Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2020 Weekly Checkins
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Week 24: 6/5 - 6/11
Let's hope so. I can't handle any more, it is too much.
37/40 Nearing the end, my friends. Looking back, I got quite a lot read this week.Finished: Improv Wisdom: Don't Prepare, Just Show Up Not nearly as good as Improvisation for the Spirit: Live a More Creative, Spontaneous, and Courageous Life Using the Tools of Improv Comedy
Paper Chains Re-read. Charming book about adopted girl with a heart condition who recently moved to Boston.
A Gentleman in Moscow For prompt set in a city that has held the Olympics. I really enjoyed this one. Though being exiled in a hotel seems quite vast compared to being quarantined in a house.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy For prompt with AI or a robot. Re-read this in one day. Enjoyable as ever.
How to Be an Antiracist This one is not speaking to me as much as other antiracist books I've read. But I'll discussing it at a book club, so maybe I'll get more out of it from that process. I got more out of Kendi's lecture than his book.
The Golden Compass For prompt title with gold in it. I absolutely love this series! And the HBO miniseries is amazing as well.
Started: Who Do You Serve, Who Do You Protect? Police Violence and Resistance in the United States
Haymarket is offering an e-book of this for free, which is pretty awesome.
The Book Case Don't know what I think of this one yet.
The Great Shelby Holmes Meets Her Match Re-reading this one. It's all right.
QotW: I would say The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy since I read it in one day. I wish Douglas Adams hadn't died so young, so he could have written more!
I'm jealous, Sara - I want to be at the beach. Sounds delightful. Hope you have perfect weather.June feels calmer than the past several months, and I really needed the breather. My only weird issue has been dealing with my father's life insurances. They certainly seem reluctant to part with money, and keep coming up with new information they require. We aren't talking huge amounts here, either. I had no idea how complicated death can be.
I finished three books this week:
The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe - 4 stars, PS #4 (book club) [would also fit for only words on cover, attention grabbing title, or more than 20 letters in title]
I really liked this book by a man who had a two-person book club with his mother while they were at the hospital for her chemo treatments for incurable pancreatic cancer. His mother was a fascinating woman, and her story is told among the discussions of the books they read. It was lovely and inspiring and not nearly as sad as you would think.
Murder Is Easy by Agatha Christie - 3 stars; not for challenge
My monthly Agatha Christie read. Actually, May's read since I got behind with my library closed. This was not my favorite, although I cannot pinpoint why. Must have been my mood at the time.
You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen - 4 stars; PS #1 (published in 2020) [would also fit for book with same title as unrelated movie, flora or fauna in author's name, book involving social media, seven deadly sins]
These authors are 3 for 3 for books that are very intriguing. I wasn't sure how I felt about this one at first, but it still pulled me in and made me finish it quickly. Couldn't wait to see how it turned out. Bring on the next one!
Goodreads: 39/90
Popsugar: 22/40, 7/10
QOTW: See You Are Not Alone, above.
It's Thursday again. It feels both like yesterday and also like ages ago. The world is messing with my sense of time.Finished:
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse - I love this book so much. I want half of these pages on prints or t-shirts or something. I liked it so much the next day I read it to the cat. He seemed to enjoy it. It's unusual. It's entirely rough ink sketches with a line or two. Think of a picture of Pooh and piglet saying something sort of profound. It's a book of those. I was really enjoying it and then one page hit me right at my core. I've added it to my favorites shelf.
All Boys Aren't Blue - Really good. George talks about growing up black and queer, and he shares a lot. It was really nice to read about a family that accepts that having LGBTQ+ people is just something that runs in the family.
My friend's kid's bookshop is still doing curbside/delivery but now you can also book an appointment to shop in the store. I'm still planning way ahead for my friend so I bought and of course read way too many board books today.
Feminist Baby
Let's Find Momo!: A Hide-And-Seek Board Book
Antiracist Baby
Baby Loves Coding!
Where's the Bear?
Little Blue Truck
Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site
Indestructibles: Love You, Baby
And a new picture book for me
Spencer's New Pet
Currently Reading:
The Black Flamingo - I once again have attempted to listen to an audiobook while following in the hardcover. I thought this would be the best way, because of the poetry, and the author reads it, and the book is pretty. Here's where this isn't working as well as I hoped: I have the US audio but the UK hardcover (It's prettier, and it's my PINK book) and they are not the same! He's adapted it because we don't know what Party Rings are and such, but there are also things that have been changed that don't seem to be for that reason so I'm left wondering why. I think I should just pick a format and stick with one. It's interesting to see the changes, but maybe on a second reading.
