2025 Reading Challenge discussion
ARCHIVE 2023
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Martha☀'s 70 Books of 2023
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JANUARY7/70
1) 05 Jan
Rock Paper Scissors 3⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery
2) 10 Jan
Watch Me Disappear3⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery
3) 12 Jan
Screaming on the Inside: The Unsustainability of American Motherhood4⭐ My Review
Tags - non-fiction, current events
4) 17 Jan
Snow 4⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery
5) 18 Jan
Winterland5⭐ My Review
Tags - historical, cultural
6)23 Jan
11/22/63 3⭐ My Review
Tags - historical, cultural, supernatural, sci-fi, romance
7) 30 Jan
A Line To Kill5⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery, 5 star,
FEBRUARY15/70
1) 04 Feb
Demon Copperhead5⭐ My Review
Tags - 5 star, cultural, current events
2) 10 Feb
Adventures in Opting Out: A Field Guide to Leading an Intentional Life2⭐ My Review
Tags - self-help, non-fiction
3012 Feb
Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams4⭐ My Review
Tags - science, non-fiction
4)17 Feb
Maureen: A Harold Fry Novel5⭐ My Review
Tags - 5-star, series
5) 18 Feb
Three Women2.5⭐ My Review
Tags - general fiction, audiobook
6) 17 Feb
The Tiger's Wife3⭐
Tags - historical, cultural, supernatural
7) 25 Feb
ReproductionDNF⭐ My Review
Tags - award, canadian, abandoned
8) 28 Feb
Ms. Demeanor4⭐ My Review
Tags - general, romance
Looks great Martha! Good luck this year!
*dropping a note* Best of luck, Martha :)
Good luck Martha! I've been wanting to start reading King for some time now and I thought that 11/22/63 was a good place to start but perhaps another might be more fitting now oops. Looking forward to seeing more of what you read!
March23/70
1) 01 Mar
This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor 5⭐ My Review
Tags - non-fiction, biography, medical, humour
2) 11 Mar
The Hunting Party2⭐ My Review
Tags - audio, mystery
3) 12 Mar
Building a StoryBrand: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen4⭐ My Review
Tags - professional
4)14 Mar
In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto3⭐ My Review
Tags - food, non-fiction
5) 15 Mar
Things We Do in the Dark3⭐ My Review
Tags - general, audio
6) 19 Mar
Starlight5⭐ My Review
Tags - indigenous, Canadian, audio
7) 23 Mar
Carrie Soto Is Back5⭐ My Review
Tags - general, athletes, audio
8) 25 Mar
The Vanishing Half3⭐ My Review
Tags - general, cultural
I hope you enjoy "Songs in Ursa Major" It's a really good book. And not enough people know about it. Looking forward to seeing what you think whenever you get to it :)
Nikki wrote: "Good luck Martha! I've been wanting to start reading King for some time now and I thought that 11/22/63 was a good place to start but perhaps another might be more fitting now oops. Looking forward..."Nikki, if you've never read King before I personally would not recommend starting with one of his doorstoppers!
When it comes to Stephen King it really depends on what you're looking for but I'd either recommend going for a short story collection like Night Shift, or a novella collection with no-monsters Different Seasons (in particular The Body)
If you're more interested in full novels, maybe choose one of
his classic works, like Carrie or maybe Misery, especially because chances are likely that you are already familiar with how the story goes.
For more "scary" easy entry: 'Salem's Lot
Another way of entry is through the Castlerock books, which follows a cast in the town of Castlerock in Maine - starting either with The Dead Zone or Cujo
I hope that helps.
Enjoy :)
Lisa wrote: "Nikki wrote: "Good luck Martha! I've been wanting to start reading King for some time now and I thought that 11/22/63 was a good place to start but perhaps another might be more fitting now oops. L..."I'll have to confess, the only thing I know about King's works is that the movie IT has a creepy looking clown and a balloon (and something about the clown creeping on people through the drain) and some mentions of Carrie in one of the Fear Street Netflix movies. No idea how I've avoided so much spoilers but I guess it's good so I can essentially choose any and wouldn't be influenced by anything haha. Pet Semetary and Carrie from all your recommendations sound the most interesting, thank you for all of those though! I'll definitely attempt King at least once this year :)
Nikki wrote: "Lisa wrote: "Nikki wrote: "Good luck Martha! I've been wanting to start reading King for some time now and I thought that 11/22/63 was a good place to start but perhaps another might be more fittin..."Haha, that's amazing.
