Sunday, December 31, 2017

January Reads


New year means new books! And this January, I have A TON of books to read! I will not be getting through all of these, but here's hoping.

The Magic of Oz by L Frank Baum - Oz Challenge
Once Upon a Summer Day by Dennis McKiernan - unaffiliated
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson - Winter Reading Challenge for work
Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend - unaffiliated
Snow and Rose by Emily Winfield Martin - unaffiliated
Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie - Back to the Classics
Beneath by Roland Smith - Caudill Challenge
The Seventh Most Important Thing by Shelley Pearsall - Caudill Challenge
Ghostwritten by David Mitchell - Personal Reading Challenge
The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden - unaffiliated
Listen Slowly by Thanhhah Lai - Caudill Challenge (not pictured)

Whew! That's a lot. I've switched my priority list of what should be read first so many times. Right now I think I'm just going to go in order of when things need to go back to the library which puts Once Upon a Summer Day at the top of the list. I also calculated how many pages I need to read a day to get through all of these. It came out to 90 pages a day. I don't want to turn into a job though, so I'll read as I see fit, and if I get through it all, great!

1984 by George Orwell


Title: 1984
Author: George Orwell
Pages: 279
Finished: December 31, 2017

First Sentence: It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.

Summary: Is a summary really needed for this book? Perhaps so, considering I'd never read it and didn't really know much about it other than dystopia, Big Brother, and constant surveillance. Winston Smith, a member of the Outer Party of Ingsoc, finds himself dissatisfied with the current world order. He spends his days rewriting history, thinking dangerous thoughts, and constantly trying to hide whatever he is thinking. And then he has a forbidden love affair with another member of the Party.

Thoughts: It was disconcerting to see Oranges and Lemons pop up in this book. I learned it in Musikgarten classes where the last two lines don't exist. I don't think I'll be able to ever listen to the song again without feeling a supreme depression.

I don't see how Oceania could exist. Or perhaps more specifically, how Airstrip One (the former Great Britain) could exist as part of Oceania rather than part of Eurasia. I had a hard time believing that the Americas had a similar set up simply because we were reading about something on what felt like the outer rim of the territory.

This books was not what I thought it was. I knew it was a dystopia, but it seems that modern dystopias end with hope. A revolt by the downtrodden and an epilogue talking about rebuilding. There was no hope here. I spent the entire book waiting for there to be something, and instead I got a 50 page torture sequence and a speech about power is power and the terrifying idea that your thoughts aren't your own. I honestly felt sick to my stomach as I read this.

It's also really hard to read this as 2017 comes to a close and not make parallels with the current political climate in the United States at the moment.

Read as my classic club spin. I think I'm glad I read it, but this is not an experience I need to repeat ever again. Time for me to go read another Oz book so I end the year on something a little less upsetting.

Saturday, December 30, 2017

Personal Reading Challenges

I've set two personal reading challenges for myself this year. The first one is to read all of David Mitchell's books in order. According to Mitchell, even though his novels don't have to be read in order, they all are vaguely part of one giant novel. I've read two of his novels already, and will be rereading both for this challenge as well as all the others. I'm hoping to finish this challenge by the end of July. The books are listed below:


1. Ghostwritten (1999)
2. number9dream (2001)
3. Cloud Atlas (2004)
4. Black Swan Green (2006)
5. The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet (2010)
6. The Bone Clocks (2014)
7. Slade House (2015)



My second personal challenge is to finish out the year with five books from my miscellaneous To Be Read list.  I've decided to read down the list in order of what's there, otherwise, there are books that I'll never get to. If the book is the first in a series, I'm only counting the first book as part of this challenge. More books in the series will be read if and when I feel like it. The hope is to read one book a month for a total of five books by the end of December. The first five on my list are below.

1. Od Magic - Patricia A McKillip
2. Redemption in Indigo - Karen Lord
3. Shades of Milk and Honey - Mary Robinette Kowal
4. Little Big - John Crowley ILL
5. The Hourglass Factory - Lucy Ribchester

2018 Back to the Classics

Edited: This is my final wrap up. All links go to the reviews. My contact info is notrosesshadow [at] gmail [dot] com

After doing the Back to the Classics Challenge last year, I really enjoyed it, so I've decided to try again this year! I stuck to my list pretty well last year - only substituting one that I just couldn't handle. I'm hoping for the same this year. This is also a really good chance to knock another couple books off my Classics Club list. Below is my list. I'll be following all rules to the challenge and adding one more: Half of my books must be by women authors. I'll also be reading some of these books for a book club with my parents. They requested any books I suggest to them be under 400 pages, so I've added average page numbers here and marked the ones sub-400 with an asterisk for my own easy reference.


19th Century Book: Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
This is, apparently, one of my dad's favorite books. I've never read it, as the first Hardy book I read was Tess of the D'urbervilles. I had massive issues with that book, so hopefully this one will go better.

FINISHED 9/26/18 I have a lot of feelings about this one. It's a very interesting feminist piece of literature. A bit clumsy but I think that's primarily due to the time it was written.

*20th Century Book: Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
One of my later books is Jane Eyre, so it feels fitting to add this to my list this year! I've never read it, but I remember my college roommate raving about the novel.

FINISHED 4/15/2018 Plausible and thought provoking, but ultimately an unenjoyable read.


Book by a Woman Author: The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather
I enjoyed My Antonia when I read it in high school. I look forward to this one!

FINISHED 2/13/18 Really wanted to like this one, but felt generally apathetic about it. Was a chore to get through


Book in Translation: One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (457)
I started this once in high school and it didn't work out. Time to try again over a decade later. Might work a bit better.

Changed to The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery.

FINISHED 3/1/18 Incredibly surreal experience. Haunting. I most definitely was left with a hole in my heart when I finished it.


*A children's classic: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (331)
I love this story. I've only read the book twice I think, but it's so sweet and charming. Definitely looking forward to a reread.

FINISHED  8/2/18 Very charming little book, though a bit slower than I remembered.


*A classic crime story, fiction or non-fiction: Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
I've never read this! I've never read ANY Agatha Christie books! I'm 30. How is that possible?! With the new movie out, this seems like a given for me. I'm sure I won't be the only one reading it, but I don't care. I'm excited!

FINISHED 1/14/18 Not what I expected.


*A classic travel or journey narrative, fiction or non-fiction: The Time Machine by H. G. Wells
Travel backwards and forwards in time counts right? If it doesn't, I'll figure something else out.

