Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

It's still winter up here in NY  This week it finally warmed up enough so when it snowed, it was good packing snow, and I made a snölykta (a snow lantern).  But my candles wouldn’t stay lit, so .. no snölykta love for me.  

Admin stuff:
We still need a discussion leader for our **MAY** group read!!

March:  The Song of Achilles  for A book that has won the Women’s Prize for Fiction - we have a discussion leader for March! (JUST in time :-) )

April: The Midnight Library  for A magical realism book - we have a discussion leader for April!

May: Ayesha at Last for A book by a Muslim American author

June: Dear Martin  for A book on a Black Lives Matter reading list - we have a discussion leader for June!


Send a note to me or Lynn if you're interested in leading a group discussion.  Don't be shy! It's fun and informal! 



This week I thought I read a lot, but turns out I only finished 2 books, one for this Challenge, bringing me to 14/50 Maybe I spent more time thinking about books this week than actually reading books!!

Rosewater by Tade Thompson-  I had been so excited to read this book!  And ... I was SUPER disappointed.  Another review pointed out that there's no real plot, and I admit I didn't notice that at the time, but that may be why I was so bored with it.  I checked off "afrofuturist" with this book.

Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Brittney Cooper- she had some good points, but nothing that really jumped out at me as new. 



Question of the Week  What are your bookish pet peeves?


This started over on FB where someone said their pet peeve was "padded" used instead of "walked." That's one of mine too, so that caught my attention! I will knock my book rating down by a star if I come across "she padded into the kitchen" or "he padded barefoot down the hall" or whatever. URGGHH

Another one I was reminded of when I just came across in a book I'm reading now: describing a drink as "the cool liquid flowed down her throat" instead of just saying she drank something. I'm always quick to get annoyed by excess description.

It drives me nuts when a character will look into a mirror and describe their looks, solely so the author can describe what the character looks like. Honestly, it just doesn't matter that much to me to know all those things. If the character's appearance matters to the plot, it will come up. If it doesn't matter, don't tell me.

And, finally, I hate romance novels where the man "teaches" the woman how to kiss. ARGHAFGADHDG

Nadine wrote: "It's still winter up here in NY  This week it finally warmed up enough so when it snowed, it was good packing snow, and I made a snölykta (a snow lantern).  But my candles wouldn’t stay lit, so .. ..."

RE: description of main characters. I've only just learned that their are people for whom, when they read, the book plays out for them like a big movie in their head.

And since then I've wondered if my issue with books with long, long, long descriptive passages is it is supposed to be filling in the scenery for the movie that isn't playing in my head. Are the character physical descriptions there to show off authors descriptive ability or is it for mental casting?

Genuinely, I don't know. I don't have movie in my head.

Brandy wrote: "And since then I've wondered if my issue with books with long, long, long descriptive passages is it is supposed to be filling in the scenery for the movie that isn't playing in my head. Are the character physical descriptions there to show off authors descriptive ability or is it for mental casting?..."

I picture what's happening in my head, but I think my brain does it's own thing no matter what the author does. The amount of times an adaptation happens and everyone is praising the casting, and I'm like, oh I saw them completely differently... and then I go back and see that I just ignored the character description!

Happy Thursday, once again! Nadine, a snölykta sounds awesome! Unfortunately (?) it warmed up and the majority of our snow has melted. But this is Ohio, so I'm sure we'll get another good blast or two before spring actually gets here. Bit quiet this week otherwise; I made another batch of apple crisp last night because we have a TON of vanilla ice cream in the freezer to use up :D oh! Hubs and I finally upgraded to iPhones; up to last week we both still had dumbphones, but I'm already deeply enjoying the capabilities of my new one. Very handy (and now I sound like my dad).

Books! This week I finished:
Stony the Road: Reconstruction, White Supremacy, and the Rise of Jim Crow - 5 stars. An excellent starting point before I (eventually) dive into Du Bois's Black Reconstruction in America 1860-1880
The Fire Next Time - 5 stars. Still as relevant as ever in 2021, which is rather sad.
Crown of Thunder - DNF. This was definitely a "me" issue; I waited too long after reading the first one to pick this one up and just couldn't focus on the story.
Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches - 5 stars. I can't wait to read Lorde's poetry.

Currently reading:
Beloved - still plugging away at this. This is one of the most challenging books I've ever picked up; I seem to manage a chapter or roughly 10 pages a night.
The Three Musketeers - has taken a backseat to Beloved since I got through the first few chapters, and will probably go on the wait-shelf until April so I can focus on women writers in March.
A Song Below Water - started yesterday. The audiobook is very good!

Upcoming:
The Initial Insult - A new YA from one of my favorite authors, based on the works of Poe. GIMME IT.
An Extraordinary Union - Was hoping to get to this in February but it doesn't look like I'll have time, so into March it goes.
Jade War - Psyched for this one, the first book was one of my favorite January reads!

QOTW: What are your bookish pet peeves?
I think any of us who read YA would agree with despising the "letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding" bit. That one got overused quickly. Edit: I don't mind "padded" as long as the individual doing the padding is barefoot. Or as Katy says below, if it's a dog (or another critter).

I finished With a Tangled Skein as my magical realism book. it was weird.

I'm now reading Freedom's Way as my book with less than 1000 ratings. It's awful. I can see why nobody has read it. It has my pet peeve from below.

Qotw: I hate it when the main character (usually female) thinks she's sooo great, and/or everyone treats her like she's sooo great.

question on the padding pet peeve. Is that nullified if it's a dog?

