Looking over my last eight books read, I've got a little more variety than usual. A novella, a couple of memoirs, some fantasy, some science fiction, some fiction, and a backlist book from a wildly popular author, and some historical fiction I might never have touched if it wasn't for an enthusiastic recommendation.
A reminder to myself and to you- these are my feelings about books I have recently read. For a synopsis, click the links! Or dive in blind, like I usually do. Sure, I'll Join Your Cult by Maria Bamford I've loved Bamford's stand-up comedy for as long as I've loved stand-up - all my life. Her memoir delves into her mental illness but is still so incredibly hilarious. How do authors do that? Not sure, but I loved it! No sugarcoating here, be prepared! Also, be prepared to LOL and annoy those around you. And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer by Fredrik Backman Backman is a read-everything-they-write author for me. Surely I wouldn't cry during the reading of a quick novella? About a boy and his grandfather who is suffering from Alzheimer's? Worth the sniffles, though. Starter Villain by John Scalzi There's no shame in choosing a book solely based on the cover. What even was this? Sci-fi, comedy, fiction, spy cats.... I'm still processing what I even read here, but I loved every weird minute. Just the scenes with the foul-mouthed dolphins made this a winner for me. I recommend this if you have just finished some deep humdinger of a WW2 novel and need something oddball to cleanse the palate. The Hole We're In by Gabrielle Zevin Zevin is amazing in the here and now, but this backlist was tedious and depressing. I like a good family saga, but I'd give this is a skip unless you like family sagas that provide no satisfying closure for any issue whatsoever. Oh, and no likeable characters. The Fragile Threads of Power by V.E. Schwab The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue was solid gold, as evidenced by my entire book club really enjoying it. Fantasy isn't usually my bag, but I've decided that Schwab is going to be my fantasy author when I need a fix of magic (also Alice Hoffmann, who provides just a dash. Schwab is way more heavy handed with the sorcery). This novel had several different worlds and loads of characters, but it's woven together gorgeously. You've gotta lock in, though. No skimming. Yellowface by R.F. Kuang I listened to this on audiobook, and my goodness! In general, I super loved it. I loved the biting commentary on Goodreads reviews, the publishing industry, and social media that is so spot-on and current. The spotlight on the process of writing, editing, tweaking, publishing, marketing was beyond fascinating to me and humorously delivered. Still, Yellowface left me with some unanswered questions and a feeling that the book could've been trimmed by about forty pages of the protagonist being...whiny. Good Apple by Elizabeth Passarella Modern Mrs. Darcy recommended this memoir of a evangelical Christian living in New York. It was funny and interesting, but I wouldn't consider it a must-read. One for the Blackbird, One for the Crow by Olivia Hawker I ran into a friend of mine at Biaggi's (yum!) a month or so ago and she shared that she had just finished an amazing book. She described the setting - the prairie - as being a huge feature of the novel, and I downloaded it as an audiobook the next day. I'm so glad I did. At first, I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about the narration, but it eventually just seeped into me and I was always volunteering to run to the store just so I could re-join my friends in this captivating story thick with plot, well-developed characters, and a backdrop of the prairie throughout the seasons in the later 1800's. It's a long book, and so descriptive, but just perfect. Five stars! (Thanks, Jennifer!) What have you been reading lately? I've considered tackling the memoirs of Matthew Perry or Britney Spears, but might wait until the fuss has died down some.
4 Comments
Ramona Walker
11/11/2023 11:45:18 am
As usual, you've added to my must read list. It is fun to stumble into a book and find a real treasure. Since both my girls loved the Bamford book, it will be one of the "soon to be read" books.
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Kimberly Scheirer
11/11/2023 12:01:48 pm
Let me know how you like it!
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Levi
11/11/2023 06:28:46 pm
I loved the blackbird book. Also I didn't know you were a fan of Maria Bamford! :) Randy and I absolutely adore her.
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Vicky S Gilpin
11/20/2023 02:11:47 pm
I loved the Bamford book! I highly advise listening to her doing the audio book, as it's brilliant. She has some of the best, most authentic, lines about mental illness, and her short section on suicide at the end is brilliant. I'm warning other readers because I wasn't warned: there's a mention of a dog dying, nothing graphic---her mom dying was mentioned more, but also nothing graphic---but some ppl might want to know. She's clever and funny, but she's also so real throughout. I loved it so much!
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AuthorMom of four, wife of one. By day I fund-raise with coffee, by night I read with wine and chocolate. Archives
June 2023
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