Sheri’s Comments (group member since Jul 25, 2016)

Sheri’s comments from the EPBOT Readers group.

Hi al, A Spindle Splintered won the poll! Here's the place to write your pre-reading thoughts. Are you excited? Indifferent? Dreading it?

I didn’t really live Piransi either, but I also didn’t like Jonathan Strange and Mr Norell. I just thought Piransi sounded like the kind of book I’d love. Which made it more disappointing that I didn’t .

Oh i forgot to mention, i did finish popsugar last week! (or the week before? maybe? time means nothing anymore) I have two prompts left for Around the Year and then i'm just kind of coasting. Book Nerds I never really intended to finish, I just wanted to see how far I'd get without trying TOO hard.

Yikes, I just realized I missed two weeks of check ins, so sorry! I do have the threads open, so if anyone is getting impatient with me, feel free to start a new thread if you see one missing :)

Book Club

I put up a poll for the book to finish out the year. https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/2... I'll try to make sure to announce the winner next week.

I finished quite a lot over the last several weeks, I don't think i want to post that many all at once haha. So I'll just do the last week or so.

The lightening thief: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - did an audio re-read while crafting and drawing.

Juliet Takes a Breath - queer coming of age story, was really good. I used it for ATY book related to the NATO alphabet, J-Juliet.

Freshwater - this was really difficult for me. It was powerfully written, but I really struggled to finish it, i kept putting it down to read lighter stuff. A lot of depictions of sexual violence, self harm, suicide attempts. Also the format jumped around a lot in perspective and time so I had a hard time really sinking into it narratively. I'm glad I read it, i think, but very tough,.

The Night Circus - both as a palate cleanser and because it was october, figured it was time for my yearly night circus read.

Currently reading:

Cinder - audio book re-read

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead - just started, will be my ATY warrick prize for book in translation.

QOTW:

Since it's approaching the general holiday season, do you read holiday centric books, or seasonal reading?

I generally don't, but occasionally I'll make an exception. I often end up reading Night Circus around this time of year, it's not really a Halloween book but it still feels thematic for right now. Sometimes I read the Hogfather around Christmas, but not always. Otherwise I usually am going based on my holds at the library, so just trying to read what currently is up before too many come in at once. Usually as the year winds down I lose interest in reading serious stuff, and just want escapist or fun stuff. I get stressed at holidays, I don't want to have to think too hard. Once the new year is over, I'm more willing to intersperse serious stuff in with my reading.

Hi all, the poll for the next book is here! https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/2...

I'll give it a week and announce the winner!

Ohh, that could be, I made sure to change MY settings so people here could message me. I didn't even consider that my message wouldn't have gotten through because of that. I'll send out another!

Hi all, missed a week again. Don't even really have an excuse, just got busy and forgot. Sorry!

I put up a thread for selecting a book to read for the rest of the year. I meant to do this last week, but clearly forgot!

The last two weeks I finished:

The Broken Kingdoms- did audiobook for this. I love NK Jemisin, but I admit this trilogy isn't my favorite. It's fine, but I just can't seem to get as invested as in her other work. Counted for Posugar author that shares your zodiac sign, for book nerds beautiful cover.

Tipping the Velvet - This was decent, didn't love it. I had hoped more of it would be set in the theatre, I really liked that setting. Counted for popsugar 90s bestseller

Sex Criminals, Vol. 6: Six Criminals - wrapped up the comic, was a solid ending. Was a much more serious comic than expected from a goofy premise. Sure lots of humor, but dealt with a lot of serious subjects like mental health and dealing with sexuality.

Elizabeth and Her German Garden - this was a lot more fun than I expected. It's a good book for introverts, haha. A lot of the passages were her lamenting that she had to keep entertaining guests when she would much rather be alone and read. Also chafing at a woman's place in society, and lots of eye rolling at men pontificating on why women don't deserve a place in society etc. Counted as my popsugar anonymous author (orignally published anonymously), book nerds book set before I was born.

Joust - re-read for fun

Something is Killing the Children, Vol. 3 - creepy comic, really liking it. Will probably cosplay Erika Slaughter at some point. Her costume even has a mask built in, and i found merch places selling them!

All Systems Red, Artificial Condition , Rogue Protocol- audio re-reads. Realized the narrator is Kevin from Welcome to Nightvale!

