Ennis del Mar and Jack Twist, two ranch hands, come together when they're working as sheepherder and camp tender one summer on a range above the tree line. At first, sharing an isolated tent
Spoiler-free review
Thursday, 26 May 2016
Annie Proulx - Brokeback Mountain
Ennis del Mar and Jack Twist, two ranch hands, come together when they're working as sheepherder and camp tender one summer on a range above the tree line. At first, sharing an isolated tent
Spoiler-free review
Ransom Riggs - Library of Souls (Miss Peregrine's #3)
As the story opens, sixteen-year-old Jacob discovers a powerful new ability, and soon he’s diving through history to rescue his peculiar companions from a heavily guarded fortress. Accompanying Jacob on his journey are Emma Bloom, a girl with fire at her fingertips, and Addison MacHenry, a dog with a nose for sniffing out lost children.
They’ll travel from modern-day London to the labyrinthine alleys of Devil’s Acre, the most wretched slum in all of Victorian England. It’s a place where the fate of peculiar children everywhere will be decided once and for all.
Spoiler-Free Review
Wednesday, 25 May 2016
Top 5 Stephen King Horror Novels
The King of Horror and Mistery has written a lot of books - not all of them horror stories, though. For the last couple of years (starting with Under the Dome in 2009, in my opinion) Stephen King's works became suspenseful misteries instead of spooky, scary, psychological horror stories.
This is why this list is going to be about the best horror stories he's written, because - even if those works I mentioned will not be featured in this list - it doesn't mean those works aren't great.
Because in my opinion they are.
#5
Blaze (as Richard Bachmann)
Clayton Blaisdell, Jr., was always a small-time delinquent. None too bright either, thanks to the beatings he got as a kid. Then Blaze met George Rackley, a seasoned pro with a hundred cons and one big idea. The kidnapping should go off without a hitch, with George as the brains behind their dangerous scheme. But there's only one problem: by the time the deal goes down, Blaze's partner in crime is dead. Or is he?
I have read this book quite a while ago, I might have been 13 or 14 years old when I finally read it and it gave me the chills. If you're expecting blood and cold-hearted murder or something like that, you will be disappointed in this book, but it's not always gore that makes a horror novel truly scary. It's the mind of the main character that is so very twisted it still makes me cringe.
#4
The Shining
Danny was only five years old but in the words of old Mr Halloran he was a 'shiner', aglow with psychic voltage. When his father became caretaker of the Overlook Hotel his visions grew frighteningly out of control.
As winter closed in and blizzards cut them off, the hotel seemed to develop a life of its own. It was meant to be empty, but who was the lady in Room 217, and who were the masked guests going up and down in the elevator? And why did the hedges shaped like animals seem so alive? Somewhere, somehow there was an evil force in the hotel - and that too had begun to shine...
Although many people would think that this is one of the scariest novel Stephen King ever wrote (because of the movie that was super hyped and disappointing, in my opinion), from my point of view it isn't.
The creepy setting and the state of mind that Jack Torrance is in make the story scary, yes, but all in all, there are just too many descriptions and the book is - like most Stephen King novels, I'm afraid - rather slow-paced, but even slower than most of his other works I've read.There are a few scenes that get the readers to the bones - and there are some major differences to the film!
#3
Carrie
Carrie knew she should
not use the terrifying power she possessed... But one night at her
senior prom, Carrie was scorned and humiliated just one time too many,
and in a fit of uncontrollable fury she turned her clandestine game into
a weapon of horror and destruction...
This is the first novel ever to be published by Stephen King. What makes this story a horror story is not only the telekinetic powers that Carries posesses (and what she does with them), but the day-to-day attitude that goes with the story. It tells us that every kid that gets bullied is likely to take psychic damage of it - whether they retreat into themselves, become self-conscious or, well, escalate the way Carrie does.
It's the story of an unloved child - first bullied and abused by her own fanatic mother and then bullied by her classmates because she is different from them. And I guess everyone that has been bullied or is being bullied (as I have been at the time I read this book) might find they sympathize with Carrie in a way that scares them.
#2
Pet Sematary
Sometimes dead is
better....When the Creeds move into a beautiful old house in rural
Maine, it all seems too good to be true: physician father, beautiful
wife, charming little daughter, adorable infant son -- and now an
idyllic home. As a family, they've got it all...right down to the
friendly cat.But the nearby woods hide a blood-chilling truth -- more
terrifying than death itself...and hideously more powerful.
I made the mistake to watch the film first with a friend of mine in the basement with all the lights out and no windows. And I deeply regret that.
Because once I had watched the film I wanted to peruse the book in a matter of hours (which I did), unfortunately I stopped reading when it was already 3 o'clock in the morning - and there was a full moon greeting me through my opened window.
Consequently, I didn't sleep that night. The book had taken more on me than the film ever could have, and I would have stopped reading, naturally, if I hadn't watched the film. I told myself I knew what was going on, I knew what was going to happen, but I had no idea.
#1
IT
To the children, the town was their whole world. To the adults, knowing better, Derry, Maine was just their home town: familiar, well-ordered for the most part. A good place to live.
It was the children who saw - and felt - what made Derry so horribly different. In the storm drains, in the sewers, IT lurked, taking on the shape of every nightmare, each one's deepest dread. Sometimes IT reached up, seizing, tearing, killing . . .
The adults, knowing better, knew nothing.
Time passed and the children grew up, moved away. The horror of IT was deep-buried, wrapped in forgetfulness. Until they were called back, once more to confront IT as IT stirred and coiled in the sullen depths of their memories, reaching up again to make their past nightmares a terrible present reality.
Same with Pet Sematary - I watched the film first. And the film did scare me more than Pet Sematary did, but when I finally read the book I didn't make the mistake again to read it in the course of hours (mainly because this book is so thick, but that's another story) but I put it down every so often. I couldn't sleep, anyway.
There was so much in the book that the film didn't have that creeped me out. I have to mention that I was, maybe, 14 or 15 years old when I read IT for the first time, but still the story lingers with me and I kept having nightmares after finishing this book for several weeks thereafter.
It takes a lot of work to get through this book, but it is definitely worth it - although, well, the ending is very questionable. And makes the whole thing rather ridiculous, but still - this book scared the hell out of me.
This is why this list is going to be about the best horror stories he's written, because - even if those works I mentioned will not be featured in this list - it doesn't mean those works aren't great.
Because in my opinion they are.
#5
Blaze (as Richard Bachmann)
I have read this book quite a while ago, I might have been 13 or 14 years old when I finally read it and it gave me the chills. If you're expecting blood and cold-hearted murder or something like that, you will be disappointed in this book, but it's not always gore that makes a horror novel truly scary. It's the mind of the main character that is so very twisted it still makes me cringe.
#4
The Shining
Danny was only five years old but in the words of old Mr Halloran he was a 'shiner', aglow with psychic voltage. When his father became caretaker of the Overlook Hotel his visions grew frighteningly out of control.
As winter closed in and blizzards cut them off, the hotel seemed to develop a life of its own. It was meant to be empty, but who was the lady in Room 217, and who were the masked guests going up and down in the elevator? And why did the hedges shaped like animals seem so alive? Somewhere, somehow there was an evil force in the hotel - and that too had begun to shine...
Although many people would think that this is one of the scariest novel Stephen King ever wrote (because of the movie that was super hyped and disappointing, in my opinion), from my point of view it isn't.
The creepy setting and the state of mind that Jack Torrance is in make the story scary, yes, but all in all, there are just too many descriptions and the book is - like most Stephen King novels, I'm afraid - rather slow-paced, but even slower than most of his other works I've read.There are a few scenes that get the readers to the bones - and there are some major differences to the film!
#3
Carrie
This is the first novel ever to be published by Stephen King. What makes this story a horror story is not only the telekinetic powers that Carries posesses (and what she does with them), but the day-to-day attitude that goes with the story. It tells us that every kid that gets bullied is likely to take psychic damage of it - whether they retreat into themselves, become self-conscious or, well, escalate the way Carrie does.
It's the story of an unloved child - first bullied and abused by her own fanatic mother and then bullied by her classmates because she is different from them. And I guess everyone that has been bullied or is being bullied (as I have been at the time I read this book) might find they sympathize with Carrie in a way that scares them.
#2
Pet Sematary
I made the mistake to watch the film first with a friend of mine in the basement with all the lights out and no windows. And I deeply regret that.
Because once I had watched the film I wanted to peruse the book in a matter of hours (which I did), unfortunately I stopped reading when it was already 3 o'clock in the morning - and there was a full moon greeting me through my opened window.
Consequently, I didn't sleep that night. The book had taken more on me than the film ever could have, and I would have stopped reading, naturally, if I hadn't watched the film. I told myself I knew what was going on, I knew what was going to happen, but I had no idea.
#1
IT
To the children, the town was their whole world. To the adults, knowing better, Derry, Maine was just their home town: familiar, well-ordered for the most part. A good place to live.
It was the children who saw - and felt - what made Derry so horribly different. In the storm drains, in the sewers, IT lurked, taking on the shape of every nightmare, each one's deepest dread. Sometimes IT reached up, seizing, tearing, killing . . .
The adults, knowing better, knew nothing.
Time passed and the children grew up, moved away. The horror of IT was deep-buried, wrapped in forgetfulness. Until they were called back, once more to confront IT as IT stirred and coiled in the sullen depths of their memories, reaching up again to make their past nightmares a terrible present reality.
Same with Pet Sematary - I watched the film first. And the film did scare me more than Pet Sematary did, but when I finally read the book I didn't make the mistake again to read it in the course of hours (mainly because this book is so thick, but that's another story) but I put it down every so often. I couldn't sleep, anyway.
There was so much in the book that the film didn't have that creeped me out. I have to mention that I was, maybe, 14 or 15 years old when I read IT for the first time, but still the story lingers with me and I kept having nightmares after finishing this book for several weeks thereafter.
It takes a lot of work to get through this book, but it is definitely worth it - although, well, the ending is very questionable. And makes the whole thing rather ridiculous, but still - this book scared the hell out of me.
Friday, 20 May 2016
Stephen King - Revival
In a small New England town, over half a century ago, a shadow falls over a small boy playing with his toy soldiers. Jamie Morton looks up to see a striking man, the new minister. Charles Jacobs, along with his beautiful wife, will transform the local church. The men and boys are all a bit in love with Mrs. Jacobs; the women and girls feel the same about Reverend Jacobs—including Jamie’s mother and beloved sister, Claire. With Jamie, the Reverend shares a deeper bond based on a secret obsession. When tragedy strikes the Jacobs family, this charismatic preacher curses God, mocks all religious belief, and is banished from the shocked town.
Jamie has demons of his own. Wed to his guitar from the age of thirteen, he plays in bands across the country, living the nomadic lifestyle of bar-band rock and roll while fleeing from his family’s horrific loss. In his mid-thirties—addicted to heroin, stranded, desperate—Jamie meets Charles Jacobs again, with profound consequences for both men. Their bond becomes a pact beyond even the Devil’s devising, and Jamie discovers that revival has many meanings.(synopsis taken from goodreads)
To be honest, hadn't I known this was a Stephen King novel, I wouldn't have believed it was a Stephen King novel at all.
It is widely known that Stephen King hasn't written any horror books in the past five years or so, and this one isn't one, either, although opinions may vary.
It is more of a coming of age story, though, in which we follow the whole life of Jamie.
And because it is mostly just that - the coming of age story of Jamie, how he becomes an addict, he visits Jacobs a few times and does research on him. The other parts, though, where he talks about his first girlfriend and his second girlfriend (at least the second one that is mentioned), were skippable. Entirely.
One thing I love about Stephen King is that he can create believable characters that feel just like real people, but this time it didn't work for me.
Jacobs did a 180-degree turn from when he was a Reverend in Jamie's hometown to the person he was later on in the novel. This made him seem like entirely different persons, and not a sparkle of what the old Jacobs used to be like was mentioned.
