Time for some book reviews and discussion of what we are all reading. I’m finally getting used to the blasted daylight saving time, and my morning reading time is once again enjoyable. I’ve had a bit more time to read lately as well, so we have more books than usual for a book chat day. The first book on the list was found at the 25-cent shelf at the library. I am such a fan of Masterpiece Theatre, I had to get it.
Making Masterpiece: 25 Years Behind the Scenes at Masterpiece Theatre and Mystery! on PBS by Rebecca Eaton – A marvelously candid book about the shows, stars and troubles of the iconic PBS series featuring the best of British television. Many of the series will be recognizable to readers who have watched the various series. From Foyle’s War to Poldark to Downton Abbey, years of work are detailed with notable quotes from famous British actors from Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson to Julian Fellows. It is a fascinating look at the difficulties in obtaining high quality shows, the increasing competition for them from upstart networks like A&E, the constant battle for fundraising with the exit of Mobil Oil underwriting, and the decisions made both good and bad on shows. Published in 2013, it ends with the second season of Downton Abbey, and I am actively looking for a sequel to this one. It got me thinking about the next book that has been on my shelf for a while, received from PBS during a fund drive.
The World of Downton Abbey by Jessica Fellows with a forward by Julian Fellows – This non-fiction book is a wonderful juxtaposition between the real life of the aristocracy and servant classes and the portrayal by the actors and writing of Downton Abbey. The way the show incorporates the real world of the era is fascinating. A day in the life of the characters on the show is told with real historical fact illustrating the rigidity of the social classes, the backbreaking work of servants in a grand house compared to the social and financial demands on the aristocratic family. The advent of electricity and household appliances, central heating and other inventions reduced the need for servants. At the same time, people were deciding to go into other jobs in the working class such as teachers, and small business owners. It goes into detail on the history of how women could not inherit, the rise of women’s suffrage, and the social changes brought about by the first world war. The changes in inheritance law, estate taxes and society resulted in the loss of many of these estates. Wonderfully written, it is a look into lived history, not so long ago.
Next, a series of books in the fantasy genre. Refreshingly different in storyline, the first one was so entertaining that I immediately stopped by the local library to check out the next two books in the series.
The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman – The story follows Irene, a Librarian for the Invisible Library. The library is a connection point between alternate versions of the same history. Its purpose is to collect works of fiction that are unique to the alternate realities, strengthening the ties between the library and these versions. In the story, Irene is sent to an alternate London, where the Fae Folk and Chaos are prevalent, to retrieve a valuable book of fairy tales. But when they arrive, the book has been stolen, and more than one faction wants the book.
The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman – Irene has been installed as Librarian in Residence in the alternate London of the previous book. When her assistant is kidnapped, she must find him before the Dragons unleash their fury. Kai has been taken to a high chaos alternate where it is impossible for him to change from human form to dragon. With the help of a human, and a Fae of questionable motive, Irene barely escapes by making a bargain with the Horse who can move between alternates.
The Burning Page by Genevieve Cogman – Back home, Irene is on probation for breaking uncounted rules to save the dragon, Kai. Her human friend, Vale, has been chaos contaminated and is suffering. The rouge Librarian, Alberich, has plans to destroy the Library and replace it with his own version. As portals begin to explode, Irene has to find a way to save it and prevent him from taking over spreading chaos into all the alternate versions of her world. There are more books in the series, but I think three were enough for me for now.
Moral Treatment by Stephanie Carpenter – This is a difficult book to review. It was on fellow blogger Jeanie’s (Marmalade Gypsy) book review post just a few weeks ago. The subject matter of treatment of the mentally ill in the late 1800s is tough enough, but I did not care for the writing style. This author does not use quotation marks, so it was difficult to understand what was spoken out loud by a character, and what were thoughts in an internal dialogue. There are some graphic points in detailing the self harm done by the main character Amy, and a difficult section of abuse by care providers. The plot entails an unnamed doctor (referred to as ‘the doctor’, all lower case) who believed that good food and adequate rest along with ‘wholesome influences’ could cure the mentally ill. Those influences included trust by the doctor and his wife, along with meaningful work. But as we all know, mental illness is much more complex than that. I also found it difficult to see how Amy was progressing in her treatment. As a character study type of book, the action moves very slowly, and sometimes was boring. So, I don’t think I can recommend this book, but if that kind of writing style and difficult subject matter is not off-putting, and you have an interest in historical treatment of the mentally ill, you might get something out of it. For me, it wasn’t a hit.
