50 Books Challenge 2013 Update

As you know I'm in a book challenge. Lately I haven't read any books, at least not enought to reach my goal this year. I read 37 books so far, but I'm way behind, because it's only a month and a half away from the new year. My job is taking all my energy at the moment, so reading isn't something I do very often. I do relax from time to time, because I still write, scrapbook and watch movies. My mind is set for those things, I think at any time, but reading just isn't. So I'm no longer doing this challenge, but that doesn't mean I will never read again. It's just reading without the pressure of completing a goal or reading a certain ammount of books within a timeframe.

50 Books Challenge 2013 Update - October

I've been super busy and I really don't have the energy to read much. So I only read two books, and they were actually very small books too. I'm not proud of myself and I already know I'm probably not going to reach my goal this year. But if I can't find the joy of reading now, it's better to slwowdown a bit.

# 36. The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick - 5/ 5
# 37. Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk - 5/ 5

Average: 5

Favorite of the month: The Silver Linings Playbook

Because I only read two book in october, I'm continuing that theme in novemeber.

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 37: Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

Title: Fight Club
Author: Chuck Palahniuk
Story: Every weekend, in the basements and parking lots of bars across the country, young men with white-collar jobs and failed lives take off their shoes and shirts and fight each other barehanded just as long as they have to. Then they go back to those jobs with blackened eyes and loosened teeth and the sense that they can handle anything. Fight club is the invention of Tyler Durden, projectionist, waiter, and dark, anarchic genius, and it's only the beginning of his plans for violent revenge on an empty consumer-culture world.
Start: october 14th 2013
End: october 31st 2013
Comment: Off course I've seen the movie, which is amazing, but I was Always curious about the novel. How was the story initialy told? The plot basically revolves around an insomniac. Our unnamed protagonist goes to support groups to cure his insomnia. He soon get addicted to those support groups and meets another person, Marla, who 'fakes' to get into the groups. When he meets Tyler, he joins fight club. The movie skips about a third of the book. Even if you think you know the movie, you really need to read the book. Especially when it comes to Tyler Durden, his philosophy becomes more clear. Conclusion, both book and movie are awesome!
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 36: The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick

Title: The Silver Linings Playbook
Author: Matthew Quick
Story: Meet Pat. Pat has a theory: his life is a movie produced by God. And his God-given mission is to become physically fit and emotionally literate, whereupon God will ensure a happy ending for him -- the return of his estranged wife Nikki. (It might not come as a surprise to learn that Pat has spent time in a mental health facility.) The problem is, Pat's now home, and everything feels off. No one will talk to him about Nikki; his beloved Philadelphia Eagles keep losing; he's being pursued by the deeply odd Tiffany; his new therapist seems to recommend adultery as a form of therapy. Plus, he's being hunted by Kenny G!
Start: october 1st 2013
End: october 13th 2013
Comment: We meet Pat, who was just released from a psychiatric facility. He moves in with his parents, starts working out and is conviced he's going to reunite with his wife Nikki. We see the story through the eyes of Pat and I really liked him. He was such an unpredictable, unreliable narrator that I never knew what was coming next. That's what made it so amazing. Tiffany was also a great character and her and Pat together... well, they are not your average duo. With all the bad things happening in Pat's life, does everything turn out the way Pat wanted it to eventually? No. But it does turn out just as it should: with two broken souls coming together, hoping, and believing in the silver lining. Which made me believe in it too.
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challenge Update - September

My goal was four book this month, because the series I wanted to read had four books. I'm proud of myself because I managed!

# 32. Red Dragon by Thomas Harris (Hannibal Lecter # 1) - 4,5/ 5
# 33. The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris (Hannibal Lecter # 2) - 5/ 5
# 34. Hannibal by Thomas Harris (Hannibal Lecter # 3) - 3/ 5
# 35. Hannibal Rising by Thomas Harris (Hannibal Lecter # 4) - 3,5/ 5

Average: 4

Favorite of the month: The Silence of the Lambs

Last year I also did this theme, so I'm going for it again this year.

I have made a list of books I want to read for this month. Some of them are children's books, some of them are made into movies I absolutely love.

