Five-Star Read Predictions

Some of the books I think could be five-star reads.

I wouldn’t read a book if I didn’t hope to enjoy it, but there’s no denying that certain books get me more excited than others, giving me that extra special feeling you can’t quite define that makes you think it may well become a new favourite read. Inspired by an idea from Mercedes that she’s since decided to turn into an ongoing series on her channel, I’ve decided to try and predict future five-star reads.

This is by no means a comprehensive list of books that I think I might love, but simply the ones already sitting on my shelves that sprang to mind right away. Once I’ve read them all, I plan to do a follow up post, seeing how successful my predictions have proven to be. I’ve linked each book mentioned to its Goodreads page, in case you want to find out more about them, as with each I’ve simply stated what it is about the book that makes me feel particularly excited and intrigued. Let’s get started!

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

This book is a hotbed of buzzwords I just can’t resist: It’s set in an isolated, snowy setting; it’s inspired by fairy tales; it supposedly features beautiful writing, and has a dark, whimsical vibe. Yes please! It doesn’t hurt that the cover is stunning as well.

What Belongs to You by Garth Greenwell

This book claims to be lyrical and intense, exploring themes of sexuality, obsession, loneliness and violence; all of which I’m fascinated by when handled well. It follows a man who becomes increasingly drawn to the young man he pays for sex, with a cat-and-mouse play for power emerging between the two (another theme I love), whilst he struggles to accept events from his past.

The Lonely Hearts Hotel by Heather O’Neill

This book seems to promise an immersive world, stunning prose, enigmatic characters and a magical atmosphere, with a historical setting and circus flair that are giving me major Church of Marvels vibes – and given that it was my favourite read of last year, that gets me very hyped for this.

Trumpet by Jackie Kay

Following the death of Joss Moody, a respected musician, it emerges that he was, in fact, biologically a woman. The story is told from various different perspectives, including Joss’ wife, who guarded his secret unquestioningly, and their adopted son, who had no idea his father was born a woman. Exploring the nature of love and loss, if the subject matter is handled with care and respect, I think this could be a stunning read.

Little Nothing by Marissa Silver

In this historically set book, a girl born with a physical deformity is shunned by her community. Featuring elements of magical realism and fairy tale vibes in her quest for redemption, it’s another that throws up a lot of my favourite buzzwords. Plus, I’ve heard good things from a couple of people whose opinion I trust.

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There we have it. I’m interested to see how well these predictions turn out. *fingers crossed*

What are some of your own five-star predictions?

The Ultimate Harry Potter Tag

The original UK book covers

I may have technically missed the 20^th anniversary of Harry Potter first being released (doesn’t that mere sentence make you feel old?!) but I was kindly tagged by the lovely Rachel to do the Ultimate Harry Potter Tag, and of course, I couldn’t refuse. Let’s just jump right in.

1) Favourite book?
Starting with a Sophie’s Choice level of difficulty, I see. I obviously adore them all, but The Prisoner of Azkaban represents a real shift in tone towards darker plot threads and is the one I have the most specific memories of reading for the first time. I remember exactly where I was sitting and that I was so absorbed that I refused to eat dinner until I had finished reading it, and I never turn down food.

2) Least favourite book?
Again, this is tough, but I’ll go with The Chamber of Secrets, purely because there’s not enough Hermione.

3) Favourite movie?
For pure nostalgia and adorableness, the first movie will always hold a special place in my heart. I remember being floored by how visually stunning it was, and it’s probably the most we get to see of daily life at Hogwarts in terms of lessons, professors, Houses, feasts, the sorting ceremony, etc., and I love the feeling of discovering and falling in love with the magical world along with the characters. By way of contrast, I also love both parts of The Deathly Hallows for how harrowing they are.

4) Least favourite movie?
Poor Chamber of Secrets but I’m going to go with it again, only because I was off sick for a week once as a child with a bad bout of the flu and I watched Chamber of Secrets three times in two days (I think I was delirious) and sort of sickened myself with it. And again, not enough Hermione.

