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ImperfectCJ

ImperfectCJ

Joined May 2019

Reader, voice actor, educator, autodidact, dilettante. http://imperfecthappiness.org The Storygraph: imperfectcj, IG: @ctlvoiceover
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ImperfectCJ
Gilead | Marilynne Robinson
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#WondrousWednesday @Eggs

1) Tana French, Louise Penny, Ottessa Moshfegh, Mona Awad, Kevin Wilson.
2) I am awful at picking favorites. I'll go with the tagged (genre: literary fiction), but I'm not sure it's my favorite-favorite.
3) Beverly Cleary.

Eggs Thanks for joining in🥚🩵🥚 20h
28 likes1 comment
review
ImperfectCJ
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Pickpick

I can't remember how I learned about this book, but it's just my cup of tea. An epic, car-free journey following the migratory loop of the monarch butterfly, undertaken to raise awareness about conservation and habitat loss with commentary about community and culture and privilege... it's like the many thru-hiking books I've enjoyed just with a purpose broader than self-discovery. And on a bike. I'll definitely be gifting some copies of this one.

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ImperfectCJ
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A little bittersweet to work this puzzle while listening to Xe Sands tell Sara Dykman's story of biking thousands of miles to raise awareness about the North American monarch migration and conservation in general. I'll review the book once I finish it...and then I'll see if my landlord will let me plant a patch of native milkweed and other butterfly-supporting plants in the tiny yard.

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ImperfectCJ
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I attended my first book launch today! The Best Bookstore in Palm Springs (California) is not in the database, so I tagged the book! It's a beautiful journal filled with awesome ideas for adventures big and small that we can enjoy with the youngest people in our lives! The bookstore is a sweet little spot chock-full of great books and fun and friendly staff! I am so filled with exclamation marks, they are spilling into every sentence!!

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ImperfectCJ
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I'm not able to devote quite as much time to the tagged as I'd like, but it's getting nice and creepy. No connection to this photo, really, except that I'm kind of obsessed with the lighting, which looks a little like it was painted by a Dutch master, which is maybe a little uncanny.

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ImperfectCJ
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Afternoon treat! 🍨 📚

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ImperfectCJ
The Hunter: A Novel | Tana French
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Pickpick

I really enjoy the subtlety of the relationships in Tana French's novels. She's adept at portraying both the spoken dialogue and the subtext, including when characters recognize that there is subtext but can't quite be sure what it is. I'm not sure what the title has to do with the story, but aside from that, I found this to be another solid, enjoyable addition to French's oeuvre.

I presume that this little lizard in my yard agrees with me.

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ImperfectCJ
The Hunter: A Novel | Tana French
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Despite the fact that my photography skills make it look like an indistinct lump in the tree, this is one of our neighborhood great horned owls. On my evening audiowalk with the tagged book, I spotted this fellow flying from tree to tree in between calling to his sweetheart (and no doubt with another kind of hunting plan for later). On an earlier audiowalk today, I saw a hawk carrying off a snake. It's Wild Kingdom around here!

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ImperfectCJ
The Hunter: A Novel | Tana French
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Pretty cool day today! I got a skip-the-line loan of Tana French's latest on Libby, had a beautiful walk with a friend (first time wearing a sleeveless top this year...slathered on the SPF50), and during our evening walk, my spouse and I unexpectedly saw the SpaceX Falcon 9 shortly after it launched from Vandenberg AFB. (I have very mixed feelings about ultra-rich dudes funding space stuff, but this was cool.)

review
ImperfectCJ
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Pickpick

It took me a couple of chapters to get into this one. I watched Star Trek when I was younger, and I've read a decent amount of sci-fi (Heinlein, Asimov, Bradbury, Tchaikovsky, PK Dick, Adams, Eggers, Chiang---TheStorygraph says I've read 101 sci-fi books), but I'm not really a sci-fi fan, per se. I do not cosplay, for example. However, I'm glad I persevered because this novel is funny, smart, and emotionally truthful.

