In January I read seven novels, watched several TV series, and watched only one movie, which was so terrible I can’t remember a single thing about it. It’s a cold month – might as well spend it on the couch!
Here is a recap of what I enjoyed:
Books
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
The best book I read in January is hands down this classic . It’s a short novel set in the 1950s, with a butler traveling through the English countryside reminiscing about his earlier days serving a great English household. Honestly, it sounded kind of boring and when I first started it I thought it would be a sort of quaint Downton Abbey-type of story. I was wrong. Ishiguro is so good at subtlety, and this novel is truly brilliant. Amidst descriptions of butler servitude and small villages and landscapes, there are themes about loyalty and love and a lot of philosophical questions regarding right and wrong, the English class system in the early 1900s, and being true to one’s self. The story overall is quite simple but underneath the main story is a tremendous amount to consider and the book is simply packed with meaning. One of the best books I have read in a long time.
Call Down the Hawk by Maggie Stiefvater
This is a spinoff, so to speak, from Stiefvater’s Raven Cycle, a series of 4 books with varying degrees of success. Interestingly, I learned that the author was struggling with a major undiagnosed illness for several years while writing the final book in that series, and acknowledges the gaps in the story, the confusing writing, etc. You have to wonder why her editor didn’t say something. Her story is fascinating and you can read it here: https://maggiestiefvater.com/the-year-of-wonder/
Anyway, Call Down the Hawk focuses solely on Ronan – one of the characters from the Raven Cycle – his brothers, and we have a couple of new characters as well. Ronan is a dreamer, which means he is able to dream things into being. This is sometimes awesome and sometimes dangerous and always complicated. In this novel we learn there are more dreamers and there are those bent on destroying dreamers (they have their reasons). It’s a beautifully written story with interesting and complex characters, fun storylines, magic, mystery, and Ronan. To have read the Raven Cycle books is to love Ronan, but it’s not required to have read them to enjoy Call Down the Hawk.
My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
This is a novel about the grooming and subsequent sexual abuse of teenage girls, Vanessa in particular. The topic is distasteful, to be sure, but the author handles it with care. The story goes back and forth in time between present day where Vanessa is in her 30s, and tracking the story of her abuse starting when she was 15. What really stands out here is how the abuse has shaped Vanessa as an adult. She is confused, conflicted and feels love, hate, shame, excitement, anger, hurt, betrayal. Just to name a few. This is thought provoking, complex, and very well written.
The Unwind Dystology by Neal Shusterman
What is a dystology? It is a series of 4 books based on a dystopian society. In Shusterman’s nightmare, the battle over abortion turned into a literal war, and somehow the solution becomes the “unwinding” of teenagers between the ages of 13-17. Unwinding uses cutting edge technology to turn a person into the “divided state” – removing all parts of their body for implantation in someone else. All body parts must be used, which means legally the unwound is still alive – in many pieces. Creepy? Uh, yes. I never really felt the connection between abortion rights and unwinding made any sense, but it’s not important. The four books follow several teenagers as they battle against unwinding. The books have a lot of action and adventure, throughout the books there is character development, and there are a lot of interesting concepts. There are times when unwinding is narrated. It’s disturbing. I was reminded of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go – another brilliant book – although it’s completely different overall.
TV Series
Game of Thrones on HBO
I have now watched 7 seasons of GoT. I am actually nervous to watch the last season. There are only 6 episodes and I recall how angry fans were when it debuted. It doesn’t seem like 6 episodes is enough to tie up all the loose ends we currently have.
I’m nervous because I have really enjoyed the series. There have been episodes of battles that were too intense for me, and some of the gratuitous sex and nudity gets old, but the characters are wonderful – or awful. Yelling “You’re so stupid Cersei” at the TV is almost as much fun as watching the Mother of Dragons turn into a queen worth fighting for, or cheering Arya on as she struggles to survive, or laughing at Tyrion, or admiring Jon Snow. The storylines are very complex. It took me a couple seasons to get characters straight. I have not read the books and I can see where that would be helpful in knowing backstory in the earlier seasons. Worth all the hype.
Yellowstone on Peacock
I started this series in 2020 but wrapped it up at the start of the year. This is a current series, with a 4th season under development. This follows the Dutton family, who own a ranch in Montana “the size of Rhode Island.” They are in a constant battle to keep their land, fighting off Native Americans, big bad corporations, and even the state government. However, the Duttons are not what you would call heroes as they engage in a lot of shady dealings themselves. The only truly honorable character is the Native American chairman, who just wants land back for his people. Despite the Duttons not being squeaky clean , rooting for Beth Dutton, all sharp edges that you do NOT want to mess with, is tons of fun. This is an enjoyable drama and has beautiful landscapes. I am looking forward to the next season.
February has been even colder than January, so I should have another solid month of entertainment to review in a few weeks!
Bookgirl Reviews and Recommendations 