THE WEIGHING OF THE HEART.

 A Random Gift Of Kindness from the lovely Lainy over at So many books, so little time whose thoughts on the book can be read here, today its my turn to share my thoughts on ...

THE WEIGHING OF THE HEART by PAUL TUDOR OWEN.

GENRE ... Contmporary Fiction

PUBLISHER ... Obliterati Press

NUMBER OF PAGES ... 254

'Sooner or later, everybody comes to New York ...'

Following a sudden break-up, Englishman in New York Nick Braeburn takes a room with the elderly Peacock sisters in their lavish Upper East Side apartment, and finds himself increasingly drawn to the priceless piece of Egyptian art on their study wall - and to Lydia, the beautiful Portuguese artist who lives across the roof garden.

But as Nick draws Lydia into a crime he hopes will bring them together, they both begin to unravel, and each find that the other is not quite who they seem. {Back Cover Blurb}

Sooner or later, everybody comes to New York, and I was no exception. {First Sentence, Chapter 1}

One morning when I returned to the Peacocks' apartment from Lydia's, I found to my complete bafflement that all the books on the living room shelves had been turned around so that the spines faced the walls and the pages faced the room. I checked the library - the same thing had happened there. With slight trepidation, I opened my bedroom door and looked up at my own shelves - all my books had been turned inward too. {Memorable Moment, Page 150}

MY THOUGHTS ... A story of paranoia and jealousy; that much I did get but on the whole ...

A book I'd file under 'Just didn't get it; was I missing something?' 

What was reality? What was the result of increasing paranoia; of a character spiralling ever deeper into mental illness? I guess that it could be argued that this not knowing was pure genius on the part of the author but for myself ... 

What can I say? Come the ending I still didn't know and, quite frankly, I found myself not really caring.

Maybe if there had been more of the Peacock sisters but, as it was, I found myself totally uninspired by and unable to connect with any of the other characters. 

I had hoped that the Egyptology/Egyptian mythology that ran throughout the story might at least prove a redeeming feature but alas, interesting as the Ba, the scarab and the Devourer might have been, in this scenario ...

Hmm! As I said I just didn't get it. 

ABOUT PAUL TUDOR OWEN ... Paul Tudor Owen's debut novel The Weighing of the Heart won the People's Book Prize for fiction 2020. He was born in Manchester in 1978, and was educated at the University of Sheffield, the University of Pittsburgh, and the London School of Economics. He began his career as a local newspaper reporter in north-west London, and currently works at the Guardian, where he spent three years as deputy head of US news at the paper’s New York office. {From the GoodReads site}

FOLLOW PAUL TUDOR OWEN ... ~Website ~ Twitter ~ 

Q&A With Paul Tudor Owen on Lainy's So many books, so little time.

FIRST BOOK 2021.

 Oh dear, only four days into the new year and already I'm behind.

For various reasons its been a while since I participated in this, Sheila @ Book Journey's 'First Read' post, but somehow this year it seemed the perfect way to begin a new year and a whole new chapter of books just waiting to be read.

So from myself, all of these lovely readers and so many more (please click here for Sheila's full collage) may I wish you a happy 2021 to you all. May it bring love, light and peace ... oh and a 250th follower of Pen and Paper would be lovely.

ANSWERED, 33 RANDOM QUESTIONS.

Know what Kelly of Kelly's Thoughts & Ramblings favourite joke is? 

No? 

You will once you have her answer to ... 33 Random Questions.

What a great way to learn more about our fellow bloggers. I'd love to know YOUR answers to these 33 Random Questions. 

Don't want to read my wittering on? That's OK but, in need of a laugh?  You might want to check out numbers 16 and 33 before you go.


1. Who are you named after? Long story. I was going to be called Carol (not after anyone and not because I was a Christmas baby or anything like that)  but when born my parents thought I looked like a Tracy (whatever it is a Tracy looks like) so Tracy it was ... until it wasn't. Hating my name I legally changed it last year to names I both liked and had meaning to me; Felicity meaning happiness and Grace (amongst other things) forgiveness.
2. Last time you cried? Heck! I'm of a certain age when if I'm not crying/wanting to cry I'm wanting to scream. 
3. Do you like your handwriting? No. I never have. Its always seemed child-like to me.
4. What is your favourite sandwich? At the moment I'm rather partial to brie and tomato.

