Six Degrees of Separation is a monthly blog event hosted by Kate at booksaremyfavouriteandbest. It’s inspired by the 6 Degrees of Separation, a movie game where you attempt to connect actors in six movies or less. But we do it with books!
This month we’re starting with Murmur by Will Eaves.
I hadn’t heard of Murmur prior to this post, but Kate picked it because it won the Wellcome Book Prize. The Wellcome Prize is awarded each year to books with central themes of health, medicine, or illness. Another book from the Wellcome shortlist from 2019 is…
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh. I haven’t read this book, but I bought it for my brother for Christmas because it sounded like exactly something he would love. Fifty bucks says he hasn’t read it… I discovered this book listening to the Kirkus podcast, Fully Booked, when they interviewed the author. Another book I discovered via podcast was…
Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse. This is a gritty Native-American post-apocalyptic fantasy with a Walking Dead/Supernatural hybrid feel. Goodness, if grimdark or gritty fantasy is your jam, THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU. Because I’m having a hard time making connections, we’ll go to another book with Lightning in the title. Which most obviously leads us to…
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. Rick Riordan has (in my humble opinion) done more for young readers than anyone since J.K. Rowling. His books are fun, engaging, hilarious, and not too difficult to read. I’m so in love with his imprint as well, for bringing such a wide variety of cultures and mythologies into Middle-Grade adventure novels. One of the most celebrated authors involved in Rick Riordan Presents is…
Yoon Ha Lee who, of course, wrote Ninefox Gambit. Sadly I did not enjoy this book, since I felt so in over my head, but by golly if it wasn’t nominated for both the Hugo AND the Nebula in 2017. AND the Arthur C. Clarke Award! You’d be hard pressed to find as critically acclaimed a modern Sci-Fi novel. (And dang if I haven’t written myself into another dead-end…) Another modern Sci-Fi beloved by fans and critics alike is…
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. I did adore this one, and if you like Sci-Fi, queer stories, or found-families do yourself a favor and put this book at the top of your tbr. Hands down one of my favorite books I read last year, and for sure will be a life-long favorite. I can’t wait to read it again!
So there you have it! Murmur to A Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet.
This was a tough chain for me, so I’m looking forward to seeing how everyone else did with this prompt. Thanks as always to Kate for hosting!
Never Not Reading 
Excellent! Do you think next month will be easier? We’re starting with “Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak. I constantly read it to my kids when they were little, so I know it well.
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Haha, it’s a favorite at our house too! Should definitely be easier, I can think of multiple directions to go. ❤
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Well done!
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Like that we both used the Moshfegh but went in very different directions 🙂 I listen to lots of podcasts but just haven’t got into bookish ones – I know there are lots of great ones out there but I think when I’m listening to something I need a change of pace from bookish stuff (that said, will give Fully Booked a listen – maybe I just haven’t found the right bookish podcast!).
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Mostly I listen to podcasts from Book Riot – All the Books which covers new releases, and Get Booked which is a recommendations podcast. I also really like The Librarian is In from the New York Public Library, though they don’t *just* do books.
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Definitely agree about rick riordan!
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