Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

Happy Thursday!  Welcome to June!!

This week flew by - why is time flying lately??  Summer is coming - the grass is not so juicy now, and yesterday it was over 90F (that's HOT for us!!)  

I pulled some poison ivy yesterday, and got a bunch of mosquito bites for my trouble.  What do you want to do when a mosquito lands on your arm?  Smack it.  What can you NOT do when you're pulling poison ivy?  Touch your skin.  Afterward I was all itchy, thanks mosquitos for getting all in my headspace!!! (No poison ivy rash this morning, so I am fine. I was careful, I wore disposable gloves, double bagged the poison ivy I pulled, and then washed up thoroughly.)

Up early today because my younger dog, Sophie, has surgery scheduled at 7am. She has a broken tooth (view spoiler)[that is massively abscessed and the infection has created an open sore on her face. (hide spoiler)] (Spoiler tagging for anyone who is squeamish!!) It's just a tooth extraction, but I HATE leaving my dog someplace and going home without her, so I'm a bit of a wreck right now.




Admin stuff
The June group read (which could fill "road trip") is:  West With Giraffes!    You can join the discussion here:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

The  July group read (which could fill "snake on the cover or in the title")will be: Sunrise on the Reaping.  As always, let us know if you'd like to lead the discussion!!

The final poll for August's group read is here: https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/3... The top three nominations were:
Remarkably Bright Creatures
James
Strange Weather in Tokyo




This week I finished 3 books, one for this Challenge, and I am now 36/50

The Heiress Effect by Courtney Milan- this was wonderful, it's been a while since I was able to really sink into a book.  Milan writes historical romance books I love to read.  Thanks to the member who long ago recommended the Brothers Sinister series for "left-handed character" - I don't remember who you are, but it made this category easy for me! (And he DID mention being left-handed in the book!) I also checked off "comfort read" in AtY.

Kills Well with Others by Deanna Raybourn - I loved the first book and when I heard there was a sequel, I knew I NEEDED to read it!  Women in their 60s being bad-ass assassins?  Yes please!   Unfortunately, this book felt random and pointless, like the author & publisher were just cashing in on the success of the first book.   Raybourn has been very hit or miss for me, this was a miss.  There's a corkscrew on the cover (and kudos to the cover artist because that was a scene in the book! although it was not a pivotal or important scene) so I checked off "common household object" in AtY.

Ocean of Clouds: Poems by Garrett Hongo- this poetry collection was a NetGalley book, and I wasn't really enjoying it, so I finally decided to call it quits and sped through the rest of it just to say I read it.  Someone somewhere is going to be very moved by these poems, but I'm not that person. Three stars.  No challenge category.


Popsugar 72% 36 /50
Must Reads 20% 2 /10
AtY 73% 38 /52
AtY bonus 10% 1 /10
2025 pub 54% 27 /50
NetGalley ratio  81%




Question of the Week
Did your parents read to you as a child? If not, how did you discover a love for reading?

This week's question was suggested by Jennifer W!

This article indicates that Gen Z parents are not reading to their kids as much as previous generations.  https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/borin...   And my first impression of that is:  GEN Z???   My KIDS are Gen Z!  How can they be parents??!!  And then I wondered ... "WILL my kids read to their kids?  geez I hope so!"

Yes, my mom read to me when I was a child.  We owned a few books - the two I remember are Hop on Pop and Little turtle's big adventure. But we also went to the library every week to get books (my mom has never been a big fan of OWNING books).  My mother never taught me to read, I just picked it up, and at a very young age.  I assume it's because she read to me, I assume that's how kids learn.   Because I read to my kids, too, and they also knew how to read before they were in school, and I didn't really go out of my way to teach them,other than the hours and hours I happily spent reading to them.  So my sample size of 3 says that "kids learn how to read by being read to."  Not very scientific, I know.

I was a very quiet kid, and apparently I liked being read to so I never let on that I could read myself; so in 1st grade the teacher put me in the slower readers group.  And when it was my turn to read, I just casually picked up the book and zoomed through it.  And she called my mom and said "I think we'll be moving Nadine up to the advanced readers group."  

And then for the next ten years I read all the time.  My mom still teases me about how much I read.  

By complete coincidence, after Jennifer sent me this article and suggested the QotW, it showed up in a FB moms group I belong to.  To my surprise, several of the younger moms did say they hate reading to their kids and they find it a chore and a hassle and their kids won't sit still.  So the article is not completely off-base!

I finished The Complete Book of the Cat as my book with less than 3 stars. It had none as nobody had reviewed it. It still has less than 3 stars because I gave it 2.

I finished Innocent as my book I wanted to read based on the last sentence (I'm ready to find out what happens next). This one was better. The characters were mostly all horrible people, but the story was gripping.

QOTW: I would imagine so. I really don't remember being that young. I do know my mom taught my sister how to read, but didn't teach me. Because my mom taught my sister by memorization and my sister's kindergarten teacher yelled at my mom. So,, I always say I don't know how to read because nobody taught me. Obviously somebody must have at some point because I do know how to read.

I think I fell in love with reading because I was a shy, awkward kid, didn't have any friends and reading was an escape. I loved animal books the most: The Black Stallion series, Paddington, Black Beauty, the Misty books.

Happy Thursday, y’all.

My accomplishment of last week was a group hike that I joined. I used to hike with those folks before my Scotland trip and quit because I had complaints about how fast the leader hiked and left behind those of us in the back. I also felt bad about myself compared to the others in the group. Not a fun thing to do.

This time I did fairly well. The hike was over 3.5 miles and one that I had done before. Although I ended at the back of the group, it was only due to fatigue. The same leader was great, the pace was fine, and I did well for 2/3 of the hike. The last third, I slowed up because of fatigue and to take care of myself. Overall, I was amazed at how well I did, my attitude of positiveness, and generally enjoyment. Quite an accomplishment, all told!

Tried chair yoga. Leader was the hike leader, and it was taught at the local senior center…so others were my age. Enjoyed it. Will do again next week (only once a week).

My blueberry bushes are producing more than enough for me and the birds. Banana peppers have also started producing. Now to figure out how to use them.

Finished:
In the Shadow of the Valley: A Memoir – Kindle. PAS. 4*. Appalachian memoir.

The Celestine Prophecy – PAS. 4*. Interesting book. I have owned it for several years but it seemed to fit right in with my spiritual path at this time.

Love Lies Bleeding – PAS, ATY #7 (author has 3 names). 4*. Continuation of a series.

Currently Reading:
Kate: The Journal of A Confederate Nurse – PAS. 15%.

Anybody Can Do Anything – PS. 22%

Just Starting:
Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All - ATY #30 (monster), PAS, PS #44 (book I have avoided). 9%

A Moveable Feast – PAS (due 6/17 with no renewal)

On Deck: (owned)
The Pony Wife – PAS
The Brass Verdict – PAS

On Deck: (library)
The Wind Knows My Name: A Novel – PAS, PS (due 6/17 with no renewal)
Waypoints: My Scottish Journey – ATY (due 6/10 with renewal)
The Dangerous Days of Daniel X – PAS (due 6/17 with no renewal)
The Warsaw Anagrams - PAS
Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop - ATY seasonal
Kills Well with Others
The Vaster Wilds
Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War
Murder and the First Lady
Running with Sherman
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West

PS 19/50
ATY 19/52, Anniversary 9/10
GR 86/200

QotW: Did your parents read to you as a child? If not, how did you discover a love for reading?

