Jack : "this book plunged me into a reading slump" Also Jack : "I've read 47 books this year so far"

47 books and it ain’t even april that’s WILD i love my unhinged king

I wonder how long Jack Edwards's reading slump lasts. My guess is 30-60 minutes.

47. Fake Accounts by Lauren Oyler - 0:39 46. Insatiable by Daisy Buchanan - 1:41 45. Fiona and Jane by Jean Chen Ho - 2:14 44. The Novelist by Jordan Castro - 2:51 43. I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston - 3:13 42. On the Road by Jack Kerouac - 3:52 41. Marigold and Rose by Louise Glück - 4:34 40. Salt Slow by Julia Armfield - 4:52 39. I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman - 4:58 38. Queer by William S. Borroughs - 6:35 37. Lapvona by Otessa Moshfegh - 6:53 36. Mouth to Mouth by Antoine Wilson - 7:19 35. Spare by Prince Harry - 7:51 34. Mr. Salary by Sally Rooney - 8:56 33. Watching Women & Girls by Danielle Pender - 9:30 32. Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover - 10:49 31. Cultish by Amanda Montell - 11:39 30. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee - 12:41 29. Bliss Montage by Ling Ma - 13:36 28. Losing the Plot by Derek Owusu - 14:16 27. The Last White Man by Mohsin Hamid - 14:36 26. Exteriors by Annie Ernaux - 15:09 25. Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi - 15:42 24. Haruko/Love Poems by June Jordan - 16:15 23. Beast at Every Threshold by Natalie Wee - 16:28 22. People Change by Vivek Shraya - 16:56 21. The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain - 17:13 20. When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris - 17:50 19. Things We Lost in the Fire by Mariana Enriquez - 18:11 18. The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V.E. Schwab - 18:29 17. The World Keeps Ending, and the World Goes On by Franny Choi - 19:43 16. A Horse at Night On Writing by Amina Cain - 20:14 15. Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters - 20:37 14. Oxygen Mask by Jason Reynolds - 21:17 13. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman - 21:35 12. Argonauts by Maggie Nelson - 22:08 11. Hex by Jenni Fagan - 22:53 10. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus - 23:14 9. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery - 23:57 8. If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio - 24:17 7. The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy - 24:55 6. Serious Concerns by Wendy Cope - 25:38 5. Hearts & Bones by Niamh Mulvey - 26:02 4. Alone With You in the Ether by Olivie Blake - 26:31 3. Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan - 27:02 2. In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado - 27:49 1. Foster by Claire Keegan - 28:13 Please excuse any typos ..

I laughed so hard at “she said annoying world tour” and I love how jack spoiled the plot twist with zero spoiler alerts for his most hated book bc he’s like no you’re not reading this 😂

I can’t decide what I like more - Jack roasting books or Jack praising books 😂

Watching Jack absolutely toast books for half a video is something I didn’t know I needed today

Why is Jack describing books he hates so hilarious. I would watch these videos for the roasting! ‘She’s just walking around being insufferable, she said annoying world tour’ 😂

Personally Pachinko has been a favourite of mine since I've read it last year, I even went onto read the author's other book. A lot of people feel frustrated with the 2nd half of it, and though I liked, I'd recommend trying the TV show (same name, made by Apple tv). They changed a lot of Solomon's life story so maybe people might like it more. One thing the show fails to nail though is that Koh Hansu isn't some misunderstood hero, everything he does is with the motive to control or gain power.

'screaming, crying, throwing up, punch me in the face' is just me all the time. Love ur content Jack

I’ve only read 7 books so far this year but my fav was If We Were Villians by ML Rio Holy cow 🐮 it was amazing

Ok so... his views on Pachinko... I think this was interesting how he recognised how elements of the novel are 'just dropped'. Personally I think this was intentional to reflect the (perhaps artificial) merging of Korean and Japanese cultures on Korean immigrants. I think you get a great sense of how the strong identity of a Korean family was lost during the time of Japanese occupation. This makes the novel so powerful. Just my thoughts... I'm no expert and haven't thought about it enough.

are we ever getting the "every book i read in 2022 reviewed in one sentence each" video???

I've done with 53 books so far...FOR THE FIRST TIME I'M AHEAD OF JACK!!!

hey jack!! could you maybe make a video on your process in reviewing books & how to get better at reviewing books? I love how multidimensional and specific your reviews always are, but feel like I personally always resort to the same 3 words to describe novels! ☺️

When you’re able to talk about books and make your viewers and listeners laugh out loud multiple times, you’ve really accomplished something.

