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Stephanie (R.A.)- Attempting the Unlikely
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Stephanie (R-A) wrote: "53. Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier554 pages, ★★★★☆
Even though this book was a slow starter for me, by the end I just could not take my eyes off of the page. Really f..."
I'm planning to read this book soon-ish, glad you liked it Stephanie
54. The Green Mile by Stephen King465 pages, ★★★★☆
This was another slow starter for me. It really didn't grab me until about book 3 or so, but once it had me it refused to let go. On top of that, this is by far the best Stephen King ending I have ever read. It is extremely appropriate to the story and doesn't feel abrupt or like it is cheating or anything.
John Coffey and Paul Edgecombe are fantastic characters who have a great interplay between each other. You sympathize with both of them. The issues of race in the story are not overplayed, but when it matters you can tell they are there. Overall, this one was really well done.
If you haven't seen the movie, I would wait until you have read the book. For once, the movie adaptation is almost scene for scene what it is in the book. I won't complain about that because it is really well done in both instances. I will say, the movie makes me bawl like a baby and the book didn't have that impact on me, but that is more because I saw the movie first I think.
Genre: Horror/Historical Fiction
Applicable Challenges: I-Spy Book Challenge, USA Road Trip, Let's Turn Pages, Book Riot's Read Harder, Award Winning Books, SUMMER and Villains
55. The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins323 pages, ★★★★☆
Lots of people had told me that I needed to read this book, but never why. I am glad they abstained from divulging too many details. Not knowing what is coming is half the fun with this book.
So, I too will abstain from giving too many details. I will say that this is one of the most suspenseful books I have read in a long time. Once I started, I simply couldn't stop. I loved the character growth of Rachel- I found myself continually annoyed with her in the beginning, but by the end I was definitely in her corner. I saw the end coming, but not until the last 1/4 of the book, which is pretty good for me.
Essentially, this book is good. You should read it.
Genre: Mystery
Applicable Challenges: I Spy Book Challenge, Pop Sugar Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, Award Winning Books, PRIDE, Villains and Get Royal
56. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: A Savannah Story by John Berendt388 pages, ★★★☆☆
This was a much stranger book than I had anticipated. The story itself in its essence was good enough, but the organization for the story was all off for me. It introduces characters that have nothing to do with the story itself and is a little all over the place for my tastes. It never really sticks to the narrative of the murder and feels more like a dissertation on Savannah, Georgia in places.
I am not sure if I would recommend this book to anyone, but I can't really call it terrible. I think if I had entered into reading it understanding that it was more about Savannah than a crime I would have liked it better. In that way, I think the hype was way different from the product. That said. if you like books based off of actual events and you don't mind a little meandering through the story, you might give this one a shot.
Genre: Non-Fiction
Applicable Challenges: The Every Year Book Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, SUMMER, PRIDE, and Get Royal
CHLOE'S 10 CHALLENGEDuration: July 1 - September 30, 2016
This challenge was created by Chloe, who won the Create a 3rd Quarter Challenge competition. To celebrate 10,000 members, we're going to put a dent in our to-be-read lists by sorting our to-read shelf in 10 different ways.
To sort , go to My Books page, click your to-Read shelf and scroll to the bottom of the page where you'll see "sort" with a drop down box next to it.
In ascending order:
1. Sort by Title and read the 10th book down on your list.
2. Sort by Author and read the 10th book down on your list.
3. Sort by Number of pages and read the 10th book down on your list.
4. Sort by Date Added and read the 10th book down on your list.
5. Sort by Random and read the 10th book down on your list.
In descending order:
6. Sort by Title and read the 10th book down on your list
7. Sort by Author and read the 10th book down on your list.
8. Sort by Average rating and read the 10th book down on your list.
9. Sort by Date Added and read the 10th book down on your list.
10. Sort by Random and read the 10th book down on your list.
My Books:
1. 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus
2. Rock My Soul: Black People and Self-Esteem
3. Drugs, Addiction, and the Law: Policy, Politics, and Public Health
4. Wuthering Heights
5. Ashes
6.Zombie Spaceship Wasteland
7. The Fortune of the Rougons
8. The Moon Has its Secrets
9. Ignite
10. Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity
57. The Woman Who Would Be King: Hatshepsut's Rise to Power in Ancient Egypt by Kara Cooney289 pages, ★★★★★
So, I managed to finish a book in this crazy summer. And it was a REALLY good one!
I have been reading about Ancient Egypt and Hatshepsut since I was eleven and never have I enjoyed a book so much. The author is very careful to establish that any feelings these people may have been experiencing is impossible to know because the Egyptians didn't record their thoughts and feelings on monuments. However, she is the first person I know who admits that these are suppositions and not factually written somewhere. Also, every statement of fact is backed up by multiple sources.
Despite the academic nature of the book, it creates a complete picture of Hatshepsut in a way I just haven't seen before. It makes no assumption of Hatshepsut's nature and builds from the things that she is known to have done, and then talks about the impact of these achievements on Egypt during Hatshepsut's reign and after. In the very end she talks about what it means for women in power in general and how remarkable Hatshepsut was when taking other women of power into account.
I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in ancient history or the role of women over time. It is good stuff.
