The Week in Review: 1.13.2017
Between the Covers
Finished last week:
BETWEEN THE WORLD AND ME by Ta-Nehisi Coates was a book club selection for me. It’s written by a black man as a letter to his son about what it’s like to grow up/be black in America. I struggled through much of the book, finding it rambling and difficult to follow. I did appreciate the message, though, and have thought much about Coates message. In the end, I’m glad I read the book but can’t say that I loved it. I’m anxious to see what other members of my book club thought. (Review copy provided by Penguin Random House.)
KID ATHLETES: TRUE TALES OF CHILDHOOD FROM SPORTS LEGENDS by David Stabler is a terrific book for middle grade readers. It includes childhood stories of a nice variety of professional athletes including sumo wrestler Jesse Kuhaulua, gymnast Gabby Douglas, and football player Peyton Manning. Young readers/athletes will enjoy discovering these sports giants were ordinary kids with struggles much like their own. Doogie Horner’s great illustrations are a nice touch to this inspiring book. You’ll want to pick KID ATHLETES up for the young athletes in your life. (Review copy provided by Quirk Books.)
I listened to THE UNDOING PROJECT: A FRIENDSHIP THAT CHANGED OUR MINDS by Michael Lewis over the holidays and, to be honest, it didn’t really work for me. I wanted to love the book but had trouble staying focused on and making sense of the story of the friendship between and work of two Israeli psychologist. Dennis Boutsikaris’s narration was fine but it wasn’t enough to save the book for me. I’d suggest skipping this one unless you have a great interest in the work of Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky.
Currently reading:
- LONER by Teddy Wayne
- MISCHLING by Affinity Konar (audio)
- FLYING LESSONS & OTHER STORIES, edited by Ellen Oh
On the Screen
- I was thrilled to see our somewhat local team, Clemson, win the NCAA National Championship in football. ACC, baby!
- My movie going friend and I decided to take our husbands to see Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them this week since we’re all fans of the Harry Potter franchise. (This movie is about the wizarding world before Harry Potter.) I think we all enjoyed this movie but none of us loved it. I thought the story was good and the special effects were great but there were way too many action scenes and the movie was too long. For me, the movie wasn’t anything special but it was entertaining.
Off the blog
- They predicted 5 to 8 inches of snow in our area and people spent Thursday and Friday preparing since we live in an area without snowplows. As usual, they got everyone worked up for nothing. This is what we woke up to Saturday morning:
- I walked 3 miles every day, even when it was 16 degrees Sunday and Monday mornings.
- I play trivia with a few friends fairly often on Wednesdays and we came in first place this week.
- I love games and puzzles and started a new jigsaw puzzle yesterday afternoon:
- My book club met last night to discuss BETWEEN THE WORLD AND ME. Several members found the book inaccessible so they didn’t finish it. Most who did read the whole book agreed with me and said they found it thought provoking and were glad they read it, but they didn’t love it. Several mentioned that it made them uncomfortable.
How was your week?
I had mixed feelingsabout Between The World And Me. I didn’t even write a review for it. Unlike most people, I would have been disappointed there was that little snow. I need to do one of the puzzles I bought that haven’t been opened yet.
Exciting about Clemson, right?! I’m an ACC grad too, so it’s fun (and rare!) when an ACC team is able to win a football championship.
Undoing Project was a disappointment for me too…it was almost as if Michael Lewis didn’t write any of it beyond the first chapter. Read like a textbook to me. I think it should’ve been a Vanity Fair article rather than a book.
Once again enjoyed your weekly roundup. I’m glad you decided to do this and inspire me to do the same. We rarely get snow in our area either – ice is more likely and probably more treacherous. The weather people here are usually bored or at least I think so. They get so pepped up when we get any type of winter weather. And when we do, it’s always best to stay home. No one here seems to know how to drive on dry pavement, much less slick pavement. We saw the Fantastic Beasts movie too. I liked it, but we were in a theater where we had to sit too close to the screen or closer than we are used to. It kind of made me motion sick in parts. LOL
That’s about how much snow we got, too. I really enjoy these weekly wrap up posts. Have a great weekend!
I am glad you found time to start a new puzzle! I have two on the go on the moment. lol A really easy 500 piece one and a harder 1000 piece one. I spend so much time trying to save them from the cats, there is no easy. lol
I haven’t read any of your books, but did see Fantastic Beasts. I agree with your assessment.
On another note, if you are a trivia fan (I am!), then sign up for Trivia Today. They send 2 questions a day. Each questions has 4 choices. They not only explain your answer, they also tell you what percentage of the people picked each choice. And they give you a monthly and lifetime percentage of right answers for you. On top of that, they send a topic with 4 questions that they explain. It’s always about something that happened on that day in history. The whole thing is just so darn much fun and educational. Plus it’s great to compare the numbers with your friends.
