Book of the Month: November

You may have noticed that there wasn't a Book of the Month in October. That is because October was crazy busy and I only finished one book. Is it really winning if you're the only one playing?

In November I started reading more ebooks on my desktop during my free time which means I read nine books in the month of November, three of which were graphic novels. (I can't believe my stack of graphic novels I got in September is still staring at me.) I read a wide variety of types of books in November, most of which I enjoyed but not all.

My favorite book I finished in November was actually the book we read in our book club, "The Handmaid's Tale." This is classic feminist literature that I had somehow never gotten around to before but I'm glad I have now. And what a year to read this book... When your reality is starting to feel more like a dystopian future, this sort of thing just doesn't seem that far-fetched. This book sucked me from the beginning. Reading this book felt like taking great, gulping breathes of air after being under water. It felt like taking a disaster preparedness course. Now I at least feel like I know what to look out for. It freaked my shit out.... but I liked it.

(So far this year I have read 41 books and 26 graphic novels.)

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Book of the Month: September

During the month of September I finished five books, two of which were graphic novels. I completed my GoodReads challenge for the year which was to read 50 books. I am now up to 55. 33 of the 55 books read are not graphic novels. I think this means I should try to read 22 more non-graphic novels by the end of the years. It is only early October and I am in the middle of three books at the moment so this seems like an entirely obtainable goal. The reason I wanted to read less this year was so that I could try new things and I think I have achieved that. I've learned about pastry baking, I've had my first baking gigs, I got a new job, I wrote some children's stories and short stories. The stories may never see the light of day but I am happier for having written them. I feel like it has been a productive year. Sure, it has been emotionally tumultuous but that has just kept a fire burning under me to remind me that I could always be doing more to improve myself.

I started reading a biography about Neil Gaiman at the same time as I started reading, "The View From the Cheap Seats," and what I learned is that I would rather read absolutely anything Neil Gaiman has written more than I want to read some unknown write about him. Sure I may not know the true and exact story of his childhood through the eyes of an outsider, but I know the fantastical story the way Neil tells it and that is so much better in my opinion.  "The View from the Cheap Seats," is a collection of non-fiction writings from Neil Gaiman. Some of the selections are introductions for other books, musical tours, reviews of shows, personal works, etc. There is a wide variety of subjects and even if you don't have any prior knowledge about the topics of which he writes, all are a delight to read.

Book of the Month: August

August was a really good month for books! I finished eight books, four of which were graphic novels, one of which is a writing work book that I have been working through since October of last year, one of which was a re-read of "To Kill a Mockingbird," all of which were delightful in their own way.

While some of the books I read were technically better than, "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child," I did not enjoy any of them nearly as much as an overall experience as I did this book. I was a reluctant Harry Potter fan as a child. I had acquired the first three books as gifts from my grandmother as they came out. I have always been a reader, Amazon wish lists haven't always existed, I often was gifted books from Hot Picks! section of Costco. Nothing wrong with that. I've gotten lots of great books that way. But Harry Potter was POPULAR so that automatically made me think it SUCKED. I didn't want to like a popular book. I liked liking weirdo books that no one else was reading. (See also: Why I just read my first Jane Austen book this year.) So they sat on my shelf for a long time.

When I was a kid, ever summer for our vacation, my parents and I would take big, three-week long road trips all over the country. We saw many many national parks, very few tourist traps, everyone in the country we're related to, we saw A LOT out the window of our car. The trips were fantastic! I loved them! But you can't look out the window for three weeks so I brought books. Lots of books. I filled a crate with basically all the books I owned that I hadn't read and it usually wasn't enough... I'd usually read 10 - 15 books in a three week period. Ereaders hadn't been invented yet so I had to lug everything I wanted to read with me from home and after all the good stuff that I was super stoked to read was done with, I'd be left with the dregs. All the books I owned and hadn't read that I didn't care about got read on these trips. I didn't always enjoy them but I finished them because that's what I had.

 Harry Potter was part of the dregs. I have never been more happy to have been wrong about something. After that trip, I was a fan for life. I dressed up and waited in line for both midnight book releases and midnight movie releases, I asked my mom to make me wizard robes, I was hooked. And when the series ended, it was like a friend had died. I cried. I couldn't believe that this thing that had become such a huge part of my life was over. I was losing friends. A whole book full of friends. But the bright side is that Rowling was fairly young when she wrote the Potter novels and she has not been felled by any horrible ailments, thank Dumbledore. There was always a chance I'd get to see my friends again but I didn't dare hope. I didn't want to be disappointed when it didn't happen.

