It’s Monday! What are you reading?

Hell-o, multiverse.

I let myself be gutted and finally finished reading Cheryl Strayed’s Tiny Beautiful Things. It was soul-smashingly beautiful, and it needs to be required reading for me and you and everyone we know.

In other news, my Civil War reading mission is going swimmingly, and I managed to read five more books from the list.

A progress update on this year’s Eclectic Reader Challenge: Saga, Vol. 1 was abso-fucking-lutely brilliant. Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples are, to borrow a phrase from Cheryl Strayed, “über-cool sparkle rocket mind-blowers,” and I loved every tiny beautiful thing about it.

I am currently reading T.H. White’s The Once and Future King, which has been sitting on my shelf for far too long. I almost feel ashamed that I have not read it sooner, but I’m just glad that I’m reading it now. This week, I plan on devouring more titles from Marvel’s Civil War, and read more about the magnificent omnishambles in Saga.

All for now, duckies. Have a wonderful reading week!

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It’s Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It’s a fun way to keep track of current reads and to find out what other people have been reading.

There is a linky thing at the end of the post, so go forth, visit new reading blogs, and add to your to-read list!

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

Last week was grueling, but I managed to get some reading done during stolen moments.

Batman: Year One by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli was dark and gritty and riveting. It touched on Bruce Wayne’s tortured humanity, and showed Gotham City as a horrifying hellhole. But it’s not just about Batman’s story—it’s about Jim Gordon’s as well. Gordon is one of my favorite supporting characters in comic books, because he’s such a decent person and he tries so damn hard to do the right thing. In Year One, we see him struggle as a good cop in a city ran by scoundrels. He rises to the occasion and takes action because no one else will. Batman: Year One shows the parallels between these two flawed and conflicted individuals, and I just really want to give each of them a massive hug.

Speaking of brilliant graphic novels, House of M by Brian Michael Bendis and Olivier Coipel was fucking fantastic. Wanda Maximoff’s mind voodoo is scary as fuck. It also made me ecstatic about Avengers: Age of Ultron and AKA Jessica Jones.

In other news, my Civil War reading mission got off to a great start, and I finished the first 19 titles on the list. I still have a long way to go, but I’m determined to go through with it. I also managed to squeeze in Runaways, Vol. 3: The Good Die Young by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona, but I don’t think I’ll be continuing with the series.

I still haven’t finished Cheryl Strayed’s Tiny Beautiful Things, and it’s mostly because I don’t want to devour it in one sitting. She writes beautifully and with so much honesty, and my fragile heart needs to come up for air every once in a while.

Anyhoo, on my TBR pile are The Once and Future King by T.H. White (Kubi’s copy is having tea and scones with the rest of the unread books on my shelf), and Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples. The latter is included in my reading list for the Eclectic Reader Challenge, which I’m trying to accomplish this year.

Two more books that I’m excited about reading in the future are Hanya Yanagihara’s A Little Life and Claire Fuller’s Our Endless Numbered Days. I know I won’t be able to read them this week, because LIFE, but I hope I’ll get the chance to do so.

All for now, lads and lassies. Happy reading!

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It’s Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It’s a fun way to keep track of current reads and to find out what other people have been reading.

There is a linky thing at the end of the post, so go forth, visit new reading blogs, and add to your to-read list!

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

Last week was still all about graphic novels, although I did finish Daniel O’Malley’s The Rook, which was quite the page-turner. This One Summer by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki was like watching somebody’s story unfold from afar through blue-tinted glasses. I read the last two issues of Felicia Day’s The Guild, and the first two volumes of Runaways by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona. The former made me want to watch the whole series (or maybe just revisit Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog), while the latter just made me want to get started with my Civil War reading mission.

I also breezed through the last two issues of John Allison’s Giant Days: Year One, which I loved with all of my heart. I’m still trying get ahold of the first issue. I didn’t realize that the one I read two weeks before was the first one in a new six-issue limited series, with Allison writing and Lissa Treiman drawing it.

In other news, I let myself be gutted and am now reading Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar by Cheryl Strayed. I’m also working my way through Batman: Year One by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli.

Anyhoo, an update on my Eclectic Reader Challenge reading list: I was able to squeeze in Ms. Marvel # 1: Meta Morphosis by G. Willow Wilson & Adrian Alphona this week. Hopefully I’ll be able to write a review before the week ends. Next on my list is Saga, Vol. 1 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples, as well as the first few books from Marvel’s Civil War.

That’s all for now, sweet peas. Happy reading!

