Reading Update

Arrival, Chiang

This was a book of short stories. I learned about it because of the movie Arrival, which is great. The other stories had fascinating concepts too. The one that I remember the best is based off of the Tower of Babel. 

Babylon's Ark, Anthony

An amazing true story of trying to save the remaining zoo animals that are trapped in a war zone. 

Wayward Son, Rowell

I quite liked Carry On. The other two books in the series I wasn't as crazy about. Possibly because Simon was so depressed, which made him mean to everyone. He did go through a lot. Anyway, I just didn't find the sequels as fun as the first book (which was the freaking book that made me actually enjoy a vampire romance). 

Sharing a House with the Neverending Man, Alpert

Stories of Studio Ghibli as told by a rare westerner who has worked with them. It's fascinating to hear about the company, and to hear some of the cultural differences are explained. 

One thing that surprised me is that there's a character based off of him in The Wind Rises. He didn't even mention it in the book! I was wondering why that character was on the book cover, so I looked it up and discovered that I was right. 

Warriors, Hunter

Okay, I finally finished the first series of Warriors. Only because I promised two of my cousins that I would. But the books drove me crazy. And not just because they glorify feral cats. The characters were all so frustrating. They didn't share information that was vital, or refused to believe certain things for no reason. Or just randomly went crazy. Yeah, I rather suffered through these books. If I want cool animal cultures, I'll stick with Watership Down. 

Challenger Deep, Shusterman

I learned about this book because I went to an event where the author was present. He said that the book is based off of what his son went through. The book is amazing, and harrowing. It was really good, and quite stressful to read. I felt off balance for a while after reading some parts of it. It's about a boy with schizophrenia, and the story is split between the real world and the world that the illness has created. 

My Side of the Mountain, George

Kids fantasize about running away from home and going to live in the wilderness. This kid does. It takes a while to adjust, but he learns to live on the mountain. 

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel, Clarke

I've heard about this book so many times. It's amazingly written, and a good story. I think I need to read it again though. There's so much happening. I even missed part of the ending. I keep meaning to find a book so I can go back and see what I missed. It was something important. TT^TT

I just saw that they made a show based on the book! Gotta check that out. 

Sailing with Noah: Stories from the world of zoos, Bonner 

Some great stories about zoos, animals, and the people who care for them. 

Rogues, Martin

A collection of short stories about characters who are, well, rogues. The stories are in a variety of genres, and there are some big-name authors in it. I learned about it because there's a Name of the Wind story amongst them. I think my favorite was where the team managed to steal an entire road. 

Sheine Lende, Little Badger

The prequel to Elatsoe. This is the best book comp I've found. It's good, but why can't I find mooooore? 

Beauty and the Beast, Rudnick

A novelization of the Disney live-action movie. I just stumbled upon this at a used store, so it was a cool find. 

Annihilation, Van der Meer

A strange, dangerous, fantastical land is slowly spreading. A team of people crosses into this land, to try to learn what they can about it. It was a pretty bewildering read. The strange land is interesting, but they didn't give me enough of it to want to read more of the series. 

Tending the Wild, Anderson 

A great book of how the native California people cared for the land in ways that the Europeans never bothered to understand when they arrived. The entire state was cared for, unlike now where much of the land has been destroyed, or is in danger of burning to the ground.