Too Ten Tuesday – Authors I’ve Read the Most Books By

Welcome to another edition of Top Ten Tuesday! It has been a long time since I last did this and so I’m really excited to get to do it again!

Top Ten Tuesday is an original blog meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and is currently being hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s given topic is Authors I’ve Read the Most Books By.

Haruki Murakami – 17 books

Apparently, Haruki Murakami is my favorite author, ever. I’ve nearly read most of his books and I’ve enjoyed and loved them all. I hope there’s more to come from this brilliant author.

Agatha Christie & Jessica Zafra –  12 books each

And Then There Were None started my reading journey of Agatha Christie’s works. I was then hooked with the Miss Marple series afterwards.

Jessica Zafra is a Filipino fiction writer known for her sharp and witty writing style. I still hope to read her other books when I get back to the Philippines.

Nicholas Sparks – 9 books

Paulo Coelho & Dan Brown – 6 books each

George R.R. Martin & Mitch Albom – 5 books each

Gillian Flynn, JRR Tolkien, Rainbow Rowell, Jodi Picoult, Stephenie Meyer –  4 books each

Jose Saramago, Stephanie Perkins, Chang-Rae Lee, Khaled Hosseini, Sam Harris, John Green, Neil Gaiman, William Boyd – 3 books each

There you go guys! Do we have the same list? Share your answers in the comments section or feel free to drop a link so I can check them all out.

Happy Tuesday, Homo sapiens!

 

 

 

City of Djinns: A Year in Delhi by William Dalrymple

If you want to read about India, or more specifically Delhi, I happily recommend City of Djinns.

The book tells about about the author’s one year stay, as well as what he has learned, while in New Delhi in the 1980s. He talked about how kind people in Delhi were, different cities, his funny landlady, Mrs. Puri, Hinglish, Anglo-Indians, the partition, the scorching heat he experienced there, horoscopes, architecture, a Hindu wedding and so much about India’s culture and history.

This is my first attempt to William Dalrymple’s works and I must say, I am impressed. He’s a brilliant observer and he can very much entertain readers with his writing. I very much admire the work he’s done with this book. Wonderful.

This book can be a travel guide when I visit India someday. One of my finest reads this year.

Quotable Quotes:

“Partition was a total catastrophe for Delhi,’ she said. ‘Those who were left behind are in misery. Those who were uprooted are in misery. The Peace of Delhi is gone. Now it is all gone.”

“Whoever has built a new city in Delhi has always lost it: the Pandava brethren, Prithviraj Chauhan, Feroz Shah Tughluk, Shah Jehan … They all built new cities and they all lost them. We were no exception.”

“For all its faults we love this city.’ Then, after a pause, she added: ‘After all, we built it.”

“And it would be nice if the roof was a bit stronger. Then the peacocks wouldn’t keep falling through. I don’t mind during the day, but I hate waking up at night to find a peacock in bed with me.”

“When a dust storm blows it means the djinns are going to celebrate a marriage …”

Rating: 5/5 stars

 

 

 

 

 

A Six-Word Story

Loving you a bit more everyday.

Quote of the Week

Letting go doesn’t mean that you don’t care about someone anymore. It’s just realizing that the only person you really have control over is yourself.

~Deborah Reber

Why

do we

hold on to

those who can’t love

us?

Mid-Year Freak Out Tag

Hi there, Homo sapiens! I hope you are all doing well and safe wherever you are.

Welcome to the Mid-Year Freak Out Tag! This is the first time I’ll be doing this and I’m really excited to do it. Thanks to Carl, I was introduced to this. Well, this tag basically helps you reflect how good or how terrible you are on your reading at this time of the year. 😅 2020 has been a mess but I somehow found more time for reading and so let’s get started, shall we?

Best Books I’ve Read So Far in 2020

Best Sequel I’ve Read so Far in 2020New Releases but You Haven’t Read Yet but Want To

Most Anticipated Releases for the Second Half of the Year

Biggest Disappointment

Biggest Surprise

Favorite Authors (Debut or New to You)

Ocean Vuong

Madeline Miller

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Ayobami Adebayo

Alex Michaelides

Newest Fictional Crush

Unfortunately, there’s none so far this year… hope to have one in the books I’m about to read for the rest of the year.

