fiftytwotwentytwo

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Closing the Book on 52 Books

I saw a YouTube video not too long ago where a person talked about how they also read 52 books in one year and how it changed their life.

So, is my life changed?

No.

But I will say a weight has been lifted.

I initially started this challenge because I could not remember the last time I read a book (It had been at minimum 2 years since I read a book) and I wanted to fall in love with reading - I wanted to make it a lifelong habit.

Well - it certainly could have been my book choices but most of the time I felt like I was doing homework. I also thought by reading almost everyday that my reading speed and comprehension would increase - to be honest I never measured it AND don't know how to measure it, but I feel like I am about the same as I was.

What will happen after this?:

With my personality - I have recognized that I can drop things pretty easily without remorse. I could (and most likely) easily slide back into not reading books again.

A reverse addiction....

A Reverse Addiction is coy way of me saying that laziness is my real addiction.

Man-Oh-Man, I absolutely love doing nothing. I could do nothing for weeks if I could afford to or didn't have obligations (my internet persona is going from self appointed "Person Amongst Saints" (big JK right there) to a real Piece of Shit - no JKs there) AND I recognize that about myself.

And since laziness is an obvious realization for myself I started creating grand, yet arbitrary, goals for myself each year.

Back in college an acquaintance stated the "challenges" I set for myself were just punishements to keep me living in misery and I would have to disagree - yes - sometimes the goal I can set for myself can be tedious, exhausting, and eat away at my social engagements - but at the same time I like having something to look forward to - something to break me of my laziness - and it wouldn't be too far fetched to say that I don't at least least learn something new (either in knowledge or internalized retrospection).

Anywhosel, back to the books - Will I continue reading?

Well, I not going to worry about - I not going to set goals - so I do forsee I will probably not read much. In a perfect world What would be nice is if read about 1 to 1.5 books per month... 12-18 books per year... but no promises to myself.

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If I do seek out some books - Here are some author's on my "booklist":

V.E. Schwab: I love their writing style - read two books already by Schwab. I have a third book of theirs already collecting dust that I am somewhat excited to read.

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Taylor Jenkins Reid: Read two of her books - Thought they were good. Enjoyed a small discovery that her stories/characters live in the same universe - I wouldn't mind reading more of her stuff.

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Stephen King: Only read one of his books, but I was thoroughly impressed and of course he has a reputation to stand up too.

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Agatha Christie: I was a bit skeptical - but her mystery books are legit and I could use more mystery in my life.

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Lee Child: This one I think I was most shocked by - Killing Floor (first installment to the Jack Reacher series) was sooo good. I think I wouldn't mind following Ol' Jack Reacher around.

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Kurt Vonnegut: This dude has some effing style when it comes to his work - dark humor and a bit absurdist - kind of elevated punk.

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And Now - Here is the list of books from my self described Worst Reads to my Favorites:

The Love Hypothesis (Wasted Potential - BS premise)

Ready Player Two (An absolute fall from grace - Made me Hate fictional versions of John Hughes and Prince which in turn made me non-fictional despise the author)

The Hating Game (IMO - Hot Garbage)

Interview with a Vampire (Depressing)

American Psycho (No Charm - Boring)

One Hundred Years of Solitude (Artful, Poetic, Repetitive, Dull)

Midnight Sun (An unreadable cash grab)

Brave New World

Last of the Breed

The Fuck-Up

Eat, Pray, Love

All About Me

The Midnight Library

Tuesdays with Morrie

Feed

Murder at the Vicarage

The Paris Apartment

Snow Crash

Carry On

Cinder

Leviathan Wakes

Grey

Crushing It

The Unhoneymooners

No Memes of Escape

Where The Crawdads Sing

Silver Screen Fiend

Yearbook

Mexican Gothic

Survivor

Invisible Monsters

Malibu Rising

Vengeful

Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone

The Maidens

Breakfast of Champions

Coma

The Storyteller

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

Death on the Nile

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

Verity

The 100 Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared

Circe

Song of Achilles

Jurassic Park

Pulp

11/22/63

Killing Floor

The Confederacy of Dunces

Slaughterhouse-Five

Vicious (Read Vicious in late January and I still think about to this day -Could not put it down - Fun, Exciting, Dark, Read like a Movie)