AmyG I loved Starter Villain so much. Stacked as I need to read more of his books. 2w
ImperfectCJ @AmyG It seems to me that Starter Villain would have been good to have on hand for my current situation (done with Redshirts but still covered in cats). 2w
rretzler I‘m a huge sci-fi fan (don‘t cosplay either, I feel like that‘s an entirely different thing) and Scalzi is one of my favorite authors. I bought Red Shirts many years ago for my husband, who likes sci-fi, but he never read it. Finally, I did and I was hooked. I‘ve read all of Scalzi‘s books now. And if you like audiobooks, the combination of a Scalzi book with Wil Wheaton narrating is hard to beat. I recommend Starter Villain and Lock In! 2w
See All 9 Comments
ImperfectCJ @rretzler It's interesting that you see cosplay as totally different from being a sci-fi fan. I feel like everyone I know who's into sci-fi is into cosplay, too. I thought maybe it's bc I live in San Diego where we have the big Comic-Con, but even friends in New England and Utah are into both. The only exception I know of is my dad...and now you! :-) Maybe the sci-fi fans not into cosplay are just not as visible because they're not in costume. 2w
rretzler @imperfectCJ I distinguish sci-fi fandom from sci-fi literature. I think of cosplay as being part of the fandom, which I would say is Star Trek, Star Wars, Dr Who, the MCU, etc (all of which I am a fan of, as well). I don't think of books related to fandoms as being part of sci-fi literature, which I equate with books like 1984, Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451; or authors like Asimov, Clarke, Heinlein; or the Hugo and Nebula awards. 2w
rretzler @imperfectCJ I am older though, and did some cosplay at sci-fi cons back in the day, too. And there are some books that I think cross-over, like Timothy Zahn's Thrawn trilogies, but basically, I just think of the fandoms/cons, etc as being separate from the great sci-fi novels, even though I am a fan of both. 2w
ImperfectCJ @rretzler That makes total sense. Now that I think of it, I know a lot of sci-fi TV and movie fans who are not familiar with Heinlein, Asimov, Huxley, etc. I hadn't thought about being a fan of one but not the other, but it makes sense. And since I actually like both, I wonder if I might be a sci-fi fan after all. Anne Morrow Lindbergh wrote that midlife can be a time of self-discovery much like adolescence...maybe this is one of my discoveries 🙂 2w
CatLass007 Being covered in cats sounds like a great time. I was raised on Star Trek and science fiction. I never went to a con or did cos-play. 2w
dabbe 🖤🐾🖤 2w
51 likes1 stack add9 comments
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ImperfectCJ
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Camille and Silo say that my top priority this afternoon is sitting still and finishing my book. If I don't fall asleep under the warmth and purring of two cats.

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Awww 😽🫶🏻 2w
Ruthiella They‘re making a cat Yin Yang symbol ☯️ 2w
dabbe 🖤🐾🐾🖤 2w
56 likes3 comments
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ImperfectCJ
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I finally got into the tagged book and all I want to do is read it, but instead I have to read and give feedback on informational articles written by 5th graders. I mean, they're awesome 5th graders, but it's not really the same. Photo of yesterday's sunset and waxing moon to illustrate my wistfulness.

kspenmoll The life of a teacher!😉😟 2w
48 likes1 comment
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ImperfectCJ
Untitled | Unknown
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🪻I prefer task-based work to time-based work, it's okay not to be immediately awesome at something when I first start out (or ever. Mediocre still gets the job done), and I kind of like being the center of attention (but don't mind sharing).
🪻 Part-time teacher, part-time student, aspiring voice actor.
🪻 I'd love to do so many things. Park ranger, Navy chaplain, actor, musician, photographer, scientist, midwife...
@Eggs #WondrousWednesday

Eggs Fascinating- thanks for playing 🥳 2w
32 likes1 comment
review
ImperfectCJ
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Pickpick

Maggie Downs's second book just came out, and I can see this book becoming a must-gift for new and expectant parents (and grandparents!) in my life. The list includes activities ranging from the simple---"Sing together"---to the more ambitious---"Visit a wonder of the world." Best of all, each activity is paired with prompts and journal space to reflect on and savor each completed activity, with extra pages for your own adventures and drawings.

