100 Books to read in a Lifetime

June Wrap Up

May Recap:
2 Books
641 pages (6:27:08 hours)
Average Rating 4.5

🎧A Wrinkle in Time 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
A Deadly Influence 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Another month gone, they just seem to fly by these days.
The weather is getting nicer and I am looking forward to lounging outside in the sun relaxing with a book but first outside chores must be done. Top of the list is weeding the flower beds and getting the garden planted. Gonna need to have the Aleve handy. 😄
This year for me has been about reading when I can and not getting frustrated with myself when my completed numbers are low. Normally I would be very disappointed in only finishing 2 books, but I am learning to stop comparing my numbers to others and just be happy that I had the extra time for those two. Life is crazy busy some times and we need to give ourselves more credit. I am happy. I am healthy. I love my family and the life I live. That’s enough for me. I know that I will have big reading months and slow months, but it’s not a competition, just enjoy it when I can.

A Wrinkle in Time – (Middle Grade, Classic, Sci-Fi) Meg, her little brother Charles Wallace, and their friend Calvin are visited by three mysterious women, Mrs Whatsit, Mrs Who and Mrs Which. They have come to help the children retrieve their father who went missing. A scientist who works on classified experiments for the government was on assignment when all communications with his family stopped.
“A straight line is not the shortest distance between two points” rather a tesseract, or creating a wrinkle in the fabric of space, is. The children must tesser to another planet in order to save their father, and the universe, from The Darkness.

A Deadly Influence – (Thriller,Police Procedural) Hostage negotiator Abby Mullen gets a call from a fellow cult survivor Eden. Eden’s son has been kidnapped and the ransome is $5 million . As Abby gets further into the investigation, her past is coming back to haunt her.

38/100 Books to read in a Lifetime

A Wrinkle in Time (A Wrinkle in Time Quintet, #1)

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Narrated by Hope Davis
6:27:08 hours

Classic, Middle Grade, Science Fiction

Meg, her little brother Charles Wallace, and their friend Calvin are visited by three mysterious women, Mrs Whatsit, Mrs Who and Mrs Which. They have come to help the children retrieve their father who went missing. A scientist who works on classified experiments for the government was on assignment when all communications with his family stopped.
“A straight line is not the shortest distance between two points” rather a tesseract, or creating a wrinkle in the fabric of space, is. The children must tesser to another planet in order to save their father, and the universe, from The Darkness.

What a wonderfully written book for middle grade readers and adults. It is so hard to understand why this book is one of the most contested and banned books. How could you ban something so incredible? But humans are flawed and full of fear, especially when it comes to children. I however cannot wait to have my nephew read it! It had so much heart and such wonderful lessons for young minds to experience.
Hope Davis was a good choice for narrator, her voice was fitting.

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37/100 Books to read in a Lifetime

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Douglas Adams
Narrated by Stephen Fry
Random House Audio
5:51:37 hours

🌟🌟🌟
Sci-fi, Comedy

Synopsis:
Immediately before the Earth is destroyed, to make room for a galactic freeway, Arthur is saved by his friend Ford, an unemployed actor, or so Arthur thought. Ford is actually from another planet, on Earth doing research for an update to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy but has been stranded for the last 15 years.
They get picked up by a group of travelers, two headed Zaphod, his girlfriend Trillion (another Earthling), and a depressed robot Marvin.

My Thoughts:
This was funny and enjoyable. I laughed out loud several times. It’s a quick listen or read, about 6 hours. I wouldn’t say that it’s a must read but it was good. Stephen Fry was the best narrator for this book, perfect choice!

April Wrap Up

April Recap:
4 Books
1,426 pages (19:55:50 hours)
Average Rating 3.5

🎧One Hundred Years of Solitude 🌟🌟
Little Heaven 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Duchess If You Dare 🌟🌟🌟🌟
🎧The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 🌟🌟🌟

Happy May Day! Wow, I can’t believe that it is already May! Well April ended better than I thought it would. I finally finished Little Heaven, and Duchess If You Dare from my TBR pile from March. I am a little behind due to being incredibly busy but just taking it one book/day at a time. I know I will catch up. I also was able to finish two more “100 books to read in a lifetime”. Overall very happy and looking forward to May!

Little Heaven – (Paranormal Horror, Extreme Horror) A trio of mercenaries are hired by a woman to trek into the woods of New Mexico to find her nephew who is living in a cult. Ran by an egomaniacal preacher who was led to this area by the voice of God, however this voice was not God but something sinister with evil plans in mind. They made it in to the camp but will they survive when they attempt to leave?

