Hey Book Worms,
It has been a while since I updated you on the books I have been reading this year. Who knew that having a ton of time in lockdown one would actually lead to less reading. If that happened to you too that's okay, not being productive in a pandemic is not a flaw. I am not sure I will reach the 100 I aimed for but I just aim to read as many as possible and then try again next year. I have already doubled the amount of books I read last year and have really been enjoying learning more about different cultures, escaping into fantasy worlds and reigniting my imagination.
Return To The Labyrinth vol 1
You may remember this book from the 'Books For The Brave' readathon I took part in. This was super fun and I need to take part in another soon. I am a huge fan of the film The Labyrinth and pretty much anything Jim Henson. Any chance to return to the world and I will take it so when I heard of these graphic novels I had to hunt them out. They are pretty tricky to get hold of but it was not oin vain as I actually loved this. A grown up Toby (the baby from the film) is drawn into the Labyrinth after hearing so much of the world from Sarah and it is about his adventure. There are lots of fun new characters to explore and we also get to hear from some old favourites. I loved reading this but as with most graphic novels I devoured it pretty quickly and the hunt for the next one began.
The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou
From a young age I remember discovering the poem 'Life Doesn't Frighten me' my teacher in primary school really opened my world to the beauty of poems. Later I discovered the amazing 'Phenomenal Woman' and since then I have always been hooked on Maya Angelou's work she really has a way with words and I have really learnt a lot from her. Buses in the country side are awful so I find myself killing time in the library and I started reading a few of these poems every time I visited lockdown meant I had to wait to finish but I managed to get my hands on this book again. I urge you to read Maya Angeou's poems if you haven't yet. Also as a side note use your local library too!
Outlander
Again another book I read in the readathon and this was a hefty read but wow do you go on an adventure! I have to admit that I watched the series first so I knew what to expect but somehow it didn't matter Usually I have read the book before I see a series or film and have always avoided reading the book if I have already watched but this totally changed my mind. I was given the first three books as a birthday gift from a lovely friend and fellow Outlander lover. Although the series have been very close to Diana Gabaldon's originally book the book has so much more to offer. You fall in love with characters all over again Jamie is just as perfect in the book and in the series I didn't warm to Claire but explored her more in the book and found her much more likeable. I am excited to read the next in the series it is easy to get lost in Scotland and a great escape read packed full of sex, fighting and love.
Return To The Labyrinth vol 2
The hunt was successful to find the second volume I managed to pick this one up on ebay and am currently hunting out the last two volumes. If you see them for a reasonable price hit me up because I am currently stuck in the Labyrinth with Toby and we have just discovered a villain entering the scene so I feel like the next book is going to kick off with some major action. There is a weird story line unfolding which seems to be a clone of Sarah but my suspicions have not been confirmed yet and I just really need to know what happens next. I also love that at the back of the book you get to see lots of fan art my favourite is of course any of Ludo.
Queenie
Candice Carty-Williams brings us a powerful book about a young Jamaican-English woman who after splitting from her white ex is on a journey of discovery. Queenie mental health unravels as she makes a lot of questionable decisions that so many women who have been in there 20s will recognise. Through living life through Queenie's eyes we also see how white washed the world really is and the racism she experiences through work, and her ex's family. Queenie experiences a real break down in her mental health which is so important to talk about and because we fall in love with her funny and fun personality we really care when she hits these lows. The book is advertised as like Bridget Jones but that can get to fuck this book is so much more than Bridget will ever be. Learning about the world a young black woman with low mental health experiences is vital. Thankfully we get to stay with Queenie as she builds herself back up and rediscovers who she is. I genuinely loved this book and even more so as I listened to it as an audio book and it was beautifully read.
Mythos ,
I love Stephen Fry and am in awe of how intelligent he is so I thought I would try out the audio book of Mythos as not only do I love mythology but of course it is read by Stephen Fry himself. Now this is super detailed and who knew there was so much to learn about mythology. I have to admit there was so much going on that I just ended up confused and a bit lost. I think maybe this book was just bit over my head but it was certainly really interesting just not great if your memory is as bad as mine and you find yourself lost with who is who. I learnt a ton of fun stuff and will keep learning about Mythology too.
The confessions of Frannie Langton
This year I have been steaming through the audio books its all I have been able to really focus on and I have just found a love for the voice acting that goes into them bringing them to life. The Confessions Of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins is probably the best book I have consumed this year packed with so much. Frannie was born a slave into paradise only so by name, a Jamaican plantation run by a white man obsessed with experiments to prove that black people are a different species in a time already steeped in racism. Frannie is a truly complex and interesting protagonist so much so I want to explore this book on a deeper review.
No one is too small to make a difference
This was a quick read a collection of essays from Greta Thunberg talks on climate change. Greta is a very passionate young lady who is concerned about the impacts of our actions on her generation and children's generation and rightly so. However the book was very repetitive with all the speeches often saying the same thing yes valid points but to make a book I would think we need some variation to the solution. Perhaps some comments from other experts would have been interesting and livened up the debate. I do think that climate change is vital but sustainable living isn't always obtainable for working class wages. We can all make small changes and that is something I would like to explore in a later blog post.
The Bees
The Bees is a collection of poems by Carol Ann Duffy around what we need to protect in the world as it is precious including of course the bees. Of course the book is not solely about bees we have recollections of the war. I listened to this again on audio book but feel I need to read them on paper to truly take them in.
The Five : The Untold Lives Of The Women Killed By Jack The Ripper
Hallie Rubenhold gave me the book I didn't know I needed. As a true crime buff it is important that I point out it is not an obsession with serial killers but into the mind of those who chose to take life and honoring victims who never should have been taken. This book highlights how sadly these five women were victims of an unjust society long before Jack murdered them in cold blood. The life women led in Britain reminds you why feminism exists and the shock of how these women had their children taken for them were forced into alcoholism and homelessness. A common rumour is that all these women were prostitutes but that is not the case nor is there proof to show this for all of them. Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddows, and Mary Ann Kelly truly deserve to be remembered for more than just being the victims of Jack the Ripper they were women, mothers, sisters and wives and they didn't deserve what happened to them. Hallie Rubenhold regains some dignity in their memory/ A haunting book but an important read for all true crime and history lovers.
I am currently on my 36th book but always open to what to read next.
What have you been reading lately? Have you read any of these books?
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