This year I challenged myself to get through my ever growing reading list! And I thought, "Hey why not share my thoughts about the books I read?" and it's always fun to share more and more book recommendations out into the world.
My first book isn't on my list. I was just wandering the local Barnes and Noble with my fiancé looking for a new book or two or three to read, when this beautiful orange cover caught my eye.
"The Poppy War?" I said as I picked it up. "What's that about?" So I read the blurb on the back, read all of the reviews, and saw the map on the inside cover and was hooked once again.
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang was an absolutely amazing read. It was intense, it was thought-provoking, and exciting. My goal to get to reading more was just one chapter a night. Whenever I sat down to read the book, I ended up reading more than that, glued to the pages as I turned through them, wanting to read more about Rin and her story. The storytelling was beautiful, and the writing was pulling me in. I gasped when the war started, seeing Rin and her classmates go from kids in school to soldiers fighting for their lives. I cried reading about the fallen city of Golyn Niis. I had to wait a day before picking up the book again. I was as torn as Rin was as she battled against the fire and rage inside her.
I honestly can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy! And while I rush off to the library to check those out, I'm going to learn some more about Chinese history. One of my favorite things that R.F. Kuang includes in the book are some recommendations on the history of World War II in China. I don't know a lot about Chinese history, but I do enjoy learning!
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