Genre: Nonfiction
Applicable Challenges: Read Women, Let's Turn Pages, A-Z Titles, A-Z Characters, FREEDOM, LEADERS, The Fellowship of the Ring and Leadership Challenge
Summer 2016 Olympics ChallengeAround the World in 80 Books
August 5, 2016- February 8, 2018
In honor of the Summer Olympics being held this year in Rio de Janeiro, we will begin a Summer Olympics reading challenge.
At the time of this posting there are 194 countries that have qualified at least one athlete. That is more than twice that of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Genre: Any
There will be three chances to "medal":
Gold Medal - Read a book set in or written by an author from each of the countries participating in the 2016 Olympics
Silver Medal - Read a book set in or written by an author from each country that wins a medal in the 2016 Olympics (i.e. 26 countries medaled in 2010)
Bronze Medal - Read a book set in or written by an author from each country that wins a gold medal in the 2016 Olympics (i.e. 19 countries won gold in 2010)
Here are the countries participating in the 2016 Winter Olympics as of July 13, 2016 (This is still subject to change):
Afghanistan
1. Khaled Hosseini
Albania
Algeria (S)
American Samoa
Andorra
Angola
Antigua and Barbuda
Argentina (G)(S)
Armenia (G)(S)
Aruba
Australia (G)(S)(B)
Austria (B)
Azerbaijan (G)(S)(B)
Bahamas (G)(B)
Bahrain (G)(S)
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belarus (G)(S)(B)
Belgium (G)(S)(B)
Belize
Benin
Bermuda
Bhutan
Bolivia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brazil (G)(S)(B)
British Virgin Islands
Brunei
Bulgaria (S)(B)
Burkina Faso
Burundi (S)
Cambodia
Cameroon
Canada (G)(S)(B)
Cape Verde
Cayman Islands
Central African Republic
Chad
Chile
China (G)(S)(B)
Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) (G)(B)
Colombia (G)(S)(B)
Congo
Congo DR
Cook Islands
Costa Rica
Croatia (G)(S)(B)
Cuba (G)(S)(B)
Cyprus
Czech Republic (G)(S)(B)
Denmark (G)(S)(B)
Djibouti
Dominica
Dominican Republic (B)
Ecuador
Egypt (B)
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Estonia (B)
Ethiopia (G)(S)(B)
Fiji (G)
Finland (B)
France (G)(S)(B)
Gabon
Gambia
Georgia (G)(S)(B)
Germany (G)(S)(B)
Ghana
Great Britain (G)(S)(B)
1. Neil Gaiman
Greece (G)(S)(B)
Grenada (S)
Guam
Guatemala
Guinea-Bissau
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Hong Kong
Hungary (G)(S)(B)
Iceland
Independent Olympic Athletes (G)
India (S)(B)
Indonesia (G)(S)
Iran (G)(S)(B)
Iraq
Ireland (S)
Israel (B)
Italy (G)(S)(B)
Ivory Coast (G)(B)
Jamaica (G)(S)(B)
Japan (G)(S)(B)
Jordan (G)
Kazakhstan (G)(S)(B)
Kenya (G)(S)(B)
Kiribati
Kosovo (G)
Kyrgyzstan (B)
Laos
Latvia
Lebanon
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Liechtenstein
Lithuania (S)(B)
Luxembourg
Macedonia
Madagascar
Malawi
Malaysia (S)(B)
Maldives
Mali
Malta
Marshall Islands
Mauritania
Mauritius
Mexico (S)(B)
Micronesia
Moldova (B)
Monaco
Mongolia (S)(B)
Montenegro
Morocco (B)
Mozambique
Myanmar
Namibia
Nauru
Nepal
Netherlands (G)(S)(B)
New Zealand (G)(S)(B)
Nicaragua
Niger (S)
Nigeria
North Korea (G)(S)(B)
Norway (B)
Oman
Pakistan
Palau
Palestine
Panama
Papua New Guinea
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines (S)
Poland (G)(S)(B)
Portugal (B)
Puerto Rico (G)
Qatar (S)
Romania (G)(S)(B)
Russia (G)(S)(B)
Rwanda
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Samoa
San Marino
São Tomé and Príncipe
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Serbia (G)(S)(B)
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore (G)
Slovakia (G)(S)
Slovenia (G)(S)(B)
Solomon Islands
Somalia
South Africa (G)(S)(B)
South Korea (G)(S)(B)
South Sudan
Spain (G)(S)(B)
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Suriname
Swaziland
Sweden (G)(S)(B)
Switzerland (G)(S)(B)
Syria
Tajikistan
Tanzania
Thailand (G)(S)(B)
Timor-Leste
Togo
Tonga
Trinidad and Tobago (B)
Tunisia (B)
Turkey (G)(S)(B)
Turkmenistan
Tuvalu
Uganda
Ukraine (G)(S)(B)
United Arab Emirates (B)
US Virgin Islands
USA (G)(S)(B)
1. Michael Crichton
2. Jeffrey Eugenides
3. Kathryn Harrison
4. Melanie Benjamin
5. Mitch Albom
6. Joe Hill
7. Brom
Uruguay
Uzbekistan (G)(S)(B)
Vanuatu
Venezuela (S)(B)
Vietnam (G)(S)
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe
There is also a Refugee Olympic Team with 10 members. For this team, you can read a book about a refugee from any country.
