Another read-along comes to a close

We've been reading Haruki Murakami's most recent novel, 1Q84, for more than 2 months. And on a Friday night, a few members of the book club decided to meet to discuss the book, officially bringing to a close the online read-along. Needless to say, it was a night well spent talking about the novel and enjoying one another's company.

We didn't think about the traffic that day, considering that it was a weekend and a pay day. We couldn't care less that we'll be meeting again the next day for an official book club event. We didn't mind that there'll be only a few of us for the meet-up (we were only 11). We just wanted to talk about the book, get it out of our system, and hear other people's thoughts about it.

1Q84 is such a polarizing book, that's what I got during the discussion. A few really found it very enjoyable, and some didn't take to it at all. What we did agree on, however, was that there were lots of questions that were left unanswered even after more than a thousand pages. In fact, the discussion centered on those questions, with the members sharing their theories about them.

I'll post my review of 1Q84 soon. A caveat: I didn't like it that much. But what's more important, I believe, was the experience of reading this doorstop with awesome people from the book club. I never thought that read-alongs could be so much fun.

I managed to take a few pictures during the meet-up, and I'm sharing them with you, dear reader.

Joko, showing the bespoke shoes that Ajie made just for her

Pretty glasses that Ajie painted on

Ajie and Ling, all smiles before the discussion

Iya and Gege, engaging in small talk

Michelle, one of the members who really enjoyed the novel

Michelle, Lia, Joko, and Iya
These ladies had a lot to say!

Anne, Ling, and Mike
e-reader love!

Iya, Arthur, and Ajie
Of course, it wouldn't be a book club meet-up without food.

On the last day of my being 38

On the last day of my being 38, I panicked a little. Like, for 5 minutes. I took a close look at the mirror for any wrinkles or age spots. Thank goodness I have oily skin, for these facial lines are still nowhere to be found! (My skin can be so oily that on extremely humid days, you can actually fry something on my face.)

On the last day of my being 38, I was with my book club friends. We had a book discussion on a locally authored book. It was a blast! I'll post about it soon. There was non-stop eating that happened as well, with a buffet lunch, a Chinese snack (the discussion was held in a Chinese restaurant, and a Chinese lauriat for dinner.

On the last day of my being 38, I received these gifts from my book club friends. I've still left them unopened, but I'm guessing that a few of them are notepads or notebooks. Yes, I'm a magnet for these things. The mug is a special gift, as it came from the author whose book we discussed on that day. It actually had poetry on it! The TWG gift is from R, who has indulged me with my ongoing tea phase.

On the last day of my being 38, I realize again for the nth time that book-ish friends are the best. They know exactly what you want. I love them. And I hope they love me back, even though I can be grumpy and moody during book discussions. Hopefully, now that I've sworn off drinking coffee, I'll be in a more cheery mood during these meet-ups.

On the last day of my being 38, I got home late and dog tired. But I couldn't complain though. I had fun, and it was a great day to end my being 38. Today, the 17th of March, St. Patrick's Day, I turn 39. Yes, it's my last year before I the 40s. I'm already getting positive vibes from 39 though. Now you have to excuse me. I need to check something in the mirror again.

More book spine lovin'

And my love affair with book spines continues. Some of these I posted on Facebook a few weeks earlier. I figured I might as well post everything on this blog. See the first batch of pictures here.

Seeing everything ravaged everything burned,
things fall apart, then we came to the end.

All the single ladies should stay away from these men.
We do know that good and honest men are a challenge to find.

I want to buy a vowel! E!

Of fetishes and human body parts

Reading Asa Nonami's short story collection, Bødy, is both an enjoyable and uncomfortable experience. The 5 featured stories here all have one thing in common: how we can become totally focused on one body part and ultimately compromising our wholeness as persons.

Let's face it—we all have our bodily fetishes. Be it the nape, the fingers, the belly button, or whatever, there's that body part that turns us on. (I have a kinky fetish, but of course I won't tell.) But the characters in Bødy take it to the extreme.

And what are these 5 stories? The first is about a housewife who gets so addicted with plastic surgery that her husband goes home one night and fails to recognize her. The second concerns a guy who's so paranoid about his hair loss that he eventually loses his girlfriend because of it. We also meet a guy who fondles women's knees on the train. Then there's the girl who goes on an extreme diet to avoid defecating. The last is about a teenage boy who becomes a target of men's fists in boxing matches.

All of these stories are very much disturbing. But I've come to expect it from Nonami, whose previous novel, Now You're One of Us, has elements of Rosemary's Baby, hallucinogens, and dysfunctional families. As a collection, Bødy lets us peek into modern-day Japan, with its unhealthy materialism, fast-paced lifestyle, and warped fixations.

If I were to pick 1 story that I liked best, it would have to be "Buttocks." In that story, a girl goes to an elite boarding school in Tokyo, gets ridiculed for having a fat ass, discovers blood in her stool, and swears off food to avoid making use of her rectum. If that isn't sick enough, I don't know what is.

Read this book if:

1. You know you could be more good looking if not for this one body part.
2. You like reading about fetishes.
3. You love short story collections.

