Having read five books from the depths of my TBR stacks, I‘m going to take a short break and read something new so the tagged book is next.
pickIt‘s Tamora Pierce so the book is good. That being said, I was hoping for more. Though generally well-written, the writing is, at times also clunky. The story is engaging & complex but there isn‘t a whole lot of forward momentum. The real strength of the book is the characters—the three main characters in particular though there are also some great secondary characters. I don‘t know if I will continue with the series but I‘m glad I read this one.
Friends...
This sounds about right...book things, shows, and food!
❤️
Yay #bookmail #bookhaul to start the week off right!!! A little bit of everything in this Book Outlet order (not shown are the books I picked up for the library!)—love the Muderbot Diaries & anything written by Seanan McGuire. Picked up NF books on food, thievery & murder. Saunders & Hobson books sounded interesting as did comic by Schwab &, finally, I wanted my own copies of Truly Devious & Gaiman‘s delightful ABC book illustrated by Grimly.
pickCalling all fans of N.K. Jemisin—don‘t think you‘re a fan of comics? Well, she might just make you change your mind with this one. I know nothing about Green Lantern—I picked up this comic because Jemisin is the writer—& can‘t speak to how it fits in that world. That being said, I thought this was a great comic in itself—love the writing, worldbuilding, strong main character, intriguing story & art. Plenty of reasons to keep reading.
I‘m continuing with my deep dive into the oldest, and dustiest, sections of my TBR stacks. I‘m afraid if I let some of these books linger tooooooooooo long, books that I was presumably interested in when I bought them, I will lose all interest and not give them the attention they deserve. Tamora Pierce is always good though and I‘m really not sure why I haven‘t picked this book up before now. Here goes!
pickI finally managed to read beyond Chapter 3! There‘s a lot to like about this book—each of the three main characters are well-developed & interesting & only occasionally do or say things that don‘t make sense & the worldbuilding is top notch. That being said, the way all the characters interacted didn‘t always work & transitions between scenes were often abrupt. The story itself was good but not enough I feel I need to continue with the series.
pickThis. Book. Is. The. Cutest.
Seriously. This delightful picture book imagines the moment Pluto gets the call from scientists on Earth telling him that he is no longer a planet. 🤯 In the aftermath, Pluto takes readers on a tour of the solar system & along the way learns that he doesn‘t have to be a planet to be special, unique, & loved. Filled with humor, heart, & lots of cool facts about space, this is a wonderful addition to the library.❤️🚀💫
This morning is still cold (29 degrees) and snowy/icy enough that I decided a currant scone, chai tea latte, and a few minutes with the tagged book (which I‘m working through slowly as it‘s my emergency backup read I always have with me) were in order. ❤️😋🍵📖❤️
Third time‘s the charm?!? 🤞 Continuing with my dive into the deepest reaches of my TBR stacks, I‘m going with a book I‘ve tried to read on two previous occasions—unfortunately, it didn‘t take either time! 🤣 I‘ve seen good things about it here on Litsy so I‘m going to give it another chance! I mean I bought it so at one time it sounded really interesting to me, right?!?
I didn‘t see this until late in the day but Wonder Woman origin story graphic novel written by Laurie Halse Anderson? Yes please!
(From an EW tweet)
so-soNow I remember why I wanted to read this book—I‘d read one of the author‘s other books & wanted to read more. This is Templeman‘s debut. It has an interesting premise & a good mystery to solve. It also has the nugget of a good story wrapped up within another larger story that doesn‘t quite work as a whole. Yes, you can see the author‘s potential, and it is fully realized in later books, but this book has a ways to go. Still, I mostly enjoyed it.
It‘s Wednesday!!! I❤️#ncbd! Trades to read—Fear Agent, Vol. 1, Deadly Class, Vol. 8 & Monstress, Vol. 4. Several new comics out today & I picked up The Dollhouse Family #1, Family Tree #1, Far Sector #1 & Folklords #1. And ongoing comics—Wonder Woman #82, Collapser #5, & Runaways #27 (if you are a fan of Rainbow Rowell & not reading this comic, I urge to take a look, it‘s excellent). There is so much awesome here, I don‘t know where to start!
🤨
Hate these weird, awkward moments...love this description...
