I've always been an avid, if slow, reader. To my great surprise, I ended up studying literature (along with CS) for my undergrad degree, which enriched my world in ways that would be difficult to quantify. I would read a lot more now if it wasn't for other responsibilities. I'm using this page to simply track what I'm reading and any thoughts about the books as a future reference for potential birthday and Christmas presents, and maybe you can find some value in these as well. I try to update it every once in a while...
In Progress - Historical Fiction
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Nothing at the moment...
Completed Reads - Historical Fiction
I first read Blood Meridian 15 or 20 years ago. Prior to picking up Meridian I was introduced to McCarthy in a North American literature class in college where we read All the Pretty Horses. McCarthy is simply an astonishing writer. Some people find his prose and writing style off-putting. I love it -- it's like reading art almost, but in the hands of anyone just slightly less skilled it would be unreadable. Critic Harold... read more
It is beyond my modest skill as a reader and writer to do justice to The Shadow of the Wind. Like a Russian doll, it was a tragic and beautiful series of stories within stories, though to me a rabbit warren might be a more apt description, as I found that I got lost in the different stories that Ruiz Zafón so deftly weaved together with characters seeming to meld together as I read.
I... read more
I love Sapkowski's stories and storytelling, and The Tower of Fools only supports that feeling. This one is a much bigger novel than any of the Witcher series novels (almost 600 pages), but it moves quickly and nimbly through a fun, if light, story based in the early 1400s in what is now primarily eastern Poland, overlapping into the Czech Republic and Germany. Like the Witcher books, there are too many slavic names, places, and... read more
I'm actually 3/4 of the way through Tyll, but I put it down and I'm not sure when or if I'll finish it up. The story is based "on the folkloristic tales about Till Eulenspiegel, a jester that was the subject of a chapbook in 16th century Germany" (Wikipedia). The novel is well-written and I loved diving into a realm of folklore and history that I have hardly any exposure to. The story... read more
I've always wanted to read Camus and as the Covid-driven social isolation escalated, I pulled The Plague off our shelf. And it was so goddamned good. I'd never ready any Camus before and I had no idea what I was missing. I've found the Nobel winners can be hit-or-miss in terms of actual non-academic readability but Camus' prose was so fluid I found it hard to put the book down at night. The story he... read more
I didn't finish Pillars...I've put it down and I don't know if I'll get back to it. It's a good story, definitely dark, but relatively well-written and fun to read. Follett keeps things moving well and the world he's created is rich and complete. The thing is, I just couldn't get into the story...It didn't hold me enough. I may pick it up again but it's just not what I'm looking for right now...
I... read more