I went into this book with a feeling of apprehension since I have previously read reviews about it which didn’t necessarily make me want to bump it up on my “to read” list. In the end, I felt quite torn about how to rate it. There were quite a few parts that sounded interesting to…
Category: 3/5 ★
Within this category you can find all the 3/5 ⭐ reviews about books that I thought were good reads. They were insightful, the writing was enjoyable, I learned something and liked them, but something was off for me. Either the writing was not up to standard or the plot/argument was lacking, so generally speaking it had parts that I enjoyed and others that I didn’t.
My Year of Rest and Relaxation – Ottessa Moshfegh
The harmlessly sounding title of the novel actually ended up being a story that isn’t for the faint of heart. As a disclaimer straight away, I’d only suggest this book to readers who feel to be in a stable state of mind. Reading up on trigger warnings would be a good idea as well since…
The Marriage Portrait – Maggie O’Farrell
This book was another prime example of why I love book clubs! I’m generally not a fan of historical fiction and I probably would have never voluntarily chosen to read a book set in the 1560s but I was really glad to have given this one a chance!! I was captivated from the first pages…
Sprache und Sein – Kübra Gümüşay
“Sprache und Sein” zählt zu einem der Bücher, bei dem es mir schwer fiel, es nach dem Lesen zu bewerten oder zusammenzufassen. Zwar habe ich mir viele Stellen markiert, wo mir interessante Ideen oder Gedankengänge aufgefallen sind, nichtsdestotrotz fehlte mir ein klarer roter Faden, der einen durch die einzelnen Geschichten führen würde. Es ging um…
The Yellow Wall-Paper – Charlotte Perkins Gilman
I only came across this book because it was picked for the “difficult women book club” in Barcelona and I didn’t expect much going into it. Knowing that I was in for three short stories that were written in 1892, 1893 and 1911, I wouldn’t have guessed that I would actually enjoy them! Each of…
The Woman Destroyed – Simone de Beauvoir
I have previously shied away from books by Simone de Beauvoir, thinking that they would be too complicated or too philosophical for me, so it was only thanks to a book club in Barcelona that I got my hands on a novel by the author. Three short stories make up the entirety of the book,…
Greek Lessons – Han Kang
This was the second book that I read by Han Kang, after previously reading “The Vegetarian” in 2019, which I rated with 4/5 ★. Even though I still have the author’s two other books, “The White Book” and “Human Acts” on my “to-read” list, I’m starting to think that the author might just not be…
Sommer in Odessa – Irina Kilimnik
Auf meiner Mission mehr ukrainische Autoren zu lesen, bin ich auf das Buch “Sommer in Odessa” gestoßen, das Anfang von 2023 veröffentlicht wurde. Mich überraschte es, das Datum zu sehen, an dem das Buch erschienen ist, da es von der Erzählung und von der Stimmung her am besten als Sommerlektüre passt. Spannend fand ich es…
The Dutch House – Ann Patchett
This book ended up being disappointing in the sense that it simply didn’t manage to live up to the hype around it for me. I’ve been seeing its cover pop up everywhere around its publication date in 2019 and 2020, whereas I finally only got to it about 3 years later myself. Having read it…
Everything I Know About Love – Dolly Alderton
Having chosen “Everything I Know About Love” out of my pile of “unread books” for a couple of days of a break outside the city, with some beach time planned, it ended up being the perfect setting for it. It’s written in a low key and relaxed style, which permitted me to leisurely get through…
Auerhaus – Bov Bjerg
Zum “Auerhaus” bin ich gekommen, weil ich nach einem sehr informativen Sachbuch etwas entspannteres zur Abwechslung lesen wollte. Diesen Zweck hat das Buch auf jeden Fall erfüllt. Meiner Meinung nach aber nicht die Erwartungen, die mit den vielversprechenden Zitaten auf dem Umschlag, die “eines der schönsten Bücher unserer Tage” bewerben, einhergingen. Es geht um eine…
Beyond the Wand – Tom Felton
I think the sensation that stays the most after finishing this book is… feeling confused? What exactly was it about? It tries to be a memoir but mostly ends up focusing on Tom’s acting experience within the Harry Potter movies while only describing a tiny little part outside of it. I might see how it…
Heaven – Mieko Kawakami
Having read this book for a book club in Barcelona, getting through it was a bit of a struggle. It simply didn’t draw me in to continue reading it, which might have been linked to the distant way it was written. What it did do though, was open up an intensely emotional world for the…
Ich nannte ihn Krawatte – Milena Michiko Flašar
Auf das Buch bin ich Dank einer Empfehlung der österreichischen Unternehmerin und Autorin Madeleine Alizadeh, aka @dariadaria, auf ihrer Instagram-Seite aufmerksam geworden, da sie es erwähnte hatte, dass es ihr gut gefallen hat. Bei mir hinterließ es leider keinen bleibenden Eindruck, zwar war es ein netter Zeitvertrieb, als ich es gelesen habe, jedoch würde ich…