FINISHED 11/7/18 A much deeper look into science than I expected. Wishbone (and every other screen adaptation of this) deceived me re: the Eloi and Morlocks.

*A classic with a single-word title: Moonstone by Wilkie Collins 
Other than the fact that this is on my Classics Club list, I know little to nothing about it. Looking forward to reading it though!


Changed to Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell I didn't realize Moonstone was actually The Moonstone.

FINISHED 7/25/18 Very pleasant and funny. This really makes me want to read more of Gaskell's works.

A classic with a color in the title: The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
Like the one above, I don't know much about this author or his books, but ever since I put these on my Classics club list, I've wanted to read them so badly.

FINISHED 12/21/18 Interesting read. Not as good as The Moonstone but definitely suspenseful.


*A classic by an author that's new to you: The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
She's the only Bronte Sister I've never read. Looking forward to this.

FINISHED 8/15/18 Wonderful book. Incredibly strong women characters that made the book enjoyable even though the subject matter was one I tend to avoid when possible

A classic that scares you: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
This book is over 1,000 pages and a translation. My general experience with translations is they can be good, or awful! I'm using the Modern Library Classics translation that my mom gave to me after she read it. She liked it, so here's hoping it works. I plan on breaking this down over the course of most of the year to make it manageable. Maybe ten minutes a day?

FINISHED 11/17/18 Very long and drawn out story of revenge. Few likable characters. Tiny details mentioned in passing that become important later. Just not my cup of tea.

Re-read a favorite classic: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
This may be the first adult classic I ever read. I read it in 7th grade and understood only the basic plot. I've read it about four times since, but it's been a while since my last foray.

FINISHED 3/16/18 I really enjoyed this the fifth time around! Such lovely language, and Jane is so strong.

Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Fuzzy Mud by Louis Sachar


Title: Fuzzy Mud
Author: Louis Sachar
Pages: 192
Finished: December 27, 2017

First Sentence: Woodridge Academy, a private school in Heath Cliff, Pennsylvania, had once been the home of William Heath, after whom the town had been named.

Summary: To avoid a fight with the school bully, Marshall and Tamaya cut through the woods by the school. Sadly, it doesn't work and Chad finds them. Tamaya throws some "fuzzy mud" in his face in order to escape. The next day, she discovers a rash upon her arm from where the mud touched her. Turns out, the mud isn't quite mud and a full blown epidemic is about to descend on the town of Heath Cliff.

Thoughts: Interesting read. Or listen really. Most of the story took place over the course of about 24 hours, which I thought was really interesting. The main story was interspersed with transcripts of hearings re: the happenings. It really made the experience all the more horrifying. In general, the bits about the school happenings were the most boring, but that's because I'm a 30 year old adult who's been out of school for quite a while now. This book read for Bluestem and Caudill Challenges.

Thursday, December 21, 2017

Parenting Beyond Belief by Dale McGowan


Title: Parenting Beyond Belief
Author: Edited by Dale McGowan
Pages: 304
Finished: December 21, 2017


Summary: A collection of essays by many freethinkers regarding their thoughts about raising secular humans. Covers many topics including religious literacy, death, wonder and science, thinking critically, and finding community.

Thoughts: I am an atheist. I was born an atheist, I was brought up by two atheist parents. I never attended a Christian church, though when I was in about third grade, my parents started taking us to a Unitarian Universalist church so we could gain some religious literacy that we didn't get from home. My husband was born an atheist (everyone is) but was brought up Methodist. When we got married, he was in a bit of a religious crisis - not really knowing what he believed. Lately, he's started calling himself an atheist.

We live in a world filled with a lot of hate for those who are different. People hate those who are different from them, whether those people happen to have a different faith, love different kinds of people, or come from different cultures. We live in a world where basic scientific fact is considered a matter of opinion and matters of opinion are considered basic facts.

We want more for our daughter. We want to raise her to understand how to think critically. We want to raise her to understand that people are people not matter where they're from, who they love, what they believe. We want her to understand that we have a lot more in common with each other than we have different. We want her to understand how the world works, how the various religious work etc. We basically want her to be able to think critically so that when she makes a choice about what she believes, we know she did it after thinking carefully about it and not because someone told her to.

This book was so helpful. It's not a parenting guide in the sense that they tell you "When your child is at this age, you do this." It's more of a "Every kid will ask you questions about death. As a secular parent who doesn't believe in an afterlife, this can be scary. Here are some things we found helpful in our household." That sort of thing. It's also FULL of resources. I borrowed this book from the library, but I'll likely purchase it so I have regular access to it. I will be adding his other book, Raising Freethinkers to my list as well.

And as an easter egg, the minister of the first UU church I ever attended was one of the contributors. This woman was only the minister for a short time while we were there before she moved on to another church, but in that time she had a profound impact on me. It was nice to see her name again. 

Wednesday, December 20, 2017

The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens


Title: The Old Curiosity Shop
Author: Charles Dickens
Pages: 555
Finished: December 20, 2017

First Sentence: Although I am an old man, night is generally my time for walking.

Summary: Nell and her grandfather run away from the evil Quilp after the grandfather squanders away a significant amount of money gambling. Many people help them. Many others try to find them. Quilp is evil for no discernible reason. People die. Others have happy endings. Standard Dickens.

Thoughts: I fear the tone of my "summary" may give away what I think. Back in college I decided I was going to read all of Dickens. The first few I read were fun. This one... I almost put it down. Up to the point where Nell and her grandfather leave town, it was incredibly slow. I can't tell why Quilp is as evil as he is, but perhaps that's just the beauty of Dickens. People are people in all sorts of ways without explanation. Normally I'm happy to figure out the satire and social commentary Dickens is making, but this book was such a slog that I pretty much ended up paying attention to major plot points and skimming the descriptions solely meant to raise word count. I also felt bad for Nell being saddled with an addict at a time when women really couldn't do a whole lot. Her life was absolutely lost.

This is my final book for the Back to the Classics Challenge.

Sunday, December 10, 2017

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen


Title: Northanger Abbey
Author: Jane Austen
Pages: 241
Finished: December 10, 2017

First Sentence: No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy, would have supposed her born to be an heroine. 

