Reading wrap-up for March

I thought March was a slow reading month, until I pulled together the list of books I’ve read so far. I read a total of 6 books this month, one of which was a slow, involved read. I must say I’m pleasantly surprised!

First up are the three books that I read specifically for the Book Bingo challenge

(Note: Click on the book covers to purchase the book on Amazon India. All links are affiliate links.)

Nominated for the Goodreads Awards: Anxious People by Fredrick Backman

This is the second book that I’ve read by Frederick Backman (the first was A Man Called Ove), and I have to say, I’m a fan!

His stories are relatable, humorous, and thought-provoking. Even his sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek humor often hits close to the bone.

Both of these books made me laugh, tear up a bit, and got me to think — not a bad combination, eh?

 

 

Your favorite genre: Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi

Looking over at my reading list from the last two years, I think its safe to say that fantasy/YA is my current favorite genre. It changes, so we’ll see how long this romance lasts!

This was a brilliant follow-up to Adeyemi’s runaway bestseller, Children of Blood and Bone. I almost didn’t read it after I saw all the negative comments on Goodreads, but I’m so glad I did! I think Adeyemi brilliantly captured the exhaustion and the grief that follows trauma; the hopelessness of the downtrodden and marginalized; the difficulty that allies often have with really understanding the effects of race and color; and the terrible price we pay for continuing to fight.

I know, I know. This description makes the book sound less like fantasy/YA and more like a book on race/caste/oppression, doesn’t it? But Children of Blood and Bone was written at a time when news stories were filled with stories of unarmed black men, women, and children being shot by the police. It was Adeyemi’s way of highlighting the othering and the marginalization and the terrible human costs it extracts through story; through adventure; through fantasy. And I think she’s done a fabulous job with both of these books.

A book that’s been adapted into a Netflix series: The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

Reading this book of short stories was like a quick recap of the first season of Witcher.

I think it’s one of those rare books where the stories were fairly closely followed in the screenplay adaptation. I’m going to be reading the rest of this series, because I really don’t want to wait a year — or more — to find out what happens after that stunning end to Season 2 of Witcher!

 

Other books of note:

How to Stop Time by Matt Haig: I’m almost tempted to say this is a beautiful story of time travel, but that won’t be quite right.

It is a book about a protagonist who has been alive for centuries. He’s rubbed shoulders with Shakespeare, Captain Cook, and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Lived through the witch trails, the London plague, the rise of New York, and lives now, in the 21st century, in London, where he works as a high school history teacher.

The novel weaves through the centuries, with some well researched snippets of 400+ years of English history. Its a fascinating concept and made for a very interesting read.

The Checklist Book by Alexandra Frazen: A quick read on using checklists to help you manage overwhelm. Quite different from the usual productivity books in that it ties in the idea of having a daily checklist with ensuring that you’re living intentionally + meaningfully.

The Socrates Express: In Search of Life Lessons by Dead Philosophers by Eric Weiner: I’ve already added this one to my to-read-again list! There’s a great mix of philosophers and philosophies here, some of which I want to explore a little deeper.

I was also pretty chuffed to see how similar some of Weiner’s ideas on Nietzsche’s philosophy of The Eternal Return were with my own.

His chapter was titled ‘How to have no regrets like Nietzsche’; I wrote an article on how Nietzsche’s philosophy of The Eternal Return offers a key to a contented life. Not bad for someone who hadn’t read any of Nietzsche’s books before stumbling upon this idea and being completely enamored by it!

Over to you! What did you read this month? What was your favorite read in March? And do you have a to-read-again list too? Share it, please!