Over all, I read over twice as much this "year" as I did last year thanks to a lot of splurge reading and good recommendations. Not bad considering I tried to spend most of my time with the four friends who left Japan during this time period. But I think we all know reading became my coping mechanism for that...
Except now with my Kobo dead, reading out-of-home is either going to become impossible or expensive...
45 Total: 33 New Books 12 Re-reads
READ:
Shadow of Night
Chronicles of Elantra: Cast in Ruin
The Book of Life
Hyperbole and a Half
Chronicles of Elantra: Cast in Peril
Insurgent
___________________(Autumn)___________________
Chronicles of Elantra: Cast in Sorrow
Albrecht Durer: A Biography
Allegiant
Clockwork Angel
Death Comes to Pemberley
The Alloy of Law
Clockwork Prince
Clockwork Princess
The Blood of Olympus
Poison Princess
___________________(Winter)___________________
Endless Knight
Chronicles of Elantra: Cast in Flame
Dead of Winter
Ready Player One
Son of the Shadows
Sabriel
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Tithe
Beauty
The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
The Hunter's Moon
Rose Daughter
The Summer King
Valiant
Ironside
___________________(Spring)___________________
Bellman & Black
Graceling
Fire
Cold Mountain
The Slow Regard of Silent Things
The Third Kingdom
The Third Sister
Red Rising
Grimspace
Poison Study
Spindle's End
The Night Circus
Shadowfell
The Thief
___________________(Summer)___________________
READING:
Sourcery
The Book of Enchantments
STALLED:
Child of the Prophesy
PLANNING TO READ:
Life, the Universe and Everything
Abhorsen
Shadow and Bone
The Way of Kings
(someday...)
Bellman & Black
Diane Setterfield is one of my favorite storytellers. She weaves language in such a way that the imagery reaches out and wraps itself comfortingly around me. Subtle nuances and turns of phrase elegantly tip their hats and wink an eye at the thematic presence flitting through the pages. Her previous book, The Thirteenth Tale, did this is magnificently and my high expectations were far from disappointed this time.
The story follows William Bellman, highlighting the events in his life since he was 10 years old and he shot a rook out of a tree with a slingshot. The premise for this Victorian haunting started humbly and progressed delicately, ever giving the increased sense that something was just off until I looked back and wondered how I never noticed how high he was being built up for a fall. But then it was so beautiful and un-malicious and actually quite relieving at the end, because I didn't want to wish him any ill will when he had struggled through so much. I will definitely be keeping this story in my Thought and Memory.
Graceling
I blame Katie for starting Bitterblue. And Red Rising for being so hard to get into. But whomever the culprit, I'm glad to finally have a second read-through of this story. The first time I read it, I think I had too many expectations for what I thought the story would be, and so I couldn't help feeling disappointed. This time around, I really feel like I'm discovering things I completely overlooked before. It's very different in style from Bellman & Black, which I read concordantly for part of Graceling. But it delves much more into the personal motivations of its characters so it was actually easy to switch between them.
This time around, I wasn't trying to rush through the story and instead it unfolded naturally before me. I was less upset by Katsa and Po's relationship, and the state of things at the end, and I attribute that to simply being older (even if only by a scant 3 years since I initially read it). I'm excited to indulge myself further and check out Fire next. Because even though the characters are different, I remember liking it even more than Graceling. So it'll be interesting to see if that has also grown over time~
Fire
...And oh, how I like it more. Dare I say Fire is reaching Poison Study levels of endearment with me? And more so than Graceling because I can relate to Fire more? Because I like the strong quiet image of Brigan over Po's joviality? Because they accept the fact that they care about each other so wholly and don't question that even though being together is going to be difficult it's what they're willing to work for? Because, "Your sadness is one of the things that makes you beautiful to me. Don't you see that? I understand it. It makes my own sadness less frightening."
I can't explain the reason, I just know I appreciate her willingness to love and be loved as opposed to Katsa's defiance and stubborn insistence of "freedom" (that all being said, I still like Graceling and Katsa, even for her sense of freedom. I'm just on quite the high from reading Fire so other books are looking a bit pale...)
Well over a year later I've finally gone back to this story. Part of the reason was because I've had so many strong inclinations to drop Red Rising. But I realized that I cared more about the characters and the writing in Cold Mountain than I did in Red Rising, and that I couldn't in good conscience leave it stagnant when I was determined to power through Red Rising (eventually). I'm also in a much different place emotionally and psychologically than I was when I initially "dropped" it, so I was better prepared to invest in the final hundred pages I had left.
This book is worth so much, I think. Not only is the prose poetic and captivating, expressing the flight of a bird or the growing of a tree around an arrow-head embedded in its trunk so that I could feel it, but the growth in the characters that became so dear to me was beautiful, too.
