Mount TBR 2018 discussion

Signing up for another year of climbing Mt TBR. Hope to read more books I own and acquire less in 2018.

Mount TBR Tally:

Hardcovers: 4

Trade p/b: 4

Mass mkt p/b: 12

Kindle: 13

Audio: 2

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Boulders: 6
350+ pp

Vintage: 5
>10 yrs

2017:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
2016:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
2015:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
2014:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

WRC Here Comes 2018 - The Best of the Best Lists
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Level 1 = 9 Books
Progress: 4/9

List: Best Books of 2017 (#2)
1. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas 4/06/18


List: Best Books of 2016 (#269)
2. The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson 8/18/18


List: Best Books of the 19th Century (#19)
3. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens 12/29/18


List: Best for Book Clubs (#427)
4. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens 11/17/19

good luck with all your challenges!

Welcome back, Nell! Good luck with your climb.

Thanks for the well wishes.

Nell wrote: "WRC Year of Lists
This challenge has a new twist this year. We are going to create a chain of books that are interconnected while exploring Goodreads Lists.

Here's how is works:
Step One: Pick on..."
This looks like an interesting challenge

Hi Nell
I got a lovely folio edition of Rebecca for christmas - let me know if you want to do a buddy read :-)

Hitting the Trail

1. Stowed Away by Barbara Ross 1/04/18 ★★★★½
2. The Unexpected Inheritance of Inspector Chopra by Vaseem Khan 1/13/18 ★★★★★
3. A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn 1/17/18 ★★★★

Last January, I questioned my progress because I read 6 books and acquired 11. This January, I finished 3 books and acquired 20!! (That includes reading for business.) Overachieving but not in the direction I'm hoping for. Oh well. On to February!

Freed in February:

4. A Perilous Undertaking by Deanna Raybourn 2/06/18 ★★★★★
5. A Treacherous Curse by Deanna Raybourn 2/12/18 ★★★★½
6. We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie 2/19/18 ★★★★★

March-ing On:

7. The Alienist by Caleb Carr 3/03/18 ★★★★★
8. Enter a Murderer by Ngaio Marsh 3/08/18 ★★★★
9. Terror in Taffeta by Marla Cooper 3/24/18 ★★★★

Mountaineering Checkpoint #1

1. Tell us how many miles you've made it up your mountain (# of books read).
I'm on track with 9 out of 36 books read or 1/4 of the way up Mt Vancouver = 1,204 m
But I am significantly behind the number of books read compared to previous years. This year I've read longer books in the first quarter and took on a demanding professional development project that left less time for leisure reading.

2. Complete ONE (or more if you like) of the following:
A. Post a picture of your favorite cover so far.
I loved all three covers in this series:


B. Who has been your favorite character so far? And tell us why, if you like.
Veronica Speedwell - She is the main character in a series by that name. The MC is a butterfly hunter and world traveler in Victorian England. Veronica is wise, savvy and resourceful at times, naïve and clueless at others. Her repartee with colleague and friend Stoker is often hilarious. Delightful character and a fun series.

C. The book I'm reading now is surprising me. It's a Young Adult novel (I can't remember reading this genre since I was a young adult). The writing is excellent, the story is spellbinding, the subject is vitally important and the perspective is one that never gets heard. This book is outstanding!!!
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas


D. Title Scrabble: See if you can spell a word using the first letter of the first word in the titles of some/all of the books you have read so far.
Since I'm climbing a mountain, the word I decided to spell is sweat.
S - Stowed Away
W - We Should All Be Feminists
E - Enter a Murderer
A - The Alienist
T - Terror in Taffeta

Ascending in April:

10. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas 4/06/18 ★★★★★★★★★★
11. Sky High by Susan O'Brien 4/27/18 ★★★★
12. Precious and Grace by Alexander McCall Smith 4/29/18 ★★★★

Mountaineering in May

13. Death of a Charming Man by M.C. Beaton 5/08/18 ★★★
14. The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken by Tarquin Hall 5/20/18 ★★★ 1/2
15. Murder of a Cranky Catnapper by Denise Swanson 5/25/18 ★★★★★

Jettisoned in June:

16. Between a Book and a Hard Place by Denise Swanson 6/04/18 ★★★★
17. Lowcountry Bonfire by Susan M. Boyer 6/30/18 ★★★★★

Second Quarter Checkpoint:

1. Tell us how many miles you've made it up your mountain (# of books read).
I've read 17 out of 36 books for Mt. Vancouver so I'm about halfway up the mountain.

2.
A. Two books are set on an island off the coast of South Carolina: Lowcountry Bonfire and The Color of Light


B. Tell us about a book on the list that was new to you in some way.
I don't usually read Young Adult novels expecting them to be lightweight and juvenile. Then I read The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. It is outstanding. The best book I've read in years. I gave it 10 stars!


C. Which book (read so far) has been on your TBR mountain the longest?
The Alienist by Caleb Carr was on my TBR the longest. A long train ride and the TNT miniseries prompted me to read it. It's a very good book. If it were skinnier, I might have read it sooner.


