What I Read This Month: February
As the end of the month is approaching, I thought it would be nice to wrap things up by looking back on the books I’ve read over the past four weeks. Let’s go!
‘Girl, Interrupted’ by Susanna Kaysen
*tw- mental illness*
Whilst it’s only around 200 pages long, this book packs a punch. It documents Susanna Kaysen’s time spent in a mental hospital as a young adult in the 60’s, depicting the cruel misunderstanding and mistreatment of mentally ill youth. I’ve read a few books about characters with mental health problems, and this was by far the rawest, most vulnerable account I’ve come across. Gripping from the very beginning, I finished this after only three days
‘Before the coffee gets cold’- Toshikazu Nawaguchi
Hm. I have very mixed feelings on this book. It tells the story of a mysterious coffee shop in Tokyo, where customers can request to travel back in time (permitted that they follow an irritatingly strict set of rules laid out by the owner). Split into four ‘acts’, it focuses in turn on the journies into the past taken by four of the characters. I loved the second and fourth parts, but hated the first and third. There were some really touching moments of tenderness, but also a lot of missed opportunities and poor characterisation choices. Overall, a decent read, though! I’ve heard somewhere it was based on a play, which makes MUCH more sense. It would definitely be better performed on a stage
‘History of Wolves’ by Emily Fridlund
... Wow. This book shook me UP. Set in rural Minnesota, we follow Linda and her new neighbours, the Gardeners- a mother and her little boy, Paul. When Paul’s mother asks Linda to babysit, she doesn’t think much of it and agrees to look after him, but soon discovers something is very wrong with the family when Paul’s father enters the scene. Fridlund’s style is just gorgeous, and she touches on some very deep, dark issues. I won’t go into further detail for fear of spoiling it, but if you read just one book this year- make it this one
