Imi

I had to put it aside after only 30%. It was boring me sadly and I have so much else I'm looking forward to. I'm going to keep an eye on the discussion and if it looks like it gets more interesting I might pick it back up again. Maybe the beginning is just slow or the horror genre continues to be not my favourite.

I guess it's time to finally start taking notice of my new's year resolution to give up on books that clearly aren't worth my time. I actually got very close to the end, but it was pretty clear from very early on that this wasn't going to get any better than being the ridiculous, laughable, problematic mess it had turned into. It seems the author should have done a lot more research into both the internet/hacking and Islamic cultures. It's also pretty obvious that the “convert” character was a self-insert of the author. Ick!

Abandoned at 36%. I can't deal with the tedium any longer.

I just can't continue with this. I thought I could finish it, but then I realised I had almost another 30 chapters to go and that thought wasn't a pleasant one. Another 30 more chapters of nothingness. No thank you. At this point I knew it was time to stop. Austen just really isn't for me, that much is clear. The only other book I've read by her is Emma, which not only bored me to tears but I also found infuriating. So I guess Pride and Prejudice was a slight improvement over that, as I'd only describe it as dull, nothing more. I know others find Austen's characters entertaining, endearing etc. but as I hadn't felt any of that so far in the book it seemed very unlikely that I ever would. Well at least this audiobook fulfilled it's purpose as a distraction on an extremely long journey, but since then I've had no desire to listen further.

On a side note, if you are an Austen fan, I'd highly recommend this free libravox audiobook, because the narrator was fantastic and very clear. Despite my indifference to the story, her voice was very easy to listen to.

Pieces I've started:
- 28/11/18: Bach's ‘Musette in D major, BWV Anh 126' (p.13)

Pieces I've started:
- 03/01/19: Dustin O'Halloran's ‘Opus 26' (p.78)

Trying something new. I started therapy this week and my therapist suggested “adult colouring books” as a way to switch off my brain and relax when I don't have the energy for my usual distractions such as reading or piano. I was a bit skeptical, but I'm staying open minded and giving a shot. I don't even remember using colouring books as a child, so this is a completely new. I have to admit this book is beautiful! I only bought this one because it was cheap, and was not was not expecting a work of art.

I'm marking this as “did not finish”, even though technically I didn't even properly start it. Zadie Smith's latest essay collection, Feel Free, was this week's ‘Book of the Week' on BBC Radio 4. The five episodes each cover one (probably abridged?) essay from the collection, read by Zadie Smith herself:

Episode 1 = ‘The Bathroom' (a very personal essay on Smith's upbringing in the 1980s)
Episode 2 = ‘Dance Lessons For Writers' (on the connection between dancing and writing)
Episode 3 = ‘On Optimism and Despair', talk given on November 10 2016 after receiving a literary prize (about the multiculturalism featured in her novels and whether it has “failed”)
Episode 4 = ‘The Inaugural Philip Roth Lecture', given on 27 October 2016 (on the art and practice of writing fiction)
Episode 5 = ‘Alte Frau By Balthasar Denner' (thoughts on the painting by the German artist)

I really enjoyed listening to these essays this week. Episodes 1 and 3 were particularly strong. However, looking at how large the whole collection is, I doubt I will be reading it in its entirety, at least not for some time, which is why I'm marking this as “DNF”. I'm not too interested in the subjects on many of the remaining essays and imagine the essays chosen for this series are among the collection's highlights.