Summer Reading Part Two

My latest reads/listens...


Jacqueline Davies' Lost (2009) centers on Essie, a young woman growing up on New York's Lower East Side in the early 1900s.  Essie is utterly devoted to her little sister Zelda, whom she essentially raises.  Chapters alternate between introspective, diary-like entries that trace the girls' relationship and more conventional, narrative chapters that reveal Essie's outer life, with a focus on her experiences in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, notable for its tragic fire which resulted in the deaths of 146 workers in 1911.  Davies also weaves in an imagined version of the real life disappearance of a young heiress.  I found Lost to be a compelling read, one that I would recommend particularly to more mature female students.

Clay Carmichael's Wild Things (2009) was another splendid find from the friends of the library sale shelf (as was Lost).  I wasn't familiar with it, but the book jacket synopsis sounded good, so I paid $2 and was the proud owner of another young adult novel.  The central character is 11-year-old Zoe, who has suffered countless losses in her life, but gets a chance to start anew with a reclusive artist uncle.  Although most of the story is told from Zoe's point of view, several chapters are told from the perspective of a nearly feral tomcat living near the home of Zoe and her uncle.  I thought this literacy device was effective and engaging, not artificial as it might be imagined.  I can imagine using Wild Things as a discussion-provoking read aloud with my someday class of sixth graders.

Alexander McCall Smith's La's Orchestra Saves the World (2008, 2009 Recorded Books) is a stand alone novel by the author of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series.  As a fan of this series, as well as McCall Smith's 44 Scotland Street series, I happily chose this recording from the library shelf.  It is a quiet sort of story, one in which not a great deal happens, but I found it nonetheless enjoyable.  The title refers to a wartime orchestra, albeit a small and rather mediocre one, established by La, a young widow residing in the British countryside during WWII.  While it was good entertainment as I relentlessly weeded the back yard, I won't remember it long, perhaps because La was not as engaging a character as Mme. Ramotswe in No. 1 Ladies' series, or young Bertie in the 44 Scotland series.

Sharyn McCrumb's The Devil Amongst the Lawyers (2010, 2010 Brilliance Audio) is set in rural Virginia at the time of the Depression.  It has been some years since I have read other works by McCrumb, several of which focus on Nora Bonesteel, who has the ability to see that which others cannot.  I remember liking these earlier Nora Bonesteel novels for their characters and unique perspectives.  This novel focused primarily on several journalists who have come to town to write about the trial of a young woman accused of murdering her father.  I found the characters and story less than compelling.  I am not sure I would have finished reading the book, but I did listen to the entire audio version.  Fans of Nora Bonesteel might be disappointed by the small part she plays in this story. 

I know that's not seven books in seven days, but I am working on a couple more.  So it goes...