Pop Rocket Readers discussion

Hello, and welcome to the Pop Rocket Readers Group.

Feel free to say a few words about who you are, where you live, what you're into, and your latest read.

My name is Laura Darling and I live in the SF Bay Area. I spend much of my life on social media, but try to balance that out by walking our three dogs and watering the garden. I'm currently on my second copy of Chernow's Hamilton, the first having been ripped to pieces by one of the aforementioned dogs.

I'm looking forward to meeting you.

Hello! I'm also in California, but down south in San Diego. I'm currently reading The Closer, by Mariano Rivera. I am a baseball fan to be sure (I have season tickets this year which is cutting into my reading time) but don't generally read that much about the sport. I'm a sucker for a kindle daily deal, which I believe this one was.

Next up is Neon Green!

Hello, I'm Ben Whitehouse.
I live and work in Wrexham (which is in North Wales in the UK). I work in financial services for an international company.
I read books for pleasure and tend to function as the go-to guy for book suggestions.
I like reading both physical and ebooks.
I live with my partner, Mike and have two shihtzus, Jasper and Franklin.
I used to resist calling myself geeky and would say how much I enjoy reading SF & Genre fiction but now fully embrace the geek label.
I geek out about apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic writing. I'm also a fan of non-fiction narrative podcasts.
I write a monthly book suggestion email newsletter for friends.
I'm currently rereading the Game of Thrones book series as a work colleague is reading it for the first time and her questions keep tripping me up.

I'm Tom and I live in Fort Wayne, Indiana. I do physical, ebooks, and audiobooks. My favorite are biographies and memoirs. I am nearly 40 and I had never read Catcher in the Rye, so I just finished that.

I have a partner of 14 years and I work as a web manager during the day. I'm lucky to have free access to the Pop Rocket facebook group to keep me sane at work.

Hi everyone! I'm Bryce and I'm from Chattanooga, TN. I am 31 years of age. Due to having an iPad I generally alternate between reading Nook and Kindle books. I also love having physical books because one day I want a home with a library. I also love audiobooks. My favorite writers are David Baldacci, J.A. Jance, Bill Konigsberg and Christopher Rice.

My absolute favorite book is "Charlotte's Web" by EB White. A close runner-up would be "A Density of Souls" by Christopher Rice.

I am single and I work at a major insurance company in Tennessee. I'm a podcast fanatic with Pop Rocket being one of my faves. I listen, weekly to Pop Rocket, Throwing Shade, The Read and Yo, Is This Racist.

Ben wrote: "Hello, I'm Ben Whitehouse.
I live and work in Wrexham (which is in North Wales in the UK). I work in financial services for an international company.
I read books for pleasure and tend to function ..."

Ben, how can we get on your newsletter list?

You can subscribe here: http://tinyletter.com/benjiw

Hello, everyone!

My name's Zachary Davis, and I'm 26 and living in Madison, Wisconsin. I work as technical support for electronic health record software.

My story is that I'm absolutely terrible at time management, and am still trying to figure out how to balance work, my new house, and hobbies, even four years after college. Instead of reading novels, I've been immersing myself in online news and politics daily for a few years, and the Pop Rocket book club seemed like an excellent opportunity to try to get back into reading for pleasure.

Based on some other threads on the Facebook group, I got a copy of Ready, Player One and am going to work on reading that next. Then, the Turner House.

I'm really looking forward to being able to find new recommendations!

Hey I'm Kristin! I live in Chicago and am a ebook convert. I will read everything, and I'm super fast, but I'm currently going through a picky phase. I'm hoping this 2017 challenge--and you folks!--will help kick my butt an get me reading outside my zone and talking more about the books I read.

I was a college prof for many years, and I read a lot of student work and generated a lot of substantial and meaningful feedback for student consumption. My reviews here tend to be less kind, but I'm going to dial it down for our group and engage with love again.

Also an avid listener of the podcast and the fb group of course :-)

Hello hello, welcome new members.

Hello all! I am Michelle Lawrence. I live/work in Indianapolis, IN (I grew up in Fort Wayne, where Tom is from! I've lived here 2.5 years.) I work in tech, on email specifically.

I'm almost 32 and it's been almost a year exactly that I have been a homeowner for the first time. Most of our books are still packed as we (me and partner-man of 5+ years) haven't yet trekked to IKEA to get shelves to hold them. I mostly read on my Kindle anyway because my tiny hands (lol) get strained easily.

