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Castle Rock is a small town, where word gets around quickly. That’s why Scott Carey wants to confide only in his friend Doctor Bob Ellis about his strange condition: he’s losing weight, without getting thinner, and the scales register the same when he is in his clothes or out of them, however heavy they are.
Scott also has new neighbours, who have opened a ‘fine dining experience’ in town, although it’s an experience being shunned by the locals; Deirdre McComb and her wife Missy Donaldson don’t exactly fit in with the community’s expectations. And now Scott seems trapped in a feud with the couple over their dogs dropping their business on his lawn. Missy may be friendly, but Deirdre is cold as ice.
As the town prepares for its annual Thanksgiving 12k run, Scott starts to understand the prejudices his neighbours face and he tries to help. Unlikely alliances form and the mystery of Scott’s affliction brings out the best in people who have indulged the worst in themselves and others.
From master storyteller Stephen King, our ‘most precious renewable resource, like Shakespeare in the malleability of his work’ (Guardian), comes this compelling tale about finding common ground despite differences, a story with deep resonance for our time.
For my Stephen King challenge, plus it was available immediately on Libby when I was looking for a quick read.
The Quotes
“He thought he had discovered one of life’s great truths (and one he could have done without): the only thing harder than saying goodbye to yourself, a pound at a time, was saying goodbye to your friends.”
“Why feel bad about what you couldn’t change? Why not embrace it?”
“Gravity is the anchor that pulls us down into our graves. There would be no grave for this man, and no more gravity, either. He had been given a special dispensation.”
“Sometimes he thought of a saying Nora had brought home from her AA meetings: the past is history, the future’s a mystery.”
The Narrator(s)
The author himself. Stephen King!
My Thoughts
I remember reading this one some years ago, but not paying much attention to it and not remembering much about it after. I enjoy it a lot more this time around. It’s light and whimsical, which is an interesting thing to say about a Stephen King story, but that’s what I love about King; you never know what you’re going to get but you are always going to be in for a great journey. I say journey, because honestly the story is a bit of a nothing-burger, nothing of substance really happens and it feels more like a fairytale than a serious story, but I always enjoy King’s storytelling. His easy way with words, even when you’re reading his scariest book, just keeps me going back to his books over and over again.
This book is a novella at only 146 pages; the characters are interesting but conflicts get resolved quickly and easily, and it’s more of a feel-good story which I’m perfectly happy with sometimes. I also like that there’s a race scene because I’ve been getting into running and reading a few running books recently. It was a really nice, fun read.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Peter Sagal, the host of NPR’s Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! and a popular columnist for Runner’s World , shares “commentary and reflection about running with a deeply felt personal story, this book is winning, smart, honest, and affecting. Whether you are a runner or not, it will move you” (Susan Orlean).
On the verge of turning forty, Peter Sagal—brainiac Harvard grad, short bald Jew with a disposition towards heft, and a sedentary star of public radio—started running seriously. And much to his own surprise, he kept going, faster and further, running fourteen marathons and logging tens of thousands of miles on roads, sidewalks, paths, and trails all over the United States and the world, including the 2013 Boston Marathon, where he crossed the finish line moments before the bombings.
In The Incomplete Book of Running , Sagal reflects on the trails, tracks, and routes he’s traveled, from the humorous absurdity of running charity races in his underwear—in St. Louis, in February—or attempting to “quiet his colon” on runs around his neighborhood—to the experience of running as a guide to visually impaired runners, and the triumphant post-bombing running of the Boston Marathon in 2014. With humor and humanity, Sagal also writes about the emotional experience of running, body image, the similarities between endurance sports and sadomasochism, the legacy of running as passed down from parent to child, and the odd but extraordinary bonds created between strangers and friends. The result is “a brilliant book about running…What Peter runs toward is strength, understanding, endurance, acceptance, faith, hope, and charity” (P.J. O’Rourke).
I’m a beginner runner and trying to get myself motivated by reading memoirs about running. I loved Murakami’s What I Talk About When I Talk About Running and I went looking for more.
The Quotes
“Perhaps you would like to start running. You never have tried before, or you did and you hated it, and now you wonder how to begin moving in a way that will keep you going. Get up. Start. Go. Move. Take a rusty first step, like the Tin Man. You will squeak. Go.”
“We simply accept each other as we are, for in any other direction lies madness.”
“You step outside, because real running is done outside, dammit, in the open air, where the endorphins hide.”
