Amazon knows how to hook you and keep you hooked. One day I noticed that it charged my credit card for Kindle Unlimited. I must have signed up for a trial or something, but I didn’t remember doing that as I’d not used it. I couldn’t figure out how to cancel it online (well played Amazon), so I decided to download some books and see if it would be worth it. I had some international travel this month and had time to read a couple of books on long flights. I still have to read my book club book for May, but I’ve got a short trip coming up that should allow me to cover that.
Books for this month:
- And Yet… by Christopher Hitchens: I have read two other books by the inimitable Mr Hitchens (god is not great and Hitch-22), both of which are hard going but enjoyable for someone who loves writing and language. And Yet… is a collection of his essays and book reviews, all true to Hitchens’ style. I liked this one a lot as it switched from subject to subject, had some comedy moments, and as always prompted me to continue reading his back catalogue.
- The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls: This book had kept popping up on my radar and is a perpetual book club suggestion but had never been a winner. How wrong we all were. I started and finished this book in 48 hours (with a flight in there somewhere), and I recommend it very highly. Sometimes it’s a tough read, but the determination and resilience these characters show is something that gave me some hope and direction for my own life.
- You Think You Know Me by Ryan Green: The first of my Kindle Unlimited choices, I decided to find some tabloid content to get me through a very long hair appointment. This wasn’t really a good book, as it wasn’t the Ann Rule style of deep investigation into a serial killer. Don’t bother with this one unless you’ve read all the greatest hits of the 1970s serial killers (Manson Family, Ted Bundy, Boston Strangler, etc).
- Without a Doubt by Marcia Clark: I just started this one, and already I’m intrigued by how this plays out. We know the ending of the story (in my opinion the biggest miscarriage of justice in a 20th century criminal case), but Marcia Clark writes from her point of view. I’ve refreshed my memory of the case on Wikipedia and I’ll keep at this one till I get to the end.
- Dreaming the Eagle by Manda Scott: I’m 3/4 of the way through this one, and as I have it as a bulky paperback it’s not a travelling book. I’ll finish it, as it’s the fictionalization of Boudicea’s origins in the UK. It’s inspired me to look into this history and I might visit a few of the sites it discusses out of interest.
The next book club book is The Witchfinder’s Sister by Beth Underdown. One of my trusted members has said she didn’t like it, but I’m keen on making a judgement for myself. We might do The Glass Castle for June, but also to be determined.