Ryan’s Comments (group member since May 10, 2024)

Ryan’s comments from the Brothers and Books group.

Day 9 of the 5 in 30 Challenge! How's everyone feeling so far? Keep pushing forward and remember that every page read and every book finished is a win. Share your progress below—we'd love to hear how you're going! How are your books and how is your fundrasing going? Let's keep the momentum going together!

I have a hope that when you are on the main group page and see the challenge you can click a link at the bottom which will allow you to add books as you finish them to keep track. Let me know if that is the case.

Adam wrote: "Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand.

Here's a quick summary (provided with AI assistance).

Atlas Shrugged is a novel by Ayn Rand that explores themes of individualism, capitalism, and the power of the hum..."

Adam, Thanks for leaving a reccomendation. I have a copy on my shelf that I am yet to read. Your review has pushed it further up my TBR pile. I have heard that the importance of taking responsibility for actions and the power of leadership are some of the themes throughout the novel and certainly agree it would be interesting for military readers.

Belinda wrote: "Hey Ryan
I’ve actually recently received this book(meditations) as a gift. Thanks for your review. It has convinced me to read it next - as soon as I have finished my 5 in 30. Thanks"

Belinda, That is awesome to hear. I'll look forward to hearing about what you think of it. Do you know what translation of Meditations it is?

Vicki wrote: "Hi all,

Well I can’t decided on just 5 books. Every time I think I get my 5, I add another book or change it all around.

This far I’ve already read
- Glow of the everflame (Book 2)

And 1/2 way..."

I have already changed my 5 as well! Work has gone hectic so my mood changes as does my reading choices. This is why I end up doing more books during the readathon because I keep addidng new reads.

Bethany wrote: "Hi all! 😀

I'm an avid reader outside of work hours, averaging about eight books a month. To challenge myself I've decided to try and double my TBR for the readathon. I'm asking my friends and fami..."

It's great to set a high goal for yourself. :-) In my first readathon I ended up doing 25 books. I was on school holidays, had so much time for reading and I just set a goal and crushed it. I hope you are able to crush yours as well.

Erin wrote: "I've picked 5 out but I'm a bit of a mood reader too so it might change!
-Good For A Girl by Lauren Fleshman
-Normal People by Sally Rooney
-The Backyard Adventurer by Beau Miles
-How I Became athe..."

I enjoyed Tia Clair Toomey's book. Hopefully you enjoy the read as well. Let me know what you think of it!

Johanna wrote: "I have not yet picked the books. But I am unsure how I can log the books I end up reading?"

Johanna, if you mean logging the books in an official capacity for the challenge there isn't a way. If you would like to log a book on Goodreads, add a book to your shelf as read, the the dates read and leave a review. :-)

One of my reads will be 'Tunnel 29'. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

Now I just need to hunt down 4 more.

September is fast approaching and its almost time for the Worlds Coolest Readathon. Have you started planning for the fundraiser?
I like to have my 5 books chosen ahead of time though I rarely follow through with those choices as I am a bit of a mood reader. I see that our esteemed founder Dylan has revealed he will be reading 'Finding Gobi' as one of his picks. What are you planning to read?

I will drop a couple of reviews here in addition to the insta page. I've just had the chance to read Mark Wales new book.

“Jess flinched at the very mention. Outrider. Rare. Highly trained. All combat experienced, with multiple tours. Extremely high IQs. Their capabilities could turn battles. Storms. Earthquakes. Tactical nukes. Outriders were the most elite troops AUKUS ever created, and they’d been hunted since the occupation began in 2029.”


Background: When you are asked to be the Reading Officer of Brothers and Books you get some pretty nifty perks, such as receiving Advanced Reader Copies of books. Thank you Mark Wales and his team at Pan Macmillan Australia for providing me with a copy of Outrider for review.


Lessons: Can we learn from a Fiction in the same way that we can learn lessons from Non-Fiction. Absolutely.


“What if there’s no hope?”
“There’s always hope. There’s always a way,” said Harry.
“That’s the truth,” said Jack.


The theme of Hope is central to this book. Hope has the profound ability to inspire, motivate and sustain individuals through challenges and adversity. Jack Dunne harnesses and models this Hope to his young son throughout the book and we can see the positive effects this has on the 12 year old boy who has known nothing but war.


Conclusions: Mark has created a vast and interesting new world for his creation Jack Dunne to play in. This story brings the visceral writing of Matthew Reilly together with the cinematic action of George Miller’s Mad Max Saga. But don’t be fooled into thinking you're in for mindless action because beneath the chaos that is occupied Victoria this is a story of a father and son that is reminiscent of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road.

Outrider
Mark Wales

This section has a dual purpose, to help you if you're searching for the title of a particular book, or if you're looking for new reading suggestions.

Do you want to read a challenging book? Do you want to bond with another reader? Do you want to read a book or series along with other people? Arrange and discuss here!

I love books! I devour them. But it wasn't until I did my first 5 in 50 readthon when I discovered that while I was reading solely for pleasure and escapeism, I wasn't reading for self development. This is to say, I wasnt learning from the characters/writers journey, the mistakes they made, the growth they had.

That all changed and I encountered what has now become one of my all time loved books, Marcus Aureliu's Meditations (Hays Translation). This book lives on my bedside table and whenever I feel down, angry, overly emotional (happy or sad) it still shapes my behaviour and guides me in times of doubt.

What is yours?