I don't remember my mother reading to us at all; although in her evening years, she was a big reader. And, I have memories of her taking us to the library in Marion (10 miles away),

I do have memories of sitting on my Dad's lap and his reading of the newspaper comics to me.

It just seems like I was always reading. I was and am introverted and had difficulty making friends, so books were my safe place.

Hey guys, I tried to post last week but I got side tracked so didn't get around to it.

I hope you all have been doing well. Been busy like crazy with family stuff and then to top it off and I ran out of my medication for a couple of days so that left me with some ugly withdrawal symptoms until I could get my prescription refilled. Doing better now thankfully.

Weatherwise, we finally had our first rainstorm in a year which was amazing. And now we're back up in the heated temps. At least the dust storms are over. Man I always felt like I was in a scene from Interstellar with how bad they got.

*****

Book News:

May was an excellent reading month. I read 12 books (11 nonfiction, 1 fiction). This puts me at 63 for the year so that's pretty cool.

As of May I was at 15 books that I rated 5-stars which is incredible. I normally rate 7 books a year with that high of a rating, so there's certainly something in the water in terms of what I'm picking this year. A lot of new releases have been downright insane!

Top 3 genres of May were: History, Self Help, and Science

Top 3 genres of the year have been: History, Science, and Science Fiction.

Overall, I'm doing well with my reading this year. I've still got a lot of new releases that I'm excited for and some fun ones on my monthly TBR's that I can't wait to get to.

*****

In terms of my current reads, here is what I have going on at the moment:

Native Nations: A Millennium in North America - This finally came out in paperback and I have been loving it!

The Lost World - I read the first book last year for the first time and it was great. I'm curious to see how different the second book will be compared to the movie adaptation.

This Is Chance!: The Great Alaska Earthquake, Genie Chance, and the Shattered City She Held Together - This book had me at the words 'Earthquake' and 'Alaska'.

*****

I've got a couple upcoming books that I'm planning to read:

Welcome to Metropolis: The Prequel Junior Novel - My first middle grade novel, but that's okay, it's Superman!

Bibliotherapy: The Healing Power of Reading - Pre ordered this one back in December. It was supposed to get released in February but the date kept getting pushed back. Really hope it sticks this time. I'm tired of waiting.

*****

QOTW:

Did your parents read to you as a child? If not, how did you discover a love for reading?

Yes, constantly. It's what made me love it so much. I still remember the books I had growing up and my mom has kept a few of them from back then.

Then my parents also had a rule on camping trips, no tech (this was in the 90s/00s so tech was limited, but no portable dvd players, no gameboys, etc.) so aside from family board games, for me I always had my books on a road trip or a camping adventure.

Hey guys, I'm back! What'd I miss?

Italy was fantastic. I'm already hoping to go back someday... after my finances have recovered a bit, and time and circumstances permitting, hehe. Florence was easily my favorite city, though Sorrento was also a beautiful beachside city. Rome was way too crowded and chaotic for my tastes, but I'm still glad I went.

One of the highlights of my trip was Cinema Guinti Odeon, a bookstore in a converted theater. Not only was it fun to browse (even with the language barrier in place), but the theater still screens movies at night. Neat place.

Since I've been gone for three weeks, y'all get three weeks worth of reading updates here. Yes, I managed to read on the trip -- long flights plus long bus rides mean extra reading time, hehe...

Books read the past three weeks:

The Dark Is Rising -- pretty clear it was written in the 70s, but still an enchanting fantasy story. Too bad the movie version screwed it up…

The Fae Keeper -- I read the first book for this year’s challenge, and this one was a fantastic follow-up. A great mix of fantasy and social commentary without being heavy-handed.

Black Woods Blue Sky -- I love other works by this author… so I was disappointed that this one turned out so bad

I Found Puppets Living In My Apartment Walls -- goofy but also legitimately creepy horror novella

Middlegame -- another author whose work I’ve loved in the past, but this book didn’t win me over

The Eyes Are the Best Part -- gorey but hypnotic feminist horror

The Road to Roswell -- a fun sci-fi romp about alien abductions… though the romance felt a little forced to me

The Sky Is Yours -- a case where I couldn’t bring myself to care about the characters, but the wild cyberpunk world was too vivid and fun for me to pass up

Out There -- cute graphic novel about a teen girl’s trip to Roswell, New Mexico with her alien-believing father.

DNF:

'90s Kids -- I wanted to support the author (a YouTuber I enjoy), but the writing was just CLUNKY

The Blanket Cats -- has the author ever even owned a cat? I can’t imagine “renting” a cat to someone, and cats can’t just magically change names and owners on a dime.

Parakeet -- could not get into it

Aftertaste -- same as above

Currently reading:

The Best of Catherynne M. Valente, Volume One
Rabbits
The Orchid Thief
Shady Hollow
Bury Your Gays

QOTW:

My dad read to me all the time as a child. I believe it not only shaped my love of reading, but taught me HOW to read at a very young age. My kindergarten teacher was shocked that I already knew how to read when I entered her class, and I distinctly remember being bored silly by the simple "Dick and Jane" style books we were assigned to read in class.

Happy Thursday! After a wonderful weekend in Walla Walla, this week has been frustratingly hectic. My husband had scheduled work on his car that ended up being a LOT more extensive than originally thought, and then the thermostat went out on my daughter-in-law's car. So we've had one car the last few days. It's taken quite of bit of juggling to get everyone where they need to go.

2025 Reading Challenges: I feel like I've really stalled on any progress. I'm going to have to be more particular about the books I'm choosing to read.

52 Book Club: 42/52 (I’m waiting impatiently for the next mini-challenge.)
ATY: 35/52 (ATY Anniversary Challenge: 8/10, ATY Summer Challenge: 1/25)
The Book Girls’ Guide: 32/74
Booklist Queen: 43/52
Popsugar: 35/50

My Ever-Growing TBR: 63/271 – 23.2% (My goal is 33.3%.)

