Wednesday Reading (and Watching)
Jul. 10th, 2019 11:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
maplemoodSqueaking this post in just under the line--I want to start being more systematic about recording/reviewing the books I've read, which may or may not actually happen but hey, you have to start somewhere. War and Peace is still taking up the bulk of my reading time (which absolutely isn't a complaint, I'm up to Book Twelve so, barring any huge distractions, on track to finish it this summer, and that was my main reading goal anyway), but I've had the time to sneak in a few other things now that my summer class is over.
Dead Girls: Essays on Surviving an American Obsession by Alice Bolin: A collection of essays that's a lot less focused than you'd expect given the title. I did enjoy it, but I didn't love it; I think that has more to do with my expectations going in (a bigger emphasis on true crime and true-crime-inspired stories) than with its actual quality, though.
And I Awoke and Found Me Here on the Cold Hill's Side (short story) by James Tiptree Jr.: Classic, extremely depressing sci-fi. I liked it a lot more than I was expecting to, considering the extreme depressing-ness.
Chivalry (short story) by Neil Gaiman: Funny, sweet, and a really great palate cleanser after And I Awoke. This one's also a reread--I first read it years and years ago in the collection M is for Magic and aside from the basic set up (an old British woman discovers the Holy Grail in a thrift shop), didn't remember most of the best parts, like Sir Galahad coming for the Holy Grail and sticking around to help out with chores.
All That You Love Will Be Carried Away (short story) by Stephen King
Work and Days (poetry chapbook) by Tess Taylor
Be More Chill by Ned Vizzini: Read this one mostly because my friend got me obsessed with the musical, and it's fantastic. Maybe not quite as emotionally satisfying as the show, but still plenty emotionally satisfying in its own way, honest to the point of getting pretty ugly in some parts, and funny.
It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini: Read because of Be More Chill, and everything about that applies here, times a hundred. I really, really, really loved this one.
On the TV front, I just finished the first season of Black Sails and started the second. Hardcore obsession hasn't kicked in yet but I've got a pretty good feeling that it might--of the characters so far Flint, Eleanor, Anne, and Max are my favorites, and aside from being chock full of all the brutal, backstabbing, wooden-ships-and-iron-men, Golden Age of Piracy tropes you could ask for so much of it is just gorgeous to look at. Since I've got a soft spot for anything Treasure Island-inspired I've been wanting to watch this show for a couple of years, and so far it's been worth the wait.
Dead Girls: Essays on Surviving an American Obsession by Alice Bolin: A collection of essays that's a lot less focused than you'd expect given the title. I did enjoy it, but I didn't love it; I think that has more to do with my expectations going in (a bigger emphasis on true crime and true-crime-inspired stories) than with its actual quality, though.
And I Awoke and Found Me Here on the Cold Hill's Side (short story) by James Tiptree Jr.: Classic, extremely depressing sci-fi. I liked it a lot more than I was expecting to, considering the extreme depressing-ness.
Chivalry (short story) by Neil Gaiman: Funny, sweet, and a really great palate cleanser after And I Awoke. This one's also a reread--I first read it years and years ago in the collection M is for Magic and aside from the basic set up (an old British woman discovers the Holy Grail in a thrift shop), didn't remember most of the best parts, like Sir Galahad coming for the Holy Grail and sticking around to help out with chores.
All That You Love Will Be Carried Away (short story) by Stephen King
Work and Days (poetry chapbook) by Tess Taylor
Be More Chill by Ned Vizzini: Read this one mostly because my friend got me obsessed with the musical, and it's fantastic. Maybe not quite as emotionally satisfying as the show, but still plenty emotionally satisfying in its own way, honest to the point of getting pretty ugly in some parts, and funny.
It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini: Read because of Be More Chill, and everything about that applies here, times a hundred. I really, really, really loved this one.
On the TV front, I just finished the first season of Black Sails and started the second. Hardcore obsession hasn't kicked in yet but I've got a pretty good feeling that it might--of the characters so far Flint, Eleanor, Anne, and Max are my favorites, and aside from being chock full of all the brutal, backstabbing, wooden-ships-and-iron-men, Golden Age of Piracy tropes you could ask for so much of it is just gorgeous to look at. Since I've got a soft spot for anything Treasure Island-inspired I've been wanting to watch this show for a couple of years, and so far it's been worth the wait.
no subject
Date: 2019-07-11 05:59 am (UTC)I don't know if you know
no subject
Date: 2019-07-11 01:17 pm (UTC)Oh, awesome! I'll have to check her recaps out.