Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2020 Weekly Checkins
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Week 32: 7/31 - 8/6
Happy Thursday Everyone! I hope that everyone is staying safe and healthy!I did it guys! I read a chunky classic and in doing so tackled the most challenging thing left on my challenge TBRs this week and I'm pretty happy about that!
Current Progress
PS: 45/50 | PSS: 16/20 | HP: 52/56 | ATY: 46/52 | GR: 84/100
Only 10 books left to go to wrap up all of my prompt based challenges - yay!
Read This Week
Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno ⭐️⭐️ This was super not my jam. I did at least somewhat enjoy the atmosphere, that this book had some LGBTQ+ rep and that this book did address some serious things in a positive way. Be sure to look into trigger warnings if you're someone that needs them before picking this up! This read way more like a middle grade story than a YA one but with themes that are more appropriate for a YA audience. Some characters had no depth at all, some were very under developed and some were completely unnecessary and irrelevant and probably shouldn't have been included at all since they honestly just felt like a waste of page time looking back. In the case of Georgina I was specifically disappointed at the lack of depth in her inner monologues. Honestly, all the reveals felt really obvious but the big "reveal" surrounding Georgina was super obvious from the beginning and also had extremely poor timing so it felt so unsatisfying as it happened JUST in time at the last possible moment for it to be useful to further the plot which ruined some of the enjoyment for me because then the climax of the story became super obvious. (It somehow reminded me of when authors do a terrible job of foreshadowing and reveal something big out of nowhere in the moment when it's needed even though in this case the foreshadowing of it was too obvious. It's just that same feeling of this is so convenient that it's cringy.) This definitely had magical realism vibes which generally aren't really my jam. There were some pretty big flaws in logic included in the story line here (the final barn scene for example) which I personally never really appreciate and lastly the romance was left in a way that was simply too open for me to be satisfying at all.
Used for: PSS - 5. A Book with an LGBTQ+ Protagonist
Undercover Bromance (Bromance Book Club #2) by Lyssa Kay Adams ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This is fairly unrealistic and a tad predictable but super entertaining and enjoyable anyways. It held my interest well and I zoomed through it fairly quickly. Liv and Mack almost seemed like they had some dulled down negative traits compared to how they were in the first book but it worked in their favour since it made both of them more likable which made this book more enjoyable than I thought it would be going into it. On the flip side though, this lacked a lot of content surrounding the book club and book that they were reading and focused on an outside story line as much as it did on the romance which was unfortunate because the book club and book "analysis" were part of what made the first book so special so I didn't find it quite as enjoyable as the first in the series.
Used for: PSS - 17. A Book with sunglasses on the cover
The Social Cancer: A Complete English Version of Noli Me Tangere by Dr. José Rizal ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Wow, I can definitely see why this book is an incredibly important piece of Filipino history (why it's one of their national books), why the catholic church banned it and burnt copies of it at the time, why it sparked a revolution and why the author eventually became a martyr. This story is fictional in terms of the characters and their individual story lines but it reads like non fiction because it was written as a political commentary on the Philippines in the 1800's and based on a lot of examples of true experiences at the time (although the story dulls them down a bit which is downright shocking to think about because things are already pretty bad in here). This is at its' core, a tragic love story that paints a strong picture of what Spanish colonization was like for the Philippines even after hundreds of years because of its' isolation from the world at the time. It delves deep into how the catholic church and its' agents were corrupt, how they increasingly manipulated and exerted control over not only communities and local governments but also individuals and how they really had some negative impacts in a variety of ways. This is very much a classic (inaccessible language and all) and a translated one at that so even reading it physically alongside the audio I still had a hard time grasping the nuances of everything (my brain just can't always compute which is why this was only a 3 star read for me) until I read a chapter summary and analysis for every chapter and discussed it with my boyfriend who is Filipino . I highly recommend checking out the Litcharts info on this if you plan on reading it to really get the most out of your experience. **Also this is old enough to be in the public domain so you can find the audio free on Libravox/youtube and the ebook free on Project Free Gutenberg.
Used for: PS - 24. A Book on a Subject that you know nothing about (I didn't know anything about Filipino history beforehand other than that the Spanish had colonized part of it.)
HP - 8. Read a book set in a tropical climate (It's set in the Philippines)
Currently Reading
Survival Quest (The Way of the Shaman #1) by Vasily Mahanenko - I'm only a couple chapters in so far but I can say that this seems friendly for people new to LitRPG in terms of explaining gamer terminology that it's using and remaining fairly simplistic so far (in case anyone is wondering). I will say though that I've already encountered a few minor grammatical errors so I'm thinking that maybe the translator didn't quite do a perfect job which is a tad unfortunate.
QotW
For me a "best book" is one that I immensely enjoy that really sucks me into the story and isn't necessarily an important book. I assign my ratings purely based on enjoyment and I've only given a handful of 5 star ratings out this year but they are:
A Court of Wings and Ruin (ACOTAR #3) by Sarah J. Maas
Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh
Scythe (Arc of a Scythe #1) by Neal Shusterman
The Bromance Book Club (Bromance Book Club #1) by Lyssa Kay Adams
If I had to choose, I would say the one that pleasantly surprised me the most was Scythe!
If I was going to answer this in terms of what are the most important books I've read this year, my list would look entirely different. If that's what you consider a "best book" then here's my list of those from this year:
Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women by Kate Moore
The Social Cancer: A Complete English Version of Noli Me Tangere by Dr. José Rizal
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Rising Out of Hatred: The Awakening of a Former White Nationalist by Eli Saslow
White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide by Carol Anderson
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo
I would also say that the chapters on depression in Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened were fairly important too!
Hi everyone! Hope everyone's had a good week. I've been on a depressive streak for the past few weeks, but I'm finally coming out of it, so I'm finding it easier to enjoy books again. I put aside last week's book (My Calamity Jane) so that I could read things I was more excited about.Currently Reading
Axiom's End by Lindsay Ellis. I'm halfway through and I'm LOVING THIS. Alien sci-fi is what I'm here for.
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World by Steve Brusatte. Lovely, enjoyable history of dinosaurs and paleontology.
QotW
I absolutely adored Doomsday Book by Connie Willis. I'd meant to read it for years, but finally a global pandemic put me in the mood for it, and it's become one of my favorite books.
I'm back in a local lockdown where I am and am again banned from meeting people socially in the garden for example so that's a bit of a drag...I was on holiday last week so managed to get quite a bit of reading done, particularly as our weekend weather was pretty rubbish!
Finished
The Glass Hotel by Emily St John Mandel - I did really like this but probably would have enjoyed it more if I didn't know so much about Bernie Madoff. Having said that, I liked seeing his life mirrored in the story
The Two Lives of Lydia Bird by Josie Silver - I'd recently heard some pretty flaky reviews on this one but I actually liked it a lot more than I expected. I really sympathised with Lydia
The Last High by Daniel Kalla - just nope....
