monthly wrap up

June 2023 Reading Wrap-Up

I had quite the good reading month in June and finished 9 books

Kaleb Cooper – The World According To Kaleb
I am honestly not sure what the point of this book was. Other than to make money.

Like most fans of Clarkson’s Farm, I utterly adored Kaleb but this book was… well, it was exactly what you’d expect of a sheltered young man who’s never left the village he’s grown up in or experienced any kind of life outside of his circle.

There were a couple of points that were really interesting, and the bits of the book where he was talking about farming, the tone totally changed and you could feel his love. But as an overall reading experience, it fell flat

A 1.25 star read

Andrea Penrose – Murder at Half Moon Gate (Wrexford & Sloane #2)
The second of the Wrexford & Sloane regency mysteries and another excellent read. All the characters felt more fleshed out and real, even the secondary ones, and I’m not even hating the flirting between Wrexford & and Sloane, which I normally HATE. The mystery kept me guessing, and the story kept the pages turning

Now to wait ~patiently for the next 15 weeks for the next one to be available at my library

A 4 star read

Tim Marshall – Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics
Not my usual topic of choice when reading non-fiction, but it had been on my radar as something I thought I’d like to read for years. Goodreads kept recommending it, and I’ve picked it up in the bookshop a couple of times but it never made it home. I spotted it on the Libby app and it was checked straight out. Annoyingly, neither of the library services I’m a member of have the rest of the series electronically, but Devon libraries does have them physically.

The book was absolutely fascinating and very information. I swear I learned more about the conflicts in the Middle East in 1o pages than I’ve ever learned in my entire life. I’ve also never been more ashamed to be a white British person – like, I knew colonialism caused a whole bunch of shit and we were responsible for it, but not quite to this extent.

I was also blissfully unaware of quite how close the world is to devolving into entire chaos, and how many different countries either Russia or China have a hand in. It now feels like the slightest hair-trigger could cause what now feels like the entire world to spiral into war – because no matter where it happens, either China, Russia or the US is involved and then India or Japan or the UK would get involved

It actually started to trigger my main agoraphobia symptoms – the one I’ve spent the last two years working on of ‘the world outside isn’t safe – so I had to put it down for a while, which is why it’s lost a half point.

I will, however, still be picking up and reading the next book – but with the proviso it’s going to be alternating read with something a little light and fluffy for the sake of my mental health

A 3.5 star read

Ransom Riggs – Library of Souls (Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children #3)
I’m really liking the mythology Riggs is building and weaving into the world of Peculiardom he’s created, but the stories themselves are getting repetitive. And I found the ending of this one to be particularly unsatisfying.

A 3.75 star read

Neil Gaiman – The Ocean At The End Of the Lane
My first reaction was ‘well that was bloody weird’, but it’s Neil Gaiman, so you kind of expect it. I’m not usually a fan of Gaiman’s style, which is a shame because I think he’s a fantastic storyteller and this was a wonderful, whimsical, fantastical tale which I thoroughly enjoyed. I think magical realism might have to be a genre I investigate a little more!

A 4.25 star read

Peter Ackroyd – Foundation (History Of England #1)
I have taken my time savouring this book because it is utterly fantastic! Also, hi, special interest, anyone? It covers everything from the neolithic through to the Wars Of The Roses and the death of Henry VII. I was filled with complete and utter glee for most of the reading and loved that even though he covered a HUGE amount of info, he didn’t get bogged down in the details. Straight-forward, to the point and a really good overview of the history of England. Ackroyd has this ability to bring the past to life in his narrative and I loved reading about the bits I didn’t know – and falling back in love with the Plantagenets and the Wars all over again (which, y’know, I always do!)

A 4.25 star read

Wendy Jago – How to Manage Your Mammoth: The Procrastinator’s Guide to Getting Things Done and Bringing Ambitions to Life
I picked this up from the library purely based on the title because it kind of intrigued me – I’m a terrible procrastinator, although how much of that is ADHD I don’t know. Also the cover made me laugh. I found a few useful pointers about figuring out what kind of worker you are, and how to use it to your advantage, and it didn’t feel particularly like it was talking down on me so it was definitely worth picking up

A 3 star read

Susan Cooper – Over Sea Under Stone (The Dark Is Rising #1)
Even though I’ve never read it before, this books reminded me of my childhood. I grew up in the West County, and played a lot of make believe/mystery-solving games, based a lot on Enid Blyton, and this had those same vibes. I also adore Arthurian mythology and the Grail.. so it was a no brainer really. I’m really glad Li recommended the series to me

A 3 star read

Alexis Caught – Queer Up: An Uplifting Guide to LGBTQ+ Love, Life and Mental Health
With the world rapidly turning back against not-straight and not-cis people like myself, it’s nice to actually read a really positive, uplifting, book about being queer. While it was definitely aimed at a younger audience, it’s a book that teen me would have been over the rainbow to read so I indulged. I couldn’t not pick it up from the library, I mean really!

