It was an absolutely intriguing look at a world that is long gone now, that seems romantic but that had a propensity to trample on the very people who made everything possible.

11/22/63, by Stephen King – My first, and probably only Stephen King, but I loved it.  Loved.  Time travel novels are kind of my kryptonite and this one was ah-mazing.  Jake Epping is a high school teacher in present-day Maine, divorced from a manipulative alcoholic, when he reads an essay by one of his night GED students about the night the student’s father committed a brutal multiple murder.  That shocking tale is still reverberating in Jake’s head when his sort-of friend Al Templeton drops a major bombshell: the storeroom in Al’s diner is a portal to 1958.  A time-traveler who’s willing to risk… well… everything could pop through, take up residence in the past, and prevent Lee Harvey Oswald from shooting JFK in 1963.  Al can’t carry the mission through himself – he’s returned from an attempt just to die of lung cancer.  Jake is intrigued, and he thinks he might be able to stop his student’s father from committing his horrific crime if he travels back, so he goes.  What Jake doesn’t bargain for is falling in love – which he does, with a lovely (albeit klutzy) librarian named Sadie Dunhill.  Will Jake be able to carry out his “business” in the past and save JFK, or will his love for Sadie distract him from the dangerous work he has to do?  And if he succeeds, what consequences might flow from his act?  11/22/63 is a tome that kept me feverishly turning pages, including over 400 in one day – it’s just that exciting.  (It’s also violent and contains some pretty offensive language, so potential readers beware.)  This wasn’t Stephen King’s usual fare, which might be why I loved it so much – because horror doesn’t hold much appeal for me, although time travel / suspense / love stories do.  (I loved Jack Finney’s Time and Again, and King thanks Finney in his acknowledgements – makes sense.)  After reading this heart-wrenching page-turner, there’s nothing for me to do but add my voice to the chorus saying… All hail the King.

Well, I felt as though I started April off slow, but picked up steam once I realized that I had to read 1,927 pages by May 7th.  I made good progress on that goal and read steadily throughout the second half of the month, averaging out to about two books a week.  On the other side, I can now say that April was a particularly good reading month for me.  Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? was hysterical and Village School was a dream.  But 11/22/63 was a book that cast a spell over me, keeping me turning pages at a speed and intensity I haven’t had since The Hunger Games.  And now, time to look forward.  I have some fun books on the agenda for May and I can’t wait to dig into them!