Quick Lit: August 2015

It's been a summer of some things more important than reading. :) 

My goal for this year is to read 36 books - 3 a month - after only finishing 24 last year. I'm barely on schedule, with 21 books completed so far in mid-August. I'll need to finish 3 books before the end of the month, and one that I'm currently reading is pretty long... Oh well, it's summer. :) Here's what I've finished in the last month.

The Martian by Andy Weir

"Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there." This book was featured in my August #bookwormproblems post, so I won't rehash how and when I came to read it. But let's just say I loved it. There was quite a bit of technical stuff (that I'll bet the author had lots of fun writing) that went over my head, but I don't feel like I missed out if I skimmed some of it. I understood enough to realize when things were going wrong (which seemed to happen a lot). Just when we thought things were finally looking up for Mark, something else would break down. Yes there was some foul language -- the opening line of the book almost made me close it again -- but how do you think you would feel if you were trapped on Mars??

I knew as I was reading that it was going to be made into a movie, so quite a few of the scenes I could really picture. I was really impressed that this was Weir's first novel, and will keep him on my radar for the future!

As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the
Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes

As a typical child of the '80s, I love the movie The Princess Bride. Though I'll admit I didn't first see it until college. It is one of the most quotable movies of all time, and even I myself have been known to throw a line or two into ordinary conversation. Though the beginning of the book was a little more boring -- I didn't care all that much how the movie came to be, and the conversations people had to get it going -- once I got into the actual filming I was captivated. From stories about stunts to broken toes to life working with a giant, this book made the movie that much more special. My husband read it too, and we're going to soon watch the movie again to see if we notice some of the events mentioned. I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes the movie! (but if you haven't even seen the movie yet, go watch it first - then read this book :)

The Heart of Thornton Creek (Queensland
Chronicles #1) by Bonnie Leon

I'd consider this my "fluff" read of the month. I used to read tons of Christian fiction, and have so many free books on my Kindle from one sale or another, but have been turned away by cheesy romance lately. Yes this one has some (it's a marriage of convenience after all) but there was enough of a regular plot to keep me interested. And it's set in Australia -- I haven't really read very many books outside the US or UK. It was good enough that I may read more in the series sometime.

Linking up with Anne at Modern Mrs. Darcy!

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