RED = Cannot Stand / Unbearable

BLUE = Highly Recommend / Keepers / Will Re-Read

GREEN = A New Favorite - Top 5 for Life

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

52 Books... Well, In The Books

Here's a gif of "The Stack"

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Another gif for those who are afraid of heights:

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Here is some bonus info/stats per Goodreads.com:

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

All About Me:

My Remarkable Life In Show Business

Author: Mel Brooks

Autobiography

Page Count: 456

How did I come across this book?:

Library Book #4

I love callbacks, palidromes, and full circle moments. I was looking for the "perfect" book and thought this book would be very fitting - I started the year off by reading Seth Rogen's Yearbook, an autobiography that follows the life of a hilarious comedic jew who is in show business - and - what better way to end cap the year by reading another autobiography by a hilarious jewish show biz comic, but sadly my local Library did not have any Billy Crystal so I had to settle for Brooks!

Kidding - I highly doubt Mel Brooks would see this review, but hopefully he'd enjoy the light ribbing.

I did purposely seek out Mel Brooks' autobiography especially after I saw it was trending on Good Reads.

Review:

Reading through this book was like spending an afternoon with your Grandpa.

The beginning of the book started off strong as Mel talked about his childhood, family, military service, and his beginnings in comedy and television, but grew stagnant once he talked about his films.

Don't get me wrong, the Mel Brooks films which I have seen (The Producers, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, History of the World Part 1, and Robinhood Men in Tights) are all great and laugh out loud funny, but reading about them (and many more films) was abysmal.

It's an odd thing to say that this book made me want to immediately put down the book to watch the films because Mel was doing them such a disservice by reciting the best lines and verses from his projects and spoiling major plots to his works.

I can't speak for Mel Brooks' life - but the way he presented his life was so dull, boring, repetitive, and safe. Every other line was "They fell down with laughter", "That got a big laugh", "It was the most hilarious moment"... There was no real hardships dicsussed - no faults shown - no life lessons.

I'm not going to bust Brooks' balls because he didn't delve into his family life or personal hardships (somethings are meant to be private) - but could he at least share any juicy behind the scene moments from any of his greatest films? Everything he shared seemed like passages lifted from IMDB or Wikipedia. We were supposed to be getting info straight from the horse's mouth but it felt like it was coming from the tail end.

I will give it up to Mel Brooks - he is a comedic genius when it comes to film and stage but he shortchange his literary audience.

Personal Rating: 3.5/10

Yearly Book Total: 52

* Achievement Unlocked *

Playing with a Full Deck:

52 Books in 52 Weeks

(with two days to spare)

Total Page Count: 19,989 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Leviathan Wakes

Author: James S. A. Corey

Science Fiction

Page Count: 561

How did I come across this book?:

Library Book #3

I grabbed this book for 3 reasons:

It was big and bulky with a larger page count - nice little challenge.

The book looked "well loved" based on the battered cover.

I also believe I heard people claim this to be highly acclaimed book/series.

Beyond that - I have no clue what it is about other than George R. R.Martin called it a "Kickass Space Opera" - well, technically the quotation says "It's been too long since we've had a really kickass space opera" - George didn't explicitly said this book was Kickass - it was an assumption by myself. Who knows maybe Mr. Martin read this book AND still feels like he needs a Kickass Space Opera.

Review:

It took me a while to get into the book. To be honest I am not even sure what was going on with Miller until he joined up with Holden. I could not piece together his passage of time or what was happening with his work.

Holden and his crew - that I could keep up with - so to say the first handful of chapters for me was kind of wishy-washy and a rollercoaster of comprehension would be the kindest way to put it.

But, a quarter of the way into the book - everything clicked and I began to really enjoy Miller almost better than I enjoyed Holden.

I will say the book is well written and the action scenes really drive, but you will get hit with bouts that drag (mostly the bureaucratic moments).

