Christine Seifert's Blog: Lady Professor Reads, page 6

Currently Reading and Up Next

Currently Reading:

All families are messed up in different ways. Such beautiful writing.

 

Up Next:

Historical novel about a mermaid? Sure!

What I Read: February 2019

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February was a good book month, but I’m at that point in the semester when I find it hard to concentrate for long. I read a lot in bits and pieces, which means I struggle to read anything that requires much brain work. That said, I did manage to read a couple of nonfiction books and a literary novel that engaged my melon. My total for the month was eight books.

Here’s what I read:

Hurricane Child by Kheryn Callender–Caroline is a 12-year-old Caribbean girl who has been abandoned by her mothe...

The Minnesota Murderess

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I’ve been working on an article about an arsenic murder trial in Minnesota in 1859. It’s finally published in The Atavist magazine. You can read it here.

It has everything: Murder, poison, illicit lovers, true crime journalism, misogyny, and Victorian sticks-in-the-mud.

Fun fact: One of the primary sources was a bound trial transcript so old and dirty that it gave me hives on my arm.

What I’m Reading Now

Currently Reading

Just Finished

Up Next

What I Read: January 2019

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I’ve been sick for almost a month. The upside is that the plague provided some unexpected downtime which I filled with reading (and naps) (and coughing).

I managed to read six books in January. Oddly enough, I read two in a row that were basically the same book. The plots were almost identical. Both involved maritime law, crashed planes, stolen money, double-crosses, international banking, and offshore accounts. I feel somewhat prepared to open an unmarked bank account in a tropical island n...

Reading While Sick

I’ve been sick for what seems to be the last decade, but a calendar suggests it’s only been about eight days. Nevertheless, illness has been cramping my style. For a while, I was too miserable to even read, which is a new low for me.

(You know how when you go to the doctor and she asks you to rate your pain based on a set of faces ranging from happy to grumpy? The lowest one should just be a book with an x through it. That’s my low.)

Anyway, I’m kind of back, and I started reading again last...

2018 in Books

I ended up finishing 90 books this year, which is far more than I usually read. I have no idea what changed in my reading life. Did I spend less time doing something else? Did I use my time better? Did I learn how to read faster? I honestly have no idea. But what a wonderful reading year it was!

It’s too hard to choose my favorites, so instead I’ll list some books I loved within specific categories. I’ll also include my one-sentence blurbs.

Best Self-Help

Do less dumb stuff so you can do more...

What I Read: December 2018

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As usual, it was a sprint to the end of December, but I survived and even managed to do a fair amount of reading.

In the month of December, I read five books:

The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen–This one was pure escapism. I love a good book about domestic drama, especially if the twists are ridiculously over-the-top in a Lifetime Movie kind of way. I think this one is best read without knowing anything about the story. I’ll just say it’s about marriage gone wrong.

A La...

Currently Reading

I’m currently reading two things:

First, a stack of student papers fifty-three miles high. I’m counting the days until I’m done with those–not because they are bad but because I’m just ready to let my brain have a break.

Between papers, I’m reading John Boyne’s newest book, A Ladder to the Sky. It’s everything I hoped it would be. It may end up being my favorite book of the year. I can’t wait to get back to it.

What I Read: November 2018

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November was a rough reading month for me. I found myself reading more articles, probably because I can read them in one sitting. I’ve also been listening to more podcasts, something I do when I can’t concentrate on books.

Nevertheless, I did manage to read a few and I enjoyed most of them. Here’s my November list:

1. Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage–Hanna’s father loves his sweet angel and would do anything for her. Hanna’s mother sees the real Hanna, a diabolical, plotting, scheming, bad-seed of a...