No Longer at Ease by Chinua AchebeMy rating: 3 of 5 stars The title of this novel is curious, encapsulating the pervasive discomfort of the most modern period of Africa in Achebe’s trilogy. Obi Okonkwo, descendant of the protagonist of … Continue reading →
Arrow of God by Chinua AchebeMy rating: 5 of 5 stars This novel follows Things Fall Apart in time sequence and offers a look at a later period of the history of the Ten Towns, after the British have become … Continue reading →
Things Fall Apart by Chinua AchebeMy rating: 5 of 5 stars This is a book I have read at least a half dozen times, most recently a couple of weeks ago when I decided to read Achebe’s entire African Trilogy. … Continue reading →
A Sport of Nature by Nadine GordimerMy rating: 3 of 5 stars Gordimer is well established and has no need of another fan, which is a good thing, because I am not quite one. This is the third of her … Continue reading →
The House by the Churchyard by J. Sheridan Le FanuMy rating: 4 of 5 stars When you read the work of a good writer, you feel its distinctiveness, and if the book is a surprise to you, it feels as … Continue reading →
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters My rating: 2 of 5 stars I entered this book with high hopes and exited with a sigh that it had taken it so long to do so little. The story telegraphs its next … Continue reading →
Chronicle in Stone by Ismail KadareMy rating: 5 of 5 stars This is one of those books that makes its own ground; told through a child’s consciousness, the novel explores the life of a city prior to and during World … Continue reading →
Sister of My Heart by Chitra Banerjee DivakaruniMy rating: 4 of 5 stars Reading this novel was a marvelous experience. The writing is to be admired in all ways; the language is rhythmic, the images verdant, and the world of … Continue reading →
The pile of books I have been meaning to read has begun to shrink. It is a virtual pile, not an actual one. I gave up on the physical pile and shelved all the books stacked there. Well, truth be … Continue reading →
The Farewell Symphony by Edmund White I have loved Edmund White’s books since I first discovered them. I like this one mildly. I read it with some absorption, but more as a memoir than a novel; the chatty, I’m-talking-to-you-directly quality … Continue reading →