THE GOLDFINCH
by Donna Tartt
"Theo Decker, a thirteen-year-old New Yorker, miraculously survives an accident that kills his mother. Abandoned by his father, Theo is taken in by the family of a wealthy friend. Bewildered by his strange new home on Park Avenue, disturbed by schoolmates who don't know how to talk to him, and tormented above all by his unbearable longing for his mother, he clings to one thing that reminds him of her: a small, mysteriously captivating painting that ultimately draws Theo into the underworld of art.
As an adult, Theo moves silkily between the drawing rooms of the rich and the dusty labyrinth of an antiques store where he works. He is alienated and in love-and at the center of a narrowing, ever more dangerous circle.
The Goldfinch is a mesmerizing, stay-up-all-night and tell-all-your-friends triumph, an old-fashioned story of loss and obsession, survival and self-invention, and the ruthless machinations of fate."
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I have extremely mixed feelings about this book and I must admit, at times it was a considerable struggle to read. Normally I find myself drawn into a story from the first few pages, but this didn't happen and it took me several attempts to even begin to follow Theo's journey.
At some moments, I found I was hooked and couldn't put the thing down. I'd read it in my lunch break, whilst eating my dinner and late at night when I should have really been sleeping. However, there were also sections that were so dragged out and mundane, that it was all I could do to not delete the book from my kindle and declare it a waste of my time.
Overall, I enjoyed the storyline and the development of Theo's character throughout some of the most tragic and saddening moments in his life. Boris was a favourite of mine and I was thrilled when he reappeared, making me a lot more invested in the end of the book. I would recommend The Goldfinch to others but with a cautionary warning that it gets a little difficult sometimes to follow and you could struggle to remain interested in the story.
***
EAT, PRAY, LOVE
by Elizabeth Gilbert
"In her early thirties, Elizabeth Gilbert had everything a modern American woman was supposed to want--husband, country home, successful career--but instead of feeling happy and fulfilled, she felt consumed by panic and confusion. This wise and rapturous book is the story of how she left behind all these outward marks of success, and of what she found in their place. Following a divorce and a crushing depression, Gilbert set out to examine three different aspects of her nature, set against the backdrop of three different cultures: pleasure in Italy, devotion in India, and on the Indonesian island of Bali, a balance between worldly enjoyment and divine transcendence."
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I was expecting a lot more following the hype around this woman's journey of self-discovery following her divorce, that took her to three diverse and beautiful countries. I felt as though she spent too long dragging back up the same old thoughts and explaining herself over and over. I enjoyed reading about the people she met on her travels but felt she didn't spend quite as long with this as she could have. Not my cup of tea unfortunately.
**
MILK & HONEY
by Rupi Kaur
'"milk and honey' is a collection of poetry and prose about survival. About the experience of violence, abuse, love, loss, and femininity. It is split into four chapters, and each chapter serves a different purpose. Deals with a different pain. Heals a different heartache. 'milk and honey' takes readers through a journey of the most bitter moments in life and finds sweetness in them because there is sweetness everywhere if you are just willing to look."
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I've been wanting to read more poetry this year and stumbled upon Milk & Honey on Goodreads. I read it cover-to-cover as soon as I'd bought it. Rupi Kaur has managed to discuss hard hitting subjects such as violence, abuse, love and loss in such a raw and honest way, using beautiful and thought provoking words . The book is seperated into four sections; The Hurting, The Loving, The Breaking and The Healing. My favourite being "The Healing". It's absolutely a must read.
"Accept that you deserve more
than painful love
life is moving
the healthiest thing
for your heart is
to move with it"
****
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