Book Lists 2019 Book • Page 4

Got through 3 in January, very close to finishing my 4th. Thought I'd get through a bit more but I guess it's roughly on pace for my 40 target.

January:
1. Timequake - Kurt Vinnegut
2. Madness' One Step Beyond - 33 1/3 series
3. Sexing the Cherry - Jeanette Winterson

 

GoodReads - Kemp Pettyjohn

2019 Goal: 35 Books (current pace is looking more like ~50)

January
Ursula Le Guin - Left Hand Of Darkness
Jeff Vandermeer - Annihilation
Naomi Klein - No Is Not Enough
Michelle Mcnamara - I'll Be Gone in the Dark
Jesmyn Ward - Sing Unburied Sing
George Saunders - CivilWarLand in Bad Decline

February
Joseph Heller - Catch-22
Ursula Le Guin- No Time To Spare
Megan Hunter- The End We Start From
Mohsin Hamid - Exit West
Sarah Smarsh - Heartland
Colton Whitehead - The Underground Railroad
Kurt Vonnegut- The Sirens of Titan
Jeanette Winterson- Oranges are Not The Only Fruit

March
Philip Dick- The Man In The High Castle
Ta-nehisi Coates - Between the World and Me
Zadie Smith - NW
Virginia Woolf - A Room of One’s Own

April
Michael Lewis - The Fifth Risk
Adam Haslett- Imagine Me Gone
Stephanie Wittels Wach - Everything is Horrible and Wonderful

 

just happened to scroll through this thread, thanks for this because i was just wondering when i should get around to the ICE books (and wanted to avoid all spoilers).

 

Updated. And to hold myself to my own wishes of more conversation:

The Pierce Brown novels (originally a trilogy, now a "saga") were quite a bit fun. In the last two years, I've really developed a love for written sci-fi and this is easily the most popular YA sci-fi series out right now so I knew I needed to give it a go to see what's popular in one of my hope-to-write-in genres. Brown is a bit pretentious, and I've had some reservations about the continuation from trilogy to saga--though I've also pre-ordered the fifth book out this summer, so take the reservation as you will, but he writes a really compelling story. Lots of interesting things to say about class that sometimes strays into discourse on race, but without any real meat unlike his class observations.

Fiction Currently Reading:

Angie Thomas - On The Come Up

Her follow-up to The Hate U Give--my most anticipated for this year by far. I'm a quarter of the way in, and it's way less "issue book" and way more "voice-y contemp YA," but I'm 100% invested. Angie is a treasure.

Lily Brooks-Dalton - Good Morning, Midnight

A sparse post-apocalyptic thriller uniting a scientist stuck in the arctic and an astronaut returning from Jupiter. Only a chapter in, but very excited to see where this goes.

~*~*~*~*~*~

I'm beginning to study photography a bit more as it's one of my creative joys. A photographer I follow said every photographer should study Ansel Adams, so I picked up a book at my local used store. The photographs were quite good, but I honestly wasn't that impressed besides a few jaw-dropping ones. But, I've also since learned that Adams' magic is considered to be in the realm of black and white photography. I know there's still so much for me to learn, but I feel like many photos I took with my iPhone in Iceland last year rival even his jaw-dropping ones in this collection. I'm anxious to find a book of his in black and white to truly start understanding why he's considered the greatest American photographer.

Up Next Photography Reading:

Haven't started them yet, but I've acquired both Humans of New York books from the same used shop. I'm absolutely inspired by the photojournalism of HONY and I can't wait to dive in and see how I can find a way to maybe emulate that in my own artistic journey.

~*~*~*~*~

Rachel Held Evans' book got much better as I read it...but it also didn't really change anything for me about the topic at hand. Maybe because I was educated at the same college by the same professors, or studied the Bible as genre in my literature classes, etc. But I'm glad this book exists for the people not in that same position.

Current Faith Reading:

Started a Kelly Minter Bible study with my mom. About a week in, and I'm not feeling as theologically challenged as say a Beth Moore study, but the insights thus far are good--as is the reminder to "make room"--which connects to a lot of things in my life lately as I look to find room for physical fitness, creativity in writing and photography, growth in faith, growth in friendship, and finding a career. Which clearly is represented in all of my readings.

