So Shall You Reap

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She describes the career path that ultimately brought her to Italy: four years of teaching English to trainee helicopter pilots in Iran in the late seventies, living under martial law, friendly and generous neighbours, and curfew pyjama parties and. Eventually, evacuation. A remarkable life story by a remarkable woman, Wandering through Life is an impressively written memoir laced with keen observation and humor. An inherently fascinating and memorable read from start to finish.” — Midwest Book Review Praise for Donna Leon’s Commissario Guido Brunetti Mysteries: The Donna Leon chronology starts with her debut novel, Death at la Fenice. She started writing her Commissario Brunetti series in the early 1990s. She published her first novel in 1992 after 8 months of writing her story. The book made Donna Leon into a bestselling author. She wrote her debut novel on a whim. While at the Opera House La Fenice, she got the idea to write a book just to see if she could write it. She was in her late 40s, and at the insistence of her friends, she submitted the manuscript at a contest in Japan, and much to her surprise, she was a winner of the Japanese Suntory prize. As the author reaches her 9th decade [this makes] for a fascinating insight into her life and world, albeit with discretion and leaving tantalising hints at what lies beyond. One for the fans (and friends).’ Crime Time

On a Saturday in early November, Guido Brunetti, reluctant to go outside, was at home, trying to decide which of his books to remove from the shelves in Paola’s study. Years ago, some months before the birth of their daughter, he had renounced claim to what had been his study so that their second child could have her own bedroom. Paola had offered his books sanctuary on four shelves. At the time, Brunetti had suspected this would not suffice, and eventually it had not: the time had come for The Cull. He was faced with the decision of what to eliminate from the shelves. The first shelf held books he knew he would read again; the second, at eye level, held books he wanted to read for the first time; the third, books he’d not finished but believed he would; and the bottom shelf held books he had known, some- times even as he was buying them, that he would never read.A Question of Belief (William Heinemann, London, April 2010; Atlantic Monthly Press, New York, hardcover May 2010;

Drawing Conclusions (Forthcoming in 2011 from William Heinemann, London, and Atlantic Monthly Press, New York) In this story, he starts out where he would rather be culling his crowded bookshelves than heading off to the mainland to retrieve one of their policemen, who’s somehow been caught up in a protest march that has turned violent.

Donna Leon provides another delectable slice of the thoughtful policeman's life at work and at home... So Shall You Reap is as witty and wise as anything Leon has written. To read her is to restore the soul.' Mark Sanderson, The Times

I’ve been a big fan of the Guido Brunetti series and have made my way through the first 24 of them. Thanks to Netgalley, I’m jumping ahead to So Shall You Reap, # 32 in the series. It’s also the first of the series I’ve read, rather than listened to. It works just as well in either format. She explains the difference on a train between authors and traditional passengers. The passengers see the landscape and the tunnel ahead of them. The author imagines what disaster can happen in the tunnel. Mindful of the past, Brunetti has much to ponder. Meanwhile one of his officers runs into trouble at a Gay pride parade. The past and present are on a collision course. These stories rarely move at a brisk pace. This one meanders as Brunetti attempts to find connections between the past and present. The ending was very satisfactory (especially for an animal lover) even if it was fairly obvious. What kinds of relationships does Carlo, the proprietor of the bookshop on Campo Santa Maria Nova, have with his customers? What kinds of insights does he glean from their reading preferences? What does he offer Brunetti about Inesh Kavinda?What kind of person is Professore Renato Molin? What does he seem to value or appreciate? How does his “adult” persona square with his “student” one? A real-estate query leads to more troubled waters for Venice’s Commissario Guido Brunetti . . . The commissario’s company and sensibility keep a reader in thrall throughout this and every entry in Ms. Leon’s indispensable series.”— Tom Nolan, Wall Street Journal What prompted this? A body was found. It was a pleasant Buddhist Sri Lankan, Inesh Kavinda, who was living in the garden shed of the Palazzo Zaffo Sri Leonie. For those who know Venice, or want to, Brunetti is a well-versed escort to the nooks, crannies, moods, and idiosyncrasies of what residents call La Serenissima, the Serene One . . . Richly atmospheric, [Leon] introduces you to the Venice insiders know.”— USA Today As a young woman, Leon taught English abroad in places like the Middle East and China. She delighted in experiencing foreign cultures, which gave her the desire to travel regularly and explore the world around her. It was when she accompanied her friend on a trip to Naples, Italy, that she felt truly at home and did not want to leave. This led to further exploration of the country and falling in love with the very same Venice where she eventually relocated and set her iconic series.

At one stage I just thought that some of the writing was a little poor compared to the other books i The story begins when Alvise is detained at a gay rights demonstration in Treviso for resisting arrest. It gives Paola a good laugh that Guido has never realized after years of working with him that Alvise is gay. Leon] uses the relatively small and crime-free canvas of Venice for rips about Italian life, sexual styles and—best of all—the kind of ingrown business and political corruption that seems to lurk just below the surface.”— Chicago TribuneI read the first book in her series, “Death at La Fenice” and actually saw the same book re-created in an Italian series movie version. It was rather interesting to watch. (And yes, the book was better than the movie.) (Side note: My review of Death at La Fenice is here on Goodreads.) Gracias a su prosa descriptiva, Leon captura con pasmosa facilidad el pulso y el ritmo de Venecia, pero no de la Venecia atestada por hordas de turistas, si no de la Venecia real, la de aquellos que viven allí, siendo los momentos más memorables esos pequeños detalles del día a día, esas interacciones en apariencia irrelevantes, pero que permiten crear una atmósfera de un lugar que, aunque no cambia en su superficie, bajo esta se encuentra en continuo cambio.