5) Favourite quote?
“If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”

6) Favourite Weasley?
Fred and George. They come as a package deal so I can’t be expected to choose just one, surely?

7) Favourite female character?
Hermione. Duh.

8) Favourite villain.
I love how twisted Bellatrix is. Her messed up master/servant type relationship with Voldemort is fascinating, and that’s why I’ll never forgive what they did to those characters in The Cursed Child – but that’s not real so it doesn’t count. *sticks fingers in my ears* la, la, la.

9) Favourite male character?
Probably Neville. Aw, Neville.

10) Favourite professor?
Sass-master-extraordinaire, McGonagall. Who else?

11) Would you rather A) wash Snape’s hair or B) spend a day listening to Lockhart rant about himself?
B. At least I could have a good laugh at how ludicrous Lockhart is.

12) Would you rather duel A) an elated Bellatrix or B) an angry Molly?
B. I’m not a Death Eater and I didn’t try to kill her daughter, so I hope that however angry Molly was, she wouldn’t actively try to kill me. Bellatrix on the other hand…

13) Would you rather travel to Hogwarts via A) Hogwarts Express or B) Flying Car?
Hogwarts Express! It’d be like being in the worlds of Harry Potter and Agatha Christie all at once.

14) Would you rather A) Kiss Voldemort or B) give Umbridge a bubble bath?
I’m going to steal Rachel’s clever answer here and say A, on the caveat that it was in his pre-reptilian Tom Riddle days.

15) Would you rather A) ride a Hippogriff or B) ride a Firebolt?
I’m an animal lover, so I’ll go with a Hippogriff.

16) Is there a character you felt differently about in the movies?
Movie Ginny displays about as much charisma as a used teabag.

17) Is there a movie you preferred to the book?
No, I’m loyal to the books. But that said, my love and nostalgia for the series is tied up pretty equally in both the books and the films. I love how easy the films make it to return to the world.

18) Richard Harris or Michael Gambon as Dumbledore?
I like both for different reasons, but I’ll go with Gambon, because I simply can’t imagine Harris’ adorably mild Dumbledore in the darker, more intense scenes of later movies, like his drinking of the Potion of Despair or his duel with Voldemort, for example. I have to say, it annoys me a little how many people say they dislike Gambon purely because of one scene in which he shouts a line that is said to be spoken calmly in the book (you all know what scene I’m talking about). Firstly, it’s just one scene, and secondly, actors are told by writers and directors how to deliver a line, so he almost certainly won’t have changed the intonation by his own accord. *hides*

19) Your top thing (person or event) that wasn’t in the movie that you wanted there the most?
Hermione’s campaigning for house elves’ rights. It was such a great little character building sub-plot that showed us exactly how compassionate and driven she was.

20) If you could remake any of the Harry Potter movies which would it be?
None. I’m too tied up in the nostalgia of them all by this point.

21) Which house was your first gut feeling you’d be a part of?
Ravenclaw. I fell into the trap of thinking all bookworms are automatically Ravenclaws.

22) Which house were you actually sorted into on Pottermore?
Hufflepuff. I’m definitely a Hufflepuff.

23) Which class would be your favourite?
Care of Magical Creatures. I told you, I’m definitely a Hufflepuff.

24) Which spell do you think would be most useful to learn?
Accio, for sure.

25) Which character do you think you’d instantly become friends with?
Luna ❤

26) If you could own one of the three Hallows, which would it be?
The invisibility cloak. The others are a bit too potentially perilous for my liking.

27) Is there any aspect of the books you’d want to change?
I’d cut out the epilogue. Goodness me, I needed some crackers for all that cheese. I understand from Rowling’s perspective why she included it; to try and minimize the inevitable barrage of ‘what happened next?!’, but really, it just felt sickly sweet. Those names… *shudder*

28) Favourite Marauder?
Remus. I think he’s a fascinating character and a genuinely good person, which (incoming controversial opinion) I don’t think can necessarily be said about the other Marauders.

