AUGUST 2015 BOOK SELECTION & BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

This month I unintentionally immersed myself in historical fiction. Two books, different subject matter, different time periods but alike in style.

The first is The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley. Set both in present day and in early 17^th Century Scotland, the first person narrative shifts between two characters connected by ancestry and a mystical “genetic memory.” The 17^th Century character finds herself in the middle of James Vlll’s quest for the throne of England and Scotland. The present day character is an author writing about the same time period and a descendant of the 17^th century one. Confused yet? Actually this author has been compared to Daphne du Maurier and sorts this confusion rather well. It’s clear that her research is impeccable and very interesting if you are a history nerd. Guilty. My only problem was with the constantly shifting narrative voice. I found myself caring more about the outcome for one character than the other. Still, if you like the Outlander series (which is set a bit later), you’ll like this.

The second is The Dream Lover: a Novel by Elizabeth Berg. Based on the life of Aurore Dupin, aka George Sand, the French novelist and memoirist who lived in the 19^th Century, Berg, like Kearsley has done superb research. Paris in the 1800’s comes alive on the page as does Sand. Her incredibly scandalous, bohemian, in-your-face lifestyle was shocking for the times and fascinating now. She dressed as a man for the comfort and quality of life it brought her during a restrictive and oppressive time for women. You can’t help but cheer her incredible spirit. Again the author chooses to move back and forth in time, this time between the childhood of the girl Aurore and the adult authoress Sand. I found this somewhat confusing, but overall, Berg, a favorite, does not disappoint.

It was a year ago, this month, that I first decided to do Book Selections. I think it fitting to choose my Best of the Year Award. Without question, this goes to Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. Nothing else comes close.