Wednesday, May 2, 2018

April 2018: Best and Strangest

Guys - it's been a crazy month. The semester is wrapping up, I've been working an insane amount, and yet, I've read more this month than I did during any other month so far this year. 26 books - can you believe that?! Partly, this is due to Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon, which I participated in for the first time (and had so much fun). I have no hope of reading this much next month, but I'm so glad I got this much done. As always, we'll talk briefly about what the best and strangest books I read this month are, and then move on to the rest of everything I read. So hang in there - there's a lot.

BEST
The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, #1)
★★★★★

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien is a book that I've long told myself I'd finally get around to reading and this month I actually did it. I'd heard it was slow and long and a lot to take in and in some ways, it was all those things, but I mostly found it to be a delightful and thoroughly enjoyable read - especially when you take into account that all of modern fantasy has built on this series. If you're one of the few fantasy readers who hasn't gotten around to LOTR, the time to start is now.

STRANGEST
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
★★★★
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke is one of the more original books I've read in a long time. The heroes are unlikable and often blind to anything outside themselves, the magic system is unlike any I've ever read before, and the supporting characters are some of the more delightful characters I've ever read. Plus, the whole book sounds like it walked out of the Napoleonic era and it's utterly bizarre and wonderful. For a unique fantasy story, you need look no further than this (and it's about 1000 pages, so it'll take you awhile to get through).


THE REST OF APRIL'S BOOKS
A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1)
★★★★

Wolf's Revenge (Leo Maxwell #5)
★★

The Rosary
★★★
Down and Out in Paris and London
★★★
Flat Broke with Two Goats: A Memoir of Appalachia
★★
A Guy Like Me: The John Scott Story
★★
Long Players: A Love Story in Eighteen Songs
★★
The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue (Guide, #1)
★★★★
Year of Yes: How to Dance it Out, Stand in the Sun and be Your Own Person
★★★
Seven Suspects
★★★
The Argonauts
★★★
Something Rotten (Thursday Next, #4)
★★★
Giant Days, Vol. 2 (Giant Days, #2)
★★★
Song of Susannah (The Dark Tower, #6)
★★★★
The Other Einstein
★★★

All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries, #1)
★★★

Another Fine Myth (Myth Adventures, #1)
★★


Stoner
★★★


Lazarus, Vol. 1: Family  Lazarus, Vol. 2: Lift  Lazarus, Vol. 3: Conclave
★★★ each



Diary of a Beatlemaniac: A Fab Insider's Look at the Beatles Era
★★

Eligible (The Austen Project, #4)
★★★

Sheets
★★★

This month, the most visited blog post on The Bibliotaph was my Dewey's Readathon updates post. I had so much fun writing that post over the course of the day and it was wonderful to be so productive on a Saturday! I also loved interacting with the bookish Twitter community. All in all, it was a great day and I'm glad we had so many new visitors to the blog!


What books did you read this month? Have you read any of the books listed here? What are you looking forward to reading next month?

4 comments:

  1. WHOA, 26 books!? I can't do readathons since my reading habits are super messy--maybe in the future. And I see The Gentleman's Guide up there, and it's one of the books that I've seen people love so much! I got a copy for myself and need to try it out ASAP. ♥

    - Aimee @ Aimee, Always

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    Replies
    1. It was an insane month and I don't think I'll be able to do that again (slash, we're a week into May and I've finished one book so...).

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  2. 26 books - it makes me feel a bit dizzy. Good on you though. If I could mimic that in one week I could make an impressive dint in my review books - however, I would then be seriously behind in writing the reviews. Vicious circles.
    Well done though :D
    Lynn :D

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    1. A lot of them were shorter and the readathon really made it possible. And I hate when you get ahead in reading, only to fall behind in reviews or blogging - you can't win! Thanks for stopping by:)

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