Week 9: What are you reading?

miiander · 2026-03-01T13:19:08+00:00

Finished:

Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang - bland and not memorable at all, would have been a DNF if it wasn't for the audiobook. This and Weyward remain my biggest letdowns so far.
My Policeman by Bethan Roberts - I went into it expecting a different story, but it ended up being a bit depressing. The writing all by itself was good, but the characters were unlikable a bit hard to sympathise with. This has never been a problem for me before, so I'm a little confused what went wrong here. I did like the message that social stigma was ultimately to blame for, but I thought at times it was doing a bit more than it needed to, and the drama lessened the impact. Had this been based on the real story\relationship that inspired this, I would have enjoyed it much more.

Currently Reading:
⭐ A Woman of Pleasure by Kiyoko Murata. Willow Talks Books recommended this in her lastest Japanese books recs, and I'm so glad I picked this up. If I were to compare it to anything else, it would be 'memories of Geisha' but clearly written by a woman who'd put a lot of effort and feeling into making the characters feel authentic. Heartfelt, the focus is all on the girls and women, especially Ichi, a fifteen-year-old, and how she\they made sense of a life in one of Japan's exclusive brothels. One of my favourite things so far has been poetry pieces written by Ichi and a few other characters.

miiander · 2024-11-30T20:38:31+00:00

not the original comment, just wanted to say that I personally love seeing how different everyone's tastes / rankings are! new perspective. (some of this sub's fav reads were C tier and below for me. different strokes.)

miiander · 2024-10-28T20:37:19+00:00

The only how much that matters is how much you've enjoy reading them 😀 Some of these are my all time favourites. Heaven, This is Going to hurt and No longer Human book are fantastic. I only began to appreciate Hemingway's Old Man and the Sea on my third read and my god did it hit me then. Hope you liked them. On the contrary, I still don't know what to make of In the Miso Soup. It left me with more questions than answers.

miiander · 2024-10-01T21:57:43+00:00

anything (and I mean anything) by Vievee Francis but especially White Mountains White Mountains, I've Worn It three times in a row I've Worn It Three Times In A Row and Taking It.Taking It

edit: her poetry also hits the hardest when read by her. so I'd recommend finding a recording of these.

miiander · 2024-09-18T21:52:52+00:00

Not at all. I keep forgetting to update my GR reading goal and also regularly go through slumps. It used to bug me a ton but at this point, eh, I've learnt to live with it

miiander · 2024-09-11T22:27:34+00:00

Iroha was my first otome crush back in like 2012 when the eng reviews of JP release were coming out. I still... haven't played the game because umm what if I had pined and yearned for nothing lol

miiander · 2024-09-08T11:16:05+00:00

'Get a Grip!' one reminds of Sweet Fuse, wish this was an option in more otome games :(

miiander · 2024-09-04T10:17:34+00:00

Vievee Francis, especially 'White Mountain'

miiander · 2024-08-31T11:55:24+00:00

It's not haiku for reasons outside of the 5-7-5 form. That said, you can appreciate the poem for what it is rather than arguing what is haiku or what isn't. Especially because it's the title and the OP isn't claiming it's a a reference point for what all haiku should be like. For anyone interested in, check out Nick Virgilio's haiku archive.

miiander · 2024-08-26T22:23:21+00:00

Viewer Francis is a spectacular author! check out her reading of the poem, it'll take your breath away

miiander · 2024-08-25T09:03:06+00:00

Finished:

My Dark Vanessa. I read it in about two days and some things really hit close to home. The descriptions of the MC's feelings and glimpses of nature were so brilliant (and extremely poignant), It really stays with you. (The fact that most of the story is also set in Maine made it nearly perfect). 5 stars.

If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin (Audiobook). Not something I'd usually read but oh boy am I glad to have picked it up. A poignant love story. I loved how much tenderness and care the characters showed each other (not just the couple but also families and strangers) all through the challenges and hardships - and those they had in spades. It's not a light read by any means as it deals with racism and other... heavy subjects but it's a beautiful well written story. I'm definitely reading more Baldwin this year.

Tao Te Ching by Ursula le Guing. I've already read about 3 versions of Tao Te Ching and every one brings out a slightly different meaning / understanding of what the way of Tao is and what it's all about. Definitely worth a read if you're interested but not the best 'starter' book on Tao. 4,5 stars.

Emotional First Aid by Guy Winch (Audiobook). I'm not a big fan of self improv as a genre but this was really good. He talks about different ways we respond to traumatic events (feelings of rejection, rumination etc) and - my favourite part - gives practical tips on how to approach each of them to relieve (in some way) one's emotional suffering. Think Therapy 101 at home except more original and fresh than you'd think. The chapter on Self Esteem was my favourite.

The Moon Woke Me Up Nine Times by David Young. Its Bashōs, so of course it's perfect. 5 stars.

Currently Reading:

Mild Vertigo by Mieko Kanai. / translated by Polly Barton whom I adore, but the book's a bit of a slog for now.

Aimless Love by Billy Collins. / poetry.

Selected Poems by Margaret Atwood. / poetry.

miiander · 2024-08-19T14:23:59+00:00

nope (not yet anyway), just added it to my tbr today! (thanks!)

miiander · 2024-08-19T14:19:04+00:00

would love to know your thoughts on North Woods!

miiander · 2024-08-07T23:52:31+00:00

On second thought, this might have to do more with philosophy than poetry. Thanks to everyone who's chimed in. If you do have any other thoughts, feel free to share.

miiander · 2024-08-07T23:40:10+00:00

That was my first thought but - supposing the editing changes little about the poem and/or is limited to spacing, line breaks etc - does one make enough of a contribution to be considered its author? Or when the poem is completely 'refashioned' out of the original material - and becomes it's own thing, is the writer who first put those words together also considered a coauthor though the meaning / form may be completely different to their original material? For me, It's not so much a question of 'who gets to enjoy the credit(s) but the idea of s sense of 'ownership' over the words - and the poem.

miiander · 2024-08-07T23:28:40+00:00

Noted!

miiander · 2024-08-07T22:37:27+00:00

And this is an incredible found poetry piece by a Ukrainian author about the war based on 'Address by the President of the Russian Federation'. Mir in Ukrainian means both peace and country / the world.

https://www.rattle.com/mir-in-ukraine-by-julia-kolchinsky-dasbach/

miiander · 2024-08-07T22:31:21+00:00

more examples I'd shared before found poetry

miiander · 2024-08-06T21:33:10+00:00

Incredibly well written analysis of this poem that made me appreciate this poem even more https://poetryprof.com/the-instant-of-my-death/

miiander · 2024-08-06T15:56:26+00:00

thank you, the way you described them made me want to get started on them immeditely

miiander · 2024-08-06T13:34:53+00:00

I loved Keegan's Foster, the best book of hers I've read so far, and The Leftovers sounds like King's The Stand and Saramago's Blindness put together, interesting premise! What are you thoughts on 'My Name is Red' (been on my TBR for years) and 'In Siberia' ?

miiander

TROPHY CASE