What are you reading?

[Kong Wen]

Well, I was able to finish Order of the Phoenix in my first two days of vacation. I'm going to get started on this weird side-entry in the Dark Tower series tomorrow. I'm very interested to see how it fits in and flows from what I've already read.

Order of the Phoenix was OK, but it suffered from some of the faults that mar the whole series for me so far. This one felt a bit more directionless than e.g. Goblet of Fire, with a less rewarding payoff (if a whole chapter of Dumbledore explaining everything that had happened in the book you've just read can ever be described as rewarding, that is). The characters were less interesting this time around, too, with the exception of Neville. Oh well, onward!

1. 01-10 Undermajordomo Minor (2016), Patrick deWitt (Canadian)
2. 01-20 The Outsider (1942), Albert Camus (French)
3. 02-28 Americana: The Kinks, the Riff, the Road, the Story (2013), Ray Davies (British)
4. 05-12 The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (1982), Stephen King (American)
5. 05-13 The Zone of Interest (2014), Martin Amis (British)
6. 05-16 Stories of Your Life and Others (2002), Ted Chiang (American)
7. 05-19 Notes from a Feminist Killjoy: Essays on Everyday Life (2016), Erin Wunker (Canadian)
8. 05-23 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), J.K. Rowling (British)
9. 05-27 The Handmaid's Tale (1985), Margaret Atwood (Canadian)
10. 06-04 The Golden Compass (1995), Philip Pullman (British)
11. 06-25 Beren and Lúthien (2017), J.R.R. Tolkien (British)
12. 07-02 The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987), Stephen King (American)
13. 07-04 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998), J.K. Rowling (British)
14. 07-05 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), J.K. Rowling (British)
15. 07-09 The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991), Stephen King (American)
16. 07-23 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), J.K. Rowling (British)
17. 08-01 The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997), Stephen King (American)
18. 08-07 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), J.K. Rowling (British)

[Kong Wen]

Well, I picked up and put away The Dark Tower: The Wind through the Keyhole. It felt like a nice continuation of the Dark Tower series. My main problem with it is that it's mostly just the main character telling a story, and following as it does directly after Wizard and Glass, which is also mostly a lengthy flashback, it feels like I've gone two whole books without actually making much progress with the main characters of the series. It's a sneaky way for Stephen King, notoriously prolific, to crank out a couple more novels worth of backstory.

Anyway, on to Half-Blood Prince.

1. 01-10 Undermajordomo Minor (2016), Patrick deWitt (Canadian)
2. 01-20 The Outsider (1942), Albert Camus (French)
3. 02-28 Americana: The Kinks, the Riff, the Road, the Story (2013), Ray Davies (British)
4. 05-12 The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (1982), Stephen King (American)
5. 05-13 The Zone of Interest (2014), Martin Amis (British)
6. 05-16 Stories of Your Life and Others (2002), Ted Chiang (American)
7. 05-19 Notes from a Feminist Killjoy: Essays on Everyday Life (2016), Erin Wunker (Canadian)
8. 05-23 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), J.K. Rowling (British)
9. 05-27 The Handmaid's Tale (1985), Margaret Atwood (Canadian)
10. 06-04 The Golden Compass (1995), Philip Pullman (British)
11. 06-25 Beren and Lúthien (2017), J.R.R. Tolkien (British)
12. 07-02 The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987), Stephen King (American)
13. 07-04 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998), J.K. Rowling (British)
14. 07-05 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), J.K. Rowling (British)
15. 07-09 The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991), Stephen King (American)
16. 07-23 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), J.K. Rowling (British)
17. 08-01 The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997), Stephen King (American)
18. 08-07 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), J.K. Rowling (British)
19. 08-09 The Dark Tower: The Wind through the Keyhole (2012), Stephen King (American)

[Kong Wen]

Well, that one didn't take as long as I thought it would. I finished Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince tonight. It's probably my favourite one of the series now, partly because you get a lot more insight into my two favourite characters (Snape and Dumbledore), and partly because, while Harry's still a boneheaded prat, he's less of a boneheaded prat than he has been in previous books. It can be tough to stomach a book with a shitty protagonist, so the breaks from that are more than welcome.

Furthermore, now that I'm done with my brief diversion into a Dark Tower side-story, I'm looking forward to hopping back on the main Tower train with The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla.

