Amazon UK’s 100 Books To Read In A Lifetime Tag

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I first saw Nikki at booksandlemonsquash do this tag and it looked fun!
 

Rules:

1. Include a link back to Amazon’s official 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime 
2. Tag Perfectly Tolerable, the creator of this meme
3. Tag the person who nominated you (none, but first saw booksandlemonsquash do it!)
4. Copy the list of books and indicate which titles you have read.
5. Tally up your total.
6. Comment on the post you were tagged in and share your total count.
7. Tag five new people and comment on one of their posts to let them know.

 

Here’s the list:

1984 George Orwell

A Brief History of Time Stephen Hawking

A Fine Balance Rohinton Mistry

A Game of Thrones George R R Martin

A History of the World in 100 Objects Neil MacGregor

All Quiet on the Western Front Erich Maria Remarque

American Gods Neil Gaiman

American Psycho Bret Easton Ellis

Artemis Fowl Eoin Colfer

Atonement Ian McKewan

Bad Science Ben Goldacre

Birdsong Sebastian Faulks

Brideshead Revisted Evelyn Waugh

Bridget Jones’s Diary Helen Fielding

Brighton Rock Graham Greene

Casino Royale Ian Fleming

Catch 22 Joseph Hellier

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Roald Dahl

Cider with Rosie Laurie Lee

Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevesky

Dissolution C J Sansom

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep Philip K. Dick

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Hunter S. Thompson

Frankenstein Mary Shelley

Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything Stephen D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

Goodnight Mister Tom Michelle Magorian

Great Expectations Charles Dickens

Gulliver’s Travels Jonathan Swift

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone J K Rowling

High Fidelity Nick Hornby

In Cold Blood Truman Capote

Knots and Crosses Ian Rankin

Last Orders Graham Swift

Little Women Louise May Alcott

Lolita Vladimir Nabokov

London Fields Martin Amis

London: The Biography Peter Akroyd

Long Walk to Freedom Nelson Mandela

Lord of the Flies William Golding

Midnight’s Children Salman Rushdie

My Man Jeeves P G Woodhouse

Never Let Me Go Kazuo Ishiguro

Norwegian Wood Haruki Murakami

Notes From A Small Island Bill Bryson

Noughts and Crosses Malorie Blackman

One Hundred Years of Solitude Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit Jeanette Winterson

Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen

Rebecca Daphne Du Maurier

Stormbreaker Anthony Horowitz

Tess of the d’Urbervilles Thomas Hardy

The Book Thief Markus Zusak

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas John Boyne

The Colour of Magic Terry Pratchett

The Commitments Roddy Doyle

The Diary of a Young Girl Anne Frank

The Enchanted Wood Enid Blyton

The English Patient Michael Ondaatje

The Fellowship of the Ring J R R Tolkien

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Stieg Larsson

The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck

The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald

The Gruffalo Julia Donaldson

The Handmaid’s Tale Margaret Atwood

The Hare with Amber Eyes Edmund de Waal

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Douglas Adams

The Hound of the Baskervilles Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini

The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat Oliver Sacks

The Mill on the Floss George Eliot

The Old Man and the Sea Ernest Hemingway

The Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde

The Poisonwood Bible Barbara Kingsolver

The Road Cormac McCarthy

The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Sue Townsend

The Secret History Donna Tartt

The Selfish Gene Richard Dawkins

The Sense of an Ending Julian Barnes

The Stand Stephen King

The Story of Tracy Beaker Jacqueline Wilson

The Tale of Peter Rabbit Beatrix Potter

The Tiger Who Came to Tea Judith Kerr

The Time Machine H G Wells

The Worst Witch Jill Murphy

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy John Le Carré

To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee

To the Lighthouse Virginia Woolf

The Wasp Factory Iain Banks

Trainspotting Irvine Welsh

Venice Jan Morris

Watchmen Alan Moore

Watership Down Richard Adams

We’re Going on a Bear Hunt Helen Oxenbury

White Teeth Zadie Smith

Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China Jung Chang

Winnie the Pooh A A Milne

Wuthering Heights Emily Brontë

 

I have read 12/100 books. That’s not a lot, but it could’ve been worse. I have to admit I haven’t read all of Game of Thrones, probably won’t for a while, or Hitchhikers to the Galaxy, which I want to continue soon. First obligatory excuse is that I’m not american or english, but honestly I haven’t read enough norwegian classics either. I definitely want to read more books on this list, along with classics in my own language. I don’t think anyone need to read classics, but the books are well-known for reasons and I’ve found several hits as well as misses among them.

