Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris

So I went on a bit of a binge with the Joanne Harris books this month. She is just so great. This particular book focuses on a family of four -- three children and their mother, who gets strange attacks. They live in France (go figure) during the Nazi occupation, and something terrible happens, which gets blamed on the mother for years and years. I won't reveal the terrible happenings, but suffice to say they are terrible. Terrible.
If I were going to recommend a Harris book to a first time reader of her works, I wouldn't choose this little guy. Start with Chocolat, and then move on to Holy Fools or maybe Gentlemen and Players. But you can hold off on this one. Kind of a formula book, and although they have their place and time, she's not in her best form. The tension is only slight, and the antagonists are weakly played out.
On to the next!

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith and Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons

These are two books which I consumed in a frenzy this spring. I refuse to go another day without at least mentioning them
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (the author of 101 Dalmatians) was a delightful read. That's truly the best word to describe it -- delightful. It describes the antics of a family who has fallen on difficult times as recorded by the youngest daughter. It starts out with comic scenes galore and ends with some elegant romantic touchs. A great summer read, if you're looking for something entirely enjoyable and sweet.
Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons is a classic to some -- I really enjoyed the story and the twists and turns of this crazy family. It's a contemporary of Castle, so if you enjoy that book, you'll enjoy this one as well. But Farm has a little bite to it -- it's written as a parody, so sometimes the reader might find themself wondering who the author is laughing at -- the characters, or you? But it's all in good fun, and the quotes from the outlandish characters are worth the read alone. For example, "There be no butter in hell" -- Amos Starkadder. Or perhaps more famously, "I saw something NASTY in the woodshed" -- Aunt Ada Doom
Good summer reading, both! Give them a try!

The Girl With No Shadow by Joanne Harris

It is so wonderful to have found an author who can spin such a delicious sequel. Sequels are usually disappointing, whether because a character you loved has disappeared, or because the author just can't capture the same sense of individualism. But Joanne Harris had no problems with sequel-shock in this book. It's a sequel to Chocolat, her book about a mother and daughter who slink into a small French town and take it by storm with their domestic chocolate wonders. You'd have to get on a wait-list at the library for The Girl with No Shadow, but the wait would be worth it. The characters are still magical and complex and the food descriptions make your mouth water. I slowly ate a chocolate bar from Cost Plus World Market called "Maya Bar," which had cayenne pepper and cinnamon mixed into the dark chocolate. It was a perfect companion for this book!

Also, I read The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri about a month ago, and that was also a book that made my mouth water. The delectable food descriptions made me wish I had an all-you-can-eat pass to our local Indian restaurant.

I hope to start blogging about the books I'm reading again...I really enjoyed writing this blog, and now that we have our new little iMac, I think I could be persuaded to spend a little more weekly time on the computer!