Having the opportunity to read a Harry Potter novel for the very first time again was such a joy. Sure, it is a play and not a novel and some things are lost and the story isn't as strong or complicated as I would have liked, but it was a Harry Potter book! With Ron! And Hermione! And Ginny! And Draco! It didn't matter that I wanted to punch Harry in the face, I was just happy to have him with me again. Being a play, it was a quick read and I cried when it was over because well, it was over... and who knows if I'll get another. It isn't perfect, but it is a story that is mine.

Book of the Month: July

July only saw five books finished and honestly, while nearly everything was good, there wasn't really a stand out from the bunch. I do have a stand out of what I did NOT like that I finished that month! I severely did not enjoy "Radiance," by Catherynne M. Valente. Despite all of that book's positive reviews, I found it to be an entirely bewildering and frustrating process. After our book club discussion, I gathered up a couple other books that have vexed me and traded them in for something that will hopefully be more agreeable when I get around to reading it.

I have followed Alan Cumming and his career since high school. He's played a loveable dweeb in some fantastic movies and honestly, I find him incredibly attractive. This is not one of those all-encompassing memoirs that take you through every moment of a celebrity's life starting at conception and ending at, "...and today I finished writing this book." This is a very focused story. This is the story of the tumultuous relationship that Alan has had with his father for the entirety of his life. Yes, we do get to see a young Alan grow up and have successes and struggles, but they all relate back to his father. His father's reactions, his father's rage, his father's temper, his father's undiagnosed mental illness. It is a heartbreaking emotional roller coaster as Alan tries to film a television show about his family history while dealing with the very present strife between he and his father.

Absolutely beautifully written and a totally captivating story. I hear that Alan has more stories in the works and I look forward to reading them very much.

Book of the Month: June

In the month of June I finished five books and only one of them was a graphic novel. I read some kind of intense non-fiction in June and I am glad to follow it up with things much lighter and fluffier... Well, for a little while. The non-fiction on deck is looking a bit tumultuous in ways that only non-fiction can be.

My favorite book completed in June is "Wild Swans," by Jung Chang. It is the story of three generations of women living through times of great change in China. It starts with the grandmother who was a concubine to a warlord, her daughter who was part of the uprising of the communist party, and her granddaughter (and author of the book) who lived through the cultural revolution and the time of Chairman Mao. This book is incredibly tense and heartbreaking at times, but it is an absolutely fascinating story. The cliché goes, "Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it," and I think this is a good example of that. Reincarnations of horrifying political powers do not always come back speaking the same language. I would challenge anyone who thinks that Mr. Trump has some really good ideas to investigate a little into the life of Chairman Mao. Many of his ideas for making China Great! sound awfully familiar and I admit that I had to put this book down and walk away from it at several points as the similarities were simply too apparent.

I recommend this book to anyone who has any interest in history, China, or simply how women have been treated in history. It is an absolutely worthwhile read.

Week 1: Follow Up

How many days this week did you do morning pages?
I didn't write on Friday because it was a very busy day and I just kind of forgot.

Did you do your artist's date this week?
I went to Brookings with my husband on Sunday. 

Did you get out on your weekly walk?
Yes and I look forward to going on more now that it is summer.

Were there any issues you felt were significant to your self-discovery?
I got two job offers this week and after the Orlando shooting, I have rededicated myself to spreading love.

Bookof the Month: May

In the month of May I finished five books, none of which were graphic novels. I've gotten to the end of my re-reading of The Sandman series and I've been rationing content to myself. Most of the books I finished were longer or more dense books that took a bit longer than normal to read or I had been sitting on for quite awhile for one reason or another. While all of the books I read in May were enjoyable in their own way, the one I enjoyed the most was read in nearly one sitting.

I am one of those people who receives a jury summon every three months like clockwork while my husband gets maybe one a year. This past month was the very first time I've ever been required to actually report in spite of the frequent requests. I brought two books with me, "Daring Greatly," which I was finishing up for my book club meeting and "The Argonauts," which was Emma Watson's pick for her book club. I sat in the courthouse basement for approximately four hours before I was dismissed. Thank goodness. They wanted to hook me into a six week long trial and that just wasn't happening.

"The Argonauts," is one of the most beautifully written memoirs I have ever encountered. It made so much sense when I later learned that Maggie Nelson is a poet by trade. The entire book breathed and flowed like a poem. It was delicate at times, tender like a kiss, and acid on the heart at others. The story is intimate. Maggie is experiencing the bodily and hormonal changes of pregnancy while her partner is experiencing the bodily and hormonal changes of transitioning from female to male. Their love for each other, their existing child, and their child to be is warm and tender and the way Maggie captures their experience is perfect.

This book broke my heart and sewed it back together. It has been a month since I read it and I'm getting misty-eyed just thinking about it. If you would like to borrow this book, I would be more than happy to lend it because I want everyone to read it.