May 2014 Reading Wrap Up

  

  

   

May was another excellent reading month for me, as I finished nine books!  It was almost ten, but I finished the tenth book on June 1st (Roopa Farooki's The Good Children), so that one can be carried over to June. Clearly the best way to increase the amount you read is to become so pregnant that all you can do is sit in a rocking chair surrounded by piles of books!

Despite reading a lot this month, most of the books turned out to be just average reads.  It was very much a three-star reading month, so I'm hoping that June will bring more four and five star reads for me, as too many three-star reads in a row can become demoralising.  I did meet my goal of reading one classic a month (Cranford) and also read five books from my physical TBR shelf (as opposed to kindle or library books), which I'm happy with.

This month, I read (links go to my reviews):

1. Jephte's Daughter by Naomi Ragen - An Orthodox Jewish woman struggles to find herself in the confines of an arranged marriage in Jerusalem.  Thought-provoking, but slightly let down by the second half of the novel.  3.5 stars.
2. The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin - Baba Segi's fourth wife is childless, and investigations into the cause unearth many family secrets.  A tragic comedy, and one of the best books I read all month.  5 stars.
3. Inkspell by Cornelia Funke - The second in the Inkworld trilogy, and a reread for me.  Great fun, but not as fun as the first installment.  4 stars.
4. The Vintage Girl by Hester Browne - Fun romance novel about Evie, who is addicted to antiques and meets the heir to a fabulous Scottish castle.  Great escapism - 3.5 stars
5. We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo - Darling grows up in a shanty town and dreams of escaping to America, only to find that it isn't all she hoped it would be.  My favourite read of the month - 5 stars.
6. The Kingdom of Childhood by Rebecca Coleman - Teacher in an unhappy marriage starts abusing a teenage boy.  This one promised to be controversial but wasn't as thought provoking as I had hoped.  3 stars.
7. Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell - A quiet read that took me a while to get into, about a town populated only by women.  3.5 stars.
8. Norweigan Wood by Haruki Murakami - My first Murakami, and not as weird as I was hoping. A teenage coming of age story.  3 stars.
9. The Fire Gospel by Michel Faber - Another let-down.  I'm a big Faber fan, but this retelling of the Prometheus myth missed the mark. 3 stars.

Looking ahead to June, I'm hoping to get lots of reading in before the baby comes (I'm officially due in 9 days, but have a feeling I will go over).  I'm still dipping in and out of On the Map by Simon Garfield, so will be finishing that this month.  Apart from that, I'm going to read on a whim and see where my fancy takes me.

How was your reading month?

What was your favourite and least favourite reads of May?

Sam Sunday #48: Looking Back on March

Friday was my last day at work before the two week Easter holidays, and I could not be more relieved.  It's starting to become difficult to get through the days at work now, so two weeks of rest is just what I need before going back for my final half-term. I'm currently seven months pregnant, so very much on the home run and starting to feel both excited that it's almost over and also scared that I'm actually going to have to give birth soon!

March was a great reading month.  Most evenings after work I was so tired that relaxing in bed with a book seemed like the perfect option. This has led to me getting through a lot of books, including some hefty chunksters.  I'm well ahead of pace for my goodreads goal of 80 books, and I'm sure that I'll get through a lot more books during my break from work, long may my reading mojo continue!

March reads:

  

  

  

I don't think I've ever read 9 books in one month before! (Links to my reviews)

1. The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides - Much more literary than Eugenides' previous books, a satire of the study of English literature and an examination of whether straightforward love stories have any place in the modern world.  4/5
2. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston - Powerful story of a black woman finding herself through three marriages and the hardships of life. 5/5
3. Magic Study by Maria V Snyder - Disappointing sequel to Poison Study, best avoided. 2/5
4. Almost English by Charlotte Mendelson - Promising plot line about a young Czech girl seeking to become as British as possible by attending boarding school, but unfortunately the immigration theme was never fully explored and the execution was a bit of a let down. 3/5
5. The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare - Not my favourite Shakespeare, but a fun read, and I liked the portrayal of women.  4/5
6. The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton - Every bit as impressive as it has been made out to be, a truly epic mystery set in gold rush New Zealand.  Don't let the length put you off. 4.5/5
7. Kindred by Octavia Butler - A young black woman is transported back in time to the slavery era.  A really gritty read with no moral simplicities.  5/5
8. Pregnancy for Modern Girls by Hollie Smith - I appreciated how straight-forward and plain-talking this pregnancy guide was. 3.5/5
9. The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert - Panoramic of the nineteenth century, told through the eyes of botanist Alma Whittaker.  Lots of big themes. 4/5

Looking ahead to April, I'm going to continue to read according to my mood, and just pick up whatever I feel like reading.  I've got a few Baileys long-list books checked out from the library, and hopefully I'll make it through at least some of the those, but I'm not going to make myself pick up anything.  

How was your reading in March?  Any plans for April?

Sam Sunday #43: So Long, January!

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So the first month of 2014 is over, and I'm pleased to report that I managed to stick to most of my bookish goals.  My main goal was to read only books from my shelves, as opposed to accumulating library books, buying new books or using my kindle, which I managed to do.  I finished six books:

  

  

It was actually very nice to just read exclusively from my shelves, it felt more like how I used to read before starting this blog, before all of the review copies and masses of recommendations that had me heading to the library at least once a week!  It's not something I'm going to keep doing, as I'm already missing my kindle, but I can see myself having another month like this at some point later in the year.

I also managed to stick to my goals of reading at least one book for Jazz Age January (The Paris Wife) and one book from my TBR 2014 pile, The Glass Palace. As well as this, I was pleased to read one book for the Classics Club, Brave New World, and one non-fiction title, as my non-fiction reading really suffered last year.

Looking ahead to February, I'm going to be relaxing my reading rules a bit, but I'm still going to remain focused on reading books that I already own, rather than acquiring more.  I think I'm going to give the library a pass for another month but add my kindle into the mix, so I have kindle books and physical books to choose from.  As always, I'm hoping to read one Classics Club book and one TBR 2014 book.

How was your reading month in January?  Any goals for February?