Our book club recently read a great non-fiction book entitled “Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee” by Casey Cep. I highly recommend it! However, it became apparent during our discussion that those of us who actually read a physical copy of the book enjoyed it much more than those who listened to the audiobook. Hmmm ... There could be myriad reasons for this: People concentrate more when reading as opposed to listening; the structure of the book is more obvious when reading; the narrator may not be an appropriate fit for the book. Maybe some books just aren’t right for being read aloud.   
But some books are perfect for being read aloud! This month I’m going to share a few books that I believe should only be experienced as audiobooks.

First is “Born a Crime,” the autobiographical account of comedian and host of “The Late Show,” Trevor Noah. Trevor Noah is funny and insightful, and that comes through as he narrates his story of growing up in South Africa during the later years of Apartheid, when a biracial relationship (his mother is black South African; his father is Swiss-German) was considered a criminal act. Trevor was seldom allowed to play outside for fear that his light skin would be noticed by authorities. When walking down the street as a child, he and his mother couldn’t walk together.  His story is poignant and laugh-out-loud funny. Noah’s narration and his use of all the South African dialects make this a must as an audiobook.

If you had asked me if I read a lot of celebrity autobiographies, I would have said no. But apparently I will listen to them, because here is another celebrity autobiography that should only be experienced as an audiobook: Matthew McConaughey’s “Greenlights” is part poetry, part prose, part pep-talk - this audiobook is completely entertaining read in McConaughey’s distinctive drawl.

The novel “A Gentleman in Moscow” by Amor Towles may be just as lovely to read as it is to listen to, but I can’t imagine it. Set in Moscow during the Stalin era, the fictional Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov finds himself a “permanent resident” of the Hotel Metropol in Moscow for the crime of being a “social parasite,” also-known-as an aristocrat. Nicholas Guy Smith’s narration brings the count, and the hotel, to life, and the entire book is simply lyrical.

Now that you have this list - just in time for your summer road trips - give one, or all, of these audiobooks a try, and be sure to share any great audio selections you find.

For those who might be interested, here are some other audiobooks that I have listened to recently:
• “The Dutch House” by Ann Padgett
• “Dear Edward” by Ann Napolitano
• “The Push” by Ashley Audrain
• “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte
• “Win” by Harlan Coben (I recommend this book for those who are already fans/familiar with the Myron Bolitar series.)

I love a good whodunit! I started young, with all the “Nancy Drew” mysteries. If you enjoy mysteries and haven’t discovered the author Tana French, you are in for a treat!

French’s most recent novel, “The Searcher,” is beautifully written. I know! That’s not the typical description applied to a mystery. As you follow Cal, a former Chicago cop who has retired to Ireland, French’s writing allows you to perfectly visualize his walks along the country lane, the gentle Irish rain, and his somewhat derelict cottage. What you can’t quite visualize is a crime. You’re three-quarters through the book before you discover it.  But throughout, there’s something just beneath the surface of the bucolic town that’s just enough to quicken your pulse.

In contrast, “The Witch Elm” is a rollercoaster ride!! You’ve heard that about books before, but this isn’t your run-of-the-mill roller coaster. This has ups and downs, twists and turns, spins and drops! Just when you think you can relax, take a breath, and pry your white-knuckled hands from the rail, it takes off again.  This is not a book for someone looking for tranquil bedtime reading. It’s a thriller!

As whodunits go, I also enjoy a good police procedural series. I will binge-read a good series! And Tana French’s “Dublin Murder Squad” series is definitely binge-worthy! A few years ago there was an (in my opinion) ill-conceived attempt to adapt it for the STARZ channel as Dublin Murders. Like Tana French’s stand-alone books, these books are intriguing stories that hold you until the very last word. Unlike most series, each of the books follows different characters from Dublin’s murder squad.

In “In the Woods,” readers meet Rob Ryan and Cassie Maddox. There’s the type of partnership that only needs looks to communicate and is known around the squad as Maddoxandryan. But as they investigate the murder of a young girl in a Dublin suburb, things go terribly wrong. The case is solved, but their partnership is shattered - sending Rob into administrative limbo and Cassie to the domestic violence squad.

In “The Likeness,” Cassie is making the best of the domestic violence squad when she gets a frantic call from her boyfriend, Sam O’Neill, a detective on the murder squad. He’s at the scene of a stabbing, along with Cassie’s long ago boss in the undercover unit, Frank Mackey. When Cassie arrives at the scene, she learns that there is no connection to domestic violence. Instead, the victim, Lexi Madison, is Cassie’s double. It’s even more unsettling because Lexi Madison is the undercover alias that Cassie and Frank created on a case during which Cassie herself was stabbed. To solve this crime, Cassie steps back into undercover and into Lexi’s life,  knowing that she may be living with a killer.