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 35: Hannibal Rising by Thomas Harris (Hannibal Lecter # 4)

Title: Hannibal Rising(Hannibal Lecter # 4)
Author: Thomas Harris
Story: Hannibal Lecter emerges from the nightmare of the Eastern Front, a boy in the snow, mute, with a chain around his neck. He seems utterly alone, but he has brought his demons with him. Hannibal’s uncle, a noted painter, finds him in a Soviet orphanage and brings him to France, where Hannibal will live with his uncle and his uncle’s beautiful and exotic wife, Lady Murasaki. Lady Murasaki helps Hannibal to heal. With her help he flourishes, becoming the youngest person ever admitted to medical school in France. But Hannibal’s demons visit him and torment him. When he is old enough, he visits them in turn. He discovers he has gifts beyond the academic, and in that epiphany, Hannibal Lecter becomes death’s prodigy
Start: september 28th 2013
End: september 30th 2013
Comment: This books completes the circle, the final book in the Hannibal Lecter series. And it's nothing like the other three. The book opens during Hitler's 'Blitzkrieg' operation during World War II, when Axis troops spread across Europe and placed the majority of it under Nazi control. The Lecter family, which consists of the cultured Count and Countess as well as their talented son Hannibal and his little sister, Mischa, flees to their cabin in the woods of Poland to escape from the invading SS. The rest of the book deals with Hannibal as a disturbed teenager trying to deal with the pain over the loss with his sister when he is taken in by his uncle Robert and his dazzling wife, Lady Muraski, and subsequently his life as a young medical student in Paris, where he finally begins planning his revenge on the fiends who murdered his sister. The character of Hannibal still retains his wit and remains fascinating, but is a little more reckless and humane than his older self, though he's still just as delightfully brilliant as ever. You get to know Hannibal Lecter more, but some questions about him will remain unanswered. Maybe that makes Lecter more mysterious, but I really wanted to get the answers. Especially because it's the last book. But at the end you are left with a greater sense of who Hannibal Lecter is.
Rating: 3,5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 - 34: Hannibal by Thomas Harris (Hannibal Lecter # 3)

Title: Hannibal(Hannibal Lecter # 3)
Author: Thomas Harris
Story: Seven years have passed since Dr. Lecter escaped from custody. And for seven years he's been at large, free to savor the scents, the essences, of an unguarded world. But intruders have entered Dr. Lecter's sanctuary, piercing his new identity, sensing the evil that surrounds him. For the multimillionaire Hannibal left maimed, for a corrupt Italian policeman. and for FBI agent Clarice Starling, who once stood before Lecter and who has never been the same, the hunt for Hannibal Lecter has begun. All of them, in their separate ways, want to find Dr. Lecter. And all three will get their wish. But only one will live long enough to savor the reward.
Start: september 23rd 2013
End: september 28th 2013
Comment: Of all the books in this series, this was the one I was least looking forward to. And, so far, this is the one I like the least. I did enjoy it to some point, but I just didn't like the ending. I know that no one expected this, because it is surprising. For me it's a bit unbelievable. I was sorry to see Clarice Starling come to such a sorry end. The character Mason Verger was a revolting and fascinating villain. I easily was more sympathetic toward Dr Lecter. There was lots of Harris's trademark detail and atmosphere and that's what I liked. I just did't enjoy this book as much as the previews two.
Rating: 3/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 33: The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris (Hannibal Lecter # 2)

Title: The Silence of the Lambs(Hannibal Lecter # 2)
Author: Thomas Harris
Story: There's a killer on the loose who knows that beauty is only skin deep, and a trainee investigator who's trying to save her own hide. The only man that can help is locked in an asylum. But he's willing to put a brave face on - if it will help him escape.
Start: September 10th 2013
End: September 22nd 2013
Comment: This is the perfect book when it's raining outside, you got the lights on in your house and you're curled up on the couch with a hot cup of tea. This book is chillingly creepy. Hannibal Lecter is one of the scariest villains even created, but I thin Buffalo Bill is even creepier. His whole act and attitude is freaking me out. Clarice Starling is a strong female character, someone you can easily sympathize with and relate to. You feel her fear and strength. The dialogues between her and Hannibal are the strongest bits in the book. They captivate you from beginning to end. It's a fantastic book and now I think te movie is pretty true to it. Great read!
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 32: Red Dragon by Thomas Harris (Hannibal Lecter # 1)

