Reading Challenge - 71 to 75

And here it is! The final post of the 2010 75 books reading Challenge. Only a month late (and because I forced myself to finish this today).

71 - A Sabedoria dos Mortos by Rodolfo Martinez [The Wisdom of the Dead]

This a collection of three stories, pretending to be new, unpublished adventures of Sherlock Holmes, that never saw the light of day because of their uncanniness. The author proposes that these have been written by John Watson, M.D. (not Arthur Conan Doyle – but there is an explanation for that), and that his job as been merely of translating the texts found on box in an antique shop in Soho.

Overall it was a nice book, it makes me wish I read more of Sherlock Holmes and H.P. Lovecraft. While I was reading I had some trouble in believing that John Watson could have written these stories. Not because he is a fictional character, but because it showed that the author of this story didn't have English as native language. Part of these objections where put to rest on the Translator's Note at the end of the book, but still I am unconvinced (especially having spend the entire book with those objections).

(4/5)

[Full Review]

72 - The Gift by Cecilia Ahern
This a book is something like a a Christmas Chic Flick. You know, the kind that comes out in the beginning of December, or that passes non stop on TV on Sundays afternoons.

It was a freebie, and it took me a long time to get around to read it because I was sure it wouldn't be my kind of book. I wasn't wrong.

It's light, and full of those special messages of being kind and good, and enjoying your family and your time with them. There is a bit of the story there but not much. The ending was clearly design to make the reader burst into tears – but it completely failed to do so with me.

It is also full of awful metaphors and similes that made me want to spoon my eyes out.

The only plus side is that is set in Dublin – and since I've been there, it was nice to read about something I know about.

(2.5/5)

73 - Scottish Fairy Tales by Philip Wilson

A collection of Fairy Tales, that I had on my bookshelf for ages.

I like fairy tales, but I might be too used to fairy tale retellings to properly enjoy a simple fairy tale. The stories on this book where nice, some were known, some weren't. Some repeated themselves, some were quite good. Common to all of them was the simplistic writing style.It was more enjoyable on a curiosity level than on a literary one.

(3/5)

74 - Seer of Sevenwaters by Juliet Marillier
Seer of Sevenwaters is the new instalment of the the once-trilogy-and-now-series of Sevenwaters. Even if I feel that nothing really compares to the first books on the series (which were the start of my love for Juliet Marillier's books), this book managed to surprise me in how much I loved it!

To me, it's a book of dualities. Two points of view, and also two parts on the story. The first one is recovery and getting to know oneself again. It's mostly character driven, but not without some action. The second part is about adventure and setting wrongs right. It's full of action and excitement. And all this dualities are so well woven one into each other, they complement each other, and you wouldn't want to have one without the other!

I loved this book, and even if I'm biased, I have to say that if you like historical fantasy, I really recommend Seer of Sevenwaters (or any other Sevenwaters book).

(5/5)

[Full Review]

75 - A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

This was a bit of a re-read. Only a bit because the last time I read A Christmas Carol I was a tiny lass (not that I am much bigger now), and the version was abridged. So I guess it could count as a new read. The reason for me picking this book up, especially at the time I did had very little to do with being Christmas Time, and all with Doctor Who Christmas Special (based on this story, and quite marvellous).

It is my opinion that you can never go wrong with Charles Dickens. A Christmas Carol is a very simple story - bad guy shown the error of his ways, and provided with a second chance. And it's hardly an unknown plot, as it has been adapted to all kinds of media (my first encounter with such an adaptation was The Muppet Christmas Carol).

I enjoyed reading this, not because it was mindblowing, but because it was well written, a nice story that you like because it is being told, not because of what's being told.

(4/5)

---

So here it is: Challenge Completed!

This would be place where I would post Stats and Stuff about the Challenge, but I've seem to have done that already :D So all that is left to say is that I enjoyed reading (most of) these books, and thank you for reading my reviews (and in some cases cheering me in order to finish this challenged): Thank you!

Reading Challenge - 66 to 70

66 - Minority Report by Philip K. Dick

This is actually a short story, although I have it as a book. A very small book, that can be read in a flash. But that doesn't mean it's light or simple.

There is much going on on this book. Not only it deals with paradoxes and alternate futures, there is also ethics and philosophy woven in it. The end is not surprising, but the build up to it is great, so much that there is no desire to put the book down.

I really wished that this story was written as a novel, not a short story, because what I got was a taste of something good, and I'd love to read more on this.

