2021 March Reading Summary

Blink, and it’s time for your next reading summary.

I have been AWOL for a number of reasons, in descending chronological order:

1. Spring is our busy season at work, and last spring did not adequately prepare us for this spring. To wit: We completely forgot that we have a busy season.
2. I’m a little short on motivation, as I have been for a large part of this year.
3. I’m currently muddling through A Storm of Swords and I’m mad at Jorah, so I haven’t been reading lately. Blame House Mormont.
4. I’d rather watch YouTube videos till three in the morning. Did you know that the Try Guys are really funny?
5. I am on the cusp of a major life change. It’s a good change, but boy is it keeping me busy.

All of which means I’ve been on a month-long unplanned hiatus and I’m trying to get back on track. As usual, we’ll see how this goes.

March Reading Stats

Books Finished:

1. A Clash of Kings – George R.R. Martin
2. The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration – Isabel Wilkerson
3. Brighty of the Grand Canyon – Marguerite Henry
4. The Silence of Bones – June Hur
5. Spy x Family 4 – Tatsuya Endo
6. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue – V.E. Schwab
7. World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments – Aimee Nezhukumatathil
8. The Song of Achilles – Madeline Miller
9. The Hill We Climb – Amanda Gorman

Total Pages Read: 2,985

It’s hard to pinpoint a favorite because I read so many amazing books this month, but I think I might have to give March MVP to World of Wonders, a delightful collection of nature-themed autobiographical essays. I was not expecting to relate to the book because Nezhukumatathil is Filipino-Indian and I’m Cantonese-Japanese, but I identified hard as an Asian American woman who was partially raised in the American West (Idaho in my case, Arizona in hers). This is one of my new favorite books. Even though our experiences differ in obvious respects, they also intersect in others, and I felt incredibly seen. I haven’t been buying new books lately because of the aforementioned major life change, but as soon as I’m in a position to do so I will start looking into acquiring the rest of Nezhukumatathil’s works because my mind is blown. As an added bonus, World of Wonders is beautifully illustrated, and it’s making me want to start drawing again.

I also finally read The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, and it was a trip. A full review is coming (eventually, as always), but for now I’ll say that it was a lot darker than I was expecting. I’m on the fence about the ending: I don’t hate it, but I’m still processing it almost a month after finishing it. We’ll see how I feel by the time I sit down to write my review.

Currently Reading

WARNING: Huge spoilers. Lori, look away.

A Storm of Swords
George R.R. Martin
Current rating: 4 stars, but Jorah needs to quit pissing me off. I liked him in the show. I don’t like him in the books. He was so gentle in the show (well, with Dany – he was harder on Viserys, but I’m okay with that because Viserys was a brainless dipshit), but in the books he’s started kissing her and proposing marriage and taking general liberties that are most definitely Not Okay despite the clear boundaries she keeps trying to set. I knew this was coming because I’m nosy as hell and I read the wiki years ago, but it still makes me so mad. SHE’S NOT INTO YOU, JORAH. MOVE THE FUCK ON. YOU ARE OLD ENOUGH TO BE HER FATHER. THIS IS LITERALLY FIFTY SHADES OF GROSS.

And, yes, he was head over heels in love with her in the show, but it never got to the point of sexual assault. He knew the boundaries and he stayed within them. More to the point, he never presumed to propose marriage to a girl he essentially watched grow up. Book Jorah needs to get his shit together, because he is creeping me out and that’s a large part of the reason I haven’t been reading this book as diligently as I should. I know Book Dany is going to rebuke him harshly (again, I’m nosy and I peeked years ago), but this is an issue that should never have come up because Dany is a frickin’ queen and Jorah is most definitely not such stuff as alliances are made on. I’m sorry, Jorah, but when I see a spade I call it a spade.

I have also come to the conclusion that Catelyn is the literal worst, and I really hope she does something actually useful before she dies because right now I do not see the point of her character. She’s another case of the book character being worse than the show character. In the show she releases Jaime for selfish reasons, but those reasons are ultimately understandable because (1) I can’t blame her for wanting her daughters back and (2) she was afraid that Jaime would be murdered by the northmen anyway, so she figured she might as well set him loose before he died. That wasn’t great, but it at least showed a clear progression of logic. Book Catelyn releases Jaime with no provocation. There is zero chance that he will suffer an untimely death. He is secure in a cell in Riverrun. The Karstarks haven’t tried to kill him yet. She sets him free for purely selfish reasons completely devoid of logic, then has the nerve to be surprised when Edmure tries to get him back. She betrays her own son and his whole army in remarkably good conscience, with the full knowledge that her actions do, in fact, constitute treason. If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear she wanted to lose the war. It would be unfair to say she’s the reason the North loses – she’s not – but she sure doesn’t help.

Miscellaneous Reading News

In other bookish news that doesn’t involve Catelyn fucking Stark, my most beloved book sister sent me this incredibly thoughtful gift because she happened to know I’ve been slightly more struggly than usual lately and I cannot even

THANK YOU SO MUCH LORIIIIIIIIII ❤️❤️❤️ I first plotted to buy this when it was published but then for some reason I did not, and to have it turn up on my doorstep was the best surprise I could possibly have had this week. I had completely forgotten The Handmaid’s Tale had been made into a graphic novel even though I am in theory the most devoted fan of All Things Handmaids, and I cannot wait to read this!!!