Almost Famous Women by Megan Mayhew Bergman | Review

Since the paperback recently came out, it seemed appropriate to finally get to my review of Almost Famous Women by Megan Mayhew Bergman. This is a short story collection focusing on the lives of the 13 eponymous women. There is a wide breadth of time and age, with the youngest woman being the toddler Allegra Byron (that  Byron) to painter Romaine Brooks.

I bought this book thinking I would read it slowly, one story at a time. Instead, I read the whole thing in one afternoon. The stories are riveting and haunting, and will leave you scouring Wikipedia to learn more.

Mayhew Bergman varies her form a lot throughout the book. There are a wide variety of narrators, in the first- versus third-person sense but also in relation to the subject. Allegra’s story is told through the eyes of her nurse whose own child died of Typhus, while other stories are told through the eyes of thieves and lovers.

This was one of my favorite books of the summer, if not of the year. I highly recommend reading on the patio with a glass of rosé before the summer ends.

Vacation Reads | Reading

I recently had the ridiculous luxury of an entire week of paid vacation on the beach and of course I took a stack of books. I’m still not used to the idea of PTO, so the idea of taking an entire week off and still getting paid just seems like the height of luxury.

But I digress.

I didn’t get quite as much finished as my pace in the first two days would suggest, but I’m still pretty happy with my reading for the week.

Books brought:

• Devil in the White City
• The Meursault Investigation
• The Silkworm
• The People’s Republic of Amnesia

Books read:

• Devil in the White City
• The Silkworm
• The Meursault Investigation (halfway)

I read both Devil in the White City and The Silkworm by Tuesday afternoon, and both are quite lengthy books. I really, really loved both of them. Devil in the White City tells two (true) stories: one of the design of the Chicago World’s Fair and one of a serial killer operating at the same time. It was fascinating and fast paced and read like a novel even though the book is a nonfiction. Highly recommend. I also really enjoyed The Silkworm, though not quite as much as its predecessor, The Cuckoo’s Calling.

I was rather surprised when my reading came to a grinding halt during the very short Meursault Investigation, after the lengthier books I read earlier in the week.

While I am loving Meursault, a retelling of The Stranger from the perspective of The Arab’s brother, it is a deceptively short book with unassuming simple language. The book deals with so many different layered issues (including but not limited to, colonialism, religion, family, time, absurdism, and war) that I would read for a half hour and find I had only read ten pages. So, while a fantastic book and meditation on one of my favorite books, not the best beach read.

As a result, I didn’t get to The People’s Republic of Amnesia yet but it’s definitely high on my TBR pile since it’s a library book.

What did you read on the beach/picnic blanket/in a hammock this summer?

With Charity for All | Currently Reading

 

Written by the former head of NPR, this book focuses on systemic issues facing the nonprofit sector. 

As someone who works in that sector, nothing has been super shocking to me so far but I would highly recommend it to anyone who doesn’t work in the sector. 

Gilmore Guys | Currently listening

  
As a longtime Gilmore Girls fan, I’m a little embarassed that it took me this long to get around to the Gilmore Guys. 

They’re analysis is (usually) spot-on, in particular I love their attentiveness to issues of representation of women and people of color, and Kevin’s love for Emily. They’re funny and have great guests, and I mean it’s Gilmore Girls. 

At first I was a little hesitant because I was afraid they were mocking the show or that they wouldn’t get it, but that fear was very much misplaced. They just so get this show and I really appreciate two men who talk so genuinely about the depth of female relationships, complicated female characters, and the like without being condescending or mocking. 

These guys are the real deal and their show is awesome. 

Follow them on Twitter @GilmoreGuysShow and their show is on iTunes here. 

Ruth Galloway | Series Review

I absolutely love the mystery/thriller genre and every summer I can’t get enough of them.  This summer’s addiction has been Elly Griffith’s Ruth Galloway series. Since this is a series review, I will try to keep spoilers to a minimum but there are some spoilers.

Ruth is an archeology professor in Norfolk, England who is asked to consult on a murder investigation by Detective Chief Inspector Nelson. The rest of the series sees her continuing to consult with the local police force, as well as her shenanigans with the cast of characters around her.

This is a really fun series. It is suspenseful with so many twists and turns — very classic mystery. What sets this series apart for me are the characters. Ruth is ambitious, she is fat and doesn’t really care, and she [SPOILERS] becomes a mother who continues to be ambitious and driven.

The cast of characters in this book is great. There’s her friend the Druid, the bumbling policeman Clough and the very capable detective Judy Johnson, her flakey friend Shauna and other assorted background characters. The characters are well-developed as the series goes on, with their own baggage and ambitions.

Ruth Galloway’s stories also have an amazing atmospheric setting. Ruth lives out on the Saltmarsh, a potentially sacred pagan place, but a definitely atmospheric one. It would be easy for that kind of setting to be really cheesy, but Griffiths uses it sparingly and to great effect.

There are currently seven Ruth Galloway novels, with a couple of companions too. I highly recommend if you enjoy good characters, fast plots, and staying up late.