Obedience, by Jacqueline Yallop … an interesting tale that is slowly revealed around the tortured life of Sister Bernard, a 93 year old nun when we first meet her. Her past, particularly when she was 30 years old and serving at a convent in occupied French territory during WWII, is what this novel deals with; her past and its influence on her and those around her. God speaks to her, mostly criticizing and often yelling at her; reminding her of her faults and what needs to be done to stay in his best stead, but she had an inconvenient truth called desire that superseded his will. Her sexual relationship with a German soldier during the occupation yields far more than she could have expected. The good nun fell in love and while in love she mentioned something about the resistance movement to her lover and, well … no spoilers here. I enjoyed the back and forth timeline throughout the novel and was intrigued with each new twist to the story. This is a recommended read for everyone except those who cannot permit themselves to read anything outside of the fiction in the Bible, which they take as fact (oy friggin’ vey).
So, it’s a highly recommended read.
Get it here:
The Killing … Oh, Snap, I have a new favorite … and I’m even willing to ignore the sanctified politician (his very few flaws aren’t enough to be anywhere near what it takes to be what the majority of politicians are or become—soul selling scumbags) … even the stretching of plot and pretty much anything else one could criticize this series with doesn’t bother me because I (and the Principessa) absolutely loved the actors/characters/writing and directing. We were hooked instantly watching it on Netflix (Season 1/Episode 1) and binge-watched the first 3 seasons over four days and then wanted more (which comes as a Netflix production (so cursing/real dialogue will be permitted) starting August 1st.
Mireille Enos (Linden) was so good, I went so far as to watch her extremely limited role in that horrendous piece of shit movie with Brad Smith (World War Z), but quickly re-watched Season 1 of The Killing to remind myself how good an actress she really is (she wasn’t bad at all in the dopey zombie movie, but she wasn’t in it very much and the movie was just too stupid to acknowledge—it also took me 4 days to watch, but for very different reasons).
That said, Joel Kinnaman (Holder) was the character I enjoyed most throughout the series. Whoever wrote his lines, or if he adlibbed, they/he were/was great. “Oh, Snap, Linden rocked the booty call. 1-900 Linden.”
The entire cast was terrific, but special kudos to Brent Sexton, Jamie Anne Allman and Michelle Forbes … actually everybody was terrific in this … and August 1st can’t get here fast enough.
Reading Life after Life, by Kate Atkinson, this week. What’s with all the female authors, Knucks?
I don’t know, but I’m sure enjoying them.
Next two reads (in whichever order they arrive):
The Execution of Willie Francis, by Pulitzer Prize winning author of Devil in the Grove, Gilbert King
Naked Me, by Christian Winn
The Diet Review ... (what I forgot in the original post) ... 358 on March 5, 2014 ... 285 this morning (7-21-14) ... 27 pounds to 1 bill. Listen to me: I'm running a marathon next year ... even if it's to a pizza parlor where I can eat myself back to a Phat Dad.
—Knucks
Jefferson Airplane … Volunteers …
