Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2020 Weekly Checkins
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Week 2: 1/3 – 1/9
Errlee wrote: "Amy wrote: "I was feeling nostalgic for when I used to read to my boys. They are now 16 and 11, don't want to listen to mom , much less reading picture books to them anymore. I told my youngest to ..."My son said the same thing to me! Its creepy and then "That will be you mom!" haha
Milena wrote: "Catherine, do you do audiobooks? The audiobook of And Then There Were None read by Dan Stevens was really great. You may like it better that way."I never have tried audiobooks. But I might give that a try. Thank you!
The weather has been beautiful, but it also means cedar season so we're all sneezing our faces off down here. I listened to Wave (unrelated to movie with same title) this week, and wow. I feel like a lot of books about terrible tragedies focus on the resiliency of the author and how they overcame it. That's great, but sometimes it's nice to just witness the full extent of someone's grief. As strange as it may sound, it was almost refreshing how dark and honest this book was. I recommend it for someone who loses a partner and/or child(ren). It's heartbreaking to think of how many families were lost
or destroyed in this natural disaster. 5 stars
I listened to Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo" (WOC) which was such and important subject, but the format wasn't really what I was hoping for. I wanted a lot more of his story... 3 stars
I finished We Set the Dark on Fire (bird on the cover) which has an amazing cover.
I felt like the story line, setting, characters, etc. were all a good idea but the execution of it was just decent. It may have been that I'm just really picky with YA writing. 3 stars
(more than 20 letters in the title) was very good. I always appreciate when an author makes it easy to keep track of more than three characters because their stories are so distinct. Especially when you're listening to it through audio. 4 starsI just finished
(meant to read in 2019) and some stories held my attention more than others. I think it's time I admit that short stories need to be read in print though. For some reason they tend to hold my attention less than other books on audio, with just a few exceptions in my experience. I'm currently reading
and listening to
for the ToB. QOTW: My reading is generally dictated by book clubs and the ToB during most parts of the year. And then of course everything depends on library holds. I don't necessarily save anything I'm excited about, but I can be a mood reader, so I usually have at least three books going at a time. I enjoy switching back and forth depending on how I'm feeling at the moment.
Hello from sunny Hawai’i 🏝!I’ve finished 2 books this week: Red Sister and Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World – and Why Things Are Better Than You Think (A book with only words on the cover, no images or graphics), both 5 ⭐️ IMO.
Moved on to 3 books that fulfill the prompt “A book with ‘gold’, ‘silver’, or ‘bronze’ in the title” (because I figured I’d try to find a book for each 😊): Spinning Silver (great so far, I’m 75% through), The Golden Compass, and The End Is Always Near: Apocalyptic Moments, from the Bronze Age Collapse to Nuclear Near Misses (so far quite interesting).
[Question of the week:
Do you reserve some books for reading later in the year or do you dive right in to your most exciting reads right away?]
I’ve planned out my reading schedule rather carefully, so I hopefully reach my goal (larger than previous years). I didn’t consider “interesting” when planning, so hopefully haven’t put all the interesting ones up front! I spaced out the large books over the year, and set a certain number of books per month.
Happy reading 📖 all!
Lauren wrote: "The weather has been beautiful, but it also means cedar season so we're all sneezing our faces off down here. I listened to Wave this week, and wow. I feel like a lot of books abo..."
I am absolutely not a fan of cedar season! Never in my life have I had allergies in the winter until I moved to Texas. Thankfully in Dallas it isn't quite as bad as Austin, but when we get winds from the south I have to remain indoors!
I am 4/50.This week I finished:
The Elite: Not for this year's challenge, but I needed answers.
The One: Not for this year's challenge. Reading this series was like a whirlwind. I got sucked in and couldn't stop, even though I had several other great books in the works. I don't know that I'll read the next two, but I was glad to find an end to the selection.
June: (A book with the same name as a movie, but that aren't related) I love this series. This one wasn't my favorite, but it was a fast, fun read.
Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife: (A book by a woman in STEM) I really enjoyed Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers and I find this topic interesting so I knew I needed to check this one out. I enjoyed the book a lot after I got past the chapters about sperm and ectoplasm. They were a bit too science-y and gross for me. Her journey into ghost hunting and mediumship and EVF was a lot more what I was looking for when I picked up this book.
The 19th Christmas: I don't know what it would take to get me to stop reading my James Patterson series. The characters are what makes his series special, but again we have a book with a convoluted plot and not much character growth. But like all James Patterson books it's a fast easy read.
Currently reading:
Calendar Girl: Volume Three
Criss Cross
I Remember Nothing: and Other Reflections
Do you reserve some books for reading later in the year or do you dive right in to your most exciting reads right away?
I like to spread it out a little bit. I try to pair a book that I'm excited for with a book that I'm worried will feel like homework.
Sarah wrote: "I'm having this experience as well. I'm already 4/52 for ATY without really trying. Popsugar has a lot of tough ones for me this year, and surprisingly, none of them are in the advanced section!"The thing about this year's Popsugar list is that it doesn't have any "freebie" prompts (at least for me). Last year had multi-POV, imaginary creatures, and superpowers, which cover 95%+ of my reading. Previous years had stuff like "the main character is a different ethnicity from you" which was like...every single book I read that year haha. But this year doesn't have any easy catch-all categories.
Brooke wrote: "Lauren wrote: "The weather has been beautiful, but it also means cedar season so we're all sneezing our faces off down here. I listened to Wave this week, and wow. I feel like a l..."
Yes, it's so frustrating that winter is the best time to live in Austin but it's ruined by that dang cedar. :(
Mod
I have had a Very Weird Morning, starting with being home sick due to a minor virus, and including (the HIGHLIGHT) being on the phone with Apple Support (AGAIN) for 1.5 hours and finally FINALLY unlocking my old iPad so I can use it again. It's had me locked out since 12/26 and I missed it terribly. Different support people had suggested different things, but THIS guy wasn't afraid to try really really stupid things, and it worked! (Long story short: I had two Apple IDs associated with the iPad - my real one and a false one w/ a typo - and I was somehow logged into both of them simultaneously. Then it decided I needed to log back in to the false one which I didn't realize existed.)
I literally cried a little bit with relief after I hung up with him and had my iPad back. It's my trusty e-reader!!! It's good to have it back!!!
Moral to the story: Never be afraid to try the stupid thing.
This week I finished 3 books, and I found slots for all in the Challenge, so I am currently 4/50.
The Harp of Kings by Juliet Marillier - this was a fun quest adventure, but not nearly as good as the Sevenwaters books. A lot of plot lines and character stories were left open, like she’s setting up for a series. That always annoys me. I borrowed this from my library in 2019, so this was a book I meant to read in 2019.
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong - this was ok. Lots of poetic writing, lots of people loved it, it’s got over 4 star average rating, so voila! Another category completed!
The Wedding Party by JASMINE Guillory - just as much fun as her first two books. I checked off “flora or fauna” with this one.
QOTW
I don't really "save" books to read later, but I do intentionally tackle the tough categories first to get them out of the way (for me, nonfiction is always the toughest read so I've got several of them lined up this month), and I mix them up with some easier books and some new releases I'm excited about.
There are certain types of books that I do like to read at certain times/places (like thrillers & romances at the beach) but there are so many of those, there are always more to read at the beach so I don't need to save any of them.
It's been unseasonally warm (30s) which I've been enjoying. My husband's been away on a work trip, so I've had lots of time to read and am coming out of a reading slump.This week I finished:
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, and loved it! There's lots of places I could put it, for now it's going in book with at least a 4 star rating on Goodreads, because I'm excited about finding options for other categories it fits in, but I may move it later.
The Dressmaker of Khair Khana by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon. This was a really quick read about an entrepreneur dressmaker in Afghanistan during years of Taliban, written by a journalist, another category I'm excited about, so for now this is going in title with over 20 letters.
