The 2018 Reading Challenge

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nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

I'm in! 100 Books and Booklord.

# ¿ Dec 31, 2017 07:04

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# ¿ May 14, 2024 05:59

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

I've been reading a ton this month, so am just going to do this month's check-in a little early. I'm currently in the middle of The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman and Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. I also may start The Complete Sherlock Holmes on audio today. I've been reading a lot more speculative fiction, especially fantasy, than I typically do. I also read my first manga, Princess Jellyfish, which has been really fun. My least favorite was definitely The Transition by Luke Kennard.

My favorites this month include J.Y. Yang's Tensorate Series (The Black Tides of Heaven and The Red Threads of Fortune) and Taproot by Keezy Young. Seven of the books I've read this month have been Tor.com novellas, and they've been really good. If you're into speculative fiction, you should definitely check out their offerings.

Here are the books I've read in January in order:

Weave a Circle Round - Kari Maaren (4/5) _{A bit slow to start, but when it picks up, it really picks up. Solid coming-of-age fantasy.}
Warcross - Marie Lu (3/5) _{I liked the premise and most of the book, but found the ending kind of frustrating. Looking forward to the next installment, though.}
Princess Jellyfish 2-in-1 Omnibus, Vol. 1 - Akiko Higashimura (3/5) _{My first manga! Fun, ridiculously complicated plot. Seems like a good introduction to the format/genre}
Jade City - Marie Lu (4/5) _{Mob novel in a fantasy Asian setting. Really liked this, although it did drag a bit at points. Can't wait to see where the story goes.}
And Then There Were None - Agatha Christie (4/5) _{My first Agatha Christie! An engaging and fast-paced read, but the occasional antisemitic remarks were really jarring.}
The Calder Game - Blue Balliett (3/5) _{This and the next book are books 3 and 4 in a middle grade series (Chasing Vermeer) I started late last year. They're both fun, but the first two are stronger.}
Pieces and Players - Blue Balliet (3/5)
Meet Cute - Various Authors (4/5) _{If you like YA romance, definitely check out this anthology of short stories.}
Every Heart a Doorway - Seanan McGuire (3/5) _{I'm still not 100% sold on McGuire's writing style, but she comes up with good stories.}
Down Among the Sticks and Bones - Seanan McGuire (4/5) _{Second book in the Wayward Children series. My favorite one of the series so far.}
Beneath the Sugar Sky - Seanan McGuire (3/5) _{Third book in the series. Not as good as 2, but still good.}
Why Not Me? - Mindy Kaling (3/5) _{Listened to this one on audio. Funny and enjoyable, but I liked her first book better.}
Carry On - Rainbow Rowell (3/5) _{The first half was really slow, but when the plot picked up, it really picked up.}
Princess Jellyfish 2-in-1 Omnibus, Vol. 2 - Akiko Higashimura (3/5)
Six Wakes - Mur Lafferty (4/5) _{Locked-room mystery with clones in space. I really enjoyed this.}
City of Endless Night - Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child (3/5) _{Latest installment in my guilty pleasure trashy thriller series. Better as a mystery/thriller than some of the earlier books, but I missed the quasi-supernatural element.}
The City of Brass - S.A. Chakraborty (4/5) _{Fantasy novel set in a fantasy Middle East. Lots of magic and political intrigue. Looking forward to finding out where things go next.}
Heist - Jeff Diamant (2/5) _{Pretty meh true crime book about a pretty interesting case -- the October 1997 Loomis Fargo robbery in Charlotte, NC.}
All Systems Red - Martha Wells (4/5) _{Smart and funny novella told from the perspective of a socially anxious murderous android trying to figure itself out.}
To All the Boys I've Loved Before - Jenny Han (3/5) _{A solid entry into the YA romance genre. I'll probably read the next two novels in the series at some point.}
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe - Benjamin Alire Saenz (3/5) _{Loved the first 3/4, really didn't like the last 1/4. Listened to this on audio, and Lin-Manuel Miranda's narration is excellent.}
The Black Tides of Heaven - J.Y. Yang (5/5) _{Super queer fantasy with magic and dinosaurs/dragons. Absolutely loved this; after finishing it I immediately bought the next book and preordered the third.}
The Red Threads of Fortune - J.Y. Yang (5/5) _{Same as before. I liked Black Tides better but there was a character in this one that I absolutely loved. Such a good series.}
Princess Jellyfish 2-in-1 Omnibus, Vol. 3 - Akiko Higashimura (3/5)
Princess Jellyfish 2-in-1 Omnibus, Vol. 4 - Akiko Higashimura (3/5)
The Rose and the Dagger - Renee Ahdieh (4/5) _{The second book in a YA fantasy duology inspired by 1001 Nights. Definitely a solid followup to the first installment.}
Taproot - Keezy Young (5/5) _{Really sweet and heartbreaking graphic novel. Queer romance with ghosts. Beautiful art.}
Thornhill - Pam Smy (4/5) _{Surprisingly dark (and really good) middle-grade graphic novel. NYPL shelves it with YA, which is definitely a decision I agree with.}
The London Scene - Virginia Woolf (4/5) _{A short book of essays originally published in Good Housekeeping in the 1930s. Woolf's love letter to London and the people in it. My favorite was her essay about St. Paul's.}
Soviet Daughter - Juliet Alekseyeva (4/5) _{A graphic biography of the author's great-grandmother, who grew up in Soviet Ukraine. A really engaging tribute; I'd love to read the autobiography it's based on.}
The Transition - Luke Kennard (2/5) _{A pretty meh piece of literary fiction with a promising premise.}
The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion - Margaret Killjoy (4/5) _{Not-too-scary horror novella about a murderous deer with three antlers that shows up in an anarchist collective in rural Iowa. I really liked this.}

