Week 7 Check In

[Sheri]

Hi everyone, hope you are all holding in there.

I don' t know if anyone in the group is in Texas, hope you are staying safe and warm if so. Hope everyone is, really!

This week I finished:

Empire of Wild - this was pretty good, but the ending was extremely abrupt and left me confused. I couldn't tell if it was a cliffhanger for another book later, or if I was supposed to read something into it that I was clearly not grasping. Counted this for Popsugar book by an Indigenous author, Read Harder genre fiction by an Indigenous author, ATY cross genre book (horror-thriller-paranormal), Book Nerds book with a nonhuman character.

The House in the Cerulean Sea - I really loved this, so charming. I think my books & brew is going to do it later in the year, i'll have to do the print version. The audio book was a good rendition, but I have trouble fully absorbing the whole thing. I'll get more once I read it in print. Still fills the HP loving part of my heart that is kind of vacant right now. I've not really been able to even think about HP without feeling sad, so it's nice to find a good story in a similar vein that I can feel good about. Counted for Popsugar book about fresh starts, ATY book set on an island, Read Harder book where a beloved pet doesn't die, Book Nerds book with N, S, C in the title.

Currently Reading:

Plain Bad Heroines - Enjoying this so far, sort of a creepy horror story meets making of horror movie type thing.

Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools - well written and researched, obviously not very light reading.

1Q84 - still plugging away, read another chapter or so.

Sorry no question this week, been migrained and can't think.

[Megan]

I just checked in on the last check in post yesterday, but since I happened to see this, I will report that I am almost finished with The School of Essential Ingredients for IRL book club #1 on Sunday, and it is delightful. It is a very quick read, and I would have finished it by now if I hadn't stayed up watching TV too late so much recently. :)

Speaking of TV, is anyone else watching the Masterpiece Sunday night lineup of All Creatures Great and Small, Miss Scarlet and the Duke, and/or The Long Song? I heard that ACGS has already been renewed for a second season!

Like Sheri, I hope that anyone in Texas is hanging in there - I love Texas and have always felt so at home there (there are a lot of things that are strangely similar to Ohio), so it's been awful watching what folks there are going through. And Sheri, I hope you're able to get some rest this weekend and put your migraine behind you!

[Rebecca]

It's been just above freezing and rainy here. I would like to have snow, but I also like to have power and water, so I'm trying not to complain. We should have sun this weekend!

For Black History Month I decided to read Native Son. This is another one for the "why didn't we read this in high school?" list. I found it very affecting; at one point I had put it down after my work break, and while I was working I had this nagging guilty feeling, like I was going to be caught out doing something wrong. I kept trying to figure out if there was something I had forgotten, but eventually I realized it was just transference from the book. I will say that the last of the three sections was much weaker than the first two, devolving into literal speechifying by the characters. Still worth the read.

Next I changed tack because my hold came in for The Thursday Murder Club. The author is apparently a TV presenter in the UK, but I'd never heard of him until this book. It was fantastic. The titular club was formed by members of a retirement village who meet weekly to discuss cold cases, until they get the chance to solve a current crime when a murder occurs in their town. This is not a clued mystery - in fact the author intentionally doles out bits of information in order to give the reader a constantly shifting series of wrong impressions - but the characters are great, it's very funny, and I will totally read the sequel that is apparently in work.

Last this week was This Book Is Anti-Racist: 20 Lessons on How to Wake Up, Take Action, and Do the Work. This is clearly intended for young people, but I figured I'd give it a try. It wasn't quite what I was expecting; there are a lot of brainstormy-type exercises on writing down your identities, history, and stuff like that, and really only a couple of examples of actual situations and steps to take in them. I was really hoping for more of the latter. It seems like it would work best in a youth discussion group setting.

Got some physical library holds in, so that'll be my weekend excitement.

[Sheri]

Rebecca, I actually did read Native Son in high school! I think my district must have tried a bit harder than some for diversity. I remember also reading Raisin in the Sun, and A Color Purple. Not an amazing selection, but more than the zero it seems like other schools did.

[Jen W.]

I've never been to Texas, but my company has an office there, so I've been hearing from co-workers in Austin all week about what they're dealing with. My heart really goes out to everyone in Texas. Stay safe and warm!

