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It's January and that means it's time for this year's TBB Reading Challenge & Booklord Challenge! Looking to read more? Read differently? Read anything at all? You're in the right place! There were a lot of interesting approaches to how people used the new-to-last-year Themes, so they're back! And with a new list of things to apply to your challenge however you like. Down to brass tacks. What are the TBB Reading Challenge and the Booklord Challenge? Primarily, it's a set of challenges to read more and read more broadly! To join in, just tell us your personal Reading Challenge (maybe it's a specific number of books, specific titles, or something else!) and whether you'd like to attempt completing the FULL BOOKLORD CHALLENGE (using ALL the prompts below). Then get reading, and post updates here through the year. However much or whatever you aim to read, you're welcome to join. 2024 BOOKLORD CHALLENGE PROMPTS 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge. 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men. 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color. 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers. 5. Read a work in translation 6. Read something that was nominated for an award 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play 9. Read something in the public domain 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped 11. Read something illustrated (whether it's a few splash pages or a comic, do whatever you like here!) 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024) THEMES Themes are returning! We have a new set this year and they are still entirely optional! They're not regular prompts like you see above, but you could treat them like extra prompts if you like! Or you could use them as an addition or modification to the prompts above. They're just here for some extra inspiration, so feel free to use them (or ignore them) however works for you. - Dark - Light - Unconventional - Expected - Simple - Complicated - Old - New - Angry - Calm Use this form to join the challenge and let us know your goals: Name: Personal Challenge: Booklord 2024? (Yes or No) SOME TIPS FOR READING MORE! These are just a few things I started doing that helped me read a lot more (and I've seen a lot of similar tips elsewhere). I seriously went from reading 1-2 books a year to averaging in the 75-100 a year range by doing the stuff below (and not really consciously at first -- and some of it might have started as a way just to keep myself from doomscrolling -- but it did work!). See if any of these might help you out! - Find the right format(s). If hard copies feel like a hassle, ebooks and audiobooks might be a good fit for you. Try them out if you haven't! - If it sucks, put it down! Remember that you don't have to finish a book you're not enjoying! It's a lot easier to read a book that you find fun or interesting! - Try reading more than one book at once. If you like a book but you're just not in the mood for it, try picking up something you are in the mood for to keep your momentum going. You can always come back to the other book later! - What are you really doing with your time? A lot of us are genuinely busy, but think about about how much time you spend mindlessly scrolling through things, watching YouTube videos of cow hoof trimming, playing a time-waster game you don't even enjoy. Listen to ebooks during your commute, open your ebook app while you're waiting for your doctor's appointment -- there are lots of little nooks in life you can use to read a few pages here and there if you keep it in mind. - Keep your books nearby. It's always easier to read when your book is right there! Put your ebook app on your homescreen, carry a paperback at all times, whatever works for you. - If you're really out of practice reading, set a comically small goal to start with. Commit to reading just one page, or even one sentence! You'll almost definitely exceed your expectations and it can be easier to build a habit when you start with low stakes. - Use an app or a notebook to keep track of what you've read and what you want to read. Scratch paper, Goodreads, Storygraph (my personal favorite), etc. Looking at what you've accomplished and what you're looking forward to can be a good way to stay engaged. - Relax! Reading for fun should be fun. (I assume you're doing this challenge for fun at least!). Even if you aren't quite meeting the goals you've set out, you're still accomplishing something!
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Jan 3, 2024 01:47
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Name: Heavy Metal Personal Challenge: 30 (books, audiobooks, comics) Booklord 2024? No Name: AlbertFlasher Personal Challenge: 6 books Booklord 2024? No Nom de Plume: RailtraceR30 Personal Challenge: 57 books Booklord 2024: gently caress it, Let's Go Name: Bilirubin Personal Challenge: 15 books Booklord 2024? (Yes or No) sure why not? Name: freelop Personal Challenge: 12 Booklord 2024? Yes Name: Jordan7hm Personal Challenge: 100 Booklord 2024? Yes though not that focused on it. Name: Gertrude Perkins Personal Challenge: 52 books Booklord 2024? YES Name: ectoplasm Personal Challenge: 52 Booklord 2024? Yes Name: mdemone Challenge: 100 books Booklord: Yes Name: Ben Nevis Challenge: 75 books Booklord: Yes Name: lifg Challenge: 30 books Booklord: No Name: GarbiTheGlitchress Personal Challenge: 39 books Booklord: No Name: Lord Rupert Challenge: 52 books Booklord: Nah Name: DurianGray Challenge: 52 books, re-read Moby Dick and House of Leaves Booklord: Yup! Name: Kuule hain nussivan Personal Challenge: 52 (books) Booklord 2024? Sure! Name: escape artist Personal challenge: 50 (audiobooks / regular) Booklord: Nah Name: UltraShame Personal Challenge: 25 Booklord 2024? Yes DurianGray fucked around with this message at 01:30 on Mar 10, 2024 |
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Jan 3, 2024 01:47
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Name: Heavy Metal Personal Challenge: 30 (books, audiobooks, comics) Booklord 2024? No Happy to see the thread up, thanks again! Someone fire a catapult at me if I don't read for a few months. Maybe fill the catapult with books!
