Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2024 Weekly Check-Ins
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Week 10: 3/1 - 3/7
Popsugar: 36/50Robot Librarian: 29/52
Finished: Ways of Being: Animals, Plants, Machines: The Search for a Planetary Intelligence
In Light-Years There's No Hurry: Cosmic Perspectives on Everyday Life
If on a Winter's Night a Traveller Read for prompt takes place in snow. Don't be fooled! It has nothing to do with winter or snow. That said, I loved it though. A very post-modern book that just has a whole bunch of different beginnings and a frame story.
Everything, Beautiful: A Guide to Finding Hidden Beauty in the World
The Philosopher Queens: The lives and legacies of philosophy's unsung women for prompt self-published. I wish it dug more into the ideas and not just skimpy biographies. But at least it exposed me to a couple philosophers I was unfamiliar with that I can explore more through other books.
Started: The Queer Art of Failure I'm only a few pages into this, but it looks really good so far!
QotW: I actually kinda hate coffee table books. My husband has some, but we don't have a coffee table and they don't fit in our bookcase, so they awkwardly take up space on the floor next to the bookcase. My equivalent are my bathroom books. One such book is A Velocity of Being: Letters to A Young Reader Love her stuff!
Happy Thursday! Adventure of the Week: My husband (Todd) is the WORST traveler! It doesn’t matter. He’s going to miss the flight, not have seats on the correct flight, choose the wrong dates at the hotel, forget to reserve a rental car… Something’s going to go wrong. He left Wednesday night for an event in San Francisco, due to come home on Sunday. In the meantime, my daughter-in-law has an emergency that requires her to go back to St. Louis (her mother was having surgery) which leaves me with my son Seth and both grandsons through the weekend. I don’t have a lot going on, but the ONE THING that’s important to me is my book club that meets on the first Sunday of each month. Todd gets to the airport EARLY Saturday, hours before his flight, and STILL manages to miss it. So, instead of waiting for the first flight on Sunday, he decides to rent a car and make the 12-hour trip home. Not that weather can be tricky in early March. Oh, no! I’m late to my meeting, he can’t seem to even make a Door Dash order without @*&!$ing it up, so I still had to make dinner and take care of the kids while he returned the rental. So much for my ONE afternoon to myself. It’s a good thing I love him.
2024 Reading Challenges: I’ve read 96 books so far this year with an average length of 318 pages and an average rating of 3.80.
52 Book Club: 23/52
ATY: 18/52 (Spring Challenge: 0/12 + Bonus 2/5)
Booklist Queen: 25/52
Diverse Baseline: 6/36
Popsugar: 20/50
Robot Librarian: 27/52
ICYMI Backlist: 2/12
Recently Completed:
Don't Want You Like a Best Friend: Too many anachronisms for me to truly enjoy this LGBTQ+ romance. The “thumbs up” signal at the end was the worst. (52 Books #35 – title matches song lyrics) ★★★
Bright Young Women: Not your average serial killer book. (52 Books #28 – a yellow spine/Booklist Queen #13 – title starts with B) ★★★★
Tom Lake: A 2023 NPR Books We Love selection. Meryl Streep reads the audiobook. (ATY #50 – posted in a Best Book of the Month thread/Booklist Queen #28 – a character who is an actor) ★★★★
Lunar New Year Love Story: Absolutely beautiful YA graphic novel. Love, grief, conquering fears… Gene Luen Yang is an amazing storyteller. (ATY Spring Bonus – title starts with a letter in COLORFUL/Booklist Queen #46 – a 2024 new release) ★★★★★
Beware the Woman: Another 2023 NPR Books We Love selection. I don’t always love thrillers, but this one was great! The Goodreads reviews don’t reflect my enthusiasm, but there’s a book for everyone out there. I mean, it’s Megan Abbott. I know her books can be polarizing. (Booklist Queen #18 – a book you couldn’t put down) ★★★★★
Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times: I like the idea of “wintering,” but this author’s experience is not within reach for so many people. (52 Books #27 – a neurodivergent author: autism/Booklist Queen #3 – about mental health) ★★★
Open: I loved watching Andre Agassi play tennis! (52 Books #21 – written by a ghostwriter/ATY #20 – single word title) ★★★★
Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird: Agustina Bazterrica is undoubtedly talented, but I think I prefer novels to short stories. (Booklist Queen #24 – author from southern hemisphere/Robot Librarian #6 – translated from another language) ★★★
Unreliable Narrator: Me, Myself, and Impostor Syndrome: This one’s also on the NPR Books We Love list. I didn’t love it as much as they did. (Booklist Queen #7 – unreliable narrator/Popsugar #33 – unreliable narrator/Robot Librarian #5 – an essay collection) ★★★
When Books Went to War: The Stories that Helped Us Win World War II: A slice of history I knew nothing about! (Robot Librarian Nonfiction #1 – the 000s: 028.907) ★★★★
The True Love Experiment: And another 2023 NPR Books We Love selection. Lately it’s been my go-to list whenever I need to pick a new book, and I was pleasantly surprised by this one. I liked it much more than the first in the DNADuo series. I almost gave it 5 stars. (ATY Spring Bonus – title starts with a letter in GROWTH) ★★★★
Currently Reading:
The Bad Muslim Discount (Diverse Baseline #9 – BIPOC author with different religious background)
The Future (52 Books #36 – futuristic technology/ATY Spring Challenge – white cover/Popsugar #19 – a book set in the future)
The Seven Year Slip (ATY #44 – a touch of magic)
How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures (52 Books #38 – published by Hachette)
Mr. Texas: Another one from the 2023 NPR Books We Love list! (Robot Librarian Advanced #2 – a parody or satire)
Five Little Indians (Diverse Baseline #8 – Indigenous author)
Attack from Within: How Disinformation Is Sabotaging America (52 Books #52 – published in 2024)
The Rewind: I’ve had this book on my shelves for ages. I’ve tried to read it several times and just couldn’t do it. Trying again… (ATY Spring Bonus – title starts with a letter in RAINBOW/Booklist Queen #48 – a book you own but haven’t read)
Leap In: A Woman, Some Waves and the Will to Swim (52 Books #8 – features the ocean/Popsugar #1 - leap in the title)
Age of Vice (ATY Spring Challenge – a black cover/Booklist Queen #20 – a debut author)
QOTW: I think I only have one coffee table book: Obama: An Intimate Portrait. It's not on display because there are too many little fingers around here. Now ask me about my cookbooks... That's a quickly growing collection.
Mod
We've had snow and sun and warm and cold. My early spring flowers are up: snowdrops and crocuses and iris reticulata. Today it is partly sunny and 50F, a perfect spring day (although, as my daughter reminds me, it is not yet spring. This year the first day of spring is her birthday.)
This week I read 3 books, and they all counted toward the Popsugar Challenge as well as AtY.
If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha - I enjoyed this story of five different Korean women and I gave it five stars (I feel like I've been giving a lot of books 5 stars lately); the book description mentioned K-Pop, so I decided to read this book for the K-Pop category, but I don't know if it was a strong fit. I might move things around later. I also checked off "set in one of the 24 most beautiful cities" (Seoul) in AtY, and this was one of my "must reads" for 2024.
A Second Chance Road Trip for Christmas by Jackie Lau- short, fun and goofy and just what I expected it to be: a story about a couple stranded by a snowstorm, for "set in snow" (this would also work for second chance romance and takes place in 24 hours). I also checked off "author from Canada" for AtY.
Indian Burial Ground by Nick Medina - this was slow and creepy and atmospheric, but the ending was disappointing. I won this as a Goodreads giveaway! It comes out next month. I checked off "published in 2024" with this one in both Popsugar and AtY.
Popsugar 50% 25 /50
Must Reads 60% 6 /10
AtY 46% 24 /52
QotW
Yes I do! But I don't display them on a coffee table, they are jammed onto a bookshelf in the corner of my room, and I actually read most of them when I first got them. They are mostly (maybe all) gardening books. At about the same time that I moved into this house, I discovered some discount book catalogs (like Hamilton books), and I unleashed my long-simmering passion for gardening and went nuts. If a book is a large format with beautiful photos AND useful information, it still counts as a coffee table book, right? Books like Ken Druse's The Natural Habitat Garden & Lauren Springer's The Undaunted Garden: Planting for Weather-Resilient Beauty are full of gorgeous photos AND good information.
