This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki, Jillian Tamaki (Illustrator)
Every summer, Rose goes with her mom and dad to a lake house in Awago Beach. It's their getaway, their refuge. Rosie's friend Windy is always there, too, like the little sister she never had. But this summer is different. Rose's mom and dad won't stop fighting, and when Rose and Windy seek a distraction from the drama, they find themselves with a whole new set of problems. It's a summer of secrets and sorrow and growing up, and it's a good thing Rose and Windy have each other.*
This was the book decided by the coin toss. The options were both graphic novels, both ebooks, both around 300 pages, which looked like a quick read. I actually cheated and started this on Sunday night, just because I didn't have anything to read in bed. As expected, I finished this on Monday because I just flew trough it. I wouldn't say that I was disappointed by this because I got to look at beautiful art, but the story didn't do much for me. It tried to touch on some important themes but didn't quite deliver. I wouldn't say it was bad, just nothing special. The art though, was amazing. So it's totally worth it. I ended up giving it 3.5 stars as an average between 5 stars for the art and 2 stars for the story.
The Chrysalids by John Wyndham
David Storm's father doesn't approve of Angus Morton's unusually large horses, calling them blasphemies against nature. Little does he realise that his own son, and his son's cousin Rosalind and their friends, have their own secret aberration which would label them as mutants. But as David and Rosalind grow older it becomes more difficult to conceal their differences from the village elders. Soon they face a choice: wait for eventual discovery, or flee to the terrifying and mutable Badlands.....
The Chrysalids is a post-nuclear apocalypse story of genetic mutation in a devastated world and explores the lengths the intolerant will go to to keep themselves pure.*
Next up, I picked up this classic work of science fiction, which counted both for the beautiful spine and the green on the cover challenge. I actually wanted to pick another book with a beautiful spine, but it was almost 500 pages long and there was no way for me to finish that so quickly. Although this book seems fairly short (200 pages), it took me some time to get through since it was written in 1955 and the writing is quite literary. It also took some time for me to get into it, which made it impossible for me to finish it in a day. In the end I quite loved this. The only thing I didn't love about it is that it's so short, so a lot of things are left unexplained. That's why I only gave it 4 stars but I'm curious to read some more books from this author now.
On Writing begins with a mesmerizing account of King's childhood and his early focus on writing to tell a story. A series of vivid memories from adolescence, college, and the struggling years that led up to his first novel, Carrie, offer a fresh and often funny perspective on the formation of a writer.
King then turns to the tools of his trade, examining crucial aspects of the wriiter's art and life, offering practical and inspiring advice on everything from plot and character development to work habits and rejection.*
This was my book about something I want to do (writing, very original) and also my audiobook for most of the week. It was my first audiobook read by Stephen King himself and while I must admit that he isn't very good at it, I still enjoyed listening to him tell the story. This is non-fiction but it's a memoir, so it reads more like fiction, plus the writing advice part is really well made and keeps you interested every second. I liked this so much that I definitely want to own a physical copy and maybe annotate it some day. I finished it on the fourth day of the readathon and gave it 5 stars!
Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
Her name is Binti, and she is the first of the Himba people ever to be offered a place at Oomza University, the finest institution of higher learning in the galaxy. But to accept the offer will mean giving up her place in her family to travel between the stars among strangers who do not share her ways or respect her customs.*
This short novella was supposed to be the book I read while wearing a hat the whole time, but I ended up skipping the hat altogether. Honestly, I found the challenge quite stupid and unnecessary, plus why would I put on a hat to read a book on my couch? This has been on my radar for a long time, especially because it won both the Hugo and the Nebula awards in 2016, and it seemed to be the perfect short thing for a readathon. I ended up listening to the audiobook because it was available on Scribd and I'm so glad I did. The narration brought some authenticity to the story, something the voice in my head wouldn't do. I really loved the concept of an African inspired science fiction story. I'm not a big fan of short stories in general because I feel you can't really get close to the characters in such a short time, but this novella really packs a punch, both with tons of action and characterization of Binti. Of course the first person narration helps a lot. I'm really curious to read the next one in the series. I gave this 4 stars.
