Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag

It’s roughly the middle of the year and I am super behind on my reading goals. This tag seems pretty apt so I thought I would do it for the first time this year. The tag was originally created by Earl Gray Books and Read Like Wildfire.

I was going to start a Booktube channel but I’m probs going to put that off until I get myself a new MacBook as this one I am writing on literally right now well not literally because while I am currently writing you won’t read this until the me that is writing at the moment is a past version of me. Freaky. Basically this MacBook ancient, Mesopotamian one might say, and it can’t handle final cut pro and like to just spontaneously crash. The last video I made on my channel took aeons to edit and gave me a full-blown breakdown as hours of work just kept disappearing. I could buy a new one but this one keeps ticking on…

Stats - from StoryGraph

“14” books, one was a short story of like 3 pages, and another was an essay that was weird and isn’t on StoryGraph. I did set myself a target of 50 books back in January, laughed at myself a few months ago and dropped it to 45, and then I have kind of given up on the goal, maybe I should just leave Goodreads lol and come fully over to StoryGraph.

Anyway, let’s get on with the tag

1. The best book you’ve read so far this year

Every answer on this tag might be The Lord of the Rings. I read the book or trilogy depending on how you see it for the first time this year after watching the films a billion times and reading Tolkien’s epic is perhaps one of the best things I have done in 2021 as a whole. I mean, it’s not been action-packed because of old corona, but I am practically a hobbit, so I wouldn’t have done much so far in the year anyway.

2. The best sequel you've read so far this year

The Two Towers by J.R.R Tolkien. I warned you.

3. New release you haven't read yet but want to

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro, I got the Waterstones special edition the day it came out but I haven’t read it yet! What is wrong with me lol. I always do this.

4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year

I don’t really keep up with releases as per prompt 3, but I have an advanced reader copy of A Strange and Brilliant Light by Eli Lee from Netgalley which comes out in July. It sounds pretty interesting and fits in with my whole Sci-fi fantasy mood at the moment.

5. Biggest disappointment

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle. Seemingly everyone loves the Sherlock Holmes stories but I just don’t lol. I found Baskervilles to be so dull and boring, and tbh I only read it because I was writing an article for work about the legend that inspired the story. I have read two others A study in Scarlet which was ok and Sign of the Four which I hated. I just don’t get the hype, these are not really classics they are just popular

6. Biggest surprise

Oedipus the King by Sophocles I listened to the full play on audible and I really enjoyed it. I’m surprised because I thought it might be dull or too hard to get into but I guess the translation was pretty modern, unlike Shakespeare which really needs to be watched to be understood. It shouldn't really be a surprise though because I used to hang out in the library at lunchtime when I was at school and read greek tragedies. How edgy and Dark Academia of me lol.

7. Favourite new author. (Debut or new to you)

Tolkien mon amour, tu est très très magnifique 

8. Newest fictional crush

Not new because of the movies but Aragorn is such a babe and I don’t really crush on characters…

9. Newest favourite character.

Samwise Gamgee the real MVP of lord of the rings, he is just, the perfect friend and like if I was him I would have run home when Shelob came along - no who am I kidding I would have had a heart attack. He is too pure for middle Earth and I just love him

10. Book that made you cry.

The Two Towers, the bit where Sam thinks Frodo is dead just made me cry…and a tear landed on the page, it was a whole moment.

11. Book that made you happy.

Ummm… lotr….man this really is just all lord of the rings lol

12. Most beautiful book you've bought so far this year (or received)

I have a few. Serotonin by Michel Houellebecq I saw the Better than Food review and the copy Cliff had…I was like yes I need that one, not the ugly UK version. My second-hand copy of The Shining that I got from Better World Books is just the best and Klara and the Sun is rather pretty too.