The Tea Master and the Detective - Actual e-book progress! Currently at 70%
Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre - I don't know if I don't find horror books scary or if I'm just not afraid of Bigfoot anymore. They had some fun with the audiobook. It's mixed media epistolary, and they cast each part. Most of it is a woman's journal, but between her chapters there are interviews/excerpts. The author reads the author/narrator's part, and there are a couple of bits that are supposed to be transcripts from NPR shows, and they got the actual NPR hosts. They got some fun people in there too, like Nathan Fillion, Jeff Daniels etc.
QOTW:
Hmmm... Formats makes this one weird at the moment so I'll give you a few. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse is beautiful, but can be read in a few minutes.
Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations definitely. It's a graphic memoir. The last novels I completely inhaled where Network Effect, The Last Emperox and The City We Became.
It will now be harder to check in on time since my new job is A LOT, but it's great work that I love, so no complaints. I'm still at 45/50 for the challenge; might need to swap a couple of things.
This week I listened to Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil which I enjoyed as far as learning about Savannah, but there were some issues related to racism that prevented me from rating it. It's complicated, because I know this is nonfiction and he's just relaying the things he heard and learned about the history there, but it still makes me cringe to listen to and I wonder if he could have addressed those things. This is for a book club that meets at the end of the month.
I also listened to Then She Was Gone which held my interest, but I realized at the end that there wasn't anything surprising in the entire story and it managed to completely avoid suspenseful scenes. Not a bad thing, I just wouldn't categorize this as a thriller or suspense.
I finished The City We Became for the Tournament of Books summer camp. My comments from that page: I'll admit I was really dreading reading this one, even though I thoroughly enjoyed Jemisin's short story collection, How Long 'Til Black Future Month? This pandemic makes me want to avoid reading SFF (with some exceptions, mainly short stories) but I agree with others here that this story ended up being much lighter than I expected. I was grateful for that when everything else is so heavy right now. I started listening to it right as protests were popping up and as I just started my new (overwhelming but wonderful) job. This meant that my mind couldn't focus on most of the first half. For the second half, I also really connected with the Bronca section, and I noticed my attention perk up with the backyard scene for Aislyn. I did notice the lack of plot however, and I would say I'm about 50-50 on continuing with the series.
I'm currently working through my print copy of Beloved for another book club meeting later this month, and listening to Days of Distraction.
QOTW: One that quickly popped into my mind for this wasn't necessarily the best book ever, but I flew through the print version, which I'm normally slower with. I recommend Out of the Easy for a bit of escapist reading.
I also thought of Girl, Woman, Other for this because of the author's impressive character development.
An audiobook that I've read recently that I couldn't "put down" would be Writers & Lovers, with my all-time favorite being Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood.
Been reading too much news and not a lot of books lately. If any of you guys are protesting, good luck and stay safe out there.Finished reading:
The Mysterious Study of Doctor Sex - A Gideon the Ninth short story featuring Camilla and Palamedes. This was cool. lmao Doctor Sex
Currently reading:
The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps - eh I'm not really feeling this one. It's got the same kind of storytelling cadence as Black Leopard, Red Wolf, but not the story depth, and I'm struggling to care about any of it. Also I'm nearly halfway through the book and we haven't even gotten to the Wildeeps. c'mon c'mon hurry up
QotW: This is an interesting question because I feel like how fast I read a book and how much I like it aren't well correlated. For instance:
- I read The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in a single evening but it was bad bad bad and I do not recommend it to anyone. Similarly I tore through Darling Rose Gold because it was easy reading and I wanted to see how big of a trainwreck it could get, but it was pretty consistently mediocre.
- On the other hand, I adored Gideon the Ninth (fantastic book, easily the best thing I've read this year!) but it did take me a couple weeks to read. I'm glad I took my time with it; I think it benefited from more time to appreciate the atmosphere and the character dynamics.
Lynn wrote: "I evidently live under a rock. Could you please fill me in on the "current controversy"?"JKR made some transphobic comments on twitter. When people called her on it, she doubled down with a transphobic essay. (which I have not read but people say it's pretty bad)
Lynn wrote: "Kendra wrote: "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - I hate the current controversy going on, but I still love these books."I evidently live under a rock. Could you please fill me in on the ..."
Daniel Radcliffe, Katie Leung, Eddie Redmayne, an Emma Watson have all come out in support of trans rights. Katie Leung sort of brilliantly did a twitter thread on her thoughts on Cho Chang that was all ways to support black trans women.
OMG IT'S THURSDAY HOW COULD I FORGET???*ahem*
Finished 19/50
The Holy Angels for "book published in the 20th century". This was a reread for me with my church book club. Just a fabulous book. Absolutely fabulous. Touches on everything you ever needed to know about angels in Christianity and gives a solid historical overview of both the biblical and historical views of angels (and even angels in art!). Highly recommend. Should absolutely be required seminary reading.