Saving the best for last, I enjoyed these next four the most.
The Museum of Ordinary People by Mike Gayle – When a woman has to empty her mother’s home, she saves a set of encyclopedias that she has no room for. Circumstances lead her to a warehouse where a gentleman had been saving the special items of ordinary people, not celebrities, not things that are valuable, but things that have sentimental value. As she trained as a museum curator, she takes on the challenge of organizing the collection, and making a true museum of it, despite many challenges and the resistance of her boyfriend. She learns that some things really do need to be thrown away, like those things that are reminders of painful experiences. In in the process, she learns that her decisions can change the course of lives other than her own. There is a sentence in this book that really resonated with me, and is applicable to many situations. “..even the path of least resistance leads somewhere, and not necessarily the place you want to end up.” How true this is. The book is easy reading, the story is interesting and different, with several surprises and a twist at the end. Recommend!
We Are The Brennans by Tracey Lange – Well constructed storyline about secrets within a somewhat dysfunctional family and how those secrets can ruin lives years later. The writing is easy reading, and the characters pull the reader along, becoming more difficult to put down as the story unfolds. The structure of the novel is unique, as it is all in third person, but the point of view changes with each chapter so you follow a different character for a while, read their thoughts as they move through the next days, then shift to the next character as the story moves along. Recommend.
The Art Forger by B.A.Shapiro – An artist whose reputation has been ruined is hired to create a forgery of a stolen Degas masterpiece. As she begins her work, researching the style and brushstrokes of the master, she begins to suspect that the painting is itself a forgery. As the story goes, she is drawn into a web of deceit and lies, and must discover the truth before something terrible happens and she is trapped. It is apparent the author is either a painter or has done some incredible research, as I learned a lot about painting and the art world. The prose is easy to read, and the story flows well. Recommend.
This last book will not publish until August 26, but get your library to order it now, so you can be at the top of the list. This is going to be a best seller, highly recommend!
Forget Me Not by Stacy Willingham – This story starts slowly as we ease into the life of a woman in transition. She has quit her journalism job in protest for being passed over for promotion in favor of free lance work that isn’t going well. When her father calls unexpectedly, and sends her home to her estranged mother in South Carolina, the memories of her sister’s unexplained disappearance surface again. As she decides to visit areas that her sister used to frequent, she stumbles onto a seasonal job that seems like an answer. But finding a hidden diary will change everything, as the entries describe a similar situation to her sister, and sheds light on another unsolved murder. Like a freight train, the story gathers speed and momentum, building as it goes to the point where it become impossible to put down. Five stars! Get on your library’s hold list now, before the book publishes! Or preorder from Amazon.
What are you reading now?
*************
Shop the Milk Street Store Summer Sale! – save 30% sitewide with Code: SUMMER30 Hundreds of items are on sale including the fabulous cookbooks, specialty knives and kitchen tools, videos and more. Sale ends at midnight tonight, June 22.
Sulky Threads – Check out the Quilted Cork Travel Set online class, and the free patriotic project webcast. The new summer theme mystery box, Slice of Summer, now available. I love these boxes, it’s like getting a present with lovely surprises. New items just added to the clearance sale page, too.
