L Y N N’s Comments (group member since Nov 10, 2018)

L Y N N’s comments from the Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge group.

Carmen wrote: "Hello everyoooneee!

God have I missed you all. I just really couldn't conjure up the energy to check in when I wasn't reading anyways. Because I wasn't, except for fanfiction- that I did read a lot, haha! I even managed to write! Let's hope I can at least keep the latter going, because I got a Tony Stark bingo and Stuckony bingo with some squares I'm really excited about :D"
Welcome back! Exciting to hear about your writing!!

"So for this year I am continuing to save €1 per book I read, but also per 50k of fics. I could have saved €237 more last year if I'd done that from the start, so I decided it was a good idea to start this year."
Sounds like a good plan!

"I also watched more last year, due to my lack of reading. I watched 79 movies, and watched/finished 39 seasons, with about 452 episodes in total! That is something I'm definitely happy about."
I almost fell off my chair reading this! OMG! I rarely ever watch even a movie. We have no TV in our house. This just seems...impossible! LOL I trust you enjoyed every moment!! 😁

"The best thing for me about 2020 was the fact that I got a Pass Annuel for Disneyland Paris! I managed to go 4 times so far, one day mere days after I got it during summer, a day with my sister and dad (after my trip with my sis got cancelled cuz the bus was 4,5 hours late) at the end of September, two days with my mom for my birthday about a week later (Halloween season!!!) and three days in the final week of December with all three of them. Long live the disabled passes as well! It's been amazing and I can't wait for our/my next trip."
Wow! That's a lot of Disney! Good for you!

"ALRIGHT as for reading. No one is gonna be surprised when I say I haven't read any books yet. My first order of business is finish my current reads:
Escape From Aurora
Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 3"
Sounds like a good plan!

"I might try to join in this month's read with you all if I manage to find an audio copy on one of my apps!"
I am 1/3 through and enjoying it.

"Would be nice if I managed to read some books for the readathon I host myself xD and for the Popsugar discord I host oops."
There ya go!

"Question of the Week:
Let’s talk strategy for this new year! Are you changing the way you approach the 2022 Popsugar challenge from what you did in 2021? Or was your strategy successful and you’re going to simply repeat it this year?

I mean my strategy wasn't successful because I wasn't reading, but I am gonna stick to it. With slumps lurking around the corner, mood reading is the only way I stand a chance. Later on in the year I'll check how my challenge is going and if I need to focus a bit more on certain prompts.

I think that was it! Now let's see if I can catch up on the other messages!"
Here's hoping that you're able to read at least a bit more this year! YAY for 2022!! 👍😃

sel wrote: "Happy New Year! From about Dec 24th to the first week of January is my lazy time. This weekend will be my get your butt in action time."
Same here!

Finished: Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk was a fairly short book at about 274 pages. I found it comical and heartbreaking. Definitely brings up some timeless philosophical questions.
Though I didn't know what to expect, this was definitely a surprise to me. I was not overly-thrilled with it but I would give her writing another try...

"Started: Emma by Jane Austen will be my first classic of year. Looking forward to this one."
That's one I've never read!

"QOTW: No strategy this year. Overall, I would like to finish this year and I've also given myself the broad goal of reading some classics. I find that I do better and feel happier when I pick up any book that draws my interest without looking at the prompt first. I go back into the prompts once I'm done. All the discussions and lists are so helpful in narrowing down some new to me authors or genres."
Great! Sounds as if you are READY!! 👍😃

Olivia wrote: "I hope everyone is having a good new year! I've had one smashing success and one failure so far."
Okay, I just have to ask. Are you referring to the books you've read so far listed below? If so, which is which, may I ask? 😁

"Read:
The Night Circus- Title begins with the last letter of your previous read.
When the Reckoning Comes- A Social Horror Book"
I trust you enjoyed The Night Circus? I sure hope so. No way could I read the second one. Horror. Not for me.

"QOTW: My strategy is just to read what I want and I read enough variety that I have almost all my bases covered. Periodically I'll check in a see what prompts I don't really have a plan for and find something to fit that. This is my first year participating so I don't know how well this will go, but I'm excited."
WELCOME!! Fingers cross that this strategy works for you!! 🤞😊

E.R. wrote: "Hi all! Happy 2022!

I rung in the new year by developing my first fictional crush in a long while--the Darkling from Shadow and Bone! I know, I know. But he's just so...dreamy. Lol"
I'm just guessing. The Darkling may not be the most desirable of characters? LOL

"Finished
Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo"
Okay, I finally added this series to my TBR listing!

