
Picture found at: https://www.melindatognini.com.au
#6Degrees
Six degrees of separation:
from end to beginning
or from end to hand!
Time for another quirky variation on this meme.
The book we are starting from speaks about an end, and my final degree evokes a beginning, and oh, there’s end in the first book and hand in the last one, how fun!
Using my own rules for this fun meme hosted by Kate at Booksaremyfavouriteandbest (see there the origin of the meme and how it works – posted the first Saturday of every month).
Here are my own quirky rules:
1. Use your list of books on Goodreads
2. Take the first word of the title (or in the subtitle) offered and find another title with that word in it – see the titles below the images to fully understand, as often the word could be in the second part of the title
3. Then use the first word of THAT title to find your text title
4. Or the second if the title starts with the same word, or you are stuck
Click on the covers
links will send you to my review or to the relevant page
This is the book we are supposed to start from.
I read it ten years ago, but was not wowed by it.
“‘This is a record of hate far more than of love,’ writes Maurice Bendrix in the opening passages of The End of the Affair, and it is a strange hate indeed that compels him to set down the retrospective account of his adulterous affair with Sarah Miles.
Now, a year after Sarah’s death, Bendrix seeks to exorcise the persistence of his passion by retracing its course from obsessive love to love-hate. At first, he believes he hates Sarah and her husband, Henry. Yet as he delves deeper into his emotional outlook, Bendrix’s hatred shifts to the God he feels has broken his life, but whose existence at last comes to recognize. ”
Click on the covers to read my review
or the relevant page
1. The End of Days, by Jenny Erpenbeck
VERDICT: Great piece of literature reflecting on life circumstances and how a small detail could change everything. Illustrated with a unique original structure and writing style. Perfect if you enjoy trying something different.
2. The Final Days of Abbot Montrose, by Sven Elvestad
VERDICT: A clever plot symbolizing different layers of the Norwegian society of early 20th century. A nice glimpse into the impressive work of Sven Elvestad, aka Stein Riverton.
3. Leave no Trace: The Final Moments of Florence W. Aldridge, by Tanya Anne Crosby
This is actually a novel I translated into French. Great plot and characters!
“Less than 48 hours.
That’s how long Florence W. Aldridge has to live.
Every event in a person’s life is connected. The state of our lives, at any given time, is the sum of everything we have done and everywhere we have been. Our next decision determines, not merely where our lives end, but who we become along the way. How far can one lost woman go to redeem herself by the time the clock stops ticking?
These are the final moments of Florence W. Aldridge…”
4. French Leave, by Anna Gavalda
A nice and quick read:
“Simon, Garance and Lola flee a family wedding that promises to be dull to visit their younger brother, Vincent, who is working as a guide at a château in the heart of the charming Tours countryside. For a few hours, they forget about kids, spouses, work and the many demands adulthood makes upon them and lose themselves in a day of laughter, teasing, and memories. As simply and as spontaneously as the adventure began, it ends. All four return to their everyday lives, carrying with them the magic of their brief reunion. They are stronger now, and happier, for having rediscovered the ties that bind them.”
5. The Hands On French French Cookbook: Connect With French Through Simple, Healthy Cooking, by Elisabeth de Châtillon
VERDICT: The most yummy book I have read this year. Cook and learn French at the same time!
6. In Good Hands: The Keeping of a Family Farm, by Charles Fish
Exceptionally, this is a book I haven’t read yet. It’s been on my TBR for two years, I have the feeling I would really enjoy it.
“In 1836, Henry Lester moved his family from the Vermont hills to better land on the valley floor north of Rutland, beginning a saga of six generations on a farm, which this book portrays and explores with an affectionate but critical eye. What gives the book its distinctive charm is its vivid evocation of a way of life: the beloved grandmother keeping house both as a shelter and as a temple of the spirit; the uncles sowing and harvesting, raising and slaughtering; the author, as a small boy, working with the men, fishing and hunting, and, later, reflecting on the issues of pleasure and work, freedom and community.”
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This is most definitely a quirky variation of Six Degrees. I always admire your version, even though I don’ think I could do one like it. I’ve said so before but one day I will have a go! Anyway, your books all sound fascinating.
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Using the search feature in the goodreads shelf of books I have read makes it quite easy
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What a great chain, as always. I’ve read your first book by Jenny Erpenbeck and other books by Anna Gavalda but none of the others.
My Six Degrees of Separation ended with a popular book from the last couple of years, Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens.
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Thanks. Which other book by Gavalda did you enjoy?
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I have read “95 pounds of hope” (F: 35 kilos d’espoir), “Hunting and Gathering” (F: Ensemble c’est tout),
“I Wish Someone Were Waiting for Me Somewhere” (F: Je voudrais quelqu’un m’attende quelque part). I really liked “95 pounds”, also liked “I wish …” was disappointed with “Hunting”.
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Good to know. Unfortunately, the other one I have on my physical shelf is Ensemble c’est tout ! Why did you find it disappointing?
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It’s been so long that I read it (2007), I had to go back and see what it was. I remember being bored with it and slightly irritated. One of our book club members thought it was “too easy” for me and she might have been right there. Might be a problem for you, as well. However, one never knows. Everyone else liked it. See here.
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Thanks for explaining. On my way to your review
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I don’t know any of these but French Leave sounds like one I would enjoy! Here is my chain: https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/2022/03/six-degrees-of-separation-from-end-of.html
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Yes, she’s a good author
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This is quite the mix of genres!
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A good sample of my reading life!
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I enjoyed following your quirky path from beginning to end.
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lol, thanks
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Sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy End of the Affair – it’s not my favourite Greene but I do rate it highly. I understand though that it’s not to everyone’s taste (my husband isn’t a fan either)
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It certainly didn’t stay much in me
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You did it again! That cookbook sounds good, too!
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Yes, a great one!
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Loved The End of the Affair. I was listening to it, and Colin Firth was the narrator. Can’t be better. Good choices to go with the initial book.
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Indeed, must be awesome narrator
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