Alexander's Bridge by Willa Cather

Alexander's Bridge by Willa Cather
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Well, it was an interesting little story. The characters were underdeveloped- probably because the book was so short. The story itself was a bit too moralistic.

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Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A lot of interesting things to consider, but I can’t swallow the reduction and even near-banishment of suffering as synonymous with slavery. The first clue is when you consider pure slavery is synonymous with suffering. The second clue is that Huxley’s world isn’t a real improvement in suffering, as for example, when we cured polio. No one would legitimately claim we were in any way better off with polio. Instead, Huxley’s world is devoid of true joys like parenting and full of things that bring momentary pleasure like sexual encounters devoid of intimacy and drugs. So in that regard, he fails to sell me.

On the other hand, the Brave New World is more similar to the current world in 2017 than it was in the 1930s when it was written. The dogma of capitalism and positivity as religions does appear to rule our society for the worse. So as pure prediction Brave New World succeeds.

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The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Oh my goodness. So freaky! First there's a George-Constanza-like pain at witnessing the protagonist muck up her life. She's like a very dark Bridget Jones. Then when things start to happen there's the suspense and the suspicion against every character. About mid-way I was so scared reading this book that it became a little bit of a challenge to keep going. Pretty fun in the end though.

Four stars because even though it's a fine example of its genre (if it has one, it might have created its own) there are some little plot holes that bother me now.


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The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis

The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I remember this being my favorite one when I was young and it was still very strong. Except for the discussion of healing the sick which seems pretty offensive now. (If you're a fan of Lev Grossman's Magicians which bases Fillory on Narnia, this might be the most fun book to read or reread.)

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