2017 Favourites // Books

Hello guys! This time last year I started a new job and as a result, I suddenly found that that I had lot more spare time so I finally rediscovered my childhood love of reading. I didn’t quite meet my Goodreads challenge of 40 books, I only managed to hit 37 but overall I’m actually really proud of that as I read some really amazing novels and started a new hobby, which was something that I really wanted to achieve in 2017. In this post I’m going to talk about my favourite books of 2017 (which was very hard to narrow down). Throughout my childhood and now my adulthood, no books ever manage to compare to my ultimate favourite series, Harry Potter as I have so many amazing memories of reading the books and watching the films over the years. Overall, 2017 was a good year for me; I read so many incredible books and some of them I doubt I’ll ever forget. It was difficult to choose the best of a good bunch, but I think (hope) that I’ve managed it.

The Keeper of Lost Things

One of my favourite books of last year, Sunshine was a character who completely stole my heart. She’s definitely one that I doubt that I’ll ever be able to forget, she made the entire novel so memorable with her chatty ways and love of a simple cup of tea. Actually, the majority of the characters were lovely, often supporting each other through some hard times. The concept of looking after lost items and returning them to their owners was so lovely too; it was an unusual book and full of pleasant surprises.

Tin Man

A modern take on love and loss, there were elements of a love story for it to be untangled at the last minute. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting when I starting reading this novel, but Sarah Winman always writes in such a beautiful way that it doesn’t matter; the content is always amazing. I loved how it started with a husband and wife and then the reader got to know their child and his wife and best friend too; everyone had their own story, everything was explained and developed.

This Is Now

This was a novel full of characters and surprises; Ciara Geraghty isn’t an author who I was familiar with, but having read this book I’m sure I’ll read more of her works. Her writing style is lovely; I liked that this book began with an event which was then broken down, showing the reader individual stories of those who were involved with the major incident. It has a bit of social commentary too, as many of the characters are immigrants from Ireland or Poland which was delicately handled.

The Couple Next Door

Over the past year I started reading more and more thrillers; this one was an incredible read. It all started with a double dinner date, then ended up with a missing child, such is the case for those who often seem to have it all. In an evening, the perfect relationship, the perfect life is slowly unravelled. It was such a gripping read; the plot never failing to be an absolute shocker.

After You

I loved this because it went against the grain of the average sequel; filled with grief and mixed in with endless love, an ordinary girl attempting to live an ordinary life after experiencing the worst kind of detachment from her best friend. Her life is a bit of a mess, which only seems to increase over the year after his death. The story wasn't similar to the prequel and that was a good thing; it was a continuation through new life.

The Muse

This book is arguably the best of them all; so unique and so beautifully written.I loved the concept that art, and an art gallery in two different countries and two different timelines can correspond through a painting. The elements of racism and war foreshadowed by the artworks are described so perfectly it was easy to let the imagination run wild.

I See You

An incredible thriller, made all the more terrifying by its twenty first century setting; using social media, the internet and commuter newspapers, there's someone watching your every move, documenting your way to work every single day. This book contains one of the best twists I think I've ever read in a thriller, it is completely addictive. You have to read until you know whodunnit.

The Shock of The Fall

This is likely to be the most realistic novel that I've ever read regarding mental health. A boy whose life is deeply affected by loss and survivor's guilt; a boy who finds comfort in his best friend, his only friend.This is a novel that makes you laugh, scream and cry because throughout the novel we see a boy turn into a man with the weight of the world on his shoulders. It is told sensitively and honestly, the ugly side of life is visible throughout.

A Year of Marvellous Ways

One of my favourite authors, her novels never fail to amaze me. The story of a woman in the later stages of life sounds boring on the outset, but through the pages she seems to grow and grow, finding people to help along her journey to the end. I love the way that all of the main characters explored the idea that being human is a complex thing. It begins slowly but the beautifully written prose draws you in.

