Hello lovely peeps,
Today I have another postcard, and something about my life here in Spain, and also some more book reviews. Then at the end there will be some funnies. So, a very full blogpost today.
My postcard today comes from Finland:
It is illustrated by Inge Löök and features the famous 'Aunties'. It was sent by Tiina.
As today is about smiles, I hope this made you smile.
The stamp is cute:
It was released as part of a series of Friendship stamps in 2022 for Valentine's Day:
This postcard came to me through Postcrossing and Tiina writes this:
Another thing that made me smile is this:
It is my lovely Ronnie sleeping in a most awkward position. Upright against the back of the settee. It looks very uncomfortable, but he slept like that for a long while.
So here as promised three more book reviews:
The tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris.
I started reading this because I will be visiting Auschwitz later this month. I enjoyed it very much. It wasn't until later I saw that the reviews are not so good.They say it was simplistically written or that it was historically incorrect. I didn't think it was simplistically written and Heather Morris spent three years talking to the protagonist, whose story it is, so I suppose she just wrote about his memories rather than a historically correct account. He (the protagonist) is called Lale and he is a prisoner. He has been assigned the job of tattooist in the concentration camp. He has to tattoo every newcomer with a number. With his job come a few perks, which he uses to help other people. He meets the love of his life Gita there and they promise each other that they will survive this. At the end of the book there is an author's note which tells me they did survive and get married.
I loved it, although the circumstances are sad. Lale is such a positive soul and I was rooting for him.
I gave it 5 stars.
Then I have just finished Caro Ramsey's Absolution. I really struggled with that one. It is a Scottish police procedural thriller. But the DCI wasn't very likeable. He was a barely functioning alcoholic with a psychological obsession which surfaced every now and then. Then there seemed to be two convoluted plots going on at the same time and I 'lost the plot' many times. I was glad I finished the book as I didn't enjoy it.
I gave it two stars.
The third book, simply called Frankie, is by Graham Norton. The Brits among you will know Graham Norton as a camp Irish talk show host, presenter (Euro songfestival), columnist, author and what not else. I had never read any of his books but I came across this and thought I'd give it a go. It was a very pleasant surprised.
Frankie is an elderly, but very independent, Irish lady who broke her ankle. Her best friend Nor hires a young male carer called Damian. Frankie doesn't want his help but when she finds out they both come from the same area in Ireland she relents and she eventually tells him her life story. She has had an interesting life and moved in the 'art scene' in Ireland, New York and London.(The more intimate episodes from her life are shared with her friend Nor.) The story was witty but also profound and it moved me.(you might need a tissue) Once I had started this book, I didn't want to stop reading. In hindsight I would have loved the audio version of this book as I saw it is narrated by Graham Norton himself (with his Irish lilt).
Again a 5 star rating.
Another thing that makes me smile is the fact that it is raining here! It hasn't rained for months! And it is pouring with rain. Heavy drops making a lot of noise on my patio. Flashes of lightning too as it is a thunder storm.
There are faces for Face Off on the postcard and on the stamps. And there are funnies for Friday Smiles at the end.
Happy days!
That is all from me today,
Enjoy your weekend,
Lisca
And this one is not a funny but I liked what the restaurant owner wrote (and it made me smile):
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