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Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
I loved, loved, loved this book. The multiple narrators and all the characters and the whole plot. It just came together so well. I liked almost everything by Novik but this book was a highlight and I highly recommend it.
( spoilers )
How To Talk So Little Kids will Listen: A Survival Guide to Life with Children Ages 2-7 by Joanna Faber and Julie King
My mother-in-law gave me this book a while ago and a mention of it on my livejournal friend list made me finally take it to work so I can finally read it at lunch time. I spent January reading it (and sharing some points in it with interested work colleagues).
I think it was a very helpful book overall, just good suggestions. I find that often I'm calmer dealing with a tantrum and do try to diffuse it better. It doesn't always work but it helps. I also liked their suggestion on how to praise with descriptions and various tips for dealing with dinnertime. A lot of the stuff they talked about we were already doing just normally, so that was also good to know.
I was also interested in the chapter on how to lessen fighting among siblings and there was a very useful example of focusing on the kid who got hurt and not on punishing the one who did it, as that can quicken the resolution, end tattling and promote empathy. So I'm trying to use that when they squabble for toys.
Forever Man by A.J.DeWall
This book was a Glee Kurt/Blaine fanfic first and a pretty famous one called "Someone Like You." I liked that fanfic and skimmed it before a few times. When I read fic, I tend to skim more, while if I'm reading a book I never do. So I was very familiar with the story and for a while I wanted to buy the original novel based on the fic. I finally bought it last December. I haven't been reading much fic in the last few years as I shifted more focus on books and have very limited time because of small kids. So part of me is nostalgic for my fic reading decade. But I also haven't really been into a pairing since Glee ended. While occasionally a new pair sparks an interest, it doesn't really translate to more than a few fics here and there.
It was very strange to get used to new names and various changes that had to be made to make this an original work because I remembered what should be there. Ren (Kurt's character) had both parents and a brother, while Kurt had a father, dead mother, a stepmother and a stepbrother. So some of the background of the character was different. And of course the author could not use Adele or her songs, so there is a made-up singer Allegra. It was a little jarring sometimes. I think I did like the fic more as it was imbued with wider knowledge of the characters. But I think the bigger problem was that upon a more detailed reading not all the actions or ideas made sense and the writing is not always strong. It was still a nice book and I don't regret reading it but I did have better memories of the fic itself.
The Gods Themselves by Isaac Asimov
For the last few years I have been trying to read five Hugo winning books a year, since I like having a goal and I feel like I want to know the classics of sci-fi better than I do. (When I was in high school, I tracked down and watched all the Oscar winning movies, so this kind of goal is very me.)
For my first Hugo book this year I wanted to read something from the 70s, and I figured you can't go more classic than Asimov. As a teenager I really adored his short stories. He is one of the few writers whose short stories I always liked more than books - and I did read a few of his books too, but not this book. And in general I prefer novellas and novels to short stories. But he is just a master of them. I also really liked his autobiography.
And despite several issues like some characterizations of female characters, who while smart are also either emotional or have too much intuition, and some weird 70s dialogue patterns, I really enjoyed this novel. This felt like real sci-fi with physics and chemistry that the reader had to understand. It wasn't that hard but there is an assumption that the reader can understand the physics. I really liked the second section that takes place in the parallel universe with a very different idea of life because the fusion reaction in this universe is heavier. I liked the solution to the main problem in the book. [The moon section reminded me both of Heinlein and of the Expanse series]. It felt like Asimov really thought out the consequences of different environments. Each of the sections was very different from each other. A fun read.
Artificial Condition by Martha Wells [Murderbot Diaries 2]
Very quick and easy and enjoyable. When I finished reading it, I put the third one on hold in my library. I liked Murderbot's relationship with ART. And how it's clients were in real danger and it kept calling them out on it. It's own investigation into Ganaka Pit felt a little weird since nothing really happened other than it found out that it was sabotage. It just felt as an aside that might play a role later. As usual, I enjoyed it's internal thoughts and dialogue. I really liked how ART was all upset if something happened to humans on the TV shows and how Murderbot used the media and familiar episodes to calm down. It is learning slowly to handle interactions with people and some emotion so there is a feeling of growth. Fun novella.