My Life According to Books
1. My Ex was Death of a Charming Man.
2. My best friend [met me at a] Lowcountry Bonfire.
3. Lately at work [I distributed] The Unexpected Inheritance of Inspector Chopra.
4. If I won the lottery, [I'd travel] Sky High.
5. My fashion sense [is] Terror in Taffeta.
6. My next ride [is] A Perilous Undertaking.
7. The one I love [believes] We Should All Be Feminists.
8. If I ruled the world, I would [be] Between a Book and a Hard Place.
9. When I look out my window, I see The Color of Light.
10. The best things in life are Precious and Grace.

Goodbye in July:

18. The Color of Light by Karen White 7/28/18 ★★★★

Back on Track:

19. The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson 8/18/18 ★★★★★
20. Death of a Nag by M.C. Beaton 8/21/18 ★★★★ 1/2
21. Death of a Macho Man by M.C. Beaton 8/27/18 ★★★★★

Surrendered in September:

22. An Extraordinary Union by Alyssa Cole 9/12/18 ★★★★★
23. Only a Kiss by Mary Balogh 9/30/18 ★★★★ 1/2
24. Letting Go and Becoming by Marianne Williamson 9/30/18 ★★★★★

Mountaineering Checkpoint #3

1. Tell us how many miles you've made it up your mountain (# of books read).
I've read 24 out of 36 books. A leisurely summer has me slightly behind. I need to pick up the pace in the crisp fall breeze to make it to the summit.

2. Complete ONE (or more if you like) of the following:
A. Who has been your favorite character so far? And tell us why, if you like.
My favorite character is Elle Burns in An Extraordinary Union. She is a spy for the Union Army masquerading as a mute slave in the house of a Confederate Senator. She used the racism and prejudice of others to defeat them.

B. Pair up two of your reads. But this time we're going for opposites.
Death of a Charming Man.
Murder of a Cranky Catnapper.

C. Which book (read so far) has been on your TBR mountain the longest? Was it worth the wait? Or is it possible you should have tackled it back when you first put it on the pile? Or tossed it off the edge without reading it all?

Letting Go and Becoming an audio book by Marianne Williamson. It was recorded in 1999 so I've had it for years. It was enlightening and entertaining and still relevant today. This is one I wish I had 'read' sooner but..."[w]hen the student is ready the teacher appears."
The longest owned print book was The Color of Light by Karen White on my TBR shelf 10+ years. It was good story, well-written with a little mystery and a little romance.

D. Using titles from your list, see if you can tell a short story (or story blurb) or make a mini-poem. Feel free to add a few filler words here and there if needed.

Only a Kiss at a Lowcountry Bonfire was A Curious Beginning to An Extraordinary Union. Soon I was Between a Book and a Hard Place Stowed Away Sky High in A Perilous Undertaking investigating The Death of a Macho Man. It was The Summer Before the War when The Hate U Give turned into A Treacherous Curse. I solved The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken and escaped Terror in Taffeta by Letting Go and Becoming Precious and Grace.

Mount Blanc!
Made it to this peak. On to Vancouver.

Out in October:

25. Only Beloved by Mary Balogh 10/06/18 ★★★★
26. With a Vengeance by Annette Dashofy 10/17/18 ★★★★★
27. Send in the Clowns by Julie Mulhern 10/22/18 ★★★★

Nixed in November:

28. A Cajun Christmas Killing by Ellen Byron 11/14/18 ★★★★
29. A Killing Notion by Melissa Bourbon 11/23/18 ★★★★★
30. Secrets of Spiritual Success: by Guy Finley 11/29/18 ★★★★
31. Durable Goods by Elizabeth Berg 11/30/18 ★★★

Diminished in December

32. Comfort & Joy by Kristin Hannah 12/15/18 ★★★ 1/2
33. 1225 Christmas Tree Lane by Debbie Macomber 12/22/18 ★★★ 1/2
34. First Impressions by Nora Roberts 12/25/18 ★★★
35. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens 12/29/18 ★★★ 1/2

Mt TBR Checkpoint #4:

I read 35 out of 36 books for Mt Vancouver. One book shy of the mountaintop.
63% of books read were from Mt TBR.

Words to the Wise from Mt TBR:

A stitch in time... [prevents] Terror in Taffeta

Don't count your chickens... [near a] Lowcountry Bonfire

A penny saved is.... The Unexpected Inheritance of Inspector Chopra

All good things must come... [with] Comfort & Joy

When in Rome... [enjoy] The Color of Light

All that glitters is not... Durable Goods

A picture is worth... Only a Kiss

When the going gets tough, the tough get... Between a Book and a Hard Place

Two wrongs don't make... A Treacherous Curse

The pen is mightier than.... First Impressions

The squeaky wheel gets... Stowed Away

Hope for the best, but prepare for... A Perilous Undertaking

Birds of a feather flock... Sky High