August 2025 Reading

Anybody who knows me is clear that August is my least favorite month.  Perhaps I compensated a bit by reading more fiction.  Five books for the month, total.

Audio first.  I continued to listen to Tamora Pierce’s Protector of the Small series, this time Squire.  I enjoyed Kel’s progress out into a wider world.

 

I finished off Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn trilogy, reading The Well of Ascension and The Hero of Ages.  Neither book was as good as the first one, despite an interesting world, a great system of magic, and some compelling characters.  I don’t want to do plot spoilers, so all I will say is that, in my opinion, the books suffered from being too male.  I would sort of recommend them, with caveats.  I am not in a rush to read more of Sanderson’s work because I am disappointed, on the whole, with this series.  The books are not short, so I’m not willing to invest the time for what felt like little payoff.

 

As part of my Year of Water, I read Anne Carson’s Plainwater.  It is a collection of essays and poetry.  The writing is devastatingly lovely and the conceptions are brilliant.  It was not always pleasant reading, however.  I am glad I read it, though.

 

My church’s book group is currently reading The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence.  I’m done, both because I hate reading part of a book at once and because this is a short book.  It’s actually quite lovely and encouraging and uplifting.  Essentially, Brother Lawrence advocates for a God-centered practice of mindfulness in daily life.  Two thumbs up.

 

Thankfully, September starts tomorrow.

 

August total:  5

Summer total:  15

2025 Year to Date total:  50.5