Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

Happy Thursday! Sorry to be a bit late with this today! My computer is not cooperating! And I'm trying to save money back for more plumbing issues in the house! :(

There is a Dewey Reverse Readathon scheduled for 8PM Friday, July 22 until 8PM Saturday, July 23! I don't really participate much in these, but it does motivate me to concentrate a bit more on reading during those hours. However, I will sleep just as much as usual with no regret!! Too old to miss sleep! LOL

I've had some frustrating situations this week and am trying to meditate my way through those emotions. It's interesting that I am finding it more difficult to moderate my frustration and anger in the aftermath of retiring. I think maybe that is at least partially due to lack of overwhelming distraction that full-time work offered! (Even though the frustrations of my job were overwhelming! LOL) In other words, these emotions are much stronger and more difficult for me to work through since my world is 'less busy'. I'm trying different options to overcome this, but it is an intriguing observation, IMO! I believe I definitely must increase my physical activity as I find that helps immensely. Unfortunately, reading a book requires little physical exertion! LOL :) I'm not enough of a fan of audiobooks to incorporate that into an exercise routine...but I'll figure it out. Eventually! LOL :)

I would say we are in a heatwave in the midwestern US, but with temperatures only in the 90's Fahrenheit that probably no longer qualifies as "heatwave," considering the much higher temperatures across other portions of the US and around the world. I am so very sorry for the lives lost due to extreme heat, particularly in European countries, etc. This is so very sad...

ADMIN STUFF:
The July Monthly Group Read discussion of Piranesi by Susanna Clarke is ongoing! You can find that discussion in the Current Monthly Group Read folder along with the posting for July’s “I Finished” discussion thread. Those are HERE. Thank you so much to Teri for leading this month’s discussion! Piranesi will fulfill prompt #47 A book featuring a parallel reality

Erica is the "marvelous manager" who has graciously volunteered to lead the August discussion of The Dog Stars by Peter Heller! Thank you, Erica!

We currently have two Monthly Group Reads still needing discussion leaders:
1) September: a “savvy superstar” to lead the discussion of Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
2) October: a “knowledgeable navigator” to lead the discussion of The Ex Hex (The Ex Hex #1) by Erin Sterling
Please message either Nadine or myself to volunteer!

The nomination poll for November’s Monthly Group Read will be posted next week.

The comprehensive listing of Monthly Group Reads for 2022 is HERE.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK:
To follow-up on Nadine’s question last week: What is your favorite and least favorite reading prompt from the 2022 Popsugar Reading Challenge?

My favorite Popsugar prompt is #3 A book set in a nonpatriarchal society. I read The Island of Sea Women for this and it was an excellent (if sometimes brutal) read. This prompt made me think beyond a strictly “matriarchal society” as the only alternative to a “patriarchal society,” since TIoSW depicts a “matrifocal society.” I particularly appreciated See’s description of the political policies and economic factors that helped create such a society in the first place. I learned a lot.

I’m going to say my least favorite Popsugar prompt is #11 A #BookTok recommendation. This is when I love the listopias and the fact that we had a monthly group read so I could knock it out with little research! I'm just not in the mood for yet another social media site!

Though I am not caught up with documenting books, my challenge totals are:
Popsugar: 40/50
ATY: 49/52
RHC: 14/24

FINISHED:
*The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley (5 stars) was a book I knew would compel me to keep reading and get me back into reading after being sick for a week and reading almost nothing but a few short stories! And it did exactly that! I enjoyed The Guest List, but I think I liked this one even better. I have yet to read The Hunting Party or any of her other books.
POPSUGAR: #1, #9, #25, #36, #40-2015: prompt #13 A book set in a different country-France, #42-French & English, #46
ATY: #4-A book whose author is younger than you, #7-the old man had them all trapped psychologically, #15, #35-the beautifully kept gardens in the courtyard, #40-The Lovers, Strength, Death, Judgment, The World, #41-Wine, #44, #49, #51
RHC: #24-2020: prompt #3 A mystery where the victim is not a woman

*Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T.S. Eliot, illustrated by Axel Scheffler (5 HUGE STARS!) was absolutely adorable! I had forgotten just how much I love Eliot’s poetry. It had been decades since I’d read any… Glad to reconnect with his work.
POPSUGAR: #24, #40-2016: prompt #9 A book with less than 150 pages
ATY: #3, #4-A book written by an author you might like to meet, #7-Of cats, of course!, #15, #31-1939, #36, #40-The Magician, Justice, Judgment, The World, #46
RHC: NEW #12, #24-2016: Read a book less than 100 pages in length

*The Book Lovers' Appreciation Society by Cecila Ahern, Maeve Binchy, Mavis Cheek (5 STARS) was a rather large collection of short stories by many authors I have either read and enjoyed before, or am aware of… It was an excellent collection, and about the only thing I could read while sick last week! And it was a fundraiser for breast cancer awareness and research! So bonus!
POPSUGAR: #26, #40-2017:prompt #8 A book with multiple auithors
ATY: #3, #4-A book whose cover depicts your favorite kind of weather, #14-451 ratings, #39-2009, #47
RHC: #5, #24-2019: prompt #9 A book published prior to January 1, 2019, with fewer than 100 reviews on Goodreads

CONTINUING:
Beloved by Toni Morrison is an amazing work of classical fiction, IMO.
*When the Elephants Dance by Tess Uriza Holthe
*Double Cross (Alex Cross #13) by James Patterson

PLANNED:
July Buddy/Group Reads:
*The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro
*One Good Turn (Jackson Brodie #2) by Kate Atkinson
*Raven Black (Shetland Island #1) by Ann Cleeves
*Cross Country (Alex Cross #14) by James Patterson
STILL PLANNING THESE BELOW AS WELL!
*Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk
*The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
*Ordinary Girls by Jaquira Díaz
*Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James
*Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff

It's been a few weeks since I checked in

Set on a train

One Last Stop by Casey McQuisten. I completely missed the supernatural aspect in the blurb but that's on me (how did I miss it, I have no idea), so that was a bit of a surprise. This was an adorable romance. And I would watch the series if it were made into one.

book I know nothing about
This was a hard prompt and I wandered around Barnes and Noble and seriously picked I book I had not heard about and that I liked the cover.
Persephone's Station by Stina Leicht. Sci-fi. Mainly female characters. Trying to save her world from an evil corporation. I'm not mad I bought it.

book becoming a tv series
Heartstopper: Volume 1 by Alice Oseman. Graphic novel. The first volume is like the first 3 or 4 episodes of the show. It was adorable. The show is adorable. Highly recommend.

no prompts from fave to least fave

Roommate Arrangement by Saxon James. M/M Contemporary romance.

Platonic Rulebook by Saxon James. M/M contemporary romance

The Bodyguard by Katherine Center. She's the bodyguard, contemporary romance, no spice. Sweet and enjoyable.

