Ella. Kiwi. "Adult".
"No, I have a thing. It's like a plan, but with more greatness."
Pop culture is my science. I like the internet. I watch a lot of TV.
#4 Mockingjay
by Suzanne Collins
So apparently I’m on a roll today - read this one in 6 hours. It was kinda nice to break my non-reading streak I had going for a while there.
A very intense and emotional ending to the trilogy, although I felt it was a bit rushed in places (and it wasn’t just me reading at light speed!)
I’m very intrigued to see how they make the next 2 movies - sadly it will be a long wait.
#3 Catching Fire
by Suzanne Collins
So I had only read the first book of the HG series when I went and saw the movie last night, and as soon as I got home I started this one. And finished it in 4.5 hours. Similarly to the first book, it’s impossible too put down until there are no more pages to turn.
Not sure how much more I can say - there was laughter, and there were a couple tears. Made me fall even more in love with some characters, and begin to like some others.
Looking forward to the third book now!
#2 The Fault In Out Stars
by John Green
My copy of TFIOS arrived in the mail a couple days ago (thankfully much earlier than Amazon’s predicted Feb. 3rd arrival date), but I held of reading it for a couple of days because I knew I would not be able to put it down once I started.
I finished it in less than four hours (actually it was definitely closer to three). I almost feel like I devoured it too quickly, like when you eat a piece of cake and then realize you didn’t even taste it. A couple of times I wanted to slow down and reread a page, but the urge to finish it propelled me forward. I’m definitely going to reread it soon, and look forward to getting John’s audiobook CDs in the mail and settle down with those.
It’s very hard to write my exact feelings on the book without severe spoilers, but I shall try. I loved it, I really did. With any author that you’ve previously enjoyed there is always, mixed with in the sheer excitement of new work, that little bit of anxiety that it won’t be as good, that you’ll be forced to love it because you love the person and not the work. But this was definitely not the case. I loved Hazel. I loved Augustus (I’m actually even warming to the name Augustus; watch out future sons!), I loved the banter, the relationships between the characters. I loved that I cried for approximately the entire second half of the book.
Slight spoiler alert for the following paragraph, but mostly just (heavy) implications of spoilers.
I’d love to know what happened to Monica. Like as soon as Isaac came back into the story, I just wanted to get Monica to find out did she really freak out, did she feel bad, does she already have some super-jock boyfriend. Strangely, I want to know about Monica even more than I want to know what happens to Hazel. I don’t even particularly like Monica, not in a way where like if I could choose which fictional characters I could hang out with she’d make the cut. Maybe I just need to know it’s not only the people that get hurt who have to survive and move forward, but also the people that do the hurting?
Also, check out my awesome J-Scribble! John Green how did you know my favorite color was purple?!
#1 The Diving Bell and The Butterfly
by Jean-Dominique Bauby
It’s that time again, another year-long book journal. First off, a defense as to why it took me three weeks to finish a 100-page book: I started with another that I haven’t finished yet, and also omg my life has been hectic.
I’ve been wanting to read this for years. It’s so interesting and heart-breaking. Part of me was a little disappointed though. I was hoping for more pragmatic details. How, when, where. More information about his illness (before and after), maybe a little scientific explanation and less I-had-a-dream-about-a-wax-museum type chapters. I feel like this is one case where the movie might win me over because I can see them focusing more on his life than his thoughts.
#24 Timequake
by Kurt Vonnegut
I’ve read this book slowly, savoring it because it was pretty amazing. I bookmarked pages with quotes I wanted to keep. I reread some chapters (they’re pretty short). I still could not tell you what the book is actually about. The synopsis on the back describes a plot line that, though it is present in the book, is only a costar. The book is less about a Timequake and more about reactions to the Timequake both fictitious and real. It’s part biography of a fictional writer Kilgore Trout and part biography of himself, Vonnegut and the lines blur so much that I’m not actually sure what’s true, what isn’t. Bt it honeslt is a really enjoyable read. Especially if you like Vonnegut.
#23 The Virgin Suicides
by Jeffrey Eugenides
There’s something intrinsically different about reading a story in which the ending is given away on the first page. You know what happens, but you want to know how, when, where, why. You get through it much faster, I find. Somewhat like you’re chasing something that’s moving almost as quickly as you are.
The whole book is written with a sort of haunting, tender emptiness it conveys. The type you deem unrelatable until you get to the last page and find yourself crying. It’s sad, very sad, for everyone. But written so well.
Sidenote: Has anyone seen the movie? I want to, really, but after watching the trailer and reading some reviews I’m afraid it was turned into the story of Lux Lisbon and her sisters, instead of all of them together. (I realize Lux has the most attention placed on her in the books as well but there are so many special moments for the other sisters. Especially Bonnie and Mary that would kill me if they were left out.)
#22 Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)
by Mindy Kaling
My God, how long has it been since I’ve finished a book?! Too long and this was a great one to get back into reading with. Hilarious, enlightening, relatable. I was laughing out loud from the first page onward. Just enough scoop to keep it delicious and more than enough wittiness and humor. Brilliant read.
Also, I’m seriously considering getting the audiobook, because the only thing better than reading this would be Mindy Kaling reading this to me.
#20 It’s Not Me, It’s You!
by Jon Richardson
Having recently gone on a Jon Richardson kick, I decided to check out his book. It’s really really brilliant. A combination of hilarity, astute observations and a couple of tear-jerking contemplations, it ticks all the boxes. It’s not really an auto-biography, but you do learn a little bit more about this wonderful man.
#16 Heat Wave
by ~Richard Castle
Started reading this after my Castle and I quite enjoyed it. I’m not usually one for crime novels, but I think that for me all the little bits from the shows that got integrated in the book really made me like it. I couldn’t stop picturing Roach as those actors Castle met in LA and it got a bit creepy.
I’m still kind of obsessed with knowing who actually wrote it. Because it doesn’t say it anywhere! I’d assumed it would be in tiny print in the acknowledgements or something but nope, nothing… I assume it’s Andrew Marlow. Confirmation please?
#15 The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ
by Philip Pullman
I’ve wanted to read this for about 6 months now, but I kept waiting for the paperback issue, so finally, here we go.
Definitely an interesting read. A quick one, I finished it in one evening because it is both short and captivating. I assume people will read this differently depending on their own interpretation of Jesus and the like. I wondered, while reading it, that if Jesus and Christ are separate, does that mean we have to choose? There are times when I like Christ better and there are times when I like Jesus better. It’s definitely an experience, and one I whole-heartedly recommend, no matter what your religion.
I particuarly enjoy the statement from Philip Pullman on the back of my copy:
The story I tell comes out of the tension within the dual nature of Jesus Christ, but I do with it is my responsibility alone. Parts of it read like a novel, parts like a history and parts like a fairy tale; I wanted it to be like that because it is, among other things, a story about how stories become stories.
