WWW Wednesday, 22-August-2018

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Note: For users of Blogspot blogs, I’m unable to comment on your posts as a WordPress blogger unless you’ve enabled Name/URL comments. This is a known WordPress/Blogspot issue. Please consider enabling this to participate more fully in the community. 

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Currently reading: Nothing with Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. I hope I can get this back soon!
I’m making decent progress in The World We Found by Thrity Umrigar considering it’s an ebook and I move through those so slowly. I bet it’s still another month before I finish, though.
I’m in love with Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger. I honestly thought I might have it finished but I’ll say next week now. I might even finish it today!
I adore The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. This book is so powerful but so approachable and it’s really making me think. It will be great for our book club discussion and I’m excited to see how the movie adaptation comes out.
I’ve moved surprisingly slowly through The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri. I haven’t run as much as I normally do and I’m not cooking as much as I’d like, both of which could explain it. I hope to make some more progress soon because I think it’s about to get interesting.

Recently finished: Nothing new. I saw this coming but it’s always hard not to finish something. I did manage to post my review of Dreams of Joy by Lisa See on Monday.  Please stop by and take a look when you can.

Reading Next: I made some plans for finishing up my challenge this year so I think my next book will be The Poe Shadow by Matthew Pearl. This will give me my 1800s time period and move me one step closer to finishing!

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Leave a comment with your link and a comment (if you’re so inclined). Take a look at the other participant links in the comments and look at what others are reading.

Have any opinions on these choices?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

Book Review: Dreams of Joy by Lisa See (4/5)

I enjoyed the first book in this series, Shanghai Girls, and enjoyed hearing the author speak. It seemed about time to read another Lisa See book and picking up Dreams of Joy was an easy choice. I listened to this one on audio on my phone and ended up taking a two-week break for my trip before I came back and finished it up.

Cover image via Wikipedia

Dreams of Joy (Shanghai Girls #2) by Lisa See

Other books by See reviewed on this blog:

Shanghai Girls (Book Club Reflection [twice], meeting the author)
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (movie review)

Summary from Goodreads:

In her most powerful novel yet, acclaimed author Lisa See returns to the story of sisters Pearl and May from Shanghai Girls, and Pearl’s strong-willed nineteen-year-old daughter, Joy. Reeling from newly uncovered family secrets, Joy runs away to Shanghai in early 1957 to find her birth father—the artist Z.G. Li, with whom both May and Pearl were once in love. Dazzled by him, and blinded by idealism and defiance, Joy throws herself into the New Society of Red China, heedless of the dangers in the Communist regime. Devastated by Joy’s flight and terrified for her safety, Pearl is determined to save her daughter, no matter the personal cost. From the crowded city to remote villages, Pearl confronts old demons and almost insurmountable challenges as she follows Joy, hoping for reconciliation. Yet even as Joy’s and Pearl’s separate journeys converge, one of the most tragic episodes in China’s history threatens their very lives.

This book picked up right where Shanghai Girls left off so I’m glad I remembered that ending. I liked that there was something after because the ending of the first book was so abrupt and open-ended. I felt this one had a better ending. I liked the way the story unfolded. It really highlighted Joy and how much she changed during the book. She grew up a lot and had to learn lessons the hard way, the way Pearl had learned them, even though Pearl tried to protect her from that.

I thought Pearl’s reactions to what happened were very realistic but I felt Joy was a bit too oblivious to what was happening around her. I understand that she was young and a bit idealistic, but it was a bit too much for me. By the end, she was more realistic but it was only to be expected after what happened to her in the village. I thought her ‘youthful optimism’ was a bit over the top.

Pearl was such a good mother, I really loved her character, what she did, and what she was willing to endure to make sure her family was safe. Even though Joy’s story was more dramatic, I loved Pearl’s struggles to return home to China, it felt much more realistic and showed the huge change in Shanghai between this book and the first one.

I don’t share a lot in common with these characters but I was still able to connect with them. Joy’s excitement at contributing to a new idea was relatable as was Pearl’s concern for her family and taking care of her child. See did a good job of developing characters in an environment I’ll never encounter whose shoes I could see myself in. I really commend her for the women in this book.