The Little Pieces of You and Me

A story of two friends, who have managed to keep their friendship as close as it was back in their university days, despite one living the dream working and residing in another country and the other married and settled beyond her years. Until a diagnosis changes the course of their lives forever; this is a well written novel that is an enjoyable read. The idea of a perfect life is unravelled as the book goes on, it’s a realistic view of the world.

Baby Doll

This book starts where others end; all about escape. Escape from captivity, escape from the mind; finally being free, except that freedom also comes at a price. I loved how this book explored so many taboo subjects and the main character was so strong throughout that it was an incredible read. Usually a kidnapping is how a book ends, so this one immediately stood out as it was focused instead on recovering from capture and moving on.

The Miniaturist 

This was a recommended read for me and I instantly fell in love. Based on a dolls house on display in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, it tells the story of Petronella Oortman. As I studied art, I love Jessie Burton’s novels as they always describe various pieces of art whilst adding her interpretation of the world within an artwork. This book explored 17th century life for women in what was a man’s world as well as commenting on the place of merchant families within society. This was an incredible read, I can’t fault it.

Book Review: Tin Man

Another incredibly moving and beautifully written book by Sarah Winman. Having read her other two novels I had high expectations for this one, but I wasn't disappointed in the slightest. Her novels always have eye catching, intricately designed cover artwork and this one is no exception. The image of a lone man cycling into the distance toward a line drawing of a town is haunting and only foreshadows the content of what the pages inside entail. To begin with, we meet Mr and Mrs Judd, who in front of lots of friends and acquaintances, embarrasses her husband when she ignores his wish for whisky and instead picks a painting for a raffle prize. Heavily pregnant, that is the beginning of her standing up for what she loves; life and the arts. The novel expands softly, describing a man who is well and truly stuck in a rut; after his wife died he has lost who is he, where he is and what he is. Grief has completely and utterly overtaken him to the point that even day to day living has become a painful act of wake, sleep, work.

Ellis is the kind of man that everyone knows; as in, you all know somebody who resembles him. Constantly living but not to the full; forever pleasant, but always holding something back. He’s an unhappy man, having lived through too much sadness to the point that it is painful to dwell on the past but is unable to leave the past behind. Losing his mother affected him in many ways, but his lifelong love of the arts definitely suffered; he stopped sketching, stopped appreciating art. His mother loved art, often taught him about outside of the box and often, Ellis wondered where his mothers painting had gone after her death. There on the wall one day, off the wall the next and a new step mother instead. Michael was his long term best friend, the way that Ellis tells the reader about his memories of him, he sounds like the life and soul of any day, let alone a party. Flamboyant, confident and constantly by his side, Michael was as fond of Mrs Judd (Dora) as Ellis was. Both boys have their own story, their own struggles. I loved how they both helped out in Mabel’s shop, and that she treated both of them as grandchildren in the same way that Dora considered Michael a second son.

Michael has a sad life, there’s a reason why he’s being raised by his grandmother, although that isn’t fully touched on until the latter half of the novel. The development of the relationship between Michael and Ellis was amazing, it was easy to sense the chemistry between them, as well as understand that teenagers often experiment along the path of finding themselves. Annie, Ellis’ eventual wife was an excellent addition to the trio, it made the image of three being a crowd an absolute reality; there was a sense that she knew of their original relationship, although it was clear that her part in the trio definitely changed up the dynamic between Ellis and Michael. It is hard as the novel continues to realise that more or less every important person in Ellis’ life has passed away, other than his father (with whom his relationship has always been strained) and his step mother, Carol. Structurally, the novl begins with Ellis as the narrative voice, then around half way switches to Michael as the narrative voice, before ending with Ellis as the narrator. It sounds confusing, but it was clearly laid out and a great way to decipher the gaps in the memories of both boys as they turned into men.