It's not much in comparison but I'm on my 25th book this year and it's a huge record for me😊

wasn’t expecting a yearly ranking so soon

Anne of green gables was everything to me as a child . One of those books reread constantly and i swear Anne was my kindred spirit

please you’ve saved me of spending money on sm bad books it’s insane 😭😭

i had the exact same experience with lessons in chemistry. i never gravitate towards historical fiction but omg the WRITING!!!! alone with you in the ether is one that im going to bring with me to my grave. it was chilling how i related to it yet the writing was so captivating and magical i wanted to cry :')

Been binging your content recently, thanks for adding so many books to my tbr (and plenty to not add to it)

Total over share - I had a really scary night two years ago where I had a health scare and was terrified I wouldn’t make it through the night. My parents came to try and help me through it and I asked them to keep talking to me about anything uplifting. After a while my dad ran out of things to say and mum has Alzheimer’s so was very confused about the whole situation. But she remembered my love of poetry, picked up a Wendy Cope book from my book shelves, and read the whole book to me. So that’s just another reason I love Wendy Cope. She helped get me through the most frightening night of my life.

Ive read three of your reccs from 2022 and they were all fire. Probably my fav Ive ever read. Thanks for doing these videos. Youve made finding good reads so much easier!! Ive been reading more and enjoying the reccs! 👍🏻 Keep being you!

Wow, Jack! This was really insightful and entertaining. It was fascinating to hear your thoughts on the books you've read so far, and I appreciate how honest you were about the ones that didn't quite hit the mark for you. I have to say, though, I also really enjoyed hearing you say some hilarious things about the worst books on your list. Your commentary was spot-on, and it had me laughing out loud. Keep up the great work!

I’ve read 13 books so far this year which is the most books I’ve read in a single year since I was like a little kid!! I must admit that I read The Folk or the Air trilogy this year and it completely swept me off my feet it was so so good!! I’m not even that into fantasy, but it made me be open to reading more fantasy books :)

As a librarian who doesn’t have time to read, I really appreciate your videos! It’s awesome to hear reviews of popular books so I can have some kind of idea as to what these books are about. My patrons ask for suggestions ALL THE TIME and I don’t have time to read lol (believe it or not librarians don’t read all day).

I used to feel like if I didn’t like a book it’s because I didn’t get it or understand it. Jack’s shown me it’s fine to hate a book, and be very vocal about it ! 😊

I love how Jack says that a book plunged him into a reading slump but has also read 47 books in three months 😂

I read Addie LaRue two years ago and loved it so much. This is the first piece of criticism that I actually agree with. I always see people say “it’s too long!” (She lived 300 years). But your feedback always has a new layer or level to it that I really appreciate and usually resonate with.

OMFG 47 BOOKS THATS MAD IMPRESSIVE 😭😭 but also. you actually inspired me to read more books this year!! i’ve read 8 books so far which is soooo good because i only read 5 books last year :^) thanks for always making super fun content jack!!

I have to say, after trying a lot of Jack’s recommendations I realized I don’t necessary share the same taste in books as Jack. I dislike some of his favorites and he dislikes some books I enjoyed too. Still, I keep watching every new video on his main and second channel just because I love his personality and his passion for literature really show through his videos. And I still try a lot of his recommendations because he’s great at selling a book and sometimes our taste align.

Thank you for your insight on so many of the books you've read. Adding a few to my TBR.

i don’t know if i will ever find another book like if we were villains!!! i just LOVED the mix between the plays and reality, the emotions of the actors on and off stage dealing with some many emotions and situations and how shakespeare’s words were able to translate them so perfectly i completely fell in love with it

Jack i look forward to your videos so much !! I'm so happy your channel exists 🤍 your wit and your smiling face is truly so comforting 🧡 thank you for making the world of books a more fun place to be 🌻🌻🌻 keep shining💫💫💫

I love these videos!! Love when you breakdown the video and title each section with the book title. You are my hero Jack Edwards ✌🏽

I love how unique your reads are

watching this hits different when 47 is your reading goal for the entire year

It’s always a nice feeling when you have accidentally read something from Jack’s highest ranking books before you see him recommending it. You know that’s one of the good choices you’ve made in life✨

jack is the gift that keeps on giving this was amazing

Thanks for posting this so early on a Saturday morning, the w-e started really well ❤

Thank you for this list! I now have several new must reads, and about 15 avoid at all costs. What a great way to begin a spring, my traditionally low season, and I hope Korea is kind to you. It can be a country unwelcoming to those who are different sometimes.

I’m SO surprised you didn’t enjoy salt slow! I preferred it to Our wives - would love to hear more about your thoughts on it/Julia’s work in general!

