Joanna’s Comments (group member since Dec 27, 2013)

Joanna’s comments from the CPL's Book a Week Challenge group.

Books have an amazing power to transport you away from the world. Whether to an imaginary destination or some place real, we can experience a wide range via the descriptions and emotions invoked by the author. What book destinations have you been to recently? What are your top book destinations?

One day I won't be a broken record about Tolkien, but today is not that day. Tomorrow isn't looking too good either. Middle-Earth is definitely one of my top two book destinations. I would love to wander the Shire, read books in the Rivendell library, camp out under some mallorn trees, ride a horse through Rohan's plains, and view the sunset and moonrise in Henneth Annun. And I would especially love to visit during the Long Peace, when the sun was new and the mighty of the Eldar race still walked Middle-Earth.

My second top book destination will always be Dinotopia. An island cut off from the rest of the world populated by intelligent dinosaurs? Count me in! I don't necessarily even think I'd want to come back. There's a librarian job in Waterfall City calling me (it's amazing to me the number of fictional libraries I've been drawn to before even thinking of pursuing it as a career).

Other book destinations... Narnia, Gotham, Austen's Regency England, and the library of The Starless Sea.

Where will you be going?

What is everyone reading this week? I finally finished my reread of The Count of Monte Cristo! It took me a year, not because it's a hard read, but because I kept getting distracted by other books. Does that ever happen to you? Over the weekend, I read the first Poirot book, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, and Masque of the Red Death (because now is the perfect time to read a dystopian YA novel about a pandemic based off a Poe short story). I'm going to try and finish The Silmarillion this week and maybe some manga.

What are you reading?

With the closure of the library's curbside pickup, I know it might be hard to complete the Take It or Leave It challenges that were posted. So here is a special edition for April! I'm going to leave the original challenges up there, though, so you can do whichever you prefer or mix them up.

1. Reread your favorite book you own

2. Read a book between 300 and 400 pages

3. Read a book from your to be read pile

4. Read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone- OverDrive, one of the library's e-book vendors, is offering the first Harry Potter book with no waits for #HarryPotteratHome in April. All you need is your library card and pin to access it. Check it out here!

5. Read any other e-book (Access the library e-book resources here)

6. Read a hardcover book

7. Read a paperback

April's Take It or Leave It challenges are below. Do one, do all, do none! It's totally up to you!

1. CPL's Online Book Club - Read April's Online Book Club book The Alice Network by Kate Quinn and join the discussion over on the page.

2. Poet and Didn't Know It - April is National Poetry Month! Read a book of poems

3. Bunnies and Eggs - Read a book that has a bunny or eggs on the cover

4. National Library Week (April 19-25) - Celebrate libraries by reading a library book!

5. Favorite Color - Read a book that has your favorite color in the title

6. Digital Life - Read an e-book

7. Travel the Stars - Read a science fiction book

Have fun!

Let's talk about our ultimate favorite books- the ones you reread, the ones that stick with you long after they are finished, the ones that bring you comfort. What are your favorite books? Do you know what makes them your favorite?

I can narrow my favorites to 10 books (I know, shocking for a bookworm). We all know I am a huge Tolkien fan. I try and reread the 5 books every year- Silmarillion, The Hobit, and The Lord of the Rings. I love how immersive Tolkien's writing is; I get carried away to Middle-Earth every time. He also has such a way of balancing the pain and sadness with hope. I'm actually starting my reread now and they are for me the perfect antidote to the current world.

Also on the list of ultimate favorites are Pride and Prejudice (the one that started my love of classics and the best romance ever), Crown Duel (if only I was half as brave as Mel), The Count of Monte Cristo (revenge, conspiracy, romance, this literally has it all), A Countess Below Stairs (this book is just so full of hope; we all need to be like Anna), and Carry On (this book just makes me happy).

What are your ultimate favorites? Tell us about them!

Sorry for no post last week; as you can imagine, it was a week! Everything is all new and we're learning as we go in this new normal.

How is everyone doing?

What books have you all been reading? Any standouts? I managed to finish Maas' new one, House of Earth and Blood, last week. I really enjoyed it, even if I think that at 800 pages, it could have used some editing. I also finished the latest Disney Twisted Tale, Straight on Till Morning. And I finally caught up on all the Black Butler manga volumes (I'm crying that the next one won't be out until July). All in all, I'm making more reading progress.

Tell us about your current reads!

