Tag: fiction

April reads, 2026

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Spring started properly early here, but then it slowed down into a stall. What’s that got to do with reading, you ask? Well, only that while we did go on a couple longer strolls with the dogs on some particularly nice days, the outdoors didn’t entice us out and about too much, thus keeping me indoors, reading. I did spend an hour or so maybe twice on our deck, reading in the sun, where my hanging egg-chair is sheltered from the wind.

So anyhow, 18 books, 6125 pages, average book length 340 pages – a mix of quite long ones, a couple of 120-150 page snack books, and everything in between.

  • Kingdom of the Cursed and Kingdom of the Feared (Kingdom of the Wicked 2 and 3), by Kerri Maniscalco – Love, family, demons, witches, and goddesses, a plot twist or two, and every story has two sides, as usual. Delicious, dark, and spicy, but love wins in the battle of power over the circles of Hell. Satisfying reading, great trilogy!
  • Lumenlaulaja, by Emmi Itäranta – A bit of Finnish mythology, the story of the great witch Louhi from Kalevala, told from her point of view, sort of capsizing the entire male-centric pov of Kalevala. Here the female witch is not an evil to be controlled and slain (well, she IS), but rather a strong woman trying to protect her own. And what could be more threatening to men than a woman not in need of one? Fascinating book.
  • Pohjolan jumalattaret, by Karolina Kouvola – Bit of a snack book after Lumenlaulaja, with a short article about the old deities of Finnish mythology. They are legion, many of them overlapping each other, variations of the same in different areas.
  • Adenashire books 1-5, by J. Penner – Five cozy feel-good fantasy romance books, a sixth one will be out in March next year. The books:
    • A Fellowship of Bakers & Magic – Where it all begins, with Arleta and the baking contest that leads her to Theo (or rather, Theo leads her to the contest, but you know), and new friends who all follow her back to Adenashire, each for their own reasons.
    • A Fellowship of Librarians & Dragons – Doli, the Dwarf with a huge heart, the one who originally pulled both Arleta and the reluctant Fennex Jez into their fellowship of hearts, finds her own happy romance in Adenashire.
    • A Fellowship of Games & Fables – When Jez inadvertedly throws herself and the High Elf baker-and-fellow Taenya into a whirlwind of winter games and fake-dating, the world may be frozen by mid-winter, but that doesn’t keep hearts from melting.
    • A Fellowship of Curses & Cats – Theo gets his own book. He has some issues and fears that surface when he’s about to become a father, and then his mother shows up, not helping anything at all. Or… is it, actually? At least Theo has Arleta and the rest of the fellowship for comfort, and don’t forget all them cats!
    • A Fellowship of Academics & Arts – It’s a tense night at the bakery, where the fellowship is waiting for word while Arleta is at the midwife’s, giving birth to her and Theo’s baby. What better way to while away the time than with a story? So, Verdreth is coaxed into recounting the story of how he and Ervash found their love and ended up in Adenashire with Arleta’s family.
  • David Bowie, by Marc Spitz – The life and music of David Bowie, extremely detailed but not. Seemingly crammed with everything the author managed to dig up, but only as far as they interested him, I think, what with skimming through some events and collaborations with barely a mention. Not that good of a bio, imo.
  • The Fox and the Devil, by Kiersten White – The daughter of Van Helsing chasing the woman she believes killed her dad, only to get obsessed and entangled with her and find out the world is full of monsters – but what makes a monster, after all?
  • Love and Friendship, by Jane Austen – A shortie with short stories from Austen’s youth, most of the stories incomplete. Satire and downright farce, I tell you! She was sharp and observant of the society, pouring it into these outlandish stories at first, it seems, then honing her storytelling into what we then have come to know as the style of Jane Austen. Fun snack book!
  • The Impossible Garden of Clara Thorne, by Summer N. England – What happens when a kid is unloved and abused, and what happens when they finally let themself to love and be loved. A story of magic and evil and love being the strongest power of them all. Queer romantacy, loved it!
  • Storm Over Camelot (Morgan le Fay 3), by Sophie Keetch – The conclusion of the saga of Morgan and Arthur, and all those close to them. The entire trilogy is an intense, excellent retelling, from the pov of a(nother) woman deemed an evil witch simply because she would not succumb to the control of men. Long live the once and future king!
  • Trappin perhe (orig. The Story of the Trapp Family Singers), by Maria Augusta von Trapp – The real story of the family von Trapp, written in 1949 by Maria von Trapp herself. Amazing resilience, amazing resourcefulness, just a rather amazing family all in all!
  • The Auction, by Sadie Kincaid – Dark mafia romance that left me with conflicted feelings. I liked (maybe even loved?) it per se, but got annoyed by the amount and extent of sex – felt like the middle third of the book was nothing but. Don’t get me wrong, the smut doesn’t bother me, it just kinda bores me… I want action that takes the stroy forward, not only into the bedroom (or whatever room or not-room, but you get the drift). Still, preordered book 2, for I do need to see the story to its end.
  • The Book Witch, by Meg Shaffer – Sweet and wonderful twisty kind of tale where we get to zip in and out of books with Rainy March and the Duke, where fiction and the real world mix in unexptected ways. I don’t cry with books too easily, but this one had me in tears with this beautiful scene in a library (no, won’t tell you more, read and figure it out for yourself!).
  • The Antiquarian’s Object of Desire (Love’s Academic 3), by India Holton – Ah, Amelia and Caleb and the fake-hating scheme of life-long best friends in this friends to lovers (or is it fake-enemies to lovers?) romance where things literally explode around when emotions run amock. Quirky, witty, funny, trademark Holton. Superb!

