Around the Year in 52 Books discussion
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2021 ChallengesAround the Year in 52 Books
JANUARY
by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
by Zinzi Clemmons
by Grumpy Cat
by Fernanda MelchorFEBRUARY
by Alice Walker
by Louisa May AlcottA book of poetry, short stories, or essays by a single author
by Agatha Christie
by Yeonmi ParkMARCH
9. A book you associate with a specific season or time of year
The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
by Laura Purcell
by Elizabeth Peters
by Cho Nam-Joo
by Jung ChangAPRIL
by Holly Black
by Jรบlia Lopes de Almeida16. A book with a building in the title
The Museum of Modern Love
17. A book with a Muslim character or author
Home Fire
MAY
by Catharine Arnold19. 3 books related to "Past, Present, Future" - Book 2
20. 3 books related to "Past, Present, Future" - Book 3
by Carolina Maria de Jesus22. A book posted in one of the ATY Best Book of the Month threads
JUNE
by Jane Austen24. A book about racism or race relations
25. A book set on an island
26. A short book (<210 pages) by a new-to-you author
JULY
27. A book with a character who can be found in a deck of cards
28. A book connected to ice
by Charlotte Brontรซ30. A long book
AUGUST
31. A book by an author whose career spanned more than 21 years
by Jane Austen33. A collection of short stories, essays, or poetry
34. A book with a travel theme
35. A book set in a country on or below the Tropic of Cancer
SEPTEMBER
by Jennifer Hancock37. A book from the Are You Well Read in World Literature list
38. A book related to a word given by a random word generator
39. A book involving an immigrant
OCTOBER
by Rachael Lippincott41. A book by a new-to-you BIPOC author
42. A mystery or thriller
43. A book with elements of magic
NOVEMBER
44. A book whose title contains a negative
45. A book related to a codeword from the NATO Phonetic Alphabet
46. A winner or nominee from the 2020 Goodreads Choice Awards
47. A non-fiction book other than biography, autobiography or memoir
by Kabi NagataDECEMBER
49. A book with an ensemble cast
50. A book published in 2021
by Vera Brosgol
by Colleen Hooverโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉ
Genre Bingo Challenge
B 1. Apocalyptic
by Rebecca SerleB 3. Political Drama
B 4. Satire
by Jรบlia Lopes de AlmeidaI 1. Thriller
by John SteinbeckI 3. Monster
I 4. Legal Drama
by Jรบlia Lopes de Almeida
by Koushun Takami
by Greta Thunberg
, by Emmuska OrczyN 4. Military Drama
N 5. Realistic Fiction
G 1. Action-Comedy
by Jesse Lynch Williams
by Shel SilversteinG 4. Historical Event
G 5. Mythopoeia
by Matt Greene
by Agatha ChristieO 3. Detective
by Mary L. TrumpO 5. Sci-Fi
โฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉ
Color Challenge
3. Read a book with "Red" or any shade of red in the cover.
4. Read a book with "Orange" or any shade of orange in the cover.
5. Read a book with "Yellow" or any shade of yellow in the cover.
10. Read a book with "Brown" or any shade of brown in the cover.
12. Read a book with a Metallic color in the cover.
16. Read a book with two or more color words in the title.
17. Read a book with the word โColorโ in the title.
Babitix wrote: "Hi, guys!So I am back after 2 long years without reading, and I am so excited to at least TRY to get back to a relaxing and healthy activity.
Last time I did this challenge I read 60 books, but l..."
Thank you, Kathy. It is good to be back!
