Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2019 Weekly Checkins
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Week 32: 8/2 – 8/8
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Complete:After Oryx and Crake last week I picked up the rest of the series this week.
The Year of the Flood and MaddAddam by Margaret Atwood. I loved the series but while I loved bits of the final book I didn't care for it as much as the other two.
QOTW
I love all formats but because of the digital library I read a lot more ebooks and listen to audiobooks these days. Quite frankly I'd probably never exercise if it wasn't an hour I could listen to my books.
Hullo.Only 3 things finished this week, 1 for Popsugar. I thought I'd be able to read more, but underestimated how long I would take with some of them.
Persuasion - I liked this, but somehow I can't seem to get into Jane Austen as much as it seems like everyone else is. I'm much more a Brontë gal.
Used for Popsugar prompt #13, a book published posthumously.
The Chronicles of Chrestomanci, Vol. 1 - Quite fun old children's books. Did not think they lived up to the standards of Howl's Moving Castle, however. Plus there were some really uncomfortable product-of-their-time type passages... 😓
I'll give the rest of the series a shot, though.
The Penelopiad - Great retelling, don't know how it took me so long to get round to this one - it's been sitting on the Kindle for years. Wasn't quite a 5-star due to some rather... experimental?... in-between chapters, but I did really like it. Quite irreverent and snarky, kind of taking the mickey out of the traditional tellings of the myths.
Currently reading Deathless, which is amazing so far.
QOTW: Paperback mostly, and ebook. I like hardcovers too but they're somewhat cumbersome and I worry more about damaging them, plus the dustjacket always riding up is annoying (but I can't bear to take it off while I read).
I've tried audiobooks but they didn't work for me personally, I couldn't really concentrate on the story while listening instead of looking at the words.
Within paperbacks, I prefer UK-size > trade/"floppy" paperback > mass-market pb. I have a bit of a nostalgic attachment to mass-market because they're how a lot of fantasy books come packaged but they tend to have overly small print and sometimes narrow margins, which can mean the text at the sides of the pages starts disappearing into the gutter of the book, if it's the middle of a particularly chunky one.
I totally get the not being able to concentrate on audiobooks thing. However if anyone is annoyed they can't get into them, then try listening whilst doing something else, as long as it's not something using the same bit of the brain needed for listening.I cannot just sit down and listen to an audiobook without doing something physical. Most of my commute is walking so that works well. I'll also listen when doing the washing up, which requires repetitive movements but no actual thought! I've also heard that things like jigsaw puzzles and colouring-in go well with listening to audiobooks.
If I'm somewhere new, I won't try and listen though. It needs to be something familiar that doesn't need much input from my conscious brain.
Ellie wrote: "I totally get the not being able to concentrate on audiobooks thing. However if anyone is annoyed they can't get into them, then try listening whilst doing something else, as long as it's not somet..."I completely agree with this. The only time I can sit down and exclusively listen to an audiobook is when I have just a few minutes left and am really motivated to finish it.
Mod
That’s why I say audiobooks don’t really fit in my life. Cross stitch and painting and cleaning work as “busy enough to listen without tuning out” but I use those as catch up in shows activities so they compete for attention. I don’t have long drives where there’s not much else to do but listen
Hello all! QOTW. My reading format depends on the book. I am an audible member so i listen to some things like the biography of Gen. Mattis. Others a book both print and kindle. Ive recently finished Watermelon Snow for cli fi, Diary of a part time Indian for own voices and The Last Unicorn for one of the prompts.
Mod
I know the feeling, but hey! You made progress this week! YAY!!
Traveling again! St. Louis to Santa Fe...Challenge Progress: 40/50
Completed:
The Lager Queen of Minnesota: Loved it! Stradal's writing is so good... Sentimental but not cloying (it could have been, but it's not). These people seem real to me. Read this, and don't miss Kitchens of the Great Midwest. So, so good.
