Tafadhali gets a late start in 2018

Perhaps because I did such an unimpressive amount of reading in January, I'm a bit behind on getting my 75 Book Challenge thread up and running! Last year, I focused on reading books from Mt. TBR, with the effect that I read a lot less than usual. This year, January notwithstanding, I'm hoping for things to pick back up again.

JANUARY

1. Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud: The Rise and Reign of the Unruly Woman by Anne Helen Petersen (★★★★, 1/5)
2. The Wicked The Divine, Vol. 6: Imperial Phase II by Kieron Gillen (★★★★, 1/22)

Page Count
Monthly total: 456
Cumulative: 456

Slow start or not, I'm glad you made it back! Happy reading!

Welcome, and happy reading!

FEBRUARY

3. Gay New York by George Chauncey (★★★★ 1/2, 2/9)
4. The Lion in Winter by James Goldman (★★★★ 1/2, 2/9)
5. Ms. Marvel, Vol. 8: Mecca by G. Willow Wilson (★★★★, 2/13)

Page Count
Monthly total: 735
Cumulative: 1191

Currently reading, mid-Feb edition:


A Christmas gift! I got very into the podcast Jay and Miles X-Plain the X-Men last year and vicariously fell in love with New Mutants, so it felt like time to really read through all the comics.


I've read a few of Le Guin's works (Left Hand of Darkness several times!), but this one has been on my TBR pile for years. After her recent passing, it felt like past time to pick it up. Also I read her interview in TLS and how could I resist the book after this:

If you could make a change to anything you’ve written over the years, what would it be?

In The Dispossessed, I would mention the communal pickle barrels at street corners in the big towns, restocked by whoever in the community has made or kept more pickles than they need. I knew about the free pickles all along, but never could fit them into the book.

MARCH

6. New Mutants: Renewal by Chris Claremont (★★★ 1/2, 3/4)
7. Queer Movie Medievalisms, ed. Kathleen Coyne Kelly and Tilson Pugh (★★★ 1/2, 3/8)
8. The Grave's a Fine and Private Place by Alan Bradley (★★★ 1/2, 3/9)
9. The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin (★★★★ 1/2, 3/14)
10. Landscape with Invisible Hand by M.T. Anderson (★★★★, 3/21)
11. 11/22/63 by Stephen King (★★★★ 1/2, 3/26)
12. Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire (★★★★, 3/28)
13. Let's Talk About Love by Claire Kann (★★★, 3/30)

Page Count
Monthly total: 3209
Cumulative: 4490

Currently reading, late March edition:



I can hardly put it down! My favorite kind of time travel story (both the kind where you have to carefully plan out how to live in the past, like having the right type of money and haircut, and the kind where you see ripple effects as changes are made) and somewhat spooky in its own right. Love the Derry section with Bev and Richie cameos.

APRIL

14. Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire (★★★, 4/9)
15. Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright (★★★★, 4/28)
16. Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde by Moises Kaufman (★★★★ 1/2, 4/28)
17. Strong Poison by Dorothy L. Sayers (★★★★, 4/29)

Page Count
Monthly total: 915
Cumulative: 5491

MAY

18. Runaways, Vol. 1 by Rainbow Rowell (★★★★★, 5/9)
19. Sex Criminals, Vol. 2 by Matt Fraction & Chip Zdarsky (★★★★, 5/19)
20. Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl by Andrea Lawlor (★★★★, 5/19)
21. Tempests and Slaughter by Tamora Pierce (★★★★ 1/2, 5/26)
22. The Penderwicks At Last by Jeanne Birdsall (★★★ 1/2, 5/26)
23. Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman (★★★★ 1/2, 5/28)

Page Count
Monthly total: 1932
Cumulative: 7423

JUNE

24. Rebound by Kwame Alexander (★★★ 1/2, 6/3)
25. X-Men: Grand Design by Ed Piskor (★★★★ 1/2, 6/14)
26. The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth (★★★★ 1/2, 6/16)

Page Count
Monthly total: 996
Cumulative: 8419

Currently reading, mid-June edition:



This has been on my radar since I heard the Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men interview with Ed Piskor -- I love Silver Age retellings almost as much as I don't love reading Silver Age comics, lol. I bought the deluxe edition and it's GORGEOUS and I'm trying to take my time and savor it.



