lycomayflower reads with intent in 2018

Welcome to my 2018 reading thread! Click here to go to my introduction post. The photo above is of one of my shelves, plus my bookmark cup.

This first post contains an on-going list of the books I've read this year, with the most recent reads at the top. Click on the book title to go to the book's post within the thread, where you will find a review. Numbers in parentheses are page counts for each book. Click here to visit my 2017 thread.

Total Pages: 10,896

75.) Art & Max
74.) Still Life (312)
73.) I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing (audio)
72.) Pashmina (169)
71.) The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (441)
70.) The Ulysses Delusion (181)
69.) When Katie Met Cassidy (264)
68.) Dragon Was Terrible
67.) Waiting for the Biblioburro
66.) Interrupting Chicken
65.) The Secret Footprints
64.) The Duke and the Domina (358)
63.) If You Ever Want to Bring a Piano to the Beach, Don't!

62.) A Game of Crowns (299)
61.) Texts from Jane Eyre (227)
60.) Page by Paige (~150)
59.) The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs (355)
58.) Time Was (142)
57.) The Tea Dragon Society (71)
56.) The Color Purple (289)
55.) Time of Wonder
54.) Return
53.) Quest
52.) The Empath's Survival Guide (245)

51.) The Uncommon Reader (audio)
50.) Educated (audio)
49.) Akata Witch (349)
48.) The Wilder Life (331)
47.) In Conclusion, Don't Worry about It (audio)
46.) Witch, Please (audio)
45.) The Female Persuasion (454)
44.) The Princess and the Pony
43.) The Name Jar
42.) The Different Dragon
41.) Journey
40.) This Is the Rope
39.) A Gentleman in Moscow (462)

38.) The Stranger in the Woods (203)
37.) All Out (353)
36.) Harry Potter's Bookshelf (286)
35.) Camp Austen (audio)
34.) The Quotidian Mysteries (88)
33.) The Prince and the Dressmaker (277)
32.) Feel Free (435)
31.) Grabbling
30.) Boat of Dreams
29.) SkySisters
28.) Dragons Love Tacos
27.) Triangle
26.) The Good Boy (310)
25.) A Wrinkle in Time (245)
24.) The Daughter of Time (205)
23.) The Lawrence Browne Affair (304)

22.) Romancing the Beat (78)
21.) The Water Is Wide (258)
20.) The Big Snow
19.) White Houses (218)
18.) Whereas (101)
17.) Peter Darling (204)
16.) A Perfect Day
15.) Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match
14.) Not Quite Narwhal
13.) Prelude to Bruise (103)
12.) Bound to Be a Groom (186)
11.) Dryland (216)

10.) Q's Legacy (177)
9.) No Time to Spare (215)
8.) Sated (172)
7.) Eliza and Her Monsters (385)
6.) The Homecoming (115)
5.) A Story for Bear
4.) The Gentle Lion and the Little Owlet
3.) A Wolf's Tale
2.) How to Blow it with a Billionaire (356)
1.) A Is for Alibi (307)

Hello! My name is Laura, and this is the eleventh year I've kept an LT thread tracking and reviewing my reading. I read pretty widely, but I'm most likely to read romance, memoir, mysteries, YA, sci-fi, fantasy, and literary fiction. I'm in my mid-thirties, recently worked as an editor, am married to a fellow reader, and carry on living in the south (it's been the majority of my adult life now) despite constantly missing winter and wanting to move back north (I grew up in north-east Pennsylvania). When I'm not reading, I like to do photography, write, crochet, bowl, swim, and watch TV. I also keep a bookish blog at https://wonderatsix.blogspot.com/. Please feel free to talk to me there or here on LT. I love a good bookish conversation!

As part of my goal in 2018 to read with more intent, I'm aiming to read (at least) ten books I've been meaning to read. I have a tentative list of books to choose from, but essentially this is another way of saying "books that came onto my TBR sometime in the last couple of years."

Ten Books I've Been Meaning to Read

1. A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L'Engle
2. A Gentleman in Moscow, Amor Towles
3. The Wilder Life, Wendy McClure
4. Akata Witch, Nnedi Okorafor
5. The Color Purple, Alice Walker
6. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, Becky Chambers
7. Still Life, Louise Penny
8.
9.
10.

As part of my goal in 2018 to read with more intent, I'm aiming to read (at least) ten books by authors of color. I have a tentative list of books from my TBR to choose from, but I will count any book I haven't read before by a person of color.

Ten Books by Authors of Color

1. Sated, Rebekah Weatherspoon
2. Prelude to Bruise, Saeed Jones
3. Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match, Monica Brown
4. Whereas, Layli Long Soldier
5. SkySisters, Jan Bourdeau Waboose
6. Feel Free, Zadie Smith
7. The Prince and the Dressmaker, Jen Wang
8. This Is the Rope, Jacqueline Woodson
9. The Name Jar, Yangsook Choi
10. Akata Witch, Nnedi Okorafor
--
11. The Color Purple, Alice Walker
12. The Secret Footprints, Julia Alvarez
13. Waiting for the Biblioburro, Monica Brown
14. Pashmina, Nidhi Chanani

As part of my goal in 2018 to read with more intent, I'm aiming to read (at least) ten books by LGBTQIA authors. I have a tentative list of books from my TBR to choose from, but I will count any book I haven't read before by an LGBTQIA author.

Ten Books by LGBTQIA Authors

1. Dryland, Sara Jaffe
2. Prelude to Bruise, Saeed Jones
3. Peter Darling, Austin Chant
4. White Houses, Amy Bloom
5. All Out, various
6. The Different Dragon, Jennifer Bryan
7. The Color Purple, Alice Walker
8. Texts from Jane Eyre, Daniel Mallory Ortberg
9. When Katie Met Cassidy, Camille Perri
10. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, Becky Chambers

As part of my goal in 2018 to read with more intent, I'm aiming to read (at least) three books of poetry, three books in translation, and four nonfiction books that are not memoirs. I have a tentative list of books from my TBR to choose from, but I will count any book I haven't read before that fits these categories.

3-3-4 Books of Poetry, Translation, and Non-Memoir Nonfiction

1. Prelude to Bruise, Saeed Jones
2. Whereas, Layli Long Soldier
3.
-
4.
5.
6.
-
7. The Stranger in the Woods, Michael Finkel
8. The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs, Steve Brusatte
9. The Ulysses Delusion, Cecilia Konchar Farr
10.

Welcome back!

>7 drneutron: Thanks, Jim!

Hope your 2018 is filled with good reads!

Happy New Year
Happy New Group here
This place is full of friends
I hope it never ends
It brew of erudition and good cheer.

Happy reading in 2018, Laura!

Just waiting for the project manager...

Happy 2018, Laura!

Happy New Year and happy new thread!

Happy New Year, Laura! Looking forward to keeping tabs on your reading again this year. :)

Happy reading in 2018, Laura!

Dropping a star and lurking about! happy reading!

Hi, Laura Dropping a star.



Looking forward to seeing what you're reading this year!

Happy New Year, Laura.

*gently shoulders open door. blows dust off things*

I left on a trip north for a somewhat extended visit with the Ents on 3 January, and despite having access to their computer and wifi, I pretty much didn't touch it. But now I'm back! Stand by for those "under construction" messages above to get updated and a slew of reviews here in a few.

But first! A moment to mourn the fact that I missed noting Tolkien's birthday since I was traveling on the third. *stands, belatedly. lifts glass, belatedly* The professor!

>9 thornton37814: Thank you! Ditto!

>10 PaulCranswick: Thank you! How lovely!

>11 FAMeulstee: Thank you! You too!

>12 laytonwoman3rd: LOL!

>13 jnwelch: Thanks!

>14 foggidawn: Thank you!

>15 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! Ditto!

>16 Familyhistorian: Thank you!

>17 dragonaria: Thank you! You too!

>18 rretzler: *waves*

>19 BLBera: Thank you! I hope yours is off to a great start!

Plumping cushion....

*pushes a footstool your way and hands you a hot bevvy*

>20 lycomayflower: I did wonder why I didn't see a JRRT nod from you that day... Welcome back! I'll take my hot beverage, now, thanks.

>24 scaifea: Thanks! *puts kettle back on. gestures at tray of mugs and various hot-bevvy-making bags and accoutrements*

1.) A Is for Alibi, Sue Grafton ***1/2

I read this once yonks ago and remembered nothing much about it except that a trash bin of some sort figured into the climax. With Grafton's recent death, I decided to give the series another go from the start. I enjoyed this story well enough--it goes along at a very nice clip, the mystery was entertaining and neither overly obvious nor dastardly complicated, and Kinsey is both likable enough and flawed enough to keep my interest. I was a little bit *grump* about the identity of the murderer as Kinsey was half falling in love with him and my romance-reader self kind of went *step back* at that (yeah, yeah, different genre, different expectations), and I thought there was way too much commentary on weight were it was probably not necessary. (The descriptions of one of the female characters stepped over into fat-shaming territory, honestly--though mostly of the sort that was probably fairly accepted at the time the book was written and not overtly mean-spirited--but still and therefore: head's up if that is a nope for you.) I liked it well enough I'll likely keep on with the next few anyway.

2.) How to Blow It with a Billionaire, Alexis Hall ****

It took me a little while to get into this as I'll confess I didn't remember exactly all the ins and outs of the first book (if I'd had my copy of How to Bang a Billionaire to hand, I probably would have given it a quick reread before diving into this one, but alas), but once I settled into it I enjoyed it. Arden and Caspian continue to try to figure out their relationship and how/if it will work while having sexy times and frustrating miscommunications. As always, Hall makes me fall in love with his characters (Caspian's sister needs her own book, plox) and his sentences. If I had any quibble (other than the fact that, as the middle book in a trilogy all about the same couple, the end is nowhere near H, never mind EA) it's that I feel like a piece is missing in that we never get Caspian's point of view, especially given some revelations in this volume about his past. Looking forward to the final installment.

My mom has been slowly growing her collection of children's books since my cousin had spoutlets, so I generally check out the new ones she has whenever I visit.

3.) A Wolf's Tale, Eva Montanari ***

Didn't care for this one much at all. The story wasn't much, and I didn't like the illustration style.

4.) The Gentle Lion and the Little Owlet, Alice Shirley ***1/2

Loosely based on a true story, but doesn't do terribly much with it. Not much *to* the story. The illustrations, however, are stunning.

5.) A Story for Bear, Dennis Haseley and Jim LaMarche ****

I loved this one to bits. The story got me in the feels (despite its improbability), and the illustrations are *gorgeous*. There are several pages here I would love to have prints of to hang on my walls.

6.) The Homecoming, Earl Hamner Jr. ****

The book on which the TV movie of the same name was based, which in turn was a pilot of sorts for the show The Waltons. The movie follows the book quite closely, so there isn't too much new here for someone who saw that first, but Hamner writes well, infusing the dialogue with just the right amount of dialect and capturing the characters (especially the children) in just a few lines. Enjoyed this a good deal more than I thought I might and am thinking about tracking down a copy for myself (it's out of print; I read my mom's).