29) If you could bring one character back to life, which would it be?
Hedwig. I’m not even joking. Her accidental death in the books was tragic; her deliberate death in the movies trying to defend Harry was devastating. Yep, definitely a Hufflepuff.

30) Hallows or Horcruxes?
Hallows. I’m not here for that immortal life, thanks.

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Big thanks again to Rachel for tagging me. Since I missed the anniversary and a lot of people will already have been doing this tag, I’ll simply leave it open to anyone who wishes to take part.

The Greek Gods Book Tag

I love books and I love things inspired by mythology, so when I saw that Zuky had created an original tag called The Greek Gods Book Tag, I knew right away that I wanted to give it a go and had the perfect excuse to do so when I was then kindly tagged by Rachel. So, let’s just jump right in.

Zeus: King of the Gods – your favourite book

Despite only reading it a few months ago, Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier shot right to the top of my list of favourite books. Richly atmospheric, deliciously gothic, beautifully written; I still find myself thinking about it all the time.

Hera: Queen of the Gods – a badass female character

The first person I thought of for this was Gretel, from Hansel and Gretel, which is a bit random but why not? It’s my favourite fairy tale, largely because Gretel is one of the very few female characters from classic tales who saves the day herself – after all, it’s her who outwits the witch and frees her brother – nor does she need to be married off to a prince to get her happily ever after.

Rebecca & Hansel and Gretel

Janus: God of Beginnings – your favourite debut(s)

I could pick lots for this, so here are a few that quickly sprung to mind: Church of Marvels by Leslie Parry, Shelter by Jung Yun, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling and Bird Box by Josh Malerman

Church of Marvels, Shelter, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone & Bird Box

Athena: Goddess of Wisdom – your favourite non-fiction book

I really enjoyed Iris Grace by Arabella Carter-Johnson. It’s the real-life story of a young girl (written by her own mother) who slowly breaks out of the confines and solitude of severe autism through her wonderful artistic talent and a beautiful, life changing bond with her pet cat, Thula. It’s a heart-warming story and a gorgeous book, full of examples of Iris’ artwork and photographs of her interacting with Thula.

Aphrodite: Goddess of Love – a book you adore and recommend everyone read (other than your favourite book!)

In terms of being approachable for everyone and universally retable in its theme, the first thing that comes to mind is A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. It’s the story of a young boy named Conor attempting to come to terms with his mother’s ill health whilst being visited at night by a strange monster who pledges to tell him stories if Conor admits to the truth he is trying to hide from both himself and others.

Hades: God of the Underworld – an evil book you wish didn’t exist

I almost never DNF a book, but after suffering through more than 100 pages of Being a Beast by Charles Foster, I just had to relent. It’s a non-fiction book about a man who set out to live like various species supposedly to understand them better, but it was farcical, nonsensical, exploitative and full of contradictions. When he opened the book by telling us he used to be a trophy hunter, contributed to a hunting magazine and still fills his home with taxidermy, we were off to a shaky start, and sadly things only went downhill from there.

Iris Grace, A Monster Calls & Being a Beast

Poseidon: God of the Sea & Earthquakes – a beautiful & ground-breaking book

For this I’m going to pick The Reason I Jump by Naoki Higashida, translated from Japanese by David Mitchell and K.A. Yoshida. It’s actually another non-fiction book about autism, oddly enough, only this one is written from the person living with the condition himself; and he’s only 13 years old! It’s structured mostly like a Q&A, in which he attempts to dispel myths surrounding autism and help people better understand why he behaves a certain way. It’s full of touching, enlightening moments and could help a lot of people to be more open-minded and tolerant.

Vixen by Rosie Garland

Apollo: God of the Arts – a beautiful book cover

I’m going to opt for Vixen by Rosie Garland for this, partly because it’s easily one of my favourite book covers of all time and partly to remind myself to actually read it, since it’s been sitting on my shelves for ages…

Hypnos: God of Sleep – a book so boring you almost fell asleep

Harriet Lane’s book, Her, is billed as a sinister revenge thriller but it’s so tame and never really gets going. I kept waiting for things to ramp up to the next level but it just didn’t happen. When it’s finally revealed, the actual motivation behind the ‘torment’ is frankly ridiculous and practically non-existent, and the ending fell equally as flat for me, unfortunately.

