Weekend Reflections: High Water

We’ve had a very rainy month of December, and the river is rising. (It’s supposed to keep  to the other side of that fence! )

 

Weekend Reflections

Book Review: Liberty Frye and the Witches of Hessen

Liberty Frye and the Witches of Hessen
by J.L. McCreedy (2013) ****

I came across this book as temporarily free for Kindle, and as I had just finished another book and felt like reading something lighter next, I got started on this one directly.

The first chapter or two made me initially suspect that it might be too much of an imitation of Harry Potter; but as the story proceeded, I think it turned out to stand on its own feet. Of course it has evident roots in a magic fairy-tale tradition familiar from both old and new classics in that genre, but it is also spiced with some less common ingredients. It’s a fast-paced story with some unexpected twists, and a variety of characters turning up along the way.

It starts out with a new friendship between two ten-year-old girls in a US small town – Liberty Frye and Ginny Gonzalez. Ginny lives with foster parents that don’t really care much about her. Liberty (or Libby) lives with her parents, but is considered a bit odd by many. She has a tame goose that follows her everywhere, and in her garden grows an unusual tree, in which she likes to sit and read the Fairy Tales collected by the Brothers Grimm. We (and Ginny) also get to meet an uncle of Libby’s, who is very old, but still an active inventor of fantastic machines. However, one day a strange letter arrives for Libby’s parents, and shortly after that, they take her on a sudden trip abroad, to visit relatives in Germany (without giving much explanation as to the reason). More specifically, it turns out that Libby’s mother comes from the town where the Brothers Grimm were born… And from then on, things start to get really complicated! (The title of the book gives a hint.) Ginny is left behind on the other side of the earth; but when she senses that Libby might be in danger, she starts looking for a way to help…

Putting on my critical glasses, I think that the story sprawls a bit too much; with too many “unconnected” ingredients thrown in to the mix. But at the same time I did find it very enjoyable reading, with lots of surprises and suspense – and a good portion of humour to contrast the creepy parts.

From linguistic point of view (spelling etc) the reading of this book flows smoothly (knowing a little bit of German probably gives you an advantage, though). (As I’ve come across many free and/or self-published Kindle books which turned out to contain an irritating amount of printing and/or spelling errors, I feel I want to point out that this is not one of those!)

There are many details in the story that might be interesting to pursue if you like looking things up on the internet. I also think it’s safe to say that I did feel that the story came to a proper ending, but at the same time left a door ajar for the possibility of sequels.

There is a website providing more info about the book and author, without being too revealing:
http://libertyfrye.com/

Book Review: No Man’s Nightingale

No Man’s Nightingale
by Ruth Rendell (2013) ***

Sarah Hussain, a female vicar of mixed race, modern ideas, and on top of all single mother to a teenage daughter (born years after Sarah’s husband died), is discovered murdered in the Kingsmarkham vicarage.

The body is found by Maxine, a cleaning woman who is also in the employ of former Chief Inspector Reginald Wexford and his wife. Wexford (known from many previous detective novels by Ruth Rendell) is not all happy about his retirement life; even if it gives him a chance to catch up with old classics like  The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.

When Wexford’s successor and former colleague Mike Burden gives him a chance to tag along in parts of the investigation of the Sarah Hussein case, he jumps at the chance – if nothing else, it’s an excuse to get out of the house while the ever-gossiping Maxine is there doing her cleaning. Wexford also gets more personally involved when the murder victim’s daughter, Clarissa, ends up renting a room in his Wexford’s daughter’s house, and making friends (or more than friends) with his own grandson.

To be quite frank, I felt throughout this book, that in spite of the “possibilities” of an intriguing mystery, the focus in this book tends to be more on Wexford’s struggle with retirement than on the case as such. I find it debatable (both witin the frames of the novel and from reader’s perspective) how well it works out to let Wexford continue be involved in a murder investigation without his former official police authority. However, there is an awareness of this question included in the story itself too. But in the end it still remains unclear to me how much of Wexford’s struggle with retirement is the author’s means of leading her readers astray, versus just reflecting the fact that she herself will be 84 years old next year. I guess a certain preoccupation with the hazards of getting old(er) – and at the same time keeping up with the modern world - might be allowed!

