EPBOT Readers discussion

Hi all,

Back from my unwanted Ohio vacation. it went about how I expected. Did have some fun hiking, and doing the animal wilds trip. But otherwise it was kind of an awkward, not very relaxing vacation, and I got food poisoning I'm still feeling run down from. And I had a doctors appointment yesterday that I got my flu shot at, so that hit harder than usual due to feeling a bit under the weather already. My delayed party is tomorrow, hoping i feel better in the morning!

This week I finished:

Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology - short story collection of spooky fiction from Indigenous writers. Like most short story collections, some I liked, others were meh. I'm glad I read it though.

The Final Gambit - conclusion to the first arc of the inheritance games. this was a fun YA series. I liked how it wrapped up, it fixed some of the misgivings I had. There's also a new arc in the series that just came out a couple weeks ago, The Brothers Hawthorne. It looked like the new one is from the perspective from one of the brothers this time, instead of Avery.

A Simple Favor - read this for my library's genre genius challenge, for books made into movies. I actually think i like the movie more, although I'm not sure if it's because I saw the movie first or if because the story really isn't that strong but at least the movie has Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively to hold it up.

A Closed and Common Orbit - finished up for bedtime re-read.

Currently reading:
A Marvellous Light - just started, so no real opinions yet.

Lessons in Chemistry - also pretty newly started, audio book.

QOTW:

Borrowing from popsugar again: Have you ever read a banned book and understood why it was banned? Not saying you condoned the banning, just that you understood.

I've read banned books that I could understand why someone would not want to read them themselves, or why they would not want THEIR child to not read them until they were older. But I am against banning books, so I don't really understand the whole "I don't want to read this so no one else should either" mentality. Even for books I super don't want to exist, I still just don't want people to read them because I want them to make the right choice, I don't want to make the choice for them. ( for stuff that has blatantly hateful mis-information, things like that).

Sheri,

It sounds like you were a trooper for the trip you didn't want to be on. Sorry to hear about the food poisoning. That is never fun. I hope your delayed party is excellent!

I'm about to embark on a 12 day trip to drive to my 94YO mom's. And then drive her from western NY down to NC to visit my sister and brother, then drive her back and then drive us back to home. Lots of car time coming up.

This week I finished listening to The Sinister Booksellers of Bath. It was enjoyable enough.

In a huge completion, my husband and I finished Puzzle Masterpieces: Elegant Challenges for Crossword Lovers. We've had it for nearly 2 years. We didn't "read" this book. Patrick Berry is a variety puzzle master. He appears frequently in the Saturday WSJ where we discovered him. The puzzles he constructs are amazing, challenging but doable (at least for us, when we do them together). I highly recommend. Sadly this was a one-time book as we chose to write in the book, not photocopy.

I started listening to Dark Matter. It is interesting so far. I don't know what's real just as much as the main character.

I'm reading Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures. It is very interesting conceptually but a little dry so far for my taste. It may be slow for me because I read at bedtime and this is definitely putting me to sleep before I've read too many pages.

I suspect that I will re-read (re-listen actually) to The Thursday Murder Club. That is the book we chose that I think my mom will enjoy in the car ride. We'll see.

QOTW:
I have not read banned books that I am aware of, or not specifically because they were banned. I feel like you and am against banning books. I don't want anyone telling me what I can or cannot do/read that doesn't involve anyone else. And I won't tell anyone else what they can read either.

I hope your party is awesome, Sheri! Susan, I will wave to you in NC.

The Golden Spoon - My sister recommended this with the warning that the people who wrote blurbs comparing it to Clue must have never seen the movie but heard there was a murder in a big house. Indeed, it is not a farce; it might not really even be a mystery novel. The best description I have come up with is "Great British Bake Off Gothic" - it starts out with a serial-numbers-filed-off GBBO in which the contestants stay in the host's childhood manor home, but then as the secrets of the cast, crew, and house are slowly revealed, it gets more Shirley-Jackson-esque (but still with pastries!) until culminating in murder. I'm not sure the author quite entirely stuck the landing, but I enjoyed it, and if all that sounds like fun to you, then I think you would, too.

QOTW: I mean, I can understand why books are banned in the "because people are terrible" sense, but I don't think I've read anything that I was like, "I see your point." I don't read a lot of political treatises or anything like that, although after searching briefly just now, what I've read of the current top banned books are stuff like Gender Queer and Fun Home, so not really anything deeply nefarious there.

Sorry to hear about the food poisoning, Sheri. That sucks! Hope your party was fun, at least!

Finished:
Starter Villain by John Scalzi - 4.5 stars - I loved this. It was short and sweet. I think I said this before, but if you liked Kaiju Preservation Society, you'd like this.

Comics & manga:
The Ancient Magus' Bride Vol. 18
A Man & His Cat Vol. 9
Shortcake Cake, Vol. 9
Shortcake Cake, Vol. 10

Currently reading:
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi - I'm just starting it, but I have heard a lot of good things.

Upcoming/Planned:
Nothing yet. With my challenge reading finished, I'm putting myself at the mercy of the library hold system for the rest of the year. :)

QOTW:
I don't think I have. I am completely against banning books.

Golden Spoon sounds like fun - adding to my list!!

I spent last week catching up on October Daye with Be the Serpent, Sleep No More, and the associated included novellas. I've pre-ordered book 18 which will be out in a few weeks, so I'm ready! I haven't decided yet what I am going to pick up next. I have a ton of things loaded on my kindle that I haven't touched, a few library loans that I am waiting on, and some of my son's middle grade books that I've been meaning to read.

QOTW: I dunno, I can see why narrow minded people might want a book banned, but ugh I get so worked up when I think about the issue. I don't have any specific examples but yeah.