What I am Reading in May + Timeless Readers Book Club

It has been approximately one and a half weeks since the semester finished, and I am doing my best to enjoy my summer! Currently, I am enduring a rough period, which I like to call the “reading slumps”, as of right now. But I am trying my best to finish some of the reads that I started last month.

Back in early or mid-April, I joined a self-made book club called the Timeless Readers, which are devised by two rising bookstagrammers/bookbloggers that I follow on Instagram. This particular book club is focused on reading historical fiction novels—and I am so glad that I am participating in this book club because historical fiction is not a popular reading genre. I am ashamed to admit that even though I am a history major, I do not usually read any historical fiction novels. Maybe because I cannot find any that intrigue me, or maybe it is because historical fiction novels are not highly publicized compared to other well-known genres like Young Adult (YA), contemporary, and fiction novels.  Therefore, I am eager to expand my reading taste or palette to other unpopular reading genres.

For the month of May, members in Timeless Readers have voted to read Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. So far, I find it interesting—but I am also finding it difficult to read through it only because nothing captivating has happened to make me want to read more. The one thing that I always hate about reading or starting a new book is that most books start with slow beginnings, and most writers take their time getting to the “good” parts in the book. I also have some negative opinions on the historical accuracy of the book. Even though it is based on fictional characters, the entire premise of the book is inspired by Japanese traditional culture and the role that geishas play within the culture. I cannot wait until I start a separate book review on the book and share my perspective to other fellow readers on it.

Not only am I reading Memoirs of a Geisha, but I am also reading:

• A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab 
• Madness by Roald Dahl

I do not think I will be writing a book review on the Gathering of Shadows (which is the second book in the Shades of Magic series), only because there are an array of book reviews on the book and entire series that are already discussed or published. But I will be doing a book review on Madness (hopefully soon). 

Thank you all for reading! Book reviews will be coming (hopefully) soon.

x, Kayla