Newest Favorite Character

Kainene from Half of the Yellow Sun.

Books That Made You Cry

Books That Made You Happy

Most Beautiful Books You’ve Bought So Far This Year (Or Received)

Books You Need to Read Before the End of the Year

Favorite Book Community Members

I don’t really get to interact a lot with many bloggers or book community members and I am only a part of WordPress and Goodreads. There are some very notable bloggers/members I’m glad to have met though. Carl, of course is one of them. Do visit his blog here specially if you love books/reading and you can thank me later.😊 I’ve also met Chuck here on WordPress and he’s got plenty to offer you if you like poetry. He shares poetry written by other bloggers but he writes his own as well. Check out his blog here.

Now I guess I’m done here… Feel free to do yours, too! And tag me! I’d be really glad to read your posts! Happy day, Homo sapiens!

The Cake Tree in the Ruins by Akiyuki Nosaka

The Cake Tree in the Ruins is an incredible collection of short stories all set on August 15,1945, the day Japan surrendered to the Allies in World War II.

Some of the themes tackled are war and its effects, survival, loss, love and kindness in the most difficult situations. Several of the stories highlight on how useless wars are and its effects on common/ordinary people who are the actual victims.

Most of the stories are extremely sad and heartbreaking and The Whale Who Fell In Love With the Submarine is my favorite, a beautifully tragic story.

This is my first venture on Akiyuki Nosaka’s works and he definitely has my heart. This collection is haunting and superb and one that will stay with me for a very long time.

Quotable Quotes:

“He was waiting for his mother who was sure to come back from the sky — the mother who had soared up into the sky like a kite blown by the wind.”

“Too many undernourished people and animals appear in these stories, I know, but it was wartime, after all.”

“On 15th August in the cloudless blue sky evening sky a single giant balloon left Japan and rode the jet stream headed for America. It carried no bomb… and unable to land is probably still floating around somewhere filled with the breath of school children.”

Rating: 5/5 stars

 

 

A Six-Word Story

She knows exactly who she is.

Short Story – The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe

The Cask of Amontillado is a gothic short story written by Edgar Allan Poe. He was one of my favorite authors growing up. I just love the way he writes.

The story is direct to the point. Montressor, the narrator was insulted by Fortunato and so he vows for revenge. It seems normal at first but as the story progresses, it gets darker.

We never really got to learn Montressor’s purpose/reason for carrying out the revenge on Fortunato but maybe that’s not really the point in the story. Well, I dunno.

What I know is that Fortunato was buried behind a wall and  Edgar Allan Poe knows revenge at its worst and moreover, a mystery is yet to be solved.

Quotable Quotes:

“A wrong is unredressed when retribution overtakes its redresser. It is equally unredressed when the avenger fails to make himself felt as such to him who has done the wrong.”

“It must be understood, that neither by word nor deed had I given Fortunato cause to doubt my good will.”

“The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge.”

Rating: 4/5 stars

 

 

Quote of the Week

Try to understand men. If you understand each other you will be kind to each other. Knowing a man well never leads to hate and almost always leads to love.

~John Steinbeck

Stop

saying sorry

like everything has

been your fault, it

isn’t.

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

Bridge to Terabithia is a touching and heartbreaking story with themes that include imagination, friendship, family and grief. Jesse is shy and quiet but has amazing artistic skills and Leslie is the new girl in town who beat the boys in running. Soon, they became best friends and built their secret imaginary kingdom of Terabithia.

It’s a beautiful story of friendship between these two lonely children until one day, tragedy happens. And the story tells of how to cope and come into terms with what happened. This will really touch you on so many levels. It is an engaging and memorable book with relatable characters. Children who think and talk realistically and in a very honest way.

I love books that break my heart and this was one of them. I hate it but I love it.

Quotable Quotes:

“Sometimes it seemed to him that his life was delicate as a dandelion. One little puff from any direction, and it was blown to bits.”