Recently Completed:

The Quiet Librarian (Booklist Queen #37 – about an immigrant/Popsugar #25 – main character is an immigrant or refugee) ★★★★

Stuck Up and Stupid: A Pride and Prejudice retelling and Reese’s YA pick for summer. Although the modern adaptation of P&P was interesting and done well for the most part, the story lacks any romance. ★★★

This Book Will Bury Me ★★★

Finding Tess: Highland Legacy Romance: This got pretty silly. Set in the late 1600s we got runaway brides, pirates, friendly Indians, Africans saved from slavery, and a treasure hidden by the Knights Templar. I’m sure the there’s an audience for this book – it’s just not me. A very generous three stars. Goodreads Giveaway. ★★★

The Haters: An author gets review bombed and does very foolish (and at times unhinged) things to try to combat the haters. (ATY Anniversary #5 – an emotion in the title) ★★★

Charlie Hustle: The Rise and Fall of Pete Rose, and the Last Glory Days of Baseball: Very interesting to read since Pete Rose was just recently taken off MLB’s banned list. I wonder when he’ll actually be admitted to the Hall of Fame. ★★★★

The Full Moon Coffee Shop (ATY #22 – translated novel from Asia/Popsugar #23 – healing fiction) ★★★

One Death at a Time: This is my least favorite Abbi Waxman novel. This one got a little silly – it’s a caper (unlike her other novels) – and I never really cared about the characters. However, it’s not a bad book; it’s just not my style. ★★★

32 Days in May: (52 Books #6 – set in spring: romance/ATY Summer #1c – released in 2024 or 2025) ★★★★

Where You Are Is Not Who You Are ★★★



Currently Reading:

Death Interrupted: How Modern Medicine Is Complicating the Way We Die: Reasonable Doubt Book Club. (ATY Summer #5d – challenging subject matter)
Sunrise on the Reaping (52 Books #11 – a prequel/ATY Summer #2b – author’s initials in UNSWEETENED ICED TEA)
Unjust Debts: How Our Bankruptcy System Makes America More Unequal (ATY Summer #3a – red on the cover)
We Are Watching
Because He's Jeff Goldblum: The Movies, Memes, and Meaning of Hollywood's Most Enigmatic Actor (ATY Summer #1e – a humorous book)
Queenie (ATY Summer #4c - a book nominated for an award)
Pemberley: Mr. Darcy's Dragon: Jane Austen Book Club. (ATY Summer #3d – a title word that starts with P)
Human Acts (ATY Summer #4e – originally written in a language other than English)
Standing My Ground: A Capitol Police Officer's Fight for Accountability and Good Trouble After January 6th
Coven: A Graphic Novel
The Librarians of Lisbon



QOTW: Yes, I remember my parents reading to me as a child, and I too was reading before I started kindergarten. I'm sure I was a terror in first grade when we were expected to read the simple Dick and Jane primers! One of my favorite books when I was very small was Are You My Mother?. I loved it when the little bird told the construction equipment, "You are not my mother. You are a snort!"

Hi all! I'm hot! It's already 80 inside, we don't have our ACs in yet. It was close to 90 yesterday and the house didn't cool off much overnight. Last weekend, my heat was kicking on!

In excellent news, I have *finally* been approved for Social Security Disability!! It is such a huge weight off my shoulders. At least, as long as the govt doesn't blow up all the safety net programs...

Reading-wise, I'm still kinda sluggish. I did pick up Chasing Fireflies again. It's such a good book.
I also started It Ended Badly: Thirteen of the Worst Breakups in History, I think someone on here mentioned it. I'm not very far into it, but I'm loving the snark combined with history. My kind of read!

Otherwise, I'm browsing a lot on Audible. My 99 cent for 3 months expires in less than 10 days and I haven't used any of my credits. I've got some options, but I'm still looking.

QOTW: Yes, my parents read to me and my brother all the time! Once my brother started school, my mom went to work at the library and she would bring us home the new kids' books before they were put in circulation. I particularly remember Mucky Moose being especially hilarious- a moose is too smelly to be eaten! I also remember torturing my parents by making them read Fox in Socks and other Dr. Suess books with tongue twisters on repeat.

That said, I can also relate to the parents in the article. While I'm an early Millennial, I have a 7 year old child. It can be exhausting to sit with her and read. That's on me, being "old" and having health issues. But yes, she would rather be on her tablet, or she wanders off, or puts her hands or stuffed animals on the pages so I can't read.... I think she is getting more into it now that she is able to read most of the words on most pages herself.

Happy Thursday, everyone!

It’s been a pretty busy week, but I’m feeling good about the things I’ve managed to accomplish, and I'm taking the day off from working on household projects to celebrate. I’m planning to really focus on my office over the weekend, with the goal of reorganizing the whole room (desk drawers included) and getting caught up on the shredding that’s been piling up for the past several months.

Even though I've been busy, it's been a great reading week! The SciFi Summer Readathon began on Sunday, and I am having a marvelous time so far! I’m also taking part in summer reading programs at two of my local libraries, and making pretty good progress on my reading goals for both programs.

Here are my current challenge and TBR totals…

Goodreads Challenge: 199/250 (79% complete)
Mount TBR Challenge: 118/150 (78% complete)

📚Physical TBR: 96/731
📱Ebook TBR: 12/218
🎧Audiobook TBR: 10/12
TBR Checklist Total: 118/961 (12% complete)

TBR Books DNFed in 2025: 3

This week I got copies of two new releases. They were Garfield Bacon Me Drool: His 77th Book, by Jim Davis; and Of Monsters and Mainframes, by Barbara Truelove.

I also purchased copies of Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman, by Robert K. Massie; The House of the Seven Gables, by Nathaniel Hawthorne; The Inugami Curse, by Seishi Yokomizo; and Polybius, by Collin Armstrong.

“New” Books Bought in 2025: 107
“New” Books Read in 2025: 81
“New” Books DNFed in 2025: 0
”New” Books Checklist Total: 75% complete

Here are the books I finished this week…

Finished Reading (Fiction):
~Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince — This is the sixth book in the Harry Potter series. While this book was a re-read for me, it was the first time I’d listened to the audiobook. It had been quite a while since I last read this book, so there was a lot about the story that I just didn’t remember. 🎧: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Revenant-X — This is the second book in the Red Space trilogy. I thought it was a fast-paced, exciting read, and I’m already looking forward to reading the next book (as soon as it’s released). Content Alert: (view spoiler)[ This book includes several references to cannibalism. (hide spoiler)] 📚: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
~Dragons of Autumn Twilight — It took me over a month, but I’ve finally finished the first book in the Dragonlance Chronicles series! Although I thought this book had a lot of promise, I had a really hard time staying invested in the story, which is why it took me so long to finish. I do own a considerable number of Dragonlance books, including the sequels to this one, but I do not know if I have any interest in continuing the series. I might give the second book a try later this year, but we’ll see. 📚: ⭐⭐

Finished Reading (Nonfiction):
~Vampira and Her Daughters: Women Horror Movie Hosts from the 1950s into the Internet Era — This encyclopedia of women Horror Hosts was an interesting read. I had no idea that there had been (and continue to be) so many women working in this field. 📚: ⭐⭐⭐
~Screaming for Pleasure: How Horror Makes You Happy and Healthy — I thought this was an interesting look at the impact of the horror genre. The author did make some points I did not agree with, and which I felt he did not support with adequate evidence, but I was happy to see a chapter on horror books. 📚: ⭐⭐⭐

Finished Reading (Manga, Comic Books, & Graphic Novels):
~That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime 26 — This was a great continuation of the series! I’m already looking forward to the release of the next volume. 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Cutie and the Beast Vol. 4 — I thought this was a cute conclusion to the Cutie and the Beast series. 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Finished Reading (Poetry and Drama):
None

DNFed:
None

Currently Reading:
~Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — This is the seventh book in the Harry Potter series. This book is a re-read for me, but it’s the first time I’ve had a chance to listen to the audiobook. I’m only about five hours into this book, so I’ve got quite a bit left to go. 🎧
~I'm Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom — I’m currently about five chapters away from the end of this book, so I will definitely be finishing it today. It’s been an interesting read. 📚
~Floating Hotel — I’m only one chapter into this book, and I have to confess that I’m having a hard time staying interested in it. I'm going to give it a few more chapters, but I may be returning this one to the library unfinished. 📱

QOTW:
Both of my parents read to me when I was a child, which is a big part of why I love reading so much.

