great books project Archives

What I’m Reading: July 2015

I follow my enthusiasm by reading…a lot. And once a month, I share (some of) the books I read last month and the books I intend to read this month. You can join the informal book club by sharing your own list in the comments and find all the posts here.

What I read

Better than Before, by Gretchen Rubin – This was this quarter’s Starship Book Club pick and I learned so much I recorded a podcast episode about part of it!
Eleanor + Park, by Rainbow Rowell – This was my favorite novel of the year (so far). I read it one long Saturday and it had me both giggling and in tears. Eleanor's home life just hit home for me.
The Likeness, Tana French – I'm not much a mystery novel reader, but this author was suggested to me after I liked Gone Girl. And I'm so glad because I've loved both books (I read the first one last month). It's not just mystery, it's got a lot of good character development and insights into the human psyche. But, ya know, it's still fun 🙂
The Sculptor, by Scott Cloud -I loved this. It's different from the usual, because it's not a series of individual episodes collected together – it's just one cohesive story (like a normal novel, but with visual storytelling!)

What I’m reading

Landline, by Rainbow Rowell
Emma, by Jane Austen (part of my #greatbooksproject)
The Art of Learning, by Josh Waitzkin

What I read last year

What are you reading?

The usual disclaimery disclaimer applies!

What I’m Reading: December 2014

I follow my enthusiasm by reading…a lot. And once a month, I share (some of) the books I read last month and the books I intend to read this month. You can join the informal book club by sharing your own list in the comments and find all the posts here.

What I read

Inferno, by Dante Alighieri, translated by Mary Jo Bang – part of my Great Books Project, more info below.
Grave Mercy, by Robin LeFevers – Ninja. Nun. Assassins. Historical fiction. That's all you really need to know – it was fun and I read it in a weekend. (Looks like it's free with Kindle Unlimited!)
Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty, by Diane Keaton – Sigh. I had hoped I would love this book as much as I love the actress, but it this collection of essays about her own relationship with her looks didn't reveal anything beyond a lifetime obsession with being “pretty”. Pretty disappointing.

Between Inferno and pretty Diane, my reading mojo was sucked dry. I'm halfway through 5 books, but I didn't get completely through any of them, so they're the first few listed below.

What I’m reading

The Happiness of Pursuit, by Chris Guillebeau
Aeneid, still slogging through
Time Warped, by Claudia Hammond
Show Your Work, by Austin Kleon
Playing Big, by Tara Mohr

The Great Books Project

After months of waffling, the Great Books Project is underway. I’m tracking it via GoodReads (my entire list is here) and holding discussions on the Facebook page, with conversations about our lists, our progress, and regular quotes from the books I love. I’ll be sharing a little update here each month, and you’re welcome to join in on your own project, either in the comments, or over on the FB page (the joy of FB is that we can all reply to each other).

This month I read Inferno, by Dante Alighieri, translated by Mary Jo Bang and although I like the translation better than others I found, this is a grim read. I mean, we know that right? And yet, so many people had told me, “Oh! You're going to love it!” that I…thought I'd like it. But I didn't. Oh sure, it's intense…but I'd rather not spend my reading time in hell, thankyouverymuch. (I am super curious to learn more about how many of modern Christianity's images of hell came from this bit of Italian poetry.) On the docket for this month: finishing the Aeneid and reading The Color Purple. See, Great Books aren't all ancient! (In fact, after I read Confessions, all books will be post-1500! Practically modern!)

What are you reading?

What I’m reading: October 2014

I follow my enthusiasm by reading…a lot. And once a month, I share (some of) the books I read last month and the books I intend to read this month. You can join the informal book club by sharing your own list in the comments and find all the posts here.

What I read

GirlBoss, by Sophia Amoruso – If you like business biographies, this has got a healthy dose of that, which I think is the best part. Less interesting is her “advice” for young women. On one page she's giving you interview tips, on another page tips for hiring, and it left me thinking: who is this book for? A woman entering the workforce? Middle management? What I was hoping for was a book aimed at US, women who build our own businesses…but the advice was a little shallow for that.
The Odyssey, by Homer – I'm sure I read parts of this in High School, but as part of my Great Books Project (details below) I wanted to read the whole thing. I was completely shocked by how gripping and … modern it all felt, especially if you read any sci-fi. I wholeheartedly love it, recommend it, and can't believe it took me so long.
Oedipus Rex, by Sophocles – Another Great Book that was actually great. Of course I knew the story, but Sophocles's play positions us so we watch Oedipus discover his crime. My favorite bit from the forward (written by the translator, Robert Fagles), that perfectly explains its relevance:

“Sophocles play has served…our own terror of the unknown future which we fear we cannot control– our deep fear that every step we take forward on what we think is the road to progress may really be a step toward a foreordained rendezvous with disaster.“

I mean, right?

