bamaace83 ’s Comments (group member since Dec 11, 2018)

bamaace83 ’s comments from the Nothing But Reading Challenges group.

Great job everyone!

Those darn interruptions....don't they know that we are trying hard to not do real work and read all the stories. That's why I didn't even attempt to start a book last night. I had this feeling that I better tell myself Thursday midnight deadline because sometimes work/real-life be crazy on Friday's.

Lol, there is nothing wrong with reading during a zoom meeting. I may have been doing the same thing yesterday afternoon.

Day 4 Questions Chapters 16-21

15. We get to find out about the title in this section. What did you guys think about the new rule, and the reason behind it?


I thought it was a fun change to the rule. I think it gave them a little more power and control over something that they ultimately can't change.


16. Did you all like Stella and Will’s first date? Do you think you would have the self control to stay away from the love of your life?
As an aside, are there any YA books of this type that allow the kids to spend more than 6 minutes together before falling in love?

The first date was so cute. I think it would super hard to stay away but add in all the teenager angst and hormones would make it even harder. Lol, I think it's a common theme in YA books.


17. They spend a page or two discussing the afterlife. Do you think their takes on it made sense to the characters? Realizing I am wading into murky waters here, did you want to discuss your own views? (Optional, teehee.)

I like Will's view better than Stella's. I'm always open to reading and learning how other people interpret afterlife. I know what I was raised with and I know that has changed some over the years but I think it's always interesting to find out each person's point of view. I believe one day that I will go to Heaven where I will meet up with people that have passed away.


18. Abby. We find out why happens to her here. What did you think of this reveal? Was it a satisfying explanation of the missing sister story to you?

I think they could have developed Abby a little more. I do think it confirms that Stella is afraid one day that everyone will leave her.



19. Chapter 21 is a bit of a rollercoaster. The birthday dinner is pretty cool. Did you like what Stella and all set up? Then, Poe. This hit me more than any of the other "feels" in the book. How did you take this? Discuss.

The birthday dinner was awesome. I love all the set up stuff. Poe really hit me in the feels also. He was one of my favorite characters in this book. In my past working experience, we lost a CF patient that most of us were close to and it's super hard to see but then at the same time you're happy that they can actually take a deep breath and be around all the people that they care for.

Day 3 Questions
chapters 10 - 15

10) I can't imagine the stress of trying to balance the knowledge of a fairly terminal prognosis with trying to be hopeful to live. I mean, we all know our days are numbered, but when you have an idea of what the number might be, you can either try to suck the marrow out of every day or curl up and try not to care enough to let anything hurt you more. Who do you think will have a bigger effect on the other, Will or Stella, and what do you hope will be the outcome, from a personal growth aspect?


It's hard when you've read the book! I think that they will both have a significant impact on one another during this story.



11) Maybe I'm too cynical, but I kept feeling like Abby was used as the personification of the idea that "See, you never know how long you have to live, so..." and not flawed enough to be a real person. Did anyone else feel that way or am I being a meanie?


I hadn't thought of that before. I can understand your point. I think they did a better job with her in the movie.



12) I loved Barb's parental takedown. Do you think the shift in Stella's parents will last?


I think they will try but not sure how long it will actually happen.


13) Reflecting on Barb's story of Amy and Trevor: would you choose a much shorter but immediately fuller life, or a longer lifespan though it may be less vibrant?

I would definitely choose a fuller life. I believe that the quality of life should always come first over spending lots of time in the hospital.


14) Poe says "It's my sickness...it's my problem." While it's admirable to strive for self-sufficiency, a main message of the book seems to be about how it's imperative to open up and do the work to nurture healthy, supportive relationships. What is your take on this? When in crisis, do you distance yourself or reach out?

I usually reach out to my support systems. At times, I may be more reserved but if it's a major crisis then I'll reach out to a couple people for advice that I'm close to.

Day 2 Questions

Sorry these are a little early - I can't guarantee I'll get online tomorrow round work.

6 . 'I wonder how many strings she had to pull and how much money she had to throw away to get me into this trial'
This quote caught my attention because in the UK we don't have to pay for treatment, even in a clinical trial in the UK. Did it catch anyone else's notice?

I thought it was interesting because I've worked with clinical trials before and have never had anyone try to pull strings before. I do have a hard time with when some families aren't offered the same treatments due to financial reasons.


7. Are you surprised at how quickly Stella has become attached to Will? I wasn't expecting this strength of reaction to him not taking his treatment seriously. Did you think it was in character?


I think this was a normal teenage reaction. Teenagers fall in and out of relationships all the time.