April 10, Finished (speed-)reading the bio of David Bowie (by Marc Spitz) today. It’s a highly detailed bio, at least about the parts that interested the author, while skating past many other events with barely a mention. Too much detail about a lot, detours and side-quests to the lives of some related people, barely a mention of others.

The whole book felt like it was as much about the author and their obsession as it was about Bowie himself. Like the author focused all interviews and research on what was meaningful and interesting to them, but didn’t bother with whatever wasn’t. So no, not one of the best bios I’ve ever read, not by far.

April 19, Snack book: Jane Austen’s Love and Friendship, ie. a collection of her unfinished writings from early years (teens, I think). In a very familiar kind of teeny way, she tried her hand at full-blown farce writing before settling on the style that later got her published. Outlandish stuff, quite fun reading 😄

April 25, I have loved The Sound of Music ever since I first saw it as a kid, though back then I always could’ve stopped watching at the point of the wedding – the romantic in me felt like that was the high point, the climax of the story so why bother with the disruptive war stuff, you know, just let them live happily ever after.

Of course I knew even then the story was based on a true one. I’ve had the book The Story of the Trapp Family Singers (in Finnish, “Trapping perhe”) by the mom, Maria Augusta von Trapp, in my library for years (and have no idea where it came from, maybe my grandparents’ library?) but never have I gotten around to reading it, until now.

How much more there is to the von Trapps! I really enjoyed getting to know the real von Trapp family and what their storied life actually was like, especially their time after they left Austria, ie. where the movie left off. I mean, just those ten years or so that the book covers, are full of adventures and escapades and humorous moments, paired with resilient labor to make a life, a good life at that, and not just their own life, but others too, by ways of music and post-war charity and whatnot. What a family!

April 25, The beautiful cover (of the special edition I saw) and intriguing RuNyx-y kind of plot description lead me a bit astray with The Auction (by Sadie Kincaid). It even started promisingly, and held it for almost half the book, but then the plot just kinda became secondary in the storytelling, fading into the background of sex and obsession and violence, but mostly descriptive sex. I mean, I’m not disturbed by descriptive sex and/or violence per se, but when one or the other or both become the main event, eclipsing the plot, I get bored. Obsession isn’t my favorite trope either, really.