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi - loved this book. Wish I'd come across it before I forced myself through a different book set in Japan earlier in the year hah
Currently Reading
Difficult Women: A History of Feminism in 11 Fights by Helen Lewis
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell - just a couple of chapters into this one, it's my second last one in the Women's Prize for Fiction shortlist. Hoping to get to Dominicana next week.
The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware
QOTW
I've read more this year than I have before in my adult life and have read some books I've completely loved. Some highlights are:
Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane - a beautiful exploration of the impact of alcoholism
A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes - an exploration of Greek myth that gives some space to all the women. A lovely contrast to something like Silence of the Girls which, despite the blurb, is clearly all about Achilles.
Although I didn't give it 5*, She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement by Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor if you chop off the last chapter would also be there
I guess I've really been loving feminist literature this year - really looking forward to hearing about other people's favourites!
The damage done to Beirut is unfathomable, my heart goes out to anyone living there or with family there.We're due a heatwave this weekend although it doesn't look much like summer right now. We're going out for a meal for the first time since lockdown and I'll be doing some of the reverse Dewey's readathon.
This week I read The Silent Wife for ATY (20th book) and Loveless for a book written by an author in their 20s. I usually love Alice's books but this one seemed a bit repetitive and lacking in plot, but I can see for others the aro ace rep is more than making up for it.
I'm currently reading The Glass Hotel and The Pull of the Stars.
PS: 30/50 | ATY: 28/52 | 64/100
QOTW:
My 5 star rating so far:
In Pain: A Bioethicist's Personal Struggle with Opioids by Travis Reider
Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
Middlegame by Seanan McGuire
A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor by Hank Green
Ali wrote: "A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes - an exploration of Greek myth that gives some space to all the women. A lovely contrast to something like Silence of the Girls which, despite the blurb, is clearly all about Achilles."I loved the audio of this which Natalie read herself. She has another book out later this year Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths.
I didn't get much reading time this week, because I was helping my sister's family pack, move, and clean into her new house, but I am continuing my "trash" reads to give myself some mindless entertainment.Sexy Filthy Boss: I enjoyed this one a ton more than I thought I would.
Sinful Surrender: This one was just okay, but I found a past prompt that it worked for, so that made me happy.
Currently reading:
The Silent Wife: I almost never buy books, especially when they first come out because they are so expensive and I work across the street from my library, so why spend the money. BUT I love Karin Slaughter's books so much, I bought this one the day it came out.....and have barely picked it up since. Not because it isn't great, but just because I'm distracted. Hopefully the weekend will allow me to finish it.
Question of the week:
What is one of the best books you've read so far this year?
I have been doing a ton of rereads this year, so I won't count those, and I have several series that I read, which I'm basically sure to love, so I won't count those either. I think my favorite book of the year was Be Not Far from Me. It is very different from my usual choices and I thought it was incredible. I even did the audiobook version, and it was just compelling. As I'm writing this, I'm reminded that I wanted to look into other books by this author, but haven't. Anyone else read Mindy McGinnis? Recommendations?
Time to check in - it's been a tough week and I feel unsettled most, if not all, of the time. But doing my best to keep going.Finished reading:
How to Be a Woman (no prompt): I enjoyed this and I found it an easing writing style to keep reading. But after reading other reviews I can see where there are issues with some of the comments Moran makes.
Beautiful Broken Things (no prompt): A re-read, and I still adore this book. I love the focus on friendship and how complicated it can be, especially when there are 2 best friends navigating an additional friend to the group. I need more books like this!
Currently reading:
A Phoenix First Must Burn (an anthology): I'm just over a third of the way through. I really liked the first two stories, others not as much, but I think that overall I'm really going to enjoy this.
Best books of the year so far:
Daisy Jones & The Six
Girl, Woman, Other
Speak
Mod
Our beach vacation has been temporarily disrupted by Tropical Storm Isaias: we lost power for days! Apparently a tornado passed by a few blocks away, also, but we had no idea. (And we were hardly the only ones: looks like a big chunk of the east coast is without power for a few days.) Top Five Things I miss most without power: being able to charge my phone, the refrigerator, air conditioning, the ceiling fans, and the coffee maker. Luckily we were able to temporarily retreat to a place with power, to charge our phones and experience some sweet sweet a/c. So I have enough power to post this, but I haven’t seen world news and did not know about Beirut until now.
This week I finished 4 books (including a picture book)
Crimson Lake by Candice Fox - this was just ok. I like mysteries and Australian audiobook readers and rough, broken characters, and this delivered all of that, but I still didn’t really love it. It tried to delivertoo much and I ended up feeling rather meh. Obviously this could work for “flora/fauna author’s name,” but I already checked that off.
Duende - poems by Tracy K. Smith - the duende is a mischievous house spirit, and also a muse who is often attracted to death and sorrow. Smith is always incandescent.
When the Moon Came Down picture book written & illustrated by Feridun Oral - my daughter saw art from this book on social media (I don’t even remember where) and I liked it so I borrowed the book from the library. Truly lovely art, and a comforting bedtime story.
Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore - imo, all good beach visits begin with a good historical romance, and I scored with this one. Sure it’s a little unrealistic, but it’s also a delightful romp. (“Bringing down” the Duke means he falls in love - he is “brought down” by love, and is no longer his usual cold, rational, Vulcan self. You know that trope.)
QOTW
Ive had lots of ups and downs this reading year, plenty of disappointing reads but also 35 five star reads! I’m not going to list them all, because my phone battery doesn’t have time for that, and neither do you. I’ll stick with three recent stand-outs, all fiction:
Two new releases:
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett (Everyone enjoy this December group read!)
Her Last Flight by Beatriz Williams
And a book published a few years ago:
Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine
Ellie wrote: "I loved the audio of this which Natalie read herself. She has another book out later this year Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths."Ooh thanks so much for the heads up. I did actually listen to the audio of this one and, like you, really loved it!
I finished World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War. It was alright. Not what I was expecting.I'm still working on Deep Space
I DNF'd The Barbarians are Coming after 13 pages. A record for me. I replaced it with The Fury as my book with a main character in his 20s. This book is filled with continutity errors. Are editors and proofreaders a thing of the past?
QOTW:
This is good timing on this question as I haven't loved the last few books I've read. I've read a lot of good ones this year, so nice to have a reminder. Probably my favorite 2 fiction books would be:
The Map of Salt and Stars and
The Golem and the Djinni
and my fave non-fictions would be
The Five: The Lives of Jack the Ripper's Women
Owls Aren't Wise & Bats Aren't Blind: A Naturalist Debunks Our Favorite Fallacies About Wildlife
Good morning from northeast Ohio! The heat has finally backed off a bit (thanks, cold fronts) so we had less humidity yesterday which was lovely. If autumn decides it wants to start in August I'm not going to complain. The explosion in Beirut has been on my mind - Lebanon is facing famine + coronavirus and now this. In USA-centered news, I continue to be angry and frustrated with the decision-makers, particularly anyone who thinks children should go back to school. Makes me glad I don't have kids, but I worry about where this is going to take us.In brighter news, I finished four books this week!
Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland - 5 stars. Truly riveting. A book that won an award in 2019
Die, Vol. 2: Split the Party - 4 stars. More grimdark roleplaying excellence. Stunning artwork continues to be stunning.
Buried Heart - 4 stars. A solid ending to this trilogy.
Silent in the Sanctuary - 4.5 stars. Starting the next book when I get home, this series is my new addiction. First book I touch on a shelf with my eyes closed
Currently reading:
Spin the Dawn - Made it to the 16% mark yesterday and I'm invested in this story! It's pitched as Mulan + Project Runway.
Kindred - For some reason I wasn't expecting this one to be so easy to read. I think my mind equates sci-fi with "dry and complex world-building" (likely thanks to things like Dune) but this is so good!
What is one of the best books you've read so far this year?
I'll list several, because I can never just pick one!
Nonfiction:
Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
The Autobiography of Malcolm X
Fiction:
Deathless Divide
Silent in the Grave
Little Fires Everywhere
We're all talking about Beirut this morning, so I will just add that I found the amount of tonnage of the fertilizer in that warehouse astounding. And that video of the woman's wedding, where you can see the shock wave... oh my god! It's all just shocking and terrible.Things here are normal. We did get the tropical storm this week, but we were a bit further west and only got lots of rain. No power outages or damage or anything. We're also getting into the last few weeks of our current project of helping my dad move. We have closings set up for his current house and his new house and there's a ton to do and something will probably still go wrong before it's all said and done. So, trying not to get too stressed about that.
In reading this week, I finished two books. First was If I Had Your Face. It was on a list of beach reads that I found online for this year, so I would say it counts for that summer prompt. It's about a group of women who live together/near each other in modern Seoul. I really enjoyed it.
I also finished In Five Years, which I didn't love. The story was okay, but it was not what I was expecting and it's not really how it's being marketed and I was kind of not okay with that. But I finished it because it's short and it fit the summer prompt for a book that takes place in your favorite summer destination (NYC). I usually go to New York every other weekend in the summer and I'm sad that I can't go this summer. Particularly that the US Open isn't having fans. Hopefully by next summer, things will be a little more normal.
QOTW:
The best book I've read this year was probably The Girl with the Louding Voice.
Hi everyone! Thanks for the support about my slump. I finished three books this week!I have also come through a pretty depressive period, but I'm feeling quite good this week. Honestly, a big part of it is 1.) I'm on a fairly strict news fast. I try not to even scroll Facebook much because it's Too Much. 2.) I'm bingeing The Good Place and The Good Place: The Podcast to prep for a trivia quiz on it this weekend. One of the few shows that is consistently excellent throughout, including the ending.
Sara wrote: "Life is the same here. Crazy at work, blazing hot outside. My mood has been pretty poor of late and I dream of fall. School starts in a few short weeks and life will only get more complicated. I need to take more time for myself to lower my stress levels."
For what it's worth, I feel you. My mood has been all over the place, and my reading as well. And I YEARN for fall. August is always the worst month in NC.
Stacey wrote: "Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh"
OOH! Allegedly the sequel is actually, really coming out next month. Supposedly.
Elaine wrote: "Hi everyone! Hope everyone's had a good week. I've been on a depressive streak for the past few weeks, but I'm finally coming out of it, so I'm finding it easier to enjoy books again.
...
Axiom's End by Lindsay Ellis. I'm halfway through and I'm LOVING THIS. Alien sci-fi is what I'm here for.
"
I'm glad you're doing better. And pleased to see Axiom's End is good - I love Lindsay Ellis!
Finished
The Charioteer (provisional title) - this is the book my friend is writing, and I'm totally impressed at how good it already is, in draft form! Also very honored to be asked for feedback!
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Vol. 1 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - A book set in Japan, host of the 2020 Olympics - This was very quick and fun, and the panel art is amazing. I'm really enjoying the anime too!
In a Lonely Place - ⭐⭐ - I sought out this out-of-print book because I loved the much-anthologized story "Sticks." Turns out that's the only great story in here. One epic story, two OK ones, and four clunkers. Plus, tons of cringey descriptions of women's bodies and women having sex with each other. Like, you're trying to read it for the scary bits, but the image of Wagner typing this stuff one-handed is completely intrusive. Yuck.
Currently Reading
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism
QOTW
My 5-star reads this year:
Wakenhyrst
Snow, Glass, Apples
All Systems Red
Artificial Condition
Network Effect
So, Murderbot for the win I guess!
I have been lurking all summer. I just wasn't reading as much and felt kind of meh, so chose to read posts instead of write them. Now I feel like I am heading back to normalcy as I started work again yesterday. School opens next week and paras have returned. I am worried about starting school in person, but I am hoping for the best.This week I finished reading for this year's youth committee group. Now I have until the end of September or early October before I have to start reading for next year's group. I read:
Clean Getaway
Dragon Hoops
Over the Moon
QOTW: As I was reading the above answers I was thinking "oh, yeah that was a great book," or "when can I get my hands on that book?" Hurrah for this group of readers that keep my TBR long! My favorite books this year are:
The Line Tender
Lovely War
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky
The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women
The Five: The Lives of Jack the Ripper's Women
Happy Reading!
Katy wrote: "I finished World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War. It was alright. Not what I was expecting.I'm still working on Deep Space
I DNF'd [book:The Barbarians are Com..."
Good choice, I loved The Golem and the Jinni.
Nadine, I hope you get power back soon. Plenty of people without power on Long Island also, but overall not as hard hit as New Jersey.I am four books away from finishing this challenge, but they are all either classics or long.
Finished:
One Plus One
Take a Hint, Dani Brown
Currently reading:
The Grapes of Wrath
The Count of Monte Cristo
The Last Train to Key West
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and other Classic Novels
QOTW:
My favorite book this year so far was A Gentleman in Moscow
Honorable mentions:
The Dutch House
Spinning Silver
Know My Name
Christine wrote: "Stacey wrote: "Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh"OOH! Allegedly the sequel is actually, really coming out next month. Supposedly."
Great news. I think the version I had on my wishlist had been officially cancelled so it disappeared and I totally forgot about it. I'll have to see if I can get a copy over here.
Morning!I didn't get a chance to update last week, this if for the last two weeks. Which works since I didn't finish any books this week.