Sooo, I‘m sure I‘m not the only one who has a bedside TBR stack, the one in which all my newly purchased books go, the bookshelf TBR pile where I start moving books once they‘ve languished near my bed a little too long, & then cold storage where the books I‘ve had the longest hang out because OF COURSE I‘m going to read them...when I‘m finally in the mood! 🤣 Today‘s book is from there...I remember liking another book from the same author...
so-soActually finished this one late yesterday & must confess I didn‘t love it as much as I had hoped to. The book has an interesting premise—a secretive government organization believes magic is real & was in the world until it wasn‘t & wants to bring it back. Cool idea, right? Right. Parts of the book were interesting & funny & really enjoyable. Ultimately, however, the story dragged on & was much longer than it needed to be. Ok, not great.
pickFor over 300 years the HSS Matilda has been flying what remains of humanity to a fabled Promised Land. Life onboard the ship, however, is rather unpleasant, especially for those confined to the lower decks, those on the lowest rungs of society (which is organized much like antebellum society). A transition in power & discovery there might be a way off the ship complicates things tremendously. Lots of big issues addressed in this compelling book.
Snowy days are made for good books. I picked this one up ages ago (seriously, you don‘t want to know how long ago) & enjoyed what I read BUT, as often happens, I got distracted by other books, put it down, & just didn‘t pick it up again. I really need to work through my TBR stacks so that‘s what I‘m going to do.
✔️no errands
✔️no school
✔️6 inches of snow
✔️freezing cold temps
✔️lots of reading and hot cups of tea in my future
❄️❄️☃️📚☃️❄️❄️
Coffee, books & BBQ are always better with a friend! Spent a wonderful evening with the always fabulous @ElishaLovesBooks (seen above perusing a book) enjoying a little of all three. Perfect timing too since there is no school tomorrow & we are expecting 3-6 inches of snow. Thrilled to get my hands on a signed copy of the tagged book—especially since the author‘s event last Friday was sold out. Found the other three books on the sale shelves. Yay!
One of my favorite parks in the city not only has fabulous landscaping but also statues of authors...because why not? Love this one.
This weekend‘s reading...
😢 That time you heard about an event and were all excited to go only to discover that the event went from being un-ticketed (weeks ago) to ticketed and IT‘S ALL SOLD OUT!!! Can‘t say I‘m surprised—the tickets are free, it‘s Carmen Maria Machado, and the book is garnering rave reviews! Have to pay better attention—which means I‘m going to go check on next week‘s Benjamin Dreyer (Dreyer‘s English) event. Don‘t want to miss out two times in a row!
🔍Clue
🏺Pompeii
📚So far so good
📖It‘s probably more accurate to say I didn‘t discover, rather than put off, Neil Gaiman until about a decade ago. Started with Sandman then The Graveyard Book and then anything and everything he‘s written.
❓Have you ever read a book that made you want to visit where the story was set? (And did you?)
❓Bonus: If you could be a character in any book, which would it be & why?
#friyayintro @howjessreads
pickSaunders is a masterful storyteller & this is an impressive collection of stories. The above quote encapsulates everything you need to know going in—there are moments of grace in dire circumstances but seldom happy endings, moments of courage, redemption, & hope but also futility, desperation, depravity, cruelty, utter ridiculousness. All the best & worst we can be as humans. Love it/hate it, this collection gives you something to think about.
Saunders on good writing and what it does. (This is from his conversation with David Sedaris at the end of the book.)
Thanks for the tag @MrBook .
1. Everything really—particularly that it really is all things books & people who love them. Plus, it‘s a welcoming, positive community in my experience
2. It‘s all interesting
3. Have to think about this
4. Daily usually
5. I enjoying following along but I usually only participate in questionnaires
6. Maybe a more up-to-date database for comics although I can add them so it‘s not the biggest problem
@ljuliel
While much of the Day was devoted to finishing the Arc of the Scythe trilogy, I managed to squeeze in a trip to Chicago Comics for #ncbd. Just a few comics today. Unearth #4 & 5, Nomen Omen #2, Everything #3, Locke & Key: Dog Days and Undiscovered Country #1. Looks like a night for comics and then back to Tenth of December.
pickWow—Neal Shusterman knows how to tell a good story. The Toll brings the Arc of the Scythe trilogy to a thrilling conclusion. As in his other books, Shusterman‘s characters, as well as readers, are confronted by & must deal with big questions about AI, faith, utopia, responsibility, power, & so much more. If I have one complaint, it‘s that there are some characters I would have liked to see more of but that being said, I really liked this book.
