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Grumble. . . Books. . . Grumble. . .
Aug. 9th, 2004 07:20 pmI've been striking out with new books lately. Over the past few weeks I've picked up CJ Cherryh's The Book of Morgaine, a novel about China called The Middle Heart, and The Voyage of the Narwahl which is historical fiction about an arctic voyage. The first two I put down and literally forgot to pick up again. I've been plodding through the third without enthusiasm.
Between Middle Heart and Narwahl I pulled The Black Chalice, by Marie Jakober, off my shelf and read it for the second time. It's a fantasy set in a mythical Germany at the time of the Crusades, and very Pagan. One reviewer compared it to The Mists of Avalon, but I enjoy it much more. (That's not saying much, since I can't stand Mists, but it might put things in context for other folks.) I also recently re-read Parke Godwin's Beloved Exile, which I loved as much as ever, and had the fun of re-discovering since it's been years since I opened it to do more than scan a favorite scene or two.
Why is it so hard to find books I like these days? It may have something to do with where I am psychologically. It's not that there are no good books out there, it's that I'm not connecting with them. I tried to read Our Lady of the Forest by Gutterson, which like Heart and Narwhal got a lot of critical praise, but I was so depressed by the main characters I didn't even make it halfway through.
The last new books I really, truly enjoyed were the Kushiel series, and that was several months ago. I devoured those in just a few days and was sorry to see them end.
Anyone have any suggestions? Any classics (canon or personal) you love and return to again and again?![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
shellefly mentioned Treasure Island a few days ago, and I might give that a try. I'm primarily interested in fiction at the moment. School starts next month, and I'll have more than enough non-fiction to tackle then.
I have dozens of my own old favorites on my shelves, but I'm in the mood for the pleasure of new discoveries.
Between Middle Heart and Narwahl I pulled The Black Chalice, by Marie Jakober, off my shelf and read it for the second time. It's a fantasy set in a mythical Germany at the time of the Crusades, and very Pagan. One reviewer compared it to The Mists of Avalon, but I enjoy it much more. (That's not saying much, since I can't stand Mists, but it might put things in context for other folks.) I also recently re-read Parke Godwin's Beloved Exile, which I loved as much as ever, and had the fun of re-discovering since it's been years since I opened it to do more than scan a favorite scene or two.
Why is it so hard to find books I like these days? It may have something to do with where I am psychologically. It's not that there are no good books out there, it's that I'm not connecting with them. I tried to read Our Lady of the Forest by Gutterson, which like Heart and Narwhal got a lot of critical praise, but I was so depressed by the main characters I didn't even make it halfway through.
The last new books I really, truly enjoyed were the Kushiel series, and that was several months ago. I devoured those in just a few days and was sorry to see them end.
Anyone have any suggestions? Any classics (canon or personal) you love and return to again and again?
shellefly mentioned Treasure Island a few days ago, and I might give that a try. I'm primarily interested in fiction at the moment. School starts next month, and I'll have more than enough non-fiction to tackle then.I have dozens of my own old favorites on my shelves, but I'm in the mood for the pleasure of new discoveries.