7.) Eliza and Her Monsters, Francesca Zappia ****

High school senior Eliza has been publishing an incredibly popular webcomic for years--anonymously. Only a handful of people know the identity behind the person known as LadyConstellation, and Eliza likes it that way. She keeps to herself in school and spends most of her life online, where she has not only tons of fans but a few genuine close friends. Then one days she meets Wallace, a new kid at school who is demonstrably into her webcomic, but who doesn't know that she created it. A lovely, page-turnery exploration of teenagerness, first love, fandom, creativity, family, and mental health ensues. I tore through this and loved every second of it. It's up there with Fangirl among fandom-adjacent YA for me. Recc'd if this is your bag.

>30 lycomayflower: I'm going to have to read that, eventually.

>30 lycomayflower: Dammit, Jim, I'm hit. :P

>31 foggidawn: I think you will enjoy.

>32 MickyFine: Mwuuhahaha Star Trek reference FTW. I think you will also enjoy.

>30 lycomayflower: Adding to the list.

>34 scaifea: Good, gooood

>28 lycomayflower: you’ll have to buy a copy to frame your favourite illustrations Laura.

>29 lycomayflower: I read that a few years ago, and loved it.

Hi Laura! How do you get your top post with your reading list to link to the posts below?

>38 Kassilem: Hi, Melissa! To do the links you need to grab the url specific to the individual post you want to link to.

Click "More" underneath the post you want to link to. Your url bar will then populate with the full link to that post. (It should be www.librarything.com/topic/a string of numbers#another string of numbers)

Copy that url and plug it into the html command to create a link:

(a href = "the url")Text for your link/a)

Replace the ( with less than sign and )s with greater than signs

Keep everything else in the example above as is (that is, use the quotation marks and the slash.) Replace the words "the url" with the url you grabbed after hitting "More" and "Text for your link" with whatever you want your link to say (like in my top post that's the book title).

All this is explained (probably better) under Basic HTML in the 75ers group wiki, but for some reason I can't get it to open right now to link you directly to it.

Hope this helps!

ETA: Direct Link to Explanation in the Wiki. On the wiki you can see the full command without the substitutions for some of the symbols that are necessary to keep the site from reading it *as* html and going wonky.

>39 lycomayflower: The link in the wiki was pointing to the old wiki, but I updated it to the new one so it works now.

>40 norabelle414: Woot! Thanks!

>36 Caroline_McElwee: Ooo, good idea. If I can bring myself to dismantle a book. *bites lip*

>37 fuzzi: I could see it becoming a yearly reread at Christmas time for me. I was really surprised by just how much I liked it.

>39 lycomayflower: Awesome! Thanks! It's so cool I'm definitely going t have to incorporate it.

Well! Haven't you been a busy bee. I like the way you've set out the goal in >3 lycomayflower:. It's a bit more specific than just "read more of my own books", and since there are books everywhere around here, I'm always spotting one that makes me say "I REALLY need to get to that one soon". So I should go read now.

>44 Kassilem: You're welcome!

>45 laytonwoman3rd: bzzzzbzzzzzzz I'm just enjoying being ahead of you for the nonce. I'm sure it won't last.

8.) Sated, Rebekah Weatherspoon ***1/2

I was kind of *shrug* about this romance novella. I felt like it was too short to really get to know the characters and the obstacles to their creating a relationship with each other went away with too little exploration or friction. I think the whole thing could have been really good if it was twice as long with more character development and fuller consideration of what was getting in their way. I *did* really like the representation of enthusiastic consent and discussion of sexuality and how to meet the needs of both parties involved during sex, so that was nice.

For some reason Ursula Le Guin's passing is hitting me hard. I've never been a big fan and have only read one of her books, but I guess maybe she was one of those folks I thought we would have around for a while yet. Or maybe it's just the manner in which I found out and how weird it is:

Yesterday afternoon, round abouts four o'clock. Settle in to start Le Guin's No Time to Spare. A few pages in am hit by the need to check whether she's still alive, though I am *sure* I would have heard if she'd died. Check Wikipedia. Settle back into the book safe in the knowledge that Le Guin is still with us. Half hour later, set book aside, go to Tumblr to pass the few minutes before I have to get up and do stuff. First post? Just announced that Le Guin passed on Monday.

.
.
.

I think the universe owes me a cupcake.

*hugs*

>49 scaifea: Thanks! (By what magic do the book covers get onto the fondant?!)

>50 lycomayflower: Welcome! I may have eaten a couple of them...

>51 scaifea: LOL. That's okay. *stuffs cupcake in mouth* Sharing is caring.

I blogged! I blogged for the first time in 2018! It's all about my reading goals for the year!

Bloooog.

>53 lycomayflower: Nice blog. And nice plan. I can definitely be counted on to prod you to go to the library more often. Libraries for the win!

>54 MickyFine: Thanks!

Prod away. ;-) I *love* libraries. And our main branch is a-mazing. But I tend to want to *have* the books I've read. I just need to get over this a little bit as it is demonstrably not fully working for me. :/

>55 lycomayflower: I'm actually super picky about what books I'll actually buy (I think it comes from working at the library where I know I can get things for free relatively quickly and easily any work day) and tend to limit it to things that I know I'll want to re-read. There are exceptions, of course, but that's usually the first rule of buying books at my house.

>56 MickyFine: Same here! I wonder if that's common among librarians? Don't get me wrong, I still own a lot of books -- I'm just picky about how I spend my book-buying money.

>57 foggidawn: I could definitely see it being a trend among library staff for sure.

I used to want to OWN ALL THE BOOKS, too, but have since revised my thinking. There are still books that I just buy right away, but in general (especially for my list reads), I try to read library copies first and then if it's super good, then I buy one for my shelves (or Charlie's shelves). Librarian at heart, I suppose?

>59 scaifea: I vote honorary librarian!

>60 foggidawn: OH! My heart just pooped its pants!

Seriously, that just made my day.

>48 lycomayflower: very unsettling Laura. Have another cupcake.

>53 lycomayflower: yay, first blog of the year. Good luck with the plan. I'm not really making plans this year, I've already failed to read this month's real book group read, though will probably still go to the meeting. Slapping own wrist, no cupcakes for me. Your fellow mood reader.

>48 lycomayflower: Spooky and very sad!

I mainly purchase books (and preorder them) for series that I know I'm really going to want the book. I will also purchase books that I have wanted to read if they are a Kindle daily deal for under $3.00. Anything else, I try to borrow first to see if I like it. Then I may not purchase right away but will if it's on sale or if its part of a series. Unfortunately, my library doesn't always have the book I want to read when I want to read it, so there are a few that I will just buy anyway - like Nicholas Nickleby for the group read.

>61 scaifea: That sounds . . . uncomfortable. :-)

I saw your introduction, and as you share several favourite genres with me, I dropped my star. So..er.. hi :)

>56 MickyFine: I have never been picky about which books I buy. I'm starting to feel a pull in that direction now, but there's a looot of habit to be undone to get there.

>57 foggidawn:, >58 MickyFine: Interesting!

>59 scaifea: I think I'm hitting the point where this is going to have to be how I start doing it (or at least, I just have to stop buying so many books). It's unlikely I'll ever have significantly more room to shelve books than I do now, and we're really very near complete capacity for places to put shelves.

>62 Caroline_McElwee: *sets cupcake on desk and looks at it longingly* "Real lunch first, Laura. Real lunch first." Heh.

Thank you for reading! No goals years are good too! I have had a few of those that were just *wonderful*. I think the key for me may be to have those sometimes but not go *too* long without any goals.

>63 rretzler: Right? That kind of thing weirds me out so much.

I like your system. I just have such a hard time sticking to a "plan" to read a specific book--and borrowing from the library always feels like a mini-plan!

>65 sirfurboy: Hiya! Welcome!

9.) No Time to Spare, Ursula Le Guin ****1/2

This collection of essays all came from a blog Le Guin was keeping in recent years. Boy, was this hard to read in the days just following her death--so many of the essays are about living in old age, about what she will live to see and what she won't, what mattered to her knowing that most of her life was behind her. Gah. And then there are the pieces about her cat. They are exquisitely observed bits about cat life and being a cat lover, and now I'm thinking about how her cat must be so sad having lost her. Double gah. This is a wonderful collection on a range of topics--some about writing of course, but much else as well. Particularly poignant in this last week, but marvelous I think even without that timing.

>67 lycomayflower: How Funny, I have just ordered that this afternoon. I shall look forward to it even more now Laura. I'm a big essay fan.

>68 Caroline_McElwee: Wonderful! I enjoyed it so much.

>53 lycomayflower:
As a librarian, I approve this plan!

>67 lycomayflower: BOOK BULLET!!!!! Argh...

>70 Deedledee: :-)

>71 fuzzi: Mwuuhahahaha

10.) Q's Legacy, Helene Hanff ***1/2

I love 84 Charing Cross Road and for a long time have been wanting to read this book about the "legacy" of the books Hanff read by a literature professor that in a round about way prompted the writing of 84. I never quite got wrapped up in Hanff's world and her life in this volume, perhaps because this book is more about television and theater than it is about books and reading. Certainly not a bad read (and probably *much* more interesting to someone into television and theater in the way that I am into books) but without the charm of 84.

>73 lycomayflower: Thanks for taking one for the group! I can cross that book off my list.

>74 ronincats: *bows* Certainly.

Today at the blog I think about wanting fewer books.

>76 lycomayflower: Sounds like your office is absolutely wunderbar.

And I totally share your dream of Beauty and the Beast levels of personal library. ;)

>76 lycomayflower: It's a good time for you to think about this Laura. I have more books than I can read in a life time, and there are few I own that I don't want to read, but they are now sometimes suffocating. I've let more go in the past two years, but I'm still buying too many. My small book habit changes need to move on to the next level.

I've been thinking lately about culling my shelves a bit. There's no particular reason for me to do so now, except that, as you say, it looks nice and feels freeing. I'm just at the point where stacks of books are starting to grow in the corners. My own problem is not so much the books that I buy, but the galleys that I acquire. Because I can't sell those at the used bookstore (and can't bring myself to throw them away), I have to get more creative about giving them away.

Sorry Le Guin's death hit you so hard! I hope you get some good comfort reading in. :)

>76 lycomayflower: Well, if you have increased budget but less space, one way to deal with is buy books and give them away, I am willing to make a sacrifice for you and send you my address where you can send all the extra books you buy (preferably, from my wish list)...

On a serious note, I think this isn't just limited to books, if you like to hoard anything, it ends up this way eventually, and letting go of excess is usually quite liberating.

>77 MickyFine: It is pretty much bliss, honestly, if just a touch difficult to keep warm in the cold months. *shrug* Good thing I like snuggy blankets!

>78 Caroline_McElwee: Yeah, I think future me will be pleased with present me if I rein it in on the book-buying. :-/

>79 foggidawn: Oh, galleys! Every once in a while I have a small sad that I'm not in a position where publishers etc send me galleys and then I remember that I'm already drowning in books and count myself lucky!

>80 The_Hibernator: Thanks! I have some lined up that I'm really excited about!

>81 aqeeliz: LOL! I wouldn't be against that as a way to get rid of some, actually. Nothing better than sending them off to someone who will like them!

Ug, yes. I have the hoarding tendency, for sure. I have a hard time letting things go if I think they might be useful or if I have/had any sort of attachment to them. Thank goodness it does *not* extend to actual junk, which I am more than happy to trash!