(4/5)

[Full Review]

67 - Castle in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones

Castle in the Air is a sequel to companion to book set in the same world as book written by Diana Wynne Jones where Howl also appears. I loved Howl's Moving Castle, so I really was expecting more of the same in this book. And I really shouldn't have because this book is not about Howl, and he is not even important to the story.

If I started this book with expectations of a story with the characters from the first book, by the time one of them finally appeared I only wanted to know about these new amazing characters.

This is a good book, one that I feel that everyone should read – young and adult readers alike.

(4/5)

[Full Review]

68 - Last of the Wilds by Trudi Canavan

Last of the Wilds is the second book on the Age of the Five trilogy. Priestess of the White ended with the aftermath of the religious war between the Circlians and Pentadrians.

What I liked on the first book is exactly what I liked on this one. The third side of the matter, the world-building, the different races, and the emotional struggle of the characters regarding their beliefs and their way of living. It is all there, and then some more.

[Full Review]

(4/5)

69 - Fictions by Jorge Luis Borges

This is a collection of fantastical short-stories, divided into two books. There is no connection between the stories, and not all of them are good. But a lot of them are great.

Borges does have a special ability to write about fictional things in a way that makes you believe it is real, no matter how fantastical it seems. There are stories of impossible books and inexistent encyclopaedias of inexistent nations, of men that are not men, of lotteries, of labyrinths and infinity and libraries.

These stories are somewhat philosophical, and they do make you think. I hope to keep on reading books by Jorge Luis Borges.

(4/5)

70 - Artemis Fowls: The Eternity Code by Eoin Colfer

It has been years since I last read Artemis Fowl. And boy, it's good to be back to that world of fairies and 12 years old (well, now 14) evil masterminds.

Artemis Fowl and the Eternity Code is a really nice book. Eoin Colfer's writing is quirky and the story is fun – you never notice that time is passing while you read it. And you don't have to be an young adult to enjoy it!

(4/5)

[Full Review]

The end of 2010 and of the Reading Challenge

My challenge was 75 books in 2010 - I thought it might be easy, but December was marked by small books and reading marathons, just so I could reach that goal. I think I used to read more when I was studying. Not because I had more time to do it, but because of the amount of time I spent on public transports.

The last few days were indeed a rush - I got to the point that I needed to read 3 books in 2 days. These last books were chosen to be read quickly: a book of Scottish Fairy Tales that has been on my bookshelf forever (and provided a good introduction to Seer of Sevenwaters); Seer of Sevenwaters, that a very good friend lent me because my copy is lost in postal limbo; and A Christmas Carol, because this year's Doctor Who Christmas Special made me want to re-read the original.

I'm also very behind on writing reviews. I'll restart writing them, now that the holiday confusion (and hangover) has passed.

I have no challenges planned to 2011, besides trying to reduce my TBR pile. Christmas wasn't as bad as I thought it would be to the amount of books to read: I received (only) 6 books, and 2 of them I've already read. My biggest challenge now is going to be reading in Spanish, so that I can get used to the language that I'll be using in the next 6 months (makes me wish for a Babel fish). I'm starting with The Cathedral of the Sea by Ildefonso Falcones (La Catedral del Mar).


But now for some stats about 2010:

This year I read almost 26 000 pages (almost 27 000 if including graphic novels). It means about 73 pages a day. 53% of the books had 300+ pages; 20% had 500+ pages. The average length of the books was 345 pages.

I averaged 7 books per month. The month I read more was March, the one I read less were February, June and August.

I enjoyed most of the books I've read: 68% were given 4 stars or more out of 5. 7% had 2.5 or less stars. 1 book was given 1 star (I didn't finish that one). 6 books received the maximum score of 5/5.

Top 10 Picks of 2010:

• Across the Nightingale Floor by Lian Hearn
• Goose Chase by Patrice Kindl
• Graceling by Kristin Cashore
• Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
• Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrlees
• Misfortune by Wesley Stace
• Perdido Street Station By China Miéville
• Seer of Sevenwaters by Juliet Marillier (or anything by Juliet Marillier!)
• The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
• The Map of Time by Felix J. Palma

Series that I've finished!

• Catwings Set by Ursula K. Le Guin
• Chronicles of Ancient Darkness by Michelle Paver
• Percheron Series by Fiona McIntosh
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• The Stone Dance of the Chameleon by Ricardo Pinto

I want more of this series/author!

• China Miéville
• Douglas Adams
• Eoin Colfer - I want to keep on reading the Artemis Fowl series and the last book of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galax
• Holly Black
• Kristin Cashore - anxiously waiting for Bitterblue

Reading Challenge - 61 to 65

61 - The City & The City by China Miéville
The City & The City is the big winner this year, taking all the awards (not all, but the World Fantasy Award, the Hugo, the Locus and the Arthur C. Clarke, among others). And even if I didn’t find it mindblowing, I have to agree that all of these are well deserved.

