Reading And Watching Joyously

 At first I wasn't sure if I was going to finish this book, the style of writing didn't flow easily for me and it felt like it was a bit of an effort to read. I came back to it after a couple of weeks and was quickly swept up in the story - I really enjoyed seeing a well known history told from a different point of view, focusing on the humanity of Jesus and giving an incredible glimpse into the world of Galilee and Egypt in the early 1st century AD. It was also a wonderfully feminist text, exploring the idea of ways women can have a voice even if their culture makes it difficult.

 This book was sent to me by the library in my first box of books - when I read the blurb I wasn't sure if I would like it or not - I think I feared that it would be like many other books I've read that were set in Africa - very wordy and deep, with a storyline that was hard to follow and many parts that were hard to understand. (Which is interesting, as one of my favourite books is The Poisonwood Bible, and it's set in Africa and not like that at all). Anyway, I gave The Hunters a go and it wasn't at all what I expected. It was easy to read, had a thrilling story line, with characters who were lovable, some detestable, some bland and some so so interesting - just like in real life. I fell in love with the characters just as the protagonist did - he was incredibly relatable and so was his sister. I liked how even as he gained understanding of why people acted the way they did he wasn't always able to forgive and forget  - again, like real life. The book was dark at ...

 An enticing work of historical fiction. I hadn't heard about the Lady and Unicorn tapestries before but now I want to know all about them - I've looked up pictures of them and they are beautiful. I love the story that the author devised about their creation and I'd love to think that at least some of it was true. I was surprised how much I enjoyed it even though I disliked nearly all of the characters (some of the Brussels characters were quite likable). I think she saved it by giving a happy ending to those who seemed to deserve it. I kept forgetting when it was set - it seemed a bit later than 1450 then something would remind me of the setting. I do find it exciting to discover a new piece of history that I hadn't known much about, so even though the story was fictional I feel like I've got a better handle on that part of French and Belgian history.