Happy Thursday!Finished:
I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast Is Me by Jamison Shea - 4 stars - for a horror book by a BIPOC author (could also work as a complete sentence). I really liked this peek into the ballet world, coupled with a dose of supernatural horror. Looking forward to book 2.
What You Are Looking For Is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama - 4 stars - for magical realism (also another complete sentence). I enjoyed each of these stories, and the clear love they have of books and reading.
My Love Story by Tina Turner - 4 stars - for an autobiography by a woman in rock 'n' roll. I saw the musical based on her life not too long ago, which she mentions working on toward the end of this book, and that's what got me interested in reading about her life in her own words. I have liked her music but I was never a huge fan. Now I can say I deeply admired her for her resilience, her strength, and the fact that she made it through so much abuse and came out the other side able to reclaim her life.
I am currently at 23/50 prompts for PopSugar (21/45 and 2/5).
Currently reading:
Call Us What We Carry: Poems by Amanda Gorman - reading along with the group now that I have a digital print copy
Redsight by Meredith Mooring - for a book by a blind or visually impaired author
Upcoming/Planned:
The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles by Malka Ann Older - either a book set in the future, or a book that came out in a year that ends with "24"
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer - a nonfiction book about Indigenous people
QOTW:
We own a few, mainly artbooks for anime or video games. I buy them if its a topic I'm interested in, or if it has a lot of great images/photos and is fun to flip through.
Happy Thursday, everyone! I’d love to claim that this has been a super productive week, but that would be a lie. I’ve spent most of the week avoiding the things I need to get done around the house, and a fair amount of time napping.
I blame the weather. It has been so grey and rainy this week, the combination of which has made me want to curl up under a blanket and spend all of my time reading and/or sleeping.
This is the first full week of March Mystery Madness, and I did do a significant amount of reading. While I was planning to spend the week reading both mysteries and classics, I’ve decided to take a break from my classic books until the end of the readathon. I’ve still got plenty of time to finish the classics I’m currently reading (plus the others still sitting on my shelves), so this is actually a good time to take a break. And the mystery series I’m reading is so good that I just don’t want to take time away from it to read other things.
Here are my current challenge and TBR totals…
Goodreads Challenge: 99/400 (24.7% complete)
Mount TBR Challenge: 72/150 (48.0% complete)
📚Physical TBR: 44/402
📱Ebook TBR: 28/233
🎧Audiobook TBR: 0/0
TBR Checklist Total: 72/635 (11.3% complete)
Total Progress Toward 50% TBR List Completion: 72/318 (22.6% complete)
While I was not planning to buy any books this week, I actually managed to find a copy of xxxHOLiC Omnibus 7 that wasn’t horrifically expensive, so I had to go ahead and get it. I’m super excited, because I love this series so much, and I really wanted to own all of the books in paperback format!
I also ordered a copy of Jane and the Final Mystery, by Stephanie Barron. This is the last book in the mystery series I am currently reading, and I wanted to be able to finish the series during March Mystery Madness.
I do not plan to purchase any more books until the 12th.
“New” Books Bought in 2024: 32
“New” Books Read in 2024: 26/32 (81.2% complete)
Finished Reading (Fiction):
~Her Ruthless Russian — This is the first book in the Karev Brothers trilogy, which was written by the same author as the Volkov Brothers trilogy that I read last week. To be honest, I didn’t enjoy this one very much. The speed of the main characters’ relationship felt way too fast to me, and there wasn’t much resolution of the non-romantic part of the plot. I do have two other books by this author (which I will eventually read), but I won’t be buying any more of their books. 📱: ⭐️⭐️
I spent most of the week reading the Jane Austen Mystery series. I absolutely adore this series! The writing is excellent, and the author does an amazing job of mimicking Jane Austen’s voice. The characters are also really well-developed, and the mysteries themselves are fascinating! The books I read this week include:
~Jane and His Lordship's Legacy — This is the eighth book in the Jane Austen Mystery series. 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Jane and the Barque of Frailty — This is the ninth book in the Jane Austen Mystery series. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Jane and the Madness of Lord Byron — This is the tenth book in the Jane Austen Mystery series. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Jane and the Canterbury Tale — This is the eleventh book in the Jane Austen Mystery series. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Jane and the Twelve Days of Christmas — This is the twelfth book in the Jane Austen Mystery series. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Finished Reading (Nonfiction):
None
Finished Reading (Manga, Comic Books, & Graphic Novels):
This week I had a chance to continue reading the xxxHolic series. I am absolutely loving this series! The characters and story are so much fun, and I adore the artwork! Unfortunately, the fourth omnibus is still in transit, so I won’t be able to continue the series until it arrives. Tracking info is practically nonexistent, so I have no clue when I’ll be able to continue reading. This week I finished the following volumes:
~xxxHOLiC Omnibus 2 — 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~xxxHOLiC Omnibus 3 — 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Finished Reading (Poetry and Drama):
None
DNFed:
None
Currently On A Break:
~The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1001 Nights, Volume 1 — I am currently 68% of the way through this book. 📚
~The Complete Works of William Shakespeare — Earlier this week I finished reading The Comedy of Errors and King John. I am currently a few acts into King Richard II. 📚
~Tales of King Arthur & The Knights of the Round Table — I am currently only 13% of the way through this book, and I am struggling with it. While I’ve really enjoyed other stories about King Arthur, the original text is kind of boring. It just hasn’t been an enjoyable read so far, so I’m glad to be taking a break from it. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚
Currently Reading:
~Jane and the Waterloo Map — This is the thirteenth book in the Jane Austen Mystery series. I just started this book about 10 minutes ago, so I'm not very far into it, but I'm already enjoying it. 📚
QOTW:
I don’t really have any “coffee table” books.
Spring break: so close and yet so far....(begins March 25).Hate that we have too set the clocks ahead this week and lose an hour of reading time.
But excited that I'm going to a literary Women Convention Saturday. I'll be in a chat with Melissa Fu.
And an Oscar party Sunday
I finished only 1 book this week, West With Giraffes. I liked it.
PS: n/a
52: related to "wild"
ATY: featured endangered species
robot librarian: n/a
totals:
PS: 9/52
52: 12/52
ATY: 12/52
RL: 9/52
Currently reading:
Demon Copperhead
Braiding Sweetgrass
There, There
The Secret Adversary
Dear California
The Mists of Avalon
The Annotated Arabian Nights
going to start:
London
In Search of Lost Time
The Wager
QOTW: I have no coffee table and no coffee table books. I have 2 people with ADHD in my house so any "surface" like a coffee table becomes a place to drop stuff off and leave it....so I keep surfaces to a minimum. I'm not opposed to these books just don't have any
I’m surprise struggling with the prompt “a book set 24 years before you were born.” I need a book set in 1960. It’s really difficult to Google for these books because “a book set in 1960” returns a bunch of results about books set in the 1960s, none of which are set in 1960. The only book I’ve found set in 1960 is When We Left Cuba, a sequel to Next Year in Havana, and if I end up having to read that I’m going to cry. I DNFed Next Year in Havana only to have “a book you didn’t finish” show up as the worst challenge prompt ever the next year and it was my only choice because I couldn’t remember any others.I think I’m doing okay on the other prompts. Even if they’re outside of my wheelhouse, I’ve been able to find a few books that look promising for every other prompt.
Finished
Love in the Time of Serial Killers (a book with an enemies to lovers plot). I liked the book, but didn’t love it. Once I realized it’s basically a Northanger Abbey story, I liked it a lot better. Instead of gothic novels skewing the main character’s sense of reality, it’s true crime.
Cold Clay (a book from an animal’s POV). Just as charming as the first in the series. I got the whole series through ILL. They’re due back in mid-April so I’ll pace my reading, but not too much.
