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Márjo Terreblanche

@marjo_reads

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I LOVE reading. 📖 ♥️
I’m a Mother, Wife, Friend and Doctor 🩺👯‍♀️👩‍❤️‍👨
Genres: Historical and Literary Fiction💚📚
Booker prize 🌟
Women’s prize 🏆
🇿🇦🌸

POSTS STORIES REELS

October was filled with great books and the promise of Summer!!

My average rating this month is exceptionally high. I did give up on 2 books though. Let’s see..

5🌟 books I LOVED
1. Partita - Barbara Kingsolver can do no wrong! A masterpiece. I enjoyed the characters, the setting, the storyline and the musical theme throughout.
2. The things we never say - I listened to it as I read it earlier this year. Second time around I found it even better.
3. O Now! by Niall Williams is actually a novella set again in Faha. Again he cannot do wrong. He is such a great storyteller and his characters are regular people about whom he writes with such tenderness. I will read everything he writes. After the novella he explains why he writes about Ireland and how Faha came about. A enjoyable add on.

4+ 🌟
4. Frozen River - my first book by Ariel Lawhon but not my last. I was so surprised. I really enjoyed the main character Martha Ballard, who was a midwife in 18th century Maine. She was an extraordinary woman. The audio is excellent.
5. The Typing Lady - a collection of stories by one of my favourite authors
6. Cassandra at the wedding - a tragicomic novel by Dorothy Baker written in 1962. One of 2 identical twin sisters are getting married. And Cassandra (the other one) is determined to stop it. I loved it so much. Please read!
7. The Housekeeper - A fictional version of Daphne de Maurer’s life and loves. Well written and again - an autobuy author for me.
8. Taipei Story by R.F. Kuang - I think I enjoyed this book of her most.
9. Slouching towards Bethlehem - Joan Didion. A collection ov essays where she she describes her experiences in the 1960’s in California. It is unreal that she wrote it so long ago as the topics are so relevant and timely. My favourite piece was John Wayne : A love song.

Please tell me what you read and what you loved best!!!

PS the books I didn’t finish were
* Country People
* Said the dead.
Should I try again? by @marjo_reads

Reineé, my sister, was born when I was 5 years old. I remember it vividly.
As happens with younger siblings, they call you by a name of their choosing. Mine was / is Halloes. No one else knows this or would ever call me that. So it was quite apt when she launched her cookbook recently and wrote me a message in mine, referring to me as Halloes.
The reason for this intro is such: my sister has many talents. She can cook, write, take pictures, draw/paint and she can also sing! So it was no surprise to any of us when she published a Cookbook - a thing of beauty, filled with her life story as well as her recipes. In a way it feels like full circle. A book that stretches between her childhood until now, and everything in-between. That is the Book’s name: Tussen-in / In-between.
Now, when you buy a cookbook you want to be inspired but also be sure that the recipes work and are tasty! To that I want to say: as the ‘lazy’ cook in the family, I have had many a meal at Reinee and Deon. She is the one I will ask to cater for my Birthdays, give advice on what to make and how. And my all time best and favourite meals were the ones she (and Deon) made.

The cookbook is a testament to her life journey, her love for food and entertaining and her gift for sharing it with us.
@tamatiestraat by @marjo_reads

Every year I try and keep to this! But then there is always an unexpected outsider that comes crashing in! I hope to get to all these before 31/12/2026!

Ten before the end

1. American Hagwon
2. The Housekeeper (Tremaine)
3. Body Language
4. Country People
5. Bel Canto (re-read)
6. Music against the night
7. Stations
8. The Song of Stork and Dromedary
9. Pirate Queen (instead of Frozen River which I just finished…sorry!)
10. The weight of angels

Please share what is on your list!!

PS The backgrounds are my lovely star jasmine in full bloom! by @marjo_reads

A wonderful mid week breakaway! Blissful stay in Kleinmond with daily walks and reading!
I finished Partita by Barbara Kingsolver. It is everything I love in a book. Music being my best subject at school and doing many exams in Piano and Recorder, I loved the many references to music. The storyline is richly layered and compelling. An intricate tale yet deeply endearing in its humanity.

I listened to ‘The things we never say’ after I read it about 3 months ago. Elizabeth Strout is just a master storyteller, able to distil the complexities of everyday life into something deeply human, poignant and profoundly recognisable.

A great week!

Please share what you read this week?! by @marjo_reads

Lyndsay from @parnassusbooks recommended this book about 2 weeks ago. I am listening to it and my word, it ia a gem!! I am having the best Monday!! I am giggling to myself and are completely transformed to a world of twin sisiters and a wedding weekend… by @marjo_reads

What a week! We have a yearly WOORDFEES in Stellenbosch. It is a BUSY week with so much talent on our doorstep!

