Friday! What are you reading? 6/23/17

[charlatti]

What are you reading this week? Anything awesome in the just-finished or up-next pile?

QOTW: Are you a patient person? How do you handle waiting for things (in lines, important info, pokey people, whatever)?

[abs]

I'm finishing up book 3 of the Mercedes Thompson series. They are fun mindless reads.

QOTW: LOL, no. I am not patient at all. My 6 year old is better at waiting than I am.

[travella]

I finished Girl at War and The Dry. I really liked Girl at War.  The best book of the year so far. I was less impressed with The Dry. I thought I was going to really enjoy it, but for me the ending fell flat. I know a lot of people loved this book, but for me it didn't hold up to the hype. I started Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman last night. I'm only about 50 pages into the book.

QOTW: It depends on the situation. I handle traffic, lines, waiting, etc. better than most. I just find something to keep myself busy - update my to do list, send emails, make phone calls, read/listen to music, play with the apps on my phone, etc. My patience is tested with incompetence, rude behavior, etc.

[charlatti]

I finished a few this week: A House Among the Trees by Julia Glass (4*), My Last Continent by Midge Raymond (2.5*), and Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (3.5*). Now reading Dragon's Green, the start of a middle grade trilogy by Scarlett Thomas.

I am moderately patient, but inefficiency annoys me. I don't mind waiting when it makes sense but I get crabby if I'm waiting because someone was being dumb.

[ufcasey]

Read last week
The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley by Hannah Tinti- fiction; 4 stars; this book deals with guns and gun shot wounds a lot, which is not my favorite thing, but despite that I enjoyed this book quite a bit
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury - classic; 3 stars; there were definitely parts of this book I liked but I prefer the author's other book I have read, The Illustrated Man, a lot more than this one. I read that other one recently so that probably colored my impression of this book quite a bit.
Wolfsbane (#2 in series) by Patricia Briggs; fantasy; 3 stars; this was written 17 years after the first book in the series so it's considerably better compared to that first book, but this is still not near my love for her Mercy Thompson series.

Currently reading
Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Beuvel - sci-fi; so far I am REALLY into this book. I'm listening to the audiobook and it's really well produced with multiple narrators, which is a plus.
Swimming Lessons by Claire Fuller - fiction; very early into the book so no impressions yet

QOTW
Now that I have children, I am both more patient and more impatient. In general I have reached new levels of patience in dealing with illogical people (aka a 3 year old and a 5 year old and some adults at work). At the same time, I am more impatient in my daily life because I can only deal patiently with my children so much before I eventually lose it a little. So even a 90% success rate still results in me being more impatient than I was pre-kids, because they are testing my patience a lot more than anything else did prior to having kids. If that makes sense? Taking kids out of the equation all together, I am naturally a patient person I'd like to think. Unless I am hungry, in that case watch out and feed me LOL!

[cole]

I finished All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, it was good.

I just started "They Can't Kill Us All" Ferguson, Baltimore, and a New Era in America's Racial Justice Movement by Wesley Lowery.

QOTW: I usually have a book with me, so I often kill time by reading if I end up waiting around somewhere. That helps with my impatience.

[rainbowchip]

I'm still reading Heir of Fire. It's finally gotten to a point where I actually care about what's happening and I only have 100 pages left. I am not going to finish this series.
I have The Last One by Alexandra Oliva from the library to start next but I only have 5 days to read it! I also have Homegoing that I'm not going to finish by discussion next week.
I hate that I'm so stubborn and can't put down a book I don't like.

QOTW: Like others my patience is dependent on the situation. I get really impatient with people who seem to think they are the only people in the world.

[rootbeerfloat]

I'm reading Swing Time by Zadie Smith.

It was one of those weeks when multiple books on my waiting list became available, including ACOWAR and the sixth Mercy Thompson. ACOWAR is my motivation for quickly finishing Swing Time.

QOTW: Having kids, and especially marrying my never-in-a-hurry husband, has made me more patient with the world, but it's taken practice lol. Also ditto much of what ufcasey said.

[minzy]

I am still slowly but surely picking my way through The Warmth of Other Suns - The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson. It's really good, I just haven't had much time to read. Next up is The Lost Wife by Alyson Richman, a pick for my book club.

I can be pretty patient, but, like others, my kids test me daily.

[booknerd]

Currently Reading:
Homegoing, I'm a little over halfway through. I'm enjoying it.

Up next:
Continuing my HP re-read, plus a beach vacation a week from tomorrow! So I have several things picked out for the week I'll be gone. I'm thinking the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy and Splendour Falls by Susanna Kearsley. I might also read one of the many thrillers that everyone is talking about, like next month's book club read.

QOTW:
It depends. I work with kids, particularly the kids that often test your patience the most (ADHD, ODD, autism, developmentally delayed, etc.) I feel that I rarely lose my patience with them. It's everyone else around me that I lose patience with. The most infuriating thing on the planet is those interactive voice recordings on phones, like when calling my internet company. Omg. Rage no patience give me an actual person set everything on fire.