I am not big on sci-fi so I am not sure if this would be a good introduction to the genre - some wording/context has a Hard Sci-Fi feel but if you take a step back it is actually pretty tame and borders closer to Soft/Speculative Science Fiction.

I discovered while reading this book that the story has become a beloved franchise and has been adapted into a equally loved television series. I will say I did enjoy the book, but I am not sure if liked how the ending played out (specifically Miller's story arc) - because of this - I do not believe I will continue into the series or seek out its episodes.

Personal Rating: 6/10

Yearly Book Total: 51

Total Page Count: 19,533 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Malibu Rising

Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid

Historical Fiction

Page Count: 369

How did I come across this book?:

Library Book #2

I did not know this book existed until I walked into my local library and saw it displayed on an end cap promoting it as the Hot Book of the Month.

No clue what the book was about - Total Blind Read

BUT

I did read Taylor Jenkins Reid's Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and I really enjoyed her work - thought I give her stories another go.

Review:

First thing - I had no clue the author was building a universe between her books - I was kind of excited to see names pulled from TJR's past books.

I also found her writing in this book to be fast pace and easy to filter - However predictably of the story helped with the speed of the book.

Malibu Rising was very cliche with the relationships, friendships, the conversations... It's all things I've read or seen before. With that said - it still goes down smooth like a ripe soap opera - plenty of popcorn moments.

I also enjoyed the ping-ponging back and forth through the past and present as well as the tidal waves of side characters vignettes - which I can see a lot of people arguing as pain points as they detract from the initial plot and just add fluff and filler - but I loved it as it reminded me of my favorite 1980's/1990's Party Films.

If I had to air any literary grievances it's that the characters - and this could all be in my head - but after reading The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Malibu Rising - the voices of the characters seem very cookie cutter. Little distinction from one to the next.

Taylor Jenkins Reid's work is still in my good graces and I plan to seek out more of her stories - but - if her books carry the same type of predictability and voice... I will most certainly feel a massive decline in my enjoyment.

Personal Rating: 6.5/10

Yearly Book Total: 50

* Achievement Unlocked *

Drop and Give Me Fifty!

This year I have read more books than I have read in my entire life combined.

Cool - or - Sad... Take your pick.

Total Page Count: 18,972 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared

Author: Jonas Jonasson

Historical Fiction / Humor

Page Count: 384

How did I come across this book?:

I was in a used book store months ago and I saw this book and the title grabbed me (a small part of me has always wanted to travel and "disappear").

The book - which looked well loved - was selling for $16.

Too rich for my blood.

I told myself I'd have pick it up from the library... then I said, why don't I make my last for books of the year all come from my local Library.

Without further ado...

Library Book #1:

Review:

Loved It!

Hilarious!

Fun!

Want a copy of my own!

If you loved Forrest Gump or The Confederacy of Dunces - this a great recommendation.

Protagonist, Allan Karlsson, has definitely made me look forward to the future and has inspired me to be more out going and further my drive to perfect the subtle Art of Not Giving a Fudge.

I discovered the Swedes have adapted this book into film and can't wait to seek it out.

Personal Rating: 8/10

Yearly Book Total: 49

Total Page Count: 18,603 pages

* Same Books - Different Look *

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Eat, Pray, Love

Author: Elizabeth Gilbert

Memoir / Autobiography

Page Count: 334

How did I come across this book?:

Well around 2014-ish I bought this book because the younger me was infatuated with travel and I enjoyed the film.

I stumbled upon this book in Barnes & Noble and thought I'll get the nitty gritty details from the author rather than the film...

But I procrastinate horribly.

I literally blew dust off the cover when I picked up this book.

Review:

Well, 2014ish me would have loved this book.

But 2022ish me thinks this book is incredibly pretentious and riddled with white privilege.

Don't get me wrong - Elizabeth Gilbert can write - this book is filled with excellent prose, descriptions, humor, metaphors/similes - but lordy, lordy - reading 300+ pages about a white lady that "doesn't know what to do with their life" and essentially gets paid to vacay is kinda boring and bullshit.