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Jan 3, 2024 03:49
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FYI February's book of the month will be the now in public domain Orlando by Virginia Woolf, which should scratch off prompt #9. Come join us in the Book Club thread next month!
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Jan 3, 2024 04:29
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Name: AlbertFlasher Personal Challenge: 6 books Booklord 2024? No I've followed these threads for years but I've never participated before. I'm changing that this year. I used to read a lot more but over the past 5-10 years I might finish 1 or 2 books a year if I'm lucky. I'm hoping to use this thread to help motivate me. I usually read non-fiction books so I will continue that for this challenge. At least to start.
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Jan 3, 2024 19:23
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Nom de Plume: RailtraceR30 Personal Challenge: 57 books Booklord 2024: gently caress it, Let's Go! Who's got four limbs, working genitals, and demands a Wildcard? This Guy! 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge. 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men. 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color. 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers. 5. Read a work in translation 6. Read something that was nominated for an award 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play 9. Read something in the public domain 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped 11. Read something illustrated (whether it's a few splash pages or a comic, do whatever you like here!) 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024) THEMES Themes are returning! We have a new set this year and they are still entirely optional! They're not regular prompts like you see above, but you could treat them like extra prompts if you like! Or you could use them as an addition or modification to the prompts above. They're just here for some extra inspiration, so feel free to use them (or ignore them) however works for you. - Dark - Light - Unconventional - Expected - Simple - Complicated - Old - New - Angry - Calm RailtraceR30 fucked around with this message at 03:37 on Jan 14, 2024 |
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Jan 4, 2024 07:52
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Name: Bilirubin Personal Challenge: 15 books Booklord 2024? (Yes or No) sure why not? 2024 BOOKLORD CHALLENGE PROMPTS 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge. 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men. 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color. 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers. 5. Read a work in translation 6. Read something that was nominated for an award 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play 9. Read something in the public domain 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped 11. Read something illustrated (whether it's a few splash pages or a comic, do whatever you like here!) 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024) THEMES - Dark - Light - Unconventional - Expected - Simple - Complicated - Old - New - Angry - Calm
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Jan 6, 2024 22:38
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Name: freelop Personal Challenge: 12 Booklord 2024? Yes Only 12 this year as I want to hit some of the larger books on the shelf. I've already started The Stormlight Archive and on reading as much of it as possible this year.
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Jan 7, 2024 18:49
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Name: Jordan7hm Personal Challenge: 100 Booklord 2024? Yes though not that focused on it. I’m going to attempt to do about 60 prose (or poetry) / 40 graphic novels, as I’ve got a big stack of graphic novels I haven’t read. The 60 prose books is likely a stretch but we’ll see.
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Jan 7, 2024 22:14
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Name: Gertrude Perkins Personal Challenge: 52 books Booklord 2024? YES Heeeeeeeeeeeere we go again!!!! I no longer have the hell-commute I had last year so who knows what my reading habits will be like?
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Jan 8, 2024 03:10
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Name: ectoplasm Personal Challenge: 52 Booklord 2024? Yes I never finish this poo poo, but I'm gonna try extra hard this year. Thanks for the tips!
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Jan 9, 2024 04:57
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Name: mdemone Challenge: 100 books Booklord: Yes 1. The Suicide Museum - Ariel Dorfman (Booklord 3, 5) 2. The Employees - Olga Ravn (Booklord 2, 5) 3. Stella Maris - Cormac McCarthy 4. The End and the Death, Vol. III - Dan Abnett 5. Things That Bother Me: Death, Freedom, The Self, Etc. - Galen Strawson 6. How To Blow Up a Pipeline - Andreas Malm mdemone fucked around with this message at 19:59 on Feb 5, 2024 |
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Jan 9, 2024 16:17
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I'm in for 75 and the booklord again.
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Jan 9, 2024 22:54
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I’m in. 30 books. No booklord.
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Jan 9, 2024 23:29
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Name: GarbiTheGlitchress Personal Challenge: 39 books Booklord: No I also plan to write a short summary of my thoughts after finishing, as I tend to have trouble remembering what I read.
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Jan 13, 2024 15:42
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Name: Lord Rupert Challenge: 52 books Booklord: Nah Curious to see how many of the booklore challenges I do get though, should be a good chunk of them.
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Jan 18, 2024 04:14
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Name: DurianGray Challenge: 52 books, re-read Moby Dick and House of Leaves Boolord: Yup! Finally posting my own! I keep meaning to re-read some stuff I've loved so I'm going to go ahead and make it part of my personal challenge.
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Jan 19, 2024 16:26
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DurianGray posted:Name: DurianGray Who Booklords the Booklord??!!?!