1. 01-10 Undermajordomo Minor (2016), Patrick deWitt (Canadian)
2. 01-20 The Outsider (1942), Albert Camus (French)
3. 02-28 Americana: The Kinks, the Riff, the Road, the Story (2013), Ray Davies (British)
4. 05-12 The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (1982), Stephen King (American)
5. 05-13 The Zone of Interest (2014), Martin Amis (British)
6. 05-16 Stories of Your Life and Others (2002), Ted Chiang (American)
7. 05-19 Notes from a Feminist Killjoy: Essays on Everyday Life (2016), Erin Wunker (Canadian)
8. 05-23 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), J.K. Rowling (British)
9. 05-27 The Handmaid's Tale (1985), Margaret Atwood (Canadian)
10. 06-04 The Golden Compass (1995), Philip Pullman (British)
11. 06-25 Beren and Lúthien (2017), J.R.R. Tolkien (British)
12. 07-02 The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987), Stephen King (American)
13. 07-04 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998), J.K. Rowling (British)
14. 07-05 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), J.K. Rowling (British)
15. 07-09 The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991), Stephen King (American)
16. 07-23 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), J.K. Rowling (British)
17. 08-01 The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997), Stephen King (American)
18. 08-07 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), J.K. Rowling (British)
19. 08-09 The Dark Tower: The Wind through the Keyhole (2012), Stephen King (American)
20. 08-13 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2007), J.K. Rowling (British)

Hey, this is my 20th complete of the year! I should be on pace to hit 30, if I keep up the good work, but we're getting into some longer works at the tail-end of these series...

[Kong Wen]

I haven't finished it yet, don't worry (and wow, this one is taking me some serious time compared to my previous reading this summer... I guess it's because I've spent the last week doing site work), but I just wanted to drop a good quotation from my current book here so I remember it:

"We spread the time as we can, but in the end the world takes it all back." — Roland, in Stephen King's The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (Toronto: Pocket Books, 2003), 317.

[Sharecrow]

Okay I've knocked out just a couple more. I knocked out Hamlet, Stephen King's Rose Madder, and Jose Saramago's Skylight.

Hamlet depressed me to read because it reminded me of when I first read it, which was a depressing period of time. But I enjoyed it despite that. Just needed to take lots of breaks.

Rose Madder was a good book, but probably the weakest Stephen King book I've read so far. I loved it, though. It was quite a page turner.

Jose Saramago's Skylight was one of his first books, which was rejected back in the day, but has since been published posthumously. It was really good. I'm glad it got to see the light of day. It reminded me, in a way, of the setting of the Decalogue films. There were some rough stories in here but some really good ones.

I've started reading a book on Hurricane Katrina, which has been on my to-read list for quite a while. I'm about a fourth through and loving it so far. I'm also still reading that Leon Uris book QB VII

Finish 24 books
1. Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert
2. No Doors, No Windows by Harlan Ellison
3. To Sail Beyond the Sunset by Robert Heinlein
4. Christianizing the Roman Empire: AD 100-400 by Ramsay MacMullen
5. Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand
6. The Shining by Stephen King
7. The Diamond Throne by David Eddings
8. Fool on the Hill by Matt Ruff
9. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
10. The Ruby Knight by David Eddings
11. Hamlet by William Shakespeare
12. Rose Madder by Stephen King
13. Skylight by Jose Saramago
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.

Read three non-fiction books
1. Christianizing the Roman Empire: AD 100-400 by Ramsay MacMullen
2.
3.

Read the Elenium trilogy
1. The Diamond Throne
2. The Ruby Knight
3.

Read two Stephen King books
1. The Shining
2. Rose Madder

Read two Harlan Ellison books
1. No Doors, No Windows
2.

[Kong Wen]

Closing in now, my friends. I'm almost tempted to press ahead with the Dark Tower books in an attempt to finish them before the film leaves cinemas, but I think I'll stick to my original plan to avoid burning out (and to avoid rushing to the end of a pleasant experience).

So on that note, it's back over to Harry Potter... for the finale, no less! I have my giant first-edition hardcover of Deathly Hallows all ready on my reading table.