I Like to Watch: Arguing My Way Through the TV Revolution: I love TV, and Nussbaum's collection of essays and critiques of television is fascinating... even when she's describing shows I never watched. They were so much a part of the cultural zeitgeist that even though I didn't watch them I knew them. In fact, some I'm tempted to stream now just so I can compare my reactions to hers. Really insightful reading.
Alpha & Omega: What a brilliant end to Joe Hill's Locke & Key series! Brutal, touching, and just about perfect.
Dapper Dan: Made in Harlem: Dapper Dan is know for interpreting high fashion as streetwear, yet his memoir isn't just about his personal journey but is an examination of a whole way of life. Fascinating.
Hope Never Dies: Campy, quirky fun. But although it was fun (and made me nostalgic for the Obama era), it wasn't much more than that. The cover, however, is pure genius. I'd love to have it as an art print. (A book featuring an amateur detective)
DNF: Gingerbread: First DNF this year. Maybe I didn't "get it," but it just seemed like a huge, pretentious mess to me.
Currently Reading: Ayesha at Last, Humans: A Brief History of How We F*cked It All Up, Girls with Sharp Sticks, Miracle Creek
QOTW: Although I'm a big fan of my Kindle, I'm really a fan of hardback books and trade paperbacks. As Giles the librarian (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) said, "Smell is the most powerful trigger to the memory there is. A certain flower or a whiff of smoke can bring up experiences long forgotten. Books smell musty and rich. The knowledge gained from a computer is… it has no texture, no context. It’s there and then it’s gone. If it’s to last, then the getting of knowledge should be tangible. It should be, um, smelly."
Mod
Books I finished:
The Tattooist of Auschwitz - So I ..."
I agree about audio books and distraction. I am not an aural learner, so I retain/remember very little from listening to a book. :(
Mod
And yes I did ask my library for help, they said I should just keep trying. If I still can’t access my account by Sat..."
I feel as if I am in that same "middle zone" you have so aptly described, Raquel! And, thanks to you, I have now added The Shadow Land as well as several other books to my TBR listing!
Hello everyone! I think I missed a check-in last week, but I've been having a lovely reading time. I'm now at 40/50 on this challenge, so all is going well.Finished:
Guards! Guards! (two-word title): I have to admit, I can occasionally get tired of Terry Pratchett's particular brand of snark (sacrilege, I know!), but this book had just the right combo of snarky, sweet, and charming to keep me entertained. Totally lived up to the hype.
The Ghost Bride (ghost story; Malaysia for reading around the world): This was fine, and quite interesting in parts. Not to give too much of a spoiler, but too much of the plot resolutions happened "off-screen". Any writing instructor would have been appalled.
Cutting for Stone (recommended by a celebrity [Former President Obama]; Ethiopia): Loved it! Looooooved it. Go read it right now! Okay, the romance was a little tiresome and Great Expectations-y, but the rest of the book was SO GOOD it totally made up for it. Just skim the parts with Genet.
Currently reading:
We, the Drowned (set in Scandinavia; Denmark): I'm not sure how I feel about this yet. It might be a little too picaresque for me, given how long it is. We shall see.
Love's Labour's Lost (love in the title): Shakespeare tips two ways for me: constant effort or total delight. This one is absolutely in the delight camp! It's already made me laugh out loud multiple times.
QOTW: I used to be very strong in the physical book camp (any format except mass market), but I now have a Kindle and it is so convenient and gives me so many options. I'm waiting for the rains to start to see if curling up with my Kindle and a cup of tea is as satisfying as a paper book. Extensive testing will be required.
Mod
Plus I’ve been spending time with friends on the weekends. So…social interaction is good, too. But I am really looking forward to this weekend with more time to read!
