Self-imposed isolation, day 33

Yesterday’s post was short, and once again, I seem to have nothing to say. That’s natural, I suppose – when you’re in isolation, nothing much happens. Which isn’t always a bad thing.

However, I did realise that (a long, long time ago) I’ve posted about some of my Lego minifigures (here and here) but I haven’t shown you my latest creations:

When you love certain books so much you want to portray some of the characters as Lego figures. 😄 From Manda Scott's Boudica series Breaca, Caradoc and, of course, Valerius.

 

And above is a portrait of some of my favourite fictional heroes: Aragorn (both Strider and King – no introduction necessary, I believe), Valerius (also in the first picture), Eirik Väkevä (Eirik the Strong from Kaari Utrio’s Vaskilintu) and last but not least, Josef Svärd from Kuninkaan rakuunat (King’s Dragoons series).

This was a bigger project for the entire family – a mayhem at an inn, a fight between the King’s Musketeers, the Cardinal’s men and the King’s Dragoons.

Happy Friday!

Best Books in 2016

It’s early 2017 and time to look back on last year’s best reads, which is something I’ve done before (for 2015 and 2014).

Goodreads says I read 63 books in 2016. Seeing that I didn’t enter all books in there, the total number would be a little higher, perhaps by 10 or so. Anyway, it is more than in 2015, when I listed 43 books in Goodreads. Why? I have no idea! I don’t think I’ve spent that much more time reading, but perhaps I have. Oh, and in early 2016, I seem to have made a New Year’s resolution to read more books! I had actually forgotten all about that... but it means I actually managed to find a resolution I could stick to. ;)

In terms of ratings, only a handful of books received 5 stars. However, there was quite a big bunch of four star books, many three star books, and only a few two star books. So, overall, I read pretty good books last year. My average rating was 3.4 (but it must be said that there were many books I didn’t rate at all). Let’s take a look at some of the highlights.

One of the few five-star ratings went, as expected, to “Children of Earth and Sky” by Guy Gavriel Kay. I’ll try to write a review at some point; right now I feel too close to the book still (it was one of my holiday reads this year, after all) to be able to say much except that I loved it.

Another one of the top books was “Haukka, minun rakkaani” by Kaari Utrio. The novel is set in Medieval Finland; while not Utrio’s best, there’s still plenty of historical detail, humour and adventure. A newly built Raseborg Castle is threatened by enemies. In the midst of battles and power struggles, Lady Blanka is pursued by a gorgeous knight... and a battle-axe-wielding, huge and hairy pagan. Do I need to say more? 😋 Yes, this sort of thing does work for me, but it must be done right. Utrio knows how.

Another five-star rating went to “The Paris Wife” by Paula McLain about Ernest Hemingway and his first wife – you can read my review here.

This was actually one of my trends in 2016: I seem to have been into books about authors and/or writing. In addition to ”The Paris Wife”, there was “Possession” by A. S. Byatt about fictional 19^th century poets and literary analysis (my thoughts here), “Mistress Shakespeare” by Karen Harper about Shakespeare and the love of his life (which I enjoyed a great deal but never managed to review) and “Mrs. Poe” by Lynn Cullen about Edgar Allan Poe and Frances Osgood, who was also a writer, and their affair. “The Shakespeare Secret” would also go into this category... and perhaps ”The Hours” by Michael Cunningham which I was also going to review but didn’t. ”The Hours”, however, made me want to read something by Virginia Woolf – and I picked ”Orlando”, which, of course, also deals with writing! Then there was “Reader, I Married him”, a collection of short stories inspired by “Jane Eyre” (I might write a review later).

Just to mention a few others... Cyrano de Bergerac – I’ve seen film adaptations, but finally got around to reading the ”real thing” - funny, sweet but so tragic!

Phil Rickman’s “The Man in the Moss” and “The Chalice” were both very enjoyable. Again, a good combination of history, myth and mystery – and great writing; I wish I could set the mood the way Rickman does.

I must also mention the anthology “Dangerous Women” (I even wrote a review).

I feel like I should say something smart in conclusion, but I can’t think of anything (this seems to happen to me with every post). I had not even set myself a reading challenge (nor will I) – but, looking at my year in books in Goodreads, it is obvious that I read a variety of very different kinds of books from different genres, eras, themes and topics. Therefore, I guess I can say that 2016 was another adventurous year – at least in terms of books!

