Review: The Girls - Emma Cline

Title: The Girls

Author: Emma Cline

Summary: The Girls follows Evie, an impressionable teenager living in 1960s California, as she encounters a mysterious group of girls and is drawn up in their seemingly glamorous lives. The closer she grows to the group, the more unpleasant it becomes, veering towards drugs, sex, and terrible violence.

Rating: ★★★★★

Review: 

Like most of you I'm sure, I heard a lot of hype about The Girls when it was released last summer, but I didn't get around to reading it until I borrowed a copy from my mum. The story revolves around a cult based on the Manson Family - which I'd not really heard of before beginning the book.

Review: Wild - Cheryl Strayed

Yes, I know it's the movie tie-in cover,
but this is the copy I have!

Title: Wild: A Journey from Lost to Found

Author: Cheryl Strayed

Summary: Cheryl Strayed lost her mother to cancer at the age of 22 and fell into a life of drugs and sex. Trying to find her way again, she decides to hike a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail completely alone. Wild follows this journey, as Cheryl reflects on her past and how to deal with pulling together what remains of her old life and starting a new one.

Rating: ★★★★★

Review: 

Wild is one of those books that you know you adore from about ten pages in, but when you try and enthuse about it to somebody in the real world, you just end up gesticulating frantically and trying to find something else to say apart from 'It's SO good!' 

Review: Welcome to Lagos - Chibundu Onuzo

Title: Welcome to Lagos

Author: Chibundu Onuzo

Summary: Welcome to Lagos follows a group of strangers who meet on a bus ride to Lagos, each of them running away for a different reason: deserting the military, fleeing an abusive husband, orphaned by an attack on their village. After arriving in the city, they find themselves in the middle of a scheme involving ten million dollars, a disgraced Education Minister, and the editor of a failing newspaper.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Review: 

When I first started reading Welcome to Lagos, I found it a little slow and I wasn't sure whether I would really get into it. As time went by and the pages kept turning, I completely revised that opinion - I became so invested in the plot and since finishing, it has really stayed with me. 

Review: Americanah - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Title: Americanah

Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Summary: Americanah tells the story of Ifemelu and Obinze, two young, academically talented Nigerians who fall in love but get separated by their journey to the West. Ifemelu attends college in America, ends up staying for fifteen years, and becomes a successful blogger, while Obinze tries his luck in the UK and eventually back in Nigeria.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Review:

If you've been on the internet for a few years and haven't come across Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, I'd be surprised. She is famed for her brilliant 'We Should All Be Feminists' TEDx Talk, which was sampled in Beyonce's Flawless. I had heard about Americanah long before I got my hands on a copy, with praise centred on its observations about race, identity, class, and gender. So - did it live up to the hype?

A-Z Book Survey | moons & metaphors

Oh hey. Welcome to moons & metaphors. I'm not sure how you've stumbled across my little blog, but I'm very glad you're here!

Rather than having a full introduction post I figured it would be best to open my blog with a tag - that way you get to find out some more about me and my reading habits, but I don't have to strain my mind for hours to try and find something interesting to say about myself. Everybody wins, right?

So without further ado, here's the A to Z Bookish Survey, originally created by Jamie from The Perpetual Page-Turner.

• Author you’ve read the most books from:

I think this is probably a tie between JK Rowling, and Meg Cabot. I was a big Princess Diaries fan as a teen, but I think Harry Potter would probably win out overall. 

• Best Sequel Ever:

Hmm, tricky one! I don't tend to read a lot of series, but I'll go with Mockingjay, the third book of The Hunger Games trilogy. I know a lot of people think it's the weakest of the three, but I really loved the wider political perspectives.

• Currently reading:

Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella. This year I'm re-visiting some of my favourite books from my teens to see if they are as good as I remember them being when I read them ten years ago. Time will tell if this one is or not!

• Drink of choice while reading:

Coffee! My main reading time comes from lunch breaks at work, so my routine is heading to a small coffee shop and sitting down with a book and a latte or mocha (or iced coffee in summer). It's so soothing.

• E-reader or physical book?

I prefer physical books (definitely paperbacks rather than hardbacks), but I have a Kindle and it's definitely useful for travelling. I'm not opposed to e-readers at all - they're not heralding the downfall of humanity!

• Fictional character you probably would have actually dated in high school:

I mean, I didn't actually date anyone in high school... maybe Neville Longbottom from Harry Potter?

• Glad you gave this book a chance:

The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory. I have never really been into historical fiction so wasn't sure if I would enjoy this, but after seeing the movie I decided to give it a go, and ended up really enjoying it.

• Hidden gem book:

Welcome to Lagos by Chibundu Onuzo. This book seems to be flying under the radar since Onuzo is a new and (very) young author, but it was brilliant.

• Important moment in your reading life:

Finishing university. I read a lot when I was younger, but since I studied History for my degree, I had to do so much academic reading that I never wanted to pick up a novel after a full day of study. Once I graduated I re-discovered the joy of reading for fun and have been gradually reading more and more ever since.

• Just finished:

A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking. Review coming soon!

• Kinds of books you won’t read:

I don't know if there's a particular genre that I would never read, but I'm not a huge fan of high fantasy or Mills-and-Boon-esque romance.

• Longest book you’ve read:

A Storm of Swords by George RR Martin (1177 pages).

• Major book hangover because of:

The Power by Naomi Alderman - again! It was very intense. 

• Number of bookcases you own:

Three. Two in my room and one in my shared living room!

• One book you have read multiple times:

If I exclude Harry Potter (definitely my most re-read books), the next is probably The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. 

• Preferred place to read:

 Bed!

• Quote that inspires you/gives you all the feels from a book you’ve read:

'It was my life - like all lives, mysterious and irrevocable and sacred. So very close, so very present, so very belonging to me. How wild it was, to let it be.' - Wild, Cheryl Strayed.

• Reading regret:

Bothering to read Twilight by Stephanie Meyer after being recommend by multiple (then teenage) friends.

• Series you started and need to finish (all books are out in series):

A Song of Ice and Fire by George RR Martin. They are all such long books!

• Three of your all-time favorite books:

I feel like I've read a lot of books recently that have become new favourites, but for three of my most read I'll pick The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling, and The Martian by Andy Weir.

• Unapologetic fangirl for:

Harry Potter and The Hunger Games. You already knew this by now though, right?

• Very excited for this release more than all the others:

Andy Weir's Artemis.

• Worst bookish habit:

Cracking spines! I like to open my books fully and I don't care if it gets those lines down the spine.

• X marks the spot: start at the top left of your shelf and pick the 27th book:

Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy.

• Your latest book purchase:

Swing Time by Zadie Smith; I've been meaning to read a Zadie Smith book for years and when I saw this one a few months ago I was hooked by the description and figured it would be a good place to start. I was just waiting for the paperback! 

• ZZZ-snatcher book (last book that kept you up WAY late):

Wild by Cheryl Strayed. 

Well, there we go! Twenty-six things you know about me that you didn't five minutes ago. 

Since this is just the beginning of the Moons and Metaphors blog, I'm still not sure exactly what it will morph into over time. I have several book reviews lined up and I'm sure I'll also be taking part in some regular bookish link-ups and memes. Hope you can stick around!

Katy xo