Other ChallengesAbe List of 100 Female Writers
โ๏ธ= Already Read | โญ= Read in 2021
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie โ๏ธโญ
Louisa May Alcott โญ
Isabel Allende
Kate Atkinson
Margaret Atwood โ๏ธ
Jane Austen โญโญ
Judy Blume
Cynthia Bond
Charlotte Brontรซ โ๏ธโญ
Emily Brontรซ
Geraldine Brooks โ๏ธ
NoViolet Bulawayo
Octavia Butler
A.S. Byatt
Angela Carter
Willa Cather
Eleanor Catton
Agatha Christie โ๏ธโญโญ
Edwidge Danticat
Kiran Desai
Joan Didion
Emma Donoghue
Daphne du Maurier
Jennifer Egan
George Eliot
Madeleine L'Engle
Louise Erdrich
Elena Ferrante
Penelope Fitzgerald
Anna Funder
Diana Gabaldon
Roxane Gay
Elizabeth Gilbert
Julia Glass
Nadine Gordimer
Lauren Groff
Yaa Gyasi
Georgette Heyer
Keri Hulme
Zora Neale Hurston
P.D. James
Tayari Jones
Miranda July
Sue Monk Kidd โ๏ธ
Barbara Kingsolver
Jhumpa Lahiri
Ursula K. Le Guin
Harper Lee โ๏ธ
Doris Lessing
Penelope Lively
Alison Lurie
Ann-Marie MacDonald
Hilary Mantel
Alice McDermott
Ami McKay
Claire Messud
Lucy Maud Montgomery
Toni Morrison
Alice Munro
Iris Murdoch
Celeste Ng
Joyce Carol Oates
Edna O'Brien
Flannery O'Connor
Helen Oyeyemi
Ruth Ozeki
Ann Patchett
Sylvia Plath
Elizabeth Poliner
Annie Proulx
Marilynne Robinson
Arundhati Roy
Karen Russell
Maria Semple
Mary Shelley
Carol Shields
Jane Smiley
Ali Smith
Zadie Smith
Susan Sontag
Emily St. Mandel
Emma Straub
Elizabeth Strout
Gertrude Stein
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Amy Tan
Donna Tartt
Miriam Toews
Anne Tyler
Alice Walker โญ
Jesmyn Ward
Sarah Waters
Edith Wharton
Connie Willis
Jeanette Winterson
Meg Wolitzer
Virginia Woolf
Evie Wyld
โฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉโชโซโซโชโฉ
Reading 01/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
After reading one of Viktor Frankl's books, this Memoir had been recommended by Kindle suggestions. I then decided to read a book about the religion without knowing about the author or even paying attention to the suffix.
"But the engine for Judaism isnโt faith. Itโs doubt." I did not only come across remarkable quotes but I got to learn and laugh quite a few times. The hardest chapter, of course, was about Poland and the author's visit to the concentration camps (something that I would like to do in a few years).
Matt Greene suprised me by standing at the side of minorities. He mentions a few things that I also agree, and this is not the reason why I liked his point of view (but this kind of helped a lot), he also made it clear what is standing for a right thing by writing "Jews understand as well as anyone that an attack on one minority is an attack on us all." We are all a minority in some point, although White I am still a Woman, although Educated I am still an Immigrant, and I could write many other things here because the list is vast.
But talking about the author and his book he also mentions that "Recognising persecution and standing shoulder to shoulder with those who are oppressed and dispossessed is a key part of what it means to be Jewish." and this (ish) suffix was for me the most interesting point on the reading. The (ish) allows him to express things in a different way, and approaches the reader of his own experiences. He doesn't try to stand with the religosity but with the struggles, persecutions and sufferings of jews, humans.
"Anti-Semitism created Israel, and not, as some would have it, the other way around."
Reading 02/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
"My theory is that loneliness creates the feeling of haunting." - I decided to refrain from making comments about being black and the struggles of a black person. This book showed me more about African culture and I liked how the author presented historical facts and data in the novel.
โThe effects of racial and economic oppression figure largely in the structure and functioning of Black families. Black women play integral roles in the family and frequently it is immaterial whether they are biological mothers, sisters, or members of the extended family. From the standpoint of many Black daughters it could be: my sister, my mother; my aunt, my mother; my grandmother, my mother. They are daughters all and they frequently โmotherโ their sisters, nieces, nephews, or cousins as well as their own children.โ - But being raised by three different women, all of them doing the โmatherโ role of providing me food, education, caring, safety, etc I thought about a black friend in particular. She was only one year older, but way skinnier, she lived in my neighbourhood and I used to play with her. I liked to play with her but there was a gap between the way we saw life even as a youth: me, a white girl being raised by three women, being treated as a princess, and her, a black girl, looking after her cousins and having to clean the house to keep the place tidy. I just washed the bathroom when I was fifteen, and only because I asked my mom to. That girl however, ran away from home when she was ten, was caught in a friendโs house, and was sent to another city. Years later, when I was eighteen or so she found me on social media. And asked me to forgive her.