I'm back in NYC from my short trip to Santa Fe, just in time for a temperature spike for a couple of days, though only into the 80s. I can handle that! But my work backlog is awful.

PS - 33/60 ATY - 47/52

Finished - 2 full days spent flying meant some finishes:
You Send Me - prompt - title starts with a Y
Truly, Madly, Sweetly - prompt - food truck - cupcake truck actually but it is referred to several times as a food truck as well.
No Tan Lines

Currently Reading:
No Strings Attached
Fugitive Telemetry

QOTW: My mother read to all of us - childrens books from the day we were born. Once we all were able to read on our own, that stopped.

My real passion for reading happened on my 10th birthday when my older brother gave me 3 Nancy Drew books: The Secret of the Old Clock, The Secret of Shadow Ranch, and The Secret of Red Gate Farm. I never looked back! I still own those 1st three Nancy Drews, which are quite tattered as they were borrowed by many friends and 2 younger sisters and their friends.

Happy Thursday everyone! I've been updating my resume and applying to jobs. I'm considering expanding my search to out-of-state opportunities, and I hope to find something soon!

On the reading front, I'm continuing to prioritize LBGTQ+ books and authors this month. I've been binging a Colombian telenovela with my mom and sister, so unfortunately I haven't been reading much during my free time. I only read 1 book since my last update, but it counted towards several prompts.

2025 Reading Challenges
Popsugar- 41/50
ATY- 52/52; Anniversary- 9/10; Summer- 100/5000
Read Good- 12/12 COMPLETED
Buzzword- 5/12; Cover- 6/12

1001 Books- 5/10
TBR- 20/20 COMPLETED

Finished
When the Tides Held the Moon- a cozy fantasy about a Puerto Rican immigrant who falls for a merman. Loved the found family in this, and while the romance was full of tenderness, it did have its corny moments. Glad it gave me the Goodreads Rainbow Reads Bookmark ☆☆☆
ATY #25- a book with waves on the cover
ATY Summer #1B- a book with water on the cover
Buzzword Cover- celestial bodies

Currently Reading
Sky Daddy
Midnight's Children
A Room of One's Own & The Voyage Out

QOTW
I didn’t speak English as a kid, so I’d make up stories in Spanish just by looking at the pictures, lol. My mom did read to me in Spanish, but I didn’t really learn to read in English until Kindergarten. After that, there was no stopping me. PBS Kids was huge in our house, so I got into the Arthur books early on. I also loved Amelia Bedelia. I related to all her funny misunderstandings, and that’s how I picked up a lot of homophones and common English expressions.

Honestly, I was more surprised that Gen Z are parents now than by the fact that some aren’t reading to their kids. When I was teaching, I had a lot of students who were reading below grade level, so this trend isn’t all that shocking. There was also that article about college students struggling with reading stamina and comprehension. So what you saw in that Facebook group, Nadine, really tracks. I also think kids are given tablets and phones way too early that it becomes a kind of digital pacifier. That said, my Gen Z cousin is trying to do things differently. He’s keeping his 2-year-old away from screens and instead spends time outside with him during the day and reads to him every night.

Two week check in again, still falling behind on my reading goals. But, plenty of time to catch back up.

Finished

Heavenly Tyrant Didn't like this as much as Iron Widow, potentially middle book syndrome I guess, but I still eagerly anticipate the next book and will be reading it. Used for silver on the cover as the title is silver text.

Run with the Wind Got so lucky with this - I didn't know what to read for the run club prompt, and happened to see this on display at my library. Story about a group of university students who decide to train and attempt to qualify for the Hakone Ekiden which is a relay race with half-marathon-length legs. Although I'm not a runner, I got really into it and just found it charming!

The Ever After of Ashwin Rao This was interesting, but a bit of a slog. It's about the aftermath of a bomb being put on an Air India flight from Canada, and the long term responses of those affected by it. It's a compelling topic, but the style was a little difficult to get into - the narrator is an Indian man who wants to talk to affected families to produce work on how they've been affected in the decades since, but then it keeps jumping into the perspective of the people he's speaking with - many of whom are more interesting than he is. Didn't use it for a prompt, but as part of clearing out the things on my TBR that I added over 10 years ago.

Road to Ruin This didn't quite live up to its premise. It's about a motorcycle courier in a maybe post-apocalyptic or maybe just generally terrible world who couriers letters between two nobles in different towns. I was promised Mad Max vibes and didn't get enough of that, and a lot of strands felt underexplained or unresolved. Maybe because there's a coming-soon sequel, which I do plan to read.

Currently Reading
The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet
Children of Time
The Girl from Everywhere

QotW
Yep, both my parents. But I particular remember my dad being the one who did my just before bed reading - from children's books all the way up to Jane Eyre and Oliver Twist.

Happy Thursday!

I'm off work next week, and happy to have a break. We're going on a small three-day road trip just to get away for a little bit. I'm looking forward to getting out of town.

Finished:
You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle - 2.5 stars - for a book with a title that starts with the letter Y. I didn't like this one terribly much. It got marginally better once the characters actually grew a backbone and started communicating, but that didn't happen until over halfway through the book. I only finished it because it was a short, quick read.

Behooved by M. Stevenson - 3 stars - for the main character being a politician. The political intrigue takes a backseat to the romance story. It gets props for a main character dealing with the equivalent of celiac disease in a fantasy novel, which I've never seen before. Overall, it was fun, and I'd recommend it if you like fantasy romance that doesn't take itself too seriously.

Manga/comics:
Queen's Quality, Vol. 22

I am currently at 31/50 for Popsugar (26/40 and 5/10).

Currently reading:
The Ladies Road Guide to Utter Ruin by Alison Goodman - not currently for a prompt.

Upcoming/Planned:
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh - for a book where the main character is an immigrant or refugee.

Hammajang Luck by Makana Yamamoto - not currently for a prompt.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot - for a book about an overlooked woman in history.

VenCo by Cherie Dimaline - for a book about a road trip.

QOTW:
I don't really remember, but I'm pretty sure at least my mom did, a little bit. Neither of my parents were big readers later in life, but she and my grandma both had bookshelves I was allowed to raid when I was a kid.

I know I learned to read very early. Like a lot of you, I was also shy, introverted, and quiet, and I was the kind of kid who would read the cereal box just to have something to read.

