Book Reviews: House Girl & The Rosie Project

Hey everyone, HAPPY FRIDAY!

I hope you all had great weeks and are ready for the weekend, I sure am! Today I’ve got a couple book reviews for you all. I’ve read a lot of books over the past couple of months but haven’t really reviewed any of them, so I thought I’d start off with the two most recent that I’ve finished.

First is The House Girl by Tara Conklin, a novel which switches back and forth between a 17 year-old house slave named Josephine Bell in 1852 and a young and promising attorney named Lina Sparrow living in New York in 2004.

Image Courtesy of Goodreads

The story switches back and forth between Lina and Josephine and slowly brings them together. Josephine works for a woman who eventually becomes a famous artist, Lu Ann Bell. Josephine loves to draw as well and often helped Lu Ann with her drawings and did many of her own. Lina is asked to take on a retribution case for slavery in which she must find a descendant of a slave to be their star plaintiff. Because of Lina’s father, a famous artist, she discovers a controversy arising over Lu Ann Bell’s art and whether or not it was really hers, or a slave’s. Lina then begins a journey to track down the unknown slave (Jospehine) and her descendants.

The story is written so well and Tara individually develops each of the main characters in ways that make you desperate to know how it all ends. Although it involves a slave and life on a plantation, this book felt more like the story of two women and their journeys to find themselves rather than a historical novel. I really enjoyed reading this book and definitely recommend it if you’re looking for a novel with a good female lead.

Next up is the Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion. I only read this book because my Kindle recommended it and it was $1.99, but it was a happy accident!

Image courtesy of Goodreads

The very first chapter of the Rosie Project grabbed my attention. The book is narrated by a 39 year-old genetics professor, Don Tillman. I don’t usually read books with male narrators because I find them harder to relate to, but I found this book fascinating. What you discover in the first chapter is that Don most likely has some form of Autism or Asperger’s. He clearly can function in society, but he has issues forming social relationships and dealing with social situations. He lives on a very rigid schedule and only has two friends – a colleague and his wife – who are entertaining in their own right.

What I loved about this book is not only the romance that forms throughout it, but the perspective of the narrator and the thoughts that he has. He analyzes every social situation as well as himself and it really makes you think about how people interact. I flew through this book and definitely recommend it if you’re looking for something a little different, but very much based on human interaction.

What’s the best book you’ve read lately?

What’s your favorite genre of books to read?

What are you doing this weekend?