September Book Overview

Welcome to my September Book Overview, dearest Pragmaster!

As you explore my September reads, please, keep in mind that I believe no book is ever truly perfect. I rate books based on overall quality and enjoy-ability from my perspective. I may feel a book wasn’t written very well, but still give it a good rating because it had great characters, or I just really enjoyed it.

A person can love a certain book/series while another hates it, so please be courteous of people’s right to their own opinion.

Without further ado, here is an overview of the books I read or listened to this September:

Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles (Books 1 – 3) by Tony_DiTerlizzi and Holly Black

My Rating: 5 of 5 | 2019 Goodreads Challenge 19, 24 & 25 of 20

I listened to this entire series on the app Libby, through my library. I really enjoyed these books and hope for more from Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black in this world. This is obviously a children’s series, and the writing reflects that, but the story and themes are still mature in nature. There are themes of family, loss of a loved one, divorce, step parents, family therapy, etc.

This is a great series to read/listen to in the spring or summer. I think many kids would love this series, especially if they enjoyed the original Spiderwick Chronicles series.

Will I ever read this series again? I can see myself revisiting this series one day when I have kids or work at a school library.

If more books are added to the series, would I read them? That’s a resounding “yes” from me!

The Looking Glass Wars (The Looking Glass Wars #1) by Frank Beddor

My Rating: 4 of 5 | 2019 Goodreads Challenge 20 of 20

Because I love Alice in Wonderland and everything related, I read this book given to me by my fiance. I was skeptical of this book due to the mass of negative reviews on Goodreads, but I can confidently say that I enjoyed this book.

The story was unique and the plot fun, but most of all the atmosphere of the story is highly satisfying. This book helped me out of a reading rut, and scratched my Alice in Wonderland itch.

I do have to point out that there was one section of the book that I did feel like was slower than the rest of the book and changed the tone of the story for a bit, but it was still enjoyable to read. I never really found myself losing interest, and once I was reading, I found it difficult to put down.

If you like fantasy, Alice in Wonderland, and/or whimsical things, then I would recommend giving this book a try. It may not be for everyone, but there is a chance it is for you.

Will I read the sequels, Seeing Redd and ArchEnemy? I do plan to pick up the sequels in the future.

Will I ever reread this series? Maybe one day. I am not opposed to revisiting this series if the situation arises.

Age of Myth (The Legends of the First Empire #1) by Michael J. Sullivan

My Rating: 5 of 5 | 2019 Goodreads Challenge 21 of 20

This opening book of the fantasy series, “Legends of the First Empire”, is possibly one of my favorite fantasies of all time. Sullivan’s writing creates a pleasant read full of vivid worlds, heartbreaking characters, and exciting plot. To my surprise this book had an excellent balance of world, character, and plot, when one is usually lacking from a story. I would even go as far to say that all of these elements in this story are excellent.

This book is packed with impressive world building, heartbreaking situations, and shocking actions. There is a good dose of politics and a mountain of magic that kept me interested in the world, while the characters are realistic, perfectly flawed, and oceans deep.

If you like fantasy, I highly recommend giving this book a chance, because I enjoyed literally every second of it. I read part of this book then listened to most of it then read the end, but both experiences were phenomenal. I love the audiobook, so if you would rather listen to books, I do recommend the audiobook.

I would recommend reading this book in fall or winter, but for no particular reason. I just felt like it fit well into those seasons, since we do see a lot of winter and fall in this world, which I enjoyed.

I am already listening to the second book in this series, “Age of Swords”, and I plan to plow through the rest of the series as fast as my work/school schedule will allow me.

I will definitely be reading this series again in my life, but probably not for a few years, when I can really appreciate it all over again.

Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #1) by Maggie Stiefvater

My Rating: 3 of 5 | 2019 Goodreads Challenge 22 of 20

I listened to this book solely because my library app didn’t have any other books available on audiobook, and I was on a waiting list for the second of the Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles books, A Giant Problem.

This book is a very cheesy, romantic story that my mind would have absorbed like a sponge in high school. As an adult, I feel like it was not terrible, but I found myself laughing at the cheesy parts and high school romance.

This book really does scratch that werewolf boyfriend itch that a lot of us get around fall and winter. With that said, I feel like this is a fall and winter read due to the seasons the story takes place in.

Although, I would not recommend the audiobook, because the voice of the female sounds like a 12 year old girl, and the guy sounds like a 30 year old man, so it is a bit creepy. In the book they are actually 17 and 18, so in the story it isn’t creepy, just their casting for the audiobook is.

There is also the most hilarious part in this audiobook where the boy sings a song he wrote for the girl to the girl’s mother. The narrator and the song sound beyond ridiculous, even if it is sweet in nature, it sounds so so so funny. Every time I think about it, I can’t help but laugh until I cry. If you’ve listened to this book, you will understand what I am talking about.

I did enjoy this book, but I have read many better YA/Teen books than this one. I don’t feel like it was a waste of my time, and I wouldn’t go recommending it to everyone. If you like a good, cheesy romance based in fall and winter with werewolves and drama, then this might be perfect for you.

I did enjoy some of the real world themes (although not explicit in nature) of child neglect, bullying, identity, and family in this book, which I did not expect.

Would I read this book again? Probably not, there are other books with similar themes that I would enjoy more.

Will I read the sequels of The Wolves of Mercy Falls Series? Probably not, unless I run out of audiobooks again, and these are available.

Outliers: The Story of Success
by Malcolm Gladwell

My Rating: 5 of 5 | 2019 Goodreads Challenge 23 of 20

I also listened to this book due to lack of available material in my library app, but I also wanted to read this book because of the great reviews and many recommendations I have received.

I generally don’t read nonfiction, but I enjoyed this book more than I expected. I particularly enjoy Gladwell’s method of making a point by telling relevant and applicable stories. The writing style of this book is the reason I enjoyed it as much as I did; if it had been just the topics of discussion with facts and statistics, I would have lost interest in this book quickly.

Malcolm Gladwell is a wonderful author and knows how to make a point and illustrate it in a way that will leave a lasting mark on the reader/listener. Not to mention that he reads his own book for the audio recording, and he does a great job giving this book a ton of personality.

Would I read this book again? I would maybe listen to it again later in life, but I don’t see myself needing to reference this book often.

Will I pursue other Malcolm Gladwell books? I think I will give his other books a listen, when I feel in the mood for some nonfiction and a well made audiobook.

Thanks for checking out my September Book Overview! It was a really great month in terms of reading/listening material!

Don’t forget to check out my Booktober series “2019 Book Overview”, Part One, Two and Three are all up!

-Knight of Cups ❤

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