Another thing that bothered me was that in the course of this novel, he meets Jacobs only two or three times after his childhood, and the reader never really gets to know what Jacobs is up to and what exactly happened during Jamie's treatment. Something happened. Something something happened happened -Yes, but what, exactly? There were so many questions left open.
I had a hard time getting into the story, and I think I never really did, because only in the last two chapters it is revealed what this book really is about. This story would have been sufficient as a short story, but to make a whole novel out of it was too much, in my opinion. It was slow-paced and boring at times. The only parts that were interesting were the beginning in which the narrator introduces all the persons, and the second-to-last chapter.
There is really not much going on, there are persons mentioned that are being mentioned over and over again, the symptoms they suffer from, how Jacobs was able to help them (or not, in some cases) but there was never anything really new to the story, except for the second-to-last chapter.
The conclusion, though, left me in tears. Not because I was touched, but because it reminded me so much of a certain (and very grotesque) Pink Floyd album. And I am guessing that was where the idea was taken from. And that made it very cliché and not scary at all.
The last chapter wasn't really a resumé, either, but really, really boring and hard to get through.
I have been a Stephen King fan for the most part of my life, but I have to say that this is my least favourite book by him so far. Nevertheless, I'm looking forward to finishing the Bill Hodges Trilogy.
Wednesday, 18 May 2016
The Book Sacrifice Tag
This tag is about books that you were willing to sacrifice during any scenario given in the following questions. I'd like to note that these are just my opinions and you don't have to agree with me.
Scenario 1: An Over-Hyped Book/Series
A zombie apocalypse breaks out while you’re in a bookstore. While zombies start coming at you, you hear an announcement over the PA system saying that the zombies’ only weakness is an over-hyped book…what over-hyped book would you sacrifice knowing that it would defeat all the zombies?
Definitely the Twilight Series by Stephenie Meyer. I read the first one halfway through and I just couldn’t get what was so good about it. I found it awful.
Scenario 2: A Sequel
You’ve just left your fancy salon with a beautifully manicured new hairstyle. Then, out of nowhere, there’s torrential downpour. What sequel book would you put over your head & sacrifice to the rain in order to protect your haircut?
The Shining really didn’t need a sequel. Although Doctor Sleep by Stephen King was lovely, he changed the story completely and all that weird stuff happened that just didn’t really have anything to do with the scariness of the original book.
Scenario 3: A Classic
That one classic you’d just love to throw at your English teacher as he/she goes on and on about how amazing it is? Which classic would drive you to such drastic measures?
This is easy. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque. My teacher made me read it half a year ago and I still feel the chills when I think about that one scene where the main character proves he’s just another murder machine and doesn’t give it so much as a second thought. Am I to feel bad for him?! Seriously, though!
Scenario 4: Your Personal Worst Book of All Time
Let’s propose that you’re hanging out at the library when all of a sudden, global warming hits and the only way to survive is to burn your least favorite book ever. What horrible book do you have absolutely no regrets about burning?
Easy-peasy one. Fifty Shades of Grey. I felt that book was a personal insult to myself. I disliked the characters, I disliked the way the story evolved around their sexual relationship (that I find more than disturbing, actually) and I really, really disliked the way that women are portrayed in this book. Not just by the main character herself that has no self-esteem, but also by the sadistic male character that, clearly, sees women as objects even though I see nothing wrong in a sexual relationship that evolves around sex. If two persons want to make a contract - fine, but I don't think these thins are adequately represented in this book.
Scenario 1: An Over-Hyped Book/Series
A zombie apocalypse breaks out while you’re in a bookstore. While zombies start coming at you, you hear an announcement over the PA system saying that the zombies’ only weakness is an over-hyped book…what over-hyped book would you sacrifice knowing that it would defeat all the zombies?
Definitely the Twilight Series by Stephenie Meyer. I read the first one halfway through and I just couldn’t get what was so good about it. I found it awful.
Scenario 2: A Sequel
You’ve just left your fancy salon with a beautifully manicured new hairstyle. Then, out of nowhere, there’s torrential downpour. What sequel book would you put over your head & sacrifice to the rain in order to protect your haircut?
The Shining really didn’t need a sequel. Although Doctor Sleep by Stephen King was lovely, he changed the story completely and all that weird stuff happened that just didn’t really have anything to do with the scariness of the original book.
Scenario 3: A Classic
That one classic you’d just love to throw at your English teacher as he/she goes on and on about how amazing it is? Which classic would drive you to such drastic measures?
This is easy. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque. My teacher made me read it half a year ago and I still feel the chills when I think about that one scene where the main character proves he’s just another murder machine and doesn’t give it so much as a second thought. Am I to feel bad for him?! Seriously, though!
Scenario 4: Your Personal Worst Book of All Time
Let’s propose that you’re hanging out at the library when all of a sudden, global warming hits and the only way to survive is to burn your least favorite book ever. What horrible book do you have absolutely no regrets about burning?
Easy-peasy one. Fifty Shades of Grey. I felt that book was a personal insult to myself. I disliked the characters, I disliked the way the story evolved around their sexual relationship (that I find more than disturbing, actually) and I really, really disliked the way that women are portrayed in this book. Not just by the main character herself that has no self-esteem, but also by the sadistic male character that, clearly, sees women as objects even though I see nothing wrong in a sexual relationship that evolves around sex. If two persons want to make a contract - fine, but I don't think these thins are adequately represented in this book.
Top 5 Summer Reads (T5W - May 18th 2016)
Be sure to check out the T5W-group on goodreads to never miss a topic!
The topic of this Wednesday is 'Summer Reads'. Since the sun is coming out over here in Germany again after a weekend of heavy rain, I think this is going to be the perfect way to get me into my summer reading mood!
5.) Neil Gaiman - Neverwhere
Richard Mayhew is a plain man with a good heart - and an ordinary life that is changed forever on a day he stops to help a girl he finds bleeding on a London sidewalk. From that moment forward he is propelled into a world he never dreamed existed - a dark subculture flourishing in abandoned subway stations and sewer tunnels below the city - a world far stranger and more dangerous than the only one he has ever known... (synopsis from goodreads)
Although I'm aware that not many people would classify this as the perfect summer read, for me it is, anyway. I love the mysteriousness of this world of London Below that Neil Gaiman provides us with and somehow this great adventurous story seems to be the perfect read for me to get in the mood for my own summer adventures. I also did a review of this book.
4.) Vladimir Nabokov - Lolita
Humbert Humbert - scholar, aesthete and romantic - has fallen completely and utterly in love with Lolita Haze, his landlady's gum-snapping, silky skinned twelve-year-old daughter. Reluctantly agreeing to marry Mrs Haze just to be close to Lolita, Humbert suffers greatly in the pursuit of romance; but when Lo herself starts looking for attention elsewhere, he will carry her off on a desperate cross-country misadventure, all in the name of Love. Hilarious, flamboyant, heart-breaking and full of ingenious word play, Lolita is an immaculate, unforgettable masterpiece of obsession, delusion and lust. (synopsis from goodreads)
This is one of my favourite classics. I would not classify this as a light read, to be honest, but still the setting and the beautiful descriptions and - most importantly - the scene when Lo and Humbert first meet, remind me of a beautiful summer.
3.) Fredrik Backman - A Man called Ove
A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door.
Meet Ove. He's a curmudgeon, the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him the bitter neighbor from hell, but must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time?
Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove's mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents' association to their very foundations.
The story about Ove is such a sweet and beautiful story. I remember when I read it last summer, I felt it was the perfect book for a sunny afternoon outside. It was not a book without substance, though. There were light-hearted and funny passages as well as very sad passages. Although this book is not entirely set in summer, I think this is a really fine book to read during the summer months. Check out my review!
2.) Stephen King - 11/22/63
Life can turn on a dime—or stumble into the extraordinary, as it does for Jake Epping, a high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine. While grading essays by his GED students, Jake reads a gruesome, enthralling piece penned by janitor Harry Dunning: fifty years ago, Harry somehow survived his father’s sledgehammer slaughter of his entire family. Jake is blown away...but an even more bizarre secret comes to light when Jake’s friend Al, owner of the local diner, enlists Jake to take over the mission that has become his obsession—to prevent the Kennedy assassination. How? By stepping through a portal in the diner’s storeroom, and into the era of Ike and Elvis, of big American cars, sock hops, and cigarette smoke... Finding himself in warmhearted Jodie, Texas, Jake begins a new life. But all turns in the road lead to a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald. The course of history is about to be rewritten...and become heart-stoppingly suspenseful.
Sadly, Stephen King has retreated from writing horror fiction into writing mainly criminal and mystery fiction. Gladly, this one is neither.
It is about the conspiracy around JFK's death - and about a man that tries to fit into the 60s but not losing himself in the past. I loved the romance that was going on in the story and the ending had me in tears. It is a rather long book, but still I enjoyed sitting in the sun and reading this last summer.
1.) Stephen King - Joyland
College student Devin Jones took the summer job at Joyland hoping to forget the girl who broke his heart. But he wound up facing something far more terrible: the legacy of a vicious murder, the fate of a dying child, and dark truths about life—and what comes after—that would change his world forever.
A riveting story about love and loss, about growing up and growing old—and about those who don't get to do either because death comes for them before their time—Joyland is Stephen King at the peak of his storytelling powers. With all of the emotional impact of King masterpieces such as The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption, Joyland is at once a mystery, a horror story, and a bittersweet coming-of-age novel, one that will leave even the most hard-boiled reader profoundly moved.
I just finished this book recently. I loved the atmosphere of the carnival lifestyle and I have always been a big fan of amusement parks. Stephen King has a very unique way of describing a setting and he also gives his characters voices that sound just like real people. Since I've read a lot of Stephen King's works over the past five years or so, I recognized some of the character-tropes he uses and this made the feeling almost perfect. Normally, such tropes would bother me, but they fit perfectly into the carny world.
The topic of this Wednesday is 'Summer Reads'. Since the sun is coming out over here in Germany again after a weekend of heavy rain, I think this is going to be the perfect way to get me into my summer reading mood!
5.) Neil Gaiman - Neverwhere
Richard Mayhew is a plain man with a good heart - and an ordinary life that is changed forever on a day he stops to help a girl he finds bleeding on a London sidewalk. From that moment forward he is propelled into a world he never dreamed existed - a dark subculture flourishing in abandoned subway stations and sewer tunnels below the city - a world far stranger and more dangerous than the only one he has ever known... (synopsis from goodreads)
Although I'm aware that not many people would classify this as the perfect summer read, for me it is, anyway. I love the mysteriousness of this world of London Below that Neil Gaiman provides us with and somehow this great adventurous story seems to be the perfect read for me to get in the mood for my own summer adventures. I also did a review of this book.
4.) Vladimir Nabokov - Lolita
Humbert Humbert - scholar, aesthete and romantic - has fallen completely and utterly in love with Lolita Haze, his landlady's gum-snapping, silky skinned twelve-year-old daughter. Reluctantly agreeing to marry Mrs Haze just to be close to Lolita, Humbert suffers greatly in the pursuit of romance; but when Lo herself starts looking for attention elsewhere, he will carry her off on a desperate cross-country misadventure, all in the name of Love. Hilarious, flamboyant, heart-breaking and full of ingenious word play, Lolita is an immaculate, unforgettable masterpiece of obsession, delusion and lust. (synopsis from goodreads)
This is one of my favourite classics. I would not classify this as a light read, to be honest, but still the setting and the beautiful descriptions and - most importantly - the scene when Lo and Humbert first meet, remind me of a beautiful summer.
3.) Fredrik Backman - A Man called Ove
A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door.
Meet Ove. He's a curmudgeon, the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him the bitter neighbor from hell, but must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time?
Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove's mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents' association to their very foundations.
The story about Ove is such a sweet and beautiful story. I remember when I read it last summer, I felt it was the perfect book for a sunny afternoon outside. It was not a book without substance, though. There were light-hearted and funny passages as well as very sad passages. Although this book is not entirely set in summer, I think this is a really fine book to read during the summer months. Check out my review!
