'Service of All the Dead', Colin Dexter

Service of All the Dead, 4^th Inspector Morse Series, Colin Dexter (3.0)

We’ve enjoyed the young Inspector Morse on the PBS show, ‘Endeavor’, so I was interested to read one of the original books from the series. Oddly I was a bit disappointed. I’m not sure if it was because I read the 4^th in the series (it was the only free one I could find), but the main character came off as less likable than the young version. He was still a complex character with the sharp insight of a good detective mixed with a taste for opera. The mystery was interesting, and the outcome, given the myriad of possibilities was a bit surprising. Unfortunately Morse came across as a bit snarky and elusive. He played games with his partner (not at all like the young Endeavor Morse) and I just didn’t like the characters enough to follow them to their next case.

'Sophie's World' by Jostein Gaarder

Sophie’s World, Jostein Gaarder (5.0)

I read this book in the late 90’s and have wanted to reread it for some time. At 500+ pages – and mostly being a book about the history of Western philosophy - it is takes a bit to get through. But if you are at all interested in philosophy, it is worth the time. As a reader, you are learning about philosophy as it is being taught to a 14-year-old girl. The author starts with the girl receiving strange letters and postcards asking a philosophical question (‘why are we here’) followed by a letter explaining the concept from the point of view of Socrates or Aristotle. Eventually she meets her teacher and the lessons go into more depth. Not only do you learn about different philosophers with approachable language, the plot of the book (yes, there is a subtle plot) is written in an Alice in Wonderland way that also helps illustrate some of the concepts. About half way into the book, there is a particularly difficult philosophy to grasp and the author does something quite mind blowing to ‘show’ rather than just ‘tell’. This book is not for everyone, but I hope those who choose to take the adventure find it as remarkable as I did.

'Remarkable Creatures' by Tracy Chevalier

Remarkable Creatures, Tracy Chevalier (4.0)

As with ‘The Girl with the Pearl Erring’, Ms. Chevalier has taken real people and circumstances and evolved a novel of possible interactions and feelings for them.  In this case, it involves a pair of fossil hunters in Britain pre-Darwin. They are unique as both are women with one being quite poor and the other a upper class spinster. They meet on the beach and soon the poor young woman finds a dinosaur skeleton. With the help of the better-connected lady, the bones make their way into the collector’s and ultimately a museum. Most interesting was the way their discovery was treated- both due to the gender of the discoverers and due to the time period. The term ‘extinct’ made no sense. The majority of scholars did not believe that anything has died off – that would imply that God made a mistake, which is unthinkable! This discovery and subsequent ones from the same fossil seeker help drive the scholars to doubt earlier thinking. I’m not always a fan of historical fiction, as it tends to blur my memory of what is real and what is not. In this case, I appreciated that these people lived, but that the author added the drama and personalities, which brought this bit of history to light. She took an interesting real occurrence and added details of the society and difficulties for women of the time (a bit Jane Austen-ish). I’m sure most people reading this cringed when the 3 unmarried sisters had to move to a small city on the coast – because their brother got married and he was ‘responsible’ for them. Ugh.

'Winter in Madrid' by C. J. Sansom

Winter in Madrid, C.J. Sansom (3.5)

I was told if you liked ‘Shadows of the Wind’ (I did), you would like this book. I do see some similarities given the time period of the Spanish revolution, but the stories are quite different. While I enjoyed this book, it lacked the well-rounded characters and sense of whimsy amongst the sadness of war. Probably obvious from the title, this book is darker. We follow four British characters as they interact and make their way through WWII and it’s affect on Spanish politics. The main narrative has a veteran called up to the diplomatic service as a ruse to allow him to reconnect with a grade school chum who appears to be on the cusp of financing Franco (which may change Spain’s views on joining the war). I enjoyed the British character’s interaction with various characters at all levels of Spanish society. I also appreciated the ‘spy novel’ aspects to the story – which were interesting and per the Afterword, based on real people.

'The Burgess Boys' by Elizabeth Strout

The Burgess Boys, Elizabeth Strout (2.5)

This book centers around two brothers and their sister and how a tragedy early in their lives influenced their personalities and actions in present day. There are a few things about this book that I didn’t like. Firstly, the main ‘surprise’ seemed rather obvious from the beginning. Secondly, the majority of characters, while having ample time to be fleshed out, still came across as two-dimensional. I do think the story had a timely subject: small towns dealing with the large influx of immigrants. And the author looked at both sides of the issue fairly. Unfortunately, the cartoonish main characters overshadowed some of the more interesting characters (the Somali shop owner, the female minister). I’m surprised this book was a New York Times bestseller, but the author did win a Pulitzer for her other work, ‘Olive Kitteridge’.

'Notorious RBG, The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg' by Irin Carmon & Shana Khiznik

Notorious RBG, The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Irin Carmon & Shana Khizhnik (4.0)

You’ve got to love a book that melds a bigger than life rapper with a stoic and influential Supreme Court justice. Many people are aware that RBG, as she is referred to far too often in this book, has accumulated a cult following among millennials, that she had a close relationship to Antonin Scalia and that she was only the second female justice on SCOTUS. This book brought to life many other things about the justice that were new to me: her accomplishments for women’s rights throughout her career, how thoughtful she was in terms of picking her battles, her ridiculous fitness (she can still do 20 push-ups at 83!) and her wonderful 60 yr relationship with her husband, Marty. I enjoyed reading about her life, both in the court and how she has attempted to find balance (harder once Marty passed away). The form of the book is fun – pictures, tributes and legal writings interspersed with the narrative, all which helped me get through the drier legal bits. I already had a good impression of Justice Ginsburg, but after reading this book I have far more respect for her approach to the law and the other judges.