“I had always believed that suffering was a requirement for anything worthwhile: art, educational success, professional achievement, marriage, parenthood. On this day, I had found another way, though it had taken thousands of miles to get here.”
The Narrator(s)
The author himself, Peter Sagal.
My Thoughts
I really enjoyed this book! I love the author’s humor, and the reference of this book’s title and cover to The Complete Book of Running by James Fixx. It was interesting reading about the author’s experience running at the Boston Marathon Bombing event, and I loved learning more about being a guide for blind runners. Not that I would qualify at the current level I’m at, but maybe someday.
There were parts of the book I didn’t like and couldn’t relate to. He talks about his divorce in a way that makes me feel that maybe he was the problem, which to be fair, we’re all allowed to make mistakes and grow from them, but there didn’t seem to be any self-reflection about it. However, I came for the running parts, and I enjoyed reading about the running parts. I wish there were more running parts!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”
It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.
Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.
His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.
But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.
For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
This series has been on my TBR ever since it came out years ago but I hadn’t managed to get my hands on the books until they went on sale on Audible recently.
The Quotes
“She wasn’t interested in telling other people’s futures. She was interested in going out and finding her own.”
“She recognized the strange happiness that came from loving something without knowing why you did, that strange happiness that was sometimes so big that it felt like sadness.”
“Watch for the devil. When there’s a god, there’s always a legion of devils.”
“People shout when they don’t have the vocabulary to whisper.”
The Narrator(s)
Will Patton. I love him as a narrator for Stephen King books and having him narrate this book gives it some Stephen King vibes for me.
My Thoughts
I’ve been wanting to read this book for a while because I love ravens and there’s a tarot deck based on the books, but I don’t actually know what the book is about so I went in blind. The story is a little messy and I’m struggling to follow the characters because there are so many of them and I get them mixed up sometimes. I bought the books on audio and I feel like I need to reread on print before I continue with the next books in the series.
In general, I love the vibes, maybe because of all the magic and prophecy, and also Will Patton’s narration, but I feel like I missed certain key details and I don’t know what is actually going on with the characters, and I don’t know who to root for. I haven’t connected with any of the characters either. I want to like the book and give it the benefit of the doubt, I don’t want to blame the book if my confusion is due to my poor listening skills, so I do want to try reading this book again before continuing with the next books.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Ignatius Perrish spent the night drunk and doing terrible things. He woke up the next morning with a thunderous hangover, a raging headache . . . and a pair of horns growing from his temples.
At first Ig thought the horns were a hallucination, the product of a mind damaged by rage and grief. He had spent the last year in a lonely, private purgatory, following the death of his beloved, Merrin Williams, who was raped and murdered under inexplicable circumstances. A mental breakdown would have been the most natural thing in the world. But there was nothing natural about the horns, which were all too real.
Once the righteous Ig had enjoyed the life of the blessed: born into privilege, the second son of a renowned musician and younger brother of a rising late-night TV star, he had security, wealth, and a place in his community. Ig had it all, and more—he had Merrin and a love founded on shared daydreams, mutual daring, and unlikely midsummer magic.
But Merrin’s death damned all that. The only suspect in the crime, Ig was never charged or tried. And he was never cleared. In the court of public opinion in Gideon, New Hampshire, Ig is and always will be guilty because his rich and connected parents pulled strings to make the investigation go away. Nothing Ig can do, nothing he can say, matters. Everyone, it seems, including God, has abandoned him. Everyone, that is, but the devil inside. . . .
I needed a book for the prompt above and I’d been thinking about trying Joe Hill again.
The Quotes
“The best way to get even with anyone is to put them in the rearview mirror on your way to something better.”
“It bewildered Ig, the idea that a person could not be interested in music. It was like not being interested in happiness.”
“There’s only room for one hero in this story-and everyone knows the devil doesn’t get to be the good guy.”
“Him and God are supposed to be at war with each other. But if God hates sin and Satan punishes the sinners, aren’t they working the same side of the street? Aren’t the judge and the executioner on the same team?”
The Narrator(s)
Fred Berman. I have no issues with the narration.
My Thoughts
I loved the concept and the story itself, but for some reason I just don’t like the author’s writing style. I found the book difficult to get into and the writing felt clunky, obvious, and disjointed to me. It’s difficult to get immersed into the book and forget I’m reading; I’m constantly aware of the story and standing outside of it.
