Break from the cold and snow

Well my husband and I have been in Sarasota Florida for a little over two weeks. We left on a messy snowy Wednesday morning- lucky to leave the cold of Connecticut. Usually we spend time in Maui however this year because of health issues we headed for Florida. The first few days were a bit cool but sunny. And no snow! Then it gradually became warmer. We have spent time at Siesta Key beach and Caspersen Beach in Venice. Both are lovely and a bit different. Siesta Key has miles of beautiful white silky sand. Quite nice. Caspersen beach has black sand which is a little bit coarser. The beaches are well cared for and have great facilities. We have even seen dolphins which was pretty neat. Caspersen beach is famous for shark teeth and people have special screens with handles to sift through the shells and sand. I have found some pretty shells to put into the condo where we are staying. The seagulls are not afraid of people and will attempt to eat anything you are eating (ask me how I know!). In planning our getaway I of course packed a number of books planning on a book every one and a half days. Well good plan. My first book was The Emperor's Children by Claire Messud.

. Well it took me almost a week to slog through. Can you tell I didn't enjoy it very much? Didn't like the characters, thought the plot was weak and I wish I hadn't finished it. I then read Anne Lamott's Blue Shoe. I had not read her before and have heard so much about her and her writing.

. At least I could believe the characters and wasn't really annoyed by them alhough the main character, Mattie, certainly was a mess. I enjoyed it and will follow up with another of her books when I get home. Then I read The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri, another author I had not read. I enjoyed this and remembered that I had seen the movie (and that is about all I could remember!).

. I then, having finished reading the library books I had brought with me, moved on to a couple of Goodreads wins. The first was Chasing Mona Lisa by Tricia Goyer and Mike Yorkey. Unknown to me this was the second in a series although it stood alone. Set in Paris and Switzerland at the end of WWII I thought I would love it. Historical fiction. However it was just okay and seemed a little too glib about the horrors of the war and events seemed contrived or just convenient. But entertaining. I did like the writing and might check out the first book The Swiss Courier.

. I moved on to The Mapmaker's Children, another Goodreads win, and more historical fiction. Set at the start and during the Civil War it is about Sarah Brown, daughter of John Brown the abolitionist. I couldn't' put it down. Well researched and very entertaining. Really a good read.

Moving on to The Almond Tree which sounded very familiar. And as I read it it became more and more familiar. I was reading it at the beach and it was my backup book. Drat! I had read it in 2014. And I had lugged it to Florida. Then I figured I better read my book club selection Same Kind of Different as Me. I wasn't sure if I would like this- it sounded a little too evangelical and I was not sure how it would pan out. In the end- an excellent read and very interesting. Yes the author and his wife had a strong faith but it was a good story. So glad I read it. My husband had only brought one book with him (can you believe it?) and was counting on visiting the little lending library in the condo association. It is actually quite nice and has a good selection of titles. On the shelf I noticed one- Once We Were Brothers- which is on my to-read list (at Goodreads). So I grabbed it and told him he would like it. He could not put it down and that rarely happens. It was that good. So I have started it last night and was instantly hooked.

. Another WWII historical fiction novel. Will get back to reading once I finish this post!