I had no reason to forgive her because I didnโt remember what bad thing she had done to me, but she said she was envious about the life I had. And then I thought about her and her duties, I thought about the spoiled soup she once offered me and that I ate to not make her feel guilty, I thought about sweeping the floor of her house while she watched me. And then, there was no reason to be angry. What seemed to be a mean childish thing, was actually a way of asking for help, but I was young, naive and lived in my bubble, I didnโt understand she was showing me the life she had. She was begging me to tell my mom, begging to be rescued. And what does this story have to do with the novel? I donโt know, but it made me think about that friend of mine.
I wonder if I should reach her to ask for forgiveness. I was too young to understand.
โI thought about how every place on Earth contained its tragedies, love stories, people surviving and others falling, and for this reason, from far enough of a distance and under enough darkness, they were all essentially the same.โ
Reading 03/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
What a tragic novel! I felt sad most of the time while reading it because I know that people still suffer from migrating to a new land, struggling to settle down and to keep the family together until they reach their dreams, which is a roof and some food.
Sometimes I feel hopeless with the course of time and human events. We have gone through so many events and still have not learned that sharing is essential. Once my grandmother said to me that dividing is multiplying and I never forgot it.
How can someone be proud of having a piece of land, and not finding a profit on its products, decide to burn and kill and throw everything without considering feeding those in need? This idea of having a pyramidal system is leading us to our own destruction. We havenโt found out that the circle of life is literally a circle, and this circle means finding a way of not wasting, not being above anything else, neither flora, nor fauna, nor brothers.
When I think about the pyramid I think about the need of having millions of people living with so little or nothing, in a way of keeping the structure of a system that already was shown to be wrong and flawed. Think about Monarchies, like the czares, and french revolution. But liberalism knew how to prevent its failure by arming a group of people and telling them that in this triangular system they are above other people and that they belong to a more important group. But still, they keep the riches on the top, untouchable, with so much that the only numbers they see are the ones with a couple of zeros after an unity $$$$$$.
Liberalism, Capitalism, Monarchies, and even nowadays Communism only stand because of the amount of people in daily suffering.
"For the quality of owning freezes you forever into 'I,' and cuts you off forever from the 'we'"
Reading 04/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
It is funny and interesting how we can judge something to be right and how we can hold this idea for pages and pages (or years and years).
I shared this reading with a lady from US whom recently I added on my Goodreads friend's list for a Twin Reading. At the 10th chapter I sent her a message telling her my impressions, and by the end of the book I couldn't be more glad to be so wrong!
This is so far the best love story I have ever read. I simply adored everything on it and I am happy to have the chance to read this book and to be so wrong since the very beggining.
โYou mistake love. You think it has to have a future in order to matter, but it doesnโt. Itโs the only thing that does not need to become at all. It matters only insofar as it exists. Here. Now. Love doesnโt require a future.โ
Reading 05/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค
I found it hard to understand the concept of the story. During the first 80 pages I was completely lost. Although the first pages were extremely necessary to understand about a culture I know so little, I felt like I wanted to know more and not too much was given to me.
This was another Twin Reading. This time, my โsisterโ was Claire from New Jersey and I am loving to share readings with other people. I shared the impression of being lost on the reading with her and got the same feedback, so I wasnโt the only one to not understand this novel fully.
There are many good points about this book and the one I want to put a spotlight on is getting to learn more about Nigerian culture.The Author described the lack of respect for other peopleโs religions and as a Brazilian I can understand this. Many African religions are demonized in Brazil, and as Christian I grew up thinking that Candomble and Umbanda are religions related to the devil only. Little I knew that all this construction is related to simply being racist. We, the caucasians Brazilians, are taught to judge everything that comes from black Brazilians: sports, music, fashion, but we are taught to demonize their religion. Only โourโ god is god.
The idea of believing in a white Jesus, a long-bearded old man as God and on the Holy Spirit being a white bird flying around have been destroyed by myself over the years. But it is not easy to stop calling God as โhimโ, and thinking about Jesus as a super hot Jim Caviezel. My hope is in the Holy Spirit as a bird, shitting on peopleโs heads.
Reading 06/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค
I had the chance to read this book before doing therapy. It helped me to remember that there is no reason to be happy, grumpiness is the secret to success!
More work for my therapist. Good luck!
By the way, this was a silly reading, just to have fun and complete one of the reading challenges. This meme was one of my favourite ones back in the days I used to spend 70% of my life on 9gag and sending memes around.