1. 01-10 Undermajordomo Minor (2016), Patrick deWitt (Canadian)
2. 01-20 The Outsider (1942), Albert Camus (French)
3. 02-28 Americana: The Kinks, the Riff, the Road, the Story (2013), Ray Davies (British)
4. 05-12 The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (1982), Stephen King (American)
5. 05-13 The Zone of Interest (2014), Martin Amis (British)
6. 05-16 Stories of Your Life and Others (2002), Ted Chiang (American)
7. 05-19 Notes from a Feminist Killjoy: Essays on Everyday Life (2016), Erin Wunker (Canadian)
8. 05-23 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), J.K. Rowling (British)
9. 05-27 The Handmaid's Tale (1985), Margaret Atwood (Canadian)
10. 06-04 The Golden Compass (1995), Philip Pullman (British)
11. 06-25 Beren and Lúthien (2017), J.R.R. Tolkien (British)
12. 07-02 The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987), Stephen King (American)
13. 07-04 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998), J.K. Rowling (British)
14. 07-05 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), J.K. Rowling (British)
15. 07-09 The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991), Stephen King (American)
16. 07-23 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), J.K. Rowling (British)
17. 08-01 The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997), Stephen King (American)
18. 08-07 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), J.K. Rowling (British)
19. 08-09 The Dark Tower: The Wind through the Keyhole (2012), Stephen King (American)
20. 08-13 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2007), J.K. Rowling (British)
21. 08-29 The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003), Stephen King (American)

[Kong Wen]

Whew, done! I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows last night, putting a cap on the whole series. It was OK. The whole series, I mean. It was mediocre fantasy, but it was pretty good adolescent mystery. They're basically sleuth books with magic. The final book was weaker than some of the previous ones.

Onward and upward, approaching the finale of The Dark Tower. I have two books left in that series, and then I'm going to have to reorient myself! I'll definitely finish them before the end of the year.

1. 01-10 Undermajordomo Minor (2016), Patrick deWitt (Canadian)
2. 01-20 The Outsider (1942), Albert Camus (French)
3. 02-28 Americana: The Kinks, the Riff, the Road, the Story (2013), Ray Davies (British)
4. 05-12 The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (1982), Stephen King (American)
5. 05-13 The Zone of Interest (2014), Martin Amis (British)
6. 05-16 Stories of Your Life and Others (2002), Ted Chiang (American)
7. 05-19 Notes from a Feminist Killjoy: Essays on Everyday Life (2016), Erin Wunker (Canadian)
8. 05-23 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), J.K. Rowling (British)
9. 05-27 The Handmaid's Tale (1985), Margaret Atwood (Canadian)
10. 06-04 The Golden Compass (1995), Philip Pullman (British)
11. 06-25 Beren and Lúthien (2017), J.R.R. Tolkien (British)
12. 07-02 The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987), Stephen King (American)
13. 07-04 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998), J.K. Rowling (British)
14. 07-05 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), J.K. Rowling (British)
15. 07-09 The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991), Stephen King (American)
16. 07-23 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), J.K. Rowling (British)
17. 08-01 The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997), Stephen King (American)
18. 08-07 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), J.K. Rowling (British)
19. 08-09 The Dark Tower: The Wind through the Keyhole (2012), Stephen King (American)
20. 08-13 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005), J.K. Rowling (British)
21. 08-29 The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003), Stephen King (American)
22. 09-07 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007), J.K. Rowling (British)

[Kong Wen]

Despite being one of the shorter books in the series, Song of Susannah took me a full month to complete. Partly because of Destiny, partly because its the start of a new term at work. With no Harry Potter books left to alternate, I've decided just to soldier on with the final book in the Dark Tower series.

1. 01-10 Undermajordomo Minor (2016), Patrick deWitt (Canadian)
2. 01-20 The Outsider (1942), Albert Camus (French)
3. 02-28 Americana: The Kinks, the Riff, the Road, the Story (2013), Ray Davies (British)
4. 05-12 The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (1982), Stephen King (American)
5. 05-13 The Zone of Interest (2014), Martin Amis (British)
6. 05-16 Stories of Your Life and Others (2002), Ted Chiang (American)
7. 05-19 Notes from a Feminist Killjoy: Essays on Everyday Life (2016), Erin Wunker (Canadian)
8. 05-23 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), J.K. Rowling (British)
9. 05-27 The Handmaid's Tale (1985), Margaret Atwood (Canadian)
10. 06-04 The Golden Compass (1995), Philip Pullman (British)
11. 06-25 Beren and Lúthien (2017), J.R.R. Tolkien (British)
12. 07-02 The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987), Stephen King (American)
13. 07-04 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998), J.K. Rowling (British)
14. 07-05 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), J.K. Rowling (British)
15. 07-09 The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991), Stephen King (American)
16. 07-23 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), J.K. Rowling (British)
17. 08-01 The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997), Stephen King (American)
18. 08-07 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), J.K. Rowling (British)
19. 08-09 The Dark Tower: The Wind through the Keyhole (2012), Stephen King (American)
20. 08-13 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005), J.K. Rowling (British)
21. 08-29 The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003), Stephen King (American)
22. 09-07 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007), J.K. Rowling (British)
23. 10-07 The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah (2004), Stephen King (American)

[Kong Wen]

And with that, I've finished the entire Dark Tower cycle. I feel empty inside. I'm going to watch the poorly-received film, and then move on. I have a palate-cleanser in mind, and then I'll either continue with the Golden Compass series, or continue with Clavell's Asian Saga of sadness...

