I am currently reading:

2025

Books

'1984' - George Orwell

my rating: 9.5/10

I really cannot reccommend this book enough. Aside from the obvious relevancy in today's America, I was surprised at how engaging this story was. I had this book sitting on my shelf for probably 3-4 years and only read parts of it. I decided it was time to finally just sit and read it, and I was surprised how contemporary this book felt. Several times I forgot i was reading a book that was written in 1949! Once I got to the second half of the book I was so invested in the story that I ended up binging the rest of the way over a couple days. I think to say this book has a twist at the end is almost a disservice, its a really interesting plot. There is also a good amount of world-building packed into this small book so if you are a fan of that check this book out.

'Doctor Sleep' - Stephen King

my rating: 7/10

This is a good story, but as a long time fan of Stephen King, it was really missing a lot of the elements that I personally like in his stories. For one this is not a particularly scary book aside from one scene that is disturbing enough to give you nightmares. A lot of Stephen King's books are not scary, but they are usually dark. Not to give any spoilers, but in this story things always seem to go in the protagonists' favor, which made this feel kind of like a children's story. Maybe that's the point and I just don't get it.

'The New Me' - Halle Butler

my rating: 8/10

To me, "The New Me", by Halle Butler, reads almost like a capitalistic horror at times. Although the overarching theme is humorous, serial temp worker Millie's greatest fears and anxieties are brought to life slowly, and in ways she doesn't even realize herself. As she floats aimlessly through life, making terrible decision after decision, her descriptions of imagined scenarios become more and more ludicrous to the point you start to doubt the idea altogether. 'I'm sure it's fine, nobody even cares that much', you almost find yourself reassuring Millie subconsciously. As if conjuring up reality from her own mind, these anxieties become reality for her with an amusing amount of detail. Changing point of views periodically throughout the story give confirmation to Millies most ridiculous fears. Coworkers and neighbors plot against her in ways that seem almost trivial and mundane. All the while, Millie's absolutely terrible personality and delusional way of justifying her bad behavior make for an entertaining read (at least in my opinion). "The New Me" challenges the ideas put forth by a generation of self-help gurus and life-hacks. Suspense is brought on by the impending realization that just maybe, things might not ever change for Millie.