2020 Mid-Year Reading Goals Check-In

Late June-early July is that time of year when I like to look back on the first six months of reading and re-visit what I liked/disliked and how well (or not) I am doing with my reading goals for the year. As I've done in the past I will incorporate some questions from the mid-year book freak-out tag that many book bloggers like doing around this time of year.

1. Best book you’ve read so far in 2020

The Lost Future of Pepperharrow by Natasha Pulley. If I ever had any doubts that Natasha Pulley was one of my favorite authors, they have been utterly obliterated now.

2. Best sequel you've read so far in 2020

Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

3. New release you haven't read yet, but want to

Network Effect by Martha Wells

4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year

The Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer

5. Biggest disappointment

The Arrangement by Sylvia Day - DNF'ed at 20 %, complete and utter trash in my opinion, and I rarely say that about books

6. Biggest surprise

The Kin of Ata are Waiting for You by Dorothy Bryant - read this for my bookclub and it turned out to be an unexpectedly deep examination of one journey to self-discovery and growth

7. Favorite new author. (Debut or new to you)

Yaa Gyasi. Her writing is very hard-hitting and vivid. When I read her book I saw the scenes she created and felt the pain and joy of the characters. 

8. Newest fictional crush

Kal from Aurora Burning. Who wouldn't like a purple-eyed Legolas look-alike

9. Newest favorite character

The Murderbot from The Murderbot Diaries. Technically I read the first novella last year, but I read three more recently and they further solidified my love for this character.

10. Book that made you cry

The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner

11. Book that made you happy

The Vanderbeekers series by Karina Yan Glaser. This middle-grade series is cozy and heart-warming and everything I look for when I pick up a children's book.

13. What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

Looking over my goals for the year and progress to date, I really need to focus on reading classics. I have the set goal of 12 for the year, and so far read only 4.

Reading the Classics: "Claudine's House" by Colette

Ever since I watched (and loved) the movie about Colette (starring Keira Knightley), I've wanted to read a book by her. Colette was quite a controversial figure in her time, mostly because of her scandalous lifestyle and performances at the Moulin Rouge. Her writing career began when she was married to her first husband Willy, a notorious libertine and opportunist. Sensing Colette's talent, he forced her to write for long periods of time under lock and key and insisted that she include salacious details in her books. He then published her work under his own name. The books were a tremendous success and were semi-biographical in nature. 

Claudine's House is a book Colette wrote much later in life. It is a compilation of reminiscences and stories about her happy childhood in the French countryside. They made me quite nostalgic and took me back to my own childhood memories. Colette's writing is exquisite and refreshing. It feels like seeping a cold drink while sitting in a rocking chair on the back porch on a warm summer day. Each story brings out a certain aspect or memory whether it is an amusing story about a household pet, a gossipy tale about a pretty neighbor or a reflection on her mother's idiosyncrasies. 

I really enjoyed this book and was glad to discover that my fascination with Colette was well-placed. I will definitely be reading more of her work and about her life if I get a chance. 

Five Books to Read about the Racial Divide in America

This past week, peaceful and violent protests have broken out all over America in the wake of more cases of police brutality. As I struggle to comprehend how (HOW?) can we be still dealing with racism in the 21st century, I have put together a list of five books that deal with the issue of race in America. All five have profoundly touched me. All five are written by black authors if you are looking for ways to support black creators. Here they are in no particular order:

1. White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide by Carol Anderson

This is a non-fiction title which chronicles the history of opposition to black success in America. The author traces its roots back to the Civil War and the Reconstruction era and examines how the structural institutionalized racism came to be. It is a highly illuminating and poignant read.

2. Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

This is a contemporary fiction title which provides a nuanced view of the myriad biases and privileges we internalize and don't stop to examine. I highly recommend listening to this on audio if you get a chance, it is an excellent production. I read this book earlier this spring and have a full review here.

3. Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

This book is a compilation of life stories of several generations of African families some of whom stayed in Ghana and others were brought to America as slaves. Each story is heart-wrenching but also hopeful. You can read my full review of this book here.

4. Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

Octavia E. Butler's work requires no introduction. Written as a Sci-Fi novel with time-traveling elements, this book gives readers a glimpse into the horrors of slavery. I have a full review of this book here.

5. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

This is a YA contemporary novel inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement. I would highly recommend it to parents and teens, and frankly anyone alive today. I listened to this book on audio also and highly recommend that format. Here is my original review.

"The Lost Future of Pepperharrow" by Natasha Pulley

I love Natasha Pulley's books. Technically The Lost Future of Pepperharrow is the sequel to The Watchmaker of Filigree Street. I would definitely recommend reading the first book before getting into this one. We follow the same main characters: Keita Mori, a Japanese samurai and clairvoyant turned watchmaker, and Thaniel Steeplton, a translator and composer. In this book, we Keita, Thaniel and their daughter Six travel to Japan: Thaniel is sent on an assignment to the British legation there, and Keita is being blackmailed into appearing in his homeland by Japan's new Prime Minister.