Reading 07/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค
This novel made me feel sick, and I donโt like this feeling. If you enjoy a strong reading, with an unique plot and donโt mind whatever you come across, maybe this book is for you.
I enjoyed how the writer presents everything without following a normal time-line, this might be the reason why I was interested in finishing this reading, however this book wonโt be something that I will suggest to my friends to read.
The last chapter was my favourite one. (view spoiler)
I will definetely now go back to the pages of Little Women to heal my heart and treat my mind.
Reading 08/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
Protect this lovely soul, Greta is not different from any other child. When I look at my cousins I see how passionate they are about things they believe and I hope they will have our support as a family so they will always be able to stand up for the right things just as Greta did. She inspires me and I wish they'll also be inspired by how fearless this big human is.
Greta is a child that woke up in time to see that her childhood was being stolen from her. I found most of the speeches on Youtube and followed the reading while listening to her voice, and got impressed on how someone changes so quick in a matter of months-time. She became more precise on her speeches and I hope she will always be an inspiration for more people and that she will keep bringing the spotlight where it is extremely necessary.
Her speech on European Economic and Social Committee "Youโre acting like spoiled, irresponsible children" is so far my favourite one, but I missed the "How dare you" and I hope they will include this one in another edition.
"And I am sorry, but saying everything will be all right while continuing doing nothing at all is just not hopeful to us. In fact, itโs the opposite of hope. And yet this is exactly what you keep doing. You canโt just sit around waiting for hope to come โ youโre acting like spoiled, irresponsible children."
๐ฅ๐ถ๐๐๐ถ๐๐๐ Books Finished: 8
๐ Pages Read: 1802
๐งก Hours Listened: 00:00:00
๐ Hearts Given: 29
Reading 09/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
Read this book if you:
- Have it Marked as to-be-read
- Like Victorian Era
- Have No Idea What Victorian Era Is
- Like Laura Purcell
- Have No Idea Who Laura Purcell is
- Like Reading
- Don't Like Reading
- Breath
Since The Boy in the Suitcase I have not found a fiction reading that involves me in its story in such a way that I want to know more and finally find the truth! It is so far one of the best fiction stories I came across in the past years and I will take a look at other Laura Purcell's titles.
Reading 10/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
I am proud of myself for giving it a try. I am not into politics as much as I should be so Political Readings are quite rare on bookshelf.
Let's start with the fact that I found intriguing that this book was written by his niece and thought "she might tell a thing or two about Donald's past", but couldn't imagine how deep it would grab me into Trump's history.
"If weโre lucky, we have, as infants and toddlers, at least one emotionally available parent who consistently fulfills our needs and responds to our desires for attention. Being held and comforted, having our feelings acknowledged and our upsets soothed are all critical for the healthy development of young children." - the fact that this biography was written by a psychologist brings another appeal to the whole experience of reading this piece. Although a political biography, it is also a free psychological lesson about how important love is to anyone's life.
I think Mary L. Trump brought some dignity to her fatherโs memory and I am glad she did so. Freddy could have done much more if he hadnโt had such a narcissistic figure as a father. I canโt even blame Gam - the whole family was trapped in his own apathy.
Reading 11/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
What a precious story! It reminded me when I first put my hands on Pollyana and got to learn so many things about life only by reading those pages. I truly believe books are an effective way to learn lessons in a pleasant way and this one is one of those stories that should be shared by the whole family, for it has so many things to be learned!
It took me quite a while to finish it, and now that it is finished I am already missing the Laurences, and the Marchs, and Professor Bhaer (and by the way, isnโt he the most charming character ever?)
Reading 12/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค
Interesting, this book used to be one of my favourite ones, but now that I just listened to its audiobook I had to re-think how much I like it. Eight years ago or so I read the book and watched both series and film, and fell in love with the plot. Although I still love Jane Eyre and think she is one of the biggest female characters of all, nowadays I think Mr. Rochester is a strong-willed and arrogant character. The man is selfish, period.
It is funny how once I thought their kind of relationship was lovely, nowadays I think she would do better by herself, but as I said, I love Jane Eyre. She is such an inspirational character, because she changed over the years and became more mature. I relate much more with this characteristic of hers now than I once I was able to do.
โI am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.โ
Reading 13/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
Well done! I like when books bring awareness to important subjects we wouldn't know if not by reading about them. Five Feet Apart presents us cystic fibrosis, and I caught myself Googling about conditions and treatments while reading the book.
