June TBR (Kind-of)

I'm still diligently working on my two year-long challenges so I had to pick a few books to definitely read. June is Pride Month so I wanted to work in some books that focused on LGBT+ characters or authors but because of my slump, I've selected many for me to choose from.

Challenge Reads:

Bad Blood by John Carreyrou
The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera  
All my Friends are Superheroes by Andrew Kaufman

Pride Selections:

Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden

The Absolutist by John Boyne

The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith

A Little Life by Hanya Yanigihara

Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rivka Brunt

Middlesex by Jefferey Eugenides

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg

A Single Man by Christopher Isherwood

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

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I definitely won't get to all of these but I want to aim high.

End of May Wrap Up

Well, the slump continues. I only read 2 more books in the rest of May.

I picked up Normal People by Sally Rooney after hearing such high praise about it. I had previously tried Rooney's debut novel Conversations with Friends which resulted in a DNF so my hopes weren't too high. The book is a slice-of-life story about two people named Connell and Marianne in high school and college. The story was fine, but I didn't understand what all the fuss was about. Most of the conflict was derived from misunderstandings or not speaking their mind. I gave it 3 stars.

Then I picked up Dune by Frank Herbert. I've recently been enjoying science fiction more and decided to pick up this classic because my husband wanted to watch the movie. (I almost always read the book before watching the movie if I can help it.) It has a lot going on. There are warring houses, an inhospitable planet, deadly sandworms, and a precious resource called melange spice. There are prophecies, an order of superhuman women, and a boy savior. I did feel some of the writing was dense (my copy was nearly 800 pages) but I loved the world-building and found the story quite immersive. I gave it 3.5 stars. Then my husband and I watched the 1980's adaptation and found it quite lacking. I'm hoping the 2020 version will be much better.

I knew my slump was coming on so I didn't create a TBR. But now I wonder if I would've read more if I had created one.

Mid-month Wrap Up

I've been delayed in getting up this post but as I'm somewhat in a slump, I've not had that many books to tell you about. You may have noticed I didn't post a May TBR- I am trying to mood-read in an effort to get out of my slump.

I read/listened to Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid. I would definitely recommend the audiobook as it is a full cast and it helps since the book is entirely interview scripts. This was a story of a young messed up singer who joins a band and together they become a huge sensation. Just as they reach their peak, the band breaks up. These interviews help explore why and from many different perspectives. This band felt real, these characters jumped off the page. I wanted to hear these songs they were writing. I loved this book. I gave it 5 stars!

Next I read A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum. This was a multi-generational book about Middle Eastern Muslim women being stuck in undesirable positions and fighting for a better life. It was heart-breaking, illuminating, and angering. The book was split in two timelines, alternating between them each chapter. Sometimes it was repetitive and I was somewhat displeased with the ending, but overall a good read that I rated 4 stars.

Then I picked up a highly anticipated novel: Women Talking by Miriam Toews. This is based on set of true circumstances about a small sect of Mennonite women in Bolivia who were being drugged and raped by male members of the community. The book is an imagined response from those women. Firstly, this book is just a bunch of women sitting around a barn talking about their three choices: do nothing, fight, or leave. I was hoping they would come to a conclusion fairly quickly and then come up with a plan to enact their choice but unfortunately, that didn't happen. They sit around a talk, interjecting seemingly unrelated dreams or ideas which do not further the conversation. The minutes are taken by a man as the women are illiterate and regrettably, we get way too much of his background and his random thoughts. At the very end, they come to a decision but we don't learn much in terms of what it is like afterwards. This would've been better off as a short story since there is way too much filler. I hate-read the rest and awarded it 1 star.

The last book I finished was You by Caroline Kepnes. This was a creepy thriller about a stalker written in second person. At times, it felt like I was person he was stalking. This was a page-turner and I loved the twists. I would definitely recommend the audiobook and I'm eager to see the Netflix adaptation. Overall, I gave it 4 stars.

ARC Review for The Farm by Joanne Ramos

I read The Farm by Joanne Ramos which is a story about a poor immigrant woman becoming a surrogate to try to earn a livable income. All the surrogates (known as Hosts) are required to live on the farm while supervisors control every element of their lives to ensure the healthiest possible babies. Their diets, exercise, and exact whereabouts are always tracked. Even their internet usage and phone conversations are monitored to make sure they don't have any extra stress. This definitely read like a dystopian novel but I actually think nearly everything that happened in this book is realistic, though horrifying. The hosts are not allowed to have their children with them, and visits with their children are used as rewards or punishments (withholding the visits). This book starts to examine the huge discrepancy in lives between the rich and poor but it doesn't do enough. Additionally, the ending was incredibly disappointing. I felt the author made these rich characters seem evil but then sends mixed messages about them at the end. I also felt four perspectives was too many resulting in flat characters. All in all, I didn't enjoy this book and do not recommend it. I ended up giving it 2 stars.


The book is out May 7th, 2019. Thank you Random House for an early copy.

O.W.L.s. Wrap-Up

I completed all 12 O.W.L.s this month! Last year I completed 11. Let me go over what I read for each subject and a short synopsis and review.

Ancient Runes (a retelling)- I read Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler. This was a retelling of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew. I thought the book was okay. It is about a blunt and unfriendly woman marrying a man who needs the marriage for a visa to stay in the U.S. It was enjoyable until the ending which seemed incredibly abrupt. I gave it 2 stars. This was definitely my least favorite read.