Books already on my TBR: A Brief History of Time Stephen Hawking, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep Philip K. Dick, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Stieg Larsson, The Handmaid’s Tale Margaret Atwood and The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini

Books I’ll add to my TBR: Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen, The Colour of Magic Terry Pratchett, The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald, To the Lighthouse Virginia Woolf

 

If you want to do it you’re free to tag me! ❤ I’m curious how many classics book bloggers have read.

My Favourite Podcasts: Space, robots, chronic illness

aquapages // eline6 Comments

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Here’s the general, two-dudes-talking type of podcasts I like. Here’s a list of book podcasts. And finally, here’s a list of science and productivity podcasts. Yes, there’s a lot of podcasts.

 

Hackable?

  • Find out just how easy it is to be hacked and how it’s done. Usually faturing a hacker scene from a popular movie or tv series to debunk how close or far from reality they are.

 

Sickboy

  • Hosts are Brian Stever, Jeremie Saunders and Taylor Macgillivary. Jeremie has cystic fibrosis.
  • Chronic illness and humor combined, the three guys interviews people with all kinds of illnesses and injuries. The people, both hosts and interviewees, are really what makes this podcast hearthwarming, educational and often very funny. They’ve shown that even the episodes with deadly illnesses can have humour, without taking away from communicating the gravity of the people’s struggles and trouble. I’m chronically ill, mainly with crohn’s and a lung problem, and this is what I’ve been looking for without completely knowing so. Illness is tough, and talking about it means it gets heavy at times, but I think all people should know a bit more about diseases and in which ways it affects people’s lives.
  • All episodes features fascinating people and I’m nowhere near having listened to them all. I would definitely recommend checking out the 1st episode about Jeremie’s cystic fibrosis, nr. 9 with ptsd, nr. 112 with multiple sclerosis (ms), nr 107 with zika virus and nr 75 with juvenile rheumatoroid arthritis. But they’re all pretty great.

Liftoff

  • Space news and history (that part I skip) that you don’t have to be a rocket-scientist to understand. Very calming voices, so at the very least it’s good to fall asleep to, but I’m pretty into space and find it exciting.

My Favourite Murder

  • I’ve listened to a few murder podcasts out there, this is the definite winner and the only one I still follow. Every once in a while something different, like a cult story, is thrown into the mix.
  • Hosted by two lovely ladies, who needs all the credit for the amazing woman-empowering perspectives they give, Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark.

Nancy

  • Stories and conversations about queer experiences today. Contains episodes that made me both laugh and cry. Talks about lgbt issues with interviews and history.

Roboism

  • Savannah Million and Alex Cox from Do By Friday/Cards Against Humanity team
  • Talks about robots! All the new, weird robots!

 

Storm Glass by Maria V. Snyder | Review

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Pages: 490

Genre: young adult, fantasy

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Synopsis

From the author of the poison study series, it’s a new fantasy book with a world where magic can be stored in glass. The Stormdancers are able to capture storms in glass orbs, but someone is killing them and destroying the storages in order to stop it. Opal Cowan, a glassmaker and magician, is brought in to prevent the disasterous attacks, but her skills might not be enough. Much is needed to be learned about the connection between glass and magic, and it not easy to gather that information with the most skilled magicians dead and the others being rather mysterious. To help and stay safe, Opal needs to learn the reason behind the attacks and how to stop them.

My thoughts

Rating out of five:

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I’ve always been fascinated by glassblowing and it was interesting to read a fantasy book that revolved around it. It’s still only an average book in all other aspects; writing, plot, characters, romance … it’s nothing special. Poison study did so well, and both this series and the healer series seems to be trying (and failing) at mimicking that sucess without creating the same story. Instead of a taster for a king, the girl is a glassmaker or healer, the love interests is more bland and the same with the main girl Opal. To not make her easily compared to the original kick-ass Yelena, why not make Opal unsure of herself always. Also, storm metaphors are nice the first five times or so, after 300 more pages with it I’m out.