And now, my Book Lord progress. Books can count for regular and bonus challenges, but not more than one challenge on the same tier. The first four are obvious exceptions. I know my numbers for 2 and 3 aren't tracking the exact thing the task is requesting, but they're close enough. I'm keeping an eye on things to make sure I still meet the letter of the challenge; it would just be to make my spreadsheet auto-calculate these numbers it the way it's set up to track author gender. I figured out a fairly non-effort way to get this information, so disregard this. In situations where I read more than one book by an author who is new to me, only the first book I read is counted as being by a new author.

_{1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge: 32/100

2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 20% of them are written by women. Currently at 84% non-male authors.

� bonus: Of these make sure half are by authors new to you 60% of the non-male authors I've read are new to me; 56% of the books I've read by non-male authors have been by authors new to me.

3. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 20% of them are written by someone non-white. Currently at 36% authors of color.

� bonus: Of these make sure half are by authors new to you 78% of the authors of color I've read are new to me; 54% of the books I've read by authors of color have been by authors new to me.

4. Read at least one book by an LGBT author. Down Among the Sticks and Bones

� bonus: Make sure 10% of the books you read this year are by LGBT authors I'm not actively tracking queer authors, but I'm definitely well over this.

5. Participate in the TBB BotM thread at least once in 2018 (thread stickied each month at the top of the forum).

� bonus: Participate in the SHAMEFUL The Greatest Books You've Never Read thread. Done! Currently reading Anna Karenina for this.

6. Ask another poster to issue you a wildcard, then read it.

� bonus: Similarly, get a wildcard from another thread in this forum

7. Get a recommendation from a friend or loved one.

� bonus: Read literally the first in-person book recommendation you get in 2018 (solicited or not)

8. Read something written before you were born. And Then There Were None

� bonus: Read a book written/published the exact year you were born

9. Read a book published in 2018 (or if you're eager to start early, the latter half of 2017). Beneath the Sugar Sky

� bonus: Read something that wins an award in 2018, but only after it is announced (i.e. don't apply retroactively)

10. Read something translated from another language. Princess Jellyfish, Vol. 1

�bonus: Read something that isn't in your primary language

11. Read something political.

� bonus: Read something political from/about a country you aren't from and don't currently live in. Soviet Daughter

12. Read a poetry collection.

� bonus: Read poems by at least 10 different poets

13. Read a collection of short stories. Meet Cute

� bonus: Read short stories by at least 10 different authors. Meet Cute

14. Read a play.

� bonus: Read a play first published in the last 10 years

15. Read something involving history.

� bonus: Read something about a (nonfictional) war that didn't involve the U.S.

16. Read something biographical. Soviet Daughter

� bonus: Read something biographical about someone you've met/seen in person

17. Read something about religion.

� bonus: Read a major religious text

18. Read something from a non-traditional perspective. All Systems Red

� bonus: Read something narrated in the 2nd person

19. Read something that has been banned, censored, or challenged. Aristotle and Dante...

� bonus: Read something currently banned, censored, or challenged in its country of origin. Aristotle and Dante...