So I got a bit annoyed and disappointed. And then everything just had to turn upside down in the last 50 pages or so and end with a crash bang cliffhanger. I had already decided not to continue the series (or rather, duology, as it is), but, hunh. I’m undecided now.

March reads, 2026

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March was a mix of classics and fantasy, mostly. 15 books, 5705 pages of happy reading. Somehow I felt like it was a month of long books, books > 400 pages, but while there were many of those too, apparently there were quite a few rather short ones as well. Funny how these biases go 😄

  • The Herbalist’s Apprentice, by Mabel Maplewood – A sweet cozy mystery in the lines of forgiving yourself and getting past mistakes.
  • A Ghastly Catasrophe (Veronica Speedwell 10), by Deanna Raybourn – Ah, Veronica and Stoker! Danger and drama and danger of drama, and the treat of the guest-starring Lady Julia and Nick Brisbane!
  • Turms kuolematon (Eng. The Etruscan), by Mika Waltari – One of the historical tomes of Waltari, very much classics of Finnish literature. Intriguing read, though a bit long-winded.
  • The Ornithologists Field Guide to Love (Love’s Academic 1), by India Holton – Whimsical and magical as Holton’s books are ever. Full of magical birds and somehow villainy and heroism aren’t exactly clear 😄
  • Villette, by Charlotte Brontë – I guess there’s something akin to Jane Eyre in this story about the teacher and a curmudgeon, and still I liked this one better.
  • The Sun and the Starmaker, by Rachel Griffin – Starcrossed lovers, a fate to be challenged. Romantacy like a Chinese myth.
  • The Geographer’s Map to Romance (Love’s Academic 2), by India Holton – No more birds, now it’s earth rumbling with magic as fey lines fail. And the walls built by our married(!) protagonist couple crumble down too. What a fate – to fall in love with your spouse! Though more like allow them to find out you fell in love long ago.
  • The Violin Maker’s Secret, by Evie Woods – Magical realism. A violin born from love and tragedy, singing the sorrow of the soul bound to it. Coveted by many. Too many.
  • Magic and Mischief at the Wayside Hotel, by Elizabeth Everett – Romantacy in a sentient “hotel” that’s stuck on earth with a guest list including a vampire, the Fate sisters, fairies, a bloodthirsty gnome and whatnot, even a god or two in the mix. And there’s more to come \o/
  • Lady Susan / The Watsons / Sanditon, by Jane Austen – Some less known novellas/short stories by Austen. Lady Susan was a bit meh but obviously completed, whereas The Watsons really should have become a novel, same as Sanditon (which has been completed into one or maybe few versions, one of which I’ve read; probably there’s completed Watsons around too, hmm).
  • Mayhem and the Mortal, by Shanora Williams – D&D meets Wizard of Oz, enemies to lovers romantacy adventure, a wild goose chase with an unexpected ending (and honestly, there NEEDS to be a sequel for this!)
  • The Astral Library, by Kate Quinn – Who wouldn’t want to roam through their favorite (public domain) books? Or live in one for good? As long as the ignorant forces stay away.
  • Get Over It, April Evans (Clover Lake 2), by Ashley Herring Blake – LGBTQ romance, enjoyable read .💜
  • Wayward Souls (Harker & Moriarty 2), by Susan J. Morris – So, Ireland, and Samhain is nigh. Sam and Hel save the day, but Professor Moriarty is still on the loose, so expecting a book 3.
  • Kingdom of the Wicked (Kingdom of the Wicked 1), by Kerri Maniscalco – First in a wicked enemies to lovers trilogy. Someone is murdering youn witches, but is it the demons, or is it your neighbor?

Mar 11, Reading India Holton’s next series (Love’s Academic) now, and I mean, her satire of every (romance) trope! Now inns don’t necessarily have even just one room left (unless such is specifically orchestrated, in which case it is the honeymoon suite), and never mind the matter of a bed. There may be a storage room with seven beds – but they’re all stacked on top of each other. Then again, the innkeeper just might surrender his kids’ rooms with sufficient bribary. And, well, you can’t have sex in a kid’s bed, now can you?

