Kaseys Korner

The Clockmaker's Daughter

** spoiler alert ** Kate Morton is so adept at creating atmosphere and painting rich detail with her gift of language that you know you're in for a treat when you pick up one of her books. She always sets the stage then masterfully unravels the threads in her intriguing, multi-layered stories. She did it again in 'The Clockmaker's Daughter.' I have so many "dog-eared" pages in my copy because of little tidbits of writing that resonated with me ~ I felt like I should be back in college with a highlighter!

There were quite a few characters in the novel, but a non-human one emerged as the dominate presence ~ the house at Birchwood. I could almost see that house (and it's gardens) and reading about it, I could swear, I felt the "pull" of it myself. The theme of a "sense of belonging" within its walls was so compelling. That so many of the characters felt it, in their turn, was interesting. Most weren't related nor did they know anything about the house before almost stumbling across it. Yet they were all drawn in & to it in an inexplicable way. That feeling & concept fascinates me. It's not anything I've experienced personally but I'm inclined (viscerally) to believe in such things. 

The book started a little slow for me but in its defense, I was also determined to take my time reading it. I wanted to savor the beautiful, evocative writing for as long as possible. As opposed to my normal method of ravenously scarfing up pages after waiting a long time for something new from a favorite author! 

I loved the middle of the book, the build up & the way the pieces started twining together at the end. There were almost too many characters and storylines for me tho and some of them not fully developed (or their storylines weren't??) Maybe Kate was trying to kick it up a notch & triple or quadruple timeline us then it got too overwhelming even for her?? I was NOT a fan of the ending. I don't know why it wasn't satisfying for me that Birdie will never move on from the house?? On some level, I can see the romanticized notion that she's now a part of the fiber of it but mostly I wanted her to be "free" after her story was finally revealed. Free to leave the grounds, free to find Edward, and free from the monotony of waiting on a new and "interesting" visitor. She was, afterall, accidentally trapped there, not there by ownership or particular affiliation with the house. Am I the only one who felt this way? It also seemed a little crazy that Lucy wouldn't remember hiding her away. Maybe I'm not understanding head trauma? aarggg. I kept saying "no, no, no" ~ Kate this can't be the end!! But what ending did I want?? I can't think right now how I could make it better ~ I certainly don't possess a tenth of Ms Morton's skills. I just wanted Birdie to finally be relieved of the mantle of watching over the house & pass on to the next plane?? 

It feels a little odd to give the 'The Clockmaker's Daughter' just 3 stars. I'm so used to absolutely loving everything this author writes. There was a lot to like about it, despite my feelings about how it wrapped but if someone asked me to recommend a Kate Morton book, this one wouldn't displace any of her others in my list of favorites. 'The Forgotten Garden' remains unchallenged at the top.

October

It's quiet in the garden. 

Since the snow and low teen temperatures, almost all the foliage (what's left) is brown.  

Thank goodness for color from fall decorating.

There's no such thing as too many pumpkins, is there??

I have a lot of leaf raking ahead but otherwise, I'm leaving the garden to its rest...

Crazy Rich Asians

Ok, I "get" what all the fuss was about!! This was a very fun romp thru a world extremely far removed from how the majority of the worlds population lives. I felt like I'd gotten myself immersed in a really good soap opera ~ that I actually wondered how I'd gotten sucked into (??) ~ but somehow I couldn't tear myself away! I definitely want to follow up the book with the movie. 

Aside from providing a peek into the lives of the mega rich & all the machinations that occur when money and time are not obstacles, there's nothing particularly redeeming about the book. It's not destined to be classic literature but it's highly entertaining. If you read it with that thought in mind, it will most likely be a very enjoyable diversion from everyday life.

Life After Life

** spoiler alert ** 'Life After Life' ~ truly a book that makes you to wonder. Which is what I did about it all night. 
Before writing anything else tho, there's a word I learned (as so often happens while reading) that I want to share & don't ever want to forget ~ it's "palimpsest." Meaning:

* a manuscript or piece of writing material on which the original writing has been effaced to make room for later writing but of which traces remain.
*something reused or altered but still bearing visible traces of its earlier form.