20. Read something about music.

� bonus: Read something about a genre of music you're explicitly not a fan of

21. Read something that involves Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Every Heart a Doorway

� bonus: Read something about hunger

22. Read something about the future. Six Wakes

� bonus: Read something about a future that takes place before the current year}

nerdpony fucked around with this message at 19:53 on Jan 31, 2018

# ¿ Jan 30, 2018 17:19

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

Soviet Daughter by Julia Alekseyeva is definitely a political book -- it's a graphic adaptation of the author's great-grandmother's autobiography about growing up in Soviet Ukraine (she ended up working for the government in various capacities, including for the NKVD), but it has interludes wherein the author reflects upon the grandmother's influence on her life and personal politics. It would be a good political read for someone who doesn't want to read a book about current events or more traditional political history. Infomocracy by Malka Older and its sequel, Null States, would be good fictional political books. The final installment in the trilogy, State Tectonics, comes out this September. The Accusation by Bandi, the book of short stories smuggled out of North Korea and published in English last year, could also count toward this task.

# ¿ Jan 31, 2018 20:02

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

Ben Nevis posted:

This is a really apt description of Penumbra. I couldn't put my finger on specific things, but amateurish is about right.

My feeling about both Penumbra and Sourdough was that I enjoyed reading them while I was reading them and they were fun, but when I finished them I didn't feel the desire for more or the need to think or talk about it.

I also agree that the obsession with Google in Penumbra is weird and detracts from the book. It really feels like product placement.

# ¿ Mar 1, 2018 21:01

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

I read less in February than I did in January, but still a lot. I intentionally read mostly books by black authors; I also read my first cozy mysteries. Favorites included Everfair by Nisi Shawl, An Unkindness of Ghosts by River Solomon, The Salt Roads by Nalo Hopkinson, Born a Crime by Trevor Noah, and Bingo Love by Tee Franklin.

Here's what I read in February (technically January 31-March 5, but whatever):

33. The Invisible Library - Genevieve Cogman (4/5) _{Really fun; looking forward to reading the other books in the series (if NYPL ever actually brings them to my branch...)}
34. Princess Jellyfish 2-in-1 Omnibus, Vol. 5 - Akiko Higashimura (3/5) _{I read Vols. 5-7 basically in one sitting because I thought the story was complete after 7; turns out it wasn't and I'm stuck waiting a few more months for the concluding volumes to come out in English.}
35. Princess Jellyfish 2-in-1 Omnibus, Vol. 6 - Akiko Higashimura (3/5)
36. Princess Jellyfish 2-in-1 Omnibus, Vol. 7 - Akiko Higashimura (3/5)
37. Everfair - Nisi Shawl (4/5) _{What if steam power enabled the Congolese people to throw off Belgian oppression? I wish I had gotten to know the various POV characters better; I honestly would have read a whole book about each of them.}
38. Long Way Down - Jason Reynolds (4/5) _{YA novel about gun violence; it's told in verse. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook.}
39. An Unkindness of Ghosts - Rivers Solomon (4/5) _{Takes place on a generation ship modeled after the Antebellum South. Intense read, but I highly recommend it.}
40. You Can't Touch My Hair - Phoebe Robinson (3/5) _{Listened to this on audio. It had its moments and I generally enjoyed it, but I was also ready for it to be over when it was.}
41. The Salt Roads - Nalo Hopkinson (5/5) _{I loved this book. Queer time travel with slave rebellions and other things. Highly recommend.}
42. How It Went Down - Kekla Magoon (3/5) _{More YA fiction about racism and gun violence. I really like Kekla Magoon, but didn't like this as much as The Rock and the River, which I read a few years ago.}
43. Binti - Nnedi Okorafor (4/5) _{A solid coming-of-age story with aliens and space travel.}
44. Binti: Home - Nnedi Okorafor (4/5) _{The next installment; you get to know the characters a lot better and see the world where she's studying.}
45. Binti: The Night Masquerade - Nnedi Okorafor (3/5) _{I liked this less than the previous two but still really enjoyed it. You learn more about Binti's family history and home society.}
46. We Love You, Charlie Freeman - Kaitlyn Greenidge (4/5) _{A coming-of-age novel that explores the history of race's intersections with medical/anthropological research. Hard to elevator pitch, but I highly recommend it.}
47. Murder in G Major - Alexia Gordon (3/5) _{Black American conductor ends up working at a boys' school in a small town in rural Ireland; she solves mysteries with the help of the sassy ghost of one of her favorite composers. A much-needed break from the heavier fare I had been reading earlier this month.}
48. Death in D Minor - Alexia Gordon (3/5) _{Next book in the series; this one has art crime more than music.}
49. Killing in C Sharp - Alexia Gordon (3/5) _{Got an ARC of this one. The author's definitely getting better at writing. Back to music here and a stronger paranormal element to the mystery.}
50. Bingo Love - Tee Franklin (5/5) _{Beautiful and heartbreaking lesbian romance comic.}
51. Born a Crime - Trevor Noah (4/5) _{Interesting and smart; I'm really glad I listened to this because Noah's narration really makes it. I learned a lot about Apartheid and South Africa.}
52. Murder with Fried Chicken and Waffles - A.L. Herbert (3/5) _{More cozy mysteries, this one featuring a woman who runs a soul food restaurant. Although the author is better at writing than Alexia Gordon, I was less interested in the food than I was in the classical music.}
53. Murder with Macaroni and Cheese - A.L. Herbert (3/5) _{Still read the second one, though.}
54. Moving Pictures - Kathryn & Stuart Immonen (3/5) _{Really interesting and I loved the art. It's not the story I wanted to read when I picked it up, but it's still very good.}