I’m not giving these series a third chance for now. It’s not for me. I do love the glassblowing aspect though, and have been looking for books with it. Have you read any other books with glassblowing? I remember reading the fiction book “The glassblower from Milano” by Marina Fiorato many years ago (I don’t really remember it at all) and liking it, but I think that’s the only other book.

Coffee Book Tag

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Coffee and books sounds fun! First saw this tag on The Book Eater, it was originally created by BangadyBangz

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1. Black coffee: a book that was hard to get into but has a lot of diehard fans

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, I couldn’t get into this book no matter how much people seem to like its uniqueness. I never achieved the natural flow of reading I usually do and found the plot confusing. Gave up after a couple chapters. Black coffee is what I usually drink btw, just because that’s what is around.

 

hp2. Peppermint mocha: a book that gets popular around the holiday season

The Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling is the obvious answer, along with the movies. I don’t know why so many connect it with winter. Is it the childhood and family, nostalgia aspect? Holidays are when people have time to read or watch it?

 

 

3. Hot chocolate: your favorite children’s book

 

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“Gravbøygen våkner” by Sigbjørn Mostue, it was an exciting fantasy story, set in nature like the one I grew up in, in Norway (but it also isn’t translated from norwegian).

An english one would be Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer, also a fantasy story with police fairies and a millionaire criminal 12-year-old genius who outsmarts everyone.

4. Double espresso: a book that kept you on the edge of your seat

thoaPs: this is my type of coffee. I didn’t drink coffee, then a couple years ago I was in Firenze in Italy with four/five hours sleep each night and guess who suddenly shotted espresso. Some cappucinos is good too, but mostly I take my coffee out of necessity.

Back to books – The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson is the last book of the original Misborn trilogy. It’s a perfect example of a last book where shit goes down and the ending is up in the air until the very end, which made me tense up and so so excited.

 

5. Starbucks: a book that you see everywhere

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Lately it’s been Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. It has just been published and I need to read it soon, it’s been getting such good reviews and sounds like an exciting unique fantasy book, which is rare.

6. Hipster coffee shop: a book by an indie author that you love

I’ve read some indie books, but none that I’ve loved as far as I know. I don’t really realize when they’re indie either?

7. Oops, accidentally got decaf: a book you expected more from

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Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare (review linked), I liked the first book Lady Midnight, but the second was just okay and I’m in no hurry to pick up the third book in the series. All the Clare series seem to become more similiar as time goes. I do have a soft spot for Julian Blackthorn and his children though, which was maybe why I disliked the ending of this.

 

8. The perfect blend – a book with the perfect combination of bitter and sweet

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I’m not sure what this means entirely?? Then I saw The Inexplicable Logic of My Life by Benjamin Alire Sáenz on my goodreads list and it just fits. Life is a combination of bitter and sweet, and this book reflects that so well. People who has unfortunate things happen in their lives, losing people they love, sometimes struggling through each day, loving each other, creating and redefining family. The gay adoptive mexican dad of the main character is the best, a person the world needs more of .

 

 

9. Green tea – a book that is quietly beautiful

Upstream

 

Upstreams by Mary Oliver, a collection of eighteen essays. Mostly about nature, growing up in a small american town, on poets like Whitman and Poe and what inspires her to write.

 

 

 

10. Chai tea – a book that makes you dream of far off places

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Nearly every book, especially fantasy. A picture can make me dream of far off places, I just want to travel more. Norwegian wood is a weird choice, it’s not about the place as much as the people. But all of Haruki Murakami’s books I’ve read makes me want to go to Japan.

 

 

Wake of Vultures by Lila Bowen | Review

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Pages: 340
Genre: fantasy, westerns
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Summary

A western-inspired fantasy, sentered around Nettie who’s called half-breed and treated like a slave by the people who raised her. There’s dangerous things in the desert, but she never imagined something like the monster that attacks her. As she gets in a stab, the monster turns to black sand, and from that point she can’t stop seeing monsters all around her. She might also be haunted by someone who needs help avenging her lost child. Eventually Nettie runs from the life she’s known, dressed as a boy and trying to survive in the unhospital world.