The first book I read by the author was Heart-Shaped Box and I rated it two stars. I read it almost 20 years ago so I don’t remember why I didn’t like it but I thought I would give him another chance, because after all, I wasn’t a huge fan of Stephen King either back then like I am now. I do intend to reread Heart-Shaped Box again though because apparently it’s his best one. I’d like to give it one more try before deciding if he’s not for me.
I must say again that I do enjoy his stories themselves; I also loved the adaptation of NOS4A2 although I didn’t read the book, but maybe I just don’t enjoy his writing style. Hopefully I’ll prove myself wrong when I try him again.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
In an unnamed South American country, a world-renowned soprano sings at a birthday party in honor of a visiting Japanese industrial titan. His hosts hope that Mr. Hosokawa can be persuaded to build a factory in their Third World backwater. Alas, in the opening sequence, just as the accompanist kisses the soprano, a ragtag band of 18 terrorists enters the vice-presidential mansion through the air conditioning ducts. Their quarry is the president, who has unfortunately stayed home to watch a favorite soap opera. And thus, from the beginning, things go awry.
Among the hostages are not only Hosokawa and Roxane Coss, the American soprano, but an assortment of Russian, Italian, and French diplomatic types. Reuben Iglesias, the diminutive and gracious vice president, quickly gets sideways of the kidnappers, who have no interest in him whatsoever. Meanwhile, a Swiss Red Cross negotiator named Joachim Messner is roped into service while vacationing. He comes and goes, wrangling over terms and demands, and the days stretch into weeks, the weeks into months.
With the omniscience of magic realism, Ann Patchett flits in and out of the hearts and psyches of hostage and terrorist alike, and in doing so reveals a profound, shared humanity. Her voice is suitably lyrical, melodic, full of warmth and compassion.
It’s a reread, and the BOTM for my in-person bookclub.
The Quotes
“It was never the right time or it was always the right time, depending on how you looked at it.”
“Some people are born to make great art and others are born to appreciate it. Don’t you think? It is a kind of talent in itself, to be an audience, whether you are the spectator in the gallery or you are listening to the voice of the world’s greatest soprano. Not everyone can be the artist. There have to be those who witness the art, who love and appreciate what they have been privileged to see.”
“For a man to know what he has when he had it, that is what makes him a fortunate man.”
“If what a person wants is his life, he tends to be quiet about wanting anything else. Once the life begins to seem secure, one feels the freedom to complain.”
The Narrator(s)
Anna Fields. It was good, I find that the best narrators are the ones who make me forget I’m listening to an audiobook and just get me immersed in the story.
My Thoughts
I read this book for the first time many years ago and it has stuck with me. I didn’t remember a single detail about the story itself but I have always remembered how it made me feel. This time around I thought I was prepared for the feels, but honestly, I might have expected it but I was still not prepared for it.
A lot of the details of the story surprised me this time around, and there were parts where I wondered at how realistic a scenario like this could be. I did have to turn on my suspension of belief, but after that, focusing on the story and the characters, it was just beautiful writing. The way the author writes about the passion for music, the way passion for something brings people together, the ways people find connection with each other. I fell in love with all of it.
Reading it again objectively, I can see the flaws in the story and there are definitely parts that I don’t like and felt were unnecessary. However, it’s so easy to get lost in the story and the writing, and you can’t help but want to know more about the characters. It’s still a wonderful journey the second time around.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
A man must fight for his planet against impossible odds when gamers from Earth attempt to remotely annihilate it in this epic, fast-paced novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl.
All colonist Oliver Lewis ever wanted to do is run the family ranch with his sister, maybe play a gig or two with his band, and keep his family’s aging fleet of intelligent agriculture bots ticking as long as possible. As a fan of Earth television and culture, he figures it will be a good thing when the transfer gate finally opens all the way and restores instant travel and full communication between Earth and his planet, New Sonora. But there’s a complication.
Even though the settlers were promised they’d be left in peace, Earth’s government now has other plans. The colossal Apex Corporation is hired to commence an “eviction action.” But maximizing profits will always be Apex’s number one priority. Why spend money printing and deploying their own AI soldiers when they can turn it into a game? Why not charge bored Earthers for the opportunity to design their own war machines and remotely pilot them from the comfort of their own homes?
The game is called Operation Bounce House.
Oliver and his friends soon find themselves fighting for their lives against machines piloted by gamers who’ve paid a premium for the privilege. With the help of an old book from his grandfather and a bucket of rusty parts, Oliver is determined to defend the only home he’s ever known.
“Don’t pass your responsibilities on to others unless absolutely necessary. Do not take on the responsibilities of others unless doing so is an act of kindness.”