Finishes last week:

The Midnight Bargain - I really enjoyed this, my genre hybrid for Popsugar. This was a Victorian England–esque setting, but in a fantasy world with fictional countries and magic. I would call it psuedo-historical romance + fantasy, because it definitely evoked the historical romance feel.

A bunch of manga I had to take back to the library: Komi Can't Communicate, Vol. 8, Komi Can't Communicate, Vol. 9, Again!! 12, The Promised Neverland, Vol. 15, The Promised Neverland, Vol. 16, Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 15

I'm currently reading Where the Crawdads Sing, which will be my Popsugar book everyone seems to have read but me. It's okay so far. I can see why it's popular book club fodder. Definitely not my genre of choice, and kind of depressing, but I also really feel for the main character. I think overall I'll be glad that I read this, even if it's not a favorite.

[Sheri]

Jennifer, My book club read Crawdads a while ago and I felt kind of the same. It was fine, liked it reasonably well, glad I read it, but it wasn't the OMG hype that a lot of people seem to have for it.

[Rebecca]

Sheri wrote: "Rebecca, I actually did read Native Son in high school!"

We read Invisible Man and I felt like I just. Did. Not. Get it. I even borrowed someone's CliffsNotes but it just summarized what happened and I was still like "but whyyyy". I think Native Son would've been easier to process.

[Daniele]

I skipped a week, but since the last time I posted I finished two books:

Bingo Love #1, a great graphic novel about finding love in unexpected places. Used for the Book Nerds "Own voices" prompt.

Zone One, which I just finished and I'm still processing my thoughts. Colson Whitehead is a brilliant author, no doubt. But there's something about this book that I just didn't connect with, except in these absolutely brilliant moments that were too few and far between. This book is at the center of the Venn diagram between The Road, Catch-22, and a zombie apocalypse. Like those books, I recognize the talent but, but... *sigh* I slotted it in the Book Nerds "book about hope" prompt.

14/100

I'm now diving back into NK Jemisin's Broken Earth trilogy, so I know that will be an enjoyable read, no matter where the story goes.

I'm hunkered down for the winter, but at least I always know it's coming. Warm wishes for anyone facing Mother Nature's wrath.

[Shel]

One finish for me last week - The King Must Die by Mary Renault. Used for the re-telling prompt - it's a more historical treatment of the story of Theseus, informed by archeological research. I found it slow going at first but it picked up later. I wavered whether to rate it 3 or 4 stars because Theseus himself irritated me. I ended up going with 4 on the strength of the story, and the things that annoyed me about the narrator were totally in character for a Greek hero. Of course he's strong and beautiful and egotistical and can do no wrong...that doesn't read as realistic in a modern story, but, well, he WAS a Greek hero, so I suppose he SHOULD be an archetype! There is a sequel that I may read someday (this book covers the time from his childhood through his escape from Crete and abandonment of Ariadne before returning to Athens) but I don't feel compelled to run out and get it immediately.

I've not made any real progress on Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents since starting it last week. I'm not in a good mental space for something so serious.

Kiddo and I are well into The Son of Neptune and I really like the direction that Riordan is taking this sequel series.

I'm horrified by what I'm seeing down in TX right now. I do not have any close friends or family there, but some FB acquaintances have shared some crazy things. Of course it's wintry up here (greater Boston area) but we know how to handle it and I took my family cross-country skiing the other day, it was great fun.

[Trystan]

i finished The Once and Future Witches this week - wow! i loved everything about it! a few things more than others, and one was quite suble. no spoilers though. :)

i'm now reading Leave the World Behind - it's a good read, as expected thusfar. i'm waiting for the twist XD

[Marina]

Hope everyone is safe and warm! It's been lovely, summer weather out here, but I've been enjoying seeing all the pictures of snow (where it's not been causing too much difficulty at least).

Finished The Hand, the Eye and the Heart, which was okay? Didn't love it, didn't hate it.

Just today finished the audiobook Storm Front. I was excited to read this, since I know a lot of people really enjoy the series and I am always here for magical detectives. But, to be honest, I found it a bit irritating. I suspect if I'd read it when I was younger I would have enjoyed it more. But I have a lot less patience these days for the saviour/martyr sort of complex and characters that insist on believing that they are responsible for everything and must protect everyone (usually by failing to give any sort of trust or agency to those other people) and could not possibly seek any sort of help or assistance. Plus, I found the physical descriptions of people a bit cringey at times too. So, I'll probably leave it there for the Dresden Files. If anyone has any alternative magical detectives for me to check out, let me know!