Just watched "The Quiet Girl" which is adapted from Foster, and I think the movie is also quite good

Great video! Always fun to find and get introduced to new books and genres!!! If you haven't read anything by her already, I think you would really like Annie Ernaux! I haven't read any of her books myself, but from what I've heard, her writing is devastatingly raw and claws at your heart.

Noooooo Fiona and Jane is one of my favorite books! It’s meant to be a play on genre and it’s written as a non-chronological collection of short stories through the lives of these two friends and their families. It’s not meant to weave through one plot line. I thought it was really lovely and I connected so much with the friends as they navigated friendship, loneliness, sexuality, and growing up, both separately and together. Bummer you didn’t enjoy it!!

I highly recommend you read Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, it’s a bit easier than War and Peace (and debatably better!). I consider it my favourite book so I hope you enjoy! ❤

Hmmm I really enjoyed Pachinko. It was shocking how the three generations of Sunja’s family and their extensive heritage were just reduced to the mechanics of the pachinko machine. Brilliantly executed from a literary point of view yet tragic that it was actually what life was like for those who lived through the period. The author did a lot of research on the topic btw. That’s why I don’t agree with you that the last half waned in intricacy. Quite the opposite for me, I felt like the characters really came alive probably because the author built those characters based off on real Zainichi interviews. I couldnt stop crying reading what happened to Noah, not just because it was sad, but more complex than that. I pitied him and felt like I had to defend his choices not because I believe his choices were right, but because many readers only blame him for his decisions and don’t try to understand what had happened to him. The author doesnt give explicit explanations either, so you have to really pay attention to the details of his upbringing preceding the event and even use a bit of your imagination to understand Noah. After all, the golden boy had lived a life always confused/ torn between multiple identities but never truely had one that he wasnt ashamed of.

I’ve only read 8 novels thus far in 2023, but my absolute favourite amongst them was without a doubt A Little Life. Thank you so much for that recommendation in your previous videos!

So I have “Beyond That, the Sea” on my TBR and “Foster” sounds so similar so now I want to read that too!

Omg I’m so glad you loved Anne in green gables. One of my favourite classics of all time

I added so many poetry collections to my tbr because of this. It seems I will be reading Serious Concerns next. I loved Cope's Making Cocca for Kingsley Amis

I have consumed 16 books so far this year, many of them are audiobooks through my local library that I can listen to while driving to work. I love it :)

I'm so happy In the dream house is right up there, it's an outstanding memoir, creatively written about something very difficult and important.

Jack! I highly recommend Secret Lives of Church Ladies. One of THE best short story collections I have ever read.

yolk was one of my favorite books that i read, i annotated and gave it to my sister

would LOVE a video on cilian murphy's recommendations! there's an article somewhere where he talks about his favourite books

Your videos just make me so happy! ❤

I finished my second book of the year yesterday and felt proud 😳 you are a machine

You should definitely read the rest of Anne of Green Gables series, it's so good!

You absolutely HAVE TO READ Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow--best book I've read this year. Also, I adore Anne of Green Gables (my namesake), so glad it ranked highly for you...the perfect book for your trip to Scotland.

lovely addition to my hungover morning 🤧 two books I think you might really like are ”the shadow of the wind” by Carlos Ruiz Zafón and ”Pedro Páramo” by Juan Rulfo. Tove Jansson is a fantastic award-winning finnish author I would recommend to anyone as well.

Since I've discovered you I've been amazed that we nearly always like the same books! Handy because you read like a crazy person so I get to see what I should read next

I watched the TV series adaptation of Pachinko before reading the book, so experiencing their story through the pages was intriguing for me. The characters were close to my heart, and this familiarity helped me flow through the pages. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, although I can understand why you felt differently. It has never happened before, but I found myself enjoying certain parts more while watching the drama than when reading them in the novel.

I completely agreed with your view of Cultish, but since you liked the language portions I would definitely recommend her other book Wordslut! Loved it!

omg Jack, thank you, I've never understood the hype with pachinko and I thought I was going mad. I understand the choice of detached writing style and how characters being introduced and moved on from quickly could be considered part of the theme but it was like reading an obituary.

I literally love your channel so much I watch every single video

extra excited for your Korea content cause I’m heading there myself in a few days!! fingers crossed for a tour of cute bookstores in Seoul 👀🤞

IF WE WERE VILLAINS IS SO GOOD IT'S MY FAVE BOOK EVER

I’m at 31 so far and have been in a skimp for over a week. Thank you for this!!

Love u, jack! love ur recommends as always!

Anne of green gables is one of my favourite books I’m so glad you liked it! If we were villains is one of my favourites this year too.