I'm currently on a nonfiction kick and excited about getting closer to my goal of increasing number of countries in which books I've read are set, so currently reading The Girl with Seven Names by Hyeonseo Lee, about a North Korean defector. It's been a fun read so far as she's described her childhood.
I'm also reading War and Peace with my husband and we work our way through the classics, we're about halfway done, but still over 30 hours of audiobook to go.
Finally I'm reading Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising with my mom. It was one of her childhood favorites, and I'm enjoying sharing that with her.
QOTW: I'm currently working to get out of a slump, so I'm leading with books I'm excited about, hoping that will help me rebuild momentum. I am trying to slate then into spots that they fit which I think will be harder for me to select a book for later.
Hi everyone, happy Week 2! I love how active these threads are at the beginning of the year, I go through and gather so many recommendations.Read this week:
The Starless Sea for a book with a character with a vision impairment or enhancement: I really liked this at the beginning, there was such a sense of mystery and wonder, but then...nothing changed. No plot happened. It just skipped from cool location to cool location but I was ripping my hair out waiting for something to happen. 2.5 stars.
My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness for a book you picked because the title caught your attention: ooh this socked me right in the gut. 4 stars.
My Solo Exchange Diary Vol. 1 for a book set in Japan: also great, a continuation of the above book. 4 stars
My Solo Exchange Diary Vol. 2 for a favorite prompt from a past year (a book you can read in a day, 2016): idk this series is just great and I'll read anything else Kabi Nagata writes. 4 stars.
The Grace Year for a book featuring one of the seven deadly sins: this one's like The Handmaid's Tale meets The Hunger Games. Girls are sent off into the wild the year they turn sixteen, in order to use up all their "magic" that they would otherwise use to ensnare men. I picked lust as the main sin because it's so clear in all the men; but pride would work too I think. 5 stars.
Wishful Drinking for a book with a pun in the title: audiobook, short and sweet. Didn't like it as much as Carrie Fisher's other memoir, but still entertaining. 3 stars.
A Wizard of Earthsea for a bildungsroman: I listened to this on audio and BOY was the narrator into it. I felt like I was a wee child listening to a bedtime story the whole time. I enjoyed it, will probably pick up the rest of the series at some point. 3.5 stars
Lady Knight for a book with a map: hoo boy this one's a snooze after the prior books. Kel's a knight, but is put in charge of running a refugee camp, so she spends the whole book doing admin work, basically. I fought my way through this one. 2.5 stars.
Currently reading:
Queenie
The Bromance Book Club
Twenties Girl (audio)
Words Are My Matter: Writings About Life and Books, 2000–2016, with A Journal of a Writer's Week
QOTW: I don't actively save exciting books to motivate me. I hold off on books I think I might not like, though. My Ninth House hold has been frozen for several months.
I haven't finished any books for 2020 yet, but I've got a couple in progress. Hopefully I can finish this year's challenge...I completed 2018 but came up about a dozen books short in 2019. Pregnancy and childbirth apparently took precedence over reading. :)Currently reading:
The Secret Life of Bees for a bildungsroman (I think it fits.....not entirely sure but I'm only through chapter 6.)
The Ox-Bow Incident for a western. As a bonus, I am planning to teach it to my special education junior & senior boys in a month or so. Therefore as I read, I'm enjoying the story AND making mental notes for the lesson plans I'll put together later. It seems to be a really interesting story about mob justice in the 1880s and I think my students will really get into it.
QOTW: I dive into some of the books I'm excited about early, but also try to save a few "easier" prompts for the end of the year when life is crazy at school. I've got a couple books purchased (with Christmas gift cards...yay!) for the same title as movie/TV and gold/silver/bronze prompts and they're a bit out of my normal reading comfort zone so I'd like to try and finish them this spring before I get busy with rodeos and horses over the summer.
Catherine wrote: "I just started And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie. I am using this book for the book by an author who has written more than 20 books prompt. I am really struggling to get into it. I have heard great things about it and I do not want it to end up being a DNF but I am having a hard time connecting with the characters. We will see how it goes."In my experience, Agatha Christie books are not about the characters. I've never had a strong connection with anyone who isn't the detective. I enjoy her books for the plots.