8. Wow Will's mum is controlling. I'm not surprised he's ended up rebelling from taking his treatments. Do you think you'd react like Stella (perfectionist, controlling about treatment and planning for the future) or Will (fed up, rebellious and living for the moment) to being in this type of situation?

I think I would be in the middle. I would want to control my treatments but still want to live in the moment as much as possible without hindering my treatment plans/options.



9. Masks, lots of hand washing, staying 6 feet (or roughly 2m) apart, limited places you can go… The recent pandemic is giving me more insight into some of what this must be like than I'd had before. How are you coping with the changes?
I'm a GP trainee so have been at work throughout with a massive shift to remote consultations. That bit is easier compared to entertaining a 2 year old without any of the friends/family/groups as distractions!

I work in healthcare so I've worked during everything. I will say the hardest part for me is wearing a mask all day at work except for breaks and wearing a mask everywhere I go. They just get so itchy! I have always been really good about washing my hands and keep hand sanitizer with me at all times. Working with pediatrics, it has been hard to help the little ones understand to keep their masks on. I have mad respect for teachers who may have to deal with this come August if schools return to full sessions.

Discussion Questions - Day 1

1) From what I know, this book is the novelization of the movie. While this doesn’t happen too often, I’ve read a couple books before that were only written after a movie/series (e.g. The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet). Have you ever read a book like this? What did you think? Was it successful? Did this experience influence your expectations of this book?

I don't think I've ever read a book like this before but I may have. I loved this book. I actually read it before I watched the movie. I usually always try to read the books first. I think it was a very successful book.


2) Stella and Will, wearing face masks & using copious amounts of hand sanitizer before it was cool. All jokes aside, this is an oddly timely reminder that face masks do make a difference to prevent the spreading of diseases. I knew next to nothing about CF before starting this book and I’ve seen very mixed reactions to the representation of CF so I was wondering… do you have any experience with CF and therefore expectations? (If you don’t feel comfortable answering, feel free to just skip this question!)


I have worked with CF kids for years. I think they did a good job portraying what CF kids go through. It's super hard not being able to have a camp dedicated to them because of the chance that they could make each other sick.


3) "If I’m going to die, I’d like to actually live first.“ This quote from Will’s POV reminded me of the countless bucket list stories and made me wonder whether this will go in that direction. Yet while Will takes more of a Devil-May-care attitude, Stella is very cautious to follow the rules. Do you think Will’s attitude is going to influence Stella as they got closer (literally?!). Will she also take more (dangerous) risks?


This is hard because I've finished the book twice now! I think that Will will push Stella at times. I also think that Stella will push Will to follow the rules also. I think they are good for one another.


4) Stella is a "tech nerd", even programming her own app. Most MCs in YA books have artsy, "girly" hobbies (sorry for using that terrible gendered stereotype), if they have any prominent hobbies at all. Books about artsy people are among my favorites and I’m always on the hunt for more. While I like traditional hobbies, some of my favorite books (e.g. With the Fire on High) have non-mainstream hobbies and I am actually quite excited to learn more about this aspect of Stella’s story. Have you read any other books where the main character had a prominent hobby that wasn’t drawing/painting/writing/theater/an instrument?

I really like the Truly Devious series. They all have unique hobbies that are used to be a foundational for their education. I like how Stella does different things.


5) Stella’s parents are recently divorced, in what she calls the “most ridiculous divorce of all time”, and she worries a lot about them. It both breaks my heart and confuses me slightly why it is so far being kept from us what happened - we only know that Stella believes both parents are unhappy after the separation. So… what do you think happened?

I can't answer this one because I've already read the book. I wasn't expecting the reasoning behind the divorce though.

Celia wrote: "I just got the kindle version of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes two weeks earlier than the library app estimated. Jumped right in! Anyone else read it or plan to?

Also, not sur..."


I have this book ready to go. I was planning on reading it during these two weeks and then had to rearrange all my books around because it didn't fit in a couple other challenges. I'm hoping that I can get it read during the next two weeks. I'm going to make it fit somewhere.

I tried to plan out my books and then marked off a lot of stuff and rearranged a lot of stuff. I'll plan out a couple but I have a feeling that's how it's going to go.

It was probably some weird magical spell that came over from Chain of Gold. I just finished it earlier today and then had to spend some time with the Shadowhunters family tree to try to put all the people together.

Thanks for the letters and the tags. I like these tags better and I can work with those letters. Now off to scribble in my notebook some more.....

That’s a good question. I’m piggy backing off of it and asking do we have a day gap in between rounds or does the next one start right away. I’m trying to get my books to fall into a nice little puzzle over here.

