Author: Rosalind Laker

There is so much in this book, set in Holland in the 17th century. Francesca Visser is the daughter of a painter (I don’t think he was real) and longs to pursue a painting career on her own. Both Rembrandt and Vermeer were contemporaries of her father and they figure into the story. There is even a reference to the painting which is the subject of the book The Goldfinch.

Tulips and the tulip trade also play a big role in the story. Tulip mania had ruined a number of fortunes and the search for unique colours and flowers leads to some of the mystery behind the characters. At the time of the story France is threatening to invade Holland for a second time.

But generally, this is the story of three young women and the struggles they encounter in their search for love.

Goodreads Rating: * * * *

Author: Shannon Moroney

One month after her marriage, while she was out of town, the author’s husband committed two acts of brutal sexual assault. This is her story of dealing with the trauma of her situation, her relationship with her husband, and how she found a way to heal and help others in similar situations.

The book is an easy read and, in hindsight, it is laying the ground for her work in restorative justice.

Goodreads Rating: * * *

Author: Margaret Atwood

I’m not a huge Atwood fan but when I saw this series on Netflix I knew right away that I wanted to read the book. Our library was still intact at that time and I was surprised that we didn’t have a copy of the book on the shelf. On my last trip to Texada I was looking on the bookshelf there and found a copy that I probably purchased at one of the thrift shops or the library sale.

The novel, based on a true story, has details filled in from Atwood’s imagination. In 1843, Grace Marks was convicted for her involvement in the murder of two people. Her partner in the crime was sentenced to death by hanging but Grace’s original sentence was commuted to life in prison. She spends the next 29 years in the penetentiary with a bit of that time spent in the lunatic assylum. The thing I most wanted to know was whether or not Grace was guilty as from the very start there were many people who thought she was innocent. I will have to live with the fact that I’ll never know for sure.

Through the book, Grace is pictured as sewing a variety of quilt blocks. Each section of the book starts with a sketch of a quilt block and I definitely see an Alias Grace quilt in my future. Those quilt blocks bumped my rating from 4-stars to 5.

Goodreads Rating: * * * * *

Author: Laura Lee Hope

Monday, September 21, 2020

Pat and I spent an afternoon emptying the many bins of books that had been packed up when they started the restoration work in the basement. We moved the bookcases around a bit and, since everything was off the shelf, we decided to reorganize and reorder the books. After a few hours we managed to finish off most of the novels; there is no guarantee that we won’t find more novels in some of the remaining bins.

After dealing with all of the great books we have on the shelf I have sworn I won’t borrow any more books from the public library – after I finish the two library books I currently have on loan! I’ve also said I won’t spend another evening watching TV – after I finish the Modern Family series and unless I have a knitting project I’m trying to get done!

As we unpacked I would often ask Pat if he was interested in a particular book that I had already read. In most cases the answer was yes so the book went onto the shelf. In our reordering we found a few books that we had duplicate copies of so they were set aside for donation. We found we had a duplicate set of the Harry Potter series; we posted them for sale and had a few people interested but they are still sitting on the kitchen table.

The big find of the day was a book of Mum’s. I knew I had it but I hadn’t really paid much attention to it and I had never read it. I opened the cover and found an inscription to Mum from Aunt Almeda on the occasion of Mum’s 10th birthday. Aunt Almeda was five years older than Mum.

I did some research and found some very interesting things about the book series and its author. The book, called The Moving Picture Girls at Sea, is the sixth book in a series of seven. The author, Laura Lee Hope, is not actually a “real” person. Each book in the series may well be written by a different author and the name Laura Lee Hope was a pseudonym for several authors who wrote for the Stratemeyer Syndicate. Laura Lee Hope is credited with a number of other books, including the Bobbsey Twins series.

This Syndicate was also responsible for the Hardy Boys and the Nancy Drew series; both of these series were accredited to a single author who was also a pseudonym.

UPDATE: October 9, 2020

I’ve read the book and it isn’t bad but I think it might be a little advanced for a 10-year old. It explains quite a lot about how films were made and the various productions that were taking place simultaneously with many of the same actors in various films. Movies were probably not all that common in 1930; I wish I’d asked Mum when and where she saw her first movie.

Goodreads Rating: Regardless of the story, the book is priceless to me.