I knew what I was going to read because I watched the film at the cinema (do you guys remember this place before covid?), so yeah, I watched it and cried one hundred million teardrops (I counted all of them) and left the place thinking that I should love more and be more grateful. So, once I knew what I was going to face I was ready to cry much less this time, right? HELL, NO! I literally covered my face mask with tears, and this is the good part of reading while going through a pandemic time: no one sees it. Well done!
โIt's just life, Will. It'll be over before we know it.โ
Reading 14/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
โI am most grateful for two things: that I was born in North Korea, and that I escaped from North Korea. Both of these events shaped me, and I would not trade them for an ordinary and peaceful life.โ
When I decided to read this book I knew nothing about North Korea, but it is time for me to challenge myself and read more about the world.
Yeonmi is so strong, I can't believe people don't trust her speech about the hardships her family went through in a way of surviving under North Korea's hard regime. She was a child in North Korea, indeed, but kids can remember a few important things about their past. I have memories that once I wished could be forgotten but nowadays I use those memories to shape my integrity and actions.
โWhen you are a very small child, all you know is what is in front of your eyes. Your whole life is your parents, your relatives, your neighborhood.โ
Early in life she had to be more mature in a way of surviving and making her way to South Korea. (view spoiler)
Every government is in charge of providing whatever is necessary to its people to live with dignity. As an immigrant I also think my government had failed me. Of course, I cannot compare my situation to hers, but I could relate to a few things she said.
โBut of course if North Korea wasnโt such a hell on earth, there wouldnโt be a need for the women to flee in the first place.โ
There is only one thing I donโt agree with Yeonmi โIn a democracy, if you work hard, you will be rewarded.โ I didnโt believe it at first.โ. I still donโt. There are so many things related to race, gender, privileges - I still think there are people above others in this pyramidic system we are inserted into. Capitalism is not a fairy tale, and it has its failures just like other systems do. In either North Korea or Brazil, there are insane men who think they own land and people. Evil souls they are. However I can agree that living in a Democratic system at least gives us a chance of changing and deciding.
The title of her book expresses exactly her decisions in a way of surviving and saving her family, no one should judge her by her actions. She had to become mature in an early age and she is braver than I could ever imagine to be. Once in South Korea she had to adapt to a new life, completely out of her world or imagination.
After finishing the reading I immediately started watching her speeches on Youtube. It is overwhelming, sad, and we need to listen to people from other places and learn with them. We are not suffering alone, and we donโt have to.
โI was starting to realize that you canโt really grow and learn unless you have a language to grow within. I could literally feel my brain coming to life, as if new pathways were firing up in places that had been dark and barren. Reading was teaching me what it meant to be alive, to be human.โ - Thanks, Yeonmi!
Reading 15/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
It is a pity that during my school time only one teacher would present us the Brazilian Authors during her class. However, I never came across Julia Lopes de Almeida and if it wasnโt LibriVox I would probably never know anything about this author.
This book is one of those that presents Brazil exactly how it was and sometimes still is. Poverty, suffering, mothers raising their children by themselves and going against all the odds to do the best for their offsprings. Martha was raised in a Cortiรงo, a place still known by some of us, by her saint mother, Martha, who did everything she could to change the girlโs future. She was the one who would work hard on providing all the goods, even when it was necessary for her to put her own health at risk.
This book also presents us how women, living in a sexist Brazilian society set in the 1800โs, would be able to change their future by themselves. Plot twist: most of them wouldnโt. Emancipation is still something that Brazilian women have to fight for, and most suffer because of what Society thinks it is right for them. I mean, us.
This reading showed me so many aspects of my own country, while I listened to Rachel Moraes I could think about all the almost-well-hidden layers of the society I was raised in. I could see clearly in my mind my own neighborhood, my friendโs families and houses, my own home and the women who raised me and fought against the odds themselves to put me in a higher rank.
Reading 16/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
A sweet fairy tale with an ethical conclusion to pay deep attention to. We have a saying in Brazilian Portuguese: "ter o rei na barriga" which literally means "to have a king in the belly." The real meaning of this is "to be full of yourself," and this book is exactly about it.
An imperious princess, so full of herself, didn't know how to be kind and polite to others. She would feel pleasure in doing bad to anyone only for the fun of doing so, and she didn't know anything regarding loving someone.