13. What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

The Silmarillion because I now worship at the altar of Tolkien, I also want to read Foundation before the Apple TV+ series with Jared Harris and Lee Pace comes out. Same with The Wheel of Time, like I’m not gonna read all 14 books anytime soon (it took me like 3 months to read LOTR!) I think I need to read at least the first book The Eye of the World before the tv series comes out,  I also need to read Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler and Neuromancer by William Gibson - so basically lots of fantasy and sci-fi because that’s all I want to read at the moment.

Thanks for reading and if you fancy grabbing any of the books mentioned check out the affiliate links, they will get you great books, help your local bookstores (through bookshop.org) and get me a small commission. Winners all around! Take care and I’m going to try and get back to blogging more, the past couple months have been a bit overwhelming for some reason but I’m starting to feel better again and like I have enthusiasm for my side hustles and hobbies again.

February Books

Intimations by Zadie Smith

Written during the first days of the Pandemic this collection of essays covers random thoughts and feelings Smith had at the time and she also reflects on the Murder of George Floyd. I’ve never actually read any of Smith’s fiction so I thought I would start with her essays and I liked her writing style so I will be checking out her fiction in the future.

Oedipus Rex by Sophocles

I listened to an audio adaptation on Audible that you can download for free as part of your audible subscription. I think everyone knows Oedipus Rex to some extent, perhaps because of Freud’s controversial Oedipus Complex theory more than anything else which is interesting in itself, how something becomes part of a collective cultural memory. I didn’t realise that the play takes place during a pandemic so that was interesting. I used to read Greek plays in the school library during lunch break (I can’t remember which ones tbh) but this was my first encounter with Sophocles and I must say that I did enjoy the audio adaptation as really for me plays become so much more accessible when dramatised either on stage or by audio.

The Hound of the Baskerville’s by Arthur Conan Doyle

Here ends my reading of the Sherlock Holmes books. For some reason I just don’t get on with them, I find them rather bland and boring if I’m perfectly honest. I just don’t get what all the fuss is about. Is Sherlock Holmes and an interesting character? Sure, but that’s about all that Doyle has going here. The mystery in Baskerville’s wasn’t even that interesting and the vibe wasn’t as spooky as I had hoped, which is the only reason why I picked up another Holmes story, the hope of Gothic elements. The cover is pretty though…

Strange Weather in Tokyo by Hiromi Kawakami - Sága Book Club Pick

What a heartwarming novel. I absolutely adored this book and I am so happy that I finally read it. Kawakami’s story of two people, a teacher and his former student re-connecting after many years is just the kind of book I needed right now. The writing is uncluttered and is essentially an episodic slice-of-life narrative which is clearly a result of how it was published in Japan as it was originally serialized from July 1999 to December 2000, before becoming a novel.

One of my favourite things about Strange Weather in Tokyo is how the seasons drift by and that this subtly drives the narrative. We follow the characters as they encounter each other sporadically and it is dependant on the seasons as to where they will meet and what they will eat. This tradition of seasonal eating is a very Japanese practice, there is even a word 旬 ‘Shun’, which refers to when ingredients are at their most optimal for eating. While the principal characters engage in eating Shun foods and drinking copious amounts of beer and sake together (sounds like quite the ideal ritual…am I right?) they form an attachment, that soon blossoms into love.

“I felt a sudden rush of warmth in my body, and felt the tears well up once again. But I didn't cry. It's always better to drink than to cry.”

The novel is told in first-person from the point of view of Tsukiko, a nearly 40-year-old former student of Sensai who is himself some 30 years her senior. She is shy and doubtful and I found her character really quite relatable, as I am those things myself. I also think that love is born out of quality time shared and that it almost creeps up on you, just like it did to these characters. I won’t spoil the ending but it was both expected and unexpected, perhaps a better way to put it is that I saw it coming but I didn’t think it would be executed in the way that it was. I think Strange Weather in Tokyo has certainly become a new favourite and I’m sure I’ll revisit it many times in the future.

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21 Books I want to Read in 2021

Like Byron, I am mad, bad and dangerous to know...why you ask? Because these books will take over your life!