ImperfectCJ In the interest of full disclosure, Maggie and I were in junior high together (we participated in the same writing competitions, but only Maggie became a journalist and author), but I am pretty sure that I would love this book even if we hadn't. 2w
44 likes1 stack add1 comment
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ImperfectCJ
Chain-Gang All-Stars: A Novel | Adjei-Brenyah, Nana K
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1) Watch drunk people on YouTube and give feedback on classmates' commercial recordings.

2) So many (clown, mom, teacher, long-haul truck driver, firefighter), but for a long time I wanted to be a singer because I loved Linda Ronstadt.

3) Zion and Death Valley NP road trip this spring, then a 2-3 week trip in June either to Nova Scotia or to Seattle/Vancouver.

4) Tagged!

@Cupcake12 #MotivationalMonday

Cupcake12 Your trios planned sound amazing! Thanks for joining in x 2w
28 likes1 comment
review
ImperfectCJ
Ducks, Newburyport | Lucy Ellmann
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Bailedbailed

After 23 hours, with 23 more to go, I have to set this one aside. I am interested in knowing her story but not enough to devote my precious time and attention to it right now. Maybe I'll pick it up again later.

dabbe #hailthebail! 🤩🤩🤩 2w
Deblovestoread 46 hours? That would be a struggle for me. 2w
ImperfectCJ @Deblovestoread 46 hours of stream-of-consciousness, no less. It's a little crazy-making. 2w
See All 6 Comments
Deblovestoread I commend you for getting halfway through! 2w
merelybookish I loved this but it's not a minor commitment! 2w
Hooked_on_books I‘m impressed you got as far as you did! I don‘t think I would have. 2w
41 likes6 comments
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ImperfectCJ
Respect for Acting | Uta Hagen
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Book mail!

If this---voice acting, practicing multiple languages, learning about recording, performing music again after a long hiatus (and adding a new instrument)---is a midlife crisis, I am enjoying it more than I expected. It's kind of terrifying but mostly in a good way.

LiteraryinLawrence All of those things sound really cool! 2w
50 likes1 comment
review
ImperfectCJ
Mrs McGinty's Dead | Agatha Christie
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Mehso-so

While I always enjoy Hugh Fraser's narration, I had to re-read parts of this on my Kobo to get the plot straight. Listening to the audiobook, if I let my attention stray for one moment, I lost the thread. Even reading back and understanding the basics, the motivations and details still don't make total sense to me. I like the characters, but it's not my favorite Poirot mystery.

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ImperfectCJ
Ducks, Newburyport | Lucy Ellmann
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Still chugging away on the tagged. I snapped this photo of a not-duck at school today. This fellow was singing his heart out. I don't know what he is...some kind of finch, maybe. Every time we move to a different region I have to learn new birds, and although we've been here 6 years, I still only know phoebes, ospreys, pelicans, cormorants, seagulls, condors, wrens, and quail. This is none of those.

ImperfectCJ Update: I think it's a house finch. The toughest for me are birds that exist all over but look different in different areas of the country. Like finches of many kinds. 3w
Rissreads Beautiful bird! ♥️ 3w
48 likes2 comments
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ImperfectCJ
Untitled | Unknown
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1) Newcomerstown, Ohio (Ducks, Newburyport)
2) The location I'm thinking about now is the Canadian Maritimes from the Anne of Green Gables books. I've been to New Brunswick and PEI, but I haven't made it out to Nova Scotia yet. I've also wanted to see Newfoundland ever since I read E. Annie Proulx's The Shipping News.

@Eggs #WondrousWednesday

Eggs I concur on # 2 - it all sounds wonderful and still on my bucket list 🤗 3w
33 likes1 comment
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ImperfectCJ
Ducks, Newburyport | Lucy Ellmann
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Some people take classy restroom selfies. I take whatever this is. (Book-related because while taking the picture I was listening to the tagged on my little headphones, which are cleverly hidden in my hair.)

BarbaraBB Great photo 🥰 3w
ImperfectCJ @BarbaraBB Thanks! I've been attempting to embrace my silly side (and break in my new boots...almost there!) 3w
BarbaraBB Your boots and dress are 🤩 3w
48 likes3 comments
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ImperfectCJ
Ducks, Newburyport | Lucy Ellmann
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Still uncertain if I can go the distance with the tagged book, but I listened to it while putting our new rug under the dining table, and it's grown on me a bit. (The book, not the rug. Although that's grown on me, too.)