Duchess If You Dare – (Historical Fiction, Regency Romance)
Scarlett, a member of the Maidens of Mayhem, a group of four women who fight to protect women in a society ruled by men.
When Scarlett’s seamstress suddenly goes missing, she knows that foul play must be involved. While Scarlett investigates, the clues bring her to an up scale brothel where she learns some girls have also gone missing from. Ambrose, Duke of Aylesford, is investigating this same brothel as well, a mess his impetuous younger brother got him mixed up in.
After Scarlett and Ambrose’s path cross and they discover they’re looking into same thing and decide to work together. From opposites backgrounds and lifestyles, they don’t have much in common but the chemistry is unavoidable.

What were your favorites from April?

36/100 Books to read in a Lifetime

One Hundred Years of Solitude
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Blackstone Audio
14:04:14 hours
Narrated by John Lee

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

🌟🌟
Classic, Magical Realism

Synopsis:
Story of the Buendia family in the mythical town of Macondo. It follows the lives of seven generations, their successes and failures, children and deaths. When Jose Arcadio Buendia and Ursula Iguaran his wife and cousin, leave Columbia and set out to find their utopia. After having a dream one night one their journey, Jose establishes the town of Macondo.
Over the years, the town becomes exposed to the outside world and eventually is brought to ruin. The Buendia family may have been cursed after all, as predicted by Ursula in the very beginning.

My thoughts:
I am sorry to say but I found this book to be boring. I struggled to follow along with so many people with the same names. I Googled a family tree for it so that I could have anything to help keep them straight but it was still difficult. Ultamately I struggle with books built upon symbolism. I read books for the enjoyment and not necessarily to promote deep thinking. I like deep feeling, ones that bring out emotions and make you analyze what you are feeling or cause unexpected feelings. I don’t want to have to interpret every little thing throughout to discover their true meaning. “The ghosts are symbols of the past and the haunting nature it has over Macondo.”
However, I can see why this is a Classic for sure and why so many people love it. It has some great magical realism throughout. My favorite was Remedios the Beauty, said to be the most beautiful woman on Macondo. She is thought to be cursed, unintentionally causing the death of several men who lust after/love her. One man falling to his death after watching her bath. Instead of blood escaping his body it was an amber colored oil that smelled of Remedios the Beauty.

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Book Review – Catch-22

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Classic, Satire, Historical Fiction

Set in Italy during WWII, bombardier Yossarian is upset that his command keeps increasing the number of missions he must complete before being sent home.

“Yet if Yossarian makes any attempt to excuse himself from the perilous missions he’s assigned, he’ll be in violation of Catch-22, a hilariously sinister bureaucratic rule: a man is considered insane if he willingly continues to fly dangerous combat missions, but if he makes a formal request to be removed from duty, he is proven sane and therefore ineligible to be relieved.”

This one was not for me. I understand that this is considered comedy to a lot however I did not find funny at all. It actually took me probably half the book before I realized that this was a comedy, I had been thinking that it was just a horrible plot until then. It made it a little easier to listen to after that but not much.
Took me a very long time to finish with many stops and starts. It seems it is either a love it or hate kind of book.

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August Recap

7 Books

1,292 pages

29 HR 29 Min

Average Rating 3.7

🎧Of Mice and Men 🌟🌟🌟

Another Time 🌟🌟

Gilchrist 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

🎧A Tale of Two Cities 🌟🌟🌟

🎧The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn 🌟🌟🌟

Strawberry Shortcake Murder 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Memorial Drive: A Daughter’s Memoir 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

August was a great month for me. I felt rejuvenated! A whole new energy and I was able to get a lot of reading in. I had a lot of inventory to do at work so it was a great opportunity to get some audio books done too. I figured I would start with my 100 books to read in a Lifetime list and found the ones my library had on audio to download. I knew that reading some of the classics would be tough so I figured audio would be best.

My stand out of the month is Memorial Drive: A Daughter’s Memoir, this book has moved me and will stay apart of me forever. It is so beautifully written, poetic storytelling. A story full of strength and such insight that really resonated with me.

34/100 Books to read in a Lifetime

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, narrated by Eric Dove

10 HR 20 min

Adventures that all little boys only dream of! No matter what society deems right or what adults tell him do, in the end Huck always does what his heart tells him is right to do.

Goodreads: Following the events of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn is under the watchful stewardship of the Widow Douglas. However, when he is forced back into his drunken father’s custody, Buck fakes his own death and runs off down the river. In the process, he meets up with Jim, a runaway slave, anf the two become friends as well as travel companions. Their adventures lead them through many twists and turns through the American South, embarking on a legendary journey.

33/100 Books to Read in a Lifetime

A Tale of Two Cities – Charles Dickens, narrated by Simon Prebble

16 HR 9 min

These classics are killing me! Is it a requirement for a classic to be a tear jerker?! 😢

During the French Revolution, some used “the cause” for their own personal revenge.

Goodreads: When the starving French masses rise to overthrow a corrupt and decadent government, both the guilty and the innocent become victims of their frenzied anger. Soon nothing stands in the way of the chilling figure they enlist for their cause La Guillotine, the new invention for efficiently chopping off heads.