Currently reading:
Mister B. Gone by Clive Barker
Burning Down the House: Talking Heads and the New York Scene that Transformed Rock by Jonathan Gould
Out There Screaming, edited by Jordan Peele
An American Sunrise by Joy Harjo
Books finished this week: 3
★★★★☆
Where this book came from: Ordered on Libro.fm.
Why this book: I signed up for a book club about this one later this month, because I so enjoyed the read last year, and I wanted a quick refresher before speaking to strangers about it!
Thoughts: I used to very much be a “never reread” kind of gal——or maybe “reread sparingly.” There were a few Halloweens in a row where I reread Dracula every year, and I’ve read American Woman three times now and am probably due for a fourth. But this is the first time I’ve reread a relatively recent book so quickly, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I tried the audiobook for Natural Beauty because I’m planning to attend a book club about it soon, and listening was such a different experience. It’s also kind of wild how quickly I forgot a ton of important details. But anyhow, my original thoughts are here, and I’ll just say that while some of my original issues still stand, I liked it a lot on this new go-around.
★★★☆☆
Where this book came from: Impulse-purchased from Ripped Bodice last weekend!
Why this book: Could you turn down a book about a woman fucking the twelve-foot-tall Home Depot skeleton?
Thoughts: HAHAHAHAHA. 3 out of 5 reading experience, 5 out of 5 texting Britt (hi, Britt!) with all the gory details experience.
★★★☆☆
Where this book came from: I won an ARC!!
Why this book: I love a meta storyline, and a movie final girl having to final girl it up IRL sounded perfect for me.
Thoughts: I went with three stars for this one, because it genuinely felt very middle-of-the-road for me, in terms of my enjoyment. It’s an absolutely fantastic premise, but the narrative itself begins so slowly, and stays that way for, I’d say, three-quarters of the book. There were some fun nods to classic horror (and some ham-fisted ones) and I loved the fictional franchise within the story, but the slow pace and repetitive thoughts from main character Barb about getting older and being a woman in Hollywood began to feel like I was getting smacked over the head with the point. Things picked up in the end, but the big finale didn’t feel as epic and campy as I was expecting. Overall, I’d say this was a perfect book for me on paper that just didn’t live up to the hype I built for it in my head.
Library updates:
I cannot lie, I have been stressed, you guys. I ran up against a bunch of deadlines over the last few weeks, along with assorted other plans, responsibilities, and feelings, and it felt genuinely awful. I haven’t felt like that in a long time and I do not know how I went so many years living my life like that. Thank god for therapy, Lexapro, and growing older and wiser and finding the strength to set healthier work-life boundaries.
But it wasn’t all doom and gloom! I hope everyone has been enjoying the lovely fall weather in whatever way works for you. I’ve been working and reading out on my balcony more and have caught myself walking slower when I’m out at dusk and after dark, just soaking in the chill. I love fall and spring, the transitional feelings——they both feel like breaths of fresh air after long stretches of extremes.
I haven’t been writing much (or really at all, if you don’t count emails, editorial letters, or Sunday missives), but I enjoyed a lovely bookstore crawl through Brooklyn with my original writing retreat pals (hello, friends!) and, yes, bought some books to add to the Library. But I also walked over 20,000 steps and spent hours outside with some of my most excellent friends, so I think it’ll all come out in the wash.
Also, an audiobook update: I was listening to God of Fury on 2x speed, wondering when my torment would end, and I finally decided to just . . . not do that anymore! So I jumped to the end to see how it all ended and then shut that down. I’m also pausing on listening to The Shards, because despite Bret Easton Ellis being my problematic king, I kind of lost my steam listening to that one. I’ll find another audiobook to capture my attention again soon.
Closing thoughts:
Breathe that air, read that book, hit that deadline.
Total books read from the Moratorium Library: 237
(Total books added to the Moratorium Library: 503)
What a momentous (and mortifying) occasion in the life of the Moratorium Library! I’ve bought over 500 books in just four and a half-ish short years! Hooray!!!!!
Britt——hi again, Britt!——and I stopped in at Twisted Spine before seeing the Halloween classic Trick ‘R Treat at the Brooklyn Horror Film Festival!
And then a few days later, as mentioned above, some writing friends and I took ourselves on a self-guided Brooklyn bookstore crawl . . .
Books purchased from Community Bookstore, Ripped Bodice, Troubled Sleep, Unnameable Books, and Love & Legends.
