Dutch Hollow Reads of January
Welcome to the first blog post of Dutch Hollow Books! I hope that after every month of reading, I will be posting the best and worst of the books I read during this month, along with the list of what I did read. My hope is to make them short and sweet so a cursory glance allows you enough information for you to pick your next reading choice.
Best book of January was a tie between To Shake the Sleeping Self by Jedidiah Jenkins and The Girl With All the Gifts by M.R Carey.
To Shake the Sleeping Self is a memoir of Jedidiah’s two year bike trip from Oregon down to Patagonia. Whilst on his journey, he wrestles with his faith, his upbringing, and ultimately who he is and who he wants to be.
I liked his writing and the story itself. I enjoy traveling and have often wondered what it would be like to take off and just travel with no real responsibility for a long time. He addresses both the euphoria and the reality of the travel bug kind of wearing off. It tops my list for this month.
The Girl With All the Gifts was not what I expected. I fully expected this to be a story about some especially smart girl locked in an insane asylum. In a very, very small way, this book is about that but without spoiling anything, it is not in any way that. Little did I know I was getting myself into a dystopian zombie-like book. Really good. Quite well written and as much as I want to read his next book in this same universe, I need to separate myself from it for a little longer or I will have some nightmares because it was that good.
Worst Read: Sidequest: In Realms Ungoogled - Frank J. Fleming
Just not worth your time….
Give it a Chance Book: Traveling to Infinity: My life With Stephen - Jane Hawking
This book is just that; Jane Hawking’s memoir of her life with Stephen Hawking. It is the book that the movie The Theory of Everything is based on. I did enjoy this but please know, this woman is just as intelligent as her famous ex-husband and her memory for detail is uncanny. She is very verbose in her details. Still a fascinating story and worth a read.
January’s List:
To Shake the Sleeping Self - Jedidiah Jenkins (memoir)
The Girl With All the Gifts - M.R. Carey (fiction/thriller)
The Summer Kitchen - Lisa Wingate (fiction, chick-lit)
Heart of Iron - Ashley Poston (YA Fantasy)
Sidequest: In Realms Ungoogled - Frank J. Fleming (fantasy)
Traveling to Infinity: My life With Stephen - Jane Hawking (memoir)