2.) Stephen King - 11/22/63
Life can turn on a dime—or stumble into the extraordinary, as it does for Jake Epping, a high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine. While grading essays by his GED students, Jake reads a gruesome, enthralling piece penned by janitor Harry Dunning: fifty years ago, Harry somehow survived his father’s sledgehammer slaughter of his entire family. Jake is blown away...but an even more bizarre secret comes to light when Jake’s friend Al, owner of the local diner, enlists Jake to take over the mission that has become his obsession—to prevent the Kennedy assassination. How? By stepping through a portal in the diner’s storeroom, and into the era of Ike and Elvis, of big American cars, sock hops, and cigarette smoke... Finding himself in warmhearted Jodie, Texas, Jake begins a new life. But all turns in the road lead to a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald. The course of history is about to be rewritten...and become heart-stoppingly suspenseful.
Sadly, Stephen King has retreated from writing horror fiction into writing mainly criminal and mystery fiction. Gladly, this one is neither.
It is about the conspiracy around JFK's death - and about a man that tries to fit into the 60s but not losing himself in the past. I loved the romance that was going on in the story and the ending had me in tears. It is a rather long book, but still I enjoyed sitting in the sun and reading this last summer.
1.) Stephen King - Joyland
College student Devin Jones took the summer job at Joyland hoping to forget the girl who broke his heart. But he wound up facing something far more terrible: the legacy of a vicious murder, the fate of a dying child, and dark truths about life—and what comes after—that would change his world forever.
A riveting story about love and loss, about growing up and growing old—and about those who don't get to do either because death comes for them before their time—Joyland is Stephen King at the peak of his storytelling powers. With all of the emotional impact of King masterpieces such as The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption, Joyland is at once a mystery, a horror story, and a bittersweet coming-of-age novel, one that will leave even the most hard-boiled reader profoundly moved.
I just finished this book recently. I loved the atmosphere of the carnival lifestyle and I have always been a big fan of amusement parks. Stephen King has a very unique way of describing a setting and he also gives his characters voices that sound just like real people. Since I've read a lot of Stephen King's works over the past five years or so, I recognized some of the character-tropes he uses and this made the feeling almost perfect. Normally, such tropes would bother me, but they fit perfectly into the carny world.
Monday, 16 May 2016
Ransom Riggs - Hollow City (Miss Peregrine's #2)
- Minor spoilers, just so you be warned -
The second Novel to the Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children series, Hollow City, is about the peculiar children and their headmistress, Miss Peregrine, searching for another ymbryne that can help Miss Peregrine turn human again.
Since I wasn't such a big fan of the first book, I didn't expect to like the second one much, either. But although I've had my prejudices, I tried to be as objective as I could.
The second Novel to the Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children series, Hollow City, is about the peculiar children and their headmistress, Miss Peregrine, searching for another ymbryne that can help Miss Peregrine turn human again.
Since I wasn't such a big fan of the first book, I didn't expect to like the second one much, either. But although I've had my prejudices, I tried to be as objective as I could.
Saturday, 14 May 2016
25 Bookish Facts About Me!
25 Bookish Facts About Me
So, this ‘tag’ consists of 25 random bookish facts that I could think of…1
I hate audiobooks. I tried to listen to them once during a 7 hour car ride and I couldn’t focus on what the reader was saying nor on the plot and I got distracted all the time. Another time I tried to listen to an audiobook at home I got so bored that I crocheted - and forgot all about the audiobook.2
I also hate E-Books. I just like to have the weight of a physical book in my hands to read - if I’d read on an E-Bookreader or - more likely, since I don’t have such a device - on my laptop, I’d get distracted very - very fast. The light of those devices is too bright for my eyes and I keep getting a headache when I stare at glaring screens.3
I have never read the Harry Potter series until my 19th birthday. That was when I got the whole series. I’m still at it.4
My favourite author of all time is Stephen King.5
The first book I read by him by the age of 11 - and I think that has seriously damaged me in various ways :D6
I don’t judge books by their covers. I judge them by title and premise.7
I like used bookstores and very old books. I like the smell of them. Most of the Czech copies of novels I own are at least 30 years old.8
I rarely read books in my native language. Why? Because of Booktube and all the great international authors that are out there that I want to read works of. Not that the German literature scene was bad or anything, but I like to read the books in the language that they were originally written in, if possible.9
I’m having a hard time to choose what to read next. That is because I have so many books that I have not yet read but want to read ASAP.10
I have written two books and have participated in NaNoWriMo twice. The first one is about a Murder that took place 60 years ago and is now being solved a second time, the second being about a girls whose pedophile admiror finds out she has a dark side to her that arouses him even more. That was about the sickest thing I could imagine at that time.11
My boyfriend hates books, but sometimes when I just can’t keep it in I talk to him a lot about books which I think annoys him quite a bit. Yet he keeps listening to me.12
I taught myself to read at the age of 5 and have been a heavy reader since then, with a pause by maybe 13 or 14 years til the age of 17.13
I have read 27 books in 201514
My favourite book when I was young was The Wild Chicks Series by Cornelia Funke. And I still want to reread them.15
When I was maybe 9 or 10 I was a member in the Pony Club (I think they call themselves Pennigirl now) where I was sent a book monthly to read. I still have all of them.16
The longest series I have ever read consisted of 9 books of about 300 pages each.17
The worst book I have ever read was 50 Shades of Grey.18
I did not finish the Twilight series. I was about halfway through the first book when I had to give it up for good.19
Sometimes I’d like to torture people who use spoilers in everyday language as it if were something normal to just go and ruin my life.20
I love Yaoi Manga. Period.21
I have wanted to be a writer since I was six years old and have never stopped.22
I like to drink tea while I read. When I don’t have tea with me when I read it’s probably because I read in bed right before I go to sleep.23
I run the school library and use my free hours to go and read there in the cozy seats.24
I have never enjoyed romance books. And I guess I never will, though.25
The book I’m currently reading is 'Lustrum’ by Robert Harris and I’m having a hard time to get through it.Friday, 13 May 2016
Ransom Riggs - Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's #1)
I've had a few issues with this book.
Although I really liked the story and premise of it, I've had problems with Jacob. In the first chapter it he describes himself (I wouldn't consider this a spoiler as it appears at the beginning of the book and doesn't reveal anything about the story, anyway)
Jacob describes himself as a spoiled brat. His mother is intensely rich and his uncles own the company that he's got a job at and tries everything to get fired from it, behaving incredibly unrespectful toward his boss, which made him, in my eyes, extremely unlikeable.
Because of that, I intended to put the book down, but since my bookclub wanted to read this, I kept on going. The further I got into the story, the more interesting it became. The book uses antique pictures, as you may know, that were made to fit into the sory.
The photos were quite powerful, but I felt the author tried too hard at some points to fit them into the story (why would sleeping granddad be appreciated by readers? Well.) and the writing lacked descriptions, I think because of those photos.
- SPOILERS AHEAD -
On finishing the Harry Potter series
I finished the Harry Potter series
So, I’m not going to do a review of the Deathly Hallows, because I don’t feel like it.I’ve been crying for over an hour after… well.. you can guess what. I’ve been hating this character for such a long time, and guess what - I was wrong. We all have been wrong, I guess.
I loved this series. I loved the strict you-can’t-tell-right-from-wrong thing with Dumbledore, Snape, Sirius and even Peter Pettigrew. The only not-ambiguous character is Voldemort - he is the very only one that doesn’t have a good side to him. He’s just plain evil. But the others who I have thought to be good were actually not too good.
I loved the allegory to the Nazi regime with the Ministry of Magic discriminating against Muggle-born wizards. I think that, too, is the reason why Voldemort is the only character that has only negative traits to him. He is Hitler. He’s the one obsessed by power and goes beyond measure to obtain it.
The one thing I can say is that now I cannot decide whether I want a deathly-hallows tattoo or a doe made of the word ‘always’.
Stephen King - Joyland
Joyland - Stephen King
College studen Devin Jones took the summer job at Joyland hoping to forget the girl who broke his heart. But he wound up facing something far more terrible: the legacy of a vicious murder, the fate of a dying child, and dark thruths about life - and what comes after - that would change his world forever.
I really liked the premise of this book - a murder in an amusement park, at least that’s what I thought it was about. It was more about Jonesy (that’s what the ‘carnies’ call him) and how he found his place among the Joyland people and what happens after the summer business is over.
What kept me reading was not necessarily the story itself, but I really, really liked the setting and the atmosphere that Stephen King created with this book. The main character was thrown into all that stuff and what was going on beyond the neon lights of the amusement park and I really liked those insights that I got. I also liked the characters, they were well-created and well-described. I just didn’t care for them as much as I did with other characters in other boooks - for example I didn’t cry at the end.
As for the murdered girl - the story didn’t really much revolve around her as I’d thought it would. She was more of a seldom-mentioned character that didn’t necessarily have a great part in the story. Even when her storyline ended (that’s about all I can say without spoilering anything) it wasn’t that big of a deal. Just gone.
Joyland had aspects of a crime/mystery book, I guess, because in the end - you can guess - they found the killer (which isn’t very surprising in a crime novel). And that’s all there was to it.
I’m not sure if I’d read this book again, but if so, I’d read it just for the atmosphere. And for the humour that was brought across. Stephen King did a very good job at this one. All in all, I thought it was a little slow-paced and long at times, but then again I’m not really sure. Let’s just go with this:
Many, many Stephen King tropes (main character from Maine, psychic kid, creepy and wise old men… you get it), but nevertheless it was an original story, although some of the characters had a familiar touch to them.
College studen Devin Jones took the summer job at Joyland hoping to forget the girl who broke his heart. But he wound up facing something far more terrible: the legacy of a vicious murder, the fate of a dying child, and dark thruths about life - and what comes after - that would change his world forever.
I really liked the premise of this book - a murder in an amusement park, at least that’s what I thought it was about. It was more about Jonesy (that’s what the ‘carnies’ call him) and how he found his place among the Joyland people and what happens after the summer business is over.
What kept me reading was not necessarily the story itself, but I really, really liked the setting and the atmosphere that Stephen King created with this book. The main character was thrown into all that stuff and what was going on beyond the neon lights of the amusement park and I really liked those insights that I got. I also liked the characters, they were well-created and well-described. I just didn’t care for them as much as I did with other characters in other boooks - for example I didn’t cry at the end.
As for the murdered girl - the story didn’t really much revolve around her as I’d thought it would. She was more of a seldom-mentioned character that didn’t necessarily have a great part in the story. Even when her storyline ended (that’s about all I can say without spoilering anything) it wasn’t that big of a deal. Just gone.
Joyland had aspects of a crime/mystery book, I guess, because in the end - you can guess - they found the killer (which isn’t very surprising in a crime novel). And that’s all there was to it.
I’m not sure if I’d read this book again, but if so, I’d read it just for the atmosphere. And for the humour that was brought across. Stephen King did a very good job at this one. All in all, I thought it was a little slow-paced and long at times, but then again I’m not really sure. Let’s just go with this:
Many, many Stephen King tropes (main character from Maine, psychic kid, creepy and wise old men… you get it), but nevertheless it was an original story, although some of the characters had a familiar touch to them.
JK Rowling - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter #6)
Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince - JK Rowling
I actually finished this book yesterday, but I didn’t feel like reviewing it just then. I don’t want to spoiler those who have not yet read it, but I was crying. I kept crying until I closed the book.
I can say that - with the Philosopher’s Stone and all being a fairly thin book - I needed only about a day more to read this one than I did when reading the Philosopher’s Stone. That adds up to three days.
I was indulged from the moment I laid my eyes upon the first page. JK Rowling had some serious plot twists planned, I knew, and I was eager to know what would happen. I’d seen the film, alright, but that was about a year ago. And it was definitely worth it.
The tension in this book doesn’t seem to come to a halt - I already explained why I didn’t like the Order of the Phoenix as much as the other books because it had some slower passages that were hard to get through at some point, but the Half-Blood-Prince just blew it. Once again the sub-plots were intertwined neatly into the story and were - although they seemed rather stupid (like Hagrid crying over the loss of his gigantic spider in the forbidden forest) - an important piece to the whole of the story. And I can definitely say now that the Half-Blood Prince is my second favourite book at this point.
