In April, I spent a month in Istanbul, and that city was one of the most amazing places I’ve ever been. It was modern and historic, beautiful and creative, and that blend of Asian and European is something that can actually be seen. Put aside its physical beauty, and Istanbul is seriously one of the most interesting and fascinating places. And during my last week there, I took myself to the Museum of Innocence, even though I’ve never read Orhan Pamuk’s famed book of the […]
She’s a working girl/She’s single and free
All right, I haven’t reviewed in ages, so I’m just gonna jump right into it. I read Factory Girls months ago – in April, to be exact – and it has just been stuck in my craw. The book is the work of Leslie Chang, a Wall Street Journal reporter who was based in China, and spent years following the lives of women working in factories in Guangdong province. As Westerners, much of what we know about these factories come from stories about exploitation in […]
A quick, creepy read that was just a bit sobering for me
Another day, another Mitchell! I bought Slade House not long after I finished The Bone Clocks because I didn’t want to stop living in Mitchell’s world. It ended up being the perfect accompaniment to Bone Clocks, almost like a side note into the world of Atemporals, souls who are able to live on for centuries in different bodies. Described as a “haunted house” book, Mitchell exercises his horror writing skills in describing Slade House, which is hidden behind a small black iron door down a narrow, winding alley. Nathan Bishop, […]
A “mid-life crisis novel” for David Mitchell
I have been really terrible about writing book reviews, but I have at least renewed my drive to read more. Mitchell is one of the easiest authors for me to jump into, and The Bone Clocks — which has sat on my shelf unread for over a year now — was a pretty easy read for me. I’ll try to put up the reviews for all the other books I have read before and after this one (I have about four others!) On to the review! […]