Discussion Questions Day 5 - Part 10 to End

17.) Anyone else find Giovanni's thoughts on Cord (his a 36 year old adult) to be a refreshing bit of grow up, you're an adult, figure out a way to handle your crap? Did Regan's revelations to Giovanni change your opinion of her?

Giovanni was one of my favorite characters. I loved that part of the book. Nope, I still didn't really like Regan.


18.) What did you like about the revelation Lee (or really Jason via the credit card) paid for the trip, pretending Charlotte won the contest? Why do you think the author did this?

I was wondering if there was a twist at some point. I thought it interesting that Charlotte was the one who won. I don't think Lee should've used Jason's card but I am glad that they went on the trip.


19.) A lot happened at the final stop. Charlotte had the 'big O' and fixed by the magical penis. Regan got back in touch with her artist self and her kids randomly appeared in a foreign country (how did they get passports? both parents must be present at the time of application in the US for children to be issued passports), Cord and Giovanni worked things out, Lee had her breakdown and started healing. Did anyone else think this was abrupt and when they were all together (including Regan's kids) thinking WTH is going on?

It was a random ending. I don't know how the kids got there. I think the ending could've been a little better.


20.) Final Thoughts on the book? Rating? Any idea what point the author was trying to make with this book?

I gave it a 4. I liked the bouncing back and forth between the characters. I think she was just trying to write a story about a messed up family finding their way.

Discussion Questions Day 4 - Part 7 - 9

13: The characters have each made some defining decisions on the vacation. Which decision or resolution stuck out to you the most? Example - Mine was when Charlotte pretended not to see Cord at the end of part 9. It broke my heart to see her have so much difficulty loving her son!)

I totally agree with it being when Charlotte turned her back on Cord.


14: Why do you think Charlotte took on and passed on the traits of her mother that she didn’t appreciate? What might have been different in her interactions with her children if she intentionally shook those off? Example traits are her mother’s inability to communicate, and her disapproval turning into a lack of love)

I think it's what she knows and she didn't know how to change the pattern or somewhere deep down inside she didn't want to change the pattern.


15: The characters each have a flaw in that they hold back a piece of themselves from their family and the ones they love. Which character is the hardest to read about and why?

I feel the worst for Cord. He doesn't feel like he can be his true self and nobody should feel like that.


16: This was my first time reading this author. Do you think you’d read something else by Amanda Eyre Ward? Why or why not?

This was my first time reading her books. I'll give it another go. I liked the book overall. I do agree that some parts were like what the world but overall I liked it.

I'll add that to my TBR read. I'm always up for a buddy read.

It may be a private Olympics because we had to get a fancy invite. It was a wild opening ceremony with lots of flags. We have now moved on to the swimming portion. This could get interesting. Oh yeah, I've already switched out books on the fancy spreadsheet for ones that I had planned on reading but I kept my same spots. I'm just over rearranging. Do we get penalized for reading over the amount of books that we said? I have four left to read for the next week and my work schedule is crazy so I may not go over that but then again, I might.

Lol, she's just keeping us on our toes. At least we aren't dodging flying objects at the moment. I think some of our hearts were already pumping from the Olympic countdown clock and seeing another one may have been like a there's no way moment. I mean I may or may not be speaking from experience over here.

Leaving my comfy ship to come over with a couple non-fiction recommendations. Given what has been happening in the United States recently, I just finished Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption with a 5 rating and once my circle of friends hands over White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism then I'm sure that it will receive just as high of rating.

Swimming over from Watership Down to give sports recommendations. I already noticed that several people voiced my thoughts about Beartown and Us Against You. Two of my all time favorite books. Before the world of Goodreads, I read Bleachers and I really enjoyed it.

That does make sense. Let me go find those threads.....done!

I would be slightly intimidated writing questions myself. I think it would be hard to make sure to have good information in the questions and also get good discussion from them. I really love the book Five Feet Apart. I've worked with that population of kids for years in the hospital setting and it just touches a special piece of my heart. I work with another population now but both populations still intertwine at times. I'm sure that y'all will knock it out of the park on questions and I'm going to re-read the book since it's been a year and so I can add more points. :)

Navi wrote: "Greetings from Team Pants! I've come to request recommendations from you all 😊 Lately, I’ve been in the mood for some great nonfiction. Any favourites? I don’t have a genre preference – biography, ..."

If you haven't read it yet, I just finished Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. It was so good and a great read during this time that we are having in the United States right now. A few of my local friends have been passing around White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism and I'm next on the list so I'm really looking forward to that one also.