My trip to London may have been cancelled, but my book shopping need not be. I happily supported my local bookstores and then I happily supported a couple of the bookstores I was going to visit in London.
I decided it would be a nice treat if I subscribed to a six-month book subscription from Persephone Books, something I have been wanting to do for a number of years now. Much to my delight, the first book, Mariana, arrived earlier this week. Mariana is written by Monica Dickens, the great-granddaughter of Charles Dickens. It’s a little bit biographical and the main character, Mariana, is a young Englishwoman, going through all the motions of life. It’s supposed to be humorous and interesting and well-written.
I also bought Square Haunting by Francesca Wade and The Other Bennet Sister by Janice Hadlow. I’m looking forward to reading both.
Square Haunting is the story of five women writers living in London (Bloomsbury) during the years between the two world wars. I was planning on buying it in London, so I thought it only right to order the British edition. I was supposed to stay in Bloomsbury and haunt all of these squares myself, but it will have to wait for another time and that’s okay.
The Other Bennet Sister is about Mary Bennet, the overlooked sister from Pride and Prejudice. I recall feeling annoyed by her, so it will be interesting to see how Mary’s life turns out.
In more local news, I also paid a visit to my neighborhood used bookstore and bought Travels with my Aunt by Graham Greene (humorous) and From Splendor to Revolution by Julia P. Gelardi (Romanov history).
Even though I’m in book heaven, I’m not used to purchasing so many books. (I talk about that here.) I honestly don’t know how soon I’ll get through reading this new stack. Regardless, supporting our bookstores is the right thing to do and binge reading will be a good diversion from the current troubles.
What is your good diversion currently?
xoxo, Jane