~*~*~*~*~

The Designing Your Life novel is one of a stack of books I picked up recently trying to figure out wtf is going on in my career life as I'm 29 years old, stuck in mid-level retail management, and hating every damn second of it. It was a fantastic, insightful book that I'm immediately mailing to a friend in a similar position.

Up Next:

Jon Acuff - Do Over: Rescue Monday, Reinvent Your Work, and Never Get Stuck

 

February

1. A Reporter's Life (Cronkite, 1996)
2. Doctor Sleep (King, 2013)
3. Love and Rockets No. 3 (Hernandez Brothers, 2010)

April

4. Pet Sematary (King, 1983)

 

I feel like it's weird to call this a slow start for me, but I'm hoping to add another 1-2 books by the end of the month. Currently reading Pet Sematary and this list will have a lot of King on it this year. I think I'll be reading about 13 more after it (possibly more if I want to stay ahead on my podcast).

 

Hello all,

Finally going to be an adult and start reading regularly. Going to set a modest goal of 1 book per month until I really get in the habit. Or at least get through 12 during the year. Spent most of my time gaming and doing other stuff to really enjoy sitting in quiet solitude reading a book in my adult life.

Goodreads

Already read Artemis by Andy Weir (thought it was just okay. Definitely preferred 1st half to the 2nd half of the book), and have started Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James (this one is hard for me to get through. His writing style is just so unique and hard to get a handle on) and Red Rising by Pierce Brown (this one is a page turner, and I can see myself going through the whole series this year. His writing style has just pulled me in). Also just purchased a Kindle Paperwhite, so I'm really excited for that.

 

Comics:
1) Happy!
2) A Study In Emerald

Audiobooks:
1) Midnight At The Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew J. Sullivan
2) The Fifth To Die by J.D. Barker
3) Guess Who by Chris McGeorge

Books:
1) Elevation by Stephen King
2) The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas
3) Two Can Keep A Secret by Karen M. McManus



I was quite impressed with both The Cheerleaders and Two Can Keep A Secret considering each author is fairly new it appears. I enjoyed the ending of The Cheerleaders because it was atypical for a teen slasher and was quite unexpected. Eventhough Two Can Keep A Secret was more typical of an ending and I didn't necessarily hate it, I didn't really like how it was concluded. I DID like the story better than McManus' previous effort and look forward to her next book

 

Oh and @Garrett L. I think you would like both of those books

 

I read One of Us Is Lying so Two was on my list.

How was bright ideas bookstore?

 

I think I kinda passively listened to most of it cuz I don't really remember it but I remember thinking it was rather odd and different than I was expecting.

 

I'm 17 books into my 75 goodreads totally. Stopped to read some Paul Tremblay.

 

Updated for February.

In terms of fiction: Children of Blood & Bone had exceptional world building but the story dragged a bit towards the end (and seemed a bit predictable). Some of the characters were annoying, but seriously, the world created here is wonderful. I would read the next instalment when it's out just to see where it goes and if Adeyemi can improve on the flaws of the first one. The only other fiction I read was a Danish detective novel by Inger Wolf. It was ok - I find a lot of these police crime detective novels are very similar, but they're fun to read every now and again.

I read the book about teenagers for a job interview (I didn't get the job). It actually had some good bits in it that were helpful for me personally, so that was a positive outcome. I also read The Drama of Being a Child for my counselling course. To be honest, I found bits at the beginning very insightful but the rest of it felt out of date and I think there are better books about the impact of your childhood on your adult outlook. I wouldn't recommend this one unless for study purposes.

I read the Rupi Kaur book of poetry in one sitting and honestly, it floored me. Incredible writing. Jarring and challenging in places. Uplifting and empowering in others. I was waiting for my car in the garage so I just kept reading. I don't read much poetry at all but this was so easy and accessible and ultimately gripping. I'd highly recommend.

The Kingsley book detailed her travels around West Africa in the late 1800s. It was interesting but not my favourite read. The most impressive aspect of her story is that she is a woman from Victorian Britain travelling around by herself. Almost unheard of at the time. Some of her outlook was outdated but some of it challenged the colonial perspective at the time. I'm glad I read it but it wasn't something that gripped me.

