The Reading List for July 2023

 

Today is the last day of July, so the time has come for me to post a list of the books I've read this month. Regular readers will notice that there was no posted list for June. I'll start by explaining the reason for that.

I had come across several recommendations for a book by Gabriel García Márquez - One Hundred Years of Solitude. According to these recommendations, this particular book was considered by many to be one of the best books written in the 20th century. Last October, I had read two books by Márquez -Love in the Time of Cholera and In Evil Hour and had enjoyed both, so I had no reason to doubt these recommendations.

Márquez wrote his novels in Spanish and I know sometimes translations can fail to live up to the original, but in my view, the accolades for One Hundred Years of Solitude are overblown. I struggled with the book for nearly a month and found it unreadable. I hate to say this but I could not finish it - and I really struggled to do so. I realize I'm not the smartest person I know, but anyone looking at my book lists would have to agree that I'm fairly well read. I think it's the book, not me.

Four of the books I read in July are from "the nine books you must read in 2023". Those four are Half a Yellow Sun-The Midnight Library-Death at La Fenice and Sea of Tranquility. I can recommend all four.

One book not on the "nine books list" is America, a Redemption Story by Senator Tim Scott from South Carolina. The book was published before Senator Scott officially announced his run for POTUS. It's a very interesting book - Scott may not be the professional writer some of these others are, but I think the book is well written for all that.

The other four books on the list were all written by mystery writer Donna Leon. After reading her first book -Death at La Fenice - I knew I'd be reading more of her books. I've downloaded all 32 e-books in her Commissario Brunetti mystery series.

One book that I started in July which won't be finished in time to make this list is the first in Georges Simenon's detective Jules Maigret series. Simenon was a well respected Belgian mystery writer, but I can't get into his mysteries as I do Donna Leon, Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers or Elizabeth George. Perhaps it's another case of losing something in the translation.

So now....the list for July 2023.

Half a Yellow Sun     by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Midnight Libray     by Matt Haig
Death at La Fenice        by Donna Leon
Death in a Strange Country      by Donna Leon
The Anonymous Venetian          by Donna Leon
Sea of Tranquility        by Emily St. John Mandel
A Venetian Reckoning     by Donna Leon
America, a Redemption Story    by Senator Tim Scott
Acqua Alta      by Donna Leon

Five Books

In May, I came upon a list of "the nine books you must read in 2023". As I write this post, I've read five of the nine books and reviewed two - The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith and I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy .

I suppose I should say something about the other three - Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - The Midnight Library by Matt Haig - and Death at La Fenice, by Donna Leon.

Half of a Yellow Sun tells the story of the Biafran War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970). I was a teenager at the time and have some memories of the war from news reports, but I was more preoccupied with the Vietnam War. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was not yet born at the time of the war and obviously her information regarding the war is second hand. The book is no less powerful for that.

The Midnight Library tells of a woman who is able to experience alternate versions of her life. It's all explained by "Quantum mechanics".

Death at La Fenice, is the first in Donna Leon's Commissario Brunetti mystery series. I don't know why I've never heard of Ms.Leon before now. I've begun reading the 2nd book in the series -I've downloaded all 32. I'm not sure how many I'll read in the series before returning to the "nine books" list.

I can recommend each of the five books I've read so far.

The Dumaguete Airport Road Bridge

I mentioned on one of my blogs that Google Maps Can Be So @#%$ing Lame. At that time, I had attempted to add a couple of local bridges to Google Maps only to be told that the edits could not be verified. As it turned out, those bridges were eventually added to the Map without my getting credit. At least I was finally able to upload some photos of the bridges.

Now today, I found myself in a part of Dumaguete where I had never ridden my bicycle, and came upon Dgte. Airport Road Bride. I took photos of the bridge and attempted to add its location. The edit was not accepted.

I don't understand how Google Maps can reject an edit when photographic proof is provided. At any rate, I'm posting the photos here. Maybe one day Google Maps will "aggregate its fecal material".