“You think it’s so great to die and make everyone cry and carry on. Well it ain’t.”

“He may not have been born with guts, but he didn’t have to die without them.”

Rating: 4/5 stars

 

A Six-Word Story

He meant so much. She didn’t.

Quote of the Week

Time can be a greedy thing — sometimes it steals the details for itself.

~Khaled Hosseini

WWW Wednesday 17-Jun-2020

Hello there, Homo sapiens! Welcome to another WWW Wednesday, hosted by Sam from Taking On A World of Words.

As usual, just answer the three W questions:

1. What did you recently finish reading?
2. What are you currently reading?
3. What do you think you’ll read next?

Recently Finished

I recently finished these three wonderful reads and all of them received 4-⭐️ ratings from me.

Currently Reading

I decided not to read other books at the moment so I can focus and hopefully finish A Dance of Dragons soon. To be quite honest, there’s not that much action happening so far in the book that’s why I always end up reading something else but I haven’t reached half of it yet so hopefully it gets better.

Next Reads

I hope to start with these two books after I finish A Dance with Dragons. I think these are going to be great reads!

Have you read any of these books? What have you been reading this past week? I’d be delighted if you share your WWWs, too. Leave a link or share your lists on the comments section so I can check them all out!

Happy reading and keep safe, Homo sapiens!

Don’t Forget

Everyone

makes mistakes

but don’t forget

the good deeds they

made.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

Alicia Berenson was a famous artist and married to a well-known photographer, Gabriel. She shot her husband and never spoke a word ever again. She was later confined in a psychiatric facility where Theo, an ambitious psychotherapist and obsessed with Alicia and her story, tried his best to get in.

This is a clever story. It grabbed my attention from the start as I was intrigued with what’s going on. I started formulating theories in my mind while reading and some came real close. But that twist, I seriously did not see coming at all.

As I write this now, I’ve realized the writing was good but I can’t really say it was amazing. The characters were not that appealing and even the plot was a little bit unlikely. However, it all worked together beautifully.

Alex Michaelides did a good job on this debut and he now belongs to my radar of authors to watch for.

Quotable Quotes:

“You know, one of the hardest things to admit is that we weren’t loved when we needed it most. It’s a terrible feeling, the pain of not being loved.”

“…we often mistake love for fireworks – for drama and dysfunction. But real love is very quiet, very still. It’s boring, if seen from the perspective of high drama. Love is deep and calm – and constant.”

“Remember, love that doesn’t include honesty doesn’t deserve to be called love.”

Rating: 4/5 stars

A Six-Word Story

I am enough as I am.

Quote of the Week

There comes a time when the world gets quiet and the only thing left is your own heart. So you’d better learn the sound of it. Otherwise you’ll never understand what it’s saying.

~Sarah Dessen

WWW Wednesday 10-Jun-2020

Hello there, Homo sapiens! Welcome to another WWW Wednesday, hosted by Sam from Taking On A World of Words.

As usual, just answer the three W questions:

1. What did you recently finish reading?
2. What are you currently reading?
3. What do you think you’ll read next?

Recently Finished

I gave 4-star ratings for all four books.

Currently Reading

I haven’t really read much from A Dance with Dragons so I will try to put a little more time for it this week because it’s still a long way to go! Just started with Little Women yesterday, it’s been on my TBR for years. I’m enjoying The Book of Night Women so far so I really hope this ends good.

Upcoming Reads

I was supposed to start with Near to the Wild Heart but opted for Little Women instead so I hope to pick this up next. Also, I was browsing my Kindle for what else to read next and found The Member of the Wedding and Augustus. I almost totally forgot about these two books already so both will be priorities for my upcoming reads.

Have you read any of these books? What have you been reading this past week? I’d be delighted if you share your WWWs, too. Leave a link or share your lists on the comments section so I can check them all out!

Happy reading and keep safe, Homo sapiens!

Pretended

she’s happy

for way too

long and just couldn’t

anymore.

A Six-Word Story

Just keep trying, never give up.

Circe by Madeline Miller

If you are into mythology, well even if you aren’t actually, you should read this book.