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Jan 20, 2024 07:03
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Gertrude Perkins posted:Who Booklords the Booklord??!!?! Not me apparently since I accidentally wrote "Boolord" lol
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Jan 20, 2024 20:40
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DurianGray posted:Not me apparently since I accidentally wrote "Boolord" lol So you'll be reading nothing but horror books, got it
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Jan 20, 2024 23:39
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January books completed: 1) Bad Cree by Jessica Johns 2) White Noise by Don DeLillo 3) The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson Currently reading: Don Quixote, Orlando Name: Bilirubin Personal Challenge: 15 books 3/15 Booklord 2024? (Yes or No) sure why not? 2024 BOOKLORD CHALLENGE PROMPTS 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge. 15 books, plus books from most mega threads in TBB 3/15 #3 for SFF, #2 for Read Real Lit, #1 for General Horror 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men. 1/3 #1 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color. 1/3 #1 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers. 1/3 #1 5. Read a work in translation 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play 9. Read something in the public domain   11. Read something illustrated (whether it's a few splash pages or a comic, do whatever you like here!) 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard THEMES (still thinking of how to deal with these) - Dark - Light - Unconventional #2 - Expected - Simple - Complicated - Old - New #1 - Angry - Calm Bilirubin fucked around with this message at 22:56 on Feb 1, 2024 |
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Feb 1, 2024 22:53
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January felt like it lasted forever for me, but now it's over! I finished 8 books and got a few challenge categories ticked off already. 1. Unconquerable Sun by Kate Elliot I think I might have gotten this confused with something else I saw recommended around because woof, this did not work for me. It's ostensibly "Alexander the Great but a Girl and In Space" but it was more of a... I dunno, goofy teen hijinks with some war and court politics thrown in? I ended up skimming through a lot of it trying to find something that would keep my attention and it didn't really happen. Oh well! 2. The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows by Olivia Waite This is a historical fiction lesbian romance set in England during the reign of George IV (the exile and return of Queen Caroline is a major recurring plot element) about a beekeeper in a lavender marriage and a widowed printshop owner falling in love. Waite writes solid historical fiction in addition to the relationships which is what keeps me reading her stuff even though I don't usually go for romances. I learned a lot about beekeeping and printmaking! 3. The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw A very short, weird, purple, gross, and indulgent story about a mermaid (the scary kind) and a plague doctor (not really human either) travelling around a dying kingdom together. I really enjoyed this but the prose style is VERY idiosyncratic and I found myself looking up words maybe every other page (and I was a nerd who read the dictionary for fun in middle school). Definitely recommend if indulgent, gorey, medieval settings and purple prose are your thing. 4. In Memoriam by Alice Winn This was another queer historical fiction novel, but this time set in the trenches of WWI instead of a cozy English village. I enjoyed this a lot. It's core is a romance between two British (private? public? the fancy kind of boarding school there) school boys who both have un-spoken crushes on each other. When WWI breaks out, they both eventually join the same regiment and start a relationship, but again, it's WWI so things aren't going great. This didn't ignore how much of a horror show WWI was, but it also had some moments of respite, like a sequence of kind of fun POW prison breaks. I liked it a good bit! 5. The Archive Undying by Emma Mieko Candon A very unique sci-fi book in a decaying world where city-states are run by capricious and eccentric AI gods, many of whom have become 'corrupted' and destroyed their constituents. Everything ties in with these corrupted AI gods, and while there are some action sequences, most of the book is focused on the concept of the self and interpersonal relationships. It's very meditative for a book that also has giant robots stomping around occasionally. I dug it! Might be a bit slow if you're expecting a whiz-bang robot showdown though. 6. The Revolt by Clara Dupont-Monod, translated by Ruth Diver This is a very lyric/literary historical-ish novella about Eleanor of Aquitaine and her son Richard the Lionheart and the Game-of-Thrones-y battles (political and... the war type) between monarchs in the period. Most of the broad strokes seem factual, but there's of course a lot of creative liberty taken considering the events it's based on happened almost 900 years ago. It was pretty good but the pacing was definitely slow 7. Citizens of the Mausoleum by Rodney Gomez A poetry collection I picked up on a whim while pre-ordering a different poetry collection. While I have probably read a bit more poetry than the average person, I would not say it's a lot more. I think that this was a good collection. Nothing stood out as 'bad' as far as my current poetry litmus test, but noting really sunk its claws into me either. Some really striking turns of phrase, but overall it hasn't stuck with me. I do look forward to reading more poetry soon though! 8. The Man Who Ate His Boots: The Tragic History of the Search for the Northwest Passage by Anthony Brandt A nonfiction book about what it says. I was initially expecting this to mostly be about the Coppermine expedition since that's where the phrase in the title comes from, but it covered a lot before and after, and while Franklin is of course a major figure, he's far from the only one. This was a really good overview of the history of the (especially English) attempts and tragedies and near-tragedies looking for something that wouldn't really exist until global warming happened (yeesh). 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge. 8/52 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men. ~6/8 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color. ~3/8 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers. ~4/8 5. Read a work in translation -- The Revolt (from French) 6. Read something that was nominated for an award 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play -- Citizens of the Mausoleum (poetry) 9. Read something in the public domain 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped 11. Read something illustrated (whether it's a few splash pages or a comic, do whatever you like here!) 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024) -- The Salt Grows Heavy