This book is about a lot of things. It's about struggling through patiently but also about taking hold of your fate with your own two hands. It's about the depth of loss and war but also about the fullness a day's hard work and the wholeness we find in others. It's a journey, and I think back on all of the adventures I had while reading it and can only be grateful that I have at the very least one more day left of my own journey.
The Slow Regard of Silent Things (Borrowed from Barry)
(but both Barry and Anna as well as Courtney and Ryan have been waiting for me to read this)
I adore Auri's character, so I was delighted by the prospect of a novella dedicated to her. In the author's end-note (his "story about a story"), he expressed his worry that no one would like this story since it didn't follow any of the proper elements of proper stories. But his friend had said it well when she said there are stories upon stories out there like that for people who want them, what about stories for people like her?
Auri is both shattered and circle-perfect, both lost and true, alone and surrounded by those dear to her. There's something so profoundly beautiful about her existence, and I think it's something that resonates deep.
The Third Kingdom (The Sword of Truth series #13; Richard and Kahlan series #2)
It's rather a toss-up if I was afraid to read this book or... yeah, no. I was /definitely/ afraid to read this book. The change in the over-all tone this series has taken since expanding from the original story has made them a bit harder to be excited for than their predecessors. I was warned this one especially would slink into much darker places than I was perhaps comfortable with.
And while it was more gruesome than previous installments, that wasn't its highest mark against it. It seems that this series has come to a point where there isn't much story left to tell, and so in an attempt to continue in the lives of these characters, a new and greater evil is introduced. But the original compelling method of storytelling has fallen away to dialogue and descriptions that feel repetitive and laden with forced shock value.
I finally got excited about three-quarters in when what I felt were the true personalities of the characters began to show (such as when Richard mocks his captor's plan to resurrect a thousands year old king in saying, "I don't know. He still looks dead to me" and having it explained that his blood is what they need: "You, Richard Rahl, are the one." "So I've been told.") and I began to feel curious about possibly reading the sequal. THat is, until irreversible events took place pages from the end that I don't think I will soon get over...
The Third Sister
This wonderful little novel has been on my "To Read" shelf for a while. I think my mom happened to find it used somewhere and thought it sounded interesting. As a continuation of Sense and Sensibility following Margaret (the third Dashwood sister), I was delighted to be re-acquainted with old friends and to share the happiness in how their lives had progressed.
I think I have always strove to overcome my natural "Marianne" romantic tendencies in favor of Elinor's patience and forbearance, and therefore found the similar struggle in Margaret quite relatable. She was wary of the overly-forward addresses and open manner of a certain gentleman, thinking back on how her poor sister had been caught up all too easily in an infatuation in the same way by a man of duplicitous character. As for Margaret, perhaps she let her prejudiced opinions take her too far from believing his open and honest affection.
Perhaps others wouldn't find this story very exciting, but I appreciated the author's dedication to Austen's use of language and the integrity of the characters. The message was a welcome twist of Marianne's situation in the last book in the sense that yes, it is sensible to get to know a person before allowing yourself to become too attached to them. But it is also alright to form that attachment. And it is especially important not to allow past injuries to alter opinions on new acquaintances or to decide/believe that all open natures are false.
Red Rising
I really wanted to like this book. I was excited to read it, despite the fact that it was a male-led first person Sci-Fi. And while the beginning seemed so promising, I was disappointed (and bored, quite frankly) from about the third chapter until halfway through the book. The concept wanted to be intriguing. The writing wanted to be memorable and clever. But I found myself liking the supporting characters over the lead more than I can think of in any other story I've read, and they weren't featured enough for me (especially after martyring his wife...) And not necessarily because the side characters were so great themselves, but because the main character was just so un-appealing to me.
Things finally did pick up nearly 40% through the book, but I could have honestly done with out the first third of it. It's a shame, because there ended up being some things I really liked (the characters Roque and Sevro, who were like his shadow king and wolf-lord, as well as when he shifted his tactics and stopped trying to conquer everything but rather created loyalty). There were, however, several things I didn't like, foremost being the destruction of several great side characters, in addition to Darrow's and others' overall dark mien. I was relieved to get to the end with at least one favorite character intact, but I don't think I'll be continuing this series. There's a terrible reckoning coming for Darrow and his rebellion, and I don't care to stick around to see him further tear things apart.
Grimspace
I first found this novel while shelving books back in Special Collections. The novelty of a female led Sci-Fi (with an interesting cover and title...) compelled me to add it to my list of books I'd found while working there that I'd love to investigate someday. Fast forward nearly two years exactly to when I visited the US this past May and on a whim reserved it at Schuler's (well, is it any surprise considering I was "browsing" with my mom? So many of my favorite stories and authors have been uncovered thus). It was new uncharted territory, being neither recommended from a friend or by hype online nor a familiar author. A rarity on my never ending reading list.