(originally posted May 2016)
I actually finished this book yesterday, but I didn’t feel like reviewing it just then. I don’t want to spoiler those who have not yet read it, but I was crying. I kept crying until I closed the book.
I can say that - with the Philosopher’s Stone and all being a fairly thin book - I needed only about a day more to read this one than I did when reading the Philosopher’s Stone. That adds up to three days.
I was indulged from the moment I laid my eyes upon the first page. JK Rowling had some serious plot twists planned, I knew, and I was eager to know what would happen. I’d seen the film, alright, but that was about a year ago. And it was definitely worth it.
The tension in this book doesn’t seem to come to a halt - I already explained why I didn’t like the Order of the Phoenix as much as the other books because it had some slower passages that were hard to get through at some point, but the Half-Blood-Prince just blew it. Once again the sub-plots were intertwined neatly into the story and were - although they seemed rather stupid (like Hagrid crying over the loss of his gigantic spider in the forbidden forest) - an important piece to the whole of the story. And I can definitely say now that the Half-Blood Prince is my second favourite book at this point.
(originally posted May 2016)
Klaus-Peter Wolf - Ostfriesenkiller (Ann-Kathrin Klaasen #1)
![Ostfriesenkiller - Klaus-Peter Wolf [German Review]
“Eine Serie von Morden erschüttert eine kleine Stadt in Ostfriesland. Nach und nach werden mehrere Mitglieder des Vereins ›Regenbogen‹ auf grausame Weise umgebracht. Wer hasst so sehr, dass er sie...](http://66.media.tumblr.com/ddf57db426ccd1a950bb62c785a094a5/tumblr_o6b2pnxf4C1ubbzkno1_1280.jpg)
Ostfriesenkiller - Klaus-Peter Wolf [German Review]
“Eine Serie von Morden erschüttert eine kleine Stadt in Ostfriesland. Nach und nach werden mehrere Mitglieder des Vereins ›Regenbogen‹ auf grausame Weise umgebracht. Wer hasst so sehr, dass er sie alle auslöschen will? Für Ann Kathrin Klaasen wird dieser Fall zu einer echten Bewährungsprobe.”
Ich war nie ein besonders großer Fan von Kriminalromanen, wenn sie nicht als Thriler ausgeschrieben waren. Nachdem ich den Papenburger Puppenspieler (Rezension ebenfalls hier zu finden) gelesen hatte, habe ich auch erst einmal die Nase voll von Lokalromanen gehabt, denn dieses Buch hatte mir persönlich - bis auf den grandios gewählten Anfang! - nicht zugesagt.
Ich fand die Erzählweise in ‘Ostfriesenkiller’ sehr spannend gehalten - in den einzelnen Kapiteln wechselt manchmal die Perspektive, aber insgesamt ist der Fokus sehr auf die Kommissarin Ann-Kathrin Klaasen gerichtet. Was ich allerdings daran zu bemängeln habe, ist, dass sie leider etwas stereotypisch gelungen ist - weniger als Kommissarin, sondern mehr als 'Frau’. Sie scheint klischeehaft, wenn sie sich Vorwürfe macht, ihren Sohn wegen ihrer Karriere vernachlässigt zu haben. Ich als Leser habe zwar einen guten Einblick in die Gedankengänge von Klaasen bekommen, was ihren Fall und ihre Ehe anging und sie schien mir gen Ende des Buches auch fast glaubwürdig.
FAST glaubwürdig. Es muss eben einen großen Haken geben. Ich habe selten bei einem Buch vor Erstaunen gelacht. Ohne etwas vorwegnehmen zu wollen, werde ich es folgendermaßen ausdrücken: Es passt überhaupt nicht in den doch sehr gefestigten und pflichtbewussten Charakter der Kommissarin.
Auch die Auflösung, wer die Morde begangen hat, fand ich insgesamt zwar storytechnisch und erzähltechnisch stimmig, aber von der Personifikation der betreffenden Person her ziemlich weit hergeholt und unglaubwürdig. Auch die Auflösung scheint sehr, sehr schwammig, da unklar bleibt, wie der Mörder letztendlich genau gefasst wurde.
Ob ich mir die nächsten neun Bände kaufen werde? Das weiß ich noch nicht. Wahrscheinlich werde ich es tun, weil ich noch höher in den Norden gezogen bin und mir noch ein wenig Lokalkultur fehlt. Für Nordseetouristen und solche, die es werden wollen, ist dieser Krimi nicht nur als Fremdenführer (zumindest einigermaßen gut) geeignet, sondern dient auch der Unterhaltung - auch, wenn ich ihn persönlich eher als ziemlich leichte Kost bezeichnen würde.
Das Buch selbst habe ich an zwei Nachmittagen vollständig gelesen, was nicht unbedingt dafür spricht, dass es so schrecklich gewesen ist, wie meine Kritik hier vermuten lässt. Mal schauen, was die nächsten Bände bringen - wenn ich sie mir denn noch einverleibe.
(originally posted April 2016)
“Eine Serie von Morden erschüttert eine kleine Stadt in Ostfriesland. Nach und nach werden mehrere Mitglieder des Vereins ›Regenbogen‹ auf grausame Weise umgebracht. Wer hasst so sehr, dass er sie alle auslöschen will? Für Ann Kathrin Klaasen wird dieser Fall zu einer echten Bewährungsprobe.”
Ich war nie ein besonders großer Fan von Kriminalromanen, wenn sie nicht als Thriler ausgeschrieben waren. Nachdem ich den Papenburger Puppenspieler (Rezension ebenfalls hier zu finden) gelesen hatte, habe ich auch erst einmal die Nase voll von Lokalromanen gehabt, denn dieses Buch hatte mir persönlich - bis auf den grandios gewählten Anfang! - nicht zugesagt.
Ich fand die Erzählweise in ‘Ostfriesenkiller’ sehr spannend gehalten - in den einzelnen Kapiteln wechselt manchmal die Perspektive, aber insgesamt ist der Fokus sehr auf die Kommissarin Ann-Kathrin Klaasen gerichtet. Was ich allerdings daran zu bemängeln habe, ist, dass sie leider etwas stereotypisch gelungen ist - weniger als Kommissarin, sondern mehr als 'Frau’. Sie scheint klischeehaft, wenn sie sich Vorwürfe macht, ihren Sohn wegen ihrer Karriere vernachlässigt zu haben. Ich als Leser habe zwar einen guten Einblick in die Gedankengänge von Klaasen bekommen, was ihren Fall und ihre Ehe anging und sie schien mir gen Ende des Buches auch fast glaubwürdig.
FAST glaubwürdig. Es muss eben einen großen Haken geben. Ich habe selten bei einem Buch vor Erstaunen gelacht. Ohne etwas vorwegnehmen zu wollen, werde ich es folgendermaßen ausdrücken: Es passt überhaupt nicht in den doch sehr gefestigten und pflichtbewussten Charakter der Kommissarin.
Auch die Auflösung, wer die Morde begangen hat, fand ich insgesamt zwar storytechnisch und erzähltechnisch stimmig, aber von der Personifikation der betreffenden Person her ziemlich weit hergeholt und unglaubwürdig. Auch die Auflösung scheint sehr, sehr schwammig, da unklar bleibt, wie der Mörder letztendlich genau gefasst wurde.
Ob ich mir die nächsten neun Bände kaufen werde? Das weiß ich noch nicht. Wahrscheinlich werde ich es tun, weil ich noch höher in den Norden gezogen bin und mir noch ein wenig Lokalkultur fehlt. Für Nordseetouristen und solche, die es werden wollen, ist dieser Krimi nicht nur als Fremdenführer (zumindest einigermaßen gut) geeignet, sondern dient auch der Unterhaltung - auch, wenn ich ihn persönlich eher als ziemlich leichte Kost bezeichnen würde.
Das Buch selbst habe ich an zwei Nachmittagen vollständig gelesen, was nicht unbedingt dafür spricht, dass es so schrecklich gewesen ist, wie meine Kritik hier vermuten lässt. Mal schauen, was die nächsten Bände bringen - wenn ich sie mir denn noch einverleibe.
(originally posted April 2016)
Robert Harris - Lustrum (Cicero #2)
Lustrum - Robert Harris
This novel is about Cicero’s consulship and the years after until he has to leave Rome.
It took me a fairly long time to read this book. First because I kind of had to because of my Latin exam next week, secondly because there’s not a lot going on in this book.
There’s Caesar and Pompey and Catiline and all that - but if you knew what was going on in 63 BC you would be well off reading only the last two chapters of part one when Catiline and his followers are exposed to the senate. The second part seems unneccessary at first, but then I think if Robert Harris had written it from Caesar’s instead of Cicero’s POV it would have been more exciting and fun to read. There are a few consequences Cicero has to experience when Caesar finally takes power (which happens in the second to last chapter, I think), but then again Cicero’s point of view seems quite stupid.
Nevertheless, I liked Harris’s style of writing and the way in which he combines fiction and historical facts. The story is told by Cicero’s slave Tiro (who, in fact, wrote his memoir and is the reason this little & exists) who is, of course, quite biased. In the first part Cicero is portrayed as the hero who is going to save Rome - the second part describes him merely as a coward. This antithetic characterisation has its charme, but still, I don’t think the second part was necessary from Cicero’s point of view as it is about Caesar obtaining power.
There are a few storylines that - sadly - are mentioned later in the book but are not adequately taken care of. Like when Tiro falls in love with Agathe - a Greek slave prostitute, I think you could call her - and just can’t get himself to talk to her again on their brief encounters.
All in all, I think Robert Harris did a great job in making the history of Rome interesting to those who have to study it. But that’s about all there’s to it, unless you’re some kind of Ancient-History-Nerd which, sadly, I'm not.
(originally posted April 2016)
This novel is about Cicero’s consulship and the years after until he has to leave Rome.
It took me a fairly long time to read this book. First because I kind of had to because of my Latin exam next week, secondly because there’s not a lot going on in this book.
There’s Caesar and Pompey and Catiline and all that - but if you knew what was going on in 63 BC you would be well off reading only the last two chapters of part one when Catiline and his followers are exposed to the senate. The second part seems unneccessary at first, but then I think if Robert Harris had written it from Caesar’s instead of Cicero’s POV it would have been more exciting and fun to read. There are a few consequences Cicero has to experience when Caesar finally takes power (which happens in the second to last chapter, I think), but then again Cicero’s point of view seems quite stupid.
Nevertheless, I liked Harris’s style of writing and the way in which he combines fiction and historical facts. The story is told by Cicero’s slave Tiro (who, in fact, wrote his memoir and is the reason this little & exists) who is, of course, quite biased. In the first part Cicero is portrayed as the hero who is going to save Rome - the second part describes him merely as a coward. This antithetic characterisation has its charme, but still, I don’t think the second part was necessary from Cicero’s point of view as it is about Caesar obtaining power.
There are a few storylines that - sadly - are mentioned later in the book but are not adequately taken care of. Like when Tiro falls in love with Agathe - a Greek slave prostitute, I think you could call her - and just can’t get himself to talk to her again on their brief encounters.
All in all, I think Robert Harris did a great job in making the history of Rome interesting to those who have to study it. But that’s about all there’s to it, unless you’re some kind of Ancient-History-Nerd which, sadly, I'm not.
(originally posted April 2016)
E.T.A. Hoffmann - The Sandman
The Sandman - E.T.A. Hoffmann (short story)
Finals are coming. I have decided not to hide but go for it and re-read all the books that I was required to read during the last two years of my senior period, I guess you could call it. Those Germans are crazy.
Nathanael finds himself losing his mind. He has had a very traumatic childhood having lost his father at a very young age. He, like his mother, thinks that the advocat Coppelius is responsible for his father’s death, because he is a very mean character and tried to scare the children away. Nathanael falls in love with a kind of robot and pushes everyone that loves him away from him because of his irrational fear of the ‘sandman’ that wanted to steal his eyes when he was just a small boy sneaking into his father’s office to see what was going on there.