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Feb 1, 2024 23:13
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This month has included a lot of manga-binge-reading and I'm okay with that. I read five novels this month, along with a short story, two comic series, and a lot of manga, for a total of twenty-six finished titles in January. 1 - Homegoing, by Yaa Gyasi. Three hundred years of a Ghanaian family split in half by the slave trade. Each character has their own chapter, which Gyasi uses well to give historical and cultural snapshots. This has the result of each character having their own short story, with most of these being engrossing and satisfying and often very distressing. Gyasi is very interested in the lived experiences of enslaved people and the horrors of that legacy, and racism and identity struggles are woven through every one of the protagonists. Some of it's hard going because of this, but it really works. It left me wanting more, but in a good way. 2 - Great, by Ryan Armand. A long and not very satisfying comic. Shaggy-dog story about a man plagued by terrible luck and bad decisions who perseveres through sheer willpower, and manages to find...contentment? success? through his ability to beat people up with a barstool. There are some Tampopo-style ramen restaurant threads that spiral into huge corporate dealings and a whole arc about living on the streets as a determination guru. It's weird, frustrating, and doesn't come together very well for me except in a handful of places. The art is sketchy and not particularly good but Armand is very good at capturing the passage of time. The core relationships are complicated and bittersweet and there are some really nice moments, but they're hard to find among the directionless trudge of the full comic. 3 - As Yet Unsent, by Tamsyn Muir. Short story filling in some plot and worlbuilding details as connective tissue between the first three Locked Tomb novels. And drat it's good. Achingly romantic and messy as well as slotting in some much-needed jigsaw pieces of plot and context. I was not expecting a story from Judith's perspective, and I liked it, it reads very differently to the narrative voices in Muir's previous books. Deep melancholy and a difficult relationship between captives and converts. Very "yuri". Good stuff. 4-12 - Inside Mari, vol. 1-9, by Shūzō Oshimi. Strange psychosexual melodrama about a horrible creep of a hikikomori who wakes up inside the body of the girl he's beeen stalking. With the help of one of the girl's classmates (who is also a weird creep, it turns out) and a host of childhood and gender baggage, the mystery of what happened to "the real Mari" often takes a back seat to the interpersonal drama of the characters, and it mostly works. There are a couple of truly dreadful sex scenes which highlight the awfulness of the whole thing, and it sometimes felt like Oshimi was pulling the ol' switcheroo, baiting readers in with gender-swap titillation before making everything really uncomfortable and grim to push the story and vibes in his own direction. I'm sure there are a lot of trans readings of this story, for obvious reasons. It's better than I expected it to be, but it's a bumpy ride. 13 - The First Men in the Moon, by H. G. Wells. One I knew very little about, but I found quite charming, if not great. The story of two men unprepared for the travails of lunar exploration ends up being much more of a survival drama than I expected, and then the last sections are full sci-fi enjoyment. Sure, there's a lot that we can look back on and scoff about - air on the moon? An ant-like race of Selenites? - but it holds together rather well, and even got a couple of laughs out of me. Great ending, too. 14 - Tempus Fugitive, by Ken Steacey. A rollicking boys-own-adventure story, with lovingly airbrushed fighter jets and a handsome lantern-jawed hero escaping from the future into the recent past. Steacey puts a huge amount of love into his depictions of flight, from dogfights to the graceful streaking of contrails behind experimental planes and futuristic ships. The story is extremely thin and serves as an excuse for our protagonist to zip from era to era and fly cool planes and look cool while doing it. There are moments of drama and occasional discussions of philosophy, but everything keeps moving and characters disappear and disappear at a rapid clip, so none of it sticks. The ending is as rushed as the rest of the comic, but I didn't have a bad time. If I'd read this as a preteen I would have loved it, I'm sure. 15 - Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, by Robert C. O'Brien. I love the film, even though I didn't see it until recently. The novel has always been in my periphery so I thought I should finally check it out. And you know what, it's really lovely. A small story about rodents that has a great scope and sense of adventure. I really enjoyed the time I spent in this world, and O'Brien's narrative voice is cosy while still preserving a sense of danger and worry. Really good! 16 - Mammoth, by Chris Flynn. I wrote a full review of this over in the Book Club thread, but to summarise: very frustrating, disappointing, despite some parts being really engrossing. 17-26 - Dorohedoro, vol. 8-16, by Q. Hayashida. Picked this up again and immediately got sucked into Hayashida's grimy, gore-soaked and goofy world. Sorcerors, black marketeers, bags of smoke, betrayal, corruption, transformation, ghosts, time travel, bloody brawls, gyoza, gyoza, devils, gyoza, mushrooms. The artwork is what brought me into this in the first place, and it only gets better, and nastier. And the writing is good, too: for stories taking place in rotten industrial hovels and the slums of Hell itself, Hayashida manages to bring a sense of sweetness and levity when she wants. I will probably finish this series in the next month or so, it's just great. 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge. - 26/52 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men. - 11 - 1, 3, 17-26, 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color. - 19 - 1, 4-12, 17-26 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers. - 1* - 3 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024) *Q. Hayashida is a huge recluse and Oshimi has written about a lot of gender feelings but isn't "out" in a way that's countable really, so. THEMES...I will figure out later.
