Karl's Reading List

Published by Bethany House Publishers: Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1992. Book 3 of 'An Emerald Ballad.' Preceded by ' Heart of the Lonely Exile. ' Followed by 'Sons of an Ancient Glory.' Careful readers of this blog will notice that it has been a long time since Elise and I finished any combined book other than a Famous Five entry . That is for a number of reasons, the most prominent of which is that we have been busy with our drawn out move and hunt for a new house. A secondary reason, though, is that we had two physical books on the go at once, both of which were quite long: this one, and a fantasy novel called Dragon Wing (technically, we also have the final few chapters of Rachel's Tears, but that is a book we haven't picked up in a long time, and might still be some time away from revisiting). Anyway, both reasons are finally shifting. As of this post, we have finished this book and we have moved into our new home (hooray!). In fact, the night we finish...

Published by Faber & Faber Limited: London, 2021. A few years ago I heard that Taika Waititi was developing this novel to be his next movie. It was filmed, and then delayed, and delayed again, and then nothing was heard about it. Recently, I wondered what had happened to the film, and then became curious about the book, which led to me getting it out from the school library last week. The next day, the trailer for the movie version was released . Perfect timing, right?! The book itself surprised me, in good ways. I didn't know much about it, and resisted the urge to find out, even when the book seemed to be headed in some fairly dark directions! Klara and the Sun is told from the perspective of the titular Klara, an "Artificial Friend" (robot) who is eventually sold to become the friend of Josie, a girl who is sick from some undefined (in the beginning) illness. Klara is innocent, though not naive. She sees much and takes in a lot, but her thoughts and feelings are al...

Published by Word Publishing: Austin, Texas, 1995. I first read this book when I was around 13 years old, and have read it again at least once in the intervening years. It is an interesting genre, which I have not seen represented often: what I would refer to as "Christian Horror." Already that seems bizarre, right?! And it is, but it also works amazingly well. The set up of the story is that Cliff Benson, a nature photographer, is found dead - and seemingly bitten in two! - in the wilderness near Hyde River, with his wife Evelyn stumbling from the wilderness, terror-stricken, covered in blood and unable to recall what has happened. Cliff's brother, Steve, turns up to investigate, and is soon partnered with local sheriff's deputy Tracy Ellis. Blame is originally put on a bear - mostly because no other animal can explain the horrific death - but as the investigation continues, Steve begins to suspect something else is going on. Meanwhile, the town of Hyde River is conc...

Published by Zaffre/Bonnier Books UK: London, 2021. Another book from my parents' book-swap library, this one is outside my usual genres of interest, but it still gripped me. I suppose that makes sense, as the genre in question is thriller. The set up is great. In the first chapter, our main POV character, Ellen Devlin, is sitting on the train when a woman with a baby asks to sit in the empty seat next to her. Before too long, the woman has to answer a phone call, and asks Ellen to look after the baby for a few minutes. The woman then gets off at the next station, and Ellen is left with the baby, and a note that says: Please look after Mia. Don't trust the police. Don't trust anyone. I mean, what would you do?! Ellen is a complicated character, something that we learn more about as time goes on. She is recently separated, and her ex-husband is expecting a child with his new partner. Ellen, who is barren, has wanted a child for years, and is drawn to looking after Mia, even ...

Published by Simon and Schuster Ltd: London, 2022. The same day I put Roger Moore's autobiography, My Word is My Bond , into the Book-Swap Library outside my parents' house, this book was in it. Thinking it was another similar style biography - and having enjoyed the earlier one for what it was, with some reservations - I decided to give this one a go as well. I was not prepared. Although Pocketful of Happiness is indeed another memoir, written by a respected England-based actor, who had a role in Spice World (the main point of overlap between the two actors I noticed), it is mostly focussed on the year in Grant's life when his beloved wife, dialect coach Joan Washington, was dying of lung cancer. And it is heart-breaking. Grant adores his wife, and they had 35 years of marriage together - a rarity in Hollywood circles. The love he has for her, and for their daughter Olivia (called "Oilly" by both parents, in a reference to Olive Oyl from Popeye), permeates this ...

