2021 Reading Challenge - Part II
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Hi there, and welcome back to the blog.
First of all, I would like to thank you for taking the time to come by and read this week’s topic. It means so much to me, whether you are a first time visitor or a regular to the blog. I’d just like to welcome you all and hope that you enjoy this week’s blog post.
This week will be a continuation of the post from last week, where I discussed the first ten books in my 2021 Reading challenge. If you haven’t read that post yet, you can do so here.
This week I will discuss books 11-20 of my 40 books in a year challenge. These are my personal opinions on these books, and maybe you will see some books in this post that you may want to add to your own collection.
11. A Moveable Feast – Ernest Hemingway
This book by one of the greatest writers in history documents Hemingway’s time as a young writer in Paris in the 1920s. The imagery is so brilliant that it transports the reader back in time, so you feel as if you are there alongside the narrator—a great read.
A book that drives home just how small we are in the great expanse of the Universe. Although this book might be slightly dated at over forty years old, as science is constantly making new discoveries, it is still a fantastic read and shows us just how little we still know about our place in the Universe.
13. Slaughterhouse-Five – Kurt Vonnegut
This book is an exciting mix between anti-war novel and science fiction book. It tells the story of Billy Pilgrim, an American soldier and chaplain assistant fighting in World War II. The book details his capture by German forces and his time as a prisoner in Dresden during the city’s destruction due to an aerial bombardment. There are fascinating elements of time travel throughout the book as it tells the story of the war and its aftermath for the protagonist.
14. The Millionaire Fastlane – M.J. DeMarco
In his book, M.J. DeMarco advocates for readers to use the millionaire Fastlane instead of the slow lane for which most financial guru’s advocate. He says this as most people, by the time they have accumulated anything over seven figures in their bank account, are too old to enjoy it and likely only have a few years of life left to live. He gives fascinating tools and techniques for driving wealth accumulation faster than most other financial books on gaining wealth and how to stay on track on the millionaire Fastlane.
15. The Millionaire Next Door – Thomas J. Stanley & William D. Danko
The Millionaire Next Door is a precautionary tale of those who think getting into a high-paying job solves their money problems. The book details how some people in high paying jobs are often Under Accumulators of Wealth. While those in lower-paying albeit stable jobs are likely to be those Prodigious Accumulators of Wealth and have amassed more money than those in higher-paying roles thanks to their frugality and financial savviness. The book also warns against financial first aid as it may be doing more harm than good.
16. The Denial of Death – Ernest Becker
The Denial of Death builds on works by Freud, Kierkegaard, and Otto Rank to discuss psychological and philosophical concepts of death in human culture. Becker describes how humans have a physical self and a symbolic self that helps human beings from thinking about the eventuality of death. He discusses our desire for immortality projects and the psychological and philosophical results of these projects in great detail—a psychological classic.
17. Americanah – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Americanah is probably one of my favourites of the year so far. It tells the story of a young girl who completes her schooling in her homeland of Nigeria and travels to the United States for University and a new life. The story details the challenges of racism and sexism she faces in America and her struggles and successes in life and love as she navigates a country she once thought of as a kind of Utopia.
18. Hell’s Angels – Hunter S. Thompson
This is a fantastic story about the motorcycle gang The Hell’s Angels, which follows the narrator, a reporter attempting to get an insider perspective on the gang while toeing the line between telling the facts and staying in the gang’s good graces. It is an excellent book.
19. The Stranger – Albert Camus
This was a fascinating story about an unnamed protagonist who starts his story at his mother’s funeral and continues to tell of his journey over the next couple of days as he meets old acquaintances and tries to make sense of his own feelings in the wake of his mother’s death.
20. The Street of Crocodiles – Bruno Schulz
This book by Bruno Schulz is a collection of short stories that play with the line between reality and imagination. Though this book can be challenging to keep up with, it is an excellent read that can be completed in one sitting. I really enjoyed this one.
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That brings me to halfway through my Reading Challenge for 2021. I know I am a little behind, and my account on Goodreads currently tells me I am four books behind schedule. I will do a part 3 in due course once I have completed thirty books; until then, I hope you have enjoyed the last two parts of our Reading Challenge series, and hopefully, you were able to pick out a book or two that would make a good fit for your own collection.
Once again, I would like to thank you for taking the time to read this week’s blog. I hope you enjoyed it. If you would like to hear more from me and new updates to the blog, you can follow me at @MolloyWrites on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Until next time.
Warmest Regards,
James.