I enjoyed reading The City & The City, and if another book is written in this universe, I'll definitely read it.

(4/5)


[Full Review]

62 - Shades of Green by Rhonda Parrish

Shades of Green is a small book, that promised to be quick – and since it was won through Goodreads I wasn't exactly sure of what to expect.

I liked this story, it was quick and to the point, and didn't really need to be any longer. And it was nice to be surprised by the ending.

(3.5/5)


[Full Review]

63 - A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

This is a science fiction children's book, winner the Newbery Medal in 1963. It is also one of the most challenged books. There are plenty of reviews singing its praises. With all this in mind I was really expecting to like it. But it didn't fulfil those expectations. In this case I know exactly why that happened: I read it too late.

(3.5/5)


[Full Review]

64 - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (what a big name!) is indeed a curious book. Told from the point of view of a teenager with Asperger's Syndrome, Christopher, it is extremely different from all the books I've read.

The book is quite is easy to read. The language is simple and to the point, and you want to read just one more chapter every chapter. When I reached the point where the book lost its charm, it was still easy to finish it – I just stopped loving it.

(3.5/5)


[Full Review]


65 - Tithe by Holly Black

There are a lot of books that stay on my wishlist for ages, and once I get them, they are the next book to read for an equal long time – to the point that I no longer remember what was it that made me want to read it so much. Tithe was on of those (although it didn't spend that much on my TBR list).

What I knew about it was that it was a dark fairytale. But it had a pretty cover, and was Young Adult so it thought it would be okay, and quite quick to read. And it was. And quite nice as well.

Tithe is a nice story, easy to read and like. There are two more books on the series that I want to check out – as well as other books by Holly Black.

(4/5)


[Full Review]

Reading Challenge - 56 to 60

56 - The Restaurant at the end of the Universe by Douglas Adams

The Restaurant at the end of the Universe is the second book on the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, and it is much like the first one. It is a lot of fun, very silly, and very good.

[Full Review]

(4/5)





57 - Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder

I really liked Poison Study and, even if the plot was predictable at times, the characters made the book a page turner. I'll keep on reading the rest of the series because I really want to know more about these characters and this world, especially about Commander and Ixia.

[Full Review]

(4/5)


58 - Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder

This is a good sequel to Poison Study, the story continues where it was left off on the first book, with Yelena going to Sitia, ready to start to learn about magic. Of course, with Yelena being Yelena trouble does not take long to appear. This means that there is a plot full of action, danger, and Yelena doing what she does best – saving the day!

I liked Magic Study as much as I did Poison Study, it was a good follow up book, where I got to know more about the those two lands, and was presented with more great characters.

[Full Review]

(4/5)

59 - Black Sun Rising by C. S. Friedman
I had a lot of expectations for this book. It seemed like a good fantasy book, long and dark. But I just couldn't finish it. And that is a rare thing for me.

I made it to page 335 out of 589 – in the middle of an earthquake, where the characters have two options and both mean death, and close to the Castle of the Evil Guy – but I really have no desire to keep reading or find out what happens next.

[Full Review]

(1/5)


60 - Mordred's curse by Ian McDowell

Mordred's Curse starts with what I felt was like a slap in the face. It took me by surprise, both due to the language and the intensity of it.

After the initial surprise was gone, the book proved to be both enjoyable and memorable.

[Full Review]

(4.5/5)

Reading Challenge - 50 to 55

One of the goals I had with this challenge was met: I managed to write proper reviews, instead of small ones, for the entire Challenge post! Hurray for me!


50 - The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games is a dystopian young adult novel, and, even if I'm slowly moving away from young adult literature, I love dystopias.

I know I will read the next two in the series, even if I'm expecting to be somewhat disappointed (from what I could gather from skimming the reviews for Mockingjay). With a more definite ending, The Hunger Games could easily be a standalone book – an a very good one at that.

(4/5)

[Full Review]



51 - The Map of Time by Félix J. Palma

I was expecting great things out of The Map of Time, after reading my friend's review of it. What I was not expecting was that it would be so good and marvellous – a strong candidate to The Best Book I Read This Year.

(5/5)

[Full Review]




52 - Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
I'm of two minds concerning Catching Fire. On one hand, it felt like a disappointment, on the other it pressed all the right buttons to keep me reading until the wee hours of the morning.

(3.5/5)

[Full Review]



53 - Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay is the last book on the Hunger Games series, a series which, in my opinion, had its peak on the first book.

