Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh - I read this with my book club. It had probably been more than twenty years since I read it last, before I had children. I feel like it was a different read as a mother. I hadn't remembered he was married at all, let alone with children. Charles Ryder's complete disinterest and disregard for his children disgusted me. His assertion at the end that he had missed his opportunity to be a real father (which his kids are still relatively young) is also nonsense. I enjoyed reading the book; Evelyn Waugh is terrific. It was fun to talk about this book with my book club friends. (Kansas Dad's copy)
English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs - My kids are all teenagers, but I still read fairy tales or myths aloud regularly. We read them all, the weird ones, the disturbing ones, and (most of them) the funny ones. My kids love trying to predict what is going to happen. Living Book Press has good quality reprints of many older previously out of print books. (purchased copy)
The Mottled Lizard by Elspeth Huxley - This is a second volume Huxley's memoirs of her life growing up in Kenya during British colonial rule. Descriptions of African life are beautiful, but honest. It's also a fascinating glimpse into the mindset of British colonialists of the time between the World Wars. Expect a fair amount of racial stereotypes as well as the harsh realities of life at the edge of wilderness. I enjoyed this book but would definitely recommend The Flame Trees of Thika more for a younger reader than this one. (PaperBackSwap copy)
Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul by St. Maria Faustina - My oldest read selections from this as part of his religion reading his senior year of high school. I decided I'd read the whole book. It took me more than two years of slow reading (often at adoration). Of course, there is much value in the diary, but you should really think of it more as a primary source than a book to just sit and read. If St. Maria Faustina is one of your patron saints, you may find the entirety useful, but I think it would also be just fine to read a biography or other book about St. Maria Faustina that draws from the diary or shares excerpts. First Daughter (my second-oldest) hasn't read any yet, but I will assign selections during her senior year. (purchased copy)
I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links.