Title: Red Dragon (Hannibal Lecter # 1)
Author: Thomas Harris
Story: Will Graham stands in a silent, empty house communing with a killer. An FBI instructor with a gift for hunting madmen, Graham knows what his murderer looks like, how he thinks, and what he did to his victims after they died. Now Graham must try to catch him. But to do it, he must feel the heat of a killer's brain, draw on the macabre advice of a dangerous mental patient, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, and follow a trail of microscopic clues to the place where another family has already been chosen to die--and where an innocent woman has found the Dragon first.
Start: September 1st 2013
End: September 10th 2013
Comment: The first book in the Hannibal Lecter series, this is what started it all. It gave us the cannibal we can't help but love. We follow two different minds: the mind of a killer and the mind of the man hunting the killer. Will Graham helps investigate the murders of two different families, taking place on two separate occasions. Graham is a likeable character, although he is flawed. But those are the best characters, aren't they? He has a hard time living a normal live. Hannibal Lecter is barely in this book, but the part that he is involved in leaves a mark. It's memorable and gives you a hard time to forget. Kicking of with this chilling thriller makes me even more exciting about the other books. Three more Lecter stories to go...
Rating: 4,5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 Update - August

Only three books this month, I blame work. I started at a new workplace and there were a lot of new impressions. I tried to read a little bit every day, but I was jut very tired.

# 29. The Hive by Gill Hornby - 3,5/ 5
# 30. Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling - 2/ 5
# 31. City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare (The Mortal Instruments # 4)- 4/ 5

Average: 3,2

Favorite of the month: City of Fallen Agels

I really have to read four books this month, because the theme I choose is a series of four books.

I recently rewatched "The Silence of the Lambs", so that's how I got this idea.

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 31: City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare (The Mortal Instrumens # 4)

Title: City of Fallen Angels (The Mortal Instruments # 4)
Author: Cassandra Clare
Story: The Mortal War is over, and sixteen-year-old Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her. She's training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power. Her mother is getting married to the love of her life. Downworlders and Shadowhunters are at peace at last. And - most importantly of all - she can finally call Jace her boyfriend. But nothing comes without a price. Someone is murdering Shadowhunters who used to be in Valentine's Circle, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second bloody war. Clary's best friend, Simon, can't help her. His mother just found out that he's a vampire and now he's homeless. Everywhere he turns, someone wants him on their side - along with the power of the curse that's wrecking his life. And they're willing to do anything to get what they want. At the same time he's dating two beautiful, dangerous girls - neither of whom knows about the other one. When Jace begins to pull away from Clary without explaining why, she is forced to delve into the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare: She herself has set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves. Even Jace.
Start: august 19th 2013
End: august 28th 2013
Comment: I enjoyed this series so far, so I was ready for "City of Fallen Angels". Reading this proofs that the series is pretty consistent. The world-building has always been something that stood out in "The Mortal Instruments" and the fourth book is no exception. It's really great to read about it and feel like you're actually there. What bothered me is that there was lot of teen relationship angst, especially with Clary and Jace. Jace is actually starting to annoy me a bit. I don't know what it is. So "City of Fallen Angels" is another good read in the series.
Rating: 4/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 30: Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling

Title: Casual Vacancy
Author: J.K. Rowling
Story: When Barry Fairbrother dies in his early forties, the town of Pagford is left in shock. Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war. Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils. Pagford is not what it first seems. And the empty seat left by Barry on the parish council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations?
Start: august 8th 2013
End: august 18th 2013
Comment: I have to be honest that I bought the book because of its author. I love J.K. Rowling's writing in the Harry Potter books and I was curious about this and her take on a book for adults. The synopsis sounded interesting as well. Well, never buy a book for just that reason. I really wanted to like the book, but I didn't. The two stars are for the excellent writing, but not the story. The characters weren't unique or fascinating and none of them were actually memorable. They are mostly noticeable for their being annoying and narcissistic. There is a great attention to detail though. I found the plot never very interesting and sometimes just plain dull. I think this book wouldn't have sold many copies if it wasn't written by Rowling. It's better she sticks to imaginative children's stories, because that's what she does best.
Rating: 2/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 29: The Hive by Gill Hornby

Title: The Hive
Author: Gill Hornby
Story: Welcome to St Ambrose Primary School. A world of friendships, fights and feuding. And that's just the mothers. It's the start of another school year at St Ambrose. But while the children are in the classroom coloring in, their mothers are learning sharper lessons on the other side of the school gates. Lessons in friendship. Lessons in betrayal. Lessons in the laws of community, the transience of power... and how to get invited to lunch.
Start: august 1st 2013
End: august 7th 2013
Comment: As a teacher I'm awfully familiar with parents. Kind parents, critical parents, but also simply annoying and I-think-I-know-everything-parents. In this book it's all about the mothers that rule at St. Ambrose Primary School. We have Bea, the leader of the pack. Very organized and one of those know-it-alls. Georgie is a messy woman, but a miracle worker in the kitchen. Rachel is a newly divorced children's book illustrator and Heather is the insecure mom who worships Bea for some reason. Of them all I liked Rachel at first and as the story developed I could also relate to Heather. Especially in the end, I was so happy for her. Georgie also grew on me a bit. Bea was just very unlikeable. I really liked the references to bees (therefore the title of the book). Some things in this books are so recognizable and I really enjoyed it a whole lot. But it's a bit repetitive, which can get a little dull in the end. All in all "The Hive" is a fun read, especially for women.
Rating: 3,5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 Update - July

What a month. I read four book. Four GREAT books! This was, I think, the best month so far.

