Literature: April Books

Instead of writing individual reviews for all the books I have read, I am just going to condense them into what I have read each month.

At the beginning of 2019, I set myself the task on Goodreads to read 120 books this year, which means I need to read about 2 a week. In the first few months, I read 31 books. And throughout the past month I managed to read 14 books which now brings me to 45 books which now means I am 6 books ahead of schedule.

I love reading across genres, and this month the genres I have read are:

• Christian
• Crime
• Short Stories
• Autobiography
• Children’s

The 14 books I have read in April are:

• When Darkness Seems My Closet Friend by Mark Meynell
• Bullseye by James Patterson
• To School Through the Fields by Alice Taylor
• The 45% Hangover by Stuart McBride
• Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks
• I Married a Soldier by Brenda Hale
• Pop Goes the Weasel by M.J Arlidge
• The Doll’s House by M.J Arlidge
• The Boy Who Sailed the Ocean by Laura Williamson
• The President is Missing by Bill Clinton
• The Girl Who Thought She was a Dog by Clare Balding
• Liar Liar by M.J Arlidge
• Little Boy Blue by M.J Arlidge
• Hide and Seek by M.J Arlidge

So what genre fits what book?   Well one of them crosses over two genres with the 45% Hangover being both a short story and a crime novel.

Also under the genre of crime fiction I have read Bullseye by James Patterson which is number 9 in the Michael Bennet Series and The President is Missing by Bill Clinton but also co-penned by James Patterson. The latter book was interesting enough but lacked substance for me, kind of got lost halfway through and it was quite a slow read.

I also read books 2-6 in the DI Helen Grace series by M.J Arlidge which are brilliant books set in Southampton and once you have finished one you want to read the next one to find out what’s going to happen next. I really recommend this series and am looking forward to reading the next two books in the series. There are also two short stories in this series and I have one more of these to read.

Who would have known that Tom Hanks was a great author as well as a fantastic actor – well it’s true he is and his Short Story collection The Uncommon Type is brilliant – very different stories and there was only one which I didn’t like, but the rest were good.

The best book I read this month was When Darkness Seems my Closet Friend by Mark Meynell. This is a Christian book which is a reflection on life and ministry with Depression. It is the best Christian book on depression that I have ever read. Mark combines real life experiences along with bible verses and truths. It really made me think and is one I would give to anyone who suffers from depression or even family members of depression sufferers as it goes give you a peak in what it’s like to live with depression.