THE PERFECT SUMMER by Juliet Nicolson (non-fic paper)

1911 was the "perfect summer!"  It was one of the hottest on record in England.  Juliet Nicolson's social history of 1911 is a fascinating read. It covers one lovely summer including the new royals, George V and Queen Mary, the gentry (who with nothing to occupy them except good times were the forerunners of the wild 20s), and the working and serving classses as well.  If you are a fan of Downton Abbey, you will appreciate this book.  The television series began in 1911, and one can see the seeds of unrest in the serving and working classes of England.  It is a summer of strikes, new movements in art, literature and dance.  Many famous politicians, artists, and society doyans make their appearance in this hot hot summer. Most of all it is the calm before the storm of World War I.  Recommended reading.

A few other recent reads

FRIEND OF MY YOUTH by Alice Munro.  This is an early collection of Alice Munro's short stories.  Munro is considered the best of North American short story writers.  If you have followed her in the "New Yorker" and enjoy her work you will enjoy this book as well.
STONE ARABIA by Dana Spiotta.  This book has been on the best seller list.  It is about the relationship between a brother and sister and follows their disfunctional progress through the 70s and 80s.  It is well written, I just wasn't into the characters.  I found them tiresome.
SONGS WITHOUT WORDS by Ann Packer.  This book held my interest because the writing was excellent.  It is about confronting loss and how it came between two friends.  I found it sad and was looking for a lighter read at the time, so didn't enjoy it as much as I might have.

THE INVISIBLE BRIDGE by Julie Orringer (fic. papbk)

"The Invisible Bridge" is one of the best books I have read this year.  The story takes place during World War II and is set in Paris and Hungry.  The main character, Andras Levi is from a Hungarian/Jewish family and as the story opens is an architectural student studying in Paris.  There he meets the love of his life.  As the anti-Jewish laws begin to be inforced in Paris, Andra returns to Hungry with his wife.  There the war intensifies and divides his family.  This all too real story draws you in so that you are involved with this family and become emotionally entangled with its members and their lives.  I highly recommend this book.  It is beautifully written, and historically correct.  The characters are based on the lives of Ms. Orringer's grandparents.

THE MAYTREES by Anne Dillard

"The Maytrees" sat on my book pile for quite a while before I picked it up.  To my surprise, I found the book delightful.  Anne Dillard who won a pulitzer prize in the past writes beautiful poetry-like prose.  "The Maytrees" is a love story set on Cape Cod, beginning during World War II and continuing until present day.  Lou and Toby Maytree fall in love, have a child and have a community of friends who are mixture of summer people and long-standing citizens of Provencetown.  Without effort the reader falls into their life.  If you enjoy good writing, this is a good choice for you.

Murder in the Northwest in 1867

THE TENDERNESS OF WOLVES by Stef Penney is one of the better books I have read in the past year.  It takes place in a cold isolated settlement in Canada's Northwest Territory.  The setting feels authentic and the characters real.  The reader is taken back in time to the frontier where the early settlers, traders and Indians mix warily.  From the moment the murder is discovered by Mrs. Ross to the gunfight at the climax of the book, the reader is engrossed in the life of the characters.  I am not a great fan of westerns, but this book fired my imagination from start to finish.