Did you know that we are two days away from National Book Lover’s Day here in the States? (yes, there is a Day for everything under the sun—it’s also Veep Day, Shop Online for Groceries Day, National Rice Pudding Day, National Hand Holding Day, and Co-Working Day). Which makes it at least the 5th consecutive year that I don’t have anything prepped for it. You’d think that’d be a gimme of a post, right? But I’ve yet to come up with a decent idea.*
Also, around these parts, Every day is Book Lover’s Day. Anyway, I felt like I needed a couple of nonsense sentences before we got to the meat of this post. Let’s get on with things.
* Okay, I might have just thought of a post I could put together
This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.
The Three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?
Seems easy enough, right? Let’s take a peek at this week’s answers:
What are you currently reading?
I’m reading Mystery Science Theater 3000: A Cultural History by Matt Foy and Christopher J. Olson, which might be trying too hard to explain humor. I’m listening to Amari and the Great Game by B. B. Alston, read by Imani Parks on audiobook to remind me exactly where the story has us before I open the third volume.
What did you recently finish reading?
I just finished Brock Poulsen’s Bizarre Frontier Omnibus #1, and that will not be the last time I read Poulsen* . I also just finished and enjoyed Mortal Coil by Derek Landy, read by Brian Bowles on audio, which was fun even if I had trouble adjusting to a new narrator, and was troubled that I let my son read this in grade school.
* In case he reads this, I hope he notices that I spelled his name correctly this time.
What do you think you’ll read next?
My next books will be some fun MG-lit, I’ll be reading The Legendary Mo Seto by A. Y. Chan and my next audiobook should be Homerooms and Hall Passes by Tom O’Donnell, read by James Fouhey (the premise alone gets it 3 Stars).
What kinds of things have caught your eye lately?
Carol
Every day is National Book Lovers Day! 🎉📚🙌
HCNewton
This is what I’m saying!
HCNewton
Maybe it’s more intense? Suoer-sized book love?
allysonyj
I”m currently trying to finish Ruth Ozecki’s “Book of Form and Emptiness”, A.S.Byatt’s “Ragnarok” and maybe Thom Hatch’s “The Last Outlaws”, (though that last may be a DFR – it’s just not grabbing me in its exhaustive detail about Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and their early lives.
I was sidetracked by Larry McMurtry’s “Some Can Whistle.” I read this first years ago on the basis of a rave review in the New Yorker, but picked it up off the book cart to refresh my memory. I idly opened the book after dinner, and at 11PM forced myself to put it down. The characters are so vivid, the situations so dramatic, the language so compelling, I just couldn’t stop. From the first sentence – “Mr. Deck, are you my stinkin’ Daddy?” McMurtry has you wondering and worrying and caring.
Next I’ll read Paul Theroux’s “Sunrise with Seamonsters” as my bedside book. I have a copy of Kristin Hannah’s “The Women” on my iPad but my next book group meeting isn’t til September, so I’ll take my time with that one.
allysonyj
Oh. perhaps I should have mentioned that “Some Can Whistle” is about the meaning of fatherhood. Danny Deck (one of McMurtry’s recurrent characters) reconnects with a lost daughter. One of my favorite lines, as Danny wonders whether he is supposed to come along as his daughter visits her boyfriend in jail:
The daughter’s friend answers: “If you wasn’t supposed to come, you wouldn’t be here. From now on, you ALWAYS supposed to come.”
That’s parenting.
Brock Poulsen
I did read it, and I did notice! Thanks for the shoutout!