Summary: Catherine Morland, an unabashed novel enthusiast, travels to Bath with her neighbors. She meets all manner of people including the Tilneys and the Thorpes. Naive Catherine fumbles her way through her time in Bath believing everyone in earnest, little understanding that some people will say anything to appear better than they are. As she gets to know the Tilneys better, they invite her to stay with them a while at Northanger Abbey. There, she lets her imagination get the better of her as she longs to discover what sordid secrets the Abbey may hold.

Thoughts: Last time I read through all of Austen, I ranked this book as #3. I haven't read through them all again, so I don't know how it stands in relation to her others, but I do enjoy it ever so much. It's so light and fun. Catherine herself is so artless and unsuspecting. Henry and Eleanor are such excellent friends for her. And the supporting cast is, of course, ridiculous. Somehow, I've yet to read The Mysteries of Udolpho, though I really should get on that!

I did go ahead and watch the 2007 adaptation directly after finishing the novel. I do remember really enjoying this adaptation when it came out. I have a feeling J.J. Field had something to do with that, along with the fact that I was in college. I still enjoy it, but the characters are certainly different than they were in the book. Moreover, the entire Northanger Abbey sequence has been condensed and moved around to really change the tone of the novel.

I did enjoy the book very much though. A welcome break from the Dickens I'm reading.

Read for Back to the Classics Challenge: Romance.

Friday, December 1, 2017

December Reads


1984 by George Orwell - Classics Club Spin
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson - Winter Reading Challenge for work
Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend - unaffiliated
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen - Back to the Classics
The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens - Back to the Classics
Once Upon a Summer's Day by Dennis McKiernan - unaffiliated
Parenting Beyond Belief ed. by Dale McGowan - unaffiliated (not pictured)
The Tin Woodman of Oz by L. Frank Baum - Wizard of Oz Challenge

To be completely honest, this is way more than I planned to read for December. Current plan is to finish the Classics first as they have the deadline of this month. I may split them up with finishing the McKiernan as well. From there, I'll deadhead through Tin Woodman, then finish the other two library books. I'm shelving the Caudill and Bluestems until January.

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

The Lost Princess of Oz by L Frank Baum


Title: The Lost Princess of Oz
Author: L. Frank Baum
Pages: 318
Finished: November 29, 2017

First Sentence: There could be no doubt of the fact: Princess Ozma, the lovely girl ruler of the Fairyland of Oz, was lost.

Summary: As seen by the first sentence, Princess Ozma is lost. Soon, our friends in Oz discover that Glinda's magic book, Ozma's magic picture, and the Wizard's magical instruments are also all missing. Meanwhile, down in Yip (a plateau in the corner of the Land of the Winkies), Cayke the Cookie Cook discovers her magical dishpan is also missing. Many of our friends from the Emerald City go off on a quest to find Ozma just as Cayke and the Frogman venture on a quest to find the dishpan.

Thoughts: I liked this book far more than most of the odd middle books in this series. Sure it was ridiculous, but I liked most of the characters far more. I liked the plot more. And I couldn't even tell you what it is about the book that I liked, I just found it far less obnoxious than most of his others. I was not a huge fan of Scraps. I don't remember her being quite so bratty. Also, I was very annoyed by the continuity error of Dorothy not knowing how to use the Magic Belt. She totally knew what she was doing when she first got it!

Read for the Wizard of Oz Challenge.

Saturday, November 18, 2017

Classics Club Spin #16: What I Got

For the Classics Club Spin #16, I got book #4 - 1984 by George Orwell. I'll admit I'm not as thrilled about this as I could be. But that's part of the point of this Spin! It helps us get through our list, including the books we're not as excited about! I have until the end of December to read 1984. I checked it out from work today, and the page count is fairly small, so it should be fine.

Monday, November 13, 2017

Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman


Title: Book Scavenger
Author: Jennifer Chambliss Bergman
Pages: 343
Finished: November 12, 2017

First Sentence: Garrison Griswold whistled his way down Market Street, silver hair bobbing atop his head like a pigeon wing.

Summary: Emily is obsessed with the online game Book Scavenger - a game where people hide books and others hunt them down. Think Letterbox and Geocaching with books as the prize. Book Scavenger has been her constant friend while her family movies around from state to state. And now, they've moved to San Fransisco, home of Garrison Griswold, the founder of Book Scavenger. Only Griswold has been shot and Emily finds a book that might be the start of a new game. A game people will kill for.

Thoughts: Middle grade fiction perfect for kids who like treasure hunts and suspense. Repetitive and boring as an adult reading all the Caudills and Bluestems.

Thursday, November 9, 2017

Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix


Title: Among the Hidden
Author: Margaret Peterson Haddix
Pages: 153
Finished: November 5, 2017

First Sentence: He saw the first tree shudder and fall, far off in the distance.

Summary: Somewhere in the supposed future (that feels more like now or even a little earlier) Luke lives in his parents' attic. He's a third child. Illegal due to current laws that limit how many kids a family can have. He lives a life of monotony until one day, he sees a face in a house across the way. A face behind a curtain. Taking a chance, Luke sneaks over to find another Shadow Child, and his live changes forever.

Thoughts: I like Haddix a lot, but I found this fairly dull. I know it was set up, but little about it made me want to read more. Look! Dystopia of a government completely overstepping their bounds. However, I'm betting kids primarily 4th grade and up would really enjoy this. Read for my Bluestem Challenge.

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Classics Club Spin #16

It's time for a Classics Club Spin! The way this works is that I pick twenty books from my Classics Club list, list them in this post, and then on Friday, November 17th, the folks over at Classicsclub.com will pick a number. I have until the end of December to read that book! According to them, to make this really worthwhile, I should pick 5 books I want to read, 5 books I'm procrastinating/dreading, 5 I'm neutral about, and 5 free choice. However, as I look at my list, I feel more analysis paralysis instead. So I'm going to let RNG figure out my 20 books for me. My only rule is that I am picking shorter books. I still have two left from my Back to the Classics Challenge plus it's December! I don't really want to be saddled with The Count of Monte Cristo. So below is my list of 20 books for the Spin.

1. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
2. The Time Machine by H. G. Wells
3. A Winter's Tale by William Shakespeare
4. 1984 by George Orwell
5. A Room With a View by E. M. Forster
6. A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
7. The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain
8. Daniel Deronda by George Eliot
9. The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
10. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
11. Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
12. Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
13. Sanditon and other Tales by Jane Austen (includes her Juvenalia)
14. Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi
15. The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde
16. The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather
17. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
18. Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote
19. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
20. Possession by A. S. Byatt

Saturday, November 4, 2017

Last in a Long Line of Rebels by Lisa Lewis Tyre


Title: Last in a Long Line of Rebels
Author: Lisa Lewis Tyre
Pages: 279
Finished: November 3, 2017

First Sentence: From the diary of Louise Duncan Mayhew

Summary: Louise Mayhew has the most boring summers ever. So when she prays on an old family Bible for something exciting to happen, she's hoping for something a little better than normal. What she gets is a summer learning the village wants her house, the discovery that her ancestor apparently stole some gold and murdered someone, and the knowledge that that gold has never been found. So she and her friends take it upon themselves to find the treasure and save the house.

Thoughts: Ugh. I feel like I read the same twenty books every year when it comes to the Caudills. The kids are super smart. They find the gold. They don't suffer any consequences for the things they do to get the gold. They're shocked that their ancestors owned slaves in the 1800s (they live in Tennessee). Middle grade, but not really worth it.

Read for my Caudill Challenge.

Thursday, November 2, 2017

November Reads




The Lost Princess of Oz by L Frank Baum - Wizard of Oz Challenge
The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens - Back to the Classics
Among the Hidden by Margaret Petersen Haddix - Bluestem Challenge
Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman - Bluestem/Caudill Challenge
Listen, Slowly by Thanhha Lai - Caudill Challenge
Last in a Long Line of Rebels by Lisa Lewis Tyre - Caudill Challenge (Not Pictured)
Parenting Beyond Belief edited by Dale McGowan
Once Upon a Summer Day by Dennis McKiernan

This is a bit ambitious. Absolutely, positively, I want to read the Oz book, Parenting book, and the Summer Day book this month. I also want to read Last in a Long Line of Rebels since I was supposed to read it last month. Book Scavenger counts as both a bluestem and a caudill which helps things immensely. Listen, Slowly is in verse which means it'll go fairly quickly as well. (Listen, Slowly is not in verse. I assumed it was in verse because the author's last book was in verse.) While I'd LOVE to finish Old Curiosity Shop this month, I'm not too worried about it because I'll be reading an Austen book to finish the challenge up in December. That'll take maybe a week, so if Dickens goes long, I can take the time. I'm currently working through Last in a Long Line of Rebels. Once I finish that, I think I'm going to go back to my pattern of Adult Books during the week and Kid Books during the weekend so that if I get stuck on something, I don't waste my time not reading. 

Wednesday, November 1, 2017

Rinkitink in Oz by L Frank Baum


Title: Rinkitink in Oz
Author: L Frank Baum
Pages: 318
Finished: November 1, 2018

First Sentence: If you have a map of the Land of Oz handy, you will find that the great Nonestic Ocean washes the shores of the Kingdom of Rinkitink, between which and the Land of Oz lies a strip of the country of the Nome King and a Sandy Desert.

Summary: King Rinkitink decides to visit the peaceful island of Pingaree at about the worst time possible. While there, warriors from the islands of Regos and Coregos pillage the Island and kidnap everyone there except King Rinkitink and the Prince Inga. Along with the goat Bilbil and the help of some magic pearls, the trio travel to the Islands of Regos and Coregos to rescue everyone.

Thoughts: Funny little book. No one reaches Oz until the last two chapters, and Rinkitink is more of a secondary character.

I don't remember this one. I know I read it, because I read all these books, but most of these ones in the middle are very forgettable. And yet, I like these latter ones so much more than the Oz specific books. This book in particular was a reworking of a separate fantasy book Baum had written. However, as is usual for him, the Oz books were the ones people wanted, so he turned it into an Oz book.

Kaliko was different than he was last time we met him, but then I suppose since he was supposed to be Roquat or Ruggedo or whomever, that's to be excused. Read for my Wizard of Oz challenge.

Thursday, October 26, 2017

I Am Princess X by Cherie Priest


Title: I Am Princess X
Author: Cherie Priest
Pages: 227
Finished: October 26, 2017

First Sentence: Libby Deaton and May Harper invented Princess X in fifth grade, when Libby's leg was in a cast, and May had a doctor's note saying she couldn't run around the track anymore because her asthma would totally kill her.

Summary: May's life is thrown into turmoil when her best friend dies after a horrible accident. Until three years later when she starts seeing the character she and Libby made up together all around Seattle. What follows next is a race to find her friend and bring Libby's kidnapper to justice before he finds them.

Thoughts: Meh. I know that's lazy, but that's pretty much how I felt about this one. Really fun to read while reading it - I got through it incredibly quickly. But in terms of actual quality? Meh.

The Good: Strong female characters in a vaguely real world life. May was pretty smart, and she did figure a lot of things out. Libby was clearly strong. No romance plot which was refreshing for a YA novel.

The Bad: I'm sorry, how can Patrick be such a computer genius and not know about a VPN? I mean, I get that they're all of 17 or 18, but some of the mistakes were so completely boneheaded.

Read for my Caudill challenge. 

Once Upon a Winter's Night by Dennis McKiernan


Title: Once Upon a Winter's Night
Author: Dennis McKiernan
Pages: 380
Finished: October 25, 2017

First Sentence: They lived in a one-room stone cottage on the edge of Faery, there where the world ends and the mystical realm begins, there where golden sunshine abruptly becomes twilight all silver and grey, there where night on one side instead of the other is darkness, sometimes absolute, sometimes illumined with a glorious scatter of bright stars and silvery moonlight, sometimes illumined by small, dancing luminosities atwinkle among hoary trees, there where low, swampy lands and crofters' fields and shadowed forests on this side change on that side into misty fens and untilled meadows and deep, dark, mysterious woods.

Summary: The Prince of the Summerwood proposes marriage to Camille, the daughter of a poor farmer who lives on the edge of Faery. His scheming, unhappy wife accepts for her, and thus Camille travels to fairy on the back of a giant bear. There she spends her days with her bear and nights with her prince, though she never sees his face. Upon traveling back home, her mother convinces her to light a candle to see his face. When she does, a giant wind carries Camille's prince and the entire household away. It's up to Camille to travel through Faery to the place east of the sun and west of the moon where she can hopefully free the Prince of the Summerwood from a curse.

Thoughts: This is an adult retelling of East of the Sun and West of the Moon, set against a backdrop of a larger series. I liked that Camille actually built a relationship with Prince Alain. It made the idea of going to find her true love that much easier.

