I went two weeks again between posts, but have also not been able to carve out as much time for reading, so there are probably as many "reads" and "readings" after 14 days as there usually are after seven. I should have more time this week and am feeling more energetic with the time change. I don't like changing the time twice a year, but I do like sunlight later in the day.
Read:
- Patina (elibrary book) by Jason Reynolds - I loved seeing the whole track team through Patina's eyes and hearing details about her life that were only ancillary to Ghost's story. I am sorry not to have read this series sooner, but glad to be now. Reynolds has found a really engaging way to draw us into the lives of these four runners. It has taken me some time, but I see how Reynolds likes to explore situations from different perspectives as he did in Look Both Ways.
- Notes from a Young Black Chef (eaudiobook purchased from Audible) by Kwame Onwuachi - There was so much I did not learn about Onwuachi from watching Top Chef, a point he made in the book, about the way the show is edited to create a persona for each chef that may or may not align with their true personality. His story also caused me to be disappointed that he is no longer a DC chef.
- I Want to Eat Your Pancreas (purchased Manga) by Yoru Sumino - Think The Fault in Our Stars by John Green and Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews rather than The Walking Dead. I decided it was time to try Manga. Happening upon this book is what made me decide to take the plunge, because the blurb revealed it to be a realistic, almost-romance and the entire story was contained in one volume. I did not want to get myself into an on-going series. I enjoyed the story and appreciated the way manga must be read front to back and each page right to left, then left to right and back again. Once I got the hang of it, it was not an issue and provided an additional layer of mental stimulation.
- Spoiler Alert (egalley) by Olivia Dade - This one takes place in the world of fanfiction and cons (conventions). I purposely chose to read this right after One to Watch because both have been praised for positive portrayal of a plus sized main character. I wanted to compare the approach. I found Dade's characters to be more sophisticated, with more depth. This is in part because there are far fewer characters than the group of bachelors in One to Watch. There were interesting differences in the family dynamic with Bea having a loving family while April's was toxic that added a layer to each woman's expereinces. I also appreciated Dade's clever word play between April and Marcus. This as well as Marcus as a fully fleshed out character made this the novel I liked better, so if you were going to read just one of these I would recommend Spoiler Alert. I am looking forward to Dade's next novel All the Feels, due out in October. I may also look into some of her backlist.
Reading:
- A Court of Silver Flames (purchased hardback) by Sarah Maas - I am a bit over halfway finished and enjoying this story immensely. Maas is an excellent storyteller, creating characters I care about and situations that fit well into the sophisticated world she has created.
- Sunny (elibrary book) by Jason Reynolds - Two weeks ago, I was reading Patina, the second in the series, hoping that when it ended, the 3rd book would pick up where it left off. In true Jason Reynolds fashion, he surprised me by revealing what happened in Patina's relay without beginning Sunny's story with hers. This installment may be my favorite so far because I like the use of Sunny's diary entries to tell his story. I also feel more connected to Sunny because the entries show his introspective side which feels familiar to me.
Listening:
In order to decide on my next listen, I searched for a list of "best chef memoirs" and found a wonderful list. Many I put on hold at the library or in my Goodreads list, but only found one available when I finished my previous listen.
- Yes, Chef (library eaudiobook) by Marcus Samuelsson
Up Next:
Again, these are at the top of the list, but I have moved books that have come in via library holds as well as new purchases ahead for a few weeks.
- Lu by Jason Reynolds - This is truly my next read after I finish Sunny because it came in from the library before Sunny and I am in a time crunch.
- The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden - I am eager to read this second installment.
- Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir - I read and loved Gideon the Ninth and feel ready for the 2nd book.
- Commonwealth by Ann Patchett - I am making my way through all of Patchett's backlist after being bowled over by The Dutch House. I had previously read Bel Canto at the recommendation of a number of readers, for some reason had not read anything else until recently.
- Four Hundred Souls (purchased hardback) edited by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blair - I think this collection of essays exploring 400 years of the history of African America will be a good companion to read alongside Stamped: Racism, Anti-Racism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Dr. Kendi.
What have you read? What are you reading and listening to?
**A note on the picture. I always use an image from the Prints and Photographs collections of the Library of Congress. I like these because they are interesting, and freely available because they are in the public domain. I mainly choose images of people reading. If you click the image in any of my posts you will be able to see the Library's bibliographic record which includes whatever they know about the image including its creator. There are also usually links to other similar items or to the collection the image is a part of.***
