Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

Welcome to the New Year!! Time really flies. Weather has been not too warm and not too cold; it's snowing right now and it's very pretty AND my daughter just missed her schoolbus so I have to go drive her to school now, I'm just getting this posted first; we really haven't had much snow yet. I still need to track down my neighbor and pay him to plow my driveway for the season! I see he's got his plows set up, but I never see HIM!

I'm excited to be starting on our new reading Challenge!



Admin stuff

Our January group read of Chain-Gang All-Stars is happening here:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...-

We do not have a discussion leader (it's not too late to step up!!!) so this is a good chance for all readers to make use of the list of suggested questions that Lynn put together - as you go through the book, see if any questions spark a discussion you'd like to have, and if so, post it!! I think this is a somewhat controversial book and it could spark some good discussion, if you are all willing to put in the time to post.. Go join the discussion and talk about how you feel about the title and what you expect from the book!


Our February group read has been chosen, and it is Lucky Leap Day. As always, let us know if you'd like to lead a discussion.


The final poll is live to choose our March group read for "poetry" - this poll will be open for two weeks:
https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/2...





This week I finished 4 books, and 2 of them were even for this Challenge! I am starting the year off with 2/50.

All the Sinners Bleed - I loved this, it became my favorite book of December. I just returned it to my library so I can't check, but I'm pretty sure two people die in the first chapter so you could use it for that.

The Best-Loved Poems of Jacqueline Kennedy-Onassis ed by Caroline Kennedy - this is a very run of the mill collection, kind of like Caroline just needed to publish one more book so she banged this out. It includes a lot of classic poems so it might be a nice choice for the "poetry" category. But, if you're going to read an anthology edited by Caroline, I recommend She Walks in Beauty: A Woman's Journey Through Poems instead.

Late to the Party by Kelly Quindlen - this was the first book I read in 2024, and my first Challenge read, I used it for "LGBT romance." It was very sweet and perfectly captured that angsty joy of being a teen on the cusp of adulthood. And yes, (view spoiler)[it has a happy ending for everyone (hide spoiler)].

American Mermaid by Julia Langbein - I actually started this book in 2023, but I finished it in 2024, and I found a category for it, so I'm counting it for our challenge. The main character was a writer, so I checked off "about a writer." This was a weird and quirky book, and it was entertaining, but I didn't love it.




Question of the Week

Are you happy with how you completed your reading goals last year? What are your reading goals for this upcoming year? Have you made any changes or adjustments?


I finished all my reading goals last year (Popsugar, AtY, my own Winter Challenge, my "must reads" list, AND books for each Cultural Appreciation month) so yes I'm happy. I'm planning to cut back a little this year. I made my "must read" list a bit shorter, I'm not creating an alternate challenge, and I'm not committing to completing the AtY challenge (but I start every year like that, and eventually I realize I can finish both Popsugar and AtY handily, and I do). My goal is to switch my focus from other challenges, to reading as many 2024 publications as I can.

I'm planning to keep my focus on Popsugar and try (TRY!) to make sure every book I read is for a Challenge this month. I start every year with a few easy books so I get my ball rolling, and then I'll start tackling the less appealing books that I'm maybe not so excited about.

Categories I'm not so excited about: pirates, animal POV, pub in 2000, genre I avoid. I've got books picked out, but I'm very "meh" about them. Might as well get that over with!

I finished Ripley's Game. It was good, not great.

I read I, the Jury. My first Mike Hammer book. I have mixed feelings about it. The last few mysteries I read didn't have any clues and this one did, so I liked that. But, I had a hard time taking it seriously, because every time they spoof a '40s mystery on TV, they always have a voiceover with something like "dame walked into my office, she had legs that went on forever." There was no "dame walking into the office" but there were "legs that went on forever" and a bunch of other phrases like that, so I kept hearing the voice in my head and it would sort of crack me up.

I'm almost done with The Windward Road: Adventures of a Naturalist on Remote Caribbean Shores. Interesting without being dry.

QOTW: i guess. My only goals were to do the reading challenge and read a Christmas book. I did that and more. I don't really have any goals this year, besides reading 52 books, because I'm not going to do the challenge because being out of work is stressful enough without trying to find specific books to read and I have about 45 books in my apartment I haven't read yet.

Happy Thursday and happy new year!! I had every intention of staying up til midnight to finish a book and of course I zonked out at 10:30. Then I'd forgotten to set my alarm for midnight so I woke up at 3am, texted friends, and went straight back to sleep lol. Deeply glad for these past two Mondays off as I got to spend quality time at home with Husband; it's not often that we have mornings together. I treasure coffee and breakfast.

In less cheerful news, my maternal grandmother isn't doing well. Medication for one condition is causing failures elsewhere. For the moment I'm still hoping she holds on for another week or so until my sister is back home, but that may be a pipe dream. We're taking it one day at a time. I'm especially keeping my mom's younger sister and their family in my thoughts; her husband's mother passed on Christmas and we just attended that funeral last weekend. Send good vibes, strength, peace.

I've been on a decent tear with books this week:
The Hollow Places - 4 stars. If you're like me and didn't realize "cozy horror" was a thing and that appeals to you, check this out. I would classify this as more horror-lite/creepy than outright terrifying (and nicely balanced by the otherwise cozy vibes of the museum and neighboring coffee shop, and Kingfisher's hilarious writing). Book about divorce - PS 2023 46/50

Never Send Roses - 4 stars. Things seemed to get muddy in the middle, but this was another great Harmony Black installment and we finally got the payoff we've been waiting at least a book (maybe two) for!

The Year Without Sunshine - 5 stars. This is a short fiction piece by Naomi Kritzer, which you can read for free on the Uncanny Magazine website (google!). It was especially heartwarming.

The Woman in Me - 5 stars. Beautifully narrated by Michelle Williams, and I still can't believe I knocked this out in a single day. Still processing, and definitely my first favorite of 2024. PS 44, Autobiography by a woman in rock'n'roll music - bending the rule here, but Britney is such an icon that I don't think it matters.

PS 1/50
ATY 1/52
Mount TBR 0/48

Currently:
Rebecca: A Play In Three Acts - I've finally tracked down the adaptation du Maurier wrote!
Madly, Deeply: The Diaries of Alan Rickman - straightforward it may be, but his humor and wit shine
Lady Tan's Circle of Women - BOTM with Historical Fictionistas

Are you happy with how you completed your reading goals last year? What are your reading goals for this upcoming year? Have you made any changes or adjustments?
I'm pleased! I knew I wouldn't finish the PS challenge but I did manage to get one last entry in there as I counted The Hollow Places for "A book about divorce", bringing my full count to 46/50, which felt respectable.

I also managed 21 new books (2023 releases), and I was proud of that.

Goals for 2024:
100 books (I usually blow this one out of the water, but I'm leery of bumping it up should anything catastrophic happen)
PopSugar 50 books
Around the Year 52 books
Mount TBR 48 books
A few of my other usual GR group challenges - various bingo games and tbr challenges, my historical fiction summer challenge, etc

I'm looking forward to more of Seanan McGuire's InCryptid series this year, and finally dipping a toe into Discworld, among other things.

Good Thursday morning.

It’s 4:44 in the morning. My fur-children woke me up at 4 with dog-in-the-face breathing. Ziggy wanted under the covers but he sometimes forgets I don’t like when he’s right up in my face when I’m sleeping. I tend to smack things when half awake.

I wanted to go back to sleep, but it was wide awake mode saddle. So it’s a definite double shot, white chocolate caramel macchiato at Temptations today.

Yesterday morning I awoke to snow. About two or three inches, I think. Yay . . . (Insert sarcasm here). So I ended up shoveling for an hour to clear a paths for them (ungrateful beasts) and clearing a large spot in front for my mom so she doesn’t get snow in her slipper. She has a boo-boo on her toe that makes it impossible to wear shoes.

Other than that, my sister has completed her Christmas present. Hogwarts castle Lego set. It had 17 books and 2000+ pieces. And she completed her Jurassic Park jeep and big pile of 💩. Yes, Lego has recreated the scene complete with poop. It’s also hollow with berries inside it.

I find it funny because, as a kid, she was never interested in Legos or building toys except Tonkas. She loved her Tonkas. Now, she’s having fun with them.

