Get a life!

What are the odds, do you think, that three books that came into my hands quite randomly at the same time would feature a main character named Rachel? They came my way simply by having my name hit the #1 spot on the library waiting lists for each. The odds are slightly better that each would be spectacular, because they were chosen directly from the NYT bestseller lists on various Sundays. Each is markedly different, in setting and story line, but each is masterfully crafted, beautifully written, full of content. The Girl on the Train is filled with suspense, from beginning to end, hard to put down.

The Marriage of Opposites is the story of the famous French painter Camille Pissaro. More accurately, the story primarily of his mother, who was born on St. Thomas, which was then a Danish territory, although her heritage was French and Jewish. His father came from France, although of Spanish heritage.

The author is deeply talented, tailoring her prose to whichever character has the point of view, including that of the young Pissaro, who sees a world of color and light and shape and form in language that is fascinating.

 Unlike the others, who do you love is by an author whose work I know well. It's a love story, of course, but far from what might be called a 'romance book'. She's way too talented for the trite, trivial and predictable. It covers many years, some of which are actually set here in Eugene at the UO. Gotta love that!

One more book that came with the bunch awaits, and I suspect it's equally as wonderful as these three have been. It's the latest, and probably last, book by Ivan Doig, who passed away recently.


So beyond all that, I'm walking around groggy and bleary-eyed because of a late football game that I couldn't turn off. More action in the last 20 mins (including triple overtime) than the whole rest of the game put together. Awesome. Worth being groggy and bleary-eyed. What else do I have to do, after all?

I did make it to the gym this morning for my 45 minutes on the treadmill. I missed Wednesday because I awoke with an oddly pulled back muscle, and also hadn't slept well. Not likely to do much this weekend, as usual. I really do need to get a life!

But, at least I have good books to read.