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Feb 2, 2024 03:00
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Wait, it's February? 1. The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman - The most recent Thursday Murder Club. I really enjoy these. 2. The Council of Animals by Nick McDonnell - After the Calamity animals meet to decide the fate of the remaining humans. This wound up pretty mid. It is illustrated though and a very quick read. 3. This is Salvaged by Vauhini Vara - Saw this on a best of '23 list. A collection of short stories, many centered around women, focusing on grief and connections. Generally enjoyed this. 4. The Dead Take the A Train by Cassandra Khaw and Richard Kadrey - Julie is a 30 something addict scraping rock bottom who also happens to be a sort of ghost buster. People call her in, she exorcises the spirits, often in a very gruesome sort of way. Her former partner has become a big Wall Street d-bag at a shady firm working for the other worldly Proctor, a Lovecraftian demon sort. He's more than willing to throw Julie a job she needs from time to time, but naturally takes all the credit. But, something big is coming that threatens to destroy at the very least all the characters in the story, maybe more. This is the first of a duology. I've seen this sort of thing as campy fun or maybe just a little light. Gruesome is a good word here. There's a lot of blood, teeth, bone shard, flaying, even some tentacles and whatnot in here. It was surprisingly long, but didn't seem draggy to me. It really gives the sense of a deep "world" if you will with more going on than you realize. This was generally good and I'll read the second. 5. The Jinn-Bot of Shantiport by Samit Basu - Another 400+ pages here. A spaceport on another world is ruled by the rather repressive Tiger Clan. Power is shared in part by corporate oligarchs and crime bosses. There's poverty, oppressed populace, and bot fights. Our protagonists are a brother and sister from a family who were reputed to be revolutionaries, traitors to Tiger Clan and are under heavy surveillance. This was an interesting one. I liked a lot of it, but there's some big shifts throughout as it transitions from espionage and bot heists to political theory, and finishes with all of it together + a romance. It's not so much the transitions as lack thereof. Just Bam, you're now going to spend 100 pages on the best way to proceed with a revolution if you've got power. 6. Beyond the Door of No Return by David Diop - Read this because I enjoyed "At Night All Blood is Black" by Diop a couple years ago. This is about Michel Adanson, who as a young man visited Senegal to research botany. There he hears the story of The Revenant, a woman who returned to Senegal after being sold into slavery. He feels compelled to learn about her and seek her out. As you might imagine there's a lot about French colonialism and slavery. This was good. DurianGray posted:[b]
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Feb 5, 2024 17:59
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Whoops I keep forgetting to put this in despite only reading one book last month. I'm going to get my Wildcard request in early! 1. Tiffany Aching's Guide to Being a Witch by Rhianna Pratchett & Gabrielle Kent, Illustrated by Paul Kidby - The Pratchett thread summarised this book pretty well when it came out, it's a fun little read which doesn't add anything new but serves well as a little highlight reel. The quips in the margins that have been added in by other witches are good fun. 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge: 1/12 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men: 1/3 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color: 0/3 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers: 5. Read a work in translation 6. Read something that was nominated for an award 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play 9. Read something in the public domain 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024)
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Feb 6, 2024 10:02
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Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge: 3/30 Wrinkle In Time It was fine? Some kids books don't really hold up, and since I didn't read this when I was younger, I don't have any nostalgia here. I can see myself having liked it if I read it when I was younger. On the other hand my ten year old nephew read it recently and was "meh" on it, but then has read a ton* and probably has better taste than I did at his age. * - Metaphorically. I did some weighing and some math, and a ton of books, mixed hardcore and softcover, would be about 2500 books. East of Eden This book wanders. It's not as tight as Steinbeck's other books, large portions of it is just describing a family that I guess are Steinbeck's ancestors. But I like a book that takes slow detours to get to its point. I also fell in love with Cathy Ames immediately. Every time I put this book down book I was thinking about her. Troilus and Cressida I haven't read a lot of Shakespeare, the fact that I needed autocorrect just now to get his name right is evidence of that, but this one was different. It's not great, but it is a lot of fun. It only makes sense if you already know the Iliad and the major characters. It's a comedy, practically slapstick. I enjoyed imagining how I would stage this, and in my imagination it looks like a series of Marx Brothers skits.
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Feb 8, 2024 17:32
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Who here believes in WildCards?