Once more, I enjoyed listening to Rachel Moraes' voice, and she makes it easy to listen to an Audiobook.
โฑ๐๐ท๐๐๐ถ๐๐๐ Books Finished: 8 ๏ผ
๐ Pages Read: 1851 โง
๐งก Hours Listened: 10:04:00 โง
๐ Hearts Given: 31 โง
Reading 17/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ
Is it fair to rate a 50-page book 5 stars? Well, I'm certain it is! This is one of my favorite books and from time to time I come back to it just to take another look and to learn something else about myself.
Reading 18/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค๐ค
I love Miss Marple, but I am not too excited about reading Inspector Poirot. So I found the audiobook of this book in Portuguese, my mother language. And how hard it was to keep listening to this book particularly! A few times, I had to force myself not to watch The Office and get some time to finish it.
The narrator did a fantastic job, but I found the plot incredibly dull. The characters, the storyโs pace, everything was wrong. Agatha Christie will always be a genius, but this book is one of those I will never suggest to a friend.
Reading 19/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
Once more, I am impressed that I just came across this author because of Librivox. Julia Lopes de Almeida is a gem for Brazilian Literature, and if it weren't for the power of the Internet and free access to the public domain, I would never know her.
We take foreign authors for granted while our compatriots have written masterpieces, and their books remain untouched and unlistened. In this epistolary romance, we get to know Maria and her family, who had lost money and status when her husband passed away. They move to the countryside, and this change is not well received by neither one of them.
Maria shares her fate with a friend who had just arrived from Europe. This friend, Fernanda, along with their letter exchanging, shows to Maria that Brazil is a wonderful place and that any other place in this world has such a blessing land that everything that is planted grows. She makes her friend's minds to work on the land to provide for her family and community.
Fernanda has a different point of view, and I dare to say that she only could say such a thing because she has seen and experienced new things while in Europe. We do tend to think Brazil is not a great place. I also have another point of view now that I live out of its land. However, things are more complicated, and the book also talks about it. Political issues, cultural behavior, Brazil is a land kidnapped by lunatics who left its people to bear on their own land that no longer belongs to them.
Julia Lopes de Almeida, I dare to say, was a progressist and feminist somehow. The more I read her books, the more I get the message that women can work on their land with or without men and change their fate. Although this book was more romantic, reminding me of Brazilian telenovelas, I still got some messages regarding hardworking and future-changing.
Reading 20/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
Alice Walker is 1 of the 100 Female Writers that everyone must read, according to the USA Today's List and Abe List. And here I am, finally giving some space for essential readings.
It hurts me to know how we have enslaved brothers throughout humanity's history. It makes me down to know that black people are still struggling to have the right to have their own shares. But as a white person, the only thing I can do is listen and learn.
Regarding sexism, this I can talk about. Today one of my brothers saw me in a bikini and sent me a message telling me to put on some clothes. I love him, and because I do so, I sent him a message for him to fuck off. When I got his attention, I said a few things that happened to me as a woman. He listened and agreed.
"DEAR GOD,
He beat me today cause he say I winked at a boy in church. I may have got somethin in my eye but I didnโt wink. I donโt
even look at mens. Thatโs the truth. I look at women, tho, cause Iโm not scared of them."
We must talk about sexism, and it will be easier if we start with those we love. This book taught me a few important things, especially about sexism toward black females. I know nothing about some of the things I had read because I have never experienced them, but I still learned them.
"I know white people never listen to colored, period. If they do, they only listen long enough to be able to tell you what to do."
Reading 21/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
Powerful and Intense, the naked truth.
If you ever wonder what to read about Brazil, go for this reading. Its simplicity presented in the writing style will show you the grandiosity of the soul who has written this diary. Carolina was a genius. She could read between the lines the same way she could notice something clearly and write the event down.
Perpetuating her struggles and suffering, she wrote a letter to humanity. The only thing you have to do now is to read this book immediately.
Reading 22/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค
It is an okay-ish reading. The things that I find hard regarding Holly Black's books are the main characters. I want all of them to shut up and act.
I think Holly Black has a great imagination, and she always comes up with something unique and full of details. I can easily imagine this book being released as a series on Netflix or HBO.
