The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. -- Take 2

The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. was a thoroughly enjoyable read.  Whenever I am surprised by how much I enjoy a book which has sat unread in my collection for so many years, I'm a bit disappointed. It seems sort of silly, but I believe my brain is just wishing that it could have had that reading experience earlier, so that it might have been enjoyed for longer.

Regardless, here I am, finally having finished the first of the Josephine trilogy.  It's a based-on-a-true-story novel told through journal entries of the titular character plus the occasional letter.  I love the format, which so perfectly supports the goal of understanding the "secret sorrows" which Rose (later Josephine) endured.

I don't believe I'm spoiling anything (it's right there in the back cover blurb) to say that Josephine marries Napoleon Bonaparte. But she has a whole other wild, sometimes terrifying, life before she becomes Mrs. B, which is where this book spends its time.  Napoleon makes no appearance at all until the last couple of chapters.

A fun and fascinating read, and one more book to tick off on my way to completing my 2025 Reading Challenge!

What I Read -- The Prospector

I don't know much about Mauritius. I'm certain it has some European colonial history, definitely French and possibly also British.  But I'm going there, so I decided to see what I could pick up from a novel.

I selected The Prospector, by J. M. G. Le Clézio.  I didn't know anything about the author before beginning, and only learned when I got to the "About The Author" page at the end that he's kind of a big deal in his native France.  He lives part time in Mauririus, and it shows in how lovingly he writes about the island.

The Prospector is a tale of sorrow and growth and hope.

We meet our hero as a young boy, running wild through the woods with his childhood friend. We follow him through family tragedy and on his mad crusade to realize his deceased father's dreams.  He finds love, then war, then comes home again.  We follow him as his most important relationships change and are lost to time and circumstance.  We see him cope with those changes, until all that matters to him is gone.

I would not, you might guess from the above description, call this as a happy story.  But it is so beautifully told.  The words and sentences flow effortlessly one after another, expertly conveying the details of place (which, collectively, could rightfully be considered a major character) and the feeling of longing for something which remains just out of reach.

What I'm Reading Now -- The Many Lives and Secret Sorrows of Josephine B.

While simultaneously trying to catch up on my 2024 Reading Challenge with One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, I'm hoping not to fall too far behind on my 2025 list by getting going on The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B.

This book is one that has been in my collection for years, ever since I bought it for $1.00 at the big book fair in St. Louis that used to happen every spring in the covered parking at West County Mall one year that K and I went together. (Does that book fair still happen? Looks like yes!) 

What I'm Reading Now -- Wolf Hall

This is my second time through Wolf Hall.  Perhaps inexplicably, I am again listening to the audiobook. It was several years ago when I tried this before, and I believe my failure at that time was one of attention.

There's not much I can do differently this time except really try to give the story -- especially the extensive cast of characters -- the focus I should have paid it last time.  I had initially downloaded a cheat sheet of the major players. but now find myself unable to locate it.

Regardless, I'm having far more success this time. I'm 16% into the story (according to my audiobook player) and have a good grip on who's who.  With their names and identities now solidified in the background, I'm able to relax a bit and enjoy the quality of the writing which escaped me previously.

So far, so good!

What I'm Reading Now -- One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

You might recall how, for several years now, K and I have had an annual reading challenge. One ot the  books on my 2024 Reading Challenge list which I did not get to during that calemdar year was One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, the first novel by Ken Kesey.

I've seen the movie starring Jack Nicholson (and truly, why would you watch another version?), so I have a pretty good fix on the major plot points.

But I decided it's high time I read the book that inspired one of the big screen's greatest lunatics.

What I Read -- City of Buried Ghosts

I picked up City of Buried Ghosts, by Chris Lloyd, in a hotel where S and I recently stayed.  It's a detective mystery, and follows the genre tropes just as one might expect.  So insofar as that goes, it was not particularly clever or creative. 

Where it is challenging is that it's set in Catalonia, which is a region of Spain where a particular dialect of Spanish is spoken. Consequently,  the character names and place names are unusual, making them both difficult to pronounce and a tad harder than normal to remember. (At least that's the experience I have with words and especially languages that are unfamiliar.  I had a similar experience with my recent book on Indonesian history.  Or perhaps that's just me?)

Anywho, I didn't find much special in this book to recommend it over others of its kind, but if you're interested in a moderately sad page turner, this will get the job done.

What I'm Reading Now -- Stuck: How the Privileged and the Propertied Broke the Engine of American Opportunity

I have no idea where this book came from; I just found it in my reading app on my phone one day.  Not having any other audiobooks available at the time, I took the "something is better than nothing" approach and decided to give it a go.

Here are a few of the things this book told me before my time ran out and the library took it away:

 - Settlers in America have always been extremely mobile. The goal was to move up, get better economic opportunities, or escape your past.
 - People who moved had a higher-than-average rate of involvement in civic, religious, and community associations. People who stayed put had lower rates of involvement.

 - The rise of zoning laws (in California, primarily as a way to exclude the Chinese and Chinese-owned laundries through the mid- and late-19th century) began the trend of limiting mobility in order to satisfy the desires of the people who already lived in a particular area or neighborhood.
 - Zoning expanded and was further developed in NYC and Flint, Michigan, particularly in response to the first and second great migrations.

At which time, the library reclaimed its free mystery book, so I have nothing further to offer unless and until I finish up listening to it.

A Brief History of Indonesia -- Take 2

A Brief History of Indonesia: Sultans, Spices, and Tsunamis: The Incredible Story of Southeast Asia's Largest Nation is exactly what it purports to be, and I very much appreciate that about it. Specifically, it meets both the expectations set by its title and subtitle, and also in its introduction, which promises a non-academic review of the long and tumultuous history of this portion of the Malay archipelago.

For us westerners, it's easy for a country like Indonesia to be ignored.  It's not one of the world's military superpowers; it's not the exclusive source of any particular product which we Americans must have; its economy overall is pretty much in shambles domestically, not to mention internationally.

But that doesn't mean that it doesn't have a fascinating history of discovery, exploitation, and resistance.  As a nation of islands in southeast Asia, it was perfectly positioned to be central to the spice trade -- together with all the good and bad things that came along with that.  If you want to learn about them, this book is a pretty good introduction.

The Small and The Mighty -- Take 2

The Small and The Mighty: Twelve Unsung Americans Who Changed the Course of History, From the Founding to the Civil Rights Movement is a rare combination of quick, entertaining, and informative.  Where I find that it really shines is in finding little-known historical figures who did yoeman's work, often for years or decades, and giving color and depth to the story of their often Herculean efforts.

In the end, it attempts to convey the message that we all have a role to play in potentially changing history.  I'm not quite sure I believe I'm ready to go there.  It seems like a fun idea, but one that may only exist when there are certain circumstances present -- a certain social, cultural, or psychological stew that has been brewing already, some kindling already on the fire, in order for one's actions to light the inferno.

The author shamelessly plugs her own podcast at the end of the book ... but I was interested enough to want to check it out. If you're curious to check it out yourself, it's called "This is Where It Gets Interesting."

What I'm Reading Now -- Misadventures in Nature's Paradise

Further to my study of southeasst Asia, my next read is Misadventures in Nature's Paradise: Australia's Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island During the Dutch Era. 

At the opening, my honest opinion is that this sounds a little dull and esoteric, and frankly I may not get through it.  But as with so much of the world, the current political, economic, and social situations in these places stem from their colonial history.  So, I'm going to give it a whirl and see what I can learn (or how far I make it...).