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It’s Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It’s a fun way to keep track of current reads and to find out what other people have been reading.

There is a linky thing at the end of the post, so go forth, visit new reading blogs, and add to your to-read list!

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

March has churned out one delicious read after another, and it’s been an absolute pleasure. Last week was spent mostly devouring graphic novels such as Lilli Carré’s Heads or Tails and Scott McCloud’s The Sculptor. The former is a collection of short tales of whimsy and beautiful illustrations that look like graphic representations of one’s dreams, while the latter is a visual rumination on art, time, love, and life.

Some of my favorite ladies also managed to worm their way into my reading list: Felicia Day in The Guild, Tatiana Maslany as Sarah Manning and Helena in the first two issues of Orphan Black, and the hilarious trio of university students (Susan Ptolemy, Esther de Groot, and Daisy Wooton) in John Allison’s Giant Days.

Speaking of complex and fabulous ladies, perhaps my favorite thing in the world at the moment is a series called Lumberjanes from Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis, and Brooke Allen.

It chronicles the lives of a wildly disparate group of girls at a scout camp, where things aren’t what they seem. This happy potion is like an ingenious combination of some of my favorite things in life: Scooby Doo, Gravity Falls, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Happy Campers, and The Baby-Sitters Club. I read twelve issues in one night, and I still want MORE. Molly, Mal, April, Ripley, and Jo are the best, and I just really want to be in their girl gang, okay?

Anyhoo, I am about halfway through Daniel O’Malley’s The Rook, which features secret societies, supernatural forces, an amnesiac protagonist, and cheeky British humor. I’ve also been reading This One Summer, a graphic novel from Jillian and Mariko Tamaki. It tells the story of Rose and Windy in quiet observation and gorgeous shades of blue.

On my TBR list for this week are Batman: Year One by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli, Runaways by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona, and a few books from my Eclectic Reader Challenge reading list. Kubi and I are also considering reading Dragonfly in Amber, the second book in the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon, in preparation for the return of the TV adaptation in April.

That’s it for today. Cheers, duckies. Have a great reading week!

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It’s Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It’s a fun way to keep track of current reads and to find out what other people have been reading.

There is a linky thing at the end of the post, so go forth, visit new reading blogs, and add to your to-read list!

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

It’s Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It’s a fun way to keep track of current reads and to find out what other people have been reading. There is a linky thing at the end of the post, so go forth, visit new reading blogs, and add to your to-read list!

HANNA:

Salutations, fellow rabid readers! It’s been ages since the last Monday post, but we promise we’ve been reading!

September churned out two book reviews: one for V.E. Schwab’s Vicious, and the other for Christopher Moore’s Sacré Bleu: A Comedy d’Art. I also wrote a rather lengthy book loot post, which was a visual representation of my lack of self-restraint.

As for my recent acquisitions, I finally have my own copy of Jessica Zafra’s Womenagerie and the hardcover edition of The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. The most important decision I made yesterday was to grab the Starz tie-in edition of Outlander by Diana Gabaldon because I want Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe in close proximity.

In other news, I borrowed the littlest sister’s copy of Sophie Divry’s The Library of Unrequited Love and I am fascinated. I am also enthralled by William Lychack’s lovely collection of short stories entitled The Architect of Flowers, which was a gift from the sister’s boyfriend. The title story is my favorite one so far.

Lately I’ve had the sudden urge to brush up on my history, which is why I’ve been devouring Robert Lacey’s Great Tales from English History: The Truth About King Arthur, Lady Godiva, Richard the Lionheart, and More.

My TBR pile is still of gargantuan proportions, and I fear for the current state of my bookshelf.

KUBI:

How now, wordlings? Still, I trudge. Thesis writing continues to rule my existence. I haven’t been a very good reader lately what with the attention span excusing itself at the end of the day. Buy when I’m not being catatonic, I do manage to squeeze in the odd book. I recently read Hiroshi Sakurazaka’s All You Need is Kill, which was the inspiration for the secret (just to me?) sci-fi hit Edge of Tomorrow. I’d heard good things about the film and didn’t know it was a book until I saw photos of the movie tie-in edition. I was intrigued so I did a back-to-back reading/ viewing. They were both spectacularly entertaining and I have not been able to shut up about either. So yes: read/ watch Edge of Tomorrow.