Arithmancy (written by 2 authors)- I read The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham. This was a Veronica Mars mystery involving two missing girls during Spring Break. I have been so excited for the Veronica Mars reboot this summer and this definitely helped whet my appetite. There were several twists and turns and Kristen Bell (who is the actress who plays Veronica Mars) narrates the audiobook which made this a highly pleasurable read. I gave the book 4 stars.

Astrology ("star" in the title)- I read Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake. This is a YA contemporary from the perspective of a twin sister. Her brother is accused of rape by her friend and she has to come to terms with the fact that someone she loves could do something so horrible. It really confronts rape culture and society's tendency to victim blame. I found it hard-hitting and an important story for teens. I gave it 4 stars.

Care of Magical Creatures (a land animal on cover)- I read the graphic novel Pride of Baghdad by Brian K. Vaughn. I gave it 3 stars.

Charms (an adult book) - I read Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata. I already reviewed this. I gave it 3 stars.

Defense Against the Dark Arts (title starting with "R")- For this challenge I picked up The Road by Cormac McCarthy. It is a deeply disturbing post-apocalyptic story where a man and his young son travel the road to try to survive. The author's writing style is stark, bare, but incredibly vivid. I really loved the style and the overall story was very compelling. I gave the book 4.5 stars.

Divination (set in the future)- I read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. Already reviewed. I gave this 3.5 stars.

Herbology (plant on the cover)- I read Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okaparanta. I gave this 4 stars.

History of Magic (book 10+ years old)- I picked up the manga Monster by Naoki Urasawa. Highly enjoyable thriller and I gave it 4 stars.

Muggle Studies (a contemporary story)- I read They Call me the Cat Lady by Amy Miller. I gave it 3 stars.

Potions (a sequel)- I listened to the audiobook of The Golem's Eye by Jonathan Stroud. I gave it 4 stars.

Transfiguration (red cover)- I read The Curious Incident of the Dog in Night-Time by Mark Haddon. This was an interesting novel from the perspective of an autistic teen who is trying to solve the murder of a neighborhood dog. The novel is written with several lists which definitely lends a quirky voice. Some people feel it is not a good representation of autism because he is very unemotional and has some violent tendencies; but I felt that some other parts like overstimulation and not understanding idioms felt authentic. I gave the story 3 stars.

Yay! I met the requirements for Healer. I can't wait until the N.E.W.T.s in August!

ARC Review of They Call Me The Cat Lady by Amy Miller

This past week I read They Call Me The Cat Lady by Amy Miller. This is a general fiction novel about Nancy Jones. She lives on her own in a ramshackle old house with five rescued cats. She has had trauma in her past which prevents her from getting close to anyone but a person she once knew comes back into her life, forcing her to confront her traumatic history. This book deals with many heavy themes; bullying, grief, abuse, and attempted suicide. The writing is fairly simplistic and I thought this was a debut author. After reading, I found she had written 3 books prior to this one. I gave the book three stars because while it's overall an entertaining story, some of the topics are not fully dealt with and the writing style was simple, sometimes bland.



This book will be released April 26th, 2019. If it sounds like a book for you, definitely check it out.

Weekly wrap up #1

This past week I've have read 6 books for my O.W.L.s.

I finished Convenience Store Woman  by Sayaka Murata (Charms). This is a novella translated from Japanese about a woman who works at a convenience store. She is feeling societal pressures to "get a career" and "grow up and get married" but she is content with things the way they are. She has difficulties with social interaction and relies on the store manual to guide her actions. This was interesting but I felt it didn't examine the subject enough. I gave it 3 stars.

Next I read the comic Pride of Baghdad by Brian K. Vaughn (Care of Magical Creatures). This was based on the true story of four lions escaping from the Baghdad Zoo during the Iraq war. There are some violent scenes which are hard to view/read. I gave it 3 stars.

After that I picked up Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta (Herbology). Set in Nigeria during the early 1970s during their civil war, this book focuses on a young lesbian girl who struggles as her mother and country try to squash out all homosexual thoughts and actions. It is beautifully written and I really liked it. I gave it 4 stars.

Next I picked up the manga Monster Vol. 1  by Naoki Urasawa (History of Magic). The premise is a young promising surgeon is told to operate on a politician but he instead chooses to save a little boy. That little boy grows up to be a serial killer and in his own twisted way, tries to thank the doctor by killing people that impede the doctor's success. Very gripping thriller and I can't wait to read the next volume. I gave it 4 stars.

Then I listened to The Golem's Eye by Jonathan Stroud. This is the second book in the Bartimaeus trilogy. It is a children's fantasy story following the djinni Bartimaeus and his master Nathaniel. It was funny and enjoyable and I gave it 4 stars.

Lastly I finished The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (Divination). I had seen the movie and enjoyed both very much. There is all sorts of wacky humor, a depressed robot, and the mice overlords! What more could you want? My eyes occasionally glazed over from all the "fake math and science" set to explain some occurrences but overall it was enjoyable and I will probably continue on in the series. I gave it 3.5 stars.

We're halfway through the month and I am now halfway through my O.W.L.s. I'm hoping to keep up good progress so I can complete them all.