Me and my sister recently re-charged our joint youtube channel and I must say it feels great to be back making videos, there’s just something really fun and creative about it.

Autumn Reading List

I have rustled up a collection of books that I want to get through this Autumn and curiously enough they all fit together aesthetically, a coincidence (I think not!).

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (Das Parfum: Die Geschichte eines Mörders) by Patrick Süskind

Set in Paris, Perfume follows Jean-Baptiste Grenouille as he tries to sniff out the perfect scent (do or don’t excuse the pun it’s your choice) to help him concoct perfumes. However, he discovers the perfect ingredient is innocence and well I’m sure you know what the only way for him to acquire it is…yes it’s murder, naturally. I feel like this is a perfectly creepy read to keep me entertained as the northern hemisphere gets colder and darker and descends into the depths of Autumn.

La Compagnie des Loups (published as The Bloody Chamber in English) by Angela Carter

I have read and reread this short story collection many times but this will be my first time reading it in French. Yes, I am going to attempt to read it in French for the sake of language practice and the fact that I know the stories quite well should help my comprehension tantamount. If you’ve never read The Bloody Chamber I completely and wholeheartedly recommend it as Carter reimagines famous fairytales and folktales in such a magnetic and creative way.

Diary of an Oxygen Thief by Anonymous

I came across this book because of Anniken Jørgensen (a Norwegian Blogger and Author who I’ve been following and reading for a few years) as she frequently refers to it as her favourite book and I must say I feel like it’s the kind of book that I would like as its a bit morally corrupt and dark (go me for my weird taste in Literature!)

Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

I recently watched the Thomas Vinterberg adaptation of this book and fell in love with the story and the Autumnal aesthetic of the gorgeous cinematography within the film. So low and behold it’s found itself quite high on my reading list as I want to delve deeper into the story and recapture the mood from the film.

Far from the Madding Crowd follows Bathsheba Everdene as she is courted by three different men, William Boldwood a respectable landowner and farmer, Sergeant Troy a 19th-century F*ckboi, and Gabriel Oak a loyal farmhand firmly planted in the friend zone.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

A classic ‘Dark Academia’ book, this novel just feels like it was made for me. Set in a New England university a group of classics students test the boundaries of morality under the tutelage of a charismatic professor. When I was deciding what to study at Uni I did flirt with the idea of Classics for a while before I settled on English Lit. So for me, this novel will be even more fascinating to explore due to my interest in the subject they are studying and how that will link to the overall narrative.

The Master and Margarita (Мастер и Маргарита) by Mikhail Bulgakov

The devil comes to Moscow (naturally) under the guise of being a magician and starts messing with the lives of the upper echelons of society. There is a talking cat, something to do with Pontius Pilate and a whole lot of other wacky stuff in this satirical work. An absolute classic of Russian Literature, this book has been on my shelf for aeons! And the reason why is that I know I will love it but there is a part of me that is worried that I won’t (Dune turned out to be mediocre and I thought I was really going to fall in love with it!). But the time has come and I am pretty confident that this bonkers book will be a new favourite (well, I hope anyway).

The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler

Butler is the Queen of science fiction and is criminally under-read. I myself have been meaning to read her work for some time and when I came across this beautiful edition of Parable of the Sower I knew it was time to take a dive into this iconic black authors work.

Set in 2025, in our now very near future, Parable tells the story of a hyper-empath Lauren Oya Olamina as she navigates an America crumbling due to climate change, political unrest and a growing economic wealth gap. Yikes, this feels like Butler was in communion with the future all the way back in the ’90s!!!

Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset

This book is a mammoth and that’s mainly because it is actually a trilogy of novels all compiled into one. This is a classic of Norwegian Literature and also helped Undset win the Nobel Prize in 1928! It’s a historical epic set in Medieval Norway and depicts Kristin Lavransdatter’s life as she grows up, gets married and becomes a mother.

