HAPHAZARD JOURNAL #8: Book Update.

Hi everyone! I’m back with a new post. Last time, I wrote a movie update about movies that I have watched. This time, I am going to do a book update of books that I have read so far. Unfortunately, I do believe that this is going to be a short one since I haven’t had the time to read more books in the last few months. However, I still want to share my thoughts with the books that I have so without further ado… here we go!

1. Cantik Itu Luka by Eka Kurniawan

Cantik Itu Luka is created by Indonesian writer, Eka Kurniawan. In the past few months, I haven’t had the opportunity to read Indonesian books, so this is the first Indonesian books that I read after a while. The story centers in the life of Dewi Ayu, who is well-known to be super gorgeous. It tells the struggle of Dewi Ayu for being pretty which then as a result, she is forced to become a prostitute during the war. It is described in the plot that her gorgeousness makes her respected as a prostitute; thus, many men will wait to have the chance to sleep with her. Eventually, she has kids out of wedlock and she gives birth to three stunning daughters. Long story short, she wishes to have an ugly child; therefore, her child will not have to suffer what she has gone through. And…she does have one! I could tell you everything but it won’t be interesting anymore if I do. In short, it covers the story of Dewi Ayu; however, it also depicts other aspects of her life, such as her children, heritage, relationship and many more.

What do I think of the story? IT IS MIND-BLOWING! I love how twisted, disturbing and unpredictable the story is. I even dare to say that this is one of my favorite books! What I love the most about this book beside the story is how smooth the transition is between one story and another story. One minute the story talks about Dewi Ayu and before you know it you are reading the story of her children. I mean I even got to a point where I was like stop and think how the story moves from one to another. It is obviously stunning! In the end, I will gladly recommend this book to anyone who loves to read twisted, disturbing yet splendid story.

2. After You by Jojo Moyes

After You by Jojo Moyes is the sequel of Me Before You by the same author. I’m sure all of you are well aware of Me Before You if you love to read since it’s quite famous after it came out. The book is even made to a film, played by Emilia Clark and Sam Claflin. The story picks up right after Will’s death and focus on Louisa’s life in fulfilling Will’s wish for her to live her life and also cope with her loss. She is not as cheerful as she used to and is not the best version of herself. Louisa feels totally lost after Will dies and she has to go to a support group to help her deal with the loss. The plot twist for the story is when it is revealed that Will actually has a daughter that he doesn’t even know. So, Louisa deals with her as well.

For me, the story is pretty average, I mean if there was no sequel after the first novel, I would be totally fine. I can’t really say much tho since I haven’t read the first book, so I don’t know whether this sequel is actually necessary. Nonetheless, I do love how the lessons about grief described in the book. It is not only giving the character in the book a lesson but also me as a reader. Overall, I would recommend this book for light reading and especially for those who wonder what happened to Louisa after Will passed away.

That is all for today! I hope you enjoy what you read and can read some of the books that I have read as well.

Happy reading!