Popsugar: 1/50
Finished:
Tales of the Celestial Kingdom -- (PS 34, PS 47, ATY 24 & 51) -- A fabulous continuation of the duology. The short stories take place before, during, and after the events of both books. Each story has its own pov from one of the characters. I highly recommend reading the duology first because this book does contain major spoilers. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Reading: None that I’m aware of

Aty: 1/52
Finished:
Tales of the Celestial Kingdom

Reading: None that I’m aware of

Goodreads Challenge 6/400
Finished:
Tamon's B-Side, Vol. 1
Tamon's B-Side, Vol. 2
Tales of the Celestial Kingdom
Playing Tough
Enticing My Off Limits Billionaire
Full Measures -- This is by Rebecca Yarros of Fourth Wing fame. I did not realize it until I finished it again and actually read the author name. (Sometimes I'm too lazy for my own good and don't place kindle books where they belong after reading them. so they end up rotting in the generic folder with hundreds of other books.)

Reading:

QOTW:

I am such a non-planner. I add books to both challenges, but end up reading something completely different a lot of the time.

I also tend to be a mood reader. I may want to read something, but then change my mind the next day.

So I try but fail to follow through on any reading planning.

Ashley Marie wrote: "Happy Thursday and happy new year!! I had every intention of staying up til midnight to finish a book and of course I zonked out at 10:30. Then I'd forgotten to set my alarm for midnight so I woke ..."

I'm sorry about your grandmother. Sending good thoughts and vibes your way.

Happy New Year everyone! We are expecting our first snow storm this weekend so I am hoping to curl up with some books.

I have finished 4/50.

This week I read:

Play of Shadows: Not for the challenge: This was the third in a series that I have enjoyed in the past, but this one wasn't great. I did the audiobook instead of ebook version so maybe that was part of the issue, but it just didn't keep my attention or engagement.

Fallen Creed: Not for the challenge: This was a reread and I enjoyed it just as much the second time.

Cosmoknights, Vol. 1: Set in space: This was one of the least appealing prompts for me, so I thought I would get it out of the way first. It was fine, but not for me.

El Deafo: hearing-impaired author: This was really cute and definitely let me look at things from a different perspective.

Heartstopper: Volume One: LGBTQ romance: I actually loved this so much that I ended up reading the first 4 volumes in two days. Graphic novels are usually not my preference, but the style and format of this one was very appealing to me.

One Last Kill: Travel destination on your bucket list (Seattle): This is the 10th book in a series that I enjoy, and I liked this one too.

Currently reading:
Midnight Creed: Author's 24th book: I love this series and this one just came out last month, so I was glad it worked for the challenge.

Catch Her Death: I might use this one for a book set in snow, but I planned to read it either way. I enjoy this series.

Just Another Missing Person: 24 letters in the title: I didn't actually start this one yet, but I got it from Libby and need to start it.

QOTW:

I'm pleased with how my goals worked out last year. This year I plan to take a bit of a different approach. I started the year with all the graphic novels (I usually do them once per month), so that I could feel like I got a head start. Normally I attack the challenge almost like a homework assignment, but I'm planning to read a lot not for the challenge as well this year. I got a 3-month trial of Kindle Unlimited and there are at least 20 books that I need to read by March 16th, most of which aren't for the challenge. Plus I joined a book club and a Fiction to Film book group, so I'm going to keep participating in those whether they meet the challenge or not. January's picks did though, so that's an added bonus.

Happy first checkin day!

I spent my New Year's Eve watching Dancing With the Stars with my stepsister. Thrilling, haha... Kind of not looking forward to classes starting up again in two weeks, but ah well. Life goes on.

Books read this week:

Gender Queer -- for “a memoir exploring queerness." This was a powerful read, and I highly recommend it.

Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View -- not for the challenge. Not as good as the first two books in this series, but still a lot of fun

The Easy Life in Kamusari -- not for the challenge. Okay but not great. I liked the small-town mountain life depicted here, but the main character is hard to like.

PopSugar Challenge -- 1/45
PopSugar Advanced Challenge -- 0/5

Robot Librarian Challenge -- 1/32
Robot Librarian Advanced Challenge -- 0/10
Robot Librarian Non-Fiction Challenge -- 0/10

Extreme Book Nerd Challenge -- 0/50
Extreme Book Nerd Advanced Challenge -- 0/10
Extreme Book Nerd Non-Fiction Challenge -- 0/10

DNF:

Black Sheep -- was going to read it for “book about a 24-year-old.” I was going along with it for awhile until it came out that the cult the main character escaped was Satanism. I don’t think people realize that actual Satanism doesn’t actually worship Satan…

Currently reading:

Matilda -- for “a book made into a musical”
The Girl and the Clockwork Cat -- for “a book written for NaNoWriMo”
Into the Wild -- for “a book about a 24-year-old”
Rose in a Storm -- for “a book that takes place in the snow”

QOTW:

My reading goals last year were to finish two challenges (PopSugar and Extreme Book Nerd) and to chip away a little at my TBR list. I succeeded at the former... not so much at the latter. I keep adding new books to my list, haha...

Kenya wrote: "Gender Queer -- for “a memoir exploring queerness." This was a powerful read, and I highly recommend it."

One of my favorites of 2023! Glad you enjoyed it :)

Happy New Year! Like so many other people, I got Covid for New Year's Eve. Ugh, I just had it 4 months ago. We were supposed to have people over and had to cancel.
My husband who had a heart transplant has managed to stay negative, which is great since when he had Covid he had to be hospitalized for five days for infusion treatments. This does mean that we are confined to different parts of the house and I can't sleep in my own bed.

Finished:
The Woman in Me for woman in rock 'n roll. Ashley Marie is not the only one stretching with Britney. I didn't really follow the whole conservatorship thing, so it was interesting to read about it. I listened to the audiobook also, and it was really well done.
Auntie Poldi and the Vineyards of Etna for character sleeps for more than 24 hours. MC was in an accident and was unconscious for 2 days. Having not known this ahead of time, I was thrilled. This was going to be a difficult prompt.

Currently reading:
She Started It This book has 6 POVs.
David Copperfield I think this can work for bildungsroman. I started it in December knowing I would not finish for a while.
The Complete Essays
Weaving Sundown in a Scarlet Light: Fifty Poems for Fifty Years for poetry collection
System Collapse on audio
My Name is Barbra on audio

QOTW:
Last year was so bad, I am happy that I was able to read at all. I was able to complete all reading challenges except for Read Harder. That one was more of a choice, there were some prompts I just was not going to do. I am not even attempting Read Harder this year.
I don't have any reading goals really. Just to enjoy and not get so manic about finishing all the challenges.

Milena wrote: "The Woman in Me for woman in rock 'n roll. Ashley Marie is not the only one stretching with Britney. I didn't really follow the whole conservatorship thing, so it was interesting to read about it. I listened to the audiobook also, and it was really well done."

*high fives* and sending good wishes for a speedy recovery from Covid, Milena!

Ashley Marie wrote: "Happy Thursday and happy new year!! I had every intention of staying up til midnight to finish a book and of course I zonked out at 10:30. Then I'd forgotten to set my alarm for midnight so I woke ..."

Thoughts are with you, Ashley Marie.

Happy Thursday, everyone! Happy New Year!

It’s a brand new reading year, and I am super excited for it!

2024 is starting out a little hectic, as I am currently having new flooring installed in my house. I know the floor will look amazing when it’s done, but I’m not enjoying the process…and neither is my poor cat.

As far as reading is concerned, however, 2024 has started off strong. Which is great, because my main reading goal for this year is to finish at least 50% of my TBR list. (This seems like a good idea right now, but we’ll see how I really feel about it when the “New Year, New Goals” optimism has worn off.)

I have to admit that I’ve gotten a really good start on my TBR goal over the last couple of days though, partly because of the house construction. Since I’ve had to move all of my electronics for the duration of this project, reading is pretty much my only entertainment option right now. I mean, I do have my Nintendo Switch handy, but I’m trying to limit myself to around an hour a day. As a result, I’ve made more progress this week than I had originally planned, which is awesome!

I’m also currently participating in the Bout of Books readathon, which has been a lot of fun so far. I think this is my fourth or fifth time doing this particular readathon, and I always feel like it’s a good way to start the new reading year…especially since it’s only a week-long commitment. I am posting pictures of my readathon progress on Instagram. My handle is @UnapologBkworm, if you’re interested in checking out my posts. (There are also some super cute pictures of my cat on my account, if you need more incentive to check it out.)