So, this week I finished The Prison Book Club, for book about a book club. 3 stars. The story was more interesting than the author's style, which was very ho-hum in parts. Like, I didn't need to know about her post-prison visit birdwatching. And I felt like she was pretty condescending towards some of the men as well. And didn't do a good enough job of anonymizing - it's pretty clear who the "famous" prisoner was, at least to a Canadian.Also, Flights, which is giving me a little angst about where to put it - fits for bird on cover, upside-down image on cover, Bechdel test, book with maps, 2019 award winner, and possibly other categories too. Most of the ones mentioned, I already had other books in mind for. I think I'm going to use it for book with a map for now at least, because I like how it used them, and just make note of the other prompts I think it fills in case I need to re-adjust later. Anyways, I really enjoyed this. 4 stars. It was sort of different stories, or ponderings, around the two themes of travel and preservation of human bodies.
I'm currently reading An Orchestra of Minorities, which I think will be my bird on the cover book, and have Ninefox Gambit and Dune in progress too.
QotW:
Do you reserve some books for reading later in the year or do you dive right in to your most exciting reads right away?
So I'm actually discovering what planning I did went out the window pretty fast! I'm still reading based on when things are due at the library, and have already totally re-adjusted what I'm planning on reading for which prompt. I wish instead of having one reading list post that I'm editing as I go, that I'd kept the first draft of my intended reads so I can see how much it changes by the end of the year! Also the Canada Reads long list just came out. I always try to get through the five short list books, but I've requested some of the long list ones that are more interesting to me from the library now to get a potential head start before the short list is announced and everyone puts in requests for the same books! (Although last year I did that and nothing I picked from the long list made it to the competition - boo!) So those are also ones I'll have to figure out where they fit as I go through them.
So, right now I'm picking my reading based on what I want to read and figuring out what prompts I can use them for as I go. I'm sure later in the year I will have to switch to picking my outstanding prompts first and then finding a book to match. I am saving the banned book for banned books week, but other than that, my reading list is currently a free-for-all.
Since I live in the northern part of Sweden we already have snow, which I think is nice. All the storms and windy weather is not, this year the roads have also been really icy. This week has been really great, even though I haven't had so much time for reading. Got really exciting news yesterday and it seems I already have a job for the summer which feels great! It's also a job that's within my current education so I hopefully I can get some experience as well.
Popsugar Reading Challenge 2/50
Goodreads Challenge 2/55
Over to the reading. Finished
Bridge of Clay by Markus Zusak. It's not a new Book thief but it was alright. I liked the way the story was told and it was quite easy to read. 3/5 stars.
Prompt: A book with a pun in the title
Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days by Jeanette Winterson. Really enjoyed the short stories, Perfect to read around Christmas. 4/5 stars.
Prompt: A book published the month of your birthday
Currently reading
I'm still reading the "feelgood" novel about the bookshop, Bokhandeln på Riverside Drive by Frida Skybäck. Really liking it so far, which isn't surprising as it is about books and has a cat in it.
For a readalong on Booktube/Goodreads I'm reading The Hobbit, or There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien. The plan is to read this book + LOTR. This is a re-read for me but I can't say I remember much from the first time around. I like it so far, but I find the language a bit hard.
Today I also began reading Czentes Omega by Swedish author Anna Jakobsson Lund. I really love this author - she has published all of her books by herself and the writing and plot is so good. This is a science fiction fantasy novel where young delinquents are sent to a school on another planet in another galaxy. It also has aliens in it so it's pretty cool. It has some similarities with Illuminae as it also takes place in space.
QOTW
I just keep on reading as I normally do. Earlier this week I went to the library and loaned way too many books that fit some of the harder prompts and that I'm less excited about reading. For example a western.