I remember, I think it was in the first or second grade at school (in NYC), we had these color-coded reading comprehension exercises. It was like a folder with a short story or passage on the inside, and then some reading comprehension questions, and the different colors were how difficult it was. I basically zoomed through the hardest one they had, so my teacher allowed me to have quiet reading time with a book while the rest of the class did these exercises.

ETA: I actually found an article about the reading exercises I remembered: https://bookriot.com/a-box-of-nostalg...

3 month Library TBR: 14/23
3 month Purchased TBR: 8/24
Gifted: 4/9

I celebrated Shavuot this past week, so I got a good chunk of reading in!

Finished: A Brief History of Equality
The Moral Economy: Why Good Incentives Are No Substitute for Good Citizens
Democracy’s Discontent: America in Search of a Public Philosophy
Can Democracy Work?: A Short History of a Radical Idea, from Ancient Athens to Our World This was my favorite out of the books on democracy I read. I got a lot out of it.
How America Works... and Why it Doesn't: A Brief Guide to the US Political System This book tried to be fair to both sides, but I found some of its claims offensive. Perhaps that is just to show how biased I am!


Started: I started a whole bunch of books, but I'll just list the ones I consider myself to currently still be reading.

No Straight Road Takes You There: Essays for Uneven Terrain I think Rebecca Solnit's writing is beautiful. Did enjoy the "visions" more than the "revisions." Visions were capturing positive change happening in the world, while revisions focused on things that still need to be changed. I skipped over some of that section or else I'd be finished!

The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life A book about journaling. Haven't gotten far enough into it to know whether I like it or not.

More Than Human A friend recommended this to me as a book they enjoyed as a teen. So far, it's really interesting!

Qotw: My mom taught me to read when I was three so most of my reading was independent. One time, I remember reading A Cricket In Time Square together as a family. But my mom wouldn't let me take a turn reading. Perhaps because of this, I've always hated when she reads out loud!

In complete contrast to last week, the weather has warmed up to the point that it's supposed to hit 90 degrees today. While I don't relish having to turn on the AC, it's still better than being in the 50s.
My library's bearded dragon laid eggs over the weekend! Twenty eight in total, which is slightly above average (probably means we've been feeding her well).

Finished:
The Labors of Hercules Beal - Not really sure how I feel about this one. The set up was super contrived, but the main character was pretty likeable. I might have rated this higher if there was less use of "jerkface" (seriously, it's like the only insult anyone uses).
Avery and the Fairy Circle - Very cute, with a little plant education thrown in for good measure.
The Book of Heartbreak - A netgalley read, and apparently based on a middle eastern legend/folk tale. This took a while to get going, and I can't say I find the conclusion all that satisfying, but it was a decent read. The romance was definitely lacking, though.
Fowl Play - This book sounds like it shouldn't work, but it does. The highlight is the interaction between the family members as they try and solve the mystery.
Flipping Forward Twisting Backward - A quick read, the usual undiagnosed dyslexia storyline given a twist by the novel in verse format and the main character being a gymnast.

Currently Reading:
The Sound of Music Story: How A Beguiling Young Novice, A Handsome Austrian Captain, and Ten Singing von Trapp Children Inspired the Most Beloved Film of All Time
It Came from the Closet: Queer Reflections on Horror
The Partition Project
Remember Us
Hovergirls
Sea Sirens

QOTW: My parents definitely read to me and my sisters, though Dad was the one usually on bedtime story duty. I didn't teach myself to read this way, but my older sister did (to the detriment of her spelling later on, according to my mom).

Happy June.

We are finally getting some summer weather. May was kind of cold here.

I finished a book. I thought I'd be using the Thursday Next book for a book with books on cover, but there was only one book. Thursday did spend most of the book taking pain killers for an injury, so I lucked into a hard prompt instead of the regular one I'd slotted it for.

Finished:

The Woman Who Died a Lot
Popsugar prompt: A book that features a character with chronic pain
ATY prompt: A book that fits a prompt from the 2016 ATY list (a book about books)
Anniversary prompt:

Series - 4/10
Reading Across Canada - 5/10
Nobel laureates - 2/5

PS - 21/40
Regular ATY - 19/40
Anniversary ATY - 6/10

Currently reading:
Interior Castle - 25%
Death Bringer - 70%

Buddy Reads:
none at present

QOTW: My mom read to me until I could read on my own. Then, I read by myself. I even read to my younger brother. I was a total bookworm as a kid.

Kenya wrote: "The Sky Is Yours -- a case where I couldn’t bring myself to care about the characters, but the wild cyberpunk world was too vivid and fun for me to pass up..."



This book was so weird and intense and I loved it and I never see anyone else talking about having read it!!! I don't remember any of the character's names, but I do still vividly remember snatches of the plot, it stuck with me over the years and pops into my head at random times.

Bea wrote: "My blueberry bushes are producing more than enough for me and the birds...."



wow! blueberries already!!! it's so early here, strawberry season won't be for a few more weeks.

I had a very busy week and not in a fun way. I'm ready for the weekend and hopefully doing nothing but relaxing and spending time on hobbies! I've scheduled a vacation for the end of June and first week of July. That's all that's keeping me going at this point.

I invested in a white noise sound machine and ear plugs because my upstairs neighbors have insane hours and my next door neighbor lets his dogs bark all night. At least my sleep has improved!

Finished

The Twisted Women's Book Club (a book with two or more books on the cover or "book" in the title). This was a fun concept. Like all short story collections, some were better than others. The chapters with the book club leader tied it all together. This would also work for a book of interconnected short stories.


Reading

The Murder Machine (a book recommended by an AI chatbot). Since I strongly object to this prompt, I decided to read a book where AI is used as a murder weapon instead. I found this book through a librarian-curated list of tech thriller recommendations.

Tess of the D’Urbervilles (a classic you’ve never read)

QOTW
Yes, all the time. My most vivid memories from childhood are of my mom reading to me. I think this is why I enjoy audiobooks so much. I love being read to.

Happy Thursday! My daughter is officially on summer break! And it's definitely starting to feel like it too.

Finished 20/50
The Games: A Global History of the Olympics for "book about a run club". This was good! A bit somber and a little heady, but this was a cool way to view global history.

Currently Reading

Alice Will for "book containing magical creatures that aren't dragons". I....am not thrilled with this book. It's pretty clunky.

QotW

What a great question! I have wonderful memories of my dad reading the Chronicles of Narnia to me. It definitely sparked my imagination and love for fantasy. I still love the series and hope to engage my daughter with it one day!

June! That means I'm done working for 7 weeks of reading, hiking, and swimming bliss!

I finished one book, but didn't use it for a prompt:
These Precious Days: Essays

Now that I'm on vacation my book completion will speed up. Next up/currently reading:
Daughter of Fire
The Wangs vs. the World
Death of the Author
We Need New Names
The Quiet American
The Frozen River
The Berry Pickers

QOTW:

My mom read to us until I was about 4 and reading fluently on my own. My younger brother HATED books and since I could read by myself, she stopped. I am the only reader in my family, once she stopped reading to us I never saw my mom read nor did my dad read. Other than the handful of books she read from, there were no books in our house. I'm not sure if it was reading to me that sparked the book love or not, I can't remember ever NOT loving books.