Lisa See and I

I thought the second half after Joy gets married, was more interesting than the first. Her idealism around communist China disintegrates quickly and her panic, fear, and desperation made me read faster. It was hard to read about some of the suffering going on in the rural parts of the country, though. I found myself clutching my hand to my heart on several occasions.

I thought the speed at which Joy found ZG was too unrealistic. Honestly, it a city that size, it should have taken some time. Even with his fame, it should have been more difficult to locate him. It started the book out on a rough note for me and it took a while to recover from that.

This audiobook was narrated by Janet Song. If I’d listened to audio of the first one, I would have heard her read that, too. I heard Song before when she narrated another See book, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. I guess she has the corner on the See audiobook market! She did a great job before and I enjoyed her narration again. She’s good at putting emotion into the characters and showing their fear, joy, and frustration. If I read more See, I bet I listen to more Song.

Mother-daughter love was a theme of Shanghai Girls and See brings it back in this book. What Pearl does for her daughter is almost unimaginable. The danger she puts herself into and the risks she takes would only be taken by a mother for a child. Daughters are reflections of their mothers and Joy grows to be more and more like her mother as the book goes on.

Writer’s Takeaway: I think See balanced the two stories well. There was a potential for Joy’s story to overtake the narrative because it was more dramatic than Pearl’s. See balanced the chapter lengths and gave a good plot line to Pearl to keep her story interesting and progressing. I think this balance could have been poorly managed by a less experienced writer but See did it wonderfully.

This book kept me engaged and reading (listening) and I really enjoyed listening to it. Four out of Five Stars.

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

Related Posts:
The Surprise Sequel: Dreams of Joy | The Paperback Princess
Lisa See Explores the Concept of Love in Shanghai Girls and Dreams of Joy | cultcrumbs

WWW Wednesday, 15-August-2018

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Note: For users of Blogspot blogs, I’m unable to comment on your posts as a WordPress blogger unless you’ve enabled Name/URL comments. This is a known WordPress/Blogspot issue. Please consider enabling this to participate more fully in the community. 

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Currently reading: Still on hold with Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. I’ll have to see about finding this in another format so I can wrap it up soon.
I’ve made slight progress in The World We Found by Thrity Umrigar. I’m reading it slowly during lunches but while the weather is nice, I’m eating outside with my mom a few times a week which takes away at my reading time. I’m enjoying the story and I hope to get back into it soon.
I was able to start Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger and I’m loving it so far. The writing is lyrical and fun and I’m very interested in the focus family!
I’m so fortunate that I’m the first person at the library to get the audiobook copy of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. I’ve had my eye on this one for a while and it was recently picked as my book club selection for September and I’m beyond excited to start reading it.
I started a new book on my phone and this time around it’s The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri. I read another of Lahiri’s novels a few years ago and adored it so I’m excited to see what else she’s got!

Recently finished: I finished The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan on Thursday. I’m really excited to have finished another book, especially one I was working on for a while. I enjoyed this in both audio and print forms so that I could keep it up while on vacation. My review went up yesterday. I gave it Three out of Five Stars and I’ll be reviewing the movie tomorrow!
I wrapped up Dreams of Joy by Lisa See on Monday. I’ll tell you a secret. I usually write these the Sunday before just to make sure I have it scheduled and I’m usually 99% correct. This week, I was so far off that I had to re-write this Monday night! It changed so fast. I didn’t think I’d finish this one but I powered through because the end was so good. I’ll have a review up next week. I gave it Four out of Five Stars.

My review for The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver went up on Thursday. This was a big winner for me and I gave it Four out of Five Stars.
I also reviewed The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan on Monday. Many of you saw this on my list for weeks and weeks but it’s thankfully wrapped up and I’m so excited to have moved on! I gave the book Two out of Five Stars.

Reading Next: I’ve just started so many books that I’m really not sure. I think it will be a physical book and I’m leaning toward starting something to help me finish my historical fiction challenge. I’m getting a bit anxious about finishing that. I have the 1500s, 1600s, 1700s, and 1800s to go. I’ve got to start some planning!

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Leave a comment with your link and a comment (if you’re so inclined). Take a look at the other participant links in the comments and look at what others are reading.

