Queereaders discussion

Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion by atheist Sam Harris. One chapter in, it's an excellent read.

Just finished "Of fire and stars" by Audrey Coulthurst! It was really fun to read!

Thanks, Natasha, for starting up this topic. I'm a terrible moderator and very sorry for neglecting this group. I'm recovering from a bad flu and should be back to normal in a few days. I'll pop back in when I'm feeling a little better.

Happy New Year!

Nancy wrote: "Thanks, Natasha, for starting up this topic. I'm a terrible moderator and very sorry for neglecting this group. I'm recovering from a bad flu and should be back to normal in a few days. I'll pop ba..."

Happy to jump in. Your mod-ing is great, Nancy. Hope you're feeling chipper soon.

Get well soon Nancy. I've been neglectful too cause of GI probs. Getting too old.

So far this I've read:

1. Alex + Ada: The Complete Collection by Jonathan Luna & Sarah Vaughn which is a gorgeously drawn & written graphic novel.

2. Half the Way Home: A Memoir of Father & Son by Adam Hochschild Eh, it checked a box on my Read Harder challenge.

3. Star Trek New Frontier: Blind Man’s Bluff by Peter David It was fun!

4. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society: A Novel by Many Ann Shaffer & Anne Barrows What a delight!

Just started Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania, about the events leading up to the sinking of the Lusitania. It's by Erik Larson so I have high hopes :)

Handbook to Higher Consciousness by Ken Keyes Jr.
The Computer: A Very Short Introduction by Darrel Ince

Just finished Tipping the Velvet - Really loved it, not quite as good as Affinity which I think is Waters' best but a great read and enjoyed the queer Dickensian vibe.

Also polished off The Reminders which has a gay main character and is like the love child of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and The Silver Linings Playbook

Morgan wrote: "Just finished Tipping the Velvet - Really loved it, not quite as good as Affinity which I think is Waters' best but a great read and enjoyed the queer Dickensian vib..."

Morgan...that description of The Reminders is off the charts amazing! Love it.

Chris wrote: "Morgan wrote: "Just finished Tipping the Velvet - Really loved it, not quite as good as Affinity which I think is Waters' best but a great read and enjoyed the queer..."

Thanks Chris, totally available for reviews ;) Congrats on having your own book published BTW

I mean if you can contribute lines like that you should review EVERYTHING!

I'll send you a PDF anytime :)

Julia wrote: "So far this I've read:

...4. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society: A Novel by Many Ann Shaffer & Anne Barrows What a delight!

My mother handed me this on my last visit, and your nudge has been what I needed to pick it up and delve in, thanks!

Meanwhile, I'm reading The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August, by Claire North.

I'm finishing up Beatitude by Larry Closs which has exceeded my expectations. It may turn out to be one of my favorite reads of 2017.

Next up will be The Man on Top of the World.

Tim wrote: "I'm finishing up Beatitude by Larry Closs which has exceeded my expectations. It may turn out to be one of my favorite reads of 2017.

Next up will be [book:The Ma..."

Tim- Hadn't heard about Beatitude but just added to my list!

Still working on Edmund White's Arts and Letters.

Started book 7 of the Wheel of Time series and completed the wonderful Boys Like Us: Gay Writers Tell Their Coming Out Stories. Quite varied, but I identified with everyone of them in one way or another.

Great review, Phillip. I just added this one to my To Read list.

Phillip wrote: "No book has found its way into my queer heart more than The Potato Eater: The raw true story of Padric, a gay hustler from the Bronx who spent 1941-1965 in and out of 20 prisons, an..."

I'm currently reading How to Be Happy: A Memoir of Love, Sex and Teenage Confusion. This collection of anecdotes of the author's life as he navigates high school and discovers his own sexuality is, so far, funny and poignant. The delivery is honest and easy to relate to.

Then I read Reader, I Married Him: Stories Inspired by Jane Eyre edited by Tracy Chevalier, with authors re-uimaging either that sentence or elements from Jane Eyre. I liked this anthology a lot.

Ms. Marvel, Vol. 6: Civil War II by G. Willow Wilson has a lot of serious questions and answers I didn't expect in this graphic novel.

I didn't mean to read The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba, but The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope. The first is a gorgeous picture book, but I meant to read the YA/ MG memoir, instead. There's time.

I'm currently reading Machine Man by Max Barry

I'm reading Todo esto te daré by Dolores Redondo

You MUST read it! =) Greetings from Mexico

"American Gods" Neil Gaiman and just bought "The hate race" and started that today. About racism in Australia, focusing on Melbourne the city I live in. I'm expecting to feel very angry after reading it, but it's supposed to be amazing! So think it's worth the read and good to support Aussie writers!

A special thanks to Natasha and Tim for posting What are You reading threads during my absence! So sorry to have vanished for a while - lots of life stuff that I'll post more about later.

If anyone wants to add any more group read nominations, add them now! I'll make a poll tomorrow.

Nominations Thread:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Finished Chris Hunter's great romance Out Into The World - should definitely support a peer from this community!

Bill wrote: "Get well soon Nancy. I've been neglectful too cause of GI probs. Getting too old."

Hope both you and Nancy feel better soon!

I finished The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins yesterday, and despite the long length, I quite enjoyed it.

Today, I just started The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man by James Weldon Johnson. I'd picked up a copy a long time ago, but I really had no idea what to expect. So far, it's just a somewhat entertaining story of his childhood, but I'm only on Chapter 3. The only thing I've read by Johnson before was the book-length poem God's Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse.