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Lovely rug ❤️ 3w
ImperfectCJ @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Thanks! It wasn't my first choice, but my spouse and son preferred this one over my fave (muted blues). Now that it's down, I think it works quite well, though, so I guess they were trustworthy! 3w
52 likes2 comments
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ImperfectCJ
Ducks, Newburyport | Lucy Ellmann
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Please tell me that the stream of consciousness doesn't go on for the entire novel. Please? So many people like this book a lot, but the stream of consciousness might break me.

(Rainbow from my walk today.)

ImperfectCJ And I read all of Ulysses, so I'm not afraid of odd construction, there are just so...many...pages of it 3w
Ladygodiva7 Is all of Ulysses stream-of-conscious? Cuz I just CAN‘T deal with stream-of-conscious. And sorry I don‘t have an answer for your question! 3w
ImperfectCJ @Ladygodiva7 Nope, not all of it, mostly just the last section. The rest is just bizarre, and I ended up needing to read a book by Joseph Campbell to figure out what the heck was going on. After that, I didn't really LIKE Ulysses, but at least I could appreciate it. 3w
See All 8 Comments
Ruthiella Yes, the whole book is stream of consciousness with small breaks from the perspective of a mountain lion. I felt it really paid off in the end, but your mileage may vary… 3w
Hooked_on_books What a pretty picture! 3w
ImperfectCJ @Ruthiella Ugh. Well, maybe I'll do this one on audio. When I try to read it with my eyes it takes so much effort not to skip around the page. But I like a payoff. And if it starts to break me, I can always take a break (or bail). 3w
Ladygodiva7 @ImperfectCJ I probably won‘t read either then. Good job you for accomplishing it!!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 3w
dabbe 🤩🤩🤩 3w
58 likes8 comments
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ImperfectCJ
BookSpinBingo | Untitled
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TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! Looks fantastic!! 4w
39 likes1 comment
review
ImperfectCJ
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Pickpick

While I found the first 1/2 to 2/3 of this novel to be more well put together compared with the latter portion, which felt a little rushed, I really enjoyed the characters and relationships. McBride draws rich characters and skillfully shows how groups of people interact with one another and react to circumstances of inequality and bias. There's a feeling of being trapped and looking for/seeking to create a small bit of breathing room.

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ImperfectCJ
BookSpinBingo | Untitled
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For those following closely, you probably remember that I initially, accidentally, used January's #bookspinbingo board numbers to populate my February titles. I later made the correct board, but decided to track both, just for fun. As you can see, the correct board yielded a bingo and the erroneous one did not. So, yay for February!

#bookspin #doublespin @TheAromaofBooks

Jari-chan Yay for February! 4w
TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! Fantastic month!! And now I kind of want multiple bingo boards with the same books but different number arrangements every month 😂 4w
30 likes2 comments
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ImperfectCJ
BookSpinBingo | Untitled
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TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!!! 4w
29 likes1 comment
review
ImperfectCJ
Ring | Koji Suzuki, Robert B. Rohmer, Glynne Walley
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Mehso-so

The first thing to know about Ring the book is that it's really not at all like either the Japanese or US movie versions. The second thing to know is that it's not really scary (but it is weird and a little creepy). It's decently enjoyable, the relationship between the two main characters is well done, and it's an interesting 1990, pre-Internet take on viral media, but there are a couple of twists where I'm just, like...why?

The_Book_Ninja Good review. I always wondered how the book compares to the film 4w
ImperfectCJ @The_Book_Ninja The movies scare the heck out of me (or at least they did when I watched them probably 20 years ago). The book has tension, but not really much scare factor for me. 4w
42 likes2 comments
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ImperfectCJ
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Mehso-so

Towards the end of the book, Breslin explains that while she originally planned to write a work of investigative journalism about longitudinal studies and their impact on the study subjects, her publisher requested she make this book a memoir. This likely accounts for why the book consistently feels like neither one thing nor the other. It's interesting, but I think it would have been better if Breslin had been able to write it how she wanted to.