Sea of Shadows - popsugar dnf from my tbr. I was struggling with this one, since I generally only dnf if I have a really good reason for it. but years ago i picked this up, accidentally sent to my phone instead of my kindle. Started it, didn't like reading on my phone, and forgot to ever send to my kindle. I can kind of see why I forgot about it. There's nothing WRONG with it really, it's just...not super memorable. World building is a little weak, not super connected to the characters. Not bad enough that I would refuse to continue, but since I only grabbed the first one, I probably will forget to ever go finish it.

Piranesi - This was alright, a little disappointing. It feels like the kind of book i SHOULD love, but I didn't. I didn't really connect with Piranesi, and I kind of guessed what was going on pretty early. Spent most the book just kind of waiting to be proven right. At least this one was short.

QOTW:

As we close in on the end of the year, how are people's reading goals doing? Doesn't have to be formal reading challenges, could be personal goals like reading all of a series or making progress on your tbr.

I've got one more book for popsugar, 5 left for ATY. I think the rest of my challenges I'm accepting I'm not finishing. I'm at 74/100 for book nerds, which I thought was pretty good. I went into that one planning to just fill in as i went, rather than TRYING to finish. I'm just going to see how far I get by the end of the year.

I might take a break from challenges for a year. I really have been craving some free reading.

Hi all, here's the thread for picking the next book club read.

Same rules as usual:

1) Please don't just list books you're planning to read. Give a sentence or two on why you think we should read a book as a book club.

2) If you made a suggestion before, please re-submit it for this time to be included. I won't be going to past suggestion threads, this is a new round.

3) If someone already listed something you like/what you would suggest, you can "vote " for it by adding support. You can add your own reasoning why you think we should read it.

After that, we'll gather up the books that have the most support and put them into a proper poll for the final selection.

Hi all,
This week's been pretty uneventful, but tomorrow's my birthday! Just doing a small gathering of my parents and two other couples. We're all vaxed, and right now i just don't really feel up for doing big groups going out and about. husband and I do some stuff cautiously together, going out to places we like. It's much easier to stay distanced and all that when there's just two of us, though.

I'll probably get a suggestion thread going for next book selection in the next week or so, so start thinking about what you might want to read next!

This week I finished:

The God Dilemma - catching up on comics, seems like this one is done for now. Probably for the best, the second try at it wasn't as strong as the first. Fine with it taking a break for a while, hopefully if it does come back later it'll be with a clearer idea of what they want to do with it.

Training Camp - this is for my popsugar prettiest cover, and book nerds about an athlete. This book is very extra, red flocked cover with gold embossing, red and gold bookmark ribbon, colored illustrations in between sections and at chapter heads, burgundy page edges. It's partially why i got it, that and the bookstore clerk being really enthusiastic. I don't really care about baskeball and knew nothing about Kobe beyond he played. Got it before his death, and also before i had heard any allegations against him, which might have made me not buy it. But at this point I figured I spent the money anyhow, so might as well read it. I did enjoy it, interesting format. Re told the same series of events but through the perspective of 5 different players. I thought it might get repetitive, but the focus was different each time, because the players did their own things at time, were paying attention to different events with more or less focus etc.

The Broken Kingdoms - popsugar book whose author shares your zodiac sign. I did the audio book for it. It was good, but I don't really enjoy this series as much as I do the broken earth books, or the city we became.

Currently reading:

Tipping the Velvet - this will be my popsugar 90s bestseller, liking it so far.

QOTW:

Do you pay attention to Goodreads Choice awards? If so do you participate in nominating, voting?

I usually don't bother to nominate, it's not often I read something new that has any chance of winning that isnt' already nominated. I usually will go through and vote in categories that I tend to read in. I'll usually skim those nominees and see if any look like something I want to read. I don't pay much attention to the rest, if I don't already read the genre the fact that they're nominated isn't going to make me change my mind. Although sometimes I do find myself having read them just because i'd found them elsewhere and caught my eye or needed them for a reading challenge or whatever.

Haha I hated A Separate Peace so much in school. Goes to show tastes are always different! I didn’t hate Tye Scarlet Letter as much as everyone else seemed to. But I didn’t like a lot of it. Catcher in the Rye, wasnt a fan. I didn’t like 1984 or of mice and men or animal farm either. I think a lot was the picking it apart, as mentioned. I picked the Fellowship of the Ring for a paper in middle school and by the time i was done I had no desire to read the other two. And I still haven’t to this day.

Hi all,

Hope US folks had a good labor day weekend! I had a good weekend, but it's been a very migraine-y week. Meds seem to be working right now so getting a post in.