Another concept/opinion from the book that I did not enjoy - I may have misinterpreted - but from my understanding Gilbert notates she has/had serious issues with depression/suicidal thoughts but still promotes stigmatizing medication and/or seeking help/doctors for such issues.

I could be wrong about her personal stance, but she quite clearly stated during the Italian/Eat phase of the book that she did not want to re-up her meds/take them because she shouldn't have to take them since she is in Italy/"paradise".

I don't know - call me a Jealous Crotchety Scrooge, but the heart of this story left a bad taste in my mouth.

Personal Rating: 4/10

Yearly Book Total: 48

Total Page Count: 18,219 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

11/22/63

Author: Stephen King

Time Travel / Historical Fiction

Page Count: 849

How did I come across this book?:

The year was 2012. I was on a mission to better myself by reading more books, yadda, yadda, yadda...

I've always wanted to read Stephen King.

I love the concept of Time Travel.

I went to Barnes & Noble specifically to seek out and purchase this book. It was an easy find as it was well displayed in the immediate entry of the store and...

- HOLY-HELP-ME-HANNAH-

The book is over 800 pages!

Ah well, I'm on a mission to read more books, aren't I? - I'll hunker down and read it...

10 YEARS LATER

Review:

I am going to keep this short - no need to wax poetic - especially after putting in work burning through a 800+ Paged Behemoth in 4 days.

I liked this a lot. Probably a Top Ten Read of the Year for sure.

Upon completion I felt I received more than I expected from this Time Travel novel. It was structured with subplots with well balanced elements of Horror, Thriller, Romance, Spy, and Historical aspects.

Seems very meticulous and researched which provided great realness to this fictional work.

I also think if this book's parts were chopped up into individual chunks - I would say you would have 3 solid Independent stories that would function as fully functional lone stories - I could just re-read those "individual segements" again, whenever I want when the certain mood strikes.

On the other end of the spectrum - in my opinion - this book did have an enormous valley (about 150-200 pages - roughly 20% of the book) in the middle to the second half of the book where the story felt stagnant and cumbersome to read... but... the pendulum did swing again and the story found new vigor and cruised.

I am happy with my purchase - I wish I read it sooner and I can't wait to read it again... and... I will most definitely seek out more Stephen King.

Personal Rating: 8/10

Yearly Book Total: 47

Total Page Count: 17,551 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Coma

Author: Robin Cook

Medical Thriller / Suspense

Page Count: 308

How did I come across this book?:

Roughly 6-7 years ago a coworker lent me this book. Didn't say anything about it- just said it was good and told me to read it.

About 5-6 years ago they asked me if I finished the book because they wanted/needed it back and I said - "I'll start reading it tomorrow and have it finished by the weekend"

Well, that didn't happen.

Review:

This book was a great surprise - I feel like a A-Hole (medical term) for not reading this sooner.

Definitely a hidden gem from 1977 that I would have never sought out.

The beginning of the book can feel heavy handed with the hospital setting, but once our main character, a strong independent woman, gets into the thick of things - it cruises.

Absolutely love how the last half of the book played out - very grounded but immensely engaging.

I would definitely recommend this book to others - but - find your own copy... I gotta return this page-turner to its rightful owner.

Personal Rating: 6/10

Yearly Book Total: 46

Total Page Count: 16,702 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

The Fuck-Up

Author: Arthur Nersesian

Fiction / Dark Humor

Page Count: 296

How did I come across this book?:

Well - It's June 11th, 2012 - I am 10 years younger - I'm in Barnes & Noble and I see a book displayed called "The Fuck-Up"...

Yep, I bought it.

Did I read it? No, so... I am I the Fuck-Up?

Well, better late than never.

Review:

If only I read this 10 years ago when I was unknowingly basking in wasted youth - I probably would have loved it...eeehhhhh, at least enjoyed it.

This book reminds me of things I like - things like any Charles Bukowski book, The Confederacy of Dunces, or The Catcher in the Rye...

But then it's drowning with toxic pretentiousness to the point any redeeming qualities are buried.