My spontaneous rating: 3 (out of 5). I found some aspects of the book interesting or challenging; but at the same time I found the story "sprawling" a bit too much. But then it should probably also be remembered that Ruth Rendell is an author who has already written a huge number of excellent books – a fact that also makes her fans expect a lot from her.

No White Christmas

My little Christmas tree is up (since yesterday). It’s celebrating its 27th Christmas. Talk about evergreen!

The weather is horrible and I’m pretty sure it’s no one’s idea of what Christmas ‘should’ be like. Storm and rain, rain and storm… The rain is of the kind that sticks like glue to the windows, even though not mixed with snow. I’ve been staying in all day today, and most likely will be tomorrow as well. There are storm warnings issued again for tomorrow morning, class 1 around here and class 2 (worse) along the coast.

No worries for myself, as I don’t need to go anywhere. There were a couple of more items on my shopping list that I had intended to get… but nothing really essential.

 

The Meaning of Things

Katherine @ The Last Visible Dog had a beautiful and interesting blog post recently about how she was commissioned to make a painting of someone’s favourite things, and how she went about it. (Do have a look – I think you’ll find it worth while!)

Other bloggers, including myself, have been posting about how we decorate our homes for Christmas – or not, as the case may be… In a comment to GB @ A Hebredian in New Zealand on his post The Spirit of Christmas, I said that “Christmas should be about what means something to us. Whether that's represented by a few things or many, is really not important.”

My own tradition is to put up my Advent/Christmas decorations gradually during December. As I’ve been getting on with that, I have also been pondering about what the various “things” in my own home mean to me - those that are there all year round, as well as those I only put up for Christmas.

Actually almost every object represents something more to me than would be obvious to a visitor.

 

Just take this nativity scene, for example, which I put up on it’s “usual” shelf last weekend. It was not bought as a complete set (maybe that’s obvious!) but is made up of various parts collected over the years.

The oldest item is the little porcelain camel on the right. I got that in early childhood, as a Christmas present from two old ladies: cousins of my grandmother’s, unmarried sisters who lived together, and worked in a gift shop. Unlike the toys one usually gets for Christmas and birthdays at that age, some of the knick-knacks I got from them, are still with me.

For many years the camel remained an odd item for me, as we never had a Christmas Crib in my parents’ home. Well – except for a miniature plastic one-piece, that I got from the same two ladies (I still have that one as well, see below*).

It wasn’t until I was in my late thirties or so, that I happened to find (and bought) the most essential pieces in the nativity scene above: Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and the three Wise Men, who all came together with the wooden stable. 

Still, even put together with the camel, it looked a bit bare. So I added a couple of plastic sheep and a goat from a set of farm animals (from a basket of toys I kept for friends’ children to play with when they came to visit.)

The Christmas card with the shepherds was added when I got it one year from an ex workmate. (She died of cancer 11-12 years ago. Because of her Christmas card now “belonging” to the nativity scene, I remember her every year when I put that up.)

The Angel I found in some shop after I already had the crib. It’s bigger than the other figures, but then I think angels are supposed to be quite impressive! (Or else why would they need to keep saying: “Don’t be afraid!”)

The golden star at the stop of the stable is a little starfish brooch. Not real gold, and not really very important to me – until it was promoted to Christmas Star, that is! (Originally it came as a free gift with some products I bought from a certain cosmetic company, where I was a regular customer for a while. But – it also reminds me of childhood summer visits to the seaside, and finding real starfish on the beach.)

One of the little vases in the background has a camel and palm trees painted on it. It also says “Islas Canarias”. I’ve never been to the Canary Islands myself, though. That vase was a gift from a friend or friends who did go there on holiday once. So besides providing a bit of company for the lonely camel from my childhood, it reminds me of the gift of friendship.

One of the other little vases is a simple earthen vessel (clay jar). I forget where I bought it, but I know why I did. It represents for me a Bible verse: 

For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory displayed in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. (2 Corinthians 4:6-7, NIV)

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