Hermes: Messenger of the Gods – a book you sped through

I recently picked up Blythe Baird’s collection of poetry, Give Me a God I Can Relate To, intending to try the first couple of poems but I was so instantly hooked that I read the whole thing in one sitting. Her work is so accessible yet powerful, touching on themes like gender, sexuality, eating disorders and sexual abuse, always being incredibly poignant and relatable. I think it’s a great collection to try no matter if you’re a seasoned reader of poetry or a complete newcomer to the form.

The Reason I Jump, Her & Give Me a God I Can Relate To

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There we have it! Thanks again to Zuky for creating this great tag and Rachel for inviting me to take part. If you want to get involved, consider yourself tagged by me.

If You Liked This… | Book Tag

Inspired by the tag created on Youtube by the fabulous Jen Campbell, today’s post aims to recommend books based on a like for like basis; where I suggest two books that complement each other in terms of style, content or feel, so that if you enjoyed one, you’ll likely enjoy the other as well. Let’s get started!

Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy and Black Sheep by Susan Hill

Tess of the D’Urbervilles and Black Sheep

A quote on the back of Hill’s Black Sheep actually describes it as very ‘Hardyesque’ and I completely agree. The sense of slow building dread, the tone of melancholy, and the unflinching look at the trappings of rural working class life in historic Britain really called to mind the struggles of Hardy’s Tess.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce and Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and Elizabeth is Missing

These books both feature elderly protagonists, a fact which helps them to stand out in itself. One is the story of a man who sets out to reach an old friend when he hears about her impending death, whilst the other is about a woman suffering from dementia who is convinced her friend has disappeared. Both are poignant, feature memory and confronting the past as major themes, and will warm and break your heart in equal measure.

Wonder by R.J. Palacio and My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece by Annabel Pitcher

Wonder and My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece

I think these books work well together as they are both written from the perspective of very believable child narrators who are dealing with difficult situations. Wonder is about a young boy with a facial disfigurement trying to find acceptance, whilst My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece centres around a boy whose sister has been killed in a terrorist attack, and the ways his family cope.

Our Endless Numbered Days by Claire Fuller and Foxlowe by Eleanor Wasserberg

Our Endless Numbered Days and Foxlowe

Both of these books have a dark, almost menacing edge to them. The former follows a young woman returning to civilisation after years of living in enforced solitude with her father, whilst the latter centres around a remote commune with a possible cult-like mentality. Both feature child protagonists who grow into adulthood during the story and explore themes of manipulation and abuse.

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James and Pharos by Alice Thompson

The Turn of the Screw and Pharos

Even though Pharos is a modern book, it had a timeless feel that made it read almost like a classic to me, and in particular called back vibes of The Turn of the Screw. Both are ghost stories with a creepy atmosphere and a secluded setting that feature unreliable narrators, meaning we’re never entirely sure how much we can trust what they are telling us, leaving doubts as to what is real and what isn’t.

The Book Collector by Alice Thompson and Bodies of Water by V.H. Leslie

The Book Collector and Bodies of Water

The second of Thompson’s books I’ve featured here, The Book Collector is a very gothic feeling story about madness, murder and the treatment of women. Leslie’s Bodies of Water felt very reminiscent of it in tone, as it also explores historical approaches to women’s mental health and has a dark, twisted edge.

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Thanks for reading! If you’d like to get involved, consider yourself tagged, or simply recommend me pairs of books in the comments.

The Diverse Books Tag

Let’s promote diversity in literature.

I was kindly tagged by the lovely Tash over at The Bookie Monsters to take part in The Diverse Books Tag. I’m a big supporter of the call for better representation in literature, so am more than happy to get involved. I’ve included mostly books I’ve already read, but also chose a few books from my TBR to encourage myself to keep reading diversely.

