My Book Reviews

The Year I Met You by Cecelia Ahern
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book has a light plot, and was another of those kind of books where I just could not put down once I picked it up. I found myself yearning for free time throughout, where I would be able to pick up the book to read. So as to make this review spoiler-free, I'll be subtle when referring to certain things.
I must admit that throughout the story, I suspected that Jasmine would end up with one of the two guys. I knew she wouldn't get with Kevin, seeing as how she had been so uncomfortable by the incident years ago. I was right, and I thought that her relationship with her neighbour ended up being really sweet. I should also admit that the description given for Monday had completely thrown off my initial image of him. Not that it's a bad thing, mind you. Just that it was rather very different from what I had in mind.
I admit that Matt pissed me off almost as much as he did Jasmine, and as the story progressed, her opinion of him mirrored mine. I also loved how protective she was of her older sister Heather, and how much Jasmine loved her. In about a quarter in the story, you'll learn why.

All in all, I really liked this story, just like I've loved Cecelia's other books.

Room by Emma Donoghue
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I have mixed feelings about this book, but I guess it's not in a bad way. For me, the first 100 or so pages didn't intrigue me much, but I continued because I had read from a site that apparently, this book was good.

Jack is a five year old boy stuck in a single, locked room with his Ma. Literally. Everything from their toilet, bath, kitchen, living room and bedroom are quite literally in the same space. The book was written entirely in Jack's perspective. For his age though, his vocabulary could easily rival a 7 or 8 year old, and his thinking is can be so mature beyond his age that sometimes, I forget he's only 5.

Throughout the book, there were many instances where I admit that I got a bit annoyed with Jack's reactions (being a grammar nazi, certain things he said, or rather; the way he put some words together, made my eye twitch a little...- I know he's supposed to be a kid and it's written in his point of view, but... I guess I wasn't used to reading books that way). But then I had to remind myself that Jack was a toddler who had lived his life in the confined room, believing that anything outside of the four walls were not real. Like when he was afraid of the wind and rain, I had to remind myself that he was experiencing all of this for the first time in his life, and how scary it had to be in itself, no less for a toddler.

However, I thought their escape had been a little too easy and short. To be stuck for that long in Room, I'd have expected a more careful and very well thought-out plan.

Final verdict of the book is that I don't hate it, but I don't exactly LOVE it either. To be frank, it's 'just another book' for me.