The Mood of Books - Choosing the Perfect Book for Cold Weather
Jamieson Villeneuve
October 23, 2007
Lately, I have been drawn to what read what I call hard books. Books that are huge, thick, sprawling stories well over six hundred pages. Or books with dark storylines, twisting plots, epic tales. I have shied away from the lighter fare of trashy novels, romances and mass fiction.
I’m pretty sure this has a lot to do with the weather.
When the cold weather hits, I find myself wanting to settle down with a good, hard book. Books that reach out to me, engulf me in their stories, their characters, the lives inside the covers. I find myself wanting to become involved in the words, wishing I had written them myself or created something beautiful.
Earlier this month I was reading The Séance, a wonderful trashy novel by Heather Graham when it hit me: this book just wasn’t doing it for me. Something was lacking and I just couldn’t put my finger on it.
After The Séance, I moved on to The Mist by Stephen King, a really good romp through terror, horror and the unknown. And while I love Stephen King (I am habitually obsessed about his work) I found that it just didn’t satisfy me. It left my reading fix wanting.
It wasn’t until I picked up the mass market publication of Gregory Maguire’s amazing Wicked, a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, that I was able to read a book and have it hold my interest.
There is nothing light about the book. Indeed, it is more a parable of our modern times and covers such issues like racism, prejudice, murder, betrayal, politics, revolution and religion. Those wanting a darker look into the world of The Wizard of Oz would do well to check it out.
I moved on to Eat, Pray, Love, a stunning travel log/memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert about her travels to find herself and love herself after a difficult divorce and short relationship. It was stunning and moving and I’m still haunted by it, wanting to curl up with it and read random passages. It was a gorgeous piece of work.
After those two hard books, I felt I was on to something.
My love of reading had returned and I started wondering why that was. I have always loved reading but I’m usually drawn towards lighter books; Books by Kelley Armstrong, Sophie Kinsella and Maeve Binchy are a few examples.
So why, I wondered, was I all of a sudden changing gears and looking for more meaty, substantial reading material? Why was I looking for more diverse work to wet my word whistle? The only reason that made sense to me was that perhaps I was being affected by the weather.
There is nothing nicer than cuddling up with a good thick book on a cold fall evening. Even more so, I find myself drawn towards more difficult reading. Perhaps this is because my brain needs more stimulation during the darker, colder, wetter months?
Whatever the reason, my brain could not be more thrilled with this literary smorgasbord. I’m currently enjoying one of the best novels I’ve ever read. It’s called The Dowry Bride and it is the debut novel by talented author Shobhan Bantwal.
The novel is set in present day India and concerns Megha. One night she overhears her mother in law planning to kill her because her father has not paid the large dowry she has demanded. Running for her life, she takes refuge at the house of Kiran, her relative by marriage. It’s a fantastic, luxurious novel about love, life, justice and the darker subject of Dowry Burnings, something that is still common today.
Now I find myself at an impasse. I’m not sure what to read next, what novel or book of non-fiction will tickle my fancy. I guess I’ll have to leave it up to fate or my mood at the time when I come to the end of The Dowry Bride.
However, I do have a hardback copy of A Breath of Snow and Ashes staring at me from my bookshelf….
I’m pretty sure this has a lot to do with the weather.
When the cold weather hits, I find myself wanting to settle down with a good, hard book. Books that reach out to me, engulf me in their stories, their characters, the lives inside the covers. I find myself wanting to become involved in the words, wishing I had written them myself or created something beautiful.
Earlier this month I was reading The Séance, a wonderful trashy novel by Heather Graham when it hit me: this book just wasn’t doing it for me. Something was lacking and I just couldn’t put my finger on it.
After The Séance, I moved on to The Mist by Stephen King, a really good romp through terror, horror and the unknown. And while I love Stephen King (I am habitually obsessed about his work) I found that it just didn’t satisfy me. It left my reading fix wanting.
It wasn’t until I picked up the mass market publication of Gregory Maguire’s amazing Wicked, a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, that I was able to read a book and have it hold my interest.
There is nothing light about the book. Indeed, it is more a parable of our modern times and covers such issues like racism, prejudice, murder, betrayal, politics, revolution and religion. Those wanting a darker look into the world of The Wizard of Oz would do well to check it out.
I moved on to Eat, Pray, Love, a stunning travel log/memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert about her travels to find herself and love herself after a difficult divorce and short relationship. It was stunning and moving and I’m still haunted by it, wanting to curl up with it and read random passages. It was a gorgeous piece of work.
After those two hard books, I felt I was on to something.
My love of reading had returned and I started wondering why that was. I have always loved reading but I’m usually drawn towards lighter books; Books by Kelley Armstrong, Sophie Kinsella and Maeve Binchy are a few examples.
So why, I wondered, was I all of a sudden changing gears and looking for more meaty, substantial reading material? Why was I looking for more diverse work to wet my word whistle? The only reason that made sense to me was that perhaps I was being affected by the weather.
There is nothing nicer than cuddling up with a good thick book on a cold fall evening. Even more so, I find myself drawn towards more difficult reading. Perhaps this is because my brain needs more stimulation during the darker, colder, wetter months?
Whatever the reason, my brain could not be more thrilled with this literary smorgasbord. I’m currently enjoying one of the best novels I’ve ever read. It’s called The Dowry Bride and it is the debut novel by talented author Shobhan Bantwal.
The novel is set in present day India and concerns Megha. One night she overhears her mother in law planning to kill her because her father has not paid the large dowry she has demanded. Running for her life, she takes refuge at the house of Kiran, her relative by marriage. It’s a fantastic, luxurious novel about love, life, justice and the darker subject of Dowry Burnings, something that is still common today.
Now I find myself at an impasse. I’m not sure what to read next, what novel or book of non-fiction will tickle my fancy. I guess I’ll have to leave it up to fate or my mood at the time when I come to the end of The Dowry Bride.
However, I do have a hardback copy of A Breath of Snow and Ashes staring at me from my bookshelf….
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