Q2 2021 Reading Roundup

We are more than halfway through 2021 and it is once again time to review my reading habits. After quarter one, I set the following goal:

In the second quarter, I plan to forward my goals set in December by reading more about Church history, one or two books about food, and something that is philosophically challenging.

Overall, I’d rate myself an B on my overall reading habits for the quarter. I spent too long on a few books I didn’t enjoy (should have quit) and did not read for nearly a full week. In the third quarter, I plan to put down books that do not intrest me.

Here is my, non-exhaustive list, of what I read in the second quarter of this year with a one or two sentence review:

• Murder Up My Sleeve/Case of the Smoking Chimney – Erle Stanley Gardner Gardner remains one of my favorite authors and shockingly modern for pre-war serial fiction. Highly recommend for a summer “beach read.”
• The Grail – Brian Doyle Largely reads as an advertisement for Lange Pinot Noir, and it worked.
• The Drunken Botanist – Amy Stewart Cute. Better to read short intervals rather than cover-to-cover.
• Tulipomania – Mike Dash Interesting throughout. The most socking element to be was how rapidly the Netherlands went from poor to incredibly wealthy, when compared to the rest of the West.
• Nature, Man and Woman – Alan Watts Grating, out of touch.
• Lewis Carroll Selected Poems – Lewis Carroll Interesting look at Carroll’s development as a poet. Otherwise worth skipping.
• Thank You Jeeves – P.G Wodehouse Funny throughout. Written for its time.
• Song of Achilles/Circe- Madeline Miller Both are hauntingly beautiful. Song of Achilles, in particular, adds new focus and perspective to my limited knowledge of the Greek Myths.
• Church History in Plain Language – Bruce Shelly I am still looking for a text that helps outline the differences held by each denomination, and the reason each came into being, this is not that text. It was too clear that Shelly has a protestant bias from the beginning.
• An Arsonists Guide to Writers Homes in New England – Brock Clarke Cute idea, terrible characters. Should have put it down.

Given the weather from July-September calls for vacation, beaches, and outdoor reading, I plan to read a number of light fiction novels, young adult fiction, and whimsical nonfiction. I plan to read nightly, but will commit to putting down any book that does not bring me joy.