Top 5 Wednesday: Settings I want to see more of

#T5W

It’s that time of the week again when I bring you the Top 5 Wednesdays, created by gingerreadslainey and hosted by Sam @ThoughtsOnTomes. If you want to know how T5W works you can go to the Goodreads group by clicking here.

The instructions for this week were as follows:

June 29th: Settings you want to see more Of-These can be time periods (historical or futuristic) or places (real or fictitious)!I decided to base my post on places where some of my favorite books were located.

 

Paris or anywhere in France– Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. My review of the book is here.

Barcelona-The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Zafon Ruiz.My review of the book is here.

India, Italy(in particular Venice) and Thailand– Eat, Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. This book gave me serious wanderlust. It made me appreciate traveling even more.

I saw a book set in Seychelles recently. Unfortunately, I can’t even remember that title but that is a setting I would love to see too.

So, which are your favorite settings? Have you been to Paris, Barcelona, India, Thailand or Italy? I hope that those places are as beautiful as I imagine them to be. If you did this week’s T5W, leave your link in the comment section, I would love to see your favorite settings.

Top 5 Wednesday: Favorite Literary Father Figures

#T5W

It is that time of the week again when I bring you the Top 5 Wednesdays, created by gingerreadslainey and hosted by Sam @ThoughtsOnTomes. If you want to know how T5W works you can go to the Goodreads group by clicking here.

So here are my favorite book dads:

A Time to Kill by John Grisham

This is one of my favourite Grisham books and Carl Kee Hailey is one of my favorite literary father figures. If you haven’t read this book, here is the blurb:

The life of a ten-year-old girl is shattered by two drunken and remorseless young men. The mostly white town reacts with shock and horror at the inhuman crime. Until her black father acquires an assault rifle and takes matters into his hands.

For ten days, as burning crosses and the crack of sniper fire spread through the streets of Clanton, the nation sits spellbound as young defense attorney Jake Brigance struggles to save his client’s life…and then his own.

The rest are books that I have talked about a lot this year. I have linked the titles to my reviews to explain why these are my favorite father figures.

• Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
• Hans Hubberman in The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
• Niclas in Her Mother’s Hope by Francine Rivers
• Ben’s Father in The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma

So, who are your favorite literary father figures?

“Papa was a man with silver eyes, not dead ones.
Papa was an accordion!
But his bellows were all empty.
Nothing went in and nothing came out.”
― Markus Zusak, The Book Thief

Top 5 Wednesday: Favorite Character Names

Top 5 Wednesday: Characters that I Identify with

#T5W

It’s that time of the week again when I bring you the Top 5 Wednesdays, created by gingerreadslainey and hosted by Sam @ThoughtsOnTomes. If you want to know how T5W works you can go to the Goodreads group by clicking here.

The instructions for this week were as follows:

June 8th: Favorite Character Names -Fairly self-explanatory. Names you like for whatever reason!

Favorite Character names from Books that I have Read

 

Liesel Memminger in The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

This is definitely one of my favorite books and I just really liked Liesel. However, I only learnt the correct pronunciation of the name when I watched the movie. Seems that I had been reading it wrong all along. It is so pretty and musical.

Atticus and Scout Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

This book had such unique names. I also liked Boo Radley due to the uniqueness of the name.

Beloved in Beloved by Toni Morrison

Beautiful name despite the circumstances surrounding the character.

Shug Avery in The Color Purple by Alice Walker

This was such a befitting name for such an eccentric, flamboyant character. Its one of the names that cannot be separated. It does sound right to just say Shug or just Avery. It has to be Shug Avery, like James Bond.

Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens

I have always liked this name. Perhaps Twist more than Oliver.

Books on my TBR

The next four are characters that I have heard so much about though I am yet to read the books.

Anna Karenina in Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Sherlock Holmes in the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle

Jane Eyre in Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Hannibal Lector in Hannibal Lector Trilogy by Thimas Harris

So, what are your favorite character names? Don’t be shy, leave your T5W links.