(Note: I am basing this on where the authors are from and not where the book is set)
Total Authors: 3/202
58. The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro317 pages, ★★★★☆
I honestly had no idea about what to expect when I started this book. However, this author has been recommended to me several times and I now understand why. On the surface, this book is an Arthurian based fantasy tale, but underneath it is something much sadder, deeper. At places, it fails to deliver, but most of the time it hit the way it was intended, I think.
I really enjoyed that the main characters in this story were elderly. Too often, books focus on young people to the exclusion of all others. I did see the twist coming LONG before it happened, but I usually do. All in all, if you like fantasy this book is worth reading at least once.
Genre: Fantasy
Applicable Challenges: Random Books Challenge, A-Z Authors (I), Let's Turn Pages, The Fellowship of the Ring and The Leadership Challenge
59. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn419 pages, ★★★★☆
Are you having relationship problems? Read this book. It will make you feel a hundred times better about whatever your relationship situation.
This book is fascinating to me because it literally has no hero or heroine. It is about two messed up, selfish people who marry each other and the chaos that ensues. I don't want to say too much about the plot because that would mean massive spoilers, but the things these people do were just mind blowing.
I honestly can't tell if it is one of the most feminist books I have read in my life, the least feminist or a satire about what it means to be feminist. This makes it more interesting, I think, because you can't put it in a neat box. I feel like saying more would be spoilers, but if you read it, you will understand. What it says about women, men, relationships, what might drive either gender to become criminal and the power structure in society is a little jumbled for my tastes, but I appreciate that at least a diverse range of options is presented. Some of the most extreme actions in this book are presented in a way that makes me completely understand the bitterness and frustration, if not the disregard for others.
I have to admit, I saw the twist coming about 100 pages in or so- at least saw it as an option. If you don't see it coming it must be some kind of crazy when you realize it. The end was about as messed up as the characters depicted. I keep going over in my head whether or not there could have been a better one (because it is entirely unsatisfying), but it makes sense. These characters just don't lend themselves to any kind of happy ending.
Even the part of the ending that is supposed to be happy (view spoiler) is sad because it highlights how extremely spoiled Nick is in that moment. He wants a thing, and no matter how dangerous that situation is, he goes along with it. He is well aware of how messed up they are, so why (view spoiler).
(I should say before I end this, that I never saw the movie and never really followed it. I have no clue as to how it differs, but now I want to see it to see if Hollywood changed up the ending in any way).
Anyway, it was a decent book. I feel like it was somewhat poorly edited. There were paragraphs that repeated themselves throughout (like four or five times). Unless that was intentional, in which case, it was written in a way that was confusing. However, this book gets high marks for compelling me to read about two people who should be unreadable.
Genre: Mystery
Applicable Challenges: I Spy Book Challenge, The Every Year Book Challenge, Read Women, USA Road Trip, Let's Turn Pages, Recommended by Readers Challenge, FREEDOM and the Fellowship of the Ring
60. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho177 pages, ★★★☆☆
I had heard amazing things about this book. However, it didn't quite live up to my expectations. I understand that is supposed to be a fable, so the simplistic language didn't bother me. The story is actually pretty great at its core.
It is about a boy who leave to follow his dreams to find a treasure. Along his journey he makes new friends, finds true love and learns things he never would have before. However, there were some things that jarred me a little.
Fatima, the girl Santiago falls in love with, is happy to watch him go off and chase his dreams and leave her behind because true love will let them find each other again. I know this is a fable that uses a lot of Christian and Islamic ideas to guide it, but would it have been terrible for Fatima to help him discover his dream? If it is true love, aren't they meant to walk those paths together?
Of course, her dream was wrapped up in finding him- true love was her dream. Which is just a little meh to me. Santiago was a fairly well-rounded character and Fatima, the woman he loves, is totally flat and not a real person at all. She imparts words of wisdom, but she doesn't do much and instead, Santiago does for her.
Of course, this could be cultural influences spoiling the book for me. However, in my opinion, it would have been a much more compelling story between them if they had done for each other. But, overall, it was pretty good. I liked the message of following your heart past the apathies of adulthood, I just wish it went further, I guess.
Genre: Fiction
Applicable Challenges: The Every Year Book Challenge, The Pop Sugar Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, The Sorting Hat, The Listopia Challenge, LEADERS and The Leadership Challenge
61. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass158 pages, ★★★★☆
If you have interest in American History, then this book is definitely worth reading at least once. It gives you an idea of what it must have felt like to be a slave in the 1800's. There are parts of it that are pretty awful to contemplate- as they should be. Some of the descriptions of the beatings that he witnessed and experienced make the reader want to cringe. I enjoy how precise he was with names and dates when he could, calling out real people in his day that participated in these things.
I wish there was more. It feels somewhat incomplete. I realize that some of that is because he couldn't detail the way he escaped, for fear of preventing others from escaping from slavery the same way he did. I also sense that many of the days must have blended together with every day seeming much like the other, but I wanted a fuller picture of what the day-to-day society was amongst the slaves. He describes the way they slept and ate quite well, but he doesn't describe very many relationships with other slaves throughout his life, and feel like there must have been more of them. The relationships that he does describe feel somewhat incomplete.
All that said, I think this memoir is incredibly important to America's history- a side so ugly that today, people attempting to justify slaves helping to build the White House by how much they were fed. (Which I learned via this memoir, was of utmost importance to a slave's life in the sense of the quality of their life. This made me particularly sad. Beating were par for the course and the most cruel thing a master could do was not give his slaves enough to eat). Even so, you can't gloss over the fact that America was begun on the backs of forced immigrants from Africa, subjected to terrible dehumanization.
