Imagoala

Their Eyes Were Watching God  by Zora Neale Hurston Blurb: Fair  and long-legged, independent and articulate, Janie Crawford sets out to be her own person – no mean feat for a black woman in the '30s. Janie's quest for identity takes her through three marriages and into a journey back to her roots.  Review: Janie  saw her life like a great tree in leaf with the things suffered, things enjoyed, things done and undone. Dawn and doom was in the branches.  I  have to admit being somewhat weary before starting this book. It is such an Important™ book that, from the very beginning, I was questioning how good it was going to be (unfortunately, a lot of Important™ books simply aren't that good in my opinion) but after a professor of mine specifically talked about it for quite a while and told us about Hurston and the impact (or lack thereof) of her work I couldn't help but jump at the opportunity to pick this one up no matter how weary I was...

Romancing the Nerd (Nerd #2) by Leah Rea Miller Blurb: Dan  Garrett has become exactly what he hates–popular. Until recently, he was just another live-action role-playing nerd on the lowest rung of the social ladder. Cue a massive growth spurt and an uncanny skill at taking three-point shots in basketball and voila…Mr. Popular. It’s definitely weird. And the biggest drawback? Going from high school zero to basketball hero cost Dan the secret girl of his dorky dreams. A tuba-playing nerd with an eclectic fashion sense, Zelda Potts’s “coolness” stat is about minus forty-two. Dan turning his back on her and the rest of nerd-dom was brutal enough, but when he humiliates her at school, Zelda decides it’s time for a little revenge—dork style. Nevermind that she used to have a crush on him. Nevermind that her plan could backfire big time. It’s time to roll the dice…and hope like freakin’ hell she doesn’t lose her heart in the process. Review: I  hold my crosse...

Die Känguru-Apokryphen  von Marc-Uwe Kling Zusammenfassung:  Sensation , Sensation: Archäologen haben in einem Geheimfach in Marc-Uwes Schreibtisch neue Geschichten vom Känguru und seinem Kleinkünstler gefunden! Dies ist nicht die Fortsetzung der Fortsetzung der Fortsetzung der Känguru-Chroniken. Triologie bleibt Triologie. Aber ein anständiger Kleinkünstler hat natürlich eine Zugabe vorbereitet.  Rezension: " Korrekt ", sage ich und kratze mich am Bart. "Das Buch soll übrigens Die Känguru-Apokryphen  heissen." "Das", sagt das Känguru, "ist ein richtiger Kacktitel." "Vielen Dank. Deine destruktive Kritik ist immer sehr hilfreich für mich." Wer  die Känguru-Chroniken nicht kennt, der hat bisher wirklich etwas verpasst. Solltest du also die Känrugur-Chroniken gar noch nicht kennen; was machst du hier noch? Beschaff dir Zugang zu den Büchern, beziehungsweise zu den Hörbüchern, und ich wünsche viel Spass dabei, d...

Friends in High Places (Commissario Brunetti #9) by Donna Leon Blurb: When  Commissario Guido Brunetti is visited by a young bureaucrat investigating the lack of official approval for the building of his apartment years earlier, his first reaction, like any other Venetian, is to think of whom he knows who might bring pressure to bear on the relevant government department. But when the bureaucrat rings Brunetti at work, clearly scared, and is then found dead after a fall from scaffolding, something is obviously going on that has implications greater than the fate of Brunetti's apartment …  Review: Brunetti's  best friend had often said that he wanted death to take him just at the moment he laid his last lira down on a bar and said, "Prosecco for everyone." Well … Let's face it, this is only the second book by Donna Leon I've ever read and I haven't adhered to this series' order in the least bit but, more importantly, I don't...

The Little Snake by A.L. Kennedy Blurb: This  is the story of Mary, a young girl born in a beautiful city full of rose gardens and fluttering kites. When she is still very small, Mary meets Lanmo, a shining gold snake, who becomes her very best friend. The snake visits Mary many times, he sees her city change, become sadder as bombs drop and war creeps in. He sees Mary and her family leave their home, he sees her grow up and he sees her fall in love. But Lanmo knows that the day will come when he can no longer visit Mary, when his destiny will break them apart, and he wonders whether having a friend can possibly be worth the pain of knowing you will lose them. Review: This  is almost, but not quite, the whole of the story about a remarkable, wise little girl. She was called Mary. Everything I will tell you here began when Mary went walking in her garden on one particular afternoon. If  you're ever looking for a sweet little tale in the vein of The...

Oh , wow, do you remember how the last time I wrote one of these I was lamenting about having waited for too long before writing the next Throwback? Yeah, this time it's worse. But also, as you might have noticed from how sparingly I've written reviews (until this month), I was kinda busy. I have excuses. Don't judge. Anyway, I'm not going to waste more time not doing the thing I've set out to do and just get right into it: (Before I actually get into it, though, I just want to make it clear that I'll link to the Goodreads-pages of all the books I haven't reviewed on this Blog and to the reviews on this Blog of all the books which I have written ones for.) Books: (The ones I read for university) Witches: Exploring the Iconography of the Sorceress and Enchantress by Lorenzo Lorenzi Quite interesting! Especially the whole Medusa-bit, I'm a sucker for Greek Mythology and I never even thought of her as such great inspiration for the later...