Frat Wars: King of Thieves by Eden Finley. M/M college romance. Enjoyable.

Frat Wars: Master of Mayhem by Eden Finley. M/M college romance. Enjoyable.

Rogue by Eden Finley. M/M contemporary romance. Enjoyable.

Defiant Heart by Brighton Walsh. Billed as enemies to lovers. I needed more enemies part because they went from enemies to in love in like 5 seconds and no thank you.

You're Invited Thriller. Woman is invited to her ex best friend's wedding to her ex-boyfriend and is intent on stopping the wedding. It was okay but it could've ended halfway through with an actual conversation among adults.

Romance series M/M, contemporary friends to lovers all are billed as low angst. All by Saxon James.
Just Friends
Getting Friendly
Fake Friends Not low angst, one of the mains is struggling with his sexuality given his upbringing. TW: homophobic comments and conversion therapy suggestions
Friendly Fire

The Best Friend by Raleigh Ruebins. M/M contemporary romance. Friends to lovers. Enjoyable.

Boss in the Bedsheets by Kate Canterbary. Grumpy/sunshine contemporary romance that really didn't work for me because they met on a plane and then essentially moved in together the next day and were in love in what seemed like a week and I need more of a slow burn.

Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas. Lit fic about a college that cuts you off completely. I feel like the author thinks they did more than they actually did. Came off as pretentious with very little pay off.

Reverie by Shain Rose. Contemporary romance. Billed as enemies to lovers but it was more grumpy/sunshine. I did not like either main character. It was Dual POV and I swear his was all about just wanting a physical relationship to all of a sudden in love and wanting to get married. There was no development at all and the plot was all over the place.

QOTW:

Least favorite: the palindrome. It's taking forever to find something I haven't read and am semi interested in

Happy Thursday, everyone!

I decided to tackle cleaning out the storage closet this week, and I’m feeling more than a little overwhelmed by all of the stuff that’s in there. I’ve already got five boxes packed up with stuff to donate, but I’ve just barely scratched the surface. I was hoping to be done with this project by the weekend, but I think it’s going to take me longer than I anticipated.

Even though it has been a busy week, I’ve still managed to do a tremendous amount of reading. I’m really pleased with the number of books I was able to finish, especially since I am now one-third of the way into the Fairy Tail manga series.

Goodreads: 348/200
TBR Checklist: 296/1029

Finished Reading:
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 12
~First Class Murder — This is the third book in the Murder Most Unladylike series, and would be a great option for anyone who is looking for a middle grade read that takes place on a train (the Orient Express, to be exact).
~Home Before Dark — This is now officially my favorite of Riley Sager’s novels.
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 13
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 14
~Silent Whispers — I really enjoyed this romantic mystery, which was set at a writer’s conference in a haunted Scottish castle.
~Silent Night: A MacCulloch Castle Christmas — This novella sequel to Silent Whispers was a very fast read.
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 15
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 16
~Lady Killers: Deadly Women Throughout History — This book was a fascinating look at female serial killers.
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 17
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 18
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 19
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 20
~My Best Friend's Exorcism — I’ve had mixed feelings about most of Grady Hendrix’s books, but I think I’m done reading him after finishing this one. (view spoiler)[ Having one of his characters kill their dog completely ruined this story for me. (hide spoiler)]
~Fairy Tail, Vol. 21

DNF:
~The Paris Apartment — I just couldn’t get invested in the story.
~The Secret of Dunhaven Castle — I made it a couple of chapters into this book, but didn’t care for the writing style.

Currently Reading:
~The Princes in the Tower

QOTW:
I decided not to participate in this year’s challenge, but I did like the fact that POPSUGAR included the “a book you can read in one sitting” prompt.

The prompt I liked the least is the “Anisfield-Wolf Book Award winner” prompt. I really prefer open-ended prompts, and choosing books from a set list of award winners feels very restrictive to me. I felt the same way about last year’s “Women’s Prize for Fiction” prompt.

Happy Thursday, folks.

Nothing to report, so on with the reading roundup...

Books read this week:

Confessions of a Turtle Wife -- funny, cute, and surprisingly informative account of a woman trying to cope with her husband’s obsession with turtles. I learned quite a bit more about these reptiles than I expected to, hehe…

Tender is the Flesh -- whoa, this was horrifying. I should have known based on the description (a world where cannibalism is legalized due to animal meat being unsafe to eat), but it defied my expectations. Don’t know how much I “enjoyed” it, but it sure was memorable!

What Moves the Dead -- a delightfully creepy retelling of “The Fall of the House of Usher.” I LOVE T. Kingfisher!

One of Those Days -- graphic novel, a collection of comics from the webcomic. It’s a lot of fun and actually rather cute to see this couple’s everyday moments captured in a comic-book style.

DNF:

The Measure -- one of those cases of “good premise, bland execution.” Also, too many characters to juggle.

Currently Reading:

Nightmares and Dreamscapes
The Green Mile
Last Day on Earth: Stories
Dead Silence
The Emperor's Edge

QOTW:

Favorite prompt would have to be "Hugo award winner," since I'm a sci-fi fan -- I seem to be the only one who liked this prompt. Least favorite was "palindromic title."

Happy Thursday! One of my friends flew in from out of town last weekend and the show we were supposed to see got rained out, so attempt #2 is tonight (although friend is back in New Hampshire... sadface). The weather at least appears more cooperative tonight.

I also had poll worker training last Friday! In typical millennial fashion, I felt like most of it could have been an email (or, you know, just hand me the book to study and leave me to it) but I did appreciate learning to use the little check-in computers. I'm nervous about such a long day (I have to BE THERE at 5:30am and probably won't get home til 9pm, depending on where in the county they send me), but determined to help out however I can.

And I managed to try the new strawberry Frosty at Wendy's -- yuck. No more of that, thank you. Way too much artificial flavoring.

In looking-forward-to news, I'm going to my first Renaissance Faire this weekend with one of my best friends! Gonna be hot but we're so excited.

And in book news, it appears my next venture will be diving headfirst into Milestone Comics's backlog (and newer material). Huzzah for diverse comics!

Finished this week:
Catwoman, Volume 7: Inheritance - 5 stars. I NEED this mafia storyline to be a film, please. Immediately.
Rebirth of the Cool - 4.5 stars. I loved the Static tv series growing up and seeing the original comics is great.
Wrath Goddess Sing - 5 stars. I finished this last night at midnight after taking over a month to read it and WOW. So so so so good. Book about gender identity
Static: Season One - 4 stars. The first of the Milestone Returns collection. I like Vita Ayala's writing and the artwork is gorgeous. They've updated it to be very 21st century, which I appreciate, and Virgil's humor is definitely still there. Sidenote: Static/Spidey crossover WHEN??

