What I’ve Been Reading – May ’09

Books I've finished reading this month:

1. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer.

   Rating:  

   
   I now believe that it is not just Terry Pratchett; I seriously doubt that I will thoroughly enjoy anything in this vein in the near future. Somewhat odd, since it is similar to what I most often feel capable of writing; perhaps my subconscious always suspects that I would much rather be writing (post?)modern fantasy strewn with anachronisms than reading it.
2. A Room of One's Own, Virginia Woolf.

   Rating:  

   
   What issues I have with this book only arise because of developments in feminism and related areas that have come after it; it would be unfair to blame Woolf in any way for not being decades ahead of her time. Besides, I was instantly consumed by adoration of her natural, insightful, humorous manner, and she likes Jane Austen as much as I do (and for similar reasons). This is a lovely book.
3. Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit, Jeanette Winterson.

   Rating:  

   
   If A Room of One's Own is lovely, Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit is sublime. By turns funny and heartbreaking, and with odd deviations from the standard storytelling mode that only drew me in further, it is probably the best thing I have read so far this year.
4. The Voyage Out, Virginia Woolf.

   Rating:  

   
   Strangely, this had some of the problems Woolf takes other authors to task for in A Room of One's Own, and I am not sure how satirical it was supposed to be. Apart from a thoroughly infuriating ending and lots of characters making sweeping generalisations on behalf of the author, I didn't mind it.
5. Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen.

   Rating:  

   
   This reads like it was practice for Pride and Prejudice, and judging by the end result such practice was quite necessary. I will have to read more Austen to find out if I actually like her, or if it's just P&P.