The writing/pacing are fast but throughout reading this book you are tethered to the thoughts and point view of the protagonist who is a real piece shhhhh - well, just look at the title of the book.

I will say it again - the writing is great - it feels real and visceral but at the same time some of the main character's follies/antics are just too absurd and too ungrounded that it just comes off as implausible. So ridiculously unreal I didn't read it as dark humor, but perverse, juvenile thoughts.

I am finally glad I have finished this book because I can drop it like 3rd Period French with no remorse.

Personal Rating: 3/10

Yearly Book Total: 45

Total Page Count: 16,394 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

The Murder At The Vicarage

Author: Agatha Christie

Mystery / Detective

Page Count: 285

How did I come across this book?:

Three things:

The first Agatha Christie book I read (Death On The Nile) was excellent and I was hungry for more.

I wanted to end October and roll into November on a Mystery Novel - ya know - just feeling it

A coworker stated their favorite book series was the Miss Marple series by Agatha Christie. I never heard of Miss Marple and my curiosity was piqued - would it be better than Hercule Poirot novel???

I chose this particular story as this was the introduction to Miss Marple. I bought the book off Amazon and the rest was herstroy.

Review:

The first 2/3rds of this book was a drag in my opinion.

It was dialogue heavy (too much for my liking - I apparently did not realize it was a possiblity until now) - there was little to no action, and our Miss Marple is barely heard from - I was bit flummoxed and downtrodden.

It did not matter the time of day - day, night, mid afternoon - the first half of this book was the strongest sleep aide I've ever subjected my body/mind to.

BUT

The last 80 pages Agatha burns down the barn.

I was engaged, excited, and loving Miss Marple.

I enjoyed how the last third unfolded, but unfortunately I do not believe that made up for story as a whole.

I am still eager to read more Agatha Christie.

Personal Rating: 3.5/10

Yearly Book Total: 44

Total Page Count: 16,098 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

Author: Stuart Turton

Murder Mystery / Magical Realism

Page Count: 458

How did I come across this book?:

A friend sent me an invite to a Q&A session with Stuart Turton, the author. I asked my friend how he liked the book and they turned the question around and asked me how I liked it... I them told I've never read the book or even heard of it.

My friend was taken aback - adamant that I had... upon further "investigation" they confused the title of this book with Taylor Jenkins Reid's The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (which is a decent book).

After a short, mild chuckle at the error - as a goof - I ordered the book off Amazon.

Review:

Just a tidal wave of thoughts.

Right out of the gate - the story took a while to settle in to and I was not thrilled with initial perceived plot - but - chapters later the book picked up - suddenly the book is not what seemed, attaboy Turton! - but - the plot device grew tiresome - then became bit confusing - then back to being tedious and tiresome - but pretty soon you are 300 pages in saying when is something going to happen then - BANG - a nice little jolt - and then you get back on the same rollercoaster you've been riding on...

The book has a lot of moving parts, can be repetitive, and is full of side tangents.

The author, in my opinion, withholds an absurd amount information/secrets to build suspense - they constantly dangle a gift bags of information but never share any dirt but make trudge through pages and pages forcing the reader to wait chapters later to have the information revealed - sometimes it is truly shocking - other times seemed like wasted potential.

On the other hand. It kept me guessing and it had cool premise.

I am on the fence about re-reading this book. I mean the ending is blown - the only point of the re-read would be to pickup on things I missed.

Upon further split-second thought...

Nah, this book is a one and done.

Personal Rating: 5/10

Yearly Book Total: 43

Total Page Count: 15,813 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone

Author: J.K. Rowling

Fantasy / Children - Middle Grade

Page Count: 309

How did I come across this book?:

I wanted to see what all the hype was about.

I feel like my age group may have been on the edge of becoming or not becoming Pot/PotterHeads... - but I truly don't recall anyone gushing over HP in school - my nephew did, but not my peers.

I do have one vivid memory tied to the Harry Potter - couple days before the first film was supposed to be released our local priests visited the nightly CCD classes and urged demanded us to boycott the movie - there was sooooo much that made this plea so lasting.

