A rainy Monday! It appears I have two options: get really grumpy because I want spring weather and I want it now, or get Zen-ish - become one with the weather by reading a book set in the dampness of the British Isles. Since my 8 AM dental appointment resulted in no needed work, I'll pass on the grumpfest and move right on to the British portion of my day.
Last week I started The Bookman's Tale and am finding it hard to put down. It's a light literary piece set in three time frames, the present, the near past, and the Elizabethan period. The antiquarian book seeker and seller theme reminds me of Arturo Perez-Reverte's Club Dumas, except that Bookman is much simpler and my pea brain can easily keep track of all the characters and parallels. But, that little reminder coaxed me to dig out my unread copy of another book by Perez-Reverta, The Flanders Panel. I bought this book (for the first time) way back when LaDeDa first opened. Tried reading it. Failed. Sold it. Bought it again - several times- failing each time. This time, I am determined to conquer the darn thing. The back of the book says it's a "stunning debut that mixes history, mystery, deceit, and death -" who can resist?
My favorite line from The Bookman's Tale will make my theatre friends laugh. Describing Shakespeare, Mr. Cotton says "He was a quiet man - not taken to drunken carousing and immoral behavior like so many theatre folk."
Before I face the Flanders challenge for the final time, I am going to read The Mystery of Mercy Close because I like the cover and I love the opening paragraphs.
" I wouldn't mind - I mean this is the sheer irony of the thing - but I'm the only person I know who doesn't think it would be delicious to check in to 'someplace' for a 'rest'. You'd want to hear my sister Claire going on about it, as if waking up one morning and finding herself in a mental hospital would be the most delightful experience imaginable.
'I've got a great idea' she declared to her friend Judy. 'Let;s have our nervous breakdowns at the same time....we;ll get a double room...kind people...soft welcoming hands...whispering voices...white bed linen, white sofa, white orchids...Just like Heaven... the sound of tinkling water...the smell of jasmine...
Come on, admit it, you're smiling just a little, and wondering what Claire and Judy are up to.
Gotta go. Rain, coffee and books are just too much to resist today.
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