Columbine, by Dave Cullen

I'm continuing this book from last week, I'm basically finished, I only have the Afterword and the Epilogue left. It's the first non-fiction book that I've read in a while. Although I felt like the chronology kind of threw me off, I really enjoyed the way the story was told. I learned a lot of things about the tragedy that I didn't know before and it dispelled a lot of myths surrounding it. I was super intrigued and I appreciated the author telling the story so respectfully.

Men Without Women, Haruki Murakami

Once I'm done reading Columbine, I'm going to start reading this. I'm in the mood for short stories and I haven't read anything by Murakami recently so I'm really excited!

Finished:

Columbine, by Dave Cullen - super fascinating book about the shooting. Most notably, there are probably a half dozen things I had accepted as true following the events that day that the book pointed out as false.

Finished last week: Turtles All the Way Down, by John Green and Ninefox Gambit, by Yoon Ha Lee. I'm a fan of John Green's work not for his writing or plots, really, but because I find many of his characters and situations very emotionally resonant. His descriptions of mental illness and privilege were touching and powerful. Ninefox Gambit was amazing: complex, uncompromising sci-fi with a lot of interesting concepts and a main character I thoroughly enjoyed. I think it's a must-read for anyone who liked Ann Leckie's Ancillary books (which I did).

Just started: Columbine, by Dave Cullen. Felt like picking up some nonfiction for a change.

I finished Everybody, Always, by Bob Goff and am starting Columbine by Dave Cullen and Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

Currently reading Columbine, by Dave Cullen. It's very interesting so far, especially having read Susan Klebold's book last year. I was in fifth grade when this happened and I remember them constantly talking about these guys like they were outcasts, but in the book it talks about them having a relatively large friend group or Eric doing decently well with the ladies. It's really interesting so far and I hope to finish this week.

I also just started The Hike, by Drew Magary. I loved The Postmortal, so I was amped for this. So far it is not what I expected, but it is super interesting! My coworker just gave me her kindle with The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas so I hope to start that one soon as well!

Just finished: An Unkindness of Ghosts, by Rivers Solomon Highly recommended!

Next up: I want a break from sci-fi, so I'm trying to decide between reading Turtles All The Way Down, by John Green, Columbine, by Dave Cullen, and The Bear and the Nightingale, by Katherine Arden.

Currently finishing up Columbine, by Dave Cullen. It's taken me longer than expected because I've been in a bit of a funk. The subject matter is super interesting, but jumps around a ton. I was around junior high age when the shooting happened, so it has been very interesting to read about how everything actually went down compared to what I saw on TV.

Finally received Iron Gold, by Pierce Brown from the library so I will dig into that as soon as I finish Columbine! I am super excited to see what happens next.

I am reading by Columbine, by Dave Cullen. I can't seem to put this book down. Fascinating, sad, accurate. It is amazing what we learn when we step away and take time to analyze things.

I'm slowly working my way through Columbine, by Dave Cullen, which is good, but I can't read it for long stretches because I get too depressed. Definitely need to pick up something more lighthearted for my next read.

Just finished: Columbine, by Dave Cullen and Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life, by Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles. The first was pretty interesting, but also incredibly depressing. I picked it up hoping to find some insight into the shootings that keep happening, but the main take-away seems to be that one of the killers was a psychopath and the media did a bad job of telling the story...so not a lot to apply to today, since the media continues to make the same mistakes (according to the author). The second I picked up off the sidewalk for free. I'd read a lot of the main messages already in articles online, so i didn't find it particularly informative, but I'm a bit more motivated now to pick up good habits/take better care of myself.

Now I'm trying to decide between What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours, by Helen Oyeyemi, A Morbid Taste for Bones, by Ellis Peters, and A Closed and Common Orbit, by Becky Chambers. Looking for a fun an engaging read.

All the Little Lights, by Jamie McGuire

Columbine, by Dave Cullen

This past week I finished up:

The Perfect Couple, by Elin Hilderbrand

Columbine, by Dave Cullen

The Reason for God, by Timothy Keller

All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque.

I also finished going through every recipe in How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman.

I'm waiting for my next book to come available at the library, so no book in progress for now!

Started: Call Me By Your Name, by André Aciman and Columbine, by Dave Cullen.

Re-reading: Scar Tissue, by Anthony Kiedis.

Finished: Columbine, by Dave Cullen. After seeing a couple of Redditors reading the book, decided to give it a try. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the book given how incredibly sad the topic. The author did a great job of dispelling several myths. But, oh my groceries, the depth of tragedy! I won't deny I cried more than once.

Starting: The Discomfort Zone: A Personal History, by Jonathan Franzen. Would have probably not gone for this, but saw it on the shelves at the library and since I grew up in the suburbs of St Louis during the same time as Franzen I thought I'd give it a try. I've read two of Franzen's books, and though he seems to be the literary world's darling, I find him mediocre, and pretentious. Not surprising though for someone who grew up in an equally pretentious suburb like Webster Groves, MO.

columbine, by dave Cullen

These are from the last couple of weeks:

Columbine, by Dave Cullen I was a bit too young to get the full story when Columbine happened, but apparently I did pick up some misconceptions. The book was very extensive in its timeline and description of events.

The Terror Years: From al-Qaeda to the Islamic State, by Lawrence Wright A collection of reports Wright wrote over the course of several years. It was pretty interesting to follow the progression of events in the Middle East. I did feel however that becomes the articles were pretty specific to certain areas that it larger impacts of events wasn't always that clear.

China's Disruptors: How Alibaba, Xiaomi, Tencent, and Other Companies are Changing the Rules of Business, by Edward Tse The book was interesting in that it talks about the different Chinese companies that are expanding outside of China's borders. However, the book doesn't really delve into anything very deeply. The descriptions of the companies and their founders remains very shallow and I didn't feel that the author really explains very well why these companies and founders are special.

The Perfect Nanny, by Leïla Slimani I really liked this book. The book starts off with the end of the story and then slowly shows what led to that ending. I think Slimani did a good job in keeping the story flowing really well, but she didn't answer all the questions that I had about the characters.

The Shooting Gallery, by Yuko Tsushima A short story collection, in which most of the stories center around the idea of abandonment, primarily by a parent. I can't say I really connected with the stories, it just felt like something was missing.

The Haunting of Tram Car 015, by P. Djèlí Clark A pretty interesting novella. The world-building was okay, as with most novellas the time is limited in how much you can show about a world, but overall the story was pretty interesting and quite different.

Victor LaValle's Destroyer, by Victor LaValle, Dietrich Smith and Joana LaFuente A graphic novel that is a bit of a sequel and a new look at Frankenstein. While the idea was interesting I found it a bit lacking with regard to storytelling.

Rednecks, Vol. 3: Longhorns by Donny Cates, Lisandro Estherren and Dee Cunniffe An okay continuation of the story. I liked the fact that they expanded the world in this one a bit.