Published : 2021 || Format : print || Location : Colombia ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ What was it about the country that kept everyone hostage to its fantasy? The previous month, on its own soil, an American man went to his job at a plant and gunned down fourteen coworkers, and last spring alone there were four different school shootings. A nation at war with itself, yet people still spoke of it as some kind of paradise.. Thoughts : Infinite Country follows two characters - young Talia, who at the beginning of this book, escapes a girl’s reform school in North Colombia so that she can make her previously booked flight to the US. Before she can do that, she needs to travel many miles to reach her father and get her ticket to the rest of her family. As we follow Talia’s treacherous journey south, we learn about how she ended up in the reform school in the first place and why half her family resides in the US. Infinite Country tells the story of her family through the other protagonist, El
Like most of us (definitely not all because some of you sure have some super efficient TBR systems), I collect book recommendation after another until one day I realize I'm never getting through this list in my lifetime, so I decide to burrow my head in the sand rather than deal with it. This week, however, I unintentionally chanced upon that list and got sucked into a rabbit hole of looking up many of the recently discovered books - some that I had read about only once but they still sounded amazing. Since good things are best shared, I'm listing some of the most amazing books I came across recently and hope to read in this lifetime, though sooner is preferable, of course.
The Psychology of Time Travel, Kate Mascarenhas
Do you remember those good old days when everyone was gushing about The Time Traveler's Wife? Goodness, I feel so much older just thinking about how long it has been since I read that book. I need to reread it just for the nostalgia. The time travel aspect in that book still remains, to me, one of the most mind-boggling that I had ever read about, and loved. It was heartbreaking and also so awe-inspiring. Or maybe I'm just remembering it that way. So when Jenny @ Reading the End started talking about The Psychology of Time Travel, all I could think of was The Time Traveler's Wife, even though the two sound nothing similar, other than involving some kind of time travel.
Inside Out and Back Again, Thanhhà Lại
Helen @ Helen's Book Blog finds the most diverse books ever. She recently reviewed another book by author Thanhhà Lại and that's how I found my way to Inside Out and Back Again. It was published in 2011 but of course I missed it then. It has also won both the Newbery and National Book Awards. I typically have a lot of success with Newbery winners so I'm looking forward to reading this one.
Village of Scoundrels, Margi Preus
The title of this book sounds uncannily similar to David Benioff's City of Thieves, which I LOVED. They are both also set against the backdrop of WW2 but beyond that, I doubt they share any similarities. Village of Scoundrels is a very new release, with it just coming out two days ago. There have been certainly several examples in history where a group of villagers risk everything to keep those being pursued safe. This book is written more for a younger audience, but it will still be enlightening to read.
Up the Down Staircase, Bel Kaufman
This is the oldest book in this list. Love it when books published years ago still get recommended highly and show up on several to-read lists. I'll confess to never having heard anything about this book so I did read up a bit about how the book came to be (apparently the author wasn't really looking to write a book, much less a bestselling one) and how it coined a whole new phrase of "up the down staircase". If I have a favorite setting that I like my books to be in, it's a school or classroom. There's so much potential in there always and so many interesting dynamics that it never gets old. I'm not sure how easy it is going to be to get a copy of this book, but I'll have to give it a shot.
Circe, Madeline Miller
Circe is forever going to be be associated with London for me, even if it has nothing to do with it, simply because the book was released around the time of my trip to London last year and every bookstore I passed by had stacks upon stacks upon walls stocked with this book. I almost wondered if this was one of those most-awaited books, like the Harry Potter books were. Just by virtue of that over-advertising, I was very disinterested in this book. But then one day I read what it's about and thought it sounded good. However, it wasn't until about a month ago that I decided I would like to read it.
Which of these books did you love? Which one is also on your list?
Which of these books did you love? Which one is also on your list?
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