In another life, I studied Russian and Ukrainian; I love social justice and history, and I'm also Jewish. I also studied comparative literature. Basically, I will read anything (including philosophy and critical theory)! Recent favorites include Dune (Herbert), Shrill (Lindy West), Blueprint for Disaster (Hunt) and The Divide (Taibbi). I am also a homebody and plans include setting up a perfect reading nook soon. Being a Pop Rocket listener, I love consuming all kinds of media and interacting with you all on FB.

Hello All!

I'm Justin. I live and work in the East central part of MN. I am round about an hour north of the Twin Cities metro. I share my living space with a whole bunch of cats and my wife who teaches HS english. We both read fairly actively though I'm no patch on her rate. I have a fair amount of difficulty staying focused so sometimes I read the same page for awhile before I get back into gear and get on with it.

My favorite book is Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein. Last book I finished was Sula by Toni Morrison. Currently starting out my reading year trying to make my self a better human with Between The World And Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates.

Hi everyone! So excited to be a part of this group.

I'm Katie, I'm 33, and I live in Decatur, GA (just outside Atlanta's city limits) with my husband and our dog. I'm a massage therapist and have always been a voracious reader. I was anti-ebook for a looonnng time but I've since embraced it (especially for library books!), but I almost always buy physical copies of books I really love.

I'll read basically anything - nonfiction, sci-fi, memoir, YA, "chick-lit", fantasy - you name it. Excited to hear what y'all are reading! I just started H is for Hawk yesterday and I'm already ~35% through.

Hi friends!

I'm Herbie, 26, living in Philadelphia, working as a graphic designer.

I've been a devoted reader since I started working full-time, 4 years ago. My commute has been between 20-60 minutes at various points and I cherish that time to read. At my current job, I take some time during lunch to read for 10-15 minutes. It's not much, but it can be a nice getaway, even though I really enjoy my job.

I read mostly fiction, but have a major soft spot for celeb memoirs (especially about food and/or LGBTQ issues).

I just read Big Little Lies (in advance of the HBO mini series) and i'm currently reading The Handmaid's Tale for the first time (in advance of the Hulu series). I also recently read Dave Holmes' "Party of One", which I LOVED.

I read almost exclusively physical copies (the Free Library of Philadelphia is a true gift) but break out the Kindle every once in a while.

Hey everyone. I'm in my thirties, living in Queens NYC and I am a high school librarian in Manhattan. I do not read as much as I'd like between my teaching and family schedules, and also I need to find time to watch things like real housewives and Aftermath and to listen to eleventy-seven podcasts a week.

I'm really focused on promoting pleasure reading to students lately and as such I'm stepping up my own reading game to be a good role model.

Happy to be here and see what everyone recommends!

WHAT UP WORLD!

I'm 34 (but with the face of a smooth 29) live in Brooklyn and work on the marketing side of a magazine. Thanks to my job, I have access to a bookshelf of galley copies--which is a blessing and a curse. A blessing, because, well free books, but also because it sometimes points me in the direction of a book I'd never normally pick up. A curse: because towers of books surround my cube and my room, but I really do read 'em all!

I love books about pop culture and music and, @herbie, Dave Holmes book was one of my favorites. Less for it's 90s pop culture nostalgia and more for its tender recounting of what it was like to be a pop cuture-loving gay man from the midwest trying to figure out life in NYC (and life in general).

I'm currently reading: James McBride's Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul which is about SO MUCH more than James Brown. If you love music, READ IT.

I look forward to sharing reads and hearing all about your faves!

Hi friends!

I'm Abbey, I'm 28 and live in Connecticut. I'm a children and teen librarian at a small public library. I read mostly middle grade and YA, and not just for work, it's what I liked even before becoming a children's librarian. Podcasts and Goodreads are great ways for me to branch out and read books that are actually written for grown-ups! I loved when Pop Rocket did the summer book club.

I like to read (and own) physical copies of books, but I recently moved into a teeny tiny apartment and my books are all in drawers Rory Gilmore style. I've been using my Kindle more to read things from NetGalley to help with ordering at work.

I don't really have favorites, but if I have to pick I'm going with The Phantom Tollbooth and The Westing Game.

Mrs. wrote: "Hey everyone. I'm in my thirties, living in Queens NYC and I am a high school librarian in Manhattan. I do not read as much as I'd like between my teaching and family schedules, and also I need to ..."

Hey, so jealous! I have my MLIS but have not gotten a position in a library yet. In California you have to have the California teaching credential to be a K-12 Librarian, and I don't have it. If you want I'd love some suggestions for your latest and greatest YA novels!

Hi,
I'm Moira, age 36. I live in Philadelphia and have been devouring books since toddlerhood (less literally as I grew up). I have a kindle, but prefer physical books.

I tend towards historical fiction, especially WWII related. I also like dystopian YA and the occasional fluff. In 2017, I'm trying to read books not written for me, and also poetry.

