It’s the end of another year and the end of a decade. Last year I wrote my first Annual Review on the blog, and I am sticking to the same format this year with a little expansion for looking back at the decade as it draws to a close. As they say, this year has been a real humdinger. Right this moment I find myself in a sort of “grey space,” and in-between state. I’ve mentioned it before, and for now, it persists. This exercise will help me see that there is balance between the highs and the lows – Read More
Tag: Library Books
Recently Reading
My last blog was about watching terrible television, so you might think I haven’t been reading much. In fact, my television watching is less bingeing and more carefully planned portions (like Bright Line Eating.) This means I am *still* watching my way through Highlander. Meanwhile, I have actually been reading several books. I currently don’t have the wherewithal to make a whole blog post about any one of these books, so this week you get a run-down post compiling several of my recent reads. Enjoy! Scary Stuff Since this post covers things I read in October, it includes some creepy Read More
My Favorite Fantasy
This month for book club, I read two fantasy books. Is it right and proper for someone with a degree in English literature to admit that they prefer fantasy books above all others? That’s not going to surprise anyone, is it? It is a close call between fantasy, horror, and sci-fi when trying to pinpoint my favorite genre. Yes, I love the classics and have even been known to argue in favor of a literary canon – everyone should read Shakespeare, even in high school – but fantasy is the genre I return to when I want to lose myself Read More
Self Help Fest
In the first half of this year, I read 27 books. Twelve of those were non-fiction books that I think qualify as “self help.” Maybe a better way of describing these books is to say they are for my personal or professional development, but isn’t that just trying to put a spin on the fact that I am, in fact, trying to help my Self. I have always enjoyed this type of book ever since I read I’m Okay, You’re Okay in high school. I have seriously considered joining or starting a Self Help book club. Here are the books Read More
A Woman’s Words
Dystopian fiction is social commentary with a side of terror. It uses hyperbole to try and help us see that we are the frogs in the water that is starting to boil. It takes situations that some people are currently giving the side-eye, projects them into the future, and magnifies them x100. According to Rare Books Digest, the first dystopian novel was written in Russian but was banned and had it’s first release in the U.S. in 1924. What better way for such a form to make its debut than as a banned book? Aldous Huxley and George Orwell quickly Read More
Making the Political Personal – A Visit From Angie Thomas
One Book One Community I love my community. I live in beautiful Northwest Arkansas. This is a unique place to live, because it is not centered around one city but four. Then there are the smaller towns adjacent to those cities. I live in one of those. I grew up about an hour from my current residence, and I consider this entire region HOME. I am a Razorback. I spent 14 years working at a certain retailer that is based in the area. We are truly blessed that our area is thriving and growing. We have a world class art Read More
To Kill a TBR… What’s On Your List?
If you are a book-lover like me, then you can relate – there are so many books and so little time. Listening to audiobooks on 1.5x speed can only help so much. Any faster and I literally start to panic. When I see a book that I want to read, I know it will be a while before I can get to it, so I like to pop the book on my TBR list. You should already know that means “To Be Read.” And you should already have a method for tracking it. If you don’t do this yet, just Read More
Teach Us to Care and Not to Care
Sorry, T.S. Eliot fans… this is not a blog post about his poem Ash Wednesday, but for Lit class nostalgia’s sake, I will link to a copy of the poem here. This line from Eliot’s poem came to mind while I was having a discussion with my BFF, a fellow English major and participant in one of my book clubs, about books that don’t make you care about any of the characters. I was recently reading one book and listening to audio of another when I realized that I didn’t have the least bit of emotional connection to any of Read More
Currently Reading – Are you a Multilegerophile?
To the best of my knowledge, and my Google search results, I just made that word up. Multilegerophile: Someone who loves to read multiple books at once. People who paid more attention in Latin class might have a better term for it, but I’m going with this one. On the sidebar of my blog there is a display of my “Currently Reading” shelf on Goodreads. As I write this, there are eight books on that shelf. How many books are too many to read at once? And how long does a book sit idly on the shelf before one is Read More
A Discovery of Witches
Empty Nest Update I have been in a reading slump. You might remember that I spent most of the year preparing for an empty nest. I was really worried about what life held for me when I no longer had kids at home. When the time came, I took it pretty well. This was largely due to prepping and planning and important connections with people who made sure I had plans on my calendar. The kid, on the other hand, did not fare so well and will be moving home in December to consider Plan B. Disappointment happens. I went Read More