Undercover Librarian

Here we are, already almost halfway through the month! It’s time to share some thoughts and feelings about our current read and to announce our next selection.

Low/moderate spoilers, here. Think: plot points may be included but no plot twists.

Currently reading: The Witch Elm

by Tana French

Let’s talk about “The Witch Elm” and how things are going. I’ll start by commenting on the general slog of it all…

The pace of this book is a bit painful toward the beginning. If it weren’t for the endearing dialog between Toby and his buddies and the relatable descriptions of family dynamics during Sunday lunches, it might have lost me completely. It also helps that I’m also a total sucker for the Dublin Irish slang.

I have also struggled consistently with a general dislike of Toby. His little “I’m a lucky guy” speech in the beginning set me up to expect smug entitlement and WHEW did the character development deliver! On one hand, I feel guilty not giving the guy a little more grace – what with the brain injury and all – but on the other hand, I feel like it’s obvious that the writing was on the wall way before he got knocked on the head.

What I’m really appreciating about Tana French’s writing is her ability to show such a high level of unreliability in a narrator! We get so many good hints throughout the action that Toby’s brain isn’t doing him any favors while he tries to work through the mystery at his uncle’s house. I’m not finished with the book so this is pure speculation but I’m guessing that we as readers have been led into (almost) as much disorientation as Toby has felt while trying to get a handle on his own memories. For me, this kind of writing ends up being 95% about the conclusion of the story and how well it all comes together.

If you’re feeling like sharing your thoughts…

I’ve decided to start a Discord for book discussion, so that anyone who has thoughts about any of the books can share them as we go and then we can refer back when it’s time to start voting for our favorites! I’ll create that and then share it here and on socials when it’s ready to go.

Now for our February selection – a “book based on a true story!” Recommended by a dear friend who has been wanting to read it.

Up next: Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage

by Alfred Lansing

The harrowing tale of British explorer Ernest Shackleton’s 1914 attempt to reach the South Pole, one of the greatest adventure stories of the modern age. – Goodreads

I’m curious to see if anyone has thoughts on our book selections starting in March! I changed that month’s category to “a book set in Africa,” since another book set in Ireland so soon seemed a bit redundant. So who has ideas?!

Psst. Add me on Goodreads! Let’s be friends!