“Miserable people are fond of laying blame on someone else for their problems.”
“It is the one thing I admire about humans the most: the ability to compartmentalize.”
The Narrator(s)
Travis Baldree. Jeff Hays. I don’t know what it is because so many people have said they enjoy Travis Baldree as a narrator but I have a hard time with his narration. I’ve listened to one of his Legends & Lattes books that he narrates and I enjoyed the story but I can’t pinpoint what it is about his voice that grates on me. Jeff Hays’ parts were great for me though!
My Thoughts
I got so lucky with this audiobook because I thought I was going to have to wait ages for it but it was available as a skip-the-line loan and I immediately jumped on it! It’s no Dungeon Crawler Carl, but it was still really good and I enjoyed it very much. I also think I might’ve enjoyed it more if it was narrated by someone else, I honestly don’t know why I have a problem with Baldree’s narration.
The story itself has all the elements of everything I love in the DCC series; found family – which everyone knows I love, a motley crew of very different people coming together to fight for something they were thrust into, help from somewhat artificial intelligent beings who have abilities the MCs don’t, unreasonable enemies who want ridiculous things… It’s a recipe for a great book with a great plot and great characters!
It has also made me nostalgic for the DCC world and Jeff Hays’ narration, and I’m still debating about the best time to dive back into rereading the series before starting on Book 8! Just a few days left! I might just read Book 8 immediately and then start over after!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Mary Roach takes the age-old question, “What happens to us after we die?” quite literally. And in Stiff, she explores the “lives” of human cadavers from the time of the ancient Egyptians all the way up to current campaigns for human composting. Along the way, she recounts with morbidly infectious glee how dead bodies are used for research ranging from car safety and plastic surgery (you’ll cancel your next collagen injection after reading this!), to the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin.
Impossible (and irreverent) as it may sound, Roach has written a book about corpses that’s both lively and fresh. She traveled around the globe to conduct her forensic investigations, and her findings are wryly intelligent. While the myriad uses for cadavers recounted are often graphic, Roach imbues her subject with a sense of dignity, choosing to emphasize the oddly noble purposes corpses serve, from organ donation to lifesaving medical research.
Readers will come away convinced of the enormous debt that we, the living, owe to the study of the remains of the dead. And while it may not offer the answer to the ancient mystery we were hoping for, Stiff offers a strange sort of comfort in the knowledge that, in a sense, death isn’t necessarily the end.
This book has the honor of being one of the oldest books on my TBR. I bought a copy not long after it came out about 20 years ago, and I had even started reading it a few times but it never stuck. I no longer have my original copy but I have finally read it!
The Quotes
“We are biology. We are reminded of this at the beginning and the end, at birth and at death. In between we do what we can to forget.”
“You are a person and then you cease to be a person, and a cadaver takes your place.”
“Many people will find this book disrespectful. There is nothing amusing about being dead, they will say. Ah, but there is.”
“I guess I feel the same way about being a corpse. Why lie around on your back when you can do something interesting and new, something useful?”
The Narrator(s)
Shelly Frasier. It was great, no complaints!
My Thoughts
I don’t know why it took me so long to read this book. It’s not for the lack of interest, I think, but rather taking it for granted when I had it on my shelves, and then forgetting about it when I no longer had it. I finally read it now, after so many years, because I happened to be on a nonfiction binge and it was one of the books available immediately on Libby.
As had been promised all these years, it was fascinating and I loved it! I was afraid that it might feel a little dated as I had read other more recently published books about death and dead bodies since this book was first published, but it didn’t feel that way to me. I still learned a lot of interesting information, and got quite morbidly curious about the part where she talks about cannibalism.
I don’t think I personally care what happens to my body after I die, I actually love the idea of being useful after I’m dead, but I do worry about possible cases of jumping the gun on harvesting organs from a person before they are dead. It doesn’t apply to me because I’m not a candidate for organ donation but it’s still disturbing that it has happened and can happen.
All in all, this was a great read, and would you believe it, my first Mary Roach book! She’s been a TBR author of mine for so long, I didn’t realize I haven’t actually read a single book until this one. I’m definitely looking out to read more from her.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
The virus kills nine out of ten of its victims so quickly and gruesomely that even biohazard experts are terrified. It is airborne, it is extremely contagious, and it is about to burn through the suburbs of a major American city. Is there any way to stop it?
