Briana’s Comments (group member since Aug 15, 2018)

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

DQs Day 1: (end: "'I want' he said firmly 'a very fast horse.'"19% / Page 52)

1. Mort is nothing if not determined. He refuses to give up on being a “prentice” until the last stoke of midnight. Then at the very last second, Death arrives for him. Do you think Mort was quick to take the apprenticeship perhaps from feeling humiliated at the days events or was it something that truly intrigued him? Would you have been willing to work for Death?
Mort seems to take the apprenticeship as a way to nullify his humiliation at not being wanted by any of hte other trades. And it might have intrigued him some, there was no one else Death was inquiring about making an apprentice so perhaps he saw a kind of boon there to be his one and only apprentice. As for myself. I don't know. Death is complicated and sometimes messy. I'm not squeamish, but I think I'm a little like mort in that I couldn't just stand by and watch death happen without at least trying to do something to prevent it.

2. Death has a sarcastic tone during this first section. What do you think of his fawning over Mort to ensure he gets new clothes and food and Death eating with him like a regular guy? Is he up to something sinister or does he just want to make Mort comfortable?
I think he's just trying to make Mort comfortable. They're pretty much strangers and Mort will be spending an awful lot of time in Death's company. It would be wise to try and make him comfortable in order to make the apprenticeship work as smoothly as possible.

3. Mort may be a bit gangly and lost in his own head at times, but he seems to have a lot of compassion. Upon realizing that he was talking to Death, he asked him to spare his Dad. Later he tries to intervene and warn the King that he was about to be killed and finally on that same trip he wanted to tell the King’s daughter not to trust the Duke. What did you think of all that? Are these normal reactions to someone who is the apprentice to Death? Do you think it will continue as Mort sees more and more of Death’s duty?
I think anyone would try to intervene when death is coming if they have advance knowledge about it. I also think it was very human of him to try and warn the king's daughter not to trust the duke even though she seemed not to hear him. Those were very human reactions and it seems to poing toward mort having a good sense of right and wrong as well as justice. It's that sense of justice that I think makes his reactions not normal for an apprentice to Death as I don't see them stopping as the book continues. If anything I see them becoming more pronounced. Death is probably looking for someone more capable of divorcing themselves from their emotions as he does.

4. What is up with the constant utterance of “Mort” every time someone calls our MC anything other than Mort or Mortimer after arriving at Death’s House and meeting Yasbell? Is there some significance to this or is it just rather annoying?! Lol!
I don't find him constantly correcting people of what his name is annoying. To me it comes off as more of Mort trying to remind everyone else that he's a person too. Especially since his parents seemed deadset on being rid of him as quickly as possible once the whole apprenticing option was pointed out to them by his uncle. He just wants to be seen and feel valued as an individual which is something I can relate to.

5. Mort, surprisingly, asked Death for an afternoon off. I think our dear Mort is growing up! He explains to Death that he wants to meet people for more than a few minutes. When he arrives in his own time and finds out where he is, he asks if he is near Sto Lat. He seems to have a plan when he says he wants a very fast horse. What do you think he intends? Will it work out like he plans?
He's going to see the King's daugther, or at least attempt to. I think in part he wants to warn her like he wasn't able to warn the King, and I think he wants to talk to her. There was definitely a moment where he seemed to feel something when he was at the palace to help Death collect her father.

DQs Day 3 Chapters 16 - 23

11. Gramma Pearl shared many wonderful legacy stories with Daunis. I loved the reference Daunis makes regarding the storm and the thunderbirds bringing loved ones from the other world to check on them. As a result, Daunis has happy memories about storms versus being afraid and she consistently refers to Gramma Pearl when deciding what to do. Do you have any advice, stories or traditions passed down from family that you often think about? Something that you would share with your legacy...if so, share if you are comfortable.
We have a tradition at Christmas that I hope to pass down. But generally speaking we don't have any that I would refer to when it comes to making decisions.