Top 5 Wednesday: Book Theme Songs

#T5W

It is that time of the week again for Top 5 Wednesdays, created by gingerreadslainey and hosted by Sam @ThoughtsOnTomes. If you want to know how T5W works you can go to the Goodreads group by clicking here.

The instructions for this week were as follows:

June 1st: Book Theme Songs -Songs you associate with different books, whether it’s because of the lyrics matching the story, the tone fits the story, or just because you listened to it a lot while reading that particular book!

So I don’t really listen to music as I read. I actually prefer to read in silence because I get distracted easily and I tend to sing along to all the songs that I know. Anyway, there are a few songs that remind me of some of my favorite book genres.

1. Thriller by Michael Jackson- Psychological thrillers

 

 

2. Whiz Khalifa ft Charlie Puth- See you again -Tragic Stories

 

 

3.Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran- Romantic novels especially featuring weddings

 

 

4. Is this Love– Bob Marley-Any books featuring hippies, free spirits, Bohemian Culture

 

5. African Queen by Two Face

Any books with strong, black, female protagonists and also all Chimamanda’s books

 

Specific songs/books

• David Bowie- 1984(George Orwell’s-1984)
• 

  

So, what are your book theme songs ? Don’t be shy, leave your T5W links.

 

Top 5 Wednesday: Characters I Defend

#T5W

It is that time of the week again  for Top 5 Wednesdays, created by gingerreadslainey and hosted by Sam @ThoughtsOnTomes. If you want to know how T5W works you can go to the Goodreads group by clicking here.

The instructions for this week were as follows: May 25th: Characters You Defend -These are characters you love, but no one else seems to so you are always defending them!

St. Claire Etienne from Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

I know he seemed to string along Anna for quite some time and also got involved with her before really ending things with his girlfriend. However, I think that St. Clair was going through a lot at the time and he did breakup with his girlfriend before making things official with Anna. Come on, Etienne wasn’t that bad, was he?

Will from Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Will has been described as the worst boyfriend ever. I have also read comments about how he tried to get Louisa to live her life to the fullest while on the other hand, he gave up on his. His decision at the end has been criticized. Well, he was unhappy, didn’t want to live the rest of his life like that and depending on how you choose to look at it, I think his decision was brave.

 

Rachel Watson in The Girl in the Train by Paula Hawkins

Why do people dislike Rachel so much? I know that she wasn’t a strong protagonist and readers felt that her character was quite weak.  I never had any issues with from the start. She was clearly troubled and just trying her best to do something right.

Silas from Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

 

I know that he was the villain in the book but sometimes I sympathized with him. I think that he honestly thought that he was doing the right thing.

Marta from Her Mother’s Hope by Francine Rivers

She was really tough on Hildemara . However, I think Marta was just trying to do the best that she could as a mom. Hildemara was not as strong  this worried her mother. Really, I think that Hildemara did her best when it came to her family.

So, which characters do you always find yourself defending? Have you read the books on my list? What did you think about the characters? Don’t be shy, leave your T5W links.

Top 5 Wednesday: Fictional Bookworms

#T5W

It is that time of the week again when I bring you the Top 5 Wednesdays, created by gingerreadslainey and hosted by Sam @ThoughtsOnTomes. If you want to know how T5W works you can go to the Goodreads group by clicking here.

The instructions for this week were as follows:

May 11th: Characters You Are Most Like
Choose characters you are like, not characters you WANT to be like. You can also choose one character trait you share with a particular character. For example, you may not have Hermione’s bravery, but you do have her book smarts!

As an ardent reader, I decided to choose book characters who also love books.

Leisel Meminger in The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

 

 

Scout Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

 

 

 

Matilda Worwood from Matilda by Roald Dahl

 

 

 

 

Jo from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

 

Hazel and Gus from The Fault in our stars by John Green

 

 

 

 

Which fictional characters do you most relate with? Let me know in the comments section and feel free to leave the links to your T5W posts.

