Erin Reads

Looking Back: August 2011

Another month has flown by, unbelievably. Because of my traveling it was a lighter reading month for me, but I still managed to get some books finished! Here’s what my August looked like:

Books

Total books read: 5
Total pages read: 1,397
Favorite book: Swing Low by Miriam Toews
Least favorite book: Going Bovine by Libba Bray

This is the first month I’ve read more on my Sony Reader than in print; 3 of the 5 books I read were eBooks. eReaders are marvelous things for traveling!

Audiobooks

Total audiobooks listened to: 1
Total hours listened: 18 hours, 44 minutes
Favorite and least favorite don’t really apply here, but Kate Reading’s narration of Little Women by Louisa May Alcott was quite good.

Since I was away, most of my posts were pre-scheduled. Here’s what got reviewed:

The Awakening by Kate Chopin
The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff (audiobook)
Everything Beautiful Began After by Simon Van Booy
State of Wonder by Ann Patchett (audiobook)
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
When She Woke by Hillary Jordan
His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik (audiobook)
Reading Buddies did Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (part 1 | part 2), which I listened to on audio.

Your Turn!

That was my August. How was yours?

Sunday Salon: Where I’ve Been

As many of you know, I spent most of August not at home. Where was I, you ask? In India, visiting my husband’s family. Some of my own family was able to visit at the same time, and we had a great trip. Some highlights: an overnight in a swanky resort, bathing elephants at nearby sanctuary, and a glorious sunset over the Indian Ocean.

I’m slowly catching up after a month away. I’m sorry to say that my Google Reader is getting the Mark-All-As-Read treatment. If you reviewed a book you loved, or read an excellent post on another book blog, please share the link with me so I don’t miss anything unmissable! I’m also giving myself a pass on the comments left over the past month. I read them all and very much appreciate your leaving them, but some are so old that a reply seems silly. So, I’m letting myself start fresh.

And now, without further ado, some pictures! (Captions are above the photo to which they refer.)

When we arrived at the resort, we were greeted with tender coconut water, straight out of the fruit:

The view from our porch

I got to take a tabla lesson from one of the resort’s musicians:

Houseboats on the backwaters:

Bathing the elephants at a nearby sanctuary:

One of the larger elephants heading out for a day of work…carrying his dinner:

Traditional Chinese fishing nets:

And finally, what trip would be complete without some book purchases? I can’t resist browsing books, no matter where I find them! From top to bottom: Fury by Salman Rushdie, In the Country of Last Things by Paul Auster, The Imam and the Indian by Amitav Ghosh, The Best of Roald Dahl (short stories), Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie, The Indian Epics Retold by R.K. Narayan, and The Fabric of Our Lives: The Story of Fabindia by Radhika Singh.

On an unrelated note, Book Blogger Appreciation Week (BBAW) is coming up in mid-September. It’s the event that really got me into the book blogging community last year, and I’m very much looking forward to it again this year. If you’re a book blogger, be sure to check it out! And if you’re not, there will be plenty of interesting posts throughout the week from your favorite book bloggers. It’s a great time to discover new book blogs, too!

Reading Buddies: Upcoming Reads

Well, here we are in September! I’m back from my travels and hoping to share some photos on Sunday. Today’s post is brief, just to make sure everyone is on the same page with regards to Reading Buddies.

First, it’s time to start in on Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh! Since September has five Fridays instead of four, I’ll be posting about this one on 9/16 and 9/30.

October’s book, which won in the poll by a hair, will be Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenedies, to be discussed on October 14th and 28th. The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins and Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout, the other choices, were just a few votes behind. I’m thinking I’d always like to have a “classics” option, so The Woman in White is, in fact, making an appearance on November’s poll, and I’ll work Olive Kitteridge into the mix again soon.

Speaking of November’s poll, it’s now up in the sidebar, so be sure to vote for your top preference! The winner will be announced in about a month.

As for informal reading buddy books, there is some interest in A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. I’m hoping to pick it up closer to the middle of September. If you’re interested, let me know and we can join forces. I’m hoping there will be more informal reads, just as soon as I can get a better handle on my fall reading schedule!

Thoughts on “His Majesty’s Dragon” by Naomi Novik (Audiobook)

His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik (audiobook cover)

One of my former coworkers was forever recommending Naomi Novik’s Temeraire series to customers. When I found out that Simon Vance, whose narrating prowess I had heard about but never experienced, read the entire series, I knew what my next audiobook would be.

About the Book:

Captain Will Laurence of the British Navy has no reason to suspect the French ship he has captured is carrying precious cargo. War with France is in full swing, and Laurence is merely doing his duty. But when a rare dragon’s egg is discovered on board — and, worse, about to hatch — Laurence knows he must act fast. The hatching ceremony, though known only vaguely to Laurence and his crew, is crucial, for it is during these first moments of a dragon’s life outside its shell that it chooses its handler for life. If no such handler is provided, the dragon may go feral, an unacceptable loss during wartime especially. With no experienced airmen on board to guide the process, Laurence and his men must make do and hope for the best.

