Book 2, Country 2 - Belgium

Resistance by Anita Shreve - published 1995

Anita Shreve's books are always well written and this one is no exception.  The wife of a resistance member shelters a wounded American bomber pilot at their farmhouse in Nazi occupied Belgium during the Second World War and falls in love with him.    8/10

7th February 2010

The Journey Begins - Book 1, Country 1 - France

Just Like Tomorrow by Faiza Guene  Translated from French and first published in English in 2006

Written by a teenager whose own parents emigrated from Algeria to France, this novel manages to find humour in what is really quite a grim life on a deprived local authority housing estate in a Paris suburb.  Doria who narrates the story is of Moroccan origin.  She lives with her mother in a small flat, her father having recently deserted them to return to Morocco to look for another wife.  Doria and her Mum muddle along with very little money with the help of their friends and neighbours.  A quick and easy read to start my journey.  7/10

24th January 2010

Introduction

This is my own personal reading challenge.  As a geographer, who also loves reading, I don't know why I didn't think of it years ago.   I have decided to read my way around the world in 80 books travelling across land borders between adjacent countries where possible and taking short sea journeys where necessary, as if I were on a real journey.  I have chosen mainly fiction but have also included some travel writing when I have been unable to obtain a novel set in a particular country.   My criteria is that at least half of the novel is set in the country I am travelling through but the author does not have to be from that country.  Some of the books have been translated into English and some are novels written for children or young adults.  I have used the current names for the countries, although several of the books are set in the past when some of the countries' names were different.

It is an environmentally friendly way to travel with a very low carbon footprint, especially as I will be borrowing all the books from my local public library service.  I would never be able to afford to visit most of these countries during my lifetime or indeed have the time to do so.

I will give the books a mark out of ten for enjoyment.  I estimate that it will take me about 2 years to complete my journey.  I actually started my journey in January 2010 but have only now got round to setting up this blog, so some of the reviews will be posted in retrospect.