Ah….the joy of a long weekend at the very beginning of the semester. After getting things up and running and beginning to get into the groove of how things are going to go, I get a day off. That’s the perfect time for my allergies to begin causing problems and congestion to settle into my chest. Just what I had hoped for!
The week has been pretty good overall. Lots of things accomplished in the office, practicing again with some regularity as my arm continues to heal, and still managing to do some reading. At the moment, I’m fighting through a bit of a reading slump after powering through the final book of #BigBookSummer. Let me tell you what I’ve finished, what I thought, and what I’m reading now.
What I Finished
By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult. I am conflicted about this book. It was an interesting premise — Did Shakespeare actually write all of those plays and poems or were they purchased from other individuals, including women? The plight of women to receive equal footing and respect in modern society is certainly an issue worthy of discussion. Sadly, this book did not arouse the type of response in this reader that I expect when I come to one of Picoult’s books. I expect to have to think critically about important issues from perspectives that may challenge me and make me uncomfortable. By Any Other Name felt like a history lesson about a little-known female author fighting against a system that simply wasn’t going to change. I get that Picoult was pointing out how women have been fighting the same battle for centuries, but the historical fiction almost made the plight seem hopeless. When reading about the modern playwright who was deceptive, manipulative, and dishonest in order to get her play read — and then pouted when her plot blew up in her face — I was not cheering for her. Honestly, I was rather pleased that she got what she deserved. Dishonesty is never the way to bring about societal change. So, I’ve put this book on a low shelf of my bookcase and don’t plan to recommend it to other readers. I’ll just pretend that Picoult didn’t write it and continue to enjoy most of her other works.
What I’m Currently Reading
Plans changed this week and I didn’t pick up the Sue Grafton novel I mentioned last week. I also didn’t finish reading my office book….because work was BUSY! Here’s where things stand at the moment.
The Artist as Citizen by Joseph Polizi (p. 54 of 178). I chose this book for my office read because it is a compilation of speeches given about the role of the arts in American society and the artist’s responsibility as a member of society. What I failed to realize is that the quickly changing conversations in these speeches left me not necessarily wanting to dive back into the reading. So I am not making much progress through it. I’m hoping that I can force myself to continue reading the speeches this week and get closer to a conclusion. That’s also why I didn’t choose to begin another novel this week.
The Rookie by Jim Morris and Joel Engel (p. 59 of 276). A baseball memoir should be an obvious choice for me. I am finding myself drawn into the story of a west Texas boy drafted into the Big Leagues despite the obstacles, but as I have struggled with my allergies at the end of the week and needed to take care of a few things around the apartment, I haven’t done as much reading as I had hoped. Thankfully, this is a really fast read and not requiring a ton of effort to make progress. After reading several dense, big books recently, this short memoir will be a nice change of pace.
There you have it! Happy reading this week, y’all.
~Kennith
Reading for Me 
Leave a comment