First, I'm not going to name names, but this person's actual last name was an adjective that was synonymous with "fun" - "being hip" and the speech was far from fun or hip.

Also, said priest - not knocking but pointing out - sweated profusely... I don't know why - hot itchy garments? Overactive sweat glands?? But anywhosel- the man looked like he had an SNL prop tucked underneath his hair because his brow was basted in sweat.

Now, juxtapose this with being in a Catholic Elementary classroom where you have a priest whose sprung a leak and is standing in front of a backdrop of student crafted scarecrows, jack-o-lanterns, cornucopias, and the ever so popular framed photo of Jesus teaching a youngster how to hit a fastball baseball. Again, it felt very SNL-elly.

And lastly, there was just one line that stood out - one line I've always remembered - he said buying a ticket or reading the book was like buying a train seat to hell - I found the analogy very appealing as I never ridden a train, but thought "Is a train really the fastest transport to hell"? Don't get me wrong - it definitely sounds scenic, but why not a plane or just simply have the Earth's crust gobble you up.

Anyways... I saw the movie opening weekend.

And I've seen all the movies and... I'm not really a fan - BUT - adhering to the age ol' adage, The Book was Better Than the Movie - I decided to see if the book could change my mind on the Harry Potter franchise.

I ended up purchasing a copy from Amazon because I did not want to possibly damage a friend's beloved copy.

Review:

I personally had a hard time diving into this book, but it did pick up a little steam once Harry got to Hogwarts.

The world building was great. The introduction to the main cast and side characters was also well done, but I am not sure how much the films filled in some gaps.

The book eventually became fast and easy read. But up until the last 40 pages/last two chapters - the book just seemed to have great moments and no rising crescendo - no anticipatory ascent of a roller coaster - it felt more like snapshots.

Once I hit those last two chapters I fell hard - I loved the action - but the last two chapters also had a few moments where I had to remind myself that this initial story was geared towards grade schoolers - moments like solving a logic puzzle (because wizards are not well known for logic - actual statement from the book) or having a huge locked door and leaving a "hidden" key in the room with a means of transport/tools to find the key.

The last chapters were winning me over - but - the last closing pages I felt cheated. A massive break in the action/battle - a fade to black - and our hero just randomly wakes up 3 days later???

I guess Rowling "appeases" the reader by having a 3rd party tell our hero how the fight ended through exposition and info dumps... but Muggle-Oh-Muggle - it was absolute theft.

So, was it a good book?

It was okay.

I bet if I read a copy as a grade schooler - maybe even an illustrated copy - I would have yielded to the fandom.

Will I read further into the series?

Yeah, I think I'd I check it out... I mean what else am I going to read on my Train to Hell?

Personal Rating: 5.5/10

Yearly Book Total: 42

Total Page Count: 15,355 pages

* Achievement Unlocked *

It Weebles... It Wobbles... It Won't Fall Do--

OH, Lordy It's Falling!

It Officially Fell!

Forty-Two Books High

But... We Must Rebuild:

Huzzah!

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Grey

Author: E L James

Mature / Erotic Romance

Page Count: 553

How did I come across this book?:

A short condensed version:

An "Experiment" lead me to this book.

A friend recommended Twilight and I thought it would be interesting read Fifty Shades of Grey (reportedly stemmed from Twilight Fan-Fic) immediately after.

Y.A. to Mature.

Well, while searching for copies on Amazon I discovered that both Stephenie Meyer AND E L James both wrote companion books for their series installments from the perspective of the male protagonist - Twilight = Midnight Sun

Fifty Shades of Grey = Grey

Exactly what everyone wanted.

Review:

To be honest - not bad - but definitely overhyped (or maybe I am desensitized... *gulp*).

I am not a Romance-Novel-Reading Expert, but out of the romance novels I read this year - this one is on the more enjoyable end of the spectrum.

Yes, there Dom/Sub talk/actions, but the steam scenes are not any worst or more raunchy than any other commercial romance novel. If anything it carries more curse words - like if Marty Scorcese made a romance novel.

