What We're Reading (and Watching)--Jan. 5, 2014

Brian's still enjoying Two Fronts by Harry Turtledove. Apparently the Republicans are up to mind-numbingly dumb shenanigans in this alternate history. Not unlike in this actual history. He's also apparently loving 1920: America's Great War by Robert Conroy, another alternate history, I'm pretty sure.

Frances is finishing up the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson. After doing her very best to watch all the modern Dr. Who episodes over the break, she's now moved on to binge-reading this series. I haven't read it, but she loves it, which means, I'm sure, it's full of teenagers in mortal peril and useless/clueless adults.

Cate discovered Pokemon manga and checked out a katrillion books over the weekend. There's also Warriors manga, as it turns out.

I'm prepping for class, so I've read nothing but syllabi and assignments for the last few days. I did check out Longbourne by Jo Baker, a romance novel about the servants in the Bennet household, set against the backdrop of the events of Pride and Prejudice. We'll see if I get a chance to read it before I have to return it to the library.

Did I mention that I finished The Awesome Girl's Guide to Dating Fabulous Men? Don't let the title fool you. It's not really about dating, although there is dating in it. It's about 4 twenty-something black women living and loving and working in L.A.  And it was amazing. Better than amazing. It was refreshing--a novel full of black women that wasn't about pathology or trauma or lifting as we climb. It was funny and heartbreaking and challenging and so so good. I highly recommend it. If I'd read it sooner, I'd be teaching it in Black Women Writers this semester.

We've also seen a few movies over the break.

Brian and I highly recommend American Hustle (and not just because my movie boyfriend Jeremy Renner is in it, though that alone is worth the price of admission). Well-acted, funny and poignant. Jennifer Lawrence steals the show, though Amy Adams' breasts put up a good fight.

Frances saw The Hobbit and, like Tolkien, appreciates any fantasy that has the decency to include a dragon. She did say it was long, though.

The family saw and ADORED Frozen. Not only does it pass the Bechdel test, it does so in a way that surprises and delights. Plus the song the older sister sings at the end of the first act is killer. I kind of want it to be my new theme song (not that I have an old one).

And finally, we watched Turbo on DVD.  It was exactly what you'd expect from a racing movie about snails.

What We're Reading--Christmas Eve 2013

Cate is still plugging away at Warriors books. I've been reading this one to her every night. It's basically a little bio of all the cats (the major ones, I guess) in the series. It means I get to find out the fate of some of the characters (Fireheart!), but it also means I now know just how many of them die.

Frances is slowly making her way through Batman and Philosophy. She says the sentences are like the Sydney Opera House, by which she seems to mean fancy and impressive. She seems to like this about the book.

Brian's moved on to a Robert Jordan book I can't remember the name of. I really should pay more attention. Don't tell him.

I gave up on the Sabrina Jeffries book. It was an interesting enough story, but it was also the third in a three-book series and I felt like I was missing a lot. Maybe I'll go back to the first in the series. I did read, and now highly recommend, Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. It was an amazing coming of age tale that absolutely nailed fandom and first love and family drama. So so good, that book. 

I'm on to The Awesome Girl's Guide to Dating Extraordinary Men by Ernessa T. Carter, which I'm also having a good time with. It features black girls who went to Smith and have purple mohawks and make their living as life coaches. And it's funny and well-written. I'm pleasantly surprised by this book.  

What We're Reading--Dec. 15, 2013

The number of books in our house is ridiculous. Truly. Even if you cut us some slack because one of us is a lit professor and one of us works in a bookstore, you might still conclude that we have a problem. Though, all things being equal, it's a good problem to have.

Frances is making her way through The Hobbit (she wants to see the movie and we have a 'read the book before you see the movie rule,' though we don't enforce it like we used to) and Batman and Philosophy. Frances understands philosophy to be a discipline in which people ask questions all day. A book of questions about Batman struck her as the coolest thing ever. She's enjoying it, even though it has "big words and weird sentences."

Cate has discovered the Warriors series. Since there are 6783046 books in this series, this will keep her going for a while. She's reading them all out of order and, as per usual, I only ever read a random chapter out loud to her. Consequently, I know enough about the plot to be incredibly worried about Fireheart and ThunderClan, but not enough to get any resolution. And since Cate will NEVER EVER tell me what happens at the end of the books she's reading, I fear I will never know the fate of these cats.

Brian is reading Book Five of the Harry Turtledove series, The War That Came Early. I'm pretty sure that's what he's reading. I could be wrong. Don't all Harry Turtledove books seem like the exact same book?

I'm reading a Sabrina Jeffries novel, One Night With a Prince. I just finished Sarah MacLean's latest, No Good Duke Goes Unpunished. So good. I highly recommend it and the other books in the Rules of Scoundrels series. And I'm about to start Zami: A New Spelling of My Name, Audre Lorde's "biomythography," which I haven't read before and I'm teaching next semester. Good times.