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Infinite Country by Patricia Engel | Thoughts

   Published : 2021   ||    Format : print   ||    Location : Colombia ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆   What was it about the country that kept everyone hostage to its fantasy? The previous month, on its own soil, an American man went to his job at a plant and gunned down fourteen coworkers, and last spring alone there were four different school shootings. A nation at war with itself, yet people still spoke of it as some kind of paradise.. Thoughts : Infinite Country follows two characters - young Talia, who at the beginning of this book, escapes a girl’s reform school in North Colombia so that she can make her previously booked flight to the US. Before she can do that, she needs to travel many miles to reach her father and get her ticket to the rest of her family. As we follow Talia’s treacherous journey south, we learn about how she ended up in the reform school in the first place and why half her family resides in the US. Infinite Country tells the story of her family through the other protagonist, El

Reviving Reading Plans | Notes from my Reading

It's been ages since I've talked about reading seriously. I mean I do mention it now and then, here and there. But for the most part, it's been in the periphery of my mind as that thing I do when I have time (of which I had very little this summer). And to be honest, summer had nothing to do with how little reading I was doing. Life was simply busy. Work has been constantly morphing this year - my company had split at the beginning of this year and I am now part of a smaller company that is, in almost every aspect, a startup. My role has been changing as well, and with that came more responsibilities. I love it all but it does mean that I'm often not in the zone for reading at the end of the day. I want to say that things are more settled now but that wouldn't be true. Instead, I have now adapted to the new normalcy so I'm beginning to think about other things again.

So if you've been wondering why I've been extra busy over the past few months, that's what it was.



Abandoning reading challenges

At the half-year mark, I made a point to recommit to some of the challenges and let go of others. However, after not reading much for 2-3 months, I've decided to let go of them all. I want to read more serendipitously for a while and not be bogged down by TBRs. That said, I had a lot of fun with the Reading Women and the Read Harder challenges. Even if I may never finish those challenges, they have really good prompts so I will be looking for their lists next year as well. I do think they help a lot in diversifying your reading if that's something you struggle with.


Reading Marvel comics

I haven't been entirely truthful about my reading. I have actually been reading a lot of Marvel comics in the past few months. I've finished many great series about Thor, Magneto, Wolverine, Inhumans, and Captain America. I've worried that they may not pack the punch or wow factor of the movies but that's not really true - they progress differently from movies but they tell a story with as much, if not more, poignancy and fun. I expect to continue with this for some time but I've been taking breaks once in a while to read something else.



Looking forward in September

I've been reading Casey McQuiston's Red, White & Royal Blue. So far, this book has been a lot of fun, but also feels ... a bit too much? A lot is going on in this book, which would have been okay if it was also a little bit more believable (and I don't mean the romance between a Prince and the US First Son, which is probably the most believable of it all). My opinion is however premature - I have only read half the book so I'll be commenting again once it's over.



For the rest of September, I'm trying to decide what I want to read. Banned Books Week is coming up at the end of this month and RIP XVI is going on. I'm still making up my mind on what I want to read for BBW. As for RIP, I always want to do it but when it finally rolls around, I'm not so sure anymore. I know which book I want to read if I choose to join in - it will be Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle. I just don't know if I'm in the mood for it - maybe I'll go get a copy of the book and have it ready for when the mood strikes.


What are your plans for September? 

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