Currently Reading
The Shield of Psalmic Prayer for "book published in 2020". Omg this is dense. Wow. It's good stuff, but really, really dense. I'm not making the progress I want on it because it is such heavy reading. Absolutely amazing, but really technical so far.
On Living Simply: The Golden Voice of John Chrysostom for " book on one of the seven deadly sins". Ok. I'm serious. This book is EVERYTHING. Omg. You could start a revolution with this book. Wow. LOVING it.
The Wilderness Journal: 365 Days with the Philokalia for "book with title that caught your attention". Yup. Still here. Every day until 2021, folks!
QotW
Tsubasa Omnibus 6 Omg. I just. This entire series is brilliant and this point of it is just a roller coaster of emotion. I flew through it!
Hello Everyone,I finished 1 book this week:
The Hamilton Affair by Elizabeth Cobbs. Not sure which prompt I’ll use for this one.
Currently Reading:
Deep Creek: Finding Hope in the High Country
QOTW:
Two of my recent reads come to mind. News of the World and The Great Alone. Very different stories, but so good. I really didn’t want them to end.
Hi all, hope you're as well as can be.Finished:
The Girl in the Spider's Web 4 stars
It's not the same with a new writer but there characters are still there. Very glad to get this off of my to read list.
The Sun and Her Flowers 4 stars
I liked this one better than her first collection. It definitely had poems that touched on current events.
Beach Read 3 stars
I was looking forward to this one but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. It was enjoyable none the less.
The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo 4 stars
I was not expecting such painful life experiences for her to talk about. As always she's honest and funny.
Fantastic Beasts - The Crimes of Grindelwald: The Original Screenplay 5 stars
Finally bothering to read a book in my house that I've been meaning to read. I'm not letting J.k. Rowlings idiocy ruin the Harry Potter world.
PS 2020 41/50
PS 2016 30/40
Goodreads 99/150
Currently reading:
Thick: And Other Essays
Blood Heir
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World
QOTW:
I found Beach Read to be unputdownable. But the last book I stayed up reading late into the night was House of Earth and Blood.
This is my first check in also, so I hope I'm doing it right. Progress: 13/50 (once I finish my current book): I'm reading Moloka'i by Alan Brennert, which I listed as #6 on the challenge.
QOFTW: Personally, I really enjoyed The Testaments and could not wait to find out what happened, but I know not everyone loved that book.
Nothing really new here. NYC is cautiously tiptoeing into Phase 1 of reopening and protests continue. I see a few more businesses tentatively opening and more of my favorite local restaurants are now delivering during limited hours daily. I'm still reading Proust and nothing else. So on to the QOTW:
What was the last unputdownable book I read? Has to be His Majesty's Dragon, way outside my comfort zone and genres I like. As part of a team challenge over in Play Book Tag, I was persuaded - strong-armed- into reading it as part of a buddy read. LOVED it! Read like a Napoleonic historical with a cute bromance between the hero and his dragon Temeraire. Napoleonic with a dragon air force. How fun! Could not put it down, just devoured it.
Lately between reading Proust (have 2 weeks to finish -- 400 pages to go) and Pandemic Distraction Syndrome, reading has been difficult.
I don't have much to say this week either--I've been just trying to get used to summer and trying to find a summer job. I did get a little reading done this week, which I am proud of. Finished: The Revenant (a Western). This book was super boring, I wanted to like it, but was disappointed.
Currently Reading: The Hate U Give (book by a WOC). I'm more into this book than expected. Should be done soon.
Goodreads 12/15
PS: 12/50
Starting: The Night Country (book published in 2020) Hopefully I get to this. I'm so close to my Goodreads goal (which I intend to go beyond anyway.
QOTW: Fangirl got super addicting towards the end. (Also Eleanor & Park for that matter) The Hunger Games and Divergent were too, but I read them long ago.
Mod
After Lilith’s posting last week I was determined to watch or read something pertinent to the outright murder of innocent non-white people and since I did not have any unread books that would fulfill this in my house, I chose to watch the movie Just Mercy which was released last year and I never got to watch in the theater. I read and absolutely LOVED the book 4 years ago. It made me ugly cry more than once and I assumed the movie would make me do the same… BTW, I cannot remember where I read about it, but this movie is being offered FREE throughout the Month of June . No excuses. You should watch it. I thought the movie was well-cast and well-acted and I felt it followed the book pretty accurately. Though I will say, the book was better in the fact that he described more than just these two cases he initially took on. And I really enjoyed his writing style. I closed the book and said aloud, "I could move to Alabama and work in the EJI!" I cannot imagine having had so much positive impact on so many lives as he has had. I get goose bumps and start tearing up whenever I think of Bryan Stevenson and his phenomenal work. Now there's a hero!