I actually removed Pet Semetary from the list :D not because it's not still a fantastic book, I just remembered that it might just be... a lot :D it's very grief oriented, and therefore could be too emotionally heavy for first time readers.
Good luck :)
Nikki wrote: "Lisa wrote: "Nikki wrote: "Good luck Martha! I've been wanting to start reading King for some time now and I thought that 11/22/63 was a good place to start but perhaps another might be more fittin..."Thank you both for stopping by!
So funny! I also knew almost nothing of King's work until recently (purposely putting head in sand because of nightmares from Pet Sematary 😩)
In Dec, I learned that he wrote non-fiction - On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft which I loved. Then I tried Carrie which I also really enjoyed, despite it being a horror. Then I learned that he writes non-horror fiction so I listened to 11/22/63. It was 30 CD discs long!! but very engaging.
Haha, yeah that's why I thought it best to remove Pet Sematary as a beginner's recommendation. Wouldn't want traumatizing someone be my fault :D He does non-horror really well! That's why I think his short story collections are a great starting place, specially Night Shift. It really showcases a little bit of everything, imo, in terms of the genres he delves into.
I'm really interested in On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft- just haven't gotten to it yet. Ain't that always the lay of the land :D
April28/70
1) 7 April
The Bullet That Missed3.5⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery, series
2) 10 April
The Trees4⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery, cultural
3) 13 Apr
] The Echo Chamber3⭐ My Review
Tags - general, young adult
4) 29 Apr
The Light Pirate4⭐ My Review
Tags - dystopian, supernatural
5) 27 Apr
On Animals4⭐ My Review
Tags - short stories, farming, non-fiction
May33/70
1) 12 May
A Gentleman in Moscow5⭐ My Review
Tags - cultural, historical, audio
2) 15 May
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty5⭐ My Review
Tags - non-fiction, biography, horror, audio
3) 18 May
Where I Belong5⭐ My Review
Tags - biography
4) 29 May
Spare4⭐ My Review
Tags - biography, non-fiction, audio
5) 29 May
Notes on an Execution3⭐ My Review
Tags - general
June37/70
1) 12 June
Lessons in Chemistry5⭐ My Review
Tags - historical, audio
2) 20 June
The Last Flight3⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery
3) 30 June
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine4⭐ My Review
Tags - general, audio
4) 30 June
The Sentence3.5⭐ My Review
Tags - indigenous, current events
July43/70
1) 3 July
Local Woman Missing3⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery, audio
2) 13 July
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian 3⭐ My Review
Tags - young adult, indigenous,
3) 17 July
The Alice Network4⭐ My Review
Tags - historical, audio
4) 19 July
84, Charing Cross Road3.5⭐ My Review
Tags - non-fiction, historical, cultural
5) 24 July
Brooklyn 3⭐ My Review
Tags - historical
6) 30 July
Rebecca5⭐My Review
Tags - classic, historical, audio
Congratulations on reaching the halfway mark of the year! May the remaining months be filled with captivating stories, enlightening knowledge, and unforgettable literary adventures. Good luck.
August47/70
1. 2 August
The Reader5⭐ My Review
Tags - translation, historical
2. 6 August
Italian on the Move (3cds + Guide) With Book 3⭐ My Review
Tags - non-fiction, language, travel
3. 25 August
A Visit from the Goon SquadDNF My Review
Tags - Pulitzer, DNF, experimental
4. 31 August
A Thousand Splendid Suns3⭐ My Review
Tags - cultural, current events, audio
September52/70
1) 10 Sept
How to Pronounce Knife: Stories5⭐ My Review
Tags - canadian, cultural, Giller
2)14 Sept
The Maid3⭐ My Review
Tags -general
3)14 Sept
The Marriage Plot4⭐ My Review
Tags - general,
4) Sept 21
Out and Back3⭐ My Review
Tags - athletes
5) Sept
Tomorrow, When the War Began3⭐ My Review
Tags - young adult,
October
59/70
1) 03 Oct
Ape House3⭐ My Review
Tags - general
2) 03 Oct
Dark Places4⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery, thriller
3) 02 Oct
Sadness Is a White Bird 4⭐ My Review
Tags - cultural, current events
4) 08 Oct
Girl3⭐ My Review
Tags - cultural, current events.