You can find the original version of this tag here, but without further ado, let’s get started!

• Find a book starring a lesbian character

For this I’ve picked A Portable Shelter by Kirsty Logan, a series of interwoven short stories that follows a lesbian couple as they await the birth of their first child, taking turns to tell it fairy tales that mask truths about our own world.

• Find a book with a Muslim protagonist

I’ve decided to go with I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai. I’m well aware that Malala isn’t a protagonist but rather a living, breathing, and quite remarkable human being, but I thought it would be nice to include some non-fiction, in the spirit of diversity. Malala is a teenage girl who campaigns for peace and girls’ education rights who survived an assassination attempt by the Taliban.

• Find a book set in Latin America

Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez is a highly respected Latin American novelist and I haven’t read any of his work yet, so I’ve picked one of his most widely celebrated novels, One Hundred Years of Solitude.

• Find a book about a person with a disability

Marie-Laure, the protagonist of All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, is a young blind French girl forced to flee with her father during WWII. For a book that follows a blind character, I thought the prose itself and the imagery were wonderfully vivid.

• Find a Science-Fiction or Fantasy book with a POC protagonist

For this I’ve decided to go with the Saga comic series by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples. I’ve chosen this mainly because it has several POC characters, most notably Alana, the kick-ass principle heroine. However, I also chose it because an interview with writer Vaughan stuck in my mind in which he admitted that the racial diversity is due to the artist, Fiona Staples, who asked, ‘why does Alana have to be white?’, and in doing so brought to his attention his own habit of assuming characters are white by default, which I think is a fascinating topic and something many of us are guilty of.

• Find a book set in (or about) any country in Africa

To throw a little more non-fiction into the mix, I’ve gone with We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, a very short and approachable book in which Nigerian author Adichie compared her experiences as a woman in both the US and Africa, which I found interesting. I would also like to try some of her fiction, which is often spoken of very highly.

• Find a book written by an Indigenous or Native author

I’m going to cheat slightly with this one because the author, Jean Craighead George, was not Native as far as I’m aware, but her book, Julie of the Wolves, follows an indigenous Inuit girl torn between her native culture and the pressures of the outside world who flees her home and, lost in the Alaskan tundra, is taken in by a pack of wolves. This caught my attention years ago but I never got round to reading it, so I’m glad this question brought it back to mind.

• Find a book set in South Asia (Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, etc.)

For this I’ve chosen Parvana’s Journey by Deborah Ellis, which follows a young girl’s perilous trip across war-torn Afghanistan to try and find her family. This is technically the sequel to The Breadwinner, which I also recommend, but despite having read this book many years ago, I particularly remember being moved by the ending, and it has stayed with me ever since.

• Find a book with a biracial protagonist

Celeste Ng’s Everything I Never Told You centres around a mixed race family with a Chinese father and an American mother in 1970s Ohio. The book opens with the death of the family’s ‘favourite child’, and follows the ways they deal with this grief and try to understand the nature of her demise. One of the major sub-plots revolves around the grandmother’s previous attempts to stop her daughter marrying an Asian man, highlighting the racial tensions that existed at the time.

• Find a book starring a transgender character or about transgender issues

Stella from The Sunlight Pilgrims by Jenni Fagan is a fantastic character, who just so happens to be transgender. Feisty, brave, funny and inquisitive, she has a wonderful relationship with her supportive mother, Constance, and along with a newcomer to the remote Scottish caravan park they call home, they try to find their place in a world they no longer understand for different reasons, in this quiet character driven story set against the backdrop of an impending Ice Age.

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There we have it. I’m going to tag Stephanie and driftinglexi, if they would like to do it, as well as anyone else who wishes to take part.

Bookish Book Lover Tag

Let’s chat about books!

I saw this tag on whimsywriter3’s blog and instantly knew I wanted to take part. Let’s just get right into it. We’re encouraged to use the tag’s banner and share lots of book covers, so let’s get started.

