Summer has resumed. May gave us a good start but then June brought thunderstorms and a lot of rain for several weeks. Thankfully though,the weather has picked up. We have temperatures up into the thirties and sunshine till long after the children have gone to bed.

Having done so well with my reading in during the bad weather, late June and early July were a bit slow, book-wise. I only managed one book – The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler.

Much as I love to read a good book, sitting outdoors with friends in the balmy evening air or keeping an eye on Ireland’s, Nothern Ireland’s and Germany’s progress in the European Championship took up much of my free time over the past few weeks.

The Accidental Tourist was there by my bedside the whole time. We got off to a slow start. The main character, Macon, irritated me initially and I wasn’t sure I would take to the book at all. As the story progressed and Macon’s life was turned upside down, I warmed to him and his quirks. To be honest, I got to like him and his odd but endearing siblings.

Over the weekend I was eager to finish the story and find out what Macon would do with the rest of his life given the three main options open to him – old love, new love, no love. Given his odd character and strange logic, it could have gone any way.

The story surprised me several times and I am glad I stuck with it. It wouldn’t be my favourite of Tyler’s books, but it is definitely worth a read, even if only to get inside the mind of someone with such a different outlook on life as most of us have.

Last night I began reading The Girl at the Lion D’Or by Sebastian Faulks, pinched from my mother’s bookshelf on my last visit.  Several years ago I was seriously impressed with Faulk’s Engelby and enjoyed A Week In December too, a spontaneous purchase for myself during a Christmas shopping trip.

With The Girl at the Lion D’Or being one of Faulk’s earlier books, it might not live up to my expectations. That said, two chapters in I am already entranced.

With my summer holiday approaching, I am hoping to get through seval more books. All recommendations welcome, so please leave a comment.