This was my slowest reading month. In fact, I stayed away tried to stay away from borrowing books from the library mainly because I was trying hard to complete the NaNoWriMo challenge. I am also in the process of slowing down my reading as I get geared for the holidays. I plan to spend some time finishing up pending craft projects and catching up. (fingers crossed)

Only 3 recommendations this month

The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton 

A monster book – 800+ pages of an undiscovered land. I will be honest, I wondered why the book had to be so long. I for one didn’t fall in love with it. I liked it. Pick it up if you have time in your hands.

Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult

I picked this book on a whim. I hadn’t read a book by Picoult in nearly 4 years. The last book I read was when I sat in front of kuttyma’s daycare watching her weep her heart out on the monitors. This book was fun. I loved the characters – Alice and Jenna of course stood out. I wasn’t really sure if I was supposed to fall in love with Virgil and Serenity. I wish they had got some more attention. Same with the other characters in the book, they don’t seem to have enough space to create a bond with the reader. The story is woven around the behaviour of elephants and bring to light the sad fate of elephants in the hands of poachers. I agree this book isn’t for everyone but I liked it.

The Handsome Man’s De Luxe Cafe by Alexander McCall Smith

I really don’t like the No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series. I don’t relate with them but I tend to pick these books. I think the reason behind it is how McCall Smith brings Botswana to life with his words. I yearn to see Kalahari and drive around Gaborone. I sort of hate the passivity of the characters in this series and this book really stretched my patience to the limit. Solving a mystery that really wasn’t one even when it is set in Botswana isn’t that fun.

5 books is a monthly series featuring some of the books I read and loved recently. For more book updates and to check my current reading list, head to my Goodreads account