Book catch up

I’ve been reading a lot since we got here, and then I realized that I haven’t done a book post since the end of September, so it’s about time to catch up. This is what I’ve read.

Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer by Wesley Stace : Really very good
A Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes : Beautiful writing, but emotionally it held me at a distance
A Year of Writing Dangerously by Barbara Ambercrombie: Some really good ideas for writing more courageously.
The Private Lives of the Impressionists by  Sue Roe: Excellent group biography of the Impressionists. I highly highly enjoyed this.
Women, Food, and God by  Geneen Roth: Very interesting insights
The Hours by  Michael Cunningham: This book gets better every time I read it, and breaks my heart every time.
Machine of Death-ed by Ryan North, Matthew Bennardo, David Malket: THis was also a reread- I love this book.
Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan: One of the most fun, most imaginative books I’ve read in a long time. I read it in one sitting, and am sure I’ll read it many more times.
When it Happens to You by Molly Ringwald : Yes, that Molly Ringwald. This is a novel told in short stories- and very well done.
American Gods by Neil Gaiman: Also a reread, this is the last book I read before we left the US, which I feel is quite fitting.
Wind Up Bird Chronicle by  Haruki Murakami: It was also fitting that this was the first book I read in Japan. Odd, slightly unsettling, it captures a whole different world. It was fun to recognize places he mentions, even only having been here a week.
The Vanishers by Heidi Julavits: This book was very intriguing, set in a world where people with psychic abilities can mentally attack each other, and people tired of their lives can “vanish”.
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman: Neil Gaiman always delivers. This is the story of a young boy who eludes murder as a toddler by living in a graveyard. Good stuff.
The Writing Life by Annie Dillard: This is chock full of excellent advice and insights about writing.
On Becoming a Novelist by John Gardner: Also full of good insights, though his biases against genre writing definitely shows.
Island of the Sequined Love Nun by Christopher Moore: Delightful, tongue in cheek fun.
The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There by Cathrynne Valente: Cathrynne Valente is one of my absolute favorite writers, and this book is wonderful.
Happier at Home by Gretchen Rubin: Inspiring and uplifting.
The Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin : I read this with the girls, and it was beautiful and wonderful.

I’m at 90 books read this year so far. I have the feeling I’ll easily make it to 100- which is double my goal for the year. Woo hoo! What are you reading?

 

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