January and February 2016 Wrap Up - Part 2/3

Continuing on from the catch-up post of the year! You can find Part 1 here.

The sixth book I read was The Full Cupboard of Life by Alexander McCall Smith. This is the 5th book in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series which is why I can't really tell you what happened in this one. I can say that this story picks up after the last. I really enjoyed spending another few hours with Mma Ramotswe and the folks in Gaborone.  I am enjoying seeing how all the characters develop over time. I also enjoy learning about characters who were in the background in earlier books. It was funny, had pearls of hidden wisdom and was overall a quick and enjoyable read. I look forward to picking up the next one in a few months. I gave this 4 stars on Goodreads.

The next book was The Asbo Fairy Tales by Chris Pilbeam otherwise known as Hans Christian Asbosen. This book is a retelling of popular fairy tales. OK, so I know I bought this because it was dirt cheap and looked like it could be a laugh. Maybe it is because I was not in the frame of mind for a laugh when I read it; maybe it was because I had read some really good books around the time that I read this, but this... yeah, this was a waste of trees. I just didn't see the point to it. It felt like an experiment to see just how distasteful something could be. I gave it a pathetic 1 star. I should probably add that it is NOT for children - AT ALL!

The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood is next. I am so pleased I finally got around to reading this one. This book tells multiple stories at once. We follow a book that was published (which contains two tales), and we follow the protagonist in the story who is telling us about the book and telling us about her past as we follow her in the present. Hang on. That just sounds confusing. I promise you, Margaret Atwood does a much better job of pulling this off than I have done of trying to explain it. The story starts in the protagonist's past, with her hearing of the death of her sister. The Blind Assassin is exquisitely written. I think I must have annoyed most of  my family, as I would interrupt what they were doing to read them passages as I came to them. The imagery she created was fantastic. I loved her descriptions. While the pacing of this book was not fast, I was never bored. I was curious to know if my predictions were right and no matter whether I was in the story-within-the-story or in the main story, I was always intrigued. Another thing that was brilliant was how the story progressively gets darker. As the reader figures things out (yes, Atwood does not spell things out like this is a baby's book) the intrigue grows. Loved every minute of it. I gave this 5 stars!

I wanted something that was a bit lighter next so I picked up Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli. This story follows a gay boy who is bullied and blackmailed by another kid at school who is threatening to reveal his secret. I did not know what to expect going into this. Generally, when books are hyped up, I find them disappointing; and then there is this thing that I am tired of reading YA (I have read tons of it so that I can recommend books for kids at school). But this one, I thoroughly enjoyed. Not only did this book have a realistic family - they were not perfect, but they were not AWOL or horrid as is so common in YA books, but it portrayed realistic friendships too. Although, a few things could possibly be tested on that note, I did find the fallouts and reunions believable. I must admit that I found the lack of redemption for a character fitting. I do not feel that we should always feel obliged to forgive someone when they say sorry. I think the message would have been softened had that character been forgiven.Well, I hope that didn't spoil too much. I am scared that it has. I gave this 4 stars.

The last book in this wrap up is The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton. I can't remember why I bought this one. I can't say that the idea of a doll house and stocking it in miniature furniture is exactly my thing. But somehow I bought it and then ignored it (showing my great self-control and discipline while shopping). The first few chapters had me wishing I had perhaps picked up something else. I was not feeling the ominous environment. But then, somehow, I was intrigued. I didn't put it down; couldn't put it down. I needed to know what was going to happen next. I liked Nella. While she was still polite and quiet, she was not timid and meek. She could put her foot down when she needed to. In fact, to be honest, I quite enjoyed all the characters in this. There were some really awesome ladies in this, and another interesting perspective on how damned lucky we are to not be living in a day and age where woman can own nothing, do nothing - unless they want to be maids. I probably do have to put the disclaimer in here that I was as sick as a dog, so maybe, had I not been blowing my IQ out into every available tissue, I might have put the whole thing together and not been driven with the 'What's going to happen?' state of mind. I gave this 4 stars.

OK, one more wrap up to go and then I am up to date on my blog!

January and February 2016 Wrap Up - Part 1/3

Oh dear! I don't know what to say. I have been AWOL - for a month and a half! Work has been crazy busy. BY the time I have finished given up working for the night, I have a brain cramp and the thought of being coherent typing up reviews for my blog is just too much. At least I have still made time for reading though. It is how I switch off from work.

