Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2020 Weekly Checkins
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Week 26: 6/19 - 6/25
I scratched a considerable amount off my currently-reading list this past week!Finished:
Poisoned Blade by Kate Elliott - 3.5 stars. Not as good as the first installment IMO but it's because we're thrown into the middle of war rather than running an obstacle course. Looking forward to the finale regardless.
Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James - 4 stars. I want to reread this, probably in 2021, because I feel like I've never read anything like it before.
The Cabinet of Curiosities by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child - 3.5 stars. Book 3 in the Pendergast series, and a tad underwhelming after I ended up enjoying the first two. I seem to only read one book a year in this series (which means it'll keep me going for roughly 20, ha!) Book by or about a journalist
And finally wrapped up my Lord of the Rings reread by finishing The Return of the King and the Appendices - 3.5 stars. I love this whole story and I'm so excited to dive into The Silmarillion in autumn.
Plus I went back through and realized that Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: And Other Conversations About Race counted for Book with the title on the cover & no graphics/images
PS 38/50
Currently reading:
Hild - I've really left this one go and I need to get back to it ASAP because I do love it, I've just gotten distracted.
The Poisonwood Bible - Less than 50 pages in and this is already fascinating.
Don Quixote - Reading a chapter-a-day until we're finished with a group of friends. Surprisingly entertaining and deeply enjoyable.
Are you participating in the Popsugar Summer Reading Challenge?
No, I've got too many things going on right now to add another challenge - mainly the regular Popsugar and a historical fiction summer challenge that I participate in every year.
I finished The Wise Woman as my book that passes the Bechdel test. It was OK. I read This Dangerous Book: How the Bible Has Shaped Our World and Why It Still Matters Today as my book with a book on the cover. It was OK.
QOTW: No. Even if I were so inclined to try to read 70 challenge books this year, it seems impossible w/o a library.
Happy Thursday everyone! I feel like my reading slump has continued because I just haven't really been in the mood for reading half the time that I think about picking up a book, but then again I also read more than 1,000 pages and it wasn't all on audio so I guess I'm doing okay. xD I think maybe I just feel like I accomplished less because I only finished 1 prompt and because I haven't been in the mood to read as much as I usually am. I can at least say that I ticked off my last advanced prompt this week so I'm 31/40 & 10/10 now and that's something.Current Progress
PS: 41/50 | HP: 47/56 | ATY: 43/52 | GR: 61/100
Read This Week
Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4) by Diana Gabaldon ⭐️⭐️⭐️ - I definitely experienced all the middle book syndrome feels with this one! The first half of this felt rather slow and boring in contrast to the first three books in the series and the banter and relationship dynamics between Jamie and Claire seemed different or dulled down a lot! The second half of this book was much more interesting for me but it played with a plot trope that I'm not a very big fan of so that definitely affected my enjoyment. I wasn't the biggest fan of Ian's story arc in this book and I wanted a little bit more from Brianna and Roger's story arcs towards the ending (hopefully it's near the beginning of the next book)! (view spoiler) I'm sure that my slumpish mood wasn't helping my enjoyment either.
Used for: PS - 48. A Book Published in the 20th Century (It was first published in 1996)
Currently Reading
Thunderhead (Arc of a Scythe #2) by Neal Shusterman (27% through) - I'm not sure if I'm reading this at the right time or not, so far I'm enjoying it less than Scythe but I'm not sure if that's just because this one also has a bit of a slow start and will build up to a point where I can't put it down (kind of like Scythe did) or if it's because of my mood? xD There's been one reveal so far that I'm mildly interested in (I know I should be more interested but it doesn't involve the main characters or the area that they're in so it just doesn't feel high stakes yet) but nothing further on it yet. Partly, this also seems to be following a new character which I'm confident will be important and tie into the story more/again eventually but right now it's not doing much for my enjoyment. :P
QotW
I'm undecided at this point...maybe if I finish my other 3 challenges by the end of July (doable since I only need to read 14 more books, including Thunderhead) to tick off all my remaining prompts then I'll tackle most of the summer challenge in August & September. It will depend on my mood once I've finished my other challenges and how many things that I actually want to read at the time fit into those prompts and how many of my HP & ATY challenge books that I'll read in July could also be slotted into PSS. If I do decide to go ahead and do it then I already have a leg up and have finished the prompt for Black history in America since I just finished White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide at the end of last week. :)
As of now, I have some grand plans to tackle some massive adult fantasy series and to wrap up some series that I'm in the middle of (I currently have 19 partially completed series that I actually want to continue...) once my challenges are finished so I guess it will depend what I'm actually in the mood for and it that fits into any prompts. I'll probably make a tentative TBR for it at some point this week (maybe even today) even if I decide not to do it because the scavenger hunt aspect is just fun. :D
It's finally summer and it feels like it. I'm excited because my gym has reopened and I can finally get in there and actually get a good workout. I've been twice already and I'm sleeping so much better because of it. This week I finished three books.
First, a reread of The Girl Who Played with Fire. I really loved these books the first time through, which was 7 or 8 years ago. I'm loving them again now. I was going to use this as a book by or about a journalist, but with so little time to complete the summer challenge, I decided to put it in there as a book that makes you nostalgic for summer. When I think of a book that reminds me of summer, this is always the first book I think of, because the first time I read it was at the beach with my parents. It's a strangely strong memory, I can't remember any other specific book that I read at the beach, so this was a good fit for that prompt.
Diary, which I read as a book with only words on the cover. You have to get the right edition for that to be true, but it still counts. I loved the premise of this book, but I got bored by the end.
Sorry Not Sorry, which was a super fun, light, romantic read. I thought the characters were fun and apparently there are some more books about them, so I will probably try those. I used this as a book with a cocktail on the cover.
QOTW: I am doing the summer challenge. I felt far enough along in my other challenges to do it, so I'm giving it a try.
Mod
The weather has been summery. My seedlings failed to thrive (they are still seedlings, but they should be growing plants! I usually have the greenest of thumbs so I’m not sure what’s up there) but I lucked out and found some healthy $1 plants at the Farmers Market this past weekend, so I’m once again the proud custodian of some basil and tomatoes :-)
I've also got poison ivy growing up my maple tree in my backyard for the first time ever (thanks for nothing, birds!) plus my dog killed TWO muskrats this week and that is disgusting AND disturbing. (It's a fenced in yard, I don't know why the muskrats & groundhogs don't just STAY OUT of it.)
This week I finished two books, and DNFed one. I reshuffled my challenge books, so I am now 35/50.
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo - I had put off reading this when it first came out, because I didn’t like the title, and didn’t think a book about racism by a white person would be worthwhile. I still don’t like the title, but I definitely found the book worthwhile. I recommend it.
Agency by William Gibson - a sequel of sorts to The Peripheral. This took me a MONTH to read, and I was pretty angry when I finished, because it was a waste of my time. All that tedious detail lead up to NOTHING. This is only for hardcore Gibson completists. The rest of you, steer clear!
And I DNFed The President Is Missing by Bill Clinton & James Patterson- I thought it would be fun to read a thriller about a President written by a former President, but I guess I don’t really like President Clinton, because it was difficult to spy a plot hiding behind Clinton’s ENORMOUS ego. This was going to be my book by/about a global leader. For now, I’ve penciled in Elizabeth Warren’s book (which I read earlier this year), but I don’t really count a Senator and (sob, failed) Presidential candidate as a “global leader” so I don’t feel good about that. I’m just not in the mood to read any other “global leader” books right now - maybe in the fall I’ll be more open to it.
