It’s the second day of the week! Who’d have thought that, just like that, today is the last Tuesday of March. In a couple of days, we will be welcoming a new month and also the second quarter of the year. We’re already a quarter into the year! Whoa. Anyway, I hope the rest of the year will be filled with blessings and good tidings for everyone. More importantly, I hope everyone is doing well in their body, mind, and spirit.

It’s also time for a Top 5 Tuesday update. Top 5 Tuesdays was initially created by Shanah @ the Bionic Bookworm but is now currently being hosted by Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads.

This week’s topic: Top 5 books with the 5 W’s in the title

WHO
The Old Man Who Reads Love Stories by Luis Sepúlveda

Man versus Man. Man versus Nature. Nature versus Nature. Man versus himself. The novel abounded with conflicts. But in these conflicts, Sepúlveda captured something more profound. Despite being published in 1989, The Old Man Who Reads Love Stories resonates in the present because of the power of its message. With the plethora of ecological subjects and themes it has explored, the novel turned into a microcosm of the growing global concern hounding us in the past decades. The novel vividly captured the intertwined destiny of people and nature while underscoring the dangers of unregulated development.

WHERE
The Little Town Where Time Stood Still by Bohumil Hrabal

Bohumil Hrabal’s The Little Town Where Time Stood Still transported readers to Czechoslovakia before and after the war while, at the same time, capturing the changes that were slowly taking place. We witness how a little town has severed its innocence with the entry of a radical young woman who challenged tradition and conventions. It was also a vivid study of village life, with Hrabal capturing the adverse impact of Communism on the little town which effectively made time stand still. The semi-autobiographic elements added a different layer to the story as the author’s voice merged with the characters he created. The Little Town Where Town Stood Still is, without a doubt, a gem of a read

WHY
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

To be honest, I have been looking forward to Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why because of the sensitive but seminal subject it attempted to shed some light on. Unfortunately, it fell short of my expectation; the only other book with why on the title is Daniel Handler’s Why We Broke Up, a book I dislike more. To its credit, the book did succeed in opening the general public’s consciousness on suicide. It was neither a total nor an epic fail because it sparked debate again on this very sensitive subject. The subject is not only something that interests me but it is something that is close to my heart. The book held so much promise but then again it failed to hit the mark.

WHEN
Remember When by J.D. Robb

This is a filler, unfortunately, for I have read only two books with When in the title; the other one is Jonathan Kellerman’s When the Bough Breaks. I read both books over a decade ago and recall both being suspenseful. Remember When, however, was more futuristic and a part of a series by Nora Roberts she published under her pseudonym J.D. Robb.

WHAT
What I Loved by Siri Hustvedt

Despite it being the most common of the 5Ws, I haven’t actually read a book with a What in the title. However, I am sharing this book by Siri Hustvedt that I look forward to.

BONUS
HOW
How Much of These Hills Is Gold by C. Pam Zhang

To make up for the missing What, I am giving a bonus for HOW with C. Pam Zhang’s debut novel, Howe Much of These Hills Is Gold. In a record-breaking year, How Much of These Hills is Gold was longlisted for the 2020 Man Booker Prize. It barely missed the mark, but it was, nonetheless, a fascinating debut. C Pam Zhang’s prose was exquisite and breathtaking. Zhang vividly wrote about a score of themes and subjects through the stories of Lucy and Sam – including the complexities of families, the definitions of home, the immigrant experience, the hostilities of a new environment, and the meaning of identities and gender – whilst using elements of magical realism.

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