Books
ALGARVE BOOK WORMS
Jake Cleaver has called all the book lovers of the Algarve to unite, and let us in on their most beloved gripping yarns. If you are interested in sharing one of your all-time favourites, or even latest favourite, please email us at simplyalgarvemag@gmail.com
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thought it might be nice if we could get a little book review club going here in Simply Algarve. Most book reviews these days seem to be about what’s current and upcoming, which is great, but I thought it might be nice to have a slightly different spin on it and talk about books both new, but also old. After all, we’ve been telling each other tales for a long time, and this might be a good opportunity to zero in on the great ones. To that end, at the beginning of August I put a little SHOUT out on Facebook, for exactly what its namesake suggests - to uncover the faces of some of the book worms here in the Algarve. The question I asked to get their pens flowing was this: “What is your favourite book, and why?”. Now, I got a few responses all with their own interpretations. Some of their favourite books of all time, and others simply of recent times. Which turns out to be quite a nice mixture. If you are looking for some reading material as we cool off after the Summer and head into Autumn (the season of books and tea), you might very well find something below, handpicked by your fellow Algavians, that you will enjoy. I’d like to thank everybody for their contributions, and if you, dear reader, have read anything recently, or years ago, that you would like to share, we would love it if you would write into us at simplyalgarvemag@ gmail.com and we’ll help you spread the word. Or should I say spread your words, on our pages. Because, like Dr Seus said, “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more you learn, the more places you’ll go.” Let us know where you’ve been! Fever Hello. I saw your Post. I love books. My favourite author is Deon Meyer. I usually love crime fiction but my favourite book of his is Fever. It’s a crime ‘can you guess who’ post-apocalyptic thriller set in South Africa (where I was born). It’s an on your edge kind of book which makes you sad when you finish it. Sandra Pereira
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Not Forgetting the Whale My favourite book at the moment would be John Ironmongers “Not Forgetting the Whale.” It is highly recommendable, as it could, in many ways, very much apply to the current situation, but gives us a happy ending. It was written in 2015, but describes a world fighting the very problems we’re currently facing. Eva-Charlotte Gross Where the Crawdads Sing Hello Jake, I am an avid book reader. I don’t have a particular favourite, but I have just finished reading ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’, by Delia Owens, which I couldn’t put down until I had finished it! Engaging story of a “marsh girl” living alone in the marshlands of North Carolina, who is accused of murdering a local boy who is mysteriously found dead. Sensitively written, bringing the characters alive and believable. I looked for other books by this author as I enjoyed the story so much. Marilyn Sheridan Pride and Prejudice I adore Mrs Bennet! She is the most sassy, switchedon and perceptive of all Jane Austen’s characters. Mrs B’s raison d’etre is perfectly summarised in the narrator’s statement; “the business of her life was to get her daughters married.” Poor old Mrs B had the misfortune to produce five daughters when, rather unhelpfully, the necessity to marry them all off was somewhat exacerbated by the fact
September 2020