Haruki Murakami and the Music of Words – Jay Rubin
This book is the ultimate bible for the biggest Haruki Murakami fans! Written by one of Murakami’s translators, Jay Rubin, it gave a structured overview onto the years from where Haruki Murakami started and where he got to with time. It went as far as even recapping the content of every book written by Murakami…
Stop Reading the News – Rolf Dobelli
The title of the book drew me in while I was caught up in a stream of endless reading of the news on the war in Ukraine for almost a month. I knew that this behavior was having a mentally deteriorating effect on me but I simply couldn’t and didn’t want to stop. This event…
Shuggie Bain – Douglas Stuart
I believe that this novel will probably either be a hit or a miss for readers, you’ll either hate it or love it. I ended up landing somewhere right in between. So let’s directly get to the breakdown and the explanation of the reasoning behind my 3/5 ★ rating: The morning light was the colour…
A History of Ukraine – Oleksandr Palii
This book is a great starting point for someone who would like to get a better understanding about the country of Ukraine, its history, culture and traditions. Or in my case, it was a good refresher on the history of the country, after countless years have passed since my Ukrainian school education. I read it…
Strangers – Taichi Yamada
“Strangers” was one of those books that has been left behind by another traveler on the shelf of an Airbnb apartment. Me, always being curious about what kind of reads others bring along on their vacations, decided to take it along for a couple of days at the beach. As it says in the reviews…
The One Thing Worth Doing – John Pope
Having come across John Pope’s novel thanks to the Paris Anglophone Book Club, it was an extremely interesting insight into the finished product of a self-published book. Even though there were little bits and pieces of the narrative that were a bit less appealing to me, in general it was a pleasant read. There was…
Der Klang der Wälder – Natsu Miyashita
Natsu Miyashitas Buch schafft vor allem eines hervorragend – eine besondere Stimmung zu zaubern. Im Vergleich zum raschen und gestressten Alltag bietet einem die Geschichte in “Der Klang der Wälder” eine Oasis der Ruhe und des Rückzugs. Ich habe mich jedes Mal aufs Neue darauf gefreut, in das Buch einzutauchen, was auch durch die wunderschöne…
Bonjour Tristesse – Françoise Sagan
Upon finishing reading this book, I felt quite conflicted… The main character was extremely vain, superficial, privileged and spoilt. The voice it was written in took the mindless state of existence during teenagerhood to its perfection. It was full of sexist remarks, uttered by both men and women. If you take it as a snapshot…
21 Lessons for the 21st Century – Yuval Noah Harari
This was my third Harari book that I immersed myself in, after having read “Sapiens” in 2016 and “Homo Deus” in 2018. I find myself recommending these books to people because I did find them incredibly valuable and informative (especially Sapiens!) but I still end up only giving ratings of 3/5 ★ to them. It…
Geschichten mit Marianne – Xaver Bayer
Ich bin auf Xaver Bayer’s neues Buch dank dem österreichischen Buchpreis 2020 aufmerksam geworden und auch wenn es für mich bei einer Bewertung von “nur” 3/5 ★ bleibt, war es dennoch eine sehr unterhaltsame Leseerfahrung! Das Buch ist so kurz, dass man es innerhalb eines Tages auslesen kann und es sich ideal dafür eignet, wenn…
If I Had Your Face – Frances Cha
This book was the first one that I read that gave an insight into South Korean life and its culture. By the time I was done with it though, it has left me longing for more. More depth, to be more stylistically impressive and to be able to see more development of the characters. It…
The Diary of a Bookseller – Shaun Bythell
Having had this book on my virtual “to read” list for a while, I have finally come across it by chance in a book shop in Lisbon the other day. What it ended up being was a light and quick little read, sparkled with a bit of humour here and there, while telling the story…
The God of Small Things – Arundhati Roy
It’s quite difficult to put the reading experience of “The God of Small Things” in words because it was marked by so many ups and downs for me. To start with the positive parts first, I would describe reading “The God of Small Things” with the sensation of stepping into a mystic maze. A place…
Youth – Tove Ditlevsen
As much as I have absolutely fallen in love with “Childhood”, Tove Ditlevsen’s first part of her autobiographical trilogy, “Youth” simply didn’t manage to measure up to its standards. The second part of her memoir circles around the author’s teenager into early adulthood years, which are narrated in a much less introspective and reflected kind…
Lifespan – David A. Sinclair
“Lifespan” was definitely one the most challenging books I have read this year and if it wasn’t for a book club I’ve attended, I would have never come across it! As I noted down 25 pages in, I straight away understood that it would be a bumpy ride. It’s demanding of your entire attention and…
Kindred – Octavia E. Butler
Going into a novel identified within the sci-fi genre written in the 1970s, I didn’t have any expectations since it’s not my typical kind of read. The last sci-fi I had to struggle my way through was Philip K. Dick’s “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” and I still feel traumatised by it to this…
All We Leave Behind – Carol Off
This book has been standing around on my “to read” bookshelf at home for 9 months until I finally got to it. I’ve picked it up at the airport in Montreal but I guess the topic finally sounded a bit too intimidating to jump on reading it earlier. The story circles around the conflict in…
Trick Mirror – Jia Tolentino
My first reaction upon finishing the book was – what the hell did I just read??!! The 9 chapters that make up the book felt so much all over the place that it felt like I’ve read 9 short different books. The topics ranged from the author’s personal stories about her disinterest towards marriage, her…
The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree – Shokoofeh Azar
The choice in order to purchase this book and to suggest it to my local book club was a personal one. Ever since having traveled to Iran and having heard about people’s experiences living there after the Revolution, I was curious to read more about it. What I’ve been repeatedly confronted with, were the views…
Normal People – Sally Rooney
The moment has come when I have finally given in to the hype around the book of “Normal People”, simply because I couldn’t help my curiosity anymore (and because I wanted to have a direct comparison between the book and the series). From my perception, this book is made for a target group of readers…
Educated – Tara Westover
The past is beautiful because one never realises an emotion at the time. It expands later, & thus we don’t have to complete emotions about the present, only about the past. Virginia Woolf That’s the quote the book starts with and it’s definitely my favourite one out of the entire reading experience. I came across…
The Hidden Life of Trees – Peter Wohlleben
What started off as an incredibly interesting book filled with completely new information for me, didn’t quite manage to hold that level until the very end. Nevertheless, I still considered it to be a more or less enjoyable read. I really appreciated the sense of humour of the author throughout the writing and the short…
How To Do Nothing – Jenny Odell
Ever since reading “Talking to Strangers“ by Malcolm Gladwell, I have learned to not expect anything from a book by its title. This has proven to be helpful in the case of “How To Do Nothing” since the content of the book was not based on its literal meaning. It’s catchy, it sells, so I…
The Universe in Your Hand – Christophe Galfard
I’ll start off with the mention that this is an amazing book and that I’d suggest each and everyone to read it! (don’t mind the 3 stars!!) It opens up your understanding of our planet, our universe and simply how bizarre our existence is, living on a ball of matter floating through space. I’ll also…
Machines Like Me – Ian McEwan
This is the first book I have read by Ian McEwan and it has definitely sparked my curiosity to discover more books by the author. I really wanted to like this one, since I’m generally a fan of AI and I have also initially given it 4/5 stars, but while going through the review, it…
Delta of Venus – Anaïs Nin
Finishing up this book, I’ve had a bit of mixed feelings about it. All in a all, I think I’m just generally not really into reading erotica. I’d rather do it myself than read about it 🤷🏻♀️🤭 Nevertheless, it can be said that it is written in such a way that it would be appealing…
Bluebeard’s Egg and Other Stories – Margaret Atwood
Even though I wouldn’t have normally picked up a book of short stories, I was glad that I came across “Bluebeard’s Egg and Other Stories” for a book club. All in all, I’d straight ahead say that it was an enjoyable read, but for me it stays within the frame of a bit above an…
The Catcher in the Rye – J. D. Salinger
There was something very Woody Allen-like about the book. So if you enjoy his movies and the way the dialogues flow, you’ll surely like this story. It simply reads like the screenplay of the movie “Wonder Wheel”. Nevertheless, the main character is hardly able to build up relatability and there’s not much happening throughout the…
M Train – Patti Smith
Finishing up “M Train”, I still feel enveloped in a trance and dream-like state. The reading experience has been like taking a seat on Patti Smith’s train of thought, a comfortable window seat, watching passing by landscapes, cities, people. Like gently floating on waves from one image to the next, I felt transported to a…
Reading Lolita in Tehran – Azar Nafisi