โณ๐ถ๐๐ธ๐ฝ๐ Books Finished: 6 โฉ
๐ Pages Read: 524 โฉ
๐งก Hours Listened: 17:10:21 โง
๐ Hearts Given: 22 โฉ
Reading 23/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Poll 7 - No Designation
A book of poetry, short stories, or essays by a single author
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
I found these short stories much more enjoyable than listening to a long book. I often think that Poirot stories are too long, and I lose interest along the plot's course, but this audiobook kept my attention.
Reading 24/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค
It was a nice and short audiobook, a good way of practicing English. I used it to train my hearing before a proficiency test, and I recommend it. The only thing is that a play as an audiobook can be quite weird to listen to.
Reading 25/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
Crocodile on the Sandbank is one of those readings we can easily finish over the weekend. It took me a month to read the whole book, but believe me when I say it is not the author's fault.
I had a great time reading this book, and it reminded me of the films "The Mummy," in which the main characters are so charismatic. I can easily picture this series as a film starring Emily Blunt and John Krasinski. Oh, please, Hollywood, make this happen!
Reading 26/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
Delighted to listen to such an audiobook. It made me imagine the film (2005) and no doubt the best voices were Elizabeth Klett and Peter Bishop, precisely Lizzie Bennet and Mr. Darcy.
I found it a good practice, and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys listening to an audiobook.
Reading 27/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค๐ค
Meh.
Reading 28/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ
Barbara Alves Pereira, born 1991, also had depression. She also blamed herself for the clothes she was wearing, her breasts being too big, and her exaggerated laughs. She also thought she better smile less, talk less, make less noise, being less loud.
She blamed herself for making her mother quit her job to look after her. She was four.
"Why did that guy, whom my family knows well, touched my boobs?" It is my fault.
He will tell you it is his dream to be a father, but he doesn't have a job. Then he will cheat on you over and over again, make you sick, and it is your fault for not being sexy anymore while having sex. Why don't we fuck the same way we used to?
"My mom did the same thing to my dad. That is why he cheats on her"
Lock yourself, don't you dare wear shorts when you go to swimming classes.
If you kiss a boy, you'll be allowing him to touch you anywhere. If you date him, you'll allow him to blame you for making him horny. You shouldn't be kissing boys. You shouldn't have fun.
Lock yourself in your home, watch the sun rising, feel the warmth, don't go to the beach because they'll always be talking about your body. They will touch their parts while starring you, at the beach, on the bus, in the shopping center.
They will never understand your anxieties. They will never spend their time listening to your fears. Stop crying. Why don't you trust?
It is your fault.
This book is genius. GENIUS.
Reading 29/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๐ค
So, it took me a long time to finish this book, but I finally did.
I am glad I took some time this year to read more Asian authors to learn more about their culture. This book is necessary for those who want to learn more about China and its political situation. And will always be much easier to learn about China from a Chinese author, and I also think it is fundamental to see photos when reading historical books. Plus, plus.
Reading 30/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค
Not easy to listen to, and I don't blame the author. She gave her reasons why the book was written this way when she wrote the Epilogue to it. I just found it hard to keep listening to the audiobook, knowing what I would have done or what I think the main character should have done.
We always know better, right?
Reading 31/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
It took me ages to finish this book, but I have to say that it was worth the time. The similarities of the 1918 and 2020 Pandemic frightened me, and knowing that more Influenzas are about to come (it is a matter of time) made me re-think a few things regarding our societies.
The Influenza in 1918 killed a lot of healthy people, and it spread because of WWI. The Influenza in 2020 was spread due to globalism. In both scenarios, healthy and sick, rich and poor, were affected. The difference is that we had information to deal with the new virus, but instead, we decided as a society not to listen to specialists.
I would suggest this book to anyone willing to learn more bases on scientific arguments. We are certainly living in the era of Flus, so we would better be ready for whatever comes next.
Reading 32/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
I haven't read a manga for a long while, and this one might be the simplest one among all the others. However, I believe My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness was one of the best mangas I have ever read. The suffering with anxiety, the willingness to make the family proud, finding out that death is the only solution for a miserable life. Nagata put in this manga what is necessary to know about Depression, Loneliness, Anxiety, and what you need to find the nectar of life.
Reading 33/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
Like other unbelievable stories about Holocaust, this one was also shocking. I can't imagine how strong Lale had to behave, knowing that relatives and friends were being murdered and having to keep his role as a tattooist in the way of keeping other people alive by trading goods to buy food. Lale was brave, so were Gita, Cilka, Nadya, and others who went to concentration camps.