Finished:
Beloved - I finished the audio of this last week. The book itself is beautiful. Morrison reads it herself and I love her voice, it's so calming. The issue I have with the audiobook (or at least the version I checked out Overdrive) is that it is so quiet. It was really hard to hear when I was driving even with the volume all the way up. I recommend Beloved but maybe not the audiobook I listened to.
So You Want to Talk About Race - I also did this one on audio. It was very good and enlightening. I highly recommend it.
Currently Reading:
Columbine - Man oh man, is this one hard to get through. It's so well researched and written but I can't bring myself to read too much of it at once.
Queenie - I enjoying this one well enough but man does Queenie make some really bad choices about the men she brings home. I'm interested to see how it plays out.
People Who Eat Darkness: The True Story of a Young Woman Who Vanished from the Streets of Tokyo--and the Evil That Swallowed Her Up for a book set in Japan, host of the 2020 Olympics. This is my current audiobook and it's fine. The journalist has done a lot of research on this case. But I've just sent a good section of time getting the complete run-down of the killers entire life. I understand needing to talk about him but the complete info dump I just got (and am still going through) is too much. I don't need to know about every little thing he's done or went through in his life that may or may not have led to him being a horrible person.
DNF:
Normal People - Yeah, I just couldn't do it with this one. I'm usually fine with characters I don't like, I can make it through the book but this was characters I didn't like and no quotation marks...I couldn't do it.
QOTW:
So far, my favorite book of the year is The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires. This is one that not only lived up to my expectations but succeeded them.
Ashley wrote: "Morning!I didn't get a chance to update last week, this if for the last two weeks. Which works since I didn't finish any books this week.
Finished:
Beloved - I finished the audio o..."
I read Columbine several years ago and found it excellent, but I know what you mean - small doses only. I've got his other one, Parkland, on my TBR but it still feels too recent, so I may not pick that one up for awhile.
Pandemic, BLM, Beirut, possible Election fraud - yes I’m also anxious, worried and depressed. I’ve had to limit tv watching and no FB. COVID cases in our county and town are going in the wrong direction. I’m also having trouble finding the motivation to fill some of my remaining popsugar prompts. I didn’t finish anything this week.
Currently Reading:
The Goldfinch
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
QOTW:
I’ve had several equally favorite books. Becoming, News of the World, The Cellist of Sarajevo, The Hate U Give
Yes, the pictures I've seen from Lebanon are heartbreaking. Lord, have mercy. :(Blessed Feast of the Transfiguration! We're taking a much needed day off here to celebrate. I likewise cannot wait for fall. I'm craving pumpkin spice!
Finished 27/50
The Calculating Stars for "book that won an award in 2019 [Hugo]". I really liked the message, but didn't really like the book. It was weird. It just didn't grab me like I'd hoped.
Cinder for "book about a cyborg, AI, etc". This was fun! One of the better YA's I've read. I really enjoyed this retelling. Way to turn a fairytale into a sci-fi! I'll probably read the rest one of these days.
Currently Reading
Becoming for "book by a WOC". I'm super excited to read this one. Michelle Obama has always seemed so genuine and classy. I am super interested in reading her autobiography and getting to know her better.
The Wilderness Journal: 365 Days with the Philokalia for "book whose title caught your attention". Some days this book is ok. Some days I just can't wait to be done with it. XD
QotW
Fiction:
Tsubasa: RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE, Vol. 1 (the entire series was just fabulous)
The Way of Kings
The Solzhenitsyn Reader: New and Essential Writings, 1947-2005
Non-Fiction:
Orthodoxy and Heterodoxy: Finding the Way to Christ in a Complicated Religious Landscape
On Living Simply: The Golden Voice of John Chrysostom
The Holy Angels
Hi all!Limited time today, so short and sweet:
1. Circe I enjoyed this book. This would fit a few categories, but I found it on the bildungsroman list, and since I still needed to fill that, I'm using it for that prompt. Found it a quick read.
2. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American WestThis book was very hard reading with all its terrible accounts of the US's dealings with the Indigenous Americans: all the endless lies, distortions, and massacres. I could only read a little bit at a time. Nonetheless, I think it's an important book at the be read. I picked this for my Western, but this would definitely fit the category of the 7deadly sins, since so much of the injustices revolved around greed.
3.Legacy of Lies I'm not sure yet if it works for any of my open categories, but as a murder mystery, it fits a few of the seven sins (greed, lust, pride...)
That's it for what I've finished.
Barely started:
It's Hard to Make a Difference When You Can't Find Your Keys: The Seven-Step Path to Becoming Truly Organized which I picked up because the title caught my attention. This would definitely also work for a more than 20-letter title.
QOW
Although I've rated a few books as a 5 this year, the one that stood out from the crowd is definitely
A Gentleman in Moscow
Among the Nonfiction books, it would definitely be:
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West because of its importance.
Everyone else (in the northern hemisphere) is dealing with the heat, but at my house it is Fogust, and cold! I finished The House in the Cerulean Sea, Anne of Avonlea reread, and The Book of Longings this week, and enjoyed them all!
I’ve just started The Empire of Gold for the “gold” prompt, and it really requires a good memory of how the previous book in the series ended, which I don’t have! Also listening to The Wrath and the Dawn for AtY.
QOTW:
For nonfiction, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants hands down, even though there are a number of other 5+ star books in my list!
For fiction, I can’t decide between The Overstory and Indian Horse, which both have something in common with my nonfiction pick!
Hi everyone,Got a migraine today so probably keeping it short.
finished:
One Good Knight - re-read as a mental break
Fortune's Fool - re-read as a mental break
How to Be an Antiracist - finally finished yesterday. It had a lot of good info, I'd recommend anyone who wants to be proactively antiracist or even just understand what that means to read it. However it was a challenging read for me in terms of just sticking with it and getting through the chapters. I think i might have done better with audio where i could keep hands busy and listen, that's how I did Stamped From the Beginning and it went much better. I have a hard time with nonfiction if it's not narrative style, i kept reading a paragraph or two and then attention wandering.
Currently reading:
The Fifth Season - finishing up the audio book, re-reading for my online book club. Still excellent the second time around, makes a bit more sense now that I know what's going on and am less confused by the different perspectives.
A Blade So Black - urban fantasy retelling of Alice in Wonderland, liking it so far. Would work for a fairytale/classic retelling featuring a person of color for Read harder if anyone else is doing it.
got The Boyfriend Project on deck next, which i'll use for my woman in STEM prompt and will be finished! I still have two more books on hold featuring actual women in STEM, not just fiction, but those will probably take a few more weeks if not months to come up. So i'm fine counting this one just to mark the challenge as done. I like doing the challenge every year, but once summer hits i always want to just go back to reading whatever I feel like. I'm doing a little of that, but I'll feel more free to do so once all my challenges are ticked off haha.