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ImperfectCJ
Death Valley | Melissa Broder
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Mehso-so

When I was about 40% in and ready to bail, I took a break, read some reviews, and reminded myself that I really liked The Pisces. While I'm still not a huge fan of a novel that reads like a memoir and spending so much time inside the head of someone I'm not sure I like, I did end up appreciating this book. The second half redeems the first, and I like when authors portray the richness and beauty of the desert alongside its potential deadliness.

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ImperfectCJ
A House With Good Bones | T. Kingfisher
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Pickpick

I really enjoyed this book. Kingfisher's humor is just my style, and although it's not quite as creepy as I would prefer (not as many shivers down my spine as I was hoping for), it's creepy enough. I do like the theme of children contorting themselves trying to please their parents and the way that love can get distorted by need.

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ImperfectCJ
If I Ever Get Out of Here | Eric Gansworth
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1) We moved house in April 2022, but last big move was Dec 31, 2017 to Jan 8, 2018, when we did a corner-to-corner road trip to move from Massachusetts to SoCal. I'm feeling the itch to move again (hoping for Europe this time), but my son wants to graduate high school first.
2) There's a military kid in the tagged, which as a former military kid myself, I really appreciate.

#Two4Tuesday @TheSpineView

TheSpineView Always wanted to live in Europe. Hope you get to. Thanks for playing 1mo
ImperfectCJ @TheSpineView Thanks for hosting! I'm currently at my 28th address and have lived in all four time zones in the US, so I think it's about time to branch out to another continent (or at least another country...I liked Quebec when I visited, and it would be a lot closer to our family on the East Coast). 1mo
ImperfectCJ *The contiguous US, that is. I've not lived in Alaska, Hawaii or Guam, so I'm missing those three. 1mo
TheSpineView @ImperfectCJ Hope you make all thise destinations 1mo
30 likes4 comments
review
ImperfectCJ
What Kind of Mother: A Novel | Clay McLeod Chapman
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Mehso-so

If you've seen my Litsy posts, you know I like weird books. In fact, I love books in which super-off-the-wall stuff happens in the service of portraying true emotional reactions. However, this novel has the first without the second. It's a changeling story, which is cool, but I don't really buy the characters' reactions. And the repeated use of the phrase "the muck and the mire" has "Hang Me Up to Dry" by Cold War Kids stuck in my head.

ImperfectCJ There's also a scene that reminds me of a line from a Beck song. The two musical connections together make me wonder what playlist the author was listening to while writing. 1mo
49 likes1 comment
review
ImperfectCJ
The Premonition | Banana Yoshimoto
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Pickpick

Yoshimoto's prose (or Yoneda's translation of it) is smooth, comforting, and understated in this strange, quiet, short little novel about growing up and learning about the parallel stories running alongside our childhood understanding of the world. Yayoi's story is perhaps more dramatic than many, but I suspect that the discomfort of learning that the world isn't quite what you thought it was is a fairly universal experience of adolescence.

45 likes1 stack add
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ImperfectCJ
Ring | Koji Suzuki, Robert B. Rohmer, Glynne Walley
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Ear scritches and reading time: Silo is perhaps even happier than I am that I have a rare Saturday off from work.

Soubhiville Enjoy! 🐱bliss❤️. 1mo
dabbe 🖤🐾🖤 1mo
Crazeedi They do love scritches!!🐱 1mo
62 likes3 comments
review
ImperfectCJ
Resurrection Walk | Michael Connelly
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Pickpick

Michael Connelly writes novels of consistent quality. They're not astounding works of literature, but they're good stories, and I always pretty much know what I'm getting when I open the cover of one of his books (or put on my headphones, in the case of audiobooks), which is a comfort. I like that this one shows some evolution in Haller and Bosch's characters. As always, I look forward to his next book.

TrishB Perfect summary 👍🏻 I love them too for that reason. 1mo
42 likes1 comment
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ImperfectCJ
Wellness | Nathan Hill
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Pickpick

I love this novel. Some parts are a smidgen on the nose, but the themes and interactions really resonate with me. Also, the MCs are almost exactly my age and not only saw some of the same bands around the same time I did, but are going through similar mid-life stuff at the same time. The family relationships, the stories the characters tell themselves, the misunderstandings...it all hits really well for me. Now to get my spouse to read it!

