5 may The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad "Journalist Seierstad has a great narrative voice, and gives an easily accessible account of a war-torn and injured community. However, with every page that I read, what struck me was that this lady took advantage of a hospitable book-seller, ate his food, lived in his house, and then came home and proceeded to strip the family naked and raw in print. I found her sneakily judgemental turns of phrases, her constant refrain on the injustices within a family very offputting and find myself entirely in sympathy with the true man behind the book - Mr Shah Muhammad Rais - especially when he expresses his pain at Seierstad's gratuitous portrayal of his mother's obese nudity. Notwithstanding any agreements Seierstad may have made with Rais about writing the book, I feel sure Rais could not have had an inkling of exactly what she was going to write. I am not sure whether I would want to read any of her other books. It's too much like peeping through a key-hole into someone's privacy." 11 may The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown (audiobook) "Ugh! If he had nothing worthwhile to write about, or to plagiarize, Brown could have just waited a bit longer for inspiration to strike. The much-hyped Lost Symbol reads partly as a pedantic lecture, and partly as a series of mole-hill mountains. Forced twists and suspense build ups lead inevitably to anti-climaxes. Far from recreating the magic of Da Vinci Code, this books seems to be one of the lowest points in an author's work. " 13 may Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman A quirky bouquet of 27 short stories and poems, Gaiman presents something to appeal to every lover of fantasy fiction. Spooky, eerie, disturbing, comic, twisted, there seems to be something for every taste. 15 may The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon I will never lend books to boys. They NEVER return what they borrow. And some books, like this one, are so good that I have to end up re-buying and re-reading these. This book, on the second reading, still had the same magic. It still tugs at the heart-strings. 17 may And Thereby Hangs A Tale by Jeffrey Archer Typical Jeffrey Archer. A cozy set of 15 short stories, most with an Archeresque twist at the end. As an unabashed Archer fan, I have no complaints on this one… except that I absolutely hated the last one, based in India, for the many inaccuracies - what Indian wedding ceremony involves dancing around "pheras"? why would a person be named Naresh Khan? "Phera" is a ritual where the wedding couple walk sedately 7 times around a sacred fire. Strictly no dancing for the couples in an Indian wedding, Mr. Archer. And "Naresh" is a Hindu name, and "Khan" is an Islamic name. 19 may The Sweetness At The Bottom Of The Pie by Alan Bradley (audiobook) "Endearing. The first one in the Flavia de Luce mystery series. A cozy English village whodunit, where the precocious Ms Flavia does grow on you by the end of the book. And yes, I guessed who the murderer was. But I still liked this book. I found it better than the second book in the series which I had read last month." 22 may Runemarks by Joanne Harris A world populated by Norse gods, demi-gods and goblins. Magic, war, betrayals, twists. But a little too much information on Runes, a little thin on the plot. Not one of Harris's best works. 24 may Getting Rid Of Bradley by Jennifer Crusie (e-book) Funny chick lit. But it unfortunately degenerates into a sissy romance midway through. Good for light reading, this is a one-sitting sized novel. 25 may Woman Hollering Creek and other stories by Sandra Cisneros Powerful passionate writing. But a little too much of doom, gloom and female suffering for me. The world seems to be solely populated by cheating and unfeeling husbands, and the enduring women who love them. One wonders why! 28 may Zoo Station by David Downing A quiet unassuming World War II espionage story. The protagonist is an Anglo American journalist living in Germany for a long time, has a German semi-Nazi son, a German anti-Nazi girlfriend, and finds himself gradually drawn into the world of Russian, British and American spies. A very un-heroic hero, who gradually finds courage to stand for his beliefs. Very atmospheric, without too much overt violence. The sequel is on my to-read list.

Last week I got home to a dark house and a bunch of fussy kids. The power had gone out AND the sun had gone down (this was the day after daylight savings). The boys were freaked out because the light switches didn't work and it was DARK! Gabriel kept flipping switches and saying "Broken, Broken, Batteries?" Luckily I had a stash of tea light candles from ikea, and I scattered them through the house to light it a bit. Then I got out the halloween candy :-) We spent a little time reading by candle light before heading out to dinner.