I did a Wool course with @andragnelia at the Design School, witnessed and shared in the joy of my sister Reinee (@tamatiestraat) launching her beautiful cookbook, attended an inspiring memoir writing workshop and saw the most beautiful South African art. I am lucky to have friends like @sjboshoff, @mandismit , @lieslswart and @capetownk who joined me for shows and coffee!
In between I read Slouching towards Bethlehem, The Typing Lady and started Partita, one of my most anticipated books of 2026!

Life is good…

HAPPY WEEKEND FRIENDS!
🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸 by @marjo_reads

Happy Friday Friends!!
I am currently reading 2 books. I LOVE Ruth Ozeki’s novels. My favourite was The Book of Form and Emptiness. This is a short story collection. So far it is just sooo good! Taipei story is Kuang’s new novel. Although I did not LOVE Yellowface, I enjoyed Babel a lot and am ready for the latest. So far so good.
Ann Patchett recommended Didion’s novel, Slouching towards Bethlehem, a few weeks ago and as I am a true disciple #inannwetrust , I started this. I am BLOWN AWAY!!! It is also short pieces she wrote in the mid 1960’s.

Have a great weekend! by @marjo_reads

September was a very good Reading month for me.

It included 2 BIG BOOKS, both of which I loved. Crossroads was my first Jonathan Franzen and I honestly LOVED the book. A full 5 stars ⭐️ from me. I also read my first John Steinbeck, East of Eden, which I devoured. I am looking forward to the Netflix series which launched today.

My average rating for this month is also very high. Even though I only read 7 books, not one of them was below 4🌟.
Sophie, standing there is so beautifully written. I agree with the opinion that Meg Mason can make you feel loneliness in a character better than anyone. The book ticked all the right boxes for me: great story, interesting characters, a lot of character development and such an interesting take on Authors. A must read.
Exit Party is my Fifth book by Emily St. John Mandel. I am glad I read The Singer’s Gun recently as it gives you a great point of reference. A very interesting take on the possible near future in the States and Europe (and the world really!), comment on climate change and political tensions and just very cleverly executed. Another must read.

Black Bag is my fourth Booker Shortlist Prize read. Although I nearly gave up a few times, I am really glad I persevered. A very interesting read with the most delightful and entertaining narrator!

I am looking forward to a few new releases in October!

Please tell me about your reading journey in September!!
@thebookerprizes #blackbaglukekennard #crossroadsjonathanfranzen by @marjo_reads

So much to do, so little time!!

I have been in Verlorenkloof on the farm in the mountains for 3 weeks! I LOVE it here. The peace and quiet, beautiful nature, hikes while birdwatching and to also have family and friends join us in our happy place. It’s a juggle to get to everything that I want to do!! There are soooo many amazing new books out now and of course there is a mountain of back reads. What a wonderful problem to have!

Hope you have a great week ahead!

Please tell me what you are reading and planning to read! by @marjo_reads

Crossroads

This book deserves a post.

Published in October 2021, it is Franzen’s 6th novel. It is a family saga of the Hildebrandt family and set in the 1970’s in the USA, in a fictional town called New Prospect. Apparently it is the first of a Trilogy.

I went in completely blind and am glad I did. I was immediately sucked into the family and each of the characters, who get to tell their own side of the story in different chapters. When I didn’t read or listened, I was planning on when I could slip away and read further. The pace of the book is great and it all leads up to one big inevitable blow up/ meltdown!!
Sooo rewarding and so enjoyable and so well written!!!
My friend Mariam @mksreading commented that the book is everything she loves in a book. I completely agree.
Highly highly recommended

So lucky to be in @verlorenkloof and taking long walks with Stefan by @marjo_reads

We did a very long and difficult hike up the Kloof! The beauty around us was breathtaking.
📸 @mila_posthumus by @marjo_reads

August was a really good month for reading. I didn’t read as many books but mostly loved the books I did read!!

Favourite book - The Summer my mom had green eyes

We are lucky to be in the bush and celebrating big milestones with the children. And now in Verlorenkloof which is my happy place, always.

Claudia Piñeiro is a great find for me. Both books I read this month were great!

@mila_posthumus besties and cousins

@returnafrica Pafuri camp

Pafuri

Kruger National Park

Coffee stop

Family
Yanti’s admission to the Law Council

Time with the kids!

Stellenbosch by @marjo_reads