Tag: 2017 book challenge

Cryptonomicon

Neal Stephenson is smarter than I am. By a long shot. I really deserve a medal for finishing this book. Not because the book was bad, not at all. But because it was so math and computer science heavy that I was really lost at times. I still enjoyed the book, though, and gave it 4 stars.

For the 2017 book challenge, I had to read an espionage thriller. And Goodreads told me this book was along those lines. And it was, but not wholly. But let me tell ya, I’m counting it! Part of the plot dealt with WWII and the Enigma code, which obviously works. The story was told from a variety of perspectives and time periods. During WWII, we have Laurence Waterhouse, who is a codebreaker, Bobby Shaftoe, who is a Marine, and Goto Dengo, who is a Japanese military man. In present day, (book was published in 2002, so present day enough) we have Randy Waterhouse, Laurence’s grandson, and Amy Shaftoe, (I’m going to leave her lineage a mystery because it isn’t fully revealed at first, but yes, the last name is important) in the Philippines trying to set up some Internet whatnots.

I don’t do math. I have to count on my fingers. So, the math in this book is way WAY more than I can even comprehend. But that’s okay. The story was interesting enough to keep my attention, but I imagine a math/computer person would be in heaven with this book. There was a lot of logic puzzle solving as well. At 900+ pages, I feel like it could have been condensed without missing a lot, but overall I still enjoyed the book.

Tags 2017 book challenge, books and reading, crytonomicon, enigma, espionage thriller, neal stephenson, reading, world war 2

The Underground Railroad

Sometimes simplicity is better than complexity. And this book is a perfect example of this idea. Last year, I read two books by Toni Morrison. She is second to none, honestly. However, her writing is so dense that it takes a long time to get through her books. And this isn’t a bad thing at all. I am in awe of her command of the written word. Gabriel Garcia Marquez is another author that comes to mind for being complex. The language is meant to be savored.

But there are times when language distracts from the purity of the story, so simple is better. And I say this with tremendous respect and appreciation for the simplicity because sometimes the story itself needs to shine. This is what I kept thinking while reading The Underground Railroad. And it’s not that the author, Colson Whitehead, isn’t an amazing writer, because he absolutely is. But the language was interesting, but reigned in and appropriate, which allowed for the characters and plot to be the main focus. Sometimes less is better.

The story starts with Cora living as a slave on the Randall plantation. Quickly, her friend Caesar asks her to escape with him, knowing full well that if they are caught their punishment will be horrific. However, they take the risk and run for the Underground Railroad. Escaped slaves were often hunted down by slave catchers, and this book explores that. A man named Ridgeway has made it his mission to find them. Cora has a variety of life experiences, getting tastes of freedom then getting them ripped away. She learns who she can trust simply by the look in their eyes and their posture. No matter what her situation, she tries to find the best in it, always looking behind her, though.

This book doesn’t mince words when it comes to the terrible life most slaves led. Their punishments are beyond harsh. Their lives reduced to a simple existence. This is why the language Whitehead uses is so important. This story is too important to tell with clever turns of phrase and elaborate, unnecessary details. Cora’s life and soul jumps off the page from the moment we meet her. As hard as this book is to stomach, it was beautifully written and absolutely worth reading.

Tags 2017 book challenge, books and reading, colson whitehead, reading, slavery, the underground railroad

books and reading

2017 Book Challenge

Popsugar has released their 2017 book challenge!

Here is a clean copy of it. See below for what I am hoping to read in each category

