The title is self explanatory: share what you’re currently reading and tell us your thoughts (positive or negative)! Feel free to give book recommendations as well 
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I am currently reading The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo.
I personally love Hugo’s work. The story like starts of very funny but at this point ( I am nearly at the end), its getting very sad and dark. I hope Esmeralda doesn’t die. Phoebus is now my most hated character in any book I’ve ever read. Its a beautiful story though. There is lots of depth and I feel so close to the characters. I really sympathise with Frollo though he is obviously the villain.
I highly recommend.
Note: The book and the movie are very different.
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I’m currently reading The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan. It’s the first book in the Wheel of Time series (second if you count the prequel New Spring).
It’s very good, with amazing worldbuilding, interesting plot and characters. I’m about 80% done and climax of the story is just around the corner. The book is very long and starts a bit slowly, but the action starts to quickly pick up after that. I recommend reading it if you are into fantasy.
There is a series on Amazon based on this book, but it’s very different.
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First, I will just say that this is an absolutely incredible addition to the Lampshade Bar. Thank you for starting it @puppypropaganda.
For better or worse, I read mainly nonfiction, which I imagine many people will find fairly dull. But at risk of putting folks to sleep, I just finished A New World Begins by Jeremy Popkin. I highly recommend if you have any interest in the French Revolution, European history, or politics in general. The twists and turns and political machinations of the revolutionaries are fascinating to follow, and Popkin does a great job of making the narrative fast-paced and interesting. He’s no Barbara Tuchman, who writes true historical page-turners, but it’s quite good for a professional historian.
I had yet another history on tap next, but this thread has convinced me to change things up a bit. So I’m now about ten pages in to The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky. I’ll have to report back with thoughts once I get a bit further in.
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I didn’t realize that the Hunchback of Notre Dame was a book first. I’m not one for Disney movies so I might check the book out instead now 
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No problem, I just think discussions about literature are pretty fun 
I loovvee nonfiction and its what I read most often. When I was younger I used to primarily read fantasy but now I’ve found myself far more drawn to historical non-fiction. I’ve been looking to read something about the French Revolution so I’ll keep your recommendation in mind!
On the topic of both nonfiction and Dostoyevsky, I’m currently reading a biography about him (Fyodor Dostoyevsky: A Writers Life by Geir Kjetsaa). I think its interesting how much daily life and the political situation in Russia at the time influenced his work. I’ve started Brothers Karamazov as well- I’m about 1/3rd of the way through. I want to get back to reading it because i was really enjoying it when I left off
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I’m currently reading Disillusioned: Five Families and the Unraveling of America’s Suburbs. It’s a deeply fascinating book about why the current pattern of suburban development in the US is fundamentally financially, environmentally, and morally unsustainable. The core argument is that low density suburban development was financed by post-war federal dollars without thought to how infrastructure that was created would be maintained or financed. That, combined with pressure to keep local taxes low, meant that suburbs burned through their lifecycles quickly before infrastructure decintegration and disinvestment set in. The original (usually white) residents who took advantage of the initial investment and drove the infrastructure to its breaking point before simply moving to a suburb one ring further out would then leave, taking with them the wealth and capital that could’ve improved the infrastructure of the town, with their place inevitably being taken by (usually lower income, Black and brown) residents.
The book looks at that cycle by tracking five families in American suburbs at various points in their lifecycle and their experience with public education. The stories of those families in the context of these broader trends are compelling and also illustrate the broader point about the lifecycle and tragedy of American suburbs.
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Just finished the book. Incredible ending. Beautiful story.
Note: The book is very different from the movie.
Spoiler: They die. They all die. 
Saddest ending ever. I can’t believe both of them die. Vey emotional.
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I’m currently reading Grenade, I got this book from a book fair at my school and was interested in reading it. It is about the war between Japan and the USA, I find it quite sad but it is a cool book with many interesting turns!
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Am engaged with “The Mountain in the Sea” by Ray Nayler. Solid book so far, and the first fiction I’ve read more than 10% of in years.
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I miss book fairs so baad. I don’t know if its just my school/state but I wish they still did them in highschool
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This is definitely on my reading list now.
If you are interested in more reading on a similar theme, you might look into Jim Ryan’s book, Five Miles Away, A World Apart. It is more specifically focused on race and class disparities in American public education, and it has a slightly more legal angle. But it’s a compelling and troubling read nonetheless.
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