August books

My favourite books from the past month are:

Sue Monk Kidd - The Secret Life of Bees

In South Carolina, 1964, fourteen-year-old Lily has grown up believing she was responsible for her mother's death ten years earlier. Gradually she's become a slave to her unkind father, who she calls T. Ray. But when their black servant, Rosaleen, makes the decision to register to vote now that it's been passed by law, everything changes. After an altercation, Rosaleen ends up in prison, and Lily rescures her as she knows she's in danger. The two then set off on a voyage of discovery. Lily takes with her a treasured picture from her mother's few remaining belongings, depicting a black Madonna and marked with a place name. When Rosaleen and Lily eventually arrive there, they discover that the picture is a label from a honey farm. It's run by three black sisters, August, June and May, who open their home to the two strangers. There Lily learns about kindness, about bees and that the colour of your skin should never make anyone suffer or be despised. But can she tell the sisters who she really is, and can she eventually discover the truth about her mother and how she died? A fascinating and deep novel, but it's a compelling read.

Shaun Bythell - The Diary of a Bookseller

I finished reading this non-fiction book in July, but I'm including it in my August books. I've been dipping in and out of it over a couple of months since visiting south west Scotland in early May. On a very wet day we visited Wigtown, known as Scotland's book town, and spent a couple of hours looking round some of the many bookshops. There was so much to browse and enjoy in The Bookshop. Written by the shop's proprietor, this is an entertaining glimpse of life behind the counter. He started keeping a journal of the trials and tribulations of being a bookseller, from the strange customers to the vicissitudes of online selling through Amazon, the local weather, and the excitement of investigating a collection of books to see if there's anything thrilling to add to the stock. His observations are entertaining and often humorous, as he reveals his life as a traditional second-hand bookseller in a world which is rapidly transforming to digital, and where customers' expectations are also changing. For anyone who likes browsing bookshops, it's a must! And in hindsight I'm very glad that I did buy books when I was in the shop. We really need to keep these treasure troves on the streets of our towns.

Jenny Colgan - Five Hundred Miles from You

It wasn't until I finished this novel that I realised that it was the third in a trilogy - but each book can be read as a standalone. It was a perfect holiday read (especially when staying in Scotland for my summer holiday). London nurse Lissa witnesses a tragic event which severely affects her emotionally. To help her recover, she's seconded for three months to a remote Scottish village near Inverness, in an exchange with ex-army medic, Cormac, who will take over her job in London. Although they have never met, or even seen what the other looks like, the two keep in touch professionally so that they can troubleshoot any problems in their new jobs. Once living in his house, Lissa finds herself becoming more curious about the man himself, while in the London nurses' home, Lissa's outrageous friend Kim-Ange takes him under her wing. Both Lissa and Cormac begin to connect on a deeper level, unaware that they have another, more sensitive connection, through the circumstances that led to their exchange. But at the back of Lissa's mind is the dread of her upcoming court appearance in connection with the crime she witnessed. Will her time out in Scotland give her the courage to face this? A tenderly written and heartwarming story.