Happy Wednesday.

 

Top 5 Wednesday | Authors at BEA and Bookcon

#T5W

So today’s Top 5 Wednesday topic is: Authors You’d Want To Meet at Book Expo America & Bookcon– Whether you are attending the events this month or not, talk about who you would like to meet from the lineup!

Authors I would like to meet

I am not going to attend the two events but I went through the list of authors who will be there and here are the ones that I would like to meet. I picked the writers based on the fact that I have read and loved some of their books(the books I liked are indicated next to each author’s pic). I like Luvvie Ajayi. She came to Kenya last year but unfortunately, I was unable to attend the event. I hope another opportunity comes up someday. If you don’t know Luvvie then you need to check out her blog .

Emily Bleeker

 

Mary Kubica

Mary Burton

 

Luvvie Ajayi- Awesomely Luvvie

 

Books that I need to read before meeting the authors

There are other authors who I have heard so much about although I am yet to read any of their books. They will all be at the events though. I hope to read their books someday. I actually have books by Jenny Han and Sylvia Day’s Crossfire series on my TBR.I can’t wait to read them someday. The other authors are Victoria Aveyard,Veronica Roth and Richelle Mead. Below are some of their books which I have heard so much about.

 

If you would like to participate in Top 5 Wednesday, then you need to visit this Goodreads group!

T5W: Favorite Mother Figures

#T5W

Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly meme created by Lainey. Every week, readers/bloggers/vloggers get a new topic to discuss and list top 5 books (or whatever is specified) that relate to that topic! If you’re interested in joining, you should come join the fun over at the Goodreads group!

Here are my favorite mother figures from some of my favorite books

Marta in Her Mother’s Hope by Francine Rivers

I loved Marta’s character and her struggle to be a better mother inspired me although it also broke my heart considering the relationship that she had with her daughter, Hildemara. She is the strongest fictional mother that I have come across in a while. You can read my review of this book here.

 

Ma in Room by Emma Donoghue

She went through a lot in the room in which she was imprisoned  for 7 years but she still managed to create a life for her son Jack even when they were still in captivity. You can read my review of this book, here.

 

Rosa Hubbermann in The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

I liked Rosa although the story focused more on Hans, the father. However, Rosa was a strong woman with a quick tongue but she was quite endearing and she definitely loved her family especially her adopted daughter, Liesel Meminger. My full review of the book is here.

 

Angela in Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt

A lot has been said about Angela especially about the alleged incest mentioned in the memoir. However, I still think that she was a great mother. She practically raised her family alone as her husband drank away all his wages and deserted them. She also endured so much loss with the death of three of her kids. Angela loved her kids and although not everyone may agree with her actions. I think that she was a really good mother to the McCourts. Here is my review of the book.

Jacqueline in Abducted: The Fourteen Year Fight to Find My Children by Jacqueline Pascarl

Jaqueline went through so much agony after her children were abducted. However, she remained strong through the fourteen years that they were away and kept on fighting long after everyone else had given up. Her memoir is quite inspiring. My review of this book is here.

 

Honorable mention(Clever way to add a sixth mom to my Top 5)

Charlotte in Sue Monk Kidd’s  The Invention of Wing

I have already mentioned this in my blog but I have a new favorite book. I absolutely loved The Invention of Wings and so Charlotte had to be added to this list. Charlotte is Handful’s mother. They were both slaves but still, Charlotte was strong, fearless and despite their situation, she tried everything possible to make life better for her daughter. You can find my review of this book here.

 

 

A mother’s Story that I would like to read

A Mother’s Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy by Sue Klebold

I haven’t yet read this book but I have a copy of it and it is on my TBR. I can’t wait to read it. Sue is Dylan Klebold’s mother. Dylan was one of the shooters in the Columbine High Massacre.

