The Duchess of Devonshire - The book and the Film

I was pleasantly surprised when I opened up The Duchess by Amanda Foreman. I had received it from a friend years ago and it had ended up on the bookshelf without me actually having looked through it. I just assumed that it was a novel based on the life of the Duchess of Devonshire, I also had a vague recollection that it had been made into a film. Therefore I was pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be a very well-written and researched biography of the Duchess Georgiana of Devonshire. As with many other biographies, The Duchess is riddled with names and if you're not familiar with the period, it is difficult to keep them all straight, but I also think that is part of the genre of biographies and you have to take what you can get out of it and not be to uptight about remembering everything, especially if it's a book read for pleasure and not for an assignment.
Now it's on to watch the film as well and I hope it is as good as the book.
Josefine

Title: The Duchess Author: Amanda Foreman ISBN: 978-0-00-728575-4

The Marriage Bureau

The reviews told me that The Wedding Wallah by Farahad Zama is a feel-good story and I can only agree. Even though I haven't yet read the two first books in the series, The Wedding Wallah is a welcoming, well-written distraction after a few so, so books (see previous reviews). I enjoyed it a lot.
The book is set in modern India and portrays well the clashes of old and new. The traditions of an arranged marriage and the modernity of a castless society. Urban and rural traditions co-mingling on the pages. Now I can't wait to read the first two books in the series as well.
Josefine

Title: The wedding Wallah Author: Farahad Zama ISBN: 978-0-349-12268-7

A library bargain

I went to the library today to return a book, I had promised myself not to borrow more than one book (after my well thought out strategy of returning one book and lending one new). I return home with three borrowed books plus four I bought from the for sale shelf, to my defence I will say that you can't say no when you get four books for only a Pound. I am not very often at this library and every time I go, there's something new at the for sale shelf that looks interesting.

These were the books I bought this time:

Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow - an author that becomes a bigger favourite the more I read of him.

Marshmallows for breakfast by Dorothy Koomson - I read The Ice Cream Girls and has been looking forwards to read more from her.

The Forgotten Affairs of Youth by Alexander McCall-Smith - The latest in the series about Isabelle Dalhousie.

A Short history of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka - the fourth book and the best of what was left on the shelf.

Josefine

Libraries

After reading The Library Book, I got inspired to find a blogg I wrote in 2007 but still rings true today. So here it comes one more time.

Libraries, what a great concept

A library is such a wonderful place. To whom ever came up with this idea I am grateful. Just take a moment and think of the concept. You can go there and borrow almost as many books, CDs, DVDs, magazines and newspapers that you want. And all this for free. Or, you can sit there all day reading and no one would bother you.

Wherever I live I go to the library for some peace and quiet, being a student, it almost feels like a second home.

In Washington DC I loved the Library of Congress. The tranquillity of the large marbled rooms combined with the vast amount of books to borrow there were amazing.
In Honolulu the design of the library, just fit the climate perfectly. It was built around a courtyard, sprinkled with palms and greenery. On the hot balmy days, which are typical for Hawai’i, I sat outside in the cool shadow studying.
When I lived in Waukesha, Wisconsin, USA they remodelled the library and when it was done, it looked sleek, modern and fresh. An extra bonus was the books and DVDs you could borrow from other libraries in the county sent to your local library at your convenience.
Of course you can borrow e-books online and never have to set your foot in the library, but it won’t beat the feeling of going to the library and browse the many bookshelves and pick out just the one that looks great. Go visit a library and enjoy the free access to a wide variety of reading material.
Josefine

Title: The Library Book Author: The Reading Agency ISBN: 978-1-78125-005-1

A Pretty Cover doesn't make for a Pretty Book

A Vintage Affair by Isabelle Wolff is just OK, it's nice if you like clothes, most of it went way over my head, but I assume Wolff is well researched on the topic. What did bother me about the book was Wolff's desire to put ever tiny bit of research she did into the book. Details about the clothes business is understandable, that's part of what the book is about, but the passage at the vineyard read straight out of a book on wine making and not necessary to add in such detail as it wasn't essential to the plot.
Then without revealing too much, I can't quite see the parallel between giving up your friend to the Nazis in France and getting into a relationship with your best friend's love interest. Despite it's beautiful cover and great reviews it was not a book to my taste.
Josefine

Title: A Vintage Affair Author: Isabel Wolff ISBN: 978-0-00-7245826