The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese (FICTION) I really enjoyed this book. Set in India in the early 1900s and spanning multiple generations of a family and their connections, it is a deeply character-driven book. The writing was excellent and I enjoyed the characters and the setting. I was sad when it was over because I wanted the story to continue. That’s a good sign.

Over the last few years I have been working on giving up on books. It still isn’t easy, but I gave up on two in January! How about that for personal growth?!

Red Mars (did not finish) by Kim Stanley Robinson (FICTION) It was just a really slow book. I kept waiting for it to pick up and engage me, but it didn’t.

The Narrow Road to the Deep North (did not finish) by Richard Flanagan (FICTION) I initially enjoyed the story and the characters, but I got tired of reading about the main character having affairs. I don’t expect all the books I read to be rated G and the characters to be perfectly moral people. That would be boring. It isn’t what real life is like. At the same time, I just got tired of it in this book and decided I would rather read something else.

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