Books I should have read by now.

Ever feel like you are the only person that hasn’t read a particular book? You know, the one people always rave about and you sheepishly say, ‘Ah, yes, it’s definitely on my list of books to read this year.’

Well, here is my list.

The Princess Bride.

I’m not sure why I have never read this one. I know enough about the plot to know that it should be right up my alley. Just haven’t gone there yet.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

In my defence, I have certainly tried. Every time I start The Fellowship of the Ring I get a little bit further. The story is awesome in every way but it is just so slow. So it appears I am going to match the pacing and will still be reading about Middle Earth in a retirement village.

Anything by Helen Garner.

No good excuse here.

Cloudstreet.

I think sometimes literary novels scare me. I pick one up, become 15 again, and fear I will be the only kid who doesn’t like the latest fad. In fact I have never read anything by Tim Winton. You see, I did a writing course, and he was mentioned a lot. To the point where you wonder if the teachers were looking around the room and wondering if the next Tim Winton was sitting there, scribbling in their notebook. Too. Much. Pressure.

The Great Gatsby.

I have been proactive with this one and recently purchased it. Haven’t quite got to the reading part.

One Hundred Years of Solitude.

Like The Lord of the Rings, I have actually started this. But then I saw something shiny, got distracted and haven’t gone back yet.

What books have you always been meaning to read?

The Forest of Hands & Teeth

The Forest of Hands & Teeth by Carrie Ryan is a young adult, post-apocalyptic zombie love story. Yep, it’s all of that.

Mary lives in a village in the middle of the Forest of Hands & Teeth. They are surrounded by a fence built before anyone can remember to protect them from the Unconsecrated. The Sisterhood ensure everyone leads a life of spirituality and the Guardians patrol the fence to keep the Unconsecrated at bay.

After a series of tragedies Mary loses her faith and begins to question the motives of the Sisterhood. She is also dealing with being outcast to the only family she has left while realising she will never be betrothed to the man she loves.

When the fence is breached all hell breaks loose. Mary must decide if she believes there is anything past the fence worth living for.

I was ready to love this novel. It was quite well reviewed and I am going through a big YA fiction phase at the moment. Sadly, I did not feel the love.

The story starts off well and getting the low down on how the village works was fun. They are old school: a man ‘speaks for’ a woman when he wants to begin courting her.

There was also a lot of action throughout and while I didn’t connected deeply with the characters, I did want them to make it to the end.

The most disappointing thing was that it tackles some great themes but they are bogged down by a Twilight-esque love story. There were too many over-the-top teen declarations of ‘I can’t live without you.’ This space could have been better used exploring Mary’s conflict with what love is supposed to mean and how you really know if you love someone.

The supporting characters are two dimensional and don’t challenge the protagonist enough. The ending was obvious and I had no doubt that things were going to be ok.

In short: I won’t be buying the sequels. If you are partial to some dramatic love and watered down zombie descriptions then this is the book for you. Really. I think there is a market for this kind of book but it certainly reads like a first novel.

2/5

Life As We Knew It

In Life As We Knew It the world is assaulted by deadly natural disasters after a meteor hits the moon and knocks it closer to earth. It begins with giant tsunamis that wipe out much of coastal North America, and continues with, earthquakes, super storms and volcanoes.

The story is told through the journal of sixteen-year-old Miranda. She starts out like any teenager; worried about friends, boys and school. When the disaster happens she does not understand the full impact and has an almost naive hope that everything is going to be ok. She scoffs when her mother, planning for the worst, forces them to stockpile as many supplies as they can, and becomes jealous when her little brother is given more food rations than the rest of the family.

Pheffer’s pacing is spot on. The disasters and climaxes are well placed, making the book difficult to put down. The breakdown of society is touched on but not explored as deeply as it would be in an adult novel.

The best thing about this book is Miranda’s growth. At the beginning there are moments of selfishness and immaturity that would be expected of anyone her age. At this point I actually found her a little annoying, like I was just waiting for her to wake up, snap out of it, and grow up. It’s not until she really begins to see the sacrifices her mother is making that Miranda does this. From that point on the story focuses on her strength and what she is willing to sacrifice to keep her family alive.

It has funny moments mixed with scenes of deep sadness that make you wonder about how you keep going when it appears there is nothing left. I read this book in one day; I think that says it all. 

4/5