2024 Reading Challenge

#7-9
#7 - WilliamHogan - Task Force Hogan. Continuing my middle aged obsession with the ETO. Masters of the Air coming up in the to be read pile soon.
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#8 Mick Herron - Spook Street. Book 4 in the Slow Horses series. I prefer the tv show to the books. My big issue with Mick Herron is that he does not seem to like any of his characters and seems to take joy in torturing them.
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#9 Marc Weingarten (ed.) - Yes Is The Answer (and other Prog-Rock Tales). Just finishing up. While I listen to a lot of things that are Prog-adjacent but Prog itself has often left me cold. Lots of personal essays on what Prog means to the authors. Pretty much all describe Prog as being naff but they still love it. Overall an enjoyable read. I think Marc Weingarten also edited a book on essays on Power Pop so I might give that a shot in a few months.
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Book 6: Don Quixote, by Miguel de Cervantes (Translated by Edith Grossman)
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Damn fine book; I read it in college 20 years ago and have been meaning to return and try out the Grossman translation. Great translation, btw; Grossman makes the prose really sing, and she includes copious footnotes which contextualize the contemporary literary references and underline the more language-and-culture-specific wordplay. I know I read all of part 1 in school, but I think I skimmed part 2; I actually enjoyed part 2 a lot more this time, as there are fewer digressions and sideplots.

I have a lecture series I've been watching on the book for more context and deeper understanding of the themes and historical context, but I can already say at this point Cervantes has some timeless things to say about fiction and its place in our lives. If ever you think people's inability to be normal about culture/media is some modern development, I strongly recommend reading this book. The amount of slapstick and Farrelly-style effluvium humor is timeless as well.
 
Book 13

DEEPING IT: Colonialism, Culture & Criminalisation of UK Drill by Adèle Oliver
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This was a great read. Oliver pieces her thesis together into an immensely readable and informative little book (similar in dimensions to the 33 1/3 series.) As a lifelong fan of hip hop, there was nothing particularly surprising here, but it was still a fascinating read the brought some great historical context into its conversation. I'm definitely keen to check out more of this Inklings series of books.
 
Bull Shannon said:
Book 3: The Honjin Murders, by Seishi Yokomizo
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Book club read right here; we voted on this one out of a selection of three early-to-mid-century detective novels. This one's the first of a series revolving around a rumpled amateur detective named Kosuke Kindaichi, who went on to appear in over 70 more novels. I've only read a couple Japanese novels, but it seems like the tone here is in line with those: the prose is very direct, and as a result, the story is a very straight-forward description of the murder scene, the detective arriving and (very) briefly reviewing the details we've been given, then outlining exactly what happened. At one point the author includes a map of the scene, then politely reminds the reader to refer to it during crucial segments. I'm a bit skeptical of the physics, but this was an enjoyable enough read.

Book 4: Fathers and Children, by Ivan Turgenev
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Holy effing ess. I'm late to the game on Russian lit (my big introduction came with Saunders' Swim in a Pond in the Rain a couple years back) but so far these 19th century mfers are batting 100 (1000?) with me. I'm struggling a bit to capture what I enjoyed so much about this book as I get further from it, but there's a real clarity of place and character with which I'm really vibing. Turgenev picks his characters apart with such tenacity; as a middle-aged(ish) person seeing the push-pull between my generation and those ahead and behind me, a lot of the self-manufactured conflict between the younger and older characters hits home. Great stuff.

Book 5: Three-Body Problem, by Cixin Liu
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This one's a reread in anticipation of the Netflix series coming at the end of next month; it'd been 8 years since I first read it and I wanted to brush up. I'm concerned that Benioff and Weiss are trying to add a lot of badass action and tense drama to a deeply geeky book. This book gets a lot of deserved flak for being dry and containing a lot of paper-thin characters, but there's an emotional spine to this book and series which deserves more love. It's definitely tripping over itself to get into the scientific weeds (the sophon-folding sequence near the end of the book is a tough hang and I didn't even try to pay full attention to it this time around), but larger questions of humanity, love, and existentialism hover over the proceedings, especially in the next two books. I'll probably tackle those this summer and fall, respectively.
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Ok, I just found this while going through our shelves looking for books to donate. So I guess I already have some Turgenev. It's the same book, the title was apparently translated differently.
I might read this sooner instead of later!

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ranbalam said:
Ok, I just found this while going through our shelves looking for books to donate. So I guess I already have some Turgenev. It's the same book, the title was apparently translated differently.
I might read this sooner instead of later!

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Yep, mine is the NYRB copy/translation, which I guess they elected should be changed to "children" over "sons"; the praise for the translators might just be for the sake of the back cover, but I'm inclined to pursue their other translations.
 
Bull Shannon said:
Yep, mine is the NYRB copy/translation, which I guess they elected should be changed to "children" over "sons"; the praise for the translators might just be for the sake of the back cover, but I'm inclined to pursue their other translations.
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I got mine at a book fair at a mall years ago. It has no copyright dates, publisher info, nothing about who translated it. It's like a bootleg or something. I am not sure if I even want to read this version, who knows how it was translated...or if it's even the entire book.
 
avecigrec said:
Book 14

Sure, I'll Join Your Cult by Maria Bamford
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I love Maria Bamford. This book is hilarious, harrowing and full of awkward cringe. I'm sure I enjoyed reading it far more than she enjoued writing it. Dunno how inclined I'd be to recommmend to anyone who's not already a fan, but I loved it.
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She's hilarious. My wife is a big fan.
 
ayayrawn said:
1. The Hundred Years' War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi

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One of the most enraging books I've ever read. However horrific and unjust you think the history of the last 100 years is, the reality is somehow much worse. If you wonder how we could've arrived at the genocide currently happening in Gaza (cheerlead by the president) this is essential. Whole audiobook on Youtube.
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I have a lot of catching up to do.