5. Favourite drink? Presently I'm rather into elderflower presse.
6. Do you still have your tonsils? Yes.
7. Would you bungee? I'd rather have my tonsils removed ... without anaesthetic.
8. What is your favourite kind of cereal? I'm more of a toast/croissant/pain au chocolat, fresh fruit and yoghurt kind of person but when I do fancy a bowl of cereal its generally weetabix, crunchy nut cornflakes or muesli.
9. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? Because of issues with my leg I have specially made clog type shoes which I just slip on which is just as well because I never learnt to tie shoe laces.
10. Do you think you are strong-willed? If its something I feel strongly about then, mmm, probably but otherwise, no, I don't think of myself as particularly strong willed.
11. Favourite ice-cream? You can't beat Cornish clotted cream ice-cream. And if it comes with a banana cut down the middle and covered in cream all the better.
12. What is the first thing you notice about a person? What it is they are reading. Oh! You mean physically? Their eyes.
13. Football or Baseball? I'm not sure if we're talking what we call football and the Americans call soccer. Not that it really matters, football/soccer (call it what you will), I'm not a fan just as I'm not a fan of baseball. 
14. Last book read? In The Heart Of The Amazon Forest by Walter Henry Bates.
15. Last thing you ate? Buttered toast, a pear and a strawberry yoghurt.
16. I wish I were listening? Something that makes me laugh so ...Tiny Tim Talks. You don't know about Tiny Tim Talks the '3 nearly 6' year old? This, his calling a transport company (below), is probably my favourite but there are lots to choose from.

17. If you were a crayon, what colour would you be? Yellow its my favourite colour. Its so cheerful.

18. What is your favourite smell? Freshly laundered washing that's been drying in sunshine all day.

19. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? Val, a friend of mine.

20. In a relationship? Married 34 years this September; Mr T deserves a medal.

21. Eye colour? Blue.

22. Favourite food to eat? Oh! That's a hard one. Hmm! Probably ... probably Mr T's nut loaf (it includes mashed parsnip which makes it lovely and moist) with a mushroom sauce. 

23. Scary movies or happy endings? Aw! Can I opt for something that makes me laugh? No? OK then, happy endings it is.

24. Last movie you watched in a cinema? Do you know its been that long since I last visited the cinema that I have forgotten. Lets see, it was probably The Lone Ranger starring Johnny Depp.

25. What colour shirt are you wearing? I have to admit that I'm not wearing a shirt. Shameful I know but I'm still in my night clothes.

26. Favourite holiday? Like Kelly I'm wondering would that be a holiday as in a vacation or a holiday as in Easter/Christmas? If its the former, the week Mr T and I spent in a caravan in Scarborough just before we got married. If its the latter, Christmas.

27. Beer or wine? Neither, I don't drink alcohol unless its Christmas morning in which case I'll have a few mouthfuls of Bucks Fizz which unlike this, the recipe for the perfect Bucks Fizz, is more, much more OJ  and a lot less champagne.

28. Night owl or morning person? At the moment both both and neither. I think it fair to say your most likely to find me awake between the hours of 11.30pm to 3.00am OR 12 midday to 9.00pm

29. Favourite day of the week? I'm kind of partial to Saturdays as this is the day of the week Mr T and I aim to keep free in order that we can spend it together.
30. Favourite animal? Domesticated? Cats. Wildlife? Hedgehogs.
31. Do you have a pet? No. Alas our current circumstances mean having a pet isn't possible. 
32. Where would you like to travel? Given the current situation the world finds itself in I'm not wanting to travel anywhere. If asked pre Covid19, we were planning to meet up with friends from Germany who wanted to visit Scarborough so, yes, I'd like to travel to Scarborough. 
33. Favourite Joke? Really? OK, just remember, you asked.

A little blue man was feeling lonely and blue so he decided on a holiday at the Blue Dolphin Hotel and a week later, after packing his blue suitcase, got into his blue car and set off.

On arrival at the Blue Dolphin Hotel, the blue man got out of his blue car, took his blue suitcase and registered with the receptionist in the blue uniform.

He was shown to his room overlooking a very blue sea and found a welcome pack in a blue binder which ended with the warning "Under NO circumstances press the big blue button by the blue  door."

Now, after unpacking his blue suitcase and watching an episode of The Blue Planet on the television, the blue man became curious about the big blue button by the blue door and decided to press it. AND do you know what happened?

Yes, it Blew up!!!