PS 36/50, not bad for coming up on the end of July

Currently:
The Warmth of Other Suns: the Epic Story of America's Great Migration - This is both small and massive in scope, and Ms Wilkerson does an excellent job maneuvering between her three main people. Anisfield-Wolf Book Award winner
One of Us Is Lying - This stalled while I plowed through the rest of Wrath Goddess Sing, but I'm excited to come back to it!
Dreaming the Eagle - Same as above. I've realized I can't read two same-subgenre fantasies at once, so this has been cooling its heels on my nightstand for a few weeks now. Starts with the last letter of your last read (The Living End)
Locklands - Starting tonight and wary of the apparent time jump between books 2-3.
The Accidental Empress - Still not sure what's going on with this. I'll check back in on it once I finish Warmth, but I'm not worried about it til then.

QOTW: To follow-up on Nadine’s question last week: What is your favorite and least favorite reading prompt from the 2022 Popsugar Reading Challenge?
I'm a sucker for history and geography, so the Twin Towns dual prompt set off my imagination in a hundred directions before I finally narrowed it down to my choices. I also appreciated the specific marginalized categories, for Latinx author, Pacific Islander author, and BIPOC romance author. Get some of us white readers out of our comfort zones, PS!
Least favorites definitely include "Book that starts with the last letter of your previous read" - it's a lot more challenging than I thought it would be! And "Book with a recipe", since I don't read much in the way of cooking books or cozy mysteries that might involve cooking, etc. "Book with a quote from your favorite author" is proving rather challenging as well.

I live in Texas so our temps have been brutal. It's gotten up to 106 F. I overheat easily, have since I was a kid. If I'm out in the sun longer than 2 hours then I get sick. So living in Texas I try to stay cool and hydrated as much as possible.

*****

Didn't get any reading done for this week, unfortunately. I've been waiting for a couple to start in so I can get going on those.

Since I've got two books set to arrive these are the ones I'll be reading:

The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us

How the Mountains Grew: A New Geological History of North America

Also hoping to add in this one:

Cabin Fever: The Harrowing Journey of a Cruise Ship at the Dawn of a Pandemic

Two of these will fill in a couple of the PopSugar prompts: Plane/Train/Cruise ship and Duology (2)

*****

Even though I think I answered the QotW last week, I'm going with my second favorite prompt and other least favorite.

So the second are the duology books, both 1 and 2. When I found out Stephen Brusatte had a second book coming out I was immediately sold. I had been wanting to read The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World but had not gotten around to it. This topic gave me an incentive to do so since he recently released The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us which I'll be starting this week.

As for my other least favorite, can't remember what I put before, but another least would have to be the one on the ace spectrum but that's because I just have no personal interest in it.

*****

On a side note, I only have 3 more topics to go and then I'll be done.

K.L. wrote: The prompt I liked the least is the “Anisfield-Wolf Book Award winner” prompt. I really prefer open-ended prompts, and choosing books from a set list of award winners feels very restrictive to me. I felt the same way about last year’s “Women’s Prize for Fiction” prompt

This is what I struggled with. And as a nonfiction reader, it was even harder. There wasn't a lot (if any? I forgot) to choose from on that front.

The only reason I read Beloved was that it was a book club read for here and since it had been on my tbr I figured I'd give it a chance (not my type of book so it wasn't one I particularly cared for.)

I finished Dark Places as my book about a secret. It was good, but weird.

I read Creature as my book that takes place in '80s. It was weird, but good.

I'm about halfway through Madam as my palindromic title. It's weird and slow. I have no idea what is going on, but not in a good way. I'm not really invested in anyone.

QOTW: My favorite prompt is the book that takes place int he Victorian era. I like to travel to different places and times when I read. I read The Moonstone.

My least favorite is the Sapphic novel, or the romance by a bipoc. Not my thing--any kind of romance. It's OK if it's an element of the book, obviously, but not the main focus.

My Dune complete series reading is going nicely. I am up to Heretics of Dune and also reading Dreamer of Dune a bit at a time. Once I finish Sandworms, I will just have the Caladan trilogy left.

I have also started Terminal Alliance by Jim C. Hines for the book club.

Finished:

Possession by J.M. Dillard (3/5, first time read)

It is exactly what it sounds like: a possession story with the TNG crew. The possessors are not supernatural but virus-like entities.

Question of the Week:

My favorite prompts were book about a band/musical group and set on a plane/train/cruise ship. They offer so many cool possibilities.

My least favorite is palindromic title. Have there even been 10 books in this category that have been exciting or satisfying to the group?

Happy Thursday! I'm going away on a two-week vacation to visit my mother in August, and my library holds have all come in for me to pick up this weekend. Woohoo!! 15 books waiting for me!! (No, I will not be able to read all 15 - but I like to have choices!) And some of them will even be for this Challenge!



This week I finished 3 books, none for this Challenge, so I remain 37/50.

Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen - Mostly, I got sucked in by the cover and that's why I read this. Yes I do judge books by their covers. I had felt rather so-so about the previous book I read by this author, so I started this one with no more than moderate expectations. And most of the book was exactly what I expected. It was enjoyable, and it had a few small plot twists, but overall it's forgettable.

The Guncle by Steven Rowley - an absolute delight! Five stars. I think this is one of those books that a lot of people will be able to agree on.

Call Us What We Carry poems by Amanda Gorman - I was really disappointed in this.




QotW

Naturally I cannot pick just one. This year's list is pretty decent, without any big standouts that I especially LOVE or HATE. I haven't really dreaded any of the categories.


Favorites: I always like the "published this year" category, so that one for sure. I also was excited to see ownvoices SFF, Anisfield-Wolf Award, non-patriarchy, and BIPOC romance, but those last two did not turn out to be very good books for me. I was excited about "book you know nothing about" because I had so much fun in the previous year when we had to choose a book with our eyes closed, but the book I ended up using for that was not great. I was NOT thrilled when I saw social horror or man-made disaster, but I did enjoy the books I read for that!

I wrote to my favorite author and asked her which books she had blurbed, and I'm excited to read the book she mentioned, so I'm looking forward to that one. (And just this morning I saw a book coming out in November with a quote from another favorite author on its cover!)


Least Favorite: well, non-patriarchy, for sure, since that was one of the worst books I've read so far for this year's challenge. Also, a book with a recipe (because those tend to be the kind of book I don't enjoy), a book about a band (because I don't really like reading about music - reading is reading and music is music and I rarely enjoy combining them), a BookTok recommendation, palindrome, and onomatopoeia. Even though I don't like these categories, the books I've read for them so far have been good. The first book I read for onomatopoeia was a DNF, so I haven't filled that one yet, but my next choice is Dick Francis, and he's ALWAYS good, so I'm sure it will be fine.