QOTW:
Books that were stand out for me, mostly in terms of enjoyment, were Gideon the Ninth and The City We Became. In terms of being important, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America really opened my eyes to just how much our entire country (and a lot of the western world in general) was really built on racism.
Finished:-Rich People Problems by Kevin Kwan
-A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
Currently reading:
-The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates
I've been dealing with some allergies and my kids started school yesterday(imagine a grimacing emoji here) so I've been too tired to read at night.
Happy Thursday, y’all.I personally don't know anyone in Lebanon, but my heart still aches for the tragedy there. The disaster couldn't have hit at a worse time, with hospitals already overloaded due to the pandemic. I'm going to have to find some way to help, even if it's just donating to Doctors Without Borders or another cause...
Still trying to help my mom recover from her wrist surgery, while also trying to figure out how to cook dinner every night without a stove (our stove died and the stove we ordered from Lowe's got backordered until September). Fun times. At least I have books to escape...
Also AAAAAAH the new Allie Brosh book is actually happening?!?! I thought it had been cancelled! Really looking forward to this!
Ahem... on to the book roundup...
Books read this week:
Pennsylvania -- So… who would have guessed that “Amish sci-fi” was a thing? Apparently it is… The story of an Amish community being formed on another planet could have been really interesting, but sadly this novella/short story ended just as it was getting interesting. I hate it when authors end things on a complete non-ending to force you to buy the next in the series…
The Armageddon Ragv-- Early George R. R. Martin novel. Pretty much a huge nostalgia trip for rock ‘n’ roll and the ‘60s, and while it’s not Martin’s best work and it’s fairly slow up until the halfway point, it was still entertaining and makes me want to go listen to some of the bands he mentioned.
Chez Stinky -- Romantic comedy about a woman inheriting her aunt’s house… and all her dogs and cats on top of it. Cute and light and fluffy, a nice break after a George R. R. Martin book, haha...
Herding Cats -- Collection of “Sarah’s Scribbles” comics. Still funny but true, and with an inspiring illustrated essay in the end about art, the hellscape the art community online has become, and how to survive it.
Currently Reading:
Four Past Midnight
The Marrow Thieves
A Quiet Afternoon
Bookish and the Beast
QOTW:
Man, I've read some great books so far this year. Some of the best are as follows:
Every Heart a Doorway
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet
They Called Us Enemy
Strange the Dreamer
The Song of Achilles
The Stand -- wasn't the best book to start off this year with, but hey, I didn't know we'd be living through a pandemic when I started it...
It is currently raining and cold-ish in the PNW (I love it! Come on fall, I'm ready!)Finished:
Snowflower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. (A book set in a country that begins with "C" - China). This book was inspirational about a friendship that lasts decades in 19th century China. Though be warned the foot binding description was hard to stomach (ouch!).
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston (A nonfiction book about world leader). I'm not a fan of romance books, but this one was really great! I liked the political aspect and the initial disdain for each other was hilarious! Even if you aren't a romance fan this is a must read!
Currently Reading:
The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson (Book that has a book on the cover). I am almost half done and I'm really enjoying it. It's not a page-turner but keeps me interested and the slower pace is refreshing since I have been devouring books lately.
House of Glass: The Story and Secrets of a Twentieth-Century Jewish Family by Hadley Freeman (A book with "20" or "twenty" in the title). This one is a personal read for me, since my family was also in France during the rise of Hitler. My family isn't Jewish but my grandmother was involved with a man who was Jewish and was taken to a concentration camp (he was fortunate to have survived). The story of Freeman's Jewish family in France is eye-opening and really paints a picture of what France was going through with so many Jewish immigrants and French-Jews. Highly recommend.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows (A book with more than 20 letters in the title). Just started this one for the monthly read, though it fits a different prompt for me. I like it so far - very easy read.
PS: 25/40 PS Advanced: 2/10 ATY: 28/52
QOTW:
So far my favorite reads this year have been:
The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold
Know My Name by Chanel Miller
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
I am ready for the sadness of this year to be over but unfortunately I don't think that will happen any time soon.I did read a couple things. for the prompt of an anthology I read Young Explorer's Adventure Guide, Volume 5 by Sean Weaver (one of my stories is in here) It's a middle grade/YA SF/F/steampunk anthology and it's pretty good over all.
For the prompt - A book with a robot, cyborg, or AI character I read The Mandalorian Armor by K.W. Jeter. It had several robot characters including the bounty hunter IG-88 (It's a Bobba Fett centric story). For that matter I suppose Darth Vader counts as a cyborg while I'm at it. It wasn't bad but you get no closure to the story (it's a trilogy)
QOTW Let's see Who slays the wicked? by C.S. Harris (mystery)
Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cordova (urban fantasy)
Storm of Locusts by Rebecca Roanhorse (spec fic)
The Spectral City by Leanna Renee Hieber (Paranormal)
The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones (horror)
Middlegame by Seanan McGuire (spec fic)
Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone (fantasy)
Non-fiction - Quackery: A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything by Lydia Kang MD & Nate Pederson
A Serial Killer’s Daughter by Kerri Rawson (the daughter of BTK)
Hey everyone!Rather slow reading week for me as I've only finished one book since the last check-in, A Gentleman in Moscow. I did a poor job researching this one, however, as I saw in the blurb that it mentioned 1922 and had planned on reading it for the prompt 'A Book set in the 1920's'. Imagine my dismay when at the 30% mark we left the 1920's. I already read a book for 'A book set in a city that has hosted the Olympics' so I'm not sure I'll end up using it for the challenge. This book had so many things going against it in terms of things that I don't like in my books, and yet I really rather liked it. I should have hated it but I found that I liked the Count's character enough to be intrigued (even though nothing really happened plotwise) and having it set in a hotel really worked for me. I find myself fascinated by stories that heavily feature hotel staff.
Currently reading:
1Q84 - officially planning on DNF'ing this one.
Aurora Burning
Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy
QOTW: What is one of the best books you've read so far this year?
I really enjoyed Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators and pretty much all of the Murderbot Diaries.
Read: A Dream of Silence Still my all-time favorite! Read for my last super summer challenge prompt: re-read a book from your childhood.Started:The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious My friend and I are reading this together and are planning to get about 7 pages read a week, so we can do a lot of cross-referencing. It will be a challenge to see if I can keep making progress at such a slow pace!
Phantom Narratives: The Unseen Contributions of Culture to Psyche to accompany Jung
When Stars Are Scattered I got this for a graphic novel-reader, thinking we would read it together, and they read it themselves, so not I'm catching up. So far, it's very good.
QotW: The books that stand out to me so far this that haven't been favorite re-reads are:
Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition, and Accelerate Your Career I felt like this really stepped up my game and I processed it so thoroughly that it's going to stick with me for a long time.
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism I know this book is highly controversial, but I found myself defending it passionately. So You Want to Talk About Race is probably better, but I found this book was a valuable addition to the conversation as well.