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Feb 21, 2024 01:11
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RailtraceR30 posted:Who here believes in WildCards? Jackie Ess, Darryl or for something less psychosexual: Sesshu Foster & Arturo Ernesto Romo, ELADATL
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Feb 21, 2024 09:01
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Finished a fair number of books in Feb. I've started the Stormlight Archive series which should keep me going a while 2. The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson - Stormlight Archive book 1 is off to a flying start following the exploits of several characters (mostly dealing with soldier turned slave Kaladin) as hints of an apocalypse approach 3. The Assgoblins of Auschwitz by Cameron Pierce - No it's not that Auschwitz, it's an alien plant that happens to have that name run by Nazis who are aliens with a giant rear end instead of a torso and do horrific experiments on another alien race. 4. Words of Radiance: Part One by Brandon Sanderson - The story continues, we get a look into Shallan's backstory. These books are flying by 5. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Legendary Edition by Akira Himekawa - Based loosely on the game this is a fun trip through the story with a few extra bits added in. It made sense to make Link talk but it was strange to read 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge: 5/12 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men: 1/3 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color: 1/3 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers: 6. Read something that was nominated for an award 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play 9. Read something in the public domain 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024)
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Mar 6, 2024 14:23
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First time taking part, hoping I do it right. Name: Kuule hain nussivan Personal Challenge: 52 (books) Booklord 2024? Sure! Here is my StoryGraph profile. I know it's private, but I would appreciate any friend requests since I like to know what other people are reading and stalk them for recommendations. Most of my stuff is in Finnish, so you might find some weird stuff that will get translated (like Elolliset by Iida Turpeinen which is eventually coming out in english as Beasts Of The Sea) too!
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Mar 6, 2024 18:21
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Personal challenge: 50 (audiobooks / regular) Currently sitting at: 13 Booklord: Nah But I will set some personal goals in an edit at to this post, so count me in. Gonna read a considerable amount of classics and branch out with some things, just not in the exact proportion as the booklord challenge. I'll take a Wildcard? escape artist fucked around with this message at 17:46 on Mar 9, 2024 |
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Mar 6, 2024 20:44
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Name: UltraShame Personal Challenge: 25 Booklord 2024? Yes Please give me a Wildcard! --- Books read from NYD - Today: A) Blindsight - Peter Watts B) Nerdy, Shy and Socially Inappropriate - Cynthia Kim C) Remote Control - Nnedi Okorafor D) Uzumaki - Junji Ito E) All Systems Red - Martha Wells F) Alien: River of Pain - Christopher Golden --- 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge. 6/30 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men. B, C, E = 50% 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color. C, D = 33% 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers. 5. Read a work in translation - D 6. Read something that was nominated for an award A, C, D 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play 9. Read something in the public domain 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped 11. Read something illustrated (whether it's a few splash pages or a comic, do whatever you like here!) D 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024) - F
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Mar 8, 2024 06:24
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UltraShame posted:Name: UltraShame How about Leech by Hiron Ennes? (Also counts toward LGBTQ+ author.)
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Mar 8, 2024 13:59
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UltraShame posted:Name: UltraShame 15. Read the coolest loving book: E
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Mar 8, 2024 14:44
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Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge: 7/30 Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb Ah, you all know this book. I basically liked it, but not enough to get on the never-ending sequel-train. The Science of Evil by Simon Baron-Cohen I know almost nothing about psychology, so this was difficult to read, because it didn't feel like it was quite correct but I don't have enough knowledge to say why. It posits that empathy is a degree, and an evil person is someone whose empathy level is at zero. Autistic people also have their empathy set to zero, but are able to manage it through being organized. There is measurable brain activity to back up some of this. Among other problems I have in this book, it covers psychopathy but not sociopathy, and glosses over the whole banality of evil thing. How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen I haven't read a lot of books on child rearing, but this is amazing, mostly because it has stories of parents being fed up with the kids and trying to manage those feelings. I empathize. But as I type this my wife is napping and my 3 yo is having a complete meltdown over being told to not hit his little sister, so maybe I need to review. Alpha and Omega by Harry Turtledove My father in law had a shelf full of dad books. After he passed away I took a couple, including this nice hardcover Turtledove, thinking that it'd be relaxing to read the master of alternate history. My mistake! This is not an alternate history book, possibly his only book that isn't. It takes place in the now and features biblical eschatology. To his credit, Turtledove has an okay handle on the politics of middle east, where everyone distrusts their enemies almost as much as they distrust their friends, for both religious and political reasons. There's a great throw-away piece of dialog where a reform Jew is concerned that all signs are pointing to a very angry, old testament god being the true god, the kind that would let the Shoah happen. There's also a lot that's not well written, including just the nuts-and-bolts of descriptions and characters with unique voices. It's tempting to not criticize too deeply, and just call this a Beach Read, but that's not fair to better writers of better Beach Reads.
