Marell’s BFGs in 2022

I hope to do better this year in keeping up with this thread rather than just listing books read.

1. In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden.

The house of Brede is a Benedictine monastery in the south of England. The story is an intimate portrait of the religious life. The story begins with successful businesswoman Philippa Talbot, who at age 42, much older than most, leaves her home and everything else behind her, and enters the House of Brede as a postulant. I loved this book from start to finish. I began reading it sometime after Christmas. What a lovely way to end the year and begin the new.

Hi Mary, lovely to see you here again my dear.

Hi Mary. Starred your thread to follow your reading.

>3 connie53: Thank you, Connie. I hope to read a few more big books than I did last year. Next on my list is Kristin Lavransdatter. I’ve starred you also. Wishing you a fantastic year of reading.

Thanks, Mary. Kristin Lavransdatter is on my tbr too!

Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset, translated from the Norwegian by Tiina Nunnally is actually a trilogy: The Wreath, The Wife, The Cross, in one volume. I started it at the end of January and finished it last night. There are a lot of characters and family connections, which for me was pretty daunting, one reason I would recommend reading this in one go, and this translation is purported to be the best one. But I loved it from start to finish and I was always eager to read it each time I picked it up. The portrayal of daily life in 14th century Norway with its customs, traditions, religious life and lingering pagan beliefs is richly depicted.

Another book I highly recommend to anyone interested in the time period of the 14th-15th century is The Greenlanders by Jane Smiley. It is told in the style of the old Icelandic/Norse sagas and is around 600 pages long.

I just finished Trade Wind by M.M. Kaye, and loved every minute of its 553 pages. I read Death in Zanzibar earlier this year and enjoyed it too, but this book really shows what a good writer she is. Adventure, romance, treachery, and tragedy, a satisfying book in every way. Because of this book I plan to read every one of her books I can get my hands on. I’d like to share this passage:

“As the shadows lengthened the quiet garden of The House of Shade began to fill once again with chattering birds coming home to roost, and beyond the windows and far away on the horizon Hero could see the lilac-coloured hills of Africa, clear and sharp in the evening light and looking closer than she had ever seen them look before: so close that it seemed as though one might reach them in an hour. The sun plunged behind them in a blaze of glory and green twilight enfolded the Island; and suddenly it was night and there were a million stars in the sky.”

We, the Drowned by Carsten Jensen is a novel which has turned out to be one of my favorite books of the year. The author is from the town of Marstal, Denmark, and the book is a fictionalized history of this town from 1848 to 1945. It’s a fantastic tale from beginning to end.

>6 marell:. I have this book on my digital shelves. I think I will move it up the TBR mountain.

>9 connie53: I hope you like it. I sure did and I’ll never forget it.

Merry Christmas

>11 johnsimpson: Thank you, and I hope you had a lovely Christmas as well.

2023 Challenge has been set up, go to groups and set yourself up for another year of BFB's.

Happy New Year