The Goldfinch- Donna Tartt

Even at its grittiest, this book has an underlying tone of hope and love of beauty. 

My favourite character was Hobie: a sophisticated, simple and elegant man, a craftsman and restorer of furniture, a lover of beauty, a truly generous person.


The narrator of "The Goldfinch" tells us: "it's not about outward appearances but inward significance. A grandeur in the world, but not of the world, a grandeur that the world doesn't understand. That first glimpse of pure otherness, in whose presence you bloom out and out and out." p. 761

That passage reminds me of a favourite passage of mine from Robertson Davies' "Fifth Business", in which he describes Mrs. Dempster: "She lived by a light that arose from within; I could not comprehend it, except that it seemed to be somewhat akin to the splendours I found in books, though not in any way bookish. It was as though she were an exile from a world that saw things her way, and though she was sorry Deptford did not understand her, she was not resentful." p. 52 


"The Goldfinch" is a thrilling and exciting tale, but it is much more than that:

"Whatever teaches us to talk to ourselves is important: whatever teaches us to sing ourselves out of despair." p. 771

This book can teach us to sing ourselves out of despair.

The Sweetness of a Simple Life- Diana Beresford Kroeger

Reading this book helped me to slow down. There was a gentleness to the tone that created an atmosphere in my life that felt peaceful and nourishing. 

"The Sweetness of a Simple Life" deals with some very difficult subject matter; it doesn't skirt away from challenges, but the pervasive sensibility is one of deep wisdom, which comes at its own pace and sees the world through its own lens.

It altered my pace and my lens to read it.

Book Lists

I used to keep my book lists on scraps of paper. Then I graduated to a book list journal. I wish I could find it now. I kept it for several years and wrote down every book I read during that time- it was around the time my children were small. 

I'm not sure why I did it. I just had the urge to record what I read, and I would often look back through and remember books I had forgotten, sometimes in order to recommend them to friends.

It's the same impulse as keeping a regular journal, really- to record your life. And in my case, what I am reading is a big part of my life.

I want to keep another record, which is why I am starting this blog. I don't intend to record every book I read this time- it just becomes too unwieldy. And since I also hope to share, I want to share only the books that are most beautiful to me. 

That's what I'm hoping to do here.

I hope you will enjoy,
Keri