I'm struggling to come up with a duology that I'm excited about, but I've got several choices so I should be okay there when I finally get to it.

Lynn wrote: "*The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley (5 stars) was a book I knew would compel me to keep reading and get me back into reading after being sick for a week and reading almost nothing but a few short stories! And it did exactly that! I enjoyed The Guest List, but I think I liked this one even better. I have yet to read The Hunting Party or any of her other books...."


I think I asked this on your status update, but I don't know if you replied, so I'm asking again here: do you think I'll like this? I did NOT like The Guest List. At all. I had no interest in reading another book by her. But then my book club chose Paris Apartment for our August book. Sigh. My library hold list is LONG for this one, so I dont' even know if I'll get it in time, but I'm going to try to read it.

Morning Everyone! Happy Thursday!

I can't wait! I have one last Summer Reading Program day left! Then I'm free and can go on vacation in August. So ready for that.

We had an epic rain storm Tuesday. It was pouring buckets in places. It was so muggy yesterday everything was tacky. Blech! It's not so bad today. 🥵

Watched Belle on Monday! Omg! It is so freaking amazing! It so gorgeous and has beautiful music. I highly recommend it and any other movie from Mamoru Hasoda.

Finished:

The Royal Tutor, Vol. 4
The Royal Tutor, Vol. 5
The Royal Tutor, Vol. 6
The Royal Tutor, Vol. 7
Strike the Zither -- NetGalley book. So much plot and intrigue and a major twist I was not expecting! Got confused with the epithets and names on occasion. It was good. And now I have to wait for the second book. 🥺
Ceres: Celestial Legend, Vol. 5: Mikage
Fushigi Yûgi: VizBig Edition, Vol. 2
Jem and the Holograms, Vol. 1: Showtime -- Read for PS #21 Musical group or Band. Nostalgia at it's finest! I remember watching the original show and the dolls. I even got the car for Christmas! It was a radio as well. I enjoyed it.
My nephew and I had a bit of quality reading time.
Time for School, Little Blue Truck
Pete the Cat's Groovy Imagination
Fiona Helps a Friend

Continuing Reading:

Steins;gate: The Complete Manga
Inuyasha. VizBig Edition, Volume 1: Pulled Through Time!
Ceres: Celestial Legend, Vol. 6: Shuro

Planning:

Fushigi Yûgi: VizBig Edition, Vol. 3
Inuyasha. VizBig Edition, Volume 2: New Allies, New Enemies
Ceres: Celestial Legend, Vol. 7: Maya

QOTW:

I'm not looking forward to the Ansfield award and social horror ones. I'm not much of a serious reader nor do I read any type of horror. They are still tbr.

I can't really decide on a favorite one. This year's list was the best so far with so many prompts that were fun for me to do.

We are having a heatwave now. Of course our definition of heat wave is over 30 with humidity over 35. So, we are in no way going through what the UK, France, and Spain are going through. I think our definition is so that cities have to do more for the elderly, children, and the homeless in either extreme heat or cold situation.

Finished:

We Were Liars
ATY prompt: A book set on or near a body of water
Popsugar prompt: A book with a recipe in it
(summer prompt: Author's initials contained in "LET'S GET PHYSICAL")

ATY - 30/52
PS- 25/35
Series -10/13
Clearing my TBR list: 24/40

Currently reading:

Le Bonheur: Poeme - 10% done

One by One - 25% done

Reading with my kids:

At Home in Mitford - 11/24 chapters

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - 12/37 chapters

QOTW: I am really struggling with Pop Sugar prompts this year since they all seem to have a weird restriction that makes them extra hard. For example why planes, trains, and cruise ships? Why not boats? I read a book that mostly takes place on the Argo (of Jason fame), but technically not a cruise ship.

I love open-ended prompts like the secret or the party.

Favourite: The duology and the Mobility Aid were the perfect level of not being a gimme, but being something I could find a book for.

Least Favourite: Booktok - I had to rely on the listopia that the book I picked fits the prompt. I'm not doing Anisfield-Wolf or Hugo because there is nothing I want to read on the lists and I detest list prompts.

Best Cheating (not an official question) - shout out to the person who said to fulfill onomatopoeia in the title with hidden words (like ding in wedding). And props to the person who said palindrome could be repeated words (like Gone Baby Gone ... or One By One).

Ashley Marie wrote: "I also had poll worker training last Friday! ..."



I meant to ask you before: how did you find out about this? how did you sign up? I always thought of it as a retired person's gig, but I suppose I could take the day off of work.

My neighbor used to be a poll worker, it was always nice to see someone I knew when I voted. She passed away a few years ago, or I would obviously just ask her about it!

K.L. wrote: "... DNF:
~The Paris Apartment — I just couldn’t get invested in the story. ..."



Uh-oh!

Ron wrote: "K.L. wrote: The prompt I liked the least is the “Anisfield-Wolf Book Award winner” prompt. I really prefer open-ended prompts, and choosing books from a set list of award winners feels very restric...


This is what I struggled with. And as a nonfiction reader, it was even harder. There wasn't a lot (if any? I forgot) to choose from on that front."




I know it's too late to help you guys now, but the list goes all the way back to the 50s! It's a big list, a much much broader selection than the Women's Prize was last year, and there are A LOT of non-fiction choices!! I don't even read that much non-fiction, but I read non-fiction for my A-W winner (a memoir: Memorial Drive: A Daughter's Memoir).

It's been heating up a little bit here, but not as bad in PNW as in other areas. I have some work colleagues in the UK and they've been dealing with an extreme heat wave there.

Finished:
All the Tides of Fate - 3 stars, duology prompt, book 2. It was good at first, except that main character seemed to reverse all of her character growth from book 1 (but she was also dealing with the trauma of the end of the first book, so that's somewhat understandable). But then the story took a turn that I hated at the end, and it made me kind of mad.

What Moves the Dead - 4 stars, set in Victorian times prompt. I found this more creepy than scary, with T. Kingfisher's usual humor and charm. It takes place in 1890, so counting it as filling the Victorian times prompt.

Comics & manga:
A Man and His Cat, Vol. 6

I am currently at 44/50 overall for Popsugar (35/40 and 9/10).

Currently reading:
A Prayer for the Crown-Shy - not for a prompt. So far it's as delightful as the first, but I'm only about 1/4 through it. I think all I have left to read for prompts are books I already own, so I'm just trying to get through my current library books.

QOTW:
It's hard to pick a favorite prompt. I think I'll go with a book about found family, because that is my all-time favorite trope.

I agree that the more limiting prompts are my least favorite, such as award winners. Although I didn't mind the Hugo award winner because I am a SFF fan, plus there are multiple categories to choose from and a wider range of winners.

