From Kris

Before I retired, I would dream of days or weeks off where I could stay in my pajamas all day, eat junk food, and loose myself in a good “brain candy” kind of novel.  And when those days did finally come, there was always a drawer that needed to be cleaned out, mildew that needed to be scrubbed out of the shower, or I was so tired that I couldn’t keep my eyes open long enough to get through five pages.  When I finally retired, for a brief shining moment I thought that those hideaway days with a books that I fantasized about during my working days would become the norm.  They didn’t.  Drawers still need to be organized, bathrooms still need to be cleaned, and there are more dishes to do than ever because we are at home for three meals a day most days.

It wasn’t until last week, thanks to isloation due to COVID exposure that I finally realized the life that I have dreamed about for all these years.  Since we were in isolation, there was no need to get really dressed, like no full complement of undergarments was required and didn’t have to worry about keeping the house super neat because no one would be coming to visit.  Honestly, I felt this weird sense of peace knowing that I could stay home and cocoon for awhile.  I headed for all those books that have been piling up for when I “had time” to read them.

When asked what my favorite genre is, my unfiltered response is usually non-fiction, followed by poetry.  I think that my mind jumps to non-fiction because that it what I took the time to read during my working days.  For whatever reason, non-fiction seemed worthy of my precious time whereas fiction felt more frivolous.  Don’t ask me to justify this thinking.  I can’t.

My isolation reading has included a little bit of everything!

In five days I read four novels, a short story, random poems, and I began a non-fiction audiobook.  If you are interested in the specifics, here they are.

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult – I have been reading Picoult’s work from her beginnings.  I enjoy her ability to create depth in her characters as well as how she can take something that is almost familiar and make the reader see life from a different perspective.  This novel is set in the early days of the COVID outbreak.  It is a good read, but it also forces the stark realization that though we have made progress, nearly two years later, some things have not changed.

Pew by Catherine Lacey – I got this book awhile back when it was offered as a free Kindle download.  I loved it!  Both for Lacey’s brilliant story telling and its many layers.  Pew is a modern day fable about our current world.  It brings in to question how we look at people, institutions-both sacred and secular, morality, and all the threads that connect people, places, and things.  This novel was reminiscent of Ursula Le Guin’s short story The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas, so I reread that.  And I should probably read it again.  LeGuin has much to say in these twenty-two short pages.

Lacey ends this book with a final section entitled Be Advised.  In it she mentions author Jesse Ball, whom I was not familiar.  Though retired, I am still an academic deep down so I had to look him up…and ended up reading one of his novels.

How to Set A Fire and Why by Jesse Ball – At its core, this novel is about our deep need to matter, to belong, and the depths to which one will reach in the hope of achieving those things.  Ball is an incredibly engaging writer.  Though this was the first of his works I’ve read, it will not be the last.

See Jane Snap by Bethany Crandell  – Of all that I read during my book binge, this one was definitely “the fluff” read.  It is an engaging story that does not take the brain power that any of the other novels that I read require, which was a welcome relief.

I got the Best American Poetry 2021, an anthology, for my birthday.  It sits on the table by my chair, usually under my current knitting project.  When I know its not a good time to get totally sucked into a novel, like when the frozen pizza needs to be taken out of the oven in 13 minutes, I’ll open this to a random page and read a poem. The thing I love about poetry is that the same poem reads differently each time you read it.  Unlike a novel whose ending doesn’t change on subsequent readings, a poem may something different every time you encounter it.

And then there is the audiobook…I can’t listen to fiction.  I don’t know why, but my mind wanders  It may be because I am a visual learner and I tend to be distracted by “shiny things” around me. 🙂  But, I can be fully-engaged when listening to non-fiction.  So, this is what I do while getting my miles in on the treadmill.  My current non-fiction listen is Adeventures in Opting Out: A Field Guide to Leading an Intentional Life – by Cait Flanders.  I listen in 3-4 mile chunks, no more than 45 minutes at a time so I am moving more slowly through this one.  Maybe I’m just being more intentional about getting through it.  I may have more to say once I’ve listened to the entire book.

Though I regret that the world is still dealing with COVID – the illness, the death, the isolation, the politics that surround it, the fact that it has proven over and over that people in this country are incapable of loving their neighbor, I am grateful that my days of isolation reminded me of how much I love to read.  And that it is OK to let the dishes and the laundry sit a little longer while I read “just one more chapter.”  Oh and that my days have required no mandatory bedtime or morning alarm!

