Books of 2016- Installment #19

91. The Book of Kells by R.A. MacAvoy
This is book was written in 1985 and for some reason was never really on my radar. I can't say why I suddenly "discovered" it, but its premise intrigued me... an artist and his lover time travel into the past to avenge a viking attack... I wondered how the Book of Kells figured into this. It was an interesting read... I learned quite a bit about Irish history... well, tenth century history anyway. I did find the beginning hard to follow, but once the book was over, I kept finding myself drifting back into the past and wondering what was happening now. A book that doesn't leave you...

92. Hot Toy by Jennifer Crusie
I love Jennifer Cruise! This is a novella that I somehow missed. It's a quick, fun little read, it a little early for Christmas what with Thanksgiving still on its way.

93. The Red Garden by Alice Hoffman
I love Alice Hoffman's writing. I keep going back to her when I need a little something that's missing. I grew up in New England and many of her books, like this one, are set in Massachusetts. And there are times, like in this book, when I'm completely transported back to New England. She has this one sentence about the black-eyed Susans and I'm instantly back in my childhood, seeing things anew. Ah, the power of a book...

I picked this quote because in these tumultuous times- post 2016 election/pre-Trump inauguration- I thought this quote appropriate...

94. A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray
This is a multiverse trilogy, which made me think about Dark Matter since I just read that this year too. It's very different and basically the only thing they share in common is jumping between verses. The authors handled the how differently. This one was lighter and definitely aimed more at young adults.

95. The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler
 This is a really interesting family story that spans generations in one family. It's about familial bonds and how they can bind us and tear us up. Very interesting.

Books of 2016- Installment #18

86. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
October is the perfect month to read this. Now, it's a graded reader that I read to do with my students, so while it's not the original, I've read it 3 times this month!!

87. The Selkie Bride by Melanie Jackson
This is a story set in the 1920s about an American woman of Scottish descent who moves to a Scottish isle after her Scottish husband's death. She finds a world full of creatures from the world of the fey. She (mostly) embraces this life without modern (and think the 20s idea of modern) conveniences and eventually adjusts whole-heartedly to a life with fey. 

88. This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
This is the second novel in the trilogy but the third story. There's a novella between These Broken Stars and this one. I really enjoyed the first two stories and just devoured this one. It was a rainy weekend and I hadn't been able to read much this month. I want to dive into the third one but will read at least one book between them because I like to linger for awhile before moving forward.

89. Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
This book has been getting a lot of buzz, so I put a copy on hold. I didn't think much about it since I was just waiting for it to come. Shortly before it came I discovered that it was written by the author of the Wayward Pines series, which I didn't enjoy and was almost unwilling to read this one because of my feelings. Still once I had it on my Kindle I decided to read at least the first chapter. I was quite hooked, so even though I read some truly mixed reviews about it, I read it to the end!

A side note, I don't usually quote the quoting of someone else in a book, and I usually try not to pick a quote from the literal beginning of a book, but this one is so good. Good on its own but also good for the book. He chose wisely when he began his book with this one!

 














90. Their Fractured Light by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner  
This is the conclusion the Starbound series. I definitely loved this series, and it ends in a wonderful way. I will say, though, that the first one was my favorite. Still, I can't help but be moved by the quote, "To be alone in this universe is an emptiness none of us could bear." This resonates with me rather deeply.