Literary Love: Summer

July has been a pretty slow month, as far as reading is concerned. I thought having a three month break with no one to tell me what to read would be wonderful and force me to read books I actually wanted to. My ridiculously long "to-read" list has been tacked up on my wall for ages and it was so relieving to go to the library and pick up the titles I've been dying to get my hands on for months. While I found all the thirteen or so books that I wanted, I've only read two! I'm blaming my summer classes and impending finals for this, but I honestly have no excuse.

The first book I picked up is Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee. The book has won a Booker Prize, so naturally I was interested in it. It far exceeded my expectations and I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of character development crammed into the (relatively) tiny novel. I have a weak spot for morally ambiguous characters (think Syndey Carton from A Tale of Two Cities), and the main character is definitely one of them. Coetzee's writing is, the best I can describe it as, tight. His writing is precise, to the point, and his words are strikingly accurate. It's novels like these that make me realize how much impact words can create. And if the style isn't convincing enough, the plot is pretty interesting too. The book follows a rather stubborn university professor and his change in perspective after a series of events in his life (I'd be more specific, but I don't want to spoil the book for anyone).
Secondly, I read Will Lavender's Obedience. I read a review of it in TIME two or three years ago, but I somehow only picked it up last month. Here's the thing: I really wanted to like this book. I love mysteries and the psychology and suspense that was added in made me really like the book in the beginning. The pace was fast and I couldn't go through the book fast enough (I read it in seven hours). However, the ending was just a complete letdown. I couldn't believe that I had spent all my time, dreaming up elaborate theories and living in the world of the book, only to be confronted with an ending that really should have been more complicated.

Finally, I'm currently reading an English translation of Roberto Bolaño's 2666, which was originally written in Spanish. This book is so visually imposing at 900 or so pages, but I've been told by trusted sources that the book itself is amazing. I'm only a couple of pages in, so I really can't say anything about where the story is headed. I'm definitely looking forward to finishing it though!