Misery by Stephen King

Rating: 5/5

Misery is about a middle aged author, Paul Sheldon, who after being in a motor vehicle accident, is saved by his self-proclaiming “number-one fan.” The woman that saves him, Annie Wilkes, is a former nurse and took it upon herself to bring Paul to her home, mend his broken legs and nurse him back to health. It becomes evident as the story progresses that Annie is not in the best mental state, and later being upset by a plot twist in Paul’s newest novel in the Misery series, she heavily insists that Paul should write another book to undo the twist or the consequences could be fatal. Throughout the story, Paul tries to escape Annie’s secluded house while strangely growing attached to the newest Misery book as it’s being written. 

I was very fond of this book, and thoroughly enjoy Stephen King’s writing style. The language used is engaging and informative, and the characters are well-established and interesting. At times the storyline was plainly sad and sometimes slow, but it’s absolutely worth reading and I was very satisfied with the ending. 

Author: Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Rating ⅘

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe is a coming of age novel about two friends who learn lessons about life, death, and love. Ari and Dante meet at the swimming pool. Ari doesn't know how to swim and Dante offers to teach him. After that they are friends. Together they navigate the questions they both have about the universe. Ari has many questions about his brother who his parents never talk about. He doesn’t know who he is as a person and he meets Dante who knows exactly who he is. They learn about life through summers of swimming, jobs, and injuries together. I really enjoyed this book. By the end of the book I felt I understood the characters and why they did the things that they did.

1/14/22

Rating: ⅘

Summary: Girl Interrupted is a phonomalel book and movie. It's set in the 1960’s, and not a long read. It's a true story by Sussana Kaysen about a young woman who gets sent to the mental hospital, McLean. Her privacy gets taken away as she questions if her 15 minute meeting meant she was crazy, like how all the other patients seem. Lisa, a sociopath who seems to run the women's ward. Georgina, her roommate, is diagnosed with psychologia fantastica, meaning she's a pathological liar. Polly has schizophrenia and depression. There are many patients in McLean, each unique and important to the story. McLean is a refuge as much as a prison. Without the outside world, a job and bills to pay the patients have no responsibilities. Much of Girl Interrupted is contrasting the way things appear and how they actually are, and confusion with sanity and insanity

Book im reading next: Just kids by Patti Smith

January 2, 2022
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
Rating: 5/5

      Ryland Grace finds himself the sole survivor of the Hail Mary voyage, a last ditch effort to save humanity. There is one problem, the mission required him to be put in a coma, and he woke up with no memories of where he is or why. As his memories return he has to navigate a new solar system in an attempt to find a solution to earths problem. Ryland is faced with difficult situations one after another. He is left to face each obstacle completely alone. Or so he thought.
     This is a well written Sci-Fiction book similar to another of Andy Weir's books, The Martian. With much higher stakes, this book exceeded my expectations and is (in my opinion) a far better book than The Martian. It's hard to put down once you've started reading it, and does a good job balancing real science with sci-fiction. Not only did I enjoy the book immensely, but it taught me a few things about the real world and how it works. It is perfect for anyone who enjoys science and reading. 
-Everett Bistoff

1/21/2022

Rating: 5/5

Reviewed by: Wesley Thornton

Tajon is a 16 year old black man living in a rough area of Washington D.C. He lives with his little sister, mom, and alcoholic dad. After school, Tajon sells weed to make extra money for his family. His best friend, Kayla, wants him to stop, asking him to get a job instead. He never did though, having a job was embarrassing to him, selling was “doing it on his own”. Tajon’s waiting for the buyer, Bobby. Bobby’s got his own problems, you’d never know by looking at him. Wearing Burberry clothes and Versace shoes, all you’d see is the shine of his Rolex. Behind all the bold-lettered brands, is a hurt boy who lost his mother and is late on rent, again. He had no intention of paying, he needed resale money. He meets up with Tajon, pressuring him to give him the weed. When Tajon asks for cash, Bobby flashes his gun. He had no intention to shoot, and quickly holsters: there’s a cop. Both recognised him as a regular patrol. “Put your hands above your head” he commands, stepping closer and closer until Tajon runs. Taking sharp turns he runs into a dead end, with the cop in front of him. He reaches for the weed and puts his hands up, then the cop draws, and shoots. The rest of the book has to do with the impact of the shooting and how it affected everyone from his dad to the cop. Although the book is short, it packs a lot of story and does an amazing job at showing the problems in our country and covering the cop’s own life and perspective. It had a unique ending that worked well with the rest of the book. 