Published by Bethany House Publishers/Baker Publishing Group: Bloomington, Minnesota/Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2005. Book 1 of 'Chronicles of the Kings.' One of my favourite Old Testament figures is King Hezekiah. I've even done two sermons talking about him. So, when I noticed this book series on my mum's book shelf (while we are staying at their house, between house purchases) I was interested enough to pick it up. The book is an easy read, and only took a few sittings to get through, but despite the easy nature and a subject that I was predisposed to like, Gods and Kings didn't really 'grip' me as I read it. I was wondering why, and eventually clicked that the narrative is a very 'literal' read - every feeling of every character is explicitly stated: he felt sad, she was angry, etc. This all makes it feel very... shallow. Weirdly. I miss the metaphors. I miss the 'show, don't tell.' I want to feel engaged by the text, but I only feel inf...

Published by Century/Random House: London, 2016. This is the first ever James Patterson book I've read, and I have some mixed thoughts. Firstly, the book is very easy to read. The chapters are short, the sentences are simple, and as a result, I flew through the book at pace. If this is what other Patterson books are like, then I can see why he would be a popular author to read. Secondly, being a co-written book, I am unsure how much of the plot and writing  is Patterson and how much is his collaborator. Apparently, Patterson has written over 200 books, but as many of them are co-written, it is likely that many of his co-writers do the heavy lifting. Thirdly, although the book is easy to read, I'm not sure I would call it 'well-written.' With the chapters being short - and with a lot of plot to get through - the book doesn't dwell very long on any given scene, meaning that the reader doesn't have a lot of time to emotionally invest in anything that is going on. W...

Published by Wordsworth Editions Limitied/Classics: Hertfordshire, 1993. First published 1818. I don't think this needs a lot of introduction. Frankenstein is a very popular book, having been continually in print since it was first written in 1818 by a then 18-year old Mary Shelley. A young scientist, mad with power, creates a creature and brings it to life, only to be overwhelmed by what he has done and reject the creature, leading to the monster growing up alone, isolated, and resentful.  The question "Which one of the two is the real monster?" has been asked ever since the book's publication, a fact not helped by the public association of the term 'Frankenstein' with the monster, when it is the name of the scientist - it's almost as if the question could be "Which is the real Frankenstein?" However, in the book the creature is a little more monstrous than I had anticipated: he is lonely and misunderstood, but he is also quick to violence, and ...

Published by Lawrence & Gibson Publishing Collective: Aoetearoa/New Zealand, 2023. Taking a break from looking at potential Level 2 texts, this is a potential Level 1 text instead! At the heart of Turncoat is an extended metaphor, an allegory, in which Māori culture and worldview is represented by the book's portrayal of humanity as a whole, and non-Māori culture - aka, the European-centric worldview - is represented by literal aliens, who invaded in past centuries and have now interbred with humanity to the point that most humans look just like them. Our main character, Daniel, is one such human, who understands and operates in Alien culture (called the Hierarch) all the time, but still seeks to influence the Hierarch to honour the original covenants they signed with humanity all those years ago. The metaphor isn't subtle, and at times it purposefully (often humorously) becomes incredibly obvious, particularly for readers from New Zealand. So, in place of Captain Cook bein...

Published by Allen & Unwin: NSW, Australia, 1997. First published in 1995 as Vallen. Translated from Dutch by John Nieuwenhuizen, 1997. Another book I read as I look for a Year 12 text. This is a very well written and slightly disturbing book, which follows Lucas Beigne, a teenager from Belgium living with his mother in the house of his late grandfather. There is some scandal in the past that involved his grandfather, but Lucas is unsure what the details were; his mother won't tell him. Lucas also has a neighbour, Caitlin, who has returned from America, who he remembers not being allowed to play with when he was younger, but who now he is captivated by. To begin with, the book looks like it might follow the growing feelings between Lucas and Caitlin, but we are also aware, from the book's framing device, that there will be some sort of accident ahead, in which Caitlin gets terribly injured and which Lucas feels guilty for. This gives a mild sense of unease to the proceeding...

