Top Ten Tuesday: DNF Books

I used to do Top Ten Tuesday's all the time, but it's been years since I've rounded up my favourite books that fit the weekly theme. First of all, my TTT happens on a Wednesday, because hello timezones, and this week the theme is books we Did Not Finish. I've tried to sum up why I DNF each book as succinctly as possible.

Moby Dick by Herman Melville :: I talked in my last post about being separated from my Kindle thanks to the lockdown, for the past six weeks. To combat having a lack of access to books, I downloaded this book (for free) onto my phone. I don't know what to say other than that I just don't gel with some overly flowery classics. I thought I would enjoy this book, since I lived in New England for the past year and a bit, but I could not deal with the convoluted language.

Emma by Jane Austin :: This is actually a firm favourite of mine! I downloaded it onto my phone and I think the main reason I stopped reason is I found a physical book to read. No idea what that book was but I would re-read Emma in a heartbeat.

A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway :: Sensing a theme here? I think there are classics that help you ease into the writing of old authors, and A Moveable Feast was not that book. The book is a bunch of stories told from Hemingway's point of view about life in the 1920s. I don't know what I was expecting but it felt like a lot of rambling with some famous names (Fitzgerald) thrown in for good measure.

Hitman Anders and the Meaning of it All by Jonas Jonasson :: I don't think I've ever read, or at least finished, a Jonasson book before. He had huge success with the 100 Year Old Man and The Girl Who Saved The King of Sweden. I think the writing style just doesn't hook me in that much. I like humorous books, but I felt like this book kind of banked on 'getting' the humour of his past work in order to keep you entertained.

Love Unscripted by Owen Nicholls :: This had all the hallmarks of a book I would enjoy; references to cinema, a love story, kind of snarky characters. I just couldn't get into this book. It's an adult romance, which is fine, but after reading the exceptionally cute Again, But Better, (which is YA) I just found the characters a little grating and unlikeable. It's told in retrospect, so a lot of flaws in their love life are discussed but...there was something about airing all the negative elements of the character's relationship that put me off being invested in their story.

None of these books were 'bad' reads, I just struggled with my own expectations to really get into any of them. I'd love to know if you enjoy any of the books I have mentioned above and what your most recent DNF books are.

Everything I Read In March and April 2020

March and April were significant reading months for two very different reasons; we started lockdown here in New Zealand, and I made the critical mistake of leaving my Kindle at my house, while I was 'sheltering' at my mum's house an hour away. Originally, my stay was supposed to be for 14 days, but six weeks later I was allowed to travel back home.

On the one hand, I had been trying to reduce the amount of money I was spending on Kindle Amazon books, but I don't think the pandemic was the best time to test how easy this would have been. Even so, I managed to read some great books over the past two months.

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck :: I absolutely fell in love with East of Eden when I read it two years ago and was excited to try a second Steinbeck novel. Overall, I didn't love the experience of reading this novel. It was driven by dialogue and written in a heavy Okalhomian dialect that required some mental gymnastics to interpret what was being said, and what was actually meant. I did like the overall themes of the novel and exploring just how abruptly lives were changed during the Great Depression. It certainly made me think, and considering I read this mere weeks before the lockdown, now have an even deeper sense of empathy for those who were forced to survive by any means necessary during this time.

Again, But Better by Christine Riccio :: This was the perfect follow up to the slog (sorry) that Grapes of Wrath felt like at times. It's a fun story about second chances that actually, unexpectedly hit me in the feels. I knew Riccio was a Youtuber and was intrigued to read her debut novel. It's a cute, funny YA novel about a college girl called Shane who has been 'doing college wrong.' Stuck in her room reading books and going to classes, Shane signs up for a year abroad and decides to put herself out there, make friends and is determined to have her first kiss. This is a really sweet read that hits on many pressures that students face about seeing their college years as the "best years of their lives." There is also a fun twist that I had to admit, I did not see coming.

