(3 / 5) Circling the Sun by Paula McLain
As a lover of historical fiction and especially female driven narratives, this novel caught my attention immediately! I had never heard of Beryl Markham or her story as an adventurer and pilot in the early 20th century. So needless to say, this one made it onto my TBR (to be read) list pretty quickly.
When I finished this book I was not disappointed that I spent the time reading it, however, it won’t be going on my favorite historical fiction book list either. I had a difficult time sympathizing and liking the main character which made it hard to care about what happened to her as she navigates life with all of its ups and downs, good and bad decisions, and events out of her control. Going into this book, I thought since Beryl Markham was an unconventional woman for her time, I would find her interesting, unique, with a personal story to match. Unfortunately, the writing let me down and McLain’s character development left a bit to be desired.
That being said, I am glad to know Beryl Markham’s story and am intrigued to check out her autobiography which is a bit controversial (even better!) according to the author’s note at the end of the novel. If you’re interested to learn about a time, place, (colonial Africa in the early 20th century) and people you’ve most likely never of before then this book would be a good place to start as it’s an easy read with real life characters with real life struggles.
Read on my friends!
-Haddi
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