And lo and behold, the issue of holding (or inhaling) your breath! “…releasing a breath she’d not only been holding but had tied up and gagged too.” Take that unconscious breath-holders!

Mar 12, Finished Villette (by Charlotte Brontë) today and I don’t know if I really liked it better than Jane Eyre, or if the latter simply was colored in my eyes by hype (which makes me shy away from even things I might like), but I do claim to have enjoyed it (more? unlike?). I mean it is overly long, and at times boring and boorish, and it reads like a spoken narrative, with narrational styles flipping back and forth sometimes rather annoyingly, and it happily mixes in untranslated French in dialogues (though I do read that to an extent so not entirely lost on me), but the story is quite an agreeable one.

November reads, 2025

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Somehow a bit slower reading month again. Been a lot of stuff going on at work and it seems to take a bit of a toll on my ability to focus on books – as much as I want to read, I can’t always seem to have the energy to go on deciphering words and end up playing a mobile game instead 😄 Still, the 11 books of November already brought the cumulative year toll to 150 books exactly, a bit over 55 000 pages so far (which is already over 3000 pages more than last year with the 147 read books, so I seem to increase my time spent with books all the time – and maybe my reading speed is still increasing too).

  • Metal Slinger (Fire & Metal 1), by Rachel Schneider – Well that was a plot twister for sure! I lost count of them 😄 Sure kept things interesting. Looking forward to book 2 (coming in June next year) to see where it all goes in the end!
  • The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, by Stuart Turton – So how many times did Evelyn actually die? That’s for the reader to find out but it¨’s not easy with all the time loop stuff and multiple instances of same person in the same place but different time location and… whoa, have mercy on my brain! Excellently built story.
  • Hex and Hexability (Best Hex Ever 3), by Kate Johnson – The pefect palate cleaner after the mind twists of Evelyn Hardcastle, even though these books include a bit of time travel too. Fun and fast moving and a delicious romance too.
  • Princess of Blood (The Shards of Magic 2), by Sarah Hawley – More court politics than I really care for; thus a more tedious read than book 1. It did gather up some speed towards the end, also as the romance matured, and boy did it leave off on a cliffhanger!
  • Rewitched, by Lucy Jane Wood – A lovely journey to finding one’s bearings and courage, with a dose of mystery and a bit of danger in the mix.
  • The Poisoned King (Impossible Creatures 2), by Catherine Rundell – Sort of independent sequel to to book 1, middle grade read, and a good one for the intended audience, which I obviously am not really, but I did like the story.
  • Uncharmed, by Lucy Jace Wood – I didn’t enjoy this as much as I did Rewitched. The protagonist annoyed me big time with her living to please others (and maybe it hit a bit too close to home too…). In the end though, very satisfying.
  • The Everlasting, by Alix E. Harrow – Started a bit slow, took me 1/3 of the book or so to get to speed but then it was an etherial kind of ride through times in the attempt to stop the one who wanted to rule it all no matter the cost.
  • King’s Ransom (Gabriela Rose 2), by Janet Evanovich – Perhaps not the best of Evanovich but entertaining and fun story taking the reader from the States to UK to Egypt to Italy on a race to find stolen (and missing) artifacts.
  • Brigands and Breadknives (Legends & Lattes 2), by Travis Baldree – D&D or so, a travel story both through the Territories and one’s self. A bit slow moving for me, but I still liked it a lot.
  • Higher Magic, by Courtney Floyd – Dark academia, adult romantacy, themed with divergence (neuro and other) and inclusion/exclusion, infused with literature. Simply a fabulous book, pure enjoyment with the perfect level of mystery and suspence.