 

from Tracey

Every time I open my Goodreads app to check whether the latest book I’ve finished has been added to my tally of books read, I smile and wonder if any of my Goodreads friends laugh (or roll their eyes) at my book selections that may pop up, as I am firmly planted on Team Fiction. I enjoy a good biography/autobiography occasionally, but generally – fiction is my thing, and some of my choices are definitely lighter than others! 😉 My choices though are always all over the place, from fairy tale-style stories of the Fae to all kinds of dystopian and then on to historical fiction, and even historical fiction with a supernatural/sci-fi twist like time travel (looking at you Outlander series!). Maybe they have always been my escapes, the grown-up version of “mom, tell me a story!” kind of thing.

Every year I do the Goodreads Reading Challenge, and every year I set the bar low for my book-reading goal – I have chosen 12 every year since I started doing it in 2017. I set it at 12 because I figure, at the very least I can read one book a month. (there’s been a few though, that I’ve read last year, that I just could NOT get through and it felt like I was slogging through mud, and I know it was putting my one-month-to-read-a-book to the test) Doing the math, I average about 63 books a year. Last year, I had my highest ever tally at 84! But I think what contributed to that total was I had a lot of short, fluffy reads in there, AND I discovered that I love audio books as well for when I’m sitting and knitting (as long as it’s a mindless knit, and not one I have to keep any kind of counted track of, lol) – and yes, they do count toward books read in my opinion!

I also have a love of Kindle Unlimited, it really allows me to branch out and try things I would end up being mad I spent money on – which has happened more than once! And the library’s digital books have been wonderful even before the pandemic! I love checking out a book or two from home and not having to worry about getting it physically back to the library! I wish I could think of any books that I’ve read that have really been a “wow!” for me this past year, but there were a few that were “hey that was pretty good”, but not many wow-worthy. I wish I had a listing for you of books I’ve read this year, but there’s nothing that shines out, aside from Go Tell the Bees that I Am Gone. 

I feel like a lot of the books I read were time-fillers while waiting for the release of book 9 of the Outlander series finally arriving in November of last year, Go Tell the Bees that I Am Gone. I’d been waiting a couple years at least for this particular book, and it was hard not to fly through it, but I managed to slow down to savor it because it’s likely to be another long wait for the next (and maybe last) book in the series by Diana Gabaldon. Her books are always well-written, and to me very enjoyable to read. I’ve also listened to a few of the Outlander books and the lady that does the narration is fabulous – she does different voices for the different characters with accents and it’s amazing. Now that I’ve read Go Tell the Bees that I Am Gone, I’m currently listening to it on Audible. I still can’t believe I enjoy audio books as much as I do, what a lovely surprise!

I also read Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo, which kicks off that book series because I’d seen it has become a series on Netflix and wanted to read it before watching. And speaking of Netflix…

That leads me to my other source of fluff – bingeable series! Oh my, I’d finally got to finish watching Once Upon a Time on Disney Plus, then moved on to the latest season of Dr. Who on HBO Max and when I ran out of that series, I was in a quandary as to what to watch next. I enjoy setting these things up on my phone and watching while I knit, so I was kind of bored without the multi-tasking going on. That’s when I took a chance on The Vampire Diaries on Netflix, which was a tv series on the CW network. It has 8 seasons and averages 22 episodes per season – perfect. Lots of material to work with, is complete and an easy no-thinking subject because it’s going to be cheesy and out there etc. etc. etc.

Well shame on me for underestimating this network (CW) and this series! My goodness. What a ride, it has to have been one of the best things I’ve watched in ages. Seriously. I could not stop watching, yes it has it’s icky moments that I watched through fingers like any other horror-type movie, but that’s kind of par for the course with the subject matter. The humor was fantastic! The series had me run the gamut of emotions as well – happy, sad, and so forth. There were also numerous relatable situations (I know that sounds crazy since it’s a show about vampires in a small town, lol, but really it does have them!) that took you once again through the feels – it honestly has it all. The character development of certain characters was great too – by the end of the series (which I thought they did a great job wrapping up – a clear ending) one of the characters that felt like a non-essential supporting one at the start, became one of my favorites to watch by the end. I think maybe it’s the title of the series that turned me off from watching it sooner, the title really doesn’t fit the tv series that well, it’s kind of deceiving. I liked it so much I may watch it again. And now that I’ve finished The Vampire Diaries, I’ve moved on to Supernatural, also from the CW network. So far so good: cute guys, great car and supernatural adventures, perfect. One of these days I’ll have to post a follow-up list of tv series I’ve enjoyed that are worth a watch!

I wish I could say the pandemic prompted my fluff binge, but I can’t. And it’s carried over into my viewing preferences as well as you can see. I do think however, that it has influenced me in seeking it out MORE. I’ve always had an inclination toward it, but the amount I’ve digested has increased. More time at home, more reasons to want to escape and destress from the every-day world out there in these stupid times. I believe it has become a great tool to helping me keep what little sanity I have left, a kind of therapy! Hey! I think that my health insurance should cover my books and my streaming service fees – they are saving a ton on therapy bills!! 😀