The Farm by Joanne Ramos :: I wanted to love this book, but it almost became a DNF. I think part of the problem is that it's packaged as a dystopian novel which made me think it would be more like the Handmaid's Tale or The Power. Instead, the drama mainly centres around the mother, Jane, an immigrant from the Phillippines, who becomes a surrogate at The Farm. Overall I liked the premise of this book, but the way the drama was constructed was unbelievable at times. Mainly, Jane was prohibited from seeing her own daughter and was finding The Farm increasingly controlling. It just seemed weird to me that the book focused so much on surrogates living a stress-free and healthy life but then prohibited Jane from seeing her daughter, something which would be crazy-stressful for any parent. It had potential but didn't live up to the hype for me.

Know My Name by Chanel Miller :: Chanel was originally known as Emily Doe, the victim in the Brock Turner sexual assault case. I was surprised at how well Chanel writes and that the warmth and humour with which she tells her story only makes it all the more frightening. I came away from this book feeling angry that survivors like Chanel are treated more like victims, that privilege has an enormous part to play in how we treat offenders, and that Chanel spent more time fighting her case than her offender served in prison. For a dark read, it's still filled with moments of light and hope despite the subject matter.

Normal People by Sally Rooney :: Wow, what a showstopper of a read. I loved Normal People, but also kind of disliked the characters because of how realistically flawed they were. The book follows Connell and Marianne's deeply flawed on-again off-again relationship through high-school, university and into their adult lives. Messy, and realistic, it's one of the more interesting portrayals of growing up, finding love, and figuring out right from wrong.

Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton :: This was a cracker of a read.Told in a uniquely Australian voice, Boy Swallows Universe follows the life of Eli Bell, a 10-year-old boy growing up in 1980s suburban Brisbane. Eli's childhood is anything but normal. His brother is mute, his father is in prison, his mum is a junkie, his step-dad deals drugs and his babysitter is a notorious criminal. Even so, Eli's life is filled with love, albeit in a flawed way. When a local drug king-pin pays his family a visit, leaving his mum in jail and his step-dad missing, Eli is determined to set things right.

My January - February Goal List

Since moving stateside I've experience the turtle speed slowness that January and February have crept by at. These months have always been my favourite at home. It's hot (finally) and the pace of life crawls in a good way. Nights are spent outdoors and the days feel like they're never going to end. In contrast the northern hemisphere shares many of these same attributes, it's just not as appealing when the average temperature is below freezing and it's still snowing in February. Here's how I've been tacking my goals in the depths of the winter season.

Manuscript: The hardest part about starting again on my manuscript has been...starting. I knew I wanted to make a lot of changes to my first draft - big changes - I wanted to make my main character younger so it was a firmly YA story and the overall 'feeling' my first draft gave me felt like it was too heavy. My character is going through a lot of growing pains but I still wanted my book to feel optimistic and funny. I've edited 9,000 words this month and written a much more solid outline for the book, changing up scenes I no longer thought worked or were necessary. I'm enjoying this process much more than I did when I first wrote my draft.

Sustainable shopping: Overall I think I definitely need to scale back on the amount of clothing I buy  but I'm pleased to say that 90% of what I've bought this month has been second hand, However some things have crept into my cart just because they were cheap versus an actual need for them (which I never do when paying full price). I failed in early January by buying a pair of sweatpants and leggings from Old Navy as I really really needed some warm cosy pants that I could wear at home. I also bought a warm winter coat brand new but to be honest I don't regret this purchase as it's so warm and I didn't want to risk buying something that had already been worn to death.

Read more books: I'm five books into my reading goal of completing 30 books this year which is way ahead of schedule! So far I've read the latest book in The Diviners trilogy, Wild by Cheryl Strayed, The Underground Railroad by Coulson Whitehead, Into the Water by Paula Hawkins and The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock. I'll put up some brief reviews soon!

Career: I've talked a little bit about being interested in transitioning into UX design in the future. So far I've signed up for a few free introductory courses on the subject and have really enjoyed it. I'm still interested in applying some of what I've learnt into a more practical project though as even though I find the theory interesting I want to try applying what I've learnt in a real world way.

How are your goals going this year?

Top Ten Tuesday: Food Glorious Food

This week's Top Ten Tuesday with The Broke and the Bookish is a celebration of food in books.

Harry Potter :: From the feasts in the great hall to all the delicious candy featured in Harry Potter, it is hard to choose a favourite food from these books. I did always wish to try butter beer though.

The 100-Foot Journey by Richard C Morais:: A beautiful descriptive exploration of food, from India to France.

