Book Review - Sleepless Nights; Elizabeth Hardwick

TITLE/AUTHOR: Sleepless Nights; Elizabeth Hardwick

PUBLISHER: New York Review Book Classics

YEAR PUBLISHED: 1979 (reprint - 2001)

GENRE: Fiction (partially autobiographical) 

FORMAT: print/trade paperback PP/LENGTH: 128 pp.

SOURCE: my shelves/purchased

SETTING(s): US: Kentucky, NY, Maine, Vermont, CT and Europe

ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY: An elderly woman writes the story of her life through memories.

BRIEF REVIEW: My first book of 2021, just 128 pages, was not the kind of story I'm normally drawn to, but it was one that I enjoyed reading.  It was written by the author when she was 63 years old and is partially autobiographical.

Intro paragraph --"It is JUNE.  This is what I have decided to do with my life just now.  I will do this work of transformed and even distorted memory and lead this life, the one that I am leading today.  Every morning the blue clock and the crocheted bedspread with its pink and blue and gray squares and diamonds.  How nice it is--this production of a broken old woman in a squalid nursing home.  The niceness and the squalor and sorrow in an apathetic battle--that is what I see.  More beautiful is the table with the telephone, the books and magazines, the Times at the door, the birdsong of rough, grinding trucks in the street."

From her Kentucky childhood, one of nine children to grad school at Columbia in NY we get a feel for the old smoky jazz clubs  of NY and long gone hotels of years passed. Traveling to her large summer home in Maine and to stays in Boston, Vermont, Connecticut and Europe we follow her life, her friends, her experiences in an unsentimental sort of way.  

The story is very visual, the writing excellent, it almost had a dreamlike quality at times. Although the writing style was a bit unconventional, it felt all the more personal to me, like I was an old friend that she was reliving her past experiences with.  I'm happy I started the New Years with this book from my shelves. -- quite, reflective, memorable.

RATING: 4.5/5 stars

MEMORABLE QUOTES: 

"Darwin wrote someplace that suffering of the lower animals throughout time was more than he could bear to think of."

" Divorces and separation - that is one way to get attention. Everyone examines their own state and some say: strange, they were much happier than we are."

On deciding to sell her large home in Maine ----"For the rest of loss, perhaps my memories betray me a little and bleach the darkness of the scene, the agitation of the evenings. I am aware as anyone of the appeal, the power of the negative. Well, we go from one graven image to the next and, say what you will, each house is a shine."

First Book of the New Year and First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - Sleepless Nights; Elizabeth Hardwick

 

Have you selected your first book of 2021?  Still a few more days to join in. Thank you to Sheila@Book Journey for hosting this once again.  Here's my pick:

Sleepless Nights; Elizabeth Hardwick

New York Review Book Classics - 1979 & 2001

Today's first chapter, first paragraph Tuesday intros is from a book I choose as my first book of 2021 and plan to start reading on Friday,  New Year's Day.  This book was purchased by me at least five years ago, so I wanted to start off the New Year by reading something from my shelves - something that has sat there unread for way too long.

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, now hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book they are reading or that they plan to read soon. 

PART ONE

"It is JUNE.  This is what I have decided to do with my life just now.  I will do this work of transformed and even distorted memory and lead this life, the one that I am leading today.  Every morning the blue clock and the crocheted bedspread with its pink and blue and gray squares and diamonds.  How nice it is--this production of a broken old woman in a squalid nursing home.  The niceness and the squalor and sorrow in an apathetic battle--that is what I see.  More beautiful is the table with the telephone, the books and magazines, the Times at the door, the birdsong of rough, grinding trucks in the street."

What do you think? Keep reading or pass? (The description of the crocheted bedspread, made me flash back to an afghan throw my mother had crocheted for the back of our sofa when I still lived at home.)

First Book of the New Year - American Dirt; Jeanine Cummins

Happy New Year!

American Dirt; Jeanine Cummins

Flatiron Books - Release Date January 21, 2020

The book's description gives way too much of the plot, but here's what some who have already read the book have thought:

American Dirt will leave readers utterly changed. It is a literary achievement filled with poignancy, drama, and humanity on every page. It is one of the most important books for our times.

