Mon-Mon-Mon-MONDAY books!
Mar. 18th, 2024 08:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sorcyressI went into two different libraries today and accidentally got Many Books again, and I am definitely at that slightly giddy stage where I am currently in possession of more books than I can reasonably expect to read. So let's check in!
(it's been a slow reading week since the last checkin, so this might be short?)
Finished Reading Recently:
I read about five chapters of the second Alanna book (In the Hands of the Goddess, by Tamora Pierce) sometime last week, and then dove in and devoured the rest of it in and around Beantown. It's...cringeyer than Kel's books (the Bazhir are not great representation) but was fun to reread once every decade or so. George is...yeesh. Actually George and Jon are both yeesh. Alanna needs to run of and live happily ever after with Raoul (nonsexual, nonromantic).
Today at the first library, they didn't have the book I was looking for (because I got confused between main branch and west branch like a _dork_) but they did have All Systems Red by Martha Wells, which I keep casually looking for. I started reading it on the walk home, paused very briefly to check out books at the second library (the one I was looking for), continued reading, took a 20min nap, finished reading. Oh No, surprising absolutely no one ever, I am forever and always in love with this Security Unit and its problems.
That might be it. Mindless reading this past week was mostly like...r/UnresolvedMysteries because it's not a very well kept secret that I love me my true crime.
Currently Reading:
I think I have made no progress on In the Serpent's Wake (Rachel Hartman)? Maybe slightly more than last time --but I got to the part where Now We Are Going To Sail Around With Your Rapist and like, I trust Hartman. (really truly, I do). I think she's going to do a good job of it (and I am still holding out for the "not actually narratively good but a deeply satisfying concept" of Will getting eaten by something). But also, this is really really fucking hard for me to read, and it's just always going to be hard for me to read. Also it doesn't help that the book is a massive hardback and having an ereader for a mere three months has _spoiled_ me for the concept of "can I slip it into my purse with zero problems".
I have made about three pages progress on Squirrel Girl, but that was largely tonight, so maybe I will finish another volume? These have a similar problem of being large, but with the parallel problem of being very quick to read. I don't actually want to carry around eight graphic novels just to make sure I still have something to read.
Okay, so like, I picked up the webcomic archive for Unshelved as "lunchbreak at work" reading, and it is going nicely --I'm somewhere in 2006 or 7, I think? But there's a problem, because one of the features of this comic is nice Sundays where they recommend books. Which I can then immediately alt-t into the minuteman system and put holds on. Oh no.
Reading in the Future:
So all the usual stuff that keeps being in my list. (Roughly still in list: Two more Alanna books, many more Squirrel Girl, continuing with Got Drunk and Saved a Demon, The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches. Has slid out of list but I would like to put back into list eventually: Swordspoint, the Elemental Logic books, finishing the Steerswomen series. Isn't in list because I still haven't gotten my shit together to gather all the ebooks from all the sources: A whole lotta Discworld from that Humble Bundle, literally every short story Seanan has ever posted to Patreon (haha oh god), digging through email and downloads folders to find random books that were free or cheap and I grabbed, which definitely includes at least one of Racheline's novels.)
When I grabbed All Systems Red, I also grabbed Artificial Condition, the second Murderbot diary. That will very likely be my "walking-to-school" book for tomorrow, especially if I can make myself actually walk-and-read instead of being weird about the bus.
It has finally struck me that one of the advantages of digital holds is that I have a million books now, but if I grab something that has a long waitlist, it won't show up until...later! So I have The Warrior's Apprentice by Lois McMaster Bujold and A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik, both of which will turn up eventually (and both of which are apparently excellent and I've never read them). I've sorta determined that books are more fun to read when I can make flailing noises at someone as I read them, and frequently that someone is SamSam, but Murderbot is 100% going to be Elishka. If you would like to be my designated flail-ee for any book I mention in the "reading in the future" do let me know! (Yes JoshZed, I will flail Schoolmance at you <3)
I also re-discovered that I can just...go through my reading history on my Minuteman account, and look at everything I've ever checked out. Which is why I now have (physical, quicker) copies of Ella Minnow Pea (Mark Dunn), Howl's Moving Castle (Diana Wynne Jones), and Modesty Blaise (Peter O'Donnell) winging towards me. All rereads, so less squee needed, but I'm excited for all three. The problem however with Modesty is that the Minuteman system doesn't have books two or three. I really _really_ need to get a Boston Public Library card again.
...and then there's that Unshelved problem I mentioned. So far two titles have stood out enough for me to toss holds out. One was instantly available as an ebook, Stoner and Spaz by Rob Koertge. The other was the reason I visited two libraries today, Inside Job by Connie Willis. I have a vague recollection that Connie Willis is good? Notable? God I hope it's "good" and not "milkshake duck".
BOOKS.
~Sor
MOOP!
(it's been a slow reading week since the last checkin, so this might be short?)
Finished Reading Recently:
I read about five chapters of the second Alanna book (In the Hands of the Goddess, by Tamora Pierce) sometime last week, and then dove in and devoured the rest of it in and around Beantown. It's...cringeyer than Kel's books (the Bazhir are not great representation) but was fun to reread once every decade or so. George is...yeesh. Actually George and Jon are both yeesh. Alanna needs to run of and live happily ever after with Raoul (nonsexual, nonromantic).