QoTW
Nope! I was already planning to cut back on my reading this year, and then the Pandemic hit and then the protests and everything else got more frazzled so there is no way I can add additional reading requirements to my already stressed year.
For those of you who ARE adding this Challenge to your reading, we created a folder for discussion posts so you can all bounce ideas off each other:https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...
Happy Thursday! I can't believe we're past the halfway mark of the year/challenge! I'm finally getting out of my reading slump. I struggled earlier this month to get into anything. I finished three books this week, one for the challenge. Finished
Stardust - I used this for prompt #48 - a book published in the 20th Century. I really wanted to love this book. It's a fairytale which I normally love, but I struggled to get into it. I felt it was slow to start and a little confusing with all of the characters at times, but I did like the ending. 3 stars
Home Before Dark - I read this for my Book of the Month book club. This book got me out of my reading slump. It was hard to put down. I loved the ghost story aspect of it and thought it was done really well. 4 stars
The Rural Diaries: What Moving to Mischief Farm Taught Me About What Really Matters in Life, Love, and Making Dandelion Wine - I was a big fan of One Tree Hill so when I saw Hilarie Burton had a memoir, I knew I had to read it. I liked that this was more about her time with her husband and moving to upstate New York to run a farm than about her time in Hollywood. They have a very sweet life full of happy memories and some sad, but they've made the best of it. 5 stars
Challenge Progress:
Regular Challenge - 25/40
Advanced Challenge - 8/10
Total - 33/50
Currently Reading:
More Than We Can Tell - I loved Letters to the Lost so much that I had to request this on Libby right away. If you enjoyed LTTL, you should definitely read this one. It tells Rev's story and is very good so far.
In a Dark, Dark Wood - I have had this on my TBR for a long time. I've enjoyed most of Ruth Ware's books, and this was the only one I hadn't read yet.
One to Watch - this was my main BOTM pick this month, and I try to read that one in the month. This is a cute story about a plus-size woman on a reality TV show trying to find true love (like The Bachelor). It's a quick read, but I don't love the format where it's written as texts and emails. I'm still getting used to that.
QOTW - Are you participating in the Popsugar Summer Reading Challenge?
I'm going to try to do it. I just found out about it last night so haven't planned it out yet. I do a lot of side challenges so I'm not going to put pressure on myself to finish it, but I do think it'll be fun. I like a lot of the prompts.
Happy Thursday, y’all.Our county got pulled back a phase on reopening due to a spike in cases, so I'm back to working half-hours at the library. I'm getting so tired of my work schedule constantly changing on me.
On the plus side... I finished the challenge! :D *does a happy dance*
Books read this week:
The Golden Apples of the Sun -- for “book published in the 20th century.” I love Ray Bradbury, and this was a great collection of some of his earlier stories.
Thud! -- for “book from a series with more than 20 books.” Not the best Pratchett I’ve read, but still enjoyable, and shockingly relevant to our times with its focus on racism (against dwarfs and trolls, but still…) and the struggles of the police force.
The Seventh Sons -- not for the challenge. A small-town cop vs. a gang of werewolf bikers! Sadly, not nearly as fun as that premise makes it sound…
Hardworking Cats: 100 Professions for Proactive Pussycats -- comic collection, not for the challenge. A cute collection of little cartoons about our feline friends. Just light and funny.
DNF:
The Kinder Poison -- not for the challenge. I rarely DNF books that I’m halfway through, but this one was just not keeping my interest. I could not get invested in the characters, and while we got some tantalizing bits of worldbuilding, it didn’t feel like enough to me. Pretty cover though.
Currently Reading:
Four Past Midnight
The Elephant's Girl
A Gathering of Shadows
QOTW:
I don't think I will. Now that I'm done with the challenge, I'd like to focus on finishing the various series I started during the challenge (Wayfarer, Shades of London, Remembrance of Earth's Past) and whittle down my TBR list a bit.
Good morning! As soon as I finish this update I'll be out the door for my first walk of the day. I'm now walking about 10 miles a day. I lost 5 pounds this month, but there are so many pounds to go! I miss my 20s and 30s when I could eat whatever I want and never gain an ounce.Challenge Progress: 48/50 (Summer Challenge: 2/20)
Completed:
The Fire Rose: Enjoyable retelling of Beauty and the Beast set in 1906 San Francisco. I liked it, but it wasn't particularly innovative, and the ending felt rushed; Beauty by Robin McKinley is a much better choice. (A book published in the 20th century - 1995) ★★★
Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town: Krakauer's work is brutal, intelligent, and enraging. The more I read the angrier I got... especially knowing that Betsy Devos has rolled back regulations protecting rape victims on college campuses. "College-age women are not raped because they are promiscuous, or drunk, or send mixed signals, or feel guilty about casual sex, or seek attention. They are the victims of a terrible crime and deserving of compassion from society and fairness from a justice system that is clearly broken." ★★★★★
The Last Widow: Nonstop action, relevant sociopolitical events, and strong, complicated characters... This is the first Karin Slaughter book I've read, and it won't be the last. Even though I haven't read the other books in the Will Trent series, there was enough background information that I didn't feel lost trying to figure out the pre-existing relationships. I'm going to enjoy going back to the beginning of the series and learning more about Will (and Sara). (A summer-set thriller) ★★★★
The Book of Eating: Adventures in Professional Gluttony: A bit ho-hum. Platt was sometimes humorously self-deprecating, but I just didn't feel that this book had the wit or sparkle that it should have had. The most interesting parts were about his family's adventures when Adam was growing up. I'm still not really sure how he became a food critic... (A book featuring one of the seven deadly sins - Gluttony) ★★★
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men: Fascinating... and frustrating. This a comprehensive examination of all the ways female statistics/data are ignored (or completely left out) in all facets of modern life - urban planning, work, unpaid care, medicine, etc. ★★★★★
Daughter of a Daughter of a Queen: Compelling account of Cathy Williams (aka William Cathay), a former slave who hid her sex and served with the Buffalo Soldiers after the Civil War. As with all historical fiction, this is a mix of truth and fiction... I'd love to read a nonfiction account of Williams's life. (A book about Black history in America - Fiction) ★★★★
The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo: Everyone knows Alexander Dumas, author of The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo, but what about his father, Alex Dumas? You know... He's the biracial general who led France in multiple military victories in the late 1700s and was the inspiration for many of the exploits in his son's novels. Alex Dumas's life was remarkable, and he deserves to be remembered. ★★★★
Love Lettering: Charming, slow-burn romantic comedy. Reid and Meg are awkward (and quite possibly on the autism spectrum) and utterly lovable. Really sweet story. I liked this one a lot more than I thought I would. (The first book you touch on a bookshelf with your eyes closed - Fiction) ★★★★
Hag-Seed: The tempest within The Tempest... Atwood's retelling of Shakespeare's The Tempest with a prison standing in for the island and a deposed theater director as Prospero is incredibly inventive. It was interesting to note the parallels between her contemporary novel and the classic play. (A book set in a country beginning with C - Canada) ★★★★
Currently Reading:
Strange Practice (A medical thriller - Fiction)
March: Book One (A book about Black history in America - Nonfiction)
Darkness at Noon: A Novel
Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books (A book about a book club - Nonfiction)
Full Throttle
Sigh, Gone: A Misfit's Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In (A book with a great first line - Nonfiction)
The Serpent's Shadow
Red Card: How the U.S. Blew the Whistle on the World's Biggest Sports Scandal (A book on a subject you know nothing about - Nonfiction)
Dreamland Burning
QOTW: Yes, because I'm at 48/50 on the regular challenge I've decided to do the summer challenge as well. I don't think the prompts are particularly interesting... there's a lot of overlap, and it skews pretty hard toward light, fluffy reads that I'm not sure I'm really interested in (I really don't get this obsession with beaches). But I'll twist the prompts to suit my needs.