In all honesty, I knew before I started this novel that I would love it. Sarah Winman is easily on a list of my all time favourite authors as every one of her books is something special; they always have a beautifully simplistic yet creative way with prose. For example, in this novel it was lovely to read the conversations between characters as there is no punctuation, encouraging the text to flow. Tin Man is a story of loss and love, the writing is so sensual and considered that each moment feels like your own imagination is running wild. In places it is fairly fragmented as it works the past and present of Ellis and/or Michael’s memories in together, however I loved reading the same memories from each mans perspective, how they lived their lives based on a series of decisions made by one of them. Ultimately there are a lot of subjects that are laid bare across the pages of this novel, I don’t think I’ll ever read a novel like it again. It’s a slow start, but as you delve in further you become engrossed. It’s a definite recommend from me, it is simply beautiful, I don’t know how else to describe it.

May Favourites

Hello again everyone, I honestly don't know where this month (in fact, this year) has gone too! Literally it feels like it could still be March but apparently it's almost June, half the year has almost disappeared right under my nose! Now, I'm loving this warmer weather with its brighter skies (the humidity not so much) as well as the items you'll see in the photographs below. I've read so many books in the past few months but my top two for this month have to be The Muse and A Year of Marvellous Ways as although they're very different, both of them exceeded my expectations to the point that I cannot recommend them enough! My boyfriend bought me the Valentina perfume for Christmas and I've been in love with it ever since; it's such a lovely feminine and floral scent in a classy bottle. Similarly, he bought me the Vera Wang perfume for my birthday and I absolutely adore the smell of pink grapefruit; I've been spritzing so often I know that I'll probably end up buying another one when it's all used up! I've been in love with Marc Jacobs perfumes for years now, the Blush and Sunshine editions are super feminine, pink and floral. I use them not only for my go to perfumes, but also for blog photographs so they're basically multi purpose.

Make up wise, I'm in love with the MakeUp Revolution Fortune Favours the Brave palette as it's not only super affordable, but looks stunning in my blog photographs as well as great on the skin. There's so many shades and colours to create many different looks that I think it suits all skin tones. I'm a massive lover of red lipstick as it really makes my lips pop against my pale skin tone; ever since I purchased Ruby Woo by MAC I've loved it, although I find it's more drying in the lips than my absolute favourite, the Blake Lively red for L'Oréal does. That said, I've been wearing them both so much this month and I felt super glamourous whenever I wore them. I've also found the lightest foundation ever, it literally matches my ghostly complexion so well, so kudos to L'Oréal for that. Plus, it lasts all day even in the sun so I know it's going to be one of those products that I'll be repurchasing after lots of use. Real Techniques are definitely my favourite brushes, I use them all the time and I've recently bought some more eye specific brushes that have really improved the application of my eye make up. In terms of highlighter, I'm loving the MUA highlighters at the minute as they're so affordable and so incredibly pigmented, they look so expensive on the skin. Lastly, I'm loving the NYX liquid lipsticks in the Suede Sandstorm and the Matte Lip Cream in London; both of them are nude shades but they feel so nice on the lips and work well for both night and day looks. I'm looking forward to what I'll love for June already, let me know what you loved in May through the comments! :)

 

Valentino Valentina Acqua Floreale - MAC in Ruby Woo - MUA Undress Your Skin in Pink Shimmer - MUA Undress Your Skin in Irredescent Gold -  L'Oreal Paris Colour Riche Collection Exclusive Lipstick in Pure Red Blake Lively

 

The Muse by Jessie Burton - Princess of Hearts by Vera Wang - Daisy Dream Blush by Marc Jacobs - Hand Cream by Ted Baker

 

NYX Liquid Suede in Sandstorm - NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in London - Real Techniques Expert Eye Brushes - Real Techniques Contour Brush from the Berlin kit -  L'Oréal Paris 24hr Infallible Foundation in Porcelain

 