Have any opinions on these choices?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

WWW Wednesday, 8-August-2018

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Note: For users of Blogspot blogs, I’m unable to comment on your posts as a WordPress blogger unless you’ve enabled Name/URL comments. This is a known WordPress/Blogspot issue. Please consider enabling this to participate more fully in the community. 

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Currently reading: I’m still making my way through Dreams of Joy by Lisa See and I’m hoping I’ll have it finished by next week. I need to start running more which means more time to enjoy this book!
I decided to take The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan with me on vacation and read a paper copy before bed at night. I didn’t quite finish it but it’s my main focus now in print. I think this will easily be finished next week.
I started Bel Canto by Ann Patchett as an ebook while I was on vacation but the hold came due and I stopped about halfway through. I’m anxious to pick it up again but I’ll probably wait until the ebook is available rather than find it in another format.
When I lost Bel Canto, I picked up The World We Found by Thrity Umrigar. I’m not far into it at all but I’m hoping to make some steady progress. I’m not sure when, though. My ebook reading will likely drop off now that I’m back from vacation.

Recently finished: I finished two! First was The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver which I finished while I was in Spain. I really loved this one and enjoyed the plot structure more than I anticipated. It was a great one to pick up when I was traveling and I’m looking forward to writing a review to post tomorrow. I’m giving it Four out of Five Stars.
I finally finished The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan! I got home from vacation and decided to plop myself in the armchair until it was finished. It’s one I’m glad I’ve read but that I’ll never touch or be tempted by again. I’ll have a full review for next week but let’s just say it wasn’t pretty. I gave the book Two out of Five Stars.

Reading Next: My book club is meeting at the end of the month so I’ll next pick up Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger. I don’t know anything about this one but grabbed a used copy at a fundraiser. We’ll see how it goes!

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Leave a comment with your link and a comment (if you’re so inclined). Take a look at the other participant links in the comments and look at what others are reading.

Have any opinions on these choices?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

WWW Wednesday, 18-July-2018

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Note: For users of Blogspot blogs, I’m unable to comment on your posts as a WordPress blogger unless you’ve enabled Name/URL comments. This is a known WordPress/Blogspot issue. Please consider enabling this to participate more fully in the community. 

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Currently reading: I didn’t make much progress on The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver. I’m determined to finish it over the next few weeks while I’m on vacation, though! I think this will be a great read for the flights when I’m trying to keep my excitement at bay.
I made decent progress with Dreams of Joy by Lisa See, but nothing noteworthy. I’ll be taking this one to Europe, too.
I don’t know what to say anymore. The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan is taking me forever and I can’t wait to be done with it! It’s staying behind unless I can finish it before we leave in which case it’s going back to the library.
I didn’t finish The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan. I’ll have to pick back up with it when I return. I’m checking on keeping it in my car while I’m gone versus returning it and checking it out again when I get home.

Recently finished: Nothing new! It’s these back-and-forth waves that are getting to me more than anything!

Reading Next: I’ve got another book on my phone if needed though I’m hoping I don’t have too much reading time while I’m gone. The one I’m most excited about is Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. I’ve heard such wonderful things about this one and it seemed like a good airplane read.

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Leave a comment with your link and a comment (if you’re so inclined). Take a look at the other participant links in the comments and look at what others are reading.

Have any opinions on these choices?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

WWW Wednesday, 11-July-2018

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Note: For users of Blogspot blogs, I’m unable to comment on your posts as a WordPress blogger unless you’ve enabled Name/URL comments. This is a known WordPress/Blogspot issue. Please consider enabling this to participate more fully in the community. 

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Currently reading: I’m still slowly making my way through The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver. I have a feeling it’s about to take a dark twist so I’m excited and finding more and more time to devote to reading it. I’ll for sure finish it in Europe if not before!
I started up with Dreams of Joy by Lisa See again. Thankfully I haven’t forgotten anything and I’ve been able to dive back in with no problem. I have the audiobook for another two weeks so I hope I can finish it in time!
It’s embarrassing but I’m still reading The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan. It’s hard to read a lot of a non-fiction book like this in one go. I’m doing pretty good, though, and making steady progress. I can’t wait to be done with it.
I’ve just started The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan. It’s not as long as I thought it would be but I’ll still be a couple weeks working on this one. I’m just excited to be onto another audiobook, I felt like the Meltzer one went on for too long at the end.

