People of the Book

by Geraldine Brooks

So I decided to give Brooks another try, after 'Caleb's Crossing' disappointment. And was glad I did.
This was an amazing book, with a huge scope.
It follows an ancient religious text and bounces from an art restorer/archivist working with the book to the people who had impact on the book throughout five centuries of its existence.
So many voices: a Jewish teenage freedom fighter in WWII, an African slave and artist, a rabbi living in Venice during the Inquisition, and more.
Every character is picture-perfect, the story is compelling...it was a perfect read.

The Secret Scripture

by Sebastian Barry

I didn't expect much from this book, I'd never read anything by this author -- but I will now.
The story is told from two different narrators, an English/Irish psychiatrist and director of a state-run mental hospital, and Roseanne,  a patient.
Through a slowly-evolving story we learn about Roseanne's life as a desperately poor Irish girl, a young widow and mental patient. The doctor's life is told in parallel, mostly over his many decades running the asylum Roseanne spends most her life in.
The back and forth is told perfectly, with distinct yet subtle language differences.
The story is tragic, sweet and compelling.
Loved this books.

Caleb's Crossing

by Geraldine Brooks

Typically I love historical fiction but this one seemed too...I don't know, like a high-class Harlequin romance novel.
It's based on a bit of actual history, one of the first Native Americans to attend an American university -- Harvard, no less and way back in the 1600s. It's told through the eyes of Bethia, a Colonial girl who befriends him.
Some of the history was interesting, Colonial politics, Native traditions and daily life, but the storytelling was too melodramatic and the formal English language, while factual, made it worse.