I used to have this thing I did on my old blog, with about as much regularity as I do most things (which is to say, not a whole lot) where I would do what I called, “book un-reviews”. I called them un-reviews because, first, I have no time for book-snobbery and ‘reviewing’ books assumes a certain level of authority, and second, reading is such a subjective thing that I would never want someone to take my word for whether a book is worth reading or not. At the same time, I love reading and talking about books and thinking about books and hearing about books so I figure I may as well add my two cents.
I stopped using Goodreads a couple of years ago when I realized it was encouraging reading as a competitive sport…one in which I was enthusiastically particpating, it should be noted. I was quite appalled with myself for that and resolved to become more intentional about my reading as opposed to being a rabid gobbler of books.1 I started keeping a reading diary, mostly to keep track of what I’d read and to add a few thoughts about the books. I’m on my third year of my analogue record-keeping and feel quietly confident that I can expand to a digital version without putting the practice in peril.
Whether I can continue the digital transcription remains with the wind, the planets and my circulating hormone levels.
So, without further blathering…onwards to what I read in January!
I decided, in January, to spend less time reading. I know. I know. But reading is my ‘drug of choice’2 and it can get a bit out of hand in the avoiding reality department. I wanted to focus on other projects — painting, my manuscript — and so denying myself a reading free-for-all would free my time up for those things. I decided I could read at breakfast, at lunch with each session lasting only as long as the meal (and yes, I would sometimes linger unnecessarily at the table) and before bed.
Tales from Thrush Green - Miss Read
This was the last of my Festive Book Fort, which, this year, consisted entirely of re-reads, designed for comfort and cosiness over the holiday season. Not much more I can say about this — if you know, you know — other than it had been a while since I’d read this one and it was an utter delight. I’d say Miss Read is possibly the patron saint of comfort reads — her characters become old friends and their villages as familiar as my own neighbourhood.
War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
Before you get all impressed, this is going to be a year-long project. I tried - and failed - to finish this tome last year and so am giving it another go. It’s not the length that put me off - I love me a chonky book - or the subject matter, it’s the general unlikeability of most of the characters. With the exception of Pierre, I really couldn’t give a rat’s arse. Pierre, though…well, what can I say, I’m rooting for him. #sociallyawkwardmisfitsunite
I’m following along with Simon Haisell’s Footnotes and Tangents read-a-long and am finding the weekly summaries to be very helpful. A chapter a day is absolutely do-able — a chapter lasts as long as my bowl of morning porridge — so it’s fitting nicely into my day.
I’m actually quite amazed at how much of it I’m remembering from when I was reading it last year. It’s still full of pompous gits and ineffectual women (unless they’re of the scheming or manipulative variety) and I see hints of Tolstoy’s future leanings in that it seems, so far, an unflattering portrait of the aristocracy.
I’m cautiously optimistic this time around.
Pray for me.
A Winter Away - Elizabeth Fair
A Christmas gift. I’m slowly working my way through Elizabeth Fair’s books -some are wonderful, some a little bit too dated for comfort — but this one falls in the first category.
Young Maud is spending the winter with an elderly cousin and her cousin’s companion in the countryside. Her cousin has arranged a job for her with the eccentric Mr. Feniston as his secretary. Cue a selection of dramas, intrigue and misunderstandings of a very pleasingly comedic variety.
Elizabeth Fair has an ability to build detail and nuance in both dialogue and action that speaks volumes about her characters without speaking volumes about her characters. It’s a masterclass in show-don’t-tell. At the same time, because her style is so very observational, it makes it hard to get deeply invested in the main actors which is an odd tactic though effective nonetheless. It’s very reminiscent of Jane Austen in some ways, only with a heftier dose of dry humour. Oh, and they always end with a proposal.
The City of Dusk - Tara Sim
Bit of a story behind this one. My husband mistakenly gave me the second book in this series for Christmas as well as the second book in another series (his excuse being he wasn’t wearing his glasses). This series seemed to have the most promise (based entirely on the blurb), so I exchanged the other ‘second’ for this first.
I almost wish I hadn’t bothered.