Nov 5, God what a mind twister! The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (by Stuart Turton) broke my brain with the time loop stuff and multiple instances of the same individual in different states of the time loop and… whoa! Didn’t keep me from loving the book, maybe on the contrary. What a ride!

Nov 27, combine academia, literature, and magic into a romantacy mystery, and you’ve got the perfect recipe for a book – at least if you aim for my top reads of the year (or decade or maybe life) list. I mean, what’s there not to love? In the hands of a skilled author, it’s pure satisfaction. That’s Higher Magic (by Courtney Floyd) for you!

October reads, 2025

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Dark season is here. It doesn’t affect my reading habits one way or the other – I don’t read any more or less (I read most of my freetime anyway), I don’t choose my books according to season (spooky or any other seasonal theme) – I just keep on reading whatever suits my fancy at any given time. This month includes two books on ADHD as non-fiction, and The Great Gatsby as the classic I was curious about, among the usual setting of fantasy (mostly romantacy and dark academy) and mystery/crime.

  • De-Witched and Season of the Witch (books 2 and 3 of the Toil and Trouble series), by Sophie H. Morgan – fun witchy romantacy-mysteries, feel good books 💜
  • The Secret of Secrets, by Dan Brown – the long-awaited (10 years, I think Brown himself noted!) new Robert Langdon book and possibly the best one yet, or maybe it just feels like it, since it’s been 10 years since reading the previous book and way longer for the ones before, but definitely a fantastic book! It lingered with me for days (and nights) after finishing, a myriad of “what if’s” floating in my head, making me question and assess what could be and what I might believe. In the end, I am an agnostic so from my point of view, it all could be, but might not, and it really doesn’t change anything for me 😄
  • Alchemy of Secrets, by Stephanie Garber – she moved from YA to adult fantasy with such eloquence and style that it took my breath away! I hope she writes more adult fantasy; maybe a sequel to this one? The ending did leave that door open.
  • Petetty, by Max Seeck – the second Milo book took things highly personal for him, Milo the protagonist that is. Guaranteed quality crime, again. Excellent read!
  • Aloittamista vaille täydellinen – ADHD työelämässä, by Jaana Haapaluoma-Höglund and Eve Kottonen – a book about ADHD in professional life, by ADHD people themselves. Recommended read for ADHDers and neurotypicals alike, offering (self-)recognition, understanding and assistance with ADHD issues and strenghts specifically in working life. Personal experiences are complemented by chapters by professionals specialized in neurodivergency (most on the spectrum themselves).
  • Books 1-4 of the Moonlight Springs series (Starlight Antiques, Sweet Memories Bakery, Enchanted Bookshop, Painted Visions), by Lula Ward – cutesie sweet romantacy-cozy-mysteries with magic stirring and alliances forming and evolving into romance, allowing the protagonists to find themselves, their inner abilities connected to magic, and grow past trauma. The writing is a bit clumsy and repetitive, conversations often a bit redundant with same discoveries made multiple times, but I still enjoyed the stories enough to cringe and move on through the annoyances.
  • Arcana Academy, by Elise Kova – a dark academy novel starting a new series. An enemies to lovers romance in a story full of secrets and betrayal, where you never know who you can trust and nothing is quite as it seems. Left of on a cliffhanger, need to wait for a year or so for the next book 😭
  • Ai se olikin ADHD, by Laura Wáthen – another Finnish book about ADHD, written by an ADHD person. All about self-discovery and -understanding, aimed to help cope and deal with issues, which is the key to being able to use the strenghts and strive. Also, a lot of interesting history and facts about ADHD study and recognition in neuro-psychiatry and science.
  • Holly (book 3,5 of Belladonna), by Adalyn Grace -the Christmas themed bonus book in the Belladonna series, a cozy mystery kind of gathering of all the characters from the series in a Holiday celebration. Not usually my kind of a book, but I did enjoy spending some time with the crew!
  • The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald – the classic I finally decided to read since it’s referred to in so many books. It surprised me – I really enjoyed it! One of those I’m sure I wouldn’t have been able to appreciate as a younger reader. Now I found a lot of profound wisdom and insight in it, even if the story itself is not exactly uplifting.
  • The Dark Lord’s Guide to Dating (and Other War Crimes), by Tiffany Hunt – a truly delightful dark romantacy where every chapter title has a sideline in parenthesis (yes, I love that kind of stuff, along with footnotes and other sidenotes). Another enemies to lovers romantacy, where villainy is not black and heroism isn’t white. Second book coming in the spring – can’t hardly wait!
  • The City and its Uncertain Walls, by Haruki Murakami – a bit of a disappointment this one, in my opinion. A bit of a been there read that story, the themes a bit old and already exhausted, the writing too detailed and dragging on, like Murakami tried to artificially turn a 150 page novella into a 450 page novel.