Man work is kicking my butt this week. After having two weeks off, coming back to a pile of work has been kicking my butt. I have to carve out times for reading and self-care at the start of my 2020 year that would be key to having a Purposeful year. Finished:
The Last Guardian - I read a book while driving my daughter to basketball practices (about 2 hours away) plus games. She is more into the YA books and we have been “reading” through the Artemis Fowl books, her next selection is the Divergent Series. I think it is always better to “read” then listen to some horrible music, and if she doesn’t want to read she just pops in her headphones and does something else.
Currently Reading:
The Last Wish- Did read this much this week. I have enjoyed the differences between the book and what happened in the Netflix show. This is one I am glad I watched the show first so I can pronounce all the polish names.
Thrawn: Treason - The last in the Thrawn series I need to get this one finished this week. I was hoping that they would use this series for the next set of movies as the Thrawn is a great character.
Red Sister)- Ugh, I need to get into this book. I am sure that it picks up more at the end of the book but it seems like it is taking forever for the nuns in the convent to get anything done.
2/50 - PSC
QOTW -
I have no plan for reading I just start reading, I am going to try and keep up with the monthly reads. Then I just read what I feel like reading. Reading has always been a chore for me up until the last 3 years, so I try and keep it going easy and not put much pressure on my reading.
Mod
I AM SO EXCITED!! I had NO IDEA she had a new book out!!!! Goodreads used to send me an email every month, and they stopped doing it for some reason (I've checked, my profile still has that requested, so I don't know ...) so I sometimes miss it when favorite authors have a new book! I am SO GLAD to learn about it from you!!! :-)
UPDATE: I just figured out that it's not published in the US until July 2020, which is why my library doesn't have a copy. Something for me to look forward to!! (apropos of today's QOTW, I guess!)
Hello everybody,I have had an ok reading week, finished two books and started another.
I finished:
Die Liebe im Ernstfall, a novel about a few women and their experiences with love. It was short and catchy, and not romance-like (Maybe because their relationships weren't), but more about those women discovering their own true selves. I am not counting it for the challenge yet.
And I finished Kintsugi, another German book about a gay couple and their closest friends who are having a reveal-your-inner-feelings weekend in their house in the countryside. Used it for a book that won an award in 2019 (#23)
Currently reading:
Diese ganze Scheiße mit der Zeit which is kind of a memoir by a German TV-talkhost. The beginning of the book is with his Cancer diagnosis. I might use it for the great first line prompt.
am going to start another German book Winterbienen
QOTW:
Do you reserve some books for reading later in the year or do you dive right in to your most exciting reads right away?
Well, I am reading my netgalley books right now which were of course wanted at some point, but I would also like to get back to some of my series which will also fulfill prompts. Also they are all German or at least translated into German. I do want to go back to reading more internationally.
I saved some of the more difficult and challenging reads for the summer, where I will have a freer mind (during the summer holidays). I want to make sure I mix more dreaded prompts with easy ones. But I also want to make sure not to fall (too deeply) into a reading slump. I find it motivates me to have a number of prompts done, so I am reading more shorter books right now than longer ones.
I do feel the same about the AtY prompts, they come more naturally.
Happy 2020, everyone! This is my first check-in of the year, and I'm 3 books into my challenge. I read:Big Little Lies (about a book club; kind of a stretch on that prompt if I'm being honest): I got this from the library because it was available with pretty low expectations, but I ended up really enjoying it. I thought it was a good depiction of the ways we can make harmful assumptions about others and ourselves while still being fun and pretty light.
Song of Solomon (book by WOC): loved it, particularly Morrison's gift for writing beautifully about horrible things. Nothing is tied up in a bow or made less confusing/difficult/awful than it is, but the language is still transcendent.
Whispers Under Ground (set in a city that hosted the Olympics [London]): I'm really enjoying the PC Peter Grant series at the moment, so it's nice that they're covering prompts.
QOTW: I generally read by mood, so I hope to be excited about my books throughout the year. That said, this year I'm trying to get at least 20 new countries checked off my list, so I'd love some recommendations. Can anyone recommend a book set in any of the following countries I'm trying to satisfy, preferably by someone from that place?