This book will (I hope) continue to be a strong reminder to Americans today that we are a nation that started much further from the ideals stated in our founding documents and should continually strive to fulfill those ideals more. I know I will purposely be seeking more books like this that show how far we have come as a nation, and yet demonstrate how much further we have to go.
Genre: Biography/Memoir
Applicable Challenges: The Pop Sugar Challenge, From Fiction to Reality, USA Road Trip, Let's Turn Pages, Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge, FREEDOM, LEADERS, the Fellowship of the Ring, and the Leadership Challenge
62. A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab514 pages, ★★★★☆
This book is a compelling read. I really enjoyed the character development from the first book. Every character got more complicated, better. The world building is really stellar in this one. Reading about the Games was must-read stuff. Some of it was fairly predictable, but overall, it was just extremely entertaining.
My big quibble with this book is the ending. It is, in fact, not an ending at all. It is a cliff-hanger in the most egregious proportions. I suppose I prefer real endings, where there are loose ends that can be carried on but don't leave you with your heart hammering and your fist in your mouth. That said, I will wait on the edge of my seat for the next book for that exact reason. Goodness gracious.
Genre: Fantasy
Applicable Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, LEADERS and Fellowship of the Ring
63. R is for Ricochet by Sue Grafton352 pages, ★★★☆☆
When I picked this book up, I really had no idea what to expect. So, I wasn't incredibly disappointed when I felt a little "meh" when it was finished. It wasn't terrible, but it took about 1/3 of the book to figure out what the main plot was supposed to be.
I realize that long time readers of this series probably enjoy the character of Kinsey Millhone, but I didn't start at A (perhaps erroneously). That said, I will keep an eye out for the A book and see if that makes this much further sequel any better to my mind.
It is entertaining enough to keep in mind for future reading purposes, but I was hoping to be sitting at the edge of my seat at some point in the story and I never really was. So, it was good, but not great and worth checking out if you like the mystery genre.
Genre: Mystery
Applicable Challenges: The Every Year Book Challenge, Random Books Challenge, Read Women, Let's Turn Pages, CONCERT and FRIENDSHIP
64. The Diviners by Libba Bray578 pages, ★★★★☆
This is the kind of book that keeps you reading from the first page onward. I simply couldn't stop reading. I found that I really enjoyed all of the characters. You really get a sense for the post WWI era and what it must have felt like for at least some people to live then. I enjoyed that it addressed some of the social issues of the day- eugenics, strained race-relations and the like- without beating you over the head with them. The ghosts, demons, etc. aspect to the book was pretty cool. Overall, I really liked it.
I felt like the end was incredibly convenient, but I really enjoyed everything leading up to it. I thought that both the male and the female characters were real people and not just two-dimensional beings on the page. A huge part of me wishes that this would take off the way Twilight did just so I could actually enjoy something THAT popular. I would definitely finish this series.
Genre: Mystery? Horror?
Applicable Challenges: Read Women, Let's Turn Pages, The Sorting Hat, FRIENDSHIP and Signs You've Found You're New Book Friend
65. Lord of the Flies by William Golding315 pages, ★★★★☆
This book made me so sad even as it kept me on the edge of my seat. Now, I didn't shed tears or anything like that, but after finishing this book I feel somewhat less hopeful for society.
At its core this book is about a group of boys who crash land on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean (possibly during WWII). The boys try to figure out how to survive until they can be rescued (if they can be rescued). At first, they vote and coalesce around Ralph. Soon, another more violent faction is created around Jack and...well, I won't give it away, but it's absolutely horrifying.
Somewhere in its soul, this book seems to be about how human nature creates the problems that society must contend with. Egos get hurt and blood is spilled, often over very little. This is quite apparent when the end of the book comes around, although I don't know how to talk about it without spoiling it. Overall, this book is very good. I just couldn't put it down.
Genre: Horror
Applicable Challenges: Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die, The Pop Sugar Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, The Listopia Challenge, Recommended Reading By Challengers, FRIENDSHIP and Signs You've Found Your New Book Friend
66. Jurassic Park by Michael Chrichton399 pages, ★★★☆☆
Having loved this movie, I was a little worried that the book would be spoiled, but I was very pleasantly surprised. As it turns out, although both book and movie have similarities, by and large they are vastly different.
On the face of it, the characters are more or less the same (although the Alan Grant of the book is VERY different from the movie). I really enjoyed their interactions right from the beginning. The book has some really resonant themes. I found myself nodding along with Malcolm almost constantly. Yes, humanity is incredibly cocky and Malcolm makes this point constantly. Also, he presents science as the newest depiction of our need to control, and makes some very interesting points that I will be thinking about for some time to come, even if I am not quite sure I agree with him.
I feel like the dinosaurs are fairly accurately depicted for the science at the time, although I was slightly horrified with one of the dinosaurs (a raptor, I think) tests the air with its tongue. The book seems caught between dinosaurs being something like birds and lizards and at times unsuccessfully walks that line, but the story is very entertaining. I will probably read the rest of the series now. Well worth the read.
Genre: Science Fiction
Applicable Challenges: The Every Year Book Challenge, The Pop Sugar Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, CONCERT, FRIENDSHIP and Signs You've Found Your New Book Friend
67. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides529 pages, ★★★★★
I didn't do an official review for this book, aside from the five star rating, but OH MY GOODNESS. I had heard fantastic things about this book and for once they weren't exaggerated.
