Hello again!
Welcome to another monthly reading review. I've condensed this post across two month's again as I didn't get through as many books as I'd like and therefore I thought I'd squish it across the two.
Over July/August I read:
'Star Maker' - Olaf Stapledon
'The Deep' - Kyle Perry
'J.K. Rowling: A biography' - Sean Smith
'12 Rules for Life: An antidote to chaos' - Jordan B. Peterson
'The Stand' - Stephen King
To begin my rankings:
5. '12 Rules for Life: An antidote to chaos' - Jordan B. Peterson
4. 'The Deep' - Kyle Perry
3. 'J.K. Rowling: A biography' - Sean Smith
2. 'Star Maker' - Olaf Stapledon
1. 'The Stand' - Stephen King
My reviews:
1 - '12 Rules for Life: An antidote to chaos' - Jordan B. Peterson
I found this to be a really intriguing read. Although the analogies were dense at times and I found my eyes wandering away from the page, at its core its a really well thought out book. The rules themselves are explicit and thoughtful and I think I learnt a lot from reading this.
I am always striving to learn more, so books like this often catch my eye in my search for more knowledge, especially when it comes to living an ideal life.
Overall : 8/10, well written and researched. Worth the read if you can spare the time.
2 - 'The Deep' - Kyle Perry
This was a classic thriller. I picked it up at Dymocks a little while ago primarily because I loved the cover and it was another thriller set in Tasmania (I read 'The Survivors' by Jane Harper earlier this year, which is set in Tasmania). The novel was very well paced and had a clever twist at the end that you both might've seen coming at the start of the novel but by the end you thought it was impossible! Alas! Tricked again.
Overall : 6/10, this was a quality thriller but I found the multiple character perspectives difficult to follow at times.
3 - 'J.K. Rowling: A biography' - Sean Smith
I love J.K. Rowling! Afterall, she created 'Harry Potter', which is about 60% of my personality at this point. I picked this book up earlier this year at the Lifeline Bookfair along with a whole range of books!
Written in 2001 it is obviously limited by its time but I found it to be a really engaging look into her early life and how a lot of her lived experience and memories shaped what would become 'Harry Potter'. Did you know that her childhood neighbours surname was 'Potter'?
Overall : 8/10, really well written and researched. A great read for any Rowling fans!
4 - 'Star Maker' - Olaf Stapledon
This novel was lent to me by a friend of mine who has been carrying it around for 10 years but has yet to finish it. It's a sci-fi adventure novel, published in 1937. The novel is structured as the narrator's recount of an out of body experience where he travels through space and time learning about other planets and the core elements of what makes life special.
I found this a truly intriguing read and a pleasant story from start to finish. It's incredible to think that it was concocted well before the moon landing!
Overall : 9/10, I loved this! It took a bit to get into the language and style but once I was in I was hooked. I recommend this to any sci-fi lovers looking for something new.
5 - 'The Stand' - Stephen King
What can I say? The internet turned me to this one. I've been a fan of Stephen King for a long time and have always been inspired, as a fledgling writer myself, by his work ethic and imagination. I hadn't read 'The Stand' before but considering we're in the midst of a pandemic, it seemed appropriate.
From start to finish this book is engaging and exciting. The plot keeps you interested but the characters are what keep you invested for all 1200 pages.
Overall : 10/10, this has quickly jumped in to my top 50 of all time! Loved it.
Well, that's it from me. This marks the completion of 26 out of my goal of 50 books for this year. Hopefully I can get through a few more in the wind down to Christmas!
Till next time,
Rhi xx