How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures (a memoir that explores queerness). I think I can see why this book is highly rated, but I didn’t really care for the essays.
Reading
Not a Sound (a book by a deaf or hard of hearing author)
The Four Million (a book by an incarcerated or formerly incarcerated person)
The Moving Finger - prompt TBD
QOTW
I have one book on my coffee table How to Be a Wildflower: A Field Guide. It’s so beautiful it’s the center of my coffee table decorations.
I am so ready for drier weather, the ground is so sloppy and walking the dog is not fun. Even going to the beach ended up in her covered in mud somehow.I'm falling behind in challenge reading a bit since I've just been reading my novel over and over, I'm starting to hate my own words. But I've reached out to an editor to get some feedback on the first few chapters, so hopefully that will help.
Finished:
A Letter to the Luminous Deep by Sylvie Cathrall for 24 letters in the title. I was really looking forward to this but the faux-Victorian formal letter writing style didn't do it for me. I thought the underwater worldbuilding was interesting but I'm not convinced epistolary is the best format to convey other worlds.
Currently reading Killers of a Certain Age, and making zero progress on my current audiobook, Red Side Story.
QOTW:
I used to have more art and photography coffee table books but I don't really have room for them. I have Terry Pratchett's Discworld Imaginarium, a Planet Earth book and one of San Francisco street art that I bought when I visited but that's it. And like others, I don't have a coffee table to put them on.
Finished:A Death in Tokyo (4/5)
A Time to Be Born (4/5, reread)
Fantastic Four by Jonathan Hickman: The Complete Collection, Vol. 2 (4/5, reread)
The Children of Húrin (3/5, audiobook read by Christopher Lee)
Fantastic Four by Jonathan Hickman: The Complete Collection, Vol. 3 (3/5, reread)
A Time to Die (3/5, reread)
Question of the Week:
Deep Space Nine Companion is the best book I have in paper format. I also have all three of the available volumes of the Garth Brooks Anthology (at least two more are forthcoming).
Since I have a Kindle, I get some of my coffee table books in electronic form. DK typically runs sales on theirs for $1-4, and I have some on topics ranging from classical music to ocean life to Shakespeare.
I haven't been good about checking in. It mostly has to do with going into the office on Thursdays (the only day I don't work from home), and then being too tired after. But today our floor was taken over by another department (it's a shared space, we have to reserve cubicles when we work on site), so I am home. And I just had to check in because I am so excited that I finished David Copperfield. I've been reading it since late November.Finished
Monstrilio for horror book by a BIPOC author. I would never have read this based on the blurb. But people who read it for Tournament of Books really praised it, so I gave it a chance. I really liked it, very emotional for a horror.
David Copperfield Despite taking months to read, it was an easy to read book. Some classics are very challenging for me. I loved it. I wonder if I would have loved it as much if I had not read and loved Demon Copperhead first.
Currently reading:
Throne of Jade
None of This Would Have Happened If Prince Were Alive
Weaving Sundown in a Scarlet Light: Fifty Poems for Fifty Years
Iron Flame on audio. Things about this book are really annoying me. Maybe I will elaborate more next week, once I finish it.
QOTW:
Coffee table books are like interior design. And I am terrible at decorating my home. Just really really terrible.
Greetings from rainy, grey, NYC! I've given up on yet another year without a proper winter. My winter coats, hats, etc. are all put away. Boots never came out. Tragic! Now I need to get the A/Cs in living and bedroom replaced before the heat and humidity descends - probably should have done it in February. I hate climate change.
PS 20/50
ATY 32/52
Finished:
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet - PS - space - ATY Night - because it is night in space, of course.
Paladin's Grace - ATY - author known by initials - no PS prompt
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! - read for a Seuss challenge in another group - PS in the snow, ATY - not a novel
Currently Reading:
Water for Elephants
Good Evening, Mrs Craven: The Wartime Stories of Mollie Panter-Downes - finally finishing this collection!
QOTW: I have loads - 'coffee table books' that is not coffee tables! I have never had a coffee table actually. I've used an antique trunk and currently it's an oversized hassock that pairs with a chair. Nor are these books displayed anywhere - they are on shelves scattered all over my house. Some even on a stool in my bathroom. I have all kinds - most are from exhibits I have been to, and not just art - I have one from the Tolkien exhibit that was at the Morgan Library, for example. I have ones for performing arts - ballet and theater. Photography, Needlework and Textiles, even miniature golf courses. Food - New American Table by Marcus Samuelsson is as much a coffee table book as a cookbook. I've read some cover to cover: Hot Sour Salty Sweet: A Culinary Journey Through Southeast Asia and Grand Hotels of Egypt: In the Golden Age of Travel recently. These books all have tons of great essays and information in them that is fun to peruse, the way you would read a short story or two.
Hello from Columbus! Currently posting from my second job selling high-end pet food, it’s so slow during the day I think we do most of our sales around 5:30-6 when people get off work and that’s pretty much it lol. It’s quite boring but I like getting a discount on my cats stuff so I put up with it 1-2 nights a week. The weather has been wavering between rainy and really, unreasonably nice and sunny. It keeps getting my hopes up. I drove out to Pittsburgh with my son Saturday to go to the natural history museum, we had such a nice time. I hope it gets stored in his memory as one of those perfect days.
Finished:
The Ice Twins for last years friends’ recommendations challenge. This had the same vibe as pretty much every thriller involving weird kids and twins lol. It was fun, I was very interested to find out the grand reveal. Who was hiding what? Who lied? Was it insanity or supernatural? As much as I laugh at how similar all of these kinds of books are, I devour them very quickly because I like uncovering the mysteries.
Lethal White not for a challenge, I’m still rereading this series. I’ll spare you my usual rambling about how much I love PI novels and this series in particular.
Roaming for a librarian recommendation. The Tamaki cousins always make the best graphic novels. I loved that this was a little vignette into these girls’ trip and their relationship and not necessarily a complete story with context and a definitive conclusion. Short and sweet with lovely art.
The Art of Racing in the Rain for the friends challenge. I’m so close to finishing this challenge maybe I’ll have it done before the end of the year lol. This is was an easy breezy read, sweet and simple just like you’d expect anything from a dog’s perspective to be. There’s nothing really profound here. I got the distinct impression this was written with a movie version in mind so I’m not surprised to see it’s been made into a movie.
The Thief also for the friends challenge. A quick and straight forward fantasy adventure novel. It was fine, I wasn’t interested enough that I’ll seek out the rest of the series.
Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Great Adventure Catholic Bible
Taaqtumi: An Anthology of Arctic Horror Stories
It’s not on goodreads but Rescued, a Lent devotional from Blessed is She
Peter Pan
The Ten Thousand Doors of January
QOTW:
I have one that’s a studio ghibli art book. Since my majors were art and theology, I would probably get more that are baroque themed. I also really love Impressionism so a monet would be nice.
Challenges:
Popsugar - 4/45; 1/5
Read Harder - 10/24
Classics - 2/12
European Tour - 4/10
12 Friends - 6/12
Yearly Goal - 48/150
One advantage of being sick enough to not have to go to the office is that I can post earlier. It's just a cold, but I still get to WFH.I finished a book in 3 days. I am back to liking Karen McManus. There were some clever references to some of her other books in it too.
I lucked out with Libby. Meddling Kids was expiring, but someone else wanted it. The day it was expiring, I could suddenly renew it. Now, I'm getting close to finishing.
Finished:
Nothing More to Tell
ATY prompt: A book with an X connection (Gen X author)
Popsugar prompt: can't find one
Series - 2/12
Nobel laureates - 1/5
Mysteries/Thrillers - 2/13
ATY - 8/45
PS - 4/30
Currently reading:
Meddling Kids - 70% done
Mortal Coil - just started
Buddy Reads:
Mere Christianity - 45% done
This Present Darkness - 40% done
QOTW: I know we have them. None are on our coffee table as our coffee table is full of clutter. (That's another problem). My husband does art and he has some great art books. We have one tall space in a bookshelf and we keep what are probably coffee table books there.
