WWW Wednesday, 24-May-2017

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 a push to work on A Son of the Circus by John Irving over the weekend and got maybe 40 pages in. I’m over page 400 now but I’m thinking this might have to go on hold for a bit so I can get through some book club selections in time for the meetings. I hate doing that, but sometimes social pressure get the best of my reading schedule!
I had some technical difficulties with Love in the Elephant Tent by Kathleen Cremonesi over the weekend but they’ve now been solved and I’m back at this one. I’ve had a bit of lunch reading time but not too much. Hope to make some steady progress going forward.
Landline by Rainbow Rowell has been fun. I’m not as engaged as I have been with other Rowell books, but it’s still enjoyable. It’s great for runs and cooking time!
I’m making slow progress with Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris only because I don’t drive a lot. Having this one limited to my car is a bit slow but I’m still liking the humor. I’ll keep enjoying it. The short essays help with my short drives!

Recently finished: Nothing new finished but two book reviews posted! The first is for Terra Incognita by Ruth Downie. This is the second in the series and I really enjoyed both so far. I hope to keep going with these as they’re all on mobile audio. Yay! I gave the book 4 out of 5 stars.
My second review is for Ellen DeGeneres’s Seriously… I’m Kidding. I listened to this on audio and my review may have been different if I’d read the book but I gave the audio 4 out of 5 stars.

Reading Next: Unfortunately, it’s going to have to be Tigerman by Nick Harkaway. I really wanted to get to The Circle but school has been more crazy than expected. I don’t think I’ll make it to the theaters to see the movie anyway. Sad day!

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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!

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Book Review: Seriously… I’m Kidding by Ellen DeGeneres (4/5)

I love celebrity comedian memoirs. I remember listening to an Ellen book with a friend of mine in high school and laughing so hard it was inappropriate. I grabbed this book during a bag sale at the library but I found time to listen to it before I had time to read it, so here we are. I used to watch Ellen’s show when I’d get home from high school while I ate a snack so I’m a big fan of hers.

Cover image via Goodreads

Seriously… I’m Kidding by Ellen DeGeneres

Summary from Goodreads:

“Sometimes the greatest things are the most embarrassing.” Ellen Degeneres’ winning, upbeat candor has made her show one of the most popular, resilient and honored daytime shows on the air. (To date, it has won no fewer than 31 Emmys.) Seriously… I’m Kidding, Degeneres’ first book in eight years, brings us up to date about the life of a kindhearted woman who bowed out of American Idol because she didn’t want to be mean. Lively; hilarious; often sweetly poignant.

This book was exactly what I was expecting which was perfect. I wanted something honest and lighthearted. I wanted someone who was going to talk about her life and poke fun at herself but who is uplifting and a wonderful role model. This is a woman who won the Presidential Medal of Freedom and she had me laughing at silly jokes in her book. She’s a true American Icon, even if she’s not an American Idol.

Ellen portrays herself and her wife in a very realistic way. I don’t know much of de Rossi outside of her character on Arrested Development but I feel like I know Ellen from watching her show. As silly as she is and as outrageous as some things in her book may seem, I honestly believe that her life is like that. I think she embraces the silliness and things seem outrageous because of her perspective on the world.

 

I think celebrity memoirs really make the star seem very human. When I think of a celebrity, I think of someone who doesn’t do their own grocery shopping or cleaning or anything that could be work. But reading these memoirs reminds me that very few celebrities reach that level of wealth. That’s mostly reserved for businessmen. A lot of celebrities have very normal and relatable lives. They have to clean their houses and pets. They have fights with their significant others. They do a lot of ‘normal’ things and I find that reassuring.

Ellen DeGeneres receiving her Presidential Medal of Freedom with Pres. Obama
Image via NY Daily News

Ellen’s talk about a Finding Nemo sequel was really funny in light of the recent release of Finding Dory. I might not have laughed at those jokes five years ago, but today I don’t see them as bitter, just ironic.

The one thing I dislike about this style of book is the short chapters. They don’t allow for much substance but I imagine with many other books under her belt, DeGeneres might have been a bit short of solid material.

Having Ellen read the audiobook was amazing. I’m glad I listened to it instead of reading it, I don’t think it would have had the same effect. She even read the chapter numbers in funny voices to make the listening more fun. I would highly recommend this format.