11.) Dryland, Sara Jaffe ***1/2

I've seen this described as a YA coming-of-age story, which I think is a misnomer all around. It feels very much like it was written for adults, not teens, and it's a piece of the main character's coming of age, surely, but it definitely doesn't feel like Julie has demonstrably "grown up" by the end. None of which is a criticism. I liked much about this short novel--the early 90s Seattle setting was nicely evoked, the details about swimming competitively (especially the actual in-the-water stuff) was lovely and familiar, and the exploration of Julie's understanding of her sexuality and of her place in her family and the world was compelling. In the end though I didn't love the book, mostly because the style--though it felt appropriate for the subject matter and the "feel" of the book--rubbed me the wrong way. Some of the details about Julie's absent brother also felt unusefully murky for too long. As the only real reason this wasn't a four-plus-star read for me was my subjective unhappiness with the style, reservedly recommended if the book sounds interesting to you.

12.) Bound to Be a Groom, Megan Mulry ****



I loved this short romance novel about a polyamorous foursome in Regency-era Spain and England. The characters are each a delight, their relationship/s feel realistic and lovely (if maaaaybe a touch unbelievably convenient), and the period details add pleasantly to the the story. I will be reading more Mulry. Recommended (heads up to those who like their romances sweeter: much sex on the page.)

DNF: The Dovekeepers, Alice Hoffman

This is our book club read for February (meeting tonight), and I'm disappointed that I couldn't get into it because it's a book I've wanted to read for awhile. I felt completely unattached to the characters and like I was forcing myself to pick it up and read on. I push on further into books I'm not digging if they're for book club than I would otherwise, often finishing things I would give up on on my own. But after a full week of feet dragging on this one, I decided ~150 pages was enough effort, especially as the book is over 500 pages long. At least I have a book to cull! (Provided discussion tonight doesn't convince me to keep trying.)

13.) Prelude to Bruise, Saeed Jones

When does the gene that allows one to enjoy poetry kick in? I just don't get it. I see that this collection is good, I see that there are some striking images, I see that much of it is powerful. But it doesn't resonate with me or effect me much. I looked up Saeed Jones when I picked up this collection off my shelf, and I ended up reading one of his essays online. And OMG, give me more of *that*. The medium of poetry just doesn't work for me, I guess. If it works for you, get you a copy of this collection. Because you, I think, will love it.

>86 lycomayflower: Should maybe your mother have this one? 'Cause, y'know, sometimes I DO read some poetry.

>86 lycomayflower: I have never really gotten into poetry for some reason either.

>79 foggidawn: I always see on Pinterest and other places people who make creative art out of books and I've never been able to bring myself to do that to a book, but maybe with some of the galleys that you no longer want?

>87 laytonwoman3rd: Shorely now. I'll set it aside for the next box I send your way.

>89 lycomayflower: Keep forgetting to mention that the last box arrived yesterday. I'm already loving the LeGuin.

>88 rretzler: Glad it isn't just me!

Several members of my book club happened to be standing at Circulation with me when I picked up a stack of picture books I'd requested, and they thought it was pretty weird that I would read them absent a child to share them with. I tried to convince them: the illustrations! The opportunity to be five (or seven, or nine) for a few minutes! The sense of accomplishment at having finished something! The *illustrations*! They remained unconvinced, but my life is definitely better for having spent a few minutes with each of these books.

14.) Not Quite Narwhal, Jessie Sima, ****1/2

Cute, colorful, bright, lovely picture book about a unicorn who is born into a community of narwhals and wonders about why he's different. Highly recommended.

15.) Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match, Monica Brown and Sara Palacios ****

Biracial Marisol doesn't like having to choose between things, like peanut butter and jelly or burritos and printing or cursive and soccer or pirates. When she makes herself choose one over the other, she's less happy and so is everyone around her, so she ultimately embraces the fact that she "doesn't match." Good message, nice illustrations. The story appears in English on left-handed pages and Spanish on right-handed ones, which is a fantastic touch.

16.) A Perfect Day, Lane Smith ***1/2

A perfect day for the cat, dog, squirrel, etc takes a turn when a big bear invades their yard, making the day perfect for *him* but not so much for them. A little *eh* on the story, but the illustrations are superb.

>92 lycomayflower: Philistines. They don't know what they're missing. I humbly suggest seeing if your library has Boat of Dreams. Charlie and I 'read' it (all illustrations, no words) last night and it's pretty amazing.

>92 lycomayflower: they don't know what they're missing. Their loss.

A couple years ago my dh and I went to a waterpark, with all sorts of rides and attractions. One of my favorite parts of the park was aimed at small children, with geysers, waterfalls, sprinklers, and a bucket that would fill up then pour its load on our heads. We had as much fun as the 4 and under crowd there.

>93 scaifea: a "wordless" book, love it! Last year I devoured a series by Aaron Becker and plan to buy them eventually for my granddaughter.

>94 fuzzi: The Journey books are *amazing*! Some of our favorites.

>95 scaifea: she's not quite two, and her mother prefers board books for now until she's past the page ripping stage. However I have several picture books purchased, and are just waiting for next Christmas...

>92 lycomayflower: I love picture books!

Happy Valentine's Day, Laura.

>93 scaifea: Oh, excellent. *goes to library site to request it*

>94 fuzzi: Hear, hear! I see zero reason adults should not do "kid" things if they enjoy those things. So many of the best things are for kids, after all. Why should they have all the fun? ;-)

>97 rretzler: Thanks!

17.) Peter Darling, Austin Chant ***1/2

A trans retelling of Peter Pan wherein Wendy Darling creates Peter Pan in childhood games as the identity that best expresses who he really is. Neverland is a magical made-up land where he goes to live a better life, or so he thinks. Much of the story is about Peter (and Captain Hook, who is one of the only other real people in Neverland, most of the rest of them (the Lost Boys, the pirates) being companions Peter and James (Hook) have made up to keep them company and go on adventures with them) remembering his past (Neverland has a way of making you forget), realizing that Neverland is a hiding place, and understanding that if he wants to live life fully as Peter, he needs to return to the world. I love the idea of this book and this interpretation of Neverland is fascinating and feels right somehow, but the book never quite came together for me. I spent so much time in the beginning trying to figure out what was going on, and I was constantly wishing for more and longer scenes between Hook and Peter. I did, however, very much like the end, in which Peter and James get an HEA. I *am* glad I read it, and I will likely look for more by Austin Chant.

18.) Whereas, Layli Long Soldier ***

Oh, poetry. I may be about to quit you. I just don't get you. I can see that Long Soldier is saying important things here and probably doing it well, but reading it I feel like I'm being presented something everyone else thinks is beautiful that I am incapable of experiencing fully. *shrug* Don't make any conclusions about this collection based on my reaction. I feel like a tone deaf person trying to tune a guitar by ear here.

19.) White Houses, Amy Bloom ***1/2

This fictionalized account of the friendship and love affair between Eleanor* Roosevelt and Lorena* Hickok contains some lovely writing and striking scenes, but for the most part I felt kept a remove from the characters and the story. The book is in the first person from Hick's point of view and is told mostly after the fact, with her remembering moments in her relationship with Eleanor. This creates a kind of poetic, sometimes emotionally (not structurally) fragmentary narrative that seemed designed to capture Hick's feelings but which I thought mostly just kept me from getting properly caught up in the story. Everything seems sort of hazy, and my understanding of all of the characters feels as if it were developed through gauze. This might have worked, but I kept longing for a more straightforward narrative grounded in the story of these two women. Throughout the book, I was always waiting for the story to begin.

*Sidenote of Nerdom: I love that their names are nearly anagrams.

DNF: What Alice Forgot, Liane Moriarty

Thirty-nine-year-old Alice is a mother of three and about to be divorced when she hits her head at the gym and loses the last ten years, waking up thinking she is 29, happily married, and newly pregnant for the first time. Moriarty sucks me in as I'm reading, but as soon as I put the book down (or even get distracted for a minute), I find myself thumbing through the rest of the book going "How much more of this is there?" I find what (I think) she's doing here (having only read 2/5 of the book) pretty interesting: an exploration of that sense of waking up one morning in your late thirties and saying, "Ein Minuten, bitte. How did I get here, exactly?" I think this is a pretty common occurrence, even among people who are genuinely happy with where they are. Sometime in our thirties, for many of us, is probably the first time we realize we aren't who we once were and we weren't necessarily expecting that. No one thinks they'll be the same at 25 as they were at 15, but finding out you're a completely different person at 38 than at 25 might be a bit of a shock. So, it's a clever way to explore the reality of what that feels like. But I just don't really care about any of the characters, except as a vehicle to get that premise on the page, and I'm just not feeling another 300 pages of that. As is often the case with DNFs for me, if something or someone comes along to convince me otherwise, I'm open to carrying on or trying again, but for now, nix.

At the blog, I sum up the news about lay offs at Barnes and Noble and consider what they might mean.

Well, I oopsed on my book buying ban. But in a way I feel pretty good about. I was poking the internet about bookstores in the area (as I do on occasion, to see if any independents have popped up that I didn't know about). And lo! A very small shop carrying new and used books opened in a shared community space a few months ago. So I explored there today. As I would like them to stick around, I thought I ought to buy sommat (especially as their location (somewhat inconvenient for me) and their stock (revolving and unpredictable) means I likely won't go there often while I am mostly trying not to impulse buy books).



The one on the bottom is a book I was planning on buying and not counting toward my monthly allowance of books, as it is by a local author and about local history (this is exactly the kind of book that *doesn't* contribute to my choice paralysis about reading), and I was pleased to be able to get it while also supporting a local business. Gail Godwin came up on the most recent episode of What Should I Read Next? and I'd noted her as someone to check out someday. So that felt like fate. The others just looked good. All but two are used.

OOH! OOH! You got the Chanur omnibus!

You do realize there is a 4th book that you'll need in order to finish the story. There's a 5th, too, but can be read independently of the other four.

I love, love, LOVE CJ Cherryh, probably my most favorite SFF author, and definitely in my top five of all-time authors.

>103 lycomayflower: I know buying and borrowing are not the same, but can I point out that some of the aspects you want in your ideal bookstore experience are possible in a library space? Professional bias showing, I know, but if you're wanting to browse, get comfy, drink your beverages while looking, and finding depth to collections - we do that. *steps down from soapbox*

It's still alarming that there's obviously some big shake ups happening in traditional brick and mortar bookstores (I like those too). Everyone up here in Canada is keeping an eye on Chapters Indigo (our big bookstore chain) as they're expanding into the US. They do have several of the pet peeves you listed (that I share) including the proliferation of stuff that isn't books but it is interesting that in a time when a lot of bookstore chains are shrinking, they're trying to cross the border.

>103 lycomayflower: Great blog post, Laura. The only reason I go to our local B&N is for the knowledge of a woman there regarding graphic novels appropriate for my younger son. I hope she managed to survive the layoffs (perhaps she was only part-time), but I am very afraid she did not.

20.) The Big Snow, Berta Hader and Elmer Hader ****

A picture book I remembered loving as a child. The text is not much, but the illustrations! Realistic drawings of woodland animals readying for winter and dealing with a big snow when it comes.

>105 fuzzi: I have a few things by Cherryh but have never really gotten into her (having not really read any of them yet). I started the omnibus last night, and I am *loving* it so far!

>106 MickyFine: While I love and support the library (and feel my life would be at least as impoverished if I didn't have access to one as if I didn't have access to a bookstore), it doesn't scratch the *same* itch, somehow. This news has made me determined to visit the library more often, though, because ours is wonderful, and I should probably be doing even more to make sure they stick around and keep their (obviously) good funding!