Happy Thursday!After an unseasonably warm February, Mother Nature must have realized that it's still winter. We got snow and cold temperatures this week! The weather needs to make up its mind.
Also it's midterms -- well, one midterm, I have two writing classes this semester and only one class with an actual midterm exam. I need to remind myself that an 84 is still a passing grade...
Books read this week:
Heaven's Wildfire -- for “a book from a genre you avoid,” in my case historical fiction. A surprisingly revealing and powerful look at polygamy and how it threatened Idaho’s attempts to gain statehood.
Game On -- for “a book about video games.” A surprisingly cute romance involving the head of a video game company and a streamer, and also calls out some of the problems BIPOC gamers and streamers face in the video game community.
Witch of Wild Things -- for “second-chance romance.” A LOT of family trauma and heartbreak in this one, as well as an ecological bent I wasn’t expecting. Still good.
The Tusks of Extinction -- for “book published in a year ending in 24.” Short but fascinating novel about bringing mammoths back from extinction.
PopSugar Challenge -- 36/45
PopSugar Advanced Challenge -- 2/5
Robot Librarian Challenge -- 19/32
Robot Librarian Advanced Challenge -- 6/10
Robot Librarian Non-Fiction Challenge -- 1/10
Extreme Book Nerd Challenge -- 24/50
Extreme Book Nerd Advanced Challenge -- 6/10
Extreme Book Nerd Non-Fiction Challenge -- 1/10
DNF:
Redsight -- is it bad that, for a sci-fi book about blind priestesses using blood magic to pilot spaceships, the thing to completely break my suspension of disbelief is the idea that you can (view spoiler) (Spoilered it for anyone squeamish about blood) I was looking forward to this one too, so it’s disappointing to give up on it.
How to Find Love in a Book Shop -- just wasn’t holding my interest
Currently reading:
Crouching Buzzard, Leaping Loon -- for “book with the word ‘leap’ in the title”
The Shining -- for “book about a writer/author”
The Eyes and the Impossible: -- not for the challenge
Vesper Flights -- not for the challenge
QOTW:
I only own a couple coffee-table style books. And of course they're nerdy -- Weird Al: The Book, Black & White & Weird All Over: The Lost Photographs of "Weird Al" Yankovic '83–'86, and Pacific Rim: Man, Machines & Monsters
Happy Thursday!!! This week has felt like it dragged on and on. I'm just ready for the weekend honestly. READ:
The Maid for PS#29 and PS#27 Molly was so endearing and I love how matter-a-fact she was about everything.
Black Women of the Civil Rights Movement for PS#21 A book that came out in a year that ends in "24". I found this on Audible and it was 5-6 lectures on different unknown women of the Civil Rights movement. I'm glad I learned about these women, especially since it's Women's History Month.
The Secret Lives of Church Ladies for PS#28 A book where the main character is 42 years old. Technically in only one of the stories, the main character was 42. This was a collection of stories that reminded me of a bunch of situations growing up.
Question of the Week:
Do you own any “coffee table” books? If so, what is your favorite? If not, what one book might you purchase as a “coffee table” book?
I don't own any coffee table books but if I did it would be something really interesting like Japanese art or something historical
Kenya wrote: Redsight -- is it bad that, for a sci-fi book about blind priestesses using blood magic to pilot spaceships, the thing to completely break my suspension of disbelief is the idea that you can ...I literally just read that scene at lunch today. I'm still not sure about this one. It's kinda giving me similar vibes to Gideon the Ninth, but I'm not really connecting with the characters at all. I might power through it just to check off the prompts.
Hi all- hack, cough, sniffle. Stupid cold. I have a couple of hours a day where I feel like myself, and then I get totally congested and just want to crawl back under the covers. Bleh. Boyfriend had it last week and it kicked his butt for a couple of days, but he's better. I'm still lingering. Having no immune system sucks. I read a chapter or 2 in Kicking & Dreaming: A Story of Heart, Soul, and Rock and Roll for women in rock and roll. Liking it so far.
Also read a few pages in Deaf Republic for a deaf author. I like the premise, we'll see if he pulls it off.
That's all the mental energy I've had to read this week. Mostly been watching spring training baseball.
QOTW: I probably have a few coffee table books around here. I also probably have a coffee table around here... I'm a bit of a clutterbug.... The only one I can think of right off is a book my brother gave me about Costa Rica because I went there in high school. It's on a bookcase.
Heather wrote: "I’m surprise struggling with the prompt “a book set 24 years before you were born.” I need a book set in 1960. It’s really difficult to Google for these books because “a book set in 1960” returns a..."Heather, meet me over in the help thread, I'll look up some things that happened in 1960 that might give you some avenues to search for books!
Mod
Woohoo!!! Congrats!! It's an EVENT when you finish a chonker like that!!!
Oop, I've been away for two weeks! How did that happen?week 8: I was prepping for vacation!
week 9: I was on vacation in Arizona!
So now I'm back and I had the most amazing time! My mom has a place in Tucson and between that, Sedona, the Grand Canyon, and a bit of Phoenix, I basically drove around for a week barely able to process the sheer beauty of it all. It was honestly the most surreal experience ever and I can't wait to go back!
In the past two weeks, I've finished two books (two on my flights to/from AZ!) and I liked all of them a lot:
The Water Outlaws - 4.5 stars. A genderbent and deeply queer retelling of an old Chinese story, The Water Margin. I loved this so much! Emily Woo Zeller did a fantastic job on the narration. At least 3 POVs
She Who Became the Sun - 5 stars. Heavier on the historical although still with a touch of fantasy, another genderbent queer Chinese book! I connected with this one a touch more than Water Outlaws but they're both fantastic. Beautifully read by Natalie Naudus. Fiction book by a trans or nonbinary author
The Phoenix Crown - 5 stars. I need to look up Janie Chang's solo material IMMEDIATELY. This sucked me in and still hasn't let go. I loved the characters, the setting, the various conflicts, all of it. Set in a travel destination on your bucket list
Clean Sweep - 3.5 stars. An Ilona Andrews book I liked! Yay! The humor here was excellent, although I still balk at love triangles. And it veered into a touch more sci-fi than I was expecting. But, a sentient house! New lore! I'm down to read the next one for sure. Book about a 24yo
PS 12/50
ATY 13/52
Mount TBR 4/48
Currently:
Hild Listening to the audiobook even though I've owned a hard copy for probably a decade now, but it's proving helpful as the pace is slow (which I knew!) but either way enjoying this considrably Bildungsroman
The White Rose Finally getting around to this when I read the second one... god, at least 4-5 years ago, ha!
The Wretched of the Earth This is a much longer book than I expected when I first picked it up. I was prepared for the pacing (hello crunchy nonfic) but the density demands my full attention, however any time and focus I can devote to it has been extremely rewarding.
QOTW: Do you own any “coffee table” books? If so, what is your favorite? If not, what one book might you purchase as a “coffee table” book?
I have a slew of coffee table books, none of which live on the coffee table haha! They occupy a large shelf on the bookcase. Most are Art of (insert film) books or making-of various Broadway show books (my Hamilton: The Revolution is signed by costume designer Paul Tazewell), but I think my favorite is The Music of The Lord of the Rings Films: A Comprehensive Account of Howard Shore's Scores because it truly breaks down every single track of those iconic film scores and makes me feel like I understand music theory :D
Happy Thursday!(I started this at one minute to midnight, it counts!)
The weather's been lovely and I've sadly had to admit and accept that my CFS/ME is in a bad place at the moment and trying desperately to become besties with my depression. My parents were away for a few days and if it wasn't for my sister I barely would have eaten. It sucks, but acceptance will hopefully make it pass faster, because I'm not trying to force it as much.
It does mean I have to cancel going to my grandmother's birthday this Saturday. Bowling and dinner. It's a 2 hour drive there, than the activities, with some people I don't even know, and then two hours back. I can't do it. On the plus side, I'll be home for the Wie is de Mol (The Mole, in the US, according to Google) finale so that'll be nerve wreckingly nice!