Finally the Paula Gooder book kind of sits in the gap between fiction and non-fiction. It's a story imagining the life of Phoebe who is briefly mentioned in the Bible, but the story is well researched to the point where Gooder (a Bible scholar) leaves a third of the page count for in-depth endnotes that show her research and perspective. The story isn't the most entertaining and mostly centres around dialogue rather than direct action. The true value is in the research and endnotes. A worthwhile read for anyone inclined to trying to picture Mediterranean life in that Roman Empire / post-Jesus Christ era.

 

Novels

1). The White Luck Warrior (The Aspect-Emperor #2) - R Scott Bakker
2.) The Great Ordeal (The Aspect-Emperor #3) - R Scott Bakker
3.) The Unholy Consult (The Aspect-Emperor #4) - R Scott Bakker
4.) Spores - Ike Hamill
5.) The Shadow of the Wind (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books #1) - Carlos Ruiz Zafón
6.) Before They Are Hanged (The First Law #2) - Joe Abercrombie
7.) Unbury Carol - Josh Malerman
8.) The Dunwich Horror - H P Lovecraft
9.) Providence - Caroline Kepnes
10.) Last Argument of Kings (The First Law #3) - Joe Abercrombie
11.) Hex - Thomas Olde Heuvelt
12.) Best Served Cold (The First Law World) - Joe Abercrombie
13.) Dustfall: What Lies Beneath (#5) - J Thorn & Glynn James
14.) The Heroes (The First Law World) - Joe Abercrombie

Comics

1.) Intersect: Metamorph (#1) - Ray Fawkes
2.) Masquerade (Project Superpowers) - Phil Hester, Carlos Paul, & Alex Ross
3.) Sir Edward Grey, Witchfinder: In the Service of Angels (#1) - Mike Mignola & Ben Stenbeck
4.) Abe Sapien: The Drowning (#1) - Mike Mignola & Jason Shawn Alexander
5.) Hellboy: The Wild Hunt (Omnibus #3) - Mike Mignola & Duncan Fegredo
6.) 303 - Garth Ennis & Jacen Burrows
7.) Northlanders (complete series) - Brian Wood
8.) After the Cape (#1) - Howard Wong & Jim Valentino
9.) Batman: Night Cries - Archie Goodwin & Scott Hampton
10.) Batman: No Man's Land (#1) - Greg Rucka, Alex Maleev...
11.) Angel and Faith (Season 10) - Victor Gischler & Will Conrad
12.) The Fade Out - Ed Brubaker & Sean Phillips
13.) Buffy The Vampire Slayer (Season 10) - Christos Gage & Rebekah Isaacs
14.) Angel (Season 11) - Corinna Bechko & Geraldo Borges
15.) Ravine (#1) - Stjepan Šejić & Ron Marz
16.) Batman: No Man's Land (#2) - Greg Rucka, Dan Jurgens...
17.) Huntress: Year One - Ivory Madison & Cliff Richards
18.) Batman/ Huntress: Cry For Blood - Greg Rucka, Rick Burchett, & Terry Beatty
19.) Batman: Cacophany - Kevin Smith & Walter Flanagan
20.) Punisher: In the Blood - Rick Remender, Roland Boschi, & Mick Bertilorenzi
21.) The Umbrella Academy: The Apocalypse Suite (#1) - Gerard Way, Gabriel Bá, & Dave Stewart
22.) Batman: No Man's Land (#3) - Chuck Dixon, Dennis O'Neil, Janet Harvey...
23.) The Umbrella Academy: Dallas (#2) - Gerard Way, Gabriel Bá, & Dave Stewart
24.) Ravine (#2) - Stjepan Šejić & Ron Marz

Providence was great, had to read the Dunchwich Horror again to so that it made sense. Joe Abercrombie has been a delight. His original trilogy was pretty good but the stand alone books are on a whole different level. Best Served Cold was just the best kind of revenge story, non stop and bloody as fuck. I'd been looking forward to the Heroes since I'd heard the entire book was one three day battle and it lived up to my hopes. Got one more left then he'll be starting his next trilogy in September so that works out.

