Rising from the Reading Rut??

I never read as much as I would like, but I also don't force myself to if I don't feel like it. That turns out to be quite a lot of the time. This week, exceptionally, I've been reading more than usual, which I'm pleased about. Do I continue to procrastinate/neglect my schoolwork? Yes, perhaps. But as long as I find my procrastinating worthwhile (basically anything that's not just being on my phone), I let myself be.

I get sad when thinking about things I used to be very into and am not so much anymore (like doing a certain craft or playing an instrument, for example). But, I try not to get too down on myself because I know things will phase in and out. This is how I feel about reading! It's been a minute since phasing in, though, which worries me.

One problem I run into psychologically is trying to read what I *think* I should be reading. Then I quickly get bored and never finish the book and lose any glimmer of momentum I gained. Right now, I'm reading this series, which is pretty much for middle schoolers. I read it, well, in middle school, but it was one that really captivated my attention and immersed me in its world :-)

The series is called Gregor the Overlander and it's by the same author (Suzanne Collins) that wrote the Hunger Games Trilogy. I used to really love that series as well (like, a lot), but with the hype that came with the movies and the movies themselves, some of that charm left for me. Reading the Gregor series, I do remember, in a way unbiased by over-commercialization, the strength in storytelling that Suzanne Collins has. For me, in general, a children's/YA novel can absolutely be strong and compelling no matter what age you read it at. A good story is a good story, and good writing is good writing! Yeah, so I'm on book 3 of 5, and the characters are nostalgic and I'm having a really fun time reading now. This one is actually about there being a plague with no cure, so it's interesting to draw parallels to our current situation. It's good because it's been a long enough time that I feel still surprised about some of the twists. This makes me want to reread all of my old favorite series (Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and Hunger Games), so we'll see where I go next.

For anyone curious, the series is about this 12 year old boy in New York City (present day to when it was written so around 2003) who stumbles into this world miles under the city. There's giant versions of animals like rats and roaches but also a civilization of humans, and the series is basically him going on different fate-bound quests.

Otherwise, I've read Hunger by Roxane Gay (did you guys see her speak?), and I'm in the middle of All About Love by bell hooks. Both (from what I can tell so far) are very insightful. Good stuff! In film, I watched Onward with my family on Easter. If I'm being honest, for Pixar, it wasn't the most impressive for me. It definitely was fun and of course from an artistic standpoint, Pixar animation technology only gets better. But in my mind, it only ranks aboveThe Good Dinosaur (sorry to any fans out there). Today I watched a movie called Little Joe. It's about this plant that's supposed to be bred to make the owner happy, but then things start getting weird. I thought it was okay, maybe 6.5/10.