I also just read The Serpent of Venice, Christopher Moore’s follow up to his Fool, which I love. The Serpent of Venice is an amalgam of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Cask of Amontillado and William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and Othello. It was a feat but Moore somehow got it all to work. Plotting and conniving ensue, the odd wank is thrown in, and there is always a bloody ghost! It’s so irreverent and unhinged, it’s a bit of a shock to read Moore’s afterword where he talks lovingly and quite calmly about the source materials and how he stitched them together to bring his lively abomination (his word, not mine) to life.

Anyway, getting to the point. There are a few books on my nightstand these days. Reading time is precious so I’m wading into as many pools as I can (does that even make sense?).

The Bone Clocks is in stores, so I unearthed David Mitchell’s number9dream from the bowels of my bookcase. I’ve always gotten the impression that his books have a bit of a fantasy flavor so I’ve resolved to finally get my Mitchell on.

I also have my toes in Scott Lynch’s Red Seas Under Red Skies, the sequel to The Lies of Locke Lamora (read it now if you haven’t). I also have Outlander by Diana Gabaldon because, gawd, that show. I don’t know if I ever would have picked up the book without a nudge. I’d seen it before and would always kind of pass it over. Hanna wouldn’t get off my case and I’ve finally seen the error of my ways. Duly rectified. I cannae wait for all the Jamie adventure.

Finally, Wild by Cheryl Strayed is within reach because a lot of the time these days, I feel like I’m always at the foot of a new mountain to scale. Here’s to finding some clarity.

All for now, lads and lassies. Read on and read strong 🙂 Have a great week!

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

It’s Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It’s a fun way to keep track of current reads and to find out what other people have been reading. There is a linky thing at the end of the post, so go forth, visit new reading blogs, and add to your to-read list!

Hullo, earthlings! On our last It’s Monday! What are you reading? post, I talked about revisiting Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman, and falling in love with Laini Taylor’s Lips Touch: Three Times.

Since then, I’ve devoured YA novels like cake and ruminated on the stigma of young adult literature.

The skies have been weeping for several days now, and all this rain makes me want to curl up in bed and read for hours.

The gloomy weather calls for cozy mysteries, and I fully intend to become wrapped up in Lawrence Block’s The Burglar Who Thought He Was Bogart and Joanne Fluke’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder—both of which appear on a recent, and rather lengthy, book haul post.

For now, though, Kate Atkinson’s Life After Life has me enthralled.

Have a fantastic reading week ahead!

This was a post by Hanna, who still wishes for uninterrupted reading time.

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

It’s Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It’s a fun way to keep track of current reads and to find out what other people have been reading. There is a linky thing at the end of the post, so go forth, visit new reading blogs, and add to your to-read list!

KUBI

How now, weblings? Hanna has been holding down the fort while I keep my head down to write for school. Things are Coming Along, but I still have many miles to go before I sleep. This is a quick break before the week begins in earnest.

I’m currently reading Love in the Time of Cholera to mourn the death of Gabriel Garcia Marquez. My copy was a birthday gift from my folks on my 20th birthday, so it’s basically been on my TBR for nearly a decade. I regret that I waited this long to read it, but wonder if that might somehow be appropriate for the occasion.

I didn’t expect it to be funny at all, but found myself chortling in mingled embarrassment and delight, pitchy oh-my-gods squeezed out of my constricted throat, watching Florentino Ariza and Fermina Daza plunge feverishly, clumsily into love. In this sampling, he hands her his first letter:

Florentino Ariza, with a white camellia in his lapel, crossed the street and stood in front of her. He said: “This is the greatest moment of my life.” Fermina Daza did not raise her eyes to him…

“Give it to me,” she said.

…She raised the embroidery frame so he could put the letter on it, for she could not admit that she had noticed the trembling of his fingers. Then it happened: a bird shook himself among the leaves of the almond trees, and his droppings fell right on the embroidery.

Ah, the humiliation of young love. I am completely won over when it is finally pointed out that “the symptoms of love [are] the same as those of cholera.” I’m reading slowly – a chapter at a time – for fear that my pre-occupied brain will miss something.

On Ender (my Kindle), I have The Society of Crossed Keys, a collection of Stefan Zweig’s writing that served as the inspiration for Wes Anderson’s most recent confection The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Since I last wrote here, I finished The Year Of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion, Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor, and Tiny Beautiful Things: Lessons on Love and Life from Dear Sugar by Cheryl Strayed. One of these days, I’ll write a special post just for these books because they proved me wrong when I was sure I would never finish a book again. They each struck a chord in me, and I want to hear the rest of the song.

