2010 Book 25 - The Forgotten Garden

I just finished Kate Morton's novel The Forgotten Garden and loved it. But, before I get into the reasons why I loved this book let's take a look at the back-cover write-up.

A tiny girl is abandoned on a ship headed for Australia in 1913. She arrives completely alone with nothing but a small suitcase containing a few clothes and a single book - a beautiful volume of fairy tales. She is taken in by the dockmaster and his wife and raised as their own. On her twenty-first birthday, they tell her the truth, and with her sense of self shattered and very little to go on, "Nell" sets out to trace her real identity. Her quest leads her to Blackhurst Manor on the Cornish coast and the secrets of the doomed Mountrachet family. But it is not until her granddaughter, Cassandra, takes up the search after Nell's death that all the pieces of the puzzle are assembled. A spellbinding tale of mystery and self-discovery. The Forgotten Garden will take hold of your imagination and never let go.

First and foremost, this book is really a mystery, what really happened way back when and while I had a really good idea of what really happened about 2/3 of the way through, it was really intriguing to learn the bits and pieces and how Kate Morton fleshed out the story. (Oh and there was the relationship of the generations of women and I'm all about enjoying tales that weave in the mother/daughter dynamic.) AND, on top of the whole story-line there was the locale and how it was described...beautiful!!!

Admittedly, this isn't a book for everybody. The intrigue that is in this mystery is of a very subtle, romantic flavor and not shoot-em-up-who-dunnit. It is a mystery of why, which I love. Enjoy!!

Oh, and I've hit my goal for the year of 25 books and I still have time to probably get at least one more book in and then I can claim averaging a book every other week.

2010 Book 24 - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

I just finished The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon over the weekend. I thought this was great!! Here is what the back says:

Christopher John Francis Boone knows all the countries of the world and their capitals and every prime number up to 7, 057. He relates well to animals but has no understanding of human emotions. He cannot stand to be touched. And he detests the color yellow.

This improbable story of Christopher's quest to investigate the suspicious death of a neighborhood dog makes for one of the most captivating, unusual, and widely heralded novels in recent years.

It is a story about a boy with what I'm assuming is Asbergers. This would be another in a series where I've come across characters with this. I recently watched the movie Adam, which is a very sweet movie about a man with Asbergers; and there is a little boy in the series Parenthood, which I've taken to watching, who also has this. With watching these shows and reading the book, I am really amazed at the care-takers of these people (of course I'm amazed at any care-takers).

Okay, so back to the book.... It is a really fast read and very insightful. AND, the chapters are numbered in prime numbers (because the narrator, Christopher, is a math genius and he thinks in primes). I admit that I love prime numbers and at times when I'm working out or doing something repetitive I like to see how far I can count in prime numbers...is that weird?

Anyway, I would highly recommend this book to pretty much anybody.

(I think next year I'll come up with a rating system for my book reviews.....)