>107 rretzler: Thanks! I feel the same way about the employees. I don't have any special relationship with any particular employee at our B&N, but I recognize them all and know which ones I like and which ones I'd rather deal with if I have a question. Despite not really know any of them, it crushes me knowing some of them have lost their jobs.

>109 lycomayflower: I'm so glad! Pyanfar is one of my favorite characters, smart but willing to push back HARD as needed.

>110 fuzzi: She is pretty awesome, right from the get-go! And Cherryh did an excellent job in this book of making me invested in everything that was going on from page one.

>111 lycomayflower: wonderful! I am so happy when someone else enjoys one of my favorite reads.

21.) The Water Is Wide, Pat Conroy ***1/2

Conroy's memoir of the time he spent teaching on "Yamacraw Island," his fictional name for Daufuskie Island, off the coast of South Carolina in ~1969. His portraits of the people there and of teaching the African American children there is fascinating. Some other aspects of the book dragged a bit for me (his descriptions of getting to and from the island, his fights with the school board) were less interesting, almost entirely because I've heard such things before, and these descriptions were no different than those. That is not a criticism of the book; Conroy writing in 1972 can't be held accountable for the fact that a reader fifty years later has heard the very stories he helped make known. I do wish he had spent a little more time providing context--the history of the island and so on. But on the whole, definitely worth reading, especially as Conroy's account of this year rarely, if ever, descends into white savior nonsense: he is fully aware of his racism and his limitations and ends the book remarking that he doesn't think he changed the lives of his students one bit. It's kind of the opposite of the "inspirational teacher" trope, as far as I could see. There's nothing particularly "feel good" about this narrative, and that was somewhat refreshing in a way. Heads up for language, especially racist terms we would be shocked to find used matter-of-factly in a such a book if it were written today.

***For Book Club

Found me a new independent bookstore in town and wrote about the joy of it at the blog

Yay, a wonderful find Laura. Er... what did you support them in purchasing btw...haul photo please.

>114 lycomayflower: Yay!

>113 lycomayflower: Hrmmmph. If 1972 was 50 years ago, you owe your parents a BIG party.

>115 Caroline_McElwee: It really is! Haul is that pic up in >104 lycomayflower:.

>116 MickyFine: :-)

>117 laytonwoman3rd: Well, I *may* have rounded. ;-)

22.) Romancing the Beat: Story Structure for Romance Novels, Gwen Hayes ****

A wee guide to how romance novels tend to be structured/which beats readers tend to expect for a solid romance story. Does what it says on the tin. Recc'd if you are trying to clobber such a beast together, as I am.

The husbeast has been away since Friday morning, having a wee retreat in the snowy mountains, and I took the opportunity to "retreat" at home, spending most of my time reading and watching movies he has no interest in. So stand by for a small avalanche of reviews. But first, a quick note about the movies I watched:

4th Man Out: Rewatch. Mostly lighthearted story about a man in his early twenties navigating coming out to his family and friends. This is mostly about how he and his friends find their footing again after he comes out to them, and as such, it's pretty wonderful.

Touch of Pink: Rewatch. Another lighthearted movie (though, not, exactly a comedy?) about a young man of Indian descent living in London and avoiding telling his mother and extended family that he's gay and in a long-term relationship with a man. Fun and touching. The main character has an imaginary friend in the guise of Cary Grant, who is always trying to convince him to do the thing that will make the situation as "screwball" as possible. I love this touch.

Lady Bird: Story of a high school senior as she decides what to do after school and navigates her complicated relationship with her mom. I loved this, especially how it refuses to resolve things neatly at the end (though it does come to a satisfying ending point, I thought). I love Lady Bird's principal. She's an ancient nun, and she is *the best.*

Call Me by Your Name: Love story set in gorgeous northern Italy in the early 80s between seventeen-year-old Elio and twenty-four-year-old Oliver, a graduate student staying with Elio's family for the summer and working for Elio's professor father. I read the book this is based on a few years back and and enjoyed it quite a bit, thinking it did a good job of exploring early love. The movie missed the mark for me. The book is largely interiority, a thing that a movie will always struggle to be, and without access to Elio's thoughts, it's hard to follow the development of his relationship with Oliver as it's presented here. Also, the age difference, which did not read as problematic in the book (again, largely because we were in Elio's head--there wasn't any ambiguity about whether he wanted the relationship or whether he was consenting etc), came off decently squicky to me in the film. It didn't help that the actor playing Oliver (who did do a good job with the part), is a good ten years older than Oliver is supposed to be, which exaggerates the already significant age difference between Elio and Oliver. Heh. The scenery in the movie was exquisite.

Victoria and Abdul: Follows the relationship between Queen Victoria and an Indian servant she elevates to position of teacher ("the Munshi") in her court. A bit unfocused (though sometimes quite funny--Eddie Izzard's portrayal of Bertie (Edward VII) is almost worth the price/time of watching the thing on its own) and, I suspect, an unnuanced portrayal of Abdul. I also found the depiction of Victoria a bit... odd? I don't know too much about what she was like in her final years, but the movie portrays her as completely worn out, a bit dimwitted, and completely without friends or personal alliances. This last, at least, seems unlikely given what I understand to have been the force of her personality. *shrug* I didn't enjoy this as much I thought I would, but it was decent.

23.) The Lawrence Browne Affair, Cat Sebastian ***

Regency-era m/m romance between a minor English aristocrat and a conman posing as his secretary for mostly non-nefarious reasons. This should have been catnip for me, but boy did I have trouble keeping my head in the story. I had to constantly check back to see whose point of view we were in, and the progression of the emotional arc felt uneven. The characters would seem to be over a particular issue and then in the next chapter act as if whatever the previous development was never happened. Blerg. There *were* some lovely scenes, and in the last third of the book when some more external plot thingummies started to happen, I was happier. I hate to drag on Cat Sebastian, as she is, to the best of my knowledge, the only person publishing m/m through one of the major mainstream romance publishers (for these purposes here, read: publishers whose books you are likely to find on the shelves in the romance section in a general interest bookstore), so hopefully this rockiness was a one-off (or was just me).

24.) The Daughter of Time, Josephine Tey ***1/2

A detective recuperating from a fall investigates the mystery of the Princes in the Tower from his hospital bed. I had a little trouble following all the ins and outs of this when I wasn't familiar with all the historical figures referenced, but it was an entertaining read anyway, and I certainly understand the overall solution he comes to. I enjoyed the atmosphere of this book a good deal, as well.

25.) A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L'Engle ***

I think I've read this before (maybe even more than once?), and I didn't remember anything about it. And... now I see why. It feels dated to me and was also a bit tedious, almost certainly because it is largely episodic and that is just not my bag. The themes--courage against the darkness, fighting the darkness even when it seems hopeless, hope in the face of any evil, etc--are all up my street... and are all things I've responded to much more positively and whole-heartedly in other works, like The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter. This felt "not for me" in much the same way that the Narnia books have always felt "not for me," despite seeming like they *should* be for me. Presentation is key, and I just wasn't into the presentation here. I *did* however, really like the dynamic in the Murry family. The first sixty or so pages, before the children go off on their adventure and they're all just hanging out with Mrs. Murry being gently encouraged to grow into their own selves and loved unconditionally was by far my favorite part of the book.

26.) The Good Boy, Lisa Henry and J.A. Rock ****

Contemporary BDSM-themed m/m romance following twenty-year-old Lane Moredock, who is under the suspicion of the FBI for involvement in an investment fraud scheme his parents pulled off, and Derek Fields, a photographer in his mid-thirties who lost a small nest-egg in that fraud. The strength of this story is absolutely the character development. Lane and Derek (and the secondary characters) feel perfectly real within a few lines and just continue to grow and reveal themselves more fully as the story goes on. While we do get both Lane's and Derek's points of view, most of the romance beats are Lane's (and it works, somehow). Big old trigger warning for sexual and psychological abuse, which Lane spends most of the book learning how to stop reliving and move on from. It's handled pretty well (though some time with a kink-aware therapist probably wouldn't go amiss, and that never happens), but it is pervasive throughout the story, so if that is a nope for you, steer clear of this one.

Picked up this month's stack of children's picture books yesterday from the library.

27.) Triangle, Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen **

Triangle and Square play tricks on each other. Okaaay? Not my kind of weird, I guess.

28.) Dragons Love Tacos, Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri ***1/2

Basically story-less exploration of how dragons love tacos but not spicy ones. Much more my kind of weird.

29.) SkySisters, Jan Bourdeau Waboose and Brian Deines ****

Two young Ojibway sisters trek through the snow in the night to seek out the SkySpirits (the Northern Lights). Lovely, with gorgeous illustrations.

30.) Boat of Dreams, Rogerio Coelho ****1/2

Wordless story about a man and a boat and a boy and a boat and you just need to read it, I think. The art is amazing, and every time I think about it, I come up with a different interpretation of what's happening in the story (which is part of the beauty of it, I think). I *especially* love the man's bird and the boy's cat. Thanks to Amber/@scaifea for the rec, as this would probably have passed under my radar otherwise.

>125 lycomayflower: Woot! I'm so glad you liked the Coelho! It's gorgeous, isn't it?

A Wrinkle in Time is, I think, my least favorite of the series, to be honest. Not that you want to continue, but still.

>126 scaifea: It is!

Hmm, which of the series *is* your favorite? I'm not completely against trying another one is there's reason to think I might like another one better.

31.) Grabbling, Austin L. Church ****

In this picture book, Jeannie and her daddy go grabbling (fishing by hand) in the country in Tennessee and encounter an animal they weren't expecting. A lovely story (beautifully illustrated) about being brave but also knowing when to ask for help.

Austin was an acquaintance in graduate school, and he did a Kickstarter to get this book, based a a family story about his grandmother, published. So that's my full disclosure, and this is me saying I recommend checking it out.

>127 lycomayflower: Ooof. It's been too long and I can't remember which is my favorite, to be honest. I just know that the first was my least favorite...

>129 scaifea: Whut? How dare you not remember every single book you've ever read in case someone comes along wanting an off-the-cuff recommendation?

32.) Feel Free, Zadie Smith ***1/2

This collection of essays was mostly tedious for me, I'm sorry to say. (I was a bit meh about the one novel of Smith's I've read, but feel like she's someone I shouldn't have given up on yet?) She writes well, and her intelligence shines through all of these pieces, but I just never had the spark of interest or connection that will make an essay collection really work. Many of the essays were reviews of books, films, or artwork I have not read or seen, and that can make it hard to invest in the review, I find. It's not as if this was a complete waste of time--some of the essays were interesting, and I learned quite a few things. But on the whole, just not for me, I guess. I have no reason to think that if you already like Smith's work you won't like this too.

I've hovered over this volume Laura. I tend to find I like every other of Smith's work. The ones I particularly liked are White Teeth, and her homage to Howards End, On Beauty. Which is probably my favourite of her works. I also liked the volume of essays, not quite finished, Changing my Mind. I think for the novels, I'm not always greatly interested in her characters.

33.) The Prince and the Dressmaker, Jen Wang ****1/2

Graphic novel about a prince who likes to wear dresses (and feels he must keep this a secret) and the seamstress he hires to make him dresses that fit his style. Everything about this, from the art to the story to the wonderful, wonderful ending, was an absolute delight. Recommended.

