What are you reading this week? Please share! We’d love to know.
I just started Tapestry of Time. I’d hoped to get to it sooner, but Lolita always takes so much longer than I think it will. Lolita’s only 300 pages, but it’s dense. I didn’t finish it until Monday (so it took me something like a week, which is long for me for this length of book). Anyway, not far enough along in Tapestry to have formed an opinion.
Although… have you ever picked a book because of its cover & title, assuming it would be about something, only to find out that it’s not about that at all? I felt sure Tapestry of Time would be either fantasy or romance (or a combo of the two) and was surprised to learn it’s historical fiction (WWII).
After that it’ll be an upcoming alt-history release: Angel Down, “an immersive, cinematic novel about five World War I soldiers who stumble upon a fallen angel that could hold the key to ending the war.” I’m hoping it lives up to the hype - it has three starred reviews.
In audiobook format, I’m finishing up Beta Vulgaris by Margie Sarsfield, then on to Mona Acts Out by Mischa Berlinski. Both authors will be here for a chat (7/21 and 7/28, respectively).
I just finished Before Dorothy by Hazel Gaynor, which was a fun read about how Dorothy got to Kansas and her Auntie Em and Uncle Henry.
Then I read Don’t open your eyes by Liv Constantine - twisty psychological thriller that I could not put down.
I am currently reading The Names. I am really enjoying it so far.
I’m reading Heart, Be at Peace by Donal Ryan. It just won the Orwell Prize for political fiction. Damn, I do love these Irish writers!
Somehow I stumbled upon a dystopian novel (one of my fav genres) titled Wool by Howey. **
I’m currently in the middle of Atmosphere. I have enjoyed some of Taylor Jenkins Reid books however Atmosphere reveals a different writing style.
Over the past weekend I read The Good Bright Wolf which inspired me to read Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson. Both books dealt with the mindset of girls suffering from anorexia. As a teenager in the 60’s the emphasis of -you can never be too thin- was the motto. I had a sorority sister who suffered from bulimia. After reading both books I understand the mindset of people suffering from this disease.
I am grateful today society has a a healthier attitude towards body image.
I hope you enjoy The Names. I read it in one day. It was a rainy day so it kept my interest
I just finished Susan Choi’s Trust Exercise. I’m not sure “enjoyed” is the right term, but I’m glad I finished it! The characters are pretty unpleasant, but they felt really authentic to me, which made all the difference for me. I found it to be a fascinating read with a lot of twists and turns that I definitely didn’t see coming. She’s an amazing writer.
After finishing “Wild Dark Shore” by Charlotte McConaghy, I picked up “Booth” by Karen Joy Fowler. William Kent Krueger’s “Ordinary Grace” is waiting to be re-read next (all for our public library’s summer reading program for adults).
I am reading “Feeding Ghosts: A Graphic Memoir” by Tessa Hulls. Graphic novels are a new love of mine and the Pulitzer’s new memoir category killed it with “Stay True” last year so I gave it a chance. 20th century Chinese history has given us some great books.
@NanK that’s the first book in a trilogy, and I thought they were all pretty good. They’re the books the Apple TV series Silo was based on.
@Lynne_G it’s interesting that you say that. I’ve heard people who have read her other novels didn’t care for Atmosphere as much because it was so different. I loved it, but I had no expectations going in, since this is the first work of hers I’ve read.
I’ve just started Juice by Tim Winton. I’ve read several of his books but this one is very different. It is a dystopian, future, climate crisis. There’s a man and a young girl traveling, seeking safety sort of like The Road. They encounter another person and the story is related as they get to know one another with great suspicion as to intentions.
It’s a chunkster so I hope it will be good.
I read:
Mrs. Endicott’s Splendid Adventure by Rhys Bowen - a lovely read
Too Old For This by Samantha Downing - you know you will be reading about murder in her books. It actually wasn’t too brutal.
I have read both of those books.
I really enjoyed Before Dorothy!! Enjoyed reading about Auntie Em and her life.
Don’t Open Your Eyes was a good one too.
Oh yes on choosing a book on the cover and then the title.
Covers draw me in and then I check out the summary.
Covers can be deceiving - sometimes they make you think it is going to be a GREAT book, but it turns out bad…not too often, though.
And…the opposite can be true too. I can’t recall now, but I read a book that the worst cover, but it was the best book. Darn I can’t remember.
Yes, I knew it was part of a trilogy but didn’t know about the Apple series. Thanks.
Don’t Look Back-A Sudanese immigrant who lives and works in my community describes her life as a child fleeing war, living in a Kenyan refugee camp, and finally finding safety in the United States. Heart-wrenching, inspiring, and timely. So Far Gone by Jess Walter. My audio book for walking is Tequila Wars:Jose Cuervo and the Bloody Struggle for the Spirit of Texas. My preferred genre for audio is non-fiction.
Penman of the Founding, A Biography of John Dickinson by Jane Calvert. Dickinson was the only founder by father present from the Stamp Act crisis to the ratification of the Constitution. However, he was not a signatory to the Declaration of Independence. As a Quaker, he thought it too violent. Yet he served with honor in the American Army.