It's starting to warm up here, daffodils are flowering and I saw someone on Twitter reminding us that the dreaded birch pollen season is upon us. So if you're in southern England and allergic, get those antihistamines in.

I keep reading books for ATY instead of Popsugar, I really need to start putting some thought into the prompts rather than reading willy nilly.

Finished:
The Galaxy, and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers for ATY (comfort read) and it was so lovely, I kept welling up at the acts of kindness. I think this might be my favourite batch of her characters, a bunch of different aliens stuck together at a small rest stop run by what I can only picture as floppy alpaca aliens. They try to accommodate their cultural differences as much as possible, and it has a theme of bridging divides. I think it's the Wayfarers book we all need right now.

A Stranger in Town by Kelley Armstrong for ATY (female criminal). I was happy to see a recap at the start, but then less happy that there were recaps in the text, one or the other, authors, please! I think the Rockton books are starting to get samey but I liked that this made some progress on the series arc and they are fun, easy reads.

Kill Joy by Holly Jackson which is a short prequel novella set at a murder mystery party and it was great, kind of exactly how these parties turn out. I am ready for the next novel in the series.

QOTW:
This is my dad's fault but he hates that decimate is used to describe nearly destroying something rather than reducing it by a tenth. Now it grates every time I see it. This ship has sailed though, because it's in the dictionary as the new meaning and people love using it.

I have little patience for genre snobs and people who think books should better you and can't just be entertainment. We all like different things, doesn't mean something that's not to someone's taste is bad writing.

EDIT: Obviously books can better you, it's just not their only purpose.

Hi everyone. I completely thought it was Wednesday until I saw this thread. *face palm!* The sun is shining so hopefully spring is on its way soon.

I think because there are less people using the library due to lockdown, all of my holds are coming in super quick at the moment. I have a MASSIVE pile of library books which I don't think I'll get through before they're due back. Wish me luck!

This week I finished Unbirthday. Maybe I'm not a big enough fan of Alice, but this was the weakest in the Twisted Tales series so far. Every time it seemed like Alice was in peril, she woke up to the real world so there was no actual tension, the Queen of Hearts doesn't even feature even though she's the main image on the cover and I just find it hard to believe that Alice at 18 would act as bratty as Alice at 7 (stamping her foot and demanding her own way all the time). Surely she's grown up a little in the 11 years? I really hope the next release doesn't let me down because it's based on Hercules which is one of my favourite Disney movies.

I also finished The Case of the Missing Marquess which was cute but very short. I saw the film last year and they added a lot of padding to make it full length.

Currently reading: I've read quite a few YA books recently and needed a change so I'm reading Away with the Penguins. I love crotchety, old Veronica already!

Also reading The Haunting of Tram Car 015. I go it as a free e-book last year but didn't realise it was second in the series. So far, I don't feel like I've missed anything.

QOTW: Ooooooo, I probably have a lot! I hate when there's a huge afterword or a million blank pages at the end of a book. I feel like I was promised more story and was lied to :D

I don't like cliff-hangers for the first book in a series either. If I'm on the second or third book, I'm already invested enough to care about the outcome of a cliff-hanger but on the first one, I want most things resolved so I don't have to keep reading if I don't want to.

When they change the cover designs mid-way through a series, especially if the book is suddenly a different size so it is glaringly obvious on my shelves.

Oh, and when books I'm dying to read take too long to come out in paperback. I hate reading hardbacks!

Ellie wrote: "It's starting to warm up here, daffodils are flowering and I saw someone on Twitter reminding us that the dreaded birch pollen season is upon us. So if you're in southern England and allergic, get ..."

Floppy alpaca aliens sound adorable!

Katy wrote: "question on the padding pet peeve. Is that nullified if it's a dog? ..."


LOL yes I think if a book described an ANIMAL padding along, I wouldn't mind at all.

I didn't have much to report last week, so I'm going to do today's check in for the last 2 weeks. I have hit a reading wall again, not because there's anything wrong with the books, just that I'm tired and feel more like watching tv (There are too many seasons of Supernatural!) than continuing to engage my brain. I find that very frustrating though.

In the past two weeks, I finished:

No Visible Bruises: What We Don’t Know About Domestic Violence Can Kill Us: a topic you feel passionately about; As someone who feels like they have read/learned way more about domestic violence than your average person, I wasn't sure if this book would offer anything new, but it really did. It was well researched and treated the subject with the care and also logic that it deserves. It took me quite a while to get through it, but it was worth the read.

Quackery: A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything: book that starts with q: I wanted to like this one way more than I actually did. I thought the jokes fell flat and that it was overall just trying to gross out the reader more than inform. It might have been better as an audiobook, so the delivery was better.

The Vanishing Half; a book with three generations; I was excited to write a review of this one and when I was done, I just didn't know how to write my thoughts. I gave the book 5 stars, for the sole reason that I would have read an entire book about any one of the major characters. I felt like the story itself could have been something bigger, but the characters were incredible.

Currently reading:

That Night: I'm almost halfway through this audiobook and I have become a pretty consistent fan of Chevy Stevens, so I'm enjoying this.

On deck:

The Whisper Man and Cross Her Heart: I have both of these checked out from the library right not, but I just haven't been able to focus myself to start anything else in the evenings. I have a 3 day weekend because I took tomorrow off to get my second COVID vaccine, so maybe I'll be able to get back to reading.

QOTW:
I have no idea how to explain why, but I absolutely hate the word "raucous" and I find myself noticing it and rolling my eyes all the time in books.

