The Marble Collector...

The Marble Collector (2015) - Cecelia Ahern


the marble world

a candy army

advancing
challenging

self
against
self

MY GOODREADS REVIEW

 The Marble Collector by Cecelia Ahern
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Marble Collector is not a gripping, linear narrative; it is a mysterious collection of circumstances that loosely connect and hopefully find a more meaningful connection. The novel represents a metronome comparison of father Fergus' and daughter Sabrina's memoirs which evolve separately and then finally connect. It does not delve into a range of individual characters, but looks at a tapestry of characters influencing the 2 central characters and their mini memoirs. And the secrets all evolve around the unexpected presence of marbles - their competition and their art. In a sense, the novel is a uniquely unfolding mystery where there is no visible crime, but rather a crime of the spirit. Father Fergus has 2 identities that need resolving and daughter Sabrina feels that she hasn't found her identity. It takes a dementia crisis to find answers, to find resolutions. If you lay aside expectations of what a novel should be, then this novel is a refreshing detour into other possibilities.


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We are all made of Stars...

We are all made of stars (2015) - Rowan Coleman


7 nights

Sarah is a night-shift nurse
at a hospice
facing transitions

transitions back into the world

her own transition
between worlds

and those who face
the ultimate transition

7 nights

7 phases

intertwined
with many stories

in the moment

in the past

and some
only glimpsed in

the letter
of truth

NOTE: I almost did not buy this book...The title sounded a little 'artificial'...
But then, I always seek books that are out of my comfort zone, so finally the decision was
'Why not?' 

I'm glad I followed that decision...


MY GOODREADS REVIEW
 We Are All Made Of Stars by Rowan Coleman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I admit, at first, the title seemed a bit 'syrupy'. My first thought - a loaded, inspirational book, in the guise of a novel, that offers heavy-handed guidance for leading a 'good life'. But I am one who likes to at least give a book a chance - (without resorting to reviews for answers). I'm so glad that I did. Perhaps a hospice setting sounds a little intimidating. But this book only uses that setting as a connection with lives that were, that are and could be. Sarah is the night shift hospice nurse, the connecting character with the stories, and her own story becomes part of the narrative fabric. Even a little furball - of multiple personalities and attitudes - Jake, Ninja or Shadow- becomes an interesting 'sub-thread' in the stories. And then there are the letters - the truth-tellers - that offer intriguing insights into the lives of those who wait for their final transition. Far from being a depressing narrative, we feel the inner journeys, the challenges of ordinary people and admire their bravery. Yes. This is indeed an inspirational book.


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Kino

Kino - Haruki Murakami - translated by Philip Gabriel
- short story published in The New Yorker 2015



He simply waited patiently for curious people to stumble across this little backstreet bar
am I of value
am I worthy of notice

Like dry ground welcoming the rain, he let the solitude, silence, and loneliness soak in
is this my only somewhere
my nowhere important

Happiness? He wasn’t even sure what that meant 
do I need others to make me happy
what, in fact, do I need to make me happy


The most he could do was create a place where his heart—devoid now of any depth or weight—could be tethered, to keep it from wandering aimlessly
tethered
my self-imposed prison


where I am safe

really safe


and then


the rains come


????????

MY GOODREADS REVIEW
  Kino by Haruki Murakami
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When worlds coincidentally collide, surreal, unsettling circumstances can emerge. Kino withdraws from his unfaithful wife's life, but it seems that there is some enigmatic agenda beyond his choice; a power beyond his power. Kamita, reading quietly in Kino's bar, a stray cat and two men in conflict become Kino's drive to explore the inner darkness, the feelings he has ignored for too long. The orbit of his other world still spins and wills to connect. With Kino as our guide, Murakami quietly follows the shadows of loose threads in our social fabric and lets us become absorbed in our own personal questions and reflections. Murakami's story deftly digs far deeper than mere narrative.

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