 |
| Some of My June Reads |
June Wrap-Up
- Finished: 9
- Started but not finished: 1
- Total pages read: 2,184
- Average rating: 4.38
June was a great month when it came to reading! Not only did I finish nine books, but they were also really good: four five-star books, three four-star books, and one three-star book. One nonfiction book I left unrated. I finished six fiction books and three nonfiction books. Three of the fiction books I read during a short summer vacation at my mother’s, and I’ll give you mini reviews of them below (there's also a bonus review of a book I finished in early July). Two of the fiction books were fantasy: The Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi (4/5 stars) and Song of Silver, Flame Like Night by Amélie Wen Zhao (also 4/5 stars). One was a collection of ancient Greek novels, Collected Ancient Greek Novels (5/5 stars). Click the links to read longer reviews.
Summer Reads
 |
| Summer Reads |
East of Eden by John Steinbeck
Originally
published: 1952
My rating:
4/5
I spent the final week of June at my mother’s, and I took the opportunity to pick up books from her bookshelf. The first book I picked from her vast collection was East of Eden by John Steinbeck. This was my third Steinbeck and honestly probably the last at least for a while. I like Stenbeck’s writing, but I find his stories too depressing. East of Eden tells the story of three generations of two families, the Hamiltons and the Trasks, and includes real-life events from Steinbeck’s childhood (Samuel Hamilton was his maternal grandfather). The title refers to the biblical narrative of Cain and Abel, and sibling rivalry and (either attempted or metaphorical) fratricide are major themes in the novel. It was interesting to notice all the allusions to the Genesis narrative of Adam and Eve and their sons, but at the same time I found the biblical allusions heavy-handed. In addition, the character of Cathy/Kate was too one-sidedly evil to be believable. That being said, East of Eden is definitely a classic worth reading, but it’s not my favorite Steinbeck. I gave this book four stars.
Sculptor’s Daughter by Tove Jansson
Original
Swedish title: Bildhuggarens dotter
Originally
published: 1968
My rating:
5/5
The next book I picked up from my mother’s shelves was Tove Jansson’s Sculptor’s Daughter. Jansson is more famous for her Moomin books, but I have to admit that I’ve never been a huge fan of them (which feels a little sacrilegious to say as a Finn). But I enjoyed Jansson’s The Summer Book when I read it a few years ago, and Sculptor’s Daughter was great as well. The book is a collection of short autobiographical snippets from Tove’s childhood. Her father worked as a sculptor and her mother illustrated book covers, and in addition Jansson writes about her summers with her parents and grandparents, her impressions of adults as a child, and her childhood plays. I loved how she perfectly captures the innocence and naivety of a child in her writing. Five stars and a book I highly recommend!
Anton Chekhov’s Short Stories
Originally
published: My Life (1896), The Lady with the Dog (1899), In the Ravine (1900)
My rating:
3/5
I had time for a third book as well, and I picked up a little collection of three short stories by Russian author Anton Chekhov. I’ve read Chekhov’s plays before and really enjoyed them. I’m not sure if I’ve read any of Chekhov’s short stories, but I was a little disappointed with this collection.
The first story in this collection was My Life, a novella about a young aristocratic man who doesn’t want a menial job in an office but instead wants to make a living with his hands. His father disowns him, and he takes up a job as a painter and later, influenced by a woman he marries, as a farmer. His rejection of aristocratic lifestyle leads to a family tragedy, as his sister starts an affair with a married man and ends up pregnant out of wedlock. This is a slow narrative where almost nothing happens.
The second story, The Lady with the Dog, is a short story about an adulterous affair between an unhappily married Moscow banker and a young married woman that begins while both are vacationing in Yalta. I found it hard to relate to the characters, as the narrative didn’t give clear reasons why they were attracted to each other and started the affair in the first place.
The third story, In the Ravine, is a novelette about a merchant family living in a rural Russian village. The ageing merchant Grigory Tsybukin decides to marry his elder son Anisim to a poor young woman. Anisim agrees to the wedding without enthusiasm and comes home with newly minted coins that later turn out to be fake. Anisim’s forgery is caught, and he is sent to six years of hard labor in Siberia. Tsybukin makes a will that gives his fortune to Anisim’s newborn son. This angers the wife of Tsybukin’s younger son, and she pours boiling water on the baby, killing him. This is a tragic and powerful story, but ultimately I found its pessimism depressing.
A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie
 |
| A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie |
Originally
published: 1950
My rating:
4/5
While I was visiting my mother, we made a trip to a bookstore and bought some new books. I picked up five books to read in the coming months. One of them was Agatha Christie’s A Murder is Announced. I don’t often read detective stories, but for some reason I find summer the perfect time to read one, and it has usually been an Agatha Christie novel. Technically, I finished this book in July, but I’ll review the book now when it’s fresh in my mind.
The time and the place of a murder are announced in a local village newspaper, and naturally the curious neighbors flock into the house of the elderly Miss Blacklock, hoping for an entertaining night. But when the murder really happens, excitement turns to fear, and soon it seems no one is safe.
A Murder is Announced is part of Christie’s Miss Marple series, and this was my first time reading about the sweet old sleuth. The murder mystery was great, and I could not figure out who the murderer was. However, I don’t think this was a good introduction to Miss Marple, because for most of the book she isn’t even present, and the majority of the investigation is handled by an adequate but not particularly fascinating police officer. That’s the reason why I’m giving this book four stars instead of five.
Non-Fiction Reads
I finished three nonfiction books in June. The first was SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome by Mary Beard (5/5 stars). SPQR gives a broad strokes view of Roman history from the founding of Rome (traditionally dated to 753 BCE) to Caracalla’s edict that made all free men Roman citizens (212 CE). This was a fascinating take on Roman history, but definitely not a book intended for someone who has no prior knowledge of the topic. The book expects the reader to be familiar with at least the basic facts. The text doesn’t always follow the chronological order of events, which made it difficult to follow, and for that reason I would only recommend this book to Roman history nerds.
I also read a nonfiction book about a year in medieval Finland, Vuosi keskiajan Suomessa by Ilari Aalto and Elina Helkala (5/5 stars). This book gave nice basic information about what life in the medieval times would have looked like. I also flipped through an old geometry book from the 1950s, and although I’m leaving it unrated, I’m still going to count it as read.
Jane Austen July Hopefuls
 |
| Jane Austen July Hopefuls |
July is the
month for the Jane Austen July readathon. I have a separate blog post where I’m
introducing the books that I’m planning to read this month, so check that out
if you want more information about the books that are in my July hopefuls.
~ ~ ~
If you want to see more about the books I’ve read, check out my June reading wrap-up video (including a summer reading vlog and a book haul) below:
No comments:
Post a Comment