The Book Thread Book • Page 190

still less wild than when his dad mentioned Korn and 311 lmao

 

I’ve seen people say that reading Eimear McBride is like learning to read again and I always forget how true that is for me. The beginning of A City Changes Its Face was a little rough because it’s been a few years since I read The Lesser Bohemians, but now I can’t get enough and feel the weight of every sentence. I know her stuff isn’t for everyone, but goddamn do I love it.

 

Also, on a more fun note, I was gifted a copy of Gnomes and it’s such a cozy bedtime read. Would love more stuff like this.

 

https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/prize-years/2025

Added most to my TBR list

 

I just finished the Books of Blood and ordered like five more Clive Barker books immediately, I'm hooked lmao

 

Just finished Laughter in the Dark last night. Wow that book is amazing

 

Recently discovered ThriftBooks.com, which I can already tell is going to be dangerous. I found it searching for The Keep by Jennifer Egan for a book club next month. Their “you might also enjoy” feature is great because several they suggested I ended up buying haha. It did take some of the fun out of browsing books at thrift stores or bookstores but can’t stay away from a good deal.

I bought

Rule of the Bone by Russell Banks
The Long Home by William Gay
Disturbing the Peace by Richard Yates
Hamilton Stark by Russell Banks
The Fool’s Progress by Edward Abbey
The Death of Sweet Mister by Daniel Woodrell
The Singer’s Gun by Emily St John Mandel

I read Continental Drift and Affliction by Russell Banks and fell in love with his writing. The way he wrote his characters is unmatched. It's haunting. They stick with you long after you finish. Excited to dig in to more of his work.

 

Thrift books is great. I volunteer at a nonprofit bookstore and we give them our books that are donated to us that aren't at the quality we like to sell or if we don't rly have a market for them.

 

I’m halfway through The Fisherman by John Langan. It’s one of the most beautifully written horror books I’ve read. I’m still trying to figure out if I like the ‘story within a story’ thing though. We’ll see when I’m done.

 

Love a well-done story within a story. I especially love it with John Irving’s The World According to Garp, that one is an all-timer.

 

I am a fan too when it's well done and I'm not saying Langan isn't doing it well here, but I think in this case I really love how he set the stakes and made me care about the characters so switching to a totally different story with characters I care less about so far hasn't landed for me.

 

I have a lot of reading related stickers on my water bottle and I volunteer at a bookstore and am a regular at my local bookstore yet the moment someone is like "oh who is your favorite author? What's your favorite book?" My brain short circuits and suddenly I can't remember anything I've ever read in my life.

 

this is how I am with everything: music, movies, books, etc. it can be very frustrating, especially if the person asking is someone i actually want to be talking to.

 

I have a giant Bayside tattoo on my side. we went to the beach a few summers ago and a random guy next to us asked what it meant so I told him it was a band. He next asked me to sing one of their songs and counted down from 3 and I claimed up big time. Was the strangest encounter I’ve had re: this concept but also the most unique?

 

Omg I have a Thursday tattoo and if someone asked me to do this I would die. Idek what I would try to sing.

I could scream "WE WERE SAAAAAFE" and then they'd probably leave me alone

 

Currently rereading Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things to prep for my 12th grade's next unit. HEr writing is beautiful, but man are those first two chapters challenging. The family drama is incredible, and I know she's aiming to set the sociocultural and political landscape, but it truly reads like a textbook at some points. It took me maybe 3 weeks to read the second chapter because I didn't want to go back.

 

Are there any good book clubs from public figures? I don't really follow anyone specifically, but I've heard that Dua lipa's is good and that she does good interviews with authors as well. Wasn't sure if there's anyone else who has a good book club going just for when I am not sure what to read next

 

Reese Witherspoon? I think hers tends to be pretty well regarded

 

Anyone pick up the M. Night / Nicholas Sparks collab?