Saturday 16 September 2017

The Monthly Ledger: September 2017

Perhaps I should make these yearly ledgers.

Hullo, hullo!

How are you? This month, I have been up to my nose in homework and deadlines (interesting etymology - do google it!) but still snatched some time during the travel home, during dinner or borrowed some (very) expensive sleep time to read a few books.

Now, I've got some good news and bad news. The good news is that I will be finishing school in about 2 months, and after that, I will sell my soul to liven this blog. The bad news is that I've got two more months of school, during which I'm probably going to forget that I have a blog. Let's hope that the time I finally go back to regular posts (remember the Friday Posts Oath?), I will still have some soul and spirit.

Anyway, here are some quick comments on two great books I read over the past few months:

1) Love, Aubrey by Suzanne LaFleur

Love, AubreyAn upset me picked up this for need of a book without war and destruction (and it had a goodreads rating of 4.2). It turned out to be a light, poignant read and ended up with me being more upset than when I started it. The writing style was very relaxing, and LaFleur has very intelligently places stylistic elements (like letters, events) so that they struck a definitive, emotional chord within the reader. The part about (spolier alert) a dead sister made me tear up (I've a little sister too, oops), especially because LaFleur skillfully protrayed the purity and innocence of the sisters' relationship. However, it isn't a very fast-paced plot and I would recommend this only to those who are expecting a deeply reflective, slow-paced plot set in the country.


Overall Rating: 3.5/5




2) Women of Iron, by Catherine King

Women of IronNo other feminist book have I read (except for the Memoirs of a Geisha) has portrayed the women in such a blaringly harsh and raw manner. Set in England during the Industrial Revolution, it follows the story of Lissie, an beautiful orphaned bastard of pure, noble blood, who is sold to a conniving trader. A jarring turn of events ends with her rape, betrayal by her love interest and the death of her a father, the only person who truly cared for her. Women of Iron was truthful through and through and despite the happy ending for the protagonist, the emotional growth she undergoes with a series of brutal betrayals and rape makes her deserving of it. The only downside to this book was that some parts of it were unnecessarily long and dragged out, making it rather boring sometimes (and it wasn't worth the valuable sleep-time I had borrowed). I also wouldn't call it an entertaining read, but a book that has to be read purely for the sake of knowing.

Overall: 3.5/5




3) Room, by Emma Donoghue


Room
Overall: 4/5


AND A BOOK EXHIBITION!

There happened to be a book sale in my city (!) and I bought books worth a few thousand rupees. I will review these once I work off my sleep debt.


  • Love, Aubrey by Suzanne LaFleur
  • Women of Iron, by Catherine King
  • Princess, by Jean Sasson
  • Room, by Emma Donoghue
  • The Pact, by Jodi Picoult
  • Spirit Walker, by Michelle Paver
  • Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn (Yes, I haven't read it yet)
Until next time, reader!