The second definition was the most intriguing to me & what Ursula used when she was defining the way time/life worked. Instead of being circular, lives are written and rewritten over top of each other and sometimes the memories from previous or future lives bleed thru. It's the perfect explanation of 'deja vu,' isn't it??? 

I like the idea of reliving until you "get it right" in some ways but not where you have to do it over and over again with the same set of people. egads. Is mastering the circumstances of each life (with the same cast of people) the only way to move on to a different set of people?? I had never contemplated that before... It's so true that for each choice we make, a completely distinct outcome occurs. I've thought about that a lot with my own life. If only I'd done this, or picked this, etc., etc. ~ then "what would my life look like now?" 

The book follows Ursula thru a number of lives & switches them so fast you sometimes get confused momentarily. It takes a few lives to catch on about what's happening & for me, almost went on a couple lives too long. The message of the book wouldn't have been lost a hundred pages earlier. There is a lot of history (RE: WWII) that was interesting in the pages tho & along with the concept made for a very thought provoking read.

 

 

The Devil in the White City

** spoiler alert ** This book was both fascinating and tedious for me. Fascinating because building something on a scale as immense as the 1893 Chicago Worlds Fair, in a time frame as brief as 27 months, was nothing short of Herculean. Mind blowing actually. The tedious part was subjective. I got more engaged once the Fair actually opened but the first part of the book, with all the planning, the construction, the labor issues, the weather setbacks, etc., drug on for me. The drudgery of those sorts of tasks, albeit essential, just aren't as interesting to me. I kept after it tho because it seemed important to the understanding of what it meant to undertake a project this massive. I'm certainly in awe of Mr. Daniel Burnham (the Director of Works for the whole Fair) to even keep the project as close to schedule as he did and also keep it from completely folding before ever reaching completion. An exceptional feat indeed.

Reading about 'The Fair' inspired me to google (as reading often does) pictures of it so that I could see (and put in better context) some of the buildings the author was describing. That brought the book to life for me & I highly recommend doing the same if you're interested in reading it.
The black & white photos truly depict a visual wonder. Those huge, (palatial actually) buildings were stunning. The architecture & detail absolutely incredible. The man hours invested ~ off the charts crazy. Deciding to paint everything the same shade of white was genius ~ it made them GLEAM ~ an effect that really shows up in the old black & white photography. It was sickening to learn that almost everything was burnt in a fire at the end of the Fair. 

I've never been to a World's Fair but in 1893, when most of the population didn't travel, I can see how it would be the most important (or only) exposure a visitor had to other cultures. Touring the buildings/exhibits by other countries and even those of all 44 (at that time) states would be marvelously educational to say nothing of exciting. I was amazed too at all the "big names" that emerged from their contributions/association to the Fair. Thinking about a young Walt Disney watching his father do carpentry work in this magical place had to have been the springboard to his own fairytale vision. So many names that made an impact on history ~ Frank Lloyd Wright & Frederick Olmsted (father of American Landscape Architecture) were two that interested me & even George Ferris, Jr (creator of the Ferris Wheel). The innovations that arose from the pressure to create something more dazzling than the Eiffel Tower, from the previous Worlds Fair in Paris, were astounding. This book was very educational even if I got bogged down in the details. Hats off the Mr Larson for his meticulous research. 

One would think that everything mentioned heretofore would be enough to constitute a good book. But no, there's actually a second story running alongside the creation of the World's Fair that's equally as compelling and more shocking. That's the one involving serial killer, H.H. Holmes. I had not heard of him prior to reading the book and I almost wish I hadn't still, the guy was so diabolical. I usually shy away from all things associated with murder, they are too frighteningly real to me but strangely, I looked forward to getting to the sections of the book involving Holmes. The murders he carried out were grossly and morbidly riveting. To think of all the lives he took (and exactly how many remains unknown) and how easy it was for him is terrifying. When he was convicted of murder, he was only 34! It was a wide swath of lives he took out for a person of that age. 

It's so bizarre to think of the brilliant spectacle of the World's Fair going on side by side with the sinister actions of such a psychopath but I guess not surprising. There never seems to be good without evil but Holmes was evil on steroids.  Lucky were those who visited and left unaware of & untouched by him.

