What I Read: September 2020

September flew by and I only completed four books. To be fair, I started a couple other very long books (Kristen Lavransdatter and Alexander Hamilton by Chernow), so my page count for the month is still quite high. I need to do some catching up in October if I want to meet my goal of 100 by the end of the year!

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas ★★★★★/5

I've read this marvelous novel at least once before as a teenager, and I loved it even more as an adult. It's roughly 45 hours via audio, and well over 1000 pages in most editions, so this was my main focus of the month. I listened to the Blackstone Audio production, and also read parts in the Penguin edition. The Blackstone uses a different translation than the more recent Penguin edition. This blogger details the various editions and translations, arguing for the Penguin edition as it is the most complete. While that may be true, I do enjoy the Blackstone's more regal, victorian-style English. I would almost certainly include this book in my top ten favorites.

Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw ★★★/5

I rediscovered this beloved book from my teenage years while I was perusing the shelves in my parent's basement (they have an amazing collection of books). I've always been a sucker for historical fiction, and I think it really does help make the history come alive, especially for young students. Re-reading this book, I was less enraptured than I was as a young person, but I still enjoyed it!

A Severe Mercy: A Story of Faith, Tragedy and Triumph by Sheldon Vanauken ★★★★★/5

I started reading this book several years ago, and didn't finish for some reason (late library book, I believe). I decided to revisit it this month, and I'm very happy I did. Vanauken writes beautifully about his extraordinary relationship with his wife, and their journey to God and Christianity through their friendship with C.S. Lewis. His emotions shared in this autobiographical story were very raw and honest, which deeply moved me. I am looking forward to reading his other autobiographical story, 'Into the Mercy,' sometime in the future.

A Grief Observed by C.S.Lewis ★★★★★★/5

Of all of C.S.Lewis's published works, I was least interested in reading this short book. The reason I ended up reading it this month is simply because Sheldon Vanauken references the title in 'A Severe Mercy'. I think I've avoided this book because I didn't know C.S.Lewis's story, and just assumed that this was a book about powering through grief, because all will be well. That was absolutely not what it was. C.S.Lewis, I discovered, was married late in life to Joy Davidman, acquiring two step-sons in the process. His marriage was cut short by the death of his wife, which drove him to the edge of despair. This book, which is essentially a series of Lewis's journal entries, was initially published under a pseudonym, which I found really interesting. This is by far the most intimate and emotional piece of writing that I've read by Lewis, and he clearly struggled to share it.

That's all she wrote. Now, on to my last 25 books to complete the year!

KPA