Hi all, Been a real rough week for me. Felt sick most of last week, had some food poisoning that really threw off my whole system. Followed it up with a migraine over the weekend, and then having to rush one of my cats to the emergency room Saturday night. He came home Tuesday, thankfully, and is on the road to recovery. Still left me wiped out!
this week I finished:
Parable of the Sower - can't remember if I finished this before after posting last week. I really enjoyed it, will need to read the next one. Used it as book I meant to read last year. I use that loosely since really I've been meaning to read it for several years, but hey one of those years was probably last year.
Equal Rites - book with a pun in the title. according to good reads I read this, but if I did it was way back in high school or college, rating likely imported from Shelfari. Honestly, it didn't feel familiar at all, I'm wondering if I actually read Wyrd Sisters and rated the wrong one. However I do own it, and it's been on my shelf for years, so maybe I just forgot it really hard. I enjoyed it, though, so it wasn't because it was bad!
Bingo Love Volume 1: Jackpot Edition - found this on an anti-racist comic list, and it was so cute! I feel like there can't be that many titles out there with queer Black elderly protagonists. There were several flashbacks to younger years, but the focus of the story was on the later life.
The Fairy Godmother - with my kitty in the hospital I just needed something to distract me that I didn't need to actually focus on, so re-read for probably the 20th time.
Between the World and Me - now that kitty's home and doing ok I went back to adding in more difficult reading. This was excellently written, but very heartbreaking to read.
Currently reading:
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle - plugging away at the audio book re-read. honestly i didn't like it much the first time around, the audiobook is not helping change my opinion. Narrator is male, and does this shrill whiny voices for any female, very annoying. This isn't a book i'd willingly have re-read, but I don't want to just skip the book club, and I didn't remember it well enough to contribute meaningfully to the conversation.
Akata Warrior - read harder's YA book set in a country other than the US or UK. Just started this morning, no real opinions yet. I liked Akata Witch, so assuming I'll enjoy it.
QOTW:
I don't think so. I had already tried to cut down challenges this year, and still managed to do 2 because I really liked Read Harder's prompt list this year. I have 6 prompts left to finish for Popsugar and 11 left for Read harder. If I was finished, might consider. If they do a fall or winter challenge I might consider, since I should be done with these by then, and might be willing to add a few new prompts.
FinishedMalice by Keigo Higashino (a book set in Japan). This is the second book I tried reading for this prompt. I’m glad I switched books. The real story is difficult to see beneath the layers of deceit, which makes the last quarter of the book a page turner. My only critique is that we don’t get to know Detective Kaga very well. It was a pretty short book, and I finished it in a day. Unfortunately, I think this might be the only book in the series translated into English, but it works as a standalone.
Tiamat's Wrath by James SA Corey (a book you meant to read in 2019). This series is still so good. I’m so sad about the deaths. I knew they were inevitable. It’s a war and not everyone can survive, but I loved the characters.
Reading
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (read a banned book during Banned Books Week). It’s not Banned Books Week, but I have time to read this now, so I’m reading it now.
A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon (a book with more than 20 letters in the title)
Death Game by Jo Graham (a book in a series with more than 20 books)
DNF
Brimstone by David Niall Wilson & Patricia Lee Macomber. I never expect these Stargate tie-in novels to be good, but I do expect the authors to be familiar with the characters and universe. These authors clearly aren’t. There are plenty more books in the series so I’m moving onto another.
QOTW
I considered it, but I don't think so. I'm close to finishing the regular challenge. I have some other reading goals for the year that aren't challenge related, and I want to focus on those next. I don't think I'll finish those before summer is over.
Hi All. The good news is my library reopens 7/6/2020 so I can go back to volunteering. I completed 2 books for the week. Neither for the challenge. Between The World And Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Very well written and timely. 5 stars. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett. 5 stars. I loved the book. The story is very interesting. This is the first time I read her but will read The Mothers in the future. I’m currently reading The Overstory by Richard Powers. I love this book. I think about it all the time. I pick it up every chance I get. I thought he was creative tying trees into the stories of the characters. It is a door stopper but I’m not stressing over finishing it. I like taking my time to make it last.
QOTW: no I’m not participating in the summer challenge. I also do side challenges and will do any read-a-thon I can find so I’m good.
Hi everyone. It is an absolute scorcher here today so I'm hiding under the ceiling fan right now!In book news, my slump seems to be over! I read three books this week (woop woop!). The first was A Kiss Before Dying. For some reason, I thought this book was going to be one of those generic mid-twentieth-century-man-regrets-wife-and/or-kids books (like Rabbit, Run or Revolutionary Road) but it turned out to be a thriller. I don't normally read that genre but I was really sucked in and I did not see a particular twist coming. The build up to the end was really tense too. I highly recommend it.
I also finished Cursed: An Anthology of Dark Fairy Tales. The first half of the stories were really good but with the second half, I lost interest in most of the short stories.
Finally I finished a re-read of Curtain Up. Still cute and nostalgic so no surprises there.
Currently reading: I started Two on a Tower but I don't feel very romance-y right now so I might put it on hold for a while.
QOTW: No, I wasn't interested in most of the prompts I'm afraid.
Finished:Rich People Problems - Yay!! I finally finished the series. I enjoyed this one and loved how it wrapped up everyone's stories.
The Nickel Boys - I don't think I'm using this int he challenge either but I've had it for awhile and wanted to actually read it. It was very well written. It's a tough story to get through because of the subject matter but well worth it.
Currently Reading:
How Long 'til Black Future Month? for an anthology. Still making my way through this. There have been stories that I'm enjoying more than other but overall a really great read.
Carry On - Probably not for the challenge. I'm listening to this on audio and the narrator is great. I really love Simon and Baz. I do not like Agatha though. Penny is fine but man, I cannot stand Agatha.
Home Before Dark - Not for the challenge. I'm not completely engaged with this one yet. I'm sure it's building but I don't think I need a long chapter of them touring the house. Will it play a part later in the book? I don't know but reading it just seemed to really slow down the story. I'm still really early in the book, so I'm assuming it will pick up.
QOTW:
I thought about doing it but there are too many prompts on it that don't interest me and I'd rather just read books I'm interested it instead.
It is getting hot here! Wow! I feel like we missed spring due to all the quarantine. What a weird year. Anywho...Finished 21/50
The Shield of Psalmic Prayer for "book published in 2020". This was a really good but really dense and technical read. If you're not into poetry and ancient Hebrew/Greek, this probably isn't for you (I enjoyed it though! Extremely thought provoking).