A book with a palindromic title also felt really limiting, especially if one is being strict with interpretation (i.e. the whole title is a palindrome, not just one word). I did actually wind up enjoying my choice for this: Mem. It wasn't my favorite read for the challenge, but it was good and interesting.

Brandon wrote: "My Dune complete series reading is going nicely. I am up to Heretics of Dune and also reading Dreamer of Dune a bit at a time. Once I finish Sandworms, I will just have the Caladan trilogy left.

I..."



I'm impressed!! I am meant to be doing a complete re-read of Gene Wolfe's Solar Cycle. Here we are, mid-July, and I'm still only just started with the first book in the series. I even ENJOYED re-reading it! The book is fantastic! But ... I am so distracted by all the new shiny books, it's hard to stay focused.

I originally planned for my re-read to span two years, but maybe I need to adjust that to three or four years.

Covid finally caught up with us, and in the middle of a heatwave too 😭. So I've been feeling pretty miserable, don't trust those who say it's just a cold now. Me and my partner are relatively healthy and it's wiped us out for a week. Sleeping is impossible and he keeps getting hideous nose bleeds. I feel like someone's sandpapered my airways.

Anyway, since I can't concentrate on much I watched a bit of One of Us is Lying...why are the actors so old?! I'm struggling to believe in them as high school kids.

Finished:
Aurora's End by Amie Kaufman + Jay Kristoff for mobility aid even though Finian doesn't have the biggest part to play. Glad I finished this trilogy but nowhere near as good as the Illuminae Files, was a bit of a slog in places.

Together We Burn by Isabel Isanez for Latinx author and ATY. This is basically what if matadors fought dragons not bulls, but urgh, the glossing over of the animal cruelty bothered me. Even the guy who objects enables everyone around him. Story was fine but I wanted the dragons to destroy the whole city in vengeance.

QOTW:
My favourites are probably own voices SFF and about witches. There are a lot of prompts I don't love this year, like others onomatopoeia, palindrome and Anisfield-Wolf have been tough to come up with a thing I'm excited to read. Non-patriarchal society was only ok because I remembered the Black Sun books were set in one.

Nadine in NY wrote: "I know it's too late to help you guys now, but the list goes all the way back to the 50s! It's a big list, a much much broader selection than the Women's Prize was last year, and there are A LOT of non-fiction choices!! I don't even read that much non-fiction, but I read non-fiction for my A-W winner (a memoir: Memorial Drive: A Daughter's Memoir).

Thanks, I'll have to keep that in mind for a future date. I'm kind of glad I got this book out of the way already. Since it was among my least favorites, it's one I don't have to worry about anymore so that's a good thing.

Hello! It is too hot here as well, but the humidity broke yesterday, so things are slightly more bearable right now. One more reason to be grateful I was given the opportunity to work from home. I feel bad for my husband when he gets home from work and just sits in our basement under the fan for a 30+ minutes.

Finished This Week:
Book Lovers by Emily Henry. I really enjoyed this, and was planning on buying it after the first third. But the snark got dialed down quite a bit after the beginning, and I think I'm content with having read it. I still gave it 5 stars. Using for ATY #43, Set in a Small Town.

Sweep of the Blade by Ilona Andrews. I was oddly compelled to read this last Friday, finishing over the weekend. I blame the Innkeeper serial going on at the author's blog, making me interested in the prior books over and over. I just reread the entire Innkeeper series back in February, but that wasn't recent enough I guess.

The Grief of Stones by Katherine Addison. I was near a Barnes & Noble on Saturday, and hopped in. They were having a sale of buy one, get one 50% off for hardcovers, plus I had a gift card. So I grabbed this and The Witness for the Dead as physical books, as I only had them in ebook. And then when I didn't want to read my library books, I decided to finally read this one. I enjoyed it, but I think the prior book had a stronger story arc. Not for PS prompt, but could be #1, published in 2022.

Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky. Hugo nominee for Best Novella. It was 200 pages, so on the longer side for novella, and it oddly took me a few days to actually finish it. It's an odd story, told in alternating point of views. The first POV is the Fourth Daughter of the Queen, only tolerated by her mother's court, who goes to enlist the aid of a sorcerer who helped out her ancestor. The other POV is the sorcerer, who's not what the princess thinks. Using for PS #3, nonpatriarchal society.

PS: 38/50 RH: 8/24 ATY: 43/52 GR: 102/100

Currently Reading:
Being Seen: One Deafblind Woman's Fight to End Ableism by Elsa Sjunneson. Hugo nominee for Best Related Work. Memoir about being Deafblind in America, and how everything got worse during Covid. Still very early, but it's an engaging read, with lots of footnotes (including how footnotes work in Braille). I expect I'll finish it tonight.

DNF:
Too Like the Lightning by Ada Palmer. Hugo nominee for Best Series. It's got a wait list at the library and I just couldn't get into it. The reviews say it's pretty slow for the first half and then picks up, but I wasn't feeling it.

Up Next:
Optimistic Hugo list (voting ends 8/11!):
Stormsong
Project Hail Mary
A Desolation Called Peace
Fireheart Tiger
Winter's Orbit
Iron Widow

QotW: What is your favorite and least favorite reading prompt from the 2022 Popsugar Reading Challenge?
My favorite prompts are Read in One Sitting and Same Author as Read Last Year. They're very versatile. So was #BookTok, as mostly anything recently published and moderately popular could be found on a BookTok list without having to get the app. (Plus B&N made a list of popular BookTok books, of which I'd already read a few.)

My least favorite prompts are the ones that you can't read by accident. Anisfield-Wolff winner, palindromic title, even Pacific Islander author. I have books picked out for them, but they're not ones where you get halfway through and go "ooo, I didn't realize I could use this for X."

Nadine in NY wrote: "I wrote to my favorite author and asked her which books she had blurbed, and I'm excited to read the book she mentioned, so I'm looking forward to that one. (And just this morning I saw a book coming out in November with a quote from another favorite author on its cover!)"

This is an amazing idea and I can't believe I hadn't thought of it. BRB, hopping on the Tweetbox to talk to authors :D

Ellie wrote: "Aurora's End by Amie Kaufman + Jay Kristoff for mobility aid even though Finian doesn't have the biggest part to play. Glad I finished this trilogy but nowhere near as good as the Illuminae Files, was a bit of a slog in places...."



Sorry to hear Covid hit you so hard!

I read Aurora Rising, and that was enough for me, I quit that trilogy. I LOVED the Illuminae files, but this was a disappointment.

Nadine in NY wrote: "Ashley Marie wrote: "I also had poll worker training last Friday! ..."

I meant to ask you before: how did you find out about this? how did you sign up? I always thought of it as a retired person..."

Oh! So VoteOhio.gov (our voting website) had a pop-up for the LONGEST time about "sign up to be a poll worker bc we NEED people!" so I kind of just went through the motions with that, and they sent me a card in the mail with info on the training class. Looks like they're not advertising it with pop-ups now, prob bc the primary is too close, but definitely look up your state's voting website, they should have something about signing up.

