There wasn't any special reason I didn't write all month. Not that I wasn't busy, but I also didn't have a lot to say about anything I was reading. I grabbed and quit a lot of books, finished a bunch, and read a good amount of fluff.
But instead of going back to fill in last month's reading, which thought I'm finding rather depressing, I'm going to plunge forward with some current reviews, because there's some great stuff piling up here.
Like True Grit
, by Charles Portis. I haven't seen the John Wayne movie, but I saw the more recent one, which was really fascinating. The dialogue was very stylized, but the story was a great Western and the characters were such fun--strange, hard Mattie and aloof, competent Rooster. I was curious about the book.It was just fun. Narrated by Mattie, the nitty gritty, practical details of getting business done as a 14-year-old girl on her own in a Western town were a romp. The dialogue was still distracting--no contractions, everyone speaking in a stilted, structured way. But inside the story, it's very clear that Mattie is telling the story, and Mattie is relating everything in her own voice.
And her voice really makes the book. I didn't understand two words of her digressions into politics or the divisions within the Presybterian church, but they were incredibly charming and passionate. She's a strange, passionate, practical girl, and it was satisfying to watch her follow her quest. Short, sharp, fun read.
