Hello everyone!
It’s the end of June already, how did that happen?? At the end of the month I always like to read people’s reading wrap ups. It is great to hear opinions on a couple of books at a time, it helps me to put new books on my reading list. Anyway, I thought I’d give it a go and see what y’all think :-)
I read a lot of books this month!
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness:
I had heard a lot about this book, all good things actually, and from the outside it looked as though I would really enjoy it. It’s dystopian, it’s fantasy, there is a talking dog…what’s not to like? The plot is very original, with the human race fleeing the planet to a new one. This new planet looks like an Eden, but it has a drawback, all the men project out their every thought and the thoughts and voices of all animals can be heard. Amidst this cacophony, the protagonist Todd finds a quiet spot. He also finds a girl, all his life he has been told that women died out years ago. Now he has to run… This book has a fabulous narrative and a fast pace, but it has so many sad twists that I found it uncomfortable to read. However, I think I will read the rest of the series, I have faith that it will cheer up!
The American Lover by Rose Tremain:
Another book I didn’t really enjoy :-( It was a trend this month it seems! The American Lover is a series of short stories, all following troubled characters. Some of the stories are beautiful, some are sad and some end with hope. It was a very mixed bag and it definitely had all the feels! If you like short stories then it is definitely worth a read, the prose is stunning. The characters back grounds are widely varied in country, time, gender and lifestyle. I know I said that I didn’t really enjoy it, but I’m not really a person for sad stories. However, if you like the melancholy, then you should read it.
The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie:
I always love an Agatha Christie! This one follows a plucky young woman, Anne, as she searches for mystery and adventure. Joke is on her I guess, she sure does find it! One day as she waits for a train she witnesses an accident, a man falls backwards onto the tracks. It all seems so much like a tragic accident, but then the doctor strikes her as odd… Following her instinct she pursues him, picking up a mysterious note he drops. This note leads her whole life in a new direction, becoming tangled up in some of the darkest pasts. Aaaannndd I won’t say anymore, can’t go spoiling a good mystery now can I?
Attachments by Rainbow Rowell:
Another masterpiece by Rainbow, all her books are wonderful and this one might even be my favourite. Who is old enough to remember when internet became mainstream? Well I am :-P This book follows 3 main characters really, in a super witty plot. Lincoln is an internet security officer employed to read the emails of the staff on the newspaper. Except he mainly ends up reading the emails of two friends Beth and Jennifer as they laugh and chat about their day to day lives. The more he reads, the harder it is to stop and he finds himself falling for Beth. Read this book to see if love BEFORE first site can lead to a wonderful encounter :-)
The Children of Húrin by J.R.R Tolkien:
Tolkien has long been one of my favourite authors, he manages to spin a whole world within the pages of a book. He is the master story teller and this book is as ethereal and haunting as the rest. The children of Húrin are cursed by the Dark Lord Morgoth, twisting a tragic faith for them both. No matter how far they run, or who they try to become they cannot escape their past or their destiny…This story made me shiver, it was so dark! It also has a very interesting narrative, reading like a history book in a similar style to the Silmarillion instead of the standard prose of The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell:
Yeah I kind of binged the Rainbow Rowell books this month, but in my defence this is just a little one. Kindred Spirits is a short story written for World Book Day. Elena is a huge fan of Star Wars, so it is completely natural for her to go and join the other hard core fans standing in line days before the release of the new film. However, it is not quite the magical experience she expected. Sandwiched between taciturn Gabe and over-enthusiastic Troy, Elena learns what it is to sleep outside, pee in a starbucks cup and share excitement people who truly feel the same as she does. This story is heartwarming and funny. Seriously, I had to try really hard not to laugh out loud and freak out the other passengers on the train.
Selected Poems by John Keats:
I have always been a lover of poetry, especially the darker more gothic styles. However, from some bizarre oversight I had never read any Keats before this month! Shocking, I know!! So to continue my collection of these beautiful Faber and Faber edition of selected poems I decided to pick up this selection of Keats. Andrew Motion has honestly selected the most wonderful of Keats’ work. I have so many favourites now, among them La Belle Dame Sans Merci, Hyperion and Ode to a Nightingale. In fact, I need to give you a quote, that way you can all fall in love as I have and will become equally addicted to Keats.
I cannot see what flowers are at my feet,
Nor what soft incense hangs upon the boughs,
But, embalmèd in darkness, guess each sweet
Wherewith the seasonable month endows
The grass, the thicket, and the fruit-tree wild -
White hawthorn, and the pastoral eglantine;
Fast fading violets covered in leaves;
And mid-May’s eldest child,
The coming musk-rose, full of dewy wine,
The murmurous haunt of flies on summer eves.
From Ode to a Nightingale
Keats’ poetry is often scorned as cliché, but I feel like it should be considered more as pure. It is beautiful and ethereal, it’s honesty makes my heart ache. I found it entirely lacking in clichés and fell in love with its return to basic rhyme.
What books have you enjoyed reading this month? Let me know in the comments below :-)
xoxo
