Category: Books Page 36 of 158

WWW Wednesday, March 6, 2024

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On March 6, 2024

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

Somehow, it feels like March is half over, no matter what my calendar says. Is it just me?

Eh, numbers were never my thing, anyway. Let’s talk about words.

 

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 A Blight of Blackwings by Kevin Hearne, a mere four years after it was released (and four months after the final book in the trilogy was published), and am listening to Moonlight Mile by Dennis Lehane, read by Jonathan Davis on audiobook, the end of my most recent Kenzie/Gennaro revisit..

A Blight of BlackwingsBlank SpaceMoonlight Mile

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished T. L. Simpson’s Strong Like You, a dynamite debut, and The Body’s Keepers: A Social History of Kidney Failure and Its Treatments by Paul L. Kimmel, MD, read by Lane Hakel on audiobook.

Strong Like YouBlank SpaceThe Body’s Keepers

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be the ARC of Rhythm and Clues by Olivia Blacke (which will surely be a fun time, like the first two in the series) and my next audiobook should be Dead Ground by M.W. Craven, read by John Banks, the only novel in the series I didn’t write about yet. Hopefully, I can fix that with revisiting it.

Rhythm and CluesBlank SpaceDead Ground

Are your books for the beginning of March more like lions or lambs?

February 2024 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

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On March 4, 2024

In Books, Calendar Items, Currently Reading, News/Misc.

February I finished 22 titles (5 up from last month, 4 down from last February), with 5,364 pages or the equivalent (291 down from last month), and gave them an average of 3.7 stars (.19 down from last month). Overall, not bad.

I’m falling behinder on posting about what I’m reading again–I knew that was happening, but I thought I was doing better than I was until I did this post. I’m going to have to work on that–on the other hand, other posts kinds of posts are in good shape (even if I missed a couple I’d planned on during the month). I’m going to call the month a toss-up on that front.

Not my best month, but definitely not my worst. That’s good enough for me. Here’s what happened here in February.
Books/Novels/Novellas Read/Listened to

Still Reading

Glorifying and Enjoying God Word and Spirit Redemptive History & Biblical Interpretation
Institutes of Elenctic Theology Vol. 1 Zwingli the Pastor The Body’s Keepers

Ratings

5 Stars 1 2 1/2 Stars 1
4 1/2 Stars 3 2 Stars 0
4 Stars 6 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 7 1 Star 0
3 Stars 4
Average = 3.7

TBR Stacks/Piles/Heaps

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read		 NetGalley
Shelf
End of
2023		 6 47 68 153 5
1st of the
Month		 5 48 67 152 6
Added 1 0 3 3 4
Read/
Listened		 10 0 5 1 1
Current Total 5 48 65 154 9

Breakdowns:
“Traditionally” Published: 16
Self-/Independent Published: 6

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 3 (14%) 3 (8%)
Fantasy 1 (5%) 6 (15%)
General Fiction/ Literature 3 (14%) 5 (13%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 5 (23%) 10 (26%)
Non-Fiction 2 (9%) 3 (8%)
Science Fiction 3 (14%) 4 (10%)
Theology/ Christian Living 2 (9%)  4 (10%)
Urban Fantasy 3 (14%) 4 (10%)
“Other” (Horror/ Humor/ Steampunk/ Western) 0 (0%) 0 (0%)

Review-ish Things Posted

Other Things I Wrote
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th), I also wrote:

Enough about me—how Was Your Month?

February Calendar

Saturday Miscellany—3/2/24

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On March 2, 2024

In Books, News/Misc., Saturday Miscellany

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
bullet Book bans? Make that “intellectual freedom challenges”—the reframing of the challenges Public Libraries are facing (whatever you may think of those challenges)
bullet A Simple Way to Build Intimacy: Reading Aloud—It’s behind NYT’s paywall, but it looks good.
bullet Mark Twain’s Obsession with Joan of Arc—I really didn’t know he was “obsessed” with her, but I appreciated this look at Twain (it also jibes well with According to Mark, a book I haven’t mentioned for a week or two)
bullet Where the Red Fern Grows was trending on Twitter this week, and I was comforted by seeing so many others sharing the same (self-inflicted) trauma that I have. Also, I learned/was reminded of this statue in Idaho Falls (finally, a reason for me to visit the town).
bullet The Biggest Differences Between the ‘Longmire’ Books and TV Series—odd that this is something written in 2024, but still a fun look back at the show.
bullet Announced this week: Safe Enough by Lee Child—”20 thrilling standalone short stories,” out in August.
bullet Speaking of announcements, Mushroom Blues Soundtrack was announced a couple of days ago. Looks great.
bullet A Beginner’s Guide to Falling in Love with Audiobooks
bullet I Have Bad Taste- Books I Feel Bad for Enjoying—The Orangutan Librarian fesses up.
bullet On My Radar: February 2024—Celeste brings a great list of links from the past month.
bullet Ways A Book Ages—surprising no one at all, Peat Long dropped something worth reading.