2. The Color Purple by Alice Walker - a classic that's always been a blind spot for me. I thought it was really lovely and good!

3. Winter Recipes From the Collective by Louis Gluck - Her final collection of poetry before passing last year. More enigmatic than her stuff usually is, and slim, but really just love her voice.

4. Life on Mars: Poems by Tracy K. Smith - Really enjoyed this collection. Some large scale ruminations on life and grief.

5. Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems by Billy Collins - Collins' sardonic and easy style make for good comfort reading. Fun collection.

6. One Piece Vol 104 by Eiichiro Oda - Once again, will be reading these til I die. At least the Wano arc is finished now.

7. Poems New and Collected by Wilsawa Szymborska - Maybe my favorite out of this first wave of poetry I've read this year. Really gorgeous and immaculate vibes. Gorgeous and even funny too.

8. Freedom is a Constant Struggle by Angela Davis - Listened to Davis herself read this on audiobook. Informative and inspiring. Some of the speeches get a little redundant and repetitive, but I'm happy to listen to whatever she has to say. Plus she has a really nice voice.

9. The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky - This is the big one I've been working on since late January and just finished today. It's pretty good, and I liked it, but do think I really prefer Tolstoy's flowery, emotional, and painterly style to Dostoevsky's more surgical, cold philosophical rants. I was occaionally affected by this one, but nowhere near as much as either Anna Karenina or Ware and Peace. I'll probably give a few more Fyodors a read down the line. Maybe with a more modern translation so it doesn't feel as dry. To be clear, it's good, and I'm glad I read it.

Anyway, I'm super stoked to finally be able to read something else. I'm currently listening to Werner Herzog's memoir that released last year (as delightful and screwy as you'd expect). Plan to hit some Pynchon and Merton here soon as well as Maggie O'Farrel's Hamnet, and Hanif Abdurraquib's new collection.
 
I've been a bit behind in sharing the book's I've read lately, but here they are:

Book 3: Wool by Hugh Howey (Arrow, 2013)
I finished watching Silo recently (which this book is based upon) and liked it enough to dig into the book series. Wool was even better than the show, expanding the story quite a bit. Im going to pick up the next in the series when I get the chance.

Book 4: Elephant Complex by John Gimlette (Quercus Publishing, 2015)
I read this behemoth of a book during a recent trip to Sri Lanka and it was a great insight into the country. The book follows Gimlette's travels across the country and I visited several of the places that he did, so it was great to read up on local history and info.

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Book 5: The Expanse: Abaddon's Gate by James A Corey (Orbit, 2014)
I watched The Expanse series a year or 2 ago and loved it. For a while I have been meaning to start reading the books and when I was in an airport a few weeks ago I saw this and decided to get it, despite not reading the first 2. Luckily I knew enough about the series to know the characters etc. Im definitely going to be on the look out for the others.

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Book 6: Paul's Records: How a Refugee from the Vietnam War Found Success Selling Vinyl on the Streets of Hong Kong by Andrew S Gutherie (Blacksmith Books HK, 2015)
This was a book I picked up in Hong Kong and decided to dig in straight away. It's a short book but covers a lot. It's part biography, part overview of Hong Kong, and part case study of Hong Kong music.

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Book 7: Foundation by Issac Isaac Asimov (Harper Collins, 2016)
Again, this was another TV series that I recently watched and after chatting to a work colleague about it, she lent me the book. I read it in 2 days so it certainly gripped me. A bit dialogue heavy but still a good read.

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Book 15

Star Wars: The High Republic - Eacape From Valo by Daniel José Older & Alyssa Wong
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A fantastically paced younglings adventure in Phase 3 of the High Republic publishing initiative. Some things from Older's Phase 2 comics now make a lot more sense in the context of the larger story. It's also nice to be back on Valo after the devastation that occurred there during Phase 1. I've made no secret of my love for The High Republic over the past couple years so I'm obviously biased toward each new book that arrives, but I daresay this is one of the better ones of the whole initiative.
 
Book 16

Dirty Laundry: Why adults with ADHD are so ashamed and what we can do to help by Richard Pink & Roxanne Emery
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This one has very mixed reviews on Goodreads and I can absolutely understand both sides very well. It's very easy to read with a good amount of humour and relatable anecdotes. There's also a lot of privilege, Rox comes off quite codependent and I can see why people find Rich to be patronizing. They work really well as a pair which is not something everybody with ADHD has access to, so it's not a book for everyone. I enjoyed it well enough, but didn't learn a lot. If it were a much longer page count or less breezy ready I don't imagine I'd have seen it through, but it proved a quick day and a half interlude to the other book I'm currently reading.
 
I come and go with my interest in reading. When the interest hits I can’t stop but then it passes and I don’t read for a bit. Well the interest has hit so I’m gonna see if I can ride it for the whole year with the goal of atleast 1 book for every month. Past month I’ve read 3 books so I’m on track

1. Red White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston: Rating - 3/5
watched the movie last year and I enjoyed it and I was in the mood for something cute and gay. It’s super corny (you will never get me to care about the prince of England) but it is very cute and very gay so it hit the spot.

2. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn: Rating - 5/5
Also watched this movie last year and it immediately jumped into my top 10 favorite movies of all time, with Amy being my favorite fictional character of all time so I really wanted to read this. The book is just as amazing as the movie, the added depth the book can give this characters made me love them even more than I did before.

3. Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn: Rating - 1/5
thought I should read another book by her since I loved Gone Girl so much and I feel the complete opposite feelings. I can’t remember the last time I hated a book so much. Boring and surprisingly predictable. Felt like a complete chore to get through.
 
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