Hex was super fucking weird and I rec it to all horror fans. @Night Channels Like at first I hated it because of how strange it was but once I started settling into what was going on it became a true joy. Unlike anything I've read, it's great to read a totally original horror story. Terrifying and hilarious.

Ravine is one of the best examples of fantasy in comics I've seen (second only to Monstress), and it's drawn by my favorite artist. But like it's probably never going to continue because it didn't sell well. Basically like only reading two Wheel of Time books, soooo much ground work being laid.

Umbrella Academy kicks fuckin ass.

 

abercrombie is such a fun writer, really like all the first law works but the standalone books were so good, focusing on the highs of the original trilogy's violent battles and telling some good stories. can't wait for the new trilogy, i felt so spoiled getting a new first law book every year to year and a half for six books and i'm glad he's finally going back.

 

Yeah sounds like I got in at just the right time. His characters are something else...Ferro, Shivers, Murcatto, The Blood Nine...and then his insane characters like Morveer and Glokta that you somehow grow to care for is a real magic trick. Fun is definitely the best word I would use to describe him, which I wouldn't for many other of my favorite fantasy authors. Sanderson, certainly.

 

Updated my list for the end of February. Some highlights:

I really wanted to love Peace Like A River, and while I respect it as a piece of literature, it just wasn't for me. I did end up finishing it, but I'm glad I got it from the library and didn't buy it. I ended up putting Black Leopard, Red Wolf back on the shelf for similar reasons. I'm hoping to come back to it next month.

Bob Woodward did some very insightful research on the Trump presidency, and I'm glad it was the first book I read on this abnormal part of our world.

I just got an electric car, so I've been taking advantage of the free charging at the library by hanging out there once or twice a week. Because of this, I got really into three books that I ended up checking out and taking home. I loved The Troop and We Sold Our Souls. Within These Walls wasn't my favorite horror novel, but I'm not writing Ania Ahlborn off yet.

I read That's Not What Happened after my sister recommended it. It's a YA novel about the aftermath of a school shooting with parallels to the martyrdom myths that became prominent after Columbine. Although it fell into some YA tropes, it was over good and insightful.

Other than my red-hot rage over the cancellation of West Coast Avengers, nothing new to report as far as comics. Looking forward to the new Ms. Marvel in a couple of weeks.

I'm starting this month strong. I finished Little Heaven yesterday (really liked it) and started The Haunting of Hill House this morning. As always, send me any recommendations, esp. books by women/POC.

 

Keep going with Ania. I loved Within These Walls but all of her books are pretty different and great in their own way. Little Heaven and The Troop were so fucking good.

Check out that book I posted about called Hex.

 

Hex popped up as recommended for me at the library, so I’ll definitely add that to the list. Which other books by Ania would you recommend?

 

Pretty sure Hex has been on my Amazon Rec list since it came out and I was just waiting for a good time. Similarly I'm reading a book now called Experimental Film that might be right up your alley. The author's name is Gemma Files. I believe it's a ghost story of some sort, though it's a slow burn, but the two issues it's directly dealing with are the nitty gritty of film making (specifically Canadian film making), and being the mother of an autistic child. It's excellent so far.

Honestly I love all of Ania's books and think they each have something special to give. Bird Eater is generally considered her best. I really loved Brother but that's more like a Jack Ketchum style horror book, no supernatural stuff just humans doing horrible things to other humans. Her newest, The Devil Crept In was great. The Shuddering was great too but now you see the issue where I'm just naming all of her books. Lol. I'd go with either Bird Eater or Brother if you want something without the supernatural, but probably more terrifying.

 

Finally had a chance to update my list, so here are the two completed months so far this year. Good stuff going on in March too, but I'll hold off for now.

Some thoughts:

Catching up on pending comics series. Captain Marvel is one of my favorite and has been for years, so it was cool to read a bunch prior to the movie, which I loved. Batman New 52 has been fun, ups and downs but mostly really good. Spider-man is a favorite, and the Renew Your Vows series has been particularly good. Little disappointed with Spider-Gwen—such a cool character and concept, but Volume 2 really fell flat for me, just a rehash of previous issues I thought she'd already dealt with. Hoping the series picks up in the next volume. Spy Seal was neat and refreshing; looking forward to more of that.

