BOOKS

I finished two books yesterday. Two because I left my main book at work one day last week and had to have something to read. But both were wonderful books, albeit on opposite ends of the spectrum.

The main book to occupy my time these past few days was In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden. The blurb on the back states -

This extraordinarily sensitive and insightful portrait of religious life centers on Philippa Talbot, a highly successful professional woman who leaves her life among the London elite to join a cloistered Benedictine community. In this gripping narrative of he crises surrounding the ancient Brede Abbey, Rumer Godden penetrates to the mysterious, inner heart of a religious community - a place of complexity and conflict as well as joy and love. It is a place where Philippa, to her own surprise and her friends' astonishment, finds her life by losing it.

The characters in this book are so real, so memorable, that they remain with you. It's so easy to stop at the habit (they all look the same) and yet, they are so very different. Godden captures the feelings and emotions - the sometimes petty jealousies, the feelings of superiority - that make these women believable. Although they are giving their lives to prayer, they are still human, with human foibles. Beyond that, learning more about the monastic life they choose to follow is fascinating. While their lives revolve around the hours of prayer (Terce, None, Vespers, etc.) they also work in gardens or with printing presses or at looms. They are a very diverse group of women. I'd recommend this book to any and all

The second book I finished was Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer. This was a very fast, fun read. Artemis Fowl is a 12 year old criminal mastermind. His father disappeared during one of his nefarious schemes and Artemis decides to find him, but needs to replenish the family fortune first. He does this by trying to trick the faeries out of their gold. This was written for a young adult audience, but the story was intriguing enough to keep my attention (not necessarily a selling point, since I read any and everything) and I've just started the 2nd in the series.

And now, I'm sick as a dog (having caught whatever Helen's been fighting for the past four days) and I'm heading out to the sun to let it bake the germs out of me.