But Camille herself bugged me. I had no problem with her being so clever earlier in the book. Her ability to beat him at chess, her ability to solve riddles. All very good. However, it seemed like all her cleverness left her when she went on her quest to save Alain.

I wasn't a huge fan of the writing either. The author was trying to sound like he was writing a bardic tale, only the lilt didn't really work in prose writing. That being said, I'm interested in how the rest of this series turns out and will probably find reason to read the other four.

Read for my Fairy Tale Challenge.

Saturday, October 21, 2017

11 Birthdays by Wendy Mass


Title: 11 Birthdays
Author: Wendy Mass
Pages: 267
Finished: October 17, 2017

First Sentence: The oddest thing about Angelina D'Angelo was that no one could remember a time when she didn't live in Willow Falls.

Summary: Amanda and Leo were best friends. The did everything together including celebrating their birthdays. But on their 10th birthday, Leo said something unforgivable, and he and Amanda have been fighting ever since. She's relieved when her 11th birthday is finally over, until she wakes up the next day and has to relive it.

Thoughts: Groundhog Day meets middle grade fiction. Sweet enough story. Typical fifth grade life events with the addition of the magic/scifi element. Quick read. Not really my wheelhouse though.

Read for Bluestem Challenge.

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin


Title: Where the Mountain Meets the Moon
Author: Grace Lin
Pages: 278
Finished: October 15, 2017

First Sentence: Far away from here, following the Jade River, there was once a black mountain that cut into the sky like a jagged piece of rough metal.

Summary: Minli lives with her mother and father in a little gray village in the shadow of Fruitless Mountain. They have little to eat and hardly any money to spake of, a fact that causes her mother no end of grief. Minli's father, however, tells stories that seem to sustain Minli. In an effort to change their fortune, Minli decides to find the Old Man in the Moon. On the way she has many adventures and learns many more stories.

Thoughts: I think this definitely counts as a frame story. The frame being Minli's journey. I really enjoyed this. I was also surprised at how little I remembered from reading this a couple years ago. I don't know my Asian folktales as well as I do my western European tales. Grace Lin adjusted the tales for her own purpose in the book, but she also added a bibliography for those who wish to read more.

I really like books with female protagonists. Particularly ones as lovely as Minli. Definitely a great role model for young girls reading this book.

Book read for Bluestem Challenge

Monday, October 16, 2017

The Once and Future King by T. H. White


Title: The Once and Future King
Author: T. H White
Pages: 677
Finished: October 14, 2017

First Sentence: On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays it was Court Hand and Summulae Logicales, whil the rest of the week it was the Organon, Repetition and Astrology.

Summary: The story of King Arthur from his childhood to his death. It's all there - The Wart's education with Merlyn as his master. His experiences as different animals. His ascension to King of England as he pulls the sword out of the stone. His attempt to civilize England with his Round Table and the idea of Might for Right. His love triangle between him, Lancelot, and Guenever. And his ultimate downfall.

Thoughts: Wow. Last time I read this was the summer before I started high school. It kicked off a four year obsession with the Arthurian Legends, and I read so many of them.

I got so much more out of this book this time around. And it is indeed kicking off a new King Arthur love.

The Sword in the Stone was funny in a way I don't remember it being before. I chuckled more than was probably warranted, but was also charmed by Wart's lessons. I wish we had seen the geese lessons in Disney's Sword and the Stone, but I suppose it wouldn't have been quite as fun as the squirrel and Madame Mim...

The Queen of Air and Darkness set up the Orkney Clan in a way that was super dark. Darker than most of what I remember reading in other books. This is also the chapter that talks a lot about anti-war. There was a quote that I really want to chuck at our leader's head right now about sending the leaders to war rather than the citizens etc. Morgause was a rather horrific lady. I also thought it was rather interesting how all her boys really loved her. Agravaine (and I believe later Mordred) in a way that was incestuous. The image of the "tape" that she used to seduce Arthur was really memorable too. I remember reading it as a teen and not really understanding what was happening.

The Ill-Made Knight is the bread and butter of the book. Everything seems so good, and then it's all dashed to pieces. I did not remember much of this book - and I found it a little boring too. Guenever was very unlikable. Jealous to a fault, and flaunting her relationship with Lancelot in a way that Arthur would have had to really turn a blind eye to ignore. Interestingly enough, as I read the book, I was reading Lancelot as bisexual. I was starting to feel like perhaps I was reading it with modern sensibilities, but upon further research, I found out that T.H. White was a closeted homosexual and that he had toyed around with actually making Lancelot gay. Mostly though, I don't think any of our main three characters came out looking all that good in this chapter. Arthur tried, but his constant turning a blind eye was difficult.

And then came The Candle in the Wind. Oh my heart. Mordred? I despise him. I understand he was brought up by the hateful Morgause, but it seemed not only did he want to hurt Arthur as best he could, he wanted to just set the world in a tailspin. Hateful man. But then again, none of our main three came out looking all that much better. Most heartbreaking though, was Arthur remembering his lesson as a goose at the very last minute. Also, the image of the candle in the last chapter was one that remained with me since my freshman year of high school, and that made much more sense than it had before.

Geeze this is a long review. I loved this book. I loved it even more than I did 15 years ago because I understood so much more about it. T.H. White was a conscientious objector in World War II, something that came out so clearly this time around. I somehow didn't get that last time, and it's not like it's deeply hidden. I think I was just reading for the plot points of King Arthur. I'm interested in seeing how this one goes in 30 more years.

Two minor things: the author does not use the Oxford comma, and the edition has two spaces after a period. Found it mildly irritating.
Read for Back to the Classics AND Retellings Challenge.

Monday, October 2, 2017

October Reads


Rinkitink in Oz by L Frank Baum - Wizard of Oz
I Am Princess X by Arthur A. Levine - Caudill Challenge
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin - Bluestem Challenge
Eleven Birthdays by Wendy Mass - Bluestem Challenge
Once Upon a Winter's Night by Dennis McKiernan - Retelling Challenge
Last in a Long Line of Rebels by Nancy Paulsen - Caudill Challenge
The Once and Future King by T H White - Back to the Classics

This is a significantly easier month for me. I was supposed to read the Caudills and Bluestems last month, but that obviously didn't happen. Once and Future King might take some time. My goal is to finish it by mid-month which means averaging 45 pages a day. I already started The Once and Future King. It's so much funnier than I remember.