This week I finished:

The Hidden Palace - I hadn't really expected a sequel to the Golem and the Jinni, but it was good and I'm glad it happened. Used for book nerds book set before the advent of the internet.

Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant - books & brew book for September. This was very meh for me. Sad in a too real but not really cathartic way. Just a bunch of toxic people, passing their toxicity down to the next generation and everyone around them. One of those "why does everyone seem to love this?" books. Used for book nerds book with a character that frustrates you, since basically all of them did.

You Should See Me in a Crown - this was a lot of fun, a good pick me up after the last one. used for popsugar book with the same title as a song, book nerds book about hope, read harder book set in the midwest, aty book with at least 6 words in the title.

Currently reading:

The Broken Kingdoms - audio book, will be for popsugar book with an author with the same zodiac sign

Final Girls - reading for popsugar tbr with ugliest cover. I don't have many totally horrible books that i own (which is what i'm considering my tbr), so went with one i don't particularly like that i felt like reading. It'll also be novella for book nerds.

QOTW:

In school did you like required reading? hate it? indifferent?

I did all the required reading, with the exception of Heart of Darkness. That one was so bad, even though it was short, I skimmed it just enough to do the project involving it/answer reading questions. (I re-read it a couple years ago for a reading challenge, it's still terrible, I missed nothing). But I rarely ENJOYED the books, and I was generally annoyed that they were taking up reading time better spent reading books I WANTED to read. I'm glad I'd already built a love of reading before the heavy required reading started up in middle school, or I might have grown to really dislike it. I really feel like a lot of schools just keep pulling from the same tired lists decades later, rather than really creating a reading syllabus that makes kids interested and excited to read and learn. Even now, most the time when i return to classics I find them just ok at best, and terrible at worst. Not saying there's zero value in them, but so many are by dead white men. I think some freshness could be introduced.

Haha that kinda sounds like me in second grade. My teacher loved Clifford, and had a chart with all the books on it. If you read them all, you got to take the giant stuffed Clifford home for a night. I was the first to get to take him home because I read all his books in…I don’t know, the first month? Maybe even after haha. My mom taught second and third grade, she had almost all of them so I’d read a stack every night without having to borrow from class or library.

Hi all, been pretty spotty with check ins. This time was because I was on vacation! I was back Wednesday night, but was so exhausted it took me several days to recover. It got late enough I figured it was easier to just combine again.

Went to Portland, it went pretty well. Traveling is stressful, probably wont' try it again a bit longer. Got to Powells, got five books which I think is pretty restrained haha.

This week I finished:

Little Women- FINALLY finished this, it took over a week. I think my kindle page count was off, it says 276 pages but I swear it felt like that took WAY too long for it being that short, and it had both parts 1 & 2 in it. Apologies to those who love the book, I was not a fan in the slightest. Way too preachy and saccharine for me. Felt bored by most of it, partly why it took so long to get through it. Counted for book everyone has read but me

When Dimple Met Rishi - random library hold that got bought that I requested years ago. It was ok, a nice quick read at least. I liked the general writing, but too many plot elements annoyed me.

Radiant Black, Vol. 1, Origins, Stray Dogs, Black Cat, Vol. 4: Queen in Black - working on getting caught up on comics, kinda a hopeless task.

Currently reading;

The Hidden Palace - random library pick, its going to be late back and didn't auto renew, oops. Oh well. Shouldn't have gotten books before vacation, didn't really think about it when I grabbed them.

The Starless Sea - audio re-read

QOTW:

Do you remember learning to read?

I don't have clear memories of it. but I do remember that I started first grade in the bottom reading level, but ended in the highest. Apparently I was a little slower than most, but then something clicked and I zoomed on!

Also sorry to hear about the illness! That’s partially why we’re so nervous about the trip. We booked this back in early June when things were feeling like they were headed back to some semblance of normal. Got some k95 masks for the airport/plane, hoping it goes ok!

Shel, OR and believe me, we’re doing powells. :) our chosen family brother moved there 7 or so years ago, we have visited him at least once, sometimes twice every year since then (except last year, obviously). We miss him! But I am 100% also shopping.