Published by Penguin Books: New York, 2016. First published 1954. This famous book is a potential Year 12 text, on our English Department shelf near The Book Thief . It is also a book that I studied in high school myself, and have not revisited since - like To Kill a Mockingbird was before I re-read it last year. With that book, I remember the vague feeling of the book, and also that I enjoyed it on the whole. When I re-read it, those thoughts and feelings were validated, to the point where I ended up including To Kill a Mockingbird on my Top 5 List for 2025! This book, on the other hand, I remember thinking of in a slightly different way. I remember the overall plot. I remember a feeling of it being well written. But I also remember thinking it was a bit too intense, a bit bleak, a bit disturbing... and once again, those thoughts and feelings were validated. Let's begin with what Lord of the Flies has going for it, particularly if I was to choose to study it. Firstly, it is sho...

Published by Picador/Pan Macmillan Australia Pty Limited: 2020 (2005). This year, for the first time, I am teaching an 'Academic' Year 12 class. That means I am teaching a book study at Year 12 for the first time, which also means I need to find a book to study at that level as well! Thus, I am looking through some of the books that the English Department has 'earmarked' for Year 12, and this is the first of those.  I have heard of The Book Thief before. I have even seen the movie, which was appropriately moving. I remember that 'Death' was the narrator, although I don't fully remember how much the 'character' of Death came into the story itself. In the book The Book Thief, Death is once again the narrator, and plays an interesting role. He is kind of a character, commenting on proceedings, having a personality of sorts (he cares about some of the characters), even having the ability to take physical objects, in particular, the titular book. Yes, to ...

Published as an audiobook by Dragonsteel, 23-04-2023. Narrated by William DeMeritt. Originally published 2023. This is one of four 'secret project' books that Brandon Sanderson released in 2023, along with Tress of the Emerald Sea , The Frugal Wizard's Guide to Medieval England , and Yumi and the Nightmare Painter, and is the third I have read. It is also the one of the four that has the strongest connection to Sanderson's 'cosmere' universe, often referencing characters and even events from his Stormlight Archives series, that began with The Way of Kings. If all this sounds like a lot of connective tissue, then brace yourself. The Sunlit Man may take place on a planet that has previously not been visited within the cosmere, but the main character, Nomad, is someone who has in the past been a knight radiant on Roshar (the main setting of the Stormlight Archives ). Not only that, but as the story progresses, it is revealed that he is a specific character from the...

Published by Walker Books Ltd: London, UK, 2017. This is a book that has been on the English Department shelves since I started at Nayland, and is often recommended to me as a good book. It is also one that I have used as an option for students to study at Level 1, having gathered themes and resources from other teachers to help support students choosing it. However, it is not a book I have read, until now. It is also a book that has been banned in some states in America, and so - looking for a "banned book" to finish off my reading challenge for the year - it finally seemed time to pick it up and give it a go. It is a very well-written book. It does have a lot of language in it, and it does talk a lot about violence - particularly police brutality - and because of those aspects I can understand why some groups might not enjoy it as much, BUT it is quite insightful and has a lot to say about racism (including subtle racism), standing up for your beliefs, and even the balance ...

Published by Arrow Books: London, 2006. First published 1960. This is an incredibly well-known book that I remember reading in high-school - I think it was even our book study. Although the generalisation is that books you have studied at high-school are 'ruined forever' for you, I remember quite enjoying this book, to the point where I offered it as a choice to read to Elise. However, after only a chapter, we weren't feeling it as a co-read, and so put it down.  Recently, I decided to pick it up as a solo book, and have now re-read it for the first time since highschool. A few things strike me about To Kill a Mockingbird after this second read. Firstly: it is a good book. My memory was not faulty on that front. Telling the story of a lawyer in the southern states of America during the 1930s who is defending a black man accused of rape, the book cleverly chooses the perspective of the lawyer's young daughter, 'Scout', as its point-of-view. This means that we get...