Chocolat by Joanne Harris :: My favourite book featuring delectable food because chocolate is my number one. Come to think of it, all of Joanne Harris' books feature richly descriptive foods that will make you increasingly hungry.

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen :: Like Chocolat, the food in Garden Spells holds its own type of magic.

Longbourne by Jo Baker :: Told from the servants perspective, Longbourne takes us inside the working quarters of Pride and Prejudice and while this is more about the workings of the kitchen's than a particular type of food, I can't recommend this book enough.

Thoughts on Lolita And Expectations v Reality

I finally got around to reading Nabokov's Lolita. It's take roughly ten years since I first discovered it but really it wasn't for wont of trying. At 19 I had picked it up many times at the library and always ended up shelving it again. It seemed, creepy, and so I always ended up putting it away again. At this stage I knew it was about a grown man who was infatuated with young girls but I hadn't really heard it lauded universally as one of the greatest books ever written.

Well I finally got around to reading it this year and while I enjoyed it, it really was a difficult book for me to make my mind up about. Maybe it was about knowing too much before I went into it. There was no surprise at the character of Humbert Humbert. I knew that I was supposed to fall for his charming ways. I already knew his secret and that he was supposed to charm me into rooting for his unconventional love story.

It's just that it didn't happen that way. I enjoyed the book. I was enamoured with Nabokov's writing. But I didn't really like Humbert Humbert. I didn't find him charming at all and that was kind of the crux of this book. I was supposed to be grappling with liking a character who was doing something legally and morally wrong! It's just that having known all about the book and what I was supposed to be thinking, I ended up feeling the opposite.

I wonder what I would have thought of it ten years ago without the weight of expectation on my shoulder reading it. Ten years ago Lolita was just a book I wanted to read for no other reason than I had heard the name. I enjoyed Lolita. I love Nabokov's writing. Hell, I even had a favourite sentence three pages in (he describes Humbert Humert's father's lineage as a 'salad of racial genes'). I'm just not sure it lived up to the expectation of being the best thing I ever read, which is an unfair pressure.

It can be hard to quieten the noise of others sometimes. I watched a video recently of someone who had just read Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and they had mused on something similar. They just thought it was going to be, more. More what, they weren't sure. I guess that's how I felt about Lolita.

After watching Better Than Food's book review of Lolita, it turns out I'm not the only one. His video says it much more eloquently than me.

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Boyfriends

Today's Top Ten Tuesday with the Broke and the Bookish is all about Book Boyfriends. Initially I was going to do the best bookish boyfriends, I've put together a list of my favourite books whose boyfriend characters embody the love is complicated theme. Caution: You may not want to date some of them.

The Course of Love by Alain De Botton :: If you have never read or heard of English philosopher Alain De Botton and are interested in philosophy check out the School of Life series narrated by AdB on Youtube. The Course of Love follows the love story of a couple from the day they meet. Interspersed with reflections and nuggets of philosophy that explain why we make weird decisions in relationships, this is a great read that will get you thinking about the complexities of falling in love.

The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller :: Sometimes the most fleeting of love stories can have the most profound effect on us. A married woman has a brief affair with a photographer and can't forget him. Beautifully written and compelling.

The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P by Adelle Waldman :: Nathaniel P might be a bit of a twat (read: he is), but this is a highly entertaining read. Nate's star is on the rise, he's a literary up-and-comer, has an ivy-league education and his pick of women but just can't seem to figure out what it is he wants, until he gets the girl and no longer wants her. You'll probably enjoy reading about Nate the shallow man-child if you also liked About a Boy or High Fidelity, as it's a little in the same vein.

Landline by Rainbow Rowell :: I love how Landline is like a love story in reverse. Georgie and Neal's marriage is crumbling under the pressures of work and kids. When Neal takes their children to Omaha for Christmas and Georgie stays in LA for work, Georgie is forced to re-evaluate her marriage and re-discovers why she fell in love with her husband all over again. Cute.

Sidenote: If you're looking for actual Bookish boyfriends to crush on I would recommend Emma (because Mr Knightly = yes), The Winter Rose by Jennifer Donnelley or the Outlander series.

