Books of the Week: How They Met and I've Got Your Number

Okay, so here we are again for my weekly book roundup :) Yay!

But before that, I would like to talk a little about how my preference for books has expanded. I would normally go for my "safe" books - Coelho, Rice, King, Albom and my stack of non-fiction marketing/management books (Lindstrom, Maxwell, Covey, Gladwell, Godin among others). Although I can read almost anything, I was just not willing. Haha.

I knew that I should do something though to expand my reading.

So two years ago, I bought this book called Bibliophile's Devotional. Basically, it recommended 365 books that I could read. While I have grabbed (and read) some on its list, I haven't really finished it. I find classics hard to read (please don't kill me) so they are sitting pretty on my bookshelf as of the moment. I am still mustering some courage to open them hopefully this year!

Did it help me achieve my objective? Hmm, probably by around 5-6 authors. I still do hope to read everything on its list though.

The next thing that made me materialize my goal was somehow an accidental one. A friend of mine Joei (from Joei&Me) invited me to this book club! 

We call ourselves the Secret Book Club. Haha :)) Each member gets to recommend a book every month which we are assigned to read. We have meetups (when schedule permits) to discuss books, blogs and everything else under the sun! 

Photo by Joei

It is so fun meeting other bookworms! Last Christmas, we had our first party and we exchanged books! I got this one from my Santa, Liz, who also maintains a blog! 

So anywayy, back to my BOWs. I was able to finish two books last week: How They Met by David Levithan and my first Kinsella, I've Got Your Number.

How They Met is a compilation of short stories of, well, how couples met each other. It is a light read from Levithan (as all his other books). It ranges from teen stories, same-sex encounters and how married couples have gotten together. 

Some of the lines I liked were -- 

"What do I think about love? Not much - that's the safe answer. Even when I think I have a grasp on it, something comes along to make me realize I don't know anything at all. It's just a concept to me. It's the thing that all the songs are written about, the thing that makes smart people act stupidly. If I an make love a concept, it makes me a better observer. And it also leaves a  place inside of me hollow. Sometimes I can actually feel it. To reach down inside that part - I wonder how it would feel, to touch a void. That nameless empty."

"Well, there's something about the stars that makes you realize both the smallness and the enormity of everything, isn't there?"

"To love - to fall - is not a question. To touch - to kiss - to speak - those are the questions. There is nothing worse that a ruined friendship. There is nothing better than a companion. Somewhere in between lies risk. Somewhere in between, lies."

So there. I rate this book 3 out of 5. It was a nice read but I didn't have goosebumps or a crying spell or some weird introspection right after reading it (benchmark: you should have seen me reading Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas, haha - couldn't stop crying or how I made a life-altering decision after I read Eat, Pray, Love)

For my second read -- it's the book I received last Christmas: I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella. 

I know there's a lot of you who enjoyed her Shopaholic series but yes, I haven't had the chance to read any of them yet but this first "experience" with her did not disappoint. 

I gave this book a 5 out of 5 star ranking in Goodreads. First because I am a girl and I love sweet, sappy, fun love stories. Second because it was such an easy read. I seriously did not put the book down once I started reading it and was able to finish in two hours, I think. Third, because it makes you dream of love again, haha! What a sentimental fool I am. So anyway -- here is my favorite line (boys, prepare to cringe): 

"I don't know if she loves me. I don't know if I love her. All I can say is, she's the one I think about. All the time. She's the voice I want to hear. She's the face I hope to see."

*giggles*

So there you go. It was a "pakilig" week for the books I read. How about you, loves? What was your book of the week? 

xx,

Balot

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Why I Want to Blog about the Books I've Read

I was looking for a book to read last night and decided to entertain myself with my old reliable Murakami. The last one I read was Norwegian Wood and again, boggled my mind with the usual Murakami style. I pulled out Kafka on the Shore. I had this book for a long time but I don't remember reading it.

I was settling myself for my night reading ritual (until Mr Sleep visits me) but to my surprise (and later on, frustration), some of the pages were already dog-eared. That only meant one thing: I have already read it.

I tried to browse the pages trying to recall what the story was all about, I read the synopsis, searched for some quotes online in the desperate effort to remember. But alas, my memory was blank. I could hear the sound, "chirp chirp" inside my head. ARRGHHH! I must have loved this book though because there were a lot of pages that I marked. *frustrating*

Yes, I sabotage my books and I am sorry. Aside from the dog ears, I also have some highlighters and in very few occasions, notes on the pages. But I just do it on my own books, don't worry!

So I have decided to chronicle the books I've read in this blog as.  To remember. Because that is the main reason why I do this (blogging) anyway. You  might not agree with the ratings I give but that's fine. Each of us would have different preferences in our books anyway.

I would not go as far as to spoil the whole plot, though. I will just try to capture some quotes which I have found interesting. Cool?

Oh, by the way, hit me up if you have any book recommendations. I am taking a reading challenge from book reads - 52 books this year! If left to me, all I would read is Coelho (of course), Anne Rice, Murakami, Stephen King - hahaha! Good thing I have my book club to expand my selections and of course, YOU :) Do give me a shout out. Thanks, loves!

xx,
Balot

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