Off the Bookshelf: May 2003 Archives

Don't you just hate it when you've started a book and something interrupts you and you don't get to finish it? Normally I pick up a book and read it straight through cover to cover, sometimes in one day. Of course, I'm wrecked the next day if I've been reading into the wee hours, but some books you just can't put down. There are three books that I've started, that I really want to finish, that I won't be able to get to for three or four weeks.

The first is a book that was widely popular a number of years ago: "Tuesdays With Morrie." I've started it, and I know the basic arc of the book, but I set it aside, claiming that Christmas was demanding my time. I don't handle death and dying as well as I'd like, and I know there are great lessons to be learned from this book, so once the wedding is over this will be the next book up.

One of my nieces is always reading. She keeps an eye on what the book clubs are discussing and what the best sellers are, and occasionally she will give me a book. Since she knows that I traditionally read trash, she gave me something more enlightening: "The Red Tent" by Anita Diamant. The novel is the story of the Biblical character Dinah. I've read more than half the book. I set it down at the point where Dinah's father is going to send her life in a totally unexpected direction. The Boston Globe said of this book: "An intense, vivid novel...It is tempting to say that The Red Tent is what the Bible would be like if it had been written by women, but only Diamant could have given it such sweep and grace." Diamant has done a superb job of showing us what life in those times must have been like.

The last book I need to finish is "Under The Tuscan Sun" by Frances Mayes. Mayes and her husband purchased a Tuscan villa and renovated it over several summers. The book is based on her journals, and begins with the search for the right villa, and carries us through the vagaries of construction, permits, and contractors to the point where they are able to welcome friends to their summer home. It's packed with descriptions of the local food, and in some places feels like a travelog. The heat of the day, the frustration of getting good help, and the incredible textures of Italian food all pour out of this book. It's the perfect volume to pick up on a chilly, rainy day.

There's one more book I haven't read, but I hope to pick up today. It's called "A Round Heeled Woman: My Late-Life Adventures in Sex and Romance," by Jane Juska. The author placed this ad in a personals column: "Before I turn 67--next March--I would like to have a lot of sex with a man I like. If you want to talk first, Trollope works for me." This Midwestern English teacher had endured an unsatisfying marriage and become a single, mostly celibate, mom, and wanted to experience the pleasure of touching before her life ebbed away. I'm interested in the courage it took to pursue this passion, and the story of how she chose the men who played a feature role in her life. My understanding is that she made love to men in a range of ages and that the unifying factor was that almost all of them wanted the same kindness in a relationship that she was hoping to find. There were cads and selfish men, but the majority were gentle men reaching out to make a connection and break the bonds of loneliness. I'll have to let you know if the book lives up to my expectations. *S*

So.....have you read any good books lately??

We're voracious readers in this household. We probably single handedly support Borders, and Amazon.com. We also hit the library once or twice a month.

Lately, because I've been getting the house ready for our daughter's wedding, I haven't had as much time to read, so I forced myself not to collect any books that might tempt me. Sunday night I really needed to sit down with a book. My back was hurting and I needed a little quiet time, so I borrowed a book that my mother had just finished.

You can really tell that we are from different generations by the books we read. The book was by Jayne Anne Krentz. It was one of her "modern" books, rather than one of the Regency books she writes under the pseudonym "Amanda Quick." Actually, I like the Regency books she writes, and I dislike the modern ones. It seems to me that the Regency heroines are all self-sufficient, intelligent women who are misfits in their time and very pragmatic about relationships. In the modern settings, you're likely to find a heroine who WANTS to be overwhelmed by a man, and to some degeree measures herself by the men who want her.

I cringe when I read some of the lines she gives the men! "I must HAVE you." "I had you last night, and you were willing." "I'll have you again." What's with the HAVE stuff?? I don't know if she was just an immature author when she penned those lines, or if she really believes guys think and talk that way.

I guess what bothers me most about this is that she's a best-selling author. That means that somewhere out there, women are enjoying what she's writing. Does that also mean that there are women who swoon at the thought of being HAD....or taken? It's one thing to have an emotionally and physically strong partner. It's another to loose your say in what's going on with your body or your life. All this HAVE stuff makes me vaguely uncomfortable.

I know that it's not easy to write women's romance. I'd LOVE to be able to write an entire book, but so far all I've managed is vignettes, and most of them are too pornagraphic to publish! Still, I'd rather see a plot with a strong female lead, instead of someone who worries that the big strong man MAY know her needs better than she does. I think it's a bad idea to promote that idea.

I guess I'm lucky that this is the greatest of my worries tonight. *S* I hope you all have a great night!