Hello Loves!
May is over and so is my reading for this month.
May has been a month of reading big, fat, chunky books.
I read some smashing books and I cannot wait to talk about them.
So sit down, get comfy and let's begin.
:)
1. The Red Pony by John Steinbeck: Started my month right, with one of my favourite writers. I first read Steinbeck in college, Grapes of Wrath was part of my course and I loved it so much and read a few more of his books. But since then, I've read not nearly as much as I would like to. So it was nice to find my way back to one of my absolute faves. This one is a tiny little book that you can read in one sitting, I really enjoyed it's themes of coming of age, disappointment, nature and what it feels like to be a child. This book has made me want to read more Steinbeck and soon. I think it's time to re-read East of Eden and maybe even unearth my cope of Grapes of Wrath from college.
3.5/5
2. 3 Rays by Satyajit Ray: In honour and in celebration of Ray's 101st birthday I read this gorgeous book, seriously it's beautiful. It's stories from all three legendary Ray men and it's full of not only their literary works but also little glimpses of their personal papers and journals (which know I love) and some family history. An absolute delight which I enjoyed so, so much!
5/5
3. The Bangalore Detective Club by Harini Nagendra: I went into this book pretty blind. I was honestly excited to read this just based off the name and of course to read about Bangalore, a place I called home for five years. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw that it was historical fiction. Set in Bangalore in 1921! What fun! A historical thriller. And this book was good fun. A perfect summer read. I really like our main protagonist, our detective, she is spunky, bright and I will be happy to read more of her capers in the future. This book had a good mystery, but one where I could guess the perpetrator from pretty much the get go. Still, fun enough.
3/5
4. The Agathas by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson: I don't read a lot of YA anymore. Especially YA romance. But the genre I am reallllly enjoying lately is YA Thrillers. I think it's because growing up teen slasher films were my favourite things to watch. I still love some of those 90s classics, you know films like I Know What You Did Last Summer, Scream and Urban Legend. So Ya thrillers have me all invested and excited.
This book was fun and I really enjoyed my time with this book. Two girls, very different from each other, come together to solve the murder of a girl from their high school..and one of them takes inspiration and tutelage from the great Agatha Christie to solve said murder. Sounds amazing and it was good fun. The twists and turns keep you hooked and I really had fun reading this.
3.5/5
5. Book Lovers by Emily Henry: Hmm...the book the whole world seems to be reading and loving this summer. Like I've said before, I am not a big romance reader, not anymore at least. I have read my fair share of romance novels in my teens. Now....it doesn't quite work for me. I'd much rather watch a romcom than read one. But this one had so much buzz and it's about book people, so I figured I'd give it a read.
It OK. Nothing special, I don't quite get the hype around it honestly. It's so basic and OK. Not my cup of tea. Some things were fun..but for most part it was tedious.
2/5
6. In The Language of Remembering by Aanchal Malhotra: My favourite thing I've read this month and maybe even all year.
Brilliant. Important. Fantastic.
A full review is up already, so I won't go on about it.
5/5
7. The Hundred Choices Department Store by Ginger Park: I loved this book so much. It's a middle grade book, though I'd even realise this while I was reading this. It doesn't feel quite like a children's book, maybe because it's about such a difficult time in history. Set in Korea (unified Korea) during WWII and immediately after, this is the story of a young girl and her family. What a brilliant little book! I read it in a day, I could not put it down.
4/5
8. Rohzin by Rahman Abbas: A book set in my city, where one of it's worst calamities is a major plot point.
Full review for this one is up too.
4/5
9. Answers in the Page by David Levithan: I haven't read something by Levithan for a few years now, but I have read a few of his books in the past and really enjoyed them. This one is a very timely and important book about the often senseless banning of books. This is a middle grade book about a young boy trying to make sense of why his mother is hell bent on banning a book that was assigned to his class.
This book is also one of those book within a book and there is also a whole other story of two young boys falling in love. So you basically get three stories in one book. I loved each strand of this story. So good and so important to read about why every story is important and banning books is such a foolish and bigoted idea.
4/5
10. Seeking Fortune Elsewhere by Sindhya Bhanoo: This one took me by surprise. I randomly started reading this and loved it so much. So good.
Full review is up for this one too.
4.5/5
11. A Wild Sheep Chase by Haruki Murakami: Read Murakami after far too long! This book was a trip, like a lot of his books tend to be, a dash of bizzare things, some magical realism, some weirdness...you know the drill if you've read him. This one was just that...odd, beautiful, moody. Not my favourite Murakami by a longgggg shot.
3/5
12. The Eminently Forgettable Life of Mrs. Pankajam by Meera Rajagopalam: Another short read this one. Told in diary format, this one is about an older women who is slowly losing her memories and is attempting to hold on to some of those memories, while her life is going through some pretty interesting changes. Moving, sad and so rooted in our world, Mrs. P is like someone you know, your mum, an aunt or a kindly neighbour. Her story and her memories are like commonplace and ordinary and yet steeped in so much life.
3.5/5
13. Laburnum for my Head by Temsula Ao: I have this collection of short stories sitting on my Kindle shelves for a little while now. I have meant to read this Sahitya Akademi winning collection for while now. I finally picked it up this month and breezed through these stories set in Nagaland. Stories about people and a place often steeped in conflict. I really enjoyed these stories and I am so glad I finally got to it. I plan on reading way more Sahitya Akademi award winners. I own a few of those titles and this decision made me reach for this book.
4/5
14. Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel: This book should have worked for me. It had things I tend to love. Cults. Sisters. And a conversation about motherhood. Yet...this felt a little flat. It was soooooo predictable and you could see every single twist coming from a mile away. Not fun. The leading character is such a dunce. Seriously, I wanted to reach into the book and shake some sense into her.
1.5/5
15. Dog Songs by Mary Oliver: A spot of poetry that I read one night just before bed. I am not a big poetry person at all. At all. But Mary Oliver is always someone whose words I find comfort and solace in. This collection of poetry, all about doggos was no different. It was wonderful and something I enjoyed very much.
4/5
16. Curious Tales from the Desert by Shaguna and Prarthana Gahilote: I won this delightful book of folktales in a giveaway last month. I was so happy to win this because I've read the first installment of this book, stories from the Himalayas, so this book was on my radar and I am happy to have read it. I love folktales and the quiet wisdom and wit in them. These stories from the deserts of India and Pakistan were so much fun.
4/5
17. Blood Sugar by Sascha Rothchild: I read this book completely invested in this story. It's about...a kind sociopath. I love, love, love books told from the perspective of a killer but a killer who (to me) seems quite justified. The main protagonist of this story is a soft sociopath. A shrink no less. She has killed three people and now she's been accused of killing her husband. I was hooked from the word go and was rooting for our little killer! If you read it you'll understand why!
4/5
So there is all I read this month.
I also read some 200 pages of Tomb of Sand by Geetanjali Shree, which has won the Man Booker International Prize. I am so happy for the author and what this means for Indian literature...but sadly I just can't seem to find a hook into this world and this book. I read 200 pages and then I didn't force myself to continue. I will give it one more shot...but like always, I won't make myself read a book if it isn't working out for me. I will let you know how it goes.
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