Rated A Game of Thrones / A Clash of Kings 8/10
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Wants to read Parable of the Sower
Finished reading The Left Hand of Darkness
Rated A League of Their Own 8/10
I've loved the movie "A League of their Own" and is one of the (relatively) few movies I will re-watch without hesitation. A new generation is going to take a swing at a tv series version of the AAGPBL this month, so while digging around for a book to read I found this one and decided to read it. It turned out to be just a novelization of the movie, but it's great how indelibly the actors' performances are that I could picture every scene, every way the dialogue was played from reading this book. The movie really was pretty perfectly cast. I can't say enough about Penny Marshall's greatness, too. The dialogue and scene descriptions differed a little here and there, but considering the book was released on the same day as the movie, that's probably from slight editor/director changes that weren't going to make the novelization. Definitely not in 1992 anyway. As always, I recommend this story, in any format.<br/><br/>Sidenote: I've apparently had this book forever as it's stamped from the South Bend, IN public library where I've not been in for decades. Hopefully I bought it and didn't accidentally keep it!
Rated St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves 8/10
<div>A really solid short story collection. I liked some better than others, of course, but in general, this was good. Glad I finally read more Karen Russell.</div>
Rated The Disordered Cosmos: A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, and Dreams Deferred 8/10
<div>Though I admit to glazing over a bit at the beginning —what with its particle diagrams, etc. —I still really liked this book. Chandra Prescod-Weinstein talks about how Black Feminism has a place in science, and how her upbringing and values have affected her position as both a physicist and professor. The last chapter, written for her mother, is perfect.</div>
Rated A Confederacy of Dumptys: Portraits of American Scoundrels in Verse 8/10
What a fun book about our national embarassments! I've seen Lithgow promoting the two previous books in this series, but they were highly particular to the last presidency's time period. I went ahead and got this one because it covers a wider range of governmental criminals. Lithgow's word choices were great with an expansive vocabulary. And who doesn't love reading history to a Seussian cadence?? Most of these characters I already knew, but still an enjoyable new way to read about them in short verse. The last long poem about January 6 really ended the slim volume strongly, though!
Edited 46d ago
Wants to read Street World: Urban Culture and Art from Five Continents
Rated Survivors: New Dawn 1 10/10
<div>This series remains great, and jumping ahead in time provides for some interesting stories.<br><br><spoiler>But Jackie! Nooooo!</spoiler></div>
Finished reading The Mercy of Gods
Edited 46d ago
Rated Still Life 8/10
<div>I liked this one better than the previous one in the series, though this once again shows some of the research seams — You're going to learn this expository information just like the author! ha .... Oh well.</div>
Rated Stories for Boys: A Memoir 10/10
I read this touching memoir in one sitting. Beginning with the suicide attempt of his father, Gregory Martin discovers why the man who raised him has reached this point. Not only was his father sexually abused as a child, but he has also been a closeted gay man throughout the entirety of his 39 year marriage. He has admitted to Martin’s mother that he has sought out “hundreds” of unknown partners at parks and rest stops while traveling and while the rest of the family slept at home. Because they lived in Spokane, Washington, the settings were very familiar to me, having myself lived there for several years.<br><br>Though the book focuses on Martin’s perspective and not his father’s, this isn’t a simple story of “troubled man comes out” — this is about a father and a son having to navigate an almost entirely new relationship. It’s an interesting exploration of memory, identity, and empathy, and I’m glad I read it.<br><br><i>(Full Disclosure: Hawthorne Books provided me with the e-book for review. This review originally appeared in <a href="http://persephonemagazine.com/2013/08/22/5-book-recommendations-for-your-reading-pleasure/">Persephone Magazine</a>.)</i>
Rated The Best American Essays 1988 6/10
<div>I picked up this 34 year old collection of essays, along with the 1990 edition, during one of the times I went to our local school district's free book giveaway day (when they pull some older books from circulation). It sat around for a long time before this challenge, but I enjoyed reading it for the most part. Most everything holds up, and the lived history from some people who are (presumably) no longer alive was interesting to read. Fav essays include work from Anne Carson, Mary Lee Settle, and Paul Horgan.</div>
Rated Between Two Fires 10/10
Edited 46d ago
Wants to read The Role Ethics of Epictetus: Stoicism in Ordinary Life
Rated Greek Buddha: Pyrrho's Encounter with Early Buddhism in Central Asia 6/10
<div>It is a fascinating book, but too speculative for my taste. Yes, all the logical “leaps of faith” are sound and plausible, but they remain leaps of faith. </div>