The February – May ’17 Overview

Guess what, I’m back! I have been MIA for three months or so and I feel really bad neglecting my blog like that. So here I am, back at it again. To start, I figured I would write down the books I’ve read these past few months. There haven’t been that many, besides blogging I also had little time to read, but I am getting back into it! According to Goodreads, I am 5 books behind schedule for my goal of 50 books, but I am sure I can catch up.

Here are the books I read in February/March/April/May with the rating I gave on Goodreads (X out of 5) and my thoughts in a quick 1 or 2-sentence review.

February

‘Wuthering Heights’ by Emily Brontë ****

I had read this book in high school and rereading it was such a joy. I understood the plot/text a lot better and it was nice to notice my English reading skills have improved over the years. Also, the love between Heathcliff and Catherine is unrivaled and I think I will be rereading this book again in the future.

‘The French Lieutenant’s Woman’ by John Fowles ***

One of the books of the literary course my friend was following. I did not really enjoy this book, the male character was just a bit much and the double ending did not sit well with me.

March

‘The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales’ by Oliver Sacks ****

I loved this book. The stories were fascinating and it was nice to learn about the abilities and disabilities of the human brain

‘Possession’ by A.S. Byatt ***

Also a book of the literary course. Also not a real favorite. I felt the ending was ‘the easy way out’, suddenly shifting perspective to finish the story, it felt unsatisfactory.

‘Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?’ by Philip K. Dick ***

This book was interesting and lead to some deep, fascinating discussions at the book club meeting. However, I felt like I could not fully grasp some of the themes in the book and this left me feeling unsatisfied (again).

‘Kindred Spirits’ by Rainbow Rowell ****

Lovely short story by my ultimate fave Rainbow Rowell. Just lovely to be back in her style of writing and her world of story-building. Too bad it was so short.

‘The Maldive Shark’ by Herman Melville ***

A little black classic I picked up because I enjoyed ‘Moby Dick’ so much. However, this book was mostly descriptions of islands and some poems. Very definitely by Melville in its style, but not necessarily an interesting read.

April

‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ by Margaret Atwood ****

Incredibly creepy because of the world ‘before’ the set up of this dystopian society. The epilogue was very unexpected and I am still not sure if I had not preferred to be left without that ending.

‘Homegoing‘ by Yaa Gyasi *****

Amazing. Just beautiful and interesting to read a book that almost feels like a collection of short stories. Every chapter is a new generation, yet you immediately feel attached to the newly introduced characters. Just a great pleasure to read.

May

‘The Hate U Give’ by Angie Thomas *****

Incredible book. The ending felt typical of a ‘young adult’ novel, but there is nothing wrong with being YA when you have been written for young adults. Powerful and interesting and I would recommend it to everyone!

‘Americanah‘ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie ***

I enjoyed Adichie’s writing, which saved this book from getting just two stars. I could not get into the plot, the characters felt flat and the ending was not what I hoped it would be (which could have saved the book in its entirety if it had been different)

‘Grief is the Thing with Feathers’ by Max Porter ****

Weird, but interesting.

‘In Cold Blood’ by Truman Capote ****

Loved it. The vibe in the book reminded me of ‘Dark Places’ by Gillian Flynn, but this time it is true crime. I loved the shifting of perspective between the killers and other people involved in the case. Did leave me feeling creeped out by the randomness of the killing.

June

With four books in May, I plan to step up my game in June and try to finish 5 books. My main goal will be to finally finish ‘Midnight’s Children’ because I am halfway in and it is about time I finish it.

• ‘Midnight’s Children’ by Salman Rushdie
• ‘Lord of the Flies’ by William Golding
• ‘Het houden van mannen’ by Myrthe van der Meer
• ‘When Breath Becomes Air’ by Paul Kalanithi
• ‘The Fall of Icarus’ by Ovid (my last ‘Little Black Classic’)