"QotW
My strategy is similar to last year, but I'm hoping that I stick to it better this year! I want to fit mostly books I already own into the challenge and taper down the literal stack of books sitting by my desk. I've found books to fit all the prompts quite nicely, so I just need to avoid the temptation of new books! Which is hard! I want them all!"
Oh, I hear ya, E.R.! But only ONE stack?!? That's not so bad... *evil grin*

Check point Chapters 8 - 12

In terms of this book and/or its characters, It Aspires...?
Not sure. I guess it aspires to be a "rom-com"? I don't typically read much romance...

Have you ever booked a hotel room with two beds only to end up with one? Does this common event in rom coms bother you or are you a fan?
Since I don't read that many of these books I guess I just assume it is part of the plot and read on!

Do you ever catch yourself buying into the social media promoted ideal of perfection? Poppy makes her living by staying relevant with social media and having an inspiring brand. How does she avoid low self esteem when she has dealt with so much bullying as a kid? Or does that explain her ennui or her holding on to a friendship instead of a relationship?
Not. At. All. In fact, after the 2016 election in the US I pretty much abandoned social media (Except for Goodreads, of course!) and have continued to do so. It is quite a time-waster, IMO. But...I am old. I'm not a Luddite, but I also did not grow up with electronics, so perhaps it is not so unusual for someone of my age cohort to not be on social media much...

What is the best road trip music? Or is this a dumb question when audio books exist for this crowd?
Actually, I agree with Katie in that I do not listen to audiobooks in the car. In fact, I rarely listen to audiobooks simply because I don't tend to remember the details nearly as well as I do when I read the written page... (I also don't do ebooks unless forced to do so or I can't read a certain book...) I mainly listen to NPR or other podcasts. Or I will search out a radio station with instrumental music, whether that be classical, jazz/blues, or...? I'm not into lyrics.

In rereading this post I realize I am truly a very boring older person! LOL 👍😁 And I'm okay with that!

Katie wrote: "Finished up laaaaaate last night and catching up on all the questions now!

General Questions: What made you decide to read this? Do you like the BookTok prompt? Are you using this book for a different prompt?
Read solely because of the group read. About halfway through the book, I was like "what prompt is this for!?" That's how little I was paying attention but I still enjoyed myself. I could probably use it for "Book you know nothing about" but I'll stick with the Booktok prompt so I don't have to figure out what that actually is.."
Ha! Ha! Agreed!! LOL

Doni wrote: "8/50

Finished: If Minds Had Toes using for book about afterlife. I was expecting this to become a new all-time favorite. It didn't rank that highly, but was still a fun philosophical romp."
Looks interesting! Added it to my TBR listing!

"The Near Witch using for prompt about a witch. This was a book I had checked out from the library and someone else had requested it, so I had to read it really quick! It reminded me in feel of Diana Wynne Jones, one of my favorite authors, so I quite enjoyed it. Reading more of hers because I enjoyed the Invisible Life of Addie LaRue so much!"
Huh. This is her debut novel. I'm definitely intrigued!

"Started: The World Between Blinks using for parallel worlds. This looks to be fun! It already has introduced Theodosia, Aaron Burr's daughter as a character. :)"
This looks adorable! I added it!

"The Moral Law: Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals"
That looks like a must-read!

"QotW: I feel like I planned more books from the start. But I have been surprised by how many books so far I've picked up that fit prompts without me having known that before starting the books. I'm hoping that trend will continue because I find that the most fun way to fulfill prompts."
I so agree with you!! It is always interesting...and so many times surprising!

"I made a New Year's Resolution to read less this year. This means I'll limit myself to a couple hours a day. We'll see if this impacts my ability to finish the challenge or not. I'm guessing not, since that's way more than most people read. And I've already finished 8 books for the 2022 challenge."
Yep! I would say you'll complete with no problem. I can't imagine purposefully limiting my reading, but whatever works for you is best!! LOL 👍😁

Kelsey wrote: "2022 Challenges:
PopSugar: 0/50
GR: 0/70

Happy New Year Everyone!

In 2020 I tried doing these weekly updates and only made it a few months. In 2021 I didn't even try. So I think I'm going to give it a go for 2022 and see how it goes... *Fingers Crossed*!"
Whoo! Whoo! Welcome back!!