I loved, loved, loved this book. The multiple narrators and all the characters and the whole plot. It just came together so well. I liked almost everything by Novik but this book was a highlight and I highly recommend it.
( spoilers )
How To Talk So Little Kids will Listen: A Survival Guide to Life with Children Ages 2-7 by Joanna Faber and Julie King
My mother-in-law gave me this book a while ago and a mention of it on my livejournal friend list made me finally take it to work so I can finally read it at lunch time. I spent January reading it (and sharing some points in it with interested work colleagues).
I think it was a very helpful book overall, just good suggestions. I find that often I'm calmer dealing with a tantrum and do try to diffuse it better. It doesn't always work but it helps. I also liked their suggestion on how to praise with descriptions and various tips for dealing with dinnertime. A lot of the stuff they talked about we were already doing just normally, so that was also good to know.
I was also interested in the chapter on how to lessen fighting among siblings and there was a very useful example of focusing on the kid who got hurt and not on punishing the one who did it, as that can quicken the resolution, end tattling and promote empathy. So I'm trying to use that when they squabble for toys.
Forever Man by A.J.DeWall
This book was a Glee Kurt/Blaine fanfic first and a pretty famous one called "Someone Like You." I liked that fanfic and skimmed it before a few times. When I read fic, I tend to skim more, while if I'm reading a book I never do. So I was very familiar with the story and for a while I wanted to buy the original novel based on the fic. I finally bought it last December. I haven't been reading much fic in the last few years as I shifted more focus on books and have very limited time because of small kids. So part of me is nostalgic for my fic reading decade. But I also haven't really been into a pairing since Glee ended. While occasionally a new pair sparks an interest, it doesn't really translate to more than a few fics here and there.
It was very strange to get used to new names and various changes that had to be made to make this an original work because I remembered what should be there. Ren (Kurt's character) had both parents and a brother, while Kurt had a father, dead mother, a stepmother and a stepbrother. So some of the background of the character was different. And of course the author could not use Adele or her songs, so there is a made-up singer Allegra. It was a little jarring sometimes. I think I did like the fic more as it was imbued with wider knowledge of the characters. But I think the bigger problem was that upon a more detailed reading not all the actions or ideas made sense and the writing is not always strong. It was still a nice book and I don't regret reading it but I did have better memories of the fic itself.
The Gods Themselves by Isaac Asimov
For the last few years I have been trying to read five Hugo winning books a year, since I like having a goal and I feel like I want to know the classics of sci-fi better than I do. (When I was in high school, I tracked down and watched all the Oscar winning movies, so this kind of goal is very me.)
For my first Hugo book this year I wanted to read something from the 70s, and I figured you can't go more classic than Asimov. As a teenager I really adored his short stories. He is one of the few writers whose short stories I always liked more than books - and I did read a few of his books too, but not this book. And in general I prefer novellas and novels to short stories. But he is just a master of them. I also really liked his autobiography.
And despite several issues like some characterizations of female characters, who while smart are also either emotional or have too much intuition, and some weird 70s dialogue patterns, I really enjoyed this novel. This felt like real sci-fi with physics and chemistry that the reader had to understand. It wasn't that hard but there is an assumption that the reader can understand the physics. I really liked the second section that takes place in the parallel universe with a very different idea of life because the fusion reaction in this universe is heavier. I liked the solution to the main problem in the book. [The moon section reminded me both of Heinlein and of the Expanse series]. It felt like Asimov really thought out the consequences of different environments. Each of the sections was very different from each other. A fun read.
Artificial Condition by Martha Wells [Murderbot Diaries 2]
Very quick and easy and enjoyable. When I finished reading it, I put the third one on hold in my library. I liked Murderbot's relationship with ART. And how it's clients were in real danger and it kept calling them out on it. It's own investigation into Ganaka Pit felt a little weird since nothing really happened other than it found out that it was sabotage. It just felt as an aside that might play a role later. As usual, I enjoyed it's internal thoughts and dialogue. I really liked how ART was all upset if something happened to humans on the TV shows and how Murderbot used the media and familiar episodes to calm down. It is learning slowly to handle interactions with people and some emotion so there is a feeling of growth. Fun novella.