34.) The Quotidian Mysteries, Kathleen Norris ****

A brief exploration of how daily work (that is, the tasks that must be done over and over, the dishes, the laundry: the drudgery) can be an important way of accessing spirituality. Interesting, and probably worth/requiring a second read.

35.) Camp Austen: My Life as an Accidental Jane Austen Superfan, Ted Scheinman, read by the author ***1/2

Entertaining and lightly informative look at Jane Austen fandom, revolving primarily around conferences and the costuming, balls, and theatricals that go along with them. Fun, and very good on audio, though probably not to the point where I specifically recommend the audio over reading the book in print.

>132 Caroline_McElwee: I think this was my problem with the novel I read, not being super interested in the characters. It was On Beauty that I read, but I feel like I maybe didn't read it in the best environment, as it was assigned reading in a grad class that was contentious from beginning to end. This might be one of the reasons I still feel like I should be giving Smith another chance.

>130 lycomayflower:

>137 scaifea:

>135 lycomayflower: That one is already on The List so I'm happy to see a positive review of it. :)

>138 lycomayflower:

Goodness. Is this a private bowing party, or can anyone join?

>141 laytonwoman3rd: Oh, no, Linda, you bow to no one.

>142 scaifea: Aaaa! I see what you did there.

36.) Harry Potter's Bookshelf: The Great Books Behind the Hogwarts Adventures, John Granger ****

I enjoyed this reread of Granger's exploration of the books and genres that influenced and/or inform the Harry Potter series. In fact, I may have enjoyed it more than I did the first time, as this time I have read more of Granger's other work, and more completely understand some of the things he is only able to explain briefly here. Recommended for Potter fans who would like to read analysis bordering on litcrit of the series.

Picture books are great. I mostly pick them up for the nieces but I definitely read a couple to The Fiancé the last time we were at my brother's house because they have such great appeal (for those interested, the books were I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen (no LT record, for shame!) and The Princess and the Pony by Kate Beaton).

>145 lycomayflower: You're welcome.
>146 MickyFine:, Oh, I love I Want My Hat Back. It's here, really. But This is Not My Hat is even better!

>147 laytonwoman3rd: Did you read the third book in the trilogy We Found a Hat? So sweet.

No, I haven't seen that one, Micky. Next library trip, perhaps!

>144 lycomayflower: That looks like a great book. I'll probably give it a read. Thanks for introducing it.

>146 MickyFine: Ooo, The Princess and the Pony. I keep meaning to track that one down.

>150 majleavy: You're welcome! It really is a fascinating read.

37.) All Out: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages, Saundra Mitchell, editor ****

Does what it says on the tin, really. This is a collection of seventeen stories by LGBTQ YA authors about LGBTQ teens at different points during history. Some of them pull on/retell legends, others are set at very particular moments in history (one story is set in the days after Kurt Cobain's suicide, for instance), and others are simply in a historical setting. Nice diversity of setting, time periods, and racial and ethnic representation as well as within the LGBTQ letters as well. Any anthology will have stories a reader likes more than others. I especially loved "The Dresser and the Chambermaid," "New Year," "Molly's Lips," "Every Shade of Red," and "Walking after Midnight" and recommend the whole collection.

Well now you've made me think there Laura. I've gotten used to dealing with extraordinary experiences that subsequently I have discovered were enacted by those whose behaviour I learn was less than acceptable. It's unpleasant not to be able to share creative moments that wowed, but what happened to victims is worse. I'll live (looking in Mr Spacey's direction for one). But a beloved book.... that will be hard. At least many of my beloved books were written by dead 'friends', so there is an element of safety there, unless there are some long overdue exposures. Otherwise I'd have to do the same as with..

a less than beloved book, hmmm I might just rip it in two and throw in in the recycle bin. If I had a garden, I might make a pretty fire with it, or put it in the compost heap, to make something wholesome out of something that was less so. I'll ponder some more.

I'm fine with donating pretty much anything in readable shape to a thrift store -- I figure the new owner can make their peace with the contents and/or associations that I object to, and the only person that benefits from the sale is the charity. In the rare occasion that a book is not in readable shape (pages falling out, etc.) I generally try to recycle it. So, I might do that if I had a book I did not feel good about donating.

>154 Caroline_McElwee: It's interesting to me that I seem to be fairly alone in my distaste for trashing or recycling a book! I like the compost idea better somehow...

>155 foggidawn: It's funny--I feel that way about some books I have problems with the authors, but others not. It seems to depend on what they did.

38.) The Stranger in the Woods, Michael Finkel **1/2

The story of Christopher Knight, who lived on his own in the Maine woods for ~20 years, speaking to near-as-makes-no-difference no one for all that time, and stealing food and survival necessities from surrounding cabins and camps. He was caught and chanrged with burglary and thus the mystery of the disappearances in the area was solved after decades.

I was really intrigued by this book for the first thirty pages or so, and then I started to feel really uncomfortable with it (and sometimes annoyed). Christopher Knight, in the small bit of interviews relayed in the book, gives me the creeps. More importantly, I don't like what appears to have been Finkel's method of getting at this story, which largely boils down to badgering Knight until he told him things. I wished he'd just left the man alone. By far the most interesting thing about this story is all the ins and outs of surviving (especially in the winters) in the Maine wilderness and the *desire* to do it *alone*. Unfortunately, that's exactly what the book can't give me in detail, as no one but Knight knows all that, and he was only forthcoming to a point. (I'll clarify: there are a fair few fascinating details about how Knight set up his camp and so on, but what I would have really enjoyed would have been the deep dive. Think Robinson Crusoe, think Hatchet.) Finkel tries to make up for this by detailing what he can (his trips to visit Knight in jail, his trips to see him after he was released) and by providing research about historical hermits and theories about humans and solitude, but these are poor substitutes for the info I would have liked. And the thing is, short of Knight writing the book himself, there's really no way to *get* that. I'm left feeling like Finkel should have just left well enough alone.

>106 MickyFine:

Could you please direct Chapters Indigo to the two Madison, Wisconsin locations where Borders closed down.

Our East Side really needs reviving since the BARNES AND NOBLE which drove Borders away
is an overly bright and noisy store located next to a mall foodcourt. Might as well be a bowling alley.

Unlike the quiet, happy little cafe with couches which graced the front windows of Borders,
this one, a STARBUCKS that refuses to accept STARBUCKS gift cards,
is crammed into the back, uncomfortable
as the rest of Barnes, with no places to sit.

So just send yours.

>157 lycomayflower: I liked this more than you did Laura. I'll ponder your comments though.

>159 Caroline_McElwee: So did I, Caroline. I did have some of the same feeling that this man should probably have been left alone, but I'm afraid my curiosity and fascination with "how could he manage that" overrode those concerns as I was reading.

>158 m.belljackson: I think you meant to direct your comment to >106 MickyFine: :)

39.) A Gentleman in Moscow, Amor Towles ****1/2

Beautifully written story of a count under house arrest in Stalinist Russia. The book is a character study of the count as well as an exploration of how Russia changed after the revolution. I enjoyed the character of the count very much and thought Towles's writing was often exquisite. A number of sequences in the book were riveting, and the end was exceptional. All that being said, I had a little trouble staying with the book--my mind never really wandered while I was reading, but I had to talk myself into going back to the story after each time I had to put it down. I was never terribly concerned (except in the last eighty pages or so) about what was going to happen next, and a book without that kind of thrust to it can often be a hard sell for me. I'm glad this was a book club read as that meant I *did* finish it.

***For Book Club

40.) This Is the Rope, Jacqueline Woodson and James Ransome ****

Beautifully illustrated story of a girl and her family during and after the Great Migration. A bit more thematic than narrative and thus maybe more appropriate for slightly older children. Recommended.

41.) Journey, Aaron Becker ****

Beautiful, fun wordless picture book about imagination and making your own adventures.

42.) The Different Dragon, Jennifer Bryan and Danamarie Hosler ***1/2

I wasn't super taken with this story about a little boy and the story one of his mothers tells him about a dragon who is different. I did, however, really enjoy the way the boy and his mother tell the story together by her prompting him and him filling in the details he was interested it.

43.) The Name Jar, Yangsook Choi ****1/2

I loved this picture book about a young Korean girl trying to decide if she wants to go by an American name (and making friends in the process) after immigrating to New York City with her parents.

44.) The Princess and the Pony, Kate Beaton ****

Amusing, and with Beaton's unique, fun drawing style.

45.) The Female Persuasion, Meg Wolitzer ****

Very well written and with a lot to say about feminism, female friendships, and mentorship. Very compelling and in many ways a page-turner--I tore through the book in about three days. I found the first section, when Greer was at college, the most interesting, possibly because it was the section that was most directly applicable to my own experience. Much of that part of the book had me silently yelling, "Yes! This is what it was like, yes!" with that particular happiness that comes with seeing that someone else understands something important to you. The rest of the book is good too, possibly objectively better, even, but I started to get tired of the whole thing before it was over. This is a book that appealed more to my head than to my heart, and I think it would have been even better if it had managed to rope in my feelings more fully. Still, important, I think, and I book I suspect will generate a lot of discussion and deservedly so.

Woot for Journey!

>162 lycomayflower: I loved this too Laura.

>165 scaifea: Joining Amber's "woot" for Journey!

>161 fuzzi:

Yes - thank you for correction!

I'm going to woot over A Gentleman in Moscow and The Princess and the Pony.

I loved the entire Journey trilogy, am planning on getting it for my granddaughter when she gets past the page-tearing age.

>165 scaifea:, >167 jnwelch:, >170 fuzzi: :-) I'm definitely going to look for his others!

>166 Caroline_McElwee:, >169 MickyFine: I'm so glad I read it, despite not being sure at some points during it!

>169 MickyFine: Kate Beaton is just so much fun, no?

46.) Witch, Please, Hannah McGregor, and Marcelle Kosman ****

One. more. time! Found myself wanting to listen to this again, and was all, "Well and why not?" So I did. (You can see my first, and definitely more comprehensive, reviews of the podcast here and here.) If I had to point someone to something that would illustrate why I *love* litcrit and why I find it fun and entertaining in addition to useful and enlightening, this podcast would be very high on my list of examples. It would also be high on my list of examples of why people think of litcrit is the practice of breaking everything good. I think that it's both for me is probably an indication of just how good McGregor and Kosman are at what they do. That doesn't mean I don't spend a good deal of my time listening to them shouting at them from several thousand miles and two years away. Obviously the positive far outweighs the negative for me, as this is the third time I've listened to the core bits of the podcast (the episodes about the seven original Harry Potter books and the original eight movies) in just over two years. They joke a couple of times when they come up with a new idea about the books that they should just start the whole podcast over with this new lens through which to look at the material. Dang, how I wish they would.

>172 lycomayflower: Adding podcasts to Librarything, eh? I approve. I enjoy Witch Please a whole lot. Though I've only listened to it once all the way through because I have too many other podcasts!

>172 lycomayflower: The episode where they discover that Neale has a film degree and the Christmas episode are among some of my favourites. So looking forward to the new season this summer! Their pictures from their trip to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter looked adorable.

>173 norabelle414: Just the feeew podcasts that feel like they are essentially audio books in length/comprehensiveness but limited coverage of the subject (that is, they cover "everything" but don't go on indefinitely). My definition of "book" has expanded a lot since I first started hanging out around here!

>174 MickyFine: Yes! And the Romperoo! Also very much looking forward to what they put out this summer.