"Anyways, I did not finish the 2021 PopSugar Challenge. I ended up reading 47/50. But 2021 was a super crazy year for me. A good year! But crazy. I got a new job, got married, and bought a house. All within about 5 months so there was a good month or two where I couldn't read a book to save my life."
I'm shocked you only lacked 3 books from finishing the challenge, Kelsey! What a lot of changes for you in 2021! Congrats on all of it!!

"So I'm going to read those last three books first and then move on to the 2022 challenge."
Sounds like a plan!

"Finished: Nothing! This book I'm currently reading is my first book of the year.

Currently Reading: The Tiger's Wife for 2021 Prompt - Women's Prize for Fiction. Honestly it's a little slow and it hasn't fully grabbed me which is why I haven't finished. But I'm about half way done so next week I can happily put it in the finished column."
I wasn't over-enthralled with that one mainly due to gory details, but I did love Obreht's writing and really want to give Inland a try!

"QOTW: Strategy of the year...
I'm not sure I really have a strategy. I always make a spreadsheet and try to plan out as many prompts as possible with books I already own because my TBR bookcase just grows and grows and I never make a dent in it. Any prompt I cant find a book for that I already own I either try and find something at a used bookstore or ebook at the library because if I don't have a book that fits that prompt... it's probably not a book I care about enough to own anyways."
I think that sounds like a strategy to me! (One I need to emulate! LOL)

"I also write all the book titles on small pieces of paper and put them in a jar so it's always a surprise what I'm going to read next."
That sounds like fun!

"Strategy this year is don't take a month or two off of reading."
Ah, well, sometimes we just need a break! 😳👍

Shannon wrote: "I didn't have a chance to adjust to going back to work because we've been extremely busy every single day this week. Students are back and they are eager lol!

So far, most of our programs have announced that their first few weeks will be virtual. I'm glad. What I'm not glad about it is that there hasn't been a single peep about what's happening for staff. Not even a "hold tight, we are talking about it!" And I work in a small building, so if one person gets it, we're all going to be out. I also work for a health sciences university, so we should be at the forefront of protecting people! But I already spent a long time ranting with coworkers this morning, so I won't spread any more negativity lol."
Yes, a health sciences university should be leading the way. Our university is sticking to in-person classes, at least for now, and I assume staff will be stuck here no matter what... At least I know I will be, since I work at the "front desk" of our department. So everyone else may be out, but not me! Unless we go into total lockdown again. One of our faculty was describing how it is in his home country of China. Scary, IMO! You do whatever the government says. He described some of his mother's friends who were stuck at their work locations for as long as two weeks due to their housing units being closed off for quarantine. Yikes! And if you test positive (they test you every single day) you are allowed to pack a few things quickly if you're home and then you head to the nearest government center for quarantine and your housing unit is immediately closed. These strategies are proving successful is limiting the spread of COVID, but man, talk about limiting freedom! Of course, China is not a democracy or anything close to a free society, so...I guess it's not unexpected. It just sounds so "foreign" (Pun intended I guess!) to me here in the US.

"Currently Reading:
Nothing! I haven't read a single page in 2022! I should feel bad, but I don't."
No need to feel badly! You do you!! LOL 👍😁

"QOTW:
I'm REALLY changing up my strategy this year in that I have no strategy. Last year, reading started to feel like a chore and I was frustrated that I couldn't read books because they wouldn't fit the challenge (and I don't have enough time to read more than what the challenge calls for). So this year I'm reading what I want and then I'll see if it fits any prompts, but I'm not going out of my way to fill anything. If I don't finish (and I likely won't) then I don't finish."
That sounds very freeing!! Good for you!

"However, there are some prompts I will fill on purpose, like the ace prompt, the gender identity prompt, the Pacific Islander prompt, and the own voices scifi/fantasy prompt. Basically, the ones that will purposefully expose me to perspectives and backgrounds that are different from mine. Those are the challenges I really appreciate."
Cool!

Cornerofmadness wrote: "I did manage to get some reading done (okay some of it was started in December but I finished it this week)

For A Hugo Award winner I read Monstress, Vol. 3: Haven by Marjorie M. Liu. It's a Hugo award winning graphic novel. It's a dark series, lots of violence and foul language if that bothers you."
Wow. Glad you enjoyed this one! Not one I would tackle...

