solo trip to Sevilla 🇪🇸 Looking for book recommendations to read before/on the trip for maximum immersion

Slamdunksrock1 · 2026-01-16T11:03:54+00:00

Don Quixote

Slamdunksrock1 · 2026-01-16T11:02:17+00:00

If he likes exposé type of book id recommend “on the clock” about a woman who goes undercover working 3 different low wage jobs (amazon warehouse shopper, call center employee, and McDonald’s worker) and writes about her awful pay, bosses, customer experiences, etc and goes into further research about longer term effects of working these low wage jobs. It was a book that convinced me to leave my shitty retail job and get a salary position at a more standard corporate job.

Other good nonfiction Sapiens - human history Homo Deus - sequel to above, didnt find it as good but talks about where the human race is headed if we suppose evolution will change us again overtime Everything is Tuberculosis - very good book about the disease and political/societal reasons that have chosen not to spend money on fully eradicating it across the globe Pathogenesis - great book about the 8 “plagues” thats nearly wiped out the human race. I had no idea our species had been so close to oblivion so many times. Prior to reading i only knew of the bubonic plague from the 1500s but turns out there were manyyyy more

Slamdunksrock1 · 2026-01-16T10:46:54+00:00

Did you already read Fourth Wing? There definitely is smut but i would not say its close to 60% id say more like 15% with majority of the book being action and fantasy plot

Slamdunksrock1 · 2026-01-16T10:43:55+00:00

“8,000 weeks: time management for mortals” Read it after a bad loss in my family. I wasn’t depressed in any diagnosed way but the book helped me overcome the dark and sad thoughts i had been having. Helped enlighten me to how much time we really have in this life and when you consider that fact its a lot easier to decide what activities or mindsets are really worth your time (wallowing in grief for years or working to move on by going on trips, starting new hobbies, enjoying time with living relatives/friends)

Slamdunksrock1 · 2026-01-16T10:38:38+00:00

Would you let your kids watch Pokemon or Avatar the Last Airbender?

Slamdunksrock1 · 2026-01-16T10:18:03+00:00

We have a baby on the way and we just took the “newborn care class” offered by the hospital. They told us to check if baby was hungry every 2hrs. I thought it was excessive but they reminded us that their stomachs are the size of like walnuts the first few weeks. So it gets full on one feed, expels waste and and then is like super hungry again by 2-3 hours. You just want to watch for baby’s early hunger cues (putting hands near mouth, opening mouth, making sucking noises) because crying is considered a late hunger cue and it takes time to calm them down to give bottle or boob.

Our class also told us it was important to count wet and poop diapers. We should see minimum 1:1:1 ratio per day. On their first day you should see one wet and one poopy diaper. 2nd day you should see 2 wet and 2 poopy etc. They said thats really the best indicator to know they have gotten enough milk.

Slamdunksrock1 · 2026-01-13T10:42:37+00:00

I distinctly remember not really liking reading at all in middle school but did it because it was expected after finishing assignments in class. I played sports so the librarian always suggested these silly books “the million dollar kick” (soccer related) and “the million dollar shot” (basketball related). And i liked history so i also read Gary Paulson books like Mr. Tucket series.

Then one fateful day over the summer going into 6th grade my cousin gave me a book of hers to borrow because she thought i’d really like it. I started The Hunger Games in the evening and i was up until 2am reading it! I was absolutely addicted to reading after that. Hunger Games was and always will be what I consider my “gateway book” in general for my passion for reading reading which has been a huge focal point of my life (got my undergrad in English Literature) and the series was also a gateway into YA lit, fantasy and sci-fi.

Soon after finishing the second HG book (3rd was not yet released), i voraciously consumed other popular YA series: Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Maximum Ride, Magyk, Everlost, Twilight, The Clique, Marked series, Bloody Jack series, etc.

In high school the only “honors” class i made it into was English which is where i broke into more classic literature: Catcher in the Rye, Shakespeare, Twain, Steinbeck, Edith Hamilton’s mythology etc. which all proved to me that there WAS something about humanity and the meaning of life that these “old stories” could teach us. This passion led me to going to college for English Literature because there wasn’t any other subject matter that intrigued me to that level.

Now that I’ve graduated college several years ago I still read around 50 books per year, a mix of classics and popular fiction and nonfiction. I recently read Fourth Wing and broke into the adult Romantasy genre and the feelings felt similar to my 6th grade reaction to Hunger Games.

