I am hanging out with my mom while she waits to move into her new apartment, which she's a bit nervous about. I started all the books for my triple book club, but finished none of them. I went anyway.
My son let the house go a bit in my absence last month, so I'm slowly getting a handle on things again. Oh, and I also made it all the way to the end of Star Trek Voyager before they fell of Netflix, which was a lot of tv to watch but I made it. I guess I should push forward on Deep Space Nine before that also jumps to Paramount+.
But mostly I'm gearing up to read all the High School Nonfiction that people can find to recommend. I warmed up by grabbing a pile of new books from the library, and nominations are open so I'll move onto actual books soon. Did I bury the lede there? NOMINATIONS FOR THE CYBILS ARE OPEN!
I am currently reading 27 books, since if I hit a tough bit on a book I'm reading I pick up the next one. I do not anticipate a cascade of completions soon. I'm going to be ready a lot of nonfiction, and picking up the rest as I can.
The Book Date does a weekly roundup of what people are reading, want to read, or have read each week called "It's Monday! What Are You Reading" and I'm going to go sign up. Ditto for the children's lit version at either Teach Mentor Texts or Unleashing Readers.
Started
Running on Empty, Connie Goldsmith. I am warming up by reading some YA nonfiction.
A Field Guide to Getting Lost, Joy McCullough. I saw other bloggers enjoy this.
Covid-19 and Other Pandemics, Don Nardo. This poor book didn't get a picture on GoodReads!
Bi the Way, Lois Shearing. Another book from my library.
Terra Nullius, Claire G. Coleman. I don't think I'll finish the Sword and Laser book by Saturday...
The Mountains Sing, Nguyen Phan Que Mai. (The vowels aren't quite right.) I probably won't finish the Torches & Pitchforks book either.
In Bibi's Kitchen, Hawa Hassan. I'm hoping to finish this on time, since this book club isn't until next week!
Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything, Raquel Vasquez Gilliland. Cybils finalist.
Completed
Pucker, Melanie Gideon. 2006 Cybils Fantasy and Science Fiction finalist. I'm a bit mixed about this. I liked the voice (although his intensity was rather exhausting) and the portal fantasy idea; the way we got information was well paced -- the main character starts in the other world, but comes to ours as a child and grows up here before sneaking back. I thought the depiction of the impact the massive facial scarring had was believable; it clearly affected every interaction Thomas had but also wasn't the only thing he had going on. But I was uncomfortable with the lack of questioning about the choices the refugees made; although some disabled people would probably be willing to take a magical fix even if it limited other choices, there was no inclusion of people who don't feel that their disability doesn't make their lives unlivable. The ending especially left me with a bitter taste in my mouth. It's a tough balance between hearing from all perspectives (some blind people are deeply bitter, for example) and implying that life without sight is inherently untenable, which is obviously not true.
The Beautiful Struggle (Young Readers Edition), Ta-Nehisi Coates. 2021 Cybils High School Nonfiction nominee. So, I first read half of the original book, before noticing that I meant to be reading the "Young Readers" version, so I spent part of my time comparing. The language is much altered, mostly in cleaning up the slang and terms that Coates probably was using as a child and teen but feels quite different coming from an adult speaking to today's kids (the n--- word has disappeared, for the most obvious example of this). I still felt the power of his words and sentences, but he had streamlined and simplified some of the more complicated parts. It still gave me, a fifty-ish white woman, a sense of what it was like growing up Black in Baltimore, and how even with the support of driven parents and passionate teachers the poison of racism in American society and structures still seeps through, and also how children can react in incredibly frustrating ways that seem self destructive and contrary but come from an honest attempt to understand and fit into the world. Coates doesn't dismiss or ignore the many ways he turned aside from opportunities (or how lucky he was at the end) but he also doesn't blame his child self for the world he grew up in.
I was also fascinated by the depiction of his relationships with his brother and his father, and to a lesser extent his mother and other siblings, where love and harshness mingle. As a child, he couldn't always see past the stern words and strict discipline to the love, and as an adult he doesn't approve of some choices his father made, but he understand what the struggle was and how high the stakes were.
I was also fascinated by the depiction of his relationships with his brother and his father, and to a lesser extent his mother and other siblings, where love and harshness mingle. As a child, he couldn't always see past the stern words and strict discipline to the love, and as an adult he doesn't approve of some choices his father made, but he understand what the struggle was and how high the stakes were.
Running on Empty, Connie Goldsmith. I am warming up by reading some YA nonfiction, chosen by going to my local library and grabbing a bunch of new Y nonfiction from the shelves. This was a good overview of sleep, why it's important, what happens when you don't get enough (with some drastic examples for drama) and how that is particularly true for teens. I liked it but wasn't blown away; the writing is clear but didn't blow my socks off. Although I just realized that I immediately started doing all the recommendations in reverse, which is a bit of a shame since I am now experiencing many of the symptoms Goldsmith warns about, but may be a sign that the prose was more powerful than I registered...