From the onset, I couldn't believe that this was a work of fiction- it feels very real, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was based off of somebody's life. It was really interesting how the story goes from present time to the past. So, from the outset, you know that Calliope is now Cal, and you can't imagine how her grandparents' and parents' story has anything to do with it, but by the end it all makes so much sense.
Throughout the story, no matter Cal's gender, he remains a person. His personality is clear whether a girl or boy and it really gives you a sense of what it must be to struggle with gender identity. In the end, a person is who they are, however society categorizes them and I love how that came through so clearly. I really feel that this is a book EVERYONE should read, preferably while they are young.
Genre: Fiction
Applicable Challenges: Boxall's 1001 Books To Read Before You Die, The Every Year Book Challenge, The Pop Sugar Challenge, USA Road Trip, Let's Turn Pages, A-Z Characters (Z), Listopia, Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge, CONCERT, FRIENDSHIP and Signs You've Found Your New Book Friend
68. Joan of Arc: A Life Transfigured by Kathryn Harrison382 pages, ★★★★☆
Before I picked up this book, I had a vague notion of who Joan of Arc was, but knew next to nothing. I can't claim that now. Joan is now a fascinating historical figure to me.
The book chronicles her life in a way that compares her to Jesus, at least on the surface. Of course, Joan had a strong personality and it becomes clear that she is not quite the Christ figure she wanted to be, yet she seems to have modeled her rise from his influence. It is very possible that without the Christ-like aspects to Joan's life that she would have never reached the heights that she did. This is endlessly interesting to me and seems to be a pattern in important women's lives throughout history. They couldn't rise for the sake of their own power and/or ideas, they had to rise for the spiritual or societal good. It had to be a burden.
In the beginning, Joan behaved as if it was. Her God through his angels and saints asked her to do these things. How could she ignore Him? He asked her to ride into battle. He asked her to dress like a man to protect her chastity. It went against everything the church and a male-dominated society stood for, while following what they stood for. She was a conundrum and one they had to solve.
The author makes very few assertions outside of actual events, but points to her inherent male attitude and attire as a huge deal and goes so far as to say that it is proof that what bothered the English men of the church about Joan wasn't anything more than her unwillingness to submit to them. She was smarter than them in their questioning of her 98% of the time and she seemed to know that she would probably die for her standing up to the ideas of what it meant to be a woman during those times.
It's an incredible story that would never have been possible without her religion, which is what makes her downfall so poignant. Her religion simply wouldn't stand for a low-born woman to rise so high and deny what they saw as the representation of her womanhood- simply wearing the dresses that they deemed appropriate. That was what killed her. They changed her into a dress and then took it away from her, and to avoid being naked she put her old clothes on. The church wanted to burn her, plain and simple.
Obviously, there is more. I definitely recommend the book. It goes into details of how Joan was perceived in her life and after. It even details books and movies made about her and describes how those portrayals probably differed from the historical Joan. Good stuff.
Genre: Biography
Applicable Challenges: Random Books Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, Read Women, The Sorting Hat, CONCERT, FRIENDSHIP and Signs You've Found Your New Book Friend
RIP Gene Wilder. The chocolate factory feels like it might be closed forever. This year has been a whopper for heart-rending celebrity deaths (and some within my own personal life). Boy, it makes me wonder what is in store for next year. As with everything, I mourn with books. I want to find a list of Mr. Wilder's favorite books to keep in mind for future reading. As of yet, I can't find anything, but hopefully something turns up.
69. Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin392 pages, 4 stars
(since I can't just highlight the stars to copy and paste right now)
This book was far more than I anticipated. I had no idea it would tackle the issues that it did, and the issues it tackles are handled very well.
This is the story of Alice Liddell- the girl who became the inspiration for Lewis Carroll's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." Of course, this is historical fiction- to a certain degree it fills the gaps in our knowledge. However, Carroll's clear love of Alice and other little girls is a documented fact. The sense that he spent his later life trying to replace her and she spent most of hers trying to outrun him, is in fact the case. I was just blown away by this.
The author handles all of this incredibly well. There are lines that are certainly crossed, but not in a disgusting way. Alice is rarely sexualized by Mr. Dodgson (Carroll's real name), but instead seems enchanted by her innocence. Of course, we can never know if this was actually the case, but it does make sense given Victorian values.
I feel like through this book I have discovered a new wonderful author. I highly recommend this book.
Genre: Historical Fiction
Applicable Challenges: I Spy Book Challenge, The Every Year Book Challenge, Read Women and Let's Turn Pages
The book that has my short story in it is being released this month! Super stoked. Threads: A NeoVerse Anthology
70. The Kite Runner by Khaled Housseini371 pages, ★★★☆☆
The perspective character, Amir, in this book is maddening. He is a selfish, selfish person. There is no way around it. He is in the upper class in Afghanistan and he knows it. Poor Hassan, possibly the nicest person ever created in a book, gets dumped on again and again- not necessarily because he is Hazara, but that clearly plays a role.
Good things keep happening to Amir while terrible things happen to Hassan. It happens over and over again, to the point where you wonder if the entire point of the book is to remind you that life ISN'T fair. Therefore, the first half of this book- minus the bits about Hassan kind of make you want to roll your eyes.