Sunday, October 1, 2017

The Scarecrow of Oz by L. Frank Baum


Title: The Scarecrow of Oz
Author: L. Frank Baum
Pages: 291
Finished: September 30, 2017

First Sentence: "Seems to me," said Cap'n Bill, as he sat beside Trot under the big acacia tree, looking out over the blue ocean, "seems to me, Trot, as how the more we know, the more we find we don't know."

Summary: Trot and Cap'n Bill get caught in a Whirlpool that takes them to wondrous lands. There they meet plenty of new characters including the Ork and Button Bright as well as the people of Jinxland. They fall on the bad side of King Krewl, but with the help of the Scarecrow, everything turns out right again.
Thoughts: So the interesting thing about this book and the last one we read is that Baum is introducing many of his characters from other books to the land of Oz. In this example, Trot and Captain Bill were part of a series that he had intended to carry on after he finished the Oz books. However, they never caught on, and kids instead asked that Trot and Captain Bill be brought to Oz. Thus this book. It also explains why they know Button Bright. He apparently showed up in that other series and talked to them. His character has definitely changed.

Overall, I didn't find this one quite as ridiculous as the others have been (though I did read that it was not well received). Trot was just as sweet as Betsy and Dorothy both are, so she'll fit in with the group quite well. Apparently Baum had a type. The Ork's tail works as a helicopter rotor which I found interesting as the helicopter hadn't been invented yet.

I find myself wanting to read some of Baum's other books. While this book was a step above some of the more recent Oz books, it does at times feel as though he's phoning it in.

Read for the Wizard of Oz Challenge.

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

The Odyssey by Homer


Title: The Odyssey
Author: Homer - Translation by Fitzgerald
Pages: 474
Finished: September 24, 2017

First Sentence: Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story
                           of that man skilled in all ways of contending,
                           the wanderer, harried for years on end,
                           after he plundered the stronghold
                           on the proud height of Troy. 

Summary: Odysseus's long and turbulent journey home from the Trojan war, and how he ultimately slay the suitors who awaited him at home.

Thoughts: I last read the Odyssey over a decade ago. I also admit I remembered very little of it other than the bits that are always talked about. Thus, I was surprised at how quick the epic breezed through the trials of Charybdis, Scylla, the Cyclopes. In general, I rather enjoyed the story up until Odysseus got home. Once he was home, the story dragged on for much longer than I cared to read, ending in a disturbing and gory battle that could have fit in on Game of Thrones.

Penelope was delightful! What an incredibly strong female character! Definitely a new contender for little girl names if we ever have another child.

I remember learning the Greek gods could be petty, but boy... there was a point where I wanted Poseidon to just get over it. Not that Odysseus was a whole lot better...

Overall, I'm glad I reread it. In the course of my reading, I learned of the translations by Lattimore, and having looked over a few passages there, I think I might reserve him for another decade if I decide to reread the Iliad and the Odyssey.

Read for Back to the Classics Challenge

Friday, September 22, 2017

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden


Title: The Bear and the Nightingale
Author: by Katherine Arden
Pages: 319
Finished: September 21, 2017

First Sentence:  It was late winter in Northern Rus', the air sullen with wet that was neither rain nor snow. 

Summary: Vasilisa's mother died in childbirth, leaving the girl with the ability to see all the old spirits of Rus'. Years later, her father travels to Moscow to remarry. He brings home a devout Christian woman who, with the help of a new Priest, forbids the town to leave offerings to the old spirits. Winters become harsher than normal. Crops, livestock, and people fail and die. Only Vasilisa sees whats happening and does what she can to keep everyone alive, even though it labels her a witch.

Thoughts: This may be one of my favorite books from this year. The book started a little slow, but once Pyotr remarried, I was hooked. Vasilisa is exactly the type of character I love. Headstrong, compassionate, and very independent. I'm also a complete sucker for stories of old religions fighting to stay relevant while Christianity tries to take over. Mostly though, I was very impressed with the world building in this story. So very immersive.

Read for the retellings challenge.

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie


Title: Haroun and the Sea of Stories
Author: Salman Rushdie
Pages: 216
Finished: September 19, 2017

First Sentence: There was once, in the country of Alifbay, a sad city, the saddest of cities, a city so ruinously sad that it had forgotten its name.

Summary: Haroun must travel to the Ocean of Stories to get his father's Storytelling powers back.

Thoughts: Read for my Personal Reading Challenge category of Book by a Nonwestern Author.

Full disclosure, when I started looking up books from non-western authors, the things that kept popping up were super depressing. There are a number of super depressing books on the Caudill list this year too, and I couldn't bring myself to read another very depressing book. My heart can only take so much emotion. So when a coworker suggested this one and labeled it as whimsical, I said yes.

And it was full of whimsy. I knew little about it other than her brief description, but I found I adored it. It has a similar feel to Alice in Wonderland or Wizard of Oz where no one is really in as much danger as it seems and everything is solved fairly easily, but I wanted that. All in all, this book came at the right time for me. 

Sunday, September 17, 2017

The Empty Grave by Jonathan Stroud


Title: The Empty Grave
Author: Jonathan Stroud
Pages: 427
Finished: September 15, 2017

First Sentence: Want to hear a ghost story?

Summary: The finale of Stroud's Lockwood & Co series. Penelope Fittes has forbade Locwood & Co from doing anything other than dealing with the most simple of hauntings. Fittes Agency is also starting to take over all other small Agencies in London. Any heads of agencies who hold out end up mysteriously dead. And furthermore, after The Skull's assertions that Penelope Fittes is actually Marissa Fittes, the woman who started Fittes Agency back when the Problem began, Lockwood and company find themselves researching her as stealthily as they can.

Thoughts: One of my favorite things about this series is how Lucy has grown as a person. Some of her character flaws that bothered me have been smoothed away as she's grown up.

The book tied up the main question that I had regarding The Problem (though the tie up was fairly predictable as the series went on.) I particularly enjoyed their foray into The Other Side where we learned more about some things that were happening. I also appreciated some of the storylines being implied rather than spelled out. There's plenty of room for fan fiction fodder. All in all, I'm glad I read this series. A great fall read with Halloween around the corner.

Saturday, September 16, 2017

Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne


Title: Journey to the Center of the Earth
Author: Jules Verne
Pages: 280
Finished: September 14, 2017

First Sentence: Looking back to all that has occurred to me since that eventful day, I am scarcely able to believe in the reality of my adventures.