Here are my current challenge and TBR totals…

Goodreads Challenge: 2/400 (0.5% complete)
Mount TBR Challenge: 2/150 (1.3% complete)

📚Physical TBR: 2/402
📱Ebook TBR: 0/233
🎧Audiobook TBR: 0/0
TBR Checklist Total: 2/635 (0.3% complete)
Total Progress Toward 50% TBR List Completion: 2/318 (0.6% complete)

I do have two goals regarding my “New Books” list for 2024…

First, I want to read all of the books I purchase in 2024 before the end of the year.

Second, I want to purchase considerably fewer books this year than I did last year.

That being said, I did make a significant purchase on Amazon this week, thanks to a gift card that my aunt sent me for Christmas. I ordered the latest Ice Planet Barbarians book, Barbarian's Touch, by Ruby Dixon; as well as the Cardcaptor Sakura manga series, by CLAMP.

So we’re not starting off strong with the “not buying too many books” goal, but that’s okay. These were actually planned purchases, rather than impulse buys, so it’s all good.

“New” Books Bought in 2024: 10
“New” Books Read in 2024: 0/10 (0.0% complete)

Here are the books I finished this week…

Finished Reading (Fiction):
None

Finished Reading (Nonfiction):
None

Finished Reading (Manga, Comic Books, & Graphic Novels):
~Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves: The Feast of the Moon — This was one of the books that my dad got me for Christmas. I really enjoyed both of the stories in this comic book, and thought the art was good. 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~The Infinity Gauntlet — I really enjoyed this comic book collection! The art and story were fantastic! 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Finished Reading (Poetry and Drama):
None

DNFed:
None

Currently Reading:
~The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1001 Nights, Volume 1 — I have been wanting to read these books ever since hearing my ninth grade English teacher talk about reading them over the course of 1001 nights. I don’t have that kind of patience, so I will be trying to read all three volumes before the end of the year. I’m currently on page 38, with quite a few pages to go. 📚
~Emma — Jane Austen is one of my all-time favorite authors, but somehow I’ve not read Emma before. I’m currently 17% of the way into this book, and really enjoying it so far. 📚
~Assistant to the Villain — This was one of the books that my dad got me for Christmas. I’m really enjoying the story. 📚
~The Tao of Pooh & The Te of Piglet — I actually have a friend who read this book for a comparative religions course in college. He thoroughly enjoyed it, so I thought I would give it a try. I don’t know very much about Taoism, so I’m finding it an interesting read. I’ve read 59% so far, and might finish it later today. 📚
~The Christie Affair — This book has been really good so far. I’m currently 43% of the way through it. 📚
~The Infinity Gauntlet Aftermath — This is the continuation of The Infinity Gauntlet storyline. I’m only about 30 pages in, but I’m enjoying it so far. 📚
~Clanlands in New Zealand: Kiwis, Kilts, and an Adventure Down Under — I thoroughly enjoyed the first Clanlands book (both the print and audio editions), and loved the Men in Kilts television series, so I was super excited to find out that Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish also explored New Zealand together. 📚
~Garrett — This is the second book in the Cold Fury Hockey series. I will be starting it later today.

QOTW:
I met both of my reading goals last year, so I ended the year very pleased.

I’m already having fun tackling my goals for this year. Reading 50% of my TBR is going to be tough, even though it’s actually fewer books than last year, but I’m excited about the challenge.

I completed a video game for the first time in a while: Poochy and Yoshi's Woolly World. The challenge level on Mellow Mode is just about right for me. I wasn't getting all of the items in every level, but I was still able to get a lot of them in the late game.

Kenya, I'm curious if we have any of the same favorites from the Return of the Jedi FACPOV book. Here are mine:

Any Work Worth Doing
Fancy Man
From a Certain Point of View
Trooper Trouble
Brotherhood
Return of the Whills

I finished my reread of the Worlds of Deep Space Nine series. They are all worth reading and add lots of cool dimensions to the cultures from the TV show and post-series books.

I am currently really enjoying Star Wars: The Princess and the Scoundrel. I let some online naysayers keep me from this when it first came out, but I am finding that it is just what I want in a Star Wars story right now.

Question of the Week:

I'm not as concerned with numbers for this year or last year. I just want to use the challenges as springboards to lead me to some cool new books, which they are doing.

Happy 2024! Crazy at how fast last year went. This year I don't have many plans or goals. I don't see the point in making them. Whatever happens, happens despite whatever effort I put into them.

So onto the book stuff. I've got several challenges I'm doing this year so that will be fun.

I haven't finished any books, but I have started reading 5 of them and hope to finish by the end of the month:

Knowing Why: Adult-Diagnosed Autistic People on Life and Autism

Of Orcas and Men: What Killer Whales Can Teach Us

Northanger Abbey

The Count of Monte Cristo - I know I won't finish this by the end of the month, but I'm still counting it for my Jan. reads

American Carnage: Wounded Knee, 1890 - Another book I know I won't finish at the end of Jan. but still counting it.

As you all know I struggle with books that are over 310 pages so if I start a 400+ page book in a month I still count it for that month even though I know I won't finish.

*****

QOTW:

Are you happy with how you completed your reading goals last year? What are your reading goals for this upcoming year? Have you made any changes or adjustments?

Definitely satisfied. I did come up short in my nonfiction though. My goal had been 85% nonfiction and I was short by one percent with a total of 84%. Not bad, but still.

As for this year:

- 25 or more books

- 1 to 12 books that are fiction

- 85% nonfiction

- More Indigenous authors/themes

Ashley Marie wrote: "The Woman in Me - 5 stars. Beautifully narrated by Michelle Williams, and I still can't believe I knocked this out in a single day. Still processing, and definitely my first favorite of 2024. PS 44, Autobiography by a woman in rock'n'roll music - bending the rule here, but Britney is such an icon that I don't think it matters. ..."


I've been really surprised to see people saying things like this. I don't think you're bending the category at all. Britney is a pop star, pop music is a sub genre of rock n roll, therefore Britney is a women in rock n roll.


A stretch would be reading about Billie Holiday or Ella Fitzgerald, since they were both solidly jazz singers, and jazz is an adjacent musical genre, not under the rock umbrella. (Nina Simone would not be a stretch, since she sang jazz, R&B, gospel, and rock songs.) A bigger stretch would be maybe reading about Maria Callas or Beverly Sills, since they were both opera singers, and opera isn't even adjacent to rock.

Happy New Year everyone!! My New Year's Eve plans changed so I just stayed home. My friend and her daughter both had Covid. I was thinking about stepping out on my own but I just wasn't feeling it.

I'm currently reading:
The Color Purple for prompt #26- A book turned into a musical I decided to go see the movie on New Years Day with a friend. At first I really didn't want to see it. I have issues with seeing and reading about Black pain but it was pretty much like the original movie. This is a reread since I first read the book about 8 years ago.

Sounds Like Home: Growing Up Black and Deaf in the South for Prompt #9- A book about a deaf or hard of hearing author

Our History Has Always Been Contraband: In Defense of Black Studies

QOTW:

Are you happy with how you completed your reading goals last year? What are your reading goals for this upcoming year? Have you made any changes or adjustments?
I surpassed my Goodreads goal but I fell flat with my Popsugar challenge. My enthusiasm just died when it came to reading. I couldn't concentrate on much of anything. I did complete the #20booksbyblackfolx challenge and I plan to do that again on StoryGraph.

Jai wrote: " I did complete the #20booksbyblackfolx challenge and I plan to do that again on StoryGraph....."



Oh I have not heard of that one! Is it ANY 20 books, or are there categories to fulfill? Looks like last year I read 17 books by Black authors - I could probably bring that up to 20 if I focused.

Happy new year! Still coughing from the Christmas cold, it's taken me ages to shake this bug off, whatever it is. The weather was dreadful for new year, so with that and feeling rubbish we just sat in front of the TV with party food. We keep joking that we need the oppositie of a dry January as we haven't touched any of the drinks we got in before Christmas.

Finished:
Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett, which was my last book of 2023. As charming as the first book.

