There is no pot of gold...

...at the end of this book

I have about 60 pages left of A Black Englishman by Carolyn Slaughter and I am struggling with it. Already from the first couple of pages I was not impressed with her way of writing, but I continued anyway. Now I am so close to the end that I can’t put it down (I have always felt that I have to finish every book I start). Disappointed I have realised that I will not feel the satisfying experience I usually do, when I read the last lines of a book.
Oh well, I guess I just have to pick up the next book and hope for a better result.
Josefine

My recommendations: East of the sun by Julia Gregson

Harry Potter II

A nasty throat infection has kept me away from anything but laying in my bed sipping hot tea and gurgle with salt. But here I am back again with my latest epiphany.

I am convinced of her geniuses.

I have now finished the first book in the Harry Potter series (Harry Potter and the philosopher’s stone) and I must say that I am hooked. Yes, it is a children’s story and most of it you have to take for what it is, but it is so well written and the story captures you that I understand what it is the has hooked a whole world. However I do think that this is a series that should be read with a couple of months in between, so I will take some time off before I pick up the second book.
Josefine

My recommendations: Faceless killers by Henning Mankell

A mind in prison

Bruno Manz makes an honest attempt to write his story A mind in prison about how he as a young German and soldier during the Second World War could stand on the same side as Hitler and close his eyes for the atrocities that were made by the regime. The books content is interesting and he talks openly about who he was and where he got his inspiration. It is difficult for me as someone who hasn’t lived through what he did to ask questions about his ignorance. However, towards the end though, I feel he repeats his own mistakes when he talks about his life in the US. He moves from blindly believing one regime to another. And perhaps that answers my previous question.
Also the book is not very well written, there must be other books on the subject that are better.
Josefine

My recommendations: Forgotten Voices of the Second World War by Max Arthur

Fallen Angels

I love a story that surprises you, a story that is not only well written but also written in an unconventional way. This was the case with Falling Angels by Tracy Chevalier. Each chapter is written from the point of view of a different character and we get to follow their thoughts and actions. It is such a melancholy story and I can’t help but think it must have been such a pain living during this time (the end of Victorian England) with all the restrictions society put on you.
Chevalier has found a nice balance between social commentary and pleasure reading in Falling Angels. It is one of the most well-written books I have read in a long time.
Josefine

My recommendations: The Pirate’s daughter by Margaret Cezair-Thompson

Fundamentalists

In a world where fear is constant and religious fundamentalists are the greatest enemies, it is refreshing to read a book (The reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid) that treats the subject light but seriously.
The Reluctant Fundamentalist is written completely from the perspective of a man sitting in a café in Afghanistan and reconstructs his life story to a man unknown to us. The end is predictable, but at the same time it takes you by surprise when it finally comes.
Josefine

My recommendations: Only half of me, being Muslim in Britain by Rageh Omaar

Nostalgia

A selection of Roald Dahl books are piled up on my nightstand waiting to be read. They are part of a new fresh edition paperbacks, all in the same format, packaged in a smart little box. Charlie and the chocolate factory, BFG, The witches, etc. and my absolute favourite Giraffe, Peli and I (my old picture book still exist somewhere in the bookshelves at my parents house).
I am waiting for a free afternoon to sit down for a nostalgia trip with Roald Dahl.
Josefine

My recommendations: Kiss Kiss by Roald Dahl

I caved in

As the frenzy has settled I have finally got around to reading Harry Potter. I borrowed the first book from the library (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone). I have long avoided reading them as I thought the madness around J.K. Rowling and her books was too much. It is difficult for me to read and enjoy a book that everyone wants you to have an opinion about. Now I have decided to give it a shot, and yes, I will tell you all what I thought about it.
Josefine

My recommendations: Lord of the Flies by William Golding