5) 14 Oct
They Both Die at the End2⭐ My Review
Tags - YA, dystopian, lgbtq
6) 18 Oct
Hostage3⭐ My Review
Tags - general, thriller(?)
7) 28 Oct
Autopsy of a Boring Wife3⭐ My Review
Tags - general, canadian, translation
November
69/70
1) 01 Nov
The War of Art1⭐My Review
Tags - professional, opinion,
2) 03 Nov
The Marriage Portrait5⭐ My Review
Tags - historical, 5 star
3) 06 Nov
Great Circle2⭐ My Review
Tags - historical fiction
4) 11 Nov
Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone4⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery, audio
5) 19 Nov
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse2⭐ My Review
Tags - graphic, self help
6) 17 Nov
Hamnet and Judith4⭐ My Review
Tags - historical
7) 24 Nov
Madhouse at the End of the Earth: The Belgica's Journey into the Dark Antarctic Night3⭐ My Review
Tags - adventure
8) 23 Nov
Tom Lake2.3⭐ My Review
Tags - general,
9) 28 Nov
Remarkably Bright Creatures4⭐ My Review
Tags - general, audio
10) 29 Nov
Beyond Belfast: A 560-Mile Journey Across Northern Ireland on Sore Feet3.5⭐ My Review
Tags - adventure, humor, athletes
December
XX/70
1) 08 Dec
The Paris Apartment3⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery
2) 14 Dec
Mud, Rocks, Blazes: Letting Go on the Appalachian Trail3⭐ My Review
Tags - athletes, biography
3) 10 Dec
The Bourne Identity3⭐ My Review
Tags - dnf, thriller, movie
4) 20 Dec
Wellness3⭐ My Review
Tags - general, 5-star
5) 20 Dec
The Black Book2⭐ My Review
Tags - mystery, translated,
(view spoiler)
Thoughts for 2025 TBR list:2024 unread list:
⏳ BO
The Carbon Cycle: Crossing the Great Divide⏳ AO
The Island of Missing Trees💰⏳ BO
The Orenda⏳ BL
Picture Us in the Light⏳ BL
Plastic: A Toxic Love Story⏳ BL
The Songbook of Benny Lament⏳ BL
Songs in Ursa Major💰⏳ BO
Stuffed ⏳ BL
Tess of the D'Urbervilles💰⏳BL
Where There's a Will: Hope, Grief and Endurance in a Cycle Race Across a Continent⏳ BO
The Yellow Houseon libby audio holds shelf:
Fayne
Now Is Not the Time to Panic
Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism
Killing Floor
Twenty-Seven Minutes
The Searcher
You Are Here
The Island of Missing Trees
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
Normal People
Trust
The Wedding People
We Begin at the End
The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympicson virl holds shelf
The Housekeeper and the Professor (CDs)
Men Have Called Her Crazy: A Memoir (book)
Danny the Champion of the World (book)
Wordhunterphysical books on my shelf
The Lincoln Highway
Magpie Murders
The Orenda
The Golden Spruce: A True Story of Myth, Madness, and Greed
Keep Sweet: Children of Polygamy
The Way the Crow Flies
Women Talking
When God Was a Rabbit
The Four Agreements
February
Amazon Extreme: Three Ordinary Guys, One Rubber Raft and the Most Dangerous River on Earth
The Rose Code
The Testamentsbooks to request or find
The Pursuit of Endurance: Harnessing the Record-Breaking Power of Strength and Resilience (avail @virl)
End to End: John O'Groats, Broken Spokes and a Dog called Gretna (need)
2025 Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
The Testaments (other topics)Killing Floor (other topics)
Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism (other topics)
End to End: John O'Groats, Broken Spokes and a Dog called Gretna (other topics)
The Orenda (other topics)
More...
I'll keep tally of the book covers for each month here.
Other stuff, like challenges, annual stats, I keep on my Member's Corner page here =>
Martha's Shelf Noise
Drop a note if you've stopped by! I'll come and visit you too