I'm going to need to find something bright to close out the year.

1. 01-10 Undermajordomo Minor (2016), Patrick deWitt (Canadian)
2. 01-20 The Outsider (1942), Albert Camus (French)
3. 02-28 Americana: The Kinks, the Riff, the Road, the Story (2013), Ray Davies (British)
4. 05-12 The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (1982), Stephen King (American)
5. 05-13 The Zone of Interest (2014), Martin Amis (British)
6. 05-16 Stories of Your Life and Others (2002), Ted Chiang (American)
7. 05-19 Notes from a Feminist Killjoy: Essays on Everyday Life (2016), Erin Wunker (Canadian)
8. 05-23 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), J.K. Rowling (British)
9. 05-27 The Handmaid's Tale (1985), Margaret Atwood (Canadian)
10. 06-04 The Golden Compass (1995), Philip Pullman (British)
11. 06-25 Beren and Lúthien (2017), J.R.R. Tolkien (British)
12. 07-02 The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987), Stephen King (American)
13. 07-04 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998), J.K. Rowling (British)
14. 07-05 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), J.K. Rowling (British)
15. 07-09 The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991), Stephen King (American)
16. 07-23 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), J.K. Rowling (British)
17. 08-01 The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997), Stephen King (American)
18. 08-07 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), J.K. Rowling (British)
19. 08-09 The Dark Tower: The Wind through the Keyhole (2012), Stephen King (American)
20. 08-13 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005), J.K. Rowling (British)
21. 08-29 The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003), Stephen King (American)
22. 09-07 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007), J.K. Rowling (British)
23. 10-07 The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah (2004), Stephen King (American)
24. 10-28 The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower (2004), Stephen King (American)

[Kong Wen]

I wanted to read a one-off, since it would be the first book in like 15 books (and the first since June) that wasn't part of the HP or DT series. I chose Yaa Gyasi's Homegoing, which is an interesting, harrowing generational novel about the slave trade for one, but about people's place in the world I guess. Really sad book. Sad enough that I think I'm ready for Gai-Jin levels of sadness now.

1. 01-10 Undermajordomo Minor (2016), Patrick deWitt (Canadian)
2. 01-20 The Outsider (1942), Albert Camus (French)
3. 02-28 Americana: The Kinks, the Riff, the Road, the Story (2013), Ray Davies (British)
4. 05-12 The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (1982), Stephen King (American)
5. 05-13 The Zone of Interest (2014), Martin Amis (British)
6. 05-16 Stories of Your Life and Others (2002), Ted Chiang (American)
7. 05-19 Notes from a Feminist Killjoy: Essays on Everyday Life (2016), Erin Wunker (Canadian)
8. 05-23 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), J.K. Rowling (British)
9. 05-27 The Handmaid's Tale (1985), Margaret Atwood (Canadian)
10. 06-04 The Golden Compass (1995), Philip Pullman (British)
11. 06-25 Beren and Lúthien (2017), J.R.R. Tolkien (British)
12. 07-02 The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987), Stephen King (American)
13. 07-04 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998), J.K. Rowling (British)
14. 07-05 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), J.K. Rowling (British)
15. 07-09 The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991), Stephen King (American)
16. 07-23 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), J.K. Rowling (British)
17. 08-01 The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997), Stephen King (American)
18. 08-07 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), J.K. Rowling (British)
19. 08-09 The Dark Tower: The Wind through the Keyhole (2012), Stephen King (American)
20. 08-13 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005), J.K. Rowling (British)
21. 08-29 The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003), Stephen King (American)
22. 09-07 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007), J.K. Rowling (British)
23. 10-07 The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah (2004), Stephen King (American)
24. 10-28 The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower (2004), Stephen King (American)
25. 11-12 Homegoing (2016), Yaa Gyasi (Ghanaian)