Miracle Cure for "medical thriller". So I learned that I don't enjoy medical thrillers! I'm just too squeamish and it's too close to the mystery/horror genres which I don't enjoy either. But I gave it an honest try and finished the book! Hey that's what this challenge is for: to expose us to other genres. So I appreciated it for that!
Currently Reading
Hidden Figures for "women in STEM". Super excited to read this! I didn't realize it was non-fiction. I thought it was historical fiction inspired by true events, but this is better!
On Living Simply: The Golden Voice of John Chrysostom for "book featuring one of the seven deadly sins". This. Book. I know I say it every week but omg this book is just one mic drop after the next!
The Wilderness Journal: 365 Days with the Philokalia for "book whose title caught your attention". Still here! Halfway through!
QotW
I wish, but, as you can tell, I'm barely staying on track for this challenge, so I don't think I can add another one right now (as much as I'd like to!).
I've had this week off work (hurrah!), but haven't managed to get as much reading done as I thought - partly, I suspect, because my husband and I have spent a good part of the last three days putting together a new warbrobe (and cursing whoever wrote the instructions!), and partly because I don't seem to be feeling the book I started earlier in the week. But I am going to try to make some inroads into it after doing this update, so hopefully I will make some more progress...Finished:
After You for A book with only words on the cover, no images or graphics. Nice easy read - liked it enough to put the third book in the series on my TBR list for the future.
Fanny Hill, or Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure for Read a banned book during Banned Books Week. I know it's not Banned Books Week yet, but I'm going to be done with the rest of the prompts well before September, so I didn't want to be hanging around waiting for this one to complete the challenge! I did struggle to find a book I was interested in for this prompt, and in the end I thought this one would be a bit of a giggle. It did slightly suffer from 'why say something in five words when fifteen will do', but I guess that was due to the period it was written in.
Started:
The Book of Swords for An anthology. This is the book I'm not really feeling, somehow, although I have liked a couple of the short stories quite a lot so far (although the Robin Hobb one I was most looking forward to ended up feeling a bit pointless, unfortunately).
QOTW:
I won't be doing the Popsugar summer challenge - one challenge per year is enough for me, and I'm always amazed at the people who manage to do two, or three, or four challenges at once! Plus, as I'm nearly done with the regular challenge, I'm looking forward to getting my teeth into my book backlog and TBR list for the rest of the year.
We've actually had a decrease in new covid cases over the past couple weeks (around 300 new cases/day in the county, down from 400). Maybe people are finally taking advice to stay home and wear masks? I have no idea; I'm still inside.Finished reading: (22/50)
The Stone Sky (WOC author, three-word title, meant to read in 2019, has a map, passes Bechdel test) - This was great and I have no idea why it took me so long to read it. (view spoiler)'s chapters were definitely the best (not sure if that's a spoiler but I will mark it in case).
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky (attention-catching title, has a map) - Middle-grade portal fantasy featuring African mythology. I got it because I love the cover + the title, but I thought the story's mythology was too shallow - there were just so many gods and legends and folkloric creatures that nobody got much depth/development. It felt like one of those rushed tours where you step out of the bus, snap a quick photo, and then get back on the bus to go to the next stop.
Still love that cover though:
Currently reading:
King of Scars (about a world leader, three-word title, has a map) - I adored Nikolai in the Grisha trilogy, and I thought Nina was just okay in Six of Crows. But surprisingly, here, I'm enjoying Nina's chapters and not really into Nikolai's. (Though I do like Zoya a lot. What a glow-up from Shadow and Bone when she was just generic mean girl #3248)
I've now read six books with maps, and am reading a seventh, and I'm not using any of them for that prompt. Maps, your day will come.
QotW: Nope. I'm already a tad behind on this challenge, so I can't really pick up another one. But it's still fun to have new topics and recs (and it's bumped a few books up my TBR).
Hey Everyone,So I actually remembered to check-in last week and wrote something up ...and then never hit submit. Whoops! So another 2 week check-in for me yet again. I've been working away at several books but only have completed 3 within that time.
First, I finished Antagonists, Advocates and Allies: The Wake-Up Call Guide for White Women Who Want to Become Allies With Black Women for a new book club that my cousin's wife invited me to. I liked it! I've read several books on social and racial justice now so there wasn't a ton of new information to me but I felt that she did a nice job of pushing you to be more active and not just learning but staying quiet (which is what I've been doing). It's a self published book and I found it funny to have gotten to the last page where there is a production date stamped from when they must have printed/bound the book and it was on the 1st of this month and I had gotten my copy around like the 6th or 7th. Talk about a fresh copy. I'm intrigued to see how this book club is going to go as my cousin and his wife live in a more rural area where the population is predominantly white and from the few facebook threads of hers I've looked in on there are a LOT of pretty defensive people. I'm wondering if some of those women are in the club too...
I also finished Exit Strategy and as with all the other Murderbot books I adored it. Really looking forward to the next one!
And lastly, I finished So You Want to Talk About Race and honestly, this was probably the best book I've read so far on racial justice from a standpoint of having a ton of topics explained and done so in a way that was really accessible. This is the book I'm recommending to my friends as the one they should start with if they want to read books on racial justice. It doesn't go into the history of the oppression/discrimination so I generally recommend additional reading along with it but it's such a good starting point.
Currently Reading:
Joy at Work: Organizing Your Professional Life - I think I'm going to DNF this for a little while. I'm not working at the moment and probably won't be for a while now so I'm having trouble staying interested in the content as it's just not relevant to me at the moment.
Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong - This is the book I've been reading in between all the other books. I've finally decided to make this more of a priority. Not sure why I'm having such a hard time getting through it because I'm finding it genuinely interesting!
How to Be an Antiracist - My hold on the audiobook version on this came in. This is the first audiobook I'm attempting since I stopped working and it's so much harder to get through one and not get distracted.
Blood of Elves - I probably should have pushed accepting this hold but I went ahead and accepted it. Whoops!
QOTW - Probably not. I cut down on the amount of challenges I'm doing this year to just the regular PS challenge and honestly I'm just now getting back into reading. Probably best if I just focus on this one. I had a slump for probably 3 months there so am feeling behind. I also keep reading non-prompt books when I do read so probably need to refocus myself soon.
Hi everyone,We're seeing huge spikes in case numbers here in Texas, so it looks like I'll be staying in for the foreseeable future. My cats sure are happy about having their parents home all the time!
Goodreads: 37/52
PS: 23/50
Lone Star: 5/20
Finished:
Ghost Boys
A Good Kind of Trouble
Both were excellent middle grades books that are very relevant right now.
Currently Reading:
Different Seasons
Stepsister
Alexander Hamilton I wanted to finish this one before the movie comes out, but it's taking me much longer than I thought to get through it!
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America This book is incredibly important, but I can only read a chapter or two a day. I find I need to take time to absorb and process what I'm learning.
QotW:
I'm going to do the summer challenge, but I won't stress about it if I don't finish it. I'm already a little behind on the main challenge, so I'll double-dip any books I can.
Well, my favorite event of every year (the Texas Book Festival) in late October was just officially moved to a virtual format. This makes me sad for many reasons, even though of course it's best to prioritize safety. I really thought we'd be out of this by then, so I'm feeling pretty sad about the state of the pandemic and hope for its ending. At least we still have books though...I'm at 46/50 for the regular challenge, and should finish up those last four in about two weeks.