When I was about 6 and wrapping up kindergarten, we went on a field trip to community buildings like the fire and police stations, and one stop was the library. When I got home I went from overjoyed to share that there was this magnificent building where I could get books for free (we were low income) as long as I brought then back, to angry when I learned that my parents knew of this magical place and never took me there. My mom tried to take me there occasionally after that but my brother was always with us and still hated books and the library. Once I was 8-9 and could go on my own (I'm a GenXer, we had that kind of freedom) I was there all the time. My school also had a small library I could use.

I teach high school, and the demographic I teach does not read. It is not recent, going back 25 years I've overwhelmingly had students with no books at home and no one reading to them, often because the parents cannot read. I read the article referenced earlier in the week and am dismayed that the problem has spread to higher income homes with literate parents. The excuses they gave are so dumb..."it's boring", "it's too much like school", "I don't have time"

I bet they have time to be on social media. And I don't mean discussing books on goodreads.

I'm proud that my Gen Z daughter reads to her daughter who is learning to love books

Jennifer W wrote: "In excellent news, I have *finally* been approved for Social Security Disability!!"

What a relief! I'm so glad to hear that!

Life update: I've been feeling old this week! Partly because of my illness, but also because I had a couple of queries at work that really brought it home to me how much the world has changed since I started out. Two of my younger colleagues were separately looking for court judgments from the 1990s, and I had to laboriously explain to them that no, those would not have been published online, and in those days we either had to consult bound volumes of printed reports, or else we passed unreported judgments from hand to hand... I am becoming a dinosaur.

Reading update: I've felt like my progress was a little slow this week, but I think that was mostly because I was eager to get to my Pride month reading. I also spent some time going through old book reviews that I posted on Livejournal and adding those books to Goodreads and SG. Just looking at all those cover images brought back a lot of memories. I finished five books:

The Calculating Stars. Not for a prompt, but I want to read the rest of the series and use one of them for a married couple who don't live together. I loved this - I can't even put my finger on it, but it was like a breath of fresh air. I think it was partly that the MC shares a name with my favourite aunt and also feels like a similar sort of person. They would have been around the same age at the time the book is set.
Star Trek: The Newspaper Comics, Volume 1: 1979-1981 for the Star Trek Series Challenge. The stories and characters were surprisingly well fleshed out, with some beautiful artwork in places.
The Haunted Starship, also for the Star Trek Series Challenge. This one was more disappointing; it was advertised as YA, but felt more MG.
Taproot for the Pride Season Reading Challenge and Queer Reads Bracket challenge
The Paris Express for the GR Armchair Explorer bookmark. Not entirely my kind of thing, as it turned out, but there were some things I liked about it.

Stats:
Finished for PopSugar Challenge: 0 this week, 44/50 total
Finished for Star Trek Series Challenge: 2 this week, 16/18 total
Finished for Readers of the Wild Moor: 0 this week, 15/30 total
Finished for Cosmere Challenge: 0 this week, 2/48 total
Finished outside the challenges: 1 this week, 15 total
All books finished this year: 5 this week, 77 total
GR Seasonal Bookmarks completed: 1 this week, 6/7 total
DNF or paused: 0 this week, 16 total

Challenges completed this year:
GR Community Favorites

Currently Reading:
The Prophet, one of the books my friend left with me
The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda for my current audiobook
The Valmiki Ramayana Vol. 3 for spiritual bedtime reading
and about to start The Lilac People for the GR Rainbow Reads bookmark and the Pride Season challenge

QOTW: My mother and father both read to me and both also made up their own stories to tell me. My dad was a part-time writer, so I think it came naturally to him. I think my passion for reading mainly came from his dayjob, though; he was an English teacher and used to tell me condensed versions of the books he was reading with his class, along with snippets of the class discussion. I was the weird kid who couldn't wait to be deemed ready to read Hamlet!

I read to my own kids (born between 1993 and 1999) as well, and now they and I read to my grandson (born 2020). He loves books and is just getting to the point of being able to read to himself in bed, but we still read to him as part of his bedtime routine. He has inherited ADHD from me, so he does have trouble sitting still, but that isn't a problem once you understand that all the moving about is actually helping him to pay more attention, not less. He's still listening to what we're saying as we read, and he will come and look at the pictures for the bits that particularly interest him.

Jennifer W wrote: "In excellent news, I have *finally* been approved for Social Security Disability!! It is such a huge weight off my shoulders. At least, as long as the govt doesn't blow up all the safety net programs..."



Congratulations!! That's a huge weight off your shoulders!! Persistence FINALLY paid off. Will you still be working part time at the school?

K.L. wrote: "I also purchased copies of Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman, by Robert K. Massie..."


Have you watched that show, "The Great"? We've been watching it because my daughter is a Nicholas Hoult fan. It's the "mostly true" story. I think they've made Peter much more appealing than he really was.

Nadine in NY wrote: "Jennifer W wrote: "In excellent news, I have *finally* been approved for Social Security Disability!! It is such a huge weight off my shoulders. At least, as long as the govt doesn't blow up all th..."

Sasha wrote: "Jennifer W wrote: "In excellent news, I have *finally* been approved for Social Security Disability!!"

What a relief! I'm so glad to hear that!"

Thank you both!

I think I will still work at the school, it's fun, gives me something to do, and makes some money. But that's coming to an end 3 weeks from yesterday for the summer.

Joanna wrote: "My library's bearded dragon laid eggs over the weekend! Twenty eight in total, which is slightly above average (probably means we've been feeding her well). ..."



how exciting!!!! what do bearded dragons eat? will the eggs hatch?

Nadine in NY wrote: "how exciting!!!! what do bearded dragons eat? will the eggs hatch?"

The eggs are infertile, but we froze them anyway just to be on the safe side.
Bearded dragons eat plants and bugs, and ours mostly eats spinach, arugula, bok choy, and endive. Her favorite veggie is bell peppers, but she doesn't like carrots and was not impressed with kale. On the insect side, we stick to mealworms, but we did get her dubai roaches once (they're a little pricey).

A quick check-in for me this week! No books finished, so I'm at 11/40 and 0/10 for this challenge and 29/85 for my Goodreads Reading Challenge.

Finished:
* none

Currently Reading:
* The Penguin Book of Murder Mysteries edited by Michael Sims;
* The Echo of Old Books by Barbara Davis, which is one of my book clubs' picks...I thought for this month but it looks like it will be next month, so I don't need to rush this one;
* A Random Walk Down Wall Street: The Best Investment Guide That Money Can Buy by Burton G. Malkiel, which I need to get rolling on since there's a waiting list for it; and,
* Death Row (from the short story Alibis Collection) by Freida McFadden, which was a bonus short story Amazon FirstReads pick (last month I think?).