And as soon as I can afford it I am ordering several of the social justice books I’ve been intending to read but have not yet purchased: White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide, White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, So You Want to Talk About Race, "Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?": A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity. I now own The Fire This Time: A New Generation Speaks About Race (anxious to read and compare to Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time since I read it last year) and We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy. I’m going to slow down on Buddy Reads and concentrate the rest of the year on books to fulfill specific challenge prompts AND these (and perhaps other) social justice books.
I will be purchasing at least one item, more if I can afford it from the Black Lives Matter website next payday. I want the money to go directly to that organization.
Anyway, then I followed Just Mercy with several 1st season episodes of Grace and Frankie. One of my best friends got me onto this show and I admit I love it. Particularly the fact that both Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston play a gay couple. I am just so thrilled that such well-known actors are doing that! Yay for them! And I do appreciate the writing and the acting is superb, IMO. And I’m finally getting something out of my Netflix subscription! Bonus!
And I finally watched American Factory, the first film produced by Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions company. I had good intentions of watching this way before now. It is also available on Netflix, so yay! I enjoyed the documentary with the Obamas and the couple who made the film also. It was quite interesting. They literally set no agenda and simply filmed to allow the story to unfold as it would through the years following the shutdown. This was proof that politicians make deals to reopen/repurpose factories with companies from other countries/cultures with no thought as to compatibility between the workers and owners. It was quite revealing in many ways. I regret that Ronald Reagan began busting up unions and other high-ranking politicians have perpetrated this trend in the US. Are they perfect? NO! (What institution or organization is?) Are they necessary? Absolutely! IMO. When I was teaching full-time I joined without any hesitation even though I needed every penny I could get to feed and clothe my children. It was a no-brainer for me.
The Map of Salt and Stars discussion is ongoing. I have already learned some new perspectives from other Goodreaders’ postings! (I think Goodreaders should be a word!) I love it when that happens!
Popsugar: 46/50
ATY: 47/52
RHC: 16/24
Reading Women: 14/26
For the first time in a long time I added no new prompts completed to any of these challenges this past week! But I did make progress on some monthly and quarterly challenges, so it’s all good!
FINISHED:
Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak for the 2020 Reading Challenge June monthly read AND a reread after 50 years. I was amazed at just how much my memory of this book was affected by my having watched the movie at least 4 times after having read the book. Honestly, I remembered very little to none of the last 50 pages or so of the book! That’s scary! I remembered the movie ending quite well, however! ;) It is totally different from that of the book. I’m really glad I reread this. I had obviously missed much of the political philosophy when I was young, and really ended up having little respect for nor really liking either Yurii or Lara 50 years later. What a difference 50 years makes!
Popsugar: #3-“On they went, singing “Rest Eternal,” and whenever they stopped, their feet, the horses, and the gusts of wind seemed to carry on their singing.”, #5, #12, #24-I know nothing about living through revolutionary uprisings, famine, or police state oppression, #27-Pride, Lust, Greed, Envy, Wrath, #33-4.03, #40, #48
ATY: #4-I would have never wanted to live through these revoutions and the resulting famine, unjust persecutions, etc., #10-456 pages, #15-Moscow, #18, #22, #25-Zhivago was a writer, #27-historical fiction, #33, #43, #52
RHC: #7
CONTINUING:
The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu for an event this Sunday and because I really wanted to read it! I hadn’t planned to read it this month, nor this early in the month, but all will be well. I am really enjoying it! I’m about ¼ of the way through it.
The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow for a Buddy Read. I am anxious to dig into this one!
Murder and the First Lady by Elliott Roosevelt. Uncertain when I’ll pick this one up again…too many June Buddy Reads!
PLANNED::
Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid for a Buddy Read and the fact that I am determined to finally read this one! And I know right where it is…unlike…
I really MUST dig these next two out of wherever they are in my house! This weekend! I know they’re here! But exactly where... ;)
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving for a June Buddy Read and the fact that one of my smartest student workers from the past stated this was her favorite book of all time! Definitely a recommendation I will heed!
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain for another Buddy Read. Note: My desire to read this does NOT in any way mean that I consider myself to be “quiet”—far from it! I am simply curious about those who are! ;)
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. I missed the May Buddy Read for this! But I do plan to reread it…hopefully soon?
Question of the week:
What was your last unputdownable book?
The Martian
The Map of Salt and Stars
The Thing About Jellyfish
Children of Virtue and Vengeance
Hello all. I've actually made some progress this week. As I'd hoped, the Hugo nominees are opening up some categories for me.