Sixteen-year-old Lara Jean Song keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her. They aren’t love letters that anyone else wrote for her; these are ones she’s written. One for every boy she’s ever loved—five in all. When she writes, she pours out her heart and soul and says all the things she would never say in real life, because her letters are for her eyes only. Until the day her secret letters are mailed, and suddenly, Lara Jean’s love life goes from imaginary to out of control.*
And then there's the book that almost got me in a reading slump. The thing with readathons is, if you have a specific goal you can't really dnf books, because you invest so much time in them and then you have nothing to show for that lost time. I picked this as my book to movie adaptation, even though the movie hasn't come out yet so I have yet to see it. Many people have raved about this book, even booktubers I trust have found it ok, and the trailer for the movie seemed fun and cute. But boy, was this book boring! The premise of the letters is something short that takes place in the beginning and frankly doesn't affect the life of the main character the way I thought it would. Instead the whole book is just the whining of a spoiled and immature teenager about what boy she likes more. This book is quite long and it was painful for me to finish it, the only way I managed that was by picking up the audiobook about half way and forcing myself to listen to as much as possible until it was over. I gave it 2 stars and will most certainly not be continuing the series. Let's just hope that the movie is a bit better.
The day after they moved in, Coraline went exploring....
In Coraline's family's new flat are twenty-one windows and fourteen doors. Thirteen of the doors open and close.
The fourteenth is locked, and on the other side is only a brick wall, until the day Coraline unlocks the door to find a passage to another flat in another house just like her own.
Only it's different. *
Finally, the last two books I read that didn't complete any particular challenge except for the challenge of reading 7 books in 7 days. I've been into Neil Gaiman books lately and I was curious to pick up this middle grade that is so famous and that everybody loves. This book is considered very creepy, especially by adults, but for me the creep factor wasn't that high. Maybe it's because I've read some true horror in my life, but this didn't impress me at all. I read it as an ebook on my phone while reading other books as well and didn't feel the urge to finish it if it wasn't for the readathon. I don't think it was bad at all, just not as amazing as I was expecting, so I had to rate it 3 stars because that's just how I felt about it.
A. J. Fikry’s life is not at all what he expected it to be. His wife has died, his bookstore is experiencing the worst sales in its history, and now his prized possession, a rare collection of Poe poems, has been stolen. Slowly but surely, he is isolating himself from all the people of Alice Island--from Lambiase, the well-intentioned police officer who’s always felt kindly toward Fikry; from Ismay, his sister-in-law who is hell-bent on saving him from his dreary self; from Amelia, the lovely and idealistic (if eccentric) Knightley Press sales rep who keeps on taking the ferry over to Alice Island, refusing to be deterred by A.J.’s bad attitude. Even the books in his store have stopped holding pleasure for him. These days, A.J. can only see them as a sign of a world that is changing too rapidly.
And then a mysterious package appears at the bookstore. It’s a small package, but large in weight. It’s that unexpected arrival that gives A. J. Fikry the opportunity to make his life over, the ability to see everything anew. *
The last book of the BookTubeAThon is also the one that took me out of the slump if I was in one. Finally a book about books that I really enjoyed! This was everything that Mr. Penumbra should have been and I literally couldn't put it down. I read it in around a day so I managed to finish my 7th book in time to complete the final challenge. Not only is this book great for people who love books, but it's cute and heartwarming, a real feel-good novel. I had a few issues with the writing so I only gave it 4 stars, but I really enjoyed it. This was also an ebook that I read on my Kindle.
Wow this was a long post to write! Hopefully the rest of August will be a good reading month!
*Source: Goodreads
Wow this was a long post to write! Hopefully the rest of August will be a good reading month!
*Source: Goodreads
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