My elementary book club is starting up again, which is good news because we weren’t sure we could make it happen. But I’ve laid in a supply of cookies and we’re giving it a go.
Goodreads thinks I am currently reading 68 books, but I’ve finished a bunch of those so I think I’m not really trending upward. The library thinks I have 48 physical books checked out but the lost one is found so I’m happy. In unrelated news, I’ve checked off two more libraries in my quest to visit all the KCLS branches. My household rule is that you can check out up to you age number of books, so I’m still legal!
Books Completed Sept 19 - Sept 25
I Survived the Shark Attacks of 1916: Graphic Novel, Lauren Tarshis. This one really shines as a graphic novel, because both monster pranks and shark attacks are great illustration opportunities and the history is minor.
Endling: The First, Katherine Applegate. I read the first with my Tuesday book club, and I remember people being uncomfortable with the talking animals eating each other. The line between stranger and lunch remains blurred here. The adventure stuff works but I’ve forgotten how this group got together so I was never sure how strong their bond was. Still, it was a good pick for my Renton Highland Library Quest.
Black Wolf of Boston, Wen Spencer. I’m glad I reread this, both because there’s a lot of exposition I had forgotten and also because it came back to me as I read it and made it even more fun. I think the first time I was a bit slowed down by remembering how the world worked.
Grendel’s Guide to Love and War, A.E. Kaplan. Matching Scintillation pick. I didn’t like this as much as most of the group; I thought the Beowulf stuff made the love story more u balanced and less fun than it would have been without the links. I get how people identify with the villains in stories when they feel out of place, but hey, still murder no matter what your reason. This book didn’t have actual murder, but I didn’t feel as sympathetic to Grendel’s shenanigans because of the base story. The Beowulf stuff on its own was cool though.
Mayhem at a Halloween Wedding, Emmeline Duncan. This is the second in a lightweight series about a small town book store owner. I enjoy them as a peek into a life I don’t have, and this delivers with an elaborate wedding our heroine is a maid of honor for. The rituals around weddings to me were baffling even while having my own, so this one was pleasantly exotic.
Masterminds, Gordon Korman. Good pick, Talbot Hill kid. Korman delivers another fun and meaty adventure story. There’s a sequel so I hope the dead kid somehow was saved off page.
Karen’s School Pictures Graphic Novel (Baby-sitter’s Little Sister), Ann Martin & Katy Farina. Karen gets glasses! Will she wear them for her picture? The politics at this posh private school are fascinating.
Ayiti, Roxane Gay. The next shelf in the Renton library gave me a taste of Gay’s fiction; previously I had only read her essays. She could drop me into a couple realized character in only a few lines; some stories were only a few pages long but still left me feeling complete. A lucky find.
From the Roots Up, Tasha Spillet-Sumner. The next stage in the comics about Native Americans getting murdered in cities left me a bit confused. The focus has moved to a group of kids who attend the local Indian community center and convince the leaders to move to a more open approach to mixed genders and what roles people can have; the loss of more traditional members who feel ignored is treated as good riddance.
Here in Harlem: Poems in Many Voices, Walter Dean Myers. The poet says he was inspired by Spoon River Anthology and he also succeeded in giving the feel of a community through short glimpses of the poetry in various members.
Game Changer!: Book Access For All Kids, Donalyn Miller and Colby Sharp. I got some good ideas for my kidlit bookclub this year as well as general support for loving seeing kids read.
I Survived the Eruption of Mount St Helens, 1980, Lauren Tarshis. I liked this even better as part of a series than I had as a stand alone: it’s good but it does kind of rest on the established structure.
Books Started
I Survived the Shark Attacks of 1916: Graphic Novel, Lauren Tarshis.
Mayhem at a Halloween Wedding, Emmeline Duncan. I enjoy this author.
Karen’s School Pictures Graphic Novel (Baby-sitter’s Little Sister), Ann Martin & Katy Farina. Checking another off the list.
Black Tie and Tails, Wen Spencer. I bought this in hard cover.
I Survived the Bombing of Pearl Harbor, 1941, Lauren Tarshis. The pile is getting smaller.