This week I finished Apeirogon which had an unexpected structure, but the story was captivating. 4 stars
I read the poetry collection Don't Call Us Dead for one of my Juneteenth reads and some of them were difficult to understand, but there was a lot of heart in this collection and it was moving overall. 4 stars
I also read the poetry collection Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude and I loved the idea and some of the moments captured throughout. I'll admit most of it also felt out of reach (poetry can be a struggle for me) but I think it's an important collection. 4 stars
I listened to Bunny which I'm going to use for the campfire story for the summer challenge. It was weird, but I didn't dislike it. 3 stars
I just finished First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers for a country starting with C. I feel like I've read a lot of these books about horrible things that happen in other countries and the happy ending is them escaping to the US. I have mixed feelings about this, but overall I feel it's important to be familiar with history like this and it's brave for people to tell these difficult stories of what they've experienced. 3.5 stars
I am now listening to Celestial Bodies and reading Narrative of Sojourner Truth in print.
QOTW: At first I wasn't sure if I'd be interested, but when the list came out I saw that about 7 of the books I currently have checked out from the library fit different prompts, and there are about 5 prompts that connect with books that have been on my TBR for a while, and about 5 more than will get me to read lighter/summer/beachy books that I don't normally get to, but I think it will be a nice change of pace.
I finished two books this week but didn't use either for this challenge. I've got two titles in progress right now, but I don't think either will fit any of my open prompts. This is what happens when I go crazy with NetGalley requests and multiple library holds come in at the same time 🤪 I remain at 22/40 and 9/10 for this challenge and am now at 71/100 for my overall Goodreads Reading Challenge. Finished:
* The First to Lie by Hank Phillippi Ryan, which was an advanced digital copy courtesy of the author and her publisher; and,
* The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates by Wes Moore, which was recommended to me. I've had it on my radar for ages and wish I'd picked it up sooner.
Currently Reading:
* The Son of Good Fortune by Lysley Tenorio; and,
* Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot by Mikki Kendall.
QotW:
Are you participating in the Popsugar Summer Reading Challenge? No, I'm not. While a lot of the prompts look fun, I'm already working on four challenges (one of which has a "secret menu" bonus prompt list, so it's almost like I'm doing five challenges). Adding a challenge with 20 prompts to be completed in just 3 months (June/July/August) sounded like it was one challenge too many for me to attempt this year.
It was my birthday this week so I went to my parents house so lots of driving and not a lot of reading. I did get two done.For the prompt of A book with "gold," "silver," or "bronze" in the title I read The Silvered by Tanya Huff (might use it for eye issues if I can't find another I want to read). It was good BUT I'm tired of fantasy that is nothing but war and right now was really the wrong time to be reading about a group of people getting rights stripped away and being killed for their differences by a crazy politician with too much power.
For the prompt of A book by an author who has written more than 20 books I read The Mystery of the Blue Train by Agatha Christie. I do love her mysteries
QOTW Honestly I didn't even know there was a summer reading challenge but my plate's overfull of challenges anyhow.
It's been forever since I've been in the swing of reading. January and February I finished 17 books a month. Sadly in May I only read 3! June/July might be a turn around for me...maybe! My last post was in early May so this is the update since then.Progress:
Popsugar - 41/50
ATY - 37/52
Goodreads - 58/100
Finished since last post 5/7/2020!
• Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell ATY: Book about Arts
• I wish you all the best by Mason Deaver ATY: LGBTQ writer/character / POP: Non-Binary Writer
• Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid ATY: Published in 2020 / POP Character in '20s
• The Deep by Rivers Solomon ATY: Book with a silhouette on the cover
• American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson ATY: Historical Fiction / POP World Leader
• The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern ATY: Author read once before
• Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams ATY: Global City POP: Pink cover
• Boy Swallows the Universe by Trent Dalton ATY: Author in Australia, POP By journalist
Currently Reading:
The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
The Map of Salt and Stars by Zeyn Joukhadar
And because these two titles have confused me the whole time on my reading list I decided to read them concurrently! (jk) they both came available at the same time
House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig
QOTW
I am participating in several challenges, the Popsugar challenge looks interesting. I'm going to keep it in mind when I'm picking books to read next. Hopefully, many of the books on my other challenges will fit these prompts also. My library is doing A-Z during the summer. Book title for each letter of the alphabet, maybe I can fill both challenges with the same book!
I am getting my hair cut and colored tomorrow! I am ridiculously excited about this. Can't wait until the nail salons open. Why do I need all of this when there's no talk of going back to the office? I guess I just like the idea that I can.Finished:
I only finished one book this week.
Recursion
Currently reading:
All Adults Here
Every Heart a Doorway
The Count of Monte Cristo
We Ride Upon Sticks
QOTW:
In a no stress way. I added the challenge to my spreadsheet and will fill in books I read if they fit, but I am not making extra effort for it.
Two-week check-in.Western
The Cold Dish by Craig Johnson. This was the prompt I was looking forward to least. I love the show. I didn’t really like the book.
Non-binary author
Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self Love by Jonathan Van Ness. I really liked this book. He was very open about his life and his journey to accepting and loving every facet of himself and it was lovely.
book set in Japan
My Almost Flawless Tokyo Dream Life by Rachel Cohn. YA. I love Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist but I did not love this one. It’s almost difficult to believe this was by the same author. This one felt very juvenile.
don’t tick off prompts
Girl Gone Viral by Alisha Rai. Contemporary romance. This is probably my least favorite of her books. I just didn’t connect with either character.
The Trouble with Hating You by Sajni Patel. Contemporary romance. CW: sexual abuse but not graphic. I really, really liked this one.
Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson. YA mystery. Boarding school for prodigies. New student is obsessed with true crime and sets out to solve a decades old cold case that happened at the school. I didn’t love it but I liked it enough to buy the second book.
If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane. Contemporary romance. Billed as enemies to lovers. Not enough enemies and not enough lovers. I liked the last 50 or so pages a lot but too little too late.
Legendary Children: The First Decade of RuPaul’s Drag Race and the Last Century of Queer Life by Tom Fitzgerald and Lorenzo Marquez. The title tells you everything. They are two of my favorite fashion bloggers. I wish it had been longer and more in depth because it was fascinating and I wanted more.
QOTW:
Probably not. I really need to start planning for the next school year which I’ve been putting off because who knows what it will look like. But I have a couple of new classes I’m teaching so I should probably get productive.
Summer is on! A bit too much summer for my taste, but: 2 days of 30’s down, 1 to go. And yesterday I was lucky to be able to work in the airconditioned office. Also, as of now, I have 2 weeks off from work, so I hope to read 3 or 4 books in the coming weeks. Finished
Homegoing Nice read. Short stories are not my cup of tea.
Prompt: a book by a woman of color
Currently reading
Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine, 1921-1933
The Stationery Shop
Qotw
No. The regular challenge is challenging me already. Typically, I read 30-35 books a year. So ticking off 40 books is pretty big for me.
Hello Everybody.I am super excited as my new Aftershokx headphones should be here today and I just got a free year of amazon prime (through my telephone company) so I am really excited to look into the Amazon reading for some audio books, it looks like it just links into Audible which you still have to pay for?? (I maybe missing something, Please fill me in if I am) I am excited to find some books to listen to while out in garden and I am frugal.
