Thursday, February 19, 2009

Miles from Nowhere - Nami Mun

Title: Miles from Nowhere
Author: Nami Mun
Published: 2009 Pages: 286
Rating: DNF (180/282 pages finished)

This may be the first time that I've abandoned a book with absolutely no intention of ever picking it up again. This was is our book club pick for March, and I suspect that the person who chose the book didn't quite know what exactly she was getting into--but she knew the book was going to be "gritty."

Miles from Nowhere is the story of a young Korean immigrant who runs away from home. She falls into the seedier side of the world--prostitution, drug abuse, thievery, and I won't even go into what make me finally put the book down for good. I read about 160 pages before I started feeling sick to my stomach, read the last chapter quickly, and passed the book back to its owner.

I was telling Laura, who is also in the [work] book club with me, that I think the story might have better had it been more character related rather than completely plot driven (yes, you know I love that characterization). I didn't get any sense of what Joon, the main character, was feeling--even despite the book being told from her narration. I only got a sense of how horrid her life was--maybe after the next chapter it would have been better, but I didn't want to give it any more time (it only took about 3 hours to get as far as I did).

Moving on! The quilt is coming along nicely. I have all the pinwheels sewn, as you can see below, and after the picture was taken I got half of the rows sewn together. So...just need to sew the rest of the top and then figure out how to quilt it. I'm not sure if I'll finish it before little Emma (my niece) arrives, but I'll be working on it most of the weekend to try!



I also hope to tackle my Google Reader this weekend. I still haven't spent much time on there this week due to quilting, etc., but I'm feeling less stressed. :)

18 comments:

Amanda said...

Oosh. I guess this one was bad. I rarely put down books once I start, so I know the feeling. But sometimes, it's good to just put the thing down.

On the other hand, I see you're reading Their Eyes Were Watching God, and that's an EXCELLENT book!

Melody said...

Sorry to hear the book doesn't work for you, Trish. Like you, I wouldn't read further if the book doesn't interest me because I'd rather spend that time on other books.

I hope you'll share with us a pic of the quilt once it's done. :)

Have a great weekend, Trish!

Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear this one didn't work out for you. It seems a lot of people have been dissatisfied with the ending.

Nikki in Niagara said...

Wow, I can't believe you made it 180 pages into a book you weren't liking! I'd never be able to hold out that long.

50 pages is all I give a book to impress me, 100 pgs if it's a chunkster.

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea said...

This was one book that I returned to the library unread. Just did not seem like I could handle it at the time.

BTW...Your quilt is gorgeous.

samantha.1020 said...

Awww..your quilt is going to turn out to be so beautiful! I wish I knew how to do something like that but the best I can do is counted cross stitch. Enjoy your weekend :)

Jeane said...

It's very hard for me to read a book describing awful situations, if I can't get inside the character's head and understand why they did those things, or how they feel about ending up in certain situations. I guess that's why I didn't like Always Running very much.

bethany (dreadlock girl) said...

Oh no. I have that one on my shelves to read. Brad tried it and said it wasn't worth reading several pages in. I just thought it was annoyed by it. I completely get your frustration...still I hope I can get through it!

I love quilts, I started my first quilt before my second was born...it still is just only "started" I need to get with the program! :) Yours is very sweet.

Anna said...

Sorry you didn't like the book. But at least the quilt is going well. Can't wait to see it finished.

--Anna
Diary of an Eccentric

Laura said...

Wow! Your quilt is coming along nicely! I guess you figured out what to do with the bit extra on each square?

Does it bother you at all that you didn't finish the book, even though you really really did NOT want to keep reading? For some reason, even if I really don't like a book, I feel bad about leaving it unread.

Tasha said...

I borrowed an ARC of this from work a while back, not knowing anything about it, but maybe I'll skip it.

Trish @ Love, Laughter, Insanity said...

*Amanda - I can usually handle grit, but not in the way that it was handled here. Really enjoying Their Eyes, though! I keep pulling out my pencil to mark up my book...big no no, but I love Hurston's writing.

*Melody - Sometimes you just have to move on and pick up the next book. I hope to finish the quilt this weekend, so I'll try and get some pictures up. I hope you have a great weekend, too, Melody.

*Bermuda - Well, if people are dissatisfied with the ending, I guess I stopped at a good place then. :) I haven't heard much else about it yet.

*Nicola - It didn't take me long to get as far as I did. The writing it self isn't very heavy--just the subject matter. Plus it was for our book club so I wanted to try my best.

*Diane - Thanks on the quilt--it's still a little rough around the edges, but I think it will turn out OK despite all my worrying. :) Sorry this book didn't do it for you either.

*Sam - Sewing is pretty easy--it's the measuring and cutting that got to me! Plus I don't know how to actually quilt. ;P Do you cross-stitch often? It's been years since I have.

Trish @ Love, Laughter, Insanity said...

*Jeane - At least the portion that I read I knew very little about what the main character was thinking or feeling. It was too detached. I haven't heard of Always Running.

*Bethany - I'll be really interested in hearing what you think of the book. After talking with some co-workers, I'm wondering if anyone will actually get through it. I'd love to see what you've quilted!

*Anna - Haha--hopefully the quilt turns out better than the book. ;)

*Laura - I think I would have felt more inclined to finish if I had bought my own copy. Good thing I didn't! The squares weren't off quite as much as I had thought, but I think the backing is going to be too small. I guess I'll worry about that when the time comes. I'll bring it up to work when I'm finished.

*Charley - I may be overreacting a tad bit, but it just didn't do anything for me. You'll get a pretty good feel for the book after the first couple of chapters--and it is really quick reading. I'd be interested in hearing what you think.

Karen said...

My motto is always "Life is too short to read crappy books - or books you just simply don't enjoy!" I think you did a great thing by putting it down and not giving it anymore of your precious time!

Lisa said...

The quilt looks so sweet! Good job.

Trish @ Love, Laughter, Insanity said...

*Karen - my thoughts exactly--too many other great books out there to read.

*Lisa - I just picked up the batting and yarn (I'm going to hand tie), so hopefully I'll be finished soon! I'll be sure to post a picture when I'm done.

Michelle said...

OOOH! The quilt is looking great! I love the purple color added to it! Emma will love it! That is a lot of work..... My hats off to you girl!

bethany (dreadlock girl) said...

haha, yep it is a yucky book. Thanks for your honesty. I still think she is a good writer, just that this book wasn't for me, not at all.