In the winter of 1989, at an Army research facility outside Washington, D.C., this doomsday scenario seemed like a real possibility. A SWAT team of soldiers and scientists wearing biohazard space suits had been organized to stop the outbreak of an exotic “hot” virus. The grim operation went on in secret for eighteen days, under dangerous conditions for which there was no precedent.
The Hot Zone tells this dramatic story in depth for the first time, giving an absolutely hair-raising account of the appearance of rare and lethal viruses and their “crashes” into the human race. From a remote jungle cave festering with deadly organisms, to an airplane over Africa that is carrying a sick passenger who dissolves into a human virus bomb, to the confines of a Biosafety Level 4 military lab where scientists risk their lives studying lethal substances that could kill them quickly and horribly, The Hot Zone describes situations that a few years ago would have been taken for science fiction. As the tropical wildernesses of the world are destroyed, previously unknown viruses that have lived undetected in the rain forest for eons are entering human populations. The appearance of AIDS is part of the pattern, and the implications for the future of the human species are terrifying.
It’s been on my TBR forever but I kept putting it off. People keep praising it though so I couldn’t put it off anymore!
The Quotes
“In biology, nothing is clear, everything is too complicated, everything is a mess, and just when you think you understand something, you peel off a layer and find deeper complications beneath. Nature is anything but simple.”
“To mess around with Ebola is an easy way to die. Better to work with something safer, such as anthrax.”
“You can’t fight off Ebola the way you fight off a cold. Ebola does in ten days what it takes AIDS ten years to accomplish.”
“The rain forest has its own defenses. The earth’s immune system, so to speak, has recognized the presence of the human species and is starting to kick in. The earth is attempting to rid itself of an infection by the human parasite. Perhaps AIDS is the first step in a natural process of clearance.”
The Narrator(s)
Richard M. Davidson. Really good, no notes.
My Thoughts
For some reason, I thought this was going to be a dry nonfiction read (maybe because of the cover!) but it turned out to be so well-written and reads like an actual horror/thriller novel. I had no idea Ebola and Marburg were so deadly. I knew they made you sick, of course, but I thought of them the way I would’ve thought about malaria, or dengue; dangerous and sometimes fatal but not incurable! And what a horrible way to go!
The issues with how the monkeys were handled, how information was shared, and how everything was cleaned up, have got me feeling torn because on the one hand, there were so many unethical practices, on the other, I have no idea what I would do if I was in that position. I’d probably be in denial too if I thought I had been exposed to an incurable virus that would eventually lead to a horrible, gory death for me.
One of the sentiments I found most interesting from the book is how viruses like Ebola and Marburg are the “predators” of humans, to cull humans when we become so overpopulated and start encroaching into animal habitats, and you know what, that’s actually really fair. We like to think we’re at the top of the food chain but we’re really not, and these tiny microscopic viruses will prove it to us any time we start thinking otherwise. I do not like the thought, but it’s what will keep me humble and wary of too much outdoor activity! I loved this book but I have decided I’m going to be a stay-at-home bookworm forever.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
A librarian with a mysterious past, a war hero with a secret, and the heist of a magic painting. THE LIBRARIAN OF CROOKED LANE is an intriguing new fantasy from C.J. Archer, the USA Today bestselling author of the Glass and Steele series.
Librarian Sylvia Ashe knows nothing about her past, having grown up without a father and a mother who refused to discuss him. When she stumbles upon a diary that suggests she’s descended from magicians, she’s skeptical. After all, magicians are special, and she’s just an ordinary girl who loves books. She seeks the truth from a member of the most prominent family of magicians, but she quickly learns that finding the truth won’t be easy, especially when he turns out to be as artless as her, and more compelling and dangerous than books.
War hero Gabe is gifted with wealth, a loving family, and an incredible amount of luck that saw him survive four harrowing years of a brutal war without injury. But not all injuries are visible. Burying himself in his work as a consultant for Scotland Yard, Gabe is going through the motions as he investigates the theft of a magician-made painting. But his life changes when he unwittingly gets Sylvia dismissed from her job and places her in danger.
After securing her new employment in a library housing the world’s greatest collection of books about magic, Gabe and Sylvia’s lives become intwined as they work together to find both the painting and the truth about Sylvia’s past before powerful people can stop them.
But sometimes the past is better left buried…
The Reason
The whole series was on sale in Audible and I thought I’d give it a try.
The Quotes
“A hidden passage inside a library? Have you been reading my childhood diary and discovered all my favorite things?”
“Nobody could make anyone believe something they didn’t want to, no matter how compelling.”
