March 2018 Wrap Up

March was not a good reading month since I hardly read any novels. I spent most of my time reading manga and comics. Life was really hectic and my brain did not have the power to process 600 page novels, which is why I chose the easy route of picking comics which can be read in couple of hours without spending much energy.
I read a total of 9 things in March, out of which one was a 600 paged tome and one was a novella. Rest of them were all comics and manga. I borrowed two books from the library and rest were books that I already owned. Some of these I got during my visit to Kinokuniya bookstore.

The books I read in March were –

1. Doomsday Book by Connie Willis – 4.5 stars

   I took an entire month to finish this book. It was great but very slow moving and I could not read huge chunks in one go. My full review of this book is here. It is a time travel story where a historian travels back to 1300s Oxford when there was Black Plague outbreak.

2. Acadie by Dave Hutchinson – 4 stars

   
   I picked this novella from my library when I saw it in new releases section. I had read some great reviews about this book and I felt the book was worth all the praise that it got. It is about this group of rebels (or crazy people) who escape from Earth and establish a colony on an alien planet. These people are into genetic mutations and experiments etc which are not allowed on Earth. Now Earth is hunting for these colonists even after 500 years. Why exactly? I will not spoil it for you. I freaking loved the ending. The twist was amazing and I never saw that coming. I wish this was a novel, instead of being a tiny novella. The world building, hard science elements were the best parts of this book. The open ending reminded me of Arthur C Clarke’s books in a good way.

   I am definitely going to read more from this author. I wish this book had made it to the 2018 Hugo award nominations list.

3. In real life by Cory Doctorow, Jen Wang – 5 stars

   I picked this book from Kinokuniya since I kept hearing good reviews about this book. This book is about a girl who plays an online multiplayer game and starts killing what she thinks are bots. But those are kids in China slogging day and night to feed their poor families. It was a heart warming, touching story with some great characters. One of the best graphic novels I have ever read. Must read if you are a gamer.

4. Tokyo on Foot: Travels in the City’s Most Colorful Neighborhoods by Florent Chavouet – 4 stars

   I discovered this book during my recent trip to Kinokuniya Bookstore. There were plenty of books which were graphical memoirs about Japan. I picked this one just because the artwork was impressive. There is not much of a narrative talking about author’s experiences in Tokyo. This book is more like an artist’s sketchbook and some drawings are pretty hilarious. Through his artwork, the author gives us a glimpse of the buildings and the people that he met on his Tokyo trip. The artwork is brilliant. Get this book for the art, if not for anything else.

5. Erased Vol. 1 by Kei Sanbe – 5 stars – New Favorite!

   I was recommended this book by the staff of Kinokuniya bookstore when I asked for mangas like Death Note. Even though I bought a different manga that day, I still thought of giving it a try. I borrowed it from the library, read and liked it so much that I got my own copy. I am really thankful to them since this was amazing – better than I expected it to be.
   This is my second favorite manga after Death Note. I will do a complete series review, once I am done with the other volumes.

6. The Trouble with Women by Jacky Fleming – 5 stars

   I recently discovered this book when I saw someone review it. I knew I had to get a copy and I am so glad I got one since it was amazing. This is probably the best book on feminism I have read so far. The author is sarcastic and humorous while also conveying how badly women were treated in the olden days. How women were not allowed to study science or earn a degree and how they were asked to stay at home, while men had real jobs. Do pick it up if you are interested in feminist books.

7. Scott Pilgrim comic series – Vol. 1 (4.5 stars), vol. 2 (4 stars) and vol. 3 (4 stars) –

   I read the first two volumes in this series 7 years back after watching the movie adaptation. I loved the first two volumes but for some reason did not continue with the series. This time I again picked up the series and decided to read all the volumes. I read the first three volumes in March. This is a hilarious series about Scott Pilgrim who falls in love with Ramona and has to fight with her 7 ex-boyfriends in order to win her. The ex-boyfriends are quite funny, each with his own magical powers. The art work is great. I will do a series review once I am done with the series.

Hoping that my April will be better in terms of reading. It started at a bad note already with my son falling sick and me taking leaves to keep him home. I also need to spend some time researching and booking for my upcoming UK trip. I have not made any bookings and I am nervous. I got some tips from friends (thanks to this blogging platform) and I need to do research on them.
What did you read in March?