Brazil
Italy
Kuwait
Mongolia
Namibia
Taiwan
Uzbekistan
Zimbabwe
Any advice would be much appreciated! Most of the sources I find don't include opinions/ratings.
Nadine wrote: "Errlee wrote: "... Empire of Wild by Cherie Dimaline ..."I AM SO EXCITED!! I had NO IDEA she had a new book out!!!! Goodreads used to send me an email every month, and they stopped doing it for..."
The different publication dates are so weird to me when the countries are so close. I have that issue sometimes when I find something I want to read on The Guardian, and they aren't out in Canada yet.
How does that work for ebooks though? Does it mean you can't get in in the States even in that format? Just curious ...
Mod
congratulations!!!
(This is where I confess that I don't actually know what it means to make partner. Is it like getting tenure as a prof, do you have 100% job security now?)
Joanna wrote: "lso the Canada Reads long list just came out. I always try to get through the five short list books, but I've requested some of the long list ones that are more interesting to me from the library now to get a potential head start before the short list is announced and everyone puts in requests for the same books!"Oh I didn't realize the long list was out! I try to read the short list most years too, although I didn't last year - they all just seemed too dark and depressing and I was not in the right frame of mind.
I'll have to go take a look and see what they picked this year - although I will most likely wait to slot things into prompts until the short list comes out. My library is usually pretty good at putting those ones on the express read shelves, or express ebooks so everyone can get them before the judging starts.
Mod
PFFFT stop being jealous. Last night I walked to my car with snowflakes blowing into my eyes and down my neck. Then I had to scrape the ice off alllll the windows of my car, while making sure I didn't slip and fall in the parking lot while I was doing it, AND making sure I didn't accidently sweep the snow right into my face thanks to the wind. This morning it was 12 degrees outside. I have central heating and all that, but the draft from the windows makes an actual light breeze when it's that cold outside. (Yes my house could use better insulation.) all that and it's not even that pretty outside right now, we only got about two inches of snow.
Heather wrote: "Errlee wrote: "I have that one on my TBR list and trying to figure out a prompt for it - I already have Bechdel test, so wondering if it might fit in for one of the seven deadly sins?...."Yes, it..."
Great thanks. I also found out there's a totally unrelated movie with the same name, so now I have two possibilities :)
Greetings this cold day from NYC! Not much accomplished this week - I've only read 2 for Popsugar so far, both in the advanced section. That's fine because I'd essentially finished the 2019 challenge by June...and I have no worries about finishing this year. Finished: Two books this week -
Home to Stay - romance, 3rd in series, and a hangover from 2019 - it was ok, not my fave in the series.
Mary Poppins - prompt published in 20th Century. Also fit a PBT challenge. Loved this! While the movie is front and center in my mind, and I kept humming the songs, I really enjoyed meeting the 'real' Mary Poppins as Travers intended her to be. Definitely will read more of these.
Currently reading:
Lab Girl - this is my woman in STEM and also for a PBT challenge or two.
Jade Dragon Mountain - not sure where I will fit this mystery/thriller set in 1708 China in PS, but it does fit PBT challenges. Enjoying it.
Proust - always Proust and that will be the case until June. Currently section is Guermantes Way, which is the 3rd book over all and first in Volume 2 of A Remembrance of Things Past. REALLY enjoying this section as there is far more dialogue and events being described, and less internal narrator monologues rhapsodizing on things like the color pink, hawthorn blossoms, church steeples, or musing on what makes great art. The narrator is now in early adulthood and observing more, entering society, and we are getting more of those devastatingly brilliant and so amusing social portraits that Proust is a master at.
All of which moves nicely into the QOTW. I don't preplan my reading. I pretty much just wing it, and that works for me. I have a very large personal print and ebook library, filled with TBR Towers, and my main goal besides finishing challenge is to read as many books from my TBR Towers in my personal library as I can. That's usually between 80% and 90% of PS reads. I pretty much just read what I fancy and figure out where it fits.
I also am participating in various buddy reads and challenges in another GR group - PBT. Plus I do the occasional buddy read with friends. Again, I fit that reading into PS as much as possible.
