Chapter Sixty-One: Thursday Next Series

So my entertainment for the long long month of March has been reading the Thursday Next series, by Welsh author Jasper Fforde.  This is a really fun and wacky series of adventure/police novels set in an alternate version of England starting in 1984 and spanning almost through the present and starring Literary Detective Thursday Next, a spunky and engaging heroine.  These books are really a hoot, and they're also totally absurd and ridiculous.  I think this is what makes them so much fun, but if you don't have a taste for the bizarre, I might not recommend them.  They are full of fun literary references, which a bibliophile like me particularly appreciates, but even if you haven't read most of the books referenced (and I certainly haven't) you can still follow the plot with ease and enjoyment.


Here's a full list of titles in the series:
The Eyre Affair
Lost in a Good Book
The Well of Lost Plots
Something Rotten
First Among Sequels
One of Our Thursdays Is Missing
The Woman Who Died a Lot

*The series is not yet complete, but these are all the books published to date.

Chapter Sixty: My Family and Other Animals

My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell is basically a memoir of the five years in the early 20th century that he and his family lived on Corfu.  Narrated by his 10-15-year old self, he recounts his own exploits on the island--mostly involving local flora and fauna--and his mother's and older siblings' adventures and misadventures.  Plot is a little thin--descriptions of the natural life of the island are more frequent than action--but it is a charming, calm, sun-drenched story.  I could almost believe I was reading it in the shade of an olive tree on a quiet summer's day.  In sum, it's not the most exciting book, but it is rather beautiful in its descriptions.

Chapter Fifty-Nine: The Blue Castle

The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery is a very light, very romantic, very fun little story about an old maid who is totally dominated by her large family until she decides to take matters into her own hands and start doing as she pleases.  And then things get fun.  I don't want to spoil it for you--you should read it yourself--it's just such a happy, affirming little story that reminds you that you are in control of your own life, and with a little spunk, you can make your life fun.