And now, my Book Lord progress. Books can count for regular and bonus challenges, but not more than one challenge on the same tier. The first four are obvious exceptions. In situations where I read more than one book by an author who is new to me, only the first book I read is counted as being by a new author.

_{1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge: 54/100

2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 20% of them are written by women. Currently at 83% non-male authors and 87% books by non-male authors.

� bonus: Of these make sure half are by authors new to you 65% of the non-male authors I've read are new to me; 64% of the books I've read by non-male authors have been by authors new to me.

3. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 20% of them are written by someone non-white. Currently at 56% authors of color.

� bonus: Of these make sure half are by authors new to you 85% of the authors of color I've read are new to me; 57% of the books I've read by authors of color have been by authors new to me.

4. Read at least one book by an LGBT author. Down Among the Sticks and Bones

� bonus: Make sure 10% of the books you read this year are by LGBT authors I'm not actively tracking queer authors, but I'm definitely well over this.

5. Participate in the TBB BotM thread at least once in 2018 (thread stickied each month at the top of the forum).

� bonus: Participate in the SHAMEFUL The Greatest Books You've Never Read thread. Done! Currently reading Anna Karenina for this.

6. Ask another poster to issue you a wildcard, then read it.

� bonus: Similarly, get a wildcard from another thread in this forum

7. Get a recommendation from a friend or loved one. The Invisible Library

� bonus: Read literally the first in-person book recommendation you get in 2018 (solicited or not)

8. Read something written before you were born. And Then There Were None

� bonus: Read a book written/published the exact year you were born

9. Read a book published in 2018 (or if you're eager to start early, the latter half of 2017). Beneath the Sugar Sky

� bonus: Read something that wins an award in 2018, but only after it is announced (i.e. don't apply retroactively)

10. Read something translated from another language. Princess Jellyfish, Vol. 1

�bonus: Read something that isn't in your primary language

11. Read something political. How It Went Down

� bonus: Read something political from/about a country you aren't from and don't currently live in. Soviet Daughter

12. Read a poetry collection.

� bonus: Read poems by at least 10 different poets

13. Read a collection of short stories. Meet Cute

� bonus: Read short stories by at least 10 different authors. Meet Cute

14. Read a play.

� bonus: Read a play first published in the last 10 years

15. Read something involving history. The Salt Roads

� bonus: Read something about a (nonfictional) war that didn't involve the U.S.

16. Read something biographical. Soviet Daughter

� bonus: Read something biographical about someone you've met/seen in person

17. Read something about religion.

� bonus: Read a major religious text

18. Read something from a non-traditional perspective. All Systems Red

� bonus: Read something narrated in the 2nd person

19. Read something that has been banned, censored, or challenged. Aristotle and Dante...

� bonus: Read something currently banned, censored, or challenged in its country of origin. Aristotle and Dante...

20. Read something about music.

� bonus: Read something about a genre of music you're explicitly not a fan of

21. Read something that involves Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Every Heart a Doorway

� bonus: Read something about hunger

22. Read something about the future. Six Wakes

� bonus: Read something about a future that takes place before the current year}

nerdpony fucked around with this message at 17:45 on Mar 5, 2018

# ¿ Mar 5, 2018 17:41

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

I read Indecent by Paula Vogel and absolutely loved it, but I'm not sure if someone who hasn't seen it on stage would have enjoyed it as much as I did. It was nominated for (and probably should have won, although I admittedly didn't see Oslo) the Best Play Tony. It's a play about The God of Vengeance, a famous and controversial play by Yiddish playwright Sholem Asch that included the first (known) lesbian kiss on the American stage. It was filmed and aired as part of PBS's Great Performances series this fall, so may be available for streaming somewhere.