It turned out to be a wonderful foil to Red Rising (that book really colored a lot of the other books I was reading concurrently...If you'll excuse the weak pun): instead of a male-written-male-first-person-protagonist-Sci-Fi, it was a female-written-female-first-person-protagonist-Sci-Fi. And while both were sought after for differing roles in their respective revolutions and came from tragic pasts and years of indoctrination, I felt that at least Jax in Grimspace was appropriately flawed but working past her old self. Grimspace, while not the best written book I've ever read, was definitely entertaining. It's a rather unoriginal comparison but I couldn't help myself thinking of Firefly as the story bounced from desperate situations to sarcastic banter without missing a beat. It also reminded me a bit of the Chronicles of Elantra in Jax's act-first-think-later tendencies.
I was worried it would become, for lack of better expression, too "trope-y" and wasn't gratified to be right in that respect. Having characters be physically intimate before they've had a chance to become emotionally intimate is never a selling point for me. I was, however, still able to enjoy most of the story by maintaining a bemused attitude towards it. It's fast paced, seemingly random at times, and I look forward to perusing the rest of the series.
Poison Study
I can have self-control anytime I want and not compulsively re-read my favorite books in the middle of a huge To-Read list....I just didn't want to, that's all~ (the phrases "Can't Stop, Won't Stop", "I Do What I Want", and "Sorry Not Sorry" come to mind haha) This was originally started on New Year's night and kept "open" as an in-between/ book-hangover remedy. But of course I couldn't resist properly diving into it once I passed halfway.
This book is very full for me. Like other favorites of mine, I can flip my copy open on its creases and immediately come across favorite scenes and dialogue. Reading it is less of the compulsion it is for most of everything else I read, and more like coming home to old friends that I'm constantly learning new things about and who always make me feel comfortable. Yelena is able to overcome so much darkness and find herself again. And being out here on my own, I find that necessary and beautiful.
Spindle's End
Yet another favorite re-read. A story about love in all of its forms for a time when I'm feeling rather lonely. With the final departure of my friends leaving Japan this year, it was the perfect companion book as I set out solo (in so many ways...) to climb Mt. Fuji. This story, rich in its telling and full in its characters, is one I will always come back to for the sense of wholeness it gives me.
The Night Circus
Well, that was impulsive. After completing Poison Study (and wanting to save all of Spindle's End for my trip) I went to my library's online lending service to hopefully find a book on my miles long To-Read list and happened across this one. I've been meaning to read it for years, even though no one among my acquaintance has recommended or read it. And to tell the truth, I wanted to read it solely based on it's cover and title.
All I really wanted was a story of Star-Crossed Lovers to tide me over and help me get through the book-hangover I could feel coming from finishing one favorite and moving on to another. What I didn't anticipate was such a delicate story woven across years and countries. The haunting timelessness in the storytelling was quite reminiscent of Bellman & Black, and the finale was just as resonating. I loved following their story and seeing the the way they refused to give in regardless of the terrible hand they'd been dealt.
Shadowfell
My second "YA" book by Juliet Marillier (the first being Wildwood Dancing, recommended and loaned by Katie at the beginning of all this chronicling). Will there ever be a story told by her that I do not love? This tale is simple in its formula and sets up the rest of the series, but conveyed so beautifully. I wonder if it's just my penchant for her stoical heroes and determined heroines, especially when they take care of each other (begrudgingly or not). This was another impulsive find on my library's website (and unfortunately the only book by Juliet Marillier they have) and now I'm adrift with out the rest of the series. I might cave and consign this series to being digitally owned, as much as I'd rather hold out to when I can own physical copies, because it might be the only thing to really spark me reading again lately...
The Thief (recommended by Gebbie-san)
This book really surprised me, and not even for being a first-person male protagonist. The reader is given information and since we're party to his thoughts and reactions to the perceptions of others, we don't question it. It was delightful to read from the perspective of a character that reminded me so much of a favorite from long ago (Briar, from the Circle of Magic series by Tamora Pierce).
I also appreciated the allusions to Greek mythology and the world building subtly laid out with mentions of invaders and the foreign relations between the main three countries.
All in all, I thought this was very clever, as well as fun to read. It was also a great lesson against making assumptions or believing everything inferred to you.
STALLED: Child of the Prophesy (Sevenwaters #3)
While I tried starting this on the same day as finishing its predecessor and progressed a mere few chapters before switching to Sabriel, I've made the executive decision to wait before pursuing it any further. It took me four years after reading the first in the series (Daughter of the Forest) to continue the story through the new characters in the second (Son of the Shadows). Considering the emotional and psychological effects theses stories have on me (so many dreams...), it feels like too much to move on to new characters again so soon. I know I will come back to Sevenwaters someday, but the story deserves more care than me bullying my way through it in order to complete it.