The Pagan Night was an instant favorite. Recommended if you like George RR Martin, Brent Weeks, Brandon Sanderson, Robert Jordan, Steven Erikson. Very much looking forward to the rest of the series. Nobody holds a candle to Gemmell's heroic fantasy, and I've only read about half his stuff so it was fun to pick up a new one. Everybody should read Frank Portman's King Dork; the sequel was almost as good, which is saying something. The Hobbit is, of course, a classic. And the Shikanoko series by Lian Hearn is really moving along nicely in this second book. Such pretty descriptions and stark depictions of pseudo-Japanese life.

All in all it's been a great year so far in reading.

 

Novels

1). The White Luck Warrior (The Aspect-Emperor #2) - R Scott Bakker
2.) The Great Ordeal (The Aspect-Emperor #3) - R Scott Bakker
3.) The Unholy Consult (The Aspect-Emperor #4) - R Scott Bakker
4.) Spores - Ike Hamill
5.) The Shadow of the Wind (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books #1) - Carlos Ruiz Zafón
6.) Before They Are Hanged (The First Law #2) - Joe Abercrombie
7.) Unbury Carol - Josh Malerman
8.) The Dunwich Horror - H P Lovecraft
9.) Providence - Caroline Kepnes
10.) Last Argument of Kings (The First Law #3) - Joe Abercrombie
11.) Hex - Thomas Olde Heuvelt
12.) Best Served Cold (The First Law World) - Joe Abercrombie
13.) Dustfall: What Lies Beneath (#5) - J Thorn & Glynn James
14.) The Heroes (The First Law World) - Joe Abercrombie
15.) Experimental Film - Gemma Files
16.) Red Country (The First Law World) - Joe Abercombie
17.) Sharp Ends (The First Law World) - Joe Abercrombie
18.) The Ruin of Kings (A Chorus of Dragons #1) - Jenn Lyons
19.) The Three-Body Problem (Remembrance of Earth's Past #1) - Cixin Liu

Comics

1.) Intersect: Metamorph (#1) - Ray Fawkes
2.) Masquerade (Project Superpowers) - Phil Hester, Carlos Paul, & Alex Ross
3.) Sir Edward Grey, Witchfinder: In the Service of Angels (#1) - Mike Mignola & Ben Stenbeck
4.) Abe Sapien: The Drowning (#1) - Mike Mignola & Jason Shawn Alexander
5.) Hellboy: The Wild Hunt (Omnibus #3) - Mike Mignola & Duncan Fegredo
6.) 303 - Garth Ennis & Jacen Burrows
7.) Northlanders (complete series) - Brian Wood
8.) After the Cape (#1) - Howard Wong & Jim Valentino
9.) Batman: Night Cries - Archie Goodwin & Scott Hampton
10.) Batman: No Man's Land (#1) - Greg Rucka, Alex Maleev...
11.) Angel and Faith (Season 10) - Victor Gischler & Will Conrad
12.) The Fade Out - Ed Brubaker & Sean Phillips
13.) Buffy The Vampire Slayer (Season 10) - Christos Gage & Rebekah Isaacs
14.) Angel (Season 11) - Corinna Bechko & Geraldo Borges
15.) Ravine (#1) - Stjepan Šejić & Ron Marz
16.) Batman: No Man's Land (#2) - Greg Rucka, Dan Jurgens...
17.) Huntress: Year One - Ivory Madison & Cliff Richards
18.) Batman/ Huntress: Cry For Blood - Greg Rucka, Rick Burchett, & Terry Beatty
19.) Batman: Cacophany - Kevin Smith & Walter Flanagan
20.) Punisher: In the Blood - Rick Remender, Roland Boschi, & Mick Bertilorenzi
21.) The Umbrella Academy: The Apocalypse Suite (#1) - Gerard Way, Gabriel Bá, & Dave Stewart
22.) Batman: No Man's Land (#3) - Chuck Dixon, Dennis O'Neil, Janet Harvey...
23.) The Umbrella Academy: Dallas (#2) - Gerard Way, Gabriel Bá, & Dave Stewart
24.) Ravine (#2) - Stjepan Šejić & Ron Marz
25.) Batman: No Man's Land (#4) - Greg Rucka, Dale Eaglesham...
26.) Uber - Kieron Gillen, Canaan White & Gabriel Andrade
27.) Crisis on Infinite Earths - Marv Wolfman & George Perez

Experimental Film was wild. Horror fans need to read. It's a ghost story about film making, to put it in the vaguest terms possible. Super happy with how Red Country ended and now I'm ready as hell for the new trilogy in September. The short story collection was okay, some good stuff in there. Ruin of Kings kicked ass, I talked about it already in the fantasy thread.

