"Once upon a time in Westphalia, in the castle of Monsieur the Baron von Thunder-ten-tronckh, there lived a young boy on whom nature had bestowed the gentlest of dispositions. His countenance expressed his soul. He combined solid judgment with complete openness of mind; which is the reason, I believe, that he was called Candide." (Opening lines of Candide)| My Head Is Full of Books
Merricat Blackwood, her older sister Constance, and their Uncle Julian live in a manor home separate from a nearby village. Constance has not left the home or the estate since the events of six years prior when the rest of the family died from poisoning and she was tried and acquitted of the crime. Julian is wheelchair bound and he spends his days reliving and writing about the day of that gruesome event. Only Merricat has contact with the outside world as she is tasked with going to the vill...| My Head Is Full of Books
Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy is the biggest downer of all novels. How did this book ever make it as a classic anyone wanted to read?| My Head Is Full of Books
For this Classics Club challenge we are told to read book number 11 on our Classics Club list by 24th August. I got it into my head that it was 4th August. This is book 6/10 Books of Summer hosted by Annabel and Emma. Imagine you are a writer. It is 1952. You have a […]| Volatile Rune
Book reviews from the perspective of a Christian writer, wife, and mother.| theedgeoftheprecipice.blogspot.com
“I doubt you’ll enjoy it,” was Mr Booker Talk’s reaction as I embarked on reading Scoop by Evelyn Waugh for the Classics Club spin. He was so right. Published in 1938, Scoop was written at a time when Waugh was gaining a name as a satirical novelist. He wrote the novel as a critique of […]| BookerTalk
Several times in the past few months I've examined lists put together by some literary luminary or another and many of the lists name Catch-22 by Joseph Keller in the top 20 Best Books of the 20th Century, some even have it in the top ten. (See lists here, here, here, here, here, and here.) Why? What is it that makes this anti-war novel so influential? Published between two messy wars, WWII and Vietnam, is made a strong indictment of war in general. Pointing out through satire the inhumanity ...| My Head Is Full of Books
I did it! I read all four of these season-themed Christie collections in four consecutive seasons!| The Edge of the Precipice
A book blog focusing on all kinds of literature, great book club selections, award books, and more.| headfullofbooks.blogspot.com
#theclassicsclub The Classics Club 2024-2029 MY FULL CLASSICS CLUB 5th LIST IS HERE The Classics Spin #41 Twitter hashtag: #ccspin I was away and off the grid when Classics spin #41 was announced, …| Words And Peace
I'm so glad that some reader friends of mine picked one of the short stories in this collection to include in the #DickensDecember buddy read event on Bookstagram last winter. These stories are so delightful! I can see why Brooke was a big hit back in the 1890s, even considered a female Sherlock Holmes. She's bright, knowledgeable, clever, and not sniffing around for a husband. That probably made her seem kind of unusual (and maybe unladylike) in her day, though now we're pretty used ...| The Edge of the Precipice
This is sad and melancholy and was hard to read. I'm glad I randomly read it because I wanted to finish off a hardcover anthology and not because I was reading all the Poirot stories in order, because if I was reading them in order and got to this as the very last one, I would now be very depressed. Instead, I have plenty of jolly Poirot mysteries to enjoy in the future still.| The Edge of the Precipice
Rowan Farm is the sequel to The Ark and continues the story of the Lechow family as they attempt to build new lives and a new home in post-war West Germany. Informed on the author's own knowledge and experiences after WWII, these two books show the chaos and ruin of Germany after WWII, but also the courage and hope of the people who work together to make the country fit for life and love once more. | The Edge of the Precipice
Like Autumn Chills and Midwinter Murder, this is a collection of short mysteries by Agatha Christie that all take place in a particular season.| The Edge of the Precipice
Book reviews from the perspective of a Christian writer, wife, and mother.| theedgeoftheprecipice.blogspot.com
Synopsis “Candide was the most brilliant challenge to the idea endemic in Voltaire’s day, that ‘all is for the best in the best of all possible worlds.’ It was the indiffere…| Hannah's Library