Finished:
Ties by Domenico Starnone, translated by Jhumpa Lahiri. This was an excellent read! Not only was Starnone’s writing (and Lahiri’s translation) superb, but the organization of the book definitely added much to the readability and overall emotional impact of this novel. There are three sections: Vanda’s interpretation of events, then Aldo’s, and then finally, their two children’s. It was heartbreaking to see how these two people interacted and the resulting toxicity that seemed to doom their own children. Note that this was NOT a tale of any physical abuse, but as research keeps proving, emotional abuse and the resulting toxicity can be just as debilitating. I would definitely recommend this book, if you are at all interested. It made me want to read more of Starnone’s writing and Lahiri has also translated his book Trick which, of course, is now on my TBR listing!
Popsugar: #2-unfortunately, not in a good way—memories of my first marriage, #11-shoes, #19, #31, #34, #40-Italian, #46-just three sections
ATY: #1-Bridge Prize for Best Novel 2015, #4-it may be a stretch, but Aldo, #7 or #8-Domestic Abuse-particularly for the children, #12-Aldo was a writer, #15-Italian author, #16, #19, #23-Aldo and Vanda’s marriage, #26-Vanda when she tried to kill herself, #28-both Aldo and Vanda, then their children as well, #50-emotional, interpersonal, we all have Ties among each other
RHC: #10
A Closed and Common Orbit, the second installment in the Wayfarer series by Becky Chambers was sooooooo good! I absolutely loved it. Though I went into it a bit hesitant since I already knew this was a story involving only one of the main characters and a couple of minor characters from The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, the first book in the series, I was blown away! I would strongly recommend it! Now I need to order Record of a Spaceborn Few so I can read it for the August (Yes, I realize that is THIS month!) 2019 Reading Challenge Buddy Read.
Popsugar: #4, #20, #27, #31, #46-unusual chapter headings
ATY: #1-Hugo Award Nominee for Best Novel 2017, Arthur C. Clarke Award Nominee 2017, Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Science Fiction 2016, #4-technically, all three main characters were breaking the law…, #6, #7 or #8-Science Fiction/Fantasy, Political/Social Oppression, #9-Science Fiction/Fantasy, #14, #17-Science Fiction, #19, #24-Lovelace’s kit, #25-Owl’s programming, #39, #43-computer software, hardware, and engineering, #46, #50-emotional, interpersonal, physical, #52
RHC: #12
Reading Women: #7, #21, #23
George by Alex Gino. I love George and her best friend, Kelly. Just the description of Kelly and her father’s apartment makes reading this book worthwhile! I also appreciate the fact that neither of these families is “traditional” (mother, father, child/children). I suspect that since Alex Gino listed David Levithan as his editor, this may have been published by Levithan’s PUSH imprint for Scholastic. It was an absolutely beautiful rendition of a child’s feelings as they realize they do not ‘fit’ with their biologically assigned sexual category. Everyone should read this, IMHO, especially if not directly involved with a child undergoing a similar process. I could somewhat understand that as a parent it may be easier to accept the fact that your child may be gay/queer as opposed to transgender. Both would be challenging! Any time a person is identified as “different” than the traditional/status quo there is always a risk of prejudice and/or discrimination. And why?!? I believe humanity overall has the capability to overcome such negative thoughts, attitudes, and behaviors. I just want it to happen SOONer rather than later! After all, each of us is by definition UNIQUE!
Popsugar: #2-for my children as youngsters, #4, #25, #31
ATY: #1-Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Children’s/Young Adult 2016, Stonewall Book for Children 2016, California Book Award for Juvenile (Gold) 2015, Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award Nominee 2017, Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Middle Grade & Children’s 2015, NCTE Charlotte Huck Award Nominee 2016, #7 or #8-LGBTQ, Political/Social Oppression, #23-prejudice/discrimination, #24-George’s identification as a girl, #25-Kelly’s clothes, #34, #36, #42-Jeff, #50-interpersonal, emotional
RHC: 18
Continuing:
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
I love this book, but I don’t need to have it read until September 9th, so I can read and relish a bit at a time for now.
