🟣 :::READING THREAD::: Week of November 10

Since November 1st I have finished:

Nightmares! by Jason Segel (actor in How I Met Your Mother) and Kirsten Miller. It's the first book in a YA series about a kid who lives in a haunted house. It was OK, but I probably won't read book #2.

Yoga Pant Nation by Laurie Gelman. The 3rd book in a series about Jennifer Dixon the snarky classroom mom for her kids' elementary classroom. Very funny/light reading, although I had to suspend my "that's not how PTA works" disbelief to read this one -wine at back-to-school night? They do things differently in Kansas! -Otherwise, I am enjoying this series.

The Unbreakable Code by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman the 2nd book in (so far) a 3-book series about 13-year-olds in San Francisco who solve book related mysteries.

Currently reading:
Tilly and the Map of Stories the 3rd in The Book Wanderers series by Anna James Apparently, I am in a middle grade mystery series sort of mood... I'm only on chapter 3 but so far so good. In this one, Tilly is a "book wanderer" and can jump into and out of stories and interact with the characters.

10% Happier by Dan Harris. Non-fiction. Audio. I had no idea who Dan Harris was (he is a reporter who worked with Peter Jennings) and wasn't really interested in how he learned to meditate, but I am enjoying his writing style and some of his turns of phrases have me chuckling. I am about 60% through this one. I might need to learn to meditate to get through the next four years...  

I am also reading A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness, but put it aside to read lighter things this past week... I don't usually like vampire anything, but so far am enjoying this book even though it has one in it.

Off to read what everyone else is reading and add to my tbr pile...

Finished Beyond Reasonable Doubt by Dugoni. Great premise and ending. It was very good, but I struggled to concentrate. 4/5 stars.

I'm now reading A Place to Hide, which is also great. It's due back in two days. I should be able to finish it. I usually read a lot on weekends but just played a mindless game on my phone this weekend for hours instead. Oops. Sometimes, that's what you need to do, I guess.

Lisa

I have tried and tried to read All the Colors of the Dark and just can not get into it. My loan will expire before I can finish it.

People raved about this one, and it started strong and ended strong for me, but I wish the author had cut out like 200 middle pages...

I read 2 last week, but was too upset about the election to post.

2.5 Stars for Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune. This sequel to The House in the Cerulean Sea, which I loved, really was a struggle to read. I was so excited to go back to Marsyas, and read more on the quirky characters that lived on the island with their adoptive dads, but instead, the book felt like a chore, almost a lecture on the importance of accepting everyone.

“But I believe the greatest weapon we have at our disposal is our voices. And I am going to use my voice for you, and for me. Hate is loud. We are louder.”

“When we live in fear, it controls us. Every decision we make is smothered by it.

It was like getting a sermon, very preaching to the choir, like TJ Klune was trying to convince me of the plight of marganialized, magical creatures. Perhaps it was meant to be required reading for MAGA or Moms For Liberty crowd, but that's not the type of person who will even look to read this book, so I was just really disappointed. I guess it is never a waste to pound the message to "be kind and tolerant..."

3.5 Stars for It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover. TW for abuse and domestic violence, this book is back in the spotlight due to the recent movie adaption. I never really had an interest in reading it, but I kept hearing the movie dropped "the Ellen Diaries" portion of the story, and for some reason, that intrigued me, so I decided to give it a chance. And honestly, the Lilly's entries to Ellen DeGenerous are the things that resonated with me so much. I was a huge fan of Ellen's show, and I remember those feelings of joy, hope, and safety that Ellen often gave to us (at least in the beginning), her audience.



"All humans make mistakes. What determines a person’s character aren’t the mistakes we make. It’s how we take those mistakes and turn them into lessons rather than excuses."



It is so easy as a reader to question, why didn't Lily just leave? Especially because SHE saw the same red flags from her parents relationship. But it is so easy for me to play armchair quarterback, and this book showcases that.



I know people feel strongly one way or the other about Hoover, but I do feel she is an entertaining storyteller.