I also heard a large majority of the hate of Fifty Shades of Grey was the writing - simple, mind numbing, ridiculous.... but I found the writing in this book to be easygoing, quick, on the nose at times, and yes, simple - but again nothing too out there for a romance novel. Who knows, maybe James improved over time...

Would I read it again?

No. Once is enough.

Would I read Fifty Shades of Grey??

Maybe, no promises.

Was it better than Midnight Sun???

I thought so.

Grey was less brooding, more energetic, and - I cannot believe I am saying this and I totally mean it in a innocent way - this book was more engaging/exciting.

Personal Rating: 4/10

Yearly Book Total: 41

Total Page Count: 15,046 pages

* Achievement Unlocked*

15,000 Pages!

High School Me is Both Impressed and Unimpressed at the Same Time.

Will this stack stumble...?

Tune in Next Week.

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Midnight Sun

Author: Stephenie Meyer

Fantasy / Young Adult

Page Count: 658

How did I come across this book?:

Entering a Challenge to read one book a week - I opened myself up to a lot of book recommendations from everyone and everything.

Some Good - Some Bad.

Recommendations from the internet, Instagram, Tik Tok, coworkers - I even took/considered book recommendations from conversations I overheard in public spaces (aka eavesdropping in Barnes and Noble).

One particular friend highly recommended Twilight. I initially did not give it much thought - I saw the movies and I thougt I saw all I could read.

But - enter Midnight Sun - a Companion Novel to Twilight from Edward Cullen's perspective.

I found this be intriguing - Bypassing the Original Twilight Saga to read a Spin-Off that does not necessarily require any past knowledge from the series. A new jumping off point.

An Experiment.

So against, my very good friend's advisement - I cut straight to Midnight Sun.

Review:

First Off - I know this is highly beloved series. I also know the series is very divisive. What I am about to say is nothing new to the conversation but quite simply my opinion and observations.

So...

Immediate Thoughts - First Pages/Chapter - I thought the book was comical. Edward, our main protagonist, is running crisis control in his head in the middle of 3rd Period Biology. This perspective was absolutely hilarious to me.

But... Upon further reading... I am NOT Team Edward - Hell No - everything went downhill fast.

The Dude is a Predator, a Groomer, a Possessive Old Man in a Teenagers body.

Midnight Sun should not be any one's introduction the franchise.

Stephenie Meyer traps you in Edwards mind as he pines, broods, and spies on people's inner thoughts. I can easily understand how an individual could draw inspiration for the infamous Christian Grey.

I honestly felt trapped reading this book. 40 page chapters devoted to a creeper lusting in a teenage girls bedroom while she sleeps. It is draining and exhausting following Edward around.

My only glimmer of hope was the thought of an impending battle between feral vampires - but at the climax of the action there was no battle - the "fight to the death" might as well been a footnote.

This is not a cute lovely romance - maybe Twilight provides a softer approach from Bella's perspective, but this book is about as fun as 104 year old Boomer mansplaining how a Teenage Girl should live.

One thing I will say that surprised me - I had no issues with the descriptions/characterizations of vampires. Even the whole "prism effect" in sun - not too bad.

As I said - this was not a great read - in my opinion, a better companion/spin off book would have been story about Carlisle or Alice from the freshman years of being newly turned vampires. A rehashing of the beginning did not seem necessary.

Personal Rating: 3/10

Yearly Book Total: 40

Total Page Count: 14,493 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Cinder

Author: Marissa Meyer

Science Fiction / Dystopian /Young Adult

Page Count: 390

How did I come across this book?:

Over a decade ago I was on a literary quest to simply expand my mind by reading books.

I was also looking for watercooler talk - what better way than asking my fellow coworkers (I worked at movie theatre) for book recommendations.

Well, there was this small clique of girls who raved about Cinder - they exclaimed it was the best book they ever read.

I looked and looked and never found the book locally - I didn't care to hunt it out online - so I just pushed the thought of the book to dusty recesses' of my mind.

Well, couple of months ago, I was out and about in small/quaint bookstore and out of the corner of my I saw this vibrant book cover - took a quick glimpse - a double take - and it was Carry On... the book I read last week...