A 3 star read

Looking more at the stats side of things:
9 books, 2608 pages – 56% between 300 & 499 pages long, 44% <300 pages
The main moods were mysterious & informative
78% medium paced, 22% face paced
56% non-fiction, 44% fiction
My most read genres were fantasy, young adult, and history
My average rating was 3.33

book reviews · life

A Quick Catch Up

So, the news in brief and some reading roundups are

The not-COVID I had at the beginning of the month? Yeah, it turned out to actually be COVID. Li and I were both pretty sick for about 10 days, and completely exhausted for about another week. I still get fatigued pretty quickly but thankfully we were both triple vaxxed and survived in once piece.

I got my module result for this year of my degree – for A112 Cultures I received a distinction. 86%! As you can imagine, I am over the freaking moon. So that’s my first academic year complete, 120 credits. Only another 4 modules to go, starting in October with A229 Exploring The Classical World

I’ve been playing a lot of Stardew Valley, and Star Trek: Timelines. Li managed to bring home a Wii the other day, I rediscovered my Game Boy Advance, and we’ve also set up my old SNES. There has been much retro gaming and it has been wonderful.

Of course, a lot of gaming, a slight complete addiction to Pointless, and introducing Li to the Bridgerton Netflix show has meant I haven’t done a huge amount of reading lately. The bookx I have read recently:

Matt Haig – Reasons To Stay Alive
3/5, memoir, mental health, non-fiction, psychology
Bizarrely, as much as I thoroughly enjoyed the other couple of Haig’s books, this one didn’t gel with me. I found it a little too self-help-y, a little too twee. I didn’t connect with it and felt it bringing me down, rather than uplifting me.

Mary Beard – How Do We Look / The Eye of Faith
4/5, art history, history, non-fiction, philosophy, religion
Very interesting, would have liked it to have gone a little more in-depth in a couple of places but I do love her descriptions of the art and places she’s visited and writes about, and it helps bring it to life for me. Her passion also shines through

Mira Grant – Parasite
5/5, horror, medical, science-fiction, thriller
OMG y’all, I could not put this down. It had been on my TBR for ages, finally got it out of the library and sat and read the whole thing in one afternoon. I was reacting outloud and flailing and squeaking at Li… who picked it up as soon as I finished it, also read it in one sitting – falling asleep at like 1am!

My reserves of Symbiont and Chimera have just come in and oh yes, I will be starting Symbiont tomorrow!

Holly Black – Tithe
3.5/, faeries, paranormal, urban-fantasy, young-adult
This one is very much a case of ‘I liked it, but…’ – I was disappointed, really. It was enjoyable enough but there was something missing. It was a little predictable in places, the characters needed a little more rounding and the pacing was… hmm… uneven. And even though there are more books in the series, I don’t care enough to see if the library even has them.

Melanie Cantor – Life and Other Happy Endings
3/5, chick-lit, family, friends, library, read, romance

Such a weird read, and literally lost starts with every section of the story. So it started off as this great 5-star read about a woman who found out she had 3 months to live and was telling people the things she wanted to tell them etc… only then she wasn’t dying because of a test result mix-up, and she was back to being trodden over… only then she was pregnant and yawn. She was way more interesting when she thought she was dying!

Joanna Hickson – First Of The Tudors
4/5, historical-fiction

We’ve covered my love for all things War Of The Roses, yes? And this was no exception! The story centers around Jasper Tudor, his wardship of young Henry Tudor and his relationship with Margaret Beaufort, and the intricacies of the Yorkists, Lancastrians, Tudors, and Warwick The Kingmaker. I will be checking out more of Hickson’s work – she has other stories set in the time period.

Which brings me on to what I’m currently reading:

book reviews

Drive-by Mini-Reviews, the second

I keep telling myself I’m going to get better at writing proper reviews as and when I finish a book but… it’s not going very well. I’m still not completely confident at writing them, if I’m being honest, but I can already tell I’m improving when I look at the difference in my post about The Lost Apothecary compared to some of my earlier reviews.

