#IMWAYR March 13, 2023

Welcome! It's #IMWAYR time again, when bloggers share what they have been reading and find out what others have been up to. Kathryn hosts the adult version of this meme at Book Date. Jen at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki at Unleashing Readers host the kidlit rendition. These are fabulous places to start your search for what to read next.


I'm still dealing with this ear/sinus infection and ruptured eardrum. It has made it difficult to focus and concentrate. Thank goodness for lists or I would get nothing accomplished. Other than that, life is good. 

I went to a workshop last Monday and managed to get my sister's birthday present finished. Creating these mats is a brilliant way to use up fabric and batting scraps. Her birthday isn't for a couple of weeks, but I'm pretty sure she is too busy to read my blog, so I can share it with you here. 


I've started and abandoned a number of books in the past couple of weeks. They just left me feeling too anxious. One of these is Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. I returned the audiobook to the library and will eventually read this one with my eyes. As you can tell from the list below, I am mostly interested in nonfiction these days, although it too can ratchet up the anxiety and ire. 

Titles with a 🍁 indicate this is a Canadian or Indigenous Canadian Author and or Illustrator.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Goodreads page of the book.

RECENT POSTS

FREE VERSE FRIDAY #3 MARCH GREEN

PICTURE BOOKS


Knight Owl
by Christopher Denise March 15, 2022

This is an important book. It's loaded with all kinds of important messages - about how to persevere to reach a goal, about how to deal with fear, about how to turn an enemy into a friend.
That it is gorgeously illustrated and full of humour just adds to it's appeal.

CHILDREN'S NONFICTION


Kapaemahu
 by Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, Joe Wilson, Dean Hamer, Daniel Sousa (Illustrator) June 7, 2022

In ancient times four Mahu, two spirited (both male and female) beings, visited Honolulu. Each of them had a special power of healing. Before they left, the people brought huge stones from the mountain to Waikiki beach. These Mahu infused the stones with their power before they vanished. Over time the stones were almost forgotten, but have been returned to a place of honour. Unfortunately, the modern retelling of the story leaves out the Mahu nature of the beings. 
This book is an adaptation of animated film by the same name. The book is fine, mostly because the artwork is spectacular, but I preferred the award winning film.
 
 


ADULT NONFICTION


Orwell's Roses
 by Rebecca Solnit (Author & Narrator) October 11, 2022

This is like a literary venn diagram with multiple narratives circling round and touching base at Orwell's roses. Then they meander off into new realms. The book delves into different aspects of Orwell's life, the times he lived in, and even into the story behind supermarket roses today.
It is fabulous!


The Power of Story: On Truth, the Trickster, and New Fictions for a New Era 
by Harold R Johnson πŸ 
October 11, 2022

This is a book to savour - to read a bit at a time and let the teaching fill you up before you go back for more.
I thought I had a pretty good take on the power of story. Then I read this book and realized I had only scratched the surface.
Johnson shows us the power in both micro and macro aspects of story. It drives our most intimate relationships. "We are the stories we tell ourselves." Story also drives the kind of society and world we live in. "Both capitalist and socialist stories depend upon the exploitation of the earth's resources. A capitalist will cut down the last tree if there's money to be made. A socialist will cut down the last tree so long as the worker doing the cutting belongs to a trade union."
This book is full of guidelines for how to live a rich and satisfying life so that "Every one of our days should be good enough to die in.... We have to practise writing those days until we can fill our lifestory with pages so good that endings don't frighten us anymore."
And my favourite takeaway is this, “Giving a shit is a powerful story.”
I do have a few quibbles with bits of this, but if you are looking for a book to change the way you see the world, I'm pretty sure this is it.

CURRENTLY

Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting by in America by Barbara Ehrenreich

The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness and Healing in A Toxic Culture by Gabor Maté, 🍁

UP NEXT 

Hotline by Dimitri Nasrallah πŸ

The Summer of Bitter and Sweet
 by 
 Jenny Ferguson πŸ

READING GOALS 

#MustReadFiction 5/24

#MustReadNonFiction 2/20 2 in progress

Canadian Authors 14/75 1 in progress

Indigenous Authors 9/20 

Canada Reads Finalists 3/5

Goodreads Reading Challenge: 56/200


12 comments:

  1. The cover of Knight Owl is adorable. Looks like a very sweet children's book. Happy Reading!

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  2. I'm very intrigued by The Power of Story. I look forward to hearing your thoughts about Nickel and Dimed. That's a book I've had forever but never got around to reading.

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  3. As usual, I come to your #IMWAYR post, and before I know it, I'm reading several weeks' worth of your posts and spending like 30 minutes of blog-reading time here alone! And I'm glad I did, because I completely missed that you participated in #LiveLikeABookChallenge—I *love* what you did for Charlotte's Web!!!

    Also, I put a hold on Knight Owl because it's absurd I haven't read it by this point—literally everyone and a half loves it! It's good to know that Kapaemahu is based on a short film and you felt the film was better. The Power of Story sounds really cool as well!

    Three more things: I am *so* sorry to hear about the infection and the ruptured eardrum! I feel like you've had quite a lot on your plate the last year or so, and this seems like an absurdly infuriating thing to add to the list. I really hope your eardrum heals quickly! Also, the mat you made for your sister is so beautiful! And lastly, I read all your thoughts on the Cybils graphic novel finalists, and they were fascinating to read! Thanks so much for the wonderful post, Cheriee!

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    1. I have missed you lots Max, but appreciate how hard it is to keep on top of everything.
      I really had fun with my little pig for Charlotte's Web and your #LiveLikeABookChallenge.
      I suspect that when I got Covid last June, it has screwed up my immune system. Every time I get sick it gets out of control and lasts at least a month. Also, my white blood count is very low. Apparently this is a sign of covid immune system dysregulation - a kind of long covid. Sigh.

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  4. I also am interested in Nickel and Dimed, read it a long time ago, so I wonder if it has held up in its premise, maybe 'yes' considering the economics recently? I bookmarked The Power of Story, thanks for the short film, & I too loved Knight Owl. I also love Solnit's works & noted this one but may not get to it for a while. Sorry about the continuing illness, get better soon! And, the mat is beautiful! I too enjoy nf books, am starting Tracy Kidder's new one!

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    1. Nickel and Dimed is pretty depressing because things have gotten worse instead of better. I just read that the average cost of a one bedroom apartment in Toronto is 2,500. The minimum wage is $15.50. You can't even pay the rent on that salary. Here in Canada we don't have to worry about as many medical expenses as you do in the USA, so I suspect it's worse minimum wage workers there.
      I've just added Tracy Kidder's book to my list.

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  5. I still haven't watched the film for Kapaemahu. I hope I remember to watch it during Pride.

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  6. I'm in a completely opposite state of mind. I'm craving fiction these days. :-)

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  7. What a beautiful gift for your sister! I love the colors. Sorry to hear you weren't;t enjoying Demon Copperhead - I absolutely loved it on audio! Listened to it for a full month and was sad when it ended - I never wanted to leave Demon and his friends. Nickeled and Dimed is a good book to read alongside it!

    I am late, as usual :) but I hope you've been enjoying your books this week -

    Sue
    Book By Book

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  8. I love the mat. It's so beautiful and yes, it's great to have a use for scraps that makes such a lovely thing. I agree about Knight Owl. I hope your ear issues clear up quickly.

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  9. I tend to be a mood reader. I'm reading several galleys from Netgalley and library books too. I start some and then go back to them later if I feel like reading a different genre. Oh, well....

    Have a good week.

    https://bookdilettante.blogspot.com/

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