SO much going on in this book. I can't begin to touch on it all. 'The Devil in the White City' is really an incredible peek into the history of the era ~ so much more than a recounting of how the Chicago World's Fair was created. I liked it, learned from it and am happy I read it but for a history buff or detail oriented person it would be, hands down, 5 star all the way.

'Limelight' Hydrangea standard

March 1st 2018, found me at the Spring reopening of one of my favorite greenhouses ~ hunting for a Hydrangea standard for the garden.

Success!  

It was planted in the back garden later that same month, surrounded by boxwoods & yews.  

There it flourished even with our hot dry summer.

Producing more blooms than I'd anticipated for a first year planting.

Now, the biggest test of all ~ how it fares thru our harsh winter weather....  

The Song of Achilles

** spoiler alert ** Mount Olympus must have sparked an ember to life and sent it racing across the Atlantic with Madeline Miller's name on it. Her vision of the renowned warrior Achilles life is nothing short of sensational. The reader could easily believe there was something superhuman about the way 'The Song of Achilles' brought him to life and in how readable it is (even if you're someone with no prior exposure to Greek mythology.) This book is as much about his companion/friend/lover, Patroclus, as it is about Achilles. Reading about the two being raised together from boyhood, you understand why the relationship works and just how deeply abiding their love is for each other. There is no jockeying for position or one upsmanship between the two. Each are secure in their strengths and respect for the other. They're also remarkable in their trust of each other but that stems from the very rare trait of complete honesty between them. Patroclus, because of his personality and the devastation of being exiled from his family & country, has an abundance of humility. Although he had some "hero worship" from the first, after he witnessed the unparalleled skill of Achilles for the first time, you understand why Achilles chose him. He never betrayed him, begrudged his prowess, tried to best him, boast about him or lord his position over any of the other boys. He simply accepted him as the magnificent mortal he was and was content in his role by his side. How beautiful is that?

I sensed from the time they started sharing a room together (in Achilles fathers palace) that a romantic relationship would develop. The way it happened was so natural, it seemed completely "right." The constant togetherness and how attuned they were to each other ~ it would have been oddly strange if nothing had happened. 

Even tho I hadn't read any Greek mythology for a long time before recently discovering Madeline Miller, I remembered how Achilles life ended. I still wished for a different ending in the book! Thank goodness the Gods (and Goddesses) have mercy from time to time tho. Thetis showed some at the end when she gave Patroclus a chance for Eternity with her beloved son, despite her scorn/hatred of him in life. I hope Briseis is somewhere near them in the Underworld too. I really liked her and the sweet relationship she shared with Patroclus. 

'A Song of Achilles' was beautifully written, well paced and exquisitely developed. A book truly deserving of all the accolades written about it.  

 

 

Bellewether

** spoiler alert ** The first book I read of Susanna Kearsley's was 'The Winter Sea.' It was instant fandom for me and I promptly devoured everything else she'd written to that date. No surprise then that I waited eagerly for the release of her latest novel, 'Bellewether.' Written in dual timeline format, I found the older timeline far more compelling than the current one. Why is that so often the case?? I love old houses and the history behind them so having the house be a big part of the story was also a very appealing aspect of the book. Btw, the 'Haunted Houses' poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was a masterful way to prefix the story! I'm also always curious how a book gets its title but was surprised (for some reason??) when we learned halfway thru, that 'Bellewether' was the name of a ship! I guess the cover should have clued me in.

As usual (with me) and historical fiction, I learned so much from the book. I had never heard of & had no idea there was such a thing as 'Parole of Honor.' I can't imagine that concept working in today's world when, so often, a mans word no longer means anything. In the 1700's tho, it seemed an efficient way to keep from filling prisons even if it imposed on the good will of the colonists. It was interesting to read about the Seven Year War plus get a refresher on the taxation issues (by the British on the Colonies) that was a precursor to the Revolutionary War.

I also enjoyed that the story was told from three POV ~ Jean-Philippe (the French 'Parole of Honor' prisoner), Lydia Wilde and Charley (current curator of the Wilde Family museum.) The romance in both timelines was believable and slow building. Based upon watching, experiencing & respecting the character and morals of each other instead of any kind of instant (superficial) attraction. The twist at the end made me very happy. 