Today at the first library, they didn't have the book I was looking for (because I got confused between main branch and west branch like a _dork_) but they did have All Systems Red by Martha Wells, which I keep casually looking for. I started reading it on the walk home, paused very briefly to check out books at the second library (the one I was looking for), continued reading, took a 20min nap, finished reading. Oh No, surprising absolutely no one ever, I am forever and always in love with this Security Unit and its problems.
That might be it. Mindless reading this past week was mostly like...r/UnresolvedMysteries because it's not a very well kept secret that I love me my true crime.
Currently Reading:
I think I have made no progress on In the Serpent's Wake (Rachel Hartman)? Maybe slightly more than last time --but I got to the part where Now We Are Going To Sail Around With Your Rapist and like, I trust Hartman. (really truly, I do). I think she's going to do a good job of it (and I am still holding out for the "not actually narratively good but a deeply satisfying concept" of Will getting eaten by something). But also, this is really really fucking hard for me to read, and it's just always going to be hard for me to read. Also it doesn't help that the book is a massive hardback and having an ereader for a mere three months has _spoiled_ me for the concept of "can I slip it into my purse with zero problems".
I have made about three pages progress on Squirrel Girl, but that was largely tonight, so maybe I will finish another volume? These have a similar problem of being large, but with the parallel problem of being very quick to read. I don't actually want to carry around eight graphic novels just to make sure I still have something to read.
Okay, so like, I picked up the webcomic archive for Unshelved as "lunchbreak at work" reading, and it is going nicely --I'm somewhere in 2006 or 7, I think? But there's a problem, because one of the features of this comic is nice Sundays where they recommend books. Which I can then immediately alt-t into the minuteman system and put holds on. Oh no.
Reading in the Future:
So all the usual stuff that keeps being in my list. (Roughly still in list: Two more Alanna books, many more Squirrel Girl, continuing with Got Drunk and Saved a Demon, The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches. Has slid out of list but I would like to put back into list eventually: Swordspoint, the Elemental Logic books, finishing the Steerswomen series. Isn't in list because I still haven't gotten my shit together to gather all the ebooks from all the sources: A whole lotta Discworld from that Humble Bundle, literally every short story Seanan has ever posted to Patreon (haha oh god), digging through email and downloads folders to find random books that were free or cheap and I grabbed, which definitely includes at least one of Racheline's novels.)
When I grabbed All Systems Red, I also grabbed Artificial Condition, the second Murderbot diary. That will very likely be my "walking-to-school" book for tomorrow, especially if I can make myself actually walk-and-read instead of being weird about the bus.
It has finally struck me that one of the advantages of digital holds is that I have a million books now, but if I grab something that has a long waitlist, it won't show up until...later! So I have The Warrior's Apprentice by Lois McMaster Bujold and A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik, both of which will turn up eventually (and both of which are apparently excellent and I've never read them). I've sorta determined that books are more fun to read when I can make flailing noises at someone as I read them, and frequently that someone is SamSam, but Murderbot is 100% going to be Elishka. If you would like to be my designated flail-ee for any book I mention in the "reading in the future" do let me know! (Yes JoshZed, I will flail Schoolmance at you <3)
I also re-discovered that I can just...go through my reading history on my Minuteman account, and look at everything I've ever checked out. Which is why I now have (physical, quicker) copies of Ella Minnow Pea (Mark Dunn), Howl's Moving Castle (Diana Wynne Jones), and Modesty Blaise (Peter O'Donnell) winging towards me. All rereads, so less squee needed, but I'm excited for all three. The problem however with Modesty is that the Minuteman system doesn't have books two or three. I really _really_ need to get a Boston Public Library card again.
...and then there's that Unshelved problem I mentioned. So far two titles have stood out enough for me to toss holds out. One was instantly available as an ebook, Stoner and Spaz by Rob Koertge. The other was the reason I visited two libraries today, Inside Job by Connie Willis. I have a vague recollection that Connie Willis is good? Notable? God I hope it's "good" and not "milkshake duck".
BOOKS.
~Sor
MOOP!
no subject
on 2024-03-19 01:22 pm (UTC)(For anyone who'd find it useful, link for BPL ecard FAQ. You can upgrade them in person, so get an ecard and then get a physical card when you're handy to a library, etc.)
I don't do a ton of library holds (because they tend to come in at the wrong point in time for when I wanted to read them) but I do keep both my Minuteman and BPL cards reasonably busy. It's sometimes interesting seeing the breakdown of availability between the two.
no subject
on 2024-03-25 01:26 am (UTC)no subject
on 2024-03-25 07:25 pm (UTC)Oh, neat -- have you read any of the Vorkosigan books yet? If not, they're a treat, especially since nearly every volume is a different genre.
(Happy to be a flail partner for those, with the caveat that it's been many years since I read them. I have all of them, though, many as signed first editions because Jane was the proofreader for a bunch of them.)
no subject
on 2024-03-31 11:52 pm (UTC)I have to say though that a couple years ago we read _Passage_ and it was... well, it's hard to describe without utterly spoiling it, other than "some people are looking into near-death experiences". What I'll say is that she pulls off a massive twist and a very unusual narrative technique. (I really had to trust the author for this one.) Only complaint is that about 25% of it should have been tightened up.