This is a dark fantasy, of such complex world-building as to be confusing. I thought perhaps it was my feeble, menopausal brain but upon investigation, I found that other people struggled as well. It felt like the author was trying to do a bit too much at once. There was just far too much going on at any given moment and it was very disorienting.
We follow four main characters, who are the heirs to their ruling Houses. There’s magic, gods, alternate realms, murder and a great deal of political jockeying. Mixed feelings on all of this.
Also, the unlikeability of characters. Yes, I’m that plebian. I need to like, or at least, respect, the people I’m reading about. I struggled with most of them; their motivations often seemed unclear (ie. why did they behave the way they did? It often didn’t make sense) and there was a sort of box-ticking element to committing murder that I found jarring.
If I didn’t already have the second book in my possession, I would probably have just left it there but I do have the second book and I cared enough about a couple of the characters to keep going.
The Midnight Kingdom - Tara Sim
Much better than the first book…not something you often come across. I feel like the author found her stride in this one and had sorted out the complexities of the world-building in a way that made sense both to her and the reader. It seems a far better realized story than the first (the first felt like one giant set-up and not a terribly organized one at that), the characters are more fleshed out and there was some gorgeous, lyrical writing. Just a far stronger book in general.
There’s a lot going on in this one, too, but it’s more deftly handled. The character arcs are stronger and more solid and even the unlikeable ones are more likeable. Still a lot of death, destruction and chaos, but only inasmuch as you’d expect and not the weirdly gratuitious stuff that emerged in the first book.
I’ll probably read the third one when it comes out. I tend to be a completionist like that. If nothing else, I’ll be able to donate a whole series which is always a gratifying thing.
Journal of a Solitude - May Sarton
This is the second of May’s journals that I’ve read - the first being Plant Dreaming Deep, which I heartily loved.
In writing this journal, May said she set out to dispel the myths that Plant Dreaming Deep created and she certainly did that. This one was harder to read — she writes a lot about her struggles with depression and suicidality, powerful mood swings and the solitude that she both craves and is tormented by all at once. The solitary life she lived in Nelson wasn’t always what she wanted/needed.
Beyond those darker issues, it was still a really fascinating view into her creative life - the ebbs and flows and how it impacted her mental health and well-being. It was incredibly relatable in many ways.
I feel cluttered when there is no time to analyze experiences. That is the silt — unexplored experience that literally chokes the mind. Too much comes into this house — books I am asked to read and comment on, manuscripts, letters, an old friend who wants my opinion about a journal (whether it is publishable), and so on.
Change out the books, manuscripts etc. for the cacophony of inputs from the digital world in any given day and this is exactly how I feel.
As with Plant Dreaming Deep, this one will need re-reads to really squeeze all the juice out of it.
So there we have it. A typcially eclectic mix - I do enjoy a bit of variety ;)
Not the strongest start to the reading year, content-wise, but there’s time yet and I’m nothing if not dedicated. :)
Please feel free to share any recommendations in the comments — I’m always keen for those.
Speaking of which — I highly recommend this Substack newsletter: Five Books For by my lovely writing friend, Kate. She always has brilliant suggestions, curated around a particular theme. Her February one has me finally agreeing to read A Court of Thorns and Roses3 so that’s saying something. Also The Unhurried Reader…I can only aspire to that level of conscientiousness and intentionality.
This is my TBR for February (thus far)…I do love a good library haul…so stay tuned. Happy reading!
~m. xo
I’ve done so with mixed results. My default, even without an audience, is to gobble books.
I realized this about myself when doing The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. The reading embargo exercise was both excruciating and enlightening.
In my contrarian way, this is a series I’ve avoided because of the hype. Basically, if TikTok is raving about it, I’m probably not going to read it. Except this time. #enneagramfour
Oooh…. Thank you for another installment of un-reviews! Always looking for suggestions of what to read! 💙
Same! Re: ACoTaR... I wasn’t going to read it because everyone else was booksta-ing it ... and then I read Kate’s newsletter and ordered the Kindle version. I still have to slog my way through a nonfiction book, but it waits for me. Who knew that contrarianism was an enneagram 4 thing!