FOUND: ANOTHER MEME.

Whilst I occasionally join in the meme that is Bermudaonion's Weblog's Wondrous Words Wednesday it isn't since a weekly meme about Inspirational Women (my apologies I forget the title) that I last regularly joined in on one so whether or not thatartsyreadergirl's Top Ten Tuesday becomes a permanent feature or not who can tell. What I will say though is this, Top Ten Tuesday/Top Ten Books With A Single Word Title as seen here on Mybookworld24,  got me thinking.

Not that could come up with TEN books that I'd read that had a one word title off the top of my head (my first thought I came up with two, Philippa Gregory's Tidelands and Emma Donoghue's Room) soooo I too had to rely on my GoodReads page which, amongst others books with a one word title that I'd read, revealed these other eight books, (the last two of which are of the same title but by different authors) ...

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2020/02/tidelands.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2011/02/room.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2012/03/property.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2014/07/sanctus.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2018/08/perfect.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2017/12/jane-yellowrook-series-1-skinwalker.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2013/05/semmant.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2017/08/wolves-of-mercy-chase-2-linger.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2012/10/poltergeeks.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2013/06/godiva.html

http://pettywitter.blogspot.com/2012/03/godiva.html

THE BRIEF HISTORY OF THE DEAD.

THE BRIEF HISTORY OF THE DEAD by KEVIN BROCKMEIER.

The City is inhabited by those who have departed Earth but are still remembered by the living. They will reside in this afterlife until they are completely forgotten. But the City is shrinking, and the residents clearing out. Some of the holdouts, like Luka Sims, who produces the City's only newspaper, are wondering what exactly is going on. Others, like Coleman Kinzler, believe it is the beginning of the end. Meanwhile, Laura Byrd is trapped in an Antarctic research station, her supplies are running low, her radio finds only static, and the power is failing. With little choice, Laura sets out across the ice to look for help, but time is running out. Kevin Brockmeier alternates these two storylines to create a lyrical and haunting story about love, loss and the power of memory.

- Back Cover Blurb

When the blind man arrived in the city, he claimed that he had traveled across a desert of living sand.

- First Sentence, Chapter One: The City

There was a vacated library around the corner from his building, the front door of which had been removed from its hinges and carted away by vandals at some point. While he knew that the shelves inside were mostly bare, it still seemed like the most obvious place to start. In the Archives Room, on the third floor, he found a cabinet labeled, miracle of miracles, CENSUS RECORDS - PAST FIVE YEARS. 

Memorable Moment, Page 147

MY THOUGHTS ... That the dead live on in our memories is a sentiment oft used to comfort the bereaved. 

That here in The Brief History Of The Dead every deceased person who we have not just loved but have known goes on to reside in The City, an afterlife (oddly reminiscent of New York) which is inhabited by those who only 'disappear' once they have been forgotten by literally everyone who ever knew them makes for a fascinating premise. 

That here the departed are not giving wings, that here there are no big revelations as to the meaning of life or anything like that, that here people are as they were when alive (although on the plus side, they don't age') interesting.

That the author got away without being sued, that the book was actually printed surprising given that one of the residents of The City is not just an executive of any old soft drinks manufacturer but an executive of arguably THE soft drinks manufacturer, Coca-Cola; that Brockmeier made no attempt to disguise this global beverage manufacturer brave, but I digress.

What at times feels like a hybrid of fantasy and reality. That the novel features an out of control world wide virus timely and rather scary. That this virus has an impact on not only the citizens of this world but also those residing in The City in which your state of being is dependent on your being remembered (and with billions dying the chances of that are becoming increasingly less likely) oddly poignant.

A book of duel narratives played out in alternating chapters; The odd numbered chapters being the stories of a cross-section of characters now residing in The City, the even numbered chapters that of Laura trapped in an Antarctic research station, her only companions the multitude of people in her head. 

Given that I enjoyed the chapters set in the afterlife so much more than I did the chapters featuring Laura which kind of reminded me of Andy Weir's The Martian  (not a book that I enjoyed) I admit I struggled to rate this novel. However overall a solid *** 'I liked it'.

SUMMED UP IN A SENTENCE ... What proved to be a unique read; thought  provoking and full of a pathos you don't often find in novels and yet it somehow failed to engage me in the way I had hoped.

My thanks to Kelly for gifting me a signed copy of the book. She had this to say about The Brief History Of The Dead in her September 2019 Book Round-Up ... 

