The World's Common Tater

It is a little early. I thought about waiting until tomorrow in case I finish the book I am reading, but after today my writing time will be much more inconsistent. So, any books I finish over the next couple of days will be included in my July list. Here are the books I have finished so far this month.

Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie – My son bought this one for me for Christmas. He is a big Christie fan. He thought I should have read it before the Egypt trip or while we were in Egypt. He is probably right. I tend to forget about the books I own because I always have so many books from the library. So, I read it after we returned

It is a Poirot book. There is a murder on a Nile cruise. He investigates. It is your typical Christie book. I’m not as big a fan of Agatha Christie as others, but her books are very well done. I always feel like they are a little slow. I guess I should stop complaining that my wife feels the same way about old movies. I did not figure out who did it. That is always a bonus in a mystery book. I would recommend it to anyone who loves a good mystery, but I feel like I am the last person to read it.

Babel by R. F. Kuang – When Robin is orphaned as a child, he is brought from Canton to London by Professor Lovell where he is trained in the art of translation. He is eventually enrolled at Oxford in the School of Translation, also known as Babel. Babel is the world center for translation and the magic that comes from using paired words from two languages and silver bars. Robin loves Oxford until he has to choose between Babel and the Hermes Society, a shadowy group determined to end imperial expansion.

I was going to read another book before I started this one but switched when my daughter wanted me to get to this one. Her love of the book kept me going through some of the early parts that I thought were a bit slow. I think some of the Oxford bits could have been trimmed down a little. The action picks up in the second half of the book when events make Robin and his friends choose where their loyalties lie. I did give the book four stars on Goodreads. I loved the concept and I was fully invested in the story and the characters. I just wish it had been a little shorter.

The Woman in the Window by AJ Finn – Anna is agoraphobic after a traumatic event. She spends her days watching her neighbors through her window. A new family moves in and Anna thinks she witnessed a murder in their house. The family insists she imagined it and she thinks she might be losing her mind.

This was a re-read for book club. I mostly listened to the audio at 1 3/4 speed. It is a decent story. There are no redeemable characters. The twists are easy to anticipate. I might watch the Netflix movie now that I remember it exists.

I will have a lot of reading time coming up. I hope to get back in my reading groove and read as many books in the next week as I did in the last month. We shall see.