# 25. A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin (A Song of Ice and Fire # 3)- 5/ 5
# 26. The Loop by Nicholas Evans - 5/ 5
# 27. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey - 3/ 5
# 28. The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - 5/ 5

Average: 4,5

Favorite of the month: The Hound of the Baskervilles

I still have some books I want to read, with one thing in common. So that brought me to this theme.

And it's authors like J.K. Rowling, Cassandra Clare and Maeve Binchy. It promises to be a good month and I'm pretty excited about it!!

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 28: The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Title: The Hound of the Baskervilles
Author: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Story: Holmes and Watson are faced with their most terrifying case yet. The legend of the devil-beast that haunts the moors around the Baskerville families home warns the descendants of that ancient clan never to venture out in those dark hours when the power of evil is exalted. Now, the most recent Baskerville, Sir Charles, is dead and the footprints of a giant hound have been found near his body. Will the new heir meet the same fate?
Start: july 24th 2013
End: july 29th 2013
Comment: I have a thing for detective stories, I like the idea of trying to solve a mystery with the characters. Sherlock Holmes is the best of them all and probably even the most well known fictional detective. So you can also say I have a thing for Sherlock. I love the films and off course the BBC show, but it all started with the books and I wanted to reread "The Hound of the Baskervilles" this summer. As soon as I opened the book, I was captivated. I normally read books in my native tongue, but I just had to read this one in English. What a beautiful way Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has with words. Your English has to be pretty advanced. This story has always been my favorite and again it was a pleasure to read it. I love the whole atmosphere of this book, the case is interesting and compelling and it's full of suspense. It's a timeless mystery. My favorite thing about all Sherlock Holmes books, is how detailed it is. They are classic 'who done it' stories, but with much more depth in it. Fantastic read!
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 27: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey

Title: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Author: Ken Kesey
Story: Tyrannical Nurse Ratched rules her ward in an Oregon State mental hospital with a strict and unbending routine, unopposed by her patients, who remain cowed by mind-numbing medication and the threat of electric shock therapy. But her regime is disrupted by the arrival of McMurphy – the swaggering, fun-loving trickster with a devilish grin who resolves to oppose her rules on behalf of his fellow inmates. His struggle is seen through the eyes of Chief Bromden, a seemingly mute half-Indian patient who understands McMurphy's heroic attempt to do battle with the powers that keep them imprisoned.
Start: july 19th 2013
End: july 23rd 2013
Comment: Off course I have seen the movie and this is one of those rare examples where the movie is better than the book. I love the movie, but I didn't have that same feeling with its novel. I like how the story is told by Chief Bromden, a fragile giant who has delusions about the Combine, a conspiracy that runs the economy and keeps the population under control. In the mental hospital where he lives, the Combine is capably represented by Nurse Ratched, a rather tightly wound mother figure. Using a combination of psychological manipulation, drugs, and shock therapy, she and the rest of the staff keep the inmates in a passive state until McMurphy arrives, a red-headed drifter and non-conformist. It began a little slow, however the contents were extremely elaborate. It's a tough book to get into, but once you are it's very interesting. The story took two different directions. Sometimes it was really depressing and at points it was quite amusing. The balance isn't quite right, because the switch between those two emotions is sometimes too extreme. Don't get me wrong, it's a good book, but it had some flaws.
Rating: 3/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 26: The Loop by Nicholas Evans

