<–The State of the Reader: 5/20/20 The State of the Reader: 6/17/20–>
A biweekly post updated every other Wednesday detailing my current reading projects and what new titles I’ve added to my to-read list. Title links go to Goodreads, and if you have an account there feel free to friend me! I’d love to see what you’re reading and/or planning to read.
Purchased: 2
- Medusa’s Daughters (edited) by Theodora Goss – $4.99 @ Amazon
- The Cat Who Walked a Thousand Miles by Kil Johnson & Goni Montes – $0.99 @ Amazon
Finished: 1
Title: The Valley of Amazement
Author: Amy Tan
Date Added: April 24, 2014
Date Started: March 1, 2020
Date Finished: June 3, 2020
Media: Hardback – Library
Amy Tan never fails to deliver. I wound up finishing this due to extenuating circumstances I’ll get to later. What amazes me most (besides the Valley, which tbh wasn’t that amazing…) is how seamlessly the author ties threads together with coincidences that don’t seem remotely contrived. Because we see the present result the past laid foundation comes with a chill and not a shrug.
If I have any complaints they’re meta in in how people either didn’t read the blurb or disregarded it. The book has an oddly low 3.63 rating on Goodreads, and I was really curious why. Apparently, readers were pissed at how graphically it described the life of sex workers in 1900 Shanghai, and I’m like wut? What the fuck did you expect? It literally says in the first sentence of the blurb that that’s what this is about. They were expecting a sweet story about generational connection, and I really want to know if they’ve ever read Amy Tan before. She has never shied away from the real and the raw. Her writing is beautiful and prosaic, but her stories aren’t Nicholas Sparks fluff. I don’t have a problem with reviews that critique, but for fuck’s sake, it’s not fair to criticize something for being exactly what it said it was. Just because it doesn’t live up to your misguided expectations doesn’t mean it isn’t good.
/end rant
Title: Gods and Myths of Northern Europe
Author: Hilda Roderick Ellis Davidson
Date Added: September 21, 2017
Date Started: May 1, 2020
Media: Paperback
Progress: 17%
This may be a slim volume but it is packed with information. I read maybe two or three pages a session because I’m taking so many notes. There are things I know, but there’s a lot more I don’t for example Elli. I remember Elli from The Last Unicorn where of course she was old age, but I have no clue that was from Norse Mythology. This is almost as big as me finding out from a friend about how Thor dressed up like a woman to save Freyja (?) from marrying someone, and I was like WHAT because, uh, that’s like EVERYONE’S FAVORITE SCENE IN FFVII. Later I came across it in The Poetic Edda and was like, “Whelp that’s confirmed.” I knew both Beagle and Squeenix used Norse mythos because of the more familiar references, but the less known ones really impress me.
Title: Dracula
Author: Bram Stoker
Date Added: May 16, 2015
Date Started: February 13, 2020
Media: eBook/Kindle
Progress: 37%
And Van Helsing has entered the scene! It’s fascinating to see the origins of these characters. Like I knew Van Helsing was part of Dracula lore but I didn’t know how he fit in.
Wow. Okay, what a week. Wednesday around noon my power went off and I didn’t come back on until this morning at 2:30. That’s why this post is two days late and I won’t be doing the SOTG one until this weekend. I missed two days of work. Since I didn’t sign on until 10 and I lost power and wifi at noon, I consider that entire day a wash. I had to use vacation time because “technically” I could go into the office, though I’d need permission, a mask, and my temperature taken. However, no way in hell did I want to. I think someone there was recently diagnosed with the rona. I was going to go over to my brother’s today if it didn’t come back on, but thankfully it did early this morning, waking both me and the hubs up. Sleeping was an absolutely nightmare (ha) and I was pretty sure I was in hell. It was dark, hot, 2020, and I had no appetite. Clearly hell. I’d actually managed to nod off when the AC suddenly kicked back on. The poor cats had been melting into puddles lol. It’s wild that a storm that lasted 10 minutes did so much damage. There are still people without power that might not get it back until Sunday night. Our ETA was 11 pm tonight, so I’m VERY glad it happened sooner. I have so much to catch up on. Besides the status post I’ve missed out on two days of editing and research.
<–The State of the Reader: 5/20/20 The State of the Reader: 6/17/20–>
The Shameful Narcissist Speaks 
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Still, you seem to have accomplished a ton of stuff. But yeah, never pay attention to anyone who says, “Things can’t get any worse.”
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That’s just an invitation to have things get worse! I am happy I was able to finish that book. While it was certainly inconvenient to not have power, at least it offered me the opportunity to do that since I couldn’t do anything else 🙂
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Yikes, that’s a long time to have no power, especially in the heat! :O I’m glad it came back on and you could take time off work (annoying as it probably is). I’ve been mostly working from home except for days when there are court hearings, but we have a negligent homicide trial this week, so it’s going to be interesting given the coronavirus guidelines. Everyone has done a great job trying to figure out logistics and how to keep jurors safe, but fingers crossed it all goes well.
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It was SO hot. Thankfully, I was actually able to use time other than my vacay, which I’m really happy about even though it’s not like I have anywhere to go :p
I hope they practiced good social distancing and the necessary precautions. I think my state is going to green next week, and of course people are acting like the virus just stopped existing. It’s amazingly frustrating. Understanding the mechanisms of why people are like this doesn’t make me less annoyed by it *sigh*
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