Author: Mindy Mejia

Maya is a young speech therapist working in the psychiatric hospital where she spent some time as a patient in her teenaged years. When Lucas arrives as a patient he makes a connection to Maya and is enlisted to get him to tell her, and the police, his story. Lucas and his father disappeared into the woods ten years prior after the father is implicated in a suspected murder.

As the story was unfolding I would often think “this is unbelievable” but then the author would bring the story back into reality and carry on.

Goodreads Rating: * * * *

Author: Khaled Hosseini

The book follows the lives of two Afghan women – Mariam and Laila. Mariam is the illegitimate daughter of a man who already has three wives; although loved by her father she and her mother live in squalid conditions on the outskirts of the city. Laila grows up in a home where her father emphasizes the rights of women. Both women end up married to the same man and their lives become much worse.

I expect the living conditions revealed in the story were true for many Afghan women and, although harsh, they were possibly better off than many.

Goodreads Rating: * * * *

Author: Ian Rankin

We picked this book up quite awhile ago at the used book store just down the hill. When you drop off books you get a credit that you can use against half the price of a book. It was a $30 book in Canada; the price inside says $4 so we only paid $2 and it was worth every penny.

Of course I like Ian Rankin’s writing and his Inspector Rebus is a favourite character. Old cases come under scrutiny and, although Rebus was just starting out during the cases that are being investigated, he is under suspicion. The story also involves a new case that Rebus and his team are out to solve.

Goodreads Rating: * * * *

Author: Jose Saramago

I’ve always enjoyed books by this author and this is no exception. The style of writing was different from his other books; it read very much as if someone was telling you the story. Along with the story, there were lots of humorous asides from the writer to the reader.

The book is loosely based on actual facts. It is said that in the mid-1500’s and elephant and his mahout made a journey from Lisbon to Vienna; their escorts on this journey were officers of the king of Portugal and the Archduke of Austria. Of course Solomon and his mahout had already traveled from India to Portugal although the story doesn’t go that far back in time.

Goodreads Rating: * * * *