Murder and Mamon by Mia P. Manansala, for ATY (cosy mystery). I like all the recurring characters so this was still a pleasant listen but the mystery was a bit of a dud and I didn't really care about who did it.

Cast Away: Poems for Our Time by Naomi Shihab Nye for poetry collection. Poems about litter and metaphorical trash, I think aimed at teen readers. I liked some, others just seemed like random thoughts jotted down. I'm not really a poetry person though. I did try a few other collections before settling on this one, and this at least I understood!

Currently reading The Reformatory.

PS: 1/50 | ATY: 1/52 | GR: 2/100

QOTW:
I only just hit my goal of 100 books which is the lowest I've read in a year since I started keeping track. I finished ATY and did 40 Popsugar prompts which was more than I was aiming for, but overall it wasn't the best reading year for me. I didn't finish any other challenges, but then I never do.

This year's challenges are Popsugar, ATY, SFF Titles and a small ATY rejects list. I will likely not finish SFF and rejects but I try and tick them off as I read for other things.

I want to listen to more audiobooks this year as I got out of the habit and I have a massive Audible credit backlog to deal with.

Nadine in NY wrote: "I've been really surprised to see people saying things like this. I don't think you're bending the category at all. Britney is a pop star, pop music is a sub genre of rock n roll, therefore Britney is a women in rock n roll."

I think it has to do with what is and is not considered "rock" music and there are so many people who draw a deep line in the sand between rock and pop. If my dad thinks of women in rock he conjures Joan Jett, Pat Benatar, Lita Ford, etc and would laugh me out of the room for using Britney for this category!

Jai wrote: "I did complete the #20booksbyblackfolx challenge and I plan to do that again on StoryGraph."

oooh I just joined Storygraph the other day! I'm still feeling it out but I added this challenge for 2024 :)

Happy Thursday!

Challenge Progress:
52 Book Club: 1/52
ATY: 2/52 (Winter Challenge: 1/14)
Popsugar: 2/50
Robot Librarian: 0/52

Completed:
Romantic Comedy (ATY - DREAMING OF SNOW/Popsugar - a book about a writer) ★★★★★
The Pleasures of Passion ★★★
Blind Man's Bluff: A Memoir (Popsugar - a book by an author who is blind or visually impaired) ★★★★
The Year of Second Chances (52 BC - a book with a grieving character/ATY - two books with similar covers) ★★★★
The Second Chance Year (ATY - two book with similar covers) ★★★★



Currently Reading:
Open Throat (ATY - a book involving a wild animal or endangered species/Popsugar - a book told from an animal's POV)
Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre (ATY - DREAMING OF SNOW/Reasonable Doubt Book Club)
Let Us Descend
Sure, I'll Join Your Cult: A Memoir of Mental Illness and the Quest to Belong Anywhere
Seveneves (52 BC - a book with a palindrome on the cover)
American Dream Come True: Why Affordable Housing Is Good Policy, Good Business, and Good for America (ATY - DREAMING OF SNOW/Goodreads Giveaway)
Nevermore Bookstore (ATY - DREAMING OF SNOW)
My Head Has a Bellyache: And More Nonsense for Mischievous Kids and Immature Grown-Ups (Popsugar - a collection of at least 24 poems)
30 Things I Love About Myself (ATY - a book with a number in the title)
Veg-table: Recipes, Techniques, and Plant Science for Big-Flavored, Vegetable-Focused Meals
Mascot (52 BC - a book with at least 4 POVs)

QOTW: Last year I successfully completed the 52 Book Club Challenge, the Popsugar Reading Challenge, and ATY. This year I plan to finish all three of those AND the Robot Librarian Challenge as well as the ICYMI Backlist Challenge. I also joined a new book club... I think I may have bitten off more than I can chew.

Ashley Marie wrote: "I think it has to do with what is and is not considered "rock" music and there are so many people who draw a deep line in the sand between rock and pop. If my dad thinks of women in rock he conjures Joan Jett, Pat Benatar, Lita Ford, etc and would laugh me out of the room for using Britney for this category!..."



I have never looked at it that way! I mean, I'm sure you are correct and this is how some people see it and that explains why I see people saying they are stretching the prompt and I'm over here scratching my head wondering why.

There's rock, which is a huge genre. And under rock is R&B (one could argue that R&B is its own genre, but for simplicity I lump it under the big umbrella), and maybe rap (I see so much overlap between rap and rock that to me rap is a subgenre of rock), and blues, and reggae, and hard rock (which would be Joan Jett), and metal (which would be Lita Ford - and there are like one billion sub-genres of metal, too), and punk, and folk rock, and emo, and alternative, and grunge, and classic rock, and classic rock-n-roll (like Chuck Berry), and rockabilly, and ska, and prog-rock, and southern rock, and POPULAR rock, which is Britney.

The only contemporary musical genres that I see as completely distinct from rock are jazz and country (and swing, opera and classical, etc), although there's always overlap between genres.

I just had fun talking about this with my daughter! She said rap and pop are distinct genres from rock, she says Britney and Taylor Swift are pop not rock, but she thinks country is a subgenre of rock. Her argument was that Neil Young sounds kind of country (which I disagreed with), and since Neil Young is a rock star, country must be a subgenre of rock.

Happy Thursday. This will be the last Thursday of me checking in at a normal time. Work has changed my schedule and starting next week Thursday is an "at the office" day. Which means that unless I'm on vacation, I will be missing these Thursday posts.

I'm very impressed Nadine read four books. I'm on vacation and was enjoying reading the book I bought myself for Christmas and trying to move my buddy read with the kids ahead.

I intend to read 3-4 books a month, but one of my goals is to read less at the same time. A couple of times last year, I would end up with weeks of juggling 3 or 4 books and it seemed stressful. I need reading to be a fun hobby, not a source of more stress. Library schedules don't help as I usually got myself into these problems by suddenly having 3 books I wanted all become available the same week.

Series - 0/12
Nobel laureates - 0/5
Mysteries/Thrillers - 0/13

ATY - 0/45
PS - 0/30

Currently reading:
The House Across the Lake - 85% done

Buddy Reads:
This Present Darkness - 25% done

QOTW: Are you happy with how you completed your reading goals last year? What are your reading goals for this upcoming year? Have you made any changes or adjustments?

I went over 45 books last year by reading 52. I bumped it up to 50 this year. I forgot about books I read with the kids or bookclub books. Both go slow, but when done, they add up. Plus I might need to read some kids books to hit my PopSugar goal.

I did hit all my series, Nobel, and random goals last year. I reduced series because I finished 6 out of 12 series last year. I reduced Nobel from 7 to 5 to give myself more time since they are usually long, not easy books. And I am doing mysteries/thrillers this year instead of random books. I'm actually shocked that I found so many ATY and PS prompts for my random books given that I had no idea before I randomized what was going to pop up.

The trying to read only 2 books at a time will be the new challenge for me.

Nadine in NY wrote: "Ashley Marie wrote: "I think it has to do with what is and is not considered "rock" music and there are so many people who draw a deep line in the sand between rock and pop. If my dad thinks of wom..."

Oh what a fun discussion! I think what made me personally say I was stretching the prompt was the specific use of "rock'n'roll" vs the more overarching "rock". Rock'n'roll definitely puts me in mind of classic rock, specifically '50s-80s.

Other thoughts: country was born from R&B, which itself was a precursor to rock, along with bluegrass/Americana/western swing and so forth, and then we eventually circled back around with Southern rock and country rock. I wouldn't necessarily classify TSwift or Britney as rock either, although they can, certainly, and I would die to see either of them do a full rock album. You don't sell out that many stadium concerts without some rock elements!

Excuse me, I need to go rewatch School of Rock and look at Dewey's board of music and how various subgenres came into being 😂

Happy Thursday and happy new year! Things have been pretty slow at work, and I'm enjoying the downtime.

Ashley Marie, my thoughts are with you and your family.

Finished:
The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies by Alison Goodman - 4.25 stars - for a book featuring a 42-year-old character. I quite enjoyed this, and I hope there's a sequel coming.

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang - 4 stars - for a book about a writer. Sharp satire of the publishing world. A little like watching a train wreck, as the main character makes worse and worse decisions.

Currently reading:
Babel by R.F. Kuang - for a one-word title.