I finished and really enjoyed The Ten Thousand Doors of January, by Alix E Harrow, and decided that from the description of "bildungsroman", I could count it for task 6.
Like one or two other people I've seen in the last couple of weeks, next up was The City in the Middle of the Night, for 2. Trans or nonbinary author. I had mixed feelings, though. The worldbuilding was great, and I was really interested in the Gelet (the main alien species), but I found most of the human characters annoying, and I felt it finished too abruptly, with too many threads left hanging.
Finally, I've devoured To Be Taught, If Fortunate this morning, which I'm using for 22. About a woman in STEM (the astronauts are also scientists, and the narrator is an engineer). I really like Becky Chambers' writing style, and the way she makes you feel like you're there.
Current totals:
Basic: 26/44
Advanced: 7/10
Total: 33/54
Most of my reading in the near future is going to be Hugo related, primarily the remaining novels and novellas with the odd cozy mystery to break it up. Next up:
The Haunting of Tram Car 015
In an Absent Dream
Middlegame
The Secret, Book & Scone Society
QotW: What was your last unputdownable book?
I've actually had two of them this month, both which I rated 4*: The Westing Game, and To Be Taught, If Fortunate.
The Ten Thousand Doors of January was close, although it stretched over two days, and I put it down to sleep!
Mod
I can't see your shelves so I don't know if you've read it, but I found Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi to be so much better. That book was so amazing, I bought a copy (and I rarely do that!) "How to" rehashes a lot of the same ground he already covered in "Stamped" - I was hoping "How to" would be more of a workbook built on the info in "Stamped" but it wasn't, and it felt like just a watered down version.
Drakeryn wrote: "Lynn wrote: "I evidently live under a rock. Could you please fill me in on the "current controversy"?"JKR made some transphobic comments on twitter. When people called her on it, she doubled down..."
She didn't make a transphobic comment. She said biological sex is real, and trans women aren't the same as cis women.
Mod
aaaaaand ... I've added that audiobook to my wishlist!
how did you get an advance copy of the audiobook?!
Mod
Progress: 13/50 (once I finish my current book): I'm reading Moloka'i by Alan Brennert, which I listed as #6 on the challenge.
QOFTW..."
Welcome, Laureen! (What a cool name!) I don't believe there is any "right" or "wrong"! You did great! :)
Mod
JKR made some transphobic comments on twitter. When people called her on it, she doubled down..."
Ah, I pretty much stay off Twitter.
Hi everyone. Still working from home, and they keep sending us surveys of our home set up and satisfaction with working from home. So I am thinking we are not going to be encouraged to come back to the office any time soon.Finished:
The Country of the Blind is a short story by H.G. Wells, about a valley of blind people in the Andes that are isolated from the rest of the world. I am using it for vision impairment for now, hopefully I will end up reading a full-length book for it eventually.
The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives for a book by a journalist. I was reading The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, but I felt like reading something more real, so I switched to The 57 Bus. It was a really good non-fiction aimed at young adults.
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is the book I set aside because it didn't match with my current mood. But it ended up addressing oddly relevant subjects, like the role of the Peacekeepers. I still didn't love it though. Used it for book with a bird on the cover.
The Mysterious Affair at Styles for a book from a series of more than 20 books.
I am now 35/50 for Popsugar, which is the furthest I have been by far by this time of the year.
Currently reading:
The Jane Austen Society
The Count of Monte Cristo
A Tale of Two Cities on audio
QOTW:
Sadly I have not had trouble putting books down lately. I think the last one I truly could not put down was Spinning Silver.
Mod
Haymarket is offering an e-book of this for free, which is pretty awesome."
Thanks so much for posting this information. Although I much prefer a real book in my hands, I will read an ebook when necessary. Since this is FREE, I feel it is necessary! I have downloaded it on my laptop. Thanks again!
Hello everyone! I've just about reached the halfway mark on all my challenges. Woohoo!Finished
Check, Please!, Book 2: Sticks & Scones - 50. A book with a main character in their 20s
Heartstopper: Volume One - 21. A book published the month of your birthday
How to Steal a Dragon's Sword - BR20 Middle grade not set in the US or UK
The Honey Month - ATY29 Lesser known book
Progress
PS - 25/52 | ATY - 27/52| BR - 11/24
Currently Reading
All These Worlds
A Blade So Black
Tomorrow Will Be Different: Love, Loss, and the Fight for Trans Equality
The Wee Free Men
QOTW
Probably This Is How You Lose the Time War. It's still my top book of the year.
Also All Systems Red and We Are Legion (We Are Bob) were pretty hard to put down.