A year of Marvellous Ways by Sarah Winman - Daisy Blush by Marc Jacobs - Daisy Eau So Fresh Sunshine by Marc Jacobs - Hand Cream by Ted Baker - Fortune Favours The Brave eyeshadow palette by MakeUp Revolution

 

Book Review: A Year of Marvellous Ways

I decided to read this book because I absolutely loved Winman's first book, When God Was A Rabbit. Her second novel is just as surprising as her first; her linguistic style is incredibly unusual and therefore rather unconventional. Throughout the book Winman refrains from using quotation marks so that the dialogue between characters is laid out within the overall sentences, which is slightly confusing to start with. However as you continue reading you somehow adapt to its unconventional format and begin to forget about it. Winman's writing style is utterly beautiful; her descriptive phrases read as a wonderful form of poetry. I understand that this isn't for everyone, because as a reader her books can be a struggle to follow at times; they are not books to be sped through, they're effectively leisure books, ones to read for pleasure and thoroughly.

One of the reasons why I was so drawn to this novel is its gorgeous cover art; when reading the book its very easy to appreciate how cover visually represents various written symbols described in many of the chapters throughout the book. In fact I would say that symbolism is what gives this novel its power; this is not a novel for everyone. It's an uncharacteristically artistic novel through and through; from the naming of characters (for example: Marvellous Ways, Paper Jack, Francis Drake, Peace, etc.), the view of life from all ages, young and old. At the start of this novel I felt the structure was a little too out there, too disjointed for my liking as none of the characters are officially introduced and the story unravels itself to a degree; the chapters are well written, poetically and gently but it took a while to get into the writing style. Whenever the narrative structure shifted, the shift wasn't declared; as a reader you need to be fully aware of which character is leading throughout the novel as it does change often, and often at a rapid pace.

This is a rare novel in the sense that I doubt I will ever read anything like it again; there is a such a wide range of perspectives, lessons and multi-faceted narratives it was a difficult read. However, I found it a rewarding read as it made you (as a reader) aware of the importance of learning. Miss Marvellous Ways at her age had a lot of life to give as well as a lot of life lessons to teach, Winman delivered her character effortlessly using literal brilliance to do so. The use of multi-narrative was not only clever, but an excellent way of interpreting the variety and vibrancy of  characters; their differences in age, gender, experience. Miss Ways is very special character in the sense that her age and life experience provides her with a maturity and an innocence at the same time. She understands people in ways that they don't even understand themselves. I would describe her as an eternal giver; giving Drake a place to live, space to heal, her time and company.

What all of the characters have in common are two main sources of pain: loneliness and grief. Drake, found and lost a lover, he struggles to regain himself after the war. Peace, a young lady who is madly skilled but struggling to brake into the world alone. There are other character introduced throughout as more and more stories are effortlessly executed, although be warned that this is a novel that breaks the norm of grammatical standards. There are parts where this does feel like an average historical novel, but it is the way that the prose is delivered that makes this novel simply unforgettable. If you choose to read this, then be sure that you're in for a pleasure, but it is a pleasure that you will have to persevere and enjoy; this is not a book to simple be read, as a reader you will need to be invested in the story, to feel the story to truly understand it. I've fallen completely in love with the authority that Winman's words have, which was unexpected to me, as I found this book to be a difficult one to love at first, but as I reached the end I realised how powerful this novel really is.

 

Reading Lust List

 

Having recently rediscovered a childhood love of reading, I feel like the list of books that I want to read is literally growing to the point where I feel like I'm going insane. I work, I blog, I have other things to do yet all I seem to do is find another book that I'm desperate to read. I will never say that reading is a bad thing, as I learnt so much from reading. I watched a video the other day that directly confronted whether young girls actively gain confidence from reading and I would say that reading definitely gave me confidence growing up. Even at aged 6, I was way above the average in terms of my reading skills but this video stated that not enough books were about girls. More importantly, girls who weren't princesses or the like. They were focussing on females as the protagonists of a story. Females who wrote their own tales and trod through their own paths. In all honesty, my favourite books as a child were; The Harry Potter series, A Series of Unfortunate Events and Ballet Shoes. All of these books contained very strong female characters although I never really thought about this at the time. I came from a female dominated household and family to the extent that I was always told that I could be whatever and whoever I wanted to be, regardless of gender, age, etc. I don't think young girls reading about princesses is a negative things; I think the more important lesson here is that we, as a society encourage ANY child to read about whatever they're passionate about. As adults, we forget that we are constantly reading.