12. "The FBI is interested in learning what caused the group hallucination. I want to know if the kids are okay." Daunis obviously thinks the FBI isn't investigating for the right reasons. I observe all the time that young people have a different view on things than more experienced/older people. Who's right? What do we learn from situations such as this? Other thoughts?
I don't think either of them is right exactly. I think both the FBI and Daunis believe they care about the community, but ultimately the FBI has to answer for why it pursues one line of investigation over another. And Daunis is still living with that concept of the self legend. That only she is capable of understanding her community and thinking about it's future. Which based on the narrative she is as she doesn't know who else is aware of the investigation or running their own investigation on the down low. She's just generally unaware of what the other adults are doing because she's trying so hard to be a "good" secret Squirrel.

13. Heather is clearly not liked amongst the girls at the beach party...why do you think Heather approaches Daunis about buying drugs? Do you think this has something to do with why she turns up dead, washed up at Duck Island?
I think Heather approaches Daunis because in a way she's a fellow outcast. She's also got the fabulous boyfriend that's new in town. Perfect mark for expanding her client base. It could have something to do with why she turns up dead, but it's hard to tell given how short the interaction was, and to be entirely honest it wasn't a thought I'd really considered before now. And I'm still not sure. What good would it do to kill Heather over offering to sell Daunis some weed or ecstacy?

14. In chapter 20, Jamie asks Daunis about the meaning of 'Firekeeper's Daughter'. It's her job to lift up the sun every day. What do you think about this explanation? Do you find additional meaning in this as it relates to Daunis and her role in the plot of this story?
I think the explanation is sort of empty, like the originator of the story couldn't come up with something more fitting for Firekeeper's Daughter to do and thus she was stuck lifitng the sun. And yet I agree with Daunis that she has such an important job it's ridiculous that she didn't warrant a name of her own. I do think there is additional meaning through for Daunis. It might be the Firekeeper's Daughter's job to lift up the sun every day, but in doing so at least so far in the book it seems like Daunis' role as Firekeeper's Daughter is to illuminate the truth whatever they may be or at least seek it out.

15. Daunis finds Heather during her mushroom sleuthing on Duck Island. During her thinking she has an 'ah-ha' moment regarding her Uncle's journals. When she goes to look for them, she's quick to assume that they don't exist because of the connection to the FBI and the confidentiality required...do you think she's right...thoughts?
No, because if I've learned anything in my reading so far nothing is ever that clear cut in this book. I'm hoping he did keep a journal though so Daunis can determine if she's even on the right track retracing his research.

DQs Day 2 Chapters 9 to 15

6. I thought that the opening scene with Daunis and the gun would show up again towards the end of the book. That’s usually what happens when authors use this kind of device. Were you surprised that it happens not even a quarter of the way in?
I was. That was not what I was expecting. At the earliest I expected that to be relevant again around the 50% point of the book.

7. We knew there would be a murder but we’re you surprised that it was Lily who was killed? Did you suspect something bad would happen between her and Travis?
I was surprised that it was Lily that was killed. But I was expecting something bad to happen between her and Travis from the moment he was introduced and Daunis acted like she needed to protect Lily from Travis and run interference.

8. The synopsis also hinted that Jamie was not all he seemed. I thought he would be something to do with the murder but not that he would be an undercover agent. What did you think it was that Jamie was hiding?
I was honestly expecting him to have some sort of criminal record. Maybe he was in a gang wherever he lived before and then it was revealed he was an undercover agent and I was just blown away by that revelation.

9. If you were Daunis would you have agreed to be a confidential informant? I’m not sure I would be brave enough.
Honestly, I can understand why but I am pretty sure I would have the courage do it. Too much can go wrong and I would never be able to keep the lies straight in order to be convincing to those around me.

10. Being a confidential informant seems to be very complicated with Daunis being expected to really investigate what is happening rather than just let them know if she comes across anything suspicious. How well do you think Daunis will be able to do this as it’s her own community and perhaps members of her own family that she will be investigating?
I think she's going to struggle with the investigation. The morality of it and what it means tobe lying to her friends and family.

DQs Day 1 Chapters 1 to 8

1) Was this book on your TBR before it was announced as a BOM and were you hypnotized by the beautiful cover art? Were you familiar with Ojibwe culture prior to reading this book?
Actually no it wasn't even on my radar. I remember seeing it win the BOM poll and just being generally uninterested. The cover is definitely gorgeous but it didn't really speak to me. So I went in with zero knowledge of Ojibwe culture prior to the opening chapters.