Lynn wrote: "Less reading done this past week/weekend, mainly because I watched some movies/series. But please allow me to plug a book I recommend to virtually everyone and anyone, but particularly other “white..."Excellent list of books on racism here! I've read almost all of the ones you mentioned and they're all very helpful. I agree that When They Call You a Terrorist is especially important. And I'm a huge fan of Bryan Stevenson and EJI. I highly recommend visiting the memorial and museum in Montgomery when it's safe to travel again!
See you on Zoom Sunday!
Mod
"
I had several challenging situations in the wake of my mother's death. It can be long and complicated. Glad you're getting a bit of a breather, however! Hang in there!
"The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe - 4 stars, PS #4 I really liked this book by a man who had a two-person book club with his mother while they were at the hospital for her chemo treatments for incurable pancreatic cancer. His mother was a fascinating woman, and her story is told among the discussions of the books they read. It was lovely and inspiring and not nearly as sad as you would think."
I really enjoyed this book as well. And I would agree, it was not as sad as you might expect it to be.
"You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen - 4 stars; PS #1 (published in 2020) These authors are 3 for 3 for books that are very intriguing. I wasn't sure how I felt about this one at first, but it still pulled me in and made me finish it quickly. Couldn't wait to see how it turned out. Bring on the next one!"
I had forgotten they have another one out now! I really enjoyed the first two as well and agree...bring on the next one! ;) What a writing team they are!
No major life updates here. There's still a pandemic. There's still racism and the fight against police brutality. Still working from home.I have successfully started to take one of my cats on walks, which is fun. He mostly walks a bit, then flops down and rolls around in the grass. Then after a minute or two, he'll get up and walk some more haha. But he likes it and it's a good reason for me to get outside.
Finished:
The Map of Salt and Stars: Loved it! I used it as my book by a trans or non-binary author
Currently Reading:
The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine by Mark Twain: This will be my blind-pick book. It's adorable so far! I wanted something a little lighter, which I expected from this since it's a children's book, but it's also surprisingly heavy thus far lol.
Upcoming:
Hopefully The Hate U Give. I got it from Overdrive but knew I couldn't handle it at the moment, so I returned it and stayed on the waiting list, so I should get it any day now. But it depends on when the next copy gets returned.
QOTW:
I've read a few books that would typically be ones I couldn't put down, but thanks to everything happening, I've had trouble focusing even on those. I'd probably say The Bear and the Nightingale. I think if I'd been reading The Map of Salt and Stars instead of listening, that might have also been one I sped through.
Mod
A friend of mine was planning a trip to Montgomery so I told her about EJI, etc., and she ended up visiting and bringing some of the information back to me. She was so grateful to learn of it. That made me feel good!
Yep! Halfway through Liu's collection. There have been a couple that were a bit too grisly for me, but some that have been truly captivating! See you Sunday!
Mod
JKR made some transphobic comments on twitter. When people called her on it,...
She didn't make a transphobic comment. She said biological sex is real, and trans women aren't the same as cis women."
Ah, sounds as if it was a matter of interpretation of the comment and perhaps evaluating it within context. Honestly, I'm not even going to bother trying to find it. Sounds like something I can avoid. I try to use non-gendered pronouns to avoid any misunderstanding. I think that is the best way to communicate effectively.
Christine wrote: "Hi everyone! I found out this week that I've developed anemia, and I feel weirdly vindicated, like, "Hey, I'm not just getting old or unable to face life or something - I have something that can be..."Glad to hear that you have a diagnosis! It really helps so that you and health care practitioner can make plans. Wishing you good health!
Kenya wrote: "Sheri wrote: "Lovecraft Country - This is going to be the august book for my books & brew, but I'm jumping on it early because I want to have it finished before the show comes out. I've never actua..."Glad to hear that this will be on Netflix! There seems to be a movement to write about the mythos created by Lovecraft, but challenging the racism.
Victor LaValle is an amazing writer, and blew my mind with his 2 books, The Ballad of Black Tom as well as The Changeling. Looking forward to reading Lovecraft Country!
Lilith, just so you know, it’s HBO, not Netflix. Standard HBO, not the hbo max they keep pushing as far as I can tell
Brittany wrote: "Hello all! So I guess it's becoming a pattern for me to check-in every other week. I completely spaced last week given everything that was (and still is) going on. I read through last weeks posts..."
Hi Brittany,
I'm glad that you understood my post in the positive way that it was meant. And I was very interested in your comments on The Vegetarian! This has been on my TBR for a while, and now I am thinking of placing a hold on this book. It keeps calling my name...
Sherry wrote: "Hello EverybodyI finally finished a book Only took me 3 months.*Happy Dance* I don't think I have EVER spent this much time to read a book. But my mind seems to be returning to some what normal. ..."
Congratulations to your daughter!