Hi all, sorry for another no post last week. If you can believe it we lost power AGAIN. Lost it 4:30 last wedneday, didn't get back until afternoon on Saturday. Then the internet went out about an hour after the power came back, and didn't come back until overnight Saturday. And then again on Sunday I felt terrible. Luckily the rest of this week has been much calmer, except frantically working to catch up/get ahead so I can go on vacation next week. We're flying to Portland tomorrow evening, which I'm kinda nervous about. When we booked the tickets a few months ago, things were a lot calmer. But we're going to go, got some k95 masks for airport/plane. And Portland has mask mandates for everything indoor, so hoping it'll be ok. We're vaccinated, and so is the friend we're visiting.

the last couple weeks I finished:

The Priory of the Orange Tree - enjoyed this, interesting new take on high fantasy, dragon lore, magic, etc. Used for popsugar book with a family tree, Book nerds book with a magical creature

Vulnerable AF - Reading Wo men poetry collection by a Black woman, i like Tank's music so read her poetry. I find I tend to like most poetry spoken out loud more than just read.

Hummingbird Salamander - this was disappointing, i really loved his Annihilation, and this looked good from the blurb. It fell flat for me. I didn't really like how the narrator kept saying stuff "if only I knew what would happen" or "that'd be the last time i ever saw that person". That always annoys me, build suspense naturally without giving these leading statements and then not following up for pages. used for book nerds set in the future.

News of the World - this was my books & brew pick, we had our first in person meeting in a year and a half last tuesday. Was kinda nice, if very hot because it was 90 and we were outside. I wasn't a huge fan. I don't love westerns to begin with. I just kind of have issue with telling a story about a girl who was a captive of an Indigenous tribe and then leaving them to be the villains, without really exploring to any of the situations going on at the time that might have lead to that. The author said she didn't touch on that because she wanted to tell a lighthearted story, but that seems kind of...lazy and privileged. But no one else seemed to mind that so maybe i'm reading too much into it.

Board Stiff - I clearly was having a slump, also wasn't a fan of this. I used to love Piers Anthony, but as he got older he seemed to get even pervy-er than he was. When I was younger I didn't notice as much, but once I got older it got more glaring. This book was just full of not really necessary nudity, lackluster relationships, lots of sexism, a kind of predictable plot, etc. Counted for popsugar book that's been on my tbr the longest, i got it on a kindle sale before I decided I wasn't really feeling him anymore and they've been sitting on my kindle since. Probably 2014 ish. also used for booknerds bottom of tbr

The Fire Rose - re-read because I wasn't doing well reading a book about eldrich horrors while sitting in a dark house and needed something already downloaded on my kindle.

Beneath the Rising - popsugar book with a black and white cover. It was an interesting premise, didn't love it. Seemed like it probably should have been an adult horror, but she was trying to make it YA. The banter was really juvenile and kind of broke the mood, and it felt like it didn't make sense for Johnny's age to be so young.

Currently reading:

Little Women - this is my book that everyone has read but me. Never read it as a kid somehow. I think i probably would have liked it more back then, as it is I'm finding it pretty saccharin.

Don't forget to post your thoughts about Project Hail Mary, if you've finished!

Hi all,

Pleased today this has been a MUCH less eventful week. Had a friend over that we haven't seen in a year, that was nice. First house guest since *gesturing at everything*. (all vaccinated etc). Having in laws over starting tonight, less pleased about that. Not that i don't like them or get along, just house guests back to back is always stressful, and I had thought they were coming Saturday only up until yesterday. (Husband thought that too, they have NOT been communicating their plans well). But i'm sure it'll be fine.

Book club: Don't forget, finished reading thread is up for Project Hail Mary. Feel free to post your thoughts!

This week I finished:

Fables: Compendium Two - these things are so massive. But I do like being able to read a whole swath of story at once, instead of constantly changing volumes, or only grabbing one and then forgetting about it for months before getting another.

Record of a Spaceborn Few - audio re-read. this is probably my least favorite of the series, but it still has a lot of good moments. I really like how she uses different galactic situations to really address current issues in our society.

The Priory of the Orange Tree - this was a good read, if long. I liked the female characters, and i thought it was a fresh take on high fantasy. Different dragon tropes than usual, different system of magic, didn't feel super euro-centeric in origin.

Currently reading:

News of the World-audio book read for my books & brew club. Not super enthused about this pick, set in Texas but it's very western-y. Not my genre, and about 2 hours in still not really sold. At least it's short.

Hummingbird Salamander- I really loved Annihilation by this author so when I saw this on the shelf, grabbed it. Taking a bit to get into it, not sure if i'm just having attention trouble, if it's the book, or what. Still going to go with it.