Upcoming/Planned:
Herc - for a book with at least 3 POVs

QOTW:
I'm pretty happy with my challenge goals from last year. I surpassed my Goodreads goal, even after raising it a couple of times. I completed Popsugar, and I even finished ATY by accident again. (I'm not in the group, but so many people here also do ATY that I like to look at their prompts once I'm done with PS and see how close I came without prior planning. I'm usually only a couple books shy.)

This year, I set my usual starter Goodreads goal of 50 books, and plan to definitely do Popsugar. I will also see if I can fill most of the prompts in the Robot Librarian challenge this year, but I'm probably not going to finish all of them.

Happy Thursday!
I was in Hawaii for the tail end of December so I went for some ocean books. Starting this and ATY now!

Finished
Our Wives Under the Sea
Island of the Blue Dolphins
Home Field Advantage
We Ride Upon Sticks (PS 1/50)

Currently Reading
The Heartbreak Bakery (ATY Week 1)

QOTW
I only did the goodreads challenge last year (and I only really started around July) and beat my goal by quite a bit. I'm pretty happy with it and I look forward to doing more challenges this year!

PS: 10/50
Robot: 14/52
Library: 9/25

Finished: The Rigor of Angels: Borges, Heisenberg, Kant, and the Ultimate Nature of Reality used for prompt about a writer. This was suggested by Maria Popova and I enjoyed it. I think anybody who likes intellectual histories would enjoy it as well as anyone who likes blurring the line between fiction and non-fiction.

Love Your Enemies: How Decent People Can Save America from the Culture of Contempt Our city mayor recommended this. While I didn't agree with the author's political assumptions at all, he made some nice points about how to get alone with people who disagree with you.

Signed, Sealed, Delivered: Celebrating the Joys of Letter Writing Mostly mined this one for other books to read.

Started: The Suicide Museum This one is fascinating so far, also blurring the lines between fact and fiction since this one has Ariel Dorfman (the author) as the main character and he's investigating the death of the historical figure, Salvador Allende. Using for prompt set in place I want to travel.

QotW: Yes! I'm satisfied with my reading goals this past year! I read more books than I ever read before, participated in three readathons, finished my personal reading challenge, a personal library challenge, succeeded in two book fasts. It was a good reading year.

This next year, I'm participating in PS (Yay!), Robot Challenge, and two Winter challenges from my library (which are really more activity challenges than reading challenges.) The hardest goal for this year is that I'm going to try to read one book at a time. *GULP* I also have a reading fast coming up at Lent. And of course the readathons.

Whoo! Whoo! HAPPY 2024!! Welcome to that bright new shiny discussion thread for "2024 Weekly Check-Ins"!!

Off the Shelf has released a listing of 6 Upcoming Releases Everyone Will Be Talking About This Year (https://offtheshelf.com/2024/01/upcom...)
They are:
The Things We Didn't Know by Elba Iris Pérez
(Added to my TBR listing. Historical fiction.)
The Women by Kristin Hannah
(Already on my TBR listing! It’s Kristin Hannah! Got to be excellent!)
The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard
(Added to my TBR listing. A debut listed as SFF.)
Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle
(Already on my TBR listing. I loved One Italian Summer and own In Five Years which I am anxious
to read!)
A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke
(Already on my TBR listing. It is a debut and I assume I will either really enjoy it or hate it… 😊)
Every Time We Say Goodbye by Natalie Jenner
(Third book in the Jenner’s Jane Austen Society series. I have yet to read the first one!)

Or, if you’d rather look back to favorite reads from 2023, there is this Off the Shelf listing of Readers’ Choice: Your 12 Favorite Books of 2023 (https://offtheshelf.com/2023/12/reade...) I won’t take the time to individually list all 12, but there are two I have read and loved:
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
***
ADMIN STUFF:
The January 2024 Monthly Group Read of Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah has begun! This book could be used to fulfill 2024 prompt #19 "A book set in the future." Surely there is a “rambunctious wrangler” just waiting to volunteer to facilitate this discussion! Please message either Nadine or myself to volunteer!
*sigh* No one has volunteered to lead this discussion, and after doing further research, I have decided this book is definitely not for me. It appears to include way too much violence. So, anyone interested in discussing this can join the fray HERE! Nadine has started off with her comments from having read this in the past! Enjoy! You will also find the thread to list a book you have read to fulfill this specific prompt HERE!

POLL RESULTS:
The February Monthly Group Read is Lucky Leap Day by Ann Marie Walker!! This book could be used to fulfill 2024 prompt #1 "A book with the word "leap" in the title." (Since “Leap Day”/February 29 does occur in February!) 😊 I don’t plan to read this one…since I want to read the mystery series that includes Crouching Buzzard, Leaping Loon (Meg Langslow #4) by Donna Andrews! I trust there is a “leaping literary luminar” willing to lead this discussion! Please message either Nadine or myself to volunteer!

NEW POLL!
The final selection poll for the March Monthly Group Read is up!. This book could be used to fulfill 2024 prompt #48 A collection of at least 24 poems. World Poetry Day is celebrated on March 21!
There are 5 books from which you can select:
milk and honey by Rupi Kaur
Call Us What We Carry: Poems by Amanda Gorman
Dog Songs: Poems by Mary Oliver
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
Shakespeare's Sonnets by William Shakespeare
VOTE HERE! This poll is scheduled through Tuesday, January 16! That gives everyone two whole weeks to vote rather than only one! 😃

The comprehensive listing of 2024 Monthly Group Reads resides HERE for your perusal and reference throughout 2024!
***
Question of the Week:
Are you happy with how you completed your reading goals last year? What are your reading goals for this coming year? Have you made any changes or adjustments?
Not happy, but definitely resigned and hopeful! LOL

As you all know, I did not finish my longest book by the end of 2023 and will be finishing it in 2024. I will not count 2023 Popsugar done for that reason. But it’s okay. I am enjoying my reread of ...And Ladies of the Club by Helen Hooven Santmyer and was unwilling to try to rush through it. Then I read two other books in tandem with that one, so, yeah. It will be counted for the 2024 challenge if there is a prompt it will fit! And…that is fine by me! Perhaps I’ll finish the 2024 Popsugar Challenge in record time! Ha! Ha! Okay, I can’t even keep a straight face as I type this! LOL 😊

I have added the 52 Book Club challenge for 2024. And I will still work on the AtY and Read Harder challenges. Although, I have stocked up on books in series I’ve already begun reading, so I trust there will be prompts to be fulfilled with those books. As always, I tell myself I should concentrate on reading the books I already own first… That never seems to work, but I’ll keep telling myself to do so anyway!! LOL 😉

2023 Popsugar: 49/50 SOOOO CLOSE! AND YET…SO FAR! 😉
Nadine’s Q1 Mini-Challenge 2023: 7/10 (I WILL READ THESE LAST 3 IN 2024!)
AtY: 52/52 DONE!
RHC: 14/24 I NEVER END UP FINISHING THIS ONE!

2024 READING CHALLENGES:
Popsugar: 0/50
Around the Year (AtY): 0/52
Read Harder: 0/24
52 Book Club: 0/52

FINISHED
2023 Challenge prompts
*Same Time Next Summer by Annabel Monaghan ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ was a quite enjoyable read, especially considering it to be a “romance” novel! Rather realistic, IMO, which I feel is unique to the genre. I just needed a ‘palate cleanser' so picked this one up from a stack!
POPSUGAR: #4, #19, #31, #50
ATY: #5, #14, #19, #29, #37, #46, #51
RHC: #24-2015: A Romance novel

2023 Challenge prompts
*White Fear: How the Browning of America is Making White Folks Lose Their Minds by Roland Martin ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ hits the mark in so many ways! This was a gift from my best friend at the gym. Then she invited me to attend an MLK presentation to be given by him at the Madame Walker Legacy Center on January 15, 2024! I am so excited to attend! I am especially jazzed since I read White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism just last month! Perhaps the Whites who buy into the underlying racist foundations of this society are finally realizing retribution may be in their future! 😉 It would be fitting, IMO! However, I have faith in the overwhelming humanity of humans toward one another. I truly believe it is there just waiting for the appropriate chance to emerge!! (You might term me an ‘eternal optimist’, but so be it!)
POPSUGAR: #4, #9, #29
ATY: #5, #6, #10-Scary—not for the future, but for the past and present, #13-flag, #14, #18, #22, #26, #28, #34-176 pages, #43-many, #52
RHC: #3, #4, 2016: Read a book about politics

I have yet to finish a book in 2024! The first one will most likely be Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon. I purchased this book at an author event in October 2023 and purchased a second copy for my best friend. She decided to start reading it at the end of 2023, so I have been reading it in tandem with ...And Ladies of the Club! (One of the main reasons I didn’t manage to finish ALotC by the end of 2023!)