Started:
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry. I have read one-third of this and although I typically NEVER read plays, this is absolutely excellent and has prompted me to do a bit of research about Hansberry. She was a “married” lesbian! And quite the activist who very unfortunately died at the age of 34 from cancer. Now I want to read the Imani Perry biography Looking for Lorraine: The Radiant and Radical Life of Lorraine Hansberry.
The Maltese Feline by Mary B. (Blount) Christian, illustrated by Kathleen Collins Howell. I picked this up for $.50 from my favorite used bookstore. It just looks like it will be a good read and then I can send to the grandkids! And…it has a gorgeous gray kitty on the cover! Bonus! ;)
Should be able to finish both of these this next weekend.
Planned:
The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen. This is for the IRL book club I facilitate later this month. Allen needs to publish more books. Our book club has read almost all of them now and we have loved them all!
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. This is for the IRL book club at my favorite bookstore later this month. Since I loved Ng’s debut, Everything I Never Told You, I am looking forward to this one!
The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen. This is for an August 2019 Reading Challenge Buddy Read.
Then I’ll need to start reading for September since I have two author events and four book club meetings as well as another Literary Wives review due October 7th!
Question of the week:
What is your reading format preference? (hardcover, paperback, e-book, audiobook, etc)
Such an easy question to answer: HARDCOPY, then PAPERBACK-trade, then PAPERBACK-mass market (only if I must!), then AUDIOBOOK (rarely), and if truly desperate and unable to locate a reasonably priced actual hold-in-my-hands-real-live book, I will read an E-BOOK, but I admit it pains me to do so. I realize they are extremely convenient, but I cannot adequately describe just how much I hate reading for pleasure from a screen. Perhaps because I am in front of a computer almost every single second of each work day for my full-time job? I’m just over looking at computer screens outside of work, unless I absolutely must. (I’m not counting my phone in that!)
Hi all! Late checking in, per usual. Been really busy with work--two shoots this past week and I'm in two shows at once right now, so I just haven't had any time to really sit down and read, it's all been audiobooks while driving and whatever ebooks I can squeeze in on my phone during downtime. Read:Wide Sargasso Sea: I thought this was all right. I had a pretty hard time following it, to be honest, but I did love the island setting in all its beauty and awfulness.
The Proposal: did not like this one. Too light on the actual feelings drama for me, PLUS it lost points for its very weird treatment of Los Angeles geography. The book seems to think Silverlake is the Eastside (it very, very isn't) and a character giving another a ride is treated as a huge travel ordeal when the locations are about 10 minutes' walk apart. I wish an actual LA resident had given it a read before publication, lmao.
Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood: Loved this! Flew through it in a day. Absolutely insane what Trevor Noah's been through.
Red, White & Royal Blue: This was cute! I did find myself a bit bored from the middle onward, because of the politics, but overall I liked it.
The Golden Tresses of the Dead (audio): I liked the Flavia de Luce books a lot more before Dogger became such a big part of them. It feels like he's just there to infodump at this point.
QOTW: Like many others, I read different formats in different situations. Audiobooks are for driving around, ebooks (through Libby on phone--I don't have or use kindle) are for emergency reading during downtime on set or in a theatre where there isn't enough light for a regular book, and physical books are for every other time. I prefer hardbacks to paperbacks because I don't have to worry about cracking the spines.
I got into audiobooks via memoirs because they were read by the author for the most part! I think Tina Fey's book was the first I had in audio format and I really loved listening to her talk to me. Then I started listening to classics via audio, which is also a great way to crack into some hard books on your tbr. I think it's a new way to appreciate the language of the story, since a lot of books were read aloud in the evening to the whole family since, you know no TV!But definitely try it on your commute or while doing dishes/laundry/walking the dog or any type of chore. But I respect that it's not everyone's cup of tea! I used to think that for myself until I really got into audiobooks and now I'm happy to have a new way to consume stories!
