Two for you

The sun is slowly rising, coloring the sky and the neighborhood. The street lights are still on, giving everything a golden glow mixed with the cold light of a new day, and I sit in bed, a kitty sleeping at my feet, getting ready for the whirlwind of the next two days.

In these quiet morning moments before Tim stirs, I'll write a little about 2 books I recently read. Some of you may recall that I took a stab at a book blog, but never really followed-up. Instead of continuing to pursue that, I'll just write about them here. :)

Sidebar: The last 2 books I read I picked-up off the shelf simply because the titles grabbed me. No other reason, and yet I found myself engrossed in books filled with literary references, populated, in fact, by characters engaged in literary pursuits. How about that? It seemed an odd coincidence, considering my background in literature, but it was a delightful surprise and wonderful bonus to well-written books.

The Solace of Leaving Early (Haven Kimmel) is a novel about grief and healing, written with such tenderness that it is not a burden on the heart of the reader. Two little girls are, in one night, in one horrible event, bereft of their parents. They step into the lives of adults who carry their own heavy burdens - a young woman with a broken heart who has walked away from her dreams and left her plans behind her; a pastor who is in a crisis of faith, wondering how he can go on serving the flock; a mother and father doing the very best they can in this difficult world. Despite the troubles of each of these characters, the author draws us in and fleshes them out, making their struggles real and worthwhile, walking us through their days of sorrow and struggle, leading us to a place of renewed joy and hope. Quite a lovely and extraordinary book.

And then there's Special Topics in Calamity Physics (Marisha Pessl). Now wait just a minute ... what was this book doing on the fiction shelves? When I saw the title I just had to pick it up (perhaps influenced by my scientist husband!). This first-time
novel was amazing! The tale centers around a young woman,
Blue van Meer, raised primarily by her widowed father, a dashing scholar at obscure colleges. They move frequently, from town to town, and Blue is forced to find her place in each new environment. Her senior year of high school is a unique one - filled with unusual characters, challenges, mystery, difficult choices, and an exploration of who she is that leads her deeper into herself and frees her from her past. Pessl writes with a unique flair, using literary references cleverly and effectively. I loved this book! It is quite a long tale, but well worth the journey. Funny, fascinating, fully entertaining.

A tiny Merry Christmas gift to all of you who like to read. :-)