Closing the lid of September

September, what a glorious month you were.

 

I finished 8 books. And, the number would have been higher if I hadn't decided to pick up the 900-page brick in the last week (which I also have finished by now).

 

* The Night Circus by E. Morgenstern (RIP VIII)

* Villette by C. Bronte (Classics Club)

* The Well of Lost Plots by J. Fforde

* Gardens of the Moon by S. Erikson

* The Universe Versus Alex Woods by G. Extence

* Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

* Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

* The Unbearable Lightness of Being by M. Kundera (Classics Club)

 

That's 3483 pages. Three books were 500+ pages.

 

Since I rated all of those books with 4/5 or 5/5, with the exception of the first Harry Potter (which got 3/5), it got me thinking if I am the kind of reader that is just very generous or if I am just awesome at picking books to read. I kinda lean towards the latter, at least for this month, because there really aren't many random books among those. Okay, classics can be hit and miss - but The Unbearable Lightness of Being was a re-read, so I knew I like it, and Villette I was fairly certain I will like. I love Thursday Next books and Harry Potters are simply very well written. Alex Woods got a lot of praise from bloggers I trust, so I was fairly confident about that as well.

 

Also, right now I am reading The Turn of the Screw (for RIP VIII) and I am not really feeling it (about half way through), so possibly there will be a story rated 2 or so...

Top Ten Books I Want to Read This Autumn

So my participation in Top Ten Tuesday is very random, depending on the appeal of the topic, and this time the topic is pretty appealing (mainly because I love autumn and I love lists), so I decided to do it. The meme is hosted by folks at The Broke and the Bookish, go check 'em out for more information.

 

It was easy to make this list because I am kind of hoping to get a lot of reading done this autumn, and I am already on a good path thanks to RIP VIII event. There is also the 24-hour readathon coming in October, so the reading scene looks pretty shiny indeed.

 

All the books are from my already existing shelves, 'cos that's how I roll (I really like to prioritise the books I already own, which is why I also find these lists and events very helpful).

 

 

 

1. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James -  short, spooky and classic.

2. The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera - I failed to re-read this during the reading slump I had in summer, and actually this is autumn book instead anyway.

3. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen - I mentally added this to RIP VIII list because it's appropriate and there's a readalong coming in October, and also it's a small book.

4. Ship of Magic by Robin Hobb - I actually read a bit of this one recently at the point when I was between the books, and it was really good! Ships that are alive? Crazy. But potentially awesome.

5. Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde - I loooove Fforde's Thursday Next books and after having seen a few good things about this book, I just decided to check it out. Curious to see how Fforde writes other things!

6. Dracula by Bram Stoker - it's going to be the Halloween read.

7. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling (currently reading Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets) - so yes, this is bad, but I have never read those books. I just finished the first one last night. When I saw the news of the 15th anniversary edition covers in spring, I decided to get the series in autumn because I really love these covers. So I now own the first three books and will get the rest as well.

8. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver - just because I want to read it.

9. NW by Zadie Smith - I still have a few Women's Prize books on my shelf, and I want to get done with the shortlist by the end of this year. (Shortlist minus Hilary Mantel's book that is since I just couldn't get into Wolf Hall, at all...)

10. Bullerby lapsed (Barnen i Bullerbyn, The Children of Noisy Village) by Astrid Lindgren - this is the star book of my childhood, probably. Well I had piles of favourites, but the very favourite must come from among Lindgren books, and it's probably this one. And I want to read it again (I think the number of my re-reads of this book must be over 30 by now).

 

Let's break it down:

* 5 Classics Club books

* 3 RIP VIII books

* 3 fantasy books (yay!)

* 1 Women's Prize book

* 1 children's book

Top Ten Series I Haven't Started (Yet)

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the people over at The Broke and the Bookish and today's topic is "Top Ten Series I Would Like to Start But Haven't Yet".

 

I like series. I have read some very nice ones - "Lord of the Rings", "Song of Ice and Fire" (up to as much as has been published), "The Farseer Trilogy" by Robin Hobb. Nowadays the amount of series coming from publishing houses makes me feel a bit uncomfortable, because it seems like it's done for financial reasons, so that maybe explains my lack of interest towards the newer stuff.

 

But, there are some series I would like to read some time in future, and here they are:

 

 

1. Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. It feels odd to be what seems like the only one who hasn't read Harry Potter. After I read that the books are getting new covers, and the first one I actually like very much, I decided that this autumn when the series gets a facelift, I shall buy them and read them, and not feel left out anymore.

 

 

2. The Dark Tower series by S. King. Not being a major King fangirl (post about that coming out as well), I am interested in The Dark Tower books. No idea when I get there, though.

 

 

3. The Liveship Traders series by R. Hobb. Robin Hobb writes lovely fantasy and deserves more attention. Last year I finished her "The Farseer Trilogy", which is one of those few stories that left me weeping like a babe in the end. So I decided to continue with her trilogies. I have the first book at home and maybe I will pick it up, some time, on a whim.

 

4. The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. Very much intimidating, but at the same time I want to read. The bad thing is that as much as I've heard, level of quality of different books in the series is very uneven.

 

 

5. Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson. Probably less known fantasy series, this requires a lot of attention and dedication, and it can take a while to get used to the myriad of characters and the strange worlds. I have started the first book some 2-3 times, and never finished, but I'm not giving up.

 

 

6. The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide by Douglas Adams. Maybe not that kind of conventional series, but it's books, one following another, so... it's kind of series. Hopefully I can click with the humour, otherwise I guess it's pretty impossible to enjoy these. Marvin!!

 

 

7. Dragonriders of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey. Because it's old, and classic, and dragons, and could be a fun read.

 

 

8. Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. From what I've heard, this is a series of book-bricks. (I refuse to get intimidated!) But hey. History, fantasy? Yes please.

 

 

9. The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis. When I was kid, and where I lived - we never had access to these books. Which is a shame. But better late than never. Should be a fun read :)

 

10. Anne of Green Gables books by L. M. Montgomery. Same as with Narnia, as a little girl I never knew these books existed. And I was exactly the kind of bookworm-child who would have related to Anne so much. Oh well. I do intend to read, if not all then at least some of Anne books.