What I Read Last Week (19 October 2009)

Red Sorghum: A Novel of China - Mo Yan (source: library) 

A challenging but entirely fulfilling and compelling read of a village fighting against the Japanese invasion of China. But it is more than a gory war story, this is the tale of a family and how it became one.

Beat the Reaper by Josh Bazell (source: Goodreads first reads giveaway)
How I adored this book! Why did it take me so long to read it (it's been on my shelves since... March?) It was such a fun read. But also quite quite disturbing (don't read it before you have to enter a hospital!). But yes, do go read this one, especially, I reckon, if you like Scrubs. 


A Town Like Alice- Nevil Shute (source: library)
I didn't expect to like this book as much as I did. Perhaps it was the familiar territory - a large part of the book was set in Malaysia during the Second World War and the Japanese Occupation. And that it was a sort of long-distance romance of a different kind between two very strong, very brave characters. 


Ex Machina: First Hundred Days - Brian K. Vaughan, Tony Harris, Tom Feister (source: library) 
The weird thing about this graphic novel is that I liked every character except the main one. Ex Machina is quite a different take on the superhero style, being more real-life (he's the Mayor of New York and his power is the ability to talk to/command machines). I'm not sure if I will continue with the series. But that's mostly because my library doesn't have the other books in the series!


Currently reading:
The Uncommon Reader: A Novella - Alan Bennett
In a Summer Season - Elizabeth Taylor
The Best American Essays of the Century - Joyce Carol Oates (editor)