This is the first book I’ve read written by Madeline Miller and it’s surprisingly good. I loved her writing style as well as the character developments. The story was also packed with myths, gods and goddesses and it was fun to come across familiar names.

I haven’t heard much about Circe herself actually apart from her being a witch and turning men to pigs. Madeline Miller did a great job giving life to Circe’s character. She also was able to write the story like as if Circe was telling the story herself. I liked the way she grew and developed throughout the book and the ending was indeed meaningful.

Highly engaging, enjoyable and wonderful read.

Quotable Quotes:

“Beneath the smooth, familiar face of things is another that waits to tear the world in two.”

“I had no right to claim him, I knew it. But in a solitary life, there are rare moments when another soul dips near yours, as stars once a year brush the earth. Such a constellation was he to me.”

“Humbling women seems to me a chief pastime of poets. As if there can be no story unless we crawl and weep.”

“I would say, some people are like constellations that only touch the earth for a season.”

“You cannot know how frightened gods are of pain. There is nothing more foreign to them, and so nothing they ache more deeply to see.”

Rating: 4/5 stars

Quote of the Week

Attitude is a choice. Happiness is a choice. Optimism is a choice. Kindness is a choice. Giving is a choice. Respect is a choice. Whatever choice you make makes you. Choose wisely.

~Roy T. Bennett

Sad

ain’t it

having feelings for

someone you can’t be

with.

Quote of the Week

Hope can be a powerful force. Maybe there’s no actual magic in it, but when you know what you hope for most and hold it like a light within you, you can make things happen, almost like magic.

~Laini Taylor

A Six-Word Story

Needed you more than I thought.

The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa

I was not suppose to read this book because I don’t like cats. But it’s a book written by Hiro Arikawa, a Japanese author whose works I haven’t ventured on yet so I thought it’s unfair not to give it a try after seeing lots of good reviews about it and just because I don’t like cats. Plus, it was translated by Philip Gabriel so I know the translation would be a good one.

So… Nana was a stray cat and was soon taken in by a kind-hearted guy named Satoru after he found it injured by a car. They lived together for years until one day, Satoru can no longer take care of Nana so they found themselves traveling together to find a new home for her. They visited several of Satoru’s friends and slowly Satoru’s story unfolds. The more they travel, the more their love for each other grew.

Well, there’s not much of a plot here and the writing was slow for my taste but simple and engaging which I like. I love Satoru and Nana and cared enough what will happen to them so it was okay that the story went a bit slow for me.

This is a beautiful story of friendship, companionship, love and kindness. The part towards the end of the book was quite lovely. Tissues required while reading.

Quotable Quotes:

“My story will be over soon. But it’s not something to be sad about. Remembering those who went ahead. Remembering those who will follow after. And someday, we will meet all those people again, out beyond the horizon.”

“If you have to consider what’s going to happen after you die, life becomes doubly troublesome.”

Rating: 4/5 stars

 

WWW Wednesday 27-May-2020

Hello there, Homo sapiens! Welcome to another WWW Wednesday, hosted by Sam from Taking On A World of Words.

As usual, just answer the three W questions:

1. What did you recently finish reading?
2. What are you currently reading?
3. What do you think you’ll read next?

~Recently Finished~

~Currently Reading~

~Up Next~

Have you read any of these books? What have you been reading this past week? I’d be delighted if you share your WWWs, too. Leave a link or share your lists on the comments section so I can check them all out!

Happy reading and keep safe, Homo sapiens!

Live

make mistakes

create happy memories

Life’s too short so

live.

A Six-Word Story

I really should have never cared.

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller

This is Helen Keller’s autobiography written while she was attending Radcliffe College. Despite being blind and deaf, she was very lucky to get proper education and use what she learned to help others in the same situation as hers. This is also a tribute to her teacher, Anne Sullivan, who was very devoted to her and made such a big difference in her life.

Since she wrote this book while still attending college, I would like to read more about her later life and somehow know more about her as a person. I’m afraid I didn’t really get that from this book. I would also probably read something about her through another’s viewpoint, say Anne Sullivan’s for example, who contributed greatly to what she has become.

