February in books

February was a more challenging month than January book-wise. I DNF'd a lot more than I thought I would, considering how many good books I had been reading, but I've been able to make good enough substitutions so far for the challeges prompts.

Frankenstein in Baghdad, Ahmed Saadawi

Tell me whyyyy did I take that long to read this book, I could've read so many more things instead! It's not a bad book, the premise is so cool, there are some interesting characters, but some of them I couldn't really care about, and so it kinda dragged. 

⭐⭐⭐1⁄2

No One Writes Back, Jang Eun-Jin 

This one made me think in a lot of things, especially the whole sending letters to people you barely know, but also the plot seemed to be going in so many different directions and it was never what I was expecting, which in a way was nice bcs I was dreadinggg the characters hooking up, whew. It was all sorts of odd, but an interesting read overall.

⭐⭐⭐

The Flood, Michael McDowell

Not what I was expecting at ALL. I thought this would be a post-apocaliptic plot of sorts but I got southern gothic with supernatural elements hmmm. Not at all bad, but I don't much care for the characters enough to read the rest of the trilogy, especially if that damn mother in law of the MFC continues to be that insufferable.

⭐⭐⭐

The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition, Caroline Alexander 

I love this book, I love my boys, the pictures are stunning, how had I not seen most of them? Everytime I read about anything Shacketlon is a good time.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Poet X, Elizabeth Acevedo

Modern poetry method and spoken word might not be my very cup of tea so it took me a little while to get used to this book, but the short format of the chapters makes for a quick read, and I really enjoy Acevedo's writing and the themes explores, after all. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Saints Save a Sinner, Dawn Douglas

Oof that was the longest 80 pages book I've ever read, it's so, so cliche, I don't chare for the characters, I'm getting kind of tired of these m/m books with basically no plot ):

⭐⭐

Não fossem as sílabas do sábado, Mariana Salomão Carrara

God I resisted immersing myself in this book for so long because of the UNECESSARY LACK OF PUNCUATION I'M SORRY??? I know perfectly well what she was trying to do, and oh, she tried, but it almost didn't work for me. I'm pretty sure the story would've been more impactful it she used that whole shtick more sparsely. In spite of that, the writing did get to me in the end.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Fifth Child, Doris Lessing

I'm sorry what did I just read? If the intention was to make uncomfortable (and of course it was), she succeeded 100%, yet not in a good way. I almost gave it up a few times.

⭐⭐1⁄2

And as for this month's DNFs:

• The three cutters, Frederick Marryat - I'm sorry Marryat I was so not in the mood for this
• Offshore, Penelope Fitzgerald - Just couldn't care less about the plot
• The two doctors Górski - Can't believe I almost got tricked into reading dark academia with magic because the synopsis seem interesting
•  A wrinkle in time, Madeleine L'Engle - Second time trying out this one. I might have liked it enough when I was the target audience but right now it's just too whimsy for me
• Celestial bodies, Jokha Alharthi - I'm sure I'll enjoy it at some time into the future but right now I'm so not interested in women family dynamics/generational differences
• O bibliotecário do imperador - Don't have the patience for books that want to be fancy 19th century similes right now
• Three men in a boat, Jeroke K. Jerome - Speaking of having no patience, I also can't deal with witty humor anymore