I've finished 6 books so far this year. The latest was H is for Hawk. I've had that book in my Kindle library for a couple of years. I think I picked it up on sale after having had my eye on it after it was well reviewed. It also has a catchy cover. I'm into birds. My last name starts with H. It felt like it was a book that would fit my vibe. I'm not sure I feel that way having read it, but it was definitely a book worth reading. It wasn't the most engaging and page turning read though. That may not be the book's fault. I have not been managing my energy well for the last few weeks. I'm totally tapped by the evening so reading right before I go to bed doesn't get me very far. I know, this is a common refrain. My patterns are well established.
My prediction that Bewilderment would be quick proved accurate. It went a bit outlandish at the end, felt like some Covid concerns slipped in as the writing was wrapping up, but the core of the book was strong. Generation X didn't fit on my shelves when I finally got my books out of the boxes so I just went ahead and read it. The wide pages with the pithy slogans and cartoons felt contrived but the book itself was fine. It would likely be forgotten if the title hadn't been used to label my generation. I was curious. I'm not curious any longer. I bought a biography of a Polish poet who lived in California on a whim. It deserves the praise that I read. Reading how this guy turned his California life into poetry (I've read a few of the poems, they deliver) was an interesting contrast to the stream of conscious superficiality of YouTube videos. These people need to do more with the experiences they document. Give us some synthesis. Find some meaning in all these places you go and things you see!
I'm close to abandoning my current book, The Grace of Kings. It's just not very interesting (or well written). I'm 100 pages in and it's not doing anything for me. I have so many other good books sitting around that I would rather read. I may give it a few more days, but if things don't pick up soon I'm moving on.
I bought an Agatha Christie book on sale the other day, And Then There Were None, so I'm still at 167 after finishing H is for Hawk. I really need to go on one of my reading spurts and check a few of these things off (so I can buy more books).