Already being hailed as "a Grapes of Wrath for our times" and "a new American classic," Jeanine Cummins's American Dirt is a rare exploration into the inner hearts of people willing to sacrifice everything for a glimmer of hope.

( I'm already hooked after the first 25%.) 

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intro - The Fifth Floor; Julie Oleszek

Every Tuesday I host First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros sharing the first paragraph, maybe two, of a book that I'm reading or plan to read soon.

The Fifth Floor; Julie Oleszek

Mockingbird Publishing - 2015

One

"The first doctor my mother drags me to is a tall, thin man. He seems to think his direct approach will intimidate me, and maybe it would if I cared, but I don't.  I follow him into his office, leaving my mother staring at my back from the waiting room.  He climbs behind his enormous desk piled with papers and files of patients and motions me to sit in one of the winged-back chairs opposite him in front of his desk.  I sit and he stares.

'Stand up and turn around,' he says with as little compassion as he can gather."

Based on this intro, would you read more or pass on this book?

Feel free to join in by posting your own First Chapter First Paragraph Intro and linking below.

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - Chocky, John Wyndham

Every Tuesday I host First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros sharing the first paragraph or two of a book that I'm reading or will be reading soon.

Chocky, John Wyndham

NYRB Classics - 2015

One

"It was the spring of the last year that Matthew reached twelve that I first became aware of Chocky.  Late April, I think, or possibly early May; anyway I am sure it was the spring because on that Saturday afternoon I was out in the garden shed unenthusiastically oiling the mower for labours to come when I heard Matthew's voice speaking close outside the window.  It surprised me; I had had no idea he was anywhere about until I heard him say, on a note of distinct irritation and apropos, apparently, of nothing:

         'I don't know why. It's just the way things are.'

Based on this intro, would you read more or pass on this book?

Feel free to join in by posting your own First Chapter First Paragraph Intro and linking below.

Happy New Year and First Book of the New Year

It's been 8 and a half years since I began blogging and since that time a lot has happened. I've lost another brother (2006 and 2009), moved, changed jobs, retired, saw my son and daughter marry and welcomed the birth of (3) adorable granddaughters.  I often find myself busier in retirement than I was when I worked full-time, so in 2017 you may see fewer posts from me, but I'll still be reading!

Sheila @ Book Journey is once again is encouraging bloggers to post their First Book of the New Year.  Pop over and check out all those who are participating. My first book of 2017 choice is a book that I purchased a few years ago and finally decided to try:

My choice is a New York Review Book Classic called Chocky by John Wyndham.

(Description)

It’s not terribly unusual for a boy to have an imaginary friend, but Matthew’s parents have to agree that his—nicknamed Chocky—is anything but ordinary. Why, Chocky demands to know, are there twenty-four hours in a day? Why are there two sexes? Why can’t Matthew solve his math homework using a logical system like binary code? When the questions Chocky asks become too advanced and, frankly, too odd for teachers to answer, Matthew’s  parents start to wonder if Chocky might be something far stranger than a figment of their son’s imagination. 

Chocky, the last novel Wyndham published during his life, is a playful investigation of what being human is all about, delving into such matters as child-rearing, marriage, learning, artistic inspiration—and ending with a surprising and impassioned plea for better human stewardship of the earth.

Happy New Year and Happy Reading Friends!

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - The Guise of Another; Allen Eskens

Every Tuesday I host First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros where I share the first paragraph sometimes two, of a book that I'm reading or plan to read soon. I really enjoyed The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens so I'm looking forward to his most recent book as well.

The Guise of Another; Allen Eskens

2015 - Seventh Street Books

PROLOGUE

"That night, there were a few things that the man knew to a religious certainty.  He knew that he'd soon be having sex with the woman sitting in the passenger seat of his Lexis.  He knew that neither his wife nor the woman's husband yet suspected their infidelities.  And he knew that any whisper of guilt he may have felt would soon be silenced by the tumult of their act.