There's a bit of the paranormal in the book, an aspect I like about Susanna Kearsleys work. It's fascinating to think of the DNA imprint of an ancestor lingering into the future. Makes you think about what your own personal impact will be... Something that will forever stick with me was Lydia's mother, Patience, telling her to place each of her troubles atop a wave and watch them roll away. I love that method of lightening your burdens & if I ever get to the ocean again, I plan to try it out.

The Authors notes, at the end of the book, made it more meaningful when you realize it's such a personal story ~ that there's a piece of her own family history built into the pages. A very enjoyable read, just as I've come to expect from Susanna Kearsley!!

 

 

The Great Alone

I confess I added 'The Great Alone' to my wtr list solely because I'm a fan of Kristin Hannah. I have zero romantic notions about Alaska or even the slightest interest in experiencing its wildness. I know myself well enough to say I'm not someone who has the heart or survival skills for it. After finishing this book, I'm sure the people that live there wouldn't want me in their state either!! It's not a land for weaklings or the faint-hearted. Not sure which of those categories I fall into, I just know I don't possess the necessary pioneering spirit.

Having said all that, it was interesting to read about our countries last "frontier" and it's non-conformist population. The author did an outstanding job conveying the realities of living there. The long, dark, difficult winters followed by short but spectacular summers. Summers that can't be enjoyed despite enduring the winter. It's the season for natives to work twice as hard to make sure they can survive the next winter. It was mentioned several times that you can make one mistake there then the next one will kill you. The reader is left in no doubt it's a (beyond) harsh environment that takes a specific personality to inhabit it. 

I was pulled into the story despite the fact it's not a life that appeals to me. I don't usually care to read about domestic violence (of which there's plenty within these pages) & I couldn't see myself in any scenario depicted but I enjoyed the book nevertheless. It will never be my favorite Kristin Hannah book but that's purely subjective, not anything against her incredible storytelling abilities.

 

 

September garden

I think the garden is as exhausted by our sweltering summer as I am.  15 days above 90 degrees in a month where temperatures are usually pleasant, has done it in.

Above:  front garden = tired & messy.  The only thing really thriving are the Nasturtiums.

Most of the perennials are heat weary and if I could guess, more than ready for a rest.  

The one thing I'm loving, the Dwarf Hameln' grasses, planted this Spring:

I know they'll only get better from this year forward.  

It's been a rebuilding year for me since I removed two overgrown evergreens last fall.  The voids left, created two huge spaces to re-design & fill.

At first it was an exciting prospect, but the front border has been decidedly harder for me to pull together than the back.  Something I'll keep contemplating over the upcoming winter.

It was interesting what randomly popped up (out front) in the empty space left behind.

'Kiss Me Over the Garden Gate' (Polygonum orientale) must have germinated from seeds left dormant from several summers ago.

I sure didn't sow them but I hope they seed around some more!

Also 'Lauren's Grape' poppies showed up in profusion.

And purple Larkspur "magically" appeared as well.  

Dahlia 'Yellow Bird' (not a surprise, planted in early summer) performed underwhelmingly.

I'm also still waiting on a few other (dinnerplate) Dahlias to bloom that I'm not even sure will make it before frost hits.

In late August, I finally started seeing a few Monarchs.

They really like my 'Honeycomb' Buddleia. 

Sadly, I haven't had caterpillars on my milkweed for several years now.  I suspect because my plants keep having infestations of Milkweed aphids.  Try as I might, I can't seem to get rid of them.

Now I'm slowly getting the garden ready for Fall. I pulled up the sunflowers, cut & collected the heads & put them all in a basket for the birds.

At least those were my intentions ~ but I don't think the birds got a single seed ~ every time I looked, squirrels were carting them off.  They didn't stop until they'd hauled them all away.

I can't believe it's already time to prepare for winter.  I've already brought in my Ivy & Myrtle topiaries and will slowly gather together everything else I want to save over the next few weeks.  As usual, summer came and went in the blink of an eye, despite being brutally hot.  I'm never, ever, ready for it to end....