Travelling to Infinity ( The True Story behind "The Theory of Everything" by Jane Hawkings *****

This was a wonderful memoir of Jane's life with Stephen Hawking, who is probably the greatest scientific genius of modern times, and who has suffered from motor- neuron disease, known in North America as ALS since he was in his 20s. 

If I had seen that the print was as small as it was, I might not have purchased the book, and at 479 pages of text, it was sometimes demanding physically to read it, but I thoroughly enjoyed every single page. It is a clear, honest depiction of the duties of a caregiver, and in Jane's case, those duties fell on her shoulders from before their marriage through the births and growth of their three children, all the while trying to fulfill her own academic goals, not to mention the high level of care required around the clock for her husband, whose celebrity had several adverse effects on their lives: people thought they were rich, so didn't need assistance, Stephen himself naturally enough bathed in the glow of this celebrity and the knowledge that he was the center of everyone's attention,,so that Jane felt herself just to be a caregiver, and in the opinion of his family and the nurses who eventually took over his care, not a good caregiver. 

There was an interesting dynamic in this family, with the musician Jonathon - I don't think we're ever told his last name- becoming a part of the family, and actually a godsend to Jane, whose emotional and physical well-being were somewhat restored by his inclusion. 

Probably one of the best memoirs I've ever read.

I reread this for Book Club , November 14, 2015. I found Jane a little harder to take in this reading. I think she should have stood up to Stephen a little earlier, and I feel she became very bitter towards everyone as time went on. Considering her relationship with Jonathon, I think she should have welcomed Elaine's involvement with open arms.

All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews ****

This book,was chosen for our Book Club this year, and I read part of it last June, but I put it down less than half- way through. I was busy that month preparing for my solo recital, and I just couldn't understand how a woman with such talent as a concert pianist was doing everything she could to kill herself. So,I tried again this month and found it much easier to read, although still difficult to understand Elf's compulsion to kill herself. I found myself agreeing with all the arguments against it, how the nurses in the hospital virtually washed their hands of her.  I could find little more than selfishness in Elf, and could at least understand the continuing despair of those who loved her. And as I read on, I didn't experience any change of mind. 

It should be a good discussion at Book Club in April. I re-read this in April for Book Club. I understand more Elf's situation- her depression, and the inability of her family to save her. I saw also the relationship between the two sisters, although I never did understand the scene where Elf said she had to be perfect for her father. It was a good discussion.

Faithful Place by Tana French. ***

I've seen this author's name before, but didn't take much notice of it. Then Imwas browsing through the mystery section at PCB Library, discovered she is an Irish writer, and sets her stories in Ireland, so I decided to read one of her books. This is a very Irish story, set in Dublin, and involving the family members of an undercover cop, Francis Mackey, an extremely dysfunctional family at that. Twenty years earlier, Francis was prepared to leave Ireland with his sweetheart, Rosie, but the night she is to meet him to leave together, she fails to show up. After twenty years, her suitcase is discovered and soon after that, her body, so Francis returns to Dublin  to solve the mystery of why she didn't leave and who murdered her. 

The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout

There are two Burgess Boys, Jim the hotshot lawyer, and Bob, the nice one, plus their sister Susan, who no one seems to like. Her son, Zachary, gets into trouble over an incident involving some Somali immigrants, thus bringing the Burgess boys together again, learning to deal with their childhood, learning to live with each other, and becoming a family again.

I'm a big fan of Strout's writing, but I found this took a while to really grab me. Good character development and good writing, but it lacked the power of Olive Kitteridge.

Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey

A mystery written in 1946, set at a Physical Education school for girls. The crime does not happen until the last third of the book, so you get to know the characters well, especially Miss Pym, who is the narrator of the book, and a guest lecturer in psychology at the school. Tey has little patience for artificiality and I really enjoyed her " asides" as the novel went on.

Fatty O'Leary's Dinner Party by Alexander McCall Smith

Really just a longer short stry this was the tale of Fatty and his wife Betty and their adventures/misadventures on their trip to Ireland. I read this in one day!

The Girl Who Saved The King of Sweden by Jonas Jonasson

An amusing story, quite satirical, reads like a fable, but I don't think it teaches any lessons, other than raising a mirror to our various imperfections as human beings. The book is extremely well- written, and the translator certainly did an excellent job. This is about a South African cleaning lady, a set of twins, both wth the same name, an atomic bomb, and two Mossad agents. We get a capsule history of Sweden's royalty, and of their political system. I'm sure this book is a hit in Sweden!