Some Sunny Day, Adam Baron. Next in the Renton Highland Library Quest.
Game Changer!: Book Access For All Kids, Donalyn Miller and Colby Sharp. How to get kids to read by giving them books.
From the Roots Up, Tasha Spillet-Sumner. I read the first one.
Mary Anne and the Search For Tigger, Ann M. Martin, up to number 25!
Hundredfold, Anthony Esolen. New poetry book.
I Survived the Eruption of Mount St Helens, 1980, Lauren Tarshis. I’m rereading this one because I read it years ago.
Arabella of Venus, David Levine. Listening to the audio while doing chores.
The Hexologists, Josiah Bancroft. Sword & Laser pick.
Bookmarks Moved
The Way of Kings, Brandon Sanderson
Track Changes, Abigail Nussbaum
Heavenly Tyrants, Xiran Jay Zhao
Beowulf, J. R. R. Tolkien
The Luminaries, Eleanor Catton
This Tender Land, William Kent Kruger
Read Dangerously, Azar Nifisi
An Exchange of Hostages, Susan R. Matthews
A, B, C: Three Short Novels, Samuel Delany
Hearts Still Beating, Brooke Archer
The Farwalker’s Quest, John Sensel. Classic Cybils finalist.
Lepunia: Kingdom of the Gallopers, Kevin Ford
Bookmarks Languished
I have not given up on these! Ignore all evidence!
Into the Vast Nothing, J. Bruno.
Marry Me By Midnight, Felicia Grossmann
True Colors, Abby Cooper.
South Riding, Winifred Holtby
Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel
Calypso, Oliver K Langmead
The Hunger and the Dusk, G. Willow Wilson
Speculative Whiteness, Jordan S. Carroll
Bourne Supremacy, Robert Ludlum
Death in the Spires, K.J. Charles
So Let Them Burn, Kamilah Cole
Coyote Dreams, C.E. Murphy
I’m Nobody, Who Are You?, Emily Dickinson
One Jump Ahead, Mark L Von Name
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, David Mitchell
Picture Books, Poems, and Short Stories
Knight Owl and Early Bird, Christopher Denise. A small bird joins the knightly order, which consists of a bunch of humans and now two small birds. No one comments on this. Somehow armor that fits the birds is available. That’s my favorite part of these books; the background strangeness as the simple emotional arc moves along in the front.
Last Stop on Market Street, Matt de la Pena. I see why this won the awards.
Leo’s First Vote, Christina Soontornvat. Wow, this author can do it all. I liked the kid’s enthusiasm and how they let the school election almost be a tie, and I was impressed at how well she avoided modern partisan politics.
Books on Slow Mode
Home Comforts, Cheryl Mendleson. I read one section a day. Currently learning laundry details for linen and cotton.
At the Feet of the Sun, Victoria Goddard. The ending feels like a beloved dog circling to find the perfect spot.
50 Great Poets, ed. Milton Crane. Mail bribe. More dull Arnold stuff.
The Writer's Stance: Reading and Writing in the Disciplines, Dorothy U. Seyler. Mail bribe.
Black Leopard, Red Wolf, Marlon. Mail bribe.
War Cross, Marie Lu. Mail bribe.
Teaching With Caldecott Books, Scholastic books. Mail bribe. I like that I remember these books.
Books Acquired
I only notice when I’m caught up.
Future Plans
This is for the actual future, so weeks beyond the books in this post. It is also probably wrong.
I am reading:
- Book I own: Wolf Hall
- Library Book: Give Me a Reason
- Hugo Finalist: Heavenly Tyrant
- Foolscap Book Club Book: Red Shirts
- Sword and Laser Club Book: Interview With the Vampire
- Scintillation Book Club: Crucible of Time
- Cloudy Book Club: Someone You Can Build a Nest In
- Torches and Pitchfork Book Club: Spook
- River Runs Under It Book Club: North Woods
- Talbot Hill Book: Fantasy, Historical/biography
- Friday Book Club: Black Wolves of Boston 1 & 2
- Romance Book Club: Doctor romance
