This is not a reading blog. There are lots of reasons for that – not least that I don’t read enough to keep up regular posting about books. That might change now, because one of the few adult things I’ve found it possible to do while keeping Sebastian calm is read. At the moment, he doesn’t mind what I read, provided I am reading it out loud. So we have already shared the car seat manual, my previous blog post and various emails.
We have also shared a book. And just as I reserve the right to post about Sebastian occasionally despite this not being a parenting blog, and about the cats despite it not being a pet-lovers blog, this post is about a book I’ve read.
Mitch Albom’s The Time Keeper
Mitch Albom is one of my favourite modern authors. His is one of the names I search for occasionally to see if they’ve released anything new. The last time I did that, I had a nice surprise and a few days later, The Time Keeper dropped through my letter box.
Like most of his books, it’s a work of fiction but with a strong moral compass, and elements of the old-fashioned fable. The story is relatively short, there is not much by way of description, character depth or action, and if you don’t happen to agree with the author’s world view, you should probably steer clear of all his books. But I do happen to agree with a lot of Mitch Albom’s world view, and I find his books both moving and inspiring. He has a simple, easy-to-read style and I believe the lack of detail he gives is one of the things that allows readers to feel so much for the characters – they are a backcloth on which to impose our own self-image.
If you haven’t read any of his books, I would strongly recommend you do. My favourite remains The Five People You Meet In Heaven, but others, like For One More Day and The Time Keeper are also strong. Tuesdays With Morrie is probably his most famous, but it’s a slightly different type of book, being based on a true story, and isn’t where I’d suggest starting.
If you’ve read any of his books, let me know what you think in the comments. Or, if you like Mitch Albom’s writing and can recommend anything similar you think I’d enjoy, please let me know.
Meanwhile, Sebastian and I are wondering whether to go for H G Wells or Dorothy Koomson next…
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