• What book are you currently reading?

I’m reading High-Rise by JG Ballard, because I liked the look of the recent movie adaptation but wanted to read the book first. It’s about a self-contained community that lives in a giant skyscraper filled with every possible amenity – a school, restaurants, swimming pools, etc. – which begins to degenerate into fierce rivalry between the floors due to a toxic hierarchy within the tower.

High-Rise by JG Ballard

• What’s the last book you finished?

The fifth volume of Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples. I’d been putting it off for ages because I didn’t like the idea of being fully caught up and having to wait for the next release but I couldn’t resist any longer.

Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples

• Favourite book you read this year?

There have been a few gems but my heart was stolen by Church of Marvels by Leslie Parry. We follow an eclectic mix of characters as their lives weave together in increasingly intricate and heart-breaking ways.

Church of Marvels by Leslie Parry

• What genre have you read most this year?

That’s tough because I read very broadly. Having a quick look through my Goodreads, I’d probably say something like literary fiction.

• What genre have you read least this year?

Well I haven’t read any erotica, so does that count? If we’re talking about a genre I actually have read some of, I’d probably say high fantasy.

• What genre do you want to read more of?

I’ve been getting back into thrillers again recently, which I’ve been enjoying. I have a goal of reading more non-fiction this year, as well as more classics, though the latter is arguably more to do with an era than an actual genre.

• How many books have you read this year, and what’s your goal?

So far I’ve read 64 books towards a total of 100. I’m getting there!

• What’s the last book you bought?

I buy so many it’s genuinely hard to keep track of what order I picked them up, but I know I recently acquired Human Acts by Han Kang, The Widow by Fiona Barton, Sunlight Pilgrims by Jenni Fagan and What is Not Yours is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi.

Human Acts, The Widow, The Sunlight Pilgrims and What is Not Yours is Not Yours

• What book are you saving up to buy next?

If we’re talking literally then The Sculptor by Scott McCloud comes to mind. It’s a pretty mammoth graphic novel that can be quite pricey, so I haven’t picked it up yet.

The Sculptor by Scott McCloud

• How many books did you check out last library visit?

Truth be told, I haven’t used the library in ages. I used it lots when I was young – my gran would take me each time I went to stay with my grandparents and I would pick a couple of books to read during my visit. Sadly, it’s not the best library in the world for adult readers though, being tiny and carrying a very limited selection. Given that I read so broadly – and often seek out lesser known, obscure titles – it’s just not practical. I am a big believer in the importance of libraries though, so I wish I could use it more.

• What’s a book you can’t wait to read?

I can’t wait for the second illustrated Harry Potter to come out later in the year. Jim Kay’s interpretation of the world was incredible. As for a book I already own, I’m excited to try The Bone Clocks – my first David Mitchell. I keep putting it off because it’s so long, but that’s stupid and I hope I can push forward with it soon.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and The Bone Clocks

• What’s a series you’d recommend to everyone?

Well, Harry Potter kind of goes without saying. Aside from that, I’d say The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness. It opens in a world where everyone can hear everyone else’s thoughts in a chaotic mass known as Noise. When our protagonist stumbles upon an area of complete silence and exposes a secret that changes everything he thought he knew, he is forced to flee his home, sparking an epic, heart-wrenching and pulse-pounding adventure.

The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness

• Who’s an author you’re hoping writes more?

Kirsty Logan. She’s written three books thus far, all of which I loved. Her work is heavily influenced by fairy tales and mythology, which is right up my street.

• A few books your heart adores?

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan, Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden and Bird Box by Josh Malerman.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, The Gracekeepers, Memoirs of a Geisha and Bird Box

• What series’ coming conclusion makes you sad?

I believe the Fairyland series by Catherynne M. Valente recently came to an end but thankfully I’ve only read two so far, so I still have a few to keep me going.

Book one in Valente’s Fairyland series

• What books are on your wish-list?