Sarah wrote: "Hi everyone. I completely thought it was Wednesday until I saw this thread. *face palm!* The sun is shining so hopefully spring is on its way soon.

I think because there are less people using the ..."

I completely agree with all your pet peeves. I was reading your post and just kept nodding my head.

Mary wrote: "... The Vanishing Half; a book with three generations; I was excited to write a review of this one and when I was done, I just didn't know how to write my thoughts. ..."


Oh that happens to me too!!! If I'm really enjoying a book and completely immersed in it, when I finish, all I can think to say is "I loved this book."

Afternoon! It has been a while since I checked in, so I won't cover all the books I've been reading, just the last few. I also haven't been slotting them into Popsugar prompts... just not had the spoons. I'll need to get round to going through the list again and seeing if anything fits.

Not much new with me. I got Zelda: Breath of the Wild on Nintendo Switch and I have been loving it, even though it took me a month of puttering around Hyrule before I plucked up the courage to do the story-related missions that looked difficult. And I still run far and fast away from Guardians. Have not figured out that shield trick yet that counters them.

Aside from vidya games, mainly I've just been watching the owl livestream I like - the Robert E Fuller one, I think a few of us talked about it in a prior checkin. Currently we're waiting on tawny owlets hatching any day now, and the barn owls are starting to prepare for breeding.

So, books. Within the last week or so I've finished:

Featherhood - Wonderfully written. The way Charlie discusses estrangement from a parent is great, really gets across all the conflicted tangled emotions. Didn't greatly approve of his wildlife-rehabilitation methods though - within a few chapters that magpie had a vanishingly small chance of being successfully reintroduced to the wild.

Himself - Mixed feelings on this one. I liked the concept, the characters, and the Irishness. Not so much the mystery, and the violence/gore - which there isn't a huge amount of, but you're thrown right into it with the prologue and then it keeps popping up in short disturbing bursts every so often. (There's a bit near the end about a dog being killed, so if animals being hurt is triggery for you, maybe skip this one.)
Didn't find the way it wrapped up terribly satisfying and couldn't tell if the murderer's identity was written as a twist, since I already knew who it was. Plus there are loose ends still dangling that I really wish had been explained.
I do like Jess Kidd as a writer but her books seem to just leave me ambivalent... maybe she's not for me?

The Galaxy, and the Ground Within - I needed this. Let's do lockdown just for a few days, on an alien planet, where everyone is at heart a good person and there is homemade cake. Please give me all of the cosy SFF, I am desperate for the escapism.
(And, for the record, I pictured the Laru as a mix between kangaroos and gerenuk - those antelopes with the really long necks. 🙂)

Not currently reading anything, as I only just finished "Galaxy". Not sure what I'll pick. Maybe another sci-fi.

QOTW: I can't think of anything particular I'd call a peeve. I guess lately, it's been bugging me when there's a conversation on page and the writer stops adding... what is it called, dialogue tags? for a few lines. I lose track of which character's speaking very easily. I used to not mind, so I think maybe it's just the Global Clusterfudge turning my brain to mush.

Cendaquenta wrote: "... Aside from vidya games, mainly I've just been watching the owl livestream I like - the Robert E Fuller one, I think a few of us talked about it in a prior checkin. Currently we're waiting on tawny owlets hatching any day now, and the barn owls are starting to prepare for breeding. ..."


Oh that reminds me, this is the time of year when the big birds start nesting up here. I have very fond memories of watching a heron nest cam several years ago in Sapsucker Woods. The baby herons are like little punk rockers. I just checked, and looks like there is no longer a heron cam [sad face].

They do still have their red-tailed hawk nest cam running! And the hawks are building their nest!!

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/cams/re...

I'm excited to get my first vaccine shot today - yay! Has anyone else had Pfizer, and did you get sick after the first or second shot? I'm hearing mixed stories...

This week I finished:

You Should See Me in a Crown Very sweet YA book. 4.5 stars

What Doesn't Kill You: A Life with Chronic Illness - Lessons from a Body in Revolt This was tough to read, but I am so grateful for it. My chronic illness is similar to the author's so I connected with a lot of her story, and appreciate how helpful it would be for folks without chronic illness to read this and learn the best ways to support us. 5 stars

The Four Winds Strong story here, as expected by this author. 4.5 stars

I'm about to finish up Interior Chinatown in print, and just started The Rib King on audio.

QOTW: I might push back a bit on the annoyance with character descriptions. It's important writers identify the race of characters, especially with novels. If it's not identified, most readers/white authors assume the default is white, which is problematic. But I also get annoyed by the term "padded" and ever since there was some uproar about a character "letting out a breath they didn't know they were holding" I've seen it a lot, which is funny.

My biggest bookish pet peeves are when access to wealth solves problems, as well as unnecessary romantic subplots (and for me, if it's not a romance novel, it's almost always unnecessary, LOL).

Ellie wrote: "I have little patience for genre snobs and people who think books should better you and can't just be entertainment. We all like different things, doesn't mean something that's not to someone's taste is bad writing.."

AMEN

Cendaquenta wrote: "Afternoon! It has been a while since I checked in, so I won't cover all the books I've been reading, just the last few. I also haven't been slotting them into Popsugar prompts... just not had the s..."

I need to add missing dialogue tags to my list! No speech marks as well makes me immediately nope out of a book

Happy Thursday, y’all.

Not much to report this week. My life is boring, haha...