Recently finished: I wrapped up The Fifth Assassin by Brad Meltzer on Sunday morning. It’s the second in a series of three but I’m not sure if I’m going to continue with the series. If I do, I’ll be in no rush to get to it. I’m not even sure what the last book is called if I’m being honest. My review went up yesterday and I gave it Three out of Five Stars.
I also finished Critical Chain by Eliyahu Goldratt over the weekend. It was a good weekend of finishing books and hurriedly writing reviews of them. This one was just what I was expecting and I enjoyed Goldratt’s method of teaching business lessons through a novel. I gave this one Three out of Five Stars as well.

Reading Next: I’ll start Brainiac by Ken Jennings as soon as I can but I’m nervous about finishing it before I leave for Europe! I’ll have to return it to the library before I go. I’m hoping I can fly through it, even though it’s another non-fiction. I’m guessing it will be a lighter topic.

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Leave a comment with your link and a comment (if you’re so inclined). Take a look at the other participant links in the comments and look at what others are reading.

Have any opinions on these choices?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

WWW Wednesday, 4-July-2018

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Note: For users of Blogspot blogs, I’m unable to comment on your posts as a WordPress blogger unless you’ve enabled Name/URL comments. This is a known WordPress/Blogspot issue. Please consider enabling this to participate more fully in the community. 

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Currently reading: I’m a quarter of the way through The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver. I’m enjoying it still, just a matter of having lunchtimes to read it. Maybe I’ll try leaving the office for lunch a bit more this week since it’s a slow one.
I’ve got Dreams of Joy by Lisa See back but I’m hoping to finish Critical Chain first. I just want to finish a darn book! We’ll see how it times up.
I’m still working on The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan which I’m embarrassed to admit. I’m trying to make more time to devote to reading it but the subject is so dense that it’s hard to read a lot at once.
I am really close to finishing The Fifth Assassin by Brad Meltzer which is encouraging. I was hoping to have this one finished this week, but it looks like I’m waiting one more week. Sigh.
I’m getting close to finishing Critical Chain by Eliyahu Goldratt as well. I think this one will be finished off within the week, hopefully, sooner so I can get back to my other audiobooks.

Recently finished: No comment.

Reading Next: I’ve been so tempted to start Brainiac by Ken Jennings every time I read four pages of Friedan and put it back down. I want a book to binge and enjoy and I’m hoping this can be it!
The audiobook is all set and ready for The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan. Just got to finish Meltzer and I’ll start it immediately.

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Leave a comment with your link and a comment (if you’re so inclined). Take a look at the other participant links in the comments and look at what others are reading.

Have any opinions on these choices?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

WWW Wednesday, 27-June-2018

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Note: For users of Blogspot blogs, I’m unable to comment on your posts as a WordPress blogger unless you’ve enabled Name/URL comments. This is a known WordPress/Blogspot issue. Please consider enabling this to participate more fully in the community. 

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Currently reading: I think I made it through one chapter of The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver. I’ve been studying during lunch when I can and finally got back to it some today. I’m really enjoying this book and its unusual format so I look forward to reading more when I can.
Still waiting on the hold of Dreams of Joy by Lisa See to come back. Sigh.
I didn’t finish The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan before the book club meeting and ended up skipping it in order to study a bit more. I felt bad, but I wasn’t sure how much I’d get out of the discussion if I was only a bit over half-way through it.
With all my driving to school, I’ve made great steps forward with The Fifth Assassin by Brad Meltzer. These books are fun and exciting but I do sometimes get frustrated feeling I’m kept in the dark. Toward the end, I’m sure everything will start to come together so I’m just looking forward to that.
Critical Chain by Eliyahu Goldratt has been a good read for me so far. I don’t read many business books because I’m usually trying to escape from B-School by reading, but Goldratt makes it all seem more fun by giving his stories a plot.

Recently finished: Let’s not talk about it. Maybe next week?

Reading Next: I’m not going to start Brainiac by Ken Jennings until I finish Friedan. I have to keep telling myself that since the book is so tempting right on my bedside table…
I forgot to cancel my hold on another car audiobook so I have The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan ready to go when I finish Meltzer. I think another week or so and I’ll be able to start this one.

