Reading onward... books 21-30 for 2015

Time to take my nose out of my current book (briefly) and let you know what I've been reading. Forgive me the huge post!

21 - What makes us tick? - Hugh Mackay

I bought this book at Writers' Week during the Adelaide Festival of the Arts. Although I didn't know much about Hugh Mackay's writing his talk sounded interesting, and I had time - although he mostly spoke about a different book I decided to try this one.

In this book, Hugh Mackay explains ten drivers of behaviour and decision-making beyond the basic needs of food, water, air and such. Throughout the book a variety of situations are given and the interaction of these drivers is explained. I started to think of similar situations I've seen, and began to see the behaviour of others I've met with a fresh perspective.

This is a book that really made me think - it gave me a lens to look through when thinking about my own choices and actions and those of others. I plan to revisit it again in future as it's knowledge well worth keeping active in my mind. Along with other books I'm currently reading or have read in the recent past I'm finding that I'm developing a new way of looking at things and learning from them. This can only be a good thing.

22 - Chew, Vol. 1: Taster's Choice - John Layman & Rob Guillory

Tony Chu is cibopathic - he gets psychic impressions from what he eats. In a world where poultry was banned after an outbreak of avian flu killed millions this is a very useful detective skill in the FDA - combating the black market for chicken is serious work. But this skill is not always a good thing. Sometimes it's best not to know the details...and some of the things Tony has to eat in the line of duty are not exactly food.

The story is crazy and fun, the characters are wonderfully fun. I enjoyed the story and am looking forward to seeing where it goes - looks like a lot of shades of grey are developing.

You might not to read this one while eating though.

23 - Poisoned Apples: poems for you, my pretty - Christine Hepperman

This book of poetry mixes issues teenage girls frequently face with fairytales and feminism. I found about half of the poems in the book very enjoyable and cleverly written, but didn't really find much for me in the rest, especially the fairly substantial number of them tackling eating disorders. This might well be a reflection of personal experience, so others might find something more in those.

24 - Guards! Guards! (Discworld, #8) - Terry Pratchett

A mysterious cult, a fire-breating dragon, a collection of unlikely guardsmen and (gasp!) a stolen library book. This book was my introduction to the wonderful and hilarious Discworld. I'd attempted to read The Colour of Magic before but hadn't got far. This book did the trick. When I heard that Sir Terry Pratchett had died I wanted to re-visit the Discworld, and I thought that the book that got me into it was the right place to go back to. I was sad to hear of Sir Terry's passing, but I was soon laughing along with this book. It's sad that he's gone, but the books he's left behind will bring many hours of laughter and good cheer to people for many years to come.

25 - The Disappearance of Ember Crow (The Tribe, #2)- Ambelin Kwaymullina

I really don't want to spoiler this series - and it's almost impossible to introduce this book without spoilering the first so I'll skip right onward.

Once again we're given the idea we know what's going on - but we're proven wrong repeatedly as secrets, some buried for many years, are revealed. It takes fantastic storytelling skill on the part of the author to do this so well, too often twists can be spotted a mile off - but not in this series. There are plenty of surprises here to keep you hooked and reading far later than is entirely responsible (*cough*). 

The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf was a great book, but the second in the series is much stronger. The story has gained complexity and moral grey areas of varying degrees abound. My challenge now, is to wait patiently for the third book. That will be difficult.

26 - Hinterkind, Vol. 1: The Waking World - Ian Edginton and Francesco Trifogli

After the blight, little of humanity remains. Cities are overgrown and life as we know it is long gone. Fantastic creatures and people have returned to the world, and they're not exactly friendly...

Even by my standards, I'll keep this one brief. This book wasn't bad, but I just wasn't inspired or compelled by it. I did continue to Vol. 2, but I'm not sure I would have if I hadn't already borrowed it from the library. I'm sure some people enjoyed it... but this wasn't my cup of tea.

27 - Into the Grey - Celine Kiernan

After a fire destroys their Home Patrick, his twin Dom and their family move into a seaside cottage that was once the family's summer getaway. Now, changed by the fire, they attract sinister attentions. Patrick can see that Dom is changed - perhaps dying- but nobody else seems to notice. As things worsen and history is gradually revealed Patrick will have to deal with the situation to the best of his ability in trying circumstances. 

