What have you recently finished reading?

Devi Sridhar’s Preventable, a book about the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic completed/published in 2022, which makes it off-base on a number of things (e.g. basically commenting that Trump’s hate on for the WHO doesn’t matter at all and was just words). I found it a bit too “yup, let’s get back to normal” at the end, particularly given that she assumes that’s possible because of vaccination… which is no longer widely or freely available in the UK. But mostly it was a pretty good look at the initial situation.

What are you currently reading?

I just started History in Flames: The Destruction and Survival of Medieval Manuscripts, by Robert Bartlett, which I just got today as a birthday present! Not very far into it yet, but I might finish it today — it’s not very long.

Other than that, I have a few books on the backburner, but nothing else at the forefront of my mind. I do want to finish Lex Croucher’s Gwen and Art are Not in Love, Laura Spinney’s Proto, T. Kingfisher’s Paladin’s Strength, Caitlin Rozakis’ The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association, Victoria Shepherd’s Stony Jack and the Lost Jewels of Cheapside and Molly Conisbee’s No Ordinary Deaths, because they’re all on my August Book Spin list on Litsy, but we’ll see, that’s a lot!

What will you be reading next?

Probably I’ll start my reread of the third volume of The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System, as a birthday treat. Since I have the day off, I might finish up with that, in which case I might start one of my new books — Carwyn Graves’ Tir: The Story of the Welsh Landscape is calling to me, or maybe Rachel Harrison’s Cackle — or start on a book that’s been on my backlog for a while, Margaret Elphinstone’s The Sea Road.

Quick reminder: I added a captcha to my comment form because of relentless spam. It should be invisible to legit users, and people have been commenting OK as far as I can tell, but if you’re having any difficulty with commenting, shoot me an email at bibliophibianbreathesbooks@gmail.com so I can troubleshoot! ♥

What have you recently finished reading?

The last thing I finished was apparently Noah Whiteman’s Most Delicious Poison, which I have complex feelings about. The discussion of biology and chemistry is fascinating, and I appreciated the pretty in-depth explanations of how certain toxins mimic chemicals in the human body, how things may have evolved, etc. Buuut on the other hand, it’s also an exploration of the death of the author’s father through alcohol abuse, and addiction is clearly a massive preoccupation of Whiteman’s. It wasn’t entirely clear to me from the blurb etc that the book was part memoir and really intended to focus only on addiction.

What are you currently reading?

Several books at once, of course! Most actively, I started this month’s British Library Crime Classic almost right away: it’s Nina Bawden’s The Odd Flamingo, and so far it’s just okay. There’s some interesting characterisation stuff going on, but the plot isn’t exactly singing (perhaps because the main character isn’t super on the ball about it).

And the other book I’m most actively reading is Devi Sridhar’s Preventable: How a Pandemic Changed the World and How To Stop the New One. I wish I’d read this when it came out, because it was written pretty early in the pandemic, and is unlikely to talk about the stuff that concerns me most now. Namely, that people now believe it’s “over”, when SARS-CoV-2 is still a dangerous virus we don’t fully understand, and which still poses a serious threat to the vulnerable among us… and yet regular boosters are no longer free and routine in the UK.

I’m considered pretty paranoid — and even mentally ill — for still considering it a disease of concern, despite my academic background (soon to graduate from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine with an MSc in infectious diseases). So I’d love a popular-science book which digs into the remaining legit concerns and publicises them a bit.

I’m also just embarking on T. Kingfisher’s Paladin’s Strength, but I’m not far into it.

What will you be reading next?

I’m not really sure. Every time I say some plans, I’m wrong! I do want to read volumes 8 and 9 of Solo Leveling, and in randomly browsing my newly-organised bookshelves I’m tempted by Stuart Turton’s The Last Murder at the End of the World, but who knows. I do have a book out from the library, as well, Sacha Coward’s Queer as Folklore — so maybe that!

What have you recently finished reading?

The last thing I finished was the seventh volume of the Solo Leveling manhwa (in English). I picked up the next two volumes on a trip into town yesterday, so I stopped being scared of starting it and not having more of the story to read. Jinwoo is so ridiculously OP at this point.

Before that, I finished John Dickson Carr’s The Judas Window, which is one of his books I actually got on with really well. Lots of courtroom drama, which crops up in some classic crime, but isn’t that common, so that was fun.

What are you currently reading?

I’ve got quite a few books on the go at once, as usual, but for right now the book on the arm of the chair next to me is Mouhdy Al-Rashid’s Between Two Rivers, a history of ancient Mesopotamia. I’m enjoying Al-Rashid’s style and structure for telling the story, and not minding too much that there are some personal interjections — it’s very readable.

Other than that, I’ve also got started on Molly Conisbee’s No Ordinary Deaths, which feels a bit more… well, not academic, because it still feels aimed at a non-specialist audience, but I’m just not as into it. It is hitting weirdly right now because it talks about our relationship with death and how most of us are quite distant from it, never see a dead person, etc, and that is not true for me.

What will you read next?

As so often, I’m not really sure. I might make a start on T. Kingfisher’s Paladin’s Strength, or I might start on my reread of Vivian Shaw’s Grave Importance… or possibly both!

I probably won’t start another non-fiction read for a bit, since I have a few on the go at once, including some I need to get back to (like Laura Spinney’s book on Proto-Indo-European, Proto). Buuut in the end I’m a creature of whim, so who knows?

It’s a bit late in the day, but it’s still Wednesday!

What have you recently finished reading?

I haven’t finished anything in a few days, which is unusual for me — but I blame moving. Looks like the last thing I finished was Jonn Elledge’s A History of the World in 47 Borders, which was ultimately a bit too flippant and glancing for me, even though I generally like books in this format. I did learn some stuff, but, hm. I’m not sure how well I retained it.

What are you currently reading?

I must confess, I’ve grabbed a book off my shelf solely because I think I’ll probably donate it after I’ve read it, and it avoided me having to shuffle 8 shelves’ worth of books along to fit a different book in. So I’ve finally picked up Gwen and Art Are Not In Love (Lex Croucher). I’m trying not to be a purist about it as far as the links to Arthuriana go, but I’m raising my eyebrows a bit all the same (also about whether it’s supposed to fit in historically, given references to other, real countries) or not.

I’m guessing it’s Not That Deep, but that’s why I don’t read a lot of this kind of light-hearted YA-ish romance. I overthink it!

What will you read next?

I really don’t know. I’m eyeing a couple of other books that I suspect I’ll read and then donate, like Kacen Callender’s Felix Ever After, since I’ve been reminded of them while sorting through my books and getting them onto the new bookcases. We’ll see! With all the turmoil of moving, it’s also “whatever can catch and hold my interest right now”, to be quite honest.

What have you recently finished reading?

I think the last thing I finished was T. Kingfisher’s Clockwork Boys, which I just now finally got round to (oops). I’ve had the ebook for ages, but was finally prompted to get round to it by getting the new UK hardback release, and I had a lot of fun, even if I kinda want to kick Caliban’s shins a bit and tell him not to be an ass. It’s affectionate, I swear.

What are you currently reading?

I actually started right away on the sequel to Clockwork Boys, so I’m most actively reading The Wonder Engine! I got a bit distracted by a new game (The Wandering Village), but I want to spend more time with it tonight. It follows pretty much straight on from Clockwork Boys, which is probably why I actually managed to pick it up straight away. Normally I space out series a bit more.

Other than that, there are a few books on the go at once, as ever. I’m focusing on finishing up John Elledge’s A History of the World in 47 Borders, mostly.

I did also start The Grimoire Grammar School Parent-Teacher Association, but I’m not far into that yet.

What will you read next?

Mostly I intend to focus on some of the books I already have on the go, but I do want to continue reading the Solo Leveling manhua, so I’m eyeing volumes six and seven to read sometime this week. Otherwise, it’ll be stuff like getting back into Laura Spinney’s Proto (which has just started getting into the linguistics stuff I was interested in) and getting back to my reread of Vivian Shaw’s Dreadful Company.

What have you recently finished reading?

I finished up Alan Cleaver’s The Postal Paths last night. It’s part history (about postal workers, mostly rural postal workers) and part memoir about walking, and it’s a bit too much of the latter for me at times. The author gets a bit sanctimonious about the virtues of walking and hand-writing letters at times, which was a bit annoying, too. I’m going to review it for Postcrossing, where I’ll probably be a touch more positive about it — but on a personal level, not a huge fan.

What are you currently reading?

I started Laura Spinney’s Proto yesterday, so that’s the book at the top of the pile! It’s a history of Proto-Indo-European, the ancestor language of many modern languages, and it’s… okay. As usual, I long for numbered footnotes, and it’s less about the language itself than the speakers of the language. It feels like it sometimes goes too long without tying back in to the actual topic, but I’m enjoying it enough to keep reading. I hope it gets a bit more solid and specific about Proto-Indo-European itself, though.

What will you read next?

As ever of late, that’s a bit up in the air. I might just return my attention to something I had already started reading, like Noah Whiteman’s Most Delicious Poison… or I might be tempted to start Sam Leith’s The Haunted Wood: A History of Childhood Reading. I picked it up to just read the first page to see if I was tempted to read it, last night, and almost made myself late for bed, so that might be a good sign for my current interest in it! I do try to follow that kind of whim.

What have you recently finished reading?

The last thing I finished was a manga, The Troublesome Guest of Sotomura Detective Agency, by Sakae Kusama. I haven’t written up a review about it yet, but personally I wasn’t a huge fan of the art, and felt that a bit more character development (and a bit less random sex during which one of the partners is pretending to be mad about it) would’ve suited my reading tastes better. Still, it was fun to give it a try, and reminded me of reading FAKE (and rereading it a couple of years ago). Nostalgia!

Other than that, I finished rereading Finn Family Moomintroll, by Tove Jansson; I’ve been rereading the series in order, having not read the novels since I was a kid (though I read collections of the comics when I was at university). I have such an appreciation for Moominmamma and the way she welcomes every single unexpected visitor as a beloved guest.

What are you currently reading?

I’m slowly working my way through The Correspondent, by Virginia Evans: although the main protagonist (Sybil) is nothing like me or my grandmother, nonetheless it’s perhaps a little raw to read an epistolary novel in which letters are vitally important to the protagonist, given my recent loss of my grandmother to whom I wrote every week from 2022 to 2025.

Other than that, I have a few books on the go, but most actively A History of the World in 47 Borders, by Jonn Elledge. It’s very light and often flippant, but I do have some serious holes in my understanding of history, so even that fills up some of the corners. It does have some sources and an index, so it’s not totally casual, but still.

What will you be reading next?

The next Moomin book is The Memoirs of Moominpappa, so I guess that’s the most likely next read! Other than that, I have so many books on the go that I should probably focus on one of those, and perhaps return to Medieval Bodies, by Jack Hartnell, since that’s the one I was most recently reading before I got distracted…

What have you recently finished reading?

I reread Karel Čapek’s R.U.R., which I’d forgotten I’d read before. I think I “got” it better this time than previously, judging from my previous reaction. It’s still weird how all the men are in love with Helena, though.

Before that, I finished David Hone’s The Future of Dinosaurs, which… well, I’ve already posted the review; it was interesting, but quite dense to get through. At the same time, I guess it was kind of bitty as well, since it covers a broad range of topics.

What are you currently reading?

I’m most actively reading The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female Detective, by Sara Lodge, which I’m finding quite interesting given my interest in the development of crime fiction as a genre. It’s not really about that, but it does discuss fiction alongside the real-life female inquiry agents, etc. It’s funny reading it and thinking about Sayers’ Lord Peter thinking he’s so clever and innovative by recruiting Miss Climpson etc; clearly just a couple of decades before that was a whole well-known thing, based on the evidence of ads in papers and at least one court case so far.

As ever, I have a number of irons on the fire — probably too many — but I’m not making a lot of progress on anything else I’m reading.

What will you read next?

Who knows? The next week or two are gonna be pretty focused on moving into the new house, and then organising and shelving my book collection. Something unexpected might jump out at me! Right now I have no plans except to pick up whatever I feel in the mood for, to be honest. It’s likely to be non-fiction, given the givens.

What have you recently finished reading?

I think the last thing I finished was my reread of Nghi Vo’s Into the Riverlands — I got tempted to reread the novellas after reading an ARC of the latest, A Mouthful of Dust, and I’m definitely enjoying the revisit, and also spotting little links between the stories. Each can stand alone, but sometimes a little stray detail pops up that I only really notice because I’ve got them all very fresh in my mind.

What are you currently reading?

Not very much, I’ll be honest. I have quite a few books part-started, but I’m not finding anything that quite clicks with my brain. I most recently started Wendy A. Woloson’s Crap: A History of Cheap Stuff in America, which I’m finding very interesting. It isn’t always directly relateable to the UK and experiences here, but there are definitely similarities.

I’m also reading Virginia Evans’ The Correspondent, somewhat on a whim; it’s doing a really good job at building a personality through letters, and I look forward to reviewing it for Postcrossing’s blog at some stage.

What will you be reading next?

It’s really hard to say since I’m mostly playing Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, not reading! But I’m in a danmei book club Discord server, and they’re starting on The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation soon, so maybe that.

What have you recently finished reading?

After weeks of reading really really voraciously, I’ve calmed down a bit, so it’s been a couple of days since I last finished anything! I thiiiink the last thing I finished was Joseph Hone’s The Book Forger, which digs into the story of the literary forgeries perpetrated by Thomas J. Wise. It frames it as a bit of a detective story, which isn’t wrong. I mostly enjoyed it, except for where it really bizarrely misquoted Dorothy L. Sayers (or rather, correctly quoted but contextualised it completely wrong).

What are you currently reading?

I have a lot of books started, but I’m not super actively reading anything at the moment. The closest to the top of my mind are The Future of Dinosaurs, by David Hone, and my reread of volume two of The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System. The former is really interesting, though quite dense (and the print is tiny!).

The latter… I’m basically struggling with the part where Luo Binghe and Shen Qingqiu are completely at cross-purposes and totally failing to understand one another, and I hate that part. There are excellent and funny aspects to that part, but it’s just so painful to see the misunderstanding and not be able to hit Shen Qingqiu around the head shouting, “You’ve changed the story! He doesn’t have the same motivations anymore!”

What will you be reading next?

Not sure! I did get the urge to start Crap: A History of Cheap Stuff in America (Wendy A. Woloson), not at aaaaall inspired by sorting through stuff ready to move. (Not that we’re from the US, and not that the problem is really cheap stuff, but when you’re moving you become very aware of how much stuff you have and how you should’ve sorted through and donated a bunch of it ages ago. Ahem.)

I did also just get volumes 3 and 4 of the Solo Leveling manhwa, so maybe I’ll read those. That will of course lead to wanting volume 5, I’m sure, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it…