[Book Club!] Before I Go To Sleep

"What are we, if not an accumulation of our memories?"

I first heard about Before I Go To Sleep on a Taiwanese entertainment show as recommended by the celebs and so I mentally added this novel onto my to-read list. I picked it up from the book store nearly a month ago yet I only managed to finish the book just recently. (Procrastination. What's new?) And boy every page is thrilling. I finished reading the book in 4 hours as I couldn't put the book down.

The book revolves around a woman who suffers from amnesia and she wakes up everyday with no memory except for her name and bits of her childhood/young adult memory. She was shocked when she found out that she is 47 years old and is married to a man whom she does not recognise or remember at all. She then starts writing journal to record everything she learns throughout a day, following a doctor's advise; and from here secrets slowly uncovered. 

I absolutely enjoy reading this novel and I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys suspense novels, albeit the ending could have been less sloppy. But hey, in my opinion this is still a brilliant work consider the fact that it is Watson's debut novel.

Summer book challenge #4: Sh*t My Dad Says

Sh*t Justin Halpern's Dad Says.

This book has been on my to-read list for a long while. When I had the RM200 book vouchers on hands, guess what's the 1st book I searched for on the Kinokuniya search machine?

... And the Kinokuniya machine directed me to the philosophy category and I managed to find this book out from few racks of Ancient Greek philosophy literature. You are on the same level with Socrates & Plato, Mr. Sam Halpern! (I wonder what will he say)

Anyway, I was expecting many funny moments & deep, witty, sarcastic but meaningful golden quotes from Mr. Halpern given that many Goodreads user have rated this book 5 stars, & I am not disappointed.

I have to say that this book is my favourite read from my summer book challenge list apart from Beautiful Ruins. Unfortunately I did not manage to finish Middlesex & Shadow of Night before the break ended. :(

“People are always trying to tell you how they feel. Some of them say it outright, and some of them, they tell you with their actions. And you have to listen. I don't know what will happen with your lady friend. I think she's a nice person, and I hope you get what you want. But do me a favor: Listen, and don't ignore what you hear.”

"Don't ever say stuff just because you think you should.That's the definition of an asshole."

“If you work hard and study hard. And you fuck up. That's okay. If you fuck up and you fuck up, then you're a fuckup.”

“There seem to be a lot of gay people there...Oh please, as if that's what I meant by that. Trust me, none of them would ever want to fuck you anyway. They're gay, not blind.”

“No, you can't go getting mad at people because they're shitty. Life will get mad at them, don't worry.”

On Lego's:
"Listen, I don't want to stifle your creativity, but that thing you built there, it looks a pile of shit.”

On Telemarketer Phone Calls:
“Hello?…Fuck you.”

One day I was on a walk with him and my dog, Angus, who was sniffing around in a bush outside a neighbor’s house. My dad turned to me and said, “Look at the dog’s asshole.”
“What? Why?”
“You can tell by the dilation of his asshole that he’s going to shit soon. See. There it goes.”
It was at that moment, as my dog emptied his bowels in my neighbor’s yard and my dad stood there proudly watching his prediction come true, that I realized how wise, even prophetic, he really is.”

So thank you Mr. Sam Halpern, for all the philosophy you've taught Justin & indirectly, us.

x Jess

Summer book challenge #3: Tell the Wolves I'm Home

There's always a wolf, living inside your heart, and no matter how many lies you tell yourself that everything is okay everything is fine, at the end of the day the wolf will still bring the guilt out of you, corroding your heart & mind in the middle of the night.

Summer book challege #2: Beautiful Ruins

So. Many. Feelings. ;___;

First of all, whoa so many characters along with back stories in a book! But all lead to the same point in which sometimes life just doesn’t play out like what you have planned or what you have in mind of, but it will turn out just fine eventually. Just like what Pat (senior)’s mom said, “Sometimes what we want to do and what we must do are not the same. The smaller the space between your desire and what is right, the happier you will be.” - Noted, Antonia. Thanks for the tips.

Of all the mini stories, Maria’s got to me the most - She loves this American stranger more than every man she’s ever known, and that’s why she had to let him go, she knew that there’s no future between them.

"But I think some people wait forever, and only at the end of their lives do they realise that their lives has happened while they were waiting for it to start."

I guess it applies to all of us - We’re too beautiful ruins.

Summer book challege #1: The Fault in Our Stars

The Fault in Whose Stars?

There are infinite numbers between 0 and 1. There’s .1 and .12 and .112 and an infinite collection of others. Of course, there is a bigger infinite set of numbers between 0 and 2, or between 0 and a million. Some infinities are bigger than other infinities. A writer we used to like taught us that. There are days, many of them, when I resent the size of my unbounded set. I want more numbers than I’m likely to get, and God, I want more numbers for Augustus Waters than he got. But, Gus, my love, I cannot tell you how thankful I am for our little infinity. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. You gave me a forever within the numbered days, and I’m grateful.

John Green – The Fault in Our Stars

Just finished reading this book. Didn’t like it nor hate it. It was funny at the beginning and lots of tears in the end. Augustus & Hazel talk like script writers instead of teenagers. The book was enjoyable nonetheless.

His Prince & His Fox

To me, you are still nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys. And I have no need of you. And you, on your part, have no need of me. To you I am nothing more than a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But if you tame me, then we shall need each other. To me, you will be unique in all the world. To you, I shall be unique in all the world…

Le Petit Prince, 1st ever book that made me cry when I was 11.

Days gone by too quickly.

 





Here I am, creating another blog even when I have a low blogging frequency. It’s been a real hectic week; midterm, birthday celebrations and stuffs. I passed all the subjects, could have done better especially in Organic Chemistry though. My coursemates and I went to Food Foundry @ SS17 for dinner yesterday. We talked about our future cluelessly - unlike Katy Perry. Phar’s leaving for Manchester, gonna miss her loads. My piggy brother brought me to Marutama Ramen @ Empire Gallery this afternoon, best ramen in town I gotta say. I’ve finally bought The Secret. Never enjoy reading self enrichment book but many people claim that it’s good so I thought I’ll give it a try. And it’s really inspiring. Thoughts become things, hopefully. x Jessie