Mockingjay was entertaining at first, but lost all of its appeal midway when the angst became too much – to the point that I lost all interest in it.

(2.5/5)

[Full Review]



54 - Graceling by Kristin Cashore
Graceling is a very good fantasy book, that seemed almost impossible to put down. And that smile that I had when I was reading stayed on my face long after I finished the last page. Truth be told, it comes back every time I think about this book. A fun read, and most importantly a great read.

(4.5/5)

[Full Review]


55 - Fire by Kristin Cashore

Fire is the companion book of Graceling, a sort of prequel set in the same universe, but not on the same lands, with different characters and different elements. In short, if it weren't for one character in common and some references to the Graceling world, it could have been a totally different book.

I liked this book, but kept comparing it to Graceling, which is not really fair. The book stands well on its own, it is very enjoyable, with a good plot, good characters and good worldbuilding.

(4/5)

[Full Review]

Reading Challenge - 45 to 49

45 - Watership Down by Richard Adams
Watership Down comes highly recommended, and won a fair number of prizes on the last 40 years. A story where the main (well, almost all) characters are bunnies. Actual rabbits hopping about the English countryside.

Despite the fact that it is clearly stated that these are rabbits (with one in the cover), not a human version with bunny ears, I kept having trouble picturing them as animals (I kept seeing them as Hobbits, go figure! - except for General Woundwort, that I imagined as a tiny Napoleon).

The rabbits were likeable and funny, and a bit stupid most of the time (seriously, did it take them that long to realise they were all males!?), but they were still able to come up with some inventive plans.

What I liked the most on this book were the stories of El-ahrairah, the ultimate trickster, of how he always managed to (cunningly) get his way.

It was an enjoyable book, but not as much as all the recommendations lead me to believe it would be.

(3.5/5)

46 - The Hitchhicker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
I've sat around pretending to be writing this review for a long time, when all I really want to say is: “This book is awesome! Go read it!” - There it is, I've said it.


[Full Review]

(4.5/5)



47 - Across the Nightingale Floor by Lian Hearn

Set in a Japan-but-not-Japan land, i.e., a heavily Japanese inspired land, full with its most traditional costumes, and samurais and ninjas, but not bound by the need to be totally accurate, because it's fantasy. But even the term fantasy is used very loosely here. There are hints of some things that may be magical. A term that I rarely use, but which I like, and fits this book is Speculative Fiction – a what if? kind of book.


This is the first book in the series, but can easily be read as a standalone. I will read the next ones because I loved this one.


[Full Review]

(4.5/5)


48 - The Beginning Place by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Beginning Place in a coming-of-age story, but different from usual. Although the two main characters, Hugh and Irena, are young, they are not in the usual age group for these stories, they are not teenagers, they are past the age when people become adults. Yet they are not fully there.

They both find the Beginning Place while running away, and so, it becomes their safe haven, their hiding place. But they don't find it together, first it is Irena, who has time to get to know Tembreabrezi and their language. But when she discovers Hugh in “her place”, trespassing, tainting what she thought was pure, she can only hate him.

The Beginning Place is a fantastical place, where time goes in a much different fashion than the outside world. They can spend a day there and only a few hours would have gone by outside. They can have adventures there. It's a bit like Narnia, but more barren, eerier, darker.

I can describe this book as being quiet and subdued, but deep and memorable. I enjoyed it a lot, slowly seeing the characters grow, become adults and free themselves from what was holding them back.

(4/5)

49 - Touched by an Alien by Gini Koch

Touched by an Alien is the story of Katherine “Kitty” Katt, who goes from being a marketing manager in Pueblo Caliente to helping an Alien Agency protect the Earth from nasty things from Space. The thing is, all the aliens in this agency are drop dead gorgeous (the author turned a major flaw in romance fiction into a feature!), and the hunk (Armani-clad!) that first appears to help her is ready to make his moves on her.

If you're a big romance fan, and don't care much about getting the science right, this book is probably for you. If you, like me, like your science fiction to be more about science, you can still enjoy this book as light reading, for the romance and the chuckles.

[Full Review]

(3.5/5)

Reading Challenge - 40 to 44

40 - The Third by Ricardo Pinto
The Third God is the last book of the Stone Dance of the Chameleon, a much anticipated ending to the series. Although the wait for this third book has been long, it was worth it.

I loved reading this series, but, like it usually happens with good things, I'm sad that it came to an end. Different from most fantasy I've read, it evokes a vivid imagery every time I think about it. Not a fast or light read, but an immensely enjoyable one. I will probably do a re-read of the entire series in a near future.

[Full Review]

(4.5/5)

41 - Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
Now, this one was just boring.