I'm stupidly obsessed with this book and have been itching to reread it ever since I finished reading it the first time a year and a half ago. My sister and I are doing a 5-part book club with themed outings and meals to really dig into the text because I was an English major and that's how I roll.

JULY

27. Anger is a Gift by Mark Oshiro (★★★★, 7/2)
28. The Oxford Murders by Guillermo Martinez (★★★, 7/21)
29. Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman (re-read) (★★★★★, 7/28)
30. The Subtle Knife by Phillip Pullman (re-read) (★★★★★, 7/28)

Page Count
Monthly total: 1488
Cumulative: 9907

AUGUST

31. Screening Stephen King by Simon Brown (★★★★, 8/2)
32. The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman (re-read) (★★★★★, 8/5)
33. Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card 1 by CLAMP (★★★, 8/21)

Page Count
Monthly total: 884
Cumulative: 11691

SEPTEMBER

34. It by Stephen King (re-read) (★★★★★, 9/9)
35. Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries by Kory Stamper (★★★★, 9/12)
36. Kindred by Octavia Butler (★★★★★, 9/25)
37. Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick (★★★★ 1/2, 9/26)
38. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson (re-read) (★★★★, 9/28)

Page Count
Monthly total: 2177
Cumulative: 13868

OCTOBER

39. Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer (★★★ 1/2, 10/3)
40. Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie (★★★★ 1/2, 10/11)
41. Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie (★★★★, 10/17)
42. Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie (★★★★, 10/18)

Page Count
Monthly total: 1475
Cumulative: 15343

Currently reading, beginning of November edition:

I'm in the middle of too many books at once! I should finish Cat's Cradle today or tomorrow, but I guess I need to take a moment to sit down with the others and just finish them.



David Bowie Made Me Gay: I've been working on this one for awhile – each chapter packs in a lot of information, so it's a good book to dip in and out of. I think, on the whole, I'd prefer in-depth chapters on a few key people to the more encyclopedic approach that Bullock takes, but I appreciate that he's able to cover a lot of ground.



Jane Austen, Game Theorist: I love literary criticism that takes a completely different tack than I would (and I'm generally amateurishly interested in game theory). Chwe's thesis that Austen purposefully examines strategy and prefigures modern game theory in her books is pretty bold, but whether or not his broadest claims are fully supported, his structure makes for a fascinating read of the social dynamics at play in her work.



The Night Watch: The final Sarah Waters book I'd left unread! I've heard mixed things about this one, but I'm not far enough along to have an opinion yet.



Cat's Cradle: Love, love, love this book. I last read it 10 years ago and it's a joy to revisit. I'm leading a lunchtime discussion on it with some of my high school students tomorrow, so I better finish it during lunch!

NOVEMBER

43. Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut (re-read) (★★★★★, 11/1)
44. Jane Austen, Game Theorist by Michael Suk-Young Chwe (★★★ 1/2, 11/2)
45. Turtles All the Way Down by John Green (★★★ 1/2, 11/8)

Page Count
Monthly total: 891
Cumulative: 16234

DECEMBER

46. The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang (★★★★, 12/12)
47. The Night Watch by Sarah Waters (★★★ 1/2, 12/12)
48. Runaways, Vol. 2: Best Friends Forever by Rainbow Rowell (★★★★★, 12/12)
49. Matilda by Roald Dahl (re-read) (★★★★★, 12/15)
50. Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld (★★ 1/2, 12/17)

Page Count
Monthly total: 1720
Cumulative: 17954

Wow, uh, I guess I just barely made it to 50. Whew.