Lynn wrote: "Lilith wrote: "Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire. I had a really hard time getting through the first half of the book. I'd read a page and fall asleep. I can buzz through 650+ page of politic..."Lynn, I think it's just me! The book has won at least 3 awards that I recall, and everyone seems to *love* it. I do like Seanan McGuire's writing style, and loved the ace and trans representation. I guess I am just wired differently ;)
Teri wrote: "I'm jealous, Sara - I want to be at the beach. Sounds delightful. Hope you have perfect weather.June feels calmer than the past several months, and I really needed the breather. My only weird iss..."
Wishing you all the best with all the challenges surrounding paperwork. Deaths are hard enough, and the last thing we need are insurance hassles.
Drakeryn wrote: "Been reading too much news and not a lot of books lately. If any of you guys are protesting, good luck and stay safe out there. Thank you, Drakeryn! We are certainly making every effort. My spine is kicking up a fuss, so may be taking a few days off...
Laureen wrote: "This is my first check in also, so I hope I'm doing it right. Progress: 13/50 (once I finish my current book): I'm reading Moloka'i by Alan Brennert, which I listed as #6 on the challenge.
QOFTW..."Welcome, Laureen! There's no one way to check in. You are doing great.
Lynn wrote: "Less reading done this past week/weekend, mainly because I watched some movies/series. But please allow me to plug a book I recommend to virtually everyone and anyone, but particularly other “white..."Lynn, this is an amazing recommendation! Very hard-hitting, in a good way.
I chose to watch the movie Just Mercy which was released last year and I never got to watch in the theater. I read and absolutely LOVED the book 4 years ago. It made me ugly cry more than once and I assumed the movie would make me do the same… BTW, I cannot remember where I read about it, but this movie is being offered FREE throughout the Month of June .
Yes, I'm getting ready for the ugly crying. I have Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption on hold. Bryan Stevenson is my kind of hero!
And as soon as I can afford it I am ordering several of the social justice books I’ve been intending to read but have not yet purchased:
This is a fantastic list - some I've read and appreciate all of the impact, and others I look forward to. I managed to somehow jump the list on Libby with White Fragility as a Lucky Day read. This is a reread for a group I'm in, and it's tricky to contribute, because I'm now mixing authors up.
Sheri wrote: "Lilith, just so you know, it’s HBO, not Netflix. Standard HBO, not the hbo max they keep pushing as far as I can tell"Oh thank you - I don't have tv, but my BFF does, so I may be able to watch this with her.
Nadine wrote: "I can't see your shelves so I don't know if you've read it, but I found Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi to be so much better. That book was so amazing, I bought a copy (and I rarely do that!) "How to" rehashes a lot of the same ground he already covered in "Stamped" - I was hoping "How to" would be more of a workbook built on the info in "Stamped" but it wasn't, and it felt like just a watered down version."Good to know. I have both of them on hold at the library, but I'll stick with Stamped.
Hey Guys. This is my first check-in. Just came across. Guess wasn't paying attention to this part of Goodreads :/Happy to be here :D
This week I finished:
- Red, White and Royal Blue (Casey McQuiston)
- I Know Your Secret (Ruth Heald)
- The Switch (Beth O'Leary)
I've been lucky with these book. They've been amazing stories with interesting characters & writing, and all different genres.
Going to read:
- A Room of One's Own (my first Woolf :O)
- Beach Read by Emily Henry
Planning to start a new series this month too
- Broken Earth Trilogy by Jemisin
Btw, I'm from India. And we have quite a mix of situations here. Pandemic, Political issues, Cyclones & Earthquakes all in the past few months. Basically, like everywhere else in the world. Lol. Hoping for the best though :D
Good to read y'alls messages :)
Welcome to all of you who are first-timers to the weekly check-ins. This is actually my favorite part of this group.
Mod
Also, to add to the confusion, there is the original book:
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi
and then he collaborated with Jason Reynolds for a YA book:
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You (I have not read this one - has anyone read both and can compare teh two for us?)
And I'm not helping matters by just abbreviating the first book as "Stamped"!
Someone in this group mentioned somewhere that the YA version is good but the full book is better. I'll go with the Definitive History version for full impact.
Katy wrote: "She didn't make a transphobic comment. She said biological sex is real, and trans women aren't the same as cis women."From my understanding, what you're referring to is a different comment than the one that people are considering transphobic and/or it's her behaviour as a whole within the entire situation that people are considering to be transphobic.
