I have been in one of my “can’t finish a book” ruts for a few days now. Which means I have been switching back and forth in an endless cycle between Wild Wood by Posie Graeme-Evans, The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry, and The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry. This is followed by brief moments of “Oh! I should finish that” with Justice Hall by Laurie R. King. Add to those that I’ve now started Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstance by Ruth Emmie Lang. I blame being stuck at home for so long that my brain […]
Using Fiction to Understand the Past
There is something about reading a book that has familiar landmarks. Not even necessarily places that you’ve actually been to (though being able to actually visualize where you are in the book is fun), but places that you’re actively interested in, time periods you’ve spent scads of time researching. I’m currently reading The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry, and while I love my ability to mentally follow Towner down Derby Street, up Hawthorne past the hotel and up to the Common, well… It reminded me of yet another book where it wasn’t quite the same, […]