ArmchairBEA 2012: Best of 2012

Posted June 5, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in ArmchairBEA / 0 Comments

As I try to explore books both old and new, a best of 2012 list is difficult. Do I do a list of the best books released in 2012 or just pick from the books that I’ve read in 2012? I took some time to think about what I wanted to do and I decided to would be best to give my top five books I would recommend to read based on the books I’ve read this year. So here they are;

5. Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King

I picked this book because there are so many great YA novels out there but it’s nice to read a book with a protagonist full of angst not only having to deal with her teenage years but also having to deal with love and lost.

4. Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops by Jen Campbell

For all book lovers out there, this is just a fun read. Some great and interesting things have been said in a book store but my favourite from this book would be; “Do you have this children’s book I’ve heard about? It’s supposed to be very good. It’s called Lionel Richie and the Wardrobe.”

3. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

I wanted to pick a classic piece of literature but it’s hard to pick something that you can recommend to everyone. But A Wrinkle in Time is probably a book that everyone should at least read and I think most people would enjoy.

2. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

I do hate that I’ve got two YA novels in this list but when it comes to recommendations they are probably the easiest to recommend because they are a gateway read into the world of finer literature. John Green is a brilliant writer and this book is a touching; it’s hard not to have it as a recommendation.

1. Angelmaker by Nick Harkaway

My favourite book of the year (so far). Combining a plot made for a Bond movie with a writing style that has been compared to Charles Dickens; I think this is an exciting Victorian style adventure well worth reading.

While there are other books I thought were better than some of these books, including Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes, When Gravity Fails by George Alec Effinger, Talulla Rising by Glen Duncan and Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky they really aren’t books you can recommend to everyone for many reasons.

ArmchairBEA is a virtual convention for book blogger who can’t attend Book Expo America and the Book Blogger Convention. Banner by Nina of Nina Reads and button by Sarah of Puss Reboots

Monthly Review – April 2012

Posted April 30, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Monthly Reading / 0 Comments

April has been a great month, not only with the amount of reading that I’ve been able to do but also with the celebration of, firstly, my wife’s birthday and then my sister-in-law’s. Also during the month I was able to take a mini vacation from work, a great chance to recharge and enjoy some reading. In terms of reading, I managed to read more books than I imagined, including some great recent releases, a chilling classic and unfortunately a high amount of below average novels.

Surprisingly, I read a few Magic Realism books with The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey and the massive 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami; while this genre is weird and not really my style, it was good to experience some the genre first hand. I also read a few novels that have recently been adapted into movies in preparation for their releases; The Rum Diary by Hunter S. Thompson and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer. Overall this month has been a great month of reading for me, knocking out twelve different books.

Highlights for this month included the steampunkish action adventure novel Angelmaker by Nick Harkaway; imagine if Charles Dickens wrote a good James Bondish novel and that is what you’ll find in this book. Also the dark disturbing story of a woman suffering the effects and after effects of a very unhealthy relationship in Elizabeth Haynes’ brilliant debut novel Into the Darkest Corner. As well as the Henry James classic, a gothic horror masterpiece; The Turn of the Screw.

April’s Books