Understanding Comics/Making Comics by Scott McCloud: Really interesting, visually appealing books that make you wish you could learn about EVERY subject through comics.
Batman: The Long Halloween: Pretty fun graphic novel. Quick, easy read. The pictures are hyper exaggerated and super colorful and I did feel a bit like a nerdy teenager, but I still enjoyed the story, characters, and format - especially after reading McCloud.
Carrie: I'm not really a Stephen King fan. I thought The Shining was such a drag. And there is a lot of over-the-top didactic stuff in Carrie that made me roll my eyes a bit. But I still enjoyed writing and thinking about Carrie in the context of some pretty big issues we discussed in one of my classes last semester on monsters. I even saw the movie, and wasn't nearly as freaked out as I had been led to expect I would be.
The Knife of Never Letting Go: I was really fascinated by this book through about 90% of it. And I do mean the I can't stop reading or even put down this book type of fascination. But for some reason, the end didn't quite have me dying to read the sequel the way it was supposed to. I tried to start the sequel and just couldn't get into it with the same amount of enthusiasm. This has happened before with The Maze Runner, and I'm still not sure why. Too much build up with too little pay off? Or maybe too much pay off? (Once the main question was answered, I wasn't as interested in finding out anything else.) Anyway, I enjoyed the concept and thought his style of writing was very unique (i.e. intriguing/odd/sometimes downright annoying). Give it a whirl if you're in a mood to be controversial.
Rosemary's Baby: Didn't much care for this one. I've heard it called a horror story and a satire, but it wasn't quite scary, and it wasn't quite funny. I also got a headache trying to figure out how to write about it (I eventually switched to writing about Carrie), so I currently am holding a grudge.
Delirium: I really was intrigued by the concept of this book (Love is a disease? Fascinating!), but found the characters and execution to be oh-so-tiresome. The story was quickly bogged down by the overkill development of the not that hard to grasp background, and fretful, wistful, time-wasting meandering through typical teenage mood swings, swooning, determination to rebel, etc. I eventually gave up and skimmed through the whole thing, decided the plot wasn't that impressive after all, and moved on.
The Fault in Our Stars: I've tried to read a few Jon Green novels before this one, and never really got attached to the characters or story. Until this one. From almost the first page I was immediately drawn in and was astonished at how quickly I came to relate and identify with the main character's attitude and situation. The simplicity and normalcy of the story somehow seemed epic and crucial. I would highly recommend this one, and I'm going to give his other books another go.
Ready Player One: Loved, loved, LOVED this one. Entertaining, exciting, intriguing, creative, and non-stop adrenaline the whole way through. Another one I had trouble putting down. And I don't even play video or computer games (which is what the whole book is about). Definitely recommend.
Flowers for Algernon: I loved this book - the story, the writing, the character, and the heart behind it all really got to me. It's heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time.
Lazy B: Nice, nostalgic read about Sandra Day's memoirs growing up on a ranch. Made me want to write and live my own childhood again.
The Meadow: I've read this before, but it's worth reading again. Poetic and thought-provoking.
I Am the Messenger: Very interesting, creative work from the author of the Book Thief. It doesn't feel quite as epic or inspirational as The Book Thief, but still brings that element of truth combined with mystery, secrecy, and import. I am amazed at how well this author weaves together seemingly unconnected images and moments to create such unified and beautiful ideas.
Beyonders (1&2): Didn't enjoy either of these as much as Brandon Mull's Fablehaven or The Candy Shop War. The magic worlds, evil bad guys, and perilous situations all seemed a little too exaggerated to be taken seriously (kind of like the old boys-in-danger story scenarios that Daniel and I used to write when we were little).
The Night Circus: This one gets a picture because I loved it so much. It would be my favorite book I read this year if I hadn't also read Mistborn. Super intriguing plot and beautiful imagery and writing throughout.
Midnight in Austenland: I loved the first Austenland book, but this one seemed a little contrived to me. Too Lost-in-Austeny for my taste.
Warbreaker: This was my first attempt with Brandon Sanderson and it was a smashing success! I went from skeptic to convert after reading this book, an excellent, creative, in-depth examination of religious and social structures complete with complex, three-dimensional characters and epic confrontations between good and evil.
Mistborn Trilogy: Hands down my pick for the best books I've read this year and probably for many years. These are books you want to live, not just read, and not just once but over and over again. I fell in love with the characters, the concept, the plot, and the writing. Seriously, I can't say anything bad about these books (except that if you are like me, you will cry when you finish them because all you want to do is to keep reading them forever).
Elantris: Again, one of the best sci-fi fantasies I've read, though I still consider it the weakest of B. Sanderson's. Still, I'm astonished at how good he is even when he is not so good.
King Lear: A very tragic play, but touching, inspirational, and beautiful in its own way. A lot of the lines got under my skin for a long time, particularly Edmund's self-condemning speech about how we blame fate in vain for our actions.
The Crossing: The second book in Cormac McCarthy's Border Trilogy, and one I've been meaning to read for a long time. Very powerful, gritty, deep stuff.
Something Borrowed/Something Blue/Baby Proof: Probably the most frothy/indulgent books I read all year. A tad scandalous, but oh so juicy and gossipy, and I ended up caring more about the characters than I expected thanks to Emily Giffin's appealing, straight-from-the-heart style. It felt almost like reading a stranger's diary or blog, maybe while eating ice cream and giggling with your girlfriends. Definitely while eating ice cream.
The Hunger Games trilogy: It had been a while since I read these books, and I was surprised at how much I couldn't remember about the details of the plots. The first book is definitely my favorite - such a twisted, crazy, fascinating scenario, and with sympathetic, enjoyable characters as well! The second book is also quite good, though the novelty wears off a little. The third book is the worst. I tried to like it both times I read it, but both times I ended up just shaking my head in sorrow, disgust, and quizzical disbelief and amusement. It does has the greatest expectations placed upon it, so it's understandable why it isn't as good, but it's still disappointing.
As for movies, I really enjoyed seeing The Hobbit, The Avengers, and The Hunger Games this year, and am still looking forward to seeing the last Breaking Dawn (there, I admitted it), Les Miserables, and Skyfall. This semester I'm hoping to see a lot more International Cinema films. I'll be taking a Western films class too, so expect to see a lot of westerns over the next four months. Incidentally, some of my other resolutions for the year include writing my thesis, probably over spring and summer (my goal is to have at least a rough draft of every chapter by December!), taking a dance class (I want to do one before I graduate, and it's looking like that will happen a year from this semester), finishing up everything I need to graduate besides my thesis (Spanish 321, I'm looking at you), writing in my journal weekly (I took two weeks off due to being sick), swimming/exercising/playing volleyball more regularly, and finally, a few spiritual goals - daily prayer, scripture study, and weekly family home evening/date night with Matthew. This May will be our two-year anniversary - how fast it goes by! Hard to believe we're still in the same apartment we started out in, and even more that it feels like home.
1 comment:
Fantastic review. I have no idea how you find time to read this much when you are so busy!
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