Hello travelers,
If any of you are avid Booktube fans like I am, I'm sure you've noticed this tag making the rounds right now. Some people did this back in June, others are only now getting theirs up. To be honest, it doesn't feel like the seventh month of the year. I still feel like it's March or April even though I know that's not the case. My calendar told me so.
Anyway, I thought I'd do a Freak Out post for you this week to "celebrate" the middle of the year. Firs off, a few rules: I'm using the questions posed by Jesse the Reader in his video, I will use one book per question-- meaning if I use a title as one answer, i cannot use it for another answer-- and finally, I can only use books that I have finished, not any that I am currently reading.
1. What's the Best Book you've read so far in 2020? Hands down, it's Nevernight by Jay Kristoff. As I've mentioned before, this book had me reading by the headlights of the cars behind us. I haven't done that since Middle School. I loved the narration, the world, the characters, the sarcasm. I'll admit I'm annoyed with myself for not having finished the series already, but it is on my list to finish soon.
2. What's the new release you haven't read yet but want to get to? Amie Kauffman and Jay Kristoff's Aurora Burning. I am so excited to read this book. I just haven't had a chance to go and get it yet.
3. What's your most anticipated release of the second half of the year? It was going to be Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff (are you noticing a theme here?) but that's been moved to next year. Now it is To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini, one of my teen-hood favorite authors. i'd honestly thought he'd stopped writing after finishing the Inheritance Cycle but now, I can't wait to see what he's going to do now that he's had more experience and practice.
4. What's your biggest book disappointment? Neela: Victory Song by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni. I chalk this disappointment up to the fact I remember wanting to read this when I was in elementary or middle school but never had the opportunity. When I found it recently, I was so excited to get to read this fabled thing from my childhood. It was a lot of nostalgia and expectations to put on a middle grade book that wasn't really meant for me now that i'm older. The book is fine, it serves its purpose, but it's nothing like the thing that I had in my head. I will 100% admit this disappointment is my own fault.
5. Most surprising book you've read so far this year? Soul's of Black Folk by W.E.B. Du Bois. I usually don't like reading nonfiction, especially when it's a bunch of essays about something that I don't relate to. This book, however, drew me in and held me captive. I ended up reading it digitally while at work because I couldn't put it down. After finishing it, I could only sit and think for a long time, ending with me recommending it to everyone who would listen and knowing that I need to get a physical copy and go back to annotate it (one of my most hated things to do to my books) because it hit me hard and made me want to understand more. And after what's been happening in the USA recently, I'm glad I did read this. In all honestly, I do want to come back to this book later in the year after reading more books about racism and racial inequality in the US. Please, please, please, read this book!
6. Favorite debut or new to you author? Cheri Priest through her book Boneshaker. It's a Western Steampunk Apocalyptic Zombie book. I wouldn't say she's a new favorite author, but she certainly grabbed my attention and held it, prompting me to purchase the next book in her series. She's also an author that I'll happily recommend to others.
7. Newest favorite character? The Captain from In the House In the Dark of the Woods by Laird Hunt. This book is weird and not what I expected going into it. The Captain's character is a woods woman who I swore was supposed to be a "big bad wolf" character from Little Red Riding Hood, but she turned out different than I expected. She's strong and independent during a time period when women where expected to stay home and look after their families, she's a skilled huntress and a ruthless killer as well as a master manipulator. Out of all the characters we encounter in this book, she was my favorite and I wished there was more about her in this psychological horror fairy tale.
8. What's the book that made you emo? Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I remember this being really popular with my friends' families growing up and I know it's really popular in the home school community. But I finally read it and was . . . unimpressed. I don't really know why it's held up as this great literary work. It's not bad. Just not that good. I barely finished it.
9. What's a book that made you happy? Seconds by Bryan Lee O'Malley. This graphic novel has been sitting on my shelf for a while and I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep it or pass it on to someone else. So as I was going through all of my books, finding ones to donate, I took the time to sit and read it. I read the entire thing while sitting in front of my shelves. It's cute and sweet and has an important message.
10. What's the most beautiful book you've bought or received this year? I actually haven't gotten many books this year because of quarantine and not being able to go to the bookstores in my area. I'm weird int he fact that i like holding a book before deciding if I want to purchase it or not. My most recent purchase was Blood of Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski that has a beautiful cover. Another contender-- yes I'm breaking my own rule-- would be the Autumn Nightmares RPG book from White Wolf company. I love the art style and the terrifying creatures on it.
11. What's a book that you were hoping to read by the end of the year? Currently on my shelf, I want to read Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi. I loved the first one and was so excited for the second to come out. But I haven't been able to bring myself to pick it up. I don't know if it's because I'm worried I won't like it as much as the first or if the mixed reviews I've heard are making me nervous or if it's because i want to stay in this world, and the plot that I've made up in my own head, for a little longer. But i do want to read this soon.
Comments
Post a Comment