Read my second book this year.
Ok, ok, so I’ve read more than two books this year, but according to Goodreads, I am way behind schedule. That’s right. I have a book schedule, and if you’re anything like us Lemurians, you may also have a book schedule of your own hovering over your head pouring guilt all over you the way your mom does when you tell her that no, you still haven’t gotten renter’s insurance, and yes, this is a new tattoo.
The culprit is Goodreads, that once pure site full of book reviews, to-read lists, and awesome recommendations that is now a another conquest of those brilliant bastards over at Amazon.com. The reason Goodreads is making me guilty is because at the beginning of the year you can challenge yourself to read any amount of books that you want. This year, I decided to go easy on myself- 75 books should be a breeze, right? I mean come on people, I sell books for a living.
Turns out, the Goodreads challenge is a really good way to constantly remind myself that I’m not reading as much as I should be. I’m torn: is it making me keep up with those books that I constantly tell people are “on my list” or is it just homework? To help myself figure it out I’ve decided to compile a short list of my year to date in books.
1. Maus by Art Spiegelman. Loved it. Loved it even more when I realized that the story was completely autobiographical. I mean it when I say that if you only ever read one graphic novel, please read this one.
2. Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson. I loved this book, and the other two in the trilogy, too. And I usually hate young adult novels. And trilogies. Read it. Come on, read it. No really, do it.
3. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller. This may have been the book that explained to me just how literary a graphic novel could be. I mean yikes. You think existential crises are only the bread and butter of bespectacled Brooklyn coffee shop writers? You, my friend would be wrong. But don’t think that this is too high brow for you, because Batman isn’t too high brow for anyone, son.
4. Notes to Boys by Pamela Ribon. Imagine if you had physical records of almost all of the stupid things that did and thought because of your crushes from Jr. High. That would be HORRIBLE. Well, Pamela Ribon did just that. Somehow, she meticulously journaled and made copies of all of the notes that she wrote to boys, and it is as awful and embarrassing as you think should be. She also often also interjects in the entries as her present self, mocking how dramatic and silly she was. God bless that woman for being willing to publish this book, because it made me laugh so hard that I almost wet my pants.
5. Thickety by J.A. White. This is the best middle grade novel that I’ve read this year. Reminiscent to The Witch of Blackbird pond, it deals with blind hatred and zeros in on how scary an uninformed mass of people can be. Part coming of age story, part fairy tale (complete with a forbidden forest) this book gave me the heebie jeebies with its dark undertones and suspenseful feel. (no seriously, I got out of bed to make myself tea at a few parts to calm my nerves) This is an older middle grade book, so don’t give it to your eight year old. But you should read it. Even if you’re a grown up.
6. The Enchanted by Rene Denfeld. This book killed me. It’s been a while since I’ve read a work of fiction that made me feel this much, and I have to say, although it was an exhausting experience it was totally worth it. Simply put, this is a book about a death row inmate and a death row investigator who have tender, unexpected views on life. Poetic and surprising, it made me feel all the feels.
7. The Weirdness by Jeremy Bushnell. Andre and I picked up this book at the same time and we both fell in love with, well, it’s weirdness. (Check out Andre’s blog about it here) What can I say about a book where the devil comes a’calling and tells you the the world is about to be destroyed by a waving lucky cat? <- That. That’s all I should have to say.
I mean, is anyone surprised that it was a cat taking over the world?
8. Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh. Hyperbole and a Half started as a simple yet hilarious blog about Brosh’s life, and if you read some of the blog, I won’t have to explain to you why this book is amazing. So go read it.
9. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. Apparently it is totally uncool to have your characters make decent life decisions. This is how I felt about Gone Girl:
I’m not going to include a 10th book on this list because I’m tired of writing this blog, but trust me I’ve read more than 9 books this year. And I’ve read some I really didn’t like, but why would I blog about that? If you want my loud mouthed opinion on any of the other stuff I’ve been reading, come to the bookstore and ask me, and I will gladly wax poetic about my favorites. Now I’m off to console myself about the fact that I only have to read 900 more books before the year is over.
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