I’m giving this book 3-stars for its inspiring and interesting story though the second part of the book was a bit redundant. I’m giving 5-stars to Helen Keller for her passion, her commitment and eagerness to learn and for her achievements.

Quotable Quotes:

“One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar.”

“I wonder what becomes of lost opportunities? Perhaps our guardian angel gathers them up as we drop them, and will give them back to us in the beautiful sometime when we have grown wiser, and learned how to use them rightly.”

“Trying to write is very much like trying to put a Chinese puzzle together. We have a pattern in mind which we wish to work out in words; but the words will not fit the spaces, or, if they do, they will not match the design.”

Quote of the Week

It’s amazing how a little tomorrow can make up for a whole lot of yesterday.

~John Guare

WWW Wednesday 20-May-2020

Hello there, Homo sapiens! Welcome to another WWW Wednesday, hosted by Sam from Taking On A World of Words.

As usual, just answer the three W questions:

1. What did you recently finish reading?
2. What are you currently reading?
3. What do you think you’ll read next?

Recently Finished

Currently Reading

Up Next

Have you read any of these books? Or is there anything you want to recommend? What have you been reading this past week? I’d be delighted if you share your WWWs, too. Leave a link or share your lists on the comments section so I can check them all out!

Happy reading and keep safe, Homo sapiens!

 

Don’t

settle for

temporary pleasures for

you’re worth more than

that.

Top 5 Tuesday – Top Opening Lines

Hello there, homo sapiens! It’s time for Top 5 Tuesday.

This tag is hosted by Shannah over at Bionic Book Worm.

Top 5 Opening Lines

“Mother died today. Or maybe yesterday; I can’t be sure.”

 “It was a pleasure to burn.”

 “All this happened, more or less.”

 “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.”

“History has failed us, but no matter.”

 

 

 

Quote of the Week

There are all kinds of love in the world, but never the same love twice.

~F. Scott Fitzgerald

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

Randy Pausch was a professor at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh where his areas of expertise were computer science and virtual reality. He worked for Disney as an Imagineer. He died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 47.

Overall, the book is inspiring though not mind-blowing. The wisdom within this book makes it an important book to read. It is indeed a good lecture for him to leave to his children and to inspire many others.

While I enjoyed Randy Pausch’s positive attitude during the most difficult time of his life, I also felt that the book was a lot more about him proving how great he and his life had been. I don’t want to speak ill of the dead and I will probably burn in hell to say this but he appeared to be cocky, arrogant and so full of himself. Death is always a tragedy but his was a fairytale having been able to bid goodbye to everyone he loves and leaving a mark in the world. I personally think he should have hired a writer to assist him in writing this book, maybe it would touch more hearts and won’t sound or appear the way it did.

Nevertheless, you’d still have to admire Randy.

Quotable Quotes:

“We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.”

“Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted. And experience is often the most valuable thing you have to offer.”

“The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.”

“Showing gratitude is one of the simplest yet most powerful things humans can do for each other.”

“Find the best in everybody. Just keep waiting no matter how long it takes. No one is all evil. Everybody has a good side, just keep waiting, it will come out.”

Rating: 3/5 stars

 

A Six-Word Story

Choose to believe you are worthy.

Write

about anything

even the thing

you are most afraid

of.

A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

A Dog’s Purpose is one dog’s story trying to find and understand his life’s purpose through four different lives. He was first born as a stray dog and was later named when caught and kept in a dog pound. In his second life he was a golden retriever named Bailey. This is my favorite part of the book, aside from being a golden retriever which is my favorite dog breed, this is where he met Ethan. Come his third life, he became a she, a female German Shepherd named Ellie and was part of of the Search and K-9 unit. He was back to being a male dog in his fourth life and this time a Labrador.

Told from a dog’s perspective, every thought that enters the dog’s mind were realistic. The way the author has written the dog’s thoughts made me feel like I am actually in a dog’s mind. It felt like the dog was really the one telling the story.

