March Book List

My Remarkable Uncle by Stephen Leacock (borrowed from Dan)
An Object of Beauty by Steve Martin (library)
All The Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy (library)
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman (library)
Secrets From The Vinyl Cafe by Stuart Mclean (library)

Recommended: I quite enjoyed Steve Martin's An Object of Beauty, and am going to look for some of his other titles. Here's the Good Reads synopsis:
          "Lacey Yeager is young, captivating, and ambitious enough to take the NYC art world by storm. Groomed at Sotheby's and hungry to keep climbing the social and career ladders put before her, Lacey charms men and women, old and young, rich and even richer with her magnetic charisma and liveliness. Her ascension to the highest tiers of the city parallel the soaring heights--and, at times, the dark lows--of the art world and the country from the late 1990s through today."
I thought it was quite clever how he wove real life events through the story (9-11, the market collapse). The story itself was familiar and blase, but all the art talk was interesting.

I am officially in love with Stephen Leacock! Subtly funny, cheeky, pleasant, with a little social commentary thrown in. I made lots of notes in Dan's book and sent it back with pages falling out! It was well-loved in the short time I had it. Now I have moved on to another, and hope to enjoy it as much!

Cormac McCarthy is apparently hit-or-miss with me. I really didn't enjoy the last McCarthy title I read back in November, but this one was kind of amazing! I borrowed it along with two other titles that make up The Border Trilogy. But I couldn't finish all many-hundred pages in the three weeks I was allotted, so I made lots of notes in my copy and returned it a couple of days late (oops!), and then immediately put a hold on it, so I could get it back eventually! Here is the synopsis (because apparently I suck at writing these):
   
        This "is the tale of John Grady Cole, who at sixteen finds himself at the end of a long line of Texas ranchers, cut off from the only life he has ever imagined for himself.  With two companions, he sets off for Mexico on a sometimes idyllic, sometimes comic journey to a place where dreams are paid for in blood."


But it is also so much more than just that. McCarthy writes in a very plain, dry style, but his simple and straightforward way of phrasing things makes me think more about the world, and life and death and the breadth of a person's soul than any other writer. He is quite amazing, but he never uses quotation marks, rarely uses commas, and some of his sentences last a whole page. Be prepared.

Fail
The Imperfectionists kept jumping between the past and the present, and tried to tie a bunch of supposedly related and connected stories together about a bunch of selfish journalists and I just couldn't get in to it. And then it ended. Oh well.

Library Notes:
I borrowed a lot from the library again this month, but I was less crazy about it than I have been, although I did discover how easy it is to put books on hold through the website...I feel a disaster coming on!! I forgot about due dates left, right and centre, and ended up owing loads of moola on three items...money that could have paid for those items new! Oops! I did make a library card owner out of a friend of mine, so I think I should receive a commission or something. At least strike my late fees from the record.

later loves