2) Several social issues have been touched on so far including racism (including within race (skin tone) and within families for biracial children), enrolled v. descendant tribe membership, substance abuse, illegitimacy, and mental health. Does the author seem to be pulling this off so far or does it seem like too much to have it work for the story?
The author does seem to be pulling all of these different issues off pretty well so far. None of them feel like they don't belong in the story, nor has any pulled me out of the plot as yet. I'm hoping that remains true as I get further into the book, especially since it's very easy for any one of these issues to get lost or written shoddily the longer the plot carries on.

3) Characters. Any favorites so far? Does anyone else want to be adopted by Granny June, or is that just me?
I really enjoy Jamie, he seems very down to earth and laidback. He's really got the flirt going and I wonder about that since he's stated to have a girlfriend already. It's pretty much the only thing I'm not enjoying about him so far.

4) The author weaves tribal culture into the story and makes it an important aspect of Daunis's life. Including having her work in the tribal language into her interactions with the kids. Language is such an important part of culture, loosing a language means more than just a loss of vocabulary words. Are you enjoying this aspect of the story?
Okay so this really made me super happy. Any book that uses a foreign language tends to make my little language loving heart go pitter-patter. So to see this aspect at play just makes my day, and I enjoy how the author uses Jamie to teach the reader about the tribal language as he isn't familiar with his Ojibwe roots and neither are many of the readers of this book. It's such a nice tool to broaden the readers view of the world and their understanding of indigenous people.

5) The quote "when someone dies everything becomes past tense, except for the grief. Grief stays in the present." really hit home. How did you react to this statement, did is resonate with you as well?
It didn't resonate with me at the time, but it's a sentiment I can kind of understand. I think part of the reason it didn't hit super hard for me was much of my personal loss was expected. You have time to prepare and in some cases begin mourning in a way before it happens. This is not the case when someone dies suddenly. there is no way to prepare for that and the adjustment from present to past tense is rough while the grief remains with for a very long time.

Completion Post

Book: The Stranger by K.A. Applegate (Techincally a middle grade but the audiobook is 3 hours and 19 minutes long)
Date Completed: 6/25/2021
Pages: 163

Tasks:
204 - Seventh book in the Animorphs series
225 - Told in 1st person

Completion Post

Book: The Witching Vault by Kathrin Hutson
Date Read: 6/24/2021
Pages: 262

Tasks:
79: featurs elves, Leandras is an elf
171: Spell it L - Leandras (character)

Completion Post

Book: Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala
Date Read: 6/20/2021
Pages: 336

Tasks:
46 - flames on the cover
132 - AAA for the American Automobile Association a well known insurance company
172 - Spell it out - A, Arsenic (title)
186 - Author is POC
203 - features a murder
214 - dog on the cover

Judy wrote: "The chess piece task is actually "chess piece in title" not "chess piece on cover" so Briana's Midnight Library didn't work for it unfortunately :("

That's a bummer, but at least we still get the BOM points.

I'm going to claim task 79 as I have a couple different books I can read for it. Current thoughts are Every Which Way But Dead or to reread The Cruel Prince.

Completion Post

Book: The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Pages: 288
Task:
181 - MPG Mental Health
199 - Pawn on the cover

BOM DQs: 1, 2, 3

DQs Day 3: The Tree That Is Our Life - Wild and Free (59%)

11. Regarding the system error, that occurred when Nora tried to return to the library after that speech. Do you think Nora could have trouble returning to the library from one of the next lives that she visits?
I think it's likely. It was a pretty serious glitch if Mrs. Elm didn't even notice her return for several whole minutes at first.

12. But you will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life. (p. 151) Do you think Nora is going to "find the meaning of life", "be happy forever in a parallel life", or "will want to die and leave the library forever"?
I think she's going to ultimately find peace in herself, which I guess would fall under the concept of "find the meaning of life". Things hse thought about herself keep being consistently proven wrong or incorrect. And you can tell Nora is changing with each one. So she's heading I think to some form of contentment or peace.

13. Are you surprised about Nora meeting Hugo, another Slider, as he calls people like them in the in-between?
Yes and pleasantly at that. It was nice to see another "Slider" to get some answers to what exactly was happening, or the best answers that made sense at the time anyway.

