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Hosted by Kathryn at Book Date
Phew! I had 12 days in a row where I was either visiting family or had company here with me. It was absolutely wonderful, but included very little reading time. I tried to remedy that on Friday by holding my own mini-read-a-thon. Almost all I did all day was read! Even when I took time for a long walk, I was listening to a book. It felt amazing! This week I head back to work for three days of meetings and preparations for students the following week. It’s always a little sad to see the summer end, but new beginnings can be exciting, too.
Last Week’s Reads
Both books I finished this week will take a little time for me to fully digest. I listened to the audio version of Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie and found it to be sad and a little disturbing. For me Home Fire didn’t live up to all the hype surrounding it, though it’s certainly a thought provoking book. I plan to include it in an upcoming post of mini-reviews. The Good People by Hannah Kent took place in 1825 Ireland, following three women’s quest to help a changeling child. The story pitted superstition against the Catholic church and was based on actual events. I’ll be reviewing this closer to its release date of 9/19.
Currently Reading
The second half of July and all of August have been a rough book time for me. I’ve read several so-so books and several that I liked, but none that absolutely wowed me. Last week, I tried A Loving, Faithful Animal by Josephine Rowe, but found her choppy writing style too demanding for me as a reader, so gave up on that one. I NEEDED a wow book! The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne has been on my radar for a while, but, to be honest, the length (594 pages) has kept me away. That changed on Friday when I read Renee’s review @itsbooktalk. I trust Renee’s opinions and she said this book blew her away, becoming her favorite for the year. With that i was completely sold and decided to go for the wow! At barely 10% in, I’m loving the voice of the narrator and am anxious to get back to the book, both very good signs.
Likely to Read Next
I figure that after a really long book, it might be good to go with a couple of shorter books next. The Burning Girl by Claire Messud comes out tomorrow and at Beth@bethfishreads suggestion, I plan on listening to it for my next audiobook. A coming-of-age story about the shattered bonds between long-time best friends sounds right up my alley. I hope Janet Peery’s The Exact Nature of Our Wrongs proves to be the great dysfunctional family story I’m longing for.
I hope you have a great week in books!
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Renee changed my view of Heart’s Invisible Furies too! I have it on hold at the library and am now planning to take the plunge!
And planning to read The Burning Girl and maybe try Exact Nature depending on your thoughts as well!
I’m a little over halfway through with HIF now and am really liking it. There are some parallels with one of my relatives, so that makes it even more interesting to me.
Susie thanks so much for the mention and for your kind words! I so hope I don’t let you down with Heart’s and that you end up loving it:) I haven’t heard of either of your upcoming reads but I like the sound of both so I’ll be checking those out. Have a great back to work week!
Thanks, Renee and thanks for pointing me to HIF. At 50% now and loving it!
The Hanna Kent and Burning Girl are high on my list. Maybe I’ll have to reassess Furies.
I am curious about The Burning Girl, although it has been a while since I read her previous book.
Sometimes I hesitate with lengthy books…but yesterday I started reading a book I knew I would love, but has 528 pages, and it is flying by. (The Good Daughter).
So…with the right pace and a riveting story and characters, we can breeze through anything.
Here are MY WEEKLY UPDATES
So true! I need to not get so overwhelmed with the idea of a long book. Before i started blogging, it was never even a consideration.
I also want to read John Boyne’s because of Renee hahaha Oh, and Im reading The burning girl soon so I’m curious about your thoughts. I also love family days but then I do the same as you and when I’m by myself again I can’t stop reading 😛
There’s almost nothing better than a whole day alone with nothing but books! I’m downloading The Burning Girl in the morning and will start it on the way to work. I’m looking forward to a good coming-of-age story.
I have a couple of books I’ve been putting off because of the length – I want short, fun books for summer, but now that summer is winding down it might be time to dig into a thicker novel. Happy Reading! Girl Who Reads
Those were my thoughts exactly!
Your books are all new to me. I hope you enjoy the ones coming up. Come see my week here. Happy reading!
Great descriptions and suggestions! Thank you. I look forward to hearing your take on Heart’s Invisible Furies, I like the author and just picked it up from the library! Happy Reading!
I’ve somehow never read John Boyne Before, so Heart’s Invisible Furies is a very pleasant surprise.
I finished The Heart’s Invisible Furies last week. Despite it’s length, there is NOTHING tedious about it. The voice of Cyril was both heartbreaking and heartwarming. The Irish Catholic culture of the 1940’s thru the 80s is what one might expect. Truly a great read.
You are so right! I absolutely love Cyril. He’s a great story teller and and such a heartbreaking character. I’m so glad I took the plunge!
Those are all new to me books. Come see what I’m reading.
I like the sound of your mini readathon! A wonderful week to you, Susie.
Oooh, a promising new audio selection sounds great, Susie! I’ll have to check back in and see what you think! And don’t you hate it when real life things (and people) break into your reading schedule? HAHAHA! 😉