Fat Quarter Shop has new specials for June! Get 20% off the Basic of the Month, Pure Solids by Art Gallery, 30% Off the Notions of the Month by Annie, 30% off Patterns of the Month from Fig Tree paper patterns and see the Book of the Month – Summer Memories. Check out Today’s Flash Sale and see the Precuts of the Week. The Liberty Box is shipping this month, and there is still time to order a box! This limited-edition mystery box is filled with goodies to celebrate the All-American spirit. Fat Quarter Shop will donate a portion of the proceeds of each box to the Quilts of Valor Foundation.
Check out the new add-ons for Electric Quilt.
From My Carolina Home 
Hmmm…I think I’ll give “Ordinary People” a try. Sounds interesting…
You had my interest at Masterpiece Theatre. Thank you for the long list of titles that are mostly up my alley. Now I just need to find the books and…. find the time to read them.
Nice list of books. Have ordered a couple from the library and will order more at a later date. My order list is quite long so I guess I’d better space them out a bit.
Pleased you are enjoying a little extra time for yourself……….
Mary :))
Looks like many great books. We are in the heat of the season in Florida. A great time to sit back and read with a glass of something cold. (My auto-complete said “a glass of wine”, — well that too, LOL.)
This is a great list Carole, I will be hunting many of these to try! I just finished the latest Verity Kent installment (Anna Lee Huber) and found it an enjoyable summer read. It’s a cozy mystery series set right after WWI. This one was set in Dublin during the Irish turmoil. I am on the wait list for a fantasy series. Totally different and not quite my taste, but now I want to know what happens!
I truly look forward to your book reviews and have read several based on your recommendations over the years. As a fantasy lover I am eager to read the Invisible Library trilogy but it was the Museum of Ordinary People synopsis that actually brought tears to my eyes. I may have told you this before but I am an only child who lives 2 hours away from my parents. My dad had an unexpected heart attack while we had 17 inches of snow here during the winter. I was unable to get to him and long story short he passed away a few days later on Valentine’s Dad. My mom had a stroke at his funeral so I left to go to the hospital with her and didn’t get to finish dad’s funeral. She had a massive aneurysm and died the next day without regaining consciousness so I really have no closure with either death. I am still in the middle of clearing out their large home…both being pack rats. I was just down there yesterday and was looking at their 1962 set of World Book Encyclopedias wondering what in the world to do with all this stuff! I think I need to take a deep breath and choose a good read. Mike Gayle’s book sounds like something I need as everyone around me keeps offering advice to “take the path of least resistance” and toss everything. Thank you, Carole. Blessings….
I’m reading Stephen King’s “The Institute” – it’s been out quite a while but I’ve never read many of his books so it’s new to me. I just downloaded the Libby app & borrowed a Martha Grimes mystery, also not recent but one I hadn’t read. I see a theme, quilting time has overtaken reading. Loved, loved, loved Ordinary People – there’s a book that beat out quilting.
@choatejulie – I love my wireless “AFTER SHOKZ” open ear headphones, and always have an audio book playing when I am in my sewing room. I can set my phone done and walk away and not worry about cords etc.
That is quite a list of books, Carole! You have definitely been reading! I saw several that interested me, especially The Museum of Ordinary People and Forget Me Not. It is very difficult to read about the treatment of the mentally ill in our country’s past. My book club read a book called The Woman They Could Not Silence, by Kate Moore, that is the same topic. Right now I am reading Running with Sherman, a memoir about a donkey and the man who rescued him and taught him to be a burro racer. It’s a good and heart-warming story!
I reviewed Woman They Could Not Silence in 2022 (Click on A Month of Great Books). That one, while infuriating as to their treatment, was not as tough a read as Moral Treatment. Plus being non-fiction, it gave more context. I recommended it highly.
We read it in 2023, so at that point, I probably would not have remembered that you reviewed it a year previous, but I am glad I read it. There are several readers in my book club who really like Kate Moore’s books.
Thank you for the reviews and recommendations. I have one to recommend for you: Lightning In A Mason Jar by Catherine Mann. It’s about abused women who risk everything to start over and I couldn’t put it down. I think you’ll enjoy it!
