What are you reading?

[Jude]

Speaking of Murderbot, I'm #13 in the library queue for the first book, of which the library has 6 copies. So maybe late next month I'll get my hands on it.

[Inanna]

Ooooh. I haven’t. Thank you!

[narya]

Now that I'm hooked on Libby, and have free time, I'm venturing into this thread and the Kindle Resource thread. As I see an interesting recommendation I am dropping it into my hold queue, then reading books as they become available. I'm delighted to have a library in my back pocket, and to be able to shift from book to book as whim dictates. I enjoy snuggling under the covers with the text on my phone, in soothing sepia colors and very large font. Currently in my Libby app:

Reading now:
- Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix Harrow, as recommended by Inanna. Thoughtful, deliciously written fantasy of a young orphaned woman of color in early 1900s Vermont, being raised in a household of white males of privilege. And magic doors.
- Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes, as translated by Samuel Putnam in 1948, since I finally realized I've seen all sorts of popular take-offs, but have never read the source material. It's not at all what I expected, but it is growing on me very slowly.

Next up:
- Crocodile on the Sandbank, also recommended by Inanna in our recent Zoom moot, not started yet.
- Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie, as recommended by Inanna up thread.

Awaiting holds:
- The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu - a favorite author - I don't know what the book is about, but I heard this one is now available and assume it will be good.
- Leviathan Falls by James S.A. Corey - last of the Expanse novels, publishing next week.
- Consider Phlebas by Iain Banks - it came up in a discussion with my brother, and sounded interesting.
- Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams, as recommended by Impy in this thread.
- Honolulu by Alan Brennert, recommended by Rose in this thread.

Just finished:
- All available Expanse novels (500 pages each) and novellas (shorter) by James S.A. Corey. I read all 15 of them, sometimes twice, because they are just as immersive and enjoyable the second time through. There are so many Chekhov's guns lying around that you don't see the first time you read the book - sometimes the gun doesn't go off until 4 books later. I've seen the TV adaptation as well, so the movies in my head as I read the books are particularly vivid and detailed.

Good thing I just twisted my ankle and am forced to lie around reading books.

[Jude]

I just finished Ten Thousand Doors of January (thank you Inanna!) and now my reserved copy of the first of the Murderbot Diaries has arrived. I think I reserved this several months ago when it came up on the board.

I tentatively reserved a couple of e-books from my library too. I'll figure out how to acquire them when they come in.

[Inanna]

*The* Ten Thousand Doors of January. Note the specificity, there might be other doors, thousands of them, which are not January’s.

I also just finished “The Dictionary of Lost Words”; quite liked it. Especially the beginning.

ETA (hey, I can edit in Tt): Am reading the latest in the Outlander series: “Tell the Bees that I am Gone”.

[RoseMorninStar]

I find that title 'Tell the Bees that I am Gone' to be haunting. Love 'THE Ten Thousand Doors of January' as a title too.

I have a book on hold that sounds fascinating, 'All that She Carried' by Tiya Miles. I think I read about it in the NYT. I can't wait to read it.

[Inanna]

Correct title: “Go Tell the Bees that I am Gone”

And cover (from a bookstore I was browsing today):




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[narya]

If you run out of books to read (hah!), here's a trove of recommendations. Set some filters, click on the icon of each book to get more details.
https://apps.npr.org/best-books/

I found the review of The Ten Thousand Doors of January when I set the filters "2019", "Speculative Fiction", and "Seriously Great Writing", and I would agree!

[narya]

I just finished Ancillary Justice ... for the second time. I read it, but it was a little baffling to slowly unwrap the identity and history of the character like the layers of an onion. The second time around, I had the "gestalt" of it, and was able to see all the little hints and nuances. I was highly entertained by both readings. Thanks to Innana for bringing it to my attention! (And the NYTimes, Hugo, Clarke, Nebula, Locus, and a few others who bestowed awards.) It's hard to believe this was the author's first novel, originally a NaNoWriMo draft, then crafted over ten years (with some help from Clarion West and Octavia Butler) before publishing in 2012. Now on to book 2 in the series.

Crocodile on the Sandbank, on the other hand, was too fluffy, and I returned it to the library only half read.