A Field Guide to Getting Lost, Joy McCullough. This book did something completely different from what I expected, but managed to convince me to enjoy the book I was reading rather than the one I had imagined. The kids got lost in a city park for a few hours, not in survival conditions for days, but the story was also about them moving out of their comfort zones and learning to like each other, something they really wanted to do because it would make their parents happy. I liked the family dynamics and the way the kids were protective of the family just as the parents were.
Covid-19 and Other Pandemics, Don Nardo. A quick and clear summary of how pandemics operated throughout history, with special attention to how the understanding of disease vectors helped or hindered the response. It helps put Covid-19 in perspective.
Empress of Salt and Fortune, Nghi Vo. 2021 Hugo novella finalist. It's another story within a story (I've read the next in the series), which our story-collecting monk hearing about what goes on behind the doors of the empire's elite. I like the rhythm of the disclosures and how they are marked by the catalog of items.
Bi the Way, Lois Shearing. Hmm. This one I might nominate. I've never really understood the complexities of bisexual issues. I mean, so you like people -- who cares? Go for it! Turns out that a lot of people care, and react very badly when people challenge their assumption of who they are. Hmm, the pronouns are getting mixed, but I hadn't realized how much pushback and violence results when people think they have someone defined as gay or straight and then they defy that categorization. Or that when bisexuals get harassed when with a same sex companion they feel invalidated when that abuse is categorized as a "gay" (or lesbian) crime. Interesting perspectives that I hadn't considered. The writing is good (not great) but the issues and discussions seem important, and I really liked the many quotes from a diverse selection of bisexuals.
Bookmarks Moved (Or Languished) In:
Black Leopard, Red Wolf, Marlon James. Ancient Sword and Laser pick. Didn't touch it.
The Luminaries, Eleanor Catton. Didn't touch it.
The Bourne Supremacy, Robert Ludlum. Didn't touch it.
The Wine-Dark Sea, Patrick O'Brien. Made it a few pages ahead.
Seven Sisters, Lucinda Riley. The library brought it back, but I pushed for another week.
Sharks in the Time of Saviors, Kawai Strong Washburn. Didn't touch it.
Last Night at the Telegraph Club, Malinda Lo. Didn't touch it.
Vampire Trinity, Joey W. Hill. Made progress.
Harrow the Ninth, Tamsyn Muir. Hugo novel finalist.
Conductors, Nicole Glover. My eating companion. I made a bit of progress, now that I'm home and eating at my table.
You Should See Me In a Crown, Leah Johnson. Cybils finalist. Made progress.
Neogenesis, Sharon Lee & Steve Miller. I am very excited that almost all of the characters are now on the same planet.
Deal With the Devil, Kit Rocha. Cloudy book club pick. I did not finish in time for the meeting.
The Relentless Moon, Mary Robinette Kowal. Hugo novel finalist. Made progress.
Winter Tide, Ruthanna Emrys. From my (digital) shelves. Made progress.
Picture Books / Short Stories:
None.
Palate Cleansers
These books I'm barely reading; lately I use them bribes to get me to deal with the mail. Hmm. I should get back to that.
The Educated Child, William Bennett.
Wool, Hugh Howey. Fighting and thinking.
Sorcerer to the Crown, Zen Cho. Boy is the main guy so very English.
Dates From Hell, Kim Harrison & others.
Reading and Learning to Read, Jo Anne Vaca. Moving into the appendixes!
Reading Challenges
- Cybils 2020. Still reading You Should See Me In a Crown, and also Sia Martinez
- Early Cybils: Finished Pucker.
- Hugos 2021: Finished novellas. Made minimal progress on last two novels. Watched a smidge of youtube.
- KCLS 10 To Try: 10/10. Complete!
- Tacoma Extreme Reading Challenge. 51/55. Counted again, and I must have missed some. I think I will have to actively go after the remainder.
- Reading My Library. Haven't started the next one.
- Where Am I Reading 2021: 32/51 states. Rhode Island! I'm currently reading books in Indiana and Pennsylvania. 19 Countries.
Future Plans
I'm putting this at the end because I suspect it's complete fiction, but I feel I should attempt some structure.I am reading:
- Book I own: Deal With the Devil Next: Terra Nullius.
- Library Book: Bibi's Kitchen. Next: Red Madness
- Ebook I own: Luminaries. Next: Winter's Tide
- Library Ebook: Cybils pick. Next: Cybils pick.
- Book Club Book: Bibi's Kitchen Up Next: Nos4R2
- Tuesday Book Club Book: . Next: I need to finish that sailing book.
- Review Book: The Queer Principles of Kit Webb Next: Back Home
- Hugo Book: Ruthless Moon. Next: Harrow the Ninth.
- Rereading: Steerswoman
- Meal Companion: Conductors
- Audio: None Next: I have a book on CD I'll start listening to if I ever catch up on my podcasts.
1 comment:
I just checked out A Field Guide to Getting Lost and hope to squeeze it into my reading rotation this next month. Thank you for continuing to be a judge for Cybils. I'll have to click over to the nomination form to see if they've listed the current nominations. I hope your mom settles in, nicely. And I haven't binge watched something in a long time. I used to do it a lot when the kids were younger. Now I struggle to get my hands on the TV or to have time to binge. But it's always exciting when I can! Have a great week, Beth!
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