Book of the week: February 20th 2011???

So you may notice a skip in the book of the weeks. That’s because my e-reader and I aren’t seeing eye to eye at the moment. My book club has picked an incredibly sad book. I’m not looking forward to being sad so I keep putting it away. So my idle e-reader is sitting there taunting me. I know I’ll read it I made the commitment, plus I really have to get going or I won’t meet my goal of 100 books this year. It’s just the sad book. I wonder why people pick sad fiction books to read when real life can be just as sad.

So this week is dedicated to the sad books or the heartache books or the books without a happy ending!

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

Read March 2010

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Based on the true story of Eyam. England in 1666. A bolt of cloth carrying the plague arrives in the little village. The village elects to quarantine themselves within the village boundaries to stop the spread of the disease to nearby towns. The book is told from Anna’s view point. She witness death to a point of numbness. She watches the villagers turn to God, witchcraft, medicinal herbs, each other, and murder.

I think I cried the first 100 or so! At some point I became numb to the drama, and at about 200 pages was looking for closure.

I do recommend it. It was an interesting look at what would happen on a small scale if an apocalypse happened. The book is a quick read and it must've had a small effect on me because I brought it up and discussed this book with my husband about some of the topics in it. As a mom of 2, the story made me cry a little. What would you do, if you had no knowledge or way of protecting your babies from death and it’s knocking on your door?
Ending was not my favorite, it was quick and questionable.


View all my reviews

Some of my other top 10 sad books off the top of my head:

1.      Diary of Anne Frank

2.      Marley and Me (I sobbed through the whole book because I could see what was going to come at the end)

3.      Angela’s Ashes

4.      Of Mice and Men

5.      Anybody Out There?

6.      The Giving Tree

7.      Charlotte’s Web

8.      I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

9.      New Moon (yeah I was heart broken when he left, Bite me!)

10.   If I Stay