QotW:
Did your parents read to you as a child? If not, how did you discover a love for reading? Yes! That was part of the bedtime routine every night when I was little and also part of our holiday traditions. My Mom also took me and my brother to story hour at the library on a regular basis, which was so much fun when I was growing up. When my goddaughter was little, I got to read her bedtime stories and go to story time at the library with her, which was a treat for me. I also sent her recorded books from Hallmark for Christmas that she apparently listened to a lot. My best friend would tell me how they'd often hear Auntie Megan's voice wafting through the house, so it was nice to know they were a hit. My goddaughter is now a teenager and is a voracious reader who carries around a book with her at all times to sneak in more reading time (just like me)! 📚🤓

Happy check-in!

Finished Reading:

The Starlight Heir ⭐⭐⭐
A very pretty looking romantasy book. The main character was 25 but it seemed very ya.

Godkiller ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (ATY Do Re Mi)
This took me a while to get through but it was a good fantasy journey/quest story. I'll be continuing this series.

Problematic Summer Romance ⭐⭐⭐ (ATY adult friendships)
Yet again I nearly dnfed it but it ended well.

A Business Proposal, Vol. 9 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
One more left in the series but I don't know when the English translation will happen.

Amazing Fantastic Incredible: A Marvelous Memoir ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This was fun. Thank you to whoever it was that read this weeks back a brought it to my attention.

The Assassin's Blade ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (PS interconnected short stories)
Wow I had forgotten how much Caelena was self absorbed.

PS 31/50
ATY 41/52 Anniversary 4/10 Summer 4/25

QOTW:
My parents and sister read to me, they took me to the library, our house was full of books and magazines but still I could not sit still and read until late teens/adulthood. I made forts out of the Nancy Drew series and Readers Digests in the basement. I had terrible spelling and only read when forced for school. Harry Potter and Twilight changed that. Goodreads and reading challenges resulted in me reading hundreds of books a year.

Happy Saturday! I wasn't feeling well Thursday and spent most of the day sleeping, and forgot to check back here Friday. Last weekend there was a book fest in Berkeley, and I got to see some really interesting author talks. I went to ones on dystopian books, speculative fiction, and romantasy. There were more I wanted to go to, but I got burnt out and had to head home- but wound up with some great new books!

Finished:
Lessons in Magic and Disaster- I loved this, it never went where I was expecting. Covers different timelines, and the ways bigotry keeps trying to beat people down. And there's magic.
-no prompt

A Vampire in the Bathhouse- just a fun, silly manga. A good time!
-no prompt

It Rhymes With Takei- a graphic novel memoir following George Takei's time as a student, an actor, and an activist. Also how he had to stay closeted to protect his career, and the ways that affected his life. This was really good, I find graphic memoirs can be really impactful
-no prompt

Currently reading:
Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection- nearly done with this, would definitely recommend the audiobook

QotW:
My mom was a kindergarten teacher, so reading to us and teaching us to read was a really big focus for her. I remember after we'd learned to read on our own, some article or study came out, and it said that kids could benefit from being read to even when they could read themselves. So my mom started to read to us again at night when we were around 9. I remember one of the books we read together was The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, which might be why I have such fond memories of that book

Hope your dog came thru the extraction well

Managed only a little reading this week but this takes me to half way thru the challenge (fitting since we're halfway thru the year somehow already)

Of Manners and Murder by Anastasia Hastings
(ps 26. a book where an adult character changes careers) Violet has a new job thrust upon her in this historical mystery. She is ghostwriting her aunt's Miss Hermoine columns, she's an agony aunt. It was a good mystery

And I read The Smoke in His Voice by J.V. Silver (ps 31. A book where music plays an integral part of the storyline) It was a really cool idea of his voice powering weapons against vampires and his band becomes a group of Slayers. However, this self pubbed book either had the worst editor or Silver ignored their editor because the grammar and sentence structure errors are constant and enough to make you weep so I can't really rec it

QOTW

Oddly Mom and I were just talking about this. I'm starting to get Gen Z at the university. This doesn't surprise me of them sadly. I am nervous about them as adults in general. It's quite sad they don't/won't read to their kids.

And yes my mother read to me and started sharing her mystery books with me probably at a way too young age. I know I was reading Agatha Christie and Ngio Marsh by the time I was 10-11 years old.

Time is whooshing past at a ridiculous speed. I hope Sophie's recovering from her surgery. Scully managed to scratch half her chin off on the rug and it looks horrendous. But dogs take these things in their stride, don't they?

This is a few weeks of check in again, because works been so busy and I've barely had the mental capacity to read in the evenings. I've mostly been doing very low effort gaming and staring into oblivion!

We had our first strawberries from the garden last week, and we grew tenderstem broccoli for the first time and it seems to be endlessly cropping. So everything is with broccoli right now.

Finished:
Careless People: A story of where I used to work by Sarah Wynn-Williams. A memoir about how Facebook wormed their way into global politics. None of this was surprising.snd I think the title is spot on.
BookRiot: Banned book

An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us by Ed Yong. I loved this. Also mentioned a few books on my TBR that I can use for the book mentioned in another book prompt. So win win!
ATY: 50. A book posted in one of the ATY Best Book of the Month threads in 2024 or 2025
BookRiot: Non-fiction nature book

A Theory of Dreaming by Ava Reid. I liked revisiting the characters but the plot didn't seem to go anywhere and I was left feeling like I didn't understand what just happened.
Popsugar: 10 A book you got for free

QOTW:
I guess they must have done because I could read independently by the time I started school, but I don't have specific memories. I was always encouraged to read but I liked reading by myself.

Happy weekend everyone!

I had the opposite effect of some of you this week. My week has taken ages to get thru. It is the first week of summer break and I have been entertaining my nephew and trying to find things to do every day. I think we baked or cooked something everyday. But yesterday we went to an event called Dirt Works. We went last year as well, but this year we roped in my Dad and his girlfriend and her family. They ended up not staying that long but because my nephew LOVES machines we spent all day there. It's this event where kids get to go on and even drive all this different machinery. This year they also had a boom truck from the tree trimmers (It was the most popular thing). He actually got to drive a bulldozer and a large excavator by himself this year. He was so proud of himself after the bulldozer, cause he was all "Aunty I made a big hole!" After we came home and my Dad got back home the two of them went into the pasture to pull out a post the bulls had broken and he said that Papa let him drive the machine (my dad was still in it).

I know I have been doing a lot of reading but I still didn't finish much this week.

2025 Challenges:
Popsugar: 35/50
ATY: 38/52 & 7/10
A to Z (Kindle edition): 2/26

Goodreads: 71/150
GR WTR: 7/432

Physical TBR: 8/119
Kindle TBR: 0/127
TBR Goal: 8/246

Book Clubs:
PS Monthly: 27/66
Reese: 35/111
Oprah: 14/110
Jenna: 10/78
OSS: 7/39

Finished:
4 finished, 0 Completed Popsugar

Fat + Flour: The Art of a Simple Bake: A Cookbook

Brownstone

Phenomenal Woman: Four Poems Celebrating Women

May I Come In?: Discovering the World in Other People's Houses

-------
Currently Reading
While We Were Dating
Encanto: Nightmares and Sueños
My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry
Ripples & Waves
Every Drop is a Man’s Nightmare
A Snake Falls to Earth
Banned Together
The Art of Home

On the Backburner
Libby

Physical Library Rentals
The New Girl
Yellow Bird
American Poison
ASPCA complete dog Training Manual
Puppy Brain
Rebellion 1776
My Passion for Design
Old Brand New
Heirloom Rooms
The Rebel Diet
The Milk Street Cookbook
Love is for All of Us
Beautiful Ugly
Pride and Prejudice in Space
Squad
Stars in their Eyes
Lion Dancers
Cravings
Cravings All Together
Hula
Light for the World to See
Why Fathers Cry at Night

Magazines: (10/149)
Read since last check-in: 0

Question of the Week:
I don't remember my Mom reading to me. I do remember this box of homemade flash cards with words and pictures on them. Plus my Mom was an avid reader so it seems like she would have read to us but, I really don't remember and neither does my sister.