My thoughts

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I liked this book because it was entertaining as well as contains a lot of well-written themes, like gender roles and racism, making it a different kind of fantasy novel. It doesn’t lose focus on the plot or character development, which I’ve missed in other similiar books. I loved the main character Nettie, and how she reacts to the world around her, which isn’t very welcoming to someone who’s black and/or a girl. The book feels well-done, in all aspects I can judge. At times it was a bit slow as Nettie’s journey started to look like a long line of encounters with creatures, but eventually it was always leading somewhere. Westerns is still not a genre I’m going to read much of, but I liked it better than expected. The thing to keep in mind when reading this book is definitely to be open for something different.

 

Books On My Spring TBR | Top Ten Tueday

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TTT

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl to bring bookish friends together. A new topic is posted each week. 

You might take on look on this list and think it’s just a TBR list, it doesn’t have anything to do with spring at all.

Let me explain a little; spring is the season of new hope (no longer dark outside 20/7), of motivation and exhaustion (exams). So hopefully I’ll give books I’ve forgotten about a new chance, along with reading more sports books, especially with fighting. I miss being healthy enough to exercise (I’m chronically ill and currently not feeling so good). Also I’m going to a university visit/science workshops, so I want to read a bit more science and non-fiction on the travel there. Fighting, forgotten books, science – here we go

The F- It List by Julie Halpern

Why I want to read it: mostly because I’m trying to clear out my to be read list, tbh.

 

 

Bruised by Sarah Skilton

Why I want to read it: young adult book with taekwon-do, no more research needed.

 

Fighting for Flight by J. B. Salsbury

Why I want to read it: martial arts, romance. I hope it’s good, I’m not quite certain about this one.

 

 

Letters to a Young Scientist by Edward O. Wilson

Why I want to read it: a famous book of advice by the scientist Edward O. Wilson, which hopefully will give me some inspo for choosing uni.

 

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Why I want to read it: it’s a classic and I want to give it a try before the movie comes out, starring Lilly Singh. I think it will be hard to avoid spoilers afterwards.

 

New and Selected Poems Vol. 2 by Mary Oliver

Why I want to read it: I love Mary Oliver’s poems and I need them at all times in my life. It’s good she’s published so many.

 

(Don’t you) forget about me

Why I want to read it: This book has been on my tbr list for many years, and while many books have been read or crossed out, this one persists.

It’s an interesting plot – a town where no one ever gets sick or dies from illness, but of course it comes with a catch. Every fourth year the teens in the town is infected with something that makes them do weird shit, like kill their friends. Skylar’s sister was locked up for killing sixteen of her classmates in such a incident, and she’s haunted by it four years later. She needs to stop the murder sprees from happening and she doesn’t have much time left. 

 

Words of Radiance by Brandon Saderson

Why I want to read it: It’s the second book of the Stormlight Archive. The only reason I haven’t read it yet is that it’s 1000 pages and I need time, because it’s so hard to lay down when you first start. I love Sanderson’s books. I don’t know if I’ll get the time before summer, but I’ll certainly try.

Ilusions of Fate by Kiersten White | Review

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Pages: 278
Genre: fantasy, young adult

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“Perhaps if you gave the sun a bit more attention, it would be flattered and come out more often.” 

Synopsis

Jessamin has been an outcast since she moved from her island home of Melei to the dreary country of Albion. Everything changes when she meets Finn, a gorgeous, enigmatic young lord who introduces her to the secret world of Albion’s nobility, a world that has everything Jessamin doesn’t—power, money, status…and magic. But Finn has secrets of his own, dangerous secrets that the vicious Lord Downpike will do anything to possess. Unless Jessamin, armed only with her wits and her determination, can stop him.

My thoughts

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My feelings about this book told by the book itself: “I don’t dislike them, nor do I like them. I’ve never understood why one must love children (magical plots) because they are (have lots of all-powerful alpha men behaving like) children.” Edited that quote a bit oops, not that the original quote with children isn’t too true. Fortunately for me, Jessamin feel the same way about the guys, at least at first.

