Miss Buncle's Book

Miss Buncle's Book, by D.E. Stevenson

28/25 | Started 09.19.21 • Finished 10.14.21

A fun little book I picked up after hearing about it on What Should I Read Next? as a great in between books easy read. Miss Buncle leads a rather unhappy life in a rather boring town until she decides to write a book under a pseudonym about everyone in her town.

She had lived for so long among these people and had suffered so many afternoon teas that she was able to say the expected thing without thinking about it at all. You simply put a penny in the machine and the expected thing came out at once, all done up in a neat little packet, and suitably labeled.

Turns out her descriptions are so spot on that people are able to identify themselves in the book, which results in anger along with even more of the identifiable behavior. I enjoyed all the different characters and reading their reactions to being written about, and especially how their hatred for the book actually spurred its success!

He had already noticed that Miss Buncle was either monosyllabic and completely inarticulate, or else overpowered by a stream of words which forced themselves between her lips like water from a bursting dam.

I saw the romantic part coming from a mile away but I didn't mind it as much as I have in some other books. Give this one a shot!

She was meticulously truthful in all she said (it was almost as if she were on oath to speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth all day long and every day of the week).

Killers of the Flower Moon

Killers of the Flower Moon, by David Grann

27/25 | Started 09.03.21 • Finished 09.19.21

A very interesting look at a piece of history about which I knew absolutely nothing. One would think that the systematic elimination of a people group would be something historians would deem worthy of covering, but my guess (and that of the rest of my book club) is that because it was against American Indians--such a minority--it didn't even register. Even if this explains the lack of notice, it just adds to the tragedy. People in high up places knew this was happening and instead of making a valiant effort at discovering what was going on, they threw stones at it.

History is a merciless judge. It lays bare our tragic blunders and foolish missteps and exposes our most intimate secrets, wielding the power of hindsight like an arrogant detective who seems to know the end of the mystery from the outset.

As a side note, there was some interesting information on the beginnings of the FBI. One point I thought particularly noteworthy was that its agents were originally meant to be unarmed white collar detectives. Anyway, all in all, a very insightful book with some great historical information on a little known part of American history.

Klara and the Sun

Klara and the Sun, by Kazuo Ishiguro

23/25 | Started 07.08.21 • Finished 07.16.21 | 3.5 stars

[This post was delayed as I had to wait for the book to come into the library so I could take a photo]

I have enjoyed Kazuo Ishiguro's books in the past so when I heard this book mentioned on What Should I Read Next, I figured I should probably give it a try.

‘Sometimes,’ she said, ‘at special moments like that, people feel a pain alongside their happiness.

This was so different from everything else of Ishiguro's I've read. It was futuristic and possibly a little dystopian (maybe?). But not in a bad way. Through the eyes and observations of an artificial friend named Klara, we learn about Josie, a young girl with an undisclosed medical condition. Her parents are divorced and her mother seems to carry a weight beyond what she can give voice to. Her best human friend, Rick, is somehow on the outside of what is socially acceptable. Through Klara's insights, the reader comes to learn what it means to be a friend and what it means to truly love someone.

Until recently, I didn’t think that humans could choose loneliness. That there were sometimes forces more powerful than the wish to avoid loneliness.’

I don't think this book is for everyone. It takes a bit of getting used to Klara's voice and getting comfortable with Ishiguro not explaining every little piece of the story. Also, it's a slow burn. That said, I think it would be a good, challenging read for someone looking to branch out in their reading life. While it's not an exquisitely written book (i.e. I didn't have a ton of highlights), it provides surprising insights into human life, relationship, and love that I wasn't expecting.

‘Hope,’ he said. ‘Damn thing never leaves you alone.’