 

So, have you read any of these books? Do you have other books that had mothers as protagonists or main characters? Do share and please feel free to add your T5W links in the comment section.

PS:the featured image shows a Kenyan Maasai mother and her baby.Source.

T5W: Intimidating Books

April 20th – Top 5 Wednesday: Books that I am intimidated by

#T5W

Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly meme created by Lainey. Every week, readers  get a new topic to discuss and  list  5 books (or whatever is specified) in relation to the specified topic! If you’re interested in joining, come over to this Goodreads group!

Okay, so I am intimidated by the classics. My reading challenge for this year included reading at least 10 books classified as classics. I have read 31 books so far this year and only two were classics( Beloved by Toni Morrison and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee). I still plan on meeting my target. I mean, we still have 7 more months till the end of 2016, right? So, there is still time.

Here are some of the classics that intimidate me.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Anna Karenina and War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Moby Dick by Herman Melville

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

 

I don’t own any of these books but they are all at the library at my place of work. I usually pass by the classics sections, pick one book(most are huge), read the blurb, quietly put it back on the shelf and tiptoe to the aisle that has memoirs or thrillers. However, next time I pass by the classics, I will pick one book and hopefully walk out of the library with it. Someday…

Have you read any of these? Do you like the classics? Which books  intimidate you?Feel free to share your T5W links.

T5W: Books with Hard Topics

#T5W

Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly meme created by Lainey. Every week, readers get a new topic to discuss and list  5 books (or whatever is specified) that relate to that topic! If you’re interested in joining, you should come join us at the Goodreads group!

 

Books with hard topics tend to stay with you long after you turn the last page. They haunt you and confront you with issues that you wish never existed in the first place. My choices for this week entails books with different forms of sexual abuse especially where minors were involved.

The Room by Emma Donoghue- This was a tough one. A woman was kidnapped and held as a sex slave for seven years. She had a son as a result of the rape. Mother and son end up living in the room where they are imprisoned and the rape goes on despite the presence of the little boy in the room. This story was devastating. Furthermore, it is inspired by true events(Josef Fritz case) hence even more  horrific. You can read my full review here.

 

Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold- The protagonist was only 14 years old when she was raped and murdered. It was heartbreaking reading about the incident and what happened to Susie. I was disgusted by the rapist. Susie’s life was cut short in such a tragic manner. Child abuse is always such a hard topic. My review of the Lovely Bones is here.

I recently bought Lucky by the same author and can’t wait to read it. Apparently, Lovely Bones was inspired by Alice’s own experiences as a child.

I know why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou- This is an inspiring memoir but truly heartbreaking. At 8 years old, Maya is raped by her mother’s boyfriend. The description of the rape was difficult to read. Maya talks about the unimaginable pain that she went through during the ordeal. Truly horrifying.

 

 

I am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced by Nujood Ali and Delphine Minoui- This is a story about a 10 year old bride forcefully married off by her father to an older man. The agony that Nujood went through is unimaginable. The repeated rape by her husband and torture by her mother in law was horrific. It was all too much; I can’t imagine how she went through all that. She was the world’s youngest divorcee although sadly, there are other younger brides forced into marriage before the age of ten. I reviewed this book last month.

 

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini- Second time I am mentioning this book in T5W this month. It is the only book that I remember that had a male character who was sexually abused. Hassan was raped by bully when he was young. Shockingly, the bully grew up and made Hassan’s young son his sex slave. It was all too heartbreaking. Another book that had a male character going through child abuse was Lost Boy by Dave Pelzer although this time, the abuser was his mother. You can read my review of Lost Boy here. I also did a review of Kite Runner here.

I am currently reading This Secret We’re Keeping by Rebecca Done. Its about a teacher-pupil relationship, a taboo topic of course, I would have included the book in this list but I have just started reading.

Have you read any of these books? Which books made it to your list this week? Don’t be shy, Share your links and I will pay your blogs a visit.

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