“Paths do not only go one way. We choose which direction to take. I refuse to believe that any outside forces can determine the course of my life.” 

It’s supposedly a historical fiction (with a non-existing country?), or at least it’s placed in England in another time where women didn’t have rights and especially not the biracial ones from foreign countries, who blackmailed their white rich dad to get an education (u go girl).

“He shakes his head dismissively, and I hate him for it. He has dismissed my entire life with that one gesture, whether intentional or not.”

Sometimes Jessamin seems clever and capable, making me want to laugh in glee, but mostly she’s acting even more like kid than the rich bastards involving her in their oh-so-powerful invisible magic war. Can’t even remember what the fighting was about, that’s how much the book explained it. Jessamine’s friendship with the other girl was what got me through that last part. A huge thank you to Kiersten White for not making her the typical “mean girl”.

This book is interesting and the ravens are cool and all, but it doesn’t bring much new. Perhaps if the writing had been better, or the characters less inconsistent? It handles the subjects of politics and racism pretty well, but… it lacks a certain flow and I’m sorry to say the beautiful cover doesn’t match with the story between them.

 

 

Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson | Review

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Pages: 690
Genre: epic fantasy

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Summary

The people of Hallandren’s Gods, like Lightsong, are regular humans who died in a heroic way and was brought back to life using magic. No matter how hard Lightsong tries, he can’t remember his death or past life, as is the same with all gods, and he questions the belief people hold of him. After all, the thought of him being the god of bravery proves something’s gone wrong.

The God King, Susebron, are to marry one of the princesses Vivieanna or Siri of Idris. Vivienna has been trained for court and this fate her whole life, but her father the king considers her too valuable to let go. With that decision war would be on them, and so he sends his younger, more unruly daughter Siri instead.

Vasher is an immortal and exactly what he’s planning no one knows. His bloodthirsty, talking sword Nightblood are by his side and so are thousands of Breaths. Magic is colorful in this world and it comes in the form of breaths. Every person carry one Breath each and if one buys or gathers enough, few things become impossible.

My thoughts

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I really enjoyed this book. It has a lot of elements I have missed in fantasy, like the quality of the interesting political intrigues. Not to forget the fantastic world-building, twists and mysteries that makes you constantly question the gods’ place and how this world actually works. Sanderson’s one of the best at playing around with gods and belief-systems, and this is a perfect example of that. Theology is a corner stone in the development of characters and the story, without overlessing you with facts or becoming too complex to follow for regular readers.

There’s five (i believe) different points of view and Siri is telling the story a lot in the beginning, as she’s beginning her journey. I didn’t like Siri or her sister Vivenna as much as I would’ve liked, but I still cared enough to worry about them. Siri is a strong, if young and inexperienced, main character and it’s not her fault she’s thrown into this new country without preparation. Or maybe a little, since she quickly realizes she should’ve paid attention in her classes. Vivienna on the other hand is a leader, but perhaps in over her head. They’re both faulty people, and the book shows that well.

Vasher’s point of view was interesting, but there’s so much mystery surrounding him it can get a bit overwhelming. His sword Nightblood has to be my favourite magical object and it’s worth reading the book just for its sarcastic witty comments and fights. 

I completely fell in love with Lightsong and his place in the story. He’s a minor god of bravery and automatically controls parts of the troops, even if he jokes about giving the responsibility away. No Lightsong on board = no war. He’s tried to stay out of the political intrigues and works hard to convince himself and everyone else he’s useless. The reason I love him is how he thinks about how lazy he is and unfit for the job, while sneaking around trying to find answers. That’s devotion. I mean;

“Have you no thoughts on the matter?“ Blushweaver finally asked.
“I try to avoid having thoughts. They lead to other thoughts, and-if you’re not careful-those lead to actions. Actions make you tired. I have this on rather good authority from someone who once read it in a book.”
Blushweaver sighed. “You avoid thinking, you avoid me, you avoid effort… is there anything you don’t avoid?”
“Breakfast.” 

