My Reading Challenge – 29% complete

I’m still enjoying my reading challenge!  My new order of books arrived in the post this week ready for me to start, as my to-read-shelf has started to be depleted as I consume my challenge with ease.  As per Goodreads I’m now 4 books ahead of schedule!  Now wondering if my challenge of 45 books in a year was not taxing enough, as my progress to date seems to suggest.

Anyway, what have I read since my last blog?

 

I continued my reading with Heap House by Edward Carey.

This was a book that appealed to me by how it looked both unusual and quirky, different to my current recent reads, as well as how great the Illustrations looked. A lot of books on my shelves are dominated by historical fiction books, as family members over the years have purchased them as birthday or Christmas gifts for me.  But I fancied mixing up what I was reading, so plumped for this odd looking curiosity. 

However I ended up feeling confused most of the time reading this and not at all sure where things were going, plus I never really managed to connect with any of the characters, maybe Clod a little, but none of the others which was a shame.  The book is about a family that looks after? live in? heaps of trash, that also have random items that can speak to them.  Nice idea which convinced me to purchase and try it, however a Marmite type of a book I suspect. You’ll either love it or hate it. I’m left a little indifferent.

My next book, which again is a fictional book on the quirky side is Mr Penumbra’s 24 hour bookstore by Robin Sloan.

I enjoyed this story a lot, was a little bit different again to the usual stuff I read, and glad I did. This book will definitely appeal to the mid-thirties to forty year old crowd amongst us, who where geeks before geek became cool. Lot’s of little nostalgic nods to things we grew up loving, like music cassettes and Dungeons and Dragons.

There’s a quote in the blurb from the Washington Post that I can’t agree more with. ‘Delightful…smart, hip and witty’. It definitely is, and all bookworms that love a little mystery solving which involves books, libraries and book stores will thoroughly enjoy this. I did.  And in the style of the story, probably quite apt I read this on my kindle.

5 stars.

Right, where’s that collection of new books for me to look at and choose from [image error]