JFF: What are the last three books you read?

Right now: William Shakespeare, Hamlet (can't see the films without reading the books, in both French and English version)

Previously:

George Bernanos: Sous le Soleil de Satan 

Charles Dickens: Oliver Twist

E.M. Forster: Howard's End

William Shakespeare: Henry V

Gettysburg by Haskell And Oates

Jack the Ripper by Evans & Gainey

Dupes by Kengor

Today, I bought, but haven't read yet:

L'étranger by Albert Camus

Les Enfants terribles by Jean Cocteau

Sous le soleil de Satan by Georges Bernanos

Teorema by Pier Paolo Pasolini

It is the first time in 5 years (I think) that I actually buy books. Most of the time, I rent them at the library or borrow them from other people. Now, that DVD shops are dead, I felt the need to find a new fight. Therefore, I bought these books from local bookstores.

Il est minuit, docteur Schweitzer by Gilbert Cesbron (5/5)

There are the books that I read in one day because they are absolutely horrible, and there are those that I read in one day because they are masterpieces. Il est minuit, docteur Schweitzer is a masterpiece, one of the best plays that I have read.

MANGA/GRAPHIC NOVEL:

Made in Abyss vol. 7 and 8. Well past the only season of the anime. Rated 4/5 and 5/5 respectively.

Ms. Koizumi Loves Ramen Noodles, Vol. 2 (reread): 5/5.

Ms. Koizumi Loves Ramen Noodles, Vol. 3 (reread): 5/5.

WANDER: A Johnny Wander Travelogue Collection by Yuko Ota. Graphic memoir/autobiography which I bought from their Kickstarter project. 5/5.

Goldie Vance Vol. 1 BY Hope Larson. (reread): 5/5. Bought at the beginning of the pandemic. I now need to order the next 4 or so volumes. It's a fun, easy YA mystery read.

Chainsaw Man, Vol. 1: I get how this is one of the most hyped manga property of the past year. 4/5.

The Paths Between Worlds (This Alien Earth #1) by Paul Antony Jones. 5/5. Multiversal madness and mystery. 

A Memory of Mankind (This Alien Earth, #2): 5/5.

AUDIOBOOK:

Network Effect (The Murderbot Diaries, #5) The first full(er) length novel of the series. 5/5.

Fugitive Telemetry(The Murderbot Diaries #6): 5/5.

Perestroika in Paris by Jane Smiley. 5/5. Runaway horse and abandoned dog team up in the middle of a Parisian. Does anyone know if any of the author's other works have a similar comic/fantasy bent?

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix. 3/5. It's a little too brutal for my taste.

We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry. 4/10. Could have used a bit more dark magic as a coven of field hockey players turned witches after making a deal with the devil got off without too many negative consequences.

The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson. 2/5. Multiversal story with so much potential. But I can only suffer stupid protagonists only so much.

Klara and the Sun by Kazguo Ishiguro. 4/5. 

Friday Black by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah. 2/5. Short stories under the horror and dystopia genres, bordering on parody since they lack any nuance. You'll get a concussion if you read them earnestly.

Minimum Wage Magic (DFZ, #1) by Rachel Aaron. 5/5. Comedic urban fantasy. Seriously in my wheelhouse. Apparently, this is a spinoff series from the Heartstrikers series which I have yet to read (but not necessary to do so).

Part-Time Gods (DFZ, #2) 4/5.

The Startup Wife by Tahmima Anam. Stopped less than an hour into it. One of the worst audiobook narrators I have ever encountered. Definitely not a professional voice actor. Likely a friend of the author.

A Psalm for the Wild-Built (Monk & Robot, #1): 4/5. First book where the protagonist (the monk of the title) falls under the they/them pronouns. Never explained but pretty confusing when read out loud in an audiobook. The robot in question comes into the narrative 3/4ers into the short novel. Was going to rate it a 3/5 but the robot when finally arrived is such a fascinating delight. I'll keep on reading this series.

Sous le soleil de satan - George Bernanos (5/5)

The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho (1/5)

This is the "quotation pillow" of novels. Paulo Coelho doesn't realize how ridiculously "agreed" is his "life-changing" message. He writes "personal legend" and "soul of the world" as if he had discovered the meaning of life. If that is so, he should be doing seminaries for people in their mid-life crisis.

Les impatientes -  Djaïli Amadou Amal (4/5)

All audiobooks.

The Children of Tomorrow (This Alien Earth Book 3) by Paul Anthony Jones. 5/5. I knew I read somewhere that the author died last year before finishing the final book to this trilogy which is why there's a second author to finish writing it. But damn I can't find any fact to verify it, other than a mention in a Goodreads review, especially in the authors personal webpage. It is having me question my sanity.

The Twisted Ones and The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher. Both great Lovecraftian horror novels. 5/5 for both.

The Dog Stars by Peter Heller. A reread but first time as an audiobook. 5/5.

The Ten Thousand Doors of January Alix E. Harrow. Got forty percent into the damn book before we finally get to anything into the fantasy world. 1/5. Couldn't give a damn about either of the two books protagonists, especially January.

Magpie Murders (Susan Ryeland, #1) by Anthony Horowitz. I love the book with a book framing device.

Blameless in Abaddon (Godhead, #2) and The Eternal Footman (Godhead, #3)

The former maybe a reread though I couldn't remember anything about it. Never got around to reading the latter finishing book to the trilogy. I really love how all three books are wildly different and taking unexpected turns from each other. The third book being set in a most existential post-apocalyptic pandemic. 5/5 for both.

The Management Style of the Supreme Beings by Tom Holt. 4/5. One of his damn early books are finally getting an adaptation. Damned if I can find out which one, let alone his IMDb page.

And finally. The book I finished today. Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl. 4/5.

Everything's Eventual,Just After Sunset,Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King

Teorema - Pier Paolo Pasolini (5/5)

Le Mystère Henri Pick - David Foenkinos (2/5)

One of the books is called The Alice Network by Kate Quinn, and the book is amazing. The plot is very interesting, and I recommend it to everyone. The second book is called "To Kill a Mockingbird"; it's a classic, but I can't say that it's my favorite one. The third one is a play called A Raisin in the Sun—also worth reading. I'm not a fan of this genre, but I needed to read it for my course. I also wrote the analysis of it, but with the help of https://studydriver.com/a-raisin-in-the-sun-essay/ where I read a few of the provided A Raisin in the Sun essay examples, because without those papers, it was so hard to write on it. It's an interesting play, but the meaning of some things was not understandable to me.

Kukum - Michel Jean (4/5)

Written by one of our news anchor in Quebec. Very powerful.

House of Suns by Alastair Reynolds, 4/5.

Quantum of Nightmares by Charles Stross, 4/5. 

The Freeze-Frame Revolution by Peter Watts, 2/5. 

Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz, 4/5.

A Night Without Stars by Peter F. Hamilton, 3/5.

Yotsuba&!, vols. 4 and 5. Both manga volumes, 5/5.