Give Me Your Hand  by Megan Abbott Blurb: You  told each other everything. Then she told you too much. Kit has risen to the top of her profession and is on the brink of achieving everything she wanted. She hasn’t let anything stop her. But now someone else is standing in her way – Diane. Best friends at seventeen, their shared ambition made them inseparable. Until the day Diane told Kit her secret – the worst thing she’d ever done, the worst thing Kit could imagine – and it blew their friendship apart. Kit is still the only person who knows what Diane did. And now Diane knows something about Kit that could destroy everything she’s worked so hard for. Review: If  I sliced open Diane's beautiful, extraordinary brain, I feel certain of what I'd see:  swarm of worms, a cluster of sickly grapes, pushing against the chamber of her brain, inflaming it. In  case you have never heard me talk about Megan Abbott, here's the quick run-down: I ...

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier Blurb: Working  as a lady's companion, the heroine of Rebecca learns her place. Her future looks bleak until, on a trip to the South of France, she meets Max de Winter, a handsome widower whose sudden proposal of marriage takes her by surprise. She accepts, but whisked from glamorous Monte Carlo to the ominous and brooding Manderley, the new Mrs de Winter finds Max a changed man. And the memory of his dead wife Rebecca is forever kept alive by the forbidding housekeeper, Mrs Danvers... Review: I  suppose sooner or later in the life of everyone comes a moment of trial. We all of us have our particular devil who rides us and torments us, and we must give battle in the end. This  was somewhat disappointing. No, frankly, it was very disappointing. I went into this book expecting a thrilling, but slowly creeping tale of subtle drama that would manage to fascinate me, grab my interest from the very start. Welll... it took me ...

Far From the Tree  by Robin Benway Blurb: Being  the middle child has its ups and downs. But for Grace, an only child who was adopted at birth, discovering that she is a middle child is a different ride altogether. After putting her own baby up for adoption, she goes looking for her biological family, including— Maya, her loudmouthed younger bio sister, who has a lot to say about their newfound family ties. Having grown up the snarky brunette in a house full of chipper redheads, she’s quick to search for traces of herself among these not-quite-strangers. And when her adopted family’s long-buried problems begin to explode to the surface, Maya can’t help but wonder where exactly it is that she belongs. And Joaquin, their stoic older bio brother, who has no interest in bonding over their shared biological mother. After seventeen years in the foster care system, he’s learned that there are no heroes, and secrets and fears are best kept close to the vest, where they...

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin Blurb: We  are not quite novels. We are not quite short stories. In the end, we are collected works. A.J. Fikry's lifeis not at all what he expected it to be. His wife has died; his bookstore is experiencing the worst sales in its history; and now his prized possession, a rare collection of Poe poems, has been stolen. Slowly but surely, he is isolating himself from all the people of Alice Island—from Chief Lambiase, the well-intentioned police officer who's always felt kindly toward him; from Ismay, his sister-in-law, who is hell-bent on saving A.J. from his dreary self. Even the books in his store have stopped holding pleasure for him. These days, he can only see them as a sign of a world that is changing too rapidly. And then a mysterious package appears at the bookstore. It's a small package, though large in weight—an unexpected arrival that gives A.J. the opportunity to make his life over, the ability...

Nineteen Eigthy-Four  by George Orwell Blurb: Winston  Smith works for the Ministry of truth in London, chief city of Airstrip One. Big Brother stares out from every poster, the Thought Police uncover every act of betrayal. When Winston finds love with Julia, he discovers that life does not have to be dull and deadening, and awakens to new possibilities. Despite the police helicopters that hover and circle overhead, Winston and Julia begin to question the Party; they are drawn towards conspiracy. Yet Big Brother will not tolerate dissent - even in the mind. For those with original thoughts they invented Room 101 . . . Review: " Tell  me," he said, "how soon will they shoot me?" "It might be a long time," said O'Brien. "You are a difficult case. But don't give up hope. Everyone is cured sooner or later. In the end we shall shoot you." I  have a whole collection of books that are on my tbr-shelf, and which I real...

The Raven King  (All for the Game #2) & The King's Men  (All for the Game #3) by Nora Sakavic Quick disclaimer before I get into this. You might be wondering why I'm combining these two books into one review but I've pretty much devoured the second and third book as if they were one and I think it might just be easier to simply combine both reviews into one. That being said, I'll mostly focus on The Raven King anyway/state my opinions only vaguely/indicate one I move on to the third book .  Blurb (for The Raven King ): The  Foxes are a fractured mess, but their latest disaster might be the miracle they've always needed to come together as a team. The one person standing in their way is Andrew, and the only one who can break through his personal barriers is Neil. Except Andrew doesn't give up anything for free and Neil is terrible at trusting anyone but himself. The two don't have much time to come to terms with their situation before ou...

Dear Martin   by Nic Stone Blurb: Justyce  McAllister is top of his class and set for the Ivy League– but none of that matters to the police officer who just put him in handcuffs. And despite leaving his rough neighborhood behind, he can't escape the scorn of his former peers or the ridicule of his new classmates. Justyce looks to the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for answers. But do they hold up anymore? He starts a journal to Dr. King do find out. Review: The  cop shoves him to the ground beside the police cruiser as he asks if Justyce understand his rights. Justyce doesn't remember hearing any rights, but his ears had  been ringing from the two blow to the head, so maybe he missed them. He swallows more blood. It's  hard to read a book like this one and afterwards have to say that, yeah, it's okay, but really nothing special simply because the topic is very polarizing. Which is, as you might have figured already, exactly wha...