And, once again, my habit of reading too many books at a time (back up to 15 again!) means I’ve finished a bunch all at the same time. So you get another round of mini-reviews of them

A Court Of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
4/5, fae. fantasy, romance, young adult
This… this is not my normal sort of book. I hold up my hands and say I don’t like fantasy. But this is one of those books that EVERYONE loves. It’d been on my TBR for a while, probably a couple of years, but I wasn’t prepared to buy it, in case I didn’t love it. But then this year I’ve started using the library again, signed up for Libby and was able to get the book that way. And… and OH! Yes, I can absolutely see why everyone loves this book. The world-building didn’t feel all encompassing but actually just part of the story, we discovered the world as Feyre did and because we were seeing it through her eyes, there weren’t 7 pages about a blade of grass, y’know? I loved how the vivid and tangible Prythian feels and the characters are very real – interesting, annoying, frustrating, with genuine interpersonal relationships. It didn’t go where I was expecting it to and I ended up loving it more because of it. I got A Court Of Mist and Fury straight out of the library!

The Prison Doctor by Dr Amanda Brown
3/5, health, memoir, non-fiction
I picked this one up from the library because the title and summary intrigued me – a memoir of a doctor working in some of our most infamous prisons. I mostly liked it. Some of the anecdotes and stories she told were moving and heartbreaking – and some funny. But I was getting a sense of ‘holier than thou’ from her tone, she felt a little preachy in places and there was a lot of time spent reiterating how wonderful all these hardened violent criminals thought she was.

Greek Mythology: The Gods, Goddesses, and Heroes Handbook by Liv Albert
4/5, history, mythology, non-fiction
I love Greek Mythology. I have loved Greek Mythology for well over 30 years at this point, and I’m currently doing a Classical Studies degree. I also have friends who love mythology and recommended Liv’s podcast to me. I’ve listened to a few episodes but sadly podcasts and I are not friends – I think it’s my ADHD, I just zone out when people are talking at me. But when I heard she had a book, based on what I’d heard, I knew I had to have it. I was right. It’s a great overview of the characters and stories that feature in the mythology – just enough information to give a good feel for each one but without being overwhelming. The art is stunning (seriously, I want a print of the Zeus artwork) and the book has a informal, friendly tone.

The Body: A Guide for Occupants by Bill Bryson
5/5, biology, health, history, non-fiction, science
I don’t know where to start with writing about this book. I fucking loved it. I adore Bill Bryson’s style of writing and human biology/anatomy/physiology has been a fascination of mine since school biology lessons. I definitely wasn’t let down. It wasn’t a deeply scientific book but it also didn’t talk down to the reader and was filled with fascinating anecdotes and trivia that I had to share with my betrothed as I was reading – and our tagline became ‘but we don’t know why’. It’s both fascinating and horrifying how damn much we don’t know but at the same time, I loved re/learning the history of how we discovered what we do know.

I am still trying to read about 15 books (trying to get it down to 8) but mostly focusing on 5 of them:
Holly Black – Cruel Prince
Sarah J Maas – A Court Of Mist & Fury
Silvia Moreno-Garcia – Certain Dark Things
Heidi Swain – Summer at Skylark Farm
Ruby Wax – A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled

top ten tuesday · weekly wednesday blogging challenge · www wednesday

Classic Literature, Mythological Creatures and What I’m Reading Wednesday

So, yesterday’s Top Ten On Tuesday asked 21st Century Books I Think Will Become Classics and honestly, I don’t have an answer to this, mostly because the kinds of books I read aren’t ones that would be considered for that status. It did, however, inspire quite the conversation between me and the betrothed about what it takes for a work to be a classic, what makes a work a classic and what it means when something gets awarded that status

That makes two thinkythought posts brewing:
One about fantasy
One about the nature of classic works
Are you interested in reading these, and if so – which one would you like to hear first?

Now, moving on to today’s link-ups:
Weekly Wednesday Blogging Challenge asks What mythological animal you’d like to have as a pet and knee-jerk reaction is a unicorn. 
But then… there’s dragons and chimera and mermaids and sphinxes and griffins and phoenixes and cerberus etc etc and that doesn’t even begin to cover Pegasus! 
No, I’m totally not a mythology geek. No, I’m totally not studying Classical Studies because of my love of mythology… why do you ask? LOL

And last, but by no means least, we have WWW Wednesday asking:
What are you currently reading? I’m trying to focus on finishing three books right now: Dr Amanda Brown – The Prison Doctor; Bill Bryson – The Body; and Sarah J. Maas – A Court Of Thorns and Roses
What did you recently finish reading? I DNFed Rainbow Rowell – Eleanor & Park at the beginning of the week. I read the first 30 pages of it about 10 days ago, wasn’t really feeling and just couldn’t be bothered to pick it back up again. I think a mixture of not being the target audience and being very frustrated with how information was being drip-fed too slowly – I had no reason to care, and not enough interest to read enough to find out. 
What do you think you’ll read next? I think it’ll either be Matt Haig – Notes On A Nervous Planet and finishing two other in-progress books Rainbow Rowell – Fangirl and Liv Albert – Greek Mythology

book blogger hop · weekly wednesday blogging challenge

Genres

I have come across two different blogging prompts/link ups this week that are asking the opposite questions to each other, so I thought I’d combine them into one post.

