By: Manuela Soares
Happy Wednesday, readers! We’ve reached the middle of another week which makes it time to catch up with what’s being read! WWW Wednesday is a weekly reading update hosted by Taking on a World of Words.
The Three Ws are:
- What are you currently reading?
- What did you recently finish reading?
- What do you think you’ll read next?
What are you currently reading?
Lost Roses by Martha Hall Kelly
Her debut novel, Lilac Girls, made me a fan of Martha Hall Kelly, and I’ve been enjoying this book so far. It’s a prequel of sorts to Lilac Girls, in that one of the main characters (Eliza Woolsey-Ferriday) is the mother of one of the main characters (Caroline Ferriday) in Lilac Girls. Kelly does an incredible amount of research for her writing, and it shows. That research helps to create a realistic world that sucks in readers and keeps them engaged and enamored with the book. She also has another book coming out soon, Sunflower Sisters, that is based during the Civil War and features an ancestor of the Ferriday women (Georgeanne “Georgey” Woolsey).
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
Despite having majored in English in college, I haven’t read many classics. This is something that I’ve wanted to change, so I’ve been slowly integrating them into my reading. North and South is one that I’ve been wanting to read for a while thanks to the BBC mini-series starring Richard Armitage and Daniela Denby-Ashe from years ago.
Vincent van Gogh: A Life in Letters edited by Nienke Bakker, Leo Jansen, and Hans Luijen.
I got this book, as well as the other Van Gogh book on this list, for Christmas last year as I’m going to the Immersive Van Gogh Exhibit in San Francisco when it’s here. This book is all about the letters of Vincent van Gogh and the look into his mind that they offer. Van Gogh is well known for being a brilliant artist who suffered from mental illnesses, and this look inside his thoughts and life is incredible.
Van Gogh: The Life by Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith
A comprehensive biography of the life of Vincent van Gogh that gives the background of his parents, family, and Vincent’s life. It’s a thick book, so I haven’t gotten too far into it, but I’ve enjoyed what I’ve read so far, and I’m learning a lot about him. It also includes color pictures of some of his works that are stunning. I’m not familiar with his whole collection, so seeing all these images is great.
What did you recently finish reading?
This was a book that I’d heard about for years but never read in high school, which is apparently where most people I’ve talked to about it read it. The premise is fascinating, being based around the Salem Witch Trials, though Miller takes many creative liberties to tell the story; like aging and de-aging characters. It’s a good story that makes you think and would be a great discussion book.
What do you think you’ll read next?
Like always, I’m not sure. I’ve got a few books checked out from the library, but it’ll just depend on my mood and what catches my interest. Contenders are The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmer, The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson, Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman, or The Other People by C. J. Tudor. Any thoughts?
Have you read any of these? What are you reading this week? Let me know in the comments, and have a good week!
Functionally Fictional 
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