Circling The Sun caught my eye with its beautiful cover, first and foremost. I had this book for so long now, never got to it. It was time. Brought to Kenya from England as a child and then abandoned by her mother, Beryl is raised by both her father and the native Kipsigis tribe who share his estate. Her unconventional upbringing transforms Beryl into a bold young woman with a fierce love of all things wild and an inherent understanding of nature’s delicate balance. Beryl forges her own path as a horse trainer, and her uncommon style attracts the eye of the Happy Valley set, a decadent, bohemian community of European expats who also live and love by their own set of rules.

Circling the Sun (McLain) - LitLovers Circling the Sun (McLain) - LitLovers

I don't mind reading about narcissists, cheaters or idiots and their ridiculous life choices. They're types that are central in many of my favorite novels. But what's infuriating is when a selfish fool is held up as a role model for women, and when a tedious account of her affairs and intrigues is called a story that "transports you" to Kenya. Beryl forges her own path as a horse trainer, and her uncommon style attracts the eye of the Happy Valley set, a decadent, bohemian community of European expats who live and love by their own set of rules. But it's the ruggedly charismatic Denys Finch Hatton who ultimately helps Beryl navigate the uncharted territory of her own heart. The intensity of their love reveals Beryl's truest self and her fate: to fly. Entirely coincidentally, the next book I read was “Almost Famous Women” by Megan Mayhew Bergman. One of the stories in Bergman’s book, “A High Grade Bitch Sits Down For Lunch,” is about Beryl Markham and her training of the wild and dangerous horse, “Messenger Boy,” which was covered in “Circling the Sun.” The reference to her being a “high grade bitch” is a quote from Ernest Hemingway in reference to Markham’s 1942 book, “West With the Night:” The descriptions of Africa and Beryl's love for her native Kenya definitely shone throughout this novel. First it was her father who taught her everything she would ever need about horse training. She would become the youngest licensed horse trainer, and first women in the world, at the age of eighteen.Channeling spiritual/modal jazz and Latin rhythms, they simultaneously reference the greats such as Sun Ra, Pharoah Sanders and Alice Coltrane, while maintaining a fresh perspective on ensemble dynamics. I loved this book! Beryl Markham was a very strong, independent woman. She was a horse trainer and also learned to fly. I wish I could have known her. I plan to read more about her. While I didn't always agree with the choices she made, I liked that she was so determined and accomplished so much. I felt sad about her relationships and that she struggled in that area of her life. What an amazing life she lived though. Similar to the first summer you come home from college, after a school year of freedom to make your own decisions. Once you have had that independence, to have someone try to determine for you what they think you should do is unbearable. I think ... - barb23703 This was an excellent read. Now fate will take its course. I will have to read West With The Night by Beryl Markham herself. Like its high-flying subject, Circling the Sunis audacious and glamorous and hard not to be drawn in by. Beryl Markham may have married more than once, but she was nobody’s wife.” —Entertainment Weekly

Circling the Sun by Paula McLain: 9780345534200

Of course , the book's focus is Beryl, but there are many other fascinating people, many of whom are expats and the relationships they have to each other, many of which are extramarital. Everybody seemed to be in love with someone other than their spouse . And some men with multiple women as in the case of Denys Finch Hatton . But that was life in this tight Kenyan community. So many free spirited people or careless depending on your perspective . It's heartbreaking at times but oh so uplifting at others . You may not agree with everything Beryl did but what a life , what strength, what motivation to do what she wanted to do . I learned to watch, to put my trust in other hands than mine. And I learned to wander. I learned what every dreaming child needs to know—that no horizon is so far that you cannot get above it or beyond it. These I learned at once. But most things came harder.” —BERYL MARKHAM, West with the Night Abandoned by her mother as a young girl, growing up on a horse farm, getting married several times, and trying to make it on her own in a man's world, and in 1936, became the first woman to fly solo and nonstop from east to west across the Atlantic. Britain's Amelia Earhart. Although she was born a Brit, she was Kenyan in heart and soul. I'll tell you one thing, I'm a little mad at the author --Her book had me reading all night long!! And..now I want to know a little more about this woman's character! --Talk about her with others anyway! Darn -this author --for writing a captivating book! :) Paula McLain has such a gift for bringing characters to life. I loved discovering the singular Beryl Markham, with all her strengths and passions and complexities, a woman who persistently broke the rules, despite the personal cost. She’s a rebel in her own time, and a heroine for ours.” —Jojo Moyes, author of Me Before YouPaula McClain based her protagonist in Circling the Sun upon the historical figure of Beryl Markham. Although she bears the same name, McClain's Markham barely resembles the intrepid Markham of real life. She is born to her British parents in colonial Kenya. After her mom leaves, young Beryl is left largely on her own because of her alcoholic father. She becomes the charge of her native neighbors who readily teach her their customs and train her to be a warrior. At 16, Beryl marries a man for financial support, but he turns out to be a drunk and a scoundrel. She runs away a couple years later to become a horse trainer. She makes a name for herself, becoming the first licensed woman in Kenya to train horses. Her professional career is hampered by her promiscuous love-life. Desperate for the denied affections of Finch Hatton, she begins an endless series of affairs and marriages, none of which she loves. Eventually she travels to England to leave a disabled baby with one of her mother-in-laws. Upon returning to Kenya, Beryl finds herself once more seeking an escape. She becomes involved with the Kenyan liberation movement and flies planes. Formed over two decades ago, The Circling Sun certainly cannot be accused of rushing to unleash musical product on the public, as Spirits, set for release on May 19th on the famous Soundway imprint, will be their debut album. In playing such a long game, the inevitable question will be, was it worth the wait? To these ears, the response is an unreserved yes, together with a strong impression that the album will garner positive plaudits from an array of differing sources. I have come to believe that fiction can often be more true than non-fiction. What can we really know from all the poses and roles that people from real life leave behind in letters or memories of those around them? After going through a couple of divorces, I’ve learned clearly how people have to compose simplified stories to make sense of their own complicated lives. Maybe this book doesn’t help me know the real Beryl Markham, but I am happy with a potent version of someone very much like her. The short version of her life as she ponders future challenges rings as true to me, or at least as a truth:

Circling the Sun by Paula McLain | Waterstones Circling the Sun by Paula McLain | Waterstones

Perhaps the group’s name is no coincidence - each instrument seems to be in orbit around the concept of symbiotic synergy - and everyone is given equal space to shine; from a psychedelic Korg, to a delirious saxophone or the gentle ripples of a harp. There’s a huge array of keyboards, skillfully manned by the likes of Guy Harrison and Cory Champion (Clear Path Ensemble), with a standout acoustic piano solo by Harrison on “Plume”.Brought to Kenya from England as a child and then abandoned by her mother, Beryl is raised by both her father and the native Kipsigis tribe who share his estate. Her unconventional upbringing transforms Beryl into a bold young woman with a fierce love of all things wild and an inherent understanding of nature's delicate balance. But even the wild child must grow up, and when everything Beryl knows and trusts dissolves, she is catapulted into a string of disastrous relationships.