June Books

This month has basically been a marathon of short fiction, a final trudge through Dune and me discovering a new favourite book and a desire to read classics again. Oh and I read one of the most obscene books ever written!

Dune by Frank Herbert

I wrote a separate review for Dune as I felt like I had a lot to say, and I did. So TL;DR I liked it but I didn’t like it. It’s complicated and it depends on how you read it and from which POV. But if you fancy reading the full review then click here.

At The Sign Of The Cat And Racket (La maison du Chat-qui-pelote) by Honoré de Balzac

This month I decided to start tackling French author Balzac’s The Human Comedy (La Comédie Humaine) a collection of interlinked works which is made up of novels, novellas and essays set in during the Restoration period and July Monarchy. Balzac could be seen as a French Dickens, as both wrote about society and with a focus on realism. This novella follows a few characters who work at a small shop in Paris and the owner marries his daughters off to two very different men. The themes of money, happiness, status, faithfulness, art, and work run throughout. At some point when my French is up to scratch, I’ll probably try reading some of The Human Comedy in French so stay tuned for that (let’s hold me accountable please!)

Also, Balzac’s At The Sign Of The Cat And Racket has forced me to reconsider the genre of realism, and particularly whether I was wrong about Dickens! I have for many years refused to touch a Dickens novel after reading A Christmas Carol at school and finding it veritably boring. I even avoided reading Bleak House for my degree because I thought I knew that I would hate it (ended up reading Walden by Thoreau and despised that instead) but maybe I would have liked it! Maybe I need to reconsider Dickens, and that folks is something I never thought would happen!

Micromegas by Voltaire

More French lit, I think I often coincide my cinematic choices with my book choices as recently I started watching French films again and suddenly all I want to read is classic French Literature. It’s a bit strange but I’ll go with it (I’ll have to because I have ordered so many French Lit second-hand books recently). I read Candide for Uni last year and really enjoyed Voltaire’s wit and seeing that I was miles behind on my 75 books in a year challenge I thought to myself “why not read this tiny little book by a French author that you’ve read before”. So I did. Micromegas is a rather strange little thing, it is essentially Sci-Fi before Sci-Fi was a thing.

The short story follows a giant from a planet called Sirius as he journeys through the solar system, he meets another giant (though much smaller than Micromegas) on Saturn and they soon find themselves on Earth. For these giants, Human life is so small (literally) and they find our behaviour (waging wars) perplexing due to how insignificant we seem, as in comparison, humans are tiny, and live such short lives and have a much inferior intellect to them. Voltaire’s brand of satire is fantastic and I can’t wait to read more of his works.

Record of a Night Too Brief (蛇を踏む) by Hiromi Kawakami

I like abstract stories, I like bizarre and challenging stories. But I did not like any of the short stories in this volume. I also have in the past read Kawakami and enjoyed her prose, but this collection of three stories just didn’t do anything for me. I found them too strange and I was unable to connect with them on any level. All I can say is nevermind, you win some and you lose some. Will I continue to check out Kawakami’s work? Sure, I think she’s an interesting and talented writer, it’s just that these stories didn’t touch me.

A Spy in the House of Love by Anaïs Nin

I have found a new author to consume wholeheartedly. Her prose is deliciously poetic, and the way she writes Sabine is so vivid and relatable but alarming and deplorable at the same time. I loved this novel and I feel like I need to get a physical copy (I read it on Libby) to underline all the moments of poeticism and to read it over and over again.

Femme Fatale by Guy de Maupassant

This Penguin Little Black Classics book contains four short stories set in 19th Century France was nothing particularly fantastic, just ok in my opinion. But for 80p you can’t really go wrong and I might read Maupassant’s most famous work Bel-Ami as a result.

Story of the Eye (Histoire de l'œil) by Georges Bataille

This is a book that will leave an impression on you. It’s interesting to analyse from a psychological angle but my goodness it is utterly depraved and probably the most f***ked up book I have ever read. All I’m prepared to say is that I can probably never look at eyes and eggs the same way again.