[Frelga]

I'm two books in the Ancillary series, and the third on my Kindle, waiting for me to finish the last Rivers of London book. Also listening to Brothers in Arms, in the Vorkosigan saga. It's starting to hit familiar plot points, so unless it's about to pull a twist, I'm going to give it a rest after this.

[Inanna]

Narya, the first Amelia Peabody book is really not reflective of the entire series. Just an FYI.

I’m glad you are liking the Ancillary series. The second read really is a better read than the first, I agree. Prim had it in her “to-read” list on goodreads. I actually picked it up after she passed away, from her goodreads page.

Rivers of London! I forgot about that series, again!

[Jude]

Narya, my reaction to Crocodile on the Sandbank was a lot like yours on first reading. Now I'm on my second time through the entire series, and along the way I'm buying the volumes that I had borrowed from the library the first time through. Because I expect to read the series again.

Edit: I still think the Jacqueline Kirby series is superior to the Amelia Peabody series. I suggest reading "The Seventh Sinner" and then if you like it, the other three books in the series. You'll get a feel for Eizabeth Peters' quirky sense of humour. A lot of what I perceived as "fluff" in Amelia Peabody is actually more of a parody of fluff.

Meta-fluff, if you will.

[Inanna]

I’ve been ploughing through narya’s recommendation of the Dresden Files; it’s good, but not my cuppa tea. I like the humor in the writing, but there’s little depth. Giving it up now.

[Maria]

I like the Dresden Files books... up until book 16. "Peace Talks" I just couldn't get through. So I'm stalled out on that series now.

[narya]

The two other Ancillary books were quickly consumed. I was highly impressed by the narrator of the audio books, Adjoa Andoh, who gives each character a distinctive accent, rhythm and timbre, including various European- and African-based voices.

I'm reading and enjoying "Honolulu" now, that was recommended by Rose. It's an historic fiction about a "picture bride" who moves from Korea to Hawaii in the early 20th Century. Lots of day-to-day living situations of everyday people that usually isn't covered in the history books.

I set up Overdrive for an old friend of my dad's, so she can read/listen to library books on her laptop. She was thrilled. She especially appreciated the REALLY LARGE FONT that is available. We share a lot of political and social leanings, so we have some overlap in our reading lists. I downloaded a few books for her. The first book (sucked down in 2 days) was "The 10,000 Doors of January". She loved it.

[RoseMorninStar]

I'm reading and enjoying "Honolulu" now, that was recommended by Rose. It's an historic fiction about a "picture bride" who moves from Korea to Hawaii in the early 20th Century. Lots of day-to-day living situations of everyday people that usually isn't covered in the history books.

I just finished another book in that series, Moloka'i. It focuses on the period of time where Hansen's disease (leprosy) was ravaging native Hawaiians and also touches on WWII and the Japanese internment camps. Talk about the need for reparations. The US (mostly at the urging of big business; Dole/pineapples/sugar and missionaries) basically stole Hawaii. The Blount Commission found that Queen Lili’uokalani had been overthrown illegally, but they annexed Hawaii anyway against the will of native Hawaiians.

[Frelga]

Finished listening to the next Vorkosigan book, Brothers in Arms. Fun stuff, but I think I'll take a bit of a break from the series. I'm starting to recognize the plot beats.

[narya]

Rose, thanks for recommending Honolulu by Alan Brennert. The chapters near the end are based on several famous and egregiously racist trials (with Clarence Darrow defending lynchers!). I've put a recent news article on it in the spoiler window. If anyone else is planning to read the book, don't look at the spoiler until you finish the book. Otherwise, read it now for your edification. I would say the book is worth reading. It is not particularly erudite, but it does present otherwise unheard historical voices.

Hidden text.

Here's the news article: https://www.sfgate.com/hawaii/article/J ... 934391.php

[Frelga]

I’ve been ploughing through narya’s recommendation of the Dresden Files; it’s good, but not my cuppa tea. I like the humor in the writing, but there’s little depth. Giving it up now.

I only read the first one. It didn't grab me enough to pursue. Quite possibly the series get better as they go, and maybe I'll find out one day.

[narya]

It does. I started midway thru.