I found the characters to have little depth, and the plot was hardly novel. Despite this, the characters (or at least Marianne) do evolve a bit to reach the unsurprising ending: they all make good marriages (makes me wonder if there is more to life than that).

Final opinion: watch the movies/mini-series and you'll be more entertained than with the book.

On another note, I'm not sure what Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters is about (I suppose there will be sea monsters in it, but after my experience with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies I am in no rush to find out), but if anyone wants to make a remake of this book in which little Margaret turns out to be an evil murderess possessed by the devil, killing everyone on revenge because they spend the entire book ignoring her, I'll read it. Because I'm not entirely sure why there was a need for a third sister if she is to be forgotten during most of the book.

(3/5)


42 - The Painted Man by Peter V. Brett

The Painted Man is hardly ground-breaking fantasy, but it has nice concepts and the action packed plot means it's an easy and fast read, and enjoyable enough. I will read the next one in the series, because I want to know what happens next, not because I loved this first book.

[Full Review]

(3.5/5)


43 - Perdido Street Station by China Miéville
Perdido Street Station comes highly recommended on the steampunk genre, and is the winner of various awards. I haven't read much of steampunk (if you consider Wells' The Time Machine steampunk, then that's all I've read), so I decided to give the genre a try. And I can say this will not be my last book (either on the genre or by China Miéville).

[Full Review]

(4.5/5)


44 - Brother Grimm by Craig Russell
Detective novels are not my thing, I like Fantasy and Science Fiction and weird stuff far better. I picked Brother Grimm because of its fairy tales connection, and didn't care that it was the second book on a series.

I liked the book well enough, a bit like CSI, but more focused on the detective part than on collecting the forensics. It is a fast read, and enjoyable. There is plenty of action and twisted murders, but there is still room for more deep musings about the significance of Fairy Tales, and especially of the Brothers Grimm task of collecting all the fairy tales through Germany, in a way of collecting the essence of the German People.

The one thing I have to point out is that there seemed to be much repetition of the characters descriptions (time and time again referring “the two Sex-Crime SoKo members, Petra Maas and Hans Rödger” as such every time they appear, especially when they didn't provide much to action. They were there but didn't do much).

I might read the first novel of the series if it comes my way.

(4/5)

Reading Challenge - Half way done

So now that I'm half way done with this challenge, I decided to share some thoughts of what I've realised so far, as well as some statistics.

I've learnt that by reviewing each book I read, the way I rate them has changed. Now I feel like I have to justify why it is that rating, so I'm less benevolent. A book finished is not an automatic 4 out 5, I give it some thought why I liked it or not, which parts bugged me, and which parts I loved.

Also by reviewing a book right after I finish it I'm more likely to write a long review rather than a short one. With The Book of Lost Things as The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories, I started by writing a short review, realizing, upon finishing it, that it was longer than I had thought to write. Guess I had more things to say than I thought.

The next challenge might be to write a proper review for every book I read. We'll see about that.

And now for some stats:

I've read 39 books so far, 1 of which was actually 4 very small books (The Catwings Set). I also read three graphic novels that didn't count toward the challenge, as they are usually much lighter and faster to read than a regular novel. They were Coraline and The sandman : preludes & nocturnes by Neil Gaiman, and Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. So in truth, I've read 45 books so far.

I tend to read long books, which makes this challenge a bit more, well, challenging. About 36% of the books I read this year had 400 or more pages. I've read 13192 pages so far. Of course this doesn't mean much, when most of the books have different page and font sizes, with some books having about 80 words per page, and others close to 600.

As for ratings:
4 books got the maximum rating (5/5), but 3 of them were re-reads of books by Juliet Marillier (an author that I love).

10 books were rated 4.5 (one of them a re-read).

The lowest ratings so far were 2 out 5, for Shadowmancer, followed by 2.5 for Secrets of Surrender.

The average rating is: 3.97 (the average rating disregarding re-reads is: 3.87)

This means I enjoyed most of the books I read. To tell the truth I read some that are on their way to become absolute favourites (to use an expression from the Percheron Series that I read this year).

What to read next
I asked what should I read next, and the responses were (3 votes, I know it's not much):
   2 votes for The Third God by Ricardo Pinto
   1 vote for Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen.

Because The Third God is a huge book (888 pages), I can hardly carry it around with me - it would probably dislocate my shoulder and cause severe back problems. I will start reading it, but only at home. While I'm out, I'll read Sense and Sensibility, that is of a much more sensible size, and fits perfectly in my handbag.

The poll is still open, so if anyone wants to vote, feel free to do it.