The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead :: There's no doubt that Colson Whitehead is a great writer. I find his books (I also read The Underground Railroad last year) very easy to get absorbed into and The Nickel Boys is no different. This story follows the life of Elwood Curtis, a black boy who is sent to a reform school in Jim-Crow era Florida. This is not an easy story to read. The reform school is, as expected horrifying and worst of all, the events are based on real schools that punished young men who were too young, or their crimes too petty, for them to go to prison.
My one complaint about Colson's writing is that he's almost too cold in his writing. I felt like this reading The Underground Railroad. I felt like I was reading these awful things happen to the character from a very...cold narrator if that makes sense? The story is awful and sad but the emotional part of the storytelling is really missing for me.
Cosmopolis by Don DeLillo :: Have you ever read a book and thought "I am either really dumb or this book just doesn't make sense." I have no idea what happened in most of this book and apparently neither do most people who reviewed this on Goodreads. It follows a young tech billionaire as he travels in his limousine through New York City. If you're looking for a book that's confusing as all hell and you're not sure what the message is then maybe this book is for you. If you'd prefer a book that's a harder read but still comprehensible may I suggest DeLillo's White Noise. It's about noise pollution and the effects that have on one family.
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck :: A sweet and short read that I really enjoyed, Of Mice and Men follows the story of two men George and Lennie two displaced migrant workers in the 1930s. I have read Grapes of Wrath and found that novel a little hard to get through, so if you are after an easy read I highly recommend picking this up. I love the snapshot of the 1930s and always get a sense of how different and yet in some ways how similar the struggle of poverty and rural poverty still is when compared to life today.
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini :: I really enjoyed this book from the perspective of learning more about life before and after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. I picked this up because of what currently has been happening in Afghanistan. Like all of these books I didn't find this book really connected on an emotional level. I can highly recommend The Kite Runner which is also by Khaled Hosseini if you are after a more emotional story set in the same region.
The Secret History by Donnna Tart :: I've had The Secret History on my TBR list for so long, but once I read it I felt it was kind of overwhelming. I find Donna Tart books are a couple of hundred pages longer than I need to be. Again, it was an interesting read but I kind of felt like I was reading the story from afar and not really engaged with the emotional story of