10 years in the Tub: a Decade of Soaking in Great Books, by Nick Hornby. I picked this up randomly from the Reading section of my library (geek alert!) and I am so happy with it. It's a collection of Hornby's “What I'm Reading” articles (you know I love that!) for the Believer magazine, which he wrote for 10 years. The articles are funny, memorable, and perfectly express what it is I love about reading. It's a biggie, and I've been reading a few articles every day, stretching out the enjoyment. (Warning: It caused me to add over a dozen books to my To Read list. Beware!)
(Some of) How to Read a Book, by Mortimer Adler. I didn't read it all, because the tone totally turned me off. The author gets snobby (or as British Nick Hornby would say, sniffy) about reading and how to properly do it and while I learned bits, I didn't like his voice or style enough to keep going. But according to Mr. Adler, the only fair criticism is to agree or disagree (with a non-fiction book). I agree with this:

“The first piece of advice we would like to give you for reading a story is this: Read it quickly and with total immersion.”

And this:

“A story is like life itself; in life, we do not expect to understand events as they occur, at least with total clarity, but looking back on them, we do understand. “

What I’m reading

Make it Mighty Ugly by my pal Kim Werker. I'm taking it slow, because I really really love it.
The Magician's Land, by Lev Grossman
Fictitious Dishes, by Dinah Fried
Aeneid, by Virgil
Confessions, by St. Augustine

The Great Books Project

After months of waffling, the Great Books Project is finally underway. At your suggestion, I'm holding most of it over on the Facebook page, with discussions of our lists, our progress, and regular quotes from the books I love. I'll be sharing a little update here each month, and you're welcome to join in on your own project, either in the comments, or over on the FB page (the joy of FB is that we can all reply to each other).

My project officially started October 1, but as you can see I got a little excited and hit two of my books already (The Odyssey and Oedipus Rex). This month I hope to plow through Virgil and St. Augustine. Do you have any recommended resources for any of them? (For example, I'll be using CraftLit when I hit Dickens and Wilde.) My entire list is here.

What are you reading?

The Adventures

Every day is an adventure. I share the view, the gratitude and the news on Fridays – you’re invited to join in. You can find all my adventures here, or follow along via email here.

The view

I am so grateful for…

Yarn!
Libraries and my favorite librarian!
Pesto!
Real, honest conversations with loved ones.

The Finds:

I’m obsessing over:

My Great Books Project is coming together. Making an official announcement about it today over at the Facebook page (where the majority of the project will unfold). In order to see updates, it's not just enough to “like” the page, you also need to “follow” it (to get notifications), or just be sure to like/comment/share on my posts. SpaceCadet Stephanie explains it well here.
Yahaira's awesome BlueSand Cardigan. I spent the last week trying to get it out of my mind, but I finally gave in and got some Plucky to knit it up. (I‘m still looking for a pale gray if you have a suggestion!)
All that project-obsession got me thinking about my stash, so I cleaned it all out (it fits on two tiny shelves in one of those cube-y shelves, in a closet) and gave a few skeins away (there's still one left here). Now my Ravelry stash reflects my actual stash and order reigns once again.
Allyson's Midwestern Knits project! (I'm a Midwesterner, after all.)

I’m eating:

Pesto Cauliflower with breaded tofu, from Isa Does It. I loved it, Jay said, Meh. (It helps if you're as addicted to cruciferous vegetables as I am. I would eat roast cauliflower in every meal. Or broccoli. Or brussel sprouts! YUM!)
Nachos, with (vegan) Chorizo, refried beans, our home-grown tomatoes, and the nacho cheez sauce from Bake + Destroy.

In case you missed it:

This week we talked about money and enoughness and how to get going without any, on the blog, podcast, and email lesson. I got a lot of “thank you SO MUCH!” messages and a higher-than-usual amount of unsubscribes. Did you love it? Hate it? I'd love to know! (By the way, I don't plan on changing anything based on unsubs – I think they're a good metric of my success: I'm talking directly to my right people + the others aren't interested. Which is a good thing.)

The newest episode of the Handmade Podcast came out! I announced the only place to buy my yarn, if you've been hoping to snag it.