The Narrator(s)
Marian Hussey. She was perfect for the whole series. I enjoyed her narration immensely!
My Thoughts
Book 1 – The Librarian of Crooked Lane Book 2 – The Medici Manuscript Book 3 – The Untitled Books Book 4 – The Dead Letter Delivery Book 5 – Secrets of the Lost Ledgers Book 6 – The Journal of a Thousand Years
I had never heard of the books nor the author, but I love bookish books and the titles of the books and series drew me in immediately. The whole series was on sale and a preliminary search of the books made me feel good about an impulse buy. I wasn’t disappointed, it was such an enjoyable series! I especially loved the pacing and the way the stories flowed from one book to the next. To the point where it makes it hard for me to talk about the books one by one (which I initially wanted to do) because I don’t remember where a plot ended and another began, so I’ll just talk about all of them as a whole.
Apparently, this series is a spin-off from the Glass and Steele series by the same author. I was initially interested in reading them too but there are 13 books in the series, and unless I get lucky with another sale, I don’t think I’ll be doing that!
As for this series, they give me dark academia meets magical fantasy meets historical romance vibes. I loved how we get to know the characters more with each book and how their relationship progressions grow naturally. There are references to things that I assumed happen in the Glass and Steele series but doesn’t leave us with questions in this series and, as far as I know, doesn’t seem to spoil the Glass and Steele series.
I listened to the whole series on audio, one right after the other, and I thought it was just the perfect series to listen to during a time where I couldn’t be a hundred percent focused. It was light-hearted and easy to follow, yet also interesting and thrilling enough to keep my attention throughout all six books. I loved the whole experience and I was transported into another world for a wonderful time.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this series? Would you read this series? Did you like it or do you think you would like it?
Tara Westover grew up preparing for the End of Days, watching for the sun to darken, for the moon to drip as if with blood. She spent her summers bottling peaches and her winters rotating emergency supplies, hoping that when the World of Men failed, her family would continue on, unaffected.
She hadn’t been registered for a birth certificate. She had no school records because she’d never set foot in a classroom, and no medical records because her father didn’t believe in doctors or hospitals. According to the state and federal government, she didn’t exist.
As she grew older, her father became more radical, and her brother, more violent. At sixteen Tara decided to educate herself. Her struggle for knowledge would take her far from her Idaho mountains, over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge. Only then would she wonder if she’d travelled too far. If there was still a way home.
EDUCATED is an account of the struggle for self-invention. It is a tale of fierce family loyalty, and of the grief that comes with the severing of the closest of ties. With the acute insight that distinguishes all great writers, Westover has, from her singular experience, crafted a universal coming-of-age story, one that gets to the heart of what an education is and what it offers – the perspective to see one’s life through new eyes, and the will to change it.
This has been on my TBR forever and it recently went on sale in Audible. The audiobook is narrated by Julia Whelan, whom I love, and so solidified my reason for buying and reading the book!
The Quotes
“You can love someone and still choose to say goodbye to them,” she says now. “You can miss a person every day, and still be glad that they are no longer in your life.”
“My life was narrated for me by others. Their voices were forceful, emphatic, absolute. It had never occurred to me that my voice might be as strong as theirs.”
“It’s strange how you give the people you love so much power over you.”
“Whomever you become, whatever you make yourself into, that is who you always were.”
“An education is not so much about making a living as making a person.”
The Narrator(s)
Julia Whelan. The GOAT! She can do no wrong in my eyes(ears)!
My Thoughts
I finished this book just before bedtime and was unable to sleep the rest of the night because I was so worked up and emotional about it. I did not expect to relate so hard with the author because we have pretty much nothing in common, but all that control and abuse disguised as familial love is unfortunately all too familiar to me. So is the difficulty in leaving and letting go, dealing with lies spread about you, and despite all of that, the yearning for change, love, and acceptance anyway.
The way the author articulated her experiences and her feelings about them was matter-of-fact and direct, yet at the same time felt raw and emotional. Perhaps I was projecting as well, but either way, it got me reflecting on my own experiences and wanting to articulate them too.
I love that education is the key to her liberation, and I love that it was her curiosity and love of learning that led her on the path to higher education. I am inspired by her courage in going to university when she barely had a high school education, and forging ahead even when she felt stupid after making a huge faux pas out of ignorance.
It took me such a long time to finally read this book but I’m glad I did. All the praise for it is well deserved. It’s a powerful story with a powerful message and I’m sure I’ll come back to it again one day.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