Books read this week:

Anne of Green Gables -- for “book about do-overs or fresh starts.” I somehow never read this as a kid, and it’s not at all what I was expecting. It was funny and sweet, and I fell in love with the main character! Are the sequels any good? Is this series worth following?

The Girl With All the Gifts -- for “book you saw on someone else’s bookshelf.” I… didn’t realize this was a zombie novel. But I was still blown away. What a powerful read! And I appreciated that it wasn’t afraid to show its villain as sympathetic, and its heroes as flawed.

Yellow and the Perception of Reality -- not for the challenge. Bizarre and kind of all over the place prose-wise, but still packs an emotional punch.

Petals -- graphic novel, not for the challenge. Short and wordless but beautiful story about loss, friendship, and generosity. Good artwork too, and makes me want to check out the artist’s webcomic.

DNF:

The Witch's Heart -- not for the challenge. Came for the Norse mythology, bailed at the painfully-slow plot and the equally painful “romantic banter.”

Tell the Wolves I'm Home -- was going to be for “book everyone seems to have read but you.” I’ve heard great things about it, but the nastiness of the main character’s sister and the uncomfortable crush the main character has on her uncle dampened my enthusiasm.

Qualify -- was going to be for “book whose title begins with Q, X, or Z.” I didn’t mind that it was a The Hunger Games knockoff, but the writing was just BAD. Not putting up with bad writing or a whiny main character for 600 pages, thank you...

Challenge stats:

Regular challenge books -- 15/45
Advanced challenge books -- 4/10
Not for the challenge -- 14

Currently Reading:

Bradbury Stories: 100 of His Most Celebrated Tales -- for “longest book on your TBR list”
All the Names They Used for God -- for “book with something broken on the cover”
Axiom's End -- for “book on your TBR that you meant to read last year”
Quivers and Quills -- for “book whose title begins with Q, X, or Z”

QOTW: Pull up a chair, folks, I got a lot of these...

* Books that end in cliffhangers -- ESPECIALLY if it's the first book in the series
* Books that lie to you in the description/dust jacket blurb
* Authors who use (view spoiler)[sexual assault/rape (hide spoiler)] as a cheap way to give a female character backstory and/or a cheap way to make a villain extra despicable
* Authors who farm out their writing to other authors (looking at you, James Patterson) and/or publishers/families of dead authors who keep hiring ghost writers to keep the deceased's series/franchises going on like some desiccated zombie
* Love triangles
* "Strong" female characters who have no personality beyond being an emotionless generic action girl -- can we get a kick-butt heroine with a goofy bubbly personality for once? Like Squirrel Girl?

Okay, I'll stop there...

Cendaquenta wrote: "Aside from vidya games, mainly I've just been watching the owl livestream I like - the Robert E Fuller one, I think a few of us talked about it in a prior checkin. Currently we're waiting on tawny owlets hatching any day now, and the barn owls are starting to prepare for breeding."

Yes! I just checked back in after being gone for a few months. Excited for owlets!

Lauren wrote: "I'm excited to get my first vaccine shot today - yay! Has anyone else had Pfizer, and did you get sick after the first or second shot? I'm hearing mixed stories... "

My husband got his second shot last week, and he had Pfizer. He had a sore arm after the first shot, and zero side effects after the second. We were very surprised.

I feel like I’ve been juggling too many books at once to have finished anything so I’m okay having no finishes to report this week. I’m liking everything I’m reading, and that’s the important part.

My MCU re-watch continues. This week Spider Man transformed from a mild annoyance (why have they rebooted Spidey again?) to a precious child I adore. I really thought I was going to hate this, but it’s one of my favorites? My age is showing because I am Tony in this movie. I had to rent this because it’s not on Disney+ for some reason, but it was so worth it.

Since I’m watching all of these movies I think I might pick a comic book for the “format you don’t normally read” prompt. I have no idea where to begin. Do I close my eyes and point? Does anyone have recommendations? I’m looking for something fun and bright. The last comic I tried to read was Frank Miller’s Batman, and it was a terrible and frustrating experience for me.

Reading
Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo (a book with a black and white cover)

Watership Down by Richard Adams (a book set mostly or entirely outdoors)

The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary by Simon Winchester (a bestseller from the 1990s)

QOTW
I know I have them because I remember rolling my eyes a lot when I was reading the Shadowhunter books. But I think I’ve blocked them from my memory? Or I just haven’t seen them in a couple years?

I agree with Sarah about changing covers part way through a series. Matching covers on my bookshelf is very important to me.

Sarah wrote: "I need to add missing dialogue tags to my list! No speech marks as well makes me immediately nope out of a books....."

Me, too. No Cormac McCarthy for me.

Lauren wrote: "I'm excited to get my first vaccine shot today - yay! Has anyone else had Pfizer, and did you get sick after the first or second shot? I'm hearing mixed stories...

This week I finished:

My parents both had their first Pfizer vaccine last week. They had a sore arm the next day but nothing else.

Heather wrote: "My MCU re-watch continues. This week Spider Man transformed from a mild annoyance (why have they rebooted Spidey again?) to a precious child I adore. I really thought I was going to hate this, but it’s one of my favorites? My age is showing because I am Tony in this movie. I had to rent this because it’s not on Disney+ for some reason, but it was so worth it."

