The Bell

 

I first became aware of Iris Murdoch through Roger Ebert's review of the movie Iris on his show. He said that the movie didn't give the author her due. He mentioned he was a fan. Despite this, I didn't read an Iris Murdoch book till much later. This is my second time reading this book. There are two storylines one involving a gay priest named Michael who goes through turmoil after he realizes he is in love with two boys Toby and Nick, although they are both at different times in his life. Then there is Dora who is married to an older man Paul who she merely tolerates. Toby and Dora uncover an old bell. They try to replace the ancient bell with the new one. This is kind of lengthy. A.S. Byatt wore an introduction for one of the editions and I'm actually interested in what she has to say. I've got to read more books by Iris. 

Valerie and her week of wonders

 This is a bizarre Czech book. I saw the movie first and liked it so I decided to read the book. I like the book more since it is less trashy and more involving. I found this in the romance section of my library where it was very misplaced. This is an experimental novel. Valerie is developing into a woman and she has to deal with a grandma who has found a way to be young, a person who might be her brother or not, and a polecat who sucks the blood of chickens. I read this ten years ago and read it pretty quickly the second time this week. I need to check out more surrealist books like this. 

The Real Life of Sebastian Knight

 This was Nabokov's first English book. I read Laughter in the Dark which was written before this. That was good and showed Nabokov had potential. The Real Life of Sebastian Knight probably wouldn't be remembered at all had Nabokov not written Lolita. It's merely ok. It's about a half brother writing a biography of his brother Sebastian Knight. He meets a phony biographer of his brother along the way and gets some information about Knight's past loves. It also talks about Knight's writing. It was kind of boring, to be honest. Still, I'm going to read more of Nabokov's works. 

The Feigning Courtesans

 

In the play "The Feigning Courtesans" two sisters Marcella and Cornelia run away and pretend like they are courtesans. One does so to escape marriage from someone she doesn't care for. Meanwhile, a past lover of Marcella falls in love with the new person she pretends to be. In the end, Marcella is allowed to be with the one she loves and other subplots are settled.  I like Aphra Behn. She was one of the first women writers able to make a living off her writing. I read "The Rover" earlier and that was better. Still, this was ok. 

The Ocean at the end of the lane

 

This is one of Gaiman's best. It's a gothic like tale about an outcast boy who becomes friends with a peculiar family called the Hempstocks after his father begins an affair with his babysitter who more or less is a monster literally. This was my third time reading the book. I like how it was short and to the point. I can't figure out which one I liked better Coraline or this. I heard once that this was going to become a movie with Tom Hanks. That would have been cool but that never happened. It's not exactly a kid's book since it has sexual elements in it even though it is seen through a kid's eyes. It kind of reminds of me movies like The Reflecting Skin that combine both elements. Simply amazing. 

Among others

 

This science-fiction book was ok. It had a subplot with fairies that I wasn't that interested in. The character was really into science fiction. In fact, she joins a book group devoted to science fiction. The author was very enthusiastic about science fiction and I added a lot of the books that she discussed onto my goodreads books to read list. There's also a bad guy in her science fiction group that she falls for. I also liked the relationship between the main character and her estranged father.

The Youngest Doll

 

This was a pretty cool book of feminist stories from the Latin American author Rosario Ferre. My favorite story was"The Youngest Doll" where an aunt makes all her nieces dolls as a wedding present. For the youngest niece, she makes a doll filled with honey. The girl finds her husband only really wanted her as a trophy. "Amalia" is an interesting story too about a girl who is infatuated with a chauffeur and fights off the advances of her uncle. I need to be more multicultural with my reading. There is no doubt that this book will get another reading maybe in a year or two.