Ellie wrote: "Time is whooshing past at a ridiculous speed. I hope Sophie's recovering from her surgery. Scully managed to scratch half her chin off on the rug and it looks horrendous. But dogs take these things..."


Cornerofmadness wrote: "Hope your dog came thru the extraction well ..."



Thanks!! It's been a journey! She had four or five teeth pulled, so there were some other trouble spots along with the one big broken tooth we knew about. She's been pretty whiney, but who wouldn't be whiney after that LOL They sent her home with codeine, which I've been doling out, and she keeps that down. After four days of recovery, I'd say she's finally back to being herself, more or less. The sore on her face is starting to heal up - finally!!! I wish our regular vet did not wait so long before sending us to a specialist - she struggled with this for over a year, she must have been so uncomfortable.

JessicaMHR wrote: "Happy weekend everyone!

I had the opposite effect of some of you this week. My week has taken ages to get thru. It is the first week of summer break and I have been entertaining my nephew and tryi..."




Dirt Works sounds AWESOME!!!!



You sure have a lot of physical library borrows!! How long do you get to keep them?

Happy Monday.

Stats
GR: 112/250
PS: 26/50
ATY: 33/52
ATY Anniversary: 6/10
ATY Rejects: 11/28
ATY Rewind: 4/10
GR Choice: 13/30
TBR: 4/10

Finished

The DallerGut Dream Department Store ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
ATY: Fictional setting
I loved this one so much. A cute funny story set in the store you go to when you sleep to buy whatever dream you're going to have.

Malibu Rising ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
ATY: Author with 3 names
I am slowly making my way through TJR's back catalogue.

Don't Sleep with the Dead ⭐⭐
PS: Under 250 pages
I hate read Siren Queen and The Great Gatsby, so I'm not sure why I started this. I was waiting in the library, it was there, and once I started, I couldn't stop, but still, I do not think this author is for me.

One Piece, Volume 2: Buggy the Clown ⭐⭐⭐
ATY Rejects: Going for Gold
This was fine, but it mostly just made me want to reread Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 1.

She and Her Cat: Stories ⭐⭐⭐
ATY: Translated from Asia
This was fine, but I've read better in this genre.

In Progress
The Further Observations of Lady Whistledown
Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame

I went a little overboard on my last trip to the library so I have way too many books too. Here's my list:
Problematic Summer Romance
Cue the Sun! The Invention of Reality TV
Lore Olympus: Volume Three
Lore Olympus: Volume Four
Lore Olympus: Volume Five
Lore Olympus: Volume Six
Lore Olympus: Volume Seven
Enigma
It's All or Nothing, Vale
The House of Hades
Godkiller
For the Love of the Bard
The Great Halifax Explosion: A World War I Story of Treachery, Tragedy, and Extraordinary Heroism
Thorns, Lust, and Glory: The Betrayal of Anne Boleyn
50 Oscar Nights: Iconic Stars & Filmmakers on Their Career-Defining Wins
Amazing Fantastic Incredible: A Marvelous Memoir

QotW
I grew up surrounded by books, so when I couldn't get someone to read to me, I'd look through them on my own, but I have some really good memories of people reading to me. Then my little sister came along, and she would not let me read to her. I memorized One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish and made a game of seeing how much of it I could recite before she ran away. When my niece came along, I was always game to read to her, but she's too old and would rather read to herself now. I can still help by buying her books every chance I get.😁

Nadine in NY wrote: "JessicaMHR wrote: "Happy weekend everyone!

I had the opposite effect of some of you this week. My week has taken ages to get thru. It is the first week of summer break and I have been entertaining my nephew and tryi..."




Dirt Works sounds AWESOME!!!!



You sure have a lot of physical library borrows!! How long do you get to keep them?"


Yeah, I think I may even have more than I listed, EEK! I have too many! I get them for 3 weeks and they just started doing automatic renewals (we got renewals before but not automatically). As long as there is no request for it it will renew up to 3 times.

Nadine in NY wrote: "K.L. wrote: "Have you watched that show, "The Great"? We've been watching it because my daughter is a Nicholas Hoult fan. It's the "mostly true" story. I think they've made Peter much more appealing than he really was."

I have not had a chance to watch The Great yet, but it's definitely on my list.

Happy Wednesday!

Wow, did time get away from me! I had such a busy week; Mickey to the vet for his teeth check up, four evenings of hikes (I did it!!!)... the last hiking day coincided with the check in day, and I completely forgot. Then I had a hair dresser's appointment, a recovery day, a Disney + Disney100 Expo trip, another recovery day, and now here we are. Still recovering, still trying to stay afloat.

My grandfather isn't doing well, so we're all kind of expecting him to go soon. Which, devastating as it will be, would be for the best. He's refusing to eat most of the time, is losing weight at a scary pace, fell recently landing him in hospital for two days...

I also haven't heard from the lawyer for a while so who knows what's happening there.

I'm exhausted. And today I haven't wanted to do much of anything. I've been playing Assassin's Creed II pretty religiously, though, and am pretty sure I am nearing its end already. Luckily I have three more games to play after this, haha! Dad has also started one of the games and I've been having a very good time watching him play.

Read
The Book Eaters
I missed my Libby hold coming in (because the app refuses to tell me of anything) so I haven't been able to compare yet, but ohmygod was this a disaster. The mistakes were inexcusable. There were three editors involved, as per the acknowledgments at the end, but I wonder if they ever even opened the book. I want to cross reference with the ebook, to see if Illumicrate once again sent us an unfinished copy, but given I missed it I have to wait again and all I can say is that my copy was horrendous. I'm glad I got it over with.

Currently Reading
A Day of Fallen Night
IT'S HAPPENING! Slowly, granted, due to the hikes and being exhausted, but slowly is still progress!

QOTW
I don't remember really being read to. I'm sure they must have when I was really little, but I'm pretty sure it didn't last. Maybe because I started reading myself by the age of 3? Whatever caused it, I don't remember a time where I didn't love reading, or where my Sinterklaas and Christmas presents weren't predominantly books.

Nadine in NY wrote: "Ellie wrote: "Time is whooshing past at a ridiculous speed. I hope Sophie's recovering from her surgery. Scully managed to scratch half her chin off on the rug and it looks horrendous. But dogs tak..."

Poor girl, glad she's improving