I'm still waiting on the Incredible Hulk (2008) to come in from the library. Feels like it's taking foreverrrrr

I seem to be the one weird person who doesn't mind a lack of speech marks - it sometimes takes me a wee while to even notice they're not there.

longest book on my TBR

Dark Age by Pierce Brown. Sci-Fi. I really liked the original trilogy. And I hesitate to say this because reading some of the comments on the less than stellar reviews here on goodreads is something else. But this book was kind of a convoluted mess. Multiple POVs. I don’t think time was really spent on one before going to another and the plot line was practically non-existent. Unnecessarily violent. Honestly, it felt like the author didn’t know where to go with the characters after the initial trilogy. I kept hoping it would get better and it did very slightly towards the end but still meh.

QOTW:

Changing the sizes of the books in a series. Changing spine designs on series. Why? Putting out super cool covers (like the shiny Hunger Games covers). Paperback, paperback, paperback, hardback in a series.

Ellie wrote: "I have little patience for genre snobs and people who think books should better you and can't just be entertainment. We all like different things, doesn't mean something that's not to someone's taste is bad writing."


Genre snobs get on my last nerve especially when they make sweeping pronouncements about genres (especially YA and romance) without having read a lot of either. Ugh.

It also doesn't escape my notice that the genres that take the most beatings are the genres most loved by women and girls.

Cendaquenta wrote: "QOTW: I can't think of anything particular I'd call a peeve. I guess lately, it's been bugging me when there's a conversation on page and the writer stops adding... what is it called, dialogue tags? for a few lines. I lose track of which character's speaking very easily. ..."


Yes this happens to me sometimes!!! Somehow, a skilled author makes sure that we do not lose track of who is speaking (either by including clues in the dialogue, or by making sure it's clear with "he said" and "she said" type text). I hate when I get to a line and think "wait a minute - which person said this?" and then I have to go back and count 1-2-1-2-1-2-1-2 until I get to the line. Just a few days ago my daughter complained about this same thing!

And YES I hate this new literary trend of no quotes. Please, stop doing this, authors. It doesn't make the text flow more smoothly, it doesn't immerse me in the story, it doesn't make the book seem fresh and new, or whatever other reason is behind this bizarre choice. It's like these new authors all think they are e.e. cummings and they can mess with known style rules.

I finished 2 books for the week.
A Most Beautiful Thing by Arshay Cooper. Used for A book that has the same title as a song, The Most Beautiful Thing, Bruno Major
The Guest List by Lucy Foley. A locked - room mystery.
QOTW: One of my pet peeves is the addition of unnecessary gross or cruel things deep into the story.

Chandie wrote: "It also doesn't escape my notice that the genres that take the most beatings are the genres most loved by women and girls. ..."


Yep. Society is always very very quick to dunk on something that is particularly beloved by women and girls.


People LOVE to trash romance, in particular. There is some sort of idea out there that romances are always badly written. Whenever I see it pop up as a challenge category, I'm both happy and anxious. Happy, because I like reading romance. Anxious, because I know it brings all the "I don't read romance because it's trash" folks out. I think last year it was on the Book Riot challenge, and oooooh boy the comments over there!


Everyone has genres that just don't work for them. It's fine to just say "this genre has been tough for me - does anyone have suggestions for a person who doesn't normally read this?" But it's not fine to say "this is trash and it's always bad."

Didn't manage to update last week due to family stuff, so two weeks worth of updating to do here!

Finished:

A Middle-Earth Traveller: Sketches from Bag End to Mordor - not for the challenge, but my husband got it for me for Christmas the year before last, so I figured it was about time I took a look!

The Obelisk Gate for An Afrofuturist book. I hadn't planned to read this, after not being blown away by the first book, but then I needed something for this prompt, so...

One to Watch for A book that discusses body positivity. Fun, but I don't think I fully appreciated the premise, having not watched any reality dating shows!

The Betrayals for The book on your TBR list with the prettiest cover. Found this a very frustrating read (which is a shame as loved the author's previous book) - several elements felt like they were included for no reason, and other things seemed to be kept mysterious and unexplained purely for the sake of being mysterious!

Started:

The Queen of the Tearling for The book that’s been on your TBR list for the longest amount of time.

QOTW:

I'm sure I have loads of pet peeves, but right now I can hardly think of any! Two that spring to mind are:
a) Sloppy editing/proofreading - and I don't mean in the sense of missing actually mistakes, liket typos, but more picking up on things like something that bugged me in a recent book, which was the author apparently being unable to decide whether to use contractions or not!
b) Poos world-building (particularly applicable to fantasy) - if I can detect shallow world-building, it hampers my ability to engage. Why should I invest in your world, author, if you haven't invested in it yourself?

Katy wrote: "Sarah wrote: "I need to add missing dialogue tags to my list! No speech marks as well makes me immediately nope out of a books....."

Me, too. No Cormac McCarthy for me."



Ohhh nooo!! He does that??? I've never read any of his books, and I keep telling myself I should. Hmmm ... maybe I shouldn't. I'll see if I can find an audiobook - audio is GREAT for getting past this particular annoyance!

Hello! The snow is melting and the roads are clear and that is lovely. Work is super busy and if I wasn't living with someone, I would have worked until late every night this week. Husband keeps reminding me to do things like eat and relax and move around.

Finished This Week:
That Ain’t Witchcraft by Seanan McGuire. Reread in preparation for new book in the series. Still not a fan of Antimony. I like her adventures in Lowryland, but not her adventures in Maine. Not for prompt.

Imaginary Numbers by Seanan McGuire. Also a reread to prepare for the next book in the series. Sarah, on the other hand, I quite like. There was a ton of cuckoo stuff in this one, reinforcing my desire to read The Midwich Cuckoos, a book that must have been a major player in the formative years of Seanan McGuire. I'm all set for Calculated Risks, now just need for it to arrive! Not for prompt.