Lucy is eating again, so I started the second to last puzzle, I finished about 8 scenarios I think in Rollercoaster Tycoon, I made great progress so far on the latest Dreamlight Valley update, and I've been bingewatching Shameless.
I'm currently halfway into season 5.
And for the first time in ages my brain has been screaming for fanfics! But I can't! It's killing me! I'm halfway there!
Tomorrow my Empire of the Damned Illumicrate edition should come in, so that's fun!
Cats are still a work in progress. Some days I think we're doing amazing, other days I feel like it's never going to work out. It's exhausting, but all for a good cause!
QOTW
I have a bunch what would be considered coffee table books, I think. I have a bunch of GISHWHES ones, which are called coffee table books so for those I'm pretty sure, haha! I also have a couple Marvel ones, and an Art of Disneyland Paris one. They're on a shelf all together (it's high enough) and I plan to actually read them one day. The DLP one has been on my imminent TBR for ages but each time by brain decides to stop reading. I have gone through all the GISHWHES ones; the team I was in made it one year with one of our entries!
Hard to believe it's Thursday already! Right now I could use something to stop time, or at least stretch it out a little, as I've finally started sewing together the squares everyone turned in for the crochet blanket project my library is hosting. We got enough to make two blankets, so I'm hoping to finish the first one by the end of this weekend.Finished:
Monstrilio - (a book where someone dies in the first chapter) My favorite of this year's ToB books I've read so far. If there's such a thing as cozy horror, this is it.
Delicious in Dungeon World Guide: The Adventurer's Bible - Turns out I'd already seen most of the supplemental material (i.e. bonus manga chapters) post on Tumblr OTL Still, it was a good refresher before starting the next volume, which finally stopped being too new to be sent ILL.
Hakumei & Mikochi: Tiny Little Life in the Woods, Vol. 3 - This one actually had a multi-chapter arc, but that's still not enough to entice me to continue the series, especially since no library in the state has any volumes past this one anyway. But I did decide to use the first volume for the Cozy Fantasy prompt.
Claudia and the Bad Joke: A Graphic Novel - What can I say? I loved the books as a kid, and I'm enjoying seeing how the stories are adapted into graphic novel form. This particular story was never one of my favorites, though.
Currently Reading:
Rental Person Who Does Nothing
Roaming
The Shamshine Blind
Chain-Gang All-Stars
The Guest
The Wild Party
QOTW:
I own a number of coffee table books, particularly the "Art of [movie]" type, though none are on my actual coffee table. I don't know about favorite, but I do have a story about how I acquired one: When I was in middle school, I went through a big Bernadette Peters phase, which turned into a Sondheim phase, and so when I saw Sondheim at the local Encore Books, I convinced my mom to buy it for me for Christmas or my birthday, whichever was closer. I don't recall, because well before either, my mom asked me to get a frozen ham out of the downstairs freezer. Well, that freezer was one of those foot locker types, and it turned out the ham she wanted was practically on the bottom, and took quite some doing to unearth. And so, to reward my efforts, I got my Sondheim book early, and I've had it ever since.
Heather wrote: "I’m surprise struggling with the prompt “a book set 24 years before you were born.” I need a book set in 1960. It’s really difficult to Google for these books because “a book set in 1960” returns a..."That's the same year I need, too! I've found two titles so far, though I'm not sure I'll use either: Nine Days: The Race to Save Martin Luther King Jr.'s Life and Win the 1960 Election and The Songbook of Benny Lament
Still in a bit of a reading slump. I found one book on my shelf for Prompt 29. I think enough has been written about Sherlock Holmes being neurodivergent that he counts (even if he most likely wasn't written with that in mind) I read My Dearest Holmes by Rohase Piercy. The shocking thing about this one was it was written as a two cases shared after they were both gone detailing the fact they were gay but written in the 1980s. Today I'd think nothing of it but 35 years ago that could get an author blacklisted. Too bad it wasn't better.I read a couple graphic novels Shuna's Journey
by Hayao Miyazaki which is finally in English and I enjoyed it and Blood on the Tracks, Vol. 2 by Shuzo Oshimi which is an excellent psychological horror manga
QOTW
Yes I do. My favorites are the The Living Wells of Wales: New photographs and old tales of our sacred springs, holy wells and spas by Phil Cope which is a lovely look at Wales.
Pittsburgh Then and Now® which has a historic picture of Pittsburgh on one side with a short history on the area and a modern pic taken from the same angle.
And a huge Star Trek book that I can't remember the name of at the moment
Kenya wrote: "Happy Thursday!After an unseasonably warm February, Mother Nature must have realized that it's still winter. We got snow and cold temperatures this week! The weather needs to make up its mind.
A..."
Did not know the weird Al books existed and now I need to read them!
Happy Thursday!Hi! The wind has been a howlin' today, which is making the day pretty chilly. Warm weather is coming though.
I already talked about my adventure with the Quail in week 9. Thankfully nothing like that has happened lately.
At work I have finally finished weeding the juvenile section and the playaways! YAY! There is no weeding to do until July, which is the new fiscal year. Then it starts all over again with the Young Adult section.
My new director has started a massive weed of the audio books. They desperately need it too. The old director didn't week even after the 5 year mark. Plus, with the new new director is new genres of books! Less of the things that don't go out and more diverse variety.
Popsugar:10/50
Finished:
Reading: none i'm aware of
Aty: 14/52
Finished:
Reading: none that i'm aware of
Shelfreflection's Disney Animated Movie: 6/55
Finished:
4) Bambi (1942) Villains Are Destined to Die, Vol. 6
11) The Sword in the Stone (1963) Cavalier With the Truth：Sagishi Vol.２
13) Aristocats (1970) A Kiss with a Cat, Vol. 2
18) Aladdin (1992) A Kiss with a Cat, Vol. 3 This one has issues. The catagory has takes place in India instead of Middle East and has a Sikh instead of Sultan. I'm not sure if this was a mistake or not.
24) Mulan (1998) Tales of the Celestial Kingdom
49) Moana (2016) Trickster: Native American Tales, A Graphic Collection
Goodreads Challenge 180/400
Finished: (I confused myself and got lost so I split them)
Story Hour:
Kitty and Cat: Bent Out of Shape
Manga:
Lightning and Romance, Vol. 1
Lightning and Romance, Vol. 2
Lightning and Romance Vol. 3
Lightning and Romance Vol. 4
Lightning and Romance Vol. 5
61062246]Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke's Mansion, Vol. 1 (Volume 1)
Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke's Mansion 2
Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke's Mansion, Vol. 4
Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke's Mansion Vol. 5
The Villainess's Guide to (Not) Falling in Love 01
The Oblivious Saint Can't Contain Her Power: Disgraced No Longer, I'm Finding Happiness with the Prince! Volume 1
Cavalier With the Truth：Sagishi Vol. 2
Cavalier With the Truth：Sagishi Vol. 3
The Princess Everyone Hates is the Beast King's Favorite ~The Poison Princess's Life is Reset and then She Finds Love~ Vol. 2
XXX Manga:
Didn't You Say You Hate Me!? The Troubled Doting Marriage Life of a Strange Duke Vol. 2
Didn't You Say You Hate Me!? The Troubled Doting Marriage Life of a Strange Duke Vol. 3
The Unsociable Duke Adores His New Wife
My Boss is a Giant: He Manages My Every Need With Enormous Skill The Complete Manga Collection
Light Novel:
The Oblivious Saint Can't Contain Her Power: Forget My Sister! Turns Out I Was the Real Saint All Along! Volume 1
Romance:
The Curvy Girl's Father of the Bride
Forbidden Appeal
Daddy’s Billionaire Inventor
Midnight Snack
Dirty Mind
Claiming Shelby
Forbidden Professor
Reading:
I Shall Survive Using Potions! Volume 2 (I Shall Survive Using Potions!
Darker by Four
QOTW:
I don't think I do. I've been trying to purge my book collection for things I actually want to read. So anything like that has already been donated to the library.