ETA: It definitely seems like a retired person's gig (or a work from home or freelancer's gig, someone who has a more flexible schedule than a 9-5er); as usual, I was the youngest in the class :D

ETA - First half of my post disappeared. Here it is, more or less now complete.

NYC in a heat wave - I hibernate and read.

Only 8 prompts left in PS! I have the books stacked up, and think I will work to finish by end of August.

Finished:
Suburban Dicks - loved this!! Edgar nominee for best first novel, detective fiction with a side of snark. Funny, clever, delightful. @Nadine - set in NJ in Princeton/Trenton area.
Under Locke - bad boy biker tattoo artist as the love interest - first novel that had strengths but also some real weaknesses - should have been edited viciously.
Murder on St. Nicholas Avenue - part of Gaslight series.
The Narrowboat Summer - 5 star read -- about the journey of 3 women, strangers to each other, cruising from London to Chester on the UK canals - its a lovely physical journey but also a life journey. Fabulous book. Used for my set on a cruise ship prompt - stretching meaning of cruise ship just a wee bit - but my challenge. 😁

Currently Reading:
Small Wonder
The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels
On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

QOTW: I have a few favorites:
Set in favorite season
Set at during a holiday
Different book by author read in 2021
Set in Victorian Times
Sister Cities
Duology

Least favorite prompts:
turned into series or movie -- always loathe those
palindromic title - too limited in options especially since I almost exclusive read from my massive collection of TBR Towers.
Favorite author quote
Character in ace spectrum -- just seemed so limiting
Pacific Islander - again very limiting

Looking at this, no surprise those that are very limiting in options to read -- and this often includes award winner prompts though not this year - because I either don't have anything I can find in my massive TBR (one of my personal rules is it needs to be read from my existing TBR which truly is massive) but also has to be where I have not read all or most of the options and those I have not read I will never read.

But I'm also not averse to stretching or bending the prompt definition.

As for the positive - clearly Ilike those prompts dealing with setting and location best of all!

Melissa wrote: "Too Like the Lightning by Ada Palmer. Hugo nominee for Best Series. It's got a wait list at the library and I just couldn't get into it. The reviews say it's pretty slow for the first half and then picks up, but I wasn't feeling it. ..."



I keep adding this book to my TBR and then taking it off again. I usually don't do well with slow books. But I keep seeing it recommended. So then I add it to my TBR again.

Ashley Marie wrote: "Nadine in NY wrote: "I wrote to my favorite author and asked her which books she had blurbed, and I'm excited to read the book she mentioned, so I'm looking forward to that one. (And just this morn...


This is an amazing idea and I can't believe I hadn't thought of it. BRB, hopping on the Tweetbox to talk to authors :D "


LOL! I hope they reply right away! I think I got a reply after a few days. I wrote to her right away when the list came out. I thought of it because a few years ago when we needed an author in their 20s, I wrote to an author on Twitter to check if she was in her 20s when she wrote the book I was looking at. She was!

And of course I always make sure to tell them how much I love their work!!

Ashley Marie wrote: "Nadine in NY wrote: "Ashley Marie wrote: "I also had poll worker training last Friday! ..."

I meant to ask you before: how did you find out about this? how did you sign up? I always thought of it ..."


I never really looked at the election board site! I just checked elections.ny.gov, and I was met with a HUGE banner "NATIONAL POLL WORKER RECRUITMENT DAY" It's too late for this year's Primaries I'm sure, but I will keep this in mind for the future.

Nadine wrote: I usually don't do well with slow books. But I keep seeing it recommended. So then I add it to my TBR again.

This is kind of my problem too. I think this is what added to my discomfort with the book Beloved . It was just too slow pace and dragged on to where ultimately I lost interest in what the point of it was.

With most books I'll end up jumping to the final chapter just to get an overall view of the book and that's what I did with Beloved. I figured then I could jump back into the rest and hopefully it would work on getting into it.

This works best with nonfiction though in my opinion.

Nadine in NY wrote: "Lynn wrote: "*The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley (5 stars) was a book I knew would compel me to keep reading and get me back into reading after being sick for a week and reading almost nothing but a...

I think I asked this on your status update, but I don't know if you replied, so I'm asking again here: do you think I'll like this? I did NOT like The Guest List. At all. I had no interest in reading another book by her. But then my book club chose Paris Apartment for our August book. Sigh. My library hold list is LONG for this one, so I dont' even know if I'll get it in time, but I'm going to try to read it."
Sorry, Nadine, I must have missed the Status Update query...

What made you dislike TGL? I loved the complex interrelatedness of the characters, though I didn't really like much of any of them in the end...

I *think* you would enjoy The Paris Apartment. I felt it was less intense than TGL in several ways. It was also a phenomenally quick read, I thought. It felt "lighter" to me...

Theresa wrote: "@Nadine - set in NJ in Princeton/Trenton area.
Under Locke - bad boy biker tattoo artist as the love interest - first novel that had strengths but also some real weaknesses - shoul..."



Which book is set in NJ? I thought you meant Under Locke, but I looked that up and it's Austin TX

Lynn wrote: "Nadine in NY wrote: "Lynn wrote: "*The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley (5 stars) was a book I knew would compel me to keep reading and get me back into reading after being sick for a week and reading..."



It was boring, and repetitive, and I didn't care who died or who did the killing because I hated all of them so much that I wanted them all to die.

Finished: Wondrous Words: Writers and Writing in the Elementary Classroom This is an AMAZING book. It's my second read through and I will need to study it more to access its full wisdom. The basic idea is teaching kids how to read as writers.

Started: My Own Words I tried the audio book version of this even though I don't like audio books and it was AMAZING! Includes recordings of Ruth and her husband. So much more personal than I would have gotten from a book.

Dr. Seuss and Philosophy: Oh, the Thinks You Can Think!

Qotw: My favorite prompt was reading a book that starts with the letter that the last book ended on. I like how fluid. I'm not sure what my least favorite is yet. It depends on which one I end up having the hardest time fulfilling. Maybe booktok recommendation since I'm not in that world nor care about it that much?

Nadine in NY wrote: "Lynn wrote: "Nadine in NY wrote: "Lynn wrote: "*The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley (5 stars) was a book I knew would compel me to keep reading and get me back into reading after being sick for a wee...

It was boring, and repetitive, and I didn't care who died or who did the killing because I hated all of them so much that I wanted them all to die."
LOL That's pretty much what I expected you to say. I don't think you'll regret reading TPA. But if you do, you can easily blame me. As I stated, I felt it read really fast!

Call Us What We Carry poems by Amanda Gorman - I was really disappointed in this...."