CONTINUING:
*Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon
Not just a good mystery, but also full of snarky humor! Lana reminds me of my own mother. That’s not necessarily good for Beth, her daughter, but I can appreciate and empathize with Beth’s loyalty in caring for her mother regardless of their relationship.
*...And Ladies of the Club by Helen Hooven Santmyer
Still working on this last one for 2023 Popsugar. Can’t believe how much I had overlooked or forgotten or just simply didn’t have enough life experience to better understand and relate to in this book when I read it 35 years ago! Amazing what a difference age and experience can make in rereading the same text!
*Dismantling Racism: The Continuing Challenge to White America by Joseph Barndt
Want to read this before the MLK Day event. It was published in 1991. I find it unbelievable how LONG it takes to make the majority of us humans more respectful, aware, and appreciative of each other! Ugh…

PLANNED:
*An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed (Elderly Lady #2) by Helene Tursten, translated by Marlaine Delargy for an IRL book club
*An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good (Elderly Lady #1) by Helene Tursten, translated by Marlaine Delargy—a reread to refresh my memory for the second installment above!
*Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum #30) by Janet Evanovich
*10th Anniversary (Women’s Murder Club #9) by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
*Fear No Evil (Alex Cross #29) by James Patterson
11th Hour (Women’s Murder Club #11) by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
*Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey
*The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin
I’m already planning to delay this until February

Happy 2024! I ended 2023 not that well and didn’t start 2024 well: I got the flue… And my boyfriend did too. And I was so much looking forward to 4 whole days for me and my books… I only got half a day, boohoo poor me.

PS: 1/50
FNL: 0/40
Total: 1/52

Finished
Strangers with the Same Dream by Alison Pick⭐⭐⭐
PS #34, a book with at least 3 points of view
I'm still figuring out what I'm thinking of this book.

Currently reading
The New Tsar: The Rise and Reign of Vladimir Putin by Steven Lee Myers
Stadt aus Rauch by Svealena Kutschke

QOTW
I’m very happy! I’ve topped my goal with 12 books 🥳. Sad part: I didn’t complete Popsugar, I missed 1. A bit disappointing, so close and yet so far away. I simply lost motivation to find a book that would fill in 1 last prompt. Ah well, it’s just a challenge.

My goals for this year are: 52 books total, 40 prompts of a Dutch reading challenge (FNL, on Goodreads) and ticking off Popsugar prompts along the way. I switched from Popsugar to FNL for my main challenge this year. Already +1 for Popsugar: I can’t miss the weekly check-ins, they’re too much fun and so nice to share your reading every week!

Milena wrote: "Happy New Year! Like so many other people, I got Covid for New Year's Eve. Ugh, I just had it 4 months ago. We were supposed to have people over and had to cancel.
My husband who had a heart transp..."

Oh no! Not fun! Let's hope the rest of your year looks up from here.

Ashley Marie wrote: "Oh what a fun discussion! I think what made me personally say I was stretching the prompt was the specific use of "rock'n'roll" vs the more overarching "rock". Rock'n'roll definitely puts me in mind of classic rock, specifically '50s-80s...."


I've always had fun discussing musical sub genres!! Somewhere in this house I've got a book about all the many many many metal subgenres. I disagree with some of it. Total tangent: It's LUDICROUS to even CONSIDER SUGGESTING that Deep Purple or Led Zeppelin or Iron Butterfly were "metal" - they were early hard rock, Black Sabbath was the first metal band, and I will die on this hill. I'm not even really a Sabbath fan, but c'mon. They were the first, they pioneered that deep driving bass sound (all because Tommy Iommi injured his finger and couldn't play the normal scales)

Lily and I did discuss the "rock" vs "rock n roll" aspect! She considers rock a subgenre of rock n roll, and I consider rock n roll a subgenre of rock. When I first read the category, I assumed they meant the big umbrella and they were just the type of people who think rock is a subgenre of rock n roll.

Nadine in NY wrote: "Ashley Marie wrote: "Oh what a fun discussion! I think what made me personally say I was stretching the prompt was the specific use of "rock'n'roll" vs the more overarching "rock". Rock'n'roll defi..."

I think rock and rock n roll are the same thing...
I can see both sides of the Brittany thing. I feel like rock came first and pop came from that (the Beatles, Michael Jackson are some of the big names that, to me, started to diverge pop away from rock). So I can say that Brittany and other pop are descended from that and can count.
On the other hand, if you ask me to categorize artists, I would not call Brittany rock, I would say she's a pop artist. One of the qualifications for me is an element of playing your own musical instruments, particularly guitars (preferably electric). I never liked country as a teen or young adult. I only got into country within the last 5-10 years and a big part of what has appealed to me is the fact that they are actually playing their own instruments. (so is country now coming back around as rock?? I'm not yet sure, but I'm willing to be persuaded. Ken Burns did a great PBS documentary series on country, I recommend it)
I would not count R&B as rock, either. To me, it diverged from the blues at least at the time rock did, or maybe before.

And this concludes my dissertation that no one asked for! ;)

Happy check-in! Happy New Year!

Finished Reading:

Stag's Leap: Poems ⭐⭐ (PS leap in title)
Not one poem stood out good or bad.

Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 15 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Heartstopper: Volume Five ⭐⭐⭐ (PS LGBTQ+ romance)
I still find Charlie annoying oh well.

Redbone: The True Story of a Native American Rock Band ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (PS non-fiction about Indigenous People)
Random graphic novel I picked from the library that was a great surprise. I knew there song "Come and get your love" from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1 but that was it. I took a star off because the start was a bit confusing with how the scenes were placed.

One True Loves ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (PS second chance romance)
Yet another hit from TJR.

Dinosaur Sanctuary, Vol. 1 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (ATY Science or Sci-fi)
The Manga author consulted with a paleontologist who has factoids at the end of each chapter.

PS 4/50
ATY 1/52
Goodreads 6/150

Currently Reading:
Born to Be Badger

QOTW:
I'm vary happy with last year's reading because I finished all my goals.
This year I plan to do PS and ATY. I want to finish off the Fullmetal Alchemist series and the Omens series by Kelley Armstrong. There is an ATY rejects challenge for the list prompts that'll try but I'm not concerned with finishing it.

Hi all! I've been hearing in the news that Covid and flu are rampant, but no one I know personally has been hit. So I'm sorry that so many of you have been! I however "decided" to take a different route and I have pink eye! I have no idea where I got it, no one I know has this either. Including my usual germ vector kiddo. I'm really hoping she doesn't get it from me. And with the new year and insurance issues, it's taken over 6 hours to get my eye drop prescription filled...
Even before this, we planned for a quiet NYE. My brother and I found a website with old PC games for sale (gog.com) and I bought Roller Coaster Tycoon and have been addicted to that! So when I looked up from playing, it was 12:07 January 1. Hehe, whoops!

Kiddo only went back to school yesterday, so I haven't gotten back into my reading routine. I have read a few pages in Leap and I'm liking it so far.

QOTW: Lol, I will never be satisfied with my reading progress! I missed my personal goal of 30 books by like 4. I really should just not even try to read in December, too much going on. I set my 2024 goal at 30 again. Who knows what life will throw at me though?

I do have a reading "resolution" (I don't make resolutions, but I guess this can kinda be one). I want to get in some reading after my daughter gets home from school. I've read multiple places that to get your kids to read (or do anything, really) you have to model it. I usually read after she's gone to bed, so I want to start reading on the couch while she's around. Even if she's watching TV. I'm hoping this will lead to not only exposing her more, but me getting in a little more reading and also let me feel a little less stressed in the after school to dinner interim. However, pink eye has me not wanting to read atm, so we're already off to a banger start....

Hi all,

Happy 2024, good riddance to 2023! Hoping this year is much better for all!