by Linsey Miller

5/5 

Sallot Leon is a thief and the only survivor of the slaughter of Nacea, in which shadows created by Erland mages slaughtered Sal’s whole family and the entire country of Nacea. While stealing jewelry from a wealthy noble they find a poster inviting anyone who can prove themselves to a competition to become a member of the queen's left hand, her personal assassins. Sal proves them self by killing their boss, a well known criminal. After arriving Sal is given a mask and brought to the dinning hall with the rest of the contestants where the left hand appears and informs them of what they have actually signed up for, a fight to the death.

This book is a well paced, action packed story that will keep you on the edge of your seat. It is one of my favorite books and it always left me wanting more. 

The characters are well rounded and relatable, besides all the murder, and the main character really makes you root for them. It has some representation with the main character being gender fluid and having a handful of other characters being members of the LGBTQIA+ community. If you like action, cute friendships, and a little bit of romance you are probably going to like this book. I would check the trigger warning though as this book does contain violence, gore, and some sensitive topics. 

 

By Tamara Shopsin

Rating: 4.2/5

Review by Wesley Thornton

LaserWriter II is a peculiar book that tells the story of Tekserve, a computer repair shop that focused mainly on Apple products. Before the Genius Bar and the plethora of computer repair shops that are now available, Tekserve, located in New York City, was the best place to get electronics repaired. As the book progresses, so does Apple’s empire of computers. At one point in time, Apple used to make printers, one of the most expensive being the LaserWriter II. For a good portion of the book, an employee named Claire is focused on as she learns how to fix printers. LaserWriter II highlights the change in the tech industry. In 2022, there is often a large disconnect between the customer and tech company, which is something Tekserve didn’t suffer from. Eventually, Apple used Tekserve as a place to repair their broken computers and slowly, Tekserve became corpritaized & disconnected from their customers & eventually were swallowed by Apple. 

Xiran Jay Zhao

5/5
Review by Malia Bistoff

Iron Widow is a fantasy re-imagining of the rise of Chinese Empress Wu Zetian, who was the first and only Chinese empress. The book follows Wu Zetian, who lives in a world where a woman can only follow two paths. Marriage or becoming a cocubine/co-pilot to the men fighting for humanity, a fate which more often than not, leads to death. When Zetian's sister is murdered by the programs ace pilot she seeks revenge and enlists. But what she doesn't expect is to come out alive. 

This book is a great re-imagining and incorporates a lot of interesting and cool Chinese mythology. Along with Chinese representation there is also a lot of LGBTQIA+ characters, including the main character. The fight scenes are exciting and will keep you on the edge of your seat. Even better are the main characters, who are well written and have understandable and realistic motivations. Xiran Jay Zhao did an amazing job with world building and makes it very easy and fun to read. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fantasy books or might be a bit sick of normal love triangles.  

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

5/5

Review by Katherine Sage

Sharp Objects follows a series of murders taking place in Wind Gap, Pennsylvania. Camille Preaker is dragged back to her home town after shes given an assignment for her daily paper. Her stay is unexpected and unwelcomed by her mother and the rest of the town. As she investigates the murders she uncovers more about the small towns twisted history. And even more about her family’s. I enjoyed reading this, it was written well and would recommend it to anyone who likes suspense.