Jenny (Reading Envy)’s Comments (group member since Mar 04, 2017)

Jenny (Reading Envy)’s comments from the Reading Envy Readers group.

Nadine in California wrote: "the thought of deleting Goodreads gives me the hives. Maybe I've got a problem....... "

Oh I could never, but I think there is space for these multiple experiences. ;)

Yanira shares why she deleted Goodreads and how it's improved her reading life, and we talk about rereading books before we dig into books we've read and liked lately.

http://readingenvy.blogspot.com/2022/...

One month in to non-fiction, two to go.

I got through:
The Genius Under the Table: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain
Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad
Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine, 1921-1933

In May I'm hoping to read:
Other Russias
Pushkin's Children: Writing on Russia and Russians
Twenty Letters to a Friend

And I have a few from the library I want to try but have not yet mentally committed to:
From Russia with Blood: The Kremlin's Ruthless Assassination Program and Vladimir Putin's Secret War on the West
Nothing Is True and Everything Is Possible: The Surreal Heart of the New Russia
On Our Way Home from the Revolution: Reflections on Ukraine
A Russian Diary: A Journalist's Final Account of Life, Corruption & Death in Putin's Russia

It is! I've made it past chapter 6. So many names! But one thing that remains constant is the creativity and resiliency of the Ukrainians (or is that the bias of the author?)

At the end of March, a handful of us gathered to discuss what we had read for the Russian novel quarter of Reading Envy Russia. We also discuss the works we abandoned, some dips into Ukrainian literature, and talked more about what makes a novel quintessentially Russian. Thanks to all who joined in during this chat, in Goodreads, and in social media!

Link to episode:
http://tinyurl.com/ReadingEnvy245

Andrew wrote: "hi jenny, I'm more than happy to have another visit to the pub at some point but if its full this year I'll sit in the corner nursing my pint with book in hand happily listening to the podcast for ..."

I still have dates for the second half of the year! Would love to have you back.

Dree wrote: "Jenny (Reading Envy) wrote: "I feel so dumb that it's fiction, ha!"

Well the whole intro is how it's not nonfiction but not fiction either, yada yada yada research research yada yada.

But I made ..."

Oh I do get in audiobook slumps for sure. I saw this as an eBook in Hoopla so that's how I'll try it - if I ever get past my Red Famine slump, haven't made it past chapter 1 there. I just don't read straight history okay?

I'm just a podcast host, standing in front of some readers, asking if anyone wants to come be a guest for an episode in May. I had a guest ask to move their spot to later in the year so they could talk about a new book by their favorite author. How could I say no? But now I do have a spot. If you aren't scheduled for this year and have been a guest before OR if you want to give it a go for the first time, please send me a message!

ETA: I think I have the May date covered but still have half a year to fill so feel free to contact me for a later date.

Ceane wrote: "I just read Genius Under the Table and loved it, especially the illustrations. I bought the hard copy of Symphony of the City of the Dead years ago and have always wanted to read it, so I think I’l..."

Is Symphony of the City of the Dead intended for YA too?

Dree wrote: "Red Plenty will be my next Hoopla listen (I have 2 hours left on my current, so may start tomorrow)--even though it's actually fiction, but sounds excellent. I read Spufford's latest last year so I..."

I feel so dumb that it's fiction, ha!

Andrew wrote: "Hi jenny, I haven't really engaged in this thread as I wasn't planning to get to any Russian literature this quarter even though I did by Life and Fate pre Christmas. However I have just finished '..."

That sounds interesting Andrew, and not one that had come up in discussion so far.

Dree wrote: "Today I finally finished the audiobook of Oblivion by Sergei Lebedev. It took me 16 days and is under 10 hours, and feels like a huge accomplishment LOL. The narration was fine, I just don't do wel..."

In our non-fiction episode, Lauren talked about a whole subgenre of gulag memoirs! There are a lot out there.

Sue wrote: "I just started reading The Sentence by Louise Erdrich (don't worry, this connects to reading Russian authors) and came across this:
"WOMAN: It has taken me years, but I've read all of Proust. I nee..."
Yes! I laughed my head off about that.

I stumbled across a group read of Red Famine in Instagram so I got it from the library. And in the shower, M.T. Anderson's book on Shostakovich and the Leningrad symphony. I accidentally bought Other Russias AND requested it from ILL so I now have two.

Cindy wrote: "Though I don't plan to read any Russian literature this year I have been immersed in Helen Dunmore's The Siege (with glowing praise from major historians on back cover of paperback) fiction about t..."

This all sounds interesting, thanks for sharing.

Shatterlings has a private discussion group.

Lauren W. will be co-hosting this non-fiction quarter of Reading Envy Russia. We share books we have already read and freely recommend, and also chat about the piles and shelves of books we are considering.

Link to episode:
http://readingenvy.blogspot.com/2022/...

So many good books. I discovered there is a group read going of Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine, 1921-1933 in Instagram right now. I'm thinking of maybe participating, of course I want to read ALL the books.

Robin wrote: "I read The Brothers Karamazov for this quarter and it did not disappoint. It had been on my TBR for decades. I didn't realize how famous the section The Legend of the Grand Inquisitor is, although ..."

Whew D.H. Lawrence!! Thank you for participating Robin!

Shatterlings wrote: "A group of us on Instagram are reading Red Famine, it goes into a lot of depth from the 1900s onward so will give a historical perspective for current events."

Oh is there a hashtag? I've always meant to read that one....