Vulnerable AF - I like Tank and the Banga's music, cool to read a book of her poetry

QOTW:

I'll borrow from popsugar again. Are there any book characters you'd like to be friends with? I know that's also one of the prompts from the book nerd's challenge!

When I was a kid I desperately wanted to be friends with Carol, Lisa, and Stephanie from the Saddle Club, and become a member and ride horses with them.

For the prompt I picked Eve Brown from Act Your Age Eve Brown, she seemed pretty relatable and like she'd be fun to hang out with. I'm sure there's others but those are what come to mind!

Hi all, apologies for no post last week. It's...been a week. Busy week at work last week, followed by the worst storm I can remember over the weekend. Downed powerlines and trees uprooted everywhere, no power for over 2 days. Finally got it back Monday afternoon, then the internet went down just before bed and was out for over 24 hours, so I missed Monday and Tuesday at work. I work from home, and have for the last 10+ years, so there IS no office for me to pop into. Then I got some sort of back/stomach issue Tuesday night, would have called in yesterday if not for having been out Monday and Tuesday. Still not feeling great today. Just...want this week to be over.

Book Club: I put up a finished reading thread and some questions for Project Hail Mary. Feel free to check it out and post your thoughts if you are finished!

Finished:

A Closed and Common Orbit - audio re-read, I love that book!

Project Hail Mary - loved this! I put some of my thoughts on the thread for a change.

Solutions and Other Problems - this was fun, I enjoyed. I never followed Allie Bosch much when she was doing the comic, but I am aware of it and read some. I do remember her disappearing from the internet and it causing a stir, was interesting/sad hearing the reasons behind it. Reminded me a bit of Jenny Lawson style, but with comics.

Currently reading:

Fables: Compendium Two - down to the last quarter or so of this. These books are massive! Hard to believe there's still two more of these monsters. Glad the library has them, I don't think I'd ever finish the series otherwise, at my "buying the little omnibus every couple years' pace.

The Priory of the Orange Tree - not sure why i thought it was a good idea to read two massive books at the same time haha. no actual finishes this week because of it, in spite of tons of extra reading time due to all the outages. About half through it. Liking it a lot so far.

Record of a Spaceborn Few - audiobook reread, while i cross stitch and do art. This is probably my least favorite of the series, but still pretty good.

QOTW:

Borrowing from popsugar again: Have you ever come across a character that felt like they were you in fictional form?

I don't think I've ever 100% related to a character. Probably about closest was a combination of Hermione and Luna. Especially early Hermione, I had that grades obsession, following all the rules mentality. But I was also dreamy and weird and had strange interests compared to other kids. Not quite as picked on as Luna but still not as many friends as most girls had.

This is the thread for your final thoughts on Project Hail Mary. Spoilers are fine here, so don't read this until you're finished!

Here's some questions to help with discussion, feel free to answer any that appeal! Any thoughts welcome.

Did you read The Martian? How did Project Hail Mary compare to it? Which one did you like better?

We meet Ryland when he wakes up all alone on the spaceship. He’s suffering from select amnesia and is slowly piecing together what happened. Why do you think the author decided to tell the story in this way? How did the slow reveal help build tension?

We eventually learn that Ryland is a science teacher after he left his career as a molecular biologist. Let’s talk about why Ryland left that field and found solace in teaching.

Why did Stratt recruit Ryland to help with the task force of finding out what is dimming the sun?


The entire world comes together to try and solve this huge issue. What did you think about this behind the scenes look at the countries working together?

While it seems that Ryland is going to be a man alone—big surprise— he encounters an alien creature who is also trying to solve the Astrophage issue. What did you think about the alien appearance?

Let’s talk about the friendship between Ryland and Rocky. Despite all the differences, in what ways were they similar?

What did you think about all the science details on solving the Astrophage problem?

We eventually find out that Ryland didn’t volunteer for the mission—he got forced against his will by Stratt. How did that change how Ryland perceived the mission? Do you think he was a coward like Stratt accused him of or was he simply scared?

Ryland makes a huge choice in the end—go back to earth or save Rocky and his people. Let’s talk about Ryland’s decision.

Do you think he will ever go back to earth? In your opinion, what has happened to earth?

Hollywood is making a movie version of the book with Ryan Gosling playing Ryland. Which scenes do you hope are included in the novel? How do you think the movie version will handle the Rocky character?

Any other thoughts?

It was a great exhibit! The village is also really fun, usually we just go there unless it’s a special exhibit at the museum or bad weather. Love just walking around, even!