14. For Nora it's a library, for Hugo it's a video store. What do you imagine would your variant of the in-between be? (And obviously you are not allowed to say library now, because I'm guessing most of us would go with that answer. Be creative and let me know what else you would feel comfortable with.)
A forest.

15. We finally get to see Nora's life as a rock star. In what direction do you think this will go? Is it going to be the life Nora is happiest with and stays the longest/forever? Or do you think that she's going to leave it rather soon again?
I think she's going to leave soon-ish. There's some things that she's clearly not pleased about and while the rock star life is nice I think she's trying to work her way toward a world where her brother and her get along if nothing else and Ravi too as a sort of side benefit.

Christina wrote: "I just saw that another book cover of The Midnight Library actually has a chess piece on the cover which we still need for one of our tasks if I'm not mistaken. So if someone can get their hands on..."

That is actually the edition I'm reading, so I've got the chess piece covered when I finish.

DQs Day 2: The Penultimate Update - Peppermint Tea (39%)

6. Were you surprised that Nora's second choice was related to her cat? What did you think of the outcome?
I was surprised that she wanted to see a world where Volts "lived" as it were. But oh man that life made me cry. Her cat loved her so much as Mrs. Elm told her and that explaination of why Volts died in the road or under her bed, just hurt my heart so much. Nora was a truly good catmom and I'm so glad she was able to get that perspective living that life no matter how short her time in it was.

7. How did the reality of Nora's Australia line up with what you imagined it would be like?
It didn't at all. I was really expecting her and Izzy to be living in an apartment together working all day and enjoying themselves at night. And then it turns out that Izzy died not long after they got to Australia and Nora's living with some random woman and oh boy it just wasn't anything I was expecting at all. It made me sad to know that there was another Nora out there stuck and in need of some help to keep going.

8. What did you think about the similarities between Nora's life in Australia versus her original life?
It made me sad and hope that her new friends were able to give her the support she needed to get unstuck. Nora deserves to have someone in her corner.

9. On the surface, Nora's life with a swimming career seems to be the most successful so far. Do you think the positives will outweigh the negatives this time around?
No. I really don't think so. There's already cracks to it from what we've read so far. They're small and apparently easily missed or at least easily ignored for the most part by Nora. But then again maybe they aren't and that's why that Nora is in therapy and on anti-depressants herself.

10. Any predictions for how Nora's speech will go in the next chapter?
I'm leaning toward it not going over well at all. She's already confused so many of the people in her life by how vastly different the two lives are from each other that anything she says will probably throw her audience for a loop and wonder if she's really the right person to take advice from about success and how to measure it.

DQs - Day 1

1. Were you planning to read this book before it became a BOM? If so, what drew you to it?
I was thinking about it. A booktuber I follow read it and while she wasn't very crazy about it how could I not give it a shot with a title like The Midnight Library. I really wanted to know what The Midnight Library was.

2. What do you think of Matt Haig’s writing style (and those short chapters!) and how he has set the story up so far?
Haig's writing is very frank, I like that about it. The shortness of the chapters actually reminds me somewhat of James Patterson. But it's in a different way. The chapters are short but they all clearly have a point, they don't meander to what the point is. It's nice. It made reading the book feel less like I was taking too long and more like the chapters were just flying by.

3. What are your thoughts on Nora? Are you attached to her yet?
I don't know what to think about Nora. Especially since the first early chapters hit me kind of hard. I'm not attached exactly but I am glad she's being given a second chance of sorts.

4. If you were somehow able to, would you want to see all of the different outcomes that could have played out in your own life? Or would you rather just leave things as they are without ever knowing?
There's a couple moments that I wish I could see different outcomes for. But for the most part I'd rather live my life as it is. It's the choices I made that made it my life. Visiting a life where a parallel me made different choices wouldn't make it mine no matter how satisfied and happy in that life I felt.

5. What did you think about Nora’s first glimpse at a road not taken? Were you surprised by which book she chose to open first or by how quickly it disappointed her?
Honestly, that whole glimpse I expected to be something like that. It just seemed a matter of course that Dan would turn out to be that sort of man. I'm glad that in visiting that life she realized how much he'd never deserved her and left quickly. She deserved so much better than him and I hope we find that in one of the lives she tries through the rest of the book.