This week I finished:

Strange the Dreamer - this was ok. I was liking it pretty well, up until the ending. It literally wrote "to be continued" at the end, which is an unacceptable way to end a book in my mind. You either just write one long book, and accept it's long and thus won't be for everyone (or edit better to get the story more concise, this could certainly have had some stuff trimmed), or you properly wrap up your first book into a complete thought. There was a spot probably 50 pages sooner where she totally could have ended which would have been, sad, but poignant. By barreling past it and going into "setting up the next book but then stopping" it just ruined the whole moment and left me annoyed. I ended up just skimming the summary for the next book because I no longer cared to read more.

Currently reading:

Starling House - Library book i really should get back at some point. I am really enjoying it, although I don't think I can fit it into any prompts which is kind of frustrating. Usually at the beginning of the year I can do a certain amount of free reading and tucking things in as I go before I have to actually start looking for specific fits. I thought it MIGHT fit for the writer/author but that would be a huge stretch. And there's enough books about authors/writers out there that I don't really think that's a problem prompt to fill.

Nettle & Bone - audio re-read for books & brew. I really love T Kingfisher! Such a good fairy tale.

QOTW:

Last year I was pretty pleased. I finished my TBR challenge with my book club, I finished popsugar, I finished my booknerds with no shelf control challenge, and I did all of read harder but the DNF prompt. I'd started off the year saying I wasn't going to do popsugar and I was taking a break from all challenges but the TBR one but everything was fitting so effortlessly that I ended up breezing through most the challenges without too much effort. And the stuff that I had to pick purposefully I mostly finished with audiobooks while walking over the summer.

This year I was excited about the prompts when I first saw them, but I'm feeling very meh about starting. I am miffed that the first books I am reading don't fit anywhere, nor do the new(er) October Daye books that I planned to read next. So I might just take a break from the challenge this year. Or a least just spend the first month or two of the year doing my thing, reading what I want. Then when I get caught up on October Daye and am more intentionally looking for books, see how I feel about ones that actually fit somewhere. I'm still doing my TBR challenge too, and I'm not sure how many of those fit in prompts this year either. (last year about 12 of them did, which is partly why i ended up doing the challenge).

Happy Thursday! And happy 2024!! I had a very quiet NYE- I used to go to out to shows, but those always wound up being not the best experiences, so now I prefer staying home. It's been a mellow start of the year so far, which I'm good with!

Finished:
The Count of Monte Cristo- I finished!! Feeling very satisfied that I actually read this. The only characters I really liked were Caderousse, yes he's a villain but I thought he was so funny, and Eugenie. Eugenie was so entertaining and we only got like two chapters of her? 100 pages of Franz and only 20 on Eugenie?? Unacceptable. Also Mercedes did nothing wrong.
-2023 prompt: longest book on tbr

Ella Enchanted- this was for the reread prompt. I loved it back when I was a kid, and I still love it now

Love & Saffron- first book of 2024! This is a cozy book about cooking and friendship, but then also made me cry. I wound up really liking it!
-16 A book set 24 years before you were born (set in 1962-1964)

Currently reading:
Rememberings- I'm listening to the audiobook, her childhood was intense. A pretty great memoir so far

House of Sky and Breath- after a year of my friend bugging me to read this, I'm finally starting it. She tells me she feels very calm about it and isn't super invested in getting updates as I read.

QotW:
I'm pretty happy with how my reading went last year. I finished Popsugar challenge on the last day, but at least I finished! My other goals were to read more translated books, which I definitely read more this year. And I had a list of 20 books I wanted to read for 2023, but only read 6 of them. I'm ok with that tho, because the year before I only read two on the list.

For this year my main goals are to complete Popsugar challenge, to keep reading more translated books and try to read more older books. Not necessarily the big classics, but have a little more variety when it comes to publication date. Last year I only read 6 books published before the 90s, I can do better than that. I also have a new list of 20 books to read for 2024- so if I read more than 6 of those I'll be happy!

Jennifer W wrote: "I do have a reading "resolution" (I don't make resolutions, but I guess this can kinda be one). I want to get in some reading after my daughter gets home from school. I've read multiple places that to get your kids to read (or do anything, really) you have to model it. I usually read after she's gone to bed, so I want to start reading on the couch while she's around. Even if she's watching TV. I'm hoping this will lead to not only exposing her more, but me getting in a little more reading and also let me feel a little less stressed in the after school to dinner interim. ..."



LOL I remember reading that advice, too. They make it sound so simple! Just let your kids see you reading, and they will read, too!

The bit about "read to your kids and they will learn to read" worked out for me, I never taught my kids to read, I just read a million different picture books (enthusiastically! I love picture books!) and they both learned how to read at around 3 years old.

But did they grow up to be avid readers??? Alas, no!! They DO read books, but no where near as much as I did at their age. My mother tells me NO ONE reads as much as I did and do, but she's wrong, obviously. All of you read that much.

I don't push it. They read well, and they sometimes read for pleasure, that's all I can ask. Maybe once they've graduated university and no longer have assigned reading, they will choose more books on their own.

Sheri wrote: "Strange the Dreamer - this was ok. I was liking it pretty well, up until the ending. It literally wrote "to be continued" at the end, which is an unacceptable way to end a book..."


Normally that sort of thing enrages me, but I guess I will forgive Laini Taylor anything, because I remember reading that, and I was piqued, but not full-on angry.



This year I was excited about the prompts when I first saw them, but I'm feeling very meh about starting. I am miffed that the first books I am reading don't fit anywhere

Yeah I've been running into that, too. And a lot of the books people ask about in the "where does this book fit?" have the same issue. This year's list of categories is particularly challenging, and many books don't fit into a single category.

I finally finished the 2022 challenge! Only a year late! I did not get to finish the 2023 challenge, but I’m skipping ahead to the 2024 challenge now. If I ever have a great reading year, I’ll come back to the 2023 challenge.

Finished
Year of the Reaper (2022 - a book by a pacific islander author). Fantastic! I wish there were more standalone fantasy novels. I could barely put this one down once I started reading.

The Disappearing Spoon: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements (2022 - a book with cutlery on the cover). Really interesting nonfiction about the periodic table of elements. The level of explanation was perfect for my background knowledge in science.

A Quiet Afternoon (a fiction book by a trans or nonbinary author). I liked these quiet sci-fi and fantasy short stories a lot. As with all collections, some were more to my liking than others, but overall I enjoyed reading the collection. It’s a short book (71 pages) in case you’re looking for something quick too.

Reading
Points of Origin: Volume Two of the Travelers' Tales (a book with a one word title that you had to look up in the dictionary). One of the short stories is titled “Coterminous”.

Resistance: A Songwriter's Story of Hope, Change, and Courage (an autobiography by a woman in rock n roll). Written by Tori Amos.

The Cutting Season (a horror novel by a BIPOC author). I’m getting social horror vibes from the beginning of this book. We’ll see how well it fits.

QOTW
Meh. No, but that’s mostly because of how infrequently I read. I’m trying to get back into the habit of reading before bed instead of doom scrolling.

Hello all! Thanks for sharing what you’ve been reading this week. I am making my way through Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive, and I finished The Words of Radiance. It was truly as amazing as I had hoped. I counted it toward the PS multiple POVs prompt.

QOTW: I read more in 2023 than I ever have in my life. I always challenge myself to read a new genre every year. Last year was “memoir,” and I ended up reading 7! I think I’ll try historical non-fiction this year. Lastly, I expect my book count will be lower this year, but I want to make my way through the rest of the Cosmere books. I’m hoping I can use them to fulfill PS prompts.

I did pretty well this week, mostly because these were arcs that I was already behind in reading and wanted to get the reviews out there for the publishers (and they just so happened to fit the prompts, well one of them and the ones I'm sure to get done by next week)

For A book by a blind or visually impaired author I read A Dead and Stormy Night by Steffanie Holmes Now this one isn't new and my version was so old it had the tag cozy fantasy right in the title. It really isn't. This is a paranormal mystery (with a reverse harem and several sex scenes) However both the main character and the author (I believe) has retinitis pigmentosa (at least that's what I believe Steffanie has).

And I lucked out that this arc had unreliable narrators (as I dislike the trope and generally don't seek out books about them) Your Blood, My Bones by Kelly Andrew was a very good YA horror. It's expected to publish in April.