Improvisation for the Spirit: Live a More Creative, Spontaneous, and Courageous Life Using the Tools of Improv Comedy This a workshop-turned-book that I would like to take. Since the workshop is not currently an option, I was very grateful for the book.
Ashley Marie wrote: "Ashley wrote: "Morning!I didn't get a chance to update last week, this if for the last two weeks. Which works since I didn't finish any books this week.
Finished:
Beloved - I finis..."
I didn't realize he wrote a Parkland one. At some point in the future, I'll have to pick it up.
AnthologyThe Best Nonrquired Reading of 2019 edited by Edan Lepucki. This was not the best entry in the nonrequired reading anthologies. Overall meh rating.
others that don’t fit prompts
The Rose That Grew from Concrete by Tupac Shakur. Poetry collection but it’s cool because they had his handwritten poems in the book.
Beautiful Player by Christian Lauren. I avoided these books forever because I was convinced they were written by the same person who wrote Beautiful Disaster and I did not like that problematic book. I got one of Lauren’s books in a care package from the Ripped Bodice and it was delightful. They are kind of smutty contemporary romances and fun to read. I’ve been working my way through their backlist this summer.
QOTW:
Counting Descent: poetry collection
First They Killed My Father: nonfiction about the killing fields in Cambodia
Everything Here is Beautiful: contemporary fiction
A Good Marriage: thriller
Over the Top: memoir
Prepping for a serious heat wave here in the Netherlands: starting today we will have temperatures of 35 degrees and more for a whole week. A whole week!! Can I fastforward to Wednesday when I’m allowed to work at the airconditioned office again please?? Or even better: autumn. I hate August. Sorry. End of rant. Finished
Wees onzichtbaar - A coming-of-age story of a Turkish-Dutch boy in Amsterdam. The book takes place in the 1980/1990’s and is describing what it is like to grow up as an immigrant in the immigrant-junkie-ghetto of the Bijlmer in Amsterdam and o, he also has a tyrannical father. The story itself is a bit dull, but I think it is a good picture of growing up in that environment in those years. The writer is 2 years older than I am: the book was a trip down memory lane: the music, school system, objects we used, etc. I have declared myself officially old now *smile*.
Prompt: a book that won an award in 2019 (De Inktaap)
Currently reading
Hello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms
I think I start a re-read tonight for the prompt: a book with a pink cover. Have several of them and need something easy to read.
Qotw
Just 1 book made it to 5 stars this year: Das achte Leben by Nino Haratischwili. Title in English: The Eight Life.
Christine wrote: "Stacey wrote: "Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh"OOH! Allegedly the sequel is actually, really coming out next month. Supposedly."
That is so exciting! I googled it and the publisher hasn't responded regarding any potential delays, so fingers crossed! I know I don't know her, but I've definitely worried about her off and on over the past few years.
Good afternoon all,This has not been a good week. The horror in Beirut is heartbreaking, and the pandemic seems to be getting worse, at least in this country.
I'm in a pretty depressed state, as I am caring for a loved one with a terminal illness. Reading and writing are generally my passions, but right now, that's just too much for me.
Finished:
We Were Liars. I loved the poetic writing style, but it felt like every day was a repeat of the same. I almost DNFd several times. I'm glad I didn't, as I really liked the way the the last third of the book unfolded. It worked out to be an OK read.
Used for the PSS prompt for beach town setting
QOTW:
This has been a great year of wonderful book find. Hard to pick one but:
The Holdout - loved the treatment of race, class and inequality in justice
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You. Still in queue for Ibram X. Kendi's Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, but this was such a good read about racial construction and the ensuing aftermath, and the constant spiral of ideas and thoughts on race
Taaqtumi: An Anthology of Arctic Horror Stories. Simply the most beautiful book I've read in a number of years.
Happy Thursday! I finished 2 books this week, one was for the challenge. Finished:
The Wife Who Knew Too Much - this was my last book finished in July bringing my total to 13 for the month which is good for me. I thought this book was okay. The opening paragraph was great, but none of the characters were likable, and there were a lot of unanswered questions that I think were necessary to the story. 3 stars
If I Was Your Girl - I used this book for prompt #2 - a book by a trans or non-binary author. This book was recommended in here, and I'm glad I selected it for this prompt. 5 stars
Challenge Progress:
Regular Challenge - 29/40
Advanced Challenge - 8/10
Total - 37/40
Currently Reading:
The Best of Friends - I'm reading an ARC of this, and it's so good. Depressing, but good.
The Night Swim - this is my first audiobook ARC from NetGalley. It's an interesting premise, and I'm enjoying it.
The Boy in the Red Dress - I finally started this last night. It's an easy read, and I'm looking forward to seeing where it goes.
QOTW - What is one of the best books you've read so far this year?
My surprise favorite this year was definitely The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires. I didn't think I'd love this one as much as I did, but it was amazing!
Hi All. It was a good reading week for me. 3 books & I finished all 3 challenges I was doing. Now I can read whatever & for book clubs. Completed: 1. Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel. I used it for prompt # 39 Read a banned book during banned books week. I wanted to finish the challenge so I didn’t wait. 2. South Pole Station by Ashley Shelby for a face to face book club. I gave it 3 stars. I really liked the story but sometimes the writing wasn’t the best. 3. Stay With Me by Ayòbámi Adébáyò. This was for a different challenge. This is a very haunting story, very powerful. I gave it 4 stars.
Currently reading Four Puddings and a Funeral (Oxford Tearoom Mysteries #6) by H.Y. Hanna. This falls under whatever I want to read category.
QOTW: My favorite book of the year? I have four. The Overstory by Richard Powers. Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family by Robert Kolker. The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix.
The Mirror & The Light (Thomas Cromwell Trilogy #3) by Hilary Mantel.
I've been working hard on my anxiety this week, both in pushing through some things that are hard for me, and in filling up my pool of serenity to deal with harder times. That means a wide variety of books on the go for different moods, so I've done a lot of reading but haven't finished that much. I did finish a couple:Death Angel by Linda Howard: wowwwie, this was a weird one! It's not well written and it's not even really a romance or suspense novel, but for some reason its strangeness hit my funny bone and I enjoyed reading it. If, like me, you enjoy the unexpectedly strange, you might want to give it a try.
One Year of Ugly (Trinidad and Tobago in my countries of the world challenge): I didn't know much about this book when I got the audiobook from the library, but I really enjoyed it. It's about illegal Venezuelan immigrants in Trinidad, so an unexplored subject for me, and has lots of gloriously bitchy attitude to it, a perspective I don't see very often. A delightful surprise!
Currently reading:
Clouds of Witness: Who can be anxious with Lord Peter Wimsey around?
The Priory of the Orange Tree: I'm not sure what I'll think when I've finished, but I like it enough to keep reading.
