The Garden of Evening Mists, by Twan Eng Tan

I’m not exactly sure how this book was recommended to me. I believe it was on sale for a great price on Amazon, and then after taking a look at some reviews or reading a portion of the book I decided that I should read it. I’m incredibly glad that I did. It was probably the most beautiful book I read in 2014 and it left an impression on me that I won’t quickly forget.

The story is about Yun Ling Teoh and her life at different stages. There is her past, in which is as a prisoner in a Japanese wartime camp, then the part of her life where she is training under Aritomo as an apprentice to design gardens, and then her present, where she is slowly coming to grips with the fact that she has a disease that may take from her everything she holds dear.

“Once I lose all ability to communicate with the world outside myself, nothing will be left but what I remember. My memories will be like a sandbar, cut off from the shore by the incoming tide. For what is a person without memories? A ghost, trapped between worlds, without an identity, with no future, no past.”

Readers learn each of the hardships she has had to face, and how she moved forward (or didn’t). The book is so incredibly beautiful that I think writing out everything that happens in it would be a disservice to the reader, so I’m going to leave this review pretty sparse for details, aside from what I have already mentioned. It was beautiful, haunting, and I highly recommend it.

5/5 stars

The Wild Truth, By Carine McCandless

Like many others, I started reading this book expecting a more in-depth look at Chris (you may remember him, he became famous after the story behind his death was published by Jon Krakauer in the book “Into the Wild”. That book deeply touched and moved me, which is why I picked this one up.

I almost wish I hadn’t purchased it (except I really enjoy reading, so of course I did). The book offers very little new information at all about Chris, and is instead a very narcissistic read about his sister and her family troubles. It’s well written and of course a page turner (sort of like that accident that you can’t look away from) but no where in the entire book does she ever take the blame for anything that befalls her, in her entire life. Even the portions of the book that were supposed to focus on Chris instead put Carine front and center. She came across as the one who never made mistakes (even three marriages later), who was never at fault, who could never be blamed for anything. I’m not excusing an abusive childhood (or adulthood), but the book paints her as being incredibly materialistic, and constantly thinking of herself. She mentions numerous times that she waits for her parents to come around, for their views to change, for them to change – but never does she mention changing herself, growing up, or moving forward in a mature fashion. Instead she clings to the past and the pain she has suffered – and the book shows just how much she wants her family to be punished for her hurt.

2/5 Stars

More Autographed Books

Do you have a favourite site to purchase books from? One of mine happens to be Bookoutlet.ca – that’s where I bought the Warcraft book mentioned in my previous post. They have a pretty great selection of discounted autographed books, the only problem being that they are often times sold out even after you have made your purchase, because they only have a small handful of copies to sell. That being said, they’re still a fantastic site and offer some great deals. Just browsing through the list now I see Drama, by John Lithgow in hard cover, signed, for $9. If I hadn’t of already blown my budget for the month, I would probably snatch that up. Their shipping is quite affordable as well.

Of course I couldn’t resist checking out the other deals going on. Indigo (also known as Chapters) had You are Here, in hardcover, signed by Chris Hadfield for $28. A book written by one of our very own Canadian astronauts? Yes please! I also picked up a signed copy of The Rosie Project, which I really enjoyed reading this year.

Then there is my favourite site, The Signed Page. They offer signed books (along with pre-orders of books) mostly of the fantasy / sci-fi genre. I haven’t been able to afford much from their site yet (shipping is quite expensive) but I spend hours browsing through and making a mental list of everything I would love to one day be able to afford which is pretty much everything in their store. Ever.

I love collecting books, but without having my very own library, room is limited. Collecting autographed books on the other hand lets me feel a sense of ‘purpose’ so to speak. I feel less concerned about books taking up room because they’re signed. Silly? Of course it is, but that’s how these hobbies and collections go, hehe. I can’t wait to add more books to my collection.