Here are a couple of the books I intend to read in the near-ish future:

• Case Histories by Kate Atkinson: I give the woman love whenever I come across her books at the store. It’s not yet a full-blown operation, but yes, it seems I’m procuring her entire oeuvre. That’s just how much I love Life After Life.
• Torch by Cheryl Strayed: I’d been thinking about this book since finishing Tiny Beautiful Things, and ended up finding it in a used bookstore this weekend. I also own Wild, so I definitely have a lot of Cheryl Strayed in my future.
• The Rehearsal by Eleanor Catton: When a girl my age wins the Man Booker Prize, it is practically a given to obsess about her. I want to give her debut a shot before I even attempt her epic The Luminaries.

HANNA

Salutations, beautiful creatures!

Last week was a blur of days spent sifting through piles of work, frolicking outside to thwart the evil forces of the sun, catching up on sleep, stocking up on snackage, hanging out with the crazy mother before she flies back to work, discovering a shared obsession with the cousin, and preparing a feast for the senses for the father’s birthday.

As for my reading exploits, I have just finished reading The Doll’s House, which is the second volume in Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman.

I have to say that I’m really glad that I started re-reading this series. I devoured it when I was still a little bit too young, but my mind was blown in every way possible. Reading it slowly this time around made me appreciate everything about it even more. It also reinforced my adoration for Gaiman’s work and the crazy inner workings of his twisted mind.

Reading Laini Taylor’s Lips Touch: Three Times was a heady experience. I am absolutely in love with her prose, and her use of words and description is sheer genius. It’s a collection of two short stories and a novella, which revolve around a kiss.

This book was enchanting, and I savored every word of it like relishing a piece of the best damn chocolate in the entire universe.

My favorite story is Goblin Fruit, which centers on a girl named Kizzy and her utmost desires. Its first few lines were so seductive that I just had to keep on reading:

There is a certain kind of girl the goblins crave. You could walk across a highschool campus and point them out: not her, not her, her. The pert, lovely ones with butterfly tattoos in secret places, sitting on their boyfriends’ laps? No, not them. The girls watching the lovely ones sitting on their boyfriends’ laps? Yes.

Them.

The goblins want girls who dream so hard about being pretty their yearning leaves a palpable trail, a scent goblins can follow like sharks on a soft bloom of blood. The girls with hungry eyes who pray each night to wake up as someone else. Urgent, unkissed, wishful girls.

Like Kizzy.

Oh, it was wonderful and absolutely delicious.

The other two stories, Spicy Little Curses Such As These and Hatchling, were marvelous and breathtaking, but it was Goblin Fruit that really made an impression on me.

Each story also featured beautiful illustrations by Jim Di Bartolo, who made the stories come alive.

I know I didn’t get to read much this week, but I thoroughly enjoyed every single minute I spent with these two books. I’m still scanning my shelves for my new companions in the coming days. In the mean time, here’s a photo of David Tennant reading a book with a penguin:

Have a lovely reading week, duckies.

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

It’s Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It’s a fun way to keep track of current reads and to find out what other people have been reading. There is a linky thing at the end of the post, so go forth, visit new reading blogs, and add to your to-read list!

Salutations, multiverse!

Last week, I picked up my sister’s copy of Gregoire Delacourt’s The List of My Desires and became fully absorbed in Jocelyne’s story. (I wanted to hug her and make her happy.)

I also re-read the first two books in the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy by Laini Taylor before diving into the final book in the series.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone was still as breathtaking and magical as the first time I read it. Days of Blood and Starlight was still savagely beautiful and heartbreaking. There was a lot going on in Dreams of Gods and Monsters, but it provided a satisfying end to a spectacular series. This particular book also caused an ugly-cry face and reinforced my love and admiration for Karou.

I have fallen in love with Laini Taylor’s prose and I wanted more after reading the final book in the trilogy. I learned about Night of Cake and Puppets from Kubi, and it was the perfect happy potion. This book is made entirely out of squee and I devoured it like cake.

As for my recent acquisitions, I found these two gems at a second-hand bookshop:

Monday was spent revisiting Neil Gaiman’s deliciously dark and haunting The Sandman universe, starting with Preludes and Nocturnes.

I plan on reading Gaiman’s The Doll’s House this week, as well as Laini Taylor’s Lips Touch: Three Times.

On a totally unrelated but delightfully cheery note, I bought a new pair of boots and watched The Grand Budapest Hotel with the sisters and my bookworm-in-training cousin. We picked up a couple of pizzas on the way home, and sang along to ’90s pop songs in the car.

Needless to say, Monday was a goddess today and has set a pretty high standard for the rest of the week.

This was a post by Hanna, who is running out of shelf space.