Dear Reader by Mary O'Connell

Well this was a fun, cute little read that got a little weird towards the ending. Dear Reader by Mary O'Connell centres around 17-year-old catholic school girl Flannery Fields. Flannery is enamoured with her English teacher Miss Sweeney and their current reading material Wuthering Heights. When Miss Sweeney is a no-show at class one day Flannery makes it her mission to find her missing English teacher.

When the police are called into School, Flannery does all she can to help. She just can't quite part with Miss Sweeney's copy of Wuthering Heights which has transformed into Miss Sweeney's real-time diary. As Flannery sets off for New York City in search of her beloved teacher Flannery meets Heath Cliff, an English university student who helps her on her mission.

The book is told between Flannery's perspective and Miss Sweeney's diary and has the Wuthering Heights-esque use of convoluted language throughout. I did enjoy the flicking back and forward between Miss Sweeney's diary and Flannery's adventure. I remember being surprised that my teachers had a life outside of school. Flannery discovering her teacher's past as a student in New York is very reminiscent of that. It did feel like some of the heavier points of Miss Sweeney's past were glossed over. She is struggling with the death of an ex-boyfriend and taking anti-depressants -  serious issues which I didn't feel were given enough focus, even though they are integral to the ending of the story.

What I did enjoy about Dear Reader was Flannery's chapters were interspersed with thoughts of Miss Sweeney's critiques on her writing, which was very amusing. The ending was where it all fell apart for me though. Without giving too much away the ending felt like it belonged in another book. Flannery set off on her mission to find her teacher but the final chapter didn't seem to fit with her character arc at all which was unexpected and disappointing. Overall, Dear Reader is a cute and easy to read story, but one that didn't quite hit the mark.

Book Slumps And How To Fix Them

I am in a book slump. A funk. A pickle, if you will. Ironically since I started studying writing this year and completing my own work I have hardly finished a book. This is greatly upsetting, because a) your girl loves to read so what, whyyyy?? is this happening and b) my writing is so much better when I read. It's like I forget how to word properly without it. See?

Anyway, this post wasn't intended to just be a whinge. I thought I would throw down some tips and see how to get my reading back on.

1. Find a guaranteed good book. Now is not the time to be picking up Ulysses by James Joyce.* Nope, we are in an easy-to-finish zone only here. Find something pacey, fun, entertaining and get to work. (I've picked a very cute book called Dear Reader which I shall elaborate on when I finish).

2. Take your book everywhere with you. I always find myself in random places thinking, 'Isn't this a lovely place to sit a while and contemplate life?' In about two minutes time I start panicking and thinking that other people are looking at me for being a weirdo on their own just sitting staring into the distance. While I should probably care less about this, it also brings me to the fact that I get bored easily anyway and bringing a book along for these moments would provide entertainment and stop me from looking weird.

3. Stop watching Youtube. Guilty as charged. I even did a post last month about my favourite Youtubers to binge-watch. My bad. I quite enjoy watching a few videos in the morning as I much my breakfast but really at night it's not a great habit as the blue light is bad for keeping you awake longer and I'm usually watching very half-arsedly anyway.

4. Read x amount of pages per day. Sometimes it takes a little more concentration to get over the hump of a book and get into the story. A few chapters to break the ice could be all I need to stick to a book and see it all the way through.

*Was never going to do that ever anyway. Let's be honest.

Top Ten Tuesday: My Spring TBR List

September brings with it the changing of the seasons and thankfully means longer nights, sunny days and the wild and windy weather Wellington is known for! Surprisingly despite the coming warmth my to be read list is looking pretty dark. Take a look at this week's Top Ten Tuesday!

The Power by Naomi Alderman :: A sci-fi novel about a diverse group of teenage girls and how their lives change when they inherit the physical power. Seemingly overnight the world changes. I love this take on feminism and whether the world would change for better or worse, if women were physically dominant.

The Girl Who Takes an Eye For An Eye by David Lagercrantz :: Continuing on the Girl With The Dragon Tattoo series, David Lagercrantz delivers the fifth book in the series. I read The Girl In The Spider's Web a few years ago and really enjoyed it.

The Break Down by B A Paris :: It's been a while since I've indulged in reading crime fiction and The Break Down has come up in my media feeds a lot lately.