Hello! Last week of (kids) summer here in Vegas. Took my daughter to Six Flags in CA which was a super fun little break from life for us. Tried to do some reading but I have been caught up in Queer Eye which has most of my free times attention rn.26/40 Regular
4/10 Advanced
Completed:
26. Published in 2019 (I got a prepublished ARC thru a gr giveaway. Yay!)
5. Book with over 1 million ratings
Reading
QotW:
What is your reading format preference? (hardcover, paperback, e-book, audiobook, etc)
Physical copy or audio book. I do not care for e reading as it gives me a headache(I will in a pinch but so rather not).
Love audiobooks for the car! We do not have a good transit system in Vegas so overdrive and hoopla help me get some extra books in. I also am working on voice over myself so it is good research as well. I almost always have a book on me. So necessary.
So, I’ve had a good week this week. Hope everyone else has too. I realized a couple weeks ago that I didn’t really like my spreadsheet for this year so started re-designing it to use next year. I’m took the main tracking page and added it as a page to the spreadsheet I’m using this year and I’m going to try it out for the last part of the year. So far I like it much better than what I had been using but don’t have all the genre options I would like (I Hit my character limit) and I want to figure out how to have it create running totals of some data. More learning of excel but I’ve got half a year to figure it out! This week I’ve finished:
The Door translated from Hungarian and not at all my typical type of book but I really enjoyed it. I’ve learned I enjoy this type of book if I allow myself to read it in pieces instead of from cover to cover without reading something else in between.
I Can't Make This Up: Life Lessons. It was my audiobook for the week and I enjoyed it.
The Coroner's Lunch set in Laos. Really enjoyed this one and loved the characters.
Going Postal. Also a great read. I usually like Terry Pratchett.
I started but turned back to “want to read” I Am the Messenger. I just wasn’t feeling it. But I think that could be my mood so I didn’t put it on my DNF shelf.
I am currently reading:
An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth. It is my current audiobook and I’m really enjoying it.
The Only Harmless Great Thing
The Priory of the Orange Tree
Stats so far: ATF- done! PS 2019- 55/56; PS 2015- done! PS 2016-27/40; PS 2017- 15/52. I’ve pretty much given up on Readharder and my nonfiction growth challenge but I only have a couple of books left in each and still have 4.5 months so who knows what will happen there.
QOTW:
I read e-books almost exclusively for reading things in written format. I live that I always have my entire library with me and I can borrow from the library from wherever I’m sitting (if I have internet access). My second favorite is audiobooks. I didn’t listen to audiobooks before end of last year when I listened to The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World. That’s when I realized that though I don’t enjoy reading nonfiction. I do enjoy listening to a lot of it. Especially memoirs.
I cannot seem to find a good reading rhythm. There are some weeks where I get nothing finished and then others I get three. This past week was in the former category.Currently Reading:
Vintage 1954
If You Ask Me: Essential Advice from Eleanor Roosevelt
Because You Love to Hate Me: 13 Tales of Villainy
Temporarily Paused:
A Thousand Ships
QOTW:
I enjoy the tactile experience that comes with reading so cannot do audiobooks or e-readers. I prefer the ease of transportability that comes with paperbacks but dislike how the font size is sometimes so tiny so if that is the case try to find a hardback.
Hi everyone! I had an awesome reading week, the first in a long while!Finished Reading
The Art of Racing in the Rain Prompt #1, book becoming a movie
I loved this, read it all in one day! 5 star read.
Nevernight 5 stars
I finially finished this! I'd been reading it for almost a month. I got about halfway in, and I then it took off from there! Really great ending, I'm excited to read the rest of the series!
The Impossible Girl 4 stars
I really enjoyed this one. It had its moments of creepiness, and I loved the mystery behind it. I did not guess the ending at all!
Currently Reading
(I actually haven't started any of these quite yet, but will be starting soon!)
My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry
The Vacationers
The Meryl Streep Movie Club
QOTW
What is your reading format preference? (hardcover, paperback, e-book, audiobook, etc)
I prefer to read physical books. I like both paperback and hardback, but I'm not a fan of mass market paperbacks. Trade paperbacks are fine. Generally, the bigger the book, the more I want to hold it and read it! Both in height and width!
