Book Challenges- Week 23

Popsugar Challenge

(19/50)

A childhood classic you’ve never read: Matilda, by Roald Dahl: Even though I’m not eight years old anymore, I still loved this book. It’s got everything that makes a great kid’s book: magic, a super-smart girl, bullies/ villains, and a sympathetic adult. It was great fun to read, and it makes me want to watch the movie sometime.

 

While I Was Reading Challenge

(4/12)- No progress this week… I did intend to make progress on this goal. I read Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock, for the category of “a book that takes place in one day. I read online that this book takes place in a day, but it doesn’t; it’s two days. Being a stickler for rules, when it suits me, I’ll read something else for that category.

The Unread Shelf

Running Total: 16

I’ll Give You the Sun, by Jandy Nelson (YA fiction): I LOVED this book. It’s told from the point of view of twins. Noah tells what happened when they were 13, and Jude tells what happened when they were 16. The twins used to be inseparable, and then they were completely separate. As I was reading this book, I laughed, I cried (well, teared up a bit), and I highlighted. There were so many great concepts in this book, and I liked that both twins did some things they shouldn’t have, but I cared about them anyway. I wanted to both hug them and give them a good shake throughout the book.

Incidentally, if you’re doing the Popsugar challenge, this would be a great book for either the category of a book with an LGBTQ+ protagonist or the one with a book about twins.

Five People You Meet in Heaven, by Mitch Albom (fiction): This was a reread for me. Someone “borrowed” my copy at some point, so I’d re-purchased it when I saw it at Goodwill.

I remember liking this book a lot more the first time I read it. I didn’t remember anything about it, so it was like reading it for the first time. I didn’t hate it, but it didn’t move me. I didn’t have the urge to highlight anything or discuss it with anyone afterward. It was decent and enjoyable enough while reading, but now I understand why I forgot it the first time.

5 Classic Books

(1/5) Finally!

 

Miscellaneous Reading

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock, by Matthew Quick (YA fiction): Leonard Peacock has five presents to give out, then he intends to kill his former best friend and himself. Throughout the day, he thinks things like, if anyone remembers his birthday, he won’t kill himself.

Leonard is a misfit, a little too strange and too interesting to really fit in. Still, he has people who care about him, and it shows.

What I liked (no spoilers): There were people throughout the day who noticed his odd behavior and expressed concern, and people who didn’t. That felt realistic to me.

What I didn’t like (no spoilers): The ending. It’s not a bad ending; I don’t want to give you that impression, but it felt unfinished, and I was unprepared. I read the Kindle version, and most books end around 97%. This book ended at 83% because (in my version, at least), there’s a bunch of stuff after, like an excerpt from a new book. So, just be warned.

If you want the full review with spoilers, click here to go to Goodreads.

 

Abandoned

None this week.

2018 Running Total: 70

Have you made any progress on your TBR or book challenges? What’s the longest book you’ve ever read?