It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? 02-08-21 #IMWAYR

Currently Reading

I’m probably one of the last book bloggers to read The Vanishing Half (Penguin, 2020) by Brit Bennett, even though I had access to an advance reading copy through NetGalley since well before it came out last June, but I have finally started it and whoa, yeah, it’s good!

You would already know this from the number of Best Books of 2020 lists The Vanishing Half made it onto, and probably from reading it yourself already.

For book club this week, I’m reading The Water Keeper (Thomas Nelson, 2020) by Charles Martin. Selecting book club books has gotten a little harder since we started meeting virtually last spring, as the selections have to be available as ebooks for simultaneous use, in addition to being available in large-print and regular print.

Further complicating matters (but in a good way) our usually all-female book group has been joined by a male reader, and since our list tends to be heavily weighted towards female authors and women-centric stories, I made a conscious effort to diversify, and maybe make men feel more welcome to join.

The Water Keeper starts out with two deaths that hit the main character, Murphy (“Murph”) Shepherd hard. More grief and loss. I really need to find some happy books ASAP.

This isn’t one! 😉

I started What My Mother and I Don’t Talk About (Simon & Schuster, 2020), a collection of essays edited by Michele Filgate, as a ebook borrowed through the library in December. It expired on me before I could finish (story of my life these days!) and I’ve just gotten it again.

From the Publisher

As an undergraduate, Michele Filgate started writing an essay about being abused by her stepfather. It took her more than a decade to realize that she was actually trying to write about how this affected her relationship with her mother. When it was finally published, the essay went viral, shared on social media by Anne Lamott, Rebecca Solnit, and many others. This gave Filgate an idea, and the resulting anthology offers a candid look at our relationships with our mothers.

Contributions by Cathi Hanauer, Melissa Febos, Alexander Chee, Dylan Landis, Bernice L. McFadden, Julianna Baggott, Lynn Steger Strong, Kiese Laymon, Carmen Maria Machado, André Aciman, Sari Botton, Nayomi Munaweera, Brandon Taylor, and Leslie Jamison.

Recently Read

Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano will not be on my list of favorite books of 2020 but it was worth reading. Because it has a very sad premise and is loosely based on a real-life story of a young boy being the sole survivor of a horrendous plane crash, it feels strange to call Dear Edward a feel-good book, but readers will be rooting for the main character all the way, willing him to live on through overwhelming grief, which is complicated by the public nature of his tragic loss.

Recommended, with reservations. While it has quirky characters and is ultimately life-affirming, I wouldn’t put this on a feel-good book list without a heads-up as to its content.

Recently Listened To

A unusually unsatisfying resolution to the murder investigation at the heart of this legal thriller (#6 in Mickey Haller series) makes me wonder if there will be a follow-up revealing more, with Harry Bosch playing a larger role, but the fast-paced story kept me in suspense, regardless.

Criminal defense lawyer Mickey Haller, now a defendant himself, is placed in life-threatening danger as he refuses to waive his right to a speedy trial for murder and tries to prove his own innocence. Author Michael Connelly weaves news reports of the pandemic into the story, which takes place in the late winter/early spring of 2020 in Los Angeles.

The audio narration by Peter Giles was great, as always!

AudioFile reviews The Law of Innocence (Earphones Award)

Currently Listening To

I requested The Cold Millions by Jess Walter on audio from the library mainly because of the all-star cast of audiobook narrators, and also because Beautiful Ruins was a great audiobook, but when I realized it was historical fiction about the labor movement, set in the Pacific Northwest in the early 1900s, I was dubious whether I had the brainpower and focus to listen to it without my mind wandering.

A few minutes into the audio, though, and I was completely hooked on this story of two brothers in Spokane, Washington, class warfare, and the history of the brave men and women involved in the labor movement in the early part of the 20th century.

Audiobook narrators of The Cold Millions include several of my favorites – Edoardo Ballerini, Marin Ireland, Cassandra Campbell, & Frankie Corzo – and is also introducing me to several others who are likely to become favorites.

This post is linked to “It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?” hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date. Check out the link-up party there for more book lists!

Ed. note — For custom Twitter text at publication or scheduling time: It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? 0-0-21 #IMWAYR @theBookDate