When I came across the Big Book Summer Challenge hosted by Sue at Book by Book I knew I already had the perfect big book to read. Just that day I had checked Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel out of the library. Serendipity!
This big gorgeous read was the winner of the Man Booker Prize. It takes place during the ascension of Anne Boleyn in the court of Henry VIII. I love this time period. I love reading about King Henry’s reign because let’s face it, that guy was nearly bat-shit crazy by the end. 8 wives? Hello!
This is told from the point of view of Thomas Cromwell. I’ve read so many books about this time in England that I thought I already had a pretty good grasp on this guy. I knew he wasn’t nobility but still managed to rise in the ranks of Henry VIII’s court and become what today would be called his right hand man. But this girl had a lot to learn! I’d never read about this period told from Cromwell’s point of view and it was very interesting. He was the man who worked tirelessly to dissolve King Henry’s 20 year marriage to Katherine of Aragon. (Ms. Mantel’s next novel, Bring up the Bodies continues the story of what happens after he is successful)
I finished up Calling Invisible Women today. It was a short, smart and hilarious read.
Description from Indie Bound:
A mom in her early fifties, Clover knows she no longer turns heads the way she used to, and she’s only really missed when dinner isn’t on the table on time. Then Clover wakes up one morning to discover she’s invisible–truly invisible. She panics, but when her husband and son sit down to dinner, nothing is amiss. Even though she’s been with her husband, Arthur, since college, her condition goes unnoticed. Her friend Gilda immediately observes that Clover is invisible, which relieves Clover immensely–she’s not losing her mind after all!–but she is crushed by the realization that neither her husband nor her children ever truly look at her. She was invisible even before she knew she was invisible.
The Relentless Reader 