2017 book challenge

Book recommended by a librarian:
Book that’s been on your TBR list for too long:
A book of letters:
An audiobook:
Book by a person of color:
Book with one of the four seasons in the title:
A book that is a story within a story:
A book with multiple authors:
An espionage thriller:
A book with a cat on the cover:
A book by an author who uses a pseudonym:
A bestseller from a genre you don’t normally read:
A book by or about a person with a disability:
A book involving travel:
A book with a subtitle:
A book published in 2017:
A book involving a mythical creature:
A book you’ve read before that never fails to make you smile:
A book about food:
A book with career advice:
A book from a nonhuman perspective:
A steampunk novel:
A book with a red spine:
A book set in the wilderness:
A book you loved as a child:
A book by an author from a country you’ve never visited:
A book with a title that is a character’s name:
A novel set in wartime:
A book with an unreliable narrator:
A book with pictures:
A book with a main character that’s a different ethnicity than you:
A book about an interesting woman:
A book set in two different time periods:
A book with a month or a day of the week in the title:
A book set in a hotel:
A book written by someone you admire:
A book that’s becoming a movie in 2017:
A book set around a holiday other than Christmas:
The first book in a series you’ve never read before:
A book you bought on a trip:

More categories for the advanced reader

A book recommended by an author you love:
A bestseller from 2016:
A book with a family member term in the title:
A book that takes place over a character’s life span:
A book about an immigrant or a refugee:
A book from a genre/subgenre that you’ve never heard of:
A book with an eccentric character:
A book that’s more than 800 pages:
A book you got from a used book sale:
A book that’s mentioned in another book:
A book about a difficult topic:
A book based on mythology:

Book recommended by a librarian: TBD
Book that’s been on your TBR list for too long: The Three Musketeers
A book of letters: The Historian
An audiobook: Twenty-Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
Book by a person of color: Parable of the Sower
Book with one of the four seasons in the title: Winter’s Tale
A book that is a story within a story: Jellicoe Road
A book with multiple authors: Rage Against the Night
An espionage thriller: Cryptonomicon
A book with a cat on the cover: Master and the Margarita
A book by an author who uses a pseudonym: the Cuckoo’s Calling
A bestseller from a genre you don’t normally read: Way of Kings (fantasy, ugh)
A book by or about a person with a disability: Ghost Boy
A book involving travel: Well of Lost Plots (time travel!)
A book with a subtitle: The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific
A book published in 2017: The Song Rising (third book in the Bone Season series)
A book involving a mythical creature: Dreams of Gods and Monsters
A book you’ve read before that never fails to make you smile: Subtle Knife
A book about food: The Man Who Ate Everything
A book with career advice: Masterminds and wingmen (I am raising two boys)
A book from a nonhuman perspective: Watership Down
A steampunk novel: The Golden Compass
A book with a red spine: Sanctuary (Faulkner!)
A book set in the wilderness: All the Pretty Horses
A book you loved as a child: Sweet Valley Confidential (loved the series in middle school)
A book by an author from a country you’ve never visited: HP and the Cursed Child
A book with a title that is a character’s name: Lisey’s Story
A novel set in wartime: 1984
A book with an unreliable narrator: Annihilation (love this series!!)
A book with pictures: TBD
A book with a main character that’s a different ethnicity than you: The Joy Luck Club
A book about an interesting woman: TBD but this won’t be hard to find
A book set in two different time periods: It
A book with a month or a day of the week in the title: December
A book set in a hotel: The Hotel on Place Vendome: Life, Death, and Betrayal at the Hotel Ritz in Paris
A book written by someone you admire: Mycroft Holmes (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a childhood hero of mine, and his opinion pieces are fantastic)
A book that’s becoming a movie in 2017: A Monster Calls (a reread. What an amazing book)
A book set around a holiday other than Christmas: The Halloween Tree
The first book in a series you’ve never read before: The Young Elites
A book you bought on a trip: American Pastoral

A book recommended by an author you love: The Troop (Stephen King recommended)
A bestseller from 2016: The Underground Railroad
A book with a family member term in the title: Daughters of the North
A book that takes place over a character’s life span: Life After Life
A book about an immigrant or a refugee: Alexander Hamilton
A book from a genre/subgenre that you’ve never heard of: S by JJ Abrams (Ergodic literature)
A book with an eccentric character: Sherlock Holmes
A book that’s more than 800 pages: Carrion Comfort
A book you got from a used book sale: the second Way of Kings book
A book that’s mentioned in another book: Tales of Beedle the Bard
A book about a difficult topic: The Hour I First Believed (about school shooting)
A book based on mythology: Lost Hero

Tags 2017 book challenge, books and reading, reading