50 likes1 stack add
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ImperfectCJ
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The lineage of this test making it to me was, I think, @ElizaMarie from @Chrissyreadit from @TieDyeDude from @The_Book_Ninja

Despite flaws in the test, for a former subscriber to Ms. Magazine, someone who saw Gloria Steinem speak at Duke University, who participated in Take Back the Night rallies, and whose later feminism was strongly influenced by work with birthing and childrearing families, it's a quick look at where feminism is today.

Chrissyreadit I‘m so curious! it looks like you have a more moderate approach to feminism and i am genuinely wondering what major influences were? I suspect we grew up during same time frame- i also subscribed to Ms and follow Steinem. I‘m enjoying seeing all the results and many of the questions i think would have been answered differently (by me) with a more nuanced approach. 1mo
TieDyeDude The ecofeminism stuff really threw me. I'm sure this barely scratches the surface, but it was an interesting exercise. 1mo
See All 13 Comments
ImperfectCJ @Chrissyreadit My moderate results are likely a combination of a bit of an allergy to making decisive declarative statements (i.e., thumbs up or double thumbs up) about nuanced issues, and the fact that a lot of these nuanced issues are presented as decisive and declarative. My influences are varied and include the tagged, women's studies classes in the late 90s, watching how women are treated by the medical system, and Audre Lord, to name a few. 1mo
ImperfectCJ *Audre Lorde. Especially this book of hers (I'm not big on poetry, but I like essays). 1mo
ImperfectCJ @TieDyeDude Agreed. And also how the questions/statements seem to use patriarchy and capitalism interchangeably (although that might have been a misinterpretation on my part). 1mo
Chrissyreadit @TieDyeDude I agree! i tend to see eco through a financial lens- and can see how it is more nuanced and intersected. @ImperfectCJ Yes- i was surprised by some of the statements tbh. I have a very inclusive view of feminism but some of those statements were clearly exclusive- unless perhaps more nuances were to be presented. Either way it‘s making me think and want to have conversations and i love anything that does that. 1mo
ImperfectCJ @Chrissyreadit Yes! The test results themselves feel uncomfortably segmented. This is a tendency in our culture right now that feels quite uncomfortable for me...as someone who's spent her adult life working to open up definitions of gender and feminism, it's disorienting to see my GenZ children embracing such granular labeling and definitions. I can't say it's bad, just not what I expected. 1mo
ElizaMarie I think some of my answers were more related to me being in health care. Gender identity is a huge part of what we are discussing at the workplace and having family members and friends who are nonbinary, transgender and in same sex relationships made me consider those statements more carefully. That and being a Latina in Vermont. I think if I filled it out while still living in south TX I might not have answered similarly. (edited) 1mo
Chrissyreadit @ElizaMarie For me it really felt more like differentiating between what are considered societal norms and what i truly believe. Also i consider myself a fairly rabid feminist so was surprised by some of my own initial responses. I also wonder what responses my colleagues in my clinic would have. 1mo
ElizaMarie @Chrissyreadit I really enjoyed this “exercise”. I feel like I need to either read more or engage more with people and have these discussions more regularly. 1mo
The_Book_Ninja Thank you to everyone who tagged me. I‘ve enjoyed seeing the varied results 1mo
Nameera Hello guys. I am a Clinical psychology student trying to study the psychological well-being empathy and fantasy engagement among Fiction and non fiction readers. It would be great you you take time to fill this form
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd8dX_2Udab9QKk4CXiI0CeScJNjf-HWh1gTYH8...
3w
33 likes13 comments
blurb
ImperfectCJ
Untitled | Unknown
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Less than two weeks after the start of February, my January Bookends post is up! Enjoy! https://imperfecthappiness.org/2024/02/12/bookends-january-2024/

UwannaPublishme 😍👏🏻👏🏻 1mo
33 likes1 comment
review
ImperfectCJ
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Pickpick

With alternating timelines that gradually move closer to one another until they meet, this one is structured quite similarly to The Dry. I found it confusing in a few spots, but that seemed intentional and felt satisfying when things became more clear. I'm going to take a break before reading the next in the series, but I do plan to revisit these characters.