I have a copy of Angels in America sitting on my nightstand, and I'm going to read that soon. I saw both parts on Saturday and am looking forward to spending some more time with it.

Eugene O'Neill's plays, in addition to generally being very good, are notorious for their detailed stage directions -- unlike some other playwrights, reading the play gives you a lot of insight into it you might not have otherwise.

nerdpony fucked around with this message at 02:22 on Mar 21, 2018

# ¿ Mar 21, 2018 02:14

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

Way less in February than in March -- work's been crazy and Holy Week took up even more of my time than I was anticipating. I'm hoping April gives me a chance to read a bit more. I have a few things in progress right now but I'm not super excited about any of them.

Here's what I read from March 5 onward:

55. 100 Nights of Hero - Isabel Greenberg (5/5) _{Lesbian graphic novel inspired by 1001 Nights. I absolutely loved this.}
56. Everything, Everything - Nicola Yoon (2/5) _{This book was so bad.}
57. Indecent - Paula Vogel (5/5) _{Saw this on stage, absolutely loved it, loved it in print.}
58. Ooku, Vol. 7 - Fumi Yoshinaga (4/5) _{Really interesting alternate history manga about gender and politics and stuff. Looking forward to reading more -- although I didn't realize quite how long the series was when I started!}
59. My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness - Nagata Kabi (4/5) _{Graphic memoir. Relatable and heartbreaking.}
60. The Best We Could Do - Thi Bui (4/5) _{Memoir/family history about refugees, immigration, and family ties. I loved the art.}
61. So You Want to Talk About Race - Ijeoma Oluo (3/5) _{A really solid introductory primer on race and privilege in the US. The sort of book I'd recommend someone give their mom.}
62. Tiny Pretty Things - Sona Charaipotra & Dhonielle Clayton (4/5) _{Trashy soapy YA novel about a ballet school in Manhattan. Exactly what I needed to read when I read it.}
63. Shiny Broken Pieces - Sona Charaipotra & Dhonielle Clayton (3/5) _{The sequel. I didn't like it as much because it got a little too off the rails -- the girls got a little too terrible for it to be at all realistic.}
64. That Inevitable Victorian Thing - E.K. Johnston (4/5) _{Fun and queer alternate history novel that takes place in a really interesting world. The characters were engaging, but I really found the world much more interesting and want to read more stories in it.}
65. The Masked City - Genevieve Cogman (4/5) _{The next installment in the Invisible Library series. Enjoyable, fun, and smart, just like the precedent the first book set.}
66. Stories of Your Life and Others - Ted Chiang (5/5) _{An amazing collection of short stories; I wish I had read this years before. Highly, highly, highly recommend.}
67. Ooku, Vol. 2 - Fumi Yoshinaga (3/5)
68. The Last Equation of Isaac Severy - Nova Jacobs (3/5) _{Fun math-centered puzzle thriller novel. Worth the time I took to read it, and I'll definitely check out the author's future books.}
69. The Burning Page - Genevieve Cogman (3/5)

And now, my Book Lord progress. Books can count for regular and bonus challenges, but not more than one challenge on the same tier. The first four are obvious exceptions. In situations where I read more than one book by an author who is new to me, only the first book I read is counted as being by a new author.

_{1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge: 69/100

2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 20% of them are written by women. Currently at 83% non-male authors and 88% books by non-male authors.

� bonus: Of these make sure half are by authors new to you 70% of the non-male authors I've read are new to me; 58% of the books I've read by non-male authors have been by authors new to me.

3. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 20% of them are written by someone non-white. Currently at 55% authors of color.

� bonus: Of these make sure half are by authors new to you 90% of the authors of color I've read are new to me; 62% of the books I've read by authors of color have been by authors new to me.

4. Read at least one book by an LGBT author. Down Among the Sticks and Bones

� bonus: Make sure 10% of the books you read this year are by LGBT authors I'm not actively tracking queer authors, but I'm definitely well over this.

5. Participate in the TBB BotM thread at least once in 2018 (thread stickied each month at the top of the forum).

� bonus: Participate in the SHAMEFUL The Greatest Books You've Never Read thread. Done! Currently reading Anna Karenina for this.

