Book club selection: The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin (5 stars)
This book was so, so lovely. I went into it with high expectations, knowing that most everyone who had read the book had loved it. And all my expectations were met! I loved A.J., even at his grumpiest. He was ornery yet adorable. I loved the natural twisting and turning of the book; nothing felt too dramatic or too crazy. The story flowed so well, and when I finished the book, I felt content and satisfied. It’s such a good novel, and I highly recommend it.
Book Riot Read Harder Challenge (a book of short stories): Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout (2.5 stars)
This was another book I dove into with high expectations because I had seen a lot of really, really good reviews. It’s a book of short stories, centered around the small town of Crosby, Maine, and the retired schoolteacher, Olive Kitteridge, who lives there. It takes you on a journey of the people in this town and their stories. And… I just didn’t like the novel. I found the stories overwhelmingly depressing and sad and a bit hopeless. I felt a little depressed and sad and hopeless when I finished it. It just didn’t give me that good feeling you want from reading. I just felt… yucky… when I finished it.
Book Riot Read Harder Challenge (a book written by someone who identifies as LGBT): Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris (3 stars)
This was my first David Sedaris book and I liked it well enough. Sedaris’ writing style is very easy to read and humorous. I don’t think I’m one for short stories, though, so the book dragged a bit for me because I wasn’t really following a specific plot… just reading essays that had little to do with one another. A good novel, but I’m not sure I’m jumping out of my chair to read another one of his books.
TLC Book Tours read: The Swimmer by Joakim Zander (3 stars)
I reviewed this book earlier in the month. An intriguing thriller about politics and corruption. I wish the book had been a little more fast-paced and I wasn’t a huge fan of the ending… but still a good read!
Others (read for fun!)
The Things We Do for Love by Kristin Hannah (4 stars)
I enjoyed this novel. It was a pretty long book, but I read through it in a matter of days because I was so intrigued by the plot and wanted to know what was going to happen next. The story follows a woman named Angie who, in the space of a year, has a miscarriage, loses her father, and goes through a divorce. The beginning is incredibly sad and heartbreaking, as Angie moves back to her old hometown to deal with her heartbreak, and it is there she is wrapped up in the love of her family. I love, love, love the way Hannah wrote this family. They were so enveloped in warmth and love, but also felt very real with their own insecurities and vulnerabilities and sadness. Kristin Hannah is one of my favorite writers because I just adore the way she writes her characters. You really pull for them, whether or not you find them completely loveable.
Dark Places by Gillian Flynn (4 stars)
Oh, my god. This book was so creepy. I don’t remember Gone Girl being creepy. Gone Girl was disturbing and twisted… but this book was just downright creepy. I love Gillian Flynn, though, because she creates SUCH unlikeable characters. There’s something… interesting… about that. They are so real and raw and vulnerable and horrible and creepy… and she just really gets into these characters’ psyches. Dives right into the twistedness of human behavior. This book was a wild ride and I honestly did not guess the ending (but I’m not very good at guessing endings unless they are super predictable). It was dark and twisty and creepy and a little too graphic at certain times… and I am really interested to see how this book will be made into a movie.
book stats // february
# of books read: 6
# of pages read: 2,002
quickest read: The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry (4 days)
longest read: The Swimmer (13 days)
multicultural: 1 out of 6
formats: ebooks (3), physical books (3)
What was the best book you read in February? Mine was The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry!
I really enjoyed AJ Fikry as well; it just had a certain flow to it, didn’t it? I have also read Dark Places, which I agree was very “creepy”. I was disturbed almost the entire time I was reading it!
My favorite book I read in February was Code Name Verity. I think it is a YA novel, but it had fun characters, while still giving you a bit of the history of WWII. I actually ended up reading it in less than 24 hours!
I read both of Gillian Flynn’s other novels, Dark Places and Sharp Objects, and found them both insanely creepy. I cannot remember which is which now but they both just dealt with the weirdest most disturbing content. It was a little too disturbing for me honestly.
The best book I read in February was Winter of the Worlds, the second book in the Century trilogy! Right now I’m reading a tree grows in brooklyn but I’m having a bit of trouble getting into it. I’ve been waiting for it at the library since before Christmas though!
I think the best book I read in February was Dog Crazy, by Meg Donohue. I loved it, I cried through parts of it, and then I wanted to go and get all of the dogs. I think you’d enjoy it, too! It’s nothing overly deep or overly surface, just a good book.
I don’t do well with short stories as a rule. I find them all to be really freakin’ depressing. I have yet to read an uplifting group of short stories.
I am the odd one out and haven’t read any other Gillian Flynn novels. Gone Girl was enough for me!
That’s interesting that you categorized Olive Kitteridge as short stories! I suppose they are, although related. I’m sorry you didn’t like it; I just thought the writing was so beautiful and articulated a lot about being human (nostalgia, getting older, family relationships) so eloquently that it instantly became one of my favorite books.
AJ Fikry is another that I want to read! I didn’t like Gone Girl, but I was captivated by it (is that an oxymoron?) so I do want to read Sharp Objects (which I have) and Dark Places (don’t have but it’s in my cart for my next Thriftbooks purchase). I didn’t find GG creepy, just wildly disturbing, so I’m interested (and kind of scared) to see why the other two are creepy. I only read 3 books in February with Cancel the Wedding being my favorite. I’m hoping for a more productive month of reading in March 🙂
I’m so glad you liked AJ Fikry – that was one of my favorite books from 2014. It just made me feel all warm and fuzzy.
The best book I read in February was The Girl on the Train. But I also really enjoyed Americanah and Dollbaby.
I loved Gone Girl SO MUCH so I really need to read her other books. Sadly, I’ve only read about 100 pages total since Caleb’s been born. Looking forward to the days I can start reading a lot more again when he’s a bit older!