"For the prompt (as of right now) A social-horror book I read Such a Pretty Smile by Kristi DeMeester. This could be used for Pubbed in 2022 (it's not even out yet. I had an ARC), two points of view or social horror. I might move it as far as where I use it but since I don't like social horror that much it'll probably stay there. The social horror in this was the idea of women obeying the patriarchy, keeping quiet, keeping in our place or be killed violently. (so this is quite violent too) I'm not sure I really liked it but it wasn't a bad read."
Too horrific for my wussy self! 😳

"For the prompt A book with a reflected image on the cover or "mirror" in the title I read On Deadly Tides by Elizabeth J. Duncan. It has a reflection of a lighthouse in the water. It could also be used for a secret. I picked it up mostly because it was in Wales but it didn't have much of a Welsh feel (and it's like book 11) the romance in this just was a huge miss for me."
Wow. I have no idea how this series has managed to elude me this long! Added the first installment to my TBR listing!

"QOTW I am doing things a little differently. My main point of my reading challenges is to do some shelf clearing as my physical book TBR is nuts. I already read diversely in both subject matter and authors so I use the challenges to keep me motivated. I normally complete this challenge but this year if I'm not feeling a prompt I'm not worrying about it. Also I'm using a lot of graphic novels to fill prompts this time as well."
That sounds like a successful strategy for you for sure! Good! 😁

Sherri wrote: "Happy New Year. I finished 2 books for the week. People We Meet On Vacation by Emily Henry. I didn't use it for prompt # 11 A BookTok recommendation. I was reading it for a different challenge & saw where we were discussing it. I gave it 3 stars. I was going to give it 2 but towards the end the book picked up for me."
I'm about 20% through this and really enjoying it! I love the humor!

"The other book was Razorblade Tears by S.A.Cosby.5 stars. I used it for #29 A different book by an author you read in 2021. I loved Blacktop Wasteland in 2021."
I marked that as to much "horror" for me to read. Looks as if you really enjoyed it!! YAY!!

"Question of the Week:
Let’s talk strategy for this new year! Are you changing the way you approach the 2022 Popsugar challenge from what you did in 2021? Or was your strategy successful and you’re going to simply repeat it this year? I changed my approach for the 2022 ATY challenge so it affected the way I choose books & complete prompts for all my other challenges. We will see how this goes. I usually complete all my challenges in August so if I slow down too much I will take a new approach."
I can't imagine completion in August!! Good for you!!

Sheri wrote: "Hi all, happy first check in of the year!

I'm also struggling with being back to work, getting a migraine this week doesn't help either. I'm very mad at my head, it was bad enough when my migraines were monthly on a pretty regular schedule. Now they're popping up willy nilly, and it's not cool and making it hard to manage my meds.
I am so sorry about the migraines. They are beasts! Sending you "headache-coping" energy!

Still managing to read though, this week I finished:
Her Body and Other Parties: Stories- this was so disappointing for me. I'd been looking forward to it, but my library only had it on audio and it didn't seem like the kind of book I wanted to listen to on audio. A few months ago I found a kindle deal for it so grabbed it. I just found all the stories pretty grim and depressing, if not outright confusing or pointless. (please, why on earth were there like 30 pages of weird made up SVU plot synopsis?) This was my last book for the Book Nerds challenge, so i completed all 100 prompts! (was my banned book, the book's been on a lot of challenged lists lately). Finished it middle of the day on new years eve so really squeaked that in haha.
Congrats on the finish! 👍 This is a book I decided I was not interested in reading...

Daughter of the Deep - First reading finish of the year! I liked it a lot. I like the idea of 20000 leagues much better than the actual novel, so this was a good compromise haha. It could probably count for the set on a Plane, Train, or Cruise Ship, if you interpret cruise ship as "a boat". A good portion of it takes place on a Yacht, then a submarine."
Good to know about the prompt this could fulfill! I never read the original book, so would probably want to read it first and then this one!

"The 5th Gender - I liked this, it was weird and fun. It could probably work for the book on gender identity if someone wanted a fluffier read. It's a M/M romance cozy mystery with an alien. The alien's species has five genders, and that was used to kind of explore the idea of gender in relation to biology and sexual orientation. I will warn that there is quite a bit of fairly explicit sex in it, if that's not people's thing."
I was interested...but not in explicit sexual details so thanks for the warning!

"Currently reading:
Gods of Jade and Shadow - my next books & brew pick. I think we might be meeting on zoom again next week which makes me sad, but also kind of relieved. It's feeling scary out there again. I'm liking this quite a bit so far."
This is on my TBR listing...

"The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue - audio re-read"
Ah...such a good book!