Title: The Loop
Author: Nicholas Evans
Story: Things aren't going too well for wolf biologist Helen Ross. At 29, she's unemployed, single, and has just learned that her father is marrying someone younger, richer, and prettier than herself. Back in her lonely log cabin in Cape Cod, frantically chain-smoking, she receives a message from her former lover Dan Prior. Prior, also a biologist, works for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service wolf-recovery program. In return for helping him track the lupine posse, Prior will provide her with a cabin, truck, and a snowmobile for good measure in a rustic little town called Hope, just outside of Helena, Montana. Within moments of her arrival, she finds out what she's up against: a small town with a long history of wolf fear and loathing, no resources, and a powerful rancher who will do whatever it takes to eliminate the wolves. The rancher, testosterone-saturated Buck Calder, has got the community riled up after a wolf stalked his daughter's home and killed the family dog. He won't stop until every last endangered wolf is dead, which proves problematic for Ross when she decides to romance his 18-year-old son, Luke.
Start: july 11th 2013
End: july 18th 2013
Comment: Last year I read Nicholas Evans' "The Horse Whisperer", which totally surprised me by being better then I thought. So when I saw "The Loop" I just had to pick it up. It has been catching dust on my shelve, so during this theme I just needed to finally read this book. And this book was even better. For some reason wolves have always fascinated me, more then horses. A wolves howl is actually my favorite noise. It's really interesting to read about the wolves and Helen's research. What I like in the beginning, athough it's a bit slow, that each character gets its own chapter of introduction. Evans is very detailed about their history, so you really get to know all the characters and they have depth. Helen was my favorite, we had some things in common. And Abe was my least favorite, he was an ass! Evans is like the male version of Sara Gruen, who also writes novels about animals and nature and they both grab you with their wonderful writing.
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challeng 2013 - # 25: A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin (A Song of Ice and Fire # 3)

Title: A Storm of Swords (A Song of Ice and Fire # 3)
Author: George R. R. Martin
Story: Of the five contenders for power, one is dead, another in disfavor, and still the wars rage as alliances are made and broken. Joffrey sits on the Iron Throne, the uneasy ruler of of the Seven Kingdoms. His most bitter rival, Lord Stannis, stands defeated and disgraced, victim of the sorceress who holds him in her thrall. Young Robb still rules the North from the fortress of Riverrun. Meanwhile, making her way across a blood-drenched continent is the exiled queen, Daenerys, mistress of the only three dragons still left in the world. And as opposing forces maneuver for the final showdown, an army of barbaric wildlings arrives from the outermost limits of civilization, accompanied by a horde of mythical Others—a supernatural army of the living dead whose animated corpses are unstoppable. As the future of the land hangs in the balance, no one will rest until the Seven Kingdoms have exploded in a veritable storm of swords...
Start: july 1st 2013
End: july 10th 2013
Comment: It has always takes me some time to finish a book in this series. This one took me ten days, less then the two other books I read. Although this novel isn't fast paced either, it was easier to go through for some reason. I was absorbed by this book. You would think that after three books, you have the basic plotlines of the story mapped out. Think again. Nothing is predictable with "A Storm of Swords". It's not always the good guy that wins or the bad guy that will lose, the hero doesn't necessarily stay alive at the end. It's an emotional rollercoaster ride with a lot of WTF moments. Again not for the feint of heart. There are some horrific murder scenes, they are so well written it just feels like the action seems to move in slow motion. This is the best book in the series so far. Wonderful.
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2013 Update - June

I read five books this month, I'm happy about that.

# 20. The Secret Garden by Frances H. Burnett - 2,5/ 5
# 21. Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard Atwater - 3/ 5
# 22. George's Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl - 4,5/ 5
# 23. Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll - 5/ 5
# 24. The Neverending Story by Michael Ende - 4/ 5

Average: 3,8

Favorite of the month: Through the Looking Glass

Summer vacation just started Friday, so i have plenty of time to read this month. So I decided to go with the following theme.

I was looking at my bookshelves and there were a lot of books I still had to read, so I choose this theme to catch up on that. To make my TBR pile smaller.

50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 24: The Neverending Story by Michael Ende

Title: The Neverending Story
Author: Michael Ende
Story: The story begins with a lonely boy named Bastian and the strange book that draws him into the beautiful but doomed world of Fantastica. Only a human can save this enchanted place - by giving its ruler, the Childlike Empress, a new name. But the journey to her tower leads through lands of dragons, giants, monsters, and magic - and once Bastian begins his quest, he may never return. As he is drawn deeper into Fantastica, he must find the mysteries of his own heart.
Start: june 25th 2013
End: june 30th 2013
Comment: The movie is something from my childhood. I loved it! Now I thought it was time for me to read the book, finally. I really like fantasy stories, but I think children's fantasy is even better. This books deals with self-discovery: Atreyu's quest and Bastian's limits of physical and mental endurance. This is a novel which respects the intelligence of its reader, it's not your average children's book. It's an adult-sized fairytale. "The Neverending story" is a great journey for every reader, a challenge. And as the title implies, you never want this story to end.
Rating: 4/ 5