So, this month started off so strong but after a week and a half of the house of flu (I just cannot read when I am ill) it tailed off pretty dramatically. I managed to finish four books, only one of which was on my TBR pile for November. This is a problem that I consistently have – sticking to my pile!
I am up to a healthy 22 books read this year to date, now some people may read 22 over the course of a couple of months. I didn’t start reading again until around June this year, and with a new born baby in tow, I think 22 is a pretty respectable number. With December still to go and an already larger than previous months TBR pile picked out, I hope that this is closer to 30 by the end of the year.
So, as I said, I read four books this month and these were:-
- We should all be feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Slade House by David Mitchell
- Homegoing by Yaa Gysai
- Kings Cage by Victoria Aveyard
As you can see, it’s an eclectic mix of books.
We Should All be Feminists, this Book essay is Chimamanda’s 2012 Tedx Talk, in which she discusses what it is to be a feminist today, drawing on her own personal experiences. Many people will recognise it from Beyoncé’s song ‘Flawless’ where a sample of the talk was used – really interesting to hear Chimamanda’s views on this. At 55 pages long, I read it in about an hour, screen shotting a lot of the content and sending it to friends along the way. Feminism is something which has always been in my mind, but since being on maternity leave, it is something which I have been able to look at in more depth. I recently went to see Rebecca Solnitt and Shami Chakrabati talk at the Manchester Literature Festival, two incredible women. The evenings were both insightful and I came away with a lot to think about. It has certainly opened my eyes to some of the challenges which women face and how we can overcome these and educate our children for the future. This book is a very accessible and is a great book to start with if you want to read more about feminism.
Slade House, well I think my review says it all. The baby sister to Mitchell’s masterspiece novel The Bone Clock’s. At 233 pages its a short read, split up into four chapters starting at 1979 and finally reaching 2015 on the final chapter. It’s bizarre, a bit twisted and centres around two soul sucking twins who long for eternal life – That’s got your attention, hasn’t it!
Kings Cage, this is the third book in the Victoria Aveyard series, I have learnt that there is a fourth novel due out next year. I enjoyed this book, as you know my love for YA fiction runs deep. I loved The Hunger Games, Noughts and Crosses, His Dark Materials (although lots of adults have read this too), Shadow Hunters series by Cassandra Clare. My trouble is, they consume me – If I start a series I want to read them all and them all now. Then I drag my sister into this by lending her the books, before we know it, we are both like crazed book addicts driving around for the final book of a trilogy – This never happened, honest! For me, this wasn’t as good as the Red Queen which was the first in the series, but it did the trick and I still enjoyed it. It continues with the story of Mare, exactly where the Glass Sword left it. It has strong elements of fighting for what you believe, friendship, family, doing something for the greater good and that old YA favourite a strong love triangle. If you are looking for a gift for a young person or adult who enjoyed the other book series mentioned above then this trilogy would make a great Christmas present, it’s a quick read with a story that keeps you interested.
By far my favourite book this month has to be Homegoing. Firstly, I feel like I keep saying this, about so many books I have read this year but this book is a debut, a debut. Yaa Gysai has got amazing talent as a writer, I can only dream of writing something as beautiful as she has, with Homegoing. Secondly, I wouldn’t have necessarily have chosen this book, but I heard it reviewed on a book podcast and was instantly intrigued, it goes to show that sometimes taking a chance on a new book pays off. The story begins with sisters Effie and Esi – Effie becomes a Slave traders wife while Esi is sold into slavery, the story spans several generations, following the history of slavery, it’s impact and lasting effects. From the shores of the slave ships on the African coast to the projects of Harlem in the United States. The story follows the generations, each sharing their own story, a chapter at a time. It is both heart breaking and heart warming, cruel and visceral yet warm and tender in parts. You can read my full review on the blog, but just go out and read it for yourself, I don’t think you will be disappointed. For me, it’s a contender for my Book of the Year.
The book pile for December has already been picked out and it is a big one……
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