Room and The Wonder by Emma Donoghue :: I absolutely loved Frog Music by Emma Donoghue and have always wanted to read more from this compelling author. Although Room and The Wonder are two very different books I love discovering authors who write a broad range of fiction.

Into The Water by Paula Hawkins :: Another crime book! I really enjoyed The Girl on The Train.

Top Ten Books: Featuring Students

This Top Ten Tuesday has a distinctive student theme. Here are ten great reads loosely featuring students!

Armada by Ernest Cline
I am 45 pages into Armada but this science fiction novel from the author of Ready Player One has sparked my interest. Zack Lightman a student (with a most excellent moniker) sees a flying spaceship from his favourite video game while daydreaming out the window one day.

Fan Girl by Rainbow Rowell
A coming of age story about a young girl who writes fan fiction. It's a cute, easy read that deals with all the anxieties of starting university and pushing yourself out of your comfort zone. Oh, and young love.

Harry Potter by J K Rowell
Having recently binge watched the entirety of the Harry Potter movies it might be time to revisit these timeless books.

The Catcher in the Rye by DJ Salinger
16 year old Hayden Caulfield's story of teenage rebellion is a modern classic.

Paper Towns by John Green
A snappy road-trip coming-of-age novel from YA master John Green. I preferred the book to the movie.

The Opposite of Loneliness: Essays and Stories by Marina Keegan
A post-humous collection of writing from Yale graduate Marina Keegan whose essay of the same name went viral.

Girl At War by Sara Novic and Why You Need Tissues

I have read a few war novels over the years but Girl At War stands out for a few reasons - the main one being it's a much more personal experience. Told from Ana's perspective, Girl At War follows her journey from a carefree ten year old living in Zagreb in 1991, to surviving the ethnic atrocities and fleeing to America. As a college student Ana can't escape from her past, and returns to Croatia to lay her ghosts to rest.

I can't tell you how many times I cried during this book. I think in the end my eyes just had a permanent watery state about them. Watching the war through Ana's eyes was heartbreaking and yet, she is such a strong character, resilient and determined in many ways. I think it was her strength that sometimes upset me, that a child of ten becomes used to the backdrop of war, death and terror. I remember watching the war unfold on television as a child and it dawning on me for the first time that there were people around the world living in fear, persecuted simply for their race or religion. I was about seven at the time. Maybe some of those childhood memories came back to me while reading this, I'm not sure. But, whatever it was, Girl at War was an emotional reading experience.

There were other reasons this book stood out to me. Sara Novic touches on the themes of grief and resilience. As Ana struggles to adjust to life in America she learns to bury the ghosts of her war for the sake of those around her. Like grief, empathy for Ana's situation is shortlived, with most people wanting to move on - her adoptive parents refer to the war never directly for fear of not wanting to upset her. Unfortunately, as anyone who experiences grief knows, these feelings don't just fade away. There is no getting over losing someone, including your home and culture. Ana struggles with feelings of loss - both for the family she has left behind and being an outsider in her new home and guilt at not feeling grateful for the new life she has been given.

I hope I haven't painted this book as a depressing read, because it's not but Ana's story will stay with you long after closing the final chapter. There is death, but there is also hope and peace in Ana's story. Overall Girl at War was a stunning read, unlike any war novel I have read before.

Top Ten Tuesday: Book to Film Recommendations

Top Ten Tuesday returns! While the rest of the world is basking in summer, down here in the south pacific we're rugged up on the couch with a blanket and a good book. With so many book to screen adaptations this year, here's my picks of what you should read first. Check out more from Top Ten Tuesday on the Broke on the Bookish.

Big Little Lies :: Liane Moriarty
An Australian novel that follows the lives of a handful of women and the suspicious circumstances around a murder. The movie version was set in California and has a stunning cast (Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon) but the book is really great and deserves a look in. Liane has a lighthearted writing style but manages to tap into the emotional heart of a story. I love that this book delves into the lives of 'normal' women, they are mothers and wives all balancing their own identities with those of their family and kids.

Ready Player One :: Ernest Cline
When I saw the trailer for this move a while ago I made a mental note to read the novel before I see the movie. Sci-fi and fantasy is something I have been pushing myself to read more and the fact that Ready Player One has a fun 'retro' element to it with references to the 80s makes it more palatable for non-science fiction readers.