I'm interested to hear more. I really liked this, especially because it focused on the pandemic. What didn't you like about it?

I wrote to my favorite author and asked her which books she had blurbed, and I'm excited to read the book she mentioned, so I'm looking forward to that one. (And just this morning I saw a book coming out in November with a quote from another favorite author on its cover!)...

This is awesome! I don't know that I would have the guts to do that.

Doni wrote: "Call Us What We Carry poems by Amanda Gorman - I was really disappointed in this...."


I'm interested to hear more. I really liked this, especially because it focused on the pandemic. What didn't you like about it..."



It felt really preliminary, like someone had stolen her notebook of ideas and published it as a set of completed poems. Most of these poems did not feel ready for publication. And I have to wonder how much pressure the publisher put on her to get them out NOW so they could make $$$ based on her sudden and immense popularity after her Inauguration poem.

Hi all,

Sorry if i sounded impatient earlier, I was more just confused. Normally I don't try to check in that early, so the posts are always well filled in by the time I get around to it. I'm having a rough day though, had to take one of my cats to the emergency vet last night due to another urinary blockage. Didn't sleep well waiting for the call to confirm he was un blocked. By the time i finally got the call, was too keyed up to go back to sleep, and then got an additional check in call at 6 am. He's doing ok for now, is un blocked but has a UTI, crystals. Probably can't pick him up until Saturday morning at best. I miss my boy. Probably should have just taken today off, i've been in a fog all day, not really accomplishing anything. Luckily it's a slow week, i don't have a lot TO accomplish.

This week I finished:

Honey & Spice - i ended up really liking this. It didn't use the typical fake dating tropes in the way i expected , I appreciated it. Mild spoiler: (view spoiler)[ I also appreciated having a woman protagonist not be 100% comfortable with all sexual acts, the man NOT pressure her into going further than she wanted to,
and there was no second guessing about "oh but i'm in my 20s, i need to go experience these things, i'm an adult now, etc". As someone who was a late bloomer in that area, and got pressured a lot, I just...appreciated that. So many books have teens totally diving into sexual activity with zero qualms, and while that CAN be fine and healthy, it can also put pressure on those who are 100% not ready to feel like they SHOULD be ready if everyone else seems to be. (hide spoiler)]

Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age - did the audio book. I liked this a lot, learned a lot of info. Also a lot to think about in terms of what we think about when we think of city, what makes a culture, what is considered lost, abandoned, etc. So many definitions are based on the European view of things.

Currently reading:

Sharks in the Time of Saviors - this is for my August books & brew. For a cool title, I'm kind of let down by the actual book. I really am not enjoying it, it's depressing and I kind of want to put it down. But it's a library hold, and I don't want to deal with checking it out again later.

QOTW:
I'm not really doing the challenge, so no real strong opinions. But I'd agree that palindrome seems INCREDIBLY limiting. Even if you broaden it to a palindrome in the title, not the entire title has to be a palindrome, there's still not that many options. If I were doing the challenge, I'd probably just re-read Seveneves, even though I generally don't like using re-reads, just because of how few options there are. Onomonopia seems slightly more broad, but still not amazingly so.

I was miffed at book tok when i saw it, but honestly there's so many lists that have book tok recs that;s easy enough to get around without much work, so I don't think it's that bad.

I don't personally like the begins with the last letter that you read one just because that requires too much thinking/planning, you either have to stumble on it like "oh hey this book I didn't think would fit just happens to fit on a fluke" or try to very carefully plan your reads. Which if you do a lot of library holds, like me, can be tricky. Sure you might THINK you're going to read these two back to back from your kindle tbr, but then the library drops five holds on you all at once and suddenly you're not.

i always like hugo ones, i love sci fi/fantasy. seems like there's several good options for that this year, with the own voices SFF, Social horror, parallel reality. And I tend to jam in sci fi/fantasy in any prompt i can anyhow, when i do it haha.

Hi everyone. We survived the crazy 40C weather here in the UK. There was a forest fire close to the place where I work so everything was kind of smokey yesterday. Luckily it's cooled down today and there's been a little bit of rain as well so I'm hoping we're getting back to normal.

This week I finished quite a few books. First up was A Psalm for the Wild-Built. This was cute but I generally find novellas too short. I'll definitely read the next one

I also finished The Creature in the Case - another novella. This didn't really add much to the series overall but I liked the premise.

Finally I finished Instructions for a Second-hand Heart. I don't remember when or why I put this on hold at the library but I read it all in one day and it made me cry... twice. That has to be a good sign.

Currently reading: I had so many library holds come in this week so of course I decided to re-read Persuasion. I keep seeing an advert for the Netflix adaptation but it seems to completely miss the vibe so I thought I would re-read the book before I watch it.

QOTW: I am not joining in the challenge this year because (among other things) I wasn't a fan of a lot of the prompts. Palindromes, onomatopoeia, social horror, recipe, constellation on the cover and during a holiday all filled me with dread.

I like the band one and own voices SFF

Hi everyone. I haven't checked in in months, but I wanted to answer the QOTW.

Favorite prompt: Social horror - I know a ton of people hated that prompt, but I was really excited about it, because it was outside my go-to genres, but had potential to be something I would really enjoy, so I had fun choosing for it (even though the book I chose was only okay).

Least favorite prompt: A book with a parallel universe - I just really don't enjoy this concept at all. I don't like things that mess with time. I have no idea why. I even read a book that I know was great, but it just wasn't for me.

Hi all! Hot and humid here. I've had AC running non-stop for a couple of days, which is incredibly rare for me. And it's supposed to stay in the 90s through the weekend, so there goes my electric bill...
I can't tell if it's the heat or a new med I started this week, but I've had a mild-ish migraine for several days, too. Mine are made worse by movement and strong smells (most people suffer in light and noise), so as long as I sit still and don't paint my nails, chop an onion, that kind of stuff, I can manage. Which means that I can still read.

Nothing finished. Actually, I just read I Don't Like Birthday Parties to my daughter. Which features a party and is a nice book about neurodiverse kids, or kids who get overwhelmed by lots of people.
Still working on Burnt Shadows for Anisfield-Wolf winner, Full Count: The Education of a Pitcher for a book in favorite season, Pachinko for a book becoming a show. I also started Night Over Water for a book on a plane.

QOTW: Anisfield-Wolf, actually is my favorite. I'd never heard of it before, but when I looked through the list, there were so many choices I would love to read. Burnt Shadows is one I've owned for years, and my copy has a sticker on it saying it won the award, who knew?

Palindrome was my least favorite, which is a bummer because I love palindromes, but there's too few choices. I found a short story in a collection of stories and used that.

Doni wrote: "Nadine in NY wrote "I wrote to my favorite author and asked her which books she had blurbed, and I'm excited to read the book she mentioned, so I'm looking forward to that one. (And just this morning I saw a book coming out in November with a quote from another favorite author on its cover!)...