First up, Weekly Wednesday Blogging Challenge! is asking Favourite Book Genre and why and while I’m not sure I can articulate the why, I can definitely enthuse.

I do love me some horror. Nothing particularly gorey but something that can make me scared (in a safe way) and keep turning the pages. I discovered Stephen King when I was in my early teens – I actually remember the librarian ringing my mum to ask if I was allowed to check one of his books out. He still remains one of my favourite writers, especially his older stuff – Firestarter, ‘Salem’s Lot, Misery, Carrie. So much love. Notable shouts also to Anne Rice and Poppy Z Brite, also Dean R Koontz and Richard Laymon.

My other main love is chick-lit. As much as I love escapism, I also like stories about people like me where everything works out fine, real people with real lives that we can recognise with a fantastic cast of characters and a happily-ever-after. Cecilia Ahern, Jaimie Admans, Christie Barlow, Marian Keyes, Belinda Jones, Ali McNamara, Mandy Baggot are among my favourites.

I also really love urban fantasy – and this actually ties in a little bit with this week’s Book Blogger Hop which is asking What genre do you refuse to read and why and oh, unpopular opinion time so I’ll probably going into witsec after saying this but I Do Not Like Fantasy. Specifically, high fantasy. It just… I have no patience for world-building, they all feel exactly the same and they bore me. I’ve tried so many (Tolkien, Eddings, Pratchett, Le Guin, Brooks, Goodkind) and I just can’t get into them.

But urban fantasy? I love it. It’s our world but just that little bit different. I love magic and magical realism, I love vampires, I love were-creatures, I love – to quote a beloved tv show – ‘vampires, demons, and the forces of darkness’. I grew up on Buffy and Charmed, fell headlong into Harry Potter in my 20s. Give me Ben Aaronovitch, Kelley Armstrong, Patricia Briggs, Jim Butcher, Rachel Caine, Cassandra Clare, Rick Riordan, Rachel Vincent…

I’m trying to expand my horizons a little and am giving some of the currently popular YA fantasy a go. I’m really enjoying Sarah J Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses and Holly Black’s The Cruel Prince. So possible I need to add ‘fae’ as a niche. I tried Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone but only got about 15 pages in before noping out, too fantasy for me.
Am open to more recommendations of this type of book

I struggle with comics/graphic novels/manga. Although as a child, I read a LOT of comics (Beano, The Real Ghostbusters, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and I had a definite manga phase in my early 20s (mostly yaoi). I’ve tried the Stargate, Sandman, Buffy etc graphic novels as well as trying to dip into Marvel but the style doesn’t work for me and I struggle to follow the story. The layout doesn’t make sense to my brain.

I don’t get on very well with a lot of humor – like I don’t get on with the style of Pratchett or Adams.
While I love chick-lit, I don’t like Mills & Boon/Harlequin style romances.
I can’t see me ever reading westerns.

So yes – loving horror, chick-lit and urban fantasy with science-fiction coming a close second. Also we need to give mystery, thriller and medical dramas a honourable mention. Ooh, and historical fiction, alternate history and steampunk
But not really into fantasy, harlequins or graphic novels.

Do you now see why my answer to “What type of book do you like” is ones with words in them? LOL

book reviews

Book Review: The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

Title: The Fault In Our Stars
Author: John Green
Dates read: 10/01/22 – 17/02/22
Rating 2/5

Publisher: Puffin
Number of pages: 316
Fiction or non-fiction: fiction
Subject or genre: young adult, romance, contemporary

Book blurb: Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning author John Green’s most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.

How I discovered or acquired this book: It’s been on my TBR for idk about 8 years or so. I’ve only recently started using the Libby app and this was available through Telford library so I figured it was time to read it and see what all the fuss was about

My thoughts So, obviously I’m not the target age range for this book, but I’ve read a handful of YA novels in recent years (albeit mostly dystopia) and I do love a good tear-jerker. I cry at everything – including TV adverts for RSPCA. I had tissues ready for this book. I didn’t need them. Not a single tear was shed, which considering there’s a major character death (wait, do I need spoilers for a decade old book?) It wasn’t terribly written, it wasn’t amazingly written. It felt kind of flat and emotionless considering the themes and I didn’t feel like I connected with the characters – I just didn’t care about anything that happened to them. I was quite disappointed because I’d been looking forward to reading this for a few years because I’d heard so much awesomeness about it.