QOTW:
I very thoroughly enjoyed:
Song of Solomon
Broad and Alien is the World (this is wonderful but very depressing, so be warned)
Rebecca
House of Earth and Blood (stayed up until 3 am to finish it!)
Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
All Systems Red (it took me a while to get to Murderbot, but now I love Murderbot)
Hi everyone. No word about the redundancies yet. Hopefully I'll hear something tomorrow. It's just extra stress that I don't need right now.This week I finished Annihilation. It had a great build up but the conclusion was a bit of a let down for me.
Currently reading: Spellwright I started this pre-lockdown and fizzled out but I'm determined to finish it.
QOTW: This year has been so awful, I can't even think of a favourite book so far. Maybe the best is yet to come?
Happy Thursday. How is it already August??? Books I finished:
Spinning Silver - I'm still very much in the mood for comfort rereads right, now, and I really do love this one.
Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How it Changed the World - I haven't been reading as much non-fiction over the last month, so this was nice. Why books about plagues make me feel better, I don't know, but that's definitely been a trend in my reading this year.
The Blue Castle - Another reread. It was interesting reading this just after reading about the Spanish Flu and how it made me look at the attitudes towards disease and medicine in this book. 
Happily Ever After & Everything In Between - It was there in overdrive and I needed a quick pick me up. Not as good as Book Love, but still lots of fun.Books I made progress on:
The Empire of Gold
On the EdgeQOTW
Right now, Exit Strategy is sitting as my #1 new book of the year, but I love the whole murderbot series.
I finished the challenge this week - yay! And I'm at 16/20 for the summer challenge. Books are pretty much the only thing keeping me together right now, so I'm always happy to jump into this group and see what everyone is reading. I've also been supporting my local bookstores more than usual lately since I've finally recovered financially from my unemployment. This week I listened to Here Comes the Sun which was more difficult than expected, but I'm glad I read it. 4 stars
I also listened to Ordinary Girls, which was a tough memoir to follow the feel-good ones I read right before this. I wanted more on how she managed to get through some of the things she experienced, but her vulnerability was moving. 4 stars
Surpassing Certainty: What My Twenties Taught Me was one of those feel-good memoirs. Her self love was heart-warming and I was glad to hear about the choices she made in her life to take care of herself. 5 stars
I read my signed copy of When My Brother Was an Aztec (I met the author about a year ago and she's lovely) and it was incredibly powerful. I highly recommend! 5 stars
Sissy: A Coming-of-Gender Story this was also a feel-good memoir, more so than I was expecting. Yay! 5 stars
I listened to The Girl with the Louding Voice with some skepticism since we were recently warned about the issue with the female character who drastically (and confusingly) changes her position on having children. Luckily that aspect of the story was relatively minor, so I was able to enjoy the rest. 4 stars
I'm currently listening to Felix Ever After and reading A Song Below Water in print.
QOTW: Already too many to list here!
My favorites so far have mainly been memoirs:
Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower
All Boys Aren't Blue
Heavy: An American Memoir
Sissy: A Coming-of-Gender Story
Surpassing Certainty: What My Twenties Taught Me
But I also really loved Sharks in the Time of Saviors and A Luminous Republic.
Christine wrote: "OOH! Allegedly the sequel is actually, really coming out next month. Supposedly.":o I didn't realize there was going to be a sequel! Thanks, will totally add that to my TBR now! lol
Shannon wrote: "That is so exciting! I googled it and the publisher hasn't responded regarding any potential delays, so fingers crossed! I know I don't know her, but I've definitely worried about her off and on over the past few years."
Good to know! Yeah, I haven't checked on her blog site lately but the last time I did I don't remember there being anything new so it had me wondering.
Wow! I completely forgot it was Thursday. We ventured forth from New Mexico to Missouri for a family event, driving 14 hours yesterday. We're exhausted, but it's nice to see family even if we are all wearing masks. Challenge Progress: PS 49/50 PSS 16/20
Completed:
Conjure Women: There's a lot going on here. I just finished the book and my mind is still whirling with impressions of the relationships between Rue and Varina, Sarah, Jonah, and Bruh Abel. Just beautifully written. (And the cover's gorgeous too!) ★★★★
The Vacationers: I just didn't care about this family. Jim is a cheat, and Franny is completely self-involved. Bobby? Well, his name explains it. He's never grown beyond his childhood name. Only Sylvia was in any way a sympathetic character, but she's 18! She's supposed to be immature and self-involved. This doesn't make me want to read anything else by Emma Straub. ★★
Our Time Is Now: Power, Purpose, and the Fight for a Fair America: Voter suppression is real and dangerous, and my opinion of Stacey Abrams has skyrocketed. I really admire the work she's doing to engage voters. ★★★★ (PSS9 nonfiction - a book with a release date in June, July, or August of any year)
Tell Me Who You Are: Sharing Our Stories of Race, Culture, & Identity: I'm a bit disappointed. I had such high hopes for this book, but while impressive that two young women tackled this project, the vignettes were scattered and incohesive. It felt repetitive and not particularly revealing. ★★★ (PSS14 nonfiction - a book that takes place in the summer before high school or college)
An Excess Male: Not exactly what I expected, but it was still an interesting look at China's "One Child" policy and what might happen in the future to the structure of Chinese families because of the imbalance between the male and female population. ★★★ (PS19 "China" - a book set in a country starting with C)
The Sun Down Motel: This was great! I loved the parallels between Viv's story and Carly's. It was spooky and scary... a fantastic blend of a psychological thriller and a horror novel. ★★★★★ (PSS16 - a book with sun, sand, or waves in the title)
The Unhoneymooners: Thoroughly enjoyable! I loved Olive and Ethan's banter, and I'm a sucker for big romantic gestures. The epilogue was a sweet touch. I'll read more from Christina Lauren. ★★★★★ (PSS4 - a book about a vacation)
Honor Girl: A Graphic Memoir: There's a lot to love here. The angst of summer camp felt real - the first stirrings of sexual awakening, the quest for self, the friendships, and the bullying - but somehow it all just fell a bit short, and I was disappointed in the ending. I also found that the simplistic illustrations made it difficult to tell characters apart. ★★★ (PSS18 nonfiction - a book about camping or summer camp)
Currently Reading:
My Dark Vanessa
March: Book Two
The Bookish Life of Nina Hill (PS 16 - a book with a book on the cover)
Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History (PSS1 nonfiction - a book with summer in the title)
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (PS29 - a book with a bird on the cover)
Antigone Rising: The Subversive Power of the Ancient Myths (PSS17 nonfiction - a book with sunglasses on the cover)
Witchmark
QOTW: I've read 176 books so far this year and given 25 of them five ★s. I won't list them all, but some of my favorites were:
FICTION:
Spinning Silver
The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires
Ella Minnow Pea: A Novel in Letters
NONFICTION:
Know My Name
Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men
It was really hard to narrow down my top choices. I've read a lot of really good books this year!
