The Content Reader

Busy month with a lot of challenges. I decided though to join Novellas in November which I find interesting. Mostly because I don't really read novellas. This month has helped me find my way into the shorter fiction books. It is very nice to read shorter books as a break with the very long books that seem to enter our lives these days. Thank you to hosts Cathy of 746 Books and Rebecca of Bookish Beck .  To my own surprise I did manage to find something for each of the weeks.  1 – 7 November: Short Classics - The Sandman by E.T.A. Hoffmann 8 – 14 November: Novellas in Translation - Metamorphoses by Franz Kafka 15 – 21 November: Short Non-Fiction - How Much Land Does A Man Need? by Leo Tolstoj 22 – 28 November: Contemporary Novellas -  Master Georgi   by Beryl Bainbridge 29/30 November: My Month in Novellas/ New to my TBR - The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry,  On top of that I read Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk by Nikolai Leskov, recommended by Emma ...

We are half way through the Novellas in November, hosted by Cathy of 746 Books and Rebecca of Bookish Beck , and this is my first post. I did manage to read a novella för the first three weeks,  1 – 7 November: Short Classics - The Sandman by E.T.A. Hoffmann - I really loved this book and Hoffmann's writing. A mystery, dark and spooky tale. The Sandman is a folklore character who is said to throw sand in the eyes of children to help them fall asleep. The protagonist and narrator is Nathanael, most likely suffering from post traumatic stress due to an encounter with the sandman in his childhood. The whole story has a dark, psychological and unreal touch taking us into another world. What is real and what is suggested by our thoughts? 8 – 14 November: Novellas in Translation - Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka  -   for someone like me who do not like insects it was a rather terrifying read. What does Kafka want to say with the novel? Alienation: people who are different are loo...

Just a short post to put a few books on my list for November. I don't really know why I am doing it, because most of the time I never follow the lists. Well, there is always a first for everything. At least I am trying to limit the books into covering more than one challenges. I am not able to follow all. My main aim is Nonfiction. Nonfiction November Hosted by five bloggers (see link) for my post Nonfiction November . Always a great and interesting event. I usually go for history books, but wanted to diversify myself this year. I have chosen three book, and one extra if I have time:  Empire of Pain, the Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Raden Keefe - heard so much about it from fellow bloggers. One of the richest families in the world, a great patron of art and sciences. But, the source of their wealth was vague. In recent years it has emerged that they were responsible for the making and marketing of OxyContin a painkiller that started the opioid crises.  The ...

  Coming up shortly is Novellas in November  hosted by Cathy of 746 Books and Rebecca of Bookish Beck . Cathy and Rebecca have set a category for each week – there are no rules as such (although they suggest that 150–200 pages is the upper limit for a novella, and post-1980 as a definition of ‘contemporary’).  This year they will be hosting a buddy read throughout the month. The book chosen is Foster  by Claire Keegan. If you want to join in, you can read Foster online and review it at any point throughout the month. There is also an Irish language film version of Foster – An Cailín Ciúin – which was released this year to rave reviews and is widely tipped for an Oscar nomination. Go to their websites for more detailed info.  1 – 7 November: Short Classics (Rebecca) 8 – 14November: Novellas in Translation (Cathy) 15 – 21 November: Short Non-Fiction (Rebecca) 22 – 28 November: Contemporary Novellas (Cathy) 29/30 November: My Month in Novellas/ New to my TBR I ca...