I LOVED Where the Heart Is-- read it several years ago, I guess when it came out. The fact that I remember it is testament to its quality since I frequently forget what I read yesterday. I like Oprah books a lot because they are generally great light reading, but are well-written and different enough to be interesting.
Lately I am having problems getting through books and I don't know if it's me growing impatient with writers or if my mind is going, which as you know is one of my fears. I notice on my list that I have three N/Fs (not finished)in the past month. When I was younger, I felt obligated to complete a book, as if it were rude to close it in the middle and leave--like walking out of a room in the middle of a conversation. On the other hand, if a book hasn't engaged me in a silent dialogue of some sort by 50 pages, established a relationship between it and me, then maybe it's just a blind date that didn't work, and it's ok to admit it and quit.
I used that blind date metaphor in my book about Libby the Librarian-
The books paraded through her days like living, breathing personalities. She watched them leave in the company of others while she, a literary yenta, hoped for a successful match. Some were chosen for their pretty faces, some because they came from a good family, some were blind dates that she set up with high hopes for a rewarding union.
I am reading Bret Lott's A SOng I Knew By Heart right now and debating about quitting. You may have read Jewel by him; it was an Oprah selection, and I read another- The Hunt Club-- that I was neutral about. His style isn't much to my liking. FUnny because my favorite books are about people and the small details of life, and I love Southern writers, but well, he is sort of boring.
But since he's so nice, I may have to stick out the whole evening with him. |
