Between the Covers – March 2019
As of this writing, I am 41% into my reading goal for 2019. That’s 12 of 29 books, seven of which I finished in the months of March and April.
Here are my March books:
THE APPEAL – JOHN GRISHAM
In this novel, rated 3.59 stars on Goodreads, a giant chemical company was found guilty of dumping toxic waste that caused the worst cancer cluster that had ever been known. The verdict was a victory for the small town that had wasted away, and a much-needed win for the small husband-and-wife lawfirm that took the fight to the courts. The fight was far from over though – there was still an appeal to overcome.
I was a John Grisham fan in high school but I haven’t read much of his work in recent years. Some of the more memorable legal thrillers I’ve read had to do with torts cases like this book was focused on: Grisham’s own King of Torts, and A Civil Action by Jonathan Harr. I loved them because they were about righting wrongs, and making big companies pay for cutting corners and doing damage to life and the environment. Think Erin Brockovich, the Julia Roberts movie.
But, I have to say I am disappointed with this one. For me, it reads too much as a news story or maybe a legal transcript. It was not very compelling and not so much the legal thriller I remember Grisham writes. I was not even sure I would finish it, but I did – because I was hoping for a different ending.
It does make quite a statement though. That the legal system could be quite the sham.
A BOY MADE OF BLOCKS – KEITH STUART
Now here was a book, with a 4.3 star rating on Goodreads, that was quite heartwarming.
This is from my 2018 Big Bad Wolk Booksale haul. I saw it among the piles of books at the World Trade Center, and was intrigued by the title. I initially thought it was somehow LEGO related, but it turns out to be about a Dad who found a way to connect with his young son through the game Minecraft.
Something I takeaway from the book is the need to have a shift in perspective (in case one is needed) from seeing a person with disability as a problem that needed to be dealt with to seeing them as A PERSON, and treating them just like another human being, albeit with special needs.
LIVING DEAD IN DALLAS – CHARLAINE HARRIS
Many years ago, around 2013 if I’m not mistaken, I took two trips to the National Bookstore Warehouse sale at their Panay Ave/Quezon Ave branch, and brought home boxes of books. This, along with many other Charlaine Harris titles, was in one of those. I never got to watch the True Blood series on HBO but knew that it was based on these Sookie Stackhouse novels.
Truth is, I wasn’t interested in reading the books, but the husband (then still the boyfriend) saw the books, and at 50 pesos each, I couldn’t let it go. So we picked up all the titles we could find (and one or two dupes with a different cover), and they’d been sitting on my shelves ever since.
When it was time to get started on these books (I just decided it was time) I realized that I didn’t have Book One. I resolved to live on the edge and just start with Book Two and it wasn’t so bad. I figured I’d give it a shot and then decide if I’d read the rest, or get of rid of it. Book 2 is 3.98 starts on Goodreads.
The verdict? I wouldn’t call this one a keeper, but I think I’ll keep reading. It’s easy to read, not complicated, even shallow (?). And sometimes you need books like this one.
WRITE HERE WRITE NOW – AA PATAWARAN
Now this has got to be one of my newest favorites! It’s a book about writing and it was written so beautifully. I don’t think I can ever be as great a writer, and I don’t even mean in the sense of getting published or becoming well known – but just in terms of quality of writing.
Let’s just say that after reading, I wished I had continued to write or maybe took up writing electives while at the UP. I wish I had a writing mentor. Because I missed out on that, and years and years of no practice – I’ll just do the next best thing: continue my attempts at writing, and re-read this gem of a book every once in a while.
There goes my March books. Did you read any of these? I’d love to know what you thought about either one. What are you reading next?