Read Harder - Final Update

Y'all...I fuckin did it. How, I'm not entirely sure? But it is done. I've got approximately ten zillion things to do in the next few days to prepare for celebratory happenings, and I need to finish one book a day to finish my total reading goal, but below are some brief thoughts on the last six books I read.

September:

Nelson Mandela's autobiography, while incredibly long, is pretty amazing. There was so much I didn't know about the history of South Africa and the fight to end apartheid, and I just...wow. He was incredible, the people he worked with were incredible, and now I want to read a biography about Winnie, his second wife, because she sounded tough as hell.

Love is a Revolution was an ok read. I didn't love the character development, but it was still enjoyable, and it goes by super quickly, which always makes it easier for me to overlook minor complaints.

October:

Good lord, Fifty Words for Rain was heartbreaking. Every time I thought maybe things were looking up, nope, here the plot comes to punch you in the gut again.

I am not one for poetry, and I don't know that I've ever read a book of poems before, but I enjoyed Earth Keeper. It was pretty short, and I listened to it on audio, which honestly I feel is the best way to enjoy poetry...it's like reading a play versus seeing it acted out. 

November:

Lila and Hadley was very good and made me cry a bunch. 

December:

I can't decide how I feel about The Edge of Every Day. There were parts of it I really loved and parts that I found kind of meandery or couldn't see how it connected to the overall narrative. I don't want to critique what is essentially someone's memoir...it's weird to say about someone telling their own story that the way they did it was wrong or bad...I think I just connected more with the parts about the author's mom and brother (the two family members who had schizophrenia) than I did with the parts where she was focusing more on herself.

Anyway...it is done! I kind of can't believe it. Now, who's ready for Read Harder 2022?

December, Goal Updates, etc.

Well, my my...having a new job is tiring! Even though I've been a librarian for a while and basically know what I'm doing, aside from some organization-specific things, it's still a lot of energy getting to know new people (especially when those new people include 400+ students between the ages of five and twelve), learning the ropes, and getting used to working again. I really thought I would have more energy for blogging again before now, but clearly that was not to be. If I can get ahead on lesson planning during winter break, my goal is to start up again January...we shall see.

In the meantime, I figured now that it's December (HOW is it December?) I probably owed everyone (all the one people who read this) a Read Harder update. You ready for this?

I am very behind. (Shocking, I know. I also still need to read 24 books for the year to hit my goal of 150 books total. Yeesh, how did I let this happen?)

I DID manage to finish all my books through August, so that's...something? Maybe? I'm working on Long Walk to Freedom right now, from September - spoiler alert, it is LONG - and will probably read Love is a Revolution this week while my husband is working nights. I tend to get more reading done when I'm supposed to be asleep while he isn't here but can't actually sleep. I also read one of my November picks and one of my December picks, woo! Hopefully I can get through the last six books I have to finish in the next three weeks...tall order...anyway, my remaining choices for the year are below.

October:

Historical Fiction with a POC or LGBTQ protagonist: My choice was Fifty Words for Rain by Asha Lemmie, which is set in post-WW2 Japan and has a beautiful cover. I can't wait to get into it!

A book of nature poems: I've actually started reading one, but it's a nature poem for every day, so I only read one poem a day...that's gonna take a while. My other pick for this category is Earth Keeper, which I have on hold at the library right now.

November:

A children's book that centers a disabled character but not their disability: Ok, so, I technically have already read a book for this category, but it was a picture book, so I picked two. The book I already read is Mommy Sayang by by Rosana Sullivan, which is just a lovely, lovely book. The one I still need to read is Lila and Hadley by Kody Keplinger. I actually did a book talk of this book for some of my classes before I found it as an option for this category, and a couple students read it and really liked it, so I'm looking forward to reading it and being able to talk to them about it.

A book set in the midwest: Done! For this one, I chose You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson, which I have wanted to read for.ev.er. While I could not wrap my brain around earning a huge scholarship for winning prom queen, I still adored this book. Lea Johnson does a great job of depicting the multiple facets to every story and showing character growth. Excellent read.

December:

A book that demystifies a common mental illness: My choice for this is The Edge of Every Day by Marin Sardy. It's about schizophrenia, which I think is a pretty misunderstood and heavily judged mental illness. I picked it up from the library a little bit ago, so I'm ready to go as soon as I have time.

A book with a beloved pet where the pet doesn't die: Also done! I chose The Tea Dragon Society by Kay O'Neill for this, and it is ADORABLE. It's a graphic novel with beautiful illustrations, and I finished the series and dearly love all three books. So gorgeous.

What would you have chosen for each of these challenges?