Currently reading
The Green Mile still reading this out loud with my daughter but she and I are both working full time we are finding it hard to find time to actually sit down and read it.
Finished reading
All Systems Red Really liked this book, Thank you all for recommending it. I am looking forward to the next one which I have to buy as I missed the first two when Tor had them for free, I do have 3 and 4 already waiting in the Que and I am sure I will be buying #5
QOTW
I know this year and in past years I do not even come close to finishing just the popsugar challenge. I do like the suggestions of different types of books to read so I have added it to my challenge with no real intentions of completing it.
Happy Reading everyone
Mod
I just got my hair cut yesterday!! First time since I don't know when ... Feb? It was really long! Now it's REALLY short!!
I thought I'd have to wait a long time to get in, since I'm sure my stylist has a long waiting list, but just as I was about to trim my bangs for the third time, she texted me!
Nadine wrote: "Milena wrote: "I am getting my hair cut and colored tomorrow! I am ridiculously excited about this. Can't wait until the nail salons open. Why do I need all of this when there's no talk of going ba..."Maybe after I will start turning my video on for teleconferences.
I am in Arizona, and the apathetic attitude of so many toward taking coronavirus precautions is very upsetting to me. The governor has not been extremely helpful in this regard, either. I have not done dine-in since early March, and I do any errands as efficiently as I can while wearing a mask. I really want our schools to be able to open for in-person education this fall, and that means buckling down during the summer like we did in spring.Books finished:
Child of Two Worlds by Greg Cox
Dead Endless by Dave Galanter
The Way To The Stars by Una McCormack (a bildungsroman)
The first two get three stars, and The Way to the Stars gets four stars. The characters were very relatable, and the struggle to detach from your parents and make your own way in life is pretty universal. Of the Discovery novels, The Way to the Stars and Fear Itself are the ones I would recommend to date.
DNF:
Live and Let Chai by Bree Baker
The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi
Baker's cozy mystery felt very formulaic (lady goes back to a small town to start a business and discovers a murder that has some circumstantial evidence against them). It just wasn't setting itself apart from the pack enough for me to want to finish it.
The Gilded Wolves has some interesting concepts. However, I didn't feel like Forging or the Fragments were explained very well. Skimming reviews convinced me that the rest was not going to turn it around, so I DNF'd at Chapter 7.
Currently reading:
Harbinger by David Mack
2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke
These are both rereads of books I enjoy a lot. 2001 is my pick for a book with "20" in the title, and the Penguin Galaxy edition I got from the library only has text on the cover (stylized, but no graphic elements).
QotW:
This is one that I could do, but I don't find the prompts compelling enough to commit to it. What I will do is keep my eyes open in those threads and this one for books that people have loved that fit those prompts.
For the 2021 challenge, maybe there could be a few seasonal prompts for those who like to read books related to the current season without doing a separate challenge (kind of like the Banned Books Week prompt this year).
So I have a couple of updates already!1. To expand on my answer for the QotW, I've finished making a tentative TBR for the PS Summer challenge and since I was able to make it with a decent mix of genres and almost entirely with books that are already on my general TBR (only 1 that wasn't) and some that I was planning on reading this year anyways I think that I'll go ahead and do the challenge but I probably won't really focus on it until August/September. :)
Here's my TBR in case anyone wants to see (I'll just hide it under a spoiler tag so it doesn't take up so much room for anyone who isn't interested..there won't be any actual spoilers!)
(view spoiler)
2. I got my CT results today and I get to have some minor surgery soon (not sure when because of covid & current protocals at hospitals surrounding non-urgent surgery) to have my sinuses drained because they have been inflamed/congested for yearsss and no meds or treatments have helped because of the area that's affected. I'm not particularly looking forward to the surgery itself or being put under but at least it's outpatient/same day/just a scope. I am super looking forward to feeling better and being able to read a lot more comfortably after it's over! I would love less pressure around my eyes, less headaches, less nasal congestion, being able to breathe easier, less severe headache migraines when I have them and being able to ride roller coasters again without feeling awful afterwards...yes please!! I'm lucky that since I'm Canadian it's free and I don't have to think about paying for it! :)
Happy Thursday. I went and did some volunteer yardwork over at my church this week. Even though it was hot out, because I was in public I stubbornly insisted on wearing a mask the whole time. I don't care how hot it made me, it was the principle of the thing (plus I am just that stubborn). But I'm happy the sun came back. Challenge Progress:
Popsugar: 46/50
ATY: 51/52
Popsugar Summer: 4/20
ATY Summer: 7/12
Books I Finished:
A Left-Handed History of the World - I grew up listening to my Aunt's rant on how the world was biased against left-handed people (while listening to my Mom's occaisional story of being treated like she was disabled because she was left-handed) so I final borrowed this book from my Aunt and read it. I would have preferred a bit more history and a bit less 'left-handed people are better because I said so' but whatever. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Herding Cats - It was okay. It was mostly funny, but nothing really special. It was short, it was there, and I needed a laugh. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets - I loved The Wire. I've always meant to check out what David Simon's books were like, and this was just there on overdrive one day. It was brilliant and I'm sad it's over. I ended up using this for the Book about or by a journalist. prompt, even though I already had a book for that prompt.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Books I made progress on:
The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line
Mountain of Black Glass
The Jane Austen SocietyQOTW
I'm a bit of a challenge addict, so when I heard about it, I immediately copied the list, but then I actually looked at every prompt, and I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to finish it - but I'm still going to try.
Hi all! I finally got a Kindle after years of resisting (I like physical books as a rule; they smell so good!), so now I can rent library ebooks without actually leaving my house. It's not the same as holding a book, but it'll ultimately save me a ton of money and shelf space.Finished
She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey (book by or about a journalist). This wasn't a happy read, but it was interesting to see the behind-the-scenes of the journalists who took down Weinstein, who is, of course, The Worst. The book also delved into Kavanaugh (also The Worst) for the last two chapters. I was pretty bummed after reading this, especially as a chaser for My Dark Vanessa. I need to plan my reading schedule better!
The Science of Sci-Fi: From Warp Speed to Interstellar Travel by Erin Macdonald. This was an audiobook that went over some of the real science in shows like Star Trek, Futurama, etc. It was a fun listen, but I'd heard a lot of the content before since I watch a lot of science documentaries.
The Invisible Orientation: An Introduction to Asexuality by Julie Sondra Decker. This is a book about asexuality. I'm ace so I rather enjoyed it, and found it comforting to see that I'm not the only one who feels this way.
Currently Reading
The Power by Naomi Alderman (book with the same name as a movie/TV show but is unrelated). I'm really enjoying this so far. After reading She Said, I rather like the idea of women being able to shoot lightning out of their hands.
QotW I'm not going to do it just because I have about 20 challenge books left, and also a stack of books I couldn't fit into prompts that I still want to read this year. But I downloaded the list, so maybe I'll try it next summer. I'm not much of a "summer person" so maybe it'll get me in the spirit. Hopefully it's safe to actually go on vacation and do fun things this time next year!