Completion Post

Book: Equal Rites
Date Completed: 6/9/2021
Pages: 240

DW Bonus
BOM Participation: 1, 2, 3

DQs - Day 3

9 . What do you think on the creatures from the dungeon dimensions? Do you find them creepy?
Not creepy exactly. They don't even really hit nightmarish for me even though they're supposed to be terrifying. Their motives are concerning and okay I will admit they did kind of unnerve me a little when they were speaking through Simon. But altogether their general master plan was kind of eh. I can understand most of it but in terms of actual stakes they didn't really do anything for me when it comes to the plot, they just existed in some form and when they did I was like "oh this is happening okay."

10. I enjoyed the Esk’s thoughts about being both witch and wizard and wanting to defend the one to the other. Do you sympathize with this view (more in general than in specific regards to magic fields)?
Do I ever. I think in a way we've all been caught between generally opposed things and have to defend it from people that can only do one or the other knowing full well that it is possible to do both. But it's recognizing that not everyone can do both that makes the difference and while that wasn't the outcome for Esk it was still enjoyable to see her grappling with some form of it when it came up.

11. Why do you think Esk’s magic did not work?
She let her need to prove they were wrong get in the way. She was plenty focused, but it was too much focus? She wanted so badly to show the wizards that she could do wizard magic that she kind of gave herself a case of stage fright of sorts.

12. Esk is supposed to be precocious but also nine years old. Do you think she acts in a way you could see a nine year old acting?
Asking so many questions feels like a very nine year old thing to do. Wandering off and travelling downriver so far on her own, debating wtih adults? Not so much. Even a precocious nine year old is usually a little more aware of and accepting that there are bounds they are expected to be within and not just go off like she is an adult herself. It was this behavior that had me frequently forgetting she was only nine.

As a member of Team Ook, the bonus question is: Is not the librarian wonderful and would you want to be turned back in his place?
No. Being an orangutan is a small price to pay for doing something you love.

Aiswrya wrote: "Yes! I love it Briana!"

Excellent I'll take care of it then.

I think I have a book that would count for 132. Arsenic and Adobo, that would make the acronym AAA which stands for American Automobile Association and is a well-known travel agency and insurance company in the US.

DQs Day 2

Starting with a Bonus question...
“They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it is not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance.” (Granny said)
First off, who are “they”? I have always wanted to know. Secondly, do you agree with “them”?
They feels like people in general with that quote. But the way it keeps popping up throughout the narrative I'm inclined to believe it's something more sinister in this book. I do however believe that they're right about knowledge not being nearly as dangerous as lot of ignorance. Ignorance tends to breed intolerance and an unwilliness to be open to new ideas or possibilities. That just leads to a stagnating way of life and that's just dull.

5. Esk went ahead and did not follow Granny’s advice, and thought since she had a feeling she could get into the bird’s brain, then why not do it.
When you were a kid, did you jump off the swing, or touch the hot burner? If so, give us examples.
Do you think she learned something from it, or are we looking at shades of her future University life?
Jumping off swings at it's highest point was a game with the kids I went to daycare with we all did it. Usually, when the adult can't give a child a reason that makes sense to them why they shouldn't do something they do it anyway and learn through experiences (most of the time) that it was a bad idea. I think she learned that there are limitations to magic. That borrowing is just that you borrow the body of the animal not try to take it over. But I don't think that Esk is likely to avoid pushing the boundaries when she finally does make it to University. I think she'll be a boat load of trouble both for good and ill.

6. What do you think of Hilda and her version of Headology? What do you think of Headology in general?
I wasn't overly impressed by Hilda's version of Headology, or really Headology in gneral. It's brings to mind swindlers and grifters looking for easy marks in the crowd. Honestly, it kind of makes witch magic seem like nothing more than simply listening to people and letting them find their way to their own answers. Which kind of diminishes them from having any sort of power at all. Even Granny doesn't seem entirely sure if any of the charms or curses she knows actually do anything, and that's just sad. It's like saying all a witch is good for working largely in tune with nature never upsetting the balance of things (which one would think flies in the face of their ability to curse people) where wizards can do almost anything they want with magic.

