August 2020 - January 2021 Books

 The truth is that my attention has been wandering.  I find myself reading more articles and fewer books.  In part it's perhaps the intermittent openness and closedness of the public library, but my guess is that it's more these crazy times.  Pandemic, a wack-a-doodle as the national executive, the election, an armed gang of white supremacists terrorists storming the capitol building.... it's just all... a bit much.
Here's to more peaceful times in the future.

The Once and Future Witches, by Alix E. Harrow

American Gods, by Neil Gaiman (yes, again)

The Princess Diarist, by Carrie Fisher

Falling in Love with Hominids, by Nalo Hopkinson

The Tempest Tales, by Walter Mosley

When Marnie was There, by Joan G. Robinson

The Overstory, by Richard Powers

Lilith's Brood, series by Octavia Bulter

The Old Guard, by Greg Rucka and Leandro Fernandez

Born a Crime, by Trevor Noah

Jan - July Books !?!

• So, something must have distracted me this winter/spring/summer.... what could it have been?

So, I'm sure I've missed some books :-(

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  A Man Without a Country, by Kurt Vonnegut
• The Luster of Lost Things, by Sophie Chen Keller
• The Last Wish, by Andrzej Sapkowski
• Circe, by Madeline Miller
• Columbus Day (Expeditionary Force book 1), by Craig Alanson

Mort, by Terry Pratchett

Reaper Man, by Terry Pratchett

All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes, by Maya Angelou

It Can't Happen Here, by Sinclair Lewis

How to be an Antiracist, by Ibram X Kendi

October - December Books

• Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson
• The Man in the High Castle, by Philip K. Dick
• Beverly Right Here, by Kate DeCamillo
• Loitering with Intent, by Muriel Spark
• A Thrift Shop Murder, by N.M. Howell
• Garden Spells, by Sarah Addison Allen

Not enough reading these last few months. :-(

Gilead was a book group read, took me a little bit to get into it.  Written as if a letter to a grown son by an elderly father, by the end I was immersed.
Man in the High Castle is a SF classic that I had missed. I was prompted by an add for a new TV series by the same name.  Book is excellent.
Beverly Right Here is a YA novel, lovely, well done.
Loitering with Intent was enjoyable and had a few too true truths in it.  Loved some of the turns of phrase.  Bummed to find out this author is dead.  

A Thrift Shop Murder was a BookBub find.  It was a light read, fun, but not so much that I have run off to buy the rest of the series.  (But then I don't have time to read everything I already have so....)

Garden Spells was a sweet unexpected offering a FB friend recommended.  I loved the sisters stories.

June - September Books

• Wow.  I really lost it.  I keep these lists for me, not you, but man, past me is letting future me down.  Someday I'll read a book and think "That seems really familiar. Have I read it before?"  and I'll look here and not find it, and have no idea if it's because I didn't read that book or because I just didn't keep track.  Hmph.
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• Anyway, future me, here's what Oct. 2020 me remembers from all last summer and the beginning of this fall.  Sorry, 
• signed, 
• present me (past me to you)
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• looking at this list I think it can be safely gathered that I like books, books with cats, fantasy, and generally still need more time to read than I get.  
• personal notes:
  Genius was a good book, I knew Steven T. Seagle in passing (he was dating and ended up marrying a college roommate)
• I met Stephanie Tolan at a retreat this last summer, and it was knowing that I would that lead me to read her books.
• For years I've been on a listserve that Tamora Pierce is on, but it's only recently I started reading her work, my loss!
• I've known A.E. Wasp for years and our kids are friends, I got to beta read this book, it's a fun sweet story.
  
  Boys of Summer, by A.E. Wasp
  Self Published Kindling, by Mik Everett
  Welcome to the Arc, by Stephanie Tolan
  Flight of the Raven, by Stephanie Tolan
  Surviving the Applewhites, by Stephanie Tolan
  Mother Knows Best, by Serina Valentino
  Paris by the Book, by Liam Callanan
  Meow, by Skye Mackinnon
  Love, Lies, and Hocus Pocus, by Lydia Sherrer
  Gifted Touch, by Melinda Metz
• We Who are About to.., by Joanna Russ
• Crave, by Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz
• The Human Division, by John Scalzi
• The Dispatcher, by John Scalzi
• Genius, by Steven T. Seagle & Teddy Kristiansen
• Trickster's Choice, Tamora Pierce
• Harley Merlin, Bella Forrest
• Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaimon
• American Gods, Neil Gaimon