  What a great story!  I’m not really sure what category it falls into:  science fiction?  fantasy?  dystopian literature?  literary fiction?  I found the writing to be beautiful and the story quite thought-provoking.  It’s not often I go back and read an ending several times over, just to ponder the message more deeply.  I think it’s one that will stay with me for quite some time.

FAERIES OF SAIZIA.

Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.com | Lulu’s Press

Thanks to Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for all her hard work in organising this, the Blog tour for Faeries Of Saizia by Tonya L Chaves. One of three stops today (for the full programme see below), along with promotional posts from Writing with Wolves and Just Books,  I'm proud to be sharing my thoughts here at Pen and Paper.

Zäria and Avery, two teenage faeries seeking adventure, get more than they bargained for when they start spying on the elves of Eerie Hollow. They discover why the elves are making delectable chocolates in the forest only to be captured by their adversary, Thordon who threatens them into taking on a quest.

They run into more trouble while crossing through The Perilous Forest when they meet a witch with her own agenda. Their only hope is to locate an ancient faerie sanctuary they’ve only heard of in legend. 

Secrets are revealed about Zäria’s parents, which leaves her conflicted and forced to make some tough choices. Just when the fae think their troubles are over, the kingdom of Saizia is in danger of being destroyed.

Will Zäria and Avery be able to get help on time? How will they defeat the evil Thordon? Inspired by the author’s children, Faeries of Saizia is a unique story that will instill a love for reading, love for nature, and belief in life’s endless possibilities.

- Synopsis

Avery sat on the edge of his disheveled bed, wiping the sleep from his tired eyes.

- First Sentence; Chapter 1: Celebration

Goran threw a dark-green powder over her, and the already old witch aged before their eyes until she crinkled up, turned to dust and was blown away with the wind.
- Memorable Moment; Page 87

SOURCE ... Received with thanks from tour organiser Rachel.

READ FOR A CHALLENGE? ... No.

MY THOUGHTS ... Faeries, elves, witches, dragons ... Oh my! 
Faeries, elves, witches, dragons ... Oh my!

All manner of magnificent magical beings, fantasy action, compelling world building (whilst characters tend to be my thing when it comes to novels, and my goodness! these characters did not disappoint, it was perhaps this, the author's mesmerising world-building and in particular the fae's amusing fairy colloquialisms, that really drew me in), a dash of romance, mild peril - whilst Faeries Of Saizia will doubtlessly appeal to those young-at-heart older readers as well as young readers themselves adults of more sensitive readers may wish to check it out for themselves first (as if I needed an excuse) as some of the action may prove a tad too much - oh! and chocolate, this novel really does have it all.

Way up there as a hi-light read of 2019; the memorable characters (such great names as well) captured my heart, the twists, the turns kept me on my toes, Eerie Hollow and the land beyond sparked my imagination. Combined altogether I'd say Tonya L Chaves has a winner.

Confirmed Blog Schedule (Please feel free to stop by any/all of the sites) ...

8th September

Laura's Interests - Review
Jessica Belmont - Review
Jazzy Book Reviews - Review

9th September

Tracy Terry
Writing with Wolves
Just Books - Promo

10th September

Four Moon Reviews
donnasbookblog
Jera's Jamboree

11th September

Shalini's Books & Reviews
OBC Mini Reviewers
K T Robson

12th September

MADEUP Book Reviews
Pleasure Your Shelf
On The Shelf Reviews

13th September

Dash Fan Book Reviews
B for bookreview
ReasReads

14th September

The Voracious Bibliophile
Fallen Star Stories
Reviewsfeed

15th September

Mai's Musings
Wrong side of forty
Seansbookreviews

16th September

Trails of Tales
The Magic Of Wor(l)ds
Splashes Into Books

17th September

JBronder Book Reviews
Red's Midnight Readers 
Books and Geekiness

About the author ...


 Tonya L. Chaves is from a small town in the Central Valley of California. She studied early childhood education and worked in daycare and preschool for a few years until having children of her own. During a brief time of being a stay at home mom, she picked up the hobby of quilting which she still enjoys today. For the past fourteen years, Tonya has been working in the insurance industry as a licensed agent. While juggling a full-time job, being a wife and mother of three, quilting, and crafting, she somehow managed to write a book; adding author to her collection of titles. Faeries of Saizia is her first published work.

Website: www.tonyachaves.com