Sunday Snippets #18 - the new books edition

It's raining, and it's very windy. And I've slept away my neck in the way that I can now barely move it from side to side. So that means I have plenty of time to read, and post - it's the second post in two days! Instead of the regular Sunday Snippets, in which I ramble over my boring life, I decided to show some of the new book loot Jan and I have received lately (in the past 3 weeks or so). This week there was one of those huge sale campaigns in a department store here in Helsinki and they usually have pretty good book sales as well. Last year I only got a few books, but this year's selection was so good I could have easily walked away with, maybe 15 or even more books. Good thing I wasn't on my own...

 

 

From top to bottom:

 

* In One Person, John Irving - even though I've only read one John Irving book, I've been tempted to buy more from him. I have The Cider House Rules on my Kindle, and this one I found from the book sale. I rated A Prayer for Owen Meany with four stars last summer, but honestly, more than once I've thought of going and changing it to a fiver...

 

* The Marriage Plot, Jeffrey Eugenides - I haven't read anything by Eugenides yet (zomg I know), so why I bought this book I have no idea. I have Middlesex as well and I intend to get to that one in May. Sam from Tiny Library recently published a nice review on The Marriage Plot, go check it out.

 

* Half of a Yellow Sun, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - I was surprised to see this one on sale because Adichie is enjoying quite a bit of literary sunshine right now with her Americanah shortlisted for Women's Prize this year. I had to get it.

 

* The Lacuna, Barbara Kingsolver - Barbara Kingsolver has become one of those authors who I like but don't quite love (The Flight Behavior and The Poisonwood Bible were both four out of five for me). But if I find her book with a good price, I will definitely get it.

 

* The Master and Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov - this book was on sale, and Jan had to buy it. Basically I forced him. (I would have gladly lent my own... only it's in Estonian.) And he has already started reading it so, great success.

 

*Behind the Scenes at the Museum, Kate Atkinson - that one I got for full price, but who cares - the copy is gorgeous. I am not a fan of photo-covers, but this one is really good looking. Here:

 

 

Ok, the photo quality is crap, and in reality the cover looks a lot better, so you just have to take my word for it - the book's friggin gorgeous looking. After Life After Life came first in my own personal TOP of best books from 2013, I knew I had to read more by Kate Atkinson, but had no idea where to start from. I think it was Ellie who recommended me to start with this one, and I can't wait.

 

* Number9dream, David Mitchell - so after both Jan and I had finished The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, we sat down and went through the online book shops and picked out our next David Mitchell book, which is this one. The story once again goes to Japan, and in my mind there really is a little better in the world than a top-notch word master using the setting I love a lot. Can't wait.

 

* Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, Lewis Carroll - guys, they had a bunch of Penguin clothbound classics on sale. And if there's a book cover lover person in this family, it's definitely Jan. I swear he likes the fanciest covers in the bookshop :p I didn't buy any of those myself because let's be honest, I have most of them on my Kindle and for perfectly free, but I didn't fight back when he wanted to buy this (and the next one). They will look pretty next to my own clothbounds on the bookshelf. Plus I'm not sure I ever even read Through the Looking Glass, and this one is illustrated.

 

* The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde - this may be my favourite cover design among the Penguin clothbounds. I read it while back and remember loving it, but I want to re-read it for the Classics Club anyway.

Have you read any of those books, what did you think? Are some of those in your TBR lists/mountains as well?

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On general bookish update, I finished American Gods! And didn't like it. Took me 1.5 months to finish this book. It would have been maybe edible if it hadn't been almost 600 pages. Neil Gaiman is not for me and I don't intend to try any of his other books (I had lots of problems with Neverwhere as well). Right now I'm reading Nana by Émile Zola and Honour by Elif Shafak. I noticed it's difficult to get into Nana, which makes me a bit sad because Germinal was such a shiny star read for me last year, then again it's hard to write better book than Germinal so I shouldn't get my hopes that high... Honour was longlisted for Women's Prize last year, and I'm enjoying it quite a bit. It's a story about Turkish people and some of them moving to London, with chapters presented in mixed-up timeline, which I always enjoy.

 

Hope you're all having a lovely weekend!