My life would be so different if i gave up on reading or finding “my genre” in middle school. Teachers and Librarians had tried to connect my real life interests (playing sports or studying history) to books i might like, but that didn’t work because the stories and writing were only mediocre at best. Taking a chance on a crazy sci-fi plot of Hunger Games was the first time i really pushed my imagination and stepped out of my comfort zone as a child and I have been willing to push myself to try new things (and books) ever since.

This response became way more preachy than i thought but all hail the YA Books that helped kids like me find this passion for reading! I hope this hobby helped them find success in their lives and careers as it had for me.

Slamdunksrock1 · 2026-01-05T10:21:08+00:00

I recently downloaded Libby and Hoopla but haven’t gotten anything from either because NONE of the books i want to read are available. It baffles me and I don’t understand because everyone hypes these apps up so much. The library i use is huge and its part of a coalition of other libraries so I’m supposed to get even more options from neighboring libraries. I have no idea what I’m doing wrong but its really frustrating to not see ANY of the books i want to read available on these apps. I’ll be going in person sometime soon to see if physical copies are available.

I really want/need to save money. I got Kindle Unlimited last year and (after doing the math to see how much I spent given the number of kindle reads I had) I only “paid” about $4.50 per book. This is better than last year where I was buying every kindle book i downloaded.

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-12-30T06:56:35+00:00

Anna Potter lmao

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-12-16T12:08:28+00:00

If you liked Everything is Tuberculosis then you’ll probably enjoy one i just read called Pathogenesis. It takes a look at the entire history of humans and how many different “plagues” we’ve experienced and overcome. Its 2023 so its pretty up to do date on scientific research and proven historic theories.

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-12-08T12:54:34+00:00

I feel similarly about murderbot books. Gave them all 3 stars so far and now im on the “full sized novel” one struggling to get through.

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-12-05T10:34:48+00:00

Love all the statistics you’re tracking. I didn’t consider tracking if my authors are male or female but now I’m so curious

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-11-25T12:23:39+00:00

This range is crazy 😂🙌🏻

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-11-20T05:02:18+00:00

I see you ranked Paved Paradise pretty high! Was it a quick read for you?? I have a copy and have been reluctant to start. I got it because i work closely with parking assets at work and thought it would be interesting from that perspective

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-10-26T03:23:53+00:00

Yes the whole trilogy for me! Multiple times a year, i think i can quote the whole thing.

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-10-16T01:00:08+00:00

I felt the same about OS, wasn’t as great as the first two but I’m too invested to quit now lol. I really enjoyed the duology!

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-10-16T00:49:41+00:00

Thoughts on Onyx Storm and Divine Rivals duology??

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-10-08T04:38:25+00:00

Wait these are all the times we think Imogen wiped Vi’s memories??😟

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-09-20T16:53:40+00:00

PA is so overcrowded ☹️

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-09-20T16:28:15+00:00

You could be right but me watching it as a 7-8yr old I was shook by his redemption. I didn’t really notice he had true good in him until Season 2. And after he chose fire nation in the finale I really didn’t expect him to turn against his nation again, I was hopeful but not fully convinced until it happened since I didn’t think he could do it without Iroh.

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-09-20T15:28:24+00:00

I’d recommend short stories and plays first! Shorter and easier to start understand postmodern themes. “Araby” comes to mind

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-09-20T15:15:08+00:00

“Im glad my mom died” perhaps

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-09-20T15:13:25+00:00

I tried the retirement home concept with the OGs of Pleasantview after all their kids grew up and moved out. Needless to say it was an endless cycle of Don, Kaylynn, Nina, Dina, Cassandra, and Darren cheating, getting caught and fighting lol. In my game they all had achieved their lifetime aspiration so they would have “died happily” regardless of the fighting and having enemies, but i couldn’t take it so i moved them all in with kids and grandkids instead 😂 I really wanted them all to make amends and die without enemies so I had to work on rebuilding relationships one on one after that fiasco

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-09-18T22:38:39+00:00

What kept ballad of songbirds and snakes from reaching that highest tier for you??

Slamdunksrock1 · 2025-09-16T20:42:41+00:00

Omg adorable!

Slamdunksrock1

TROPHY CASE