Milena wrote: "I am getting my hair cut and colored tomorrow! I am ridiculously excited about this. Can't wait until the nail salons open. Why do I need all of this when there's no talk of going back to the offic..."I'm glad you were so excited you told us because I have forgotten to call my stylist to schedule an appointment every single day for a week. I have a hair style that basically looks the same long as short, but my split ends and bangs are a mess. I just called, and she's able to fit me in next Monday!
As someone already mentioned, the COVID-19 cases in Texas are starting to spike again, so I'm hiding out in my apartment. Nothing much has changed, basically. Although masks are now mandatory! Not that people will actually adhere to that...And people still see masks as an infringement on human rights. I'd facepalm, but it's not a strong enough gesture anymore. I think having to be around people who aren't wearing masks is an infringement on MY right to keep myself healthy, but hey, what do I know?
Finished:
Wildwood Imperium by Colin Meloy: This was my book with a map. Ironically, I listened to the audiobook and couldn't see the map! I honestly thought I'd sell my trilogy to Half-Price Books when I finished, because I'd found it a bit meh, but this book took it to a new level and I'm going to keep them haha. It doesn't hurt that I have a box set and the illustrations are gorgeous!
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas: A book by a woman of color. I have a very bad habit of putting off books/movies/shows that I know will be heavy, which is what happened with this. Of course, I loved it.
Currently Reading:
Victorian Fairy Tales
Up Next:
Probably Highfire by Eoin Colfer. My mum won it in a Goodreads giveaway and didn't realize it was an ARC...it's already come out but we both feel obligated to read and review it (I'm the one who asked her to enter because I really wanted a copy). Yeah, it's already come out, so oops. Guess I should get on that!
I am looking forward to it. I love Eoin Colfer.
QOTW:
Heck no! I'm having so much trouble staying on top of the regular reading challenge, I can't imagine trying to add a second! I am so impressed by all of you who take on multiple challenges. I love to read, and consider myself a big reader, but I'm always extremely humbled when I see how many more books you all get through than I do. So kudos!
Did I really not finish any books this week? Guess not. I started reading a 1,000-page book so I guess that's why.Started:Liberating Sociology: From Newtonian Toward Quantum Imaginations: Volume 1: Unriddling the Quantum Enigma I was super excited about this one initially, but it's become a bit of a slog.
Hurricane Child
QotW: Definitely not! I just finished the annual challenge and was relieved to get more freedom in my book selection.
Hi all. It's been a rough week for me. Let's just say I'm not enjoying my boss at the moment. I have been following Mary Robinette Kowal's livestreams of her audiobook narration for her next book, which takes far longer than just listening to the actual book, so that's taken up most of the past two weeks.
Finished:
The Black Flamingo - Thumbs up
Bruno, the Standing Cat - Picture book
The Marching Band Refused to Yield - Thought I'd do this for the summer nostalgia prompt, as both Goodreads and Amazon had it listed as a short story. It's really an article. People aren't noted as declining to comment on short stories. But, I went into it with good faith and will probably still count it unless I happen across something better
Currently Reading:
The Relentless Moon - Two chapters left!
The Guest List - I still don't know who dunnit or to whom!
The Tea Master and the Detective - 71% Ugh Kindle books are tedious
QOTW
Sort of? Maybe? I looked at books I've already read that didn't already have prompts, and moved a couple around, and was already about half-finished. So, I might. I've slotted in a few things, but since I apparently don't naturally read many summery books, they aren't really high priority.
This week was very intense at work. I had to take a 12 hour road trip today to transport one of my probation kiddos to a new placement facility and when we finally arrived and I got out, my body was cracking like a glow stick. On the bright side, I have finally started to get really back into the swing of things with my reading.This week I finished:
Where the Sidewalk Ends: A banned book. I don't see the point in waiting until banned book week.
The 20th Victim: A book with 20 in the title. It was fine. I think I ended up giving it 4 stars, but I don't really know that it deserved it. I'm thinking about giving up on James Patterson. Too much of the same old, same old.
My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry: A book with a made up language. Why didn't anyone warn me?!?!? I have loved all 4 of his books that I've read. I didn't love this one as much, but it was still better than most other things I read. Backman is essentially the master of character development. His writing is unlike anything else out there.
Sworn to Silence: Not for this challenge. I decided as a reward to myself for almost finishing the challenge (2 prompts to go) I would reread this series before the new one comes out. Other books in the series will finish my last 2 prompts.
Currently reading:
Pray for Silence: A book with a 3 word title. I love this series, but this isn't my favorite for sure.
QOTW:
I was up in the air about it, because I am almost finished with the full challenge, but I just don't think I want to add anything else to my plate. I'm ready to just curbside pickup whatever my brain desires from the library.
Heads up!The Calculating Stars is the free Tor.com ebook this week.
https://ebookclub.tor.com/
Also I feel you all need to know this week's free National Theatre Live streaming play is the immersive production of A Midsummer Night's Dream with Gwendoline Christie, Oliver Chris, David Moorst and Hammed Animashaun. THIS is the one I've been hoping they would show. It looks spectacular and I imagine being in that audience would have been amazing. Check out the trailer and tell me you wouldn't want to go to that show!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjmOP...
I had a huge finish today... I finished Proust - Remembrance of Things Past Vol III!
3 volumes, 7 books, 3424 pages, 1,25M words.
Started 9.11.2019. Finished 6.25.2020.
Bucketlist read. Absolutely 5 stars!
Not sure if I have a PS prompt open that fits Vol. III. But I FINISHED!
QOTW: Sure. With Proust done and being way ahead in regular challenge, why not? Don't however expect to see much beyond mysteries, romances, and thrillers.
Another late night update...these summer days get away from me just like that!Finished: The Night Country by Melissa Albert for book with a book on the cover. Better than The Hazel Wood but not as great as I had hoped.
Currently Reading: All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven for book with at least a 4-star rating on goodreads. I thought there was a prompt for book becoming a movie in 2020, but turns out I made that up! But there was a prompt for that in 2019, so I'm not too crazy.
Starting: Probably nothing new, but if I do, The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket for book written in the 20th century. Was it written in 1999? Yes, Is that the 20th century? Yes. Deal with it. I'd like to try get as much of the whole series in as possible for the challenge.
Goodreads; 14/15
PS: 14/50
QOTW: Probably not...unless I find books that only fit those prompts rather than the regular challenge.
Wow Summer has hit, there is only one page of checkins by the time I'm reading through. I just got back from visiting my grandma and I'm feeling very grateful for my library. My grandma has recently lost her vision and relies on audiobooks which I am in charge of suppling her with. We are in the same province but I feel like my library actually wants to serve the public. Anyway what matters is she has a bunch of books until I can get back up there.Finished:
Thick: And Other Essays 5 stars
The writing is really compelling and I didn't want to put the book down. Still, I took my time with this one in hopes that I actually absorbed her points.
Happily Ever After & Everything In Between 3 stars
This wasn't as good as Book Love but still enjoyable.
House of the Rising Sun 3 stars
I read a series by her years ago and thought I give one of her other series a try. Turns out this is set in the same world and there's cameos by a couple of characters. This was middle of the road urban fantasy. I don't know if I'll continue the series.
Herding Cats 3 stars
It came from my library whoo. Anyways, the first in the series is still the best. This is next best. There was one comic that killed me but the rest were okay. Found out there's a fourth in the series being published in October.
