Mimi

Annie Ernaux won the Nobel Prize in Literature, so maybe this book is not representative of her work, or maybe just not a good introduction. Her obsession is tedious.

I've read this several times, yet somehow never recorded it in Goodreads. Here it is, and it's amazing every time.

For Read Harder challenge #22: Read a history about a period you know little about. Technically, this book covers a few periods I know little about, such as the horrible dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic and the reign of Leopold II in the Congo. Dictators, tyrants, slave holders—they all loved their statues. I just happened to finish this book in the same week the last public Confederate monument in Richmond, VA, was removed. Progress.

For Read Harder Challenge #5, Read an anthology featuring diverse voices. An excellent collection, one that now has tons of post-its marking the pages I want to return to.

For Read Harder Challenge #8, Read a classic written by a POC. Karen Armstrong says she reads some of this every night before bed. That's the way to do it—it's surprisingly relaxing. The commentary by Annping Chin is excellent.

For Read Harder Challenge #24, Pick a challenge from any of the previous years' challenges to repeat. I chose Read a mystery where the victim(s) is not a woman, from 2020.

I also read Kerning: A Space for Words for #15, Read a new-to-you literary magazine (print or digital). It's not in Goodreads, so I will declare it here. And with that, I have finished this year's challenge.

For Read Harder Challenge #13, Read an adventure story by a BIPOC author. This is a book intended for young readers, but I loved it, and loved Amari. Clever and fun.

For the Read Harder Challenge #9, Read the book that's been on your TBR the longest. What a slog, which is probably the reason it's been on my TBR forever. Did not like it at all.

She's so smart. There's lots of good advice, but I loved the stories of her family and their time in the White House the most. And her mom.

Didn't think I would like a book about giant robots so much, but am now into the second of the series...

Liked it even better than the first. The narrator is terrific.

For Read Harder Challenge #23: Read a book by a disabled author. The pop culture references were clearly for someone younger than me... but this is a charming collection of essays.

Hmm, 3.5? Sharp and well-written, but there were a couple of plot points that didn't add up. Still, a good read.

All caught up with Lucy Barton.

Always fun to read about competent female assassins.

Great to return to Vera and her team, and the atmospheric settings in which they solve murders. But this mystery wasn't quite as gripping as others. Still, 4+ for Vera.

For Read Harder Challenge #12, Read an entire poetry collection.

Precise writing, hopeful and moving. I had a poetry class with Professor Hayden in college, but didn't fully appreciate then how accomplished he was.

Clever premise, but the main character was more cranky and annoying than sympathetic. I did enjoy the rest of the characters, including, of course, the best friend librarian.

I loved these essays and listening to Minnie Driver herself read them. So well done.

A book about not writing a book about (Iyengar) yoga, along with the author's experiences in tai chi, meditation, and his mental illness. And a lot of other things. Left me wanting to read more [a:Knausgaard 18633046 Karl Ove Knausgaard https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png].

Not a lot of exceptional t-shirts, some okay essays, proof that I'll read anything by Murakami. I do envy him the REM t-shirts, though.

I read this right after Martha Wainwright's [b:Stories I Might Regret Telling You: A Memoir 58340692 Stories I Might Regret Telling You A Memoir Martha Wainwright https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1632077539l/58340692.SY75.jpg 56464931], and that's more than enough about emotionally distant fathers for now.

For Read Harder Challenge #1, Read a biography of an author you admire. I admire [b:Wide Sargasso Sea 25622780 Wide Sargasso Sea Jean Rhys https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1453021061l/25622780.SY75.jpg 142647], but can't say I admire Jean Rhys after reading this biography. She comes across as a cruel, maybe insane, woman who had a traumatic life. This is more of an interpretive biography, with a lot of speculation throughout about what Rhys might have been thinking or feeling. I think I would like to read a more factual account someday, maybe [b:Jean Rhys : Life and Work 2104261 Jean Rhys Life and Work Carole Angier https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1486618694l/2104261.SX50.jpg 2109648].

Every time I read a new Ali Smith book, I think it's her best yet. So, this is her best yet.

I really liked [b:Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World 64895 Cod A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World Mark Kurlansky https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1356452461l/64895.SY75.jpg 62987], [b:Salt: A World History 2715 Salt A World History Mark Kurlansky https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1414608893l/2715.SY75.jpg 73206], and [b:Birdseye: The Adventures of a Curious Man 13152473 Birdseye The Adventures of a Curious Man Mark Kurlansky https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1333578244l/13152473.SY75.jpg 25524035], but this sort-of biography was disappointing. It also felt hastily put together, with lots of typos and missing punctuation.