I loved the setting of the 19th century Japan. I should really read more books set there. Natasha Pulley did a wonderful job conveying the sense of what it is like to be a foreigner in a different culture and explaining the intricate nuances of the Japanese language. She is a masterful storyteller. We follow different point of views and different timelines, and just like in her other books, the ending is exquisite and wholly satisfying. This book also contains some of the most beautiful declarations of love. 

Pulley's books are magical. They have the right mix of a historical setting, steampunk elements, adventure and romance. There was also a brief cameo appearance of a character from her other novel The Bedlam Stacks. Perhaps in the next installment Keita Mori and Thaniel Steepleton will go visit him in Peru :).

5 out of 5 stars. She is definitely one of my favorite writers.

"Reaper Man" by Terry Pratchett

The sheer number of Terry Pratchett's books has always intimidated me. But when my bookclub picked one of his novels as our next read, I took the plunge. Reaper Man technically is book number 11 in Pratchett's expansive Discworld series. However, having read the book, I can honestly confirm that his novels can be read in any order.

Pratchett's writing is witty, clever and hilarious. I kept chuckling throughout the book. It is filled with puns, wordplay and clever allusions to customs, historical facts or other books. Overall, I got the impression that Pratchett really loves and gets humanity. He laughs at people, but it is always good-naturedly and with deep affection. It really touched me for some reason.

Now to the plot. The book begins with Powers that Be determining that Death has been exhibiting an unforgivable character flaw - he has been showing sympathy. They thus decide to fire him. Death receives his verdict and goes into a retirement of sorts where he tries to live the rest of his life among people. In the meantime, living things all over Discworld cannot properly die what with Death's job being vacant. All sorts of mayhem ensues as the world is filled with built up lifeforce.

Apart from Death, we follow other hilarious characters: wizards from the local magical University, a clairvoyant, a boogeyman, and a whole bunch of other undead creatures. They all try to figure out what is going on as things start spiralling out of control, and Death is learning a thing or two about being alive.

I really enjoyed this book. 5 out of 5 stars.

"The Jane Austen Society" by Natalie Jenner

The Jane Austen Society is Natalie Jenner's debut novel which is coming out on May 26th here in the US. As a huge fan of Jane Austen, I tend to be interested in anything that has her name in the title or has anything to do with her characters.

This is a historical fiction novel set in Chawton, England, in the 1940s. Chawton is where Jane and her sister Cassandra finally settled after their brother Edward inherited a large estate of the Knights family (the family was a distant relation to the Austens and adopted Edward as they themselves were childless). We follow several different characters in the book: a country doctor, a schoolteacher, a scullery maid, a farmer, and even a Hollywood star. All of them share one love: Jane Austen's novels.

The author uses the omniscient voice so even though we follow different characters at different times and the perspective changes, the narrative is always in the third person. I personally prefer this style of writing. The story flows smoother and I don't get distracted by different "voices".

As one can discern from the title, the characters eventually band together to form the Jane Austen Society designed to preserve the place where Jane Austen spent the last 10 years of her life. Throughout the novel, each of the characters deals with their own personal struggles and tragedies, and somehow reading Austen helps them cope with loss and pain, and pulls them back to joy and life. Through this new project of establishing a society, all of them acquire an additional purpose and drive, and I loved watching the many transformations the characters go through.

I ended up really enjoying this book. In fact, I think it might become a favorite. Every year, I review 12-20 galleys of upcoming novels. This is one of those rare occasions, when I am planning to buy a finished copy for my library, and will definitely read it again. There something cozy and nostalgic about the setting in rural England. There are also multiple references to Austen's characters, which is always a plus for an Austen fan. 5 out of 5 stars. What a delightful read!

An e-ARC was provided by NetGalley.com 

"The Light Birgade" by Kameron Hurley

The Light Brigade is a Sci-Fi novel set in a distant future on Earth and on Mars. By this point, humans have successfully colonized the Moon, Mars and are envisioning moving further into space. On earth, geographic divisions are no longer along country/nation borders. Instead, the entire planet is divided between six major corporations who are de-facto and de-juri governments of their respective territories. Citizens of those territories have the most rights and benefits, residents basically have to work very hard for the same benefits, and ghouls are the lowest rung of society and have to scavenge to survive.

Our main character Dietz was able to rise from ghouls to resident and has now enlisted in her corporation's army in order to earn citizenship and more importantly to avenge the deaths of her younger brother and girlfriend who died in what was reported as Mars' attack on Sao Paolo.

I loved this novel. It is fast paced, entertaining, has great characters and is filled with poignant themes of what is reality, what is truth, and how does one break out of the vicious circle of war and power-grabbing. It also portrays war as a senseless timewarped meat-grinder where soldiers are stripped of all identity, are expected to blindly follow orders and the meaning of "heroism" loses any meaning.

There is also a time-traveling aspect to the novel which I personally always like in Sci-Fi novels. Overall, the more I think about it, the more things I find to ponder. This would make a great book for a bookclub. 5 out 5 stars. Here are a couple of my favorite quotes from the book:

"None of this is real," Andria said. She began to move around me. "This reality, more than even the one we see, is a complete fabrication. It exists in your mind. Like pain. Like pleasure."

"Truth is a point of view."

"We are, all of us, caught within a massive loop of time, bouncing around in the spaces between things."