April Reviews

The best thing about April ending is that now summer seems very real.... and awesome. So awesome. In the meantime, I'll keep reading. April was a very productive month on the literary front- I cranked out six books and over 1,500 pages. It wasn't a slow month at work or home, either, so I'm not sure how this miracle happened. I've been trying to waste less time on my phone lately (partly because the battery is going bad) and have been reading for the first ten or fifteen minutes of my lunch break, too, so that probably has helped. And, to be honest, I didn't read the most challenging books this month. And there's been quite a bit of non-fiction in there too, so perhaps I read that faster-? Whatever the reason, here we go:

Gulp by Mary Roach

327 pages

I reviewed this already here.

Antigone by Sophocles

50 pages

This was a reread for work. You know the story: Antigone, daughter of Oedipus, decides to give her brother a proper burial, all the while defying her Uncle Creon. My students were wondering why she and her siblings weren't a little, like deformed, since their mom was their grandma. I hope they took away more form the play than just that...

Verdict: It was better than I remembered!

In the Best Interest of Students by Kelly Gallagher

210 pages

I reviewed this earlier here.

Phenomenal by Leigh Ann Henion

275 pages

Been there, done that.

Not That Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham

362 pages 

This is what happens when I read a lot of non-fiction. Read my thoughts here.

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

336 pages

Rachel is an infertile alcoholic that has lost her husband, job, and dignity. As part of the weak facade she attempts to maintain, she heads into London every day on the train, where she used to work. While doing so, she passes by her old house (where her ex, his new wife, and their baby live) and a home down the road that she has made up an idealistic fantasy about the inhabitants. The woman goes missing one day, and the case ends up bringing everyone together... for the worst.

Verdict: This was good... for a mystery. I believe that it's really hard to write a mystery novel- it's so easy to fall prey to formulas. I figured out who "dunnit" about half way through, so there is a predictably factor that brings down my overall opinion. But still better than a lot of the pulpy mass-market paperback mysteries out there. 

total: 1,560 pages