Oct 5, Reading Dan Brown’s Secret of Secrets, where Langdon quotes the opening line of ”one of his favorite novels” which just so happens to be Dan Brown’s very first published book, Digital Fortress 😁 I love finding easter eggs in books 😂

Oct 9, I loved Stephanie Garber’s Caraval and Once Upon a Broken Heart series – such devious mysteries with clever twists and turns – and so I jumped in excited expectation when I first saw a post about her then upcoming adult fantasy debut Alchemy of Secrets.

The book dropped into my Kindle two days ago upon publishing and immediately cut in my TBR line. The book is awesome! I can only call it fantasy noir as my head keeps creating this film noir scenery and music as I read.

Oct 24, Holiday themed books aren’t my cuppa in general, but since I so loved Adalyn Grace’s Belladonna trilogy, I couldn’t pass Holly, the bonus book 3.5. It’s a truly Christmasy story, sweet and cutesie cozy kind of mystery with plenty of Holiday spirit – among other spirits. Still not something I would read more of, but I did enjoy this story a lot 🥰 Also, the holly-garland growing throughout the book and the manga style illustrations made it a special kind of a treat!

Oct 25, If you’re gonna read a classic you’re not sure you’ll like, you might as well do it in style 😉 The Great Gatsby (by F. Scott Fitzgerald) is quoted and referred to in so many other books that I finally became curious enough to want to read it – and for me that means acquiring it in one form or another – so I bought this beautiful painted edition, and today, I read it.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the book! I have a more or maybe less warranted caution for classics; so many have bored me to no end. Gatsby, I truly enjoyed. And it amused me that he had a grumpy Finnish maid-whatever 😄

“…a sense of the fundamental decencies is parcelled out unequally at birth.” — “The rich get richer, the poor – get children” — “Let us learn to show our friendship for a man when he is alive and not after he is dead.”

Oct 31, Finished Murakami’s The City and its Uncertain Walls today. It was, in a way, Norwegian Wood all over again, but twice as long and magical, though apparently the story is old (novella from 1980) and the novel here is a rework of that. Be as it may, it was too long for the story itself, and I found myself rather bored halfway through, at which point I switched to speed-reading. The story picked up again at the very end when everything became fully confusing.

So, not the best of Murakami, not even close. Lacking the intellectual intrigue while repeating themes from other books (or maybe they repeat themes from this one? whatever). Actually, there are certain topics or themes that seem to be present one way or the other in all of his books, or at least most in most or so. Parallel/intertwining universes/realities, lost love from the youth, people’s shadows or lack of or being separated from, mental issues and/or autistic traits through trauma or by birth. This book had it all, but unfortunately the execution got a bit long-winded and reading a bit tedious.

September reads, 2025

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September was a month with one birthday party (and baking for it) and one Sunday spent fully with my (adult) kids, a bit of shopping, eating and a concert in the evening. A regular reading month, though “only” 11 books, but some rather long ones in the mix, like Murakami’s Kafka and 1Q84 books 1-2 (one volume).