Just one book finished for this challenge and a bunch of comics. Decided to join a comic readathon this week. First readathon I've participated in. Nice boost for my goodreads total.Finished
How to Break a Dragon's Heart - 33. A book with a zodiac sign or astrology term in title
Moonstruck, Vol. 1: Magic to Brew
Bloom
Book Love
My Brother's Husband, Volume 1
My Brother's Husband, Volume 2
Temporary DNF
Tell Me How You Really Feel
I only got about 50 pages in, but it had to go back to the library. I'm going to pick it up again when I'm more in the mood for it.
Progress
PS - 33/52 | ATY - 32/52 | BR - 19/24
Currently Reading
Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk
Where'd You Go, Bernadette
QOTW
I don't have a preference. I will read in whatever format is available.
So many books this week! Weirdly, recent QsOTW have been poking me. I DNF'd more than one book, and didn't but wanted to on others, *for the same reason.* I apparently just CANNOT with the patriarchy right now. Just NO.Finished:
Little Smokey - Cute picture book about fire planes, with a few pages of wildfire facts in the back. Love the old school illustrations.
The Sentence is Death - Book two and this concept still amuses me. Bonus Rory Kinnear narration. I need more Rory in my life. (But I'm scared to watch his new show!)
Hollow Kingdom - Not the cute middle grade book the cover made me expect. Crude crow who loves humans deals with the zombie apocalypse.
Cheshire Crossing - Teenage Dorothy, Alice and Wendy have adventures hopping between Oz, Wonderland and Neverland. Fun!
Fruit of the Drunken Tree - Didn't finish in time for book club, but did shortly afterward. I finally read a book set in South America. It's my book blind spot.
Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow - Not as fun as I was expecting, but I'll read the next one.
Utopia - NOW my oldest book of the year, and listed on Goodreads. 1516, and some of the points about the rich using the poor are still spot on, but UGH the patriarchy. Also: This place is ideal! We don't do the yucky stuff, that's what women and slaves are for. And hey I hope you aren't actually attached to your children. BLECH.
Wannabe Farms - Amusing rhyming stories (with asides from the author) about farm animals trying to accomplish things, failing, but finding something great anyway. Enjoyed it!
DNF:
A Dirty Job - It was OK, but a minor character was more than I could take. I swear I had to stop before he called women F**kpuppets one more time and I threw my phone across the room.
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 ¾ - I tried to give the kid some leeway. Then I stopped to check the publication date, and tried to give 1982 some leeway... but UGH if he griped about his mom not making dinner or washing his clothes again I was going to time travel just to slap him.
Currently Reading:
Mythos - Stephen Fry reading to me: Yay! Old stories about women being sold, raped, tricked, cheated on and married off as prizes? Blech.
Little Fires Everywhere - Next book club book. Starting earlier this time!
Illuminae - Too big to carry around very often, so it's going slowly, but that's OK.
QOTW:
Hmmm... It changes. Right now it depends on different things. Reading print has been making me sleepy for some time now, but I do love it. I vary between trade paperback and hardcover. For some reason, the thought of reading a thriller in anything but hardcover is abhorrent to me! Most of my reading has been audio for a while now. Not because I really prefer it, it's just easier to do right now. Also listening to a story is the only thing that (mostly) cured my crazy insomnia. I have a few ebooks, but I almost never read them. Mass markets are very, very few and far between. If it is extremely cheap and/or not available in another format, I might get one. Usually if there is a section of them in a shop, I won't even glance at them! Such a snob haha
Ali wrote: "I got into audiobooks via memoirs because they were read by the author for the most part! I think Tina Fey's book was the first I had in audio format and I really loved listening to her talk to me...."I agree that audio is great for classics! I listened to Moby-Dick, or, the Whale last year with a delightful narrator and I loved it far more than I would have otherwise. Sometimes classics can just have so many blocks of text that my eyes glaze over when I try to read it.
I finished two books this week, but neither worked for any of my open PS prompts. I was able to use one of them for two other challenges and am now finished with one of them (Modern Mrs. Darcy Reading Challenge ✅). I'm still at 29/40 and 4/10 for this challenge, and am at 86/100 for my overall Goodreads Reading Challenge. Finished:
* The Kill Club by Wendy Heard; I need to write up my NetGalley review still but I really enjoyed it; and,
* The Strange Disappearance of a Bollywood Star by Vaseem Khan, which was the final book I used to complete the 2019 Modern Mrs. Darcy Reading Challenge (3 books by the same author). I also used it for the August prompt for the 2019 AACPL Reading Challenge (read a book by or about someone who is different from you).
Currently Reading:
* Cold Earth by Ann Cleeves, which doesn't fit any prompts but I love this series and am finally reading the last two in it. I have Wild Fire ready to roll as soon as I finish this one.
* The Second Biggest Nothing by Colin Cotterill, which was a Giveaways win this week (woo-hoo!!). My copy arrived yesterday (thanks, Soho!) -- a great end to a crappy work week and a terrific way to start the weekend! 😃 I've missed the last few installments of the Dr. Siri series and am looking forward to reconnecting with it.
I still need to get my hands on a copy of The Last Days of Dogtown by Anita Diamant, which is one of my book club's picks for August. We're discussing it next weekend and the library request I submitted a few weeks back doesn't seem to be moving at all. I think a Kindle purchase is in the very near future...as in tomorrow at the latest! I really didn't think I'd have trouble getting a copy since it's been out for awhile. Oops!
QotW:
What is your reading format preference? (hardcover, paperback, e-book, audiobook, etc) I'd say hardcover in general, but as other folks have said, it depends on the situation. For example, paperback is my top choice for the beach and I love using e-reader apps on my phone when I'm heading downtown on the Metro rather than toting a book along.
I have been a bit lazy with the weekly check in, but read some lovely books:Murder in the Crooked House by Soji Shimada for prompt 32 - author from Asia,
The Girl in Red by Christina Henry for prompt 15 - retelling of a classic,
and Deadly Gamble by Connie Shelton, which I choose to fill in for the 2016 Popsugar Challenge prompt 24 - a protagonist who has my occupation.
And can I just gush about the lovely cover of The Girl in Red:
I absolutely adore this! I just stared at it for the longest time before I even realised it would fit a prompt. This is one of the few 5-star-books this year, everything about it was utterly satisfying for me.
QotW:
I have a prefernce for paperbacks at home and the convenience of digital when out and about. As some others noted, my attention wanders too when I try to listen to audio books.
The Girl in Red has been on my "maybe" list for a while, because that cover is amazing but I was underwhelmed by the author's Lost Boy: The True Story of Captain Hook.
Finished: The Darkest Hour for A ghost story. This is more a story with ghosts in it than a 'ghost story', I would say, but it worked well for someone who didn't want to read a full on ghost story. Ghosts scare me!Started: Bookworm: A Memoir of Childhood Reading for A book that makes you nostalgic. I really had my fingers crossed for this book on the nostalgia front (as I had no idea what I was going to read for this prompt if this one didn't work), but I needn't have worried - it's nostalgia-o-rama! If you were born in the 1970s or 80s (and possibly in the UK, as I'm not sure how many of the British books referenced have made it across the pond), then this book will make you go misty-eyed with nostalgia!
QOTW:
I am a total e-book convert, I fear! I love my Kindle - it makes life so easy - and have re-bought many books I already owned in e-book format. However, that's not to say I don't still like a physical book - there are some books in particular that I would never replace with an e-book, as it would just feel wrong, e.g. my paperbacks of LOTR are getting rather dog-eared, and when it comes to Harry Potter it's got to be my lovely hardback box set :)
I had a good week for reading. NEWTS starting up helped!Dragonsong is one of my favorite books and my popsugar pick for book that should be a movie. I bet we could do really nice CGI dragons and fire lizards <3
Dragonsinger to continue the trilogy/series. Still one of my favorites.
The Spirit Thief This is still a fun romp of a fantasy novel.
Dragondrums to finish off the trilogy. I really do love this series.
QotW
I like paperbacks, mass market or trade, but I also do have some books that I love in hard back. And even some series that I plan on getting the hardback. It doesn't really matter to me. I do like ebooks, I find that I can either read them really fast, or have them on my phone for just in case. I am slowly getting into audiobooks, they are good for knitting and listening.
Mod
Nadine, I like them for physical reading! They fit better in my hands, and are just way easier to manage. I’m reading a 800+ hardcover right lie and it’s so awkward to manage! Took up half my backpack I took to the water park. Even the bigger “nice” paperbacks are awkward. I find they tend to be floppier and harder to manage one handed
Sheri wrote: "Nadine, I like them for physical reading! They fit better in my hands, and are just way easier to manage. I’m reading a 800+ hardcover right lie and it’s so awkward to manage! Took up half my backp..."I agree that mass markets are better for reading fat books! I bought Dragonfly in Amber in mass market after my library hold came in as a giant hardcover I could kill someone with. I think hardcovers are better for books you like you plan to keep forever and admire on your bookshelf.
Yeah, the one I just finished, Fall, or Dodge in Hell, I got hardcover because it's new, but also because I have the previous one Reamde in hardcover so I thought they'd be good on the shelf matching. But logistically, so hard to read!
So I have to ask... What is a mass market paperback and what is a trade paperback?
Mod
Here is a picture of a hardcover, trade paperback, and mass market paperback side-by-side.
I think the higher quality of the trade paper might be that it's acid free. It shouldn't become discolored over the years like mass markets do.
Nadine wrote: "Trade paper is larger, with the same page count as a hardcover, with supposedly higher quality paper than mass-market, although they often seem floppier. Mass-market is smaller, your typical paperb..."Heather wrote: "Here is a picture of a hardcover, trade paperback, and mass market paperback side-by-side.
I think the higher quality of the trade paper might be that it's acid free. It shouldn't become discolo..."
Thanks, guys. I thought it would be something along those lines.
And, yes Nadine, we do have slightly different sized books. I have a handful of books from when I lived in the US and they don't fit on my shelves properly lol
US trade paperbacks are so floppy compared to UK B-format! I've noticed that a lot of the proofs I get are similar in floppiness to US books, so it's weird that they'd be on the better paper? But they are easier to read...I wouldn't mind UK trade paperbacks so much if they were floppy, but their rigidity gets on my nerves, especially if it's a long book.
- The last quarter of Tower of Dawn for a book written by an author who wrote one of your favorite 2017 books for Bookish 2018- Kingdom of Ash for my book with over 600 pages for my Modified Mannegren challenge
QOTW:
I alternate between hardcover and paperbacks. I like hardcovers because they are more durable, but sometimes I like paperbacks because they are easier/lighter to hold or carry.
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Kingdom of Ash (other topics)Tower of Dawn (other topics)
Fall; or, Dodge in Hell (other topics)
Reamde (other topics)
Dragonfly in Amber (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Colin Cotterill (other topics)Wendy Heard (other topics)
Vaseem Khan (other topics)
Ann Cleeves (other topics)
Anita Diamant (other topics)
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Finished:
Havana Blue- (Cuba) for my personal read around the world challenge. I dunno if it was bad translating or what but I was not a fan. The writing style was just... bland. I felt nothing for/from anyone.
Currently Reading:
Outlander
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Rise of the Evening Star
QOTW:
I will read whatever format is easiest available for me! Unless it's a fat book, in which case ebook or mass paperback is easiest on the wrists, I'll do whatever. I'm pickier on audiobooks- I prefer ones that are around 10 hours or I'll feel like the story is never ending!