For the past five years I have been reviewing books on Instagram. However, this year I have decided to bring my discipline of reviewing to the blog. Fingers-crossed if all goes as plan, I will be reviewing what I read at the end of each month.
Below are the 10 books I read in January 2021. Last year I had discovered Thrity Umrigar (rather late in my reading lifespan) and I was so moved by her writing in Everybody's Son & The World We Found that I decided to read all her books. I started the year with The Space Between Us and followed it by If Today Be Sweet.
I am glad that this year my reading has been from diverse group of authors: 3 South Asian authors, 7 female authors, 2 male authors, among other things.
1. The Space Between Us
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This was a well told story about the lives of two women from different classes in modern-day India. Bhima is a servant to the upper middle class Serabai. Even though they have vastly different economic incomes, both have had their share of unhappiness. This book is about their unhappiness and also about the injustice done unto the uneducated lower class by those above them.I am not sure why I did not like this book more than I did. The story was well developed and readable. The contrast between life in the slums and middle class life in contemporary India was humanly and well depicted. Maybe the story ultimately seemed a bit too predictable. In any event, it was the very end that I really did not like. Without spoiling the end for anyone, the suggestion that the denouement led to freedom for Bhima seems unrealistic.
This novel is not a complete waste of time however. Some of the metaphors used in the novel are actually quite poetic and fit the idea that the author was trying to portray.
A Burning is a story of fiery agony - it outlines the plight of the marginalized in a country whose democratic power structures are being systematically redesigned to make way for majoritarian tyranny. In many senses, “A Burning” is a cautionary tale for those who claim politics has no place in their lives, and that includes a great many people. Majumdar ties the private terrors of supposedly inconsequential people to the larger forces pulsing through India—and the world. She lays bare issues of gender, religion and class, and keeps you reading when you most want to turn away. 2. Final Girls
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Reminiscent of a slasher flick, Final Girls sticks pretty close to the typical script. All of the required components are there—survivor of a murder spree that’s barely holding it together, dead space where there should be memories, a person or two casting doubt, the hair-raising feeling that things aren’t at all what they seem and most importantly, a leading lady that makes a ton of questionable choices. I found it too slow and, at some point of the story, I wasn't really sure where it was going. I lost my interest and then, when some more interesting things happened, it fell flat. I didn't get the WOW ending I was waiting for. I appreciated this book for being a very millennial retelling of India's modern and yet timeless problems. The structure was unconventional, and the author's ambition showed through. However, something of Majumdar's voice read as off to me. The way the characters portrayed themselves did not seem particularly Indian to me, and the voices also didn't really feel particularly alive. There was something of an artifice in this book, which was blocking the passion and drama that needed to be better weaved in the text.
8. No Filter: The Inside Story of Instagram
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No filter is an inside look at the phenomenal growth of Instagram. We get to know the obsessive curation of communities by the founders, the internal dynamics of the early marriage to Facebook, and also the stilling independence the app had for a long time before being subsumed by the Facebook growth and monetization machine.I, however, found it a bit disappointing. Full of facts and told chronologically, this was simply dry and didn’t give much more than anyone can find on Wikipedia or from googling. The sections on the early days of Instagram were interesting but as soon as Facebook and Zuck were introduced, it just felt like a repeat of the same old message “Facebook is bad.” Unfortunately, not much was spent on the co-founders and their lives after they left... It felt like someone who hardly used Instagram told this story, just reading of off-sources. There was no drama, no excitement, and it lacked that spark that books about similar topics have had.
What books have you read recently?
I heard the same thing from other people who read No Filter and also found it disappointing. But you read a lot of amazing books that I want to add to my list!
ReplyDeletewww.rdsobessions.com
LOVE how many books you've read! Im pinning this for later!
ReplyDeleteYou have read quite a lot. I need to add some of these to my list. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeletexoxo
Lovely
www.mynameislovely.com
Even though I haven't read any of these, I liked your take on many of them, in particular, The Marriage Game. I'm very tired of the same portrayal of men and women in many of the books I've read lately. Need to switch it up.
ReplyDeleteLooks like you knocked out quite the list. Some interesting reads! xoxo, Sarah
ReplyDeleteKnow that you're not the first person I've come across who finds The Book Thief to be totally underwhelming. I think sometimes a ridiculously hyped book just falls flat no matter what *because* your expectations are set so high. However, I DO want to read 10 Blind Dates. That sounds so cute! And honestly, Rodham sounds super intriguing as well, though I typically don't enjoy political novels.
ReplyDeletewow 10 books in a month! I am impressed. thanks for always giving your honest opinion!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your reviews. I am not a big reader but I do enjoy reading reviews in the event I want to pick one up.
ReplyDeleteI love how honest and specific you are with your reviews. It's just enough to be a review without spoiling and enough to let me know what you thought was good, great or wasn't to your taste and I find that super refreshing.
ReplyDeleteThese sound interesting! Thanks for giving your honest thoughts on these!!
ReplyDeleteLizzie
www.lizzieinlace.com
I love reading and never know what I should read next. I love getting recommendations from others who enjoy reading but also struggle to make time. I need to make it a priority.
ReplyDeleteThe only one of these that I read was the Book Thief. What a great book! I will have to check out the others on your list.
ReplyDeleteIt is so wonderful that you have read 10 books in a month and all these recommendations sound good. I've not read any of it so will be checking them out
ReplyDeleteI love to read and have a zoom book club. I read about 5 books a month and more when time allows, this are great!
ReplyDeleteI wish I could read as much as you ç_ç Having said that I always look for advice and "Book Thief" has definitely caught my attention!
ReplyDelete10 Blind Dates sounds like a great beach read for my upcoming trip, thank you!
ReplyDeleteOh wow! Thanks for the recommendation! I really love reading books!
ReplyDeleteYes! I really love these lists! Looks interesting to read! Thanks for this post!
ReplyDeleteYou did some great reading this month! Definitely need to check these out!
ReplyDeleteWow!! I am so impressed that you read all of these in January! I am so behind on my reading goal for the year but I am going to get it together!
ReplyDeleteLots of amazing books here and I am in serious need of a new good book. I have been bad about reading recently but normally you have to tear me away from a good book. Definitely checking out a few of these as I am due for a good book and love when I cannot put it down!
ReplyDeleteLove a good book! I need to add some of these to my library list.
ReplyDeleteFinal Girls sounds like something I would LOVE to read!
ReplyDeleteI haven't read any of these mentioned books, so will surely check these out!
ReplyDeleteThanks,
Everything Enchanting
I thought I was killing it with my 3 books, but you are really taking it to the next level. Love this entire list and adding a few to my Kindle!
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