Happy Wednesday! I am super excited and a little scared, because I haven’t done a WWW Wednesday in over a year! The WWW Wednesday meme is currently hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words, and is a great way to do a weekly update on what you’ve been reading and what you have planned. I loved doing this challenge, and am so excited to give it another shot.
To take part, all you have to do is answer the following three questions:
- What are you currently reading?
- What did you recently finish reading?
- What do you think you’ll read next?
What I am Currently Reading:
I am kind of all over the place right now, trying to find something to dig my teeth into. I am casually reading Edgar Allen Poe’s Collection of Stories, a copy that I have had for almost a decade, and it is slow going because his language is insufferably stuffy (sorry!) However, I am enjoying it. I am reading Donna Tartt’s The Secret History for the first time, and that is heavy. It is the book I should have read in my teens that is probably better that I didn’t, because once upon a time I almost went to Bennington College despite not getting any financial aid (dodged a bullet I think). Either way, I am really enjoying it, but not sure if my mindspace is right for something this heavy right now.
What I Recently Finished Reading:
To break up a mild case of reader’s block, I read Jenny Colgan’s Bookshop on the Shore, which is the sequel to a book I loved, Bookshop on the Corner. It was a little disappointing, but definitely helped get my back into reading. I read JK Rowling’s Tales of Beedle the Bard for fun, and when I did a Down the TBR Hole Challenge a couple of months ago, I realized I hadn’t read it yet. This struck me as weird, since I am a modest Potterhead.
What I Think I’ll Read Next:
I will probably get into Martyn Carey’s Ordinary Miracles next, since it is on my Netgalley list. It came out July 13, but I received it after the fact so I don’t feel that guilty about it taking this long since it is no longer an ARC. The premise sounds exciting (new magical world, traversing around the UK) but I am wary due to the reviews already out. I will also be reading Flowers and Foul Play by Amanda Flower for some relaxing reading. I really like her Magical Bookshop series, so this should be fun also.
That’s all for now, folks! what are you reading / looking forward to? Let’s chat!
Books for the Beach 
I absolutely love the cover for the Poe collection! I wish modern covers were more like that. I enjoy Poe’s work, but I totally agree about the stuffy language. I read Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights about a year back and it took me so long to get through because of the language! It felt like I’d run a mental marathon afterwards 😂
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Same, I love this cover! It is a shame, the book itself is in rough condition (thrift store find), but I will never get rid of it. New covers are all so modern and very dull. How did you like Wuthering Heights?! It has always been on my list, definitely need a break after this mental marathon though haha 🙂
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I just got an ebook for The Secret History a couple of days ago and want to check it out. Also, I agree about Poe’s writing. It can be really inaccessible.
https://dearbookshelves.wordpress.com/2020/08/12/www-wednesday-august-12-2020/
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Thank you! I hope you enjoy The Secret History! It is really good, but a little slow. The narrator isn’t altogether likeable, but the scenery and the overall “ambiance” of the book is top notch. As for Poe’s writing, it seems like one of those rare cases where the stories that everyone hypes up are actually the best, but that may be a personal opinion. There is only so much ad nauseum descriptions of otherworldly attractive women on their deathbeds that I can handle, haha.
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My favorite Poe is definitely The Fall of the House of Usher but I don’t think I would like it as much if I didn’t study it with a professor I really liked. I probably would have just felt indifferent.
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The Secret History is definitely on my list of favorites! But despite that I don’t think it’s a perfect book – the narrator didn’t feel as developed for me as the other characters. I went to a private college on financial aid so there definitely some things here and there that seemed just a tad bit familiar while I was reading it too!
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I read Poe in high school but maybe it was easier since it was a translation. I’ve been thinking about reading The secret history for ages but I’m still not sure about it. I hope you find a light book that takes you out of the block soon 💕!
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