Didn't realize how slow my trade comic reading was this month. Uber was crazy fun. Crisis on Infinite Earths was great and surprisingly easy to get into despite me not knowing like anything about that era of comics.

@Dave Diddy I just finished the Three Body Problem. Loved most of it. There were often chapters where I was just in awe as I was reading them, barely able to comprehend the crazy shit that is going on. The dehydrating and everything in the "game" especially was just perfect. Admittedly I wasn't as huge of a fan of the science/physics heavy sections. Just stuff that has never interested me. I ordered Dark Forest and I'm thinking I'll probably plow through the series because I'm really into it. Also it reminded me A LOT of Steven Erikson's recent book Rejoice! A Knife to the Heart, which is also incredible and you should seek out.

 

Nice glad you liked it. And yeah sometimes the science/physics heavy sections are less engaging especially if you're not into it, but it never felt too overwhelming or dragged on super long for me. I think the dark forest is probably my favorite of the series, but that's not taking anything away from the first or third book.

 

Updated my list for the end of March. I'm thrilled to announce that, once again, I did not ready anything I didn't like.

The Haunting of Hill House started out slow, but picked up steam towards the end. I liked Brother a lot more than Within These Walls, so I'll definitely check out more stuff by Ania Ahlborn, likely The Bird Eater next. I already want to read Beloved again, likely later this year. This my third time reading Frankenstein (read it once in high school and again in college) and still like it as much as I did before. Little Heaven ROCKED. I've always been fascinated by cults, and this hit the sweet spot.

As far as the three autobiographies I read, they all moved me in different ways. If I had to recommend just one, I'd choose The Glass Castle.

For comics, Chip Zdarsky is off to a great start with Daredevil. I started reading Die after hearing it described as a "goth Jumanji"; the story and artwork are both top notch. I read Infidel and was shaken to my very core.

Starting the month of April with The Loney with Hex after that. I just picked up Unbury Carol and C.J. Tudor's "The Hiding Place" from the library as well. Hat tip to @Vivatoto for recommending Experimental Film; will definitely check that out. I'm taking the train from Colorado to Illinois for Easter, so I'm planning to bring The Stand and see how much of that I can read on the trip. Recommendations are always welcome!

 

So it turns out that moving house impacts how much reading time you get. Although I squeezed in a 6th book this weekend, at one stage I thought I might have only pulled off three or four.

Highlights of March included re-reading Nineteen Eighty-Four (which had been on my list to re-visit since mewithoutYou released Julia as a single last year) and reading The Miseducation of Cameron Post (I missed the film so thought I'd read the book when I saw it in the library).

Peter Rollins' The Fidelity of Betrayal was a thought-provoking read. I thought John Crowder's book was pretty bad and wouldn't recommend it - turns out it was his first book and his theology becomes far more astute and mature in later readings. I couldn't get on board with most of it here. I thought it was a history commentary book about old mystics, desert fathers etc. but it was more his opinions and hype with information sprinkled in.

Callahan's Becoming Mrs. Lewis was an advance copy for review (which you can read here). I didn't know anything about Joy Davidman and C.S. Lewis as a couple so it was interesting. I know it was a fiction version of the story but it was worth reading.

Finally, I got Wild Geese by Mary Oliver out of the library after there was a lot of internet activity surrounding her death. I hadn't come across her work before so thought I'd check it out. I think I mentioned last month that I'm not a big poetry reader (so it's crazy that I've read two poetry books in two months). In some ways I think I'm reading it wrong as I always sit down and read as I would a normal book. Perhaps I need to allow the words to sink in a bit more? Still, there was some really beautiful and poignant moments in this book and I loved how she used nature at the forefront of her writing. I can see why she was so loved.