A good spooky read that drew me in so well that time seemed to disappear within its pages. The supernatural is here, but this is proper spooky stuff, not the more amiable and flashy paranormal that has become so popular. While I really detest gender categorising books, in YA I can't help but notice the dominance of books primarily targeted at girls. When looking for books to recommend to teen boys when they visit the library it can be tough to find newer titles. This book will be great for recommending in that situation.

28 - Hinterkind, Vol. 2: Written in Blood - Ian Edginton, Francesco Trifolgi and Cris Peter

According to my notes, I enjoyed this a little more than Vol. 1 (book 26, higher up in this review). That said, now that I come to write a review not much comes to mind to write about it. The characters are stronger, there are some interesting developments, but I'm not sure I'll continue with the series. There are too many out there that I'd rather read first.

29 - Pride of Baghdad - Brian K Vaughan, Niko Henrichon

Inspired by the real life escape and eventual re-discovery of lions from Baghdad's view, this emotionally powerful story imagines what might have happened and mixes it with a great deal of musing on the meaning, value and costs of freedom and captivity.

I was drawn to this book as I've enjoyed some of Brian K Vaughan's other work, especially Saga. I can't really draw a comparison between that book and this because there's not a lot of common ground. The philosophy was a bit heavy-handed at times but the ideas were interesting and I found myself quite attached to the characters.

If you're looking for a happy ending, you won't find one here. It's an interesting read though.

30 - Faking it (The Intern, #2) - Gabrielle Tozer

Things are going well for Josie. She's found a job as a writer and things are working out well with her boyfriend. But the pressure's building with new responsibilities and expectations and she's developing a shocking case of impostor syndrome...

As with the first book in the series, the characters are wonderfully written. Josie's awkwardness is believable and the distinct personalities of the other characters are really well written. I really only had one gripe - there's a scene with a librarian, she's a horrible, vicious stereotype (ultra-authoritarian, uptight, angry, moralist) who behaves in a manner totally unbelievable to a person who's worked in libraries. Given how well other characters are written it was quite disappointing. I had to put the book down and walk away for a bit. Thankfully that character didn't recur and the book is very, very good otherwise.

I've been enjoying reading some newer Australian YA authors and Gabrielle Tozer and the earlier mentioned Amberlin Kwaymullina have been the standouts.

Visiting/revisiting various youths (2015 books 11-15)

11 - Andy in Trouble - Freda M Hurt

Andy in Trouble was originally published in the fifties - consequently the language is interesting, styles have changed a lot over time. It is, like many children's books still are, centred around illustrations of a moral concept and consequences of failure to observe the concept, in this case, honesty. Elements of adventure and humour are present, and the story's well told.

When I read this I was spending an evening in the bedroom that had been mine before I left home - it now contains, amongst other things, a bookshelf of my parents' books. I wanted something to read so I picked the first book my hand landed on - this one, complete with original presentation plaque (not from the fifties) inside. I went to find it on Goodreads, and had to add it myself. The author seems to be long since forgotten, but while I won't be anxiously seeking more, it was interesting to see what a book my mother read as a child was like.

12 - Penny Pollard's Diary - Robin Klein and Ann James

Penny Pollard, whose rebellious behaviour drives both parents and teacher up the wall, finally meets a friend and co-conspirator in the last place she expects.

I revisited this after a conversation got me thinking. This is a book I loved when I was younger than Penny is...and was pleased to find Penny's rebelliousness not diminished by time. The original editions were nicer, in my opinion... but if kids since then have enjoyed the book as much as I have, those would have disintegrated years ago.

13 - The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf - Ambelin Kwaymullina

In a world risen from the ashes of the one we know, Ashala Wolf, leader of The Tribe, a group of young people with strange abilities who do not wish to submit to society's restrictions, faces interrogation. The interrogation will make use of The Machine, which can pull memories from your head whether you wish to surrender them or not - how do you protect those you love and have responsibility for faced with that?

I'm making a conscious effort to add more Australian content, and more author diversity to my reading this year after noticing that it's been severely lacking. I found this book with that in mind, and I'm glad I did. Writing and story are both executed brilliantly and I'm really, really looking foward to reading the next book - the biggest problem being that the third is not out until August. It'll be tough.