[AJL]

I read Faking Normal by Courtney C. Stevens 5/5*

I'm currently reading The Scribe (Irin Chronicles #1) by Elizabeth Hunter. So far it's fun, fast paced, entertaining. I really enjoyed her Elemental Mysteries series as well.

QOTW: I'm not a patient person in general. I can be if I decide ahead of time, but mostly I just want people to hurry up or move out of the way. lol!

[sassypants]

I'm near the end of The Fifth Season and I hope the next one is still available for e-checkout so I can continue right along (although the third one isn't due for a couple months yet).

It's circumstantial for me, but I do not suffer fools, whether on the road or one-on-one.

[aurora]

I just started Homegoing (hoping I can finish by our book club discussion) and am listening to the short story anthology Dangerous Women. I'm finally on the last story in the latter, which is a story by GRR Martin about a war for the throne that took place long before the GoT series. It's fun because there are lots of dragons.

QOTW: it really depends on my mood. Usually I have my phone or a book with me and I'll read or listen to an audiobook or podcast (or randomly surf the web).

[mrspez07]

Reading The Dinner, hoping it gets better. Still listening to the Handmaids Tale.

Depends on if I'm in a hurry or have time, especially in traffic.

[dorothyinAus]

I am reading First Class Murder, a Murder Most Unladylike mystery.  It's a children's book, but the series is such fun and quick reads.  I actually got the latest one a couple of weeks ago though I almost did not after the saleslady insulted me.  When I asked if they had the book in stock, she looked at me and said "You know it's a children's book?"  Shocked I replied "Umm, yes, I do.  I want it anyway."  Though I was thinking "You have a customer looking for a book, and is willing to purchase said book from your independent bookstore.  Don't insult a customer lady."

QOTW:  It depends. I am so much more patient in traffic than I used to be -- after waiting in traffic 17 hours to 7/10 of a mile (no, that is not a typo) anything that is moving faster that that is practically speeding!  But I am far less patient with people in shops, restaurants, or other service situations.

[charlatti]

Jun 23, 2017 23:46:50 GMT -5 dorothyinAus said:

 When I asked if they had the book in stock, she looked at me and said "You know it's a children's book?"  Shocked I replied "Umm, yes, I do.  I want it anyway."  Though I was thinking "You have a customer looking for a book, and is willing to purchase said book from your independent bookstore.  Don't insult a customer lady."

That is so strange! Has her store somehow missed out on the gazillions of crossover books of the past decades? Never mind that you also could have been buying it for a child. 

[bex]

I'm still working my way through "Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss. It's really good, and not terribly dense, so when I sit down to read it I can read 50 pages in a half hour or an hour, its just that I haven't had a chance to sit down much the past few weeks. I'm hoping I can finish it in the next week or two.

I am not very patient. I think having my smartphone makes it worse. If I have to wait for something, I pull out my phone and check FB, email, and IG, and then if I'm still waiting after that I get really annoyed lol.

[spedrunner]

This week I read:



The Cay by Theodore Taylor (5*'s)

The Gift of Imperfection (Brene Brown) 4/5*s



Almost finished:



Animal Farm. I really want to wish I love or even like this book but I just don't. At all. It is painful. So far giving it 2*s.

Neither Here Nor There (Bill Bryson)  I love his writing and style and humor!
I Almost Forgot About You. I am VERY MUCH enjoying this!! I am laughing my arse off listening to it

Getting ready to read:
The Handmaid's Tale


QOTD: I am also a special ed teacher and very patient with my students, less so with staff BUT I bite my tongue a lot. I am very impatient when it comes to myself I am very hard on myself in many areas  

[dorothyinAus]

Jun 24, 2017 16:45:36 GMT -5 spedrunner said:

Animal Farm. I really want to wish I love or even like this book but I just don't. At all. It is painful. So far giving it 2*s.
 

I have never read Animal Farm, but after being disappointed by 1984, I don't have any desire to pick it up.  People tell me that it's a similar style of book.  I gave 1984 2 stars, but only because I felt bad giving such a classic 1 star.

[spedrunner]

Jun 24, 2017 19:06:18 GMT -5 dorothyinAus said:

Jun 24, 2017 16:45:36 GMT -5 spedrunner said:

Animal Farm. I really want to wish I love or even like this book but I just don't. At all. It is painful. So far giving it 2*s.
 

I have never read Animal Farm, but after being disappointed by 1984, I don't have any desire to pick it up.  People tell me that it's a similar style of book.  I gave 1984 2 stars, but only because I felt bad giving such a classic 1 star.

Yes, I was being VERY generous stating 2 stars, but like you said, its a "classic" and I just dont get it or enjoy it ....glad I'm not the only one! 

[sassypants]

Jun 24, 2017 19:11:53 GMT -5 spedrunner said:

Jun 24, 2017 19:06:18 GMT -5 dorothyinAus said:

I have never read Animal Farm, but after being disappointed by 1984, I don't have any desire to pick it up.  People tell me that it's a similar style of book.  I gave 1984 2 stars, but only because I felt bad giving such a classic 1 star.

