Last week I told you I wasn’t feeling so good, that I needed a pleasant read. A cozy romance like Done and Dusted by Lyla Sage; a story that makes me feel good. And that made me wish I had a ranch with majestic horses, a beautiful cottage to live in, and a shirtless horseman cleaning the stables. Although I think I’ll have to settle for a donkey.
After reading Lyla Sage’s book in a few days, I’ve now started a completely different book. No romance in the book on my nightstand, just a lot of solitude. And I’m still listening to Gone with the Wind; I now have seven hours of the audiobook left, and I still haven’t tired of this Georgia story. While Scarlett, so rigid in her ideas, annoys me a lot, I admit I envy her business acumen. But I don’t envy her love life, if she has one.
In print
- On my nightstand: The loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai.
- Scattered thoughts: the time has come for this book, which, for some strange reason, I thought was too introspective. All my own ideas, all wrong. In fact, this book is a thread that unites India and the United States, two worlds that couldn’t be more different. Desai recounts the loneliness of young Indian emigrants, the first generation to leave their homeland to study at American colleges. The author also recounts the lives of those who remain, who, no matter how hard they try, will never understand what it means to be alone in a foreign country. I know this too, having spent six years in Chicago, having left alone, knowing no one, a pampered only child.
In audiobook
- For walks through the sweltering countryside: Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell.
- Scattered thoughts: I’m more and more convinced that Ashley is useless, with his constant whining and the sulky face of an angry child. Rhett Butler is a different story entirely. He might be the only character brave enough to tell the truth and be himself, even if it costs him the contempt of polite society, the kind that refuses to accept the world has changed. The Ku Klux Klan has also entered the story now, portrayed in the book as a response to violence threatening the “respectable” women and children of Atlanta. Born as a secret social club in 1865, the Klan went on to spread terror across America. And, I imagine, through Scarlett’s world too.
Stories I’m curious about
📚 Since these past few weeks have been a lot, I’m letting romance be my outlet. I need stories with happy endings, ones that let me dream of a different life, even just for a moment. Lately I’ve been reading a lot on impulse, and among the titles waiting for me are Icebreaker by Hannah Grace and Max, Mischa, and the Tet Offensive.
🎧 Talking of audiobooks, I’ve got a few romances lined up too, first among them Wild Love by Elsie Silver. If I change my mind about romance, I’d probably reach for a new Michael McDowell book instead.
What are you reading?
If you are looking for inspiration..
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