Restricted Section: Term XXVI - Read, Reading, To Read

[sanalith.livejournal.com]

Activity: Read, Reading, To Read
Points: 10 points for your initial comment, 2 points for every substantial response, max 30 points
Deadline: August 30 @ 11:59PM UTC (Timezone Converter)

Details: Since this will be my only activity of Term XXVI, I wanted to both do something relatively simple AND take the opportunity to get to know you guy, so we're going to have a discussion post about our recent reading habits. For your initial comment, write at least 150 words talking about books you've recently read, are currently reading, and/or what you plan to read next. You can talk about any aspect of the books you wish, but some ideas would be why you selected the books, what you liked/didn't like about them, whether you'd recommend them to others, etc. For your responses, you'll need to write at least 50 words. Make sure you're saying something more than, "I read that book and liked/hated it!" Try to open a dialogue about what was good or bad, or even why you chose NOT to read it. Anything goes, as long as there's substance to it.

If you have any questions, direct them to the appropriate thread. As always, don't forget to sign each comment with your name/house or a sigtag.

Also, do remember that I wiped the roster clean, so if you have bonus items, make sure you register them HERE as soon as possible to earn your extra points. I won't be giving grace periods, so please double-check that you're good to go!

Comments

[brightflower]

I just recently discovered a new author who I really enjoy named Matthew Dicks. The first book of his that I read is called Something Missing. It's about a man with OCD who makes his living by stealing things from other people. He only steals things that will never actually be noticed, such as extra cans of food or bars of soap that sit around in pantries/linen closets for a long time. It's pretty brilliant, because upon thinking of it, things do go missing around the house from time to time, don't they? So I found it a plausible premise. And because Martin has OCD, he's so incredibly careful about the way he does things, and leaves no trace of himself in any of his clients' (as he calls them) houses. Along the way, Martin grows to care for his clients and finds himself in a whole entanglement of hijinks when he decides to start bettering their lives without their knowledge. This book is so clever, funny, and entertaining. I know from my description you may not like the main character because he's a thief, but seriously, he is the nicest thief you will ever met, and I genuinely loved reading about him. I stumbled upon this book at my local used bookstore and just thought it looked interesting, and it really made me want to read more by this author.

So I did. I went out and bought another book by Dicks called Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend. And again he is just so clever, because he's created this whole world of children's imaginary friends, who can communicate with one another but can't be seen by any humans other than the one who imagined them. The main character is Budo, the imaginary friend of Max, a young boy who's on the Autism spectrum. Budo is such a complex and fascinating character because he so desperately wants to live, even though he knows that he will disappear forever once Max stops believing in him. So he has to balance his love for Max with his need to survive, and things get really complicated when Max falls into a really dangerous situation and Budo has to try and rescue him despite the fact that nobody else can see him. It's truly a fascinating story, with fears and thrills.

I'm excited to have this activity to share those two books, actually, because I would definitely recommend them to anyone. I love creative, character-driven books more than anything, and both of these have amazing characters and some truly clever worlds and events.

Crystal of Puff

[caitieness.livejournal.com]

the second book you mentioned actually sounds incredibly interesting! i think it will be a good segue for me from the fantasy i'm reading now back into straight literature (which i keep trying to pick up but lose interest in quickly -- i miss reading books based in the "real world" tbh). i'll have to see if my library has it.

caitie / puff