Keith’s Comments (group member since Jan 25, 2022)

Keith’s comments from the This or That Reading Challenge group.

For July I chose "That: A book by an BIPOC (black, indigenous, people of color) author", and read The Essential Gwendolyn Brooks by Gwendolyn Brooks. It's a poetry collection, and captured a wide swath of poems over the author's 50 year career. There were a number of beautiful poems about life where the author lived, but what was most powerful were some that commented on the persecution of Blacks in America. The sad truth that even though written over 50 years ago, still many of the same challenges that remain today. 4 1/4 stars.

Amy wrote: "I chose "that" and read "hidden figures" which depicts 3 of the amazing black women human computers from NASA on the cover. it was both fascinating as I learned about their accomplishments, and inf..."

Love Hidden Figures, both the book and the film. Although naturally, you get a lot more of the history from the book. Nice pick!

I chose This: A book by a independent publishing company or small press. I read Where the Wild Ladies Are by Aoko Matsuda, translated by Polly Barton, and published by indie Soft Skull Press. I generally liked the short stories, characters, and in particular the feel / tone for this book. It was inspired by Japanese folktales that often had a supernatural ghost element to them. While a few of the stories left me wanting a bit, most were taut and conveyed unique ideas. 3 1/2 stars.

For this month I selected "that: "A book from a female author that has more than 10 books published", for which I read Dearly by Margaret Atwood (over 50 books published). I've read all of Atwood's 18 novels and a couple of non-fictions, but this was the first book of poetry I had read. I enjoyed it thoroughly. There were some humorous poems, but most were reflective and dealt with serious topics. I loved the imagery and choice of language. 4 1/4 stars.

Thanks Leticia! When I saw this challenge the simple either/or choice per month really appealed to me, and I appreciated a number of the themes.

I'm from Temecula, California, USA. I too am an avid reader: I'm in two Book Clubs + this challenge + everything else I want to read :)
I intentionally try to read a wide variety of genres, different years, international works, and various diverse voices to keep me well rounded, but if I had to pick a favorite it would be Science Fiction. I don't just enjoy reading, I really like sharing what I've been reading (and hear from others as well), so challenges like this are fun. Enjoy!

For April I chose *that* - "read a futuristic science fiction/fantasy book": I read Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule. This was recommended to me by a friend of mine, and it was very enjoyable. It was fast-paced with an epic feel for the consequences of what was happening. There were interesting characters on both the side of good and the not-so-good, and it explored some philosophical themes I very much enjoyed. 4 1/4 stars.

I have recently been on a bit of a scifi run in my reading. If anyone's looking for inspiration in that category here are some others I also enjoyed, each of which were unique:

- All Systems Red by Martha Wells, about a "Murderbot" who grows a conscience (and it's short - 160 pages)
- Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente, a comedic work about a galactic version of the Eurovision Song Contest
- This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar, an epistolary novel that creatively plays around with time a lot

For this challenge I chose "This: A book written by an Irish author", and read In The Woods by Tana French. This was the first book of the author I had read. There were some things I liked about it, and some things I didn't. Gave it 3 1/4 stars. Glad I read it.

Lori wrote: "This: Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune - Loved it!"
I really enjoyed it as well! If you haven't read it yet, I also highly recommend Klune's The House in the Cerulean Sea.

Amy wrote: "late posting, but I chose that: I finally read the four winds by Kristin Hannah"

I thought it was a tough topic, but a well done read. What did you think of it?

For February I went with the "that" option: "Cozy up and re-read of favorite book". I chose The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood. Atwood is one of my all-time favorite authors, and I remembered really liking The Blind Assassin when I read it, but it was almost ten years ago, and I couldn't remember many specifics, which is what inspired me to re-read it. And I'm glad I did. It's one of those books where the writing elevates everything, and it was such a beautiful blend of poetry and prose. The story is layered and complex, with some nice twists and turns.

I rarely re-read books, but I'm glad I took the time to revisit this fave of mine, because I felt I got even more out of it this time. 5 stars.

For January I chose the 'that': "A book you meant to read in 2021". What happened is that in December I read (and very much enjoyed) Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. Among the many storylines in Cloud Cuckoo Land, a common re-occurring element (including the title of the book) was references to The Birds by Aristophanes. So my intention was to read The Birds afterwards, but then I got distracted by holiday activities and never got around to it before the end of the year.

So I just finished reading The Birds yesterday. It was actually part of a 5-pack of comedies by Aristophanes. Keeping in mind that this was written 5th century BC, it was actually pretty decent. It's about a couple of humans who think birds have it made, so they try to become birds. It's mostly silly farce, but there was a small, provocative subplot about how by becoming birds they were no longer honoring the gods, so now the gods were crawling back to beg for their attention. I'd give it 3.25 stars. Glad I read it, to put into context with Doerr's new novel.

Emi wrote: "A book I meant to read in 2021: fight club.

I wish I could tell you about it but, the first rule of fight club is you don't talk about fight club."

😂😂😂😂