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Kelly
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After my free time thoughts being fit for nothing but mush this first half of my pregnancy, I feel the fog finally lifting- just in time for me to find a not-mindless-candy read to finish out this year. Last year I read Piranesi at this time and it was the perfect tale for these liminial, quiet days betwixt and between old and new. What’s the best book you read this year I should read this week?
— Dec 22, 2021 10:34AM
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Abyssdancer (Hanging in there!)
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Dec 22, 2021 11:53AM
I would recommend The Beautiful Ones by Sylvia Moreno Garcia … this is a very touching romantic novel that is actually quite deep, with fascinating characters and kind of a Jane Austen feel …
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Dear Kelly, how you manage to care for a newborn AND read--bless your heart! I've read 157 books this year and am currently knocking off Neil Stephenson's Termination Shock. I did NOT like Piranesi, so there's that. My favorite book this year, hmmmm--ok, I'll give you two, very different takes on reading enjoyment. The best book of the year, in terms of literature, was, hands down, Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr, author of All The Light We Cannot See. And for the best last line EVER, by my favorite rom-com author, purely for the fun of it--Tessa Dare's latest, The Wallflower Wager. (Even better than When A Scot Ties The Knot.) If you can find the time, I'd love to know your thoughts on either or both.
Thanks to both of you! No newborn yet, just a pretty rough first half of pregnancy in terms of symptoms. But I am feeling better now! *knock on wood, of course* Jane Austen feel sounds great! I have also enjoyed a few Tessa Dares in the past. I am sure I will need more light reading in the future. Appreciate your ideas!
My pregnancies were all geriatric--I was 41 and 43 when I had our daughters. I threw up every day with my first, right up to in the delivery room! (Isn't it strange how women just love to share the horror stories of their pregnancies with complete strangers? TMI, sorry.). I want to thank the reader who offered Way Station, which sounds intriguing and is now on my list. Have a wonderful remainder of your pregnancy, Kelly--that girl who gave me so much trouble turned out to be the one who takes care of us in our old age. She is a great blessing.
Thanks for the Way Station rec and glad everything turned out well for you Dee! :)
To echo the Simak recommendation: I enjoyed reading his Way Station last year, and his City this year. I love both, probably the latter a bit more :)Congrats on the pregnancy! My wife and I found the Expecting Better book excellent though a bit intense. I'm reading Bringing Up Bébé, which has a lighthearted tone, alleviating a bit of my nervousness.
Stories told by dogs! City sounds great, gotta add it to my list (done). Good for you, Reynard--but don't be nervous, if you can avoid it. Be involved! (Then you'll be too busy to be nervous.). Thanks for the recommendation.
Yeah I think the “intensity” of Expecting Better was kind of what I liked about it - mostly as a contrast to the more condescending, non-evidence-based lists of advice in older books. I liked that she trusted new parents to read the science and use it to make better decisions. Yeah some of it was a lot, but I feel like when you’re at the stage of any part of literature when it’s part of a first wave reacting to what came before, it’s gonna be intensely different in counterpoint to make its point, you know?I just read really in depth on the science of the stuff I was nervous about and skimmed the rest, which worked for me. :)