Published by The Folio Society: London, 1976. First published 1855. Book 1 in 'The Chronicles of Barsetshire.' Followed by ' Barchester Towers. ' This is the third Anthony Trollope book I have read, and is the second of his Barsetshire Novels I have read, though in fact it is the first in that series. Barchester Towers , being the second book in the set, was the only one of his that I owned when I first read it, and fortunately worked as a stand-alone. It is interesting returning to Book 1, now, though, as I have more insight into the motivations of various characters in that second book! But anyway, for those who haven't read either: The Warden follows the story of Septimus Harding, the titular Warden of Hiram's Hospital, as well as a precentor in Barchester Cathedral. Hiram's Hospital was set up generations earlier based on a bequest from a John Hiram, who asked that twelve elderly men would be looked after in the role of "bedesmen", with the War...

Published in an omnibus edition, 'Treasury of World Masterpieces: Herman Melville': 'Moby Dick'; 'The Confidence Man'; 'The Piazza Tales'; 'Billy Budd' by Octopus Books Limited: London, 1984. First published individually 1851. A number of years ago, when I was working as a milk runner, I used to listen to audiobooks while working, and one of the books I listened to was Moby Dick. I remember enjoying it quite a bit, and "getting" some of the choices the author made. For example, a number of chapters in Moby Dick stop following the plot entirely in order to instead talk about different species of whales, or the physical characteristics of a whale, or the history of whales, or to give a sermon about whales.... all of these could be seen as slowing down the book and giving unnecessary and somewhat dull details. But when I was listening to it all those years ago, I completely understood why they were included. Moby Dick is about obsession. A...

Published by Pan Macmillan Publishers Australia: Sydney, Australia, 1992 (1991). Keith is an optimist. His parents are 'misery guts': always depressed, weighed down by life. Keith wants to cheer them up, but his attempts to do so all backfire - who would have thought that painting their fish and chip shop bright orange to surprise them wouldn't bring them great joy? This odd little book is my first exposure to Morris Gleitzman, an author who has always been on the edge of my radar but never made it to the reading stage. It's fun, and silly, and pretty much the way I assumed Gleitzman's books would be, from the reputation he has. The story is broken into two halves: half one is Keith trying to cheer his parents up while living in England. Half two takes place when the family has moved to Australia, and now Keith is trying to protect his parents from finding out about the Australian dangers that surround them, fearful that if they learn about poisonous spiders, jellyf...

Published by Vintage/Penguin Random House UK: Dublin, 2024 (2023). This most recent Booker prize winner is also one of (if not the ) shortest Booker prize winner in history. It also is one of the cleanest Booker prize winners I've ever read, and also holds the distinction of being the first Booker prize winning book I have read without owning a copy in advance - a sign that my original Bookerworm goal is weakening somewhat, after so many books that have turned my stomach. Anyway, Orbital is a short book about a day in the life of six astronauts/cosmonauts living on the International Space Station. They orbit the world 16 times over the course of a day, reminiscing about life, facing personal highs and lows, observing a massive typhoon heading for the Philippines, thinking about a concurrent mission to the moon and whether that will make their role obsolete... ...and then they go to bed, and sleep, and the final chapters (each chapter covers either half an orbit or the whole orbit) ...

Published by Candlewick Press: Somerville, Massachusetts, 2012. The main character in this book, Daniel, is obsessed with death. Ever since his older brother, Eli, was killed in the Iraq War, Daniel has been keeping a 'book of the dead', writing down the cause of death of various historical figures. Although Daniel doesn't recognise it, this is his way of coping with the grief surrounding his brother's loss. His parents are coping far worse. Although the 'book of the dead' is an important feature of After Eli, the plot doesn't focus on it too much, mostly including facts from the book as epigraphs to open each chapter (and tie into the theme of the chapter slightly). Instead, After Eli is far more reminiscent of something like Bridge to Terabithia : a slightly melancholic story about a young boy falling in love with a girl who draws him out of his shell, even though foreshadowing makes us predict they will not end up together. In After Eli, the girl is quest...