The Handmaiden's Tale :: Margaret Atwood
I'm going to suck it up and just buy this damn book as every visit to the library has it checked out. Surely a classic that I would *probably* read again and again.

The Circle :: Dave Eggars
Staring Emma Watson, The Circle was a book I read earlier in the year and couldn't put down. It's a fast paced thrilling science fiction novel that had me questioning the future of privacy and sharing information online. The Circle is a giant tech company that encourages the use of shared information online but the loss of privacy comes at a cost.
  
Live by Night :: Denis Lehane
With Mystic River, Gone Baby Gone, The Drop and Shutter Island all successful movies adapted from Lehane's novels, it's no wonder there's another film the pipeline this year. If gangsters, prohibition and 1920s America sounds like your cup of tea then Live By Night might be too.

The Snowman :: Jo Nesbo
I love Scandinavian crime fiction and this adaptation makes me very happy since Michael Fassbender plays Detective Harry Hole. Dt Hole is called in to investigate a woman's disappearance, of which the only clue is a scarf left behind on a snowman. This is a Jo Nesbo book I haven't yet read but if it's anything like The Leopard I think I would enjoy it.

Other People Recommend #1

Today I'm stealing my favourite people's book recommendations and passing them on to you! I love seeing what books my friends and family love reading. Being a book lover the subject of reading often comes up so from now on I thought I wouldn't keep these gems to myself. Here are 6 recommendations that don't come from me:

Norwood by Charles Portis
If you're into gritty reads my Dad recommended this to me because of my love for Cormac McCarthy. It's a very slim book so maybe a good idea for those who haven't dipped a toe into the western genre before.

Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
I have only even read one article by David Foster Wallace. It was about lobsters. It was brilliant. This is a hugely intimidating book at over 900 pages but if the man can make half a dozen pages on lobsters entertaining then I'm pretty much sold.

Goodmorning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton
A science fiction novel set between the polar regions of the Arctic and outer space. This recommendation comes from one of my fellow writing students and it sounds amazing!!

Station Eleven by Emily St John Mendel
This book was doing the round as a great read on Youtube when it first came out. More recently Books and Quills had it as her End of the World Bookclub pick (great name by the way). She has great taste in books so this is sure to be a winner.

The Plague by Albus Camus
I bloody love a good Favourites Youtube video and stumbled across some recommendations from Arden Rose. Her top picks included Catch 22 and Lolita so I felt like this classic book could be a great recommendation.

Mid Year Book Manifestations

With over half of 2017 gone (where? how?) I thought it would be fun to do a little mid-year check-in and set some manifestations for the remaining months ahead. With course-related reading out of the way I wanted to share some goals/personal mantras that I'm hoping to take with me throughout the rest of the year and beyond. Here they are:

Read More New Zealand Authors
My mum has always been great at buying and reading New Zealand fiction whereas when I was growing up all I wanted to read was anything set in a different culture. I want to get better at reading New Zealand stories and authors. Mr Pip by Lloyd Jones and The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton are two great examples of what authors in this country can produce.

Buy From Independent Retailers
I am an avid library user and will take my library card with me to my grave. However, I can't resist buying books so I would rather my money supports local businesses who in turn support local authors. Independent shops or the book chain store Paper Plus are the best ways to support the book trade. Paper Plus have a great reputation in stocking kiwi authors and the profits stay in our country while any small store means your money really is staying local. Fortunately, Wellington has a great little independent bookshop scene.

Read Two Books A Month
I am a fast reader but I am also a) easily distracted and b) prone to procrastination. With Netflix, Youtube and Season 4 of Black Sails all tempting me away from my bookshelf, I need to make more time for reading each night. I set myself a reading challenge on Goodreads of ten books for the rest of the year and I'm quietly confident I can make it.

Stop. Getting. Library. Fines.
Is this why checking out books doesn't seem to be as popular within the book blogging/youtube community than just buying them? Library fines, like parking fines, seem to be the bane of my existence and one of my more costly failures at being an adult. Damn you Wellington library for your pricey overdue items!

How are you going with your mid year goals?

The Bedside Table Stack #14

This month's bedside table stack is a mash up of genres as I love switching up my reading pile.