What a week! Glad you didn’t get a lot of snow….that little bit looks just right.
As for Between the World and Me, it sounds like a book I might have enjoyed…if I didn’t know that it was rambling and difficult to follow. My least favorite book issue!
Thanks for sharing your week!
Oh, I love to do puzzles during our long winter seasons but this I just haven’t done it. You’ve reminded me, thanks! A cozy room with a fireplace and a cup of teak – then the big decision is do I work on the puzzle or read my book? : )
Tell me more about trivia that you play with friends. Is it online or do you meet up somewhere? How do you do it?
I so enjoy your posts. Keep them coming!
wow, those spelling errors. Sorry! Let’s try it again ….
Oh, I love to do puzzles during our long winter seasons but this year I just haven’t done it. You’ve reminded me, thanks! A cozy room with a fireplace and a cup of tea – then the big decision is do I work on the puzzle or read my book? : )
Tell me more about trivia that you play with friends. Is it online or do you meet up somewhere? How do you do it?
I so enjoy your posts. Keep them coming!
I’ve been gone for far too long as this must be your new Friday Feature and I really like it!! We have similar news inflation of weather warnings with hurricanes in FL, yes it’s great we have warning systems but the fear they put into it is disturbing.
I feel asleep during Fantastic Beasts…I know, I’m weird.
I too love your new Friday posts. I applaud your book club for reading The World Between You and Me. I found it at times difficult to read, but it was important to read it. It was thought-provoking, and it’s good to see the world through different eyes.
Jim really wants to read the Michael Lewis book – me, not so much!
I always admire your reading choices…I want to see that movie but theatres are too germ-y for me right now…Den would Lysol the entire row!
Between the World and Me gets mixed reviews all over the blogs. A busy week for you.
I really need to find a book club. I tried to do one with friends a couple years ago but nobody really read the books except for me. haha Sorry to hear you didn’t love Fantastic Beasts. I really did! LOL I’m pretty HP obsessed with everything though. I also really love Eddie Redmayne and Ezra Miller. Congrats on winning at trivia! How fun!!
Lauren
http://www.shootingstarsmag.blogspot.com
I really like this Week in Review style post. That’s great that you walk 3 miles every day, even when it’s so cold.
Good for you getting out to walk in the cold. We’ve too many icy patches in my neighborhood and no sidewalks so I’m very low on the fitbit leader board these days.
I have not done a puzzle in aaages
Between the World and Me is supposed to make people of European descent uncomfortable. I think it’s really well-written because while it leaves almost no one unmoved, it’s also impossible to argue with, since it’s addressed to his son and not the world at large. I think it’s high time more of us read books that aren’t explicitly addressed to us. We need to imagine how it is for people who are different from us to live in this country with us.
I’ll be curious to hear how your book club reacted to Between the World and Me. I thought the audio, read by the author, was excellent, but reaction was mixed at my book club meeting. Hope you’re having a great weekend!
Our snow has melted after warmer weather this past week. I’m curious how you are liking The Loner — I wasn’t prepared for the ending.
I like your Week in Review format. & Congrats on the National Championship at Clemson, wow what a game! I found the Coates book to be rambling but also thought-provoking, especially about the student at Howard U. he knew who was killed by police.
Winter was always puzzle time. I should get one started. We go from freezing rain to sunny cold. Just can’t make up it’s mind. Yay for you walking no matter the weather. Have a great week.
I used to do complex puzzles all the time and actually have several framed in my home. It’s been years since I’ve done one. But just the other day when I was in a toy store buying a gift for my nephew I saw some really cool puzzles and thought about working on one.
We don’t mind getting snow, even tons of it since we have snowplows and we are used to driving in snowy condition. It’s the ice rain I worry about. Makes the sidewalks and streets icy and dangerous.
Sounds like a lovely week. Sorry the Coates book wasn’t a big winner. It’s coming up for a local “Everybody Reads” event. I’ll let you know how it goes here. The picture of your snow looks nice to me. I love a good snow day as long as I don’t have to move around in it.
Between the World and Me is one that I can’t believe I haven’t gotten to yet … but it will definitely happen at some point. I liked Fantastic Beasts a lot but agree that it was a bit too long. I like these weekly updates! Glad to see things are going well for you. 🙂
Between the World and Me is a book my book club is reading this year. Sounds like you had a productive week.
I love this new feature you are doing! We got quite a lot of snow here that weekend and it ruined the roads for 2-3 days but then the sun came out the 4th day and it all disappeared. Crazy! I am always in awe of how many steps you hit on your fitbit! I will slowly try to get more in but for now I think only 10-11K a day is doable. 🙂
Matt wants to listen to THE UNDOING PROJECT. He’s fascinated by those guys!
16 degrees? I didn’t know it could get that cold in South Carolina!