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
(a very slow week, I should add)
bullet Chimera by Kelly Meding—(and a post I enjoyed reading for the first time in a decade or so)
bullet I mentioned the releases of Hammer of Angels by G. T. Almasi, The Chase by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg, Honor’s Knight by Rachel Bach, and The Undead Pool by Kim Harrison.

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
bullet I Only Read Murder by Ian Ferguson & Will Ferguson—a whodunit featuring a former TV star, amateur theater, and a town full of (likely quirky) suspects. Looks like a fun time.
bullet Criminal Justice by Ian Robinson—an undercover cop dances along the edge of the law. I asked Robinson a few quick questions about it yesterday.
bullet Morte Point by Rob Parker—The second Ben Bracken novel is a great ride, and has been released in a new edition.

Tweet from @bookculture 'it is a truth universally acknowledged that a person in possession of a large to read pile must be in want of another book'

WWW Wednesday, February 28, 2024

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On February 28, 2024

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

Yay, the month is almost over and I can get back to not having to overthink what I type in the Post Title!

So, speaking of February, I’ve mentioned before, but I need to say something one more time. I’m taking part in the fundraiser, I’m Reading Every Day for American Cancer Society this month, and I’d greatly appreciate your support.

Bernie Sanders saying I'm Once Again Asking For Your Support

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 the ARC of Rift in the Soul by Faith Hunter, which I’m really enjoying and seemingly not making much progress in. I’m listening to The Body’s Keepers: A Social History of Kidney Failure and Its Treatments by Paul L. Kimmel, MD, read by Lane Hakel on audiobook. It’s both fascinating and a solid reminder that I was right to avoid any career related to medicine.

Rift in the SoulBlank SpaceThe Body’s Keepers

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Bradley Sides’s Crocodile Tears Didn’t Cause the Flood, a very strange book* that I meant to post about today. I also just listened to the mercifully brief An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good by Helene Tursten, translated by Marlaine Delargy, read by Suzanne Toren on audio.

Crocodile Tears Didn’t Cause the FloodBlank SpaceBlank SpaceAn Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good

* And I mean that in the best possible way.

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be for Strong Like You by T. L. Simpson and I have no idea what my next audiobook might be. I haven’t even thought of it, really—there’s a decent chance that I’ll still be listening to The Body’s Keepers when I assemble next week’s WWW, so I’ve got time to decide.

Strong Like YouBlank Space???

What are you reading today—and for the “bonus day” tomorrow?

Saturday Miscellany—2/24/24

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On February 24, 2024

In Books, News/Misc., Saturday Miscellany

Let’s start with some good news—there’s a new independent bookstore opening soon in my area, and they must be getting serious about things because they’re hiring staff now. I’m enjoying watching them share some of their prep work, and we’re hoping to do something on this site together as they get closer to Opening Day.

I’ve got a super short list this week—I have not been doing a lot online, as you may have noticed. Remember a few years ago when I was talking about my son’s kidney transplant? Well, he’s about to start shopping for a new one—he’s currently at his second dialysis session, and there was a little bit of drama surrounding discovering it’s time for that (seriously, the effects of kidney failure on your body can be fairly astounding).

Also, this week we’re skipping the 10 years ago look back this week because I got off track and I’ve already taken care of this week. So…my flashbacks will pick up again next week (just out of curiosity, is anyone enjoying that bit in the first place?).

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
bullet An anti-censorship resource, Book Résumés, just launched. Each “résumé summarizes the book’s significance and educational value, including a synopsis, reviews from professional journals, awards, accolades, and more.”
bullet Bring Back the Big, Comfortable Bookstore Reading Chair —yeah, I can see Johnston’s point.
bullet Bear McCreary Unleashes “The Singularity” Album, Graphic Novel, Concert—color me intrigued
bullet Fungi in Fiction by Adrian M. Gibson—a guest post over at Before We Go Blog on a topic few, if any, have likely considered.
bullet Stop using “YA” as an insult—Kopratic sounds off at The Fantasy Inn
bullet A quick video post: 5 Books Better than Dealing with Real Life

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
bullet Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection by Charles Duhigg—An “exploration of what makes conversations work—and how we can all learn to be supercommunicators at work and in life.” Frankly, I don’t need to be a super-communicator, I’d be happy with better-than-I-currently-am. I’ve enjoyed Duhigg’s previous two books, and imagine this will be equally engaging, interesting, and perhaps helpful.
bullet Buffalo Fluffalo by Bess Kalb, Illustrated by Erin Kraan—No idea what this is about…fun title, great cover. Nuff ‘said.