However, by the end, you are holding your breath and wondering what is going to happen. Amir redeems himself a bit. It is ruined because it happens for completely selfish purposes, to my mind. However, the act of Amir doing something nice is good to see. So, if you can make it that far, you will be rewarded, a little.
Even better, it is not necessarily a happy ending. Amir's inadequacies chase him through to the last page. At best you are given a glimmer of hope. Which, for a such a selfish character, is great.
The glimpses into Afghani politics are fascinating. I could have read a whole entire book about that. I see some research in my future.
Genre: Fiction
Applicable Challenges: Let's Turn Pages, Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge, Recommended Reading by Challengers Challenge, REFLECTIONS and Your Book Reflection Challenge
71. Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom192 pages, ★★★★★
This book is so simple on the face of it. Morrie is dying of ALS and feels like he has something left to contribute to the way people view life in the process. For YEARS I have heard nothing but good things about this book and I was not disappointed.
It has a "Power of Now" (by Eckhart Tolle) vibe to me. The conversations that Mitch has with Morrie make SO much sense. They make you want to be the best person you can be. I actually find I have a better body image about myself after having read it, which is strange, but that kind of stuff just doesn't feel as important anymore. I wonder how long it will last, lol.
Anyway, you should DEFINITELY read this book at least once in your life. Good stuff.
Genre: Biography/Self Improvement
Applicable Challenges: The Pop Sugar Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, The Listopia Challenge and REFLECTIONS
72. Locke & Key, Vol. 1: Welcome to Lovecraft by Joe Hill156 pages, ★★★☆☆
As my first graphic novel, this one was pretty good. It is definitely a quick read. It took me a bit just to figure out exactly how to read the panels, but once I got the hang of that I just zoomed.
I liked Joe Hill's books that I have read, so it made sense to begin this graphic novel series. The medium is really great for the creepiness Hill's stories have. The story follows the Locke family and the murder of their father and how they deal with it. Each chapter is told from the perspective of one of the father's three children, or sometimes the murderer. You got a decent sense of who these kids were and how they were trying to deal with the new tragedy inflicted upon them.
I would say this graphic novel scared me more than the books I have read by Hill in the past. This is probably because of how it was illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez. The panels are extremely dark and violent, but not to the point where I felt like it was overkill. I really liked the way the people were drawn. It sort of reminded me of anime.
I would definitely read the rest of the series, although probably not right before bed.
Genre: Graphic Novel
Applicable Challenges: The Every Year Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, A-Z Challenge (Titles), SCHOOL and REFLECTIONS
73. Snow, Glass, Apples by Neil Gaiman25 pages, ★★★★☆
This is a really short story. Read it in ten minutes or so, but it was typical Neil Gaiman stuff. It was definitely creepy- I actually found the whole entire thing online and just looked up the book equivalent in pages.
The story is told from the Queen's point of view in the Snow White fairy tale, except this fairy tale is very different from the one you would have read as a child. In this one Snow White is indeed a dangerous force to be reckoned with, her prince a necrophilliac (sp?). I do recommend that people read it if they have a little bit of time on their hands. It is a very nice distraction from the day, and perfect for just before Halloween.
Genre: Fantasy
Applicable Challenges: The Every Year Book Challenge, Random Books Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, SCHOOL, and REFLECTIONS
74. The Child Thief by Brom476 pages, ★★★★★
This book is perhaps the best book I have ever read based on the mythology created around another book. The character of Peter Pan has been revealed to me in a way that I think I subconsciously knew, but didn't fully realize until Brom put his story to paper.
There is an amazing integration of British/Welch/Irish mythology into the story of Peter Pan that Barrie wrote. Connections I would have never thought to make are revealed seamlessly and very believably. It feels entirely based on reality even though you know so much of it is fantasy.
On top of that, the dichotomies in the story are presented amazingly. The motivations behind Peter's actions are incredibly understandable, even as you are convinced of the insanity of them- how easily he moves on from the deaths of the friends he makes amongst children. You root for the salvation of Avalon even as its dangers are fully revealed. There are some great comparisons of what it means to be an adult versus a child and how one can be both without judging one worse than the other.
I have more favorite characters than I can count, but I will be thinking about Nick, Cricket, Danny, Leroy, Peter and the Captain for a long time to come. Even minor characters that I won't be thinking about for a long time are realized fully as if they were real people. It's incredible, some of the best writing I have seen in a fantasy book for a long time.
Really, I can't recommend this book more fully and completely. Brom, Sir, I salute you and look forward to future endeavors. Really top notch stuff.
Genre: Fantasy
Applicable Challenges: I-Spy Book Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, SCHOOL, REFLECTIONS and Your Book Reflection Challenge
Challenges to Consider for 2017- "Flower Challenge" on Lovers of YA
- "To-Read Weight Loss Challenge" on NBRC
- "Twelve Towers Challenge" on NBRC
- "Jurassic Park Challenge" on NBRC
75. A Sliver of Stardust by Melissa Burt384 pages, ★★★☆☆
For a middle grade novel I think this was okay. I would expect a lot more from a book written for adults.
I felt like it moved a little too quickly and some of the situation just weren't realistic. For instance, home-schooled or not, how many parents just let their kids live with strangers for a month after their child meets them once? The Fiddler vs Magicians societies themselves were pretty cool, but you gain information about them in an unearned fashion quite a bit. I guess I just would have liked it to move a little slower overall- the pacing was almost TOO quick.