April and May Books

• The Book of Flora, by Meg Elison
• A Secret Rage, by Charlain Harris
• Day Shift, by Charlain Harris
• Night Shift, by Charlain Harris
• The Plague Tales, by Ann Benson
• The Heavens, by Sandra Newman
• Inside the Large Congregation, by Susan Beaumont
• Chocolat, by Joanne Harris
• Shadow of Night, by Deborah Harkness
• Team of Rivals, by Doris Kearns Goodwin
• Somebody I Used to Know, by Wendy Mitchell
• A Discovery of Witches, by Deborah Harkness
• Miniatures: The Very Short Fiction of John Scalzi, by John Scalzi
• Expanse Series, by James S. A. Corey

January, February, March Books

• Homebody, by Orson Scott Card
• One Hundred Wisdom Stories, by Margaret Silf
• The Mystery of Grace, by Charles de Lint
• The Suburban Micro-Farm, by Amy Stross
• Daring to Drive, by Manal Al-Sharif
• The Enchanted April, by Elizabeth Von Arnim
• The Wind in His Heart, by Charles de Lint
• The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl, by Stacy McAnulty
• Invisible Monsters, by Chuck Palahniuk
• Enchanted April, by Elizabeth von Arnim
• The Girl I Used to Know, by Faith Hogan
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December Books

• Mr. Dickens and His Carol, by Samantha Silva
• What Child is This, by Rhys Bowen
• Nancy Wake, by Peter FitzSimons

A light reading month I guess.  

Mr. Dickens and His Carol was for a December book group, perfect timing.  

What Child is This was a BookBub find, a light enjoyable read. 

Nancy Wake (another BookBub find) is by an Australian writer I was unfamiliar with, but I'll read more of his stuff now.  It also made me want to read her autobiography.  I love a story w/a strong woman and lots of adventure, that it's true makes it even better.

November Books

• Three Minute Tales, by Margaret Read MacDonald
• Ready-to-tell Tales, edited by David Holt & Bill Mooney
• I Robot, by Isaac Asimov
• Nights of Rain and Stars, by Maeve Binchy
• Beauty, by Robin McKinley
• How to Find Love in a Bookshop, by Veronica Henry
• Excellent Women, by Barbara Pym
• War and Turpentine, by Stefan Hertmans

Reading storybooks to find stories for my Spellbinders story telling at a local elementary school.  Fun!

I Robot was a comfort re-read, as was Beauty.

Mauve Binchy is always a joy, and Veronica Henry's book reminded me a little of her.  

Not sure how Excellent Women ended up on my pile-o-books, but it was an interesting read as a period piece.  It took me a while to get into the slower pace and plot, but I appreciated being brought to post-WWII England.

War and Turpentine was a book group pick, not the sort of thing I might have picked up on my own, but I enjoyed it.

October Books

• The Rowan Tree, by Robert W. Fuller
• The Healing Heart: Families, by David Albert and Alison M Cox
• Anathem, by Neal Stephenson
• 12 Rules for Life, by Jordan Peterson
• Dear World, by Bana Alabed

The Rowan Tree is to dignatarianism as Atlas Shrugged is to objectivism.  There.  Go look those up.

Except, I enjoyed Rowan tree and thought that it has some interesting and possible philosophy to explore.

The Healing Heart stories were good, useful for culling some stories for Spellbinders.

Anathem - still working on this one, took me a while to get into the alternate universe

12 Rules for Life is like your crusty old uncle trying to give you life advice but get side tracked by his own (obviously well loved) stories.  Not particularly well written or useful, don't recommend, but you know, it it's YOUR uncle....

Dear World is heart warming and heart breaking all at once.  Quick read, recommend.

August and September Books

• fangirl, by Rainbow Rowell
• The Golden Notebook, by Doris Lessing
• Manson: The Life and Times of Charles Manson, by Jeff Guinn
• Bright as Heaven, by Susan Meissner

I'm sure there were others, but I lost track. :-/

fangirl was light and fun, I recommend.

The Golden Notebook was long, and I wanted to like it because of the author and content, but, meh.
Bright as Heaven is a fictional view of one families experience of the Spanish flu in 1918.  I enjoyed the story.