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Mar 8, 2024 18:36
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DurianGray posted:How about Leech by Hiron Ennes? (Also counts toward LGBTQ+ author.) Looks very interesting, thank you
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Mar 9, 2024 06:15
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February was sorta rough for me health-wise and I "only" managed to finish 5 books (I know that's not a small number but it felt like it compared to what I usually get through). Knock on wood, March has been better so far at least! 9. Merchant Kings: When Companies Ruled the World, 1600-1900 by Stephen R. Brown Six snapshots of different colonial-capitalist eras, each centered on a specific guy. You get the Dutch East India Company, the British East India Company, up through the early days of the scramble for Africa. No surprise these guys were nightmare human beings. Really hammers home how tightly interlinked the roots of imperialism/colonalism and human exploitation are. 10. The Indifferent Stars Above: The Harrowing Saga of a Donner Party Bride by Daniel James Brown What it says in the title. This tells the story of the Donner party focusing (mostly) on survivor Sarah Graves, but it did give a lot of extra context for the era and the aftermath that one of the other books about it I'd read (Under the Banner of Heaven) didn't go into so much, so there was new-to-me material here along with the stuff I was already familiar with. A good read if you're interested in learning more about what actually happened to the Donner Party though! 11. The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff Sort of a literary historical fiction book about a servant girl escaping from the horrors of the Jamestown colony during the winter known now as The Starving Times. She spends most of the time running through the winter forests of (what would become) Virginia and struggling desperately to survive. Really lyrically written and does not avoid being gnarly about how terrible trying to scrape by in the woods with no real resources or knowledge would be, but also has moments of beauty. I won't spoil it, but I will say I appreciated how it ended. 12. A Restless Truth by Freya Marske The second book in a historical fantasy romance series set in the Edwardian era where there's a lot of drama and power struggles involving a secretive society of wizards. The first book starred two men (who ended up together) and this is two women (one the sister of the main guy in the first book). There's a murder mystery on an ocean liner and also a lot of pretty graphic lesbian sex scenes. But it works? (The first one did too, for me at least). I usually get bored by romances but this had an engaging enough plot outside of the romance to keep me interested. Pretty popcorn-y fare, but I'm invested enough in the overarching plot to pick up the third book at some point. 13. The Lost Men: The Harrowing Saga of Shackleton's Ross Sea Party by Kelly Tyler-Lewis While Shackleton was busy getting the Endurance sunk and escaping the dangers of the Weddell Sea, another party on the opposite side of Antarctica tried to carry out the deadly work of laying supply caches for Shackleton's intended march past the south pole and across the continent (a first, since the pole had already been reached by Amundsen and Scott). Things go VERY BADLY and it's honestly a surprise more people didn't die. If you like polar expedition disasters, check it out! 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge. 13/52 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men. ~9/13 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color. ~3/13 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers. ~5/13 5. Read a work in translation -- The Revolt (from French) 6. Read something that was nominated for an award 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) 8. Read some poetry OR a play -- Citizens of the Mausoleum (poetry) 9. Read something in the public domain 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped 11. Read something illustrated (whether it's a few splash pages or a comic, do whatever you like here!) 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) -- Stephen R. Brown / Daniel James Brown 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024) -- The Salt Grows Heavy
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Mar 10, 2024 01:49
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Right, about time I try and put up a list of stuff I've read. I think it at the moment I'm slightly ahead of my target schedule. I mainly read in finnish since I'm currently in-between ereaders and restricted by the local library selections, but I'll try and add an english title where one is available. Bolded stuff is especially good and recommended. 1. John Ajvide Lindqvist - Kuinka kuolleita käsitellään (Handling the Undead) - 2.5/5 2. Marko Hautala - Kuokkamummo (The Black Tongue) - 3/5 3. Antto Terras - Viro (Sensuroimaton) - 2/5 4. Samantha Harvey - The Western Wind - 3.5/5 5. Mauri Karvonen - Aavetaloja ja ihmiskohtaloita — Hyytävää historiaa Napapiiriltä Suomenlahdelle - 2/5 6. Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen - Kuurupiilon Anatomia (An Anatomy of Hide-and-Seek) - 3.5/5 7. Cormac McCarthy - Stella Maris - 2.5/5 8. Stanislaw Lem - Solaris - 3.75/5 9. Emmi Itäranta - Teemestarin Kirja (Memory Of Water) - 2.75/5 10. Iida Turpeinen - Elolliset (Beasts of the Sea) - 5/5 - Excellent, excellent book. Should be coming out in english sometime in 2025 11. Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen - Taivaalta Pudonnut Eläintarha - 2/5 12. Jim Cobb - The Urban Prepper's Guide: How to Become Self-Sufficient and Prepared for the Next Crisis - 3.5/5 13. Andrew Michael Hurley - Nälkänummi (Starve Acre) - 2.25/5 14. Thomas Engström & Margit Richert - Nattavaara - 3/5 15. Susanna Hast - Ruumis/Huoneet - 4/5 16. Ruth Ware - Lumimyrsky (One By One) - 4/5 17. Cristoph Ransmayr - Jään Ja Pimeyden Kauhut (The Terrors of Ice and Darkness) - 4/5 18. Numerous - Marple: Twelve New Mysteries - 2.25/5 19. Jennifer Egan - Aika Suuri Hämäys (A Visit From The Goon Squad) - 3/5 Wildcard suggestions welcome!
