I Heart Books

I have just finished two books in two days and have started on a new one this morning. I go through periods of voraciously devouring books and due to the play finishing have got back into my stride a little. The first book was extremely enjoyable and quite long, so I was reading it throughout the run but, for obvious reasons, could never just sit down and plough through it. Ursula, Under by Ingrid Hill, a book which allows the reader a glimpse into the lineage of a small Finnish-Chinese-American girl who fell into a mineshaft and there bore the responsibility to live, being the last person in this epic line of people. I loved it, particularly the narrative, which was extremely omniscient and at several points made reference to a God who could see not only what was and what is but also what will be and what could have been, and by using this technique gave you insights into what could have been a better or worse life for the characters in question. Another thing I liked was that it was never sentimental and wouldn't linger on the potentially emotionally manipulative scenario of Ursula's predicament, focussing instead on differing viewpoints and practicality. I recommend everyone to read it.

The second book took me less than a day to read and was a horse of a totally different colour. A Year With The Producers by Jeffry Denman was an actor's diary taken from his auditions to his appearance as Matthew Broderick's understudy in the original Broadway production. I love reading about people who work in theatre, there's something about it that both undercuts and perpetuates the myth and glamour. You hear about the slog and the hell of auditioning but at the same time get to read about parties where Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft conga around a restaurant with the rest of the cast in tow. However, I was very glad I had seen both films, even if I'd never made it to see the production onstage (do you know how much those tickets cost? And it's currently John Gordon Sinclair who I am not that keen on) because it is written for an audience who know the show reasonably well. Someone coming into it completely cold would be rather confused by the references to Little Old Lady Land and chorus line swastikas.

So, I'm a big novels geek but at least MuleBoy would be proud of me for reading consistently adult books as he moans at me for reading children's books. He has yet to discover the genius of Philip Pullman and Garth Nix (seriously, if you haven't read Garth Nix yet, he is excellent. I wasn't a big fan of Sabriel but Lirael and Abhorsen are well worth it).