Join me at the ol' blog for some ruminations on coming across misshelved books at the bookstore.

47.) In Conclusion, Don't Worry about It, Lauren Graham, read by the author ****

This is Graham reading the text of a commencement speech she gave at her high school alma mater (as well as a short introduction). It's good, and nicely uplifting, and funny. Graham reads it perfectly, natch. It is *very* short (just under half an hour; the print book is gift book size and less than fifty pages), but also precisely what it clearly states it is. Recommended for Graham fans. I suspect it would serve just right for the function it is certainly meant for: an inspirational graduation gift. If you're going to get it, I definitely recommend getting it on audio.

>175 lycomayflower: How could I forget the Romperoo?!

>172 lycomayflower: I really wanted The Penumbra to count toward my reading for the year; I've listened to all the Juno Steel eps twice!

>178 MickyFine: :-)

>179 kgriffith: Count everything you want to, I say!

48.) The Wilder Life: My Adventures in the Lost World of Little House on the Prairie, Wendy McClure ****

In her memoir, McClure explores her childhood love of the Little House books and details her travels to various historical sites connected to Laura Ingalls Wilder. Throughout the book, she also provides a fair bit of biography about Wilder. This was a very enjoyable, highly readable book for me, combining many things I love: memoir, books about books, and history. Recommended especially to anyone who grew up with Wilder's books but also to anyone who simply enjoys a good conversational memoir.

>181 lycomayflower: ouch. Got me. It's now been added to my wishlist.

>181 lycomayflower: Not a hit for me but one I'll pass on to my mom. :)

>182 fuzzi: Huzzah!

>183 MickyFine: I hope she enjoys it!

49.) Akata Witch, Nnedi Okorafor ***

This is the second book I've read by Okorafor... and it's the second time I've been completely underwhelmed. Akata Witch packs evidence of a pretty awesome imagination on the part Okorafor and I *love* that the the book is inspired by African mythology, beliefs, and legends rather than the Greek and Nordic inspiration so much fantasy written in English sports (not that I don't love that too--it's just nice to see something different take the stage). But the whole thing read as flat to me, from the characters to the setting to the incidents. It just entirely lacked the spark that makes a book work. I know I'm very much in the minority here, so I probably wouldn't let my review dissuade you if you're interested in the book, but I might be checking Okorafor off my list.

***For Book Club

50.) Educated, Tara Westover, read by Julie Whelan ***1/2

Westover's memoir recounts her childhood growing up in a Mormon, survivalist, isolationist, homeschooling family and then her eventual estrangement from much of that family after she left to attend college and no longer allowed herself to be controlled by her father. This was a very difficult read. Westover unflinchingly recalls instances of violence within her family, emotional abuse, physical abuse, and neglect. I went into the book thinking it would be a hard book to get through but suspecting it would also be an important read for what it would tell me about a way of living that is relevant to our national dialogue and give some insight into how someone who has lived both within that lifestyle and without it feels about it. But now I'm not so sure.

As a memoir, I think Educated is pretty excellent (if a little battened down--I don't really feel like I have any sense of who Tara really is), but it's also the story of one family whose situation is so particular that I don't think the book really tells us anything about anyone but them. And that's fine--it is a memoir, after all, not a sociological study--and I imagine that many readers will find the exploration of this particular family dynamic helpful in understanding certain kinds of abuse. Ultimately I wanted more about the process of going to school (college) for the first time and what it was like to participate in organized learning and what she found out about the world once she left her isolationist upbringing. She mentions learning of the Holocaust for the first time; she outlines some of the things about schooling she didn't know when she first got to college. I was hoping for more of that kind of thing. The book was a memoir of a family; I wanted a memoir of all the nitty-gritty details of an education. Perhaps that desire on my part is also why I found the exclusion of certain details so annoying (for instance, some of her confusion about college surely would have been addressed at orientation, but she never mentions college orientation at all, not as a thing that didn't help, not as a thing that might have helped but that she somehow didn't know to attend, nothing). The little missing pieces of the story started to annoy me more and more as the memoir went on.

I don't particularly recommend this one on audio but I'm not steering you away from it either. I didn't love Whelan's voices for the men's dialogue, but other than that, the audiobook was entirely serviceable.

Trigger warnings for Educated: emotional abuse, physical abuse, verbal abuse, gaslighting, neglect of minors, medical trauma, untreated mental illness, the "n-word," violent misogyny, violent death of a dog (brief but brutal)

51.) The Uncommon Reader, Alan Bennett, read by the author ****1/2

I first read this nearly eight years ago and enjoyed it very much. I think I liked it even more this time, hearing Bennett read it. I think, knowing a bit more about EII now than I did then, I appreciated what it is doing more now too. Recommended in any form, but especially on audio.

>186 lycomayflower: I do have this in the pile based on a couple of other reviews. I'm girding myself.

The voice can make or break an audio IMO. I'm very picky, so don't listen to many books this way.

>188 Caroline_McElwee: I'm very picky about narrators of audio books too, Caroline. I just cannot listen to some of them.

>188 Caroline_McElwee:, >189 laytonwoman3rd: I can deal with a narrator I don't love, but I won't put up with one I find actively annoying. Not worth it.

52.) The Empath's Survival Guide: Life Strategies for Sensitive People, Judith Orloff ***1/2

"Sensitive" here in the same sense as in Highly Sensitive People (HSPs), that is folks who are more sensitive than some to stimuli. HSPs (I am one) get overloaded easily in environments with harsh or excessive stimuli--so, crowds might bother them, or intense smells and sounds, or irritating fabrics and so on. According to Orloff, empaths are similar to HSPs (a person can be one but not the other, or both) but the sensitivity in the case of empaths is to do with picking up on other people's emotions and reacting to them, sometimes as if they were your own. If you find embarrassing scenes on TV excruciating or get anxious if you walk into a room where someone is angry or get choked up when an entire basketball stadium leaps to its feet in joy at a buzzer beater, you might be an empath.

Orloff explains what empaths are, offers some techniques for embracing and managing this sensitivity, and gives advice geared for general situations (how to thrive as an empathic parent, how to raise an empathic child, how to thrive at work as an empath, and so on). The worth of this book for me was two-fold: 1) the "it's you; it's real; it's okay" bit--it's always nice to get confirmation that you aren't imagining things and that you aren't alone and that there's nothing wrong with you--and 2) the exercises and meditations for embracing and managing empathic tendencies. She provides some meditations that I think will be really helpful. Some of Orloff's suggestions are a bit "new age" (do we still say that? crystals and premonitions and the like), and I don't personally find that sort of thing helpful. If you do, that aspect is here for you along with the rest. If you don't, but you want some help putting a barrier between other people's emotions and your own, there is definitely a core of non-crystalline advice here.

>191 lycomayflower: I just added that to my list, thanks!

>192 karspeak: You're welcome!

Sit right back and you'll hear a tale
About whether you should get book mail

Hmmm?

Blog.

I can't remember, Laura - were you underwhelmed by Binti, too? If so, you may want to give up on Okorafor. I loved the Binti trilogy, and the two Akata books, and others of hers, like Who Fears Death, so I'm a fan. But we're not all the same.

If you haven't read Binti, I'd try that one. Both my non-sci-fi-reading wife and non-sci-fi-reading daughter liked that one a lot.

>195 jnwelch: Yeah, Binti was the other one I read. I have three of her other books, so I don't know. I might end up trying at least one more, since they're here. I know people have different tastes, but she gets raves from so many people, I'm having a hard time letting her go.

>194 lycomayflower: we had very similar subscriptions here Laura, but I haven't subscribed to those for years. I do have a couple of subscriptions with publishers direct, Slightly Foxed editions for example, and Notting Hill editions, both delightful pocket sized hardbacks.

>194 lycomayflower: As if I needed yet another earworm...

>197 Caroline_McElwee: I remember Ilana sending me a copy of a Slightly Foxed edition and thinking it wonderful.

Have a glorious Sunday, Laura.

>197 Caroline_McElwee: Mom has some of those Slightly Foxed editions. They *are* lovely. Thanks for reading!

>198 laytonwoman3rd: You're welcome!

>199 PaulCranswick: Thank you! You too!

53.) Quest, Aaron Becker ****

54.) Return, Aaron Becker ****

The sequels to Journey. Just as imaginative and wonderful as the first one.

55.) Time of Wonder, Robert McCloskey ***1/2

Blueberries for Sal and especially One Morning in Maine were favorites for me as a child, but I'd never come across this one. The illustrations are watercolors and only recognizably McCloskey's style near the end when we see the characters at home. The illustrations are, however, still lovely. The text is dense and often flowery and abstract, but eventually I warmed to it a bit. It's about the beauty of nature on a Maine island in summertime and about the peace (and sometimes violence) and wonder of it. Not sure how much it would resonant with children (especially younger ones), but it was a pleasant read for me as an adult.

56.) The Color Purple, Alice Walker ****

I'd never read this modern classic Pulitzer winner before, and on reflection I certainly see why it's important despite not really loving it. I suspect at the time it was published it was something like a bolt of lightening--not unique or first but certainly striking and electrifying. I didn't care much for the style (and one stylistic choice--using a dash for a man's name--annoyed me enough to jolt me out of the story occasionally, even after I'd told myself to stop mentally whinging about it and carry on). I desperately wanted all of the characters to find some happiness or contentment or peace without, somehow, really caring about them as individuals. A book I will always be glad I read but not one which has settled on my heart.

57.) The Tea Dragon Society, Katie O'Neill ****1/2

This delightful middle grade manga-esque fantasy graphic novel follows a young girl as she discovers tea dragons and the people who care for them. Tea dragons are small dragons, somewhat feline in nature, whose horns produce leaves from which one can make various kinds of tea. They live for thousands of years and require near-constant attention to be kept alive and well. The story is in large part about the joy to be found in patient, exacting, rewarding work, especially of the kind that not everyone understands or that few people see the value in. The illustrations are the perfect combination of whimsy, detail, and charm. Whole-heartedly recommended.

At the blog, I recommend five things that have been fascinating me lately. There's bookish things in there!

>204 lycomayflower: #cockygate is now my favourite hashtag.

>205 MickyFine: Hehe. It's pretty great.

And it just showed up in my daily bookish news round-up from Library Journal today. They linked to The Guardian article.

>204 lycomayflower: I love A Good Read as well and get many, many recommendations from there.

>207 MickyFine: It does seem to be trickling up into the mainstream pretty well.

>208 SandDune: It is definitely one of my great podcast joys of the last few months.

I've been traveling and thus neglecting my thread (and others'). Some reviews will be popping up here shortly. In the meantime, if you want to have a laugh, check out my new collection "TBR Summer 2018." It's--oh how to put it--overambitious. I'm defining "summer" as ending on Hobbit Day (22 September) and still I would have to read more than a book a day to knock out everything in that pile. *shrug* Here's to never running out of things to read!

58.) Time Was, Ian McDonald ***1/2

This time-travel novella has a neat premise but as far as I could sort, it never really did much with it. A bookseller who specializes in old and rare books about war stumbles across a mystery surrounding two soldiers who seem to appear in photographs in wars too distant from each other to be possible. He tries to solve the mystery of the soldiers, and we get little snippets from the past making clear the nature of the soldiers' relationship and providing clues to what is going on. Great premise, but felt like it just sat there, mostly.

59.) The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs, Steve Brusatte ***1/2

This does what it says on the tin, to varying degrees of success. Brusatte excels at vivid and engaging (if also often somewhat over-the-top) descriptions of what the world of the dinosaurs was probably like, and he does a pretty good job of laying out and exploring a timeline of the evolution of dinosaurs. His integration of his own experiences as a paleontologist and his descriptions of the personalities and work of others--both those he knows personally and those from the history of the field--most often felt awkward and kind of sandwiched in. Generally, I wished he had stuck to the findings and left most of the people out of it, especially as others (Bill Bryson, for one) have done a much better job of making such scientists come to life on the page. However, some of the most fascinating bits of the book were when Brusatte would get elbow-deep in explaining his research about the growth rates of dinosaurs using charts and maths and things. So, an uneven read, though a reasonably enjoyable and informative one.

That is certainly an ambitious list Laura. Good luck with it.

>210 lycomayflower: I've read 8 of those....you should concentrate of that bunch.

>213 Caroline_McElwee: Thanks, Caroline. I suppose I never really intended it to be a list of all the/only the books I would read this summer but rather a smaller TBR to help me focus when I'm flopping around going "What shall I reeeead," but when I finished it and saw how big the collection was, I definitely had a moment of "Well, that's... a lot."

>214 laytonwoman3rd: Oh I should, should I? And which would those be?

Circe, Last Bus to Wisdom, Camino Island, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, The Witching Hour, the first Louise Penny, Jane Steele, A Beautiful Blue Death and The Paris Wife. Wait...that's nine.

60.) Page by Paige, Laura Lee Gulledge ****

YA graphic novel about a teenaged girl finding her voice and her confidence as she makes friends and explores her skills as an artist. Very good.

61.) Texts from Jane Eyre, Daniel Mallory Ortberg ***

I read this mostly in airports and on planes, and I thought it would be a perfect fit for that environment--funny and entertaining without requiring me to pay super close attention to any unfolding plot or building elements. And that was true... but I didn't care for the book much. The idea here is "what if classic book characters texted each other." The exhanges appear in text format (as if they were on an iphone) and use colloquial text speech. I won't deny that some of the exchanges had me snorting with laughter, but *most* of them made me make the "eh?" face. Just, usually not that funny? Also, you need to be *very* familiar with most of the texts Ortberg is riffing on for the jokes to land. It happens that I was, most of the time, but for the texts I didn't know (or know really well), the exchanges are nigh on meaningless. This is probably mostly a case of humor being subjective (it's clear from reviews that this book worked very well for some people), but I did sometimes feel my deep aversion to dismissiveness kicking in. Some of the exchanges feel unfair and... mean in their treatment of the source material rather than send-uppy and fun. Like, we're here to have a good time, not make some people feel shitty for liking a particular text. YMMV.

>216 laytonwoman3rd:
"Right. One... two... five."
"Three, sir."
"Three."

>216 laytonwoman3rd: glad you found that last finger Linda!

I read and enjoyed The Paris Wife.

>218 lycomayflower: Mmmm....so five is right out, then.

>217 lycomayflower: Sorry to hear Texts from Jane Eyre didn't work that well for you. I definitely remember giggling my way through it. Ron and Hermione entertained me in particular.

>221 MickyFine: I think I would have done much better with it if I had read one or two exchanges at a time instead of plowing trough half of the book in one go. Ah, well.

62.) Game of Crowns: Elizabeth, Camilla, Kate, and the Throne, Christopher Anderson ***1/2

Anderson explores the personalities of the three woman (plus Diana) most connected to the throne in Britain today and identifies what he thinks drives each of them. This is a lot of material any one who follows the Royal Family at all prooobably already knows and is presented in a dishy way rather than a scholarly one. I was sometimes pretty unclear about how Anderson knew what he seemed to know, but that was more because of his presentation style (not always making his sources clear) rather than any real suspicion that he was making anything up. It was an entertaining read, and probably a decent introduction to these women. If you are looking for a really great biography of a member of the Royal Family, I cannot recommend highly enough Sally Bedell Smith's Elizabeth the Queen. It's very readable and paints a much fuller (and at least apparently better researched) portrait of Elizabeth II than Anderson can here.

Today at the blog, a list of my favorite books published in each year of my life. (If you were following my thread last year, you've seen this here already, though there are a couple of changes.)

Nice list, Laura! I've been too intimidated to even attempt such a list myself but I'm glad you found the process fun.

>225 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky!

63.) If You Ever Want to Bring a Piano to the Beach, Don't!, Elise Parsley ****

A silly picture book about why you shouldn't bring a piano to the beach. Pretty much exactly my kind of humor. I loved it. The little girl's expressions as the piano gets more and more ruined at the beach are priceless. This one will be going to one of the nieces for her birthday later this month.

64.) The Duke and the Domina, Jenn LeBlanc ***1/2

I was enjoying this historical romance novel very much for the first two thirds or so. It wasn't without its small problems--the odd typo or internal inconsistency, a sometimes slightly wobbly transition from one pov to the other, the occasional "Eh?" that was almost certainly due to my reading book three in a series without reading the others first--but for the most part, I was wrapped up in the story and didn't really mind.

Lulu was a domina in contemporary times until she hit her head and woke up in the body of a young woman in the 1880s. I had no trouble suspending my disbelief about this; it's just the set-up for the story, whevs. Though it did annoy me that Lulu never seemed to even wonder what happened to the woman who was *supposed* to be in that body. This made it a bit of a struggle to like Lulu, to be honest. But like her I eventually did, and I was happily following her story and that of Gray, the man she must marry and who is deeply terrified of and shamed by his submissive and masochistic tendencies. Things ensue as you might expect, with a nice attention to their feelings and the problems that arise between two people trying to forge a life together under weird circumstances and having only just met.

And then it all goes weirdly off the rails. Lulu and Gray reach a climax of sorts in their relationship, and then suddenly Lulu has trouble being emotionally intimate with people. This only comes up at that juncture in the story, and it feels tacked on. The book doesn't handle it well either--from that point forward, Lulu and Gray seem wishy-washy about their feelings, apparently coming to an understanding in one scene and then in the next acting as if that scene hadn't happened at all.

Sooo, I dunno. Two thirds of a great book plus one third of mess? I can't recommend it, but I am intrigued enough to go back and try the first book in the series.

65.) The Secret Footprints, Julia Alvarez, illustrated by Fabian Negrin ****

Nicely illustrated picture book retelling a Dominican legend about the ciguapas, human-like people who live underwater and have their feet on backwards so their footprints lead away from where they've gone. Enjoyable.

66.) Interrupting Chicken, David Ezra Stein ***1/2

A young chicken loves for her papa to tell her bedtime stories but can't keep herself from interrupting to tell the characters the thing that will keep them out of trouble. Amusing, and the illustrations are in an interesting, saturated style that I quite liked.

67.) Waiting for the Biblioburro, Monica Brown, illustrated by John Parra ****

Inspired by Luis Sariano, a librarian who brought books to remote communities in Colombia, this is the story of Ana and her joy at seeing the biblioburro coming into town. Lovely illustrations.

68.) Dragon Was Terrible, Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by Greg Pizzoli ****1/2

Dragon is terrible, doing all sorts of annoying, rude things all around town. Then one day he's tamed by a story. This book is hilarious. The drawing style is simple but perfect, and the things Dragon gets up to are just right in their humor and gentle rudeness. Recommended.

69.) When Katie Met Cassidy, Camille Perri ***

My delight that this book exists sharpens my disappointment that it wasn't a better read.

The story is a romcom between two women in present day New York City. One is a lesbian, the other had never considered attraction to women until the events of the story. I *love* romcoms, and I wish there were more of them in book form. (I wish there were more of them in movie form too, darn it.) And I'm so happy to see a romcom between two women that foregrounds women's spaces, women's sexual desire, women's careers, and which puts all of that in the foreground as a matter of course, as it should be. When Katie Met Cassidy is highly readable (I tore through it in one afternoon), occasionally funny, and a nice kind of fluffy. Some of the scenes are pretty perfect and will stay with me, I'm sure.

But there isn't much *story* to it. The obstacles (Katie thinks she's straight; Cassidy doesn't do relationships) melt away without much tension. A fight that threatens to separate them comes too late in the story and resolves too quickly to provide much narrative thrust. I don't feel like I know either character terribly well. The book just doesn't quite *do* much.

On the strengths the book does exhibit, I will almost certainly check out more by Perri, but at the end of When Katie Met Cassidy, I was left wishing there was more there there.

Sounds like you've had some great picture book reads to make up for the kind of meh grown up ones. :)

>231 MickyFine: Thank goodness for the picture books, some days, honestly. I may read Dragon Was Terrible again just because.

>229 lycomayflower: I enjoyed the biblioburro book when I read it.

70.) The Ulysses Delusion: Rethinking Standards of Literary Merit, Cecilia Konchar Farr ****1/2

Farr argues that literary critics and literature professors are out of step with the kinds of novels Americans actually read. She points out that James Joyce's Ulysses shows up on nearly all lists of Best Novels done periodically by various news organizations and publishers but that comparatively few people have *read* Ulysses, never mind loved it. (She doesn't say no one, nor does she imply that no one has ever enjoyed it. Don't @ me.) If the "best" books are the books people don't read much, and the books people *do* read and love *aren't* the "best" books, something must be amiss. Farr's book explores where the disconnect is, considers why there's a disconnect, and offers some suggestions for better ways forward. She argues that regular readers are looking for books that are absorbing, relatable, discussable, and/or provide information but that these are not the qualities most critics and professors use to identify good or important books. She also invokes Nancy Pearl's notion of the "doorways" through which readers enter books: story, character, setting, and language and posits that the doorway most readers find "narrowest" --language--is pretty much the only doorway literature professors use. Farr expands on and explicates all of this by discussing Lolita, Oprah's book club, "chick lit," Jodi Picoult, and Harry Potter, among others. The book is fascinating, smart, and, I think, long overdue. It's aimed at both a scholarly and a lay audience, so it's perhaps a slightly dense read but absolutely accessible. Recommended.

>233 thornton37814: I really enjoyed the illustration style in that one.

>234 lycomayflower: Ooh that sounds great!

>234 lycomayflower: that sounds interesting Laura. I'll add it to my wish list.

>236 norabelle414:, >237 Caroline_McElwee: I'll be very interested to hear what you both think, should you read it!

71.) The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, Becky Chambers ****1/2

I feel like I'm the last person on this planet to read this book, and I honestly don't know now why I waited so long to get to it. It was a little bit slow to grab me, but after thirty pages or so I was all in. The story is about relationships of all sorts and how to get on with people and uses the science fiction setting to explore various kinds of societies and ways of making a life. By turns funny, fascinating, and heartfelt. Was a clutch it to my chest read by the end. Recommended.

72.) Pashmina, Nidhi Chanani ****

This YA graphic novel follows teenager Priyanka Das as she tries to discover who her father was, why her mother left India, and who Priyanka wants to be. A magical shawl figures into all this in a most excellent and intriguing way. The art is nice and comes particularly alive in the full-color sequences involving the shawl. Recommended.

How are you so flamin' close to 75 reads already???

>242 laytonwoman3rd:

73.) I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing: Star Wars and the Triumph of Geek Culture, A.D. Jameson, read by Holter Graham ***1/2

This exploration of "geek" culture and its rise into the mainstream was excellent in so far as it went but disappointing for what it did not include. Jameson does an insightful and informative job of outlining the history of "geek" culture (more about my scare quotes in a mo) and tracing how interest in things like sci-fi movies and superheroes went from niche (and likely to earn you a fair amount of possibly violent derision at school) to mainstream. I loved his discussion of that move in our culture and learned a good deal while nodding at much of the rest. (He does occasionally present observations as *whoa, insightful* that are almost certainly patently obvious to "geeks," which made me wonder a little about who his audience is.)

So, sounds like it does what it set out to do and well to boot, yes? Hrm. First, those scare quotes. Jameson frequently says things like "what geeks like is x" or "geeks prefer y" and as I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing is in part an extended exploration of what "geek" culture is, that usage is to be expected. But the thing is, Jameson's understanding of what "geeks" want and like is only true... from a certain point of view. That being the point of view of geeks who think like the geeks he's describing. But he isn't describing all geeks. For a while I thought maybe he was using "geek" in a really specific way (some people do, for example, differentiating between "geek" and "nerd" and "dork"), a specific way that would (rather circularly) be limited only to the kind of geek he references, and that would account for the lack of nuance. (Sort of? I mean, it certainly wouldn't address the fact that his discussion leaves out some kinds of geeks.) And I'm not going to sit here and argue that those other words I listed don't have differing connotations from each other, but it eventually was clear that Jameson is not doing precision definitional semantics here. He's using the word "geek" the way any general American speaker of English might, that is basically someone who is strongly invested in and deeply enthusiastic about something that most people aren't, specifically of the sci-fi and fantasy sort. That's me! Strange then, that a book that should have reflected me so thoroughly made me feel left out. Again.

By a slight coincidence, Jameson and I grew up in the same part of Pennsylvania, and around the same time. We are demographically similar in some regards, excepting one very important point: gender. Women have historically been treated preeetty crappy by geek culture, and it bugs me to no end that Jameson doesn't address this more fully in his book. It's not entirely absent, and I will say that he does a good job of using inclusive language throughout--it's clear that Jameson does *not* default to male when thinking about geeks. His sentences make room for women and, especially toward the end of the book, he addresses some of the geek-adjacent misogyny that has gained high traction in the last few years (the dearth of Rey action figures after the release of The Force Awakens, the prevelance of "slave" Leia action figures (in the bikini outfit from Return of the Jedi) amidst the absence of other Leia figures). But he never really addresses the long history of male geeks gatekeeping and harassing female geeks or the way women with geeky interests (especially those in my generation and older) often feel/felt doubly ostracized, first by the mainstream for being a geek and then by other (male) geeks for claiming to love the things they did while in possession of a vagina. Jameson couldn't address this from personal experience, and I wouldn't want him to try, but to leave it out altogether makes the book feel incomplete. I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing is in conversation with several texts about Hollywood in the 20th century and the role of entertainment and art in society; it could have been in conversation with texts about women's experience of geekdom as well.

So that's my first criticism of the book, that it does not do enough to include the experience of *all*, demographically heterogeneous, geeks in its discussion. (I bet you a dollar, too, that there are geeks of color out there who want to know where the discussion of *their* experience is in this exploration of geek culture. Again, Jameson makes room for that experience (he notes the relative lack of characters of color in early Star Wars movies, for instance), but he doesn't really address it.) A discussion of geek culture that doesn't address things like Gamergate or Feminist Frequency feels incomplete because it ignores the fact that for a lot of women the phrase "what geeks prefer" feels like it could be filled in with "is for women to stay out of geek spaces."

All this leads me to my other primary criticism of I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing. Jameson's discussion of geek culture is largely limited to engagement with entertainments (movies, videogames, etc) that is affirmational in nature. Affirmational fandom is about noticing and cataloging all the details of the world building, about understanding the "rules" of the source material. Affirmational fandom is awesome, but it isn't the only kind of fandom. There's also transformational fandom. Transformational fandom likes to ask "what if?" It likes to take the source material and see what else it can do. Affirmational fandom wants to pin down what the source material *is*, definitively; transformational fandom wants to swirl it all around and see what sticks. Jamesom references some fannish activities that are usually transformationl (such as fan fiction), but he never marks the distinction between these ways of "geeking out" within geek culture and his statements about "what geeks want" are almost always affirmational in nature. That's bad enough, but when you add in the fact that affirmational and transformational activities in fandom tend to be gendered, well. All us wimmins over here on the edges of stuff feeling left out and mad about it. Again.

Possibly Jameson doesn't know about these distinctions (the online essay laying them out isn't exactly mainstream, I'll grant.) But, maybe he should. I mean, *I* know about it, and I'm not publishing a book about geek culture. I'll also posit that if you are exploring geek culture, its history, how it became mainstream, and in what ways mainstream geekiness fails many geeks, maybe you should be thinking about all the kinds of geeks there are running about and how they don't all experience or enjoy geeky things in the same ways. He might could've gotten to some version of affirmational and transformational on his onesies is what I'm saying.

Among Jameson's conclusions in I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing is an exploration of why mainstream geeky things so often disappoint geeks, and it hinges on the idea that in order for a product (a movie, a TV show, etc) to do well (financially), it has to appeal to more people than just geeks. In order to do that, the product cannot assume or require the specialized knowledge that so many geeks have. (If you have to do a lot of "homework," Jameson argues, to understand the next Marvel movie, only geeks, who he contends *like* to do such homework, will see it, and the movie will tank.) But if the product doesn't adhere to all the specialized knowledge, geeks will be disappointed and feel like "their" movies/videogames/etc have been ruined. You see how this argument presupposes that geeks are, by nature, affirmational fans? A geek who primarily engages with fandom transformationally probably isn’t as disappointed (if at all), and they are less likely, I would think, to see the product as “theirs” in the first place. If you “fan” by creating a version of the thing you love and enjoying and encouraging other versions as well, your briefs don’t get into too much of a twist when someone creates a new sandbox and calls it by an old, familiar name. Because that’s what we do, all the time.

As an example, Jameson discusses his disppointment (and the disappoint of many other geeks) in the rebooted Star Trek films beginning with 2009's Star Trek. His disappointment (and by his implication, the reason these films were disappointing) stemmed from the way Abrams et al excised so much of what made Trek Trek. He particularly remarks on the way the new films are "just" action flicks and forego the thinky stuff that often marked the Original Series. And he's right. The philosophizing of TOS is absent from the reboots. But you know what? I enjoyed the films anyway. Because they present a fun what-if scenario and re-envision the characters and the world. I don't need them to be just like TOS. TOS didn't go away. It's still there. Someone just made a new but related sandbox. I don't love everything about it*, but it doesn't "ruin" anything about the version I like better. Your kink is not my kink, and that's okay, yanno? I'm a self-proclaimed geek who wasn't disappointed by the reboot films. I recognized them. They're transformational fandom**. For Jameson, “geek” seems to equal “affirmational fan,” and his book suffers for it. A more nuanced discussion of geek cultures and the ways they are interacting with the mainstream would have allowed for a more insightful exploration of what’s happening to and among the geeks.

Ultimately these problems I had with I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing made this a frustrating read for me, but that does not negate the fact that Jameson provides a core of solid geek-adjacent film history and ends with a truly excellent argument about the value of art and geeky art (especially Star Wars: A New Hope). I can’t quite recommend the book (cf. 1400 words of *urg* above), but if popular culture and/or geeky things are your bag, you probably want to check this out. The audiobook is fine, read well, and well produced. My only complaint is that the narrator pronounces a fair few geeky things (like character and place names) wrong. I mean, honestly.

Wot? Even a transformational ladypants like myself can get a little affirmational once in a while.

*It annoys me that Kirk, who was not a womanizer in TOS (I will fight you, and I have links), is reimagined as a womanizer in AOS because can we stop with objectifying women and making it "okay" but not because it "ruins" the original version of him as a serial monogamist chivalric flower boi.

**Maybe not fandom, exactly, as Abrams isn't a fan, but that's another question altogether.

74.) Still Life, Louise Penny ****

I enjoyed much about this first novel in the Three Pines series, including the mystery itself (I enjoyed watching it unfold, though I had it half solved one third in and completely solved well before the end, which is unusual for me), the characters, and the setting. Add Three Pines to my list of Fictional Places I'd Like to Hang Out, right alongside Hogwarts, Stars Hollow, and the Enterprise (no bloody A, B, C, or D.) The characters inhabiting the town are by turns amusing, relatable, and enjoyably snarky. I'm slowly warming to Inspector Gamache and particularly liked his mentory relationship with Jean Guy Beauvoir. Several moments throughout the book were very touching and/or deeply insightful into human nature.

I had some quibbles about the way the book is written as well, some more frustrating to me than others. Agent Nichol, a new young detective working with Gamache for the first time, seemed to be eager and decent at the start of the book and then wildly incompetent, rude, and deeply unselfaware for the rest of it. She just got jerkier and jerkier as the thing went on, and I have no idea why or whether she changed or Penny's portrayal of her was inconsistent. Part of the confusion there may have been do to the point of view, which is what we called "head-hoppy" when I was working as an editor. The narrative jumps from the perspective of one character to another within scenes in a way that often felt uncontrolled. It approached omniscient (which would have been fine) but without any of the kind of occasional "statements from on high" that would stabilize an omniscient point of view. The result was that I was sometimes left wondering what was true, and not in a way that felt helpful to the creation of a mystery story or the explication of these characters. Finally, Penny frequently would "hide the ball," letting the reader know that a character had discovered "something" but refusing to tell the reader what the something was until later on when she could reveal it with a flourish. Meh. This method of creating suspense just annoys the crap out of me rather than building any tension for me. It also feels like a pov issue in part, as if you are in a character's head, they are (usually) unlikely to think about something in obscuring language rather than just thinking of it as "the magazine" or "the pie" or whatever.

I hope that as Penny carried on through the series the pov and hiding the ball issues lessened because I do really want to read more of these and visit with these people and in this place again.

>245 lycomayflower: What a fantastic review. The author sounds horribly gate-keep-y.
I try to stay away from books about "geek culture" (almost all written by Gen-X white men) for a lot of the reasons you talked about. The few I have read were published well before GamerGate, but I'd be (slightly) interested to go back and reread and see what hindsight reveals.

>243 lycomayflower: Hmmmm....I see. I do not have the magics, is that it?

>245 lycomayflower: OK....left me in the dust AGAIN. Mostly I'm scratching my head, as I do when you break out the PhD.

>246 lycomayflower: Now this I get.

>247 norabelle414: Thanks, Nora! It was weird--I got the sense that he wasn't so much gatekeeping as not realizing (or not acknowledging) that there *is* a gate. Which, also not fantastic.

>248 laytonwoman3rd: *waves*

>246 lycomayflower: IMO the Penny books get better, Laura. I started the series somewhere in the middle (don't tell anyone) and was impressed by that book then started again from the beginning with Still Life which I didn't find nearly as good as the book that I started with.

>251 Familyhistorian: Oh, good! I'm looking forward to reading more of them, and it's good to hear that so many people think they get better as they go.

75.) Art and Max, David Wiesner ****

Picture book about an artist and his friend where one of them gets "erased" and then drawn again. Fun exploration of art and the illustrations are great.

Congratulations on hitting 75 Laura.

>254 Caroline_McElwee: Thanks, Caroline!