Close Range: Wyoming Stories Volume 1 - Brokeback Mountain

Close Range: Wyoming Stories Volume 1 is a collection of short stories about the hard life experienced by the people of Wyoming, both in the past and the present. The landscape may be beautiful but it is also harsh, and to make a living from the land you need to be tough. It may be cowboy country, but the romantic image that type of lifestyle may conjure in the mind is far removed from reality. Drought in summer, deep snow in winter and a new breed of landowner who doesn't actually want to work the land are the foes faced by those who have lived and breathed Wyoming for generations. Annie Proulx has not made this an easy read, and it is full of grisly incidents, bad behaviour and unneighbourly treatment. I found it hard to like any of the characters and felt little sympathy for most of them. The highlight of the book is, unsurprisingly, Brokeback Mountain, which had an element of tenderness and love which didn't come across in any of the other stories. One summer, Jack and Ennis are sent to look after the sheep on the mountain and almost instantly, are drawn together. They spend more time with each other than the sheep, but at the end of summer, they go their separate ways thinking that is that and get on with their own lives - including marriage and children. But when the opportunity to meet up again happens, the old feelings emerge and the short time they get to spend with each other over the ensuing years is more precious to them than anything else. I can see why this story is placed at the end - I might have given up on the rest of the book if I hadn't known this was coming! Not my favourite book of the year, but it was nice to see where the inspiration for an excellent film came from.

POPSUGAR Challenge 2018 prompt 1: A book made into a movie you've already seen.

My STAR rating: TWO.

Length: 320 print pages.
Price I paid: free, borrowed from library as an ebook.
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.

Life Without Limits - where does she get the energy?

I took a bit of a punt on this book as it was in a 2-for-1 sale on Audible and I needed a book about a sport for one of the Popsugar Challenges, so I thought I'd got for something I knew nothing about. A Life Without Limits is the autobiography of Chrissie Wellington, a sporty girl from Norfolk, who, in 2007, became a world champion Ironman, almost from nowhere. Why is this so remarkable ... well, an Ironman is a long-distance triathlon consisting of a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike ride and finishes with a marathon length run! I have absolutely no idea how anyone can complete such an epic race, so let me say here and now that I am in total awe of people who participate in such sports. This book takes you through Chrissie's life, beginning in Norfolk, where, as a sporty child, she enjoyed swimming and did compete at school level, but was not what you would call an outstanding talent. As a young adult, she developed an eating disorder that stayed with her for several years and despite this, continued to push herself physically in the sporting world - although she preferred the social side of it more than anything else. She had a thirst for travel and was interested in overseas development, which took her to Nepal, where she started to ride a bike. Over time, she drifted towards the triathlon, where she realised that she might actually have a talent. She started to train more seriously and took the brave decision to become a professional athlete and aim for the Olympics. The training was brutal, but she strangely enjoyed it, but began to realise that Ironman was really what she was built for. With almost no race experience behind her, she became the world champion in Hawaii in 2007, completely smashing the best time by a woman. And from that point on, she was virtually unbeatable until her retirement in 2011, beating record after record. This is a remarkable story of a remarkable woman. On display is her incredible drive to push and push and them push herself some more - almost beyond the edge of her physical and mental capabilities. I don't know why, but I found this to be a bit of a dry read. I was longing for a bit more  depth in terms of the feelings and thought processes rather than what, at times, felt like a list of spectacular achievements from around the world. Many people will find this an inspirational book, but I fear it left me feeling totally inadequate in some ways - which I'm sure says more about me than Chrissie. However, what it did make me think was that we all have our own strengths - it's just a matter of finding what yours is and then striving to keep on improving to become the best you can be. You never know, this book might spawn more world champions in the athletics sphere, but sadly, I won't be one of them.

POPSUGAR Challenge 2018 prompt 19: A book about or involving a sport.

My STAR rating: THREE.

Length: 352 print pages.
Price I paid: £2.98.
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, MP3 CD, ebook.

Americanah - an eye-opening love story

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a novel centred around a deep love that endures despite years of separation. Ifemelu and Obinze meet when they are teenagers and still at school in Lagos, Nigeria. They soon fall in love and seem destined to remain a couple, and after university, and following the path set by their peers, they plan to move out of the country to free themselves of its military regime. Ifemelu goes to America, but finds it hard to adapt to her new home where she experiences racism for the first time in her life. Obinze was to have followed her to the States, but in post 9/11 America, he cannot get a visa. He goes to the UK instead and finds it equally challenging to find his place in London, where he is living illegally, and finally gets deported back to Nigeria. Ifemelu struggles to make ends meet and during a particularly desperate time, takes on a job which she immediately regrets and enters a period of depression. She cuts off all contact with Obinze, who is devastated. Over the next 13 years, they form new relationships and develop differing careers. However, Ifemelu is increasingly drawn back to her homeland and finally gives up everything and returns to Lagos, with the hope that one day, she will be able to meet Obinze once again. This is a huge novel, full of emotion and heartache, and is sometimes hard to read. There are lighter moments too, of course. I really cared about the main characters, who were ably joined by a fascinating supporting cast. It's also a study of immigration - the challenges, threats and abuse suffered by people who are just trying to live their lives in a new country. It's also an eye-opener for anyone interested in cultures that may not be familiar to them. An enjoyable, expansive read that I would be more than happy to recommend to anyone.

POPSUGAR Challenge 2018 prompt 32: A book from a celebrity book club (Reese Witherspoon).

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 400 print pages.
Price I paid: £2.98.
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, MP3 CD, ebook.

Her Fearful Symmetry - good entertainment for a rainy afternoon!

When Elspeth Noblin dies, she leaves her London flat to her twin nieces, Julia and Valentina Poole. This comes as a great surprise to the twins who never even knew they had an aunt, let alone, that she was their mother's twin. The conditions of the will are that the twins move over from America and live in the flat for at least a year - without letting their parents (and especially their mother) into the flat for the duration. (There is a reason for this which is slowly revealed - though I'm not sure it was a big surprise by the time it did). Excited and nervous, Julia and Valentina find themselves in the flat which overlooks Highgate Cemetery. Their neighbours are Martin, an obsessive-compulsive who doesn't go out and whose wife has left him, and Robert, who was Elspeth's lover, and who takes tourists round the Cemetery. The twins have quite different personalities - Julia is the more outgoing, but has a tendency to be a bit of a control freak. Valentina is quieter, and nervy, but also has health issues.  However, underneath this, Valentina wants to find her own way in life and not always be doing what Julia wants or decides they should be doing. The residents of the flat soon discover that they are not alone - the ghost of Elspeth is lingering, and she has a plan of her own! Her Fearful Symmetry, by Audrey Niffenegger, is a study of grief, twins and the dangerous relationships we can fall into when we are not paying attention. By no means perfect, I really enjoyed reading it at the time, though I have to admit, I haven't really dwelt on the characters or plot since finishing it. Maybe it was because many of the main characters are not particularly likeable, and there are some massive leaps of faith the reader has to take to go along with the unlikely events of the story. But overall, a good book to take on holiday, or while away a rainy afternoon with. Not earth shattering, but suitably entertaining.

POPSUGAR Challenge 2018 prompt 30: A book with characters who are twins.

My STAR rating: THREE.

Length: 496 print pages.
Price I paid: free, borrowed from the library as an ebook.
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, audio CD, ebook.