Unfortunately, I thought the main character's perspective (Wren) was kind of annoying. I know the author was going for strong, independent woman, but she came across as frustrated and angry for very little reason. Simon and Jill were probably the best characters for me. Jack was kind of meh as a minor (view spoiler).
I liked the IDEA of stardust as magic more than the implementation of it. After a while, I felt like screaming, "When you are talking to yourself you can call it magic! Nobody can hear you think!" Linking magic to stars was really cool, mostly because it is true- the entire universe is constructed of the same basic elements. So, that was a little hit and miss, too.
If you like simple fantasy stories though, and you have younger readers in the family, you might consider giving this one a go, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for adults.
Genre: Middlegrade Fantasy
Applicable Challenges: Random Books Challenge, Read Women, Let's Turn Pages, SCHOOL and REFLECTIONS
76. Death: The High Cost of Living Collected by Neil Gaiman104 pages, ★★★★☆
I had heard good things about Neil Gaiman's Death character and I was not disappointed. She is exactly the opposite of how one might expect Death to behave. I liked all of the characters around her almost as much as her.
Sexton is sort of your typical teenager who has lost a sense of magic in the world. Nothing is interesting anymore and he doesn't quite know how to cope with it. In that sense, Death is his perfect companion because she sees magic in everything. I loved the juxtaposition of the two points of view.
The artwork in this book is less colorful that I might have hoped for, but it is still done really well. Dark moments are appropriately shady, but you get a sense of what things are without it being overly graphic. So, it was a pretty good book overall. It makes you think about life and philosophy a lot without being incredibly overbearing. Good stuff.
Genre: Graphic Novel
Applicable Challenges: The Every Year Book Challenge, The Pop Sugar Challenge, Home School, Let's Turn Pages, SCHOOL and REFLECTIONS
77. The Wild Things by Dave Eggers288 pages, ★★★★☆
This book is so freaking adorable. Everything is from Max's perspective and feels 100% genuine for an 8 year old boy who doesn't understand why his world is coming apart. Max's parents are divorced and his mother is seeing someone else and he feels like the entire world is against him.
So, he runs away and finds an island in the middle of the sea filled with huge terrible looking monsters who are just as lost as he is. The monsters kind of stand in for different people in his life in the real world. Judith feels like Max's sister, Carol feels like how his real dad must have been, Katherine represents his mother and Alexander seems like his mom's new boyfriend. There are others, but those are the ones that really stood out to me.
However, instead of Max being able to rely on the Wild Things to take care of him, the Wild Things make Max their king and it becomes his sole responsibility to try to make them happy. In this way, Max learns to sympathize with the people in his life who he had previously felt betrayed by. It is really lovely and organic the way that it happens.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who knows children whose parents are going through a divorce, and in fact anyone who knows children. It is a good reminder that what seems like a gray area to you is really black and white to them and vice versa. Basically, you should just read it.
Genre: Fantasy
Applicable Challenges: I-Spy Book Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, REFLECTIONS and Your Book Reflection Challenge
78. You're Never Weird on the Internet by Felicia Day260 pages, ★★★★☆
I have never related to a person more than I have Felicia Day in this book. I am not quite as introverted as she writes herself, but I definitely have an over-achieving, self-doubter in me. Felicia's memoir has convinced me push past all of that and just get down to the business of doing, even if I have no idea what that exactly entails.
Felicia explains her life in a way that is both hilarious and touching. You can actually hear her talking in your head. Rarely have I read something where someone's voice is so incredibly apparent. She speaks so honestly that all of a sudden I feel like we are best friends and I have never met her.
If you are a nerd on any level, you should read this book. If you have hang ups about yourself, you should read this book. If you are a human being who wants to connect with other human beings but doesn't always know how, you should read this book. Basically, read this book.
Genre: Memoir
Applicable Challenges: The Pop Sugar Challenge, Read Women, USA Road Trip, Let's Turn Pages, REFLECTIONS and Your Book Reflection
79. An Artificial Night by Seanan McGuire354 pages, ★★★☆☆
This was a solid book in the series. It started a little slow for my tastes, but then it had you. Children were at stake in this one, so I was on high alert. I even shed a small tear for Quentin in the end.
This book hypes up a lot of things that weren't explained at all, so it frustrated me a little in that sense. Finally, we get more information about Luna and her background (and consequently, why Rayseline is so terrible), but I felt like there were a lot of crumbs laid out that weren't addressed at all concerning Toby's mom. Perhaps some showdown/confrontation with the mom will be in the next book, but as of now, I am a little irritated by some things in that arena.
I do feel like Toby becomes a real, actual person in this one. There is some self-actualization and more of an exploration of how she is redefining family after everything that has happened to her that was lovely, and brutal at times to read.
Basically, if you liked the first two, you'll like this one too, but it isn't mind-blowing or anything.
