Rabbit Hole #64: In/Out January and February

Yeah. . . so about that regular schedule.

 

I'll keep trying to be better about that. 

Here's just a quick run-down of what I've been reading since I last popped in here: 

Black Chalk by Christopher Yates (3 stars): a psychological thriller that had a lot of promise, but fell a little flat for me. There were just some plot holes that needed to be fleshed out a little bit more. 

Alibis: Essays on Elsewhere by André Aciman (4 stars): I am a sucker for travel memoirs. The downside--I start looking for travel packages. 

Boxers and Saints by Gene Luen Yang (4 stars for both): These two graphic novels are centered around the Boxer Rebellion in China. It does a good job of showing the two sides of the conflict, reminding us that there's always more than one story to be told. 

The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde (3.5 stars): I've been wanting to read more Wilde, and this was a quick, easy read. I think the satire comes across better in the viewing of the play rather than the reading of it, though. 

Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis by Anne Rice (4 stars): My comfort reads. Definitely not my favorite book of hers--it got a little bogged down trying to introduce an alien species and the lost city of Atlantis into the vampire world, but it was fun. 

The Heart Goes Last by Margaret Atwood (3.5 stars): Live for six months in a prison and the other six in a gated community with your every need taken care of--for the people in this post-apocalyptic/post-economic crash society, it sounds like a pretty good deal. Maybe too good. Like the Rice book, this isn't my favorite of Atwood's, but it definitely is a good satire on our society. 

Glass Sword and King's Cage by Victoria Aveyard (3 stars for both): YA fantasy dystopia. Nothing fancy, just quick, easy, fun reads. 

The Crack-up by F. Scott Fitzgerald (3.5 stars): I FINALLY finished this. I have been dipping in and out of this book since 2015. This is an odd collection: it starts with Fitzgerald's memoir/essays "The Crack-up", then goes into about 150 pages from his writing notebooks, then finishes with letters to/from Fitzgerald, as well as obituaries. I enjoyed all of it, but the format just made it a slow read. 

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (4.5 stars): This is the best fiction book I've read so far this year, hands-down; the only reason it isn't a 5 star read is that I just wanted more. The story follows the descendants of two sisters, one sold into slavery, the other married to a slave trader, and the repercussions that reverberate through the centuries. 

Currently, I'm reading The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel and Bret Witter and Bright Lines by Tanwi Nadini Islam. Hopefully I will give you an update soon!

Rabbit Hole #55: September Reading Update

Still battling a weird reading slump/rut, so only seven books this month, and wondering if it's because of the three challenges. I feel a bit locked in; there's not a lot of wiggle room for me to read things outside of the tasks. I am reading a lot of amazing books, don't get me wrong, but lesson learned for next year, I think.


Popsugar 2016 Reading Challenge (Current Completion: 35/41)

A National Book Award winner: Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward (4 stars)

A book 100 years older than you: Lady Susan by Jane Austen (3 stars)


Bustle Women/POC Challenge (Current Completion: 13/20)

YA book by an author of color: Listen, Slowly by Thanhhà Lai (3.5 stars)

Post-apocalyptic fiction written by a woman: The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon (3.5 stars)


Read Harder Challenge 2016 (Current Completion: 18/24)

A food memoir: Trail of Crumbs: Hunger, Love and the Search for Meaning by Kim Sunée (4 stars)




Non-challenge books completed: 

March, Book 3 by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell (4.5 stars) 

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson (4 stars)


Check my weekly In/Out posts for more information on the completed reads!

Rabbit Hole #50: In/Out Aug. 28-Sep. 3

A lovely long weekend for reading=heaven. Hope you're enjoying your Labor Day weekend!

Recently Purchased

Zero. I'm really trying to curb my book buying this year and focusing on reading the stack I have. It's been pretty successful so far, but I do miss picking up new books on a regular basis. 

Recently Finished

Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter

I am apparently in the minority on this one. Critics loved it, my book club overall loved it, I'm just. . . meh. It reminded me a lot of Villa America which I read a few weeks ago--filled with flat, stereotypical characters that I just didn't care about. I really had a problem with the female characters; they were just there as show pieces for the men in the novel and just didn't have much agency, even though one of them was the primary focus.  I have much higher hopes for this month's pick. 

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Time of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander

Yes, I've finally finished this. And it was amazing. And terrifying. And heartbreaking. And disturbing. Reading this you realize how little the general public knows about the Drug War and police policy and court cases that have put more people of color behind bars than were enslaved prior to the Civil War. We've allowed this to happen. Our courts have allowed the Fourth Amendment to become basically empty. And this is why we finally have Black Lives Matter. It's necessary. I have a lot more to say on this book, but I'll save it for another post. Just read it. Now. 

 Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward

This book was a close-up of one Mississippi family in the days leading up to and the immediate aftermath of Katrina. It's filled with poverty and basketball and dog fighting and teen pregnancy and Greek mythology and hope and love and so many things rolled into one. Based loosely on Ward's own experiences during Katrina and her mother's during Hurricane Camille, it's a necessary perspective on what life was like for those most vulnerable. My only issue with the book was the dog fighting, but it was a part of Ward's life and those around her. She used what she knew, and it makes for a very successful read. 

Currently Reading

March, Book Three by John Lewis,  Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell

I so wish I could afford (or my school district could afford) to buy copies of all of the books in this series for all of my students. It's such a powerful look at the Civil Rights Movement from the inside and shows readers there was a lot more to the Movement than Selma and I Have a Dream (even though those are powerful and necessary to remember as well). 

Listen, Slowly by Thanhhà Lai

I am only about 30 pages into this so far, but it's a fun read so far. I think the best part about this is having my Vietnamese students help me pronounce the words and phrases. They find it interesting, and I'm learning something new!

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

Just started this last night, and from what I can tell, it's a dystopian future in London where people with special abilities such as telepathy are forced underground working for shadowy criminal elements. I don't know much more about it, other than it's supposedly the first in a planned seven book series. We'll see how this one goes before I decide to jump in further. 

In the Wings

Trail of Crumbs by Kim Sunée

I don't anticipate March taking that long, so I will probably get to this memoir this week as well.