I didn’t like Warbreaker as much as the Mistborn series, I just prefer those characters and magic-system, but it’s absoloutly worth a read or three. It’s a good place to start with Brandon Sanderson’s books since it’s only one book (for now) with a complete story, where many others are series. Warbreaker had a perfect balance of humour, focus on characters and solving the mysteries of the plot!  

– favourite quotes – 

“I swear, my dear. Sometimes our conversations remind me of a broken sword.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“Sharp as hell,” Lightsong said, “but lacking a point.” 

“Lightsong had never bothered to learn the rules.
He found it more amusing to play when he had no idea what he was doing.”

“So much evil, Nightblood said, like a woman tisking as she cleaned cobwebs from her ceiling.” 

My Favourite Podcasts: Books and mythology

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Could I have a book blog and not post my book podcast recommendations? I’ve already given my favourite general two-dudes-talking type here and science and productivity podcasts here.

– books and mythology –

The Legendarium

  • They read and discuss fantasy series. The biggest book series they’ve covered is Brandon Sanderson’s books, Wheel of Time, Lord of the Rings and they’ve recently started Narnia. In between there’s discussions on movies and tv series, like Black Panther.

Unattended Consequences

  • Patrick Rothfuss, author of The Name of the Wind (Kingkiller Chronicles) and Max Temkin from the podcast Do By Friday and the game Cards Against Humanity.
  • Currently inactive, but it’s perfect for fans and book lovers

Reading Glasses

  • Discusses books, book items and interview authors

Spirits

  • Mythology, legends and lore from all cultures told by two hosts with a drink in hand. The themes varies widly, which I appreciate and along with the discussions it keeps it interesting. Personal favourites are nr. 55 Yuki-Onna, nr 43 Javanese Mermaid Queen, nr 40 Laumes and nr 32 The Butterfly Lovers.

Poetry Off the Shelf

  • About poetry, obviously. Each episode seems to have a theme, The Wilderness is the first episode of series called A Change of World, and was amazing as it included women’s place in poetry from the 1800th century to now. They read poems out loud, and it’s wonderful, thought-provoking and calming.

Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman | Review

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Pages: 300

Genre: mythology, fantasy

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LOOK AT THAT COVER!

I already liked this book by page fourteen, because in the quote above Gaiman is basically describing my home and I agree it makes a lot of sense to not like your gods if they keep burying you in snow and forget humans need sunlight once in a while. Also scandinavians doesn’t really trust anyone as a rule and/or joke. Mostly joke, nowadays. Also no! This is not connected to american gods, it’s a retelling of the old norse myths. I’ve glanced at the reviews for this book, and it’s obvious some have no idea what they’re writing about, that this book is based on real myths and that’s why it’s a series of short stories and not one connected plot. I’ll come back to that later.

[About Loki] He is tolerated by the gods, perhaps because his stratagems and plans save them as often as they get them into trouble.

What I mostly took from these stories was that the gods of Asgard would be incredibly bored without Loki there and I don’t know why I feel this symphatic towards his monster children, but to banish one to the edge of the world, one to underneath the earth and one in chains seems awful. Joke’s on them, but mostly on humans, whyy did anyone think this was a good idea. Also I predict “Shut up, Thor” will be my favourite line of the whole book.

“Because,” said Thor, “when something goes wrong, the first thing I always think is, it is Loki’s fault. It saves a lot of time.”

Would recommend this book for anyone who’s interested in norse mythology, especially after watching “Thor”, that’s why this book is published now isn’t it? Basically, this book is for beginners. Please go read up on the edda if you want something traditional and to understand where this book came from, the language isn’t that difficult in the modern versions. Know that the stories are modernized some and rewritten, that’s the whole point of having Gaiman write them, but the right elements are definitely there. I was pretty well-known with norse mythology already, through school and own interest, and didn’t really find anything new. But it was somewhere between an okay and fun read, with some stories I found more interesting than others. Mostly I liked the stories that required charging the jotner (giants?) and including Frøya.  And I like this type of Loki, if you haven’t guessed already:

“Well? You know something. I can see it in your face. Tell me whatever you know, and tell it now. I don’t trust you, Loki, and I want to know what you know right this moment, before you’ve had the chance to plot and plan.”
Loki, who plotted and planned as easily as other folk breathed in and out, smiled at Thor’s anger and innocence.