I neglected my TBR Book Jar last year but this is a new year so it’s a good opportunity to get back into the habit of using it to help guide my decision on what to read next.
For the benefit of anyone new to this blog, the idea of my TBR book jar is to select three titles on the first of each month and committ to reading one of those titles within two months.
In its original incarnation, I used a real jar, writing out a slip of paper for each book that I owned but had not yet read. It was a laborious task and I often forgot to add any newly purchased books. Plus, it was duplicating effort since I also have a spreadsheet to records all the books I own, when I bought/acquired them and when I read them. So I’m just going to use this as an “electronic book jar” and pick three line numbers (the titles are sorted alphabetically) using a random number generator.
So here are the three titles that came from the random generator this month. .
Heartburn by Nora Ephron
Nora Ephron’s first novel is, according to Goodreads, “a sidesplitting novel about the breakup of the perfect marriage.” The central character, an author of cookbooks, discovers late into her pregnancy that her husband is in love with another woman. In between trying to win him back and wishing him dead, she offers some of her favourite recipes.
Human Acts by Han Kang
South Korean author Han Kang gained international recognition with The Vegetarian, her first novel to be translated into English. I bought her second novel, Human Acts, exactly a year ago, hoping it would be just as remarkable as The Vegetarian. The blurb on Goodreads tells me that it begins during a democratization uprising in South Korea in 1980. In the novel, a young boy is killed during a student demonstration. The story of this episode is told from the perspective of victims and those they leave behind.
Olive Again by Elizabeth Strout
This novel picks up where Olive Kitteridge ended, tracing the next decade of Olive’s life through a second marriage and an evolving relationship with her son. In her first outing, Olive was portrayed as an opinionated, blunt and judgemental woman who alienated just about everyone who encountered her in the town of Crosby, Maine. She’s a fascinating, though not very likeable, character. I’m wondering if Olive Again sees her mellow at all in her old age.
Decision Time
I’m going to give the Nora Ephron a miss since comedy isn’t really a genre I enjoy. I bought Heartburn simply because it was at a bargain price in a second hand bookshop and I’d heard of Ephron, but never read her. Now I’m thinking I’ll just let this one go to a new home unread. I might sample the first few pages before I make that decision.
I’m certain I’ll enjoy Olive Again since I’ve enjoyed everything else I’ve read by Strout. It’s tempting to revisit an old friend but I think I’m going to go with Human Acts. It sounds like a novel I can get really engrossed in and it’s about a period in history I know nothing about.
Let me know if you agree/disagree with my choice. If you’ve read the Ephron tell me whether you thought it worth reading.
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