Yes, I was being VERY generous stating 2 stars, but like you said, its a "classic" and I just dont get it or enjoy it ....glad I'm not the only one! 

But...all animals are equal!! It's just that some animals are more equal than others!

I think it resonates with our current climate a bit too much and can be off putting in that way. I did a reading of it as a play a few years back and that was probably more palatable. 

[dorothyinAus]

Jun 24, 2017 6:48:57 GMT -5 charlatti said:

Jun 23, 2017 23:46:50 GMT -5 dorothyinAus said:

 When I asked if they had the book in stock, she looked at me and said "You know it's a children's book?"  Shocked I replied "Umm, yes, I do.  I want it anyway."  Though I was thinking "You have a customer looking for a book, and is willing to purchase said book from your independent bookstore.  Don't insult a customer lady."

That is so strange! Has her store somehow missed out on the gazillions of crossover books of the past decades? Never mind that you also could have been buying it for a child. 

I was thinking there was plenty of reasons an adult is looking for a children's book, not the least of which is buying to for a child.  It was just so strange.  I prefer to shop at the independent bookstores, and usually I have lovely conversations with the staff about the books I'm either looking for or buying.  I had a delightful discussion about Trenton Lee Stewart's Mysterious Benedict Society books at this same bookstore, but this lady was really off-putting.  I almost didn't buy the book there.  Now that I think about it, I really should have mentioned the exchange to the management.

[Nonny]

I'm just wrapping up Homegoing, I think I have 3 more chapters and in theory I'll finish it today.  It's so good!  I rarely highlight things in the books I'm reading, but I've been highlighting a bunch in this book.  I'll be traveling the day of the discussion, so I probably won't be able to participate in the board discussion until the following week, but I'm looking forward to seeing what people thought.

QOTW: My patience level really depends entirely on the circumstances.  I'm rarely, if ever, patient in traffic, but if I don't have anywhere to be I can be ridiculously patient standing in line at the grocery store or Costco.  But I also have basically zero tolerance for people who are screwing around in such away that they are obliviously inconveniencing other people.  If you want to come in with 300 coupons and write a check, you do you, but please do it during the day and not when people are trying to pick up something quick for dinner and get home after work.  If you want to stop and smell the roses, cool, just don't block the sidewalk or the trail while doing it. 

[darnkatz]

I just finished The Bright Hour by Nina Riggs. I sobbed my way through it. Dying while my kids are young is one of my biggest fears, so I sincerely do not understand why I did that to myself. It was a beautiful book, though. And fucking heartbreaking.


QOTW: I am extremely impatient. I get so annoyed waiting in line.

[aurora]

Jun 24, 2017 19:11:53 GMT -5 spedrunner said:

Jun 24, 2017 19:06:18 GMT -5 dorothyinAus said:

I have never read Animal Farm, but after being disappointed by 1984, I don't have any desire to pick it up.  People tell me that it's a similar style of book.  I gave 1984 2 stars, but only because I felt bad giving such a classic 1 star.

Yes, I was being VERY generous stating 2 stars, but like you said, its a "classic" and I just dont get it or enjoy it ....glad I'm not the only one! 

I read Animal Farm back in high school and I don't really think it's a book you read to enjoy. It was extremely helpful to me to have the in-class discussions on its allegorical nature and the historical context. Basically, it wasn't until I understood which character was which Russian actor pre WW2 that I came to appreciate it.

[aurora]

Also as long as I'm in here I'll update to say that I sped though Homegoing this weekend (just 2 chapters left). I've really enjoyed it and am looking forward to the discussion!

[pandora89]

Late response but I just finished In This Moment by Karma Brown and just started Three Wishes by Liane Moriarty.

[dorothyinAus]

Jun 26, 2017 9:13:19 GMT -5 aurora said:

Jun 24, 2017 19:11:53 GMT -5 spedrunner said:

Yes, I was being VERY generous stating 2 stars, but like you said, its a "classic" and I just dont get it or enjoy it ....glad I'm not the only one! 

I read Animal Farm back in high school and I don't really think it's a book you read to enjoy. It was extremely helpful to me to have the in-class discussions on its allegorical nature and the historical context. Basically, it wasn't until I understood which character was which Russian actor pre WW2 that I came to appreciate it.

Yes, everyone I talked to about 1984 finds it strange that I was disappointed by it and that I was wrong going into reading it thinking I would enjoy the book.  I commented to one person that "there is NO happy in the book, none" and she just laughed at me asking why I ever thought there would be.  It's put me off Orwell entirely.

[ally]

I finished Entangled - it was fine - light and easy.  I am now reading The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict.  It was highlighted on my libraries homepage and was available, so I chose it while waiting for some holds.  I have been enjoying it, no clue how much is based on real history of Albert Einstein.

QOTW: I am fairly impatient, especially while driving.  In line, I will read a magazine or check something on my phone.  My husband is amazingly patient, I am trying to learn from him!