I couldn’t list them all, we’d be here all day. A few of the recent additions to my ‘to read’ list include Spectacles by Sue Perkins, Victorian Fairy Tales by Michael Newton, The Stone Gods by Jeanette Winterson and Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates.

Spectacles, Victorian Fairy Tales, The Stone Gods and Between the World and Me

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There we have it! If you’d like to take part, consider yourself tagged.

The Goodreads Book Tag

Let’s chat about books.

I saw this tag floating around the interwebs ages ago but never got round to actually doing it. I use Goodreads quite a lot, so do feel free to add me as a friend; I always like to see what people are reading. It’s the only way to keep track of the never ending stream of books I want to read. And so I thought this tag seemed fun, and I like that you could answer the same questions every now and then and get different answers each time. So, let’s just jump right in.

• What was the last book you marked as ‘read’?

That was Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. I really enjoyed the subtle approach it took to its thought-provoking themes and ideas. We follow a woman as she reminisces about her time at a strange boarding school and the relationships she forged there. If you think I’m being vague, I am. If you’ve read it, you’ll know why. I’m intrigued to try more of his work now.

• What are you currently reading?

I’m reading The Time Machine by H.G. Wells as part of my ongoing goal to read more classics in 2016. It does have that ‘classic’ feel, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised as to how approachable the language is and it’s certainly interesting seeing where so much of modern sci-fi evolved from.

• What was the last book you marked as ‘To Read’?

I’m constantly adding new books that I hear about but the most recent is Human Acts by Han Kang, a piece of translated fiction that’s really making waves at the moment. It centres around the long-lasting impact of a student uprising that ends in brutality.

• What book do you plan to read next?

I’m hoping to read We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, a non-fiction essay that’s also had a lot of buzz recently.

• Do you use the star rating system?

I do rate everything I read, but I have issues with Goodreads’ particular system. Firstly, I’m one of the many who wish they would let us use half-stars to better differentiate between reads, and using their guidelines, the only negative rating is one star, which seems a little disproportionate to me and encourages harsh marking, I think. Essentially I tend to rate along these rough lines:

5* = I loved it
4* = I really liked it
3* = It was okay, or, I liked it but had some issues
2* = I didn’t enjoy it
1* = I hated it or couldn’t even finish it (I very rarely use this)

• Are you doing a 2016 Reading Challenge?

I am! I’ve set my target at 100 books and have already passed the half-way mark, so I’m well on track, which is a nice feeling.

• Do you have a wishlist?

Not officially, but essentially everything in my ‘to read’ list is something I’m excited to get hold of.

• What book do you plan to buy next?

All the books. All the time… I am actually hoping to try and reduce my book buying a little, since I’ve been particularly indulgent in my spending recently and it’s my birthday next month, so should receive a few new books then. I am planning to buy myself some more Alice Thompson books soon however, having read and loved The Book Collector last month.

• Do you have any favorite quotes, would you like to share a few?

I had a quick look through the quotes I’ve saved on Goodreads and chose a couple to share:

“A book… it’s a world all on its own too. A world made of words, where you live for a while.” – Patrick Ness, More Than This.

“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” – Neil Gaiman, Coraline.

• Who are your favorite authors?

There are many books I love and authors who I want to read more of, but those that already stand out and who I feel I’ve read enough of their work to consider them favourites are Kirsty Logan, Patrick Ness and J.K. Rowling.

• Have you joined any groups?
  

I did join a couple when I first created a Goodreads account but truth be told I haven’t explored them much. It’s a feature I should probably try out more.

• How many shelves do you have on Goodreads?

I currently have 11 bookshelves. I like to keep things fairly simple and general, with shelves for things like ‘poetry’, ‘short story collections’, ‘graphic novels’, ‘non-fiction’ and such like; nothing too specific and out there like some people prefer.

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There we have it. As I said, please feel free to add me on Goodreads to keep up with what I’m reading and so I can see what you’ve all been enjoying. If you’d like to do this tag, please consider yourself tagged.