“Faithful Place” has Frank Mackey missing yet another weekend with his 9-year-old daughter, Holly. This time, though, it’s not for an undercover case. In 1985, 19-year-old Francis Mackey and the love-of-his-life Rosie Daly planned to run away to England, but Rosie never showed up. Frank spent the next 22 years believing that she had gone without him, until her suitcase is found with their disintegrating ferry tickets still inside. That’s enough for him to finally return to the neighborhood and his estranged family to find a killer.

There are three more books in the series, but I am out of column space! Be sure to read more about the Dublin Murder Squad in “Broken Harbour,” “The Secret Place” and “The Trespasser.”

by Nancy Carstens

I read. A lot! People often ask me how I find all of my books, and I find them the same way as everyone else. I’m in a book club. I get recommendations from friends and family. I have favorite authors. I check out book reviews and lists in the media. I follow a number of readers, publishers, and authors on social media.
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Along with all of that, I do have my own quirky, never fail (so far) strategy. I look for titles that include the word book, or reading, bookshop, library, readers, etc. You get the idea - books about books. I think it all started with “The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend” by Katrina Bivald. It’s a great book, in which Sara, who has recently lost her bookshop job, travels from Sweden to Broken Wheel, Iowa, to meet her fellow bookworm pen pal, only to learn that Amy has died. The isolated farm community takes in Sara, and as she begins to learn their history, their hopes and their heartaches, she recommends books to them.

This method often leads to other books. “The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek” by Kim Michele Richardson introduces readers to the Packhorse Library system that was established in Kentucky during the 1930s and to the “blue people” of Kentucky, who were carriers of a genetic trait that led to methemoglobinemia - poorly oxygenated blood, which caused their skin to be blue. This book led me to another book that centers around Kentucky’s Packhorse Library system, JoJo Moyes’ “The Giver of Star.” Both books involve intrigue, love, and friendship, while “Bookwoman” also explores prejudice.     

Sometimes this method leads to entire series of books. I came across a book entitled “Lost Books and Old Bones.” It turned out to be the third book in the Scottish Bookshop Mystery series by Paige Shelton. These are cozy mysteries following the amateur sleuthing of Delaney, who left Kansas for a job at an Edinburgh bookshop called the Cracked Spine. If you like a mystery, these are enchanting. Also look for “The Cracked Spine,” “Of Books and Bagpipes,” and a novella entitled “A Christmas Tartan.” Speaking of Scottish bookshops, as owner of Scotland’s largest second-hand bookstore, Shaun Bythell’s observations in “Seven Kinds of People You Meet in Bookshops” are thoroughly entertaining! While most of the personalities catalogued are specific to bookshops, anyone who has owned or worked in an independent retail setting will immediately recognize some people. I’m looking forward to reading his other books, “The Diary of a Bookseller” and “Confessions of a Bookseller,” as well as adding a visit to Wigtown, Scotland, to my bucket list.

Another bookish series begins with the title “The Library at the Edge of the World.” This series, by Felicity Hayes-McCoy, takes place in the fictional Finfarran Peninsula of Ireland and follows the librarian, Hannah, who returns home following an ugly divorce. Throughout the series, Hannah not only turns the library around, but also herself. “Library” is a charming book, followed by “Summer at the Garden Cafe,” “Mistletoe Matchmaker,” and “The Transatlantic Book Club.”

Like Hannah, we’ve probably all felt the need to turn our lives around at some point. What if, between life and death, there was a library filled with all of the thousands of stories we might have had based on the different choices we could have made throughout our lives, and all we had to do to live a different life was to choose a book? That is the premise of “The Midnight Library” by Matt Haig. This is one of the most ingenuous storylines I have ever read. It’s both entertaining and profound. It does deal with deep topics including mental health, family issues, and suicide, but it is so worth reading. 
 
If you can’t decide what to read next, I suggest trying books about books.
by Nancy Carstens

It’s February! Valentine’s Day! Love is in the air - at least a love of books! I asked the Mountain Mirror writers to share the books they love. Here are a few of their responses. I hope you love these books, too!

My favorite book is “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte. It was in high school that I first read “Jane Eyre,” and I was mesmerized. I was captivated by every element of the novel. The gothic nature of the story was spine-tingling. But, Jane! From a young age Jane faced challenges and hardships, but never allowed them to harden her - only to strengthen her. Jane did what was morally right, even though it was painful. She did what was personally right, even though it was inconvenient. When faced with cruelty, Jane developed empathy.  When she experienced loss, Jane developed self-sufficiency, but also generosity. Despite a lifetime of being confronted with her “worthlessness,” Jane never doubted her own worth. I know! I’m making Jane Eyre sound like some “paragon of virtue,” but that’s not the case. Jane experienced strong emotions - anger, sadness, and confusion, to name a few. It is how she dealt with those emotions, and how she grew through them, rather than succumbed to them, that makes this character so special. Let’s not forget that I was a teenage girl; so, the brooding Mr. Rochester and the idea of a love that could speak to you across time and distance were also appealing.