Two for the Dough by Janet Evanovich. No car bombs in this one, which I appreciated. Still not sure how I feel about Stephanie Plum. My library does not currently have a physical copy of book 3 (both copies are lost), so may have to wait on it. Using for three generations prompt #33.

Urban Tumbleweed: Notes from a Tanka Diary by Harryette Mullen. A book of poetry, all trying to be in the tanka format, one a day written over the course of a year. Poems were hit or miss, but I enjoyed them. Very quick read. Using for Read Harder's book of nature poems, and Reading Women's poetry collection by a black woman. Could use for PS #36, with fewer than 1000 reviews, as it currently has 36.

PS: 12/50 RH: 3/24 RW: 5/28 ATY: 17/52 GR: 28/100

Currently Reading:
Lead from the Outside: How to Build Your Future and Make Real Change by Stacey Abrams. Loan expires end of the week, so need to finish this.

Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner. The book that's listed first on my Goodreads To-Read shelf. I recognized one of the scenes, so it would also be a DNF book. About a third of the way in so far, and a little annoyed at how the book is structured to seem like it's telling a present story when the characters are adults, but almost all of it is the story of their friendship as kids/teens, with the occasional pop back to the present. Using for PS #45, book that's been on your TBR shelf the longest.

QOTW: What are your bookish pet peeves?
It's hard to separate what's a pet peeve, and what's a sign of bad writing, and what's that a book just isn't for you. I read a ton of chicklit back in the early 2000s, and discovered I hated most of them, because the characters were selfish people with poor impulse control and few redeeming qualities. That wasn't a pet peeve, but a sign that I was reading something that wasn't to my taste. (After giving up on yet another book, I told a roommate I wanted to read about a woman who wasn't an idiot, and she handed me Dune. When I was done, I said that wasn't quite what I meant, and she responded that Jessica wasn't an idiot, which was my only request.)

I guess my biggest pet peeve is when an author gives a character something really damaging in their past without showing any repercussions of that in the present. (I call it my 'No Crippling Backstories!' rule.) Something like assault, death, bullying in the past, but treated as a throwaway or something they got over. If they went through something, they need to show the effects of that in their current life.

For a pet peeve that's actually bad writing, I really hate it when authors give up on action description and just have dialogue, even though Things Are Happening, and now you don't know how they got out of the warehouse and why are there FBI agents here?

Nadine wrote: "Chandie wrote: "It also doesn't escape my notice that the genres that take the most beatings are the genres most loved by women and girls. ..."


Yep. Society is always very very quick to dunk on s..."

I'm guilty of having strong feelings against romance, but I would never say "all romance is trash." It's disappointing that some readers can treat genres so dismissively. It's personal taste for me, and I don't judge those who enjoy (or write) romance. While I think my preference mostly has to do with my complicated personal situation with romance/sexuality, I'll think more about how antifeminism connects to things like this. Thanks for pointing this out!

Heather wrote: "... Since I’m watching all of these movies I think I might pick a comic book for the “format you don’t normally read” prompt. I have no idea where to begin. ...."


LOL I AM HERE FOR YOU!!!


(Although I think some of our other members are even bigger fans of superhero comics than I am, so I'm sure you'll get some good suggestions all around.)


In the DC world:
* I've particularly enjoyed Tom King's Batman reboot, starting with Batman, Volume 1: I Am Gotham.
* Long long ago, I loved Batman: The Killing Joke by Alan Moore, but if you didn't like Miller's Batman, you might not like this either. They came out at about the same time.
* Ed Brubaker's Catwoman, Vol. 1: The Dark End of the Street series is the BEST, especially if you (like me) love hard-boiled classic mysteries.
* DC has been doing a re-boot of all their main characters, so along with King's Batman, there's Superwoman, Volume 1: Who Killed Superwoman?, Green Arrow, Volume 1: The Death and Life of Oliver Queen, Wonder Woman, Volume 1: The Lies, etc. I gave the first two 4 stars; wasn't so crazy about the Wonder Woman. I'm not a big fan of Greg Rucka.


In the Marvel world:
* The Fraction/Aja Hawkeye, Volume 1: My Life as a Weapon series was phenomenal. I LOVED the art! One of my all time favorite superhero series now. And I don't even LIKE Hawkeye! I asked for the omnibus for Christmas and apparently it's $$$$ so I did not get it.
* Kelly Thompson has a Hawkeye spin-off that I wanted to love but found was just okay: Hawkeye: Kate Bishop, Vol. 1: Anchor Points
* Bendis' Jessica Jones has been great! (Okay, I've only read volume 1 so far. But I really liked it!) Alias, Vol. 1
* Mockingbird is a lesser-known Marvel character, I'd never heard of her before, and I LOVED the "puzzle box" structure of this first volume. Mockingbird, Vol. 1: I Can Explain
* If you love the quippy humor of the MCU movies, I HIGHLY recommend DeConnick's Avengers Assemble: Science Bros. I laughed out loud! The Avengers Assemble comics do a good job of introducing all the characters, too, and I found that really helpful.
* For pure beauty, I loved the art in Havok and Wolverine: Meltdown. This is old and might be hard to find.
* Since you liked the recent Spider-Man, introduce yourself to Miles! Ultimate Comics Spider-Man by Brian Michael Bendis, Volume 1 (and watch his movie, too!! One of the BEST animated movies I've ever seen. I was blown away!)
* Tom King's Vision has been getting a lot of press, even moreso now that #Wandavision has been such a hit, but I haven't read it yet: The Vision, Volume 1: Little Worse Than A Man
* Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normal made a big splash, but aside from being set in NJ, it didn't really impress me.
* If you want more Captain Marvel (and who DOESN'T want more Captain Marvel??) check out DeConnick's Captain Marvel, Volume 1: In Pursuit of Flight

Cendaquenta wrote: "I seem to be the one weird person who doesn't mind a lack of speech marks - it sometimes takes me a wee while to even notice they're not there."