7. Esk finds herself on a moving barge. Loved loved loved the resume of talents beyond washing and sweeping that Esk rattles off in an attempt to stay on the boat. What skills could you bring to the barge?
I can cook, bake, mend clothes sort of. I honestly am not sure most of my "talents" would be very useful on the barge. I can play an instrument which the Zoon seemed interested in having Esk try. I'm good with direction if I know where I'm going. Generally, I don't think I'd be much use at all to the Zoon and would have been thrown to the Pike.

8. Speaking of the barge, what do you think of Esk’s decision to just leave Granny? Did she mean to leave on her own adventure, or was it an accident? Do you think her matter of fact attitude is a product of her magic, or just her personality or upbringing?
Given Esk's adventure with the eagle I think she meant to leave Granny. Not just accidentally get lost, but just go and see what happens. The amount of trouble she's gotten into as a result is impressive. However, I don't think her attitude is a product of her upbringing, yes there are children that are very matter of fact, but she almost feels too grown up at points which leads me to believe it's the magic. There were a few instances while reading that I forgot she was only nine years old based on her attitude alone .

DQs - Day 1

1. If you are new or relatively new to Discworld, what do you think of Pratchett’s world and writing style so far? For more experienced Pratchett readers, what are your favorite things about his writing style or Discworld in general?
This is my first foray into Discworld. I’m not sure what I was expecting. Knowing that Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett had co-authored a couple books and that I really enjoy Gaiman I was expecting Pratchett’s writing to be similar. And it is except I think it’s a little drier than Gaiman and it wasn’t until I found the audiobook that I really started to enjoy the book. Also what do Pratchett have against chapters? That was driving me a little mad and still does. It makes finding places to stop difficult.

2. So we have our plucky heroine Esk and her witchy mentor Granny Weatherwax. What do you think of our two main characters and their relationship with each other?
It’s a strange relationship. Granny doesn’t seem to know what to do with Esk, but she’s doing her best and Esk like many children just wants to know everything now. Not just what Granny feels is appropriate but “real” magic having that belief that real magic is fantastical and flashy and not in everyday things. Which seems to be driving Granny a little mad as Esk keeps demanding to learn the real magic and not just what the use of the various herbs are. To a certain degree it feels very standard mentor- student with the student wanting to know everything at once regardless of the reasons for the mentor to take their time. As a result I think Granny is a little overly cautious while teaching Esk and Esk really needs to learn some patience.

3. A major theme is witch magic vs. wizard magic (and women vs. men), and I can’t wait to learn more about these different magical theories and world views. What do you think of this dynamic, and which type of magic are you more drawn to?
I think the dynamic is a little to gendered. There’s underlying tone that witch magic is about healing and balance and can only ever be those things. Whereas wizard magic is flashy and dangerous and full of instant gratification. As if the only doers in the world can be men. Ironically, I’m personally more drawn to witch magic, preferring to heal and provide care as I do. But the two magics feel so very gendered that I kind of liked the moment when it was asked why can’t Esk be the first female wizard. It really hit home that it was something never really discussed before and should be at some point because they’re going to have a female wizard whether they like it or not on their hands.

4. Oh dear. Esk went a bit too far with the borrowing. What do you think is going to happen next? And what will Granny say or do?
Clearly Esk is going to wake up, probably with a fair bit of remaining traits of the eagle for a while. But she can’t die otherwise what would be the point of the book? As for what Granny will say or do. I can kind of picture her telling Esk I told you so. She’d warned the girl that there would be consequences for overtaking the bird. Though given that one of the last scenes in which Esk was conscious she was losing her concept of self I do wonder if she’s going to wake up with amnesia or something as well. Which would probably throw Granny for a bit of a loop.

Bonus: I am really enjoying Pratchett’s wit so far. What is your favorite quote from this first bit? Mine is:
“What’s an elephant?”
“A kind of badger,” said Granny. She hadn’t maintained forest-credibility for forty years by ever admitting ignorance.

My favorite quote is probably during Granny's fight with the tree and the tree asks: "Well? Who says women can't be wizards?"