The reception to this book was mixed and not that positive to be honest. I tried going into it unbiased. There are a lot of things about this book that I didn’t like, but strangely, I think it grew on me a little bit by the end.

There were too many characters and I didn’t really feel sympathetic for most of them. It took about a hundred pages before I could tell the characters apart. They all sort of blurred together for me. It took until half way through the book (around 250 pages) that I started feeling a twinge of pathos about one of them.

I enjoy Rowling as a writer. I think she does have weaknesses as a writer exhibited in the Harry Potter books too. She has decent characterization skills, but it wasn’t shown in this novel. Somehow though, I became less indifferent towards the end of the novel. It veered towards being a bit cliche though, but I think she hit some emotional notes correctly.

On the way, I do not regret reading this novel and it was not as bad for me as some readers. I don’t recommend it though. If this was not JKR, I probably wouldn’t be eager to read another novel.

Read November 11-17th, 2014.

When I first read the reviews of this book earlier in the year, I didn’t think I would read the “final” Little House books. I don’t think I read this book when I was a kid or a teenager. Like Farmer Boy, I had missed out on it. Maybe I did read it and blocked it out because it is quite depressing in parts. Having said that, I think I liked it.

The story is considerably different in tone than the other books in the series. Laura did not work on it much after Almanzo died so it this could be considered an unfinished manuscript. The rawness and honesty in the books makes it interesting though. Laura doesn’t want to be a farmer’s wife which is in character. The young family suffer through so much in the books and there seems to be a lot less happy moments. It is no wonder why the previous/last book is called These Happy Golden Years.

A friend and I discussed how this book makes you wonder more about the marriage of Laura and Manly. There seems to be less good moments between them as they both suffer through bad luck on the farm and not the best financial management. I felt bad for them both. There was a distinct lack of romance in this book.

I am glad to have read this book. It makes one appreciate what one has now and how hard it was back then. I look forward to Pioneer Girl even more now though as I have become attached to Wilder’s writing again.

Finished reading November 11, 2014 on Kindle.

Nick Hornby’s collected articles for “The Believer” magazine. This book is a bit of a cheat because I didn’t read the whole thing. I’ve already read the previous three compilations and reviewed them on this blog. There are a few chapters of new content in this nearly 500 page book. I basically read that which amounted to a cracker with cheese snack of reading.

I got it from the library, but I immediately put this book on the wishlist for the future. I love Hornby’s writings about books. I wish I had his job

I’ve found some incredible and indeed, some of the best written books from him. His word is very analytical about literature and art but still accessible. On the downside, I’ve also found some boring books from him, but I take the bad with the good.

Read the lastfew pages on November 7, 2014.