I quite liked the story a little more when I read it a second time. Having learned about all those different types of German literature depending on the century I think I got an even better understanding for this particular period.
It is very interesting how Nathanael loses his sanity and how his character can be interpreted. His girlfriend, Clara, clearly stands for sanity and rationality, while he himself is an abundance of emotions and misconceptions. The story becomes even more dramatic when he meets Coppelius again and when he reveals his true identity Nathanael cannot be saved.
(originally posted March 2016)
Finals are coming. I have decided not to hide but go for it and re-read all the books that I was required to read during the last two years of my senior period, I guess you could call it. Those Germans are crazy.
Nathanael finds himself losing his mind. He has had a very traumatic childhood having lost his father at a very young age. He, like his mother, thinks that the advocat Coppelius is responsible for his father’s death, because he is a very mean character and tried to scare the children away. Nathanael falls in love with a kind of robot and pushes everyone that loves him away from him because of his irrational fear of the ‘sandman’ that wanted to steal his eyes when he was just a small boy sneaking into his father’s office to see what was going on there.
I quite liked the story a little more when I read it a second time. Having learned about all those different types of German literature depending on the century I think I got an even better understanding for this particular period.
It is very interesting how Nathanael loses his sanity and how his character can be interpreted. His girlfriend, Clara, clearly stands for sanity and rationality, while he himself is an abundance of emotions and misconceptions. The story becomes even more dramatic when he meets Coppelius again and when he reveals his true identity Nathanael cannot be saved.
(originally posted March 2016)
Neil Gaiman - Neverwhere
Neil Gaiman - Neverwhere
How do I review this book without spoilering it?
Richard Mayhew gets drawn into the dark side of London - an underside where magic is real and where people can talk to rats and all that stuff. He ends up helping the Lady Door and the Marquis de Carabas fulfill their quest.
This book was truly amazing. This is only the second book I read by Neil Gaiman and I feel he is already becoming one of my favourite authors. His style of writing is just unbelievably great.
There are some fantastic metaphors in this piece. Like darkness being an actual force instead of just being defined as the absence of light. Darkness takes its toll. I loved that about the book.
Even though we’re entering a parallel London here we can still reflect our world with all these dark metaphors and characters that are just plain evil. And there are of course some good people, but you never know.
I have no words for it, guys. It was amazing.
(originally posted March 2016)
How do I review this book without spoilering it?
Richard Mayhew gets drawn into the dark side of London - an underside where magic is real and where people can talk to rats and all that stuff. He ends up helping the Lady Door and the Marquis de Carabas fulfill their quest.
This book was truly amazing. This is only the second book I read by Neil Gaiman and I feel he is already becoming one of my favourite authors. His style of writing is just unbelievably great.
There are some fantastic metaphors in this piece. Like darkness being an actual force instead of just being defined as the absence of light. Darkness takes its toll. I loved that about the book.
Even though we’re entering a parallel London here we can still reflect our world with all these dark metaphors and characters that are just plain evil. And there are of course some good people, but you never know.
I have no words for it, guys. It was amazing.
(originally posted March 2016)
Jonathan Kellerman - The Murderer's Daughter
![Jonathan Kellerman - The Murderer’s Daughter [Uk Paperback, I think]
Grace leads a two-sided life. At night, she’s the super-sexy woman incognito that makes every man’s heart melt. During the day, she’s a successful psychotherapist in LA. When she...](http://67.media.tumblr.com/1ba7eec7e292433e378bd91c901bac8f/tumblr_o2yivtzIqQ1ubbzkno1_250.png)
Jonathan Kellerman - The Murderer’s Daughter [Uk Paperback, I think]
Grace leads a two-sided life. At night, she’s the super-sexy woman incognito that makes every man’s heart melt. During the day, she’s a successful psychotherapist in LA. When she finds out that her recent encounter turns up inside her office and is killed just one day after - Grace just has to know why he had been killed and why her life is at stake, too.
This is more of a criminal story than an actual thriller. It had some action in it, for sure, but for the most part it was about Grace’s life and just her story and how it is all connected somehow. What I found remarkable, actually, were the psychological aspects that Jonathan Kellerman brought into his novel. I think I’ve read that he’s a psychologist, too - and you can follow Grace’s logic brilliantly. Although some of the clues don’t make sense at first, it all becomes clear later on.
I liked the style of writing and I loved the stories from Grace’s childhood, but sometimes it got a bit too slow for me and there were so many facts and clues one had to memorize to keep track of the whole story (and I get distracted very fast), but even if I hadn’t read in a few weeks’ time, I was able to get back into the story very quickly. I liked that about the book.
What I didn’t like was the ending. Without wanting to spoil anything - Grace talks to a police officer the day after the murder of her client and that police officer is characterized so carefully and the author really made her seem an important character in the story, but then that was her very last appearance in the whole novel. The story missed kind of a frame, if you get what I’m trying to say, and I think the appearance of the police officer would have been a nice frame to conclude the story. Also note that this is a stand-alone.
I would give the book a 3.5 out of 5 stars, because it was interesting and full of tension despite the lack of action - but the style of writing was great and also Grace was characterised perfectly.
(originally posted February 2016)
Grace leads a two-sided life. At night, she’s the super-sexy woman incognito that makes every man’s heart melt. During the day, she’s a successful psychotherapist in LA. When she finds out that her recent encounter turns up inside her office and is killed just one day after - Grace just has to know why he had been killed and why her life is at stake, too.
This is more of a criminal story than an actual thriller. It had some action in it, for sure, but for the most part it was about Grace’s life and just her story and how it is all connected somehow. What I found remarkable, actually, were the psychological aspects that Jonathan Kellerman brought into his novel. I think I’ve read that he’s a psychologist, too - and you can follow Grace’s logic brilliantly. Although some of the clues don’t make sense at first, it all becomes clear later on.
I liked the style of writing and I loved the stories from Grace’s childhood, but sometimes it got a bit too slow for me and there were so many facts and clues one had to memorize to keep track of the whole story (and I get distracted very fast), but even if I hadn’t read in a few weeks’ time, I was able to get back into the story very quickly. I liked that about the book.
What I didn’t like was the ending. Without wanting to spoil anything - Grace talks to a police officer the day after the murder of her client and that police officer is characterized so carefully and the author really made her seem an important character in the story, but then that was her very last appearance in the whole novel. The story missed kind of a frame, if you get what I’m trying to say, and I think the appearance of the police officer would have been a nice frame to conclude the story. Also note that this is a stand-alone.
I would give the book a 3.5 out of 5 stars, because it was interesting and full of tension despite the lack of action - but the style of writing was great and also Grace was characterised perfectly.
(originally posted February 2016)
JK Rowling - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter #5)
JK Rowling - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
To be honest - I don’t really get why this is most readers’ favourite book in all the Harry Potter series. Throughout the first part, I’ve been tempted to say that this one was probably the most slow and hard-to-read. Seriously?! We’re almost 250 pages in and they hadn’t even reached Hogwarts yet!
Later on, I was able to get myself to read this book pretty quickly. I just couldn’t get it out of my hands and out of my mind, I found it very interesting, but there are still questions. I could interpret them as cliffhangers for the next two books yet to come, but I’m sure by then I will have forgotten what that was all about. With my finals coming up in two months I’m going to have a hard time reading the remaining books.
Nevertheless, this is yet another magnificent book in the Harry Potter series, but from what I have heard on booktube and other sites, I thought it would be a little more… exciting. Yep, I think that’s the right word.
(originally posted February 2016)
To be honest - I don’t really get why this is most readers’ favourite book in all the Harry Potter series. Throughout the first part, I’ve been tempted to say that this one was probably the most slow and hard-to-read. Seriously?! We’re almost 250 pages in and they hadn’t even reached Hogwarts yet!
Later on, I was able to get myself to read this book pretty quickly. I just couldn’t get it out of my hands and out of my mind, I found it very interesting, but there are still questions. I could interpret them as cliffhangers for the next two books yet to come, but I’m sure by then I will have forgotten what that was all about. With my finals coming up in two months I’m going to have a hard time reading the remaining books.
Nevertheless, this is yet another magnificent book in the Harry Potter series, but from what I have heard on booktube and other sites, I thought it would be a little more… exciting. Yep, I think that’s the right word.
(originally posted February 2016)
Marlene Röder - In The River Darkness
In the River Darkness - Marlene Röder (Book Review)
I loved the story, though, and I read it in about 2 days. It was a pretty quick read, though. I liked the main character, but somehow it was quite confusing how the perspective changed constantly. One character had some autistic traits to him when looked onto by another character, but once I got his inside view I found him to be a pretty normal guy,no autistic traits whatsoever. It wasn’t really authentic. And the resolution failed. It sucked balls to be honest - but I won’t tell you that, because you can find out for yourself. I remember having loved this book and now it seems I have destroyed the magic of that book by reading it once again.
The writing style was bad. Really bad. It’s full of those nonsense-y metaphors and similes that just make you cringe, that’s how bad they are. All in all, this book was pretty good when I was young, but now… well.
(originally posted December 2015)
Stephen King - Four Past Midnight
![Four Past Midnight - Stephen King [This is the German version]
This is basically two novels put together into one binding. The first one is about a plane that ends up in another time where everyone has vanished and where nothing is ever the same.
The...](http://67.media.tumblr.com/fbe9066ed9aecf58a190fa3d4d8894a8/tumblr_nwu36dO6P91ubbzkno1_250.jpg)
Four Past Midnight - Stephen King [This is the German version]
This is basically two novels put together into one binding. The first one is about a plane that ends up in another time where everyone has vanished and where nothing is ever the same.
The second one is about an author who finds himself confronted with someone who claims he has stolen his short story ideas and tries to prove him wrong.
The Langoliers
I didn’t really like the first novel. Like in so many Stephen King books you get to know each character and each of their stories first. Since there are only six main characters (and next-to-no supporting ones) there’s a lot to it. I thought it was a bit boring and the setting and the time travelling just weren’t my thing. I didn’t feel the urge to read it, actually, but I’m glad I did because..
Secret Window, Secret Garden
…The second novel was the absolute best mental breakdown process Stephen King has ever written. I don’t want to spoil anything but … man.. THAT plot twist. I didn’t see that coming, honestly! I loved, loved, loved it! Why didn’t they put it first in this collection?! Why isn’t this a hyped thing?! Why isn’t this popular!
(originally posted October 2015)
This is basically two novels put together into one binding. The first one is about a plane that ends up in another time where everyone has vanished and where nothing is ever the same.
The second one is about an author who finds himself confronted with someone who claims he has stolen his short story ideas and tries to prove him wrong.
The Langoliers
I didn’t really like the first novel. Like in so many Stephen King books you get to know each character and each of their stories first. Since there are only six main characters (and next-to-no supporting ones) there’s a lot to it. I thought it was a bit boring and the setting and the time travelling just weren’t my thing. I didn’t feel the urge to read it, actually, but I’m glad I did because..
Secret Window, Secret Garden
…The second novel was the absolute best mental breakdown process Stephen King has ever written. I don’t want to spoil anything but … man.. THAT plot twist. I didn’t see that coming, honestly! I loved, loved, loved it! Why didn’t they put it first in this collection?! Why isn’t this a hyped thing?! Why isn’t this popular!
(originally posted October 2015)
JK Rowling - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter #4)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - JK Rowling
Sorry, guys! It’s been a while! I finished this book about a week ago, I think, while I was in the middle of taking exams in school and now that I’m on holidays for the next two weeks, I have got too many things on my mind to be reading this month! First, there’s preparation for NaNoWriMo (if you don’t know NaNoWriMo, check it out here!), a trip to Prague and so on.. but, we’ll see!
This novel is the fourth one in the Harry Potter Series by JK Rowling. I’ve heard so many people on Booktube saying this was their favourite book of all in the series, but I have to disagree. This one’s about double in size of the previous three books and I thought them to be much better. Although I still loved the writing style, JK Rowling tends to foreshadow a lot and then there’s scenes I didn’t think to be necessary.. but that’s just my opinion.
