LZD's 2020 ATY Challenge

[Laura Z]

50. A book with a silhouette on the cover

FICTION - The Calculating Stars, Mary Robinette Kowal: “Still. You make math seem interesting.” “Well, it is.” I shrugged. “Oh, I know it isn’t for most folks, but I think they’ve just been put off by people who taught them to be afraid of numbers.” I don't usually give the first book in a series five stars, but I've made an exception for this one. It's a complete novel - a beginning, a middle, and a satisfying conclusion. Yes, I want to know what comes next, but I don't feel cheated. Great book! ★★★★★

NONFICTION - Where Nobody Knows Your Name: Life In the Minor Leagues of Baseball, John Feinstein: "The most poignant stories in sports are never about the multimillionaires who make their games look easy but about the guys who love their games, even though they often fail while playing them." Bittersweet look at life in the minor leagues. ★★★★

[Laura Z]

51. A book with an "-ing" word in the title

FICTION - The Binding, Bridget Collins: “May your darkness be quiet and the light come sooner than you need." Well, that was lovely. Beautifully written, the story may start off slow, but it builds into a darkly romantic and exciting climax. I loved it. ★★★★★

NONFICTION - The Book of Eating: Adventures in Professional Gluttony, Adam Platt: A bit ho-hum. Platt was sometimes humorously self-deprecating, but I just didn't feel that this book had the wit or sparkle that it should have had. The most interesting parts were about his family's adventures when Adam was growing up. I'm still not really sure how he became a food critic... ★★★

[Laura Z]

52. A book related to time

Here and Now and Then, Mike Chen: "[W]e’re all different people all through our lives, but that’s okay, as long as you remember all the people you used to be." I don't know where all those 3 star ratings came from... I thought this was great sci-fi! The tech was smart, the action was exciting, and I really cared about the characters. ★★★★★

[Laura Z]

Book Covers 2020