diary of a provincial librarian

I've been reading E.M. Delafield's Diary of a Provincial Lady and its sequels (I'm almost done with the second book now). For some reason I find myself unable to read them for a long time; about half an hour at a stretch is all I can manage. They're not at all difficult reading. I think it's because there's a sameness to the protagonist's life (can she be called a protagonist?) that is more charming in short doses.
I received the first volume of L.M. Montgomery's journals for Christmas; this might be the only year that I ever receive only one book!

hooked on Alias

So I've been reading the Alias prequels (based on the TV show, natch) at a mad rate. I've read all that I can get my hands on.
Here's the weird thing: I've never seen the show. I can't remember now why I started reading the novels, but it wasn't because I'm a huge Alias fan (though since I've been reading the novels, I've put a hold on the 1st season DVD). When I was little, though, I used to run around with a friend and pretend we were spies. We even had spy names, as well as the names of our enemies (the enemy names were all German, despite the fact that both of us are of German descent).

them's fightin' words

A recent review from the Bulletin for the Center of Children's Books (ordinarily, my favorite review journal, but it has been slipping, thanks in part to reviews like these) made me pace up and down, hurling insults. The review was of Eva Ibbotson's The Star of Kazan. And here's the thing - I hadn't even read Star of Kazan yet! The reviewer had written that Ibbotson was departing from the norm when she wrote a book without supernatural elements. The reviewer completely missed the fact that Ibbotson wasn't departing from anything; rather, she was returning to the inspiration for her adult books. What Ibbotson did, rather better than one would think possible, is revisit some of the themes from her books for adults without leaving behind a young audience. Several of the details from other books are there: the carp from Glove Shop in Vienna, the storks from A Song for Summer, the passion to be useful from Magic Flutes.
The Star of Kazan isn't a perfect book, but it's a great read for a winter night. Annika and Zed, in particular, are vivid characters. The plot relies on coincidence - but then again, the coincidences add to the fairy-tale quality of the book. Certainly, the book deserved better than it got at the hands of The Bulletin.
Note: While I hadn't read The Star of Kazan when I read the Bulletin review, I have read it now, of course.

no one can deny that these are difficult times

My life has been getting in the way of my reading this week, which is tiresome. Between re-arranging the study (new shelves will make it tidier, but it's not there yet), decorating for the holidays, working and attending a Christmas party last night, I've barely read at all this week. In free moments, I've been reading The Growing Summer by Streatfeild. I've never read it before, and I may never read it again. It's one of her later books, and it isn't very good. There aren't even flashes of good classic Streatfeild, and even the Gemma books have those!
Is my life difficult? Well, no. Only as difficult as I choose to make it. The title for today comes from the Chess soundtrack, which I've been playing over and over again in the car for the last week. I've been totally hooked on it lately, despite how bad it is. I'd love to get this soundtrack (the one with the black cover) on CD for Christmas, so I can skip all the screechy Florence songs and put the Arbiter's song on repeat.