(originally posted October 2015)
Sorry, guys! It’s been a while! I finished this book about a week ago, I think, while I was in the middle of taking exams in school and now that I’m on holidays for the next two weeks, I have got too many things on my mind to be reading this month! First, there’s preparation for NaNoWriMo (if you don’t know NaNoWriMo, check it out here!), a trip to Prague and so on.. but, we’ll see!
This novel is the fourth one in the Harry Potter Series by JK Rowling. I’ve heard so many people on Booktube saying this was their favourite book of all in the series, but I have to disagree. This one’s about double in size of the previous three books and I thought them to be much better. Although I still loved the writing style, JK Rowling tends to foreshadow a lot and then there’s scenes I didn’t think to be necessary.. but that’s just my opinion.
(originally posted October 2015)
Jojo Moyes - Me Before You
Jojo Moyes - Me before you
This book is about Louisa Clark who is Will Traynor’s carer. He’s a quadriplegic who wants to end his life in Switzerland. Lou tries to take his mind off the idea. This is a love story.
Spoiler-free review
This book is about Louisa Clark who is Will Traynor’s carer. He’s a quadriplegic who wants to end his life in Switzerland. Lou tries to take his mind off the idea. This is a love story.
Spoiler-free review
JK Rowling - Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter #3)
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J.K. Rowling
This is the third book in the Harry Potter series. I have to admit this is the first time I read this series, and sadly, I have watched all the films first.
This book differs (slightly more than the other two that I have read) from the films - but the book was definitely better. Only when in the movie Peter Pettigrew is mentioned on the map I thought this was a great thing to add. But still, I loved this book. JK Rowling’s writing style is just beyond compare - and the story that seems to build up in this Volume 3 is the result of a plotting genius at work. I love how she shows Severus Snape as the antagonist throughout the whole series (up to now), and I’m really hoping to get to the part when he gets even more antagonistic later on. I’m also very fond of the characteristics - I love that she gave Hagrid his own style of talking and pronouncing - when Hagrid talks, I can hear him in my head and it’s just so vivid! Love it! The plot twist was awesome on this one. I was really flashed by the film when I first saw it a few months ago and I think that was the point that made me want to read the whole series.
And I am looking forward to reading the other books in the series! But for now, I’m going to stick with something else because I don’t want to lose interest on the series if I read all the books in a row (which is likely to happen, I’m afraid).
So, for the end of this month, I think I’m going to read Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. This is a very personal thing for me to read, but I’ll tell you in my review of that particular book ;)
(originally posted September 2015)
This is the third book in the Harry Potter series. I have to admit this is the first time I read this series, and sadly, I have watched all the films first.
This book differs (slightly more than the other two that I have read) from the films - but the book was definitely better. Only when in the movie Peter Pettigrew is mentioned on the map I thought this was a great thing to add. But still, I loved this book. JK Rowling’s writing style is just beyond compare - and the story that seems to build up in this Volume 3 is the result of a plotting genius at work. I love how she shows Severus Snape as the antagonist throughout the whole series (up to now), and I’m really hoping to get to the part when he gets even more antagonistic later on. I’m also very fond of the characteristics - I love that she gave Hagrid his own style of talking and pronouncing - when Hagrid talks, I can hear him in my head and it’s just so vivid! Love it! The plot twist was awesome on this one. I was really flashed by the film when I first saw it a few months ago and I think that was the point that made me want to read the whole series.
And I am looking forward to reading the other books in the series! But for now, I’m going to stick with something else because I don’t want to lose interest on the series if I read all the books in a row (which is likely to happen, I’m afraid).
So, for the end of this month, I think I’m going to read Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. This is a very personal thing for me to read, but I’ll tell you in my review of that particular book ;)
(originally posted September 2015)
Stephen King - Mr Mercedes (Bill Hodges #1)
Mr. Mercedes - Stephen King
A stolen Mercedes rushes into a crowd - killing eight people and leaving dozens wounded; approximately six months after the incident the killer sends retired detective Bill Hodges a letter….
Another Stephen King book I read, and another one I’ve loved. I didn’t love this quite as much as his other work, though. I think this is the only contemporary novel that I ever read from him without a supernatural aspect. It doesn’t matter which genre Stephen King chooses - he masters them all. This one’s a really good psycho-thriller.
Almost from the beginning, the audience knows who the mysterious Mercedes Killer is. His name is Brady and he lives with his mother and he’s …. well, having issues. Major issues. I’ve always loved how Stephen King portrays his villains, but this one’s perfect! I felt myself shake when reading about his fantasies, he felt credible! Sometimes he was sympathetic, and then he was antagonistic in a way that I wanted him dead.
It even went so far that in the end I didn’t even know whose side I was on. And that creeps me out. It made me question my sanity. And that shows the true quality of Mr King’s work.
(originally posted September 2015)
A stolen Mercedes rushes into a crowd - killing eight people and leaving dozens wounded; approximately six months after the incident the killer sends retired detective Bill Hodges a letter….
Another Stephen King book I read, and another one I’ve loved. I didn’t love this quite as much as his other work, though. I think this is the only contemporary novel that I ever read from him without a supernatural aspect. It doesn’t matter which genre Stephen King chooses - he masters them all. This one’s a really good psycho-thriller.
Almost from the beginning, the audience knows who the mysterious Mercedes Killer is. His name is Brady and he lives with his mother and he’s …. well, having issues. Major issues. I’ve always loved how Stephen King portrays his villains, but this one’s perfect! I felt myself shake when reading about his fantasies, he felt credible! Sometimes he was sympathetic, and then he was antagonistic in a way that I wanted him dead.
It even went so far that in the end I didn’t even know whose side I was on. And that creeps me out. It made me question my sanity. And that shows the true quality of Mr King’s work.
(originally posted September 2015)
Neil Gaiman - The Ocean at the End of the Lane
The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Neil Gaiman
I have to admit, this is the first book I ever read by Neil Gaiman. And I loved it.
It’s about an unnamed man that goes back to a pond (in his childhood he and his friend used to call it The Ocean) to remember his childhood. It’s about fears and friendship and adulthood itself. This is not a children’s book, though, I’d say!
I loved this book SO much, I had such a bad reading slump afterwards, it was awful. It’s hard to talk about this book without spoiling anything, but I’d like to classify it as a mixture between contemporary and fiction - and I love it. Did I already mention that?!
It taught me so much about adulthood - nobody is ever an adult. We’re all just children grown up on the outside. And I love Neil Gaiman for his words.
(originally posted September 2015)
I have to admit, this is the first book I ever read by Neil Gaiman. And I loved it.
It’s about an unnamed man that goes back to a pond (in his childhood he and his friend used to call it The Ocean) to remember his childhood. It’s about fears and friendship and adulthood itself. This is not a children’s book, though, I’d say!
I loved this book SO much, I had such a bad reading slump afterwards, it was awful. It’s hard to talk about this book without spoiling anything, but I’d like to classify it as a mixture between contemporary and fiction - and I love it. Did I already mention that?!
It taught me so much about adulthood - nobody is ever an adult. We’re all just children grown up on the outside. And I love Neil Gaiman for his words.
(originally posted September 2015)
JK Rowling - Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter #2)
Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets - JK Rowling
It’s been a while, folks! I finished reading this book about three days ago - and I had such a bad book hangover afterwards!
Not long ago, I read The Philosopher’s Stone as well, and I have to say I liked this one better than the first in the series. The friendship between Harry, Ron and Hermione has intensified, and you can actually see that in the second book.
I know, most people wouldn’t mark this book as the best in the whole series, but for now, I’d mark it down as my favourite.
It’s been a while, folks! I finished reading this book about three days ago - and I had such a bad book hangover afterwards!
Not long ago, I read The Philosopher’s Stone as well, and I have to say I liked this one better than the first in the series. The friendship between Harry, Ron and Hermione has intensified, and you can actually see that in the second book.
I know, most people wouldn’t mark this book as the best in the whole series, but for now, I’d mark it down as my favourite.
JK Rowling - Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Harry Potter #1)
![Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone - JK Rowling [UK Paperback]
This is an update on my TBR-List for September 2015. It’s September 2nd and I finished the first Harry Potter book in the series! I have to admit, I read it for the first time in my...](http://66.media.tumblr.com/f9e0433357e5d32e3bc0998ac599d61f/tumblr_nu26f7GRel1ubbzkno1_1280.jpg)
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone - JK Rowling [UK Paperback]
This is an update on my TBR-List for September 2015. It’s September 2nd and I finished the first Harry Potter book in the series! I have to admit, I read it for the first time in my life, but I’ve watched all the movies just two months ago, so I had a really hard time to rationalize.
I loved this book! It took me nearly a day to read it, I just couldn’t put it down! I loved the style of writing right from the start, although I think it could have needed some extra editing here and there, but I’m always picky with my books, so please don’t judge me.
The film is nothing compared to this book, by the way. I couldn’t think of a Young Adult book (and a Coming Of Age story, not to forget) that the reader could adapt to better than this one, although Harry Potter’s life is so different from ours.
If you haven’t read it (like me, just a day ago), you should definitely give it a go! It’s definitely worth it!
(originally posted September 2015)
This is an update on my TBR-List for September 2015. It’s September 2nd and I finished the first Harry Potter book in the series! I have to admit, I read it for the first time in my life, but I’ve watched all the movies just two months ago, so I had a really hard time to rationalize.
I loved this book! It took me nearly a day to read it, I just couldn’t put it down! I loved the style of writing right from the start, although I think it could have needed some extra editing here and there, but I’m always picky with my books, so please don’t judge me.
The film is nothing compared to this book, by the way. I couldn’t think of a Young Adult book (and a Coming Of Age story, not to forget) that the reader could adapt to better than this one, although Harry Potter’s life is so different from ours.
If you haven’t read it (like me, just a day ago), you should definitely give it a go! It’s definitely worth it!
(originally posted September 2015)
Jostein Gaarder - Sofies Welt
![Sofies Welt - Jostein Gaarder [DE Review]
Wie es im Untertitel schon heißt - Sofies Welt ist ein Roman über die Geschichte der Philosophie. Aber damit nicht genug! Die fast 15-jährige Sofie findet eines Nachmittags geheimnisvolle Briefe in ihrem...](http://67.media.tumblr.com/27b1614545eb0da2f26a6f139d37ffff/tumblr_nu0gkmGf6a1ubbzkno1_1280.jpg)
Sofies Welt - Jostein Gaarder [DE Review]
Wie es im Untertitel schon heißt - Sofies Welt ist ein Roman über die Geschichte der Philosophie. Aber damit nicht genug! Die fast 15-jährige Sofie findet eines Nachmittags geheimnisvolle Briefe in ihrem Briefkasten, in denen ein gewisser Alberto Knox sie in die Geschichte der Philosophie führt.
Dieses Buch ist eines der wenigen Bücher, deren Plot-Twist (ohne jetzt viel darüber sagen zu wollen) mich umgehauen hat. Damit hätte niemand gerechnet und ich kann nur jedem empfehlen - wer wirklich etwas zum Nachdenken haben möchte, der sollte dieses Buch lesen!
Es geht nämlich nicht nur um die Philosophie an sich, denn auch die Verknüpfung von Philosophie und der Haupthandlung ist dem Autor großartig gelungen. Es treten zahlreiche Geheimnisse auf und zum Ende hin, wenn sich der Plot-Twist offenbart, scheint sich alles zu verändern - und gerade das ist das Spannende an dieser Geschichte!
Die meist komplizierten Gedankengänge der Philosophen wie Sokrates, Aristoteles bis hin zu Nietzsche und Freud sind (zwar vereinfacht, aber im Kern doch zutreffend) anschaulich dargestellt, sodass der Jugendbuchcharakter erhalten bleibt. Ich empfehle dieses Buch allerdings für alle Altersklassen, denn es kann nie schaden, ein bisschen über das Leben an sich nachzudenken!
(originally posted August 2015)
Wie es im Untertitel schon heißt - Sofies Welt ist ein Roman über die Geschichte der Philosophie. Aber damit nicht genug! Die fast 15-jährige Sofie findet eines Nachmittags geheimnisvolle Briefe in ihrem Briefkasten, in denen ein gewisser Alberto Knox sie in die Geschichte der Philosophie führt.
Dieses Buch ist eines der wenigen Bücher, deren Plot-Twist (ohne jetzt viel darüber sagen zu wollen) mich umgehauen hat. Damit hätte niemand gerechnet und ich kann nur jedem empfehlen - wer wirklich etwas zum Nachdenken haben möchte, der sollte dieses Buch lesen!
Es geht nämlich nicht nur um die Philosophie an sich, denn auch die Verknüpfung von Philosophie und der Haupthandlung ist dem Autor großartig gelungen. Es treten zahlreiche Geheimnisse auf und zum Ende hin, wenn sich der Plot-Twist offenbart, scheint sich alles zu verändern - und gerade das ist das Spannende an dieser Geschichte!
Die meist komplizierten Gedankengänge der Philosophen wie Sokrates, Aristoteles bis hin zu Nietzsche und Freud sind (zwar vereinfacht, aber im Kern doch zutreffend) anschaulich dargestellt, sodass der Jugendbuchcharakter erhalten bleibt. Ich empfehle dieses Buch allerdings für alle Altersklassen, denn es kann nie schaden, ein bisschen über das Leben an sich nachzudenken!
(originally posted August 2015)
Fredrik Backmann - A Man Called Ove
![Fredrik Backmann - A Man Called Ove [This is the German paperback version]
Ove is a 59-year old man whose wife has died half a year ago. He constantly tries to kill himself to be with her, but he is always interrupted. He’s a greasy old man who keeps...](http://67.media.tumblr.com/5f0b9c64cbffb2428ffcdbf07abddc67/tumblr_nu085c3N7u1ubbzkno1_1280.jpg)
Fredrik Backmann - A Man Called Ove [This is the German paperback version]
Ove is a 59-year old man whose wife has died half a year ago. He constantly tries to kill himself to be with her, but he is always interrupted. He’s a greasy old man who keeps telling people to keep off the grass etc. He’s also very critical concerning any new technologies and ways of living. Ove just wants to keep things in order!
First of all, I loved the concept behind this book. It was so easy to adapt to Ove’s point of view (although I’m 40 years younger than him and definitely in favour of modern technology, but that’s just for your information), because I personally am a critical person - but not as grumpy as Ove!
Although the style of writing is very simple, I enjoyed the jokes and references - they made it seem like Ove was a real person. Well, some parts aren’t really realistic (like when he tries to kill himself multiple times, and by the way I think it’s highly controversial to use such a topic in a humorous book…) and the book lacked a little seriousness when talking about suicide - I don’t think Ove would react the way he does if he was a real person. There are some sad parts in the story that tell us a little more about his background and why he became the man he is - and that is just perfect!
And though the story itself seems to be about nothing at all but a grumpy old man, the development of the characters is such a big deal! I definitely, highly recommend this book to ANYONE!
(originally posted August 2015)
Ove is a 59-year old man whose wife has died half a year ago. He constantly tries to kill himself to be with her, but he is always interrupted. He’s a greasy old man who keeps telling people to keep off the grass etc. He’s also very critical concerning any new technologies and ways of living. Ove just wants to keep things in order!
First of all, I loved the concept behind this book. It was so easy to adapt to Ove’s point of view (although I’m 40 years younger than him and definitely in favour of modern technology, but that’s just for your information), because I personally am a critical person - but not as grumpy as Ove!
Although the style of writing is very simple, I enjoyed the jokes and references - they made it seem like Ove was a real person. Well, some parts aren’t really realistic (like when he tries to kill himself multiple times, and by the way I think it’s highly controversial to use such a topic in a humorous book…) and the book lacked a little seriousness when talking about suicide - I don’t think Ove would react the way he does if he was a real person. There are some sad parts in the story that tell us a little more about his background and why he became the man he is - and that is just perfect!
And though the story itself seems to be about nothing at all but a grumpy old man, the development of the characters is such a big deal! I definitely, highly recommend this book to ANYONE!
(originally posted August 2015)
Ray Celestin - The Axeman's Jazz
![Ray Celestin - The Axeman’s Jazz [UK paperback Version]
Hello there! Last week I was at my boyfriend’s and didn’t really have time to read as much as I normally do. I haven’t yet finished this book, but still I wanted to give you my review on this...](http://67.media.tumblr.com/56f899b3ff862d55110055e43b3346e3/tumblr_nskbodvAYV1ubbzkno1_1280.jpg)
Ray Celestin - The Axeman’s Jazz [UK paperback Version]
Hello there! Last week I was at my boyfriend’s and didn’t really have time to read as much as I normally do. I haven’t yet finished this book, but still I wanted to give you my review on this one, because I can’t wait anymore!
The story is set in 1919 in New Orleans. The mysterious Axeman keeps killing people and three people, the policeman Michael Talbot, a private detector (who is accompanied by Lewis Armstrong, which I find amazing!) and a former detective who has just been released from prison investigate in the murders, each approaching the solution from a different angle. The solution, however, is entirely fictional. The actual Axeman was never caught.
I really, really loved the style of writing in the first place. Secondly, I love how the reader himself gets to solve the case with all those background information provided by three different people who solve the case piece by piece, but each hast different witnesses and different ways towards the conclusion.
I also loved how music is involved in this novel. I really like Jazz, and most of the time I’ve been reading I’ve been listening to Jazz simultaneously. I really felt dragged into the first decade of the 20th century. I loved it!
If you like detective novels and historic events - this is the book for you!
(originally posted August 2015)
Hello there! Last week I was at my boyfriend’s and didn’t really have time to read as much as I normally do. I haven’t yet finished this book, but still I wanted to give you my review on this one, because I can’t wait anymore!
The story is set in 1919 in New Orleans. The mysterious Axeman keeps killing people and three people, the policeman Michael Talbot, a private detector (who is accompanied by Lewis Armstrong, which I find amazing!) and a former detective who has just been released from prison investigate in the murders, each approaching the solution from a different angle. The solution, however, is entirely fictional. The actual Axeman was never caught.
I really, really loved the style of writing in the first place. Secondly, I love how the reader himself gets to solve the case with all those background information provided by three different people who solve the case piece by piece, but each hast different witnesses and different ways towards the conclusion.
I also loved how music is involved in this novel. I really like Jazz, and most of the time I’ve been reading I’ve been listening to Jazz simultaneously. I really felt dragged into the first decade of the 20th century. I loved it!
If you like detective novels and historic events - this is the book for you!
(originally posted August 2015)
Shirley Jackson - The Haunting of Hill House
Shirley Jackson - The Haunting of Hill House (Penguin Classics)
One of the books I urgently wanted to read after I brought a fair amount back home from my trip to London was The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson.
The story is set in a haunted house where four people - a doctor, two women and the heir to the house want to explore what the haunting is about.
That’s all I can say without spoiling anything of the story. I thought it brilliant, not only for the magnificent style of writing, but also for the story itself. It is beautifully evaluated and outstanding! Shirley Jackson writes in such a manner that everyone can feel for her characters when they experience pain, anger and true horror.
(originally posted July 2015)
One of the books I urgently wanted to read after I brought a fair amount back home from my trip to London was The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson.
The story is set in a haunted house where four people - a doctor, two women and the heir to the house want to explore what the haunting is about.
That’s all I can say without spoiling anything of the story. I thought it brilliant, not only for the magnificent style of writing, but also for the story itself. It is beautifully evaluated and outstanding! Shirley Jackson writes in such a manner that everyone can feel for her characters when they experience pain, anger and true horror.
(originally posted July 2015)
Erik Wikki - Papenburger Puppenspieler
![Erik Wikki - Papenburger Puppenspieler [German following!]
Guten Abend, meine lieben Freunde. Ich komme aus dem kleinen Städtchen Papenburg an der Ems. Das Cover dieses Romans zeigt zwei zentrale Wahrzeichen von Papenburg - das Schiff, die Friederike...](http://67.media.tumblr.com/e90401dfa7ee77637a2ff033744a910c/tumblr_nrus11W8aG1ubbzkno1_1280.jpg)
Erik Wikki - Papenburger Puppenspieler [German Review!]
Guten Abend, meine lieben Freunde. Ich komme aus dem kleinen Städtchen Papenburg an der Ems. Das Cover dieses Romans zeigt zwei zentrale Wahrzeichen von Papenburg - das Schiff, die Friederike und das Rathaus. An der Friederike hängt eine Leiche - beziehungsweise Leichenteile.
Und genau darum geht es in diesem Buch:
Der Schlächter von Papenburg hat sechs Jugendliche entführt, die nun Leichenteil für Leichenteil Tag für Tag zumeist in bekannten Papenburger Lokalitäten gefunden werden. Die Polizei wird bei ihren Ermittlungen nicht nur durch die beiden Privatdetektive Kern und Model, sondern auch durch die Presse auf die richtige Fährte gebracht.
Alles in allem muss ich sagen, dass es ein netter, lokaler Roman war. Nett, aber leider nicht vergleichbar mit dem, was ich bisher gelesen habe. Die, zugegeben, sehr anglophile Namensgebung der Personen hat mich am Anfang sehr gestört, bis ich mich allerdings daran gewöhnt hatte, hat es ein wenig gedauert. Ich bin kein großer Fan von gestellten Namen und unlogischen Biographien - deswegen stand ich dem Roman am Anfang sehr skeptisch gegenüber. Das einzige, was mir wirklich als großartig im Kopf geblieben ist, ist die erste Szene, in der der Mörder beschrieben wird, wie er eine Leiche zerschneidet.
Die folgenden Szenen waren leider regelrecht enttäuschend. Die Bipolarität zwischen sexistischen Äußerungen sowohl des auktoriealen Erzählers als auch einiger Personen gegenüber der Privatdetektivin Eileen Model (deren Name offensichtlich eine Anspielung darstellt) und der energischen Feministin Britta McAshford habe ich anfänglich als peinlich empfunden. Dies aus dem Grund, dass beide Personen ihre Einstellung nicht reflektieren, sondern bis zum Ende des Romans ihre Position beibehalten - es findet also, meiner Meinung nach, keine (bedeutende) Entwicklung der Charaktere statt, was eigentlich sehr schade ist.
(originally posted July 2015)
Guten Abend, meine lieben Freunde. Ich komme aus dem kleinen Städtchen Papenburg an der Ems. Das Cover dieses Romans zeigt zwei zentrale Wahrzeichen von Papenburg - das Schiff, die Friederike und das Rathaus. An der Friederike hängt eine Leiche - beziehungsweise Leichenteile.
Und genau darum geht es in diesem Buch:
Der Schlächter von Papenburg hat sechs Jugendliche entführt, die nun Leichenteil für Leichenteil Tag für Tag zumeist in bekannten Papenburger Lokalitäten gefunden werden. Die Polizei wird bei ihren Ermittlungen nicht nur durch die beiden Privatdetektive Kern und Model, sondern auch durch die Presse auf die richtige Fährte gebracht.
Alles in allem muss ich sagen, dass es ein netter, lokaler Roman war. Nett, aber leider nicht vergleichbar mit dem, was ich bisher gelesen habe. Die, zugegeben, sehr anglophile Namensgebung der Personen hat mich am Anfang sehr gestört, bis ich mich allerdings daran gewöhnt hatte, hat es ein wenig gedauert. Ich bin kein großer Fan von gestellten Namen und unlogischen Biographien - deswegen stand ich dem Roman am Anfang sehr skeptisch gegenüber. Das einzige, was mir wirklich als großartig im Kopf geblieben ist, ist die erste Szene, in der der Mörder beschrieben wird, wie er eine Leiche zerschneidet.
