2026 June-July Read and Ramble
June is remarkably busy this year, well, probably it always is. Starting with a great road trip to Nova Scotia and circling back through mid-northern Quebec. Nice and cool mostly, a treat (for me) as the older I get, the less I enjoy the heat.
Before leaving, I opened “The Wager” by David Gann. The catchy subtitle “A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder” doesn’t exaggerate. The best book I’ve read all year, full stop. Non-fiction adventure in 1740s : England’s HMS Wager as part of a flotilla involved in naval dominance battles with Spain. World-wide conflict and the shipwreck/survival story of this ship and her crew in particular, exposited in thorough research (the notes/index/bibliography is over 65 pages long!) that exceptionally details the conflicting survivalist stories. Thanks to the British Navy’s court martial records, and thanks to the author and his access to said records, we can practically live alongside the ordeals of the sailors. Wonderful historical non-fiction and a great way to start my summer reading. I can hardly wait – a movie in in the works, watch for it, but remember, the book is always better.
Whew, time to plan holiday road trip. “The Wager” will be a hard act to follow. What to pick, and on my e-reader of course. Gotta save room for buying books (my souvenir of choice is always buying books, preferably local authors. Of course, all authors are local to where they live, but you know what I mean!)
I hadn’t planned to get so involved with heavy non-fiction before a holiday, so back to something lighter. Not too light, “Cold Victory” by Karl Marlantes. This is an author I’ve read before, and loved his mid-20th century historical fiction. He’s not prolific, so when I saw he had a new one out, I bought it immediately without even checking out the blurb. Why spoil the anticipation? I was not disappointed. The book opens in 1946 Finland, American diplomat/colonel and his wife posted to Helsinki to work with/against the Russians as they cold-war fight for Finland’s future. Old war buddies, a ski race, politics, frenemy tensions, all told mostly, but not exclusively, from the women, this is a great read with a satisfying, but emotionally-conflicted, conclusion. I love a well-thought out ending – it helps the story linger.
With July starting, the weather is heading into summer heat. After 2 such great books and after holidays, what to try next? Probably one of the pickups from the road trip? I absolutely must have a good one, so “The Spirit of Scatarie” by Lesley Crewe it is. A good start is that although this is a fiction novel, the inside details a map! A map of a tiny island off the coast of Cape Breton, a real place I’ve never heard of, called Scatarie. That’s the thing about books, they take you to places you didn’t know about, to times you never lived, and introduce people you’ll never get to meet. It’s magical, isn’t it? And speaking of magical, this book is lovely, narrated by the spirits as they follow a trio of friends from birth on this fishing village in the early decades of the 20th century, through the second world war and it’s incredible influence on them, right on to how things end up. Today the real island is still there, and its real history, but the ancient fishing way of life, and with it, the people, are gone. How lovely that writers can show us how that history unfolded.
I’ve sure been lucky with all the great books lately. I will continue with another favourite author, Kristin Hannah. “Home Front”. Actually, when I started it, I wasn’t in my house, I was outside and my “TBR” pile was out-of reach. Because after the first few pages, if that pile was accessible, I would have stopped this one for something lighter and summery-er. Wow, heavy story. I should have known better, Hannah is brutally fantastic with emoting. Ok, I’m in now. Female helicopter pilot, hard upbringing, now married with kids, to a lawyer, happy until recently, marriage starting to be on the rocks, teenager problems, etc, etc, you know, life in your early forties. Then what? Deployment to Iraq? This will not end well! So much to deal with. The happy ending? I’ll let you follow down this dark hole to find out for yourself. Be prepared, but it’s worth the trip.
Speaking of trip, August will be thrilling – finally going on the European solar eclipse cruise booked since last solar eclipse, in 2024! So loading up the e-reader, I discover 2 new ones from a favourite historical fiction writer, Conn Iggulgen. If you follow my reading review blogs, you know what I think of this great author! Ancient Rome this time, I can’t resist, and read one of the 2 I’ve loaded ahead of holiday time. It doesn’t take me long to rip through “Forged in Rome”. Kind of different for Iggulden, this one follows a fictional freed slave from the times of Emperor Nero. He usually writes about the famous historical names. Not to worry, the research and times are faithfully rendered. Always love diving into a different time and place. I’ll save the final in the Nero (speaking of whom) trilogy, “Inferno” for my August pile.
Happy Holidays, and if you haven’t tried Michele Sabad’s books, please take a look 😉
Stevie Szabad, Author 