This is awesome! I don't know that I would have the guts to do that."

..."


I felt a little apprehensive, but I keep it short, and I always lead with praise for their work. I figure, it can't be TOO annoying to get a message from a fan that says "you're my favorite author and I'm doing this reading challenge that has a category for a book with a quote from your favorite author on the cover." I mean, if I were an author, that would make me laugh!

Sheri wrote: "Hi all,

Sorry if i sounded impatient earlier, I was more just confused. Normally I don't try to check in that early, so the posts are always well filled in by the time I get around to it. I'm hav..."



Aw, hugs! I remember when my dogs chewed up a bottle of ibuprofen and I had to leave them at the emergency vet for observation over a weekend. So stressful!! In hindsight, my dogs had probably not actually consumed any of the pills, they'd just chewed up the bottle, but I didn't want to take any risks.



I don't personally like the begins with the last letter that you read one just because that requires too much thinking/planning, you either have to stumble on it like "oh hey this book I didn't think would fit just happens to fit on a fluke" or try to very carefully plan your reads.

I was really BENT about that one when the list first came out. I'm a planner, but not a scheduler!!!! How am I supposed to plan that!! I finally just ... let it go. I'm leaving that slot empty for now. When I get to the end, I'll see what I'm reading, and what I've got available to pick up, and I have faith that SOMETHING will work out. I am usually reading several books at once, and I always have a stack of books checked out from the library, so I'll have choices.

Sarah wrote: "Hi everyone. We survived the crazy 40C weather here in the UK. There was a forest fire close to the place where I work so everything was kind of smokey yesterday. Luckily it's cooled down today and..."




I have a FB friend from Texas who happens to be vacationing in and around London this past week. I bet it felt hot even for him!!! Poor guy, thought he was getting away from the Texas heat, but he brought it with him!!

Mary wrote: "Hi everyone. I haven't checked in in months, but I wanted to answer the QOTW.

Favorite prompt: Social horror - I know a ton of people hated that prompt, but I was really excited about it, because ..."



I got lucky with "social horror"!! The Trees turned out to be one of my favorite books of the year!

I don't personally like the begins with the last letter that you read one just because that requires too much thinking/planning, you either have to stumble on it like "oh hey this book I didn't think would fit just happens to fit on a fluke" or try to very carefully plan your reads.

This is one I've certainly been struggling with. It's fun but because I'm a mood reader it makes it very difficult to commit to just one book in particular.

*****

On another note, my books finally arrived after waiting all afternoon. Can't wait to get started!

Jennifer W wrote: "Hi all! Hot and humid here. I've had AC running non-stop for a couple of days, which is incredibly rare for me. And it's supposed to stay in the 90s through the weekend, so there goes my electric b..."



It seems like every day is hotter and more humid than the last!!! Right now it cooled off a bit, but it's still quite humid. We definitely have the a/c on! I can't stand the humidity.

Good morning everyone. It's been a while since I checked in, and I've only finished one book in all that time.

I started and gave up on a few, including Beloved. I'm hoping to have the brain space for it sometime in the future.

PopSugar 28/50

Finished
The Bridge of San Luis Rey It wasn't what I was expecting. I'm not completely sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't that. A bit of a roller coaster ride at times, with me thinking, "woah, that's a nihilist take on life" then two pages later thinking, "how beautiful and full of hope". I did enjoy it, though. Prompt: Twin cities - Lima

Currently Reading
I'm going to pick up Noor today if I get time.

I also have All That I Am on my list. I put this one down earlier in the month, but not because I didn't want to read it. I was loving it so much that I wanted to underline and highlight parts, like it was Mrs. Dalloway making me fall in love with language again. Sine I was reading the library's copy I returned it to resist temptation. Now I have my own copy and I'm waiting a month or so to start from the beginning with a pencil in my hand!

QOTW
Least favorite prompt was book set in your favorite season. I adored the book I read for this, but finding an autumn book that wasn't about Halloween was a challenge. Especially annoying because Halloween isn't even in autumn in Australia.

Favorite prompt was a book you can read in one sitting. I like the easy wins! Plus, I read a great romance novella for this and discovered an amazing author that I hadn't read before (Courtney Milan).

AHGGGGH! first part of my post disappeared! My @Nadine makes zero sense given the missing parts.

I have edited it to fix. Here is link: today's post fixed

Nadine in NY wrote: "Theresa wrote: "@Nadine - set in NJ in Princeton/Trenton area.
Under Locke - bad boy biker tattoo artist as the love interest - first novel that had strengths but also some real we..."

Just saw that first third of message disappeared when I posted it. I have fixed it - here is link to find it easily: my post fixed

I had some fun earlier this week. Sunday was a family and friends get-together as my nephew is leaving on a 2-year LDS mission to Peru. I'm not a fan of church, but I went to hear him speak. He's adorable and I'll miss him. It is over 100 degrees F every day now, and it was brutal for those who ate outside, but I stayed indoors as the heat just sucks the air out of my lungs.

Monday I went to a local community theater production of "Mary Poppins." I attend a lot of theater of a more professional class, so this was an experience. Most of the lead characters were great, though, although they had way too many people in the cast for such a small theater. But "just a spoonful of sugar makes everything go down."

Tuesday I saw the movie "Where the Crawdad Sings." I read it a couple of years ago and was looking forward to seeing what they did with the movie. I thought they did a marvelous job. Since everyone with me had read the book, I don't have the opinion of someone coming into it blind though. Loved the scenery, the cast, etc. Ending felt rushed, but that was my only complaint.

Finished
One Two Three by Laurie Frankel - 4 stars, PS #8 (mobility aid)
I enjoyed this book about 3 very different triplets in a small town that has been devastated by environmental poisoning. I listened on audiobook, and it was nice to have three distinct voices for each of the sisters.

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke - 4 stars; PS #36 (book you know nothing about)
I'm leading the discussion on this book for the Monthly Read. I was going to stretch this out, but I couldn't stand the suspense and had to finish the book. I'm only on Part 3 on questions but will be getting more soon. I really enjoyed this book.

Listen To Me by Tess Gerritsen - 4 stars
I've always been a big fan of Rizzoli & Isles, both the books and the TV series. I was delighted to discover that she had written another book in the series. It was great to visit the characters again, and the mysteries were as good as ever.

Goodreads: 48/100
Popsugar: 22/40, 6/10

QOTW:
My least favorite prompt is probably the palindromic title. I think I know what I'm going to read for it, but not sure yet.

My favorite prompt (hard to choose), but I'm going with the name of a board game in the title. I squealed when I saw this category because I love board games. I haven't filled it yet and haven't decided what I'm reading for it yet either. I'm saving it as a lovely surprise for later.