14 - Jerusalem: Chronicles from the Holy City - Guy Delisle

Guy Delisle spent a year living in Jerusalem with his family whilst his wife was working for Medicins Sans Frontieres. This (hefty) volume tells some of the stories and experiences he collected in that time.

After gaining a new perspective reading Marjane Satrapi's 'Persepolis' I thought it'd be a good idea to read more graphic novels examining parts of the world that I could stand to learn more about. There were some interesting stories here, but the book rambles, and at times it really drags. I would prefer something a bit more concise. Naturally, review opinions on Goodreads (as linked in the title) differ wildly, the highly divided opinions that surround this part of the world only inflame that.

15 - The Intern - Gabrielle Tozer

Josephine Browning longs to be a journalist in newspapers and other such serious publications, but lands an internship for a fashion magazine with a notoriously difficult editor...

If you think this is sounding familiar, you could be forgiven - but don't worry. Despite the similar premise, The Intern isn't a do-over of The Devil Wears Prada, instead it's a mix of believable characters, having to mature in a tough environment and moving away from the people and places that become familiar in school years. This is also, genre-wise, a very long way from my usual reading stomping grounds. Branching out can only be good, both personally and in a professional context as having wider knowledge to help others find the right book is invaluable.

Also, this adds another Australian author to this year's reading in keeping with my goals, the fourth excluding contributors to short story collections.

Five book reviews for the price of one!

Spellbound is the second book in the Spell trilogy by Blake Charlton. I recently read the first book, Spellwright which was seriously impressive. This was still a good book - it opened very strongly and was rather hard to put down, but it didn't quite have the edge the first did. It also used one of my least favourite tropes, but I'd rather not spoiler it for you, and in connection with said trope, something that was stated to be impossible naturally happened and despite the predictability it was presented as a major reveal. Despite some flaws it still comes highly recommended to those who enjoy original high fantasy.
No release date has been given for book three yet. I hope it isn't too far off!

After becoming aware of the male-protagonist-dominated nature of my paranormal detective reading I've been looking for a good paranormal detective series with a female protagonist that doesn't rapidly head down the erotica or maiden in distress route for a long time.
Greywalker by Kat Richardson is the most promising I've sound so far. I like that the protagonist takes some time to get used to her abilities and that this is not done in too twee or convenient a manner - she takes time to start to control her new abilities and by the end of the book she's still got some way to go - a good thing as this is the beginning of an ongoing series. I like that she's got some useful skills but recognises the ability of others and uses the variety of skills that her friends and aquaintances have rather than being a one person solution to the ills of the world. I was briefly worried that it was taking a turn down the erotica route that so many have before but thankfully Greywalker proved me wrong.
Perfect? No. Looking foward to reading book two? Yes. Recommended? Also yes.

'Monday 17 April 8st 13, alcohol units 6 (drowning sorrows), cigarettes 19 (fumigating sorrows), calories 3983 (suffocating sorrows with fat-duvet), positive thoughts 1 (vg)

Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary is one of the very few chick lit books (and movies) that I really enjoy. It's really not my genre, but this stuff is really funny and, reading it (again) as a single nearly-thirty, at times it's absolutely nails things - the quote above isn't one of those things, thankfully. I found this on a market stall while on holiday in Brisbane when I was nearly out of reading matter. With a third book due in October it was well worth the time. I'll have to find the second before the new book is out!

“If you’re brave enough to try, you might be able to catch a train from UnLondon to Parisn’t, or No York, or Helsunki, or Lost Angeles, or Sans Francisco, or Hong Gone, or Romeless…”

Un Lun Dun by China Mieville is another re-read from my Brisbane trip. I loved this book and I'm sure I'll read it plenty more times. Don't be put off by the recommended age of the book - it's great for adults too. A wonderful surreal world that evokes a feeling of wonder. A story that takes the tropes, runs with them for a bit and then turns them upside down to make something beautiful. Absolutely recommended.

When interviewed by Erin Morgenstern Neil Gaiman explained 'I told my publishers there was a novella on the way, but then I did a word count at the end, and realized I just wrote a novel by accident!' (source)

I was excited to hear that a Neil Gaiman novel was coming and I was not disappointed. I picked this up at the Queensland State Library bookshop when I was about to run out of holiday reading (again). The ocean at the end of the lane delivers a very different and dark fantasy based on places and events from Gaiman's childhood. Just go read it. Really.