These are the books that I read, in order of first to last.

First was The Accidental by Ali Smith. In this book we follow the dysfunctional Smart family on holiday. One day a stranger, a woman, Amber, arrives on their doorstep, and everyone thinks she knows someone in the family. Through Amber's interactions with each family member the problems are realised to the reader.
Plot-wise, I am unsure what to make of this; but I really enjoyed the writing. I enjoyed how she played with words and I enjoyed the way the thoughts of the characters would lead to so many different places. Overall, not a book I would recommend for everyone as the reading is fairly heavy. I gave this 3 stars on Goodreads.

Next up is The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson, the 4th book in the Mistborn series. Set a few centuries after The Hero of Ages (Book 3), I was introduced to new characters. Oh wow, but did I love them! Wax and Wayne were funny, smart and everything I was in the mood for. I also could not help but loving that this was a combination of a wild western and a fantasy novel. This was the best book I could have chosen to see my holiday to a close. It was humorous (no really, I laughed in so many places and that NEVER happens), action packed, exciting and still topped with that magnificent magic system of Mistborn. I loved it. I gave this 5 stars on Goodreads.

Then I read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith and Jane Austen, which I had picked up out of morbid curiosity. While this was by no means the worst thing I have ever read, I can't say that this book is going to top any of my favourite shelves. I think the big problem is that I LOVED Pride and Prejudice, and because of that, I felt the zombie, ninja thing a jarring addition. It was as though there were two separate tales going on at once. I felt Elizabeth's character differed throughout the story, and the same went for Darcy. There were moments where I did feel some satisfaction - something regarding Wickham especially. I also thought that Graham-Smith (hmm, sounds like a cricketer) did a good job of capturing the language used in the original. But I am a purist. I think the book was far better without the addition of the zombies. In other words, I like Pride and Prejudice for what it originally was. Additions to it just hinder a magnificent story. I gave this 2 stars.

To recover from the disappointment of P&P&Z, I picked up The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. In this book we follow a typical English butler through a few days while he is on holiday, and we travel throughout his memories. I went into this expecting a read that would require me to dust off my English degree and use it. I was so wrong - in a way! The language was easy to read. What my English degree did love though, was the narrator. He was unreliable in the best way. I am not talking about something like Gone Girl. This was subtle and required a lot of reading between the lines. No one was out to trick me, or manipulate me. The narrator's account seemed completely genuine - but, that is where the charm was. The reader has to read his account and make up their own mind. Although this wasn't a suspenseful, gripping read, it really kept me interested and turning pages. I wanted to know what had happened in the past, I wanted to know what was happening in the present, and I wanted to know if my interpretations were accurate and whether the future would play out as I suspected. I think this is a very worthwhile book for folks who like a slow paced yet intellectually stimulating novel. I will definitely put this one aside to reread in a few years. I gave this 5 stars on Goodreads!

Next up is another Man Booker winner, A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James. To give a really inadequate synopsis, this book covers the lives of the people involved (directly or not) in the attempted murder of Bob Marley. This was a challenge! I loved every minute of it. OK, hang on. Let me explain. This is not what I might consider an enjoyable story. But - and this is the important part - this book was spectacularly written. James toyed with my head, made it work (a lot!) and left me feeling like I had enjoyed the ride after all. I felt accomplished! There are so many things about this book that are admirable. I truly respected how James could have a chapter from one character's point of view, where I could agree with that character, understand him as a moral bloke, only to get a completely different perspective on him from other characters and have me revise everything I had concluded. That was really something. Generally the writer's voice creeps in too far, and the feeling that the chapters are really being told by different people is lost. Not in this book. I also found the flow of the story, through time, through memories, into the present, well constructed. While it makes reading this book quickly near impossible, it does provide a satisfyingly well-rounded understanding of all the characters. And once again adds to the respect I now have for Marlon James. I also enjoyed how it only made sense as to which seven killings this book was about at the end. People die in this book - on almost every page. Not for the squeamish. Actually, that is important. If you are squeamish or particularly prudish, them perhaps give this a skip. My reading has lacked a lot of depth in the past years and it was brilliant reading a book that made me need to think again. Well deserved win of the Man Booker prize. This earned 5 stars from me on Goodreads.

I am going to leave it there for this post. I still have ten more books to talk about but I think 5 a post is a bit more manageable.