Thanks for starting this!

Shauna wrote: "Mrs. wrote: "Hey everyone. I'm in my thirties, living in Queens NYC and I am a high school librarian in Manhattan. I do not read as much as I'd like between my teaching and family schedules, and al..."

Hey, Shauna! Feel free to add me as a friend on Goodreads and check out my shelves. I don't read as much YA as I probably should, but I've got some on there. :)

We have the same requirement here in NYS. I went to a School Media Program that integrated the required classes for state teaching certification into my masters program, so I got it all done at the same time. Good luck!

Hi there,

I'm Heather, age 27, from Toronto (Canada). I work for an environmental NFP and I live with my cat, Mr. Darcy. I prefer physical books (I love wandering second-hand book stores) but I also own a Kobo with many many books on it, yet to be read.

I read pretty much anything: memoirs, fantasy, non-fiction, contemporary, historical fiction, etc. I am trying to diversify my book shelf with some sci-fi and classics I've never gotten around to.

Currently reading City on Fire, next up Faithful by Alice Hoffman (one of my favorite authors).

Abbey wrote: "Hi friends!

I'm Abbey, I'm 28 and live in Connecticut. I'm a children and teen librarian at a small public library. I read mostly middle grade and YA, and not just for work, it's what I liked even..."

OMG THE WESTING GAME. Got big love for the Tollbooth as well.

Hi Rocketeers--I'm KrisAnne, 42, Minneapolis, lifelong avid reader and re-reader, and fairly recent kindle convert. Ironically, having the e-device has prompted me to become a very active library user for the first time in years--borrowing tons of both ebooks and old-fashioned ones that I have to pick up in person.

I'm a voice teacher and singer by trade and my daily schedule is evening-loaded, so one of the great joys of my life is reading for hours in broad daylight. I mostly read fiction but am open to lots of genres. I have a hard time not finishing a book once I've started it, even if I hate it.

My all time favorite book is probably Mating, by Norman Rush. This week I read Curtis Sittenfeld's Sisterland (mehhhh) and Colson Whitehead's The Underground Railroad (loved, but literally just finished and am still chewing it over).

Hi Poppers! It's your boy, Tony, from St. Paul, MN! I'm a 35 year old website developer. I've been a lifelong reader, though I've been in a slump the last year. I tend towards fiction, sci-fi, horror and graphic novels, though I also like books of useless facts and non-fiction tales.

Heather wrote: "I work for an environmental NFP and I live with my cat, Mr. Darcy..."

MR DARCY. Amazing cat name.

Also hi!

I'm Krista, 27, from Sydney, Australia (alternatively: Straya). I do communication and education at a medical research organisation so get to geek out on ***science*** all day, despite never having studied it.

My favourite book is Virginia Wolf's Mrs Dalloway. I can't quite bring myself to get a kindle, although the lack of shelf space in my house should encourage me to do so.

I read a lot of non-fiction, especially around history and medicine. I'd love to get back into reading fiction so I can't wait to get some recommendations from the group (also about any good audiobooks).

Hey guys :)

My name is Rochelle and I hail from sunny Down Under. I'm a life long book worm and lover of all types of written word. Have just finished the modern feminist manifesto 'Fight Like A Girl' by Clementine Ford which was hard going yet fantastic. Planning to read new things this year rather than my constant rehashing. I definitely in danger of creating a echo chamber, I think.

Hello! My name's Jess and I'm currently working as an English teacher in rural Japan, though I'm originally from Missouri (USA). I've always loved reading, mostly fantasy and sci-fi, but the past few years of traveling have pushed me to expand my reading horizons as well as my physical ones. I'm still a sucker for fiction, but I'm hoping the read harder challenge will help to continue moving me outside of my literary comfort zone. I've completed both comicbook challenges (March: Book One for all-ages and Plutona for female superhero) and am currently reading Homegoing

In the kindle/physical book debate, I struggle. The Kindle's been a life saver the past few years, but being far from English bookstores/libraries has only made me miss physical books more. I went home for the holidays and spent more time (and money) in bookstores than I'd like to admit...

Hi! My name is Bridget and I live in the Washington, DC metro area. I read a lot of fiction, I like historical fiction and long sagas. I've recently gotten into a bit of science fiction, but nothing to compare to some hardcore sci-fi readers. I have a long metro ride 3x a week so I get a lot of reading time, and as much as I'd like to read before bed, I often fall asleep too soon. I typically read on my Nook, and I can attest that a nook bopping you on the nose as you fall asleep is a lot more painful than a paperback. I'm so glad to have this new group!