Girl at War by Sara Novic
A young girl's idyllic childhood is shattered with the outbreak of war in Yugoslavia. Split between Ana's life in Zagreb in 1991 and her life as a college student in Manhattan in 2001, this book is part coming of age story part war novel.

A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwarb
Magic and fantasy combine in this story about multiple London's and the parallel universes each one exist in. Kell is a traveller who can move between all of them. A fun, magical adventure set in one of my favourite cities seems like a no-brainer for a good time.

Heloise by Mandy Hager
My writing tutor wrote her seventh (!!) book and I was lucky enough to attend the book launch a few months ago. 12th Century Paris. Heloise is a talented young woman, exceptionally bright and worldly, especially for a woman of no stature. This novel recounts the true story of her life and ambition to pursue learning and the relationship she has with famed philosopher Peter Abelard.

Three to Read: Best Reads of 2017

Embarrassingly, I think I can count on one hand the number of books I have read and finished this year (outside of my course-related texts.) The good news is some of them have been pretty darn great! Here are three standout novels you might enjoy as much as I did.

It Ends With Us :: Colleen Hoover
Having never read a Colleen Hoover novel before I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I knew she usually wrote romance-related novels but It Ends With Us blew me away. I burned through it in about two days. Centred around domestic violence this is not your average romance novel. From what I have heard this is one of her more mature books but still suitable for adult and older YA readers.

The Circle :: Dave Eggers
Another read that I could just not put down, The Circle by Dave Eggers had me transfixed. Mae Holland gets the gig of a lifetime working at the Circle (think Google, a large tech and social media company that combines all users online data so that users have one online identity for everything) but the further she advances at work the more she questions the Circles thirst for shared knowledge and distrust of privacy. A fascinating and suspense-filled thriller.  

The One Plus One :: Jojo Moyes
I am an unashamed Jojo Moyes fangirl so there was no doubt that I was going to enjoy this book. Jess' life as a single mum is not what she had in-visioned for herself. When her daughter has the opportunity to sit a scholarship test that could change their future Jess has to figure out how to pay the bills and get her daughter to the other end of the country along with their oversized dog and her step son who is struggling to find his feet. Then in walks Ed who could be the answer she was looking for. Naturally things don't go as planned. A fun and light-hearted read.

Top Ten Tuesday: Feminist Reads

Today's Top Ten Tuesday is a selection of books brought to you by the F-word that still gets a bad rap, particularly on the internet. Here are ten Feminist reads that every human should take a look at:

How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran :: This book is hilarious and is part-biography part-feminist manifesto based around stories from Caitlin's life. She covers everything from wedding culture to beauty and babies and just generally has a wicked outlook on life.

Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close :: Speaking of wedding culture I haven't actually read this book but it's been on my radar for a while. It tells the story of three woman navigating their own lives while dealing with a never ending round of weddings and bridal showers. I'm at that age where every month seems to bring a new wedding invite and endless questions into my own (happily and actually not that into the whole idea of marriage thanks) unmarried status so I'm sure to get a kick out of reading this.

#Girlboss by Sophia Amoruso :: Not strictly a feminist book but I read this business book about Nasty Gal CEO Sophia Amoruso's rise to success and it really resonated with me as someone who is both young and female. The majority of business books seem to be about older white men so to be given advice from someone in my own generation was invigorating. Prepare yourself for sassy feelings of world domination after reading!

The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf :: Written in 1988 the year of my birth, I read this when I was 25 and was shocked to discover that we've really made zero progress when it comes to the pressure that women face on their bodies. If anything the rise of social media not to mention both obesity and anorexia are also a concern for womens' health today mean we've probably sliding backwards more than ever. A grim read yes, but many of Wolf's ideas resonated loudly with me.

A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf :: I've never read anything by Virginia Woolf (runs away and hides in shame) but after my own outburst at my significant other about not having a 'me' space own I think this book is actually quite fitting.

Have you read any of these books?

Top Ten Tuesday :: Most Recent 5 Star Reads

There's something very satisfying about this week's Top Ten Tuesday post in rounding up the cream of the crop of books I've read most recently. While I'm not 100% sure I gave these books 5 stars each, they certainly all tick the boxes for some of the best books I've read recently!