Reading 34/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๐ค๐ค๐ค
Oh, no! I didn't like this book at all! I found Emma so annoying. Maybe I saw myself in her (I should ask Freud about it, huh?). But anyway, at least I got the chance to listen to a good narrator, and I cannot deny that I used the audiobook to spend some time when I had to cook or clean the house.
Reading 35/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธโค๏ธ๐ค๐ค
An interesting introduction to the subject. I will probably look for other titles. The Holy bad thing regarding this particular reading was that the translation was poorly done. It feels like someone was rushing to publish it.
Besides that, everything was interesting, but as I said, it was a good introduction, it is just a bit far from being a proper manual. The proper title would be something close to "An Introduction to Humanism by Jen Hancock."
Reading 36/77Genre Bingo Challenge
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค
As a fan of the book, I gave the manga a chance to show me how good it could be. I haven't read mangas for a while. The last one was probably a girly thing, which I tend to pick, but Battle Royale Vol. It was a great start. The style, the characters, everything is quite fascinating. The plot is not very interesting at the very beginning of this particular volume, but in my case, I know the plot already, so I know it is worth the read.
Reading 37/77Around the Year in 52 Books
Review: โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค
I am not into comic books, but this one was a good start in this field. However, I was not too excited about the reading and development of the characters.
Around the Year in 52 Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Anya's Ghost (other topics)Anya's Ghost (other topics)
Anya's Ghost (other topics)
Battle Royale, Vol. 01 (other topics)
Battle Royale, Vol. 01 (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Vera Brosgol (other topics)Koushun Takami (other topics)
Jennifer Hancock (other topics)
Catharine Arnold (other topics)
Kabi Nagata (other topics)
More...
๐๐ช๐ฒ๐ท ๐๐ฑ๐ช๐ต๐ต๐ฎ๐ท๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ผ:
Around the Year in 52 Books: 26/52
Genre Bingo Challenge: 11/25
๐๐ฝ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ฑ๐ช๐ต๐ต๐ฎ๐ท๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ผ:
(Color Challenge: 10/18)
(TBR Twins, 2021: 05/05)
๐ฃ๐ช๐ฐ๐ผ:
๐: 199+214+476+273+307+96+169+68+392+236+647+288+288+262+262+290+163+375+368+143+320+82+210+224 pages
๐ง: 08:36:00+02:42:00+00:46:00+00:06:26+07:16:00+04:13:22+05:35:28+07:12:32+03:07:00+11:57:51+06:24:50+11:08:36+??:?? hours
๐ : Adichie, Alcott, Almeida (x3), Arnold, Austen (x2), Black, Brontรซ, Brosgol, Cat, Chang, Christie (x2), Clemmons, Greene, Hancock, Hoover, Jesus, Lippincott, Melchor, Morris, Nagata, Nam-Joo, Orczy, Park, Peter, Purcell, Serle, Silverstein, Steinbeck, Takami, Thunberg, Trump, Walker, Williams (D, E, F,, I, K, Q, R, U, V, X, Y, Z)
๐: Brazil (x3), China, Egypt, England (x8), Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, North Korea, Poland, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, United States (x9), Unknown (x5)
๐: 1800's (x4), 1810's (x2), 1861, 1880's, 1910's (x2), 1930's (x2),1940's (x2), 1950's, 1960's, 1980's (x2), 2000's (x2), 2010's (x5), 2020 (x2), Unknown (x10)
๐ญ: Melanie, Claire, Bobbi, Harsha, Eden
(๐ท. ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐, ๐ธ. ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐, 3. ๐๐๐๐๐๐'๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐, 4. ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ข ๐๐ ๐๐๐, 5. ๐ข๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ข ๐๐ ๐๐๐, 6. ๐๐ ๐๐๐' ๐๐๐๐๐)
๐๐ธ๐ธ๐ด ๐ก๐ช๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ท๐ฐ:
โค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค๐ค๐ค: 00
โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค๐ค: 03
โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค๐ค: 09
โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ๐ค: 23
โค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธโค๏ธ๏ธ: 02
๐ก๐ช๐ฒ๐ท๐ซ๐ธ๐ ๐๐ธ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป๐ผ:
๐: