Happy Wednesday everyone! Woah. How has your year been so far? I hope that it has been great. Woah. In about a week, we will be welcoming a new month. How time flies! Nevertheless, I hope and pray that the rest of the year will be brimming with good news, positive energy, and blessings. I also hope that everyone will be happy and healthy, in body, mind, and spirit.
Wednesdays also mean WWW Wednesday updates. WWW Wednesday is a bookish meme hosted originally by SAM@TAKING ON A WORLD OF WORDS. The mechanics for WWW Wednesday are quite simple, you just have to answer three questions:
- What are you currently reading?
- What have you finished reading?
- What will you read next?
What are you currently reading?
With the month slowly dwindling down, I am also wrapping up my foray into the works of female writers; I have been exploring this world for the past two months. This literary journey transported me to various parts of the world. Currently, it has taken me back to North America through Alice Walker’s The Temple of My Familiar. It has been nearly a decade since I read my first novel by Walker, her highly heralded The Color Purple. I admit I was not a fan of the book mainly because of its use of the colloquial. But I still wanted to give her prose a chance, hence, the inclusion of The Temple of My Familiar in my 2024 Beat the Backlist Challenge and 2024 Top 24 Reading List.
The Temple of My Familiar charts the fortunes of various characters. One of the threads making up the novel followed Carlotta, a Latin American woman. When she was young, her mother, Zedé, escaped to the United States with her. They settled in San Francisco where Carlotta met Arveyda, a rockstar who was one of her mother’s customers. Carlotta and Arveyda married and their marriage was soon ruined by an act of betrayal. Enter Suwelo, a black professor of American History, and his ex-wife Fanny. Lissie was another interesting character introduced in the story. The novel explores several seminal themes such as the female experience and the legacy of colonialization. I am just a hundred pages away from finishing the novel and I can’t wait to see how Walker will tie it all p together.
What have you finished reading?
In the past week, I finished two books written by familiar names. The first one was Elif Shafak’s The Architect’s Apprentice. Since discovering the Turkish writer way back in 2019 through an online bookseller and the Booker Prize, Shafak has become one of my favorite writers. In fact, The Architect’s Apprentice is my fifth by Shafak, making her one of my most-read writers in the past decade. Oh. I just realized. I read at least one of her works a year since 2020. She was certainly a welcome and pleasant discovery.
Anyway, the titular architect’s apprentice is Jahan. At the age of twelve, he was forced to abandon his home because of his abusive stepfather. He then found himself on a ship en route to Istanbul and captained by Captain Gareth. Also aboard the ship was a young white elephant which was a gift to Sultan Suleiman I from Hindustan; the novel was set during the Golden Age of the Ottoman Empire. Captain Gareth, however, was scheming to steal from the palace. He sent Jahan to be the elephant’s mahout (keeper). Things did not go as planned and Jahan found himself under the tutelage of Sinan, the Chief Royal Architect. Jahan became his apprentice while, at the same time, the young elephant’s mahout; he named the elephant Chota. As he was fitting into his new role, the Ottoman Empire was flourishing. Mosques, aqueducts, and other architectural and engineering feats were rising, showcasing the Ottoman’s ingenuity, power, and growing influence. This also means that Chota was in action as a war elephant. At one point, Chota was the Sultan’s carrier. These sections were mere interjections as Shafak’s preoccupation was with Jahan, including his relationship with his fellow apprentices and his mentor. Overall, I liked the novel, perhaps the best among Shafak’s works I already read. It transported me back in history. Istanbul was also prominently featured.
Speaking of most-read writers in the past decade, my second most-read writer in the past decade is Agatha Christie. The A.B.C. Murders was her twelfth book I have read since 2014; it was also my 32nd novel by Christie, making her also my second most-read writer overall. Only Haruki Murakami (14 in the past decade) and Danielle Steel (42 overall) bested her, respectively. Anyway, I was not planning on reading The A.B.C. Murders but I guess I am not passing on the opportunity of reading yet another book by the Queen of Suspense.
The A.B.C. Murders reintroduces Hercule Poirot, perhaps her most famous literary creation and one of the most recognized literary sleuths. The story, however, was narrated by the Belgian detective’s friend, Arthur Hastings. Shortly after returning from South America, Hastings met his friend who showed him a mysterious letter. Signed A.B.C., the letter detailed a crime that was about to be committed. It was also challenging and mocking Poirot’s sleuthing skills. Sure enough, Alice Ascher was killed in her tobacco shop in Andover. Neither Poirot nor the police were able to solve her death. Soon enough, a new letter arrived which again ended in another death, that of Elizabeth “Betty” Barnard who was found lifeless on the beach at Bexhill. A third death ensued: Sir Carmichael Clarke, a wealthy man, was killed at his home in Churston. Apart from the letters, what linked the murders was an ABC Rail Guide left beside the victim. Just when you thought Poirot wouldn’t be able to solve the mystery – to even think of it is a blasphemy, to be honest – Poirot pulls a trick off of his sleeves. The A.B.C. Murders is classic Christie.
What will you read next?
The Pine-Scented Chronicles 