Emma by Jane Austen :: Witty, charming and hilarious, matchmaker Emma causes more trouble than she bargains for when it comes to meddling in her friends' relationships. Jane Austen's classic was hard to put down and I think I found some new favourite characters in Emma and Mr Knightley.

After You by Jojo Moyes :: The follow-up novel to Me Before You, I really enjoyed picking up again with Louisa who was struggling to move on from her relationship with Will. Sad, funny and hopeful, I thought this book dealt realistically with the struggles of moving on from grief and Lousia's struggle to discover what she really wants out of life.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor :: I wasn't expecting to enjoy this fantasy novel but something about the setting of Prague combined with the mystery of Karou's origins (blue hair, tattoos) and what all those teeth are for really struck a chord in my imagination. I can't wait to read the second installment.

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins :: While I can't say this book lived up to the hype of Gone Girl as so many people were tauting it to, The Girl on the Train was a very solid thriller, mysery which had me addicted to finishing it as fast as possibly.

What book have you read recently that you would highly recommend?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books On My Autumn TBR

While the rest of the world welcomes the first petals of Spring, us Southern Hemisphere lot are looking forward to the colder weather if only because it removes any sort of guilt associated with not being outside and instead we can reserve every right to get snuggly with a good book. This Autumn I'm hoping to tick off the following books:

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell :: My current read, (is that cheating? nope, okay then) which started off fantastically but halfway through I'm feeling a little bit defeated by the length. I'm going to carry on and hope that future chapters pick up the pace that this novel started off so strongly with.

Lair of Dreams by Libba Bray :: I feel bad even talking about this book because I bang on about this series so much (The Diviners, it's ammmmaaazing!) and yet I've been slacking on reading the second one. Maybe I have THE FEAR? either way it needs to happen.

Under the Spanish Stars by Alli Sincair :: I was very kindly gifted this book from Harlequin Aus a while back and have been meaning to pick it up. All I know is that it looks exactly like the kind of wunder-lust inducing read that I love so much.

A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby :: One of my favourite funny authors, I have had this book reserved at the library to read and then promptly forgot to pick it up for weeks.

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness :: I've really enjoyed getting into more YA last year and this book about finding the extraordinary in ordinary lives sounds like a something I would very much enjoy.

The Drop by Dennis Lehane :: I feel like it's been too long since I've picked up a crime read and indeed the last book I read from this genre was The Girl on the Train last year. Dennis Lehane is one of my favourite authors for crime fiction so any of his books will do but in particular I really want to read this one that tells the story of a 'drop bar' in Boston.
I'd love to know what books you are itching to read this season?!

Reading Classics Shouldn't Be A Chore, Right?

Twitter is a great tool for many reasons, I often find myself caught in the act of never ending scrolling until my thumb hurts just looking for interesting links and blog posts to catch up on. Well recently a great piece in the Guardian caught my eye about how reading Classical books is so often treated like it's a daunting and difficult chore. Classical fiction has become this BIG DIFFICULT THING that's scary and hard for lots of readers and then every time we hear someone talking about how they trudged through Dickens or Hardy all the rest of us shudder and decide to just steer clear.

The whole time I was reading the article I was like 'aha' 'yeah', when did reading Classics become somthing we were supposed to do because we felt guilty or like 'I'm a smart sophisticated person so I should probably give Pride and Prejudice' rather than 'ooh how about that Mr Darcy?'

I'm totally guilty of doing this too. I put off reading Pride and Prejudice for years because I thought I wouldn't get the language and it would be more of a trudge through wordy literature than an enjoyable read. But you know what? It's turned out to be one of my favourite reads and I can't wait to read more from Jane Austen. That's not to say all Classics are going to be enjoyable, I've tried three times to read Great Expectations and it just isn't working for me, but I do agree that sometime the fear of these books is offputting rather than giving them a go.

I think if there is one thing I took away from the article and from my own Classical reading experiences it's that not all Classics are created equal. You might fancy your Bronte sisters but loathe picking up anything by James Joyce (I don't know why but I've never wanted to read Ulysses for this very reason, maybe I should give it a go?) but if you've never actually picked up a copy then how will you know?

I'd love to know what your thoughts are on this article? Have you put off reading any Classic books because they seem too daunting?