It is no surprise how the hatching goes. The little dragon chooses Laurence, who christens the dragon Temeraire after a British ship. Laurence steps down from his post immediately, which gives him plenty of time to ponder his unwanted career change as the ship nears port. The life of a Navy captain is solitary and unpredictable enough, and life in the Aerial Corps is even more so. But Laurence is a man of duty, and Temeraire is a charming creature, and so the two embark on a new life through wholly unknown territory to do their part for Britain’s cause.

My Thoughts:

I don’t read a lot of fantasy, but His Majesty’s Dragon is exactly the sort of fantasy I enjoy. It reads like historical fiction, for the most part, except for some changes — in this case, the Napoleonic wars include aerial warfare fought with dragons. Around this alternate version of history, Naomi Novik has crafted a splendid world, skilfully combining the familiar with the unfamiliar. She has created a watertight world inhabited by her Aerial Corps and wedged it into British society seamlessly. I loved learning the dragon lore, habits, history, and fighting techniques woven throughout the tale.

The relationship between Temeraire and Laurence makes the book. Temeraire is clever, curious, and fiercely loyal, and Laurence, for his part, is strong but kind, good-humored, and just as loyal as his dragon. The two are an affectionate team, which adds an emotional depth to the novel I hadn’t expected. The other dragons encountered in the story have personalities as distinct as their handlers and are just as memorable.

His Majesty’s Dragon lacks the spunky female lead I often love to see, yet — and I rarely say this — I didn’t find myself missing her. Indeed, there are hardly any women in the first installment of the series, since warfare during that time was primarily the domain of men, but I hardly noticed. Novik does work a few women in, with a plausible explanation, though none have stepped forward as central characters thus far.

I don’t think I even have to say that Simon Vance is incredible, but I will. It’s my first experience with one of his audiobooks, and I know I will pick up many more. His pacing, his inflection, his character voices are perfect. He reads with flair, yet does not overdo the drama to the point of being annoying. He reads the rest of the series (five more books, so far), for which I am very excited!

If you enjoy fantasy or alternate history, even if what you usually read is along the lines of Harry Potter and Scott Westerfeld’s Leviathan series, Temeraire might be a series for you. And if you like audiobooks, well, definitely give Simon Vance’s readings a try!

Those are my thoughts. Check out His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik on Goodreads or LibraryThing, read other bloggers’ reviews, or listen to an Audible sample!

Reading Buddies Wrap-Up: “Little Women” by Louisa May Alcott

First, if you haven’t voted for the October Reading Buddies book via the poll in the sidebar, be sure to do so! I’ll be announcing October’s selection a week from today. As previously selected, September’s book will be Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh.

Second, I must apologize for the lack of interaction on my part this month. I’ve been away, with only minimal Internet access, and most posts have been scheduled. I’ve had a few opportunities to skim through comments, though, and they are appreciated! I’ll be back in home territory and playing catch-up soon.

And now, on to the matter at hand: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Beware — spoilers ahead!

Well. Having now read both parts of Alcott’s classic, I have to say, I liked Part 1 better. I find that a little odd, seeing as the “little women” are closer to my own age in Part 2 and should theoretically have interested me more. I think perhaps as children the March girls are endearing, but as adults they are just a shade annoying. Also, children seem to work well enough as flat characters, while I expect adults to have a bit more depth, a characteristic I found a bit lacking in Little Women.

That being said, I did mostly enjoy the novel overall. Though they bothered me at first, I got used to Alcott’s preachy little lessons and, I think, subconsciously lowered the bar for what I expected of Part 2 after listening to Part 1. I can see why it’s a classic, and I can also understand why it is so beloved by children. As I mentioned in my previous Reading Buddies post, many people seem to love the book more if they read it as a child, and I think the same would have been true for me.

I spent much of Part 2 waiting for Laurie to marry someone other than Jo, one of the few plot points I recalled going into the book. I had thought it would be Meg, so when she married John at the end of Part 1, I was confused. When Laurie and Amy finally got together and Jo married her professor, I took a few minutes to consider how I felt about the way things had turned out. I came to the conclusion that I really do like where Jo ended up. It didn’t feel at all wrong or forced to me for her to marry Bhaer, or open a school, or have a few kids of her own. I was a bit disappointed that she gave up her literary dreams, though. Amy and Laurie, on the other hand, I did not like at all! It’s not that I think Laurie should have ended up with Jo — something I may not have realized as a kid but can understand now. Amy annoyed me throughout, and Laurie changed his mind so fast from one sister to another that once their future as a couple became clear, I sort of wrote them off and stopped paying attention to their story line. What would I have preferred? I sort of think Amy should have married Fred over in Europe. Laurie might have stayed single, or perhaps married some other character Alcott didn’t include. After such a long friendship with the March sisters, it seemed somehow wrong that he chose one to settle down with. Where do you stand on this ever controversial issue?

I’ve heard very little about Louisa May Alcott’s other novels and have read none of them. Have you tried them? If so, how do they compare? If not, after reading Little Women, do you think you’d give her others a try?