Every year that goes by takes with it a bit more of my tolerance of heat. By the time I get home from work, I just lay on my bed in a short cotton nightgown and let my ceiling fan run full-blast in some effort to survive. I think we are finished with 100 degree weather for a few days, and I made it. Yay me!The NBA has restarted and my team is 2-2. Not great, but we are locked for the playoffs. It is weird with viral fans and little noise, but I'm happy to have them back. At least it gives me a semblance of normal life.
I finished two books this week:
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins - 4 stars, PS #29 (bird on cover)
I quite enjoyed this look at President Snow's youth. Even the worst people have a story about how they got there. Couldn't put it down.
The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren - 4 stars, PSS #8 (set at hotel)
As romance novels go (not my favorite genre), this was quite entertaining. The premise was ludicrous but fun, the characters were appealing, and the location [Maui] was divine. It was nice to read something lighthearted.
Goodreads: 65/90
Popsugar: 36/44, 10/10
PS Summer: 4/20
QOTW:
Non-Fiction - Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption
Fiction - City of Girls
Childrens - Pluto Gets the Call
Doni wrote: "White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism I know this book is highly controversial, but I found myself defending it passionately. So You Want to Talk About Race is probably better, but I found this book was a valuable addition to the conversation as well."Both of these books have been so important to me. I had no previous idea of how much I didn't know about racial issues. I also defend White Fragility passionately.
Greetings! Isaiai or however it is spelled, blew through NYC rapidly, knicking Manhattan with some high winds. But the aftermath today is beautiful weather - lower temps and humidity! I have open windows and no A/C running. First day in weeks. Reading continues weakly but I did finish two, not for challenge, but both Christmas in July reads:
Lady Osbaldestone's Christmas Goose - listened as a pandemic audiobook read to help with sleep and accompany my doing a jigsaw puzzle. Read by the incomparable Helen Lloyd, it was just as wonderful and delightful as the first time I read it.
Christmastime Cowboy - ugh - needed to be about 100 pages shorter to be tolerable. I love Christmas romance but this one was a bomb.
Currently reading:
Ghost of a Chance - actually a reread - pulled from my shelves when I could not really remember the mystery plot but remembered enjoying it. And it is such fun.
QOTW: Most of my reading this year, at least in the first 6 months was reading the last 2 volumes (or last 6 of 9 books) of Proust's A Remembrance of Things Past - in translation thank you very much. A bucket list read ... not an easy read, requiring discipline and patience, but oh what a book! There's a reason it is considered one of the greatest works of modern literature 100 years after it was written.
Other than Proust, I'd have to say the best books so far:
2 graphic novels - my first actually and both autobiographical - The Best We Could Do and Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic.
Porgy - the short novel on which Gershwin's masterpiece Porgy & Bess is based.
Jade Dragon Mountain - historical mystery
Hi everyone! We're getting ready for the school year to start here in Texas. My district is online, which is definitely the right call, but there's still so much to figure out. My reading pace will be hitting a brick wall starting Monday :( My challenges are at:
Goodreads: 52/52 (I've never reached my goal this early before! Thanks, pandemic)
PopSugar:32/50
PopSugar Summer:7/20
Finished:
20th Century Ghosts for A book with "20" or "twenty" in the title
Get a Life, Chloe Brown
The Maze Runner
Currently Reading:
The Last Mrs. Parrish
The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires
Dark Water Rising
QotW:
Fiction:
The Stand
Normal People
Red, White & Royal Blue
Non-Fiction:
So You Want to Talk About Race
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America
I'm not even sure when the last time I commented was, and am too lazy to track it down. So I will just add the two recent books that count towards the Challenge.The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks 4 stars. Counting this for a book about a woman in STEM. I think that might be a bit of a cheat because I suspect that it means a woman working in STEM, but I think it's inarguable that Henrietta Lacks was central to science in the last century, so, good enough for me. A really fascinating story - so many small parts of it could have made their own books, but I actually found myself wanting a bit more science. I didn't really end up with a strong idea of how the cells were so useful, just that they were.
This Place: 150 Years Retold 4.5 stars. A must-read for any Canadian. So much history that I knew nothing about, or new angles on history I did know about. For the anthology prompt, a number of different stories about Indigenous people in Canada that were powerful and informative.
I'm currently still working on The Count of Monte Cristo and also reading The Water Dancer.
My library has opened for curbside pickup, so hopefully that will help me get back into the Challenge mindset.
QotW
In addition to this place, my best of the year so far include the first two Murderbot novellas (currently waiting on the third), Ninefox Gambit, and Nimona. And the book that has stayed with me the most, and keeps cropping back up in my thoughts is Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Club.
I refuse to be lateFinished: Nothing
CR: Gemina and All the Bright Places
Starting: The Wide Window and Obsidio
QOTW: Illuminae for sure!
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
The Old Man and the Sea (other topics)Wilder Girls (other topics)
His Dark Materials (other topics)
Gunslinger Girl (other topics)
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? 1 (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Taylor Adams (other topics)Grady Hendrix (other topics)
Peter Heller (other topics)
Jeanine Cummins (other topics)
Beatriz Williams (other topics)
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I just want to say my thoughts are with anyone affected by the tragedy unfolding in Lebanon this week.
Life is the same here. Crazy at work, blazing hot outside. My mood has been pretty poor of late and I dream of fall. School starts in a few short weeks and life will only get more complicated. I need to take more time for myself to lower my stress levels.
Admin Note:
We are still looking for a volunteer to lead discussion for:
October - Daisy Jones and the Six
November - Where the Crawdads Sing
PM myself or Nadine if you'd like to volunteer!
On to the reading check-in!
My reading life collapsed again during the second half of July and I'm only just getting back to regular reading. I have a handful of prompts left but no interest in reading books that fit them.
Finished:
•Head Over Heels by Hannah Orenstein - BOTM selections for July. A romance is blooming between two former Olympic level gymnasts as they work to coach a promising young gymnast. This was a sweet story. Good brain candy when you can't focus on heavy stuff.
•The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenenz - I really loved the first book in the series, The Friend Zone. In this new installment we learn more about Sloan and also meet Jason. Solid romance. A bit heavier than your typical rom-com.
Currently Reading:
•The Beauty in Breaking by Michele Harper
•Silent in the Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn
•Burnout by Emily and Amelia Nagoski
Question of the week:
What is one of the best books you've read so far this year?
Nonfiction:
•The Road Back to You by Ian Morgan Cron
•The Only Plane in the Sky by Garrett M Graff
•Know My Name by Chanel Miller
Fiction
•Only When It's Us and Always Only Us by Chloe Liese
•The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer