What have you been reading this week?

Another week and another struggle to get any reading done. Although, I did manage to do more than I did last week I think. I actually finished two books and I completed this month’s book club pick well in advance. My main worry now is that I won’t complete my Spell the Month Challenge for February. I’ve currently still got an R, B, and Y to go. My Y pick isn’t too long but the other two will take me a bit of time. So, I’m planning on getting ahead today. I’ll get as much done as possible in the hope that I finish in time. Thankfully, I’ve run out of things that I’m desperate to watch. Although, I’ll definitely be getting a few viewings of WandaVision in before the season finale on my birthday. It’s so good.

Weekly Blog Posts

• BOOK REVIEW –Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

I probably shouldn’t even call this a review as it ended up being more of a rant. I’ve never really understood the obsession with this play. It’s just utterly ridiculous and there’s nothing particularly inspiring about the narrative. So, why is it called the greatest love stort ever written? It’s mad. So mad that I couldn’t help but go off on one in my post. How harsh was I? You’ll have to head over to my review to find out.

• TUESDAY REVIEW – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020)

The shock announcement that Chadwick Boseman had died last year really did rock the world. He was one of those performers that has transcended the roles that he played and meant a lot to so many people. So, there was always going to be a lot of interest in his last film role. I decided that it was time to give this one a go. After all, on paper, this had the potential to be a phenomenal film. To find out, you’ll should probably head over to my review.

• BOOK REVIEW – All My Friends Are Superheroes by Andrew Kaufman

I’d never read anything by Andrew Kaufman before and I probably never would have if it hadn’t been for book club. It was one of our options for this month’s read. I voted for it but the majority went for The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford. It sounded like such a great book that I knew I had to get a copy. It also helped that it crossed off one of my letters for my TBR challenge. But could it possibly be as good as it sounds? You’ll need to head over to my review to find out.

Just Read

• The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett

I decided to make a start on this to try and get me out of my reading slump. It was a change of pace from the more intense Rainbow Milk and was easier to read when I was tired. It still took way longer to finish that it should have done. I started it on Sunday and didn’t finish until Tuesday. Yes, there wasn’t much to read on Tuesday but it should not have taken 3 nights. Still, it started me on the path out of my slump and I’m grateful. Well, if Alan can’t convince you to read, who can?

• The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford

This was the pick for this month’s love themed book club and, though it wasn’t my pick, I was excited to read it. I haven’t read nearly enough Nancy Mitford and this is always discussed as being a great read. Hell, it was even namechecked in The Uncommon Reader. I still wasn’t at my best when reading this so I sneakily bought the audiobook version. So, I might not have always paid full attention but it’ll be enough for book club. Then I can always go back to this at a better time.

Currently Reading

• Rainbow Milk by Paul Mendez

My plan is to get back into this now that I’ve finished The Pursuit of Love. Knowing that I had a deadline for that made it more stressful, so having finished it means the pressure is lifted somewhat. Hopefully, I can crack on with this one and get it done soon.

Book Haul

I admit that I have bought one book this week and I’ve come very close to buying more. There have been some great books out recently. The only one that tempted me was a short story by Andrew Kaufman called The Tiny Wife. It sounds delightful and isn’t going to put too much pressure on my TBR. If I enjoy this one then I’m definitely going to buy more of Kaufman’s work.

Recently Watched

• TV:
  • The Simpsons– Yep, it’s still here. I’m not being very adventurous with my watching habits these days.
  • Red Dwarf – After reading the book, I decided to go back to the beginning and watch every episode again. The first few seasons are so good. It just makes watching them try to match it in later years feel even more sad.
  • Hypothetical – I have a lot of love for James Acaster, so I decided to finally watch his show with Josh Widdicombe. It’s the perfect kind of show to watch of an evening. Silly but doesn’t require much attention. It’s ideal for my lockdown 3 mood.
• Movies:
  • Avengers: Age of Ultron – Well, it did keep getting suggested to me every time I finished an episode of WandaVision. Why not got back to the start of their story? I will admit, some of the dialogue seemed much less fun this time around. I think I’m always far too lenient on Marvel films when I first watch them.