I ended up not reading much at all during March either. I don’t really know why I didn’t make more time to read last month, but I simply must have had a lot of things to do.
Number of books: 2
Number of pages: 655
Things I Want My Daughters to Know by Elizabeth Noble
How do you cope in a world without your mother?
When Barbara realizes time is running out, she writes letters to her four daughters, aware that they’ll be facing the trials and triumphs of life without her at their side. But how can she leave them when they still have so much growing up to do?
Take Lisa, in her midthirties but incapable of making a commitment; or Jennifer, trapped in a stale marriage and buttoned up so tight she could burst. Twentysomething Amanda, the traveler, has always distanced herself from the rest of the family; and then there’s Hannah, a teenage girl on the verge of womanhood about to be parted from the mother she adores.
But by drawing on the wisdom in Barbara’s letters, the girls might just find a way to cope with their loss. And in coming to terms with their bereavement, can they also set themselves free to enjoy their lives with all the passion and love each deserves?
The book is well-written, with many different characters and their lives are well intertwined. But I just don’t seem to really enjoy this kind of chick lit, where it’s all about relationships. I would have wanted some more dimension to their stories.
Rating: 2/5
Springa med åror by Cilla Naumann
“Running With Oars”
Come here, Monika, says Johanna and pulls me down on the ground. It’s quiet around us, unusually calm on this first day. The sea lies like a violet mirror below the farm.
Nothing else than Johanna has happened, still everything is changed.
She lies on her back beside her bike on the dusty ground, legs pale and panties dirty. Beside her is the bottle with thick red strawberry lemonade.
Everything is normal.
Except that Johanna lies in my garden.
Springa med åror is about the summerguest Johanna and the farmgirl Monika; about how their summers turn into a playground with consequences reaching far into the future – to their own children who unconsciously stir their mothers’ charged class conflict.
This book actually didn’t appeal to me at all, except for the idea behind the plot – about friendship across society classes; dreams; friendship and love. But I didn’t like the way the book was written, jumping back and forth in time; I couldn’t connect to any characters and the story wasn’t very intriguing.
Rating: 2/5