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Leave a comment with your link and a comment (if you’re so inclined). Take a look at the other participant links in the comments and look at what others are reading.

Have any opinions on these choices?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

WWW Wednesday, 20-June-2018

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Note: For users of Blogspot blogs, I’m unable to comment on your posts as a WordPress blogger unless you’ve enabled Name/URL comments. This is a known WordPress/Blogspot issue. Please consider enabling this to participate more fully in the community. 

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Currently reading: Almost no progress on The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver this week. School ends next week and it’s in high gear now so I did a lot of textbook reading during my lunches. I hope to return to it soon.
I am very disappointed to say that I lost my hold on Dreams of Joy by Lisa See! I put a hold on it to get it back but it might be a bit before I’m able to jump back into this one.
I am starting to think I won’t finish The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan before my book club meeting. I’m out of free time until my class ends so I’m reading about ten pages a night, not enough to help me finish. Seeing as the meeting is the day before my final exam, I might skip it entirely.
I’ve made great progress in The Fifth Assassin by Brad Meltzer. I think that’s solid proof of how seldom I’m home! I’m about halfway through the book now and I should easily finish before I leave for Europe. I don’t want a lingering audiobook while I’m gone.
I started another eaudiobook while I wait for Joy to come back. I started Critical Chain by Eliyahu Goldratt. I’m enjoying it so far and it’s very relevant to the business class I’m taking. It’s not too long so I should wrap it up in a week or two.

Recently finished: Nothing! I’m moving slowly now but I’m optimistic that it will pick up soon. It has to, right?

Reading Next: I’m very tempted to pick up Brainiac by Ken Jennings since Mystique is dragging so much for me. This one looks fun and full of trivia facts. That seems so far off now…

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Leave a comment with your link and a comment (if you’re so inclined). Take a look at the other participant links in the comments and look at what others are reading.

Have any opinions on these choices?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!

WWW Wednesday, 13-June-2018

Welcome to WWW Wednesday! This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived here on Taking on a World of Words. Just answer the three questions below and leave a link to your post in the comments for others to look at. No blog? No problem! Just leave a comment with your responses. Please, take some time to visit the other participants and see what others are reading. So, let’s get to it!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Note: For users of Blogspot blogs, I’m unable to comment on your posts as a WordPress blogger unless you’ve enabled Name/URL comments. This is a known WordPress/Blogspot issue. Please consider enabling this to participate more fully in the community. 

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Currently reading: I made better progress with The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver than I expected to, which was a welcome surprise. I figured out what the structure of the book is and I’m really intrigued to keep read it and see what happens!
I got a few runs in and made some decent progress on Dreams of Joy by Lisa See. I’ve enjoyed See’s writing in the past and this book doesn’t disappoint and I’m glad I’ve gotten to read it!
I’m afraid my progress has slowed with The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan. I’m not as interested in it as I wish I were and it’s made me read less at night and find other things to do with free time during the days. I’m pushing just to finish in time for book club now.
I started a new audiobook in my car but not the one I thought I would. I’m reading The Fifth Assassin by Brad Meltzer. It’s the second in a series I started a few years ago (I’m seeing a trend) and I remember the previous book well enough but it’s getting mixed up with other Meltzer books to me. I’ll sort it out in time, haha.

Recently finished: I finished A Walk In the Woods by Bill Bryson late last week and I want to go hiking so badly now! It was a fun read and I meant to pick the movie up at the library and totally forgot. Darn! I hope I can watch this one soon, it seems like it would be a pretty funny film.

I posted my review of Paul Beatty’s The Sellout on Thursday and my book club reflection of it on Monday. It wasn’t a favorite of mine or my book club. Unpopular Opinion Alert!

Reading Next: No change on Brainiac by Ken Jennings. I’ve already had to renew it and I haven’t cracked it open. I really hope I can get to it soon!

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Leave a comment with your link and a comment (if you’re so inclined). Take a look at the other participant links in the comments and look at what others are reading.

Have any opinions on these choices?

Until next time, write on.

You can follow me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. I’m available via email at SamAStevensWriter@gmail.com. And as always, feel free to leave a comment!