I was really scared cuz If We Were Villains is my absolute favorite of all time. I shouldn't have worried. Jack's always got my back💛

I don’t know how long ago Jack first mentioned Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, and I was so excited when I found it in a little library near my neighborhood multiple months ago, but I still haven’t read it. For the past couple days I’ve been seeing it on my shelf and feeling like I should read it, and now Jack talking about it in this video seems like a sign haha

I hope you add closed captions for us ❤ thanks

If you appreciated Death of Ivan Ilyich, I feel sure you’d enjoy War and Peace too! I absolutely loved W&P, the writing is remarkable and the characters so vivid, and I ended up reading it so much more quickly than I’d expected. Same for Anna Karenina. Thanks for more great recommendations 👍

The plot of the Red Notebook made me think of that episode in Boy Meets World with Shawn and the purse *chefs kiss* i’m sold

12:50 this was exactly how I felt about Pachinko too!! I never finished it because I got so bored. I feel bad but this was almost 2 years ago

I remember really enjoying Pachinko! I think the changing of perspectives and generations is really what the book was trying to get at, not just talk about one period for the whole book. But this has inspired me to re read and see what I think of it a second time.

I have a weird way of reading lately as someone who’s trying to get back to reading. I’ll be really into a book for a month and then I’ll drop it for a few months even if I really loved it. That’s why I don’t think I picked up on what you experienced with Pachinko as much.

love your videos, amazing content 💕

I read The Last White Man and felt like it left me wanting something a little more too. Really interesting concept, glad I read it. It was really short so it didn't explore the concept for very long. And it has stuck with me.

I don’t always agree but I love what you say and how you say it. Looking forward to your book. My 5* reads this year are: Foster, Beartown Series, Block Shot, The Girl with the Louding Voice, Squeeze Me, Boy Underground, So long, Chester Wheeler

I'm so glad you liked if we were villains, I literally waited months, and checked out every video, to see if you read it. It was my favourite book of 2022.

I read Serious Concerns since The Orange has been all over the internet. Just ordered a few more of her collections.

I think I’m an outlier on “lessons in chemistry”. I made it like a third of the way through and just couldn’t force myself to read it any longer. I found basically every main character insufferable other than the main protagonist. Maybe it’s just because it hit a little too close to home (I’ve always been a girl/woman in stem and the main character literally went to the same university I went to 🥴), but yeah like I just couldn’t find it enjoyable. I’m okay with books being sad or dealing with harsh topics, but it just didn’t have enough redeeming qualities for me to put myself through it any longer ㅠㅠ. Maybe it gets better in the second half idk but this is just how I felt about it !

I am so happy to see you loved Foster as much as me, I was so sad when it ended!!

This gave me sooooo much inspiration. Ty 💚💚💚💚

I've read 41 books this year. Addie LaRue has been on my TBR so long, but still haven't managed to read it. So glad you finally read Detransition Baby. I've been wanting to read Hex, so happy to hear you liked it. Love, love, love Small Things Like These and I have Foster on my TBR.

Jack! you should do some behind the scene-ish bloopers for your vids! that'd be so fun to watch, love your videos, as always

Can you make a video on books you suggest new readers to read? I'm trying to read more but i have no idea where to start and what are the books that are totally worth my time and money.

Wondering if your place is loaded with book shelves like you’re living in a library, do you keep all the books or give them away? I’m a new subscriber, and only watched a few videos. I’m soooo in love😭😍😍. Your book reviews/recommendations has expanded my reading interest!!

Detransition Baby is such a smash, I loved loved loved it. You summarized it really well.

jack you HAVE to go to the mysterious bookstore !! it’s a gem in tribeca with rolling ladders and completely full of mysteries !!

Lessons in Chemistry is a book that I always recommend to friends! I loved it! I'm glad you did too 😊

Foster was adapted into an Irish-language film, An Cailín Ciúin, or The Quiet Girl - it's amazing

I was feeling like an unhinged reader at 27 books so far this year (15 of those were in March alone haha). I'm jealous of how fast you can read!

Спасибо за видео! Нашёл несколько новых для себя книг. А рассказ "Смерть Ивана Ильича" - действительно очень интересное, объёмное произведение с потрясающим языком Толстого. 🥰👏

In general book recommendation engines never work for me . . but then I found you! Although our tastes don't completely align (I like Great Expectation although do find Dickens overhyped) you're the closest I've found. I grew up with so many people raving about On the Road and oh my god, I've tried twice - it's sooo boring -- who cares. Anyway, last I night I bought Hearts and Bones on your recommendation and well, love love love. My fav is The Doll which is so creepy and shivery and touching at the same time.

I was just binging some videos of of you on podcasts I guess they were..idk if it’s a podcast if it’s on KZfaq but I was just watching for you 🙂