Picture of a despondent woman with the text: No matter how often Jane re-read her favorite novel, the typographical error on page 102 still got to her.

Hello, Old Friend

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On February 22, 2024

In Books, Miscellany, News/Misc.

A few weeks back when I started thinking about the books for Top 5 Tuesday – Top 5 books about music (My Fiction List), I remembered a book that I read in elementary school (and probably after) called The Buffalo Nickel Blues Band by Judie Angell. I couldn’t tell you how long it had been since I’d thought of it—possibly not since I made a reference to it in 2013. But it got under my skin. As I was bucks up and the moment, I indulged the impulse and bought a cheap used copy online.

Photo of The Buffalo Nickel Blues Band
So, yeah—this is the original cover, not the paperback version that I can still remember in pretty good detail (couldn’t find that one anywhere). It’s got that old library plastic wrap on it, the sticker on the side reading “J Ang” to identify it as belonging in the Juvenile section of the library (some of you will have to ask your parents about the Dark Ages before YA/MG and so on), marker ink blocking out the name of whatever Library used to own it (and the pocket where the checkout card would go on the inside, which was neat to see), the remnants of some sticker in the upper corner that is likely to outlast Western Civilization no matter what I do. So it’s not the prettiest thing ever. It’s not my The Buffalo Nickel Blues Band, but it’s a The Buffalo Nickel Blues Band, and that’ll have to do.

Now, I am almost certain that I will not read this book again—in much the same way I won’t watch The Greatest American Hero or Condorman now, or like I shouldn’t have watched any of The A-Team or Night Rider in adulthood. My memories are too good to expose them to the unforgiving light of reality, and I don’t want to spend time asking myself, “What was I thinking?”

Nevertheless, I feel better knowing that my ol’ pal is in my house and that the possibility of renewing our friendship is at arm’s reach. This may not make sense to most of you, but a few of you are really going to get this. It’s not going to look great on my shelves, but I think the collection is improved.

 

Irresponsible Reader Pilcrow Icon

WWW Wednesday, February 21, 2024

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On February 21, 2024

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

This has turned into one of those weeks…I’ve read for 60 minutes (combined) the last two days—and I don’t expect today is going to be much better. Those 30 minutes a day is enough to keep me sane…just. (they’re also a good reminder that my mind does require some time for reading). They’re enough to help me keep going with my, I’m Reading Every Day for American Cancer Society, too—a nice bonus. Shall we take a quick look at the books I’m spending a little time with?

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 the disturbing (as the cover suggests) Abnormal Ends by Bryan McBee, and am listening to Spells for the Dead by Faith Hunter, read by Khristine Hvam on audiobook to refresh my mind on the series before I dive into the next one.

Abnormal EndsBlank SpaceSpells for the Dead

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished (and posted about ) Adam Johnson’s Fortune Smiles and Another Girl by Peter Grainger, read by Gildart Jackson on audio.

Fortune SmilesBlank SpaceAnother Girl

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be the ARC of Rift in the Soul by Faith Hunter (so I’d better make sure I get in some good Audiobook listening time soon) and my next audiobook should be An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good by Helene Tursten, translated by Marlaine Delargy, read by Suzanne Toren, which looks like a quick and fun read.

Rift in the SoulBlank SpaceAn Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good

How’s your reading going this week?

Saturday Miscellany—2/17/24

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On February 17, 2024

In Books, News/Misc., Saturday Miscellany

Running late today…no interesting story behind it (which is good and bad), just a thing that happened. But I do have a few things to share for whenever you see this post.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
bullet The Loss of Things I Took for Granted: Ten years into my college teaching career, students stopped being able to read effectively.—this is disturbing
bullet Can We Please Put an End to Overperformed Audiobooks?
bullet 20 Modern Whodunits to Read if You Love Golden Age Mysteries —this is a pretty good listicle from The Real Book Spy
bullet Coming to Terms With “Cozy” Fiction: Categories and genres are weird things. Sometimes they make perfect sense; sometimes they feel like mental sandpaper.
bullet Why is there an obsession with rehabilitating villains??—while I wouldn’t want to argue against rehabilitating anyone in real life, I think the Orangutaton Librarian hits on something here when it comes to fiction.
bullet The Various Things Ratings Can Mean—Peat Long drops some wisdom
bullet Books with Relationships for People who Don’t Love Love: 2024 Edition—the atypical Valentine’s Day list is back with some good recommendations.

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
bullet Dirty Magic by Jaye Wells
bullet Hide by Lisa Gardner
bullet And I mentioned the release of Grimm: The Chopping Block by John Passarella—the Grimm tie-in novel that I never got around to tracking down.

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
bullet The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown—a strange world of magic, time travel, and books. I quite enjoyed it.
bullet The Frame-Up by Gwenda Bond—magically-enhanced con artists? Count me in.
bullet Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar—this is one of those books that I’m not going to pretend to be able to describe in a sentence without reading, but it looks promising.

Keep Reading. It's one of the most marvelous adventures that anyone can have. - Lloyd Alexander

WWW Wednesday, February 14, 2024

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On February 14, 2024

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

I’d make some joke about books being my true Valentine or something here, but Mrs. Irresponsible Reader reads this occasionally—and why test her sense of humor?

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 (really) finally reading City on Fire by Don Winslow (yeah, I said I was reading it last week, but as soon as I started I was reminded of a looming Library due date), and I’m listening to Another Girl by Peter Grainger, read by Gildart Jackson on audiobook.

City on FireBlank SpaceAnother Girl

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Heather Fawcett’s Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands and the great Soundtrack of Silence: Love, Loss, and a Playlist for Life by Matt Hay on audio.

Emily Wilde's Map of the OtherlandsBlank SpaceSoundtrack of Silence

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be A Quantum Love Story by Mike Chen, and boy howdy, am I eager to dive in. My next audiobook should be Spells for the Dead by Faith Hunter, read by Khristine Hvam—I can’t believe it’s been three years since this came out, I need to refresh my memory a bit before I dive into the next one.

A Quantum Love StoryBlank SpaceSpells for the Dead

What books are stealing your heart today?

Top 5 Tuesday – Top 5 books about music (My Non-Fiction List)

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On February 13, 2024

In Books, News/Misc.


This week’s topic is, “Top 5 books about music. February seems to have a ‘national ukulele day’ so what are your top 5 books about music, musicians, or instruments.” I had a very hard time cutting this down to five when I was thinking about novels, so I decided to do a Non-Fiction list as well. This was a bit trickier, actually. Maybe if I tried harder, I could’ve come up with a better list, but I didn’t have that kind of time. But once I had the idea for this list I had to finish.

1 A Dream About Lightning Bugs
A Dream About Lightning Bugs by Ben Folds

Sure, the big appeal of this book is to learn more about the career of Folds and the Ben Folds Five, and there’s some good material on the ups and downs of Folds’ personal life. What he says about music and the creation of it–both his and others’, that gets it on this list. Also, I’m a pretty big fan of the author, that doesn’t hurt.
2 Soundtrack of Silence
Soundtrack of Silence by Matt Hay

It’s dangerous to put this here because I’ve barely scratched the surface of the book as I compose this. But something about the premise and the early execution, the nice way that he’s working in references and lyrics to music makes me think it’ll be worth calling one of my Top 5.
5 Dear Mr Pop Star
Dear Mr Pop Star by Derek & Dave Philpott

It’s kind of a stretch to include this one, but this book brought me so much joy that I don’t care. I’ll vigorously apply a shoehorn to get it to fit. It’s not about music or musicians, per se. It’s a collection of “deliberately deranged letters to pop stars from the 1960s to the 90s to take issue with the lyrics of some of their best-known songs.” For example, they write to Starship about “We Built this City” going into a great amount of detail about the nature of foundations, different types of them, etc. and how this makes their “design project” the “most ludicrous” in the history of architecture. But what separates this book from similar tomes, what makes it special is that on the very next page, you get to read a response from Martin Page, who co-wrote the song. Page mounts an impassioned defense of the song — full of references to Rock classics as proof. Each letter printed in this collection is answered by a songwriter, musician, or other representative of a musical act. Some of these responses debate the premise of the Philpott’s letter, some answer in the same vein, others take the premise and run with it in their own way — some appear to be in on the joke, others appears to be flummoxed that anyone would take their lyrics in this insane manner.
3 Sundry Notes of Music
Sundry Notes of Music by Ian Shane

We all know how a song can tie you to a moment in your personal history. Just hearing it can take you back to a moment, to a feeling, etc. There’s also how the lyrics of a song can hit you just right and inform a period of time in your life. We all know it, but few of go where Shane did and write a memoir (of sorts) tracing significant songs.

4 Love is a Mix-Tape
Love is a Mix-Tape by Rob Sheffield

A stray thought about this book led to this list. This is simply a fantastic book, a chronicle of Sheffield’s time with his wife, Renée, from their meeting to her untimely death at the age of 31. He frames his account in discussions of mix tapes he or she made for various times/events in their lives. The songs, and the feelings they evoke, are just as much part of their story as anything else. There’s a lot of humor, a lot of heart–and then some heartbreak and the aftermath. I really should make some time to re-read this.

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