A little while ago, I ran into this article about the 13 Types of Readers. We all know that readers fall into various stereotypes and this article takes a crack at them.

I definitely fall into a couple of the stereotypes-

• The Re-Readers (I love rereading my favorite books and in fact, there are seven titles I make a habit of reading every year)
• The Physical Book Loyalist (I don’t really do ebooks for a variety of reasons including the fact that reading on a screen gives me a headache and because I don’t retain the information I’m reading very well when it’s digital)
• The Spoiler Lover (yes, yes, come at me with your pitchforks. I just get too stressed about the outcome and have to know before I dive in)
• Adult YA Addicts (a recent category for me but I really do enjoy YA books, especially fantasy)

Take a look at the article and tell us which ones you are!

Are there are other reader stereotypes you think the article missed?

Happy March! Did anyone take advantage of the extra day in February to accomplish reading or other goals? I actually managed to read two books on the 29th! I was quite excited because I've been behind on my reading goals since January. It's always a good feeling to finish a month out strong.

What are you reading this week? I'm working on The Guinevere Deception and then hopefully Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and House of Earth and Blood, the new one by Sarah J. Maas.

March's Take It or Leave It challenges are below. Do one, do all, do none! It's totally up to you.

1. Change the Game - Read our Online Book Club's March pick, Wolfpack by Amy Wambach. Join the discussion throughout the month!

2. St. Patrick's Day - Read a book featuring a leprechaun or treasure hunting

3. Celebrate Women's History Month - Read a biography about a trail-blazing woman

4. Lucky Four Leaf - Read a book with a green cover

5. The Whimsical and Fantastic - Read a fairy tale retelling

6. Irish American Month - Read a book set in Ireland

7. Have a Recommendation? - Read a book recommended by a friend

Have fun!

A short post for this week but what is everyone reading? I'm still working on Sherwood and have some manga volumes out. Hoping that my head cold will be gone by the weekend so I can actually get some reading done.

Tell us what you are currently reading!

February is Black History Month! Here at the library, we’ve had a whole month of celebrations, everything from a chorale group to cooking demonstrations to author and artist talks to movie nights and beyond. The month isn’t done yet so be sure to check out our calendar of events to find out what’s happening at your library.

In thinking about Black History month and books, something that I have seen is how many of your books are written by diverse authors? Do you keep an eye on this? What books by African American authors have you read? I admit, I’m as guilty of not paying attention as everyone else. I can probably count on one hand the number of diverse reads from last year. I honestly just don’t pay attention. Which is not an excuse. I think there should be some intentionality in our reading. We should make an effort to read more diverse books. I need to get better at this.

What about you?

Right now, over at our Online Book Club we’re reading The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates. If you haven’t already, go check it out and dive into this book.

Happy Valentine’s Day a bit early! Are you celebrating? Or do you eschew the holiday in favor of other plans? I’m definitely the latter- I either ignore it completely or, as it happens this year, I’ll be out of town at a convention. But while I may be ambivalent to this romantic holiday, that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy a good romance book or two.

What are your favorite romance books? Do you have a favorite subgenre of them? I enjoy a good historical romance. There’s something about romance in a time and place so different from our own but at the same time, so like our own. Julie Klassen has been my favorite for these books; I greatly enjoy how some of her books mix romance with a bit of suspenseful drama. Recently, I’ve found YA author Cindy Anstey, whose books also mix romance with some drama. Jane Austen’s books are considered classics, but they sort of fall under historical romance as well (though, they were contemporary romance when written).

I am also a huge lover of fairy tale retellings.

I’ll read contemporary romances every once in a while, though mainly YA and with some sort of fandom component (Fangirl, Eliza and Her Monsters, Geekerella, The Princess and the Fangirl, Comics Will Break Your Heart). I did read Red, White, and Royal Blue last year (adult contemporary) and absolutely adored it. It was the perfect break from reality.

Tell us your romance reads!

Happy February! Does anyone else think January flew by? I can't believe we're already into the second month of 2020.

What is everyone reading this week? Did you read anything fun over the weekend? I started a book on Saturday, got angry over plot choices the author was making, and decided to abandon it. Has author plot choices ever made you mad? I moved on to My Plain Jane which I have had on my shelf since July 2017. I'm questioning why I put it off for so long. It was amazing and hysterical. The authors are experts of weaving real fictional books, history, and culture references into a fun book. I loved My Lady Jane which was the first one in their Jane series. Their new one is coming out in June, My Calamity Jane, and I will not be putting that one off.