Summary: Axle's uncle, Professor Lindenbrock, discovers an old Icelandic manuscript that mentions there's a path to get to the center of the Earth. Lindenbrock is more than happy to follow the hint to Iceland where he and his nephew hire a guide and do, indeed, journey as far into the earth as they can get, though the journey is not without it's perils.

Thoughts: I can safely say I wasn't a huge fan. First of all, the names in my translation were all different. The nephew was Harry. The uncle Hardwigg.  I didn't even realize the names were different until I googled the book to find the uncle's name and found a completely different name than I had been reading.

As I summed up to my parents during our book discussion: the uncle's a pompous ass, the nephew a wet blanket, and the book is full of out of date and bad science. the book wasn't particularly interesting. Every time a new part of their journey started, I though, "Oh good. Here it's going to get interesting." And every time I was disappointed and bored. Perhaps I had a bad translation, or perhaps something about this novel doesn't hold up for me. In terms of classics, this is definitely on the snore end of the spectrum.

I was a bit surprised too because I remember really enjoying Around the World in 80 Days. But then, I guess not every book by every author is going to be a winner.

Read for Back to the Classics Book in Translation.

Monday, September 11, 2017

The Creeping Shadow by Jonathan Stroud


Title: The Creeping Shadow
Author: Jonathan Stroud
Pages: 435
Finished: September 3, 2017

First Sentence: I knew at once, when I slipped into the moonlit office and eased the door shut behind me, that I was in the presence of the dead.

Summary: Lucy has enjoyed the last few months working freelance for various agencies, for the most part. Of course few agencies work as well as Lockwood and Co did, but she doesn't like to think about that... until the day that Lockwood asks to hire her for a case. While helping him there, someone breaks into her apartment and steals her skull-in-a-jar. As usual, things spiral out of control. The big haunt the team is originally hired for ends up helping them find the even bigger haunt that resolves the plot of the story.

Thoughts: Okay, these books may be a little formulaic, but I'm really enjoying them! They're the right level of scary for me. Enough that I don't like reading them right before bed in case I have to walk around the house at night. I definitely have to finish cases at the very least before turning out the light. I liked Lucy getting more sure of herself and less obnoxious towards Holly. (Because really, the jealousy thing was a bit difficult to keep reading. It really undermined the character for me.)

I had a decent idea of a lot of revelations except the one at the very end. It definitely took me by surprise and I'm very happy I waited until now to read it! The next book comes out tomorrow (September 12) and I already have it on hold at work, so it should be in my hands by Wednesday. Thursday at the latest.

Friday, September 1, 2017

Slade House by David Mitchell


Title: Slade House
Author: David Mitchell
Pages: 238
Finished: August 29, 2017

First Sentence: Whatever Mum's saying's drowned out by the grimy roar of the bus pulling away, revealing a pub called The Fox and Hounds.

Summary: Every nine years, someone finds a small, black iron door in the wall of Slade Alley. When they open it, they find themselves in the backyard of Slade House, a house too large to fit in the space provided. They find themselves in a place that absolutely fits with what they're looking for. Friendship. Companionship. Answers to questions. Even when things start to seem wrong, they don't leave. Every nine years, someone goes into Slade House and never comes out. Every nine years.

Thoughts: The only other Mitchell book I've read is Cloud Atlas, a book I really enjoyed. I picked this one up, concerned at the fact that it was a "haunted house" story, but found myself loving it. I had a hard time putting it down. I enjoyed how each person's story was written so differently, and I enjoyed how we found out more about what was happening with each subsequent visit to Slade House. Some words in the book were familiar from Cloud Atlas. When I looked it up, I discovered that, while each of his novels stands alone, Mitchell does view his novels as one great novel. So now I'm thinking about starting a new reading project in the future to read his books in publication order. Also, I was pleased that, for a haunted house story, this didn't really freak me out. I could read it at night and not have trouble sleeping.

Read for Personal Reading Challenges - book by browsing. Found re-browsing the Ms after putting the McKinley down.

September Reads



The Bear and the Nightingale - Retellings Challenge
The Creeping Shadow by Jonathan Stroud (Not Pictured)
Eleven Birthdays by Wendy Mass - Bluestem Challenge
The Empty Grave by Jonathan Stroud (Not Pictured)
Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie - Personal Reading Challenge
Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne - Back to the Classics Challenge
I Am Princess X by Arthur A. Levine - Caudill Challenge
Last in a Long Line of Rebels by Nancy Paulsen - Caudill Challenge
The Odyssey by Homer - Back to the Classics Challenge
The Scarecrow of Oz by L Frank Baum - Wizard of Oz Challenge
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin - Bluestem Challenge

Another very ambitious list. I looked at the calendar and realized many challenges are coming to an end soon. I have until February of 2018 for the Bluestem and Caudill challenges, so I'm pushing those books to the end of the month. The Stroud books aren't part of any challenge, but the fifth (and hopefully final) book comes out this month. I didn't read book four because I wanted to wait for this last one. I'm really excited for the book I picked for my personal challenge, and the book on my retellings challenge.

Tuesday, August 29, 2017

Tik-Tok of Oz by L Frank Baum


Title: Tik-Tok of Oz
Author: L Frank Baum
Pages: 271
Finished: August 29, 2017

First Sentence: "I won't!" cried Ann; "I won't sweep the floor."

Summary: Queen Ann of Oogaboo decides to raise an army and take over Oz, but when Glinda the Good finds out about this, the sorceress works some magic so the Oogaboo army ends up somewhere else. Meanwhile, Betsy Bobbin and her mule Hank find themselves shipwrecked in the land of the Rose Kingdom where they meet the Shaggyman and the Rose Princess. Also, Polychrome dances on the ground for too long during her father's visit to the land and finds herself stranded on the ground. When they all finally meet, up, they decide to save the Shaggyman's brother from the Nome King.

Thoughts: I remember this book. This is the one where the Shaggyman forgets he ever met POlychrome before! Right. The edition I read had an editor's note in here discussing how Baum wanted to write a play based off Ozma of Oz, but because he sold the rights to his characters to movie studios, he couldn't use them. Thus he made new characters for that play and called it TikTok of Oz. Betsy Bobbin was written as a stand in for Dorothy, and Queen Ann was originally written as a stand in for Ozma. When his fans wrote in for more Oz books, they asked for some of those characters to show up, and thus this story was born.