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ImperfectCJ
The Dry | Jane Harper
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Pickpick

Thank you so much for sending me this book, @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks ! What a great story! It's twisty and thrilling and mysterious but also has complex, well-drawn characters. I just downloaded the second book in the series from Libby!

Photo is of California rather than Australia, but I think it represents the title well.

dabbe I thought it was Tucson, AZ! 🤩 2mo
53 likes1 comment
review
ImperfectCJ
Clouds of Witness | Dorothy L. Sayers
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Pickpick

I occasionally get lost reading Sayers's novels. I enjoy the pleasant meandering of the plot until I look up and realize I have no idea how we got to where we are. But in some ways I feel like the mystery itself is secondary to the relationships. The friendships in this one are excellent, and it's interesting how emotionally delicate the rich people seem to be, Peter included. I'm interested to watch these characters evolve.

#doublespin for Feb

TheAromaofBooks This has been on my shelf ever since I read the first book last year - hoping to get to it soon!! 2mo
54 likes1 comment
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ImperfectCJ
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Rainy lunch between classes. (I'm under a ramada, so as long as the wind doesn't blow too hard, it's not actively raining on me...or my book.)

Clare-Dragonfly Wow, thank you for introducing me to a new word! I‘d never heard “ramada” other than as the name of a hotel chain, which I assumed was named after a person. I looked it up and now I know that it‘s a roofed, open-sided structure. 2mo
ImperfectCJ @Clare-Dragonfly I actually learned it from my friend in Tucson. It seems like there are a lot of different names for similar structures depending on where you are... pavilion, gazebo, ramada, covered patio. When I was a kid, we called them arbors, but I think arbors, like the pergola we have in our backyard, technically don't have solid roofs so would not have kept me dry during the rain. 2mo
50 likes2 comments
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ImperfectCJ
Temporary | Hilary Leichter
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"She knew when they were genuine because she was built to feel the world through active, staggered checks of compassion. She could not help but understand where they were coming from, because it was where she came from, too, because she was meant to begin where other people ended."

review
ImperfectCJ
Temporary | Hilary Leichter
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Pickpick

I find this novel funny, quirky, true, and very sad. It's a look at how we (some of us) are conditioned to put ourselves aside to become what everyone else wants us to be, whether realistic or not, and to change when their whims change. It's a look at how this is okay until it's not, and then we have to figure out what to do with the disillusion and grief that result.

Photo: Unusually active koala at the zoo this morning.

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ImperfectCJ
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Not a great photo, but we're enjoying a movie night with the 2002 movie adaptation of P.K. Dick's classic story. It's been ages since I watched this one. All of the actors are so young!

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ImperfectCJ
They Came to Baghdad | Agatha Christie
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Pickpick

I'm giving this a pick in spite of some silly aspects (like how hung up characters are about hair color) because it's just fun to read. I had to listen to the last couple of chapters three times and check out the ebook to figure out what exactly had happened, but aside from that, the twists and turns were fun. The characters in this one are especially interesting. I would like to read a whole novel about Anna Scheele.

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ImperfectCJ
BookSpinBingo | Untitled
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Okay, I re-made the February card with the correct numbers (and titles). NOW I'm ready for #bookspinbingo this month! (Although if I get a bingo with the wrong card, I might count it.)

@TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Work both boards, I like it! 😂 2mo
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ImperfectCJ
BookSpinBingo | Untitled
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Ready for February!

EDIT: Nooo! The Litsy app took me to what was apparently the most recent post I looked at on @TheAromaofBooks 's profile, which was the January #bookspinbingo card, and I didn't notice the month was wrong, just looked at the numbers! Now, do I re-do it with February's card, or do I stick with this one? 🫤

#bookspinbingo #bookspin @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Ack no!!!! I support whichever choice you want to make. So sad though!! 2mo
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ImperfectCJ
Untitled | Unknown
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And so ends January 2024 #bookspinbingo. Alas, no bingo, no #bookspin, no #doublespin. But I had a good time with several of these. I'm not sure if February is shaping up to have much more reading time, what with both taking and teaching classes now, but I'm certainly going to do my best to find time to sit and read this month.

@TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Yay!! Fantastic month!! 2mo
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