Dusk

Finishing a really thick book is like saying good-bye to an old friend. That's exactly how I felt when I turned the final page of Haruki Murakami's 1Q84.

This novel isn't Murakami's best work, I feel. But I took my time with it, spending a few chapters every night, slowly reading each word. I got lost in the make-believe world of 1Q84, with its 2 moons, little people coming out of dead people's mouths, and the frequent references to Janáček's Sinfonietta.

I think that's the allure of doorstops, those thick books that require commitment and stamina. Since you spent a great deal of time with them, you're very much sad to let them go. 1Q84 had 1,150 pages, and there were indeed times when I felt that I might as well throw the book in the air unfinished.

I'll stop posting my further thoughts on this book for a later entry. We're still meeting this week to cap off the discussion of this book, which was our selection for a read-along lasting for more than 2 months. I sure would love to hear the thoughts of the other members of the book club on this much-sensationalized work by one of Japan's contemporary novelists.

Now I'm scanning my shelves on which doorstop to read next. Should I read Proust's Remembrance of Things Past? Or Cervantes's Don Quixote? Decisions, decisions...

The one who can summon the sun

Usually, when we talk of fantasy, we think of a world similar to medieval Europe. Leigh Bardugo's fantasy novel, Shadow and Bone, does transport us to Europe all right. But this time, the place feels a lot like Russia.

Just reading the characters' names is a giveaway that we're no longer in familiar territory. The main character's name is Alina Starkov. Her best friend is Mal Oretsev. Alina and Mal live in Ravka, which unfortunately has a large area covered in absolute darkness and infested with flesh-eating monsters, the Volcra. This area, called the Shadow Fold, divides the country in half.

Apparently in Ravka, there are people who possess supernatural abilities and are then recruited to serve in the Second Army. Collectively called as the Grisha, they are of three types. The first, Heartrenders and Healers, can kill and heal. The second, Squallers, Inferni, and Tidemakers, can control the wind, fire, and water. The last, Durasts and Alkemi, can control objects. The most powerful of these Grisha, the Darkling, is in search of the fabled sun summoner, a Grisha that can command light, who can hopefully destroy the Shadow Fold.

Map of Ravka, showing the Shadow Fold (The Unsea)

Alina may just be the sun summoner herself, as she's proven that she can unintentionally light up when provoked. Naturally, the Darkling recruits her to the Grisha, separating her from the handsome Mal. However, it turns out that not everything the Darkling says is true. Alina discovers that the Darkling was responsible for creating the Shadow Fold and he just wants to use Alina to destroy the Volcra before enveloping the whole of Ravka in darkness.

This is fantasy, and, of course, we can't just have one stand-alone novel. As the first book of the Grisha trilogy, Shadow and Bone kicks off the trilogy wonderfully. The blurb at the front cover somehow says it for me; it is a novel unlike anything I've read before. The setting is a good departure from our usual, and it's refreshing to not find any dragons nor dwarves nor fairies in the narrative. Ditto with angels, werewolves, and vampires.

There's a forgivable I've-read-this-all-before feel to Shadow and Bone. And one hopes that the succeeding books will live up to first book's promise. Nevertheless, Shadow and Bone is a book that even non-fantasy readers would probably love. It has something for everyone: romance, magic, adventure, bloodshed, and drama. And despite all these varied elements, Bardugo still holds everything together, keeping the story tight and the characterization distinct and well-developed. I can't wait for the second book!

Read this book if:

1. You've always been fascinated with Russia.
2. You're patient enough to wait for the series to be complete.
3. You're into YA fantasy.

I survived battle school

During last Saturday's book club's discussion of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game, the pre-discussion activity was quite interesting as it involved a modified form of a board game. Now I love board games, but  was a bit wary of this one, as it involved a huge board, not-so-simple rules, a 9-sided die, and all those bumping and changing directions and strategizing. Ack, it looked like so much work. In fact, I didn't really plan on joining; I was a last-minute addition to a team.

One of the moderators distributed a printout of the rules of the game and my immediate reaction was, "This doesn't look fun at all." At first, I found the game, which was inspired by the battle school at Ender's Game, quite complicated. I couldn't even tell what the objective was. It was really slow going for me. Eventually though, I got the hang of it. And, who would've thought, we actually won! Yay!

The book discussion that followed was very engaging as well. I think everyone was eagerly waiting for the part wherein we talk about the author's homophobia and if one could actually separate an author's stand on some issues from his works. My stand? No, you can't.

Anyway, I managed to get a few pictures during the event, and I'm sharing them with you, dear reader.

The rules of the battle room game
Trajectories! Freeze and grapple! DC Modifiers!
Ayayay, my eyes glazed over.

A closeup of the battle room board game, showing 2 players' tokens
Our group had the red tokens.

The humongous bespoke board game
It probably measured 1.5 m x 1 m.
I think it can also serve as a table top.

Trying out these anti-glare clear glasses
And looking like a total nerd

My game token
Actually, it was the winning token as well!
This little guy sealed our victory.

Bookmarks, stickers, pins
The obligatory book discussion loot