I’m not sure there’s a running theme in this book, to be honest. Memoirs like this don’t always have one. DeGeneres wants to make her reader laugh and she does a good job of this. She uses a variety of jokes which I really appreciated and enjoyed. I’d read another of her books in a heartbeat.

Writer’s Takeaway: I’m not sure the variety of topics and formats for chapters would translate as well to the fiction I write. It works well for a genre that can seem repetitive after a while. She mixes up her essays with lists and commentary that keep her style in mind but keeps the reader pushing forward to see what’s going to come next.

This book was a fun listen and I enjoyed it a lot. 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:
Review | Seriously… I’m Kidding, Ellen DeGeneres | Literary Treats
Review: Seriously… I’m Kidding by Ellen DeGeneres | BookSpoils
Seriously… I’m Kidding – Ellen DeGeneres | CatherineZiemann

WWW Wednesday, 17-May-2017

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 wish I had more time to read A Son of the Circus by John Irving now that I’m enjoying it. School is very fast-paced for this 6-week course and I’m spending a lot of my free time reading for that class. I hate to push books off, but school does, unfortunately, come first.
I’m finding more time to read at work during lunch than I’m getting at home. As such, I’m making decent progress with Love in the Elephant Tent by Kathleen Cremonesi. It’s a little slow, but I’m still enjoying the story of Kathleen’s time in the circus and her time with the elephants.
I started two new audiobooks. The first is Landline by Rainbow Rowell. It was the next eaudio I could download. I picked up a physical copy of this book at a library sale and I’m been wanting to read it for a while. I’ll get to it much sooner as an audiobook than if I’d waited to read the physical book.
I picked up an audiobook for my car, too. I want to get to some of those that have long hold times. I decided to go with Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris. I tried reading a Sedaris book in college and couldn’t stand it but when I listened to it, I was in love. I’m hoping this is the same.

Recently finished: Seriously… I’m Kidding by Ellen Degeneres was a quick, fun read. I’m glad I listened to this one because, like Sedaris, having the author read it added a lot of fun and humor that reading the words on the page couldn’t add. My review will be up next week so look forward to that.
No reviews this week! I’ll have another one up tomorrow, though, so don’t fret!

Reading Next: I know I’ve had The Circle on here for a few weeks but I got another book club book I have to read first! Unfortunately, I’m going to replace my next up with Tigerman by Nick Harkaway. I’m hoping this is a quick read so I can get to Eggers soon! I’m putting off seeing the movie until I can read this book.

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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, 10-May-2017

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 think it would happen but A Son of the Circus by John Irving is picking up quickly! It took far too long for this to happen, but it’s finally happening. I’m so glad because I was really close to giving up on it. I got through a lot last week with a lot of time to myself but classes have started up again and I’m not sure I’ll be able to keep it up.
I started a new eBook, Love in the Elephant Tent by Kathleen Cremonesi. If it’s not clear yet, I love circus-themed books. I’ll probably be reading this one for a while but it’s a very fast read so far. She’s already fallen in love in the elephant tent so I’m not sure where this one is going to go.
I needed a new audiobook and started Seriously… I’m Kidding by Ellen Degeneres. I put several on hold but this was available when I needed it. It’s quite short and I expect I’ll wrap it up quickly so maybe one of those other holds will come in while I’m waiting. I love when things work out perfectly like that.

Recently finished: I got the ILL for The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler and finished the last twenty pages! I thought I might have been exaggerating when I said that was all I had left but I was really close. The book was fun and I’m glad I saw it through to the end. I was able to finish it while I ate lunch the day I picked up the hold. I wish I’d just sat down in a comfy chair and finished it without leaving. I wrote a full review on Monday if you want to go check that out.
I wrapped up Terra Incognita by Ruth Downie on Monday night! I wasn’t expecting to finish it so quickly so that was a pleasant surprise for me. I liked the book and I’m looking forward to reading more about these characters as I continue the series down the road. I’ll have a review up next week.

Reading Next: I still have my eyes set on The Circle by Dave Eggers. I’m having a slow go at my physical book right now but the carrot of seeing this movie is pushing me forward.

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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!