Die folgenden Szenen waren leider regelrecht enttäuschend. Die Bipolarität zwischen sexistischen Äußerungen sowohl des auktoriealen Erzählers als auch einiger Personen gegenüber der Privatdetektivin Eileen Model (deren Name offensichtlich eine Anspielung darstellt) und der energischen Feministin Britta McAshford habe ich anfänglich als peinlich empfunden. Dies aus dem Grund, dass beide Personen ihre Einstellung nicht reflektieren, sondern bis zum Ende des Romans ihre Position beibehalten - es findet also, meiner Meinung nach, keine (bedeutende) Entwicklung der Charaktere statt, was eigentlich sehr schade ist.
(originally posted July 2015)
Stephen King - Doctor Sleep (The Shining #2)
![Stephen King - Doctor Sleep [This is the German version]
This is the sequel to ‘The Shining’ where the young boy, Danny, has come of age. He is now in his forties and still has his gift. But there’s someone stronger than him - Abra, a girl just 12...](http://65.media.tumblr.com/cae1fab21f6e62ef2e64cb75dfbfb4cf/tumblr_nrt3gzR4701ubbzkno1_1280.jpg)
Stephen King - Doctor Sleep [This is the German version]
This is the sequel to ‘The Shining’ where the young boy, Danny, has come of age. He is now in his forties and still has his gift. But there’s someone stronger than him - Abra, a girl just 12 years old when the actual part of the story sets in and she is in danger. There a people that feed of people like her and Danny.
I read this book in about 5 days. It was just so catchy I couldn’t put it down, really. Since I read this in German (I really didn’t have another option, sorry!) I can’t really talk about the style of writing in this one, but the translation was very easy to read and very well done. I have to say I was quite disappointed with how supernatural it actually was because normally I’m not into things like that. I enjoyed it anyway. It’s quite nice to get actually all of the references - or at least 90% of them - because this is one of his more recent books. I loved that.
(originally posted July 2015)
This is the sequel to ‘The Shining’ where the young boy, Danny, has come of age. He is now in his forties and still has his gift. But there’s someone stronger than him - Abra, a girl just 12 years old when the actual part of the story sets in and she is in danger. There a people that feed of people like her and Danny.
I read this book in about 5 days. It was just so catchy I couldn’t put it down, really. Since I read this in German (I really didn’t have another option, sorry!) I can’t really talk about the style of writing in this one, but the translation was very easy to read and very well done. I have to say I was quite disappointed with how supernatural it actually was because normally I’m not into things like that. I enjoyed it anyway. It’s quite nice to get actually all of the references - or at least 90% of them - because this is one of his more recent books. I loved that.
(originally posted July 2015)
Stephen King - 11.22.63
![Stephen King - 11.22.63 [This is the UK version, I guess?]
This is seriously one of my favourite books ever written. This is the first time Mr King made me actually cry - and I’ve never since been crying over one of his books. Also - I’m very proud...](http://65.media.tumblr.com/8f6dbdc3cd159b208d053366caed8dfd/tumblr_nrt3671oy81ubbzkno1_1280.jpg)
Stephen King - 11.22.63 [This is the UK version, I guess?]
This is seriously one of my favourite books ever written. This is the first time Mr King made me actually cry - and I’ve never since been crying over one of his books. Also - I’m very proud this is the only hardcover edition of any Stephen King book that I own!
It’s about a man who travels back in time to save John F. Kennedy from being shot. Stephen King basically tells the story of how this man lives in the 1950s (because that’s where the time loop starts). He gets a job there and eventually falls in love.
I just love the references Stephen King makes to his own work. You can see clearly that this story is intertwined with the town of Derry (you know, evil clowns and such) where the kids from his novel ‘It’ have an appearance. And it is so well written!
The end is just heartbreaking - and although I don’t usually enjoy romance - the parts that have romance in them are just great. Not too cheesy, not too romantic - they’re just right. I love it.
If you haven’t read this novel yet, you definitely should.
(originally posted July 2015)
This is seriously one of my favourite books ever written. This is the first time Mr King made me actually cry - and I’ve never since been crying over one of his books. Also - I’m very proud this is the only hardcover edition of any Stephen King book that I own!
It’s about a man who travels back in time to save John F. Kennedy from being shot. Stephen King basically tells the story of how this man lives in the 1950s (because that’s where the time loop starts). He gets a job there and eventually falls in love.
I just love the references Stephen King makes to his own work. You can see clearly that this story is intertwined with the town of Derry (you know, evil clowns and such) where the kids from his novel ‘It’ have an appearance. And it is so well written!
The end is just heartbreaking - and although I don’t usually enjoy romance - the parts that have romance in them are just great. Not too cheesy, not too romantic - they’re just right. I love it.
If you haven’t read this novel yet, you definitely should.
(originally posted July 2015)
Stephen King - Christine
Stephen King - Christine
This is a book I read quite a while ago. It was given to me by my dear friend whom I met in Prague when I was on exchange. She was also a major King’s fan and I was so happy about her gift - I read it like five times since.
It’s basically about a boy who owns a car and he names it Christine. He also has a girlfriend, but Christine gets very jealous at times.
This book really fascinated me. Not only did King do a very good research on the car itself - he also captured the mind of teenagers just turning into adults (or not, for that matter). Sometimes it was a little hard to get all the references since this book is a bit older than I am, but I still enjoyed it. I enjoyed it a fair amount, I daresay.
(originally posted July 2015)
This is a book I read quite a while ago. It was given to me by my dear friend whom I met in Prague when I was on exchange. She was also a major King’s fan and I was so happy about her gift - I read it like five times since.
It’s basically about a boy who owns a car and he names it Christine. He also has a girlfriend, but Christine gets very jealous at times.
This book really fascinated me. Not only did King do a very good research on the car itself - he also captured the mind of teenagers just turning into adults (or not, for that matter). Sometimes it was a little hard to get all the references since this book is a bit older than I am, but I still enjoyed it. I enjoyed it a fair amount, I daresay.
(originally posted July 2015)
Stephen King - The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon
Another book I have recently finished is ‘The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon’ by Stephen King (here you see the Czech version since I’ve read it in Czech).
It is basically about a young girl who gets lost in the forests and isn’t able to get out for at least a week or so.
I’ve been really excited about this book because I live near a forest (which isn’t nearly as big as the woods described by Stephen King) and I always imagined how I would find my way out of the woods if I was to get lost in it. I used to imagine how I would be brave and strong and not let anyone (or anything) get near me or capture me or whatsoever.
Trisha McFarland is described as a 9-year-old girl who has rather genuine information about surviging in the woods. I think it’s a little exaggerated, I personally don’t think anyone at that age would memorize what to eat and what not to eat, how to find out where you are or how to behave when facing animals. It’s a bit too far fetched, either, that Stephen King adds a supernatural element rather than to finish the story appropriately to match the rest of the book.
Nonetheless, I really enjoyed this book (mainly because I can now add a lot of nature-words to my Czech vocabulary) because it was well written and scaring altogether. I could feel empathy for the little girl which is a huge thing for me. If I can’t feel the character’s pain - I don’t enjoy a book. It’s as simple as that.
I would’ve wished for an alternate ending, but Stephen King works in mysterious ways, I guess.
(originally posted July 2015)
It is basically about a young girl who gets lost in the forests and isn’t able to get out for at least a week or so.
I’ve been really excited about this book because I live near a forest (which isn’t nearly as big as the woods described by Stephen King) and I always imagined how I would find my way out of the woods if I was to get lost in it. I used to imagine how I would be brave and strong and not let anyone (or anything) get near me or capture me or whatsoever.
Trisha McFarland is described as a 9-year-old girl who has rather genuine information about surviging in the woods. I think it’s a little exaggerated, I personally don’t think anyone at that age would memorize what to eat and what not to eat, how to find out where you are or how to behave when facing animals. It’s a bit too far fetched, either, that Stephen King adds a supernatural element rather than to finish the story appropriately to match the rest of the book.
Nonetheless, I really enjoyed this book (mainly because I can now add a lot of nature-words to my Czech vocabulary) because it was well written and scaring altogether. I could feel empathy for the little girl which is a huge thing for me. If I can’t feel the character’s pain - I don’t enjoy a book. It’s as simple as that.
I would’ve wished for an alternate ending, but Stephen King works in mysterious ways, I guess.
(originally posted July 2015)
Stephen King - 'Salem's Lot
The book I have just finished is ‘Salem’s Lot by Stephen King. As you probably know from the post before (if you have read it), I am a major Stephen King fan and I adore his work - which doesn’t mean I can’t be objective when reviewing.
'Salem’s Lot is about a little town in Maine, USA (I’ll tell you just in case you don’t know Stephen King’s stories are usually set in Maine) where the inhabitants are turned into vampires. Ben Mears, a merely successful author returns to 'the Lot’ to get to closure with his childhood memories he is traumatised by. All of that seems to get together in the Marsten House, a really spooky place where suspicious, strange new owners dwell.
Many fellow readers of Stephen King’s claim this book to be the most terrifying he’s ever written - I don’t agree with that. Although it is rather dark and mysterious at times (I really have to say I got the chills while reading) it remains mysterious which I find horrifying just the same, but for the story it doesn’t make a good impression on me. The UK version which I’ve read reveals a collection of deleted scenes and - I guess it’s an additional short story - which I think is a plus. What isn’t is that we don’t get to know the concept that these vampires live on. Stephen King gets a few things from Bram Stoker’s Dracula there, but he doesn’t really define his ideal of the vampires’ nature, which is quite confusing, I’d claim.
Another thing I’m not quite comfortable with is while Stephen King introduces us, the readers, to the new inhabitants of the Marsten House (the really, really dark and spooky haunted house you wouldn’t want to sneak in) he reveals some of the backgrounds of the two characters but not all of it, which is unusual. Of course, this is his second novel published, but I think I enjoyed 'Carrie’ more because it gives deeper insight to the concept of madness and the effects bullying can have, whereas 'Salem’s Lot is clearly a tribute to Bram Stoker when it’s not at the same time.
However, I enjoyed the characteristics Stephen King gives to his characters. While you find the drunk wife-beating agressive man and the old wise, witty and charming man and the young beautiful woman and, of course, the intelligent main character in every Stephen King book you also find a range of different characters that you can’t clearly place in this one which I find just great.
If you enjoy Stephen King but haven’t read as many books by him, this is the right choice for you. If you are an experienced Stephen King fan, you may have already read this one.
'Salem’s Lot is about a little town in Maine, USA (I’ll tell you just in case you don’t know Stephen King’s stories are usually set in Maine) where the inhabitants are turned into vampires. Ben Mears, a merely successful author returns to 'the Lot’ to get to closure with his childhood memories he is traumatised by. All of that seems to get together in the Marsten House, a really spooky place where suspicious, strange new owners dwell.
Many fellow readers of Stephen King’s claim this book to be the most terrifying he’s ever written - I don’t agree with that. Although it is rather dark and mysterious at times (I really have to say I got the chills while reading) it remains mysterious which I find horrifying just the same, but for the story it doesn’t make a good impression on me. The UK version which I’ve read reveals a collection of deleted scenes and - I guess it’s an additional short story - which I think is a plus. What isn’t is that we don’t get to know the concept that these vampires live on. Stephen King gets a few things from Bram Stoker’s Dracula there, but he doesn’t really define his ideal of the vampires’ nature, which is quite confusing, I’d claim.
Another thing I’m not quite comfortable with is while Stephen King introduces us, the readers, to the new inhabitants of the Marsten House (the really, really dark and spooky haunted house you wouldn’t want to sneak in) he reveals some of the backgrounds of the two characters but not all of it, which is unusual. Of course, this is his second novel published, but I think I enjoyed 'Carrie’ more because it gives deeper insight to the concept of madness and the effects bullying can have, whereas 'Salem’s Lot is clearly a tribute to Bram Stoker when it’s not at the same time.
However, I enjoyed the characteristics Stephen King gives to his characters. While you find the drunk wife-beating agressive man and the old wise, witty and charming man and the young beautiful woman and, of course, the intelligent main character in every Stephen King book you also find a range of different characters that you can’t clearly place in this one which I find just great.
If you enjoy Stephen King but haven’t read as many books by him, this is the right choice for you. If you are an experienced Stephen King fan, you may have already read this one.
(originally posted July 2015)
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)