I find a lack of quotation marks unsettling for the first few pages, then I seem to get used to it.

On the dialogue tags point, I would say it's actually a bit of a pet peeve to have "he said/she said" tags after every piece of dialogue for me. Especially when it's narrated on audio. I agree that writers need to handle this carefully though, to make sure readers don't have to count back to keep track (which of course we can't do with audiobooks). As a writer I like to work around this by incorporating an action for the character next to some of what they're saying, so readers can track who's who, without all the "he said/she said" tags.

Chandie wrote: "Genre snobs get on my last nerve especially when they make sweeping pronouncements about genres (especially YA and romance) without having read a lot of either..."

Sadly it comes from all directions, and I think it's partly because people get defensive. But I say praise what we love and don't make sweeping negative generalisations and we'll all be good.

Sarah wrote: "Lauren wrote: "I'm excited to get my first vaccine shot today - yay! Has anyone else had Pfizer, and did you get sick after the first or second shot? I'm hearing mixed stories...

This week I fini..."

Sounds great - thanks for the notes on Pfizer shots, Sarah and Melissa!

Lauren wrote: "... QOTW: I might push back a bit on the annoyance with character descriptions. It's important writers identify the race of characters, especially with novels. If it's not identified, most readers/white authors assume the default is white, which is problematic. ..."



I thought of that. And I hesitated to include it because of your point. But, a peeve is a peeve, right? I've read a lot of books with BIPOC characters that somehow let me know the characters were not white, without giving me excessive details, and without having the character look at herself in the mirror and describe what she sees.

The whole mirror thing feels so unnatural. I've never looked at myself and thought: "grey-blue eyes stared back at her, the same particular shade as her mother's eyes. She always wished she had the pure light blue shade that her grandfather's eyes were. She brushed her graying dirty blond hair off her forehead and thought about trimming her bangs, before she turned and padded down the hall."

I have not finished anything this week, but I am over 50% through the first two books in my Currently Reading section.

Currently Reading:

Savage Trade by Tony Daniel (not for a prompt)

Have you ever wondered what was up with the Excalbians from the Star Trek episode "The Savage Curtain"? This book dives into that question. The book is mostly enjoyable without blowing me away. It is fun to see the Star Trek characters interacting with historical figures like Benjamin Franklin and James Watt.

Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain (PS: A book about art or an artist, could also be a book about a fresh start)

I am still interested in where this one is going. There was a bit of a strange moment where Lisa explains why the August 5 opening date of the gallery is so important. Provisions of the will were mentioned very early on, so unless the reader does not know what a conditional will is, the full explanation is not something they need and will not come as a revelation.

Solo Command by Aaron Allston
The Eugenics Wars, Vol. 2: The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh by Greg Cox
Into the Dark by Claudia Gray

Question of the Week:

My biggest pet peeve is deckle edge on paper books. I like to flip back and forth, especially to gauge how long the next chapter is. Deckle edge makes it harder to turn the pages, and the book does not look more beautiful, historic, or special by having it.

More comic book recs for Heather:
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, Vol. 1: Squirrel Power - a lesser-known Marvel superhero, she's a lot of fun!
The Search For Black Panther - based on Shuri from Black Panther
Saga, Vol. 1 - my breakout favorite from last year. Family-based space opera with some amazing characters and beautiful art
Die, Vol. 1: Fantasy Heartbreaker - dark and gritty, with a bit of a basis in D&D, more gorgeous artwork
DC Comics: Bombshells, Vol. 1: Enlisted - DC ladies (Wonder Woman, Batwoman, Supergirl, plus Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy later) set during WWII

Other recommendations for Heather:

Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normal
Fantastic Four by Waid & Wieringo: Ultimate Collection, Book 1 (whatever version of the comics/books you are able to find)
Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four, Vol. 1: Family of Heroes

The Spider-Man "Home" series of movies is a collaboration between Sony and Disney/Marvel, so the streaming rights do not belong to Disney+ at the moment or possibly ever. They are still widely available at libraries and stores, though.

Nadine wrote: "Lauren wrote: "... QOTW: I might push back a bit on the annoyance with character descriptions. It's important writers identify the race of characters, especially with novels. If it's not identified..."

Ha, fair enough! It's true there are ways to do it without mirrors or excessive details. I'm currently working on this with my novel draft with diverse characters. These questions about what readers like, and pet peeves are always super helpful for writers. Thanks for including this today! :)

Maybe I'm fussier than I thought because I just thought of another pet peeve.

I hate when those dual timeline books don't tell you that they're dual timelines going in. So the blurb will be be all about Captain Interesting and her amazing life but when you start reading, every other chapter is about Mrs McBoring who finds a diary or is distantly related to the other person. Please just tell me you're going to do that before I start reading so I know what I'm in for.

Sarah wrote: "every other chapter is about Mrs McBoring who finds a diary or is distantly related to the other person..."

🤣 I think a lot of these go for the same cover style so beware of a woman wandering in a landscape of muted tones with some swirly graphics round the edge.