The other arc didn't fit the prompts (for me at least) and is a middle grade book that pubbed this week. It was a fun mystery for kids. The Misfits #1: A Royal Conundrum by Lisa Yee It could fit pubbed in a year that has 24 in it (I have another I wanted for that) and you could probably argue it fits A bildungsroman book. (I have something else for that too)

QOTW

I did very well with my reading challenges (though it took shockingly long to do the alphabet soup one) I'm looking forward to this popsugar as I was able to slot in a lot more books I owned into these prompts than last year. I'm doing my other usual ones cloak and dagger (mystery, no prompts), alphabet soup (need a book for each letter of the alphabet), the Mount TBR here on GR (no prompts, just select how many books you mean to read this year) and literary escapes (American centric as you're meant to read a book for each state. I rarely finish this one but that's okay)

Nadine in NY wrote: "Jennifer W wrote: "I do have a reading "resolution" (I don't make resolutions, but I guess this can kinda be one). I want to get in some reading after my daughter gets home from school. I've read m..."

Lol, yeah, I read picture books to her regularly. But some days, the only thing I get to read is her books. I'm going to try it and even if reading around her doesn't magically make her a reader, at least *I'll* make some progress! :)

Hello! Back to work this week after taking the last week off. I go on vacation next week, so it's a brief few days full of work before taking a week and a half off to see family and friends.

I started putting together my spreadsheets for this year's challenges and finishing up the 2023 ones. Still more too do. I'll finish them up while on the trip, I imagine.

Finished This Week:
It's Not About the Burqa by Mariam Khan. Read Harder book for 2023, finished before the end of the year. Good collection of essays about being Muslim and a woman, mostly in England. Glad I read it. Not for PS prompt.

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. First new book of the year. I put this book on hold at my library back in August, when I was #3115 in line. I am now #809 in line as the number of copies slowly goes down. But I also got my own copy for my birthday, which I finally read. Quite enjoyed it. I don't see a PS prompt for it yet, but will need to check again.

The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik. Reread, not for prompt. I LOVE the first book in this series, and decided to reread the full series again instead just rereading the first. I still enjoy this one, just not as much as the first.

PS 0/50 RH 0/24 ATY 0/52 GR 3/125 TBR 1/24

Currently Reading:
The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik. And book 3. About a quarter of the way through right now. Trying to read with an open mind and not focus on how disappointed I was when I first read it.

Pep Talks for Writers: 52 Insights and Actions to Boost Your Creative Mojo by Grant Faulkner. On pep talk #44!

Techniques of the Selling Writer by Dwight V. Swain. In the 80 page chapter called "Beginning Middle End."

Paladin's Grace by T. Kingfisher. Gave up on the audiobook, will just finish by reading the ebook.

QotW: Are you happy with how you completed your reading goals last year? What are your reading goals for this upcoming year? Have you made any changes or adjustments?
I'm not happy with how 2023 turned out for reading. I only finished Pop Sugar. I'm 1, 2 or 3 books short in all the other challenges I track, which doesn't feel great. I also didn't get as many Hugo books read in time for voting, which didn't sit right with me either. The prompts that had things harder to get by chance were the ones where I missed - UNESCO City of Literature, Set in South America, Set in Dublin, A Cookbook, things like that. I did meet my Goodreads goal of 150 books at 154, so that's at least something. And while I didn't actively participate in Mount TBR, I did end up reading 14 books that qualified for that, even if I had intended to do 24.

I know exactly WHY I didn't get as many books read in 2023. I was actively focused on my own book and spent a lot of evenings writing instead of reading. I'm in a cooldown period right now from writing, where I'm not allowed to look at my draft until Valentine's Day, so I know I'll be consumed by the novel again in a month or so.

All that said, I haven't made any adjustments beyond moving my GR goal to 125 instead of 150. I included all six challenges in my spreadsheet when I made it last week. I'll probably only actively try on PS and Read Harder to start, unless there's anything on the others that particularly jumps out at me. The Mount TBR challenge should be good for 24 again, since I have at least 12 Persona 5 manga that will qualify.

Melissa wrote: "Hello! Back to work this week after taking the last week off. I go on vacation next week, so it's a brief few days full of work before taking a week and a half off to see family and friends.

I sta..."

definitely writing your own book takes up tons of time. Good luck with it

Jennifer W wrote: "Hi all! I've been hearing in the news that Covid and flu are rampant, but no one I know personally has been hit. So I'm sorry that so many of you have been! I however "decided" to take a different ..."

You'll be able to use one of the October Daye books for the 'Character sleeps for more than 24 hours' prompt.

hey, happy new year.
This week I started Persuasion by Jane Austen, for the second chance romance. Still around 100 pages left.. so will probably finish by the weekend.
And I did start listening to My Life with the Walter Boys but it is not that interesting. So idk I will give it a month before dnfing it.

QOTW: Last year was good. I mean I am happy that I finished my first ever challenge but it was really crazy. I dont even remember half of the books that I read. I just read it to fulfill the prompt. So this year I am taking it a lil bit slow.
Since so many prompts had "24ish" theme. I decided to start with 24 prompts this year. We'll see where that takes.

Yikes so much to catch up on here! Did not get a chance to really post yesterday since I got busy doing other things.

Hoping to get in some reading today. I'm currently working on several books so that's been fun.

Happy Thursday. (and Happy New Year!!!!)
I had a busy time of family gathering after family gathering, so this week has felt a little slow. But I can finally get to the pile of library books I'd stockpiled and saved for after Jan. 1st so I could count them for this years prompts.

Stats

PS: 2/50
ATY: 1/52
ATY Rejects: 0/25
ATY Rewind: 0/25
GR Choice: 0/30
TBR: 0/10
My Plan: 2.3%

Books I finished:

Dave Cooks the Turkey ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
It's not Christmas without listening to Stuart McLean tell this story.

How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I loved The Good Place when it was airing, and this is the book that the creator wrote summing up all the research he did into ethics while writing for the show. It was funny and interesting, and I needed one more GR Choice nominee to complete my challenge for 2023.

Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 13 & Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 14 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ each
Continuing to read through the series.

Ru ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (PS: A book with a 1 word title you need to look up in a dictionary)
I'd been dying to read this, so it was the first thing I picked up. I still think I liked Em more, but they were both beautiful. I didn't know what prompt to use it for, and then I realized that as it opens with the definition for the title (stream in French, lullaby in Vietnamese) it would be perfect for the prompt.

Stag's Leap: Poems ⭐⭐⭐ (PS: Leap in title)
This was pleasant, but utterly forgettable. I read it because it let me finish a hard prompt early, even though my sister warned me it wasn't that great.

Heartstopper: Volume Five ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (ATY: Character in education)
I was hoping to read this last year, but my library hold didn't come in until Jan. 2nd. And I know it's perfect for the PS 'queer romance' but I'd already done 2 PS prompts already, so I looked at my other challenges first.

In Progress:

The Sandman: Book of Dreams
The Serpent and the Wings of Night

QotW
I'm pretty happy with how last year went. I did finish all my challenges, although I only finished the last one with 1 day to spare. And my nonfiction reading was down (only 17%). I did manage to read more than 10 books out of my physical TBR, but most of them weren't even in my pile at the start of last year, so my pile didn't actually go down. But I haven't really changed any of my goals for the next year: I have my challenges, and I also try to read at least 100 pages a day, but other than that, I just read what I feel like, and I give myself permission to DNF anything I'm not enjoying.

Erin wrote:

Finished:
The Count of Monte Cristo- I finished!! Feeling very satisfied that I actually read this. The only characters I really liked were Caderousse, yes he's a villain but I thought he was so funny, and Eugenie. Eugenie was so entertaining and we only got like two chapters of her? 100 pages of Franz and only 20 on Eugenie?? Unacceptable. Also Mercedes did nothing wrong

Oh nice. I'm reading it this year. I'm reading 3 chapters a week so I'll finish by the end of September or so. If I can squeeze in more then that will be great, but if not I'll stick to the 3.

The final poll is live to choose our March group read for "poetry" - this poll will be open for two weeks:

Cool, just saw this and voted. So many great choices. I love reading poetry so this is perfect. Personally hoping 'Call Us What We Carry' gets it. I can't bring myself to read the Mary Oliver dog poems because I've heard they're pretty sad. But that's just my preference in crossing my fingers. LOL!