Whether that is reading signs, blogs, text messages, etc. We literally read constantly. I don't think it matters what people of any age (but particularly young children) read is what is important; the important thing is the keep teaching them a skill that will ultimately stay with them for life. At the moment my reading list is super full, yes. But I'm actually enjoying reading and getting my mind lost within a story. I have to be honest and say that my favourite books do tend to be those with a strong female lead, or in fact those with a strong lead, male or female. It should abou the content within a book, not about what gender a character is. As a reader, it's possible to learn from either gender in a positive way and a lack of female roles won't stop me reading, or from encouraging someone of any age to read. At one point I would only read Fantasy based fiction, due to my infinite love of the Harry Potter series. All that happened is that I ran out of stories to enjoy because I wasn't being open to anything and so it's important to simply encourage any kind of reading, not only one kind. Rant over!

Reasons To Stay Alive - Matt Haig

The Essex Serpent - Sarah Perry

The Miniaturist - Jessie Burton

The Muse - Jessie Burton

A Year of Marvellous Ways - Sarah Winman

 

Book Review: When God Was A Rabbit

 

One of the reasons that I bothered to pick up this book was it's beautifully designed cover artwork. It just really appealed to me visually and the title successfully captured my attention; it definitely arose a curiousity inside of me. I'm not even sure what I expected from this book prior to reading it, but there was simply a special kind of pull to read it. It was Winman's debut novel and was written incredibly beautifully. It's pages tread on a various of subjects in including relationships, childhood, adulthood and families. As its written in an almost autobiographical sense, as a reader you gain a steady relationship with the main character. However, that said this novel is mostly based around a brother and sister, alongside the sisters best friend. Family and friendship are definitely key themes throughout the book from the start of it where you witness Elly's childhood even through watching her grow into an adult. The story is overall a massive wrench on the heartstrings.

The novel shows how children are both innocent and quite headstrong; Elly and Joe come from a loving, genuinely close family and yet still Elly is extremely cynical and has an incredibly adult world view for a child, understanding issues such as abortion, domestic and sexual abuse. They are from a fairly wealthy family, which is balanced by the introduction of Jenny Penny, Elly's friend who is from a completely different social background. I enjoyed how the narrative developed as the characters aged. I found that it referenced all of the important parts of the characters lives, good and bad rather than skimming through; the first of these events was Joe going to school and Elly being left to roam the fields unaccompanied and alone. It's hard to decipher if the child Elly has an overactive imagination, whether her version of events are reliable or not. However that also being said, with Elly as narrator it is as though she grown old long before her time, summarising an event with little emotion.

The elder Elly was almost resigned to bad things happening to good people. This novel touches on some incredibly tough topics, for example the events of 9/11 directly struck Elly and her family, which is a quite a controversial topic. However, it's handled really nicely and the character of Elly is insanely close to her brother; throughout the books there are subtle hints about his sexuality but this is done in a wholly positive way. In fact, the novel sheds a positive light on a range of difficult situations but doesn't underestimate the affect it has on those involved. There are a lot of subtle, hinted at undertones of emotions which resonated with me as I remembered a lot of the events of the 90s and 00s that were referenced. I'm not sure how well this novel would be perceived by someone younger, who may not understand the intensity of the situations mentioned in both the childhood and the adulthood memories, but overall it's a fantastically compelling read.