Manson, shudder.  I loved the job the author did on the setting, place and time were so well captured and I learned somethings.  But, every time Manson was in the picture I felt unsettled.  So, maybe the author did a good job, but I'm not sure I liked it.

July's books

• Origin in Death, by Nora Roberts (J.D. Robb)
• Artemis, by Andy Weir
• The Marvels, by Brian Selznick
• The Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery

The Elegance of the Hedgehog was lovely, brilliant, and such a joy and relief to read.  A book about people, thinking, and finding their tribe.  Highly recommend.

The Marvels is by the same author as The Invention of Hugo Cabret, and in a similar style.  The topic and theme of the book, however, is original, and as good as anything from this author.  Another one worth buying and keeping for the kids, grand-kids, friends, people who might be friends.....

Artemis I read for book group.  It's a fun read, but not as good as The Martian (by the same author)

Origin in Death got on my list because of a discussion about clones.  I had read this series ages ago, but stopped when I caught up w/ the author.  She's excellent at churning out a decent read, and some, like this, are modestly thought provoking.  Beach worthy read.

May and June Books

• Another Brooklyn, by Jacqueline Woodson
• The Accidental Witch, by Jessica Penot
• Shadows in the Water, by Kory M. Shrum
• Still Me, by Jojo Moyers
• Governance and Ministry, by Dan Hotchkiss
• Bitten, by Kelley Armstrong
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Another Brooklyn was beautiful.  I look forward to reading it again someday.

The Accidental Witch was a silly light-hearted read, found through BookBub.  I won't go out of my way to read more, but if it landed on my pile I'd probably indulge.

Shadows in the Water is from an author I found w/ BookBub, but not in her Dying series.  It was bit different, eerie and engaging.

Jojo Moyers is always a pleasure, enough that it's ceasing to be a guilty pleasure.

Governance and Ministry, again? Ya.  Again.  Sigh.  I'm on our church Board of Trustees and this is a go-to book for us.  Anyone on the board of a non-profit could probably learn something from it.

Bitten was a fun indulgence, I found it because someone recommended the TV series based on it, so of course, I had to read the book first.

April books

• The Golem and the Jinni, by Helen Wecker
• Octavia's Brood, edited by adrienne maree brown and Walidah Imarisha
• The Feirie Gaurdian, by Rachel Morgan

Good books, thought I'd read more but for the life of me I can't remember what.

January Books

• Anansi Boys, by Neil Gaiman
• Little Brother, by Cory Doctorow
• Family Magic, by Patti Larsen
• Being Mortal, by Atul Gawande
• The H-Spot, the Feminist Pursuit of Happiness, by Jill Filipovic
• Dreamland, by Sam Quinones

Is there anything that Neil Gaiman writes that isn't brilliant, or at least really good?  Not so far as I've noticed (except Sandman, which was a bit much for me)

Little Brother was a re-read - and still pretty damn good.

Family Magic was a quick just-for-fun read.  Good for what it was.

Being Mortal was well done, and gives all of us something to think about when it comes to end of life decisions.

The H-Spot, well presented argument about the importance of women's happiness for everyone.

Dreamland, a disheartening report on the opioid epidemic and the horrible break down of any kind of a safety network.

December Books

• Games People Play, by Eric Berne, M.D.
• Mother, Can You Not?, by Kate Seigel
• Eat Dirt, by Dr. Josh Axe
• The Psychopath Whisperer, by Kent A. Kiehl, PhD

The Psychopath Whisperer was the only real book I read this month.  It was interesting, and I think my 13yo would enjoy it.

Eat Dirt was really just a promotion for other low-content stuff from the author. Meh...

Mother Can You Not, is a quick read of short essays inspired by the CrazyJewishMother twitter account.  It's light and funny.

The Berne book shows it's age (1964) with clearly dated language and sexist ideas.  Reading though, I could hear how influential it has been, as some of the language, such as giving "strokes" is still used today.  It made me sad an angry to read the victim blaming, and the derision of women in the book, but I could also see how it would be useful for writers of fiction for the many "scripts" it described.