  • Midnight in Everwood, by M. A. Kuzniar – a retelling of Nutcracker, quite enjoyable, while maybe not exquisite
  • A Dark and Secret Magic, by Wallis Kinney – witches and warlocks, secrets and danger, love and courage, the perfect mix for a rather perfect book
  • Kafka on the Shore, by Haruki Murakami – maybe Murakami’s best known book, been in my library for some years, waiting for me to be in the mood. Great read, with its parallel universes kind of magical realism that only slightly twists the brain, but not too much
  • The Queens of Renthia trilogy: Queen of Blood, The Reluctant Queen, The Queen of Sorrow, by Sarah Beth Durst – where the spirits are torn between wanting to build and wanting to kill humans, only a powerful queen can keep them in control. A story with tragedy, love, hope, and deception. Loved it💜
  • 1984, by George Orwell – I was surprised by how much I liked this despite my prejudices. Excellent book about politics, power greed and human psychology
  • The Witch is Back, by Sophie H. Morgan – first of a series, a witchy romance. Cozy sweet read.
  • 1Q84 books 1-2 and book 3, by Haruki Murakami – inspired by 1984, though the connection is very loose. Magical realism, the best of Murakami in my opinion, excellently woven parallel stories with just a bit of mind twisting and suspence
  • Accomplice to the Villain, by Hannah Nicole Maehrer – just can’t get enough of Evie, Trystan et al! The mystery of the prophesy unravels slowly, as does the romance between Evie and Trystan, but there is more deception and destruction to come! One more (at least, you never know with these nincompoops, as the author stated) book to come, need to wait a year for it 😭

Sept. 13, I’m halfway through George Orwell’s 1984. I don’t exactly know how I avoided it in school, but I did, and it really never interested me; I was sure it would just infuriate and disgust me so I’ve been avoiding it until now. I’ve had a copy in my library for some years now, though, and the reason I’m reading it now is the reason I bought it to begin with: Murakami’s 1Q84, which is now next up on my TBR. So gotta read 1984 first.

I’m actually finding it an intriguing read. It resonates but is sufficiently distanced from reality that it reads like any dystopia, no more sinister than that even though a whole lot of the stuff IS reality to some extent. I found myself thinking that e.g. the Cancel Culture people should read it – but then immediately thought, just like Winston: they wouldn’t listen to him. I can relate to Winston in his musings on many levels, and he puts my ultimate feeling in words with the notion: “I understand HOW: I do not understand WHY.”

I think I wouldn’t have known how to appreciate the book when I was young. I think it’s better I didn’t get to it until I had a few more years behind me.

Sept. 20, At the end of 1984, I still did not understand the WHY. “Power” as a “why” makes zero sense to me. Anyway, it surprised me a bit how much I liked the book, despite my heavy prejudices. Those prejudices had leaked somewhat to my expectation of Murakami’s 1Q84, due to the connection, but at least that slate was wiped clean, then. I had put off reading 1Q84 for twofold reasons, fueled by its 1984 connection: 1) I “needed” to read 1984 first, 2) it’s long and what if I can’t stand it? I hate to DNF books.

Well, now I’ve finished book 1 of 3, and I have to say it is probably my favorite work of Murakami’s. The parallel universe twist is subtle enough to tickle the brain while not fully twisting it, the two stories are being woven together masterfully, one tiny strand at a time, and it is highly intellectual and intelligent, a real treat to one’s mind. The connection to 1984 is more inspirational than a real connection, but having read it, helps understand many of 1Q84’s nuances that might otherwise be lost on the reader.

As it goes, I select the books I read at any given time purely by mood, current interest, feeling, inspiration – and it pays off to listen to that and not try to push. Time was ripe for these two works now, and I am fully enjoying my experience!

Sept. 27, ”Someone once said unless you have those kind of opportunities [being in jail or having to hide out for a long time], you can’t read the whole of Proust.” – 1Q84, book3 (Haruki Murakami)

Well, I’ve certainly never even looked at Proust, doubt I ever will, but I definitely am enjoying these 3 books of 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami.