EPBOT Readers discussion

Hello Everyone,
I'll put up a post this week. This was a bit eventful week for me as I gave my notice of retirement. I plan to be done mid-late March. The final date isn't set yet. I had decided a couple months ago but wanted to wait until the new year to talk to my manager. Staying motivated is now hard. It is like having senior-itis back in school.

I only have one finish this week, Happy After All. It was okay. I enjoyed the first 70% but then it took a turn for incessant self-reflection that just dragged on for so long. No people would talk to each other that way. I finished but the book's pace was too slow.

I'm figuring out the next book to read on my kindle.

I am still listening The Frozen River. This is the 18th century midwife up in Maine. It is historical fiction based on the actual diaries of the main character. She's a strong woman and I'm enjoying this.

QOTW:
This is a repeat question from a few years ago. But we have new people participating now.
What did you think of required reading in school? What books do you remember or were memorable from school?

Although I always was an avid reader, I usually did not like required reading in school. Either the material was not interesting to me, or I just didn't get the "deep" things.

Some books were okay and/or memorable. Books like Animal Farm stand out. And I remember reading several things for AP English. In that class I distinctly remember the motto in the class for any question was "when in doubt, answer Milton". We read Dante's Inferno and the Canterbury Tales in that class, in addition to Paradise Lost. But while I remember the titles I don't really remember the content. Given I'm now retiring, you can know it was a LONG time ago!

Wow, congratulations, Susan! I assume you will be using all your new time for reading. ;)

The Teeny-Weeny Unicorn - The art in this picture book was done with pastels and was cleverly smudged for motion blur, but the inside illustrations weren't as cute as the cover, and the story was somewhat disappointing.

Mary Jane - I know some people here liked this one, but I found it rather superficial. Also there were some author interviews in the back, and when asked who inspired the singing variety show star mononymously known as Sheba with golden skin and long, straight black hair that she flips out of her face with a signature gesture, she said, "I was obviously thinking of lots of stars from that era [...] people like the Osmonds, the Carpenters, and Liberace". Uh, is there anyone else in particular you might want to mention?

Beaverland: How One Weird Rodent Made America - This was for an online book club. Otherwise I probably wouldn't have read it, since I read Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter two years ago. This one was fine, but I probably liked the other one better.

QOTW: I liked most of the stuff I read for school, although talking about a book for weeks and picking it all the way apart often felt like it ruined it. In hindsight I think I did actually learn from all that (sometimes I notice symbolism and foreshadowing now!).

Congratulations, Susan! What a milestone! :)

I finally completed the Shadows of the Apt series with Seal of the Worm, which I finished reading last night. Fantastic ending to a wonderful series. I know big monster series are not everyone's cup of tea, but I love them, and this did not disappoint. Not for the insect-phobic, though.

I've just downloaded some nonfiction from the library to start next: Why We Remember: Unlocking Memory's Power to Hold on to What Matters. It looks fascinating!

QotW: agreed with Rebecca that while I generally enjoyed the books we read for school, I disliked picking them apart for symbolism etc. Some favorites were A Separate Peace (which I really barely remember anything about, except that it was the first required reading book that I really loved) and Anna Karenina (Russian lit class in high school with my favorite teacher).

Congrats on your upcoming retirement, Susan!

Finished:
Heavenly Tyrant by Xiran Jay Zhao - 4 stars - a book that features a character with chronic pain. I am really looking forward to the third book now. I really want to see how the author ends this series.

I am currently at 5/50 for Popsugar (4/40 and 1/10).

Currently reading:
Swordcrossed by Freya Marske - a book I got for free since it's a library book. This has been taking a little time for me to get into and I've been reading it slowly due to life, so not the book's fault. I'm going to try to really get into it this weekend.

Upcoming/Planned:
Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis - a book about space tourism

QOTW:
I get why reading is required in schools, but I think for a lot of students, it can push them away from reading. I always much preferred assignments where we could pick our own books and then do some kind of paper or project on it. I also had a bad tendency to finish assigned books way before the rest of the class, or else I would have to force myself not to read ahead all the time.

As far as memorable required reading, some of the standouts for me were:
The Outsiders
The Color Purple
Cyrano de Bergerac
Pride & Prejudice
Slaughterhouse-Five