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Mar 17, 2024 13:16
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Name: Watt Challenge: 15 fiction + some non-fiction Booklord: Almost! Fiction: - A: In Search of Lost Time - Marcel Proust - B: Invisible Man - Raph Elison - C: Don Quixote - Cervantes - D: Breakfast at Tiffany's - Truman Capote - E: The Death of Ivan Ilyich - by Leo Tolstoy - F: The Crying of Lot 49 - Thomas Pynchon - G: The Lighthouse - Virginia Woolf - H: The Awakening - Kate Chopin - I: The Master and Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov - J: The House on Mango Street - Sandra Cisneros - K: Tell Me How Long the Train's Been Gone - James Baldwin - L: Another Country - James Baldwin - M: Nervous Conditions - by Tsitsi Dangarembga - N: Bone - Fae Myenne Ng - O: A Midsummer Night's Dream - Shakespeare non-fiction: - The Signal and the Noise - Nate Silver - How to Solve It: A New Aspect of Mathematical Method - G. Polya - The Foundations of Mathematics - Stewart & Tall - Grokking Algorithms - Aditya Y. Bhargava - Plato at the Googleplex - Rebecca Goldstein - Theory of Moral Sentiments - Adam Smith - A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life - George Saunders I'm not counting my non-fiction books in my challenge, but I'm going to post them anyway. Wildcard suggestions welcome! Especially something illustrated and something that meets the same name requirement
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Mar 19, 2024 16:35
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Somebody give me a wildcard book/author that is super gay, I don't know how many of my list are LGBTQ+ so I've got to figure that out but might as well get ahead. Name: moana Personal Challenge: 120 books Booklord 2024? Sure I keep a running list in my diary, so here's what I've got so far: 1. In Search for Deeper Learning by Jal Mehta and Sarah Fine 2. Change is the Only Constant by Ben Orlin 3. After the Education Wars by Andrea Gabor 4. What's Math Got to Do With It? by Jo Boaler 5. Once Upon a Prime by Sarah Hart 6. The Future by Naomi Alderman 7. The Mathematical Instinct by Keith Devlin 8. Math Without Numbers by Milo Beckman 9. Absolution by Alice McDermott 10. Eat the Rich by Sarah Gailey 11. Homegrown by Ben Hewitt 12. Number Theory: An Introduction by Benjamin Fine and Gerhard Rosenberger 13. The Pole by JM Coetzee 14. Whalefall by Daniel Kraus 15. There, There by Tommy Orange 16. Beyond Freedom by John Holt 17. Unschooling Rules by Clark Aldrich 18. Growing Up in Public by Devorah Heitner 19. The Schoolhouse 20. Young Children Continue to Reinvent Arithmetic (book 3 of series for 3rd graders) by Constance Kamii 21. Dune by Frank Herbert 22. Young Children Reinvent Arithmetic (book 1 of series, 1st graders) by Constance Kamii 23. Is Math Real? by Eugenia Cheng 24. The Tusks of Extinction by Ray Nayler 25. Someday Angeline by Louis Sachar 26. The Schools Our Children Deserve by Alfie Kohn 27. The Last Language by Jennifer DuBois 28. Creative Schools by Ken Robinson 29. Emma by Jane Austen 30. Young Children Reinvent Arithmetic (book 2 of series, 2nd graders) by Constance Kamii 2024 BOOKLORD CHALLENGE PROMPTS 1. Set a goal for number of books or another personal challenge. Set at 120 2. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 25% of them are not written by men. So far 14/30 3. Of the books you read this year, make sure a least 25% of them are written by writers of color. So far 7/30 4. Of the books you read this year, make sure at least 8% of them are written by LGBTQ writers. So far ?/30 5. Read a work in translation 6. Read something that was nominated for an award There, There was up for the Pulitzer 7. Read something that is referenced in something else (a movie, a tv show, another book, etc.) Dune 8. Read some poetry OR a play 9. Read something in the public domain Young Children Continue to Reinvent Arithmetic 10. Read something you think is probably overhyped Creative Schools by Ken Robinson, it was weak sauce compared to his TED talk and the first book he wrote 11. Read something illustrated (whether it's a few splash pages or a comic, do whatever you like here!) Change is the Only Constant by Ben Orlin has some fantastic math illustrations 12. Read two works by different authors who have a matching name (initials, first, last, middle, whatever) So far I have three Sarahs on there. 13. Ask the thread for a Wildcard 14. Read something with exactly four (4) words in the title (since it's 2024) The Tusks of Extinction
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Mar 23, 2024 22:28
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