Took my next book with me on a long walk this morning—have to take advantage of upper 40s and sunny because winter will be here soon enough!
pickAll families have secrets...sometimes they are small, insignificant ones while other times they are the kinds of secrets that fester, reshape lives & dreams & yes, even the family itself. After staying away more than 25 years, Arthur Scott returns home to Kansas shortly after which a young girl goes missing. Roy‘s book is a well-written story about family, secrets, loneliness, & how far someone will go to protect the ones they love. Good read.
so-soWow, this comic is a fantastic journey through time & the minds of two bros—really it is like reading about the adventures of genius versions of Beavis & Butthead. So the premise is great—we develop the tech to time travel—but the characters are obnoxious. Fortunately, along came Chrononauts Futureshock #1-4 which brings some much needed depth & nuance to the story & the characters. Really liked the art, everything else was unrealized potential.
so-soAs a mystery, I enjoyed the story—great setting, likable main characters, & a solid plot with some good twists & turns. As a mystery involving a forensic archaeologist who becomes something of an amateur sleuth by the end, it was a bit annoying as almost everything written about archaeology and how it‘s done was wrong. Annoyance aside, I enjoyed the mystery & may well read more in the series in the future.
Nothing like Friday book mail to make sure you have plenty to read over the weekend...and by “plenty” I mean waaaay more than I could read in one weekend once I add this to my TBR stack(s)!
39 books & comics in October. Favorites include: Middlewest continues to be a fantastic read—looking forward to December & the next issue. Exile from Eden was a solid sequel to Grasshopper Jungle. Frankissstein was weird & wonderful. Reynolds‘ MG is just as good as his YA—loved Look Both Ways. Pumpkinheads was the PERFECT October read. Blackfish City was very entertaining & Black Science, Vol. 9 was a fantastic conclusion to a great comic.
pickFantastic finish to this SF thrill ride that asks, quite simply, just because we can do something, should we? And assuming we do, what are the consequences of such hubris? What sort of world will we find ourselves in? There‘s also family drama, space, villains, aliens, love, violence, heroes & adventure. Entertaining from start to finish, I really enjoyed this series. Love the art throughout, too. Extra shout out to this cover which is very cool.
Going with a mystery for my next book.
pickLooking for a YA short story collection retelling Edgar Allan Poe‘s tales?!? 13 of them to be precise? Look no further, this book has you covered. And for a bonus it includes the original tales as well. On the whole I liked all the stories & there‘s a good mix of horror, creepy, & simply atmospheric & moody—in other words, there‘s something for everyone. It definitely fit well with the autumn/Halloween vibe.
#ncbd! Came home with something for everyone which is fantastic since the wintery weather is giving us all sorts of reasons to stay inside. Ironheart #11, Star Pig #4 (final issue), Runaways #26 (that cover!), Invisible Kingdom #6, Wonder Woman Annual #3, Ignited #3 & #4, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #13 (for daughter), Chrononauts #1-4 & Black Science, Vol. (for my son—after I read them of course!). Excited to start reading!
Haven‘t posted an old book cover in some time so to remedy that here‘s the 1973 Avon paperback edition of Gone with the Wind. The price for all 1,024 pages? $4.95.
❄️❄️❄️That‘s right, we‘re under a Winter Weather Advisory today with a strong chance of accumulating snow through Halloween...❄️☃️🎃☃️❄️... This is a little unusual for Chicago this time of year (though not unheard of). So don‘t mind me, I‘m just going curl up with this entertaining collection of short stories and a hot cup of tea and not go outside until I have to!
This has to be my next read, doesn‘t it? I mean, Halloween is right around the corner and what better way to get ready than to read some original and reimagined Edgar Allan Poe tales? 🍁🍂👻💀🎃🍂🍁
pickAfter war & the irrevocable march of climate change leads to environmental disaster(s), people flee to floating cities in the Arctic. A woman riding an orca accompanied by a polar bear arrives in one such city & changes everything. Miller‘s writing is assured & the worldbuilding is phenomenal in this story populated with intriguing characters living in a fascinating (possible but let‘s hope not) future. I really enjoyed this book. Great SF read.
Little bit of everything in my latest Book Outlet #bookhaul. I sort of feel like a squirrel stockpiling nuts for the winter—yeah, I have a huge TBR pile but there‘s always room for another book, right? And you never know what you might want to read. You need to have options...
Just preparing as 🍁🍂🐿📚🍂🍁 will soon turn to ❄️☃️📚☃️❄️.
😊
![[tagged book]](https://pics.cdn.librarything.com/pics/litsy_webpics/icon_taggedBook@3x.png){kind=icon}