Three week check-in. My sinus infection turned into pneumonia, and I've been too sick to do much of anything. I did get a little reading done, though. I am now on oxygen 24/7 and it appears that will continue forever. It makes me feel better, but I'm sick of tubes and tanks and such. I may never leave the house again as it is too hard! I'm sure I'll adjust eventually.Finished
Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert - 3 stars; PS #32 (enemies to lovers plot)
17 year olds who were best friends as children, then became bitter enemies. Bet you can guess what happens when they are forced to spend time in nature together.
By the Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie - 3 stars
My February Christie read. I'm getting to the end of her books, and you can tell she's in her late 70s-early 80s now. The books are less coherent.
Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan - 2 stars; PS #43 (second chance romance)
Not a fan of this one. Really glad I got all the romance novels knocked out in February.
Jeeves and the Leap of Faith by Jeeves and the Leap of Faith - 3 stars; PS #1 (leap in title)
Maybe I was too sick to like anything, but this was disappointing.
March: Book One by John Lewis - 5 stars; PS #36 (formerly incarcerated person)
This was a brilliant graphic novel (not that I have a lot of experience in the genre). Great read for Black History Month. I loved it and plan to read the following ones as well.
Passenger to Frankfurt by Agatha Christie - 2 stars
My March Christie read. Probably my least favorite book of hers as the plot really makes no sense. However, there are a few brilliant Christie touches, like a couple of characters who have fun conversations.
Goodreads: 11/100
Popsugar: 8/50
QOFW: I don't have coffee table books - too expensive and I don't have room. I like looking at them at other people's houses though.
Happy Thursday! It has been a week- it's been nonstop meetings this week, and I feel like my social battery is at zero now. So happy for it to be Friday tomorrow. This weekend one of my main bookstores is having a big warehouse sale so I"m going with a friend! I haven't really bought any books this year, so I'm planning to let myself have some funFinished:
The Butcher of the Forest- a fantasy-horror short novel. I was not fully prepared for the horror- some of the descriptions were pretty grotesque. So for me the horror elements were too much, but I think the writing was pretty strong, so if you're a fantasy-horror reader you should check it out.
-no prompts for me
How You Get the Girl- I really really liked this. Romance/romcom with a side of dealing with mental health is catnip for me. It made me cry, I'm definitely going to check out the author's other books.
-#7 A book about women's sports and/or by a woman athlete (could also be LGBTQ+ romance)
The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen- another really enjoyable romcom- this one a historical gay romance. Apparently I was in a romcom mood after the horror book!
-#10 A book by a self-published author (this one wasn't self published, but a lot of the author's books are)
Currently reading:
The Centre-I started this, seems interesting, but I have to put it on hold for a second
The Prison Healer- my friend read this, told me I had to check it out from Libby, and now a different friend of hers is waiting for me to return it on Libby, so I guess I'm reading this next!
I have so many books out from the library through physical copies, libby and hoopla. It's too many! I don't have enough time!
QotW:
No coffee table books. I think someone else mentioned the ADHD thing, but if I had a nice book on my coffee table, it'd wind up under a stack of other books, or wind up getting used as a coaster and then I'd probably knock my coffee over on it when I got distracted. I think they're pretty though! Just not for me!
Jennifer W wrote: "Heather, meet me over in the help thread, I'll look up some things that happened in 1960 that might give you some avenues to search for books!"Thanks! Any help is appreciated.
Joanna wrote: "That's the same year I need, too! I've found two titles so far, though I'm not sure I'll use either: Nine Days: The Race to Save Martin Luther King Jr.'s Life and Win the 1960 Election and The Songbook of Benny Lament"Congratulations on the awesome birth year ;) Are you having mixed emotions about turning 40 this year? I am for sure!!
I've booked marked those two. I'm not sure if I'll read either, but it's nice to have a few more options.
It's been another weird week, but at least the weekend is oh-so-near! I finished a book and a short story, and kept plugging away at the other books-in-progress. I hope to finish something over the weekend but we'll see! I'm at 5/45 and 1/5 for this challenge, and 14/100 for my overall Goodreads Reading Challenge.Finished:
* Trust written by Hernan Diaz and narrated by Eduardo Ballerini, Jonathan Davis, Mozhan Marnò, and Orlagh Cassidy. I used this for "a book with an unreliable narrator." It should be an interesting discussion next weekend, so I'm looking forward to hearing everyone's thoughts; and,
* Amelia's Shadow written by Marie Benedict and narrated by Andi Arndt. This was one of the Amazon Originals in their newest short story collection, Blaze.
Currently Reading:
* The Stone Home by Crystal Hana Kim;
* The Spanish Diplomat's Secret by Nev March; and,
* Much Ado about Nada by Uzma Jalaluddin.
QotW:
Do you own any “coffee table” books? If so, what is your favorite? If not, what one book might you purchase as a “coffee table” book? SO MANY! Some were gifts from others; some were gifts to myself (usually from a museum gift shop). Most of them are art- or music-related. I try to rotate them between my living room table and my sideboard in my dining room (they're on a shelf with a glass door, so still on display 📚). I would be hard pressed to pick one as my favorite because they reflect many things that I love and bring me joy. And they remind me of a person and/or place that I visited -- which also brings me joy.
Here are a few of the titles in no particular order:
* Italian Painting by Keith Christiansen
* U2 Show by Diana Scrimgeour
* Pearl Jam Twenty by Pearl Jam
* Mary Ann Carroll: First Lady of the Highwaymen by Gary Monroe
* Fight to the Finish: How the Washington Nationals Rallied to Become 2019 World Series Champions by The Washington Post
* Fallingwater edited by Lynda Waggoner
* Italian Women Artists from Renaissance to Baroque from the National Museum of Women in the Arts
* Dali, The Museum Collection from the Dalí Museum
I also have several books on Raphael and a Raphael/Michelangelo combo book from the Vatican that would probably qualify as coffee table books too.
Mod
Wikipedia-Year in Literature for 1960:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1960_in...
That's how I did it! 😁
Happy check-in! The blizzard we got over the weekend wasn't a severe as they thought which meant less shovelling yay!I'm so confused about all of your living rooms without coffee tables. Haha Needless to say I have one for the coffee, coffee table books not so much.
Finished Reading:
A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking ⭐⭐ (ATY cozy mystery)
Well a dreaded prompt down. Fantasy and a known author didn't help me get through this prompt. The book was boring and it should have been under her children's author name. Anyway it made me bake some new cookies, Pumpkin Harvest Cookies. They were tasty.
The Battle of the Labyrinth ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (ATY Edgar Award author)
This book following a 14 year old was so much better than Defensive Baking.
One Piece, Volume 1: Romance Dawn ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (ATY Jimmy Buffet)
Annoying prompt done. Many scenes on beaches or in bars. Cute story idea.
7 Generations: A Plains Cree Saga ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (ATY related to land)
I picked this out because I read about how this book had been banned in Ontario during freedom to read week. Tough subject matter. This started out with a mom rushing home to find her son had overdosed. Then it's about teaching him about his ancestors to start healing. Gorgeous artwork.
PS 17/50
ATY 18/52
Goodreads 53/150
Currently Reading:
Homegoing audie award winner for aty list rejects
The Christmas Guest
Mandy wrote: "I don't think I do. I've been trying to purge my book collection for things I actually want to read. So anything like that has already been donated to the library...."I need to learn how to weed my collection more effectively. Does having to do that as a librarian help you let go of your own books? Towards that end, I donated 14 books today!
I fnished The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. I saw th emovie years ago and I found the Lena story annoying and boring. I liked it better in the book. I don't know why they changed it to a cliched Romeo and Juliet thing for the movie. Also liked that we got more introspection for Bridget. But, just as in the movie, I was really all about Tibby's and Carmen's story. Mostly Tibby's.I'm reading Street Dreams. Man, do I want to punch the main character out. She's so insufferable.
QOTW: I do. Oddly enough I don't have a coffee table. I don't know that I have a favorite. I do actually read coffee table books as opposed to just looking at the pictures. I always wondered if that made me a weirdo.