6. Ask another poster to issue you a wildcard, then read it.

� bonus: Similarly, get a wildcard from another thread in this forum

7. Get a recommendation from a friend or loved one. The Invisible Library

� bonus: Read literally the first in-person book recommendation you get in 2018 (solicited or not)

8. Read something written before you were born. And Then There Were None

� bonus: Read a book written/published the exact year you were born

9. Read a book published in 2018 (or if you're eager to start early, the latter half of 2017). Beneath the Sugar Sky

� bonus: Read something that wins an award in 2018, but only after it is announced (i.e. don't apply retroactively)

10. Read something translated from another language. Princess Jellyfish, Vol. 1

�bonus: Read something that isn't in your primary language

11. Read something political. How It Went Down

� bonus: Read something political from/about a country you aren't from and don't currently live in. Soviet Daughter

12. Read a poetry collection.

� bonus: Read poems by at least 10 different poets

13. Read a collection of short stories. Meet Cute

� bonus: Read short stories by at least 10 different authors. Meet Cute

14. Read a play.

� bonus: Read a play first published in the last 10 years

15. Read something involving history. The Salt Roads

� bonus: Read something about a (nonfictional) war that didn't involve the U.S.

16. Read something biographical. Soviet Daughter

� bonus: Read something biographical about someone you've met/seen in person

17. Read something about religion.

� bonus: Read a major religious text

18. Read something from a non-traditional perspective. All Systems Red

� bonus: Read something narrated in the 2nd person

19. Read something that has been banned, censored, or challenged. Aristotle and Dante...

� bonus: Read something currently banned, censored, or challenged in its country of origin. Aristotle and Dante...

20. Read something about music.

� bonus: Read something about a genre of music you're explicitly not a fan of

21. Read something that involves Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Every Heart a Doorway

� bonus: Read something about hunger

22. Read something about the future. Six Wakes

� bonus: Read something about a future that takes place before the current year}

# ¿ Apr 3, 2018 15:37

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

Esme posted:

We Love You Charlie Freeman - I picked this up because the description of the book reminded me of Get Out. It did not disappoint.

Wasn't this book so good? I read it basically in one sitting earlier this year, and I'm so glad I did. It was so much more than it could have been.

# ¿ Apr 10, 2018 18:25

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

I recently read Ted Chiang's Stories of Your Life and Others and really, really enjoyed it. Although I usually read fairly quickly, it took me about two weeks to get through this (with other stuff in between), just because I wanted to sit with the stories for a while. If you saw the movie Arrival, you'll recognize one of the stories. I'm currently reading Daniel Mallory Ortberg's The Merry Spinster and Nalo Hopkinson's Falling in Love with Hominids and liking both.

If anyone in this thread reads YA romance and wants to knock out both the challenge and the bonus in one go, Meet Cute is a really sweet anthology of YA romance short stories.

I haven't read them yet, but my partner has recently read and loved Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado and The Doll's Alphabet by Camilla Grudova.

# ¿ Apr 11, 2018 21:56

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

I just remembered that one of my favorite books I read last year is technically a collection of short stories (it's basically a novel, though) -- The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra. Really tightly connected short stories about life in the Soviet Union and Russia/the former USSR. It was really good and I highly recommend it.

# ¿ Apr 12, 2018 14:39

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# ¿ May 14, 2024 05:59

nerdpony: May 1, 2007; Apparently I was supposed to put something here.; Fun Shoe

I slumped really, really hard in April but seem to have gotten back on board. I DNF'd two things (Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell on audio and The Lost Plot, the fourth book in the Invisible Library series, in print) and only finished three books. Not going to bother with the usual formatting this month since I read so little. I'm looking forward to the big stack of graphic novels and comic trades I have next to my bed for this month, as well as working through the pile of library books I appear to have accumulated.

That said, the three books I finished this month were all really good. Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente was super fun and funny; it wasn't as amazing as it could have been, but I really enjoyed it. Time Was by Ian McDonald was a quiet and understated novella that was poignant and heartbreaking. Passing Strange by Ellen Klages was a really excellent queer fantasy novella set in 1940s San Francisco. I'd love to read more works like this (or in this world/with these characters).

I've also realized that I haven't asked for a wildcard yet, so wildcard me! I read English and German, extra points if it's something queer.

Ben Nevis, if you want to read another book about sketchy wine, check out The Billionaire's Vinegar by Benjamin Wallace.

# ¿ May 4, 2018 17:15

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > The Book Barn > The 2018 Reading Challenge