Weekly Short Stories Contest and Company! discussion

People can become so amazed, humbled, and taught by books! While I myself do a bad job at keeping up reading them, I fall in love with good ones in the process.

And sometimes we go out and buy huge stacks for ones to read (or re-read if they were once relics of the past). Books teach us valuable lessons, quiet our chaotic thoughts, inspire our loves and hopes when writing, and are just so darn fun to read!

So have you bought a bunch of books lately? What book stack do you have? What books specifically. Fiction or non? Historical Fiction or Fantasy? Sci Fi or Religious? Anything can be said here about what you love to read.

So do not fear, we'll all listen here! All we ask is just don't let that stack get too high by the way... the WSS ship can only hold so much weight. ;)

This is what inspired this thread to come up just this night, hehe.

My book stack just got a lot bigger. I went out and scooped up more than a few at a discount book store. Here are my books that are newbies to me!!

Below:

~The Medal Of Honor by Donald E. Zlotnik (Fields of Honor #1). Also
~~The Silver Star by Donald (Fields of Honor #3).

~Warcraft, War of the Ancients: The Well of Eternity. Book One.
~~And also Warcraft, War of the Ancients: The Sundering. Book Three.

(Note: They didn't have the second book of either book series for some reason, haha).

~The Word of God. The New Testament of...... in Today's English Version. (Oh I thought this was "about" the bible, why I bought it. It has an 80's style cover and is a paperback. Oh well. That's still good...)

Oh and I got a book I thought was coming tomorrow but it showed up today in the mail. Yay! I hope to continue this book (which I read originally the copy was a library book) again. Now I own it! :D

Garrison, how are you doing in the mystery department? Have you checked out what I and Al mentioned? Or have you found a different writer in that genre?

I am just curious. :D

Al wrote: "Tony Hillerman is great too!"

Cool. I saw your comment and now one of his books is in my "to-read."

Is Hillerman in your book stack currently or had his books in your collection over the years?

I don't think I've seen his books before seeing your post.

That's gr8. I read a while back a Koontz book. It was well done (and startling bc of what happened in my life just recently no different from that book's end!)

C. J. wrote: "Garrison, how are you doing in the mystery department? Have you checked out what I and Al mentioned? Or have you found a different writer in that genre?

I am just curious. :D"

I actually haven't done a whole lot of reading this year, psychological exhaustion and all. In fact, the only book I read so far in 2021 was "The Ever-Burning Light" by K.L. Cottrell, which isn't a mystery, but a paranormal fantasy. The next book I want to read is the final novel in the Hunger Games trilogy, "Mockingjay". The short answer to your question is, no, I haven't made any progress in the mystery department. Too tired. :(

I’m still reading the same old stuff. This week I began rereading Edward Whitmont’s The Symbolic Quest: Basic Concepts of Analytical Psychology (Princeton, 1969). Fifteen years ago, I was carrying pages of it around in my pocket.

Al wrote: "C. J. wrote: "That's gr8. I read a while back a Koontz book. It was well done (and startling bc of what happened in my life just recently no different from that book's end!)"

Koontz is what really..."

I love Koontz! He's one of my favorite authors.

Alex wrote: “I’ve never been able to figure out the symbols you scribbled over the cover though.”

They probably just tell where and when I bought the book. The triangle (or square or rectangle or circle) is a weather symbol.

Garrison wrote: "C. J. wro...

I actually haven't done a whole lot of reading this year, psychological exhaustion and all. In fact, the only book I read so far in 2021 was "The Ever-Burning Light" by K.L. Cottrell, which isn't a mystery..."

That's alright bud. I know how you feel. I have yet to finish a book this year! Also doesn't help I've been grieving hard and sometimes not able to focus well after!

The years 2020 and 2021 have been terrible for mental health, for sure. I sometimes have to remind myself that we're all in this boat together and that I'm never alone in feeling the way I do.

For some reason that reminded me of a professor who, right before the final exam, seemed about to give us a “light at the end of the tunnel” talk. Instead, he merely remarked, “It’s always darkest just before it gets pitch black.”

If nothing else, your professor was never short on brutal honesty.

He was one of my favorite professors. I took every class of his that I could. He taught Romantic and Victorian, and is the only professor I had who let me write my term papers about architecture.

I'm glad you found someone you liked. That's always important no matter where someone is on their educational journey. :)

C. J. wrote: "hat's alright bud. I know how you feel. I have yet to finish a book this year! Also doesn't help I've been grieving hard and sometimes not able to focus well after!'


Still grieving. More people dead. And one I kind of worked to not think about. So much crazy stuff! And sad.... I will be going away just to let y'all know! It's a good place and I hope that I can just come back and hang for a while after.

Love you guys!