Holiday preparations

It’s that time of the year again, with Winter Solstice only two days away, and preparations are under way... or should be; sometimes I feel a little overwhelmed (can you be “a little overwhelmed”?) by everything that needs to be done, but then I remind myself that we have our daughter’s gifts sorted out, we have bought lots of chocolate, and I know which books I’m going to read during the holidays. The rest is just... details. :)

I’ve mentioned before that I tend to be rather particular about my holiday reads, and this goes especially for Yule, because, well, spending lots of time reading books and eating chocolate is just what we do then (it may be the best part about the holidays, if you ask me or my DH).

This year, I chose “Children of Earth and Sky”, the latest by Guy Gavriel Kay, who, these days, is about the only fantasy author whose books I still read (and re-read). It is a nice, thick tome, but it will not be enough, of course, so I picked one of the Medieval adventures by Kaari Utrio as well – this one is set in the 14^th century. Neither of these is a re-read, and I’m really looking forward to the day when I can start celebrating (= open the first book).

Bargain books

As I may have mentioned, I can't resist a book sale. Another one of my weaknesses are the library sales. Yesterday, we went to a second-hand store, and they had shelves after shelves of used books there! We came back home with six. One for my daughter, one for my DH (all right, fine, that one was actually also for our daughter, although my DH picked it so he could read it to her ;)) and four for me! All four are by one of my favourite authors, Kaari Utrio, who writes excellent historical fiction. One of the books I chose is non-fiction, however; the history of Finnish women.

I was not going to buy all of them, but the price was just 1 € per book! How could I have resisted?

All set for the holidays?

The big unmentionable is almost upon us, but due to unfortunate circumstances, such as battling stubborn cold viruses, my preparations have been... not quite what I planned. But I've got the most important things covered and the rest is all about being in the right mood, which should be easy enough.

There is one thing, though, that I planned well in advance. Among my reading quirks, I've mentioned the habit of carefully choosing my holiday reads. This year, I'm going with Manda Scott's latest, “Into the Fire” and Kaari Utrio's "Haukka, minun rakkaani". The first will take me to the 15th century France and the latter to the 14th century Finland. I've been saving both and already look forward to diving into their world with a box of chocolates within my reach...

And so, without further ado - Joyous Yuletide! Read, eat chocolate and be merry!

2014 in review

A look back at the best reads of 2014 seems to be something many bloggers do... or did; I didn't manage to write this in any sort of a timely fashion – in fact, I forgot all about this idea... actually, I completely forgot I have a blog and was supposed to write something. Anyway, I thought it was a great idea (yeah, I can easily forget ideas, even great ones). The results were not what I expected.

Of the 59 books that I read last year, according to Goodreads (there are a number of books I never marked as “read” in Goodreads, so the total number is some 10-20 books higher), not a single book got a five-star rating from me. Only nine (9) books got a four-star rating.

That's just sad.

There are possible reasons. 1) It may be that I simply didn't come across a really, really great book, a book that I'd love, last year. 2) I fear that as I grow older, I become more... I was going to say critical, but that's not really it. Or perhaps that's a part of it. But above all else, I'm an emotional reader: I want a book to make me feel. And the older we get, the more we've seen and the more we've experienced, the harder it is to truly move us. 3) My rating is extremely subjective. If I'm not feeling too good in general, I'm more unlikely to give a good rating than I am when feeling good about my life. That's not fair, I know. However, low ratings do not happen just because I'm having a bad day. They happen when I've been having a bad 6 months or so. And last year really wasn't one of the best years ever. It probably will not have been the worst, either. I don't know whether that's comforting or depressing.

Looking on the bright side, I didn't give a single one-star rating! That's probably because I'm trying to learn to give up on a book when it fails to interest me. That's something I need to work on!

But let's focus on the top nine. One thing they all have in common is that they're historical fiction. Except the first one, but it's often called historical fantasy and reads, for the most part, much like historical fiction.

Guy Gavriel Kay's “River of Stars”. I've explained briefly before why I love Kay's novels, and the same goes for this one.

Veriruusut by Anneli Kanto. Also something we've seen before.

Next, two books by Kaari Utrio (Isabella and Saippuaprinsessa), which is not surprising, seeing that she is one of my favourite authors (mentioned before here and here). Splendid historical fiction, and I particularly enjoy the ones set in the Medieval times. It's somewhat surprising, however, to find these two books among the best of last year, since neither of them are among my favourites by her.

“Bring up the Bodies” by Hilary Mantel. Great historical fiction, Tudor court and all that. When I was finishing this book, I couldn't quite decide whether to give it three or four stars, but then Mantel made me cry... and what did I say about wanting a book to make me feel?

And here's a surprise: a graphic novel! It's volume 2 in the series titled Pakanat (“Pagans”) by Tuomas Myllylä. This, too, I've mentioned and sort of reviewed before.

 

 

And finally... three books from the same author! Now that's really something. Robert McCammon's “The Wolf's Hour”, “The Hunter from the Woods” and “Speaks the Nightbird”. The first is historical fiction / werewolf story (there should be a short review here somewhere... found it!), the second is pretty much the same but a collection of short stories, and the third is historical fiction set in the very late 17^th century, if I remember correctly. McCammon tells a great story, he knows how to keep you turning those pages! But that's not enough for me. I want the writing to be beautiful or lyrical or evocative – it's not just about the story, it's also about the language – and McCammon does have a way with words.

So. My 2014 may seem like a poor year, reading-wise. But I discovered a few authors whose work I enjoyed and really look forward to reading more. That's not bad, in my book.

Literary Lego figures

As a sort of continuation to my previous post (nah, actually I'm posting this just because I think it's funny), another gift: these tiny lego figurines. You may have already met my fierce warrioress, named Breaca (if you're familiar with Manda Scott's Boudica series, and know how deeply I love it, you'll know why I named her so). Well, it seems I was appropriately enthusiastic about this figurine which I got for my name day, because a certain unnamed person decided I needed more of them. Therefore I now have not only Breaca but her brother Bán (yes, another character from the Boudica series), an axe-wielding Viking called Eirik Väkevä (Eirik the Strong – my favourite character in “Vaskilintu” by Kaari Utrio) and a Viking lady who has yet to be named. My husband suggests Ingrid Iloinen (Ingrid the Cheerful), which is nice because it made me cheerful.

Anyway, they're cute and clearly they've been picked out with my favourite historical periods in mind. They now brandish their various weapons at me under my computer screen, crying in their tiny voices, “Get to work, get to work!”

Bookish holidays

As stated in a previous post, that is what I wanted from the holidays. Turns out I got to luxuriate much more than I planned... A nasty cold and a very sore throat made sure I spent the days between Yule and New Year under a blanket with a good book – and as soon as I thought I'd won the battle against the cold, it came back. Not the ideal end for the year, nor a promising start, but it could be worse. It could be raining. Wait... it actually is raining!

But the December 24th and 25th were just about perfect. I even received a bunch of bookish gifts! I love them so much I can't resist the temptation to introduce them here.

I unwrapped this thing and had no idea what it was I was holding in my hands. It turned out to be a graphic novel version of Jane Austen's “Pride and Prejudice!” I haven't read it yet, but the cover is hilarious! I'm not exactly a Jane Austen enthusiast, but I do like her work and find it very interesting how they've become such a phenomenon. Movies and spin-off books and other various variations of these beloved stories... I don't know why, but they always intrigue me (one of the books on my bedside table right now is “Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters” and a while back I finally read “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies”). To be perfectly honest, when I first read “P & P”, I didn't get it. I was a teenager (maybe 12-14, I don't remember) and I did not understand the humour or the social commentary or any of that. I thought it was just about these girls who could think of nothing else but how to get married (really, didn't they have anything more interesting to do?) – and, to make it worse, they were looking for wealthy husbands rather than love! (I was a big romantic then already.) I thought it was boring and I scorned the characters for their superficial values. Talk about pride and prejudice. ;)

Second, I got what I'd wished for, namely a new edition of Kaari Utrio's Yksisarvinen (“Unicorn”). It is the third part in her Viking/Crusader trilogy, which I've mentioned before. Naturally, I've read the earlier edition and even own a copy... but this is a new edition and, most importantly, includes previously unpublished material!

Last but certainly not least, this pendant from Jezebel Charms. I had admired their products just before the gift-giving time and said I'd love one but could not possibly choose! They have so many beautiful pieces that picking one can't be done. However... my husband had chosen one, and he had chosen the perfect one! It has a quote from Shakespeare's “A Midsummer Night's Dream” and, coming from him, this is the one. I had tears in my eyes when I opened the box and saw what was inside (what did I say about being a romantic?).

And to fit the themes of this blog, I might mention that among the presents was some delicious dark chocolate from friends in Germany (a review will follow) and hand-made, hand-picked Belgian chocolates from my sister. They were divine!

And now I'll crawl back under the blanket and pick up my book – I'm on part 2 on Guy Gavriel Kay's “The Sarantine Mosaic” (this is a re-read, and I still love these books).

Holiday reads, or, Reading quirks, Part 5

With Halloween behind us and the Big Unmentionable approaching much more quickly than I'd like to acknowledge, it's time to look at another one of my reading quirks. This is all about holiday reads!

A necessary accompaniment for holiday reads.

Let's start with the closest one, the one we know as Joulu, Yule, Christmas... call it what you will, I'm going to claim that books are an important part of the holiday spirit. For me, they might even be the best part: to have several days when you don't have to do much, when you can just sit back and relax and read, read, read. Candles, the tree, a good book and, another essential, plenty of chocolate. Yes, that is indeed the best part!

And to thoroughly enjoy that, you need a good book. You need a great book. A really wonderful book. Which is why I always start the selection process well in advance. Or started, anyway... it has become much easier over the years, because I've decided to always go for certain favourites, something I can trust to be good.

My choice is usually something by Guy Gavriel Kay, who has let me down only once (with “Ysabel”). If he's published a new book that year, I save it (it's hard but hey, iron will... ;)) until I can open it on the 23^rd of December. If there isn't anything new, I re-read one of the older ones. Kay is one of the first fantasy authors whose work I ever read and it looks like he'll be the last one as well. I've always been a very selective reader of fantasy, and lately I've only read works of a few authors... and since I keep dropping names off my list, there will soon be no one left! But I'm not giving up on Kay, his novels are everything I can wish for: they're entertaining but thought-provoking, there's history with just a bit of fantasy (the settings are fictional, but they are inspired by real places/locations/cultures), intriguing characters, epic events, a bit of romance, and stunningly beautiful writing. Yes, I am a big fan of his style, rather (melo)dramatic and poetic though it may be. These are books to get lost in, the sort where the story, the characters, the mood haunt me even when I'm not reading. They're the right books for Midwinter, when the world lies in darkness, when the wine is spiced and the candles glow.

Hefty tomes though most of Kay's books are, one isn't always enough to tide me over the holidays. Kaari Utrio's novels are also excellent choices, especially the ones set in Medieval times, or her great Viking/Crusader trilogy that takes you on a thrilling adventure from the pagan Finland through early Medieval Europe and the Byzantine court to the Middle East and even to Vinland. These are also books very rich in detail, in colour, and that just seems like a perfect fit for the holidays.

And what about the other holidays? For Midsummer, I like to choose something set in the pre-Christian times – it just seems to suit the magical feel of the Summer Solstice. And though Halloween hasn't yet established its place in my reading routine, it has done so regarding the bedtime stories I read to my daughter. Every year around Halloween we read “The Witch's Handbook” by Malcolm Bird. What is truly special about this hilarious book (try reading it and not wanting to be a witch!) is that I used to adore it as a child – and now my daughter is also a fan!

Comfort read

If I had a comfort read, this would be it: Kaari Utrio's romantic comedies that are set in the 19^th century Grand Duchy of Finland. For excitement, I go for her earlier novels, set in the much less genteel Medieval times. That world is brutal!

Then again, so is the 19^th century. The ballrooms may not be battle fields, but the pecking order is rigid and the rules ruthless. This is the time when one's social standing determines everything from the way one dresses to the people one can associate with – and marry. Marriages have little or nothing to do with love: they are advantageous arrangements. Women have precious little independence and extremely narrow roles.

These novels are described as comedies of manners and are often compared with Jane Austen's novels. They do indeed have much in common: ladies and gentlemen looking for an advantageous match; meddling parents and family members; a bit of romance and quite a lot of humour. Some of the characters start off as haughty or stand-offish, but – yes, you guessed it: love changes everything.

The focus is on match-making, but, like Austen, Utrio highlights the dependence of women on marriage to secure social status. There is usually something about her heroines that sets them apart, and they tend to have experiences atypical of (and sometimes abhorred by) the women of their times: they may have received an education available to very few women (e.g. in The Smolny Institute for Noble Girls in St Petersburg) or they may have accompanied their fathers on expeditions where folklore material (such as poems) was collected.

When you pick up one of these novels, you know what you're going to get (therein lies the comfort). There will be bonnets and balls, pride and prejudice, attractions deemed unacceptable... and characters whose love will conquer the obstacles of societal expectations. The historical details are rich and well-researched. The writing is solid – perhaps not the lyrical prose I'm guilty of favouring, but it's vivid and a perfect fit for the characters. The sharp observations are delivered in humorous tones: I always find myself chuckling and smiling when reading these books.

Granted, when you start, you have a fairly good idea of what's going to happen, but how... that is a mystery. Plot twists abound, often involving mistaken identities or exaggerations or ill-intentioned rumours, or misunderstanding arising from the fact that it simply was not appropriate to discuss certain matters (let alone express one's feelings). The final page always leaves me admiring how neatly Utrio ties up every loose end.

This is what a comfort read is all about: as soon as you open the first page, you know you're in good hands.