Genre: Fantasy
Applicable Challenges: I-Spy Book Challenge, Read Women, Let's Turn Pages, REFLECTIONS and Your Book Reflection
Quarterly Challenge - Race to the FinishDuration: October 1st through December 30th
Bad Men
Two Lives
A Brief History of Time
A World of Love
The Mirror of Her Dreams
The Suicide Club
The Crocodile Bird
A God in Ruins
The Lost Wife
A Quiet Storm
One Salt Sea
Gathering Blue
The Only Problem
Fight Club
The Sleeping Giant of Goll
Atonement
The Poisonwood Bible
Fair Play
A Torch Against the Night
Locke & Key, Vol. 3: Crown of Shadows
A Red-Rose Chain
The Loved One
The Year of the Locust
Earth calling Taylor
Literary Occasions: Essays
The Christians and the Fall of Rome
The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House
The Glass Menagerie
The House on the Lagoon
Last Days in Hunting Camp
Her
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Rise of an Oligarch
The Time Machine
Gone with the Wind
Wide Sargasso Sea
The Divine Comedy
The Japanese Lover
Crooked
Roma
Words in the Dust
The Feminine Mystique
Concussion
A Lion Among Men
The Eagle of the Ninth
The Diary of a Young Girl
The Giver
Map of the Invisible World
Parable of the Sower
Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment
Kitchen: How One Girl Risked Her Marriage, Her Job, and Her Sanity to Master the Art of Living
Total Read: 2/52
80. Zombie Spaceship Wasteland by Patton Oswalt192 pages, ★★★☆☆
This book wasn't as funny as I thought it would be, but it does get you thinking about what makes people tick. I really enjoyed Patton Oswalt's metaphor for people as either zombies, spaceships or wastelands. I am more of a wasteland, personally, although I certainly have my spaceship moments.
The other great part of this book is the sheer nerd aspect. The chapter on the impact of Dungeons and Dragons on Oswalt's life and how it helped shape his worldview is absolutely one of the greatest things I have read in a memoir. I never played Dungeons and Dragons myself, but I knew many who did and the revelation of a positive depiction of these people is great. In a world where even adults have less power to change the world around them, the creation of a different world where you do have some control is definitely appealing. Hey, it's why I write.
So, this book was pretty decent. There are moments where I lost interest, but overall, if you can get over some of the strange formatting/organization decisions made, it is worth reading just to contribute to what your view of being human means.
Genre: Memoir
Applicable Challenges: The Pop Sugar Challenge, USA Road Trip, Let's Turn Pages, A-Z Titles, SCHOOL and REFLECTIONS
81. The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan288 pages, ★★★★☆
I remember one of my friends reading this book in school and telling me that I needed to read it. I didn't listen to her. Now that I have read it, I wondered why I waited so long.
This book is just lovely. I really enjoyed the way that it explored the differences between generations and cultures while celebrating the strength of family. The chapters jump from perspective to perspective, in sometimes a confusing way, but by the end I had no problem understanding how that particular narrative fit in.
Perhaps the best part of the book was how every daughter seemed to be a reflection of her mother, but the way American culture influenced them made them feel divorced from each other somehow. The reaching across cultures to understand each other made it seem like they were reaching for some truer version of themselves. It was really great, and heartwarming at the end, even if it was bitter-sweet.
This is definitely a book worth reading at least once in your life. I wish I had read it when I was younger.
Genre: Fiction
Applicable Challenges: The Every Year Challenge, The Pop Sugar Challenge, Read Women, Let's Turn Pages, The Listopia Challenge, Race to the Finish and SCARE
82. Atonement by Ian McEwan352 pages, ★★★☆☆
Some of the language was really beautiful in this story- more like poetry on the page. However, if you have an aversion to individual paragraphs taking up entire pages, you might want to skip this one.
The story itself is interesting enough. The start of it takes place in the time leading up to WWII in a wealthy family where nobody quite understands each other and miscommunication is common, or no communication at all in some cases. Terrible things happen as a result.
I have a bone to pick with the ending. It happens incredibly abruptly for me. I didn't mind the time jump as much as the revelations contained within. I don't know if this is an issue I have with the structure of the story itself or the way the ending was conveyed, but I just wasn't floored, and I think I should have been.
The characters are very well developed. Everyone is so flawed that you are almost depressed on their behalf. Briony is pretty annoying- I never really liked her except before she does the bad thing and even then, she is pretty bad. I actually love Robbie and Cecilia as characters. Lola, Emily and Paul are downright fascinating.
This is one of the few books where I think the movie was quite a bit more effective. The book did not enrapture me emotionally while the movie had me bawling. So it is a bit of a mixed bag. However, I think if you like books set in or around WWII, you will probably like this one fine.
Genre: Fiction
Applicable Challenges: The Every Year Book Challenge, The Pop Sugar Challenge, Let's Turn Pages, The LIstopia Challenge, Recommended Reading by Challengers Challenge, HAUNTED, SCARE and The Ten Candy Challenge
2025 Reading Challenge
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554 pages, ★★★★☆
Even though this book was a slow starter for me, by the end I just could not take my eyes off of the page. Really fascinating. It is an elongated fairy tale more or less and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
It is the story of Sorcha, the seventh daughter of a seventh son of a seventh son- a lauded birthplace in her Celtic society. She and her brothers are very close all her life. Then her father remarries a sorceress who curses them. Only Sorcha is left to save her brother and to do so she must not utter a sound and weave shirts from a barbed plant. Along the way she has many adventures.
I found myself identifying with Sorcha more and more as she grew older. Her child self annoyed me in some ways, but by the end, I was right there with her. This is definitely a book worth reading if you get the chance. I am eagerly looking forward to the next.
Genre: Fantasy
Applicable Challenges: Let's Turn Pages and Villains