Mod
Oh no!! I'm glad you're recovered but I'm so sorry you're feeling stuck now.
Doni wrote: "Mandy wrote: "I don't think I do. I've been trying to purge my book collection for things I actually want to read. So anything like that has already been donated to the library...."I need to lear..."
Nope. Library books and personal books are slightly different. Less attachment to library ones. Personal ones are nostalgic and I want to keep them all, but if I know just keeping them to keep them and not to read again then it’s time to give them up. Plus, it makes room for things I want to read.
I just saw some super sad news. Dragon Ball Z author Akira Toriyama has died! Super sad now. His work was one of the big 5 of the 90s.
L Y N N wrote: "Wikipedia-Year in Literature for 1960:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1960_in...
That's how I did it! 😁"
Thanks, Lynn! I'll search through those and see what might be set in their present day.
Happy Friday, y’all.Well, I spent the week in VA visiting with my sister and her family. The two young ones, 6 and 12, are impressive young women and did not overwhelm me but rather shared their interests. It was fun to see how they have grown. I also enjoyed the time with my niece, her husband, and my sister. Not as stressful a visit as I had anticipated. However, the drive to was broken into two days due to rain storms the whole way and construction…and the drive home was in one block of about 8 hours. Tiring both directions.
Finished:
The Secret, Book & Scone Society – ALCM, PAS. I enjoyed this cozy mystery that had secrets of each of the five main characters that were revealed as the story developed. Well-done! 4*
The Last Camel Died at Noon – PAS. 3*. And, returned to library one day prior to due date! This is book #6 in the series but felt more like a debut book. Not the best of developed stories, but the characters were interesting and the twists made the ending delightful.
Currently Reading:
Dreams and Shadows –Kindle. 22%. This one moved up to actively being read due to the fact that I was visiting my sister and had finished the physical books that I took with me. Still not sure if I will finish this one. Very disjointed.
The Invitation – PAS. 11%. Meditations.
Outlander – audiobook. Reread. 41%.
The Frank Bennett Adirondack Mountain Mystery Series #1-3 – Reading book #2. Kindle. 51%. There are three books in this combination so I will not get to 100% unless I read the third book at this time also.
Just Starting:
Scones & Bones – ALCM, PAS
Exile – PAS, ATY #11
The Allingham Case-Book - PAS
On Deck:
Staying Well With Guided Imagery: How to Harness the Power of Your Imagination for Health and Healing – PAS.
PS 6/50
ATY 10/52
GR 44/200
QotW: Do you own any “coffee table” books? If so, what is your favorite? If not, what one book might you purchase as a “coffee table” book?
Yes, but they are scattered around the house lying on their sides for the most part on shelves. I am really not in favor of books just for looking at…rather I prefer books I can read. Now that I have given some thought to the fact that most are never going to be displayed nor read, I think I will search them all out and donate them!
Happy Friday! Couldn't post yesterday because I had to go home to look at the books in my coffee table (wood base, glass top, so it's nice, I can put them on the top level, which you can see through the glass, but they don't take table-top space).Finished
Aleph Newp. Nothing special about this story about a 59 year old being repeatedly tempted to cheat with a 21 year old - whom he still treats horribly. And the fact that part of his reason is that he apparently treated her even worse in a past life doesn't make it any less creepy. Would probably have DNF'd (a rarity for me) if it didn't fulfil a one word title I had to look up in the dictionary.
When No One Is Watching Interesting enough thriller, although it was slow to get started. Had some interesting twists I didn't see coming, but then it went totally off the rails towards the end.
Mislaid in Parts Half-Known Apparently, I really don't like to read on my phone. Every other book in this series I've had in hard copy and devoured in a night. This one my library didn't get (yet) so I read a version through Libby and it took 2 weeks. I did really enjoy it overall, I like that it progressed or concluded several characters stories.
Currently Reading
Call Us What We Carry: Poems I'm the discussion leader! Come join us in the thread.
Denison Avenue
Video Game of the Year: A Year-by-Year Guide to the Best, Boldest, and Most Bizarre Games from Every Year Since 1977
The Atlas Complex
QotW
Yes! I have:
Three Postsecret books, (PostSecret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives, A Lifetime of Secrets: A PostSecret Book, My Secret: A PostSecret Book) which I was obsessed with once upon a time.
Vanity Fair: The Portraits: A Century of Iconic Images
Palio: the race of the soul as I memento since I attended a palio in Siena
Rejected Princesses: Tales of History's Boldest Heroines, Hellions, and Heretics and Tough Mothers: Amazing Stories of History's Mightiest Matriarchs
501 Must-See Movies and another one that I can't find here with complete lists, year by year, of who won the Academy awards. Except that it's from at least 20 years ago.
Looking at it last night, I don't think I'll get rid of those last two yet, but they probably aren't going to make my next move with me.
As for favorites, as I said, once upon a time, it would have been the Postsecret books, but now it's Rejected Princesses - each entry highlights the awesome story of a historical woman who wouldn't fit into a Disney tale.
I'm slowly recovering from whatever illness/under-the-weatherness/ick I've been dealing with for about two weeks now. I just can't talk too much or too loudly at one time, which can be tricky given my job and hobbies.Completed
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption - 4 stars
Letters to a Young Poet
Dragon of the Lost Sea - for PS
Currently Reading
Foundation
Murder Is Bad Manners
PS: 28/50
QOTW
No coffee table books. I do have a coffee table, but I store my collection of adult coloring books underneath it.
Hi all, Been such a slow week, and weird weather. 70 earlier this week, now back to cold chill, some storms in the middle of the week.
I'm in a baulder's gate hole, so not reading as much as i probably normally would be, haha.
Finished:
Before We Were Yours - for my TBR challenge. I got this from my book club's white elephant holiday exchange a few years a back and never got back to it. This year someone picked it for me to read. I kept avoiding it because it didn't seem like it'd be my jam, but i ended up enjoying it more than expected. I counted it for genre I usually avoid, since I do tend to avoid really splashy historical fiction best seller type books. If I read historical fiction it usullay tends to be either historical fantasy, or set much farther back in the past or a culture I'm less familiar with.
Culture: The Story of Us, From Cave Art to K-Pop- finished audio book, finally. It was really good, just haven't gotten into a really good audio book groove yet, since the weather's been so spotty. Not taking really regular long walks yet. Quite a fascinating look on what culture is, how it spreads or doesn't spread, gets interrupted and re-discovered and re-incorporated. I am counting this as my book about KPop even though it's a pretty big stretch. I knew it was going to be a stretch going in, since it wasn't the subject of the whole book, but I thought with KPop in the title, it'd at least get a solid chapter. It was actually only mentioned for a few minutes in the very end of the epilogue. But I read it in good faith that it was going to be at least a decent chunk of the book, so I'm counting it. I don't really want to read a whole book about kpop.
Currently reading:
Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism - my next books & brews read. Pretty interesting so far, examining how the power of cults come from the language used, and how that language is found in many other aspects of life, both good and bad. Not sure it fits any popsugar prompts.
The Best Thing You Can Steal - need a fiction book for before bed/first thing in the morning. This will be my 24 letters in the title. It's just fun fluff.
Shades of Milk and Honey - current audio book. This is a nanowrimo book. I'm not a huge regency reader, so i'm not that excited about it, but I did like her lady astronaut books so I went with it. It's fine so far, nothing exciting. I really hope this prompt goes away.
QOTW:
I have various art books and such. Probably the one closest to being a "coffee table book" is my giant Marvel history of comics book. It's probably 2 feet long, 4 inches thick, extremely heavy to hold. I think it covers 75 years of marvel comics or some such. It has to flop sideways on the book shelves because I don't trust my cats enough to leave books out on coffee tables. I flip through them ever so often. I don't go out of my way to pick them up mainly because I DON'T tend to use books like that a whole lot.