Merrile Stroud shared that she was born with a congenital kidney defect and spent many days in a hospital, or at home, while she was very sick. Books became her best friends. In the second grade, she had major surgery and spent an entire month in the hospital. Her mother gave her a copy of “Little Women” by Louisa May Alcott - the full version, not some children’s abbreviated version. She read that book every waking hour until she finished it. She said that she could smell those fires, feel Marmee’s hand on her shoulder, and picture a sister sitting by her bedside holding her hand. Merrile longed for a sister to be a constant companion and best friend. From that time on, she always wanted four daughters. She described the utter joy she and John Stroud felt when they learned Baby Stroud No. 4 was a girl.

Carol Lannon  loves historical fiction and shared “Katherine” by Anya Seton as her all-time favorite. It’s about Katherine Swynford, who lived in the 14th century. Her sister was married to Chaucer. Katherine’s life reads like a medieval romance, in the truest sense. A commoner, she was eventually married to one of the sons of Edward III (Edward III, John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster; from them came five kings, and from Henry VII and Elizabeth of York, all other English monarchs are descended). Carol first read “Katherine” when she was quite young and was introduced to events and people who made English history. She describes Seton’s writing as extraordinary, saying it’s like the written version of Masterpiece Theater.
Tish Gailmard shared “An Hour Before Daylight” by Jimmy Carter as one of her favorites. It’s a beautiful story of his childhood in a simple, sweet time. She described it as a beautiful glimpse into the old South. Having grown up in South Georgia, not far from Plains, I also love this book.

Jeannie Harper said that her favorite book of all time is “The Count of Monte Cristo” by Alexandre Dumas (with the assistance of a ghostwriter). Jeannie appreciates the historical setting, but it’s the story’s handle on human action and behavior that she finds most intriguing. According to Jeannie, the story explores why humans do what they do, applying a pragmatism about human psychology. While she doesn’t feel that a person should use revenge as a personal mantra in life, she notes that it does make for a good story. And in the case of Edmond Dantes, she feels it is certainly justified! Jeannie says that in dealing with life’s challenges and disappointments, she reminds herself of a line from the book, spoken by the character Abbe´ Busoni, “There are two cures to all ails: time and silence.”

I hope you will spend some time with a book you love very soon.

Happy New Year! I recommend that you celebrate 2021 with a reading challenge. There are many reading challenges out there. They can be as simple, or as elaborate, as you choose. You can even create your own.
An easy place to start with a reading challenge is Goodreads.com, an online community of readers where you can get recommendations, share what you’re reading, leave reviews, and more. You can even join a reading challenge. It’s simple! Just choose the number of books you want to read during the year, and enter it. It’s completely up to you. It can be four books, or 40, or 400. Then, as you finish a book, you log it on the website.

If that doesn’t seem like much of a challenge, a quick internet search will turn up more. You can find them for the entire year, or mini-challenges each month. Some sites offer a log that you can print to keep up with your reading.

The site bookstacksngoldenmoms.com offers its fourth annual A to Z Reading Challenge this year. This is a simple challenge. Read a book that has a specific letter of the alphabet in the title until you have covered each letter: “Anne of Green Gables” by L.M. Montgomery; “The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek” by Kim Michelle Richardson; “Where the Crawdads Sing” by Delia Owens ... you get the idea. These titles can be fiction or non-fiction, current or classic, it’s up to you. Or switch it up, and choose the authors alphabetically, like Mitch Albom’s “The Five People You Meet in Heaven” or Zadie Smith’s  “Intimations.” This site also has great monthly mini-challenges, for example, in January you can read a book you purchased in 2020 but didn’t read, or April, the assignment is a book with an autistic main character (April is Autism Awareness month).

No matter what type of challenge you choose, enjoy it. You may not like every book, and that’s okay. Try to finish it. I have found some of my favorite books through reading challenges, and I have found some books that made me wonder about the author who came up with it, and about the publisher who thought it sounded like a good idea. That’s why it’s called a challenge. Happy reading in 2021!

DIY READING CHALLENGE
If you can’t find exactly what you’re looking for in a reading challenge, make your own. Just be sure that it is actually a challenge. Some possible categories:

• A book by an author of a gender or ethnicity other than yours
• A book by an author of a genderAND ethnicity other than yours
• A book published in your birth year
• A self-published book
• A book published locally
• A book set in a country you would like to visit
• A book set in a country you have visited
• A book you read in school
• A book you should have read in school – but didn’t
• A book you gave up on
• A book that intimidates you
• A book that has been banned
• A book that has been adapted to a movie
• A book translated from another language
• A book recommended by a friend, family member, or colleague (you can even make that three separate
• categories)
• A book you choose based solely on the cover

by Nancy Carstens