Serpent & Dove 4 stars
This was a surprise. I really enjoyed it and stayed up late reading it because I couldn't put it down. It is confusing because this seems like paint by numbers ya but the writer made the difference and 500 pages went quick. September for the next one seems to long to wait, so silly.
PS 2020 41/50
PS 2016 31/50
PS Summer 2020 6/20 (using what I've read from the star of June to the end of August)
Goodreads 108/150
Currently Reading:
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World I'm half done and I don't want to quit on it but I'm not making progress.
Blood Heir
QOTW:
Yes I am. I'm pretty close to finish the Popsugar challenges I've started thanks to lockdown (I kept track and I've read 50 books from when the library closed until when it reopened) so I might as well give it a shot but I'm not going to stress to finish it. I've reached the point when I the prompts have become challenging so naturally I'm starting a new challenge.
Hello all! Not too much to report. This week I finished:"Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?": A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity: this was fascinating! I had a more race-conscious upbringing than most white kids, probably, and it was really interesting being able to put my own and my friends' development in context. Highly recommend.
Something to Talk About: ugh this was just perfect. I worried it would have a weird perspective on the entertainment industry--it did not! And the romance was excellent. 10/10 would read a sequel.
The Lady and Her Secret Lover: a Lords of Time story.: Hmm! This was bad! A friend gave me this so I'm glad I didn't buy it. There were modeling photos interspersed throughout, which I liked, but also an instance of sexual assault, which I absolutely never want to appear in romance no thank you put it away.
How to Get the Part...Without Falling Apart!: Featuring the Haber Phrase Technique for Actors: Hmm noticeably dated, but the actual advice was fine.
Currently reading:
The Count of Monte Cristo
Venetia
Network Effect
QOTW: Mm, no, I don't think I'll do it. I decided to do ATY like a month ago so that's keeping me pretty busy. And the Popsugar summer challenge is almost...too focused on summery books for me? All I want to read right now is SFF and the thought of trying to find a summer-set thriller makes me want to scream.
Mod
I finished Proust - Remembrance of Things Past Vol III!
3 volumes, 7 books, 3424 pages, 1,25M words.
Started 9.11.2019. Finished 6.25.2020.
Bucketlist read. Absolute..."
Wow. That is a super accomplisment! Congratulations!
Finished reading:Pretending (no prompt): I enjoyed this, I liked the main character and the comments she makes, but I'm not totally sure on the ending.
A Spool of Blue Thread (no prompt): I enjoyed this more than I expected to, it was easier to read than I thought it would be. I liked the focus on family and the stories of each generation, but it got a little repetitive for me (although I think that was the point).
Currently reading:
The Private Joys of Nnenna Maloney (no prompt): I've only started reading this today, struggling a little to get into the narrative style but I think I'm going to like it.
QOTW: I don't think I'm going to join in with the summer challenge. I've covered 28 prompts out of 40 so far with the normal challenge, which is way better than I expected! I may take another look at the summer prompts and see if I have books that fit, but I'm not going to make too much effort as it will stress me out!
This will be a three week check in. I have been too busy at work to be able to do the check in previous weeks. Now only two weeks to go before my four week vacation. Challenge progress:
Popsugar: 9/40 regular, 2/10 advanced
ATY: 11/42
Goodreads 23/52
Finished
Vecka 36 a Swedish crime novel. Direct translation would be Week 36. A mum-to be disappear after a evening at the local pub. My first audiobook in a long time. 3 stars out of 5
All the Light We Cannot See From the beginning I was going to use it for A book set in a city that has hosted the Olympics but think I will use another book for this prompt instead. Did not think it took place in Paris enough to be used for this. 4.5 stars out of 5.
I stället för dig The sequel to Vecka 36 and the translation would be Instead of you. Also audiobook. Did not like it as much, 2 stars out of 5.
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine loved this book 5 stars out of 5. Used for advanced prompt a book with more than 20 letters in the title
The Light We Lost also audiobook (noticeable that we started a family account at one of the audiobook suppliers :-) ). 3 stars out of 5.
Currently reading:
En nästan vanlig man translation of Swedish title would be An almost ordinary man.
Still Alice audiobook
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire still reading this aloud for my daughter
Are you participating in the Popsugar Summer Reading Challenge?
No I am too far behind in my other challenges to add this one as well.
Anna, if you don't have a book in the vision enhancement/impairment prompt, All The Light We Cannot See would work for that
Sheri wrote: "Anna, if you don't have a book in the vision enhancement/impairment prompt, All The Light We Cannot See would work for that"Thanks, did not think that far. I will do that. I had thought of using the Harry Potter book for that but it is going so slow with the reading to my daughter ....
Mod
Challenge progress:
Popsuga..."
Okay, I admit it! I'm jealous! Four whole weeks! WOW! Enjoy!!
QOTW - After much internal debate - I am going to do the PS Summer challenge. I am 2 books away from finishing PS challenge and while I have a few other book goals this year they seem to fit with the summer challenge. When I took time to look about 1/2 of the prompts fit with books I was already planning to read in 2020 when I finish PS and the remaining I can all fill from my TBR (except for 1). I love summer, love reading at the beach and can make almost any book a "beach read". However - I am not going to stress if I don't finish it by end of August (or at least tell myself not to stress - we will see how that goes).
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
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Admin Note:. Coming next week will be the July group discussion of A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles with discussion lead by Brandy B!
We will be setting up the nomination polls for the final quarter of 2020 in the coming days so be looking for that!
On to the reading check-in!
I forgot to check in last week so this will cover two weeks of reading for me.
Finished:
At Home by Bill Bryson. This was a fun romp through the history of the typical modern home - why certain rooms were created, what their original uses were - as well as some general history of home life. I felt he got sidetracked sometimes on topics that were barely adjacent to the topic, but it was still a fun read. I did it on audio and am wondering now if the print book has any photos?
The Betrothed by Kiera Cass. I really wanted to like this book because I loved The Selection series so much. Alas, this one was just not as good. Characters were too flat. It was a step back in content quality in my opinion.
A Poisoned Season by Tasha Alexander. Book two in the Lady Emily mystery series. It's been a few years since I read book 1 so there were some references that I didn't quite remember. I should try to read the next one soon so I don't have that issue. This is a fun, light historical mystery with likeable characters.
Speaking of The Selection series - to shake off the remnants of The Betrothed (and to refresh my memory on some details before my teen reads them) I indulged in a reread of The Selection and The Elite by Kiera Cass. Sure there are some flaws, but overall it's a good story with good characters.
The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers by Maxwell King. I read half of this book last year, but I got bogged down in the middle with too much talk of tv studios and production details. Eventually I had to return it to the library unfinished. I finally picked it back up and finished it this week. It's a good story and my appreciation for Mr. Rogers went up even more. Also, I finally got to watch A Beautiful Day on the Neighborhood recently which was just delightful.
Currently Reading:
The One by Kiera Cass. Rounding out my reread of the America Singer chronicles. I have read the next two in the series (dealing with America's daughter), but I won't be rereading them.
Question of the week:
Are you participating in the Popsugar Summer Reading Challenge?
https://www.popsugar.com/entertainmen...
I am already doing three challenges this year and I simply don't have the time right now to dig into another one, but I think it sounds like fun!