There were other things, however, that the man did not know.  He didn't know where or how they would be having sex.  He didn't know whether his feelings for this woman reached beyond the carnal pull of her body.  And he didn't know that their recklessness that night would trigger a chain of events that would ripple far beyond their self-absorbed little world."

What do you think -- keep reading or pass? 
(Feel free to join in this week by posting your intro below?

A Year End Reading Review and the First Book of the New Year

A few days ago I posted my top (10) favorite reads of 2015. Since then I've broken down those stats down a bit more as I became curious how many of my own books I actually read -- disappointing results. I read and reviewed (114 books). I read (2) additional books that were for (2) different book groups that I did not review here (1) of these was a repeat that I had actually read in 2007).

• 114 Books Read
• 32 eGalleys
• 33 ARCS or finished copies sent by publishers
• 18 library books
• 22 audio books
• 16 personal copies
• 12 non-fiction
• 19 kids books

Favorite Reads for 2015

A Little Life

by Hanya Yanagihara

When I first decided to read this book, I thought that the cover image was a terrible choice, however, after finishing this 700+ pp book over the course of a few weeks, I now think the image is perfect. It so accurately depicts the emot...

Aquarium

by David Vann

Aquarium is an addictive read that hooked me early on, shocked me as the story progressed and made me wonder whether emotionally wounded individuals can ever truly heal. The story opens in 1990's Seattle, where 12-year-old Caitlin live...

The Beautiful Bureaucrat

by Helen Phillips

When I saw that readers who enjoy Murakami and Atwood would likely enjoy this book, I knew I had to give it a try. It's a great choice for book groups with plenty to discuss. After being out of work for way too long Joseph and Josephine...

Ghostly: A Collection of Ghost Stories

by Audrey Niffenegger

Ghostly, was a pleasant surprise, an awesome collection of short ghost stories. Each story can be completed in a short sitting, preferably by a nice warm fire or glowing candle with something warm to drink. Each story begins with a sma...

Eileen

by Ottessa Moshfegh

Just who is Eileen? In a town only referred to as X-ville in Massachusetts lived 24 year old Eileen Dunlop. Some might see her simply as a lonely young woman with low self esteem who cares for her alcoholic ex-cop father. To me, Eileen w...

What I Remember Most

by Cathy Lamb

What I Remember Most was a terrific story and one that kept me wondering as I eagerly turned each page. Part mystery, part contemporary fiction, the only thing that the reader knows for sure is that the protagonist, Grenadine Scotch Wild...

Our Souls at Night

by Kent Haruf

I loved this audiobook narrated by Mark Bramhall. The story left me feeling a bit sad, and with a thought that I often ask myself these days -- "Why can't people just live and let live?" The story is a pretty simple one and involves two...

Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End

by Atul Gawande

It took me a while to write this review because it covered so much important information, I wasn't sure possibly write a review that would it all the credit it deserved, as I'm sure I will have glossed over lots of important information....

This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance!

by Jonathan Evison

This is Your Life, Harriet Chance is a wonderful story told through the POV of Harriet, a 78 year old widow who had been married for 55 years. After her husband Bernard passes away, Harriet learns he had planned an Alaskan cruise for ...

Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory

by Caitlin Doughty

While many people choose not to think about death and dying, 20-something author Caitlin Doughty was obsessed by it at an early age. At the age of eight she performed a ritual the she believed would help keep death at bay. After growing ...

Sheila of Book Journey is once again hosting this fun event. Pop on over to her blog to check out the friendly faces of your fellow bloggers and, see what each has picked as their first book of 2016. (I actually started this one a few days ago, but the review is posting tomorrow. I highly recommend this sometimes sad but, lovely story.

Coming Up Next

• Post reviews for Like Family; Giordano and The Guest Room; Bohjalian
• The Opposite of Everyone; Joshilyn Jackson
• The Bazaar of Bad Dreams; Stephen King
• Between the World and Me; Ta Nehisi-Coates
• My Name is Lucy Barton; Elizabeth Stout

What are your reading plans for 2016?