Reading Lab Girl for IRL book club.

Reading Witches' Brew and Risky Relics for Halloween Bingo.

Putting together some ideas for reading challenges/goals in 2020.

Okay, we went from sweater weather to fleece jackets and heavy blankets on the beds in the course of a few days (our first frost was yesterday morning). Perfect weather for soaking in a hot bathtub and reading, then getting under blankets and reading some more. I have parent-teacher conferences on Thursday (no school!) and the kids have Friday off as well. Honestly, those days may be the easiest to read, since I don't have to rush around and get stuff done before they get home from school. I'm taking a First Aid/CPR/AED class on Thursday night to get myself re-certify (I had my license while in the military). 

This week I'm hopefully going to finish Connections in Death - I am enjoying the storyline, but it doesn't seem like I am making any progress at all. Then it's on to memoirs: first is Well, That Escalated Quickly and then Lab Girl. If I knock out two out of the three, I'm going to on one of the two books I need for a bingo (all the squares have been called) - Witches Brew or Risky Relics. I just want one bingo to save my game playing from completely sucking. There is no blacking out this year. 

Happy three-day weekend to the folks in the US in honor of Indigenous Peoples Day and Italian-American Appreciation Day. I am half-Italian and even I don't like using that genocidal asshole's name for this federal day off. Fuck him and fuck Spain for underwriting his journey. 

To the Canadians, Happy Thanksgiving!

I read this as part of Halloween Bingo, so the fact that this book could reasonably be applied to about half the squares is woth mentioning. This is the first book I've read which used the singular nongendered they/their as pronouns, which slowed me down a bit at the beginning. But it worked, and never felt gimmicky. Z. was a plausible fourteen year old zombie who's entire family died in an auto accident: only Z reanimated.

There's werewolves and high school bullying and good teachers and bad teachers and a growing movement in favor of shooting all the monsters. As a metaphor, it is terrifying. But it's also the story of school misfits becoming friends, and of teens solving a mystery, so there is significant fun as well as the terror.

I'm delighted it was recommended to me, and I can't wait to read Shrieve's subsequent books. As good as this debut was the next one should be astounding.

Library copy

This prequel to Practical Magic was released two Halloween Bingos ago, and I had planned to read it then, but didn't want to spend the $12.99 to buy it for my kindle, and the library list was dozens of holds long so I back-burnered it.

While I was casting about for something to read for the Spellbound square, I remembered that I had wanted to read this, so I looked on library2go and lo and behold, it was available without a wait. Downloaded at 5:00, finished at 8:30.

I really enjoyed it, and returning to the world of the Owens clan was delightful. It's been years since I read Practical Magic, or anything by Alice Hoffman, and I was reminded by The Rules for Magic how much I enjoy her story-telling and her use of magical elements.

This book will fill many squares as well, and I decided to use it for Relics and Curiosities instead of Spellbound, since it is generally easier to fill broader squares versus narrower ones. There is a grimoire that plays a prominent part of the book, which fits with the category. In addition, there is a Black Cat named Wren, for anyone looking to fill that square. There are also some events that occur on Halloween, so it would satisfy that one, and, off the top of my head, it would also fit Full Moon, Sleepy Hollow, Fear the Drowning Deep, and Magical Realism.

This series deals with characters trying to maintain the status quo following the end of the Cold War in a particularly unusual way. The characters are well-defined and interesting and the story moves along at a good steady pace. The end result is an entertaining and original tale which has cxlear detailed and enjoyable artwork. Very good stuff.