A Dog’s Purpose is a roller coaster of emotions — I laughed, I cried, it was happy and sad, it made me nervous and scared, it made me hopeful. I just so love this book from beginning to end.

W. Bruce Cameron did a brilliant job in this book. Whether you’re a dog/animal lover or not, I highly recommend this book. You will not be disappointed. I can’t give enough praises to this work. Read it. It’s a paw-fect book!

Quotable Quotes:

“The job of a good dog was ultimately to be with them, remaining by their sides no matter what course their lives might take. All I could do now was offer him comfort, the assurance that as he left this life he was not alone but rather was tended by the dog who loved him more than anything in the whole world.”

“Because failure isn’t an option if success is just a matter of more effort.”

“Humans were capable of so many amazing things, but too often they just sat making words, not doing anything.”

Rating: 5/5 stars

 

A Six-Word Story

Be kind you can’t be ignored.

Quote of the Week

Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise.

~Victor Hugo

Find Someone

Find

someone who

doesn’t want you

hurting yourself in any

way.

WWW Wednesday 06-May-2020

Hello there, Homo sapiens! It’s the month of May! How are all of you doing? I hope you’re all safe wherever you are. I’ve been kind of busy the past couple of weeks, I moved to a new apartment and have to arrange stuff here and there plus work, of course. Well, thank God everything’s almost in place now. So…

Welcome to another WWW Wednesday, hosted by Sam from Taking On A World of Words.

As usual, just answer the three W questions:

1. What are you currently reading?
2. What did you recently finish reading?
3. What do you think you’ll read next

Currently Reading

Recently Finished

Up Next

Have you read any of these books? Or is there anything you want to recommend? What have you been reading this past week? I’d be delighted if you share your WWWs, too. Leave a link or share your lists on the comments section so I can check them all out!

Happy reading and keep safe, Homo sapiens!

The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris

I’ve been seeing this book almost everywhere both online and offline and so I’ve finally decided to purchase an ebook and see why people are so raving about it.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz is Lale’s true story during the second world war. It tells us how he became the tattooist in Auschwitz and the trials and sufferings he and the others experienced there.

I liked the story, I do, but I didn’t quite like the writing. I’m a big fan of world war reads but this just came a bit flat for me. I also wasn’t able to connect with the characters and there was no character development. I also didn’t feel that much emotion while reading this unlike the other books I’ve read about the war. I did felt some but I would have loved it more if I were able to feel a connection with the characters or between Lale and Gita. I kinda felt like the bond between them was missing, an opportunity missed for a beautiful love story. Or is it just me? Don’t get me wrong, this would have really been a great story but I really felt the writing didn’t do it justice.

Any holocaust-related story is a gripping tale but I wasn’t blown away with this one. Still I’m glad I’ve read it.

Quotable Quotes:

“I know he is not perfect, but I also know he will always put me first.”

“To save one is to save the world.”

“Remember the small things and the big things will work themselves out.”

Rating: 3/5 stars

Quote of the Week

People are icebergs, with just a bit you can see and loads you can’t.

~David Mitchell

A Six-Word Story

Life’s too short to be angry.

Sorry

a word

misused and abused

lost its meaning to

me.

Top 5 Tuesday – Series I Want to Start

Hello there, homo sapiens! It’s time for Top 5 Tuesday.

This tag is hosted by Shannah over at Bionic Book Worm.

Series I Want to Start

To be honest, I’m not very fond of series. I’m a bit dismissive about it. Why? First and foremost, I’m impatient. Second, I hate too much or too little backstories. Third, I, well, forget several details from the previous books. This is why I have only read very few series like A Song of Ice & Fire and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

I hope to start with a new one this year and hopefully finish the entire series, too, and here are my choices:

1. The Sea of Fertility by Yukio Mishima

2. Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan

3. Time Quintet by Madeleine L’engle

4. War of the Roses by Conn Iggulden

5. Earth’s Children by Jean M. Auel

 Have you read any of these series? What did you think of them? Do you think these are great choices? What’s on your list? Feel free to leave a link or share in the comments sections. I’d be glad to read them. 

Happy Tuesday and keep safe, Homo sapiens!