Books

Book 349: The Edge of Reason (Bridget Jones #2) – Helen Fielding

If possible this one was even funnier than Bridget Jones’s Diary, or at least the ending was. There were parts in both books where I could not stop laughing, but this one ended with such a hilarious situation that I could easily find myself in involving wine and Christmas cards. I didn’t read this one quite as fast as the first, but I still read it in only a few sittings.

What I enjoyed most about this novel was the unapologetic sexuality and brashness of Bridget. This was evident in the first novel, but in this novel she takes it to a different level, primarily manifesting through keeping track of the seconds, yes SECONDS, since she last had sex. (It’s up in the tens of millions.) Now this might sound strange, but Fielding writes about issues that affect large sweeps of the population through this quirky character.

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Books

Book 346: Bridget Jones’s Diary (Bridget Jones #1) – Helen Fielding

I picked up a copy of this and the sequel, Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason, back in January 2014 because they were like $2 each. I knew I wouldn’t read it right away, but what I didn’t know is that when I read it would take less than six hours, including a two-hour walk in the middle of it! I grabbed it to read as it was a quick read. I remembered hearing things around Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, the third book released last year so I figured why not now.

Let’s start with the film adaptation: I LOVED it. The cast was perfect and what they changed was for a reason. It worked as a stand-alone, but even as an adaptation I felt it worked well. That being said, this book was hilariously funny and if you enjoyed the film you should definitely check out the book.

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ARC, Books

Book 345: How to Be Happy (Or at Least Less Sad) – Lee Crutchley

When I received this book I had no idea what it was. I hadn’t ordered any books recently and it appeared in my mail and am I glad it did! I spent some time thinking about this wonderful new magic of books randomly appearing on my doorstep, thanks Perigee, I then flipped through the book and knew this would be great. Perigee sent this to me in return for my honest opinion and I received no compensation for it.

After figuring out where it came from, I spent a few more minutes having an internal crisis over whether I should blog about it. I mean is it a book? Is it a workbook? (It’s both.) Then, I remembered I’ve written about much shorter works, and loose collections of words I wouldn’t even deign to call a book so why shouldn’t I post about it? Add in that May is Mental Health month and Self-Discovery month (who knew?!) and May 4-10 is National Anxiety and Depression Awareness Week and this is the perfect time to have read it and to blog about it. But the best news for YOU, dear reader, is that the book comes out tomorrow, May 5th, so you should most definitely go out and get a copy!

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Books

Book 341: Funny Girl – Nick Hornby

The only other Hornby I’ve read is High Fidelity (the film adaptation was meh). And I loved the film adaptation of About A Boy, so I wasn’t sure where this novel would go. I hadn’t planned on reading it, but one of my favorite podcasts, Pop Culture Happy Hour, announced they were going to do an episode a few months ago so I put it on hold and timed it almost perfectly to listen! (I missed the exact episode by a little less than week.)

I think the podcast hit the nail on the head when they talked about the story being more focused on “the show [Barabara (and Jim)] rather than the funny girl of the title, Barbara/Sophie. But what Hornby didn’t do, was show us the show; he only ever referred to specific gags, situations or dialogue. Someone on PCHH said it should’ve been called “The Show” and I can’t agree more. It would be a better title and I would definitely have chosen to read it if that were the title too!

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Books

Book 337: Crome Yellow – Aldous Huxley

My friend Nick gave this to me to read ages ago and I’ve finally gotten around to it. I wasn’t sure what to expect at first, but the further I read the more I enjoyed the story. Coming in at under 200 pages, I was pleasantly surprised at how much Huxley fit into the novel without overwhelming the sense of lackadaisical whimsy of the people.

I am incredibly glad I read the foreword though, because I don’t think I would’ve understood this was a satirical novel of the British upper-class. I probably would’ve happily read it and thought, “wow these people are petty and ridiculous,” and then thought nothing more of it. It reminded me a lot of the various upper-class dioramas I’ve read from Jane Austen to Cécil David-Weill’s The Suitors, which is what Huxley was going for in his social criticism.

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