Recent Reads - Books - 5 Books To Enjoy This Autumn/Winter By Genre.

Hi!!!

I love reading all year round as I'm sure many of you do. However, I know for lots of people it is an activity best enjoyed at home in autumn and winter, while sat under a blanket with a mug of tea. With that in mind, I've put together a little collection of books that I have read in the last 18 months or so and really enjoyed for you to consider reading. I've organised it into genres and picked one from each - I'm aware there are more genres but I wanted to keep these to things I've read recently so have chosen five. And excuse the fact that there are only three books in the photos - I couldn't locate some of them.

Award Winning General Fiction - Elizabeth Is Missing by Emma Healey

Since Elizabeth Is Missing first came out, I'd been wanting to read it, and never got round to it. My lovely best friend Elf Girl included it in a blog post and when I mentioned it to her, she let me borrow and read her copy.

It is about an elderly woman called Maud, who suffers from dementia, and her efforts to find her friend Elizabeth, who she believes is missing and about her past, and in particular, her sister Sukey.

It is such a beautiful book, and is deserving of all the critical acclaim it has received.

Healey writes in a very descriptive and sometimes poetic way. The book is a character driven piece, which I loved.

It talks about dementia in a very eye-opening and honest way and it is emotional at times to witness through the first person narrative the struggles Maud experiences.

It's a must read.

General Fiction - Funny Girl by Nick Hornby

I read Funny Girl on holiday earlier this year and it was a very enjoyable book.
It follows a team working on a BBC sitcom in the 1960s and explores many themes and social issues within that, as well as having romantic and comical elements. It's very entertaining.
The book also features photographs at certain points which help you create a picture of the world the characters are living in as you go, which is really unique and something that I really liked about it.
 Its a fun read.
I have also reviewed this book in full, and you can  read that here.

Young Adult Fiction - Paper Towns by John Green

Paper Towns was a book that I never thought I would read, and yet it is one of my all time favourites and means a lot a to me.
It follows Q as he tries to find out where the girl he has loved silently for years has disappeared to, as he and his friends leave high school.
It is full of stunning language, it is incredibly meaningful and thought-provoking and yet so much fun.
There are so many elements to this book and so many things to take away and I love it.
I have reviewed it in full, and you can catch that here.

 

Sci-Fi/Fantasy - The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde

My most recent post about books was about the Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde and The Eyre Affair is the first in the series.
This is the book in which we first meet Thursday, and are introduced to life in the version of the 1980s that she lives in (which features dodos, time travel and literary detectives!)
It is a unique, dynamic, funny and imaginative book that I adore.

Crime - The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

The Cuckoo's Calling is the first in the Cormoran Strike series.
A supermodel called Lula falls from the balcony of her London apartment and to her death. Her brother asks Strike, a private detective, to look into it because he believes there was more to it than meets the eye.
It is a very good novel. I haven't read the others in the series yet, so can't comment on anything other than this one.
It was written by JK Rowling under a pseudonym, which she has decided to reveal, so if you like her writing then maybe this could be a good read for you.
I thought it was very detailed and descriptive, I liked the characters and thoroughly enjoyed the story. I will say that I wasn't completely keen on the way she writes dialogue sometimes (e.g writing out accents...) but other than that I loved it and have passed it on to several people.

That brings a end to this post, then. Thanks for reading.

What are your favourite books? Have you read any of these? Let me know by leaving a comment.

Speak to you all soon. Oh, and HAPPY BLOOMING NOVEMBER!!!

Have a terrific day!

GingerSnaps xxx

Recent Reads - Books - 'Paper Towns' Review.

Hi!!!

Well, today's post is a first. I've never written a book review on my blog. But here I am today, writing one. I feel like such a momentous occasion should be marked by reviewing something like 'War and Peace' or 'Les Miserables' but alas, it is not and couldn't be, because I have read neither. I am instead reviewing a book I never thought I'd read - 'Paper Towns' by John Green.

So, why did I think I'd never read it? Let me explain.

I went to see the movie of 'The Fault in Our Stars' a few years ago for someone's birthday and I wasn't *quite* as amazed as everyone said I'd be.
 I came to two conclusions about John Green - I didn't like the way he named his characters (some of the names just seemed a bit pretentious) and I thought that some of the things they did were so far from what anyone would do, let alone teenagers (the cigarette metaphor, anyone?).

And, to be honest, I never thought I'd read it because it's young adult. Which I know is ridiculous of me, and snobby of me, and 'ooh I'm too cool' of me, isn't it? *hangs head in shame*.

However, I decided that this year I should actually read one of his books, rather than judge them by Hollywood or my own silly poorly founded opinions.

 

 

Paper Towns was recommended to me by my dear friend Elf Girl and as I trust her judgement in these things, I decided that it would be the one I would read.

 

The basic plot of 'Paper Towns' is as follows...

 Quentin Jacobsen (Q) has spent a lifetime loving Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. One night, she cracks open a window and climbs into his life - dressed like a ninja, summoning him to join her in a campaign of revenge - and he follows. Q arrives at school the next day to find that she has disappeared. Q soon learns that there are clues in her disappearance and that they have been left for him and he decides to follow them back to her.

 

Turns out, I actually love 'Paper Towns'. It is a great book.

The plot is really interesting and intelligent and filled with intricate details (Margo's clues for Q being the source of many). At times it is hilariously funny and I stopped to read some of the jokes again and again. And the names did bother me, but only for the first chapter or so, and yes, sometimes the dialogue was a little off base, but not by much.

 I really like the characters in 'Paper Towns', I like their friendships and their in-jokes and their craziness and their beer swords, and I like the many sides of them too. Q grows as a person in front of the readers eyes without them realising, and the lessons he learns are lessons carefully planted for the reader, too.

 

And yeah, maybe a name like Margo Roth Spiegelman is a lot to say all at once but, you know what? I've been looking at 'Paper Towns' merchandise since I finished it, and I've been talking to anyone that'll listen about it, and I think John Green is a very good author.

 

So, I like a John Green book. I love 'Paper Towns'. I'd give it a very enthusiastic and hearty four stars. And I'd recommend it to you, even if you think it won't be up your street.
 There's this part in the book where Q describes himself and his friends as "Young. Goofy. Infinite" and I love that because it fits so beautifully with their spirit, and it captures the spirit of the book as a whole.

 

Buy it here.

Thanks for reading my first ever book review. I hope you enjoyed it.
Have you read Paper Towns? Do you have any book recomendations for me? Would you like to see more book reviews? Any other comments or suggestions for future posts? Let me know in the comments. Oh and do you have any opinions on the series title or suggestions for a new one?
Speak soon, lovely people.

I hope your day is glorious!

 

GingerSnaps xxx