I started Babylon's Ashes last night, book 6 of the expanse series. Epic Space SciFi

Bill wrote: "I started Babylon's Ashes last night, book 6 of the expanse series. Epic Space SciFi"

Really enjoyed the TV series on Syfy Bill, and I bet the books were even better given the grand/epic scope.

It's a great book series, Greg. I've seen season one of the TV series. It followed book 1 quite closely. I am glad I had read the book 1st.

Jade wrote: "I'm actually reading my first LGBT themed book! I've been searching for something that sounds really good and of interest to me. It's: Annie on My Mind

And it's goodish. There are se..."

That book looks interesting Jade; how exciting to be reading your first LGBT themed book! What decided you on that one in particular? Did friends recommend it? Looking through my friends' reviews, I see that some of them did love it. Enjoy!

Jade wrote: "I actually came across it by accident while searching online for women's stories. I even love the title because I've been wishing for a girlfriend for awhile and it's always on my mind. I'm pretend..."

Great Jade! I'm glad it's getting better! :)

Jade wrote: "I'm actually reading my first LGBT themed book! I've been searching for something that sounds really good and of interest to me. It's: Annie on My Mind"

This was the second lesbian book I ever read, in 1988 when I was 18. Indeed, it wasn't excellent, but it was thrilling to read something gay-themed.

Hey everyone - group reads are starting up again after a short break!

Polls are now open to choose which books we'll read together as a group in February and March. The top two vote getters will be chosen. Voting will be open until exactly one week from today. Vote on the newest poll on the polls page here:

https://www.goodreads.com/poll/list/1...

Julia wrote: Ms. Marvel, Vol. 6: Civil War II by G. Willow Wilson has a lot of serious questions and answers I didn't expect in this graphic novel.

I just read Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normal earlier this week :) Have you read 2-5? Are they worth picking up?

I just finished "Undercover Girl: The Lesbian Informant Who Helped the FBI Bring Down the Communist Party" by Lisa E. Davis and am currently reading "A Queer Love Story: The Letters of Jane Rule and Rick Bébout", edited by Marilyn R. Schuster and listening to "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly and narrated by Robin Miles. All very fascinating and engrossing reads!

Eileen,

I like the Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normal series a lot. If you liked #1, I think you'll like the rest of the series. Caveat: I don't usually buy graphic novels, I tend to borrow them from the library, because they are so expensive. I like Ms. Marvel more than I liked Black Panther #1.

IMO, Annie on My Mind didn't age well. I preferred Nancy Garden's Good Moon Rising about two girls putting on "The Crucible."

Finished Babylon's Ashes and started book 8 of the Wheel of Time Series The Path of Daggers

Julia wrote: "Eileen,

I like the Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normal series a lot. If you liked #1, I think you'll like the rest of the series. Caveat: I don't usually buy graphic novels, I tend to b..."

Thanks for the info! :)

Jade wrote: "and wading my way through The Iliad/The Odyssey
(just about everyone has the same name and the places have similar names, it's so hard to keep it straight where is where and who is who! But I'm gonna read to the end!

I enjoyed the Iliad and the Odyssey, but you really do have to pay attention. Definitely not light reading!

Phillip wrote: "Just finished Killing the Poormaster: A Saga of Poverty, Corruption, and Murder in the Great Depression -- I gave it five stars and provide a review -- nonfiction writing at its best."

Looks interesting, and great review Phillip!

Jade wrote: "Right now I'm reading:
The Rebel: An Essay on Man in Revolt by Albert Camus (a very fascinating read on the psychology of rebellion
and wading my way through [book:The ..."

Some good reads Jade!

I haven't read the Camus one yet, but it looks fascinating!

Finished up The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man which was very interesting historically but just ok as a book of fiction. Definitely glad I read it.

Now I'm half way through Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson. Some haunting offbeat characters and beautiful writing too. I don’t like it quite as much as Gilead, but I like it a lot!

I can't say enough good things about How to Be Happy: A Memoir of Love, Sex and Teenage Confusion. An honest capture of the turmoil of the teenage years, even when you do have a supportive network when coming out. Brought back some memories of that point in my life.

Now I'm on to Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen. I've been reading the Miles Vorkosigan Saga since the '90s - this one will not be my favorite but I'm too involved with the long lives and many characters to give it up.

Tim wrote: "Now I'm on to Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen. I've been reading the Miles Vorkosigan Saga since the '90s - this one will not be my favorite but I'm too involved with the long lives and many characters to give it up. "

Do post a review when you're done? I've been a fan of Bujold for years.

Alex wrote: "Do post a review when you're done? I've been a fan of Bujold for years."

My review of Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen is up.

Currently I'm reading through A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin. It's good, but I find it had to switch from Ones character perspective to another.

Tim wrote: "I can't say enough good things about How to Be Happy: A Memoir of Love, Sex and Teenage Confusion. An honest capture of the turmoil of the teenage years, even when you do have a sup..."

Thanks for the heads up Tim. I'm gonna give How To Be Happy a read!

Finished Edmund White's Arts and Letters and started Katherine Addison's The Goblin Emperor.

I read 3/4 of Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer and still gave up on it.

Then I read the fun Half-Resurrection Blues by Daniel José Older.

Now I'm reading end enjoying Get in Trouble by Kelly Link.

Well I've started Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and Quiérete mucho, maricón: Manual de éxito psicoemocional para hombres homosexuales.

I've just finished The Kingdom of God Is Within You by Leo Tolstoy. 5 stars +