QotW: My first writing pet peeve is something my friend pointed out to me a long time ago, and it has bothered me ever since. When the writer uses the phrase, "It is as if she could read my mind," I find this extremely lazy because of course the author knows what is in all the characters' minds, but doesn't find a less obvious way to communicate something that is in the writer's mind.

Also, it seems to be a pattern that children's writers use the word, "cried," instead of "yelled," "hollered," "called," or "said," and that bugs me. Adult authors don't seem to use this as a standard.

The gratuitous use of the word, "stupid," particularly in kids' books. If you can leave that word out without changing the meaning, then leave it out!

Finished: A Wish in the Dark A Thai fantasy re-make of Les Miserables. I really enjoyed this one.

Started: Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents Man! This is a tough one to read. I keep finding myself wondering, does it really benefit anyone for me to read this? 'Cause it's torture.

How to Change Everything: The Young Human's Guide to Protecting the Planet and Each Other I've really been looking forward to this one! As with many Naomi Klein books, it has a lot of negativity and I keep worrying it is too overwhelming to be sharing with my student. I hope the suggestions for actions at the end will mitigate the negativity.

Sidenote: What I learned this week! Glow-in-the-dark sheets make no sense, especially for a kid if you want them to make their bed because the glow is only activated when exposed to light!

Sarah wrote: "Maybe I'm fussier than I thought because I just thought of another pet peeve.

I hate when those dual timeline books don't tell you that they're dual timelines going in. So the blurb will be be al..."


LOL I love that kind of book!! Lauren Willig, Kate Morton, & Susanna Kearsley should be avoided by you :-)

Nadine wrote: "* Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normal made a big splash, but aside from being set in NJ, it didn't really impress me. "

I'm coming on the other side of this. I think the early volumes of this are the best thing but there because of deep dive in being a Muslim American teenager who very much is American and Muslim. And how that is one experience for her and another experience for her brother and... LOVE THIS SERIES.

Also love Saga but long hiatus is long and and I'm angry at long hiatus and what got us to long hiatus. I mean I'm all for the creators getting to recharge their batteries and make a long term plan but OMG do not start this series until long hiatus is long gone because when you get to the final pre-hiatus issues? then having to wait for YEARS... OMG.

Typical late winter weather here in NYC - a little freezing cold, a little snow, a bit of sleet, lots of rain, and even a sunny day in the 40sF like today. This weekend it is going to be in the 50sF! I expect Central Park (across the street from my apartment) will be humming as we all gratefully head back outdoors for more than 30 minutes at a time. I'll be reading on a park bench, a spicy bloody mary in hand.

I'm 17/50 in PS Challenge. I'm actually reaching the point where I can no longer fill a prompt of some kind with whatever book I happen to decide to read. I now need to target read a bit more. But very pleased to be so far into challenge!

Finished:

East of Hounslow - unusual british thriller set within the Paki Muslim community of London and at risk young Muslims to be conscripted into a terrorist cell. This is one of the 2021 Edgar nominees for paperback original - full trilogy is available in UK but only first has been published here.


Whitney Blake's Dukes of Destiny quartet - Havoc, Sorrow, Disgrace, and Misfortune. Regency romance involving marriage between nobility and commoners, each Duke has suffered an injury at the Battle of Salamanca which dramatically changes their life, and some unusual themes are explored (i.e. divorce in regency england). I like the 2nd and 4th the best. Perfect escape reading this weekend while recovering from 2nd dose vaccine reaction.

Currently reading:

Provence, 1970: M.F.K. Fisher, Julia Child, James Beard, and the Reinvention of American Taste
Death of an American Beauty
A Brief History of Seven Killings
This Cold Heaven: Seven Seasons in Greenland

QOTW:

Well the whole padded thing does not bother me in the least as one of my closest friends uses that expression frequently as in 'I padded out to the kitchen" to reference her being barefoot around her apartment. Sounds like normal description to me.

However, two things do:

First and foremost - poor proofing/copyediting. It's an epidemic in ebooks. Does anyone actually READ them rather than use spell check alone??????

Blatant Anacrhonisms - I don't generally mind if the voice of the characters may sound too contemporary for the setting of the book. I can mostly ignore that (I know it really bothers some people), but get the facts right. Latest one that drove me nuts: In one of the Whitney Blake Dukes of Destiny books, set in 1813 London, had the characters sitting on furniture upholstered in 'mauve' colored fabric. Um NO! Mauve was the first synthetic color ever created --- in 1857. There's a whole book about it that I think was even a non-fiction best seller: Mauve: How One Man Invented a Colour That Changed the World.

Happy Thursday! My second book, Letters for Pilgrimage: Lenten Meditations for Teen Girls was released this week! Already had a TON of pre-orders which is both exciting and nerve-wracking. If you have a teen girl in your life going through Orthodox Lent, please consider gifting one to her! :D

Currently Reading

The Philokalia, Volume 2: The Complete Text for "longest book on TBR". THIS BOOK IS SO LONG. It's so good but omg I'm already falling behind and it's stressing me out!

QotW

I can't stand the obvious, YA love triangles, usually between the "nice guy" and the "bad/misunderstood boy". I stopped reading The Hunger Games series because of that. Finished book 1, saw where that was headed, said "nope". Honestly, most romance annoys me because it's so cliche and unrealistic. They look at each other, find each other attractive, an instantly fall in love without noticing or caring about each other's lives or personalities (and some of these romances have BIG abuse red flags too!). If you want to write a good romance it needs to be believable and go beyond just the "I want to have sex with that person" vibe. Love is complex! It shouldn't be written so cheaply.