The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov. I read the first chapter before bed last night, and I think this will be a good one.

Halfway through Of Human Bondage, by W. Somerset Maugham - taking a break from Philip's infatuation with Mildred.

I'm close to finishing up The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (using the Penguin 50th anniversary translation). After that, I'm planning on starting The Martian by Andy Weir.

Finished: The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov

Started: The Sirens of Titan, by Kurt Vonnegut

Finished The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov, it was brilliant. I’m starting The Idiot, by Fyodor Dostoevsky. My third Dostoevsky book and I’m really excited for this one!

Started The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov

I finished reading The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov. A new favourite, incredibly visual and humorous. Recommended! I'm currently reading SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome, by Mary Beard. Currently 20% in and really enjoying it so far.

Finished: The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Le Guin and it was good not great. I think the story became stronger near the end. The writing itself was fabulous, I just think the plot didn't wow me.

Started: The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov and I'm so pumped for this one. So far it's weird and fascinating and I'm loving it.

Finished:

-Brave New World by Aldous Huxley 3/5. Interesting concept, but really poor delivery. Dull writing, flat characters, and boring at times. Had it’s moments, like that ‘we want the whip’ scene was absolutely surreal, and really everything with the Savage honestly makes the book worth it, despite its’ many other failings. Overall not horrible to fine. 1984 was way better, phenomenal when compared to Fahrenheit 451 though.

Started:

-The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov. Weird then a bit hard to get into at first, if not dull, but it’s really starting to pick up. Ivan’s assorted shenanigans in the street and the mental hospital, but the whole scene at Woland’s/Satan’s magic show was phenomenal! Excited to continue.

I started and finished a few books this week!

First was Hardboiled & Hard Luck, by Banana Yoshimoto. I've only read Kitchen before and I really love her prose.

Second was Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes. This one hit pretty hard. Oh man.

Butterfly on a Pin, by Alannah Hill: she's one of my favourite fashion designers and her writing is just as colourful and dazzling as her designs.

Some books I've started are Notes on a Nervous Planet, by Matt Haig (I have never read a self-help book before... something new to me), The Elephant Vanishes, by Haruki Murakami (I really like to read short stories when I don't feel like committing to a whole chapter) and The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov (still up to the introduction... but the historical context is very interesting).

I got an ebook reader last week and haven't been doing so well in my mid-terms so far....

Finished: The Grass Crown, by Colleen McCullough

Started: The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov

Finished: The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov and I still don't really know how to feel about it. On one hand, it was fascinating and pretty entertaining. I loved the weirdness of it. On the other hand, I'm still trying to sort out the point of the plot. I know it's supposed to be a satire on Soviet life and the art scene, as well as religion in general and its perception in society, but there were just a few things that I didn't see the point to.

Started: The Woman in the Window, by A.J. Finn for a little bookclub my friends and I started. I'm excited for this bookclub, so I'm keeping an open mind to this book, especially since it's not something I would normally pick up. I will say it's been entertaining so far!

Just started The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov

Finished:

The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov - I need time to think this one through, enjoyed it though.

Behold the man, by michael Moorcock - Psychology student gets really into Jungian archetypes but isn't taken seriously by academic friends, instead time travels and spoilers. This book predates the rise of Jordan Peterson, but it's basically about him?

Started reading:

Globalization and its discontents revisited: Anti-globalization in the era of Trump, by Joseph E. Stiglitz

One hundred years of solitude, by Gabriel García Márquez

Just finished Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey, started Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis, still working my slow way through The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov.

I finished The Black Tides of Heaven, by JY Yang and really enjoyed it. I'll be picking up the rest of the books in the series soon. Just started on The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov last night, which I'm excited to finally read!

Finished:

-The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov 3.25/5. Not terribly great, but had it’s moments. A general feeling of confusion purveys the book, main due to names, and it was hard trying to navigate without a character list, especially in their many forms. Eventually I just gave in tot the chaos, and stopped really trying to grasp a scene, and it made somehow more enjoyable. It could absurd and funny at times, touch ping at others. But there were also points where it could be dry, but not horribly.

-The Death of Ivan Ilych and Other Stories, by Leo Tolstoy 4.5/5. I’ve only read the title story and The Kreutzer Sonata, and they were both great. Lovely writing and narration, really good and complex characters, and both stories could fill you with scorn and sadness. I somewhat forgive Pro. (I’m sorry, the names again) in Sonata for murdering his wife, even somewhat sympathize with him; crazy, isn’t it?! But then again I also sympathized with Raskolnikov, so perhaps it’s just me.

Starting:

-Nietzsche: A Very Short Introduction, by Michael Tanner. I’m glad to get back into non-fiction after a fiction, I’m hoping this could provide me with some background information and confidence to tackle an actual Nietzsche text.

Wrapping up The Master and Margarita by Mikail Bulgakov which I have really enjoyed but has simply taken forever to get through.

Started Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo as a WWI book is deserving as the centennial of the Armistice is coming up on Sunday. I may also look to reread All Quiet on the Western Front

Looking to begin The Future is Blue by Catherynne M. Valente Have always loved her work and am really just looking forward to another addition to the Fairyland series, if only a short story.

Melmoth by Sarah Perry is in the hole. It had been on my list for a bit and I tried to get to it for Halloween but, hey, whatever.

Finished Stone Mattress: Nine Tales by Margaret Atwood and started The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bugakov

Finished:

Swann's Way, by Marcel Proust
Well, it's done. I can understand why this is praised so much in the sense that the style definitely took a high level ability with words and understanding of language, but that's about as far as I go. I appreciate and respect it, I don't think I liked it. The characters were all just so unlikable...and I'm not sure whether that was Proust's intention or not. I don't know if I'll be carrying on to finish In Search of Lost Time in its entirety.

Reading:

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, by Philip K. Dick
STILL. I don't know why I'm struggling with this so much, especially as it's not a long book. I think it may be a case of hype overshadowing the book itself, and in reality, it's letting me down.

Slouching Towards Bethlehem, by Joan Didion
I love her, and am so excited to read this.

The Big Sleep, by Raymond Chandler
This is my second time trying this. I'm about 70% in this time, and I like it, but it just isn't sucking me in. It seems so surface level, and the plot is so convoluted (and not really in an enjoyable way) that it's not even fun to get lost in.

The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov
Am I ready for this? I read Heart of a Dog by him a couple years back and that was a wild ride. I think I'm prepared for the absurdity of this, but who knows?

well, recently j started reading a classic, Master and Margaret by Mikhail Bulhakov