This does explain some of the massive continuity issues such as Shaggyman forgetting he ever met Polychrome when they traveled together in The Road to Oz (though I feel that should have been found and ironed out). However, some of his rules are still inconsistent. Obviously Betsy Bobbin and Hank were in Fairyland the minute they ended up in the Rose Kingdom, but Hank couldn't speak. Contrast that to Billina, Eureka, and Jim the Horse from their respective books. Even more obnoxious, Baum even goes so far as to explain that Toto actually can talk but refuses to!

Also, how does one pronounce Tititi-Hoochoo's name?

I feel like Guph was different than he was before. Of course, that could be explained by the forgetfulness that happened in one of the previous books, but Ruggedo (formerly Roquat) seemed just as nasty as he had been before.

I have six books left in this challenge. One a month isn't too bad, but they are definitely getting more and more difficult to read.

Read for The Wizard of Oz Read Along.

Sunday, August 27, 2017

A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen


Title: A Night Divided
Author: Jennifer A. Nielsen
Pages: 317
Finished: August 22, 2017

First Sentence: There was no warning the night the wall went up.

Summary: Gerta's father and brother travel to West Berlin just before the Berlin wall goes up, effectively separating the family for years. Gerta, her oldest brother, and her mother live on the East Berlin side of the wall. It's a world of want, spying on your neighbors, and wanton propaganda. Gerta thinks she'll never see her family again when she sees her father on a viewing platform, miming the act of digging. Now it's a race for her to dig her way under the wall before her brother is conscripted into the army.

Thoughts: The Cold War is a history I've read very little about, and what I know is primarily from the American side of things. It amazes me that conditions were like this so late in the game. By the time I was old enough to be aware of anything, Germany was a unified country again (though the wall came down in my lifetime). 

This year, the vast majority of the books on the Caudill list seem to be working to make kids aware of the situation at hand in our world. Books about kids who have no money, or are in bad situations and can't get out of them. Books about fascism. Books about racism. This one takes a historical look at a fascist country where people who are different are a threat. Definitely a world I don't want to live in.

Read for the Caudill Challenge.

Saturday, August 19, 2017

Back to the Classics Wrap Up

Final wrap-up for Back to the Classics 217 challenge.



1.  A 19th century classic : The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens. finished 12/19  
2.  A 20th century classic: The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath - finished 8/17
3.  A classic by a woman author: Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell - finished 3/14
4.  A classic in translation.  Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne - finished 9/14

5.  A classic published before 1800The Odyssey by Homer - finished 9/25
6.  A romance classic: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen - finished 12/10
7.  A Gothic or horror classic: Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier - finished 1/18
8.  A classic with a number in the title. 
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury - finished 8/1
9.  A classic about an animal or which includes the name of an animal in the title: The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling - finished 2/7

10. A classic set in a place you'd like to visit: The Once and Future King by T. H. White - finished 10/16
11. An award-winning classic: Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell - finished 5/30
12. A Russian classic: Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev - finished 6/15

Favorites: Rebecca, Wives and Daughters, The Once and Future King, Northanger Abbey

Least Favorites: The Jungle Book, Fathers and Sons, Journey to the Center of the Earth

Thursday, August 17, 2017

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath


Title: The Bell Jar
Author: Sylvia Plath
Pages: 273
Finished: August 17, 2017

First Sentence: It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn't even know what I was doing in New York.

Summary: Esther Greenfield talks about the summer she descends into madness and how she gets out again.

Thoughts: I will admit when I picked this book, I wasn't fully excited to read this. It's one I missed out on somehow, but people referred to it as the female Catcher and the Rye. I hated Cather in the Rye. But I wanted to try this.

I loved it. I read it in the span of 24 hours and probably could go again to get a better idea of what I read because I was reading so fast. I couldn't get over Esther's decent. How effortlessly Plath took us through the whole journey that went from, "Hmmm, Why is she so off?" to "Holy shit!" It was so accurate (and from what I've seen is semi-autobiographical). I'm so glad I added this too my list.

Read for the Back to the Classics Challenge

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline


Title: Ready Player One
Author: Ernest Cline
Pages: 372
Finished: August 14, 2017

First Sentence: Everyone my age remembers where they were and what they were doing when they first heard about the contest.

Summary: 2044. Economic collapse. Large amounts of unemployment. Large amounts of overcrowding. Really the only place anyone wants to be is in the OASIS, a virtual reality where one can be whomever they want. When OASIS's creator dies, he leaves his legacy in an Easter Egg, a giant contest. The winner gets his fortune and propriety of the game. And five years later, Wade Wilson finds the first clue. A clue that puts him and everyone else who finds it in danger.

Thoughts: I honestly knew nothing about this when I picked it up other than the fact that Wil Wheaton liked it. But we had to read a dystopia for a work book discussion, and I wasn't really feeling 1984 or The Giver. And while I want to reread Handmaids Tale, now's not the time.

So I picked up this, and boy am I glad I did. I immediately fell into the world of the OASIS. Now, I'm a 90s child, but my parents did try to show us some of the 80s stuff. So I really did enjoy the things they discussed. I enjoyed the storyline. Nice bit of speculative fiction.

Not part of a challenge.

Saturday, August 12, 2017

Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier


Title: Wildwood Dancing
Author: Juliet Marillier
Pages: 400
Finished: August 9, 2017

First Sentence: I've heard it said that girls can't keep secrets.

Summary: Jena and her sisters go dancing every full moon in the fairy realm located in the woods behind their home. When their father leaves for the winter to hopefully avoid the cold and get healthy again, he leaves two oldest sisters in charge with help from their cousin. When their cousin takes over the household and threatens to bring down the woods, it's up to Jena and her sisters to figure a way out of their situation. Part Twelve Dancing Princesses, part Dracula, and part Frog Prince, this is a very interesting story set in Transylvania.

Thoughts: The book took a little while to hook me. Cezar was intensely unlikable, to the point where I actually threw my book across the room in anger at him. The gaslighting was intense and very uncomfortable.  I did really appreciate a fairy tale set in Romania. I don't know my Romanian folklore so well, and I'm really looking forward to studying it more. In the end, I really did like the book, and I'm glad the bad guy got what was coming to him. I also really enjoyed the fact that the dancing was what the girls wanted to do rather than something they were forced to do by a malicious spirit as so many of the retellings talk about.

Read for my retelling challenge.