This book wasn’t captivating, it had to fight for your attention. It wasn’t a page-turner and yes, its structure was quite chaotic (what I already expected from it, by skimming through other readers’ reviews). You have to create time for it, give it air to breathe, allow it to take space in your day, to…
To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee
As much as I’ve always heard about “To Kill a Mockingbird” as an absolute must-read, I haven’t been convinced into loving it. Writing the review 2 months after having finished the book, I can’t go into as many details anymore, but I do know that I’ve waited a while, hoping that I might find some…
Speed Reading with the Right Brain – David Butler
I’d give the book 3 out of 5 stars for its idea, whereas purely based on the content of it, it would barely measure up to 1-2 stars. What the author managed, was to give you a proper understanding of what “speed reading” is supposed to be about, with a focus on comprehension rather than…
In Cold Blood – Truman Capote
Having had this book suggested by a friend, I had high expectations for it, which unfortunately haven’t been met. My biggest issue with the book was the fact that it only picked up pace and became more or less captivating 150-170 pages into the story. Compared with the total length of the book, being about…
The Help – Kathryn Stockett
“The Help” was an incredibly touching, deep kind of story, for which I found that it was a pity that it ended up being one of those books that you’d need to read in as close to one sitting as possible. The way it was written is bustling with character, each chapter written by a…
Killing Commendatore – Haruki Murakami
After having put two non-enjoyable books behind me, I do have to say that as usual to Murakami’s style, this story simply flowed with ease. When you sat down with the book, you were softly enveloped into a different world and the storyline unfolded with ease. Nevertheless, I do have to say that “Killing Commendatore”…
Le K – Dino Buzzati
This being the first encounter with Dino Buzzati’s work, I was definitely positively surprised, judging by the fact of how I chose to buy the book. It has been standing around on my bookshelf for at least five-six years, having picked it up in a little French town from a shelf outside on the street,…
Homo Deus – Yuval Noah Harari
Finally! After three months (which is the longest it has taken me to finish a book in a while!) I’ve finally gotten through this one! It was an incredibly interesting read, but the time that it has taken to finish it, speaks quite a bit about it. I was a bit disappointed by it in…
Le Livre des Étreintes – Eduardo Galeano
Reading this one in French has definitely been a challenge, so I would suggest you to read it in a language you feel at ease with. I felt a bit conflicted with my general opinion about the book: It has helped me in moments I have been feeling completely and absolutely down. I was literally…
Your Body’s Many Cries for Water – Fereydoon Batmanghelidj
I wish I could have given the book a better rating due to its content but it just didn’t measure up to anything higher than 3 out of 5 stars. It wasn’t incredibly well written, it was extremely repetitive and the “stuck in the 90s” design of the cover, as well as of some randomly…
À propos d’un gamin (About a Boy) – Nick Hornby
Out of the 3 Nick Hornby books that I’ve read, this was definitely the one that I hated the least 😁 The characters were better developed, in my opinion, than the ones in “A Long Way Down” or “High Fidelity”. Nevertheless, what seemed to have mainly elevated the rating, was the fact of imagining Hugh…
Underground – Haruki Murakami
Murakami’s “Underground” has definitely nothing to do with the author’s other works of fiction. Nevertheless I mostly reached out for the book because of Murakami – I didn’t end up being completely disappointed but it also wasn’t a groundbreaking book in my opinion, therefore the 3 out of 5 stars rating. What I read out…
Confessions of a Sociopath – M. E. Thomas
I would have given the book a 4 out of 5 rating, but unfortunately it was too noticeable that the author absolutely isn’t a professional writer. I just started reading “Eating Animals” by Jonathan Safran Foer and the difference couldn’t have been bigger, the 2 books seem like 2 absolutely different worlds judging by the…
The Dark Road – Ma Jian
Ma Jian’s story definitely gave an absolutely different perspective on China’s “one child policy” than what you would expect. The narrative proceeded in a way that felt a bit like a roller-coaster ride, which could be perceived from both a positive and a negative side. It didn’t manage to captivate your attention completely but nevertheless…
The Girl on the Train – Paula Hawkins
I started with “The Girl on the Train” longing for a similar read to “Gone Girl” but it simply ended up being TOO similar. I even checked the publication years, whether Hawkins might have gotten some inspiration from Flynn, which might very well be possible. The way both stories developed were very much alike, the…
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