WRAPPIN' IT UP | August 2015
4:01 PM
This month was weird. I look at my spreadsheet and see that I read quite a few things so, in that regard, I'm quite pleased. On the flip side, I put three books onto a shiny new "dnf" Goodreads shelf and had quite a few more that I just didn't end up enjoying. All said and done, August was definitely about quantity over quality.
First, some numbers.
- I finished 13 things this month, the first of which was started on the 30th of July. I started an additional 3 books, all of which were put down partway through.
- I read a total of 3652 pages. This number is not counting the books that I marked as "dnf."
- I read 4 graphic novels and 9 novels.
- My average rating this month was 2.87 stars.
- I read 4 of the 6 books that were on my August TBR. The two I did not read are: The Wondrous and the Wicked (Page Morgan) and The 100 (Kass Morgan).
Thoughts on the books that I read this month are as follows:
- Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine. Started on July 30th and finished on August 2nd. I gave this book a 4-star rating. I really enjoyed this book. I had some issues with the supporting characters and the romance but, overall, the world was thoroughly fleshed out (I didn't have any major questions about history, motive, setting, etc.) and the plot was intriguing. This was a good start to a series and I look forward to reading the following books when they come out. You can read my full review here.
- Those Girls by Chevy Stevens. Started on August 2nd and finished on August 4th. I gave this book a 1.5-star rating (rounded up to 2 stars). I had a lot of problems with this one and it certainly didn't do anything to help prevent my reading slump from happening or growing. This book had some tropes in it that I really hate, including teen characters who run off to save the day without telling anyone, as well as plotlines that probably were supposed to be major but ended up adding nothing to the story and characters that were mostly cardboard cutouts, predictable archetypes that show up time and time again in stories such as this. This book was also incredibly dark and hard to read - trigger warning for rape, abuse, kidnapping, etc. You can read my full review here.
- Life is Short (No Pun Intended): Love, Laughter, and Learning to Enjoy Every Moment by Bill Klein and Jennifer Arnold, MD. Started on August 4th and finished on August 5th (technically - though I read it in one sitting). I gave this book 4 stars. I have loved watching the author's TV show - The Little Couple - for years and this book really brought more information to the table in regards to Bill and Jen's childhood and adolescent years. It was also fun to read about Will and Zoey's adoptions more in-depth. While there were some structural issues to this book (sections of it seemed clunky or repetitive), I can't help but love this family and their undeniable happiness and love for each other. You can read my full review here.
- Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. Started on August 5th and finished on August 8th.I gave this book a 3-star rating. I thought that this was a decent book but it definitely didn't live up to the amazing reviews that I had read before I picked it up. My biggest issue was the pacing. In all honesty, it isn't like there was something in these pages that was so bad I didn't enjoy the book, I just didn't ever fall into it. Possibly an issue related to my slump, but, who knows? You can read my full review here.
- Detective Jermain Volume 1 by Misako Rocks! Started and finished on August 10th. I gave this book a 2.5-rating, rounded up to 3 stars. When I truly realized I was in a slump, I turned to graphic novels. This one was fun enough, but I thought that the thing it was lacking most was depth - I wasn't satisfied by the seemingly-hurried conclusion to the case. You can read my full review here.
- El Deafo by Cece Bell. Started and finished on August 11th. I gave this book 4 stars. This graphic memoir is charming! Aimed for a younger audience, it cleverly tells the story of young Cece, deaf after a bout with meningitis. The story involves elements of superhero daydreams, friendship, and acceptance. Really cute art and a great story. You can read my full review here.
- Page by Paige by Laura Gulledge. Started and finished on August 11th. I gave this book 3 stars. This was a fun enough graphic novel. Some of the art was so stunning and the way that different metaphorical ideas were presented in the art was really fun to see; however, at times, it was a little too straight-forward. The romantic interest was adorable and I could see a lot of myself in Paige's story. I think that teens would really find something to connect with in this story. You can read my full review here.
- Skim by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki. Started and finished on August 11th. I gave this book 3 stars. I enjoyed this more than the previous graphic novel I have read by these two; however, it still wasn't enough to really sell me. I never fell in love with the main character, despite her diversity, and I never felt that the story really "went there" in regards to sexuality, race, weight, etc. The art was beautiful - the line work in particular is gorgeous. You can read my full review here.
- Not Otherwise Specified by Hannah Moskowitz. Started on August 12th and finished on August 13th. I gave this book 4 stars. While not a groundbreaking book by any means, this one definitely had a lot of things working for it. I loved the writing style, I loved the diversity, and I loved the main friendship being presented. I thought that some things were lacking - I wanted to be more knowledgeable about the main character's eating disorder - and I also wanted to explore more of the sister-sister relationship but, overall, I think that this book has a lot of good things to share. Of course, the great representation of bisexuality is a huge plus. You can read my full review here.
- Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan. Started and finished on August 14th. I gave this book 2 stars. At its core, I think that this book has an interesting enough premise. The major problem with it is the execution. I never got sucked into a specific setting. I never felt like anything was at stake. I hated the characters. I couldn't really let myself enjoy all the conversations about fonts and the origin of fonts and on and on and on. I can see why some people love it but it isn't for me. You can read my full review here.
- All Fall Down by Ally Carter. Started on August 18th and finished on August 21st. I gave this book 2 stars. A lot of things that I hate about young adult books, I found in this one. On the writing and plot side, the pacing was bad and the plot twists were overbearing and not very climactic. As for the characters, well, the main one isn't written convincingly at all. For being set in a fictional country, I pretty much felt like I was in the United States or a country we already are familiar with. Overall, a very meh book. You can read my full review here.
- Cream Puff Murder by Joanna Fluke. Started on August 23rd and finished on August 27th. I gave this book 2 stars. I wanted to pick up something light that I could go into with very low expectations in order to help myself get out of this slump. These books are fun... but not as fun as I remember when I started reading them a few years back. The writing is way too much, everything is being told to me, things are being explained when they are self-explanatory, the dialogue is rigid and unrealistic. The actual murder was solved and tossed away in about 4 or so pages. It definitely met my low expectations. You can read my full review here.
- The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel. Started on August 27th and finished on August 31st. I gave this book 2.5 stars (rounded up to 3). I decided to pick this one up because the TV series based on it, which I adore, just finished. I wasn't ready to be done learning about these lives and these stories and I thought that reading this book might provide me with new insight into the events and things that we saw dramatized for TV. As a result of watching the show and doing some of my own research into these astronauts and their flights and their wives and their lives, I knew a lot of what was going to happen, so I really felt nothing pulling at me to keep reading, except my own personal desire to finish the book. Overall, the content is interesting and knowledgeable but the way it is presented really brings down the book as a whole. You can read my full review here.
The books that I marked as "dnf" this month were...
- Lexicon by Max Berry - I just wasn't following the plot and wasn't really comprehending what I was reading. This is a "will return to later" book, though.
- Panic by Lauren Oliver - I didn't really enjoy the characters and the plot wasn't grabbing me like I thought it would. I wasn't really in the mood to read about teenagers doing dumb things.
- More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera - I was really upset that this one didn't work out for me. I wrote an almost full-length review about the reasons why I put it down and you can read that here.
What did you read in August? What were your favorites?
1 comments
I hope you have a better September!
ReplyDeleteAlso, your rating for the Astronaut Wives is blank.