I'm off work today, so doing a two week checkin! I've worked the past 12 days - spent the weekend in St Thomas for a conference (that I worked) and I woke up with a sore throat. UGH- I started a Chicagoland bucket list as I got the opportunity to relocate for work that I'm considering, so really want to make sure I'm taking advantage of my city while I'm still here.Challenges:
16/75 GoodReads Challenge
13/50 PopSugar Challenge
Finished:
1.) One in a Millennial: On Friendship, Feelings, Fangirls, and Fitting In by Kate Kennedy (#2 Bildungsroman) ⭐⭐⭐: I love her podcast, Be There in Five and this translated in the same, but these essays were way too long and meandering. It just didn't work for me the way I had hoped. It took me almost an entire month to read it all.
2.) First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston (No PS Prompt) ⭐⭐⭐⭐: I really enjoyed this con woman thriller. The twists worked for me and I could totally see this adapted for the big screen.
Currently Reading:
1.) Iron Flame
2.) 56 Days
QoTW: Do you own any “coffee table” books? If so, what is your favorite? If not, what one book might you purchase as a “coffee table” book?
Nope. I don't own a coffee table in my current living situation, but if I did it would be a travel photographer that I love like a Gray Malin or Lucy Laught.
TGIF. It's been a bit of a week. Our weather has been so varied and it's triggering my migraines. Work handed me a big new project (that I am excited about)...right before I go on leave in a week. And we got some bad news about my aunt, who's been ill for a while. I don't know what planet is in retrograde, but clearly something is up. Finished
The Mysterious Affair at Styles: a reread but it's been so long that I had forgotten a lot of it; still loved it
Currently Reading
Silk: A World History: if it wasn't an arc I would have dnf'd this by now. I just...it's so dense but it also doesn't really seem to have a point? Also it's strangely eurocentric given the topic? Even when we're talking about things taking place in not european places, we're always following a european scientist or silk manufacturer or whatever. I don't know; it's just very boring.
Hobtown Mystery Stories Vol. 1: The Case Of The Missing Men: this is like some kind of cross between Nancy Drew and Twin Peaks. still feeling it out
Nothing But Blackened Teeth: creepy haunted house horror
QOTW I own a few but I think they were all gifts. None of them live on my coffee table; there's no room for decorative stuff. That's where the remotes, the headphones, some abandoned cups, random papers, etc go.
Mod
for sure you need a vacation!!!
I'm also struggling with the "24 yrs before you were born" prompt! I need 1971 (or, failing that, just very early 1970s).
Oh I was never a coffee table book person for owning but have looked at many while chilling at Chapters. Just finished House of Flame and Shadow ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and listened to Remarkably Bright Creatures finally!
Up next some of my more usual murder mayhem books!
Cendaquenta wrote: "I'm also struggling with the "24 yrs before you were born" prompt! I need 1971 (or, failing that, just very early 1970s)."A few interesting options, see me in the help thread!
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Cool. Awkward. Black. (other topics)Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America (other topics)
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents (other topics)
The Great Displacement: Climate Change and the Next American Migration (other topics)
Finding Me (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Karen Strong (other topics)Robin Broos (other topics)
Lucinda Riley (other topics)
Jung Chang (other topics)
Kristina McMorris (other topics)
More...
Still seem to spend time helping others in my world, but that should be slowing down now…”should be” is the key term!!! I want to get back to more reading!!
Weather has turned more spring-like here. Rain every few days and more temperate/consistent temperatures. Ahhhhh…
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ADMIN STUFF:
The March Monthly Group Read is Call Us What We Carry: Poems by Amanda Gorman! 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!
Joanna is the "marvelous manager" who has volunteered to lead this discussion! Kudos to her!! THANK YOU, Joanna! 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏 I am awaiting my copy to be delivered later this week! I imagine she recorded the audiobook version and can only imagine it must be a wonderful listening experience as well!
MAY MONTHLY GROUP READ FINAL SELECTION POLL IS UP!!
The final selection poll for the May Monthly Group Read is HERE! This book could be used to fulfill prompt #41 A memoir that explores queerness. You will be asked to select just one book from these final 5:
All Boys Aren't Blue
Not My Father's Son
Gender Queer
Pageboy
Another Appalachia: Coming Up Queer and Indian in a Mountain Place
THIS POLL WILL BE AVAILABLE THOUGH TUESDAY, MARCH 12!! GO VOTE!! 😉 PLEASE! 😁👍
DISCUSSION LEADER NEEDED FOR APRIL!
The Mystery Guest (Molly the Maid #2) by Nita Prose
This book could be used to fulfill prompt #29 A book with a neurodivergent main character. April is Autism Awareness Month! I'm certain there is at least one member out there fitting the description of "knowledgeable navigator" to lead this discussion! Please message either Nadine or myself to volunteer!
The comprehensive listing of 2024 Monthly Group Reads resides HERE for your perusal and reference throughout 2024!
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Question of the Week:
Do you own any “coffee table” books? If so, what is your favorite? If not, what one book might you purchase as a “coffee table” book?
I kinda can’t believe I’m asking this question… I no longer own a “coffee table”! In fact, this got me wondering exactly what I did with mine the last time I moved. (That was 23 years ago, so I guess I’m forgiven for not immediately remembering! LOL) But then I remembered, one of my sons wanted it so I gave it to him. (They moved my bigger furniture that wouldn’t fit in my car for me, and although I paid them to do it, I was also generous in giving them furniture my husband and I didn’t need, etc.) But I kept my “coffee table” books!! Though they now reside on an extra-tall bookshelf! Most of these were obtained as “Bargain Buys” from either Borders or Barnes & Nobles years ago…
Quite a variety! They are:
Leonardo Da Vinci
Izis: Captive Dreams: Photographs 1944 - 1980
Wild & Scenic Indiana
I Dream a World: Portraits of Black Women Who Changed America
Van Gogh and Gauguin: The Studio of the South
Indiana 24/7
Van Gogh's Flowers
The World Of Agatha Christie
Art of the Western World: From Ancient Greece to Post Modernism
Georgia O'Keefe
The Organic Garden
Healing with Crystals and Chakra Energies
My favorites are the Van Gogh/O'Keefe/Gauguin books!
2024 READING CHALLENGES:
Popsugar: 15/50
Around the Year (AtY): 42/52
Read Harder: 9/24
52 Book Club: 32/52
FINISHED:
*Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I have previously read and enjoyed two other books and one short story by Rachel Joyce. I admit that while reading this I would intermittently wonder exactly what I was reading! I just kept wondering how it was all going to work out! And I admit to being a bit surprised by the ending... It was quick and quite unexpectedly poignant! I think I enjoyed reading Joyce's notes about how she ended up writing this book almost as much as the book! It certainly provided excellent perspective, IMO! And her interview was quite sweet! Although there was quite a bit of action and plot was relevant and moved along, I still think of this as a character study. I really enjoyed it even if it did throw me off balance several times!
POPSUGAR: #2
ATY: #3- A book with a character dealing with mental health or cognitive challenges (PTSD-Mundic), #6, #10-Historical Fiction, #15, #17, #23, #24-Orange, #25, #27, #28, #29, NEW #31, #33, #36, #46
RHC: #24-2016: prompt #24 A book with a main character with a mental illness (PTSD-Mundic)
52 Book Club: #3, #6, #9, #10, #14, #18, #30, #31, #33, #43, #51
*Cool. Awkward. Black. edited by Karen Strong ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ was such an excellent short story anthology/collection! Glad to read more work written by any/all of these authors!!
POPSUGAR: #2
ATY: #3-A book title that seemingly refers to one or more characters in the book, #9-355 ratings, #14, #24-Purple, #33, #44, #45-short story anthology, #49
RHC: #21, #24-2015: prompt #3 Read a collection of short stories
52 Book Club: #14, #30, #43
CONTINUING:
*Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa, translated by Eric Ozawa for an IRL book club
*Legends & Lattes (Legends & Lattes #1) by Travis Baldree reread for an IRL book club
Both of these book club meetings are on the same day! One in early afternoon and the other in the evening!! LOL What a wonderful day that will be!! 😋
*...And Ladies of the Club by Helen Hooven Santmyer
A priority for March!
PLANNED:
*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