The Glass Castle by Jeannette WallsMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Where to start? Mind-boggling, heartbreaking, maddening, unfathomable, yet honest, loving, and empowering. I came away from this book with a different understanding of unconditional love and with far more gratitude and humility than I had when I started.
The Bride's House by Sandra DallasMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
This Sandra Dallas book was surprisingly lackluster for me. The three stories told took too long to converge for me, and even then it was just a little too predictable. I didn't feel super attached to any of the characters or their fates. That said, I still felt unified in womanhood and learned more about love and forgiveness.
The Goose Girl by Shannon HaleMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I found this young-adult novel thoughtful, refreshing, and well-written. The Goose Girl reminded me of Ella Enchanted, another favorite young-adult book. This book contains an ideal combination of action, romance, mysticism, and fairy tale, all enveloped in an honest coming-of-age framework.
The Imperfectionists by Tom RachmanMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
I always get excited when I find a book about the print industry. I love the excitement and energy that surrounds newspapers and magazines. This book, however, replaced excitement with gloom. A somewhat gloomy outlook on the future of print, The Imperfectionists follows an international newspaper through several characters' stories. I liked only one character and found the others shallow and sad. I thought that maybe everything would tie together more in the end, but it didn't really. Perhaps this book accurately reflects the cynicism surrounding the future of print media, but it's sure not fun to read about.
Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon ShinnMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
The kitschy fantasy cover and awful back matter made me think of medieval clubs and hobbit cloaks, and I moved forward only on the recommendation of a friend. I was pleasantly surprised when I realized that this novel was more light fantasy and told a thoughtful coming-of-age story. Corie starts out as an immature, naive fourteen-year-old and through her summers in court grows into a discerning, empathetic young woman who has to make many decisions about who she is and wants to be. This book wasn't predictable, and I liked that. Summers at Castle Auburn is a great summer read combining sisterhood, political intrigue, and love in a winning fairy tale.
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According to Goodreads, I'm four books ahead of my annual goal of 40 books. This means one of two things: either read a book that will take a bigger investment (maybe another Ayn Rand novel? or a re-read of East of Eden? or both?) or increase my goal from 40 to 45 books.
What do you think?
9 comments:
You seem to fly through books, I really must know your secret!
I would read Ayn Rand (or East of Eden) AND up my goal. Is that dumb?
I felt the exact same way about The Glass Castle. Amazing book. And I LOVE The Goose Girl. That whole series is very well done. I think my favorite Shannon Hale might be Book of A Thousand Days, though.
In response to your comments yesterday, I love that we both know Daniel. Still don't know if I call him Dan or Daniel, I'll let you know what I decide. And I didn't know GWTW was streamable, but I do own the DVD, haha. Also, I thought about Scout and Atticus Finch for that list too. I really ought to read that book again.
I think her secret is that she doesn't have kids! LOL
Goose Girl is one of my very favorites.
I really enjoyed the Goose Girl.
I wish i was as incredible as you, and that i could read over 40 books in a year. you are superhuman, it's too fabulous.
i'm a huge fan of re-reading books [speaking of hobbits, that's something they love to do, haha] so i could totally support you in revisiting your favorites =]
Also, I wish you would let me raid your library. I'm reeeeally trying to read more this summer. So far it's been going great, i finished a whole farside comic. Sigh =]
I think i'm going to comment twice on ALL your posts from now on. It looks like it's becoming a trend :O
Well, you could follow my lead and read Far From the Madding Crowd for a whole MONTH! That stopped my stats in their tracks...
WOW, you have been busy. It was fun seeing you last week. I always enjoy reading your reviews!
I think you should write book reviews for a living! You're good at summing things up in an informative and entertaining way. Really--you should look into it!
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