But next to Carry On...was Cinder.

So, I purchased this book based on a decade old book recommendation.

Review:

This book has so much potential.

I know this book/series (which I had no clue it was full blown series until recently) is well loved but I felt shortchanged by the end of the book.

I felt the characters, the setting, the world building, time period was immensely shallow. The book did have intriguing concepts and I loved the futuristic/asian fusion reimagining of Cinderella, but this book was nothing but a low calorie appetizer.

The book does definitely pick up steam - but - the end of the book is devastating how they leave it open ended on a cliff hanger with no closure - when I was younger and I thought about writing my own stories I dreampt of writing tales with obscure open endings that would force the reader to wonder what happened - being older and after completing this book I feel cheated... (what do you think about that younger me, huh, not so cool now).

I mean - it's one thing if you know/knew this was going be a much larger adventure and more stories would follow - but - at very least give us more to latch on to in the first installment of the series. Just like... Fifty more pages and I think I would have been satisfied.

With that said - this book was okay - but I do not think it held me under its glamour mind-control.

I do not believe I will seek out the second installment of the series - well, not actively... maybe if I am in desperate need for more ammo? verbal diarrhea? small talk for the water cooler.

Personal Rating: 4/10

Yearly Book Total: 39

*Achievement Unlocked*

Leaning Tower of Libros - A Regular Jenga Tower:

Yep, that's right this stack of books is officially swaying but hasn't toppled

Only 13 Books Left... Will it Fall? Tune in Next Week.

Or Don't - I not much of a subscriber myself.

Total Page Count: 13,835 pages

[fiftytwotwentytwo]

Carry On

Author: Rainbow Rowell

Fantasy / Young Adult

Page Count: 521

How did I come across this book?:

Well, I read Rowell's Eleanor & Park years ago - I thought it was pretty good/decent, but I never gave much thought to reading any more of their work.

I purchased this at a local bookstore in the area. What drew me to Carry On was the cover art - it is very eye popping - pulls you in. To be honest it was also the cover art to Eleanor & Park which drew me into Rainbow Rowell's work as well.

Beyond surface assumptions made simply by eyeing the cover this is a complete blind read.

Review:

Do not let the large page count scare you off - this book is a breeze to read - not overly exciting but simplistic - simplistic in the sense that there is not much going on towards the plot in the first 150 pages - no real build up - just minute world building - infinitesimal.

The characters and their backgrounds are light and airy as well - complete fluff.

They didn't provide any sense of excitement, urgency, or danger. There were multiple passages where the characters would discuss or recall moments that happened outside/before this story took place - and not even flashbacks just passing comments - that sounded extraordinary but did not provide great depth. Moments like:

"The time we were kidnapped..."

or

"The time we burned down an entire forest fighting a monster"...

But upon reading, the characters seemed to have no heart in their delivery - as if they were spellbound by valium.

I guess another way to put it... I didn't sense any emotion.

The story does pick up more as the author teases the "love triangle" and as we get more traction towards an unsolved mystery.

At the apex of the action - I felt a bit let down and to be honest confused - was there a true villian? Was anyone a bad guy? or was everything a misguided aim to help the greater good...?

Last note - the kissing in this book - Rowell often describes the kissing as "smashing faces" together to convey passion and heat, but that has to be my least favorite descriptor I've read in regards to snogging - but - at the same time the individuals are young lovers and probably roll like freight trains the first time out of the gate, but still - every time the author had them "smash" faces - lips - I kept imagining two crash test dummies flying at each other. Also, there is not a whole lot of romantic/steamy scenes in the book... so - again - choosing the word "smash" over and over gets me - why couldn't the Caress? Explore??? each other's faces/lips?

No, Rowell would rather have me equate the characters passion the same way a toddler has their GI-Joes fight their Transformers.

I suppose with this being a YA novel you have to compose yourself while tickling the keys of your laptop.

All-in-All, nothing much to praise or teardown. A very middle of the road, young adult, fantasy novel.

Meh.

Personal Rating: 4/10

Yearly Book Total: 38

Total Page Count: 13,445 pages