Reading Challenge Update #2

At this point in time I feel as though I am going to fall embarrassingly short of completing this challenge.

May was a pretty hectic month with a few changes happening at work leading me to be very busy not to mention my first semester back at uni was coming to a close meaning assignments and exams became my number one priority.

Finding time to read has always been difficult for me which is why I began this challenge. It has forced me to actually put reading on the to do list and make me find time to relax and read. In doing this I have found I am cutting out meaningless television watching so therefore my overall feeling of productivity has increased.

So overall while I am behind I have already taken some pretty awesome positives away from this!

So here we go, the next update on my journey through the 2015 Reading Challenge. I feel like this time I have managed to read a pretty good range of novels and I have enjoyed ticking the different categories off my list!

A book more than 100 years old: Mansfield Park by Jane Austen

This book was published in 1814 making it now over 200 years old! This is classic Austen with a mix-up of themes. I can never say a bad word about Austen’s ability to make the everyday lives of people fascinating however this was my least favourite of hers. I think this was due to some more modern exploration of relationships and I ended up feeling disappointed that her characters where so predictable. But maybe that was the point. Maybe she was just highlighting the predictability of human nature…

A book with more than 500 pages: The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith

Robert Galbraith aka J.K. Rowling paints a very vivid picture of London and the lives of the individuals in which the story revolves around. I do place particular emphasis on Rowling’s ability as a writer to describe in a way that stirs such strong imagery in the mind as though I just saw a film. I have been wanting to read this book for a little while now and had purchased it before beginning this challenge, but at 550 pages I thought it a perfect candidate to slip into this spot. Very glad I got around to picking this one up and it has even sparked my interest to read more crime fiction novels.

A book you own but have never read: Above All Things by Tanis Rideout

I purchased this book off a sale table for $7 one day on my lunch break and it has since sat on my bookshelf always staying on the bottom of my reading pile. What drew me to this book was the quote on the front by Alison Pick, ‘Adventure, tragedy, mystery and a deeply moving love story. I could not put it down. Prepare to be dazzled’. I knew nothing about the story when I started reading, so it wasn’t until telling someone at work about the story that I decided to google the main character. This is when I realised George Mallory was a real person! I was quick to close the screen as I didn’t want to find out what happened in the end. It is a work of fiction based off true events of exploration, determination and discovery. I found it a very interesting read that takes you on an emotional journey.

A book with nonhuman characters: Animal Farm by George Orwell

I needed a book like this to help me power through this challenge. It is a concise but influential story and one that I should have read a long time ago. When looking at this category I thought it would be a great opportunity to finally read this one, and as an added bonus I could get through it in a morning! This novella is a very clever satire on Stalin and the Soviet Union where the Russian Revolution is told from the perspective of farm animals. A tale of revolution, uprising, and a distopian world where animals and humans are indistinguishable.

A book with magic: UnEnchanted: An Unfortunate Fairy Tale (Book One) by Chansa Hahn

This was an ibooks find when I was looking for inspiration. What attracted me to this teenage fiction story was that it was told around the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm. I actually expected a lot more magic but as it was only the first book in what is a five part series most of it was setting the scene for future stories. Very interesting plot lines based around known fairy tales with modern adaptions, such as Hansel and Gretel and Little Red Riding Hood, and basic character development that you would expect in teenage fantasy fiction. Not my favourite genre and I probably wouldn’t rush to read the remainder of the series.

A book set in the future: The Time Machine by H.G. Wells

A quick read which is what I needed to get through a few more categories in this challenge. I have previously read The Island of Doctor Moreau for a uni class so I knew a bit of what to expect from Wells. The premise of this book is very simple, a scientist invents a time machine and uses it to travel a long way into the future where civilisation is unrecognisable. Very weird interpretations of the human world especially from a scientific point of view. I am unsure how to take this book, if it is just strange or more of a satire on the impeding doom humans face. Wells I believe highlights the fact that maybe we are better off not knowing what the future holds.

If you missed the first post in the series check it out here.

What book are you reading at the moment? Do you have any suggestions for what I should read next?

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