Currently reading The Good Immigrant, which has been on my tbr pile for ages. Neither non fiction nor compilations are my usual thing, but I'm enjoying this so far.

[Sheri]

Marina, I get what you’re saying about Dresden. I still like it ok, but I don’t LOVE it like some do.

Have you tried October Daye books by Seanan McGuire? Half fae detective, lots of fun stories.

[Marina]

Sheri wrote: "Marina, I get what you’re saying about Dresden. I still like it ok, but I don’t LOVE it like some do.

Have you tried October Daye books by Seanan McGuire? Half fae detective, lots of fun stories."

I'll add it to my list!

[Shel]

I’ll second October Daye! I read the first few Dresden books a while back and they were ok but I didn’t love them like everyone else seems to.

[Shel]

Also, I realized that I forgot a finish (I thought it was last week but I guess not) - Recursion by Blake Crouch, which I could NOT put down. So good!

[Sheri]

I will say I think Dresden files does hit its stride around book 4, but that’s not me saying “go read more”. I won’t deny Harry’s written to be pretty sexist, and while he acknowledges it himself, doesn’t really change behavior much. I can still generally enjoy the epic adventure ok while rolling eyes at Harry, but I totally get when people say that’s a deal breaker for them. There’s plenty of other good urban fantasy out there!

[Jen W.]

I agree with Sheri's assessment. I am a fan of the Dresden books, but the early books are not that great. I think I'm more invested in the characters around Harry than I am Harry himself at this point. I can see where Harry's antics would be off-putting.

As far as supernatural detective stories, Laura Anne Gilman had a series about basically a magical CSI unit. I remember really liking it, but it's been a while since I've read it, so take it with a grain of salt. Hard Magic

[Sheri]

Not exactly a detective book, but I did ebioy Strange Practice by Vivian Shaw, first of the Greta VanHelsing books. Greta is a doctor to the supernatural but gets pulled into a mystery when someone’s attacking her clients. The regular world doesn’t know about the supernatural so Greta doesn’t really have authorities to turn to so investigates herself with the help of friends/clients

[Kristi]

I have a couple finishes to report. The first was Amberlough. I loved the setting and intrigues (and writing), but things took a turn for the very dark by the end and that was a little hard to take. It didn't feel out of place with what had been set up earlier, but I guess I was hoping some characters would fare better than they did. Once I adjusted my expectations (and adapted to the very grim events), I finished book 1 in a hurry and am eagerly awaiting library holds for the next two.

Cottage for Sale, Must Be Moved: A Woman Moves a House to Make a Home. This was a gentle little memoir written by a woman on Cape Cod who happened to drive past a lot and see a group of summer cottages for sale. She fell in love with one and figured it would be the perfect add-on to her current, tiny home. The books covers the year or so that it took to purchase, move, and fix up the cottage, and has lots of asides reflecting on life, the universe, and everything. It was a perfect pandemic read, and now I want to go visit Cape Cod when it's safe to travel again.

Re: The Dresden books - I agree with what others have said - the series is slow to get going, and the ensemble of characters tend to be a lot more compelling than Dresden himself, but the books certainly aren't everyone's cup of tea. At least 5 times per book, I cringe at something Harry does or says, but I like the plots, concepts, and characters enough otherwise to keep reading.

[Trystan]

Shel wrote: "Also, I realized that I forgot a finish (I thought it was last week but I guess not) - Recursion by Blake Crouch, which I could NOT put down. So good!"
i read that! agreed!!

[Susan]

I have no finishes this week. Last week I had jus barely started A Square Meal: A Culinary History of the Great Depression. I'm about a quarter to a third of the way through. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it is only okay for me at the moment. It is a bit dry even for non-fiction. But I'm learning a lot.

I have only made some progress on my audiobook The Vital Abyss. Hopefully warmer weather means I'll walk outside more.

I'm loving a lot of the ideas here. I have added a bunch to my TBR list.

Maybe I'm late to this party, but TIL that Stacey Abrams is also a novelist! I did not know this. I added both her upcoming book While Justice Sleeps and some of her romance novels (written as Selena Montgomery) to my Want to read list.