I am a huge Haruki Murakami fan and have read almost everything he wrote. So it was inevitable that I would read 1Q84. It was huge and I thought there was no way I was getting through it. I listened to it on audio. It was 30-some hours. That’s about four times longer than most books.
But alas. I listened to all of it.
I couldn’t stop. Even as it got repetitive and weird and annoying and repetitive.
Yes it was super repetitive.
Annoyingly so.
But I still loved it in that weird, crazy, inexplicable way only Murakami can write.
Having said that if you’ve never read him before, I certainly would not recommend starting with this one.
Another book I read not to watch the movie first was We Bought a Zoo and I am glad I read it. (Listened to actually.) It was really interesting and fascinating.
From what I’ve seen in the previews, the movie looks like they’ve changed the plot quite a bit. Have any of you both read and seen it? Is it worth seeing? I mean, it does have Matt Damon in it, but still I hate getting disappointed when the book is so different.
I was looking for something super-quick to read so I looked at my waiting young adult list and picked up The Adoration of Jenna Fox. Quick, interesting, and fun. Not nearly as violent as the usual.
the good news is that even though this is another “series” book, it does resolve (at least in my opinion) to a good enough place to leave you less up in the air than the others.
Alas, I think I won’t read the next one just yet. I like to take a break between them usually.
I picked up The Lover’s Dictionary because of Amy Sorenesen. She mentioned she liked it and I trust her taste.
And I loved it.
I mean, Amy, I really really loved it.
There was something absolutely magical about this book that I can’t quite put my into words. The writing is exquisite. The ability to express such profound sentiments in such simple words swept me away. The style of this book is so unique but don’t let that fool you, it’s truly a masterpiece.
At least for me.
I really loved it and thank you so much Amy!
I have a rule about reading the book before I watch the movie so when I saw the previews for The Descendants I knew I had to read the book first. Especially since it got good reviews.
And I am so glad I did.
It was a fast read but also a great read. A rare combination in my opinion. I loved the characters and the story. Now I can’t wait to actually see the movie. I hope it won’t disappoint after such a lovely book.
I am looking forward to reading more of this author.
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet was another book club pick. I’ve read David Mitchell before and I loved him so I was open minded and happy to read this book.
And even though it’s considerably different from his usual style, this was a great book. I’ll admit that I listened to it and did art at the same time and if I’d just read it, it might have felt a bit dry in places.
But the story and the characters were marvelous. Even though I found it to be a bit sad, it wasn’t over the top and it was truly a marvelous read.
If you like historical fiction, I recommend it.
I bought Self Compassion: Stop Beating Yourself Up and Leave Insecurity Behind because it was recommended in my Ordinary Courage class. At first, I started reading it right away but then life got in the way and I didn’t get to really dig into it and finish it until the holidays last year.
And it was AMAZING.
I mean truly amazing.
If you tend to beat yourself up at all (and I sure do) I cannot recommend this book enough.
I would love to quote large sections from it but I am way too tired and sick to write them up. But trust me when I tell you that this is an truly worthwhile read.
In fact, I think I will have to reread sections of mine right now.
After a lovely, literary book like Angle of Repose, I had to move to something light and fun so I read about Variant in Stephanie Howell’s blog and got it and read it pretty much in two days.
I was really really mad at the end because I didn’t know it was part of a series and it left with a pretty big cliffhanger. Books like that make me mad. But alas it was a great read and I really enjoyed it.
So now I have to wait for number two.
Argh.
When Jake and I were planning to move to the West Coast, several people told me to read Angle of Repose. It’s the quintessential California book, I was told. I bought it.
But I never read it.
We’ve now been in the west coast for nine years. And I finally got to read it thanks to book club. And you know what? It was wonderful. Slow in parts, quite sad but still beautifully written and told. I haven’t read any of his other books but now I know I want to.
And I must admit, it’s not as much about California as it is about moving to the west. A solid, wonderful read.
I’ll admit I read Moneyball (or more like listened to it) because Jake forced me to. HE really wanted me to read it before we saw the movie so I pretty much listened 24-7 until I was done and that night we went to see the movie.
In the end, I am glad I read it. It’s a spectacular story even if you’re not into baseball. And while the movie was different in some ways, it was also good. In the end, the book was much better.
Of course.
I read Enclave because I was looking for something quick and fun. And it was both. I liked the characters and the story. It’s nothing amazing or exceptional but if dystopian is your style I think this is a lovely read. (albeit a bit violent, but all the dystopians seem to be.)
I can’t remember if this is a series or not. Almost all of them seem to be lately. But it does have some good closure in the end which I liked. It’s a super fast read.
I am not a fan of short stories. But connected stories like the ones in Winesburg, Ohio are more my style. And all the reviews for this book were so darling that I couldn’t wait to read it.
I will admit that while I enjoyed it a lot more than I usually enjoy short stories, I still had a hard time getting through this book. It might have been my mood or my state of mind at the time but either way I struggled my way through it.
Looking back, I am glad I read it and if you like short story collections, this one is certainly worth checking out.
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projects for twenty twenty-four
projects for twenty twenty-three
projects for twenty twenty-two
projects for twenty twenty-one
projects for twenty nineteen
projects for twenty eighteen
projects from twenty seventeen
monthly projects from previous years
some of my previous projects
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