"QOTW:
I'm taking a break from challenges this year, last year I felt super stressed out from doing too many. I'm still participating in the group though, and over in the discord. I might casually keep track of how I do without trying, seeing as two of my books at could at least be argued that they fit. But i'm not going to keep struggling through books I'm not enjoying just because they fit a difficult prompt and I am tired of looking for something better."
That sounds like a good plan for you! Yeah, if it isn't fun, then don't do it! LOL

Erica wrote: "Does Henry's use of time jumps build the plot or do they slow the plot down for you?
At first I was a little annoyed/impatient to find out what happened in Croatia so the constant change in time slowed things down. After a couple of vacations it made sense and so it just made me read faster.."
I had to chuckle when I read this! I bet Henry and her editors would be thrilled to know that!! 😁 I agree that it really helps keep me engaged and wanting to know more!

Check point chapters 1 - 7

This was published last spring right in time for vacation and beach read season. Is reading a book about vacation when on vacation appealing to you?
It's been so long since I had a vacation I had to force myself to remember! LOL Honestly, when going on vacation in the past I have taken books that either I have been meaning to read for a long time or that are new-to-me and I'm dying to read immediately! (I read the newest Harry Potter release while on the red-eye from LA to Indianapolis since I snore like a freight train and was sure they would toss me from the plane if I fell asleep in flight! And it worked! I read through the whole flight. I was younger then and better able to stay awake! LOL)

What do you think of 'Millennial Ennui'? Is this concept good for the character building of Poppy or is it good for plot?
I always get a bit upset when (usually older) folks try to categorize or generalize about a younger generation. It seems useless to me, but whatever... Granted any group of people tends to have its own personality (If you've ever worked as a substitute teacher you've experienced that!) but I prefer to consider each person as their own unique individual self. So I tend to ignore such generalizatons...

Seeing how this is a rom com, does the initial text banter between Poppy and Alex interest you? Do you need to wait for the meet cute to decide if the characters will be a good pairing?
Definitely! I loved that first exchange! It was engaging and drew me in. I was so interested to know more about these people!

Does Henry's use of time jumps build the plot or do they slow the plot down for you?
Definitely build the plot! By using a "countdown" sequencing that helps build the tension for me and motivate me to keep reading so I can know what finally happened!

I just finished Chapter 2 so will need to read more before answering this first set of questions! I love the beginning!

Chloe wrote: "What made you decide to read this? Do you like the BookTok prompt? Are you using this book for a different prompt?
- I decided to read this as it was voted the group read for this topic. I've done the challenge over the last few years but never participated in a group read. Trying to expand my social network and thought this could be a good place to do it!"
Welcome to the Popsugar Monthly Group Read! I hope this will prove to be enjoyable for you!

Jessica wrote: "I'll be starting this book tonight! As a new years resolution I made this one: read all the monthly group reads of Popsugar Reading Challenge! This because last year I didn't join any group reads (..."
We'll be thrilled to have you join us! I typically read the monthly group read unless I've already read it. But you can join in the discussion even if you already read it and choose not to reread it.

Mark wrote: "Binti (Binti 1), 90 pages.

One sitting
Hugo Award winner
Own voices

I knocked out 3 categories on 1 January."
And what an excellent read!

Nadine in NY wrote: "Nick wrote: "Nick wrote: "Looking for opinions here - what is the shortest a book can be? Basically, when is a short story no longer a short story."


Good question, and I don't know the answer. The answer is different for everyone, but I don't even know the answer FOR ME!!

I think, if a short story was released on its own (as a free Tor short or as an author promotion, for example), and it's got a Goodreads entry, then it is its own entity, and it is eligible to be used for a reading challenge. I think I would not feel comfortable using something less than 20 pages, but that limit is going to be different for everyone. I've already checked off a category with a 56 page book (and it wasn't this category), so clearly I feel okay with that."

I agree that this is a personal guideline. I typically don't count something that is less than 40-50 pages in length. But I rarely read something that short, so it isn't that big a deal for me. I kinda like the 100-page limit but do not worry if something happens to be 75 pages or so. I know that doesn't answer your question specifically, but it can give you an idea of how different each person's definition may be... 😁 Since Nadine and I have different limits. And that is okay. It is up to each individual reader to determine for themselves. 👍😋

Theresa wrote: "Lynn wrote: "Happy First Thursday of 2022! I admit, that for someone such as myself born in the middle of the 20th Century it is surprising that I have made it to 2022!! That’s a lot of years for a..."
Agreed!

If you want to join the Buddy Read, it is on 2022 Reading Challenge. 👍😋