I’ve read three of you last 4 and also liked them all. I’ll keep my eye on the library for the new release. I read a good book, The Search about finding a new minister for a Unitarian church. Great character development.
“Forget Me Not” sounds familiar to me I will need to do a search on my kindle and see if I have that one.
Wow — you have had a great reading month and I have things to add to my list! I have indeed read Becca Eaton’s book, years ago. She’s an amazing woman, especially when you think of her in the context of PBS/Masterpiece history. (I was lucky enough to be at her lunch table at a PBS meeting a number of years ago, shortly before she retired from Masterpiece. A fascinating woman. The Downton book is terrific, too. Love that you loved these.
I’m also not surprised about “Moral Treatment.” I had a hard time with this but possibly for different reasons. The history of the Kirkbride hospitals and treatment is fascinating but I think I was too close to the subject of mental illness in that period to feel comfortable about it. And it seemed to take a long while to get anywhere, maybe building up relationships but still, disturbing.
Now I’m adding “Museum of Ordinary People” to my list and The Art Forger too. Maybe the fantasies, but life is short!
Thank you so much for your book reviews! My husband and I are currently listening to Scott Turow’s audiobooks – we went back to the beginning with Presumed Innocent, and will get to Presumed Guilty eventually. We may skip some in the middle – who knows. The ones my husband wouldn’t enjoy are on my personal list. I’ll probably read or listen to The Museum of Ordinary People next – I still have “Mom stuff” from when she died 10 years ago, including a set of encyclopedias…:)
I enjoy your book reviews. I followed your advise and set a hold on Stacy Willingham’s latest book. Do you know how many books are titled ‘Forget Me Not’? I waded through several other books by that name until I changed my search on ‘author’ instead of title’.
Lately, I have been reading books by William Kent Krueger. I enjoyed “Ordinary Grace’ and I’m now reading his many books featuring ex-sheriff Corcoran O’Rourke solving mysteries. He does a great job describing the area around Lake Superior and you can tell he loves living there.
The Museum of Ordinary People sounds so intriguing and your chosen quote sounds like some of my father’s wisdom. I think I’ll find this for my nightstand reading.
Listening on audio book — Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price. It is a “Jane Austen Murder Mystery”. This book 1. I finished book 2 (In Want of a Suspect) first, which is what happens when you just want whatever is available. Last month, a rather long read (listen) was Agent Zo, by Clare Mulley; a WWII book about women in Poland in service to the country.
Love your book reviews! Super synopsis with straight forward conclusion on recommendation.
Museum of Ordinary People and the Art Forger are available on audio so I’ve put them on my reading list.
Best listen in a few months was “Ghost Hawk” by Susan Cooper. Jim Dale narrates this story about a native American set in Puritan times. Learned much about long ago customs and beliefs. It was a bit slow to start but the pacing took off.
Jim Gaffigan’s audio on food was hilarious. Just what we needed for a long car trip.
Glad you are enjoying your reading time. Nothing like escaping into a book adventure!
Thank you for sharing your reviews!
I am currently reading Mercedes Lackeys “Founding of Valdamar” series. I enjoy her novels very much. I just finished the most recent Elm Creek Quilts novel “The World’s Fair Quilt”. I think I may try ” The Museum of Ordinary People “; it sounds interesting. I hope you have a good week.
Thank you for the recommendations, Carole. I ready The World of Downton Abbey years ago and loved it. And I also loved The Museum of Ordinary People. The other books are new to me so I’ll enjoy finding and reading several of them.
Great book reviews, Carole! “Forgot Me Not” is one that grabbed my attention. Wishing you a great week!
The Museum of Ordinary People is still one of my favorite books. I love everything by Mike Gayle! I enjoyed The Brennans too. I would have guessed that I had gotten the recommendation for that book from you! Audible has The Art Forger for free right now so I’ve downloaded it.
Thanks for the reviews!
I loved The Art Forger. It was truly well-researched, I agree. I am VERY intrigued with The Invisible Library series. I’m going to place it on my TBR! Thanks for your thoughtful reviews!