She posted something else very clearly and harmfully insinuating that you have to menstruate to be considered a woman and about making the world a better place for people who menstruate (and lots of people on book twitter have shared screenshots if anyone cares to go searching). People were replying to her and calling her on that statement trying to explain that that's TERF because trans women are still women (also many comments about women who have gone through menopause, women who are on specific types of birth control to stop periods are all of course still women as well). When that was pointed out to her she blocked people who were pointing that out and doubled down and got defensive at first instead of acknowledging that her remarks were hurtful. I'm pretty sure that she then removed the initial comment(s?) and issued a blanket apology but didn't really acknowledge the problem and that that's why people are so upset at her/cancelling her. I know that several bookish-subscription boxes have publicly come out and stated they won't be including any more HP merch because of it and several of the cast/people involved in the HP films have spoken up for trans rights.
*Just be aware that this is second-hand information for me and that I haven't delved into twitter. I only saw bits and pieces of this happening first-hand and there still might be some details missing. (I've seen some headlines about her backing other transphobic comments too but am not informed as to what that's about.)
EDIT Just noticed that Holly over at Holly Hearts Books newly uploaded a youtube video about this situation on her channel. So might want to check that out here
Lilith wrote: "Lynn wrote: "Lilith wrote: "Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire. I had a really hard time getting through the first half of the book. I'd read a page and fall asleep. I can buzz through 650+ pa..."It's not just you!! I read Every Heart A Doorway a few weeks ago and had some super unpopular opinions...I gave it one star. xD I would have DNF'd if it wasn't so short and I wasn't listening on audio. I talked about it in my weekly check in but I posted later in the thread on a friday I think. This one was a great example of a book that had a great concept but was just written in a way that was all wrong for me personally. XD
There was a ton that I didn't like about it but my main points were:
-The way that the magical realism was included! (It a. weakened my empathy for the situation of these characters because it's supposed to be about them missing "home" and being stuck back in the real world except oh wait..they still have magical elements from "home" with them...and b. seemed to only be there to conveniently solve minor plot points.)
-Plot was way too coincidental and super predictable
-Not enough delving into the portal fantasy worlds! I felt like I knew almost nothing about any of the worlds by the time the book was over.
-The first and second book spoil some of each others' plot points and given that the first book seemed fairly light on plot to begin with that's ughh.
-The characterization of so many characters is mediocre at best and felt flat/one dimensional to me to the point where I wasn't invested in any of the characters and just didn't really care what happened to any of them so the plot was further weakened for me. xD I also can't believe that in a group setting, everyone would have the same response to certain themes... (view spoiler) Jack's characterization specifically is so ..wonky?!..she's somehow heartless and caring at the same time and I just didn't get it, she seemed all over the place.
-The reps included seemed like they were just there to mark off a checklist and weren't explored nearly enough. There were 1 or 2 pretty basic quotes about real issues/experiences but that's it.
-I also didn't love that it randomly railed on Narnia. We expanded on this already in that weekly thread but the circumstances surrounding the Pevensie children's return to the real world are different and if you read subsequent books in the series it becomes obvious that they don't retain a clear memory of their experiences in Narnia so it kind of makes sense that they would have different ramifications back in the real world than the kids in Every Heart and shouldn't necessarily be compared in the way that this book does that.
I think it probably doesn't help that I love fantasy + usually don't care for magical realism and that my favourites tend to be super long and complex so I approached this book through that lens too.
Drakeryn wrote: "Lynn wrote: "I evidently live under a rock. Could you please fill me in on the "current controversy"?"JKR made some transphobic comments on twitter. When people called her on it, she doubled down..."
wow, I had no idea. That makes me pretty sad.
It's been a good reading week, I finished: Recursion - another book slotted in for the wrong prompt. I had chosen it for "Book with only words on the cover", but then I took a closer look at the cover (I was listening to the audiobook) and saw the infinity symbol...
The book itself was good, I wasn't amazed by it in any case, but still a good sci-fi. One thing I will give the author, he can keep his timelines and POVs straight. I wasn't confused at any point about what, when and where was happening. So I do recommend it. 3,75 stars.
The Princess Bride - ATY, 11th prompt - 5 stars! Wow, I loved it! The whole thing with S. Morgenstern, the story itself, the descriptions, the ending - everything was perfect. I'm also watching the movie tonight, so I hope they did the book justice.
That makes 23/50 for PS
Currently Reading:
Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore
Rivers of London
QOTW
Well recently Three Apples Fell from the Sky and Magpie Murders, but years ago I would grab The Secret Garden and just read it in one sitting
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
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The Third Angel (other topics)
The River King (other topics)
The Third Angel (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Karen MacInerney (other topics)Seanan McGuire (other topics)
Sarah Addison Allen (other topics)
Mary Robinette Kowal (other topics)
Mary Robinette Kowal (other topics)
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Finished
Bridge to Terabithia
Charlotte's Web
While I love both these books and highly recommend them, I do NOT..."
Wow, unlucky timing! At least you got all the sad out of the way in one day?