Review: The Library at Mount Char

The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

THIS IS NOT A CHILDREN'S BOOK. I repeat: this is NOT a children's book! *cries* No matter how innocent the title is urging you to believe, this ish is not for kids. Consider me shocked. Baffled. Disturbed, even. *cries harder*

I honestly did not get the point of this book. Halfway through, I was enjoying it, while getting confused on most parts. I was happy trying to take in as much of the mysteries and intricacies of the world Hawkins conjured, because I was expecting it to make sense--to have a perceivable connection to our world. But the deeper I get into the story, the lesser I understood. The intense focus I was projecting in trying to understand the story and their world waned, until the only reason for me to keep reading was just to finish it, and not because I was still enjoying it.

This book is definitely not up my alley. This is one of those books that I'm not smart enough for. :'( And I felt so bad because I really really wanted to enjoy it. I know, I know! halfway through, I said I was enjoying it and I was hooked! I really WAS. Up until two-thirds of the book, I was determined to give this a 4-star rating. However, it feels so unfair to my other 4-star reads seeing as I did not understand much of what happened on this book anyway. So I danced between giving it 2 stars or 3 stars. I decided to go for 3-stars because I enjoyed some parts of it--the gore, most especially. I was hooked, but when I realized that most of the questions on this book will remain unanswered, I became unhooked. My interest on it went from 95% to 2% (if that makes sense at all).

I just feel a complete disconnect. Maybe I was expecting too much from this book. :( I felt no emotional connection to Carolyn despite the gruesome history she went through. The conversations between Erwin, Steve, and Carolyn are absurd and unbelievable given the situation they are all in. Maybe an explanation--a sequel, or a deeper explanation of Hawkin's "Librarian" world--might dramatically change my opinion. But even so, the fact that this book cannot stand on its own (without a sequel or an explanation) just doesn't seem worth all the confusion for me.

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I did find a few gems within this book:

"Peace of mind is not the abscene of conflict, but the ability to cope with it."

"Her world is very cold, and this is the thing she warms herself over with."

"...faint comfort is better than no comfort at all."

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This review is also found on my Goodreads profile here! :)


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Worth the Splurge: A Taste of Kobe, Japan

I was high on butterbeer, and that delicate rhythm of Hedwig's theme carried my feet away in an intoxicating stupor. I closed my eyes and shook off from the trance. I know the experience will live with me forever, but I need to be onto the next important thing--dinner. :D

Borgy led me to the train station, and asked me where I wanted to go next. "What time is it? Is it still open?" I asked him. He already knew what I was talking about. We've been discussing this place way before we landed in Japan. He was initially worried that I was too tired from fangirling my heart out at USJ, and I might not have enough patience and energy to travel to Kobe. I assured him I'm okay, and I really wanted to have my birthday dinner there. We still had two hours, but I still worried if we'd make it. But faith, he had. "We'll make it." And so began our long train-ride towards Kobe. 

A few hours and my birthday will officially end. While on the train, I did a mental recap of my day. The tingling sensation of being inside WWHP (The Wizarding World of Harry Potter) slowly crept back to me. I was away from the place for only half an hour, but I was already missing it--how I seem to have floated the entire day while I celebrate my inner Ravenclaw. An announcement jolted me back to the train ride. I looked at my phone and checked where we were. I realized, we were still at a considerable distance from Kobe. I started to panic. I told Borgy we might not make it--that Kobe was still so far away; that it might still take an hour more before we reach the Kobe-Sannomiya station. Borgy assured me that we'll make it. And after another half hour, we sure did. :)

Alighting the train at Kobe-Sannomiya station, we were greeted with an atmosphere more "business-like" than that of Osaka. Buildings are taller; facade's are sleeker and more modern. There were more people carrying briefcases and dressed in suits. People there walked a little faster--they seemed busier. Kobe is the sixth largest city in Japan and is home to more than 1.5 million people. The location of Kobe made way for it being the busiest container port in the region. It's a center for foreign trade and a metropolitan where cultures of Japan and other foreign countries diverged.

Review: Pax

Pax by Sara Pennypacker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This review is also found on my Goodreads profile here! :)

Actual Rating: 4.5 stars

It took me a long time to finish this, I knoooow. Not the book's fault I was busy with other things.


This book is everything I didn't expect!

What I expected:
- Children's book with a very light tone
- More illustrations than words

What I didn't expect:
- A heavy and emotional narrative
- An actual relation to war

Emotional and Esurient at Ebisubashi-suji

I woke up with a feeling of excitement and tugging at me like an inevitable flu is the feeling of melancholy. It was our third day in Japan, the last full day Borgy and I will have before we depart back to Manila. We had no plans for the day. Actually, we never really had a proper itinerary for our Japan trip. All we've decided while we were still in Manila was that we had to go to USJ for my birthday and to eat Kobe beef at Steakland Kobe (that's for my next post). Probably the reason why we've enjoyed the trip so much--we weren't stressed out from following schedules to the dot; we just decided to wing it and went wherever our feet (and our tummies) would take us.  

On our third day, after preparing, Borgy and I went directly to the Daimaru department store to have our currencies exchanged to yen. Tip: on weekdays, you can get your dollars exchanged at their post offices. Days prior, we had our dollars exchanged for yen at the Osaka Minami Post Office, since it was just a few blocks from our AirBnb apartment. It was the same post office that directed us to Daimaru when we were looking for a currency exchange on a Sunday when the post office wasn't open.

At Ebisubashi-suji Shopping Street

Dotonbori: An Overture to Osaka

"It's not as crowded as I originally thought it would be," I thought to myself as I stepped through the famous "Doutonbori Street" sign, and unto the cobbled dimly lit street one cold Thursday evening in April. It was half past ten. Some shops were already closed. Their roller shutters lowered down, but their dazzling neon lights shone persistently, inviting late night tourists like us to draw close and admire their impressive signs. A bicycle is casually parked in the middle of the street, leaning on a street light post. No evidence of its owner around, and yet no one is giving it a second look. A few steps within the district, a few more unattended bikes lined a railing. Borgy and I went further down the street, intent on  taking in as much of the place as we can.

Dotonbori Street