Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl
The original theme for this week was “Books I HAD to Have Immediately but Still Haven’t Read.” It’s quite rare for me to buy books without immediately reading them, so I’m tweaking the topic a little to talk about some library books on my TBR list that I am looking forward to reading instead.
1. The End of My Life Is Killing Me: The Unexpected Joys of a Cancer Slacker by Annabelle Gurwitch
Why I’m Interested: Stage 4 cancer doesn’t seem like something that’s inherently funny, but I’m drawn to the idea of making the best of whatever is happening to you and trying to find the humour in hard circumstances when possible. No, I’m not talking about toxic positivity here. Think of it more like living in the moment and looking for the good when you can.
2. The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon: The Diary of a Courtesan in Tenth Century Japan by Sei Shōnagon, Dennis Washburn (Foreword), Arthur Waley (Translator)
Why I’m Interested: I’ve never read a book like this before.
3. Church Girl by Naima Simone
Why I’m Interested: Every so often I peek over into the romance genre to see if anything looks interesting, and this is one of those rare titles from it that I might want to read.
4. I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
Why I’m Interested: My parents and the vast majority of my other relatives are wonderful human beings with whom I have warm, healthy relationships, but I also know what it’s like to be related to or otherwise socially connected to someone who stirs up difficult and painful emotions. If only we lived in a world that was more open to discussing such topics and emotionally supporting people who don’t have the “typical” reaction to complex relationships or the death of a relative. You never know what’s really going on behind the scenes in a family or social group in general, so these folks won’t receive any judgement from me about how they should behave under these circumstances.
5. The Future of Work Is Grey: The Untapped Value of Age in the Workforce by Dan Pontefract
Why I’m Interested: This isn’t something that personally affects me (yet, of course), but I wholeheartedly support all efforts to reduce and eliminate discrimination, especially in the workplace given that just about everyone must work for a living. There’s absolutely no reason to make the job hunt harder than it already is for many folks!
6. The Beauty of Being Weird: A Psychologist’s Guide to Living Guilt-Free by Sergi Rufi
Why I’m Interested: There is definitely something to be said for learning to be comfortable in your own skin.
7. Playmakers: The Jewish Entrepreneurs Who Created the Toy Industry in America by Michael Kimmel
Why I’m Interested: This is another slice of history I know nothing about, but I want to change that.
8. You x Me by Ayla Vejdani
Why I’m Interested: I know nothing about dating app culture these days, so this anthology could be a good read. (Can you tell I love learning new stuff?)
9. Homesick for a World Unknown: The Life of George B. Schaller by Miriam Horn
Why I’m Interested: I’m intrigued by the lives of scientists who worked generations ago and want to know more about their lives and accomplishments.
10. Big Worlds: Politics and Elections in the Canadian Provinces and Territories by Jared J. Wesley
(Apologies, but this was as large as this image could be sized).
Why I’m Interested: Canadian culture is fascinating and I love learning about the differences between one place here and another. It’s not a topic that our local news covers very often, and I have not travelled to most parts of my country yet.
This is an automatic no from me.
There are so many physical places I wish still existed!
The Ooze was a Christian message board created by Spencer Burke that existed about 20 years ago when the Internet was quite different from how it is today. It was a gathering place for all sorts of people who were trying to come up with better ways to live out their faith. I met some incredible people there, including my spouse!