Going to now try and finish Crime and Punishment and probably start Sherwood.

Happy Reading!

February's Take It or Leave It challenges are below. Do one, do all, do none! It's totally up to you.

1. Celebrate Black History Month - Read a book written by an African American author or about African American history

2. Touchdown! - Read a book about or involving sports

3. Be My Valentine - Happy Valentine's Day! Read a book with hearts, chocolates, or roses on the front

4. Love Your Library Month - Read any library book

5. It's a Leap Year - Enjoy your extra day by reading for 30 minutes on Feb. 29th. Comment below that you did for a point

6. Polar Bear Day - Feb. 27th is Polar Bear Day. Read a book about bears, with a bear on the front, or set in the Arctic

7. Red is for Love - Read a book with a red cover

Have fun!

As January comes to a close, let’s talk about our tops and duds of the decade. 10 years is a long time with a lot of books. If you’re like me, most of what you read was good, neither exceptional nor terrible. But there are always those few.

What were your top reads of the decade?

What were your duds of the decade?

I had a few top (5 star) reads: Lost Stars, The Name of the Wind, Persuasion, You’re Never Weird on the Internet, A Curse So Dark and Lonely, Starless Sea, Ink and Bone, and The Golem and the Jinni. As you can see, fantasy books are the predominate top reads for me. Also, I rarely give 5 stars. It was super odd for me to have 3 of them last year. I think it had been a couple years since my last one.



Sadly, there is always a dud (1 or 2 stars). Again, super rare for me. I don’t think I had any last year. Duds of the decade included Gulliver’s Travels, Supergods, Butterfly Palace, and Twilight.



Tell us yours!

Happy 3rd week of January! Did everyone enjoy the holiday on Monday? Or, if you worked, did you have a good weekend?

What is everyone reading this week? I finished an interesting book over the holidays called What We Talk about When We Talk about Books: The History and Future of Reading. In a series of essays, the author talked about print and how it has evolved over history. One of her more interesting points was that every generation makes the same complaints about attention span, violence, corruption, etc. that is the result of some new "technology." In fact, novels were considered to be extremely bad for you until the advent of radio. The same sorts of articles you see nowadays for things like video games were once written for novels (they even proposed laws to fine people who gave anyone under 16 a novel!).

We view our idea of books as nostalgia, but is our collective memory of "book" even right? Most of the time, it isn't.

I definitely recommend this book as it was so interesting and really showed me where my bias lies when it comes to books. We do have a couple copies here at the library.

This week, I'm hoping to read A Heart so Fierce and Broken and Sorcery of Thorns. Both have been high on my to read pile and I'm finally going to take the time to read them!

Happy reading!

Elizabeth wrote: "I'm reading A Map of Days. I like it, but it's been too long since I read the previous books so I'm a little lost and am having a hard time getting into it."

I've come to the conclusion that any sequel books need a recap in the front to help those of us who waited too long between reads (or if it's been a year or more since the last book came out).

Everyone has such great goals for the year! Thank you so much for sharing.

Congratulations to all the winners of the 2019 Book Quest: The Challenge!

- Pamela is our Grand Prize winner
- Arlice is our staff winner
- Lonna is our Take It or Leave It champion! She completed 82 of the mini challenges.

Congratulations, everyone!

What is everyone reading this week? Are you loving it? Hating it? Just liking it? I finished Kingdom of Ruins at the end of last week and absolutely loved it. If I could live in that book, I would. She created a world where everything is alive and has agency and it just pulls at me. I'd love to live in a world where I could communicate with the ocean. Now, instead of working on my tbr, I’m rereading one of my old favorites, Crown Duel. After that, I promise I'll get back on my reading goal.

Tell us what you are reading this week!

January's Take It or Leave It challenges are below. Do one, do all, do none! It's totally up to you.

1. Welcome to the New Decade! - Tell us your first read of the decade in the comments below for a point

2. Let It Snow, Let It Snow - Read a book with snow on the cover or in the title

3. Join a Book Club - Join the Online Book Club and read Hidden Figures this month.

4. Martin Luther King Jr. Day - Read a book about Martin Luther King Jr

5. I Can't Remember the Title, but the Cover was Blue - Read a book with a blue cover

6. Their First Book - Read a popular author's first book

Have fun!