November Books

• The Curiosities, by Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, Brenna Yovanoff
• Every Day, by David Levithan
• After You, by Jojo Moyes
• The New Voices of Fantasy, edited by Peter S. Beagle and Jacob Weisman (mostly for Carmen Maria Machado's story, but the others were good too)
• Country Boy, by A.E. Wasp

I bought The Curiosities and Every Day at the Tattered Cover when I went down to Denver to meet a friend there for an author event.  I felt all grown up, walking around, sipping wine, eating hors d'oeuvres (really just samples for local businesses), and getting young adult authors to sign my program.  I might have fan-girled just a little, and maybe I shoved some of the chocolate in my purse to take home to the kids.  It was fun!  It's not often I do something just because I want to, kinda think I should do that more often.

After You was a quick fun read, a sequel to You Before Me.  I think I liked it even better than the first.

I'm loving short stories right now, they seem to fit with the bits of free time I have, so The New Voices of Fantasy were a great fit.

I read Country Boy because it's by a friend.  I think it's about the third book of hers I've actually read, although she's written a lot more.  Gay fiction is generally my thing, but honestly?  She's gotten good enough that they're just really enjoyable stories.  Now if only I could get her to write me some science fiction....

September-October Books

Half Broke Horses, by Jeannette Walls

Time for the Stars, by Robert Heinlein

2 a.m. at the Cat's Pajamas, by Marie-Helen Bertino

The Harlan Ellison Collection I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream, by Harlan Ellison

Lest Darkness Fall and Related Stories, by L. Sprague De Camp (and others)

Parenting Children with Health Issues, by Foster Cline, Lisa Greene

City Boy, by A.E. Wasp

Caliban's War, by James S.A. Cory

Abaddon's Gate, by James S.A. Cory

Cibola Burn, by James S.A.Cory

Hmm... ok - I read the whole Expanse series so far - 

God of Risk

The Vital Abyss

The Churn

Babylon's Ashes

Persepolis Rising

The Butcher of Anderson Station

and other books, because, again, I wasn't keep track real time...

May-Aug Books

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• Leviathan Wakes, by James S.A. Cory
• The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood
• Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls
• An American Childhood, by Anne Dillard
• How to Read Literature Like a Professor, by Thomas C. Foster
• Some Kind of Happiness, by Claire Legrand
• The Language of Emotions, by Karla McLaren
• Executive Functions, by Russell Barkley
• Paradise Lot, by Eric Toensmeier
• Bluffton, by Matt Phelan
• Penelopied, by Margaret Atwood

And probably others, because I forgot to keep track!

April Books

• Confessions of a Jane Austin Addict, by Laurie Viera Rigler
• The Poet's Dog, by Patricia MacLachlan
• Diary of a Mad Fat Girl, by Stephanie McAfee
• When You Reach Me, by Rebecca Stead

What a mixed bag this month's read were.  By far the children's books, The Poet's Dog and When You Reach Me were better than the others.

Confessions.... was a light fun read, really just a Jane Austin fan fantasy, and what's wrong with a little fun?
Diary... was another light read, but not as much fun.  Set in the contemporary south, this romance was distractedly white biased, so not as laid back a read as I had hoped.

On the other hand, The Poet's Dog was a sweet brilliant little book.  Enjoyable, and accessible, and one which I would suggest to any child and parent.

When You Reach Me was not as accessible, I'd suggest it for an older child or teen.  It's not scary or inappropriate, just a nice dense little plot twist that had me wanting to re-read it immediately.  It was suggested to me by my friend Karen, and she was right.  It's excellent.  Thanks Karen!

February and March Books

• A Monster Calls, by Patrick Ness
• Orphan Train, by Christina Baker Kline
• How I Live Now, by Meg Rosoff
• The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown
• This Time Together, by Carol Burnett
• Chalice, by Robin McKinley

I probably lost track of a couple of books from the last two months. Or maybe not.  It's been a bit crazy around here.

A Monster Calls is a beautiful heart breaking book, the kind I'm glad I read.  

Read Orphan Train a while back for a different book group, but didn't mind reading it again.  How I Live Now was one I just pulled off a shelf from the library, unexpectedly engrossing.  Robin McKinley is always worth reading, can't believe I haven't read everything she's done yet.  This Time Together was a light read, but I enjoyed the authors insight.

The Boys in the Boat was for book group, another I'm glad I read.  It also spurred me to find and watch "The Boys of 36" with HotDog.  Documentaries are some of our favorite ways to get our history.

Speaking of history, another favorite way to get it is audio books.  Hot Dog and I just finished listening to The Aviators.  He really enjoyed it!