Books Read in March 2018

This month was a very dismal month for reading. I only read four books. Two of them I either didn’t like very much or at all. And they were all fiction. I did not read any nonfiction. I can’t remember a month like this – ever. First, the books, then I’ll try to answer why it happened.

“The First Phone Call From Heaven” by Mitch Album. I began the month well with this one. It’s about a small lake town in Michigan where someone says she got a phone call from her dead sister in Heaven. Then several other people say they have gotten calls from departed loved ones as well. While the world comes to this town, some wonder if this is real or a hoax. I had never read Album before but enjoyed this so much I am going to read others.

 “if the creek don’t rise” by Leah Weiss. By a local author and a selection for our book club, these are the only reasons I read it. About Appalachia and its inhabitants living in the North Carolina mountains, it has all of the dismal and illegal things one knows about the area. The story made me very depressed even when it ended on what might be considered a relatively positive note. The writer did an excellent job of making the characters endearing or repulsive. She also made the setting come alive. I just didn’t like the book; and yes, the title is all small letters which I didn’t like as well.

“The Fortunate Ones” by Ellen Umansky. This story had two things going for it that I enjoy reading about: WW2 missing art and multiple time periods. Unfortunately, I did not like one of the two main characters. She lived in present-day New York and was insufferable. I did like the other, a young Jewish girl who was sent by her parents from Vienna before the war to live with foster parents in England. With alternating chapters and advancing time periods for the young girl, both meet in 2006 and the storyline continues. Though it got better as the story went along, it was more of a relationship story and very much less of a missing art story.

“Sleeping on the Ground” by Peter Robinson. The 24^th installment of the Inspector Banks series, this one did not disappoint. Once again, a present-day crime relates back to an old crime. Robinson does this frequently and does it well. I do enjoy the many references to what everyone eats in the pubs and restaurants, as well as the beer, whisky, and wines. Banks also is a music lover, primarily jazz and classical, but also some of the older “pops”, such as Dylan, Van Morrison, and David Bowie. I strongly recommend this series, but caution you to read them in order. Characters are introduced, depart, grow and develop, and you need to understand them to fully enjoy the stories. One last thing about the series lately is that Robinson highlights one of Inspector Banks’ subordinates in the particular episode. He never lets you feel Banks is the centerpiece, which he is, but he has begun to fill out the other characters more. And in this episode, he brings back a popular and important character.

As to why my reading suffered this month as to number and lack of nonfiction I can only say that I had finished my book group selection of March just before the end of February. Since I was the leader for the discussion, I wanted to do a good job. I was tired of reading books that made me think so much that all I wanted to do was to read some good, light fiction. Well, you can see that that went well.

This coming month is promising.     

(Cambria 12)