Plus since I'm reading Proust during the first 6 months of 2020 for a discussion class, I will likely not get a lot of other reading done until second half of the year.
All that said, I always try to balance out my reading during the year between light fun frivolous and slow long heavy. It's all about variety, diversity, and fun for me.
Christy wrote: "Happy 2020, everyone! This is my first check-in of the year, and I'm 3 books into my challenge. I read:Big Little Lies (about a book club; kind of a stretch on that prompt if I'm b..."
Do you like mysteries. Auntie Poldi and the Sicilian Lions is set in Italy. You could also try one of the Donna Leon books set in Venice.
Christy wrote: "Can anyone recommend a book set in any of the following countries I'm trying to satisfy, preferably by someone from that place?"Last year for the Random Travel Challenge I had Kuwait, and I read Salt Houses for it. The book takes place in many countries, only one of which is Kuwait, so it might not work for your requirements. Still, I HIGHLY recommend it. It was one of my favorite reads of last year. I actually cried at the end!
Howdy. It's been an extremely frustrating week at work and I'm so freakin' glad tomorrow is my last day before vacation. I don't get to go anywhere, but I get to not be there for a while. I've still been in Watching Things Mode more than Reading Mode. The books are calling me though, I just can't seem to fit them in at the moment. My list of books on pause keeps increasing. Hopefully some of my vacation time I can devote to books and not just watching things.Finished:
The Night Circus - Still mid-reread, but book club is tonight so it'll be done today. I still really want to be inside this book so I can go to the circus.
Currently Reading:
The Small Bachelor - Bedtime Wodehouse
Effin' Birds: A Field Guide to Identification
On Deck:
A Gathering of Shadows, If on a Winter's Night a Traveller and Platform Seven are still waiting for me to get back to them. My Sister, the Serial Killer is next month's book club book.
QOTW:
It depends. I acquire more books than I read. Because I can't possibly read them all NOW I will sometimes earmark one for later, perhaps for a heritage month or a holiday or season. Sometimes I just jump right in though. Basically I'm a mood reader with a whole lot of options.
Happy Thursday everyone!Gosh, I somewhat forget exactly how busy this thread gets at the beginning of the year. Takes quite a while to read through everything. I thought I hadn't really gotten around to reading anything this week and then realized I'd finished 3 books, then realized it's really 1 book, 1 novella and 1 graphic novel.
Where the Crawdads Sing I finished this up on Friday and to be honest it was only a 3 star read for me. I thought it was beautifully written but I just don't really care for books which cover the majority of a characters life. I go for books which focus on events which take place over a much shorter time period. I still thought it was a good book but a little slow moving for me and even the main 'mystery' was a little underwhelming. Probably going to use it for the prompt about a book with a map.
Saga, Vol. 9 I read volumes 1-8 in 2018 and figured I should probably get around to reading this one now while I still remember any of the story. To my surprise I remembered more of what was going on than I thought I would.
Can't Escape Love which is Reluctant Royals novella. Speaking of reluctant royals, I thought this was timely given Harry/Meghan's decision to step back from royal duties this week. This is the first story of hers that I've read where neither of the main characters is actually a member of royalty but I did think it was funny that she made Regina live in a castle-looking house. I loved that this had disability representation and the whole story overall was cute. A little over the top with the constant 'geek' references and I thought out of all the stories I read that the reason for these two characters meeting again was the weakest. Still, nice and fluffy and totally what I was expecting and wanting.
Currently Reading
The Mind's Eye - decided to listen to this one on a whim since it was available on overdrive and then started thinking that maybe it could work for the vision impairment/enhancement prompt. My only waffle over that is that so far (I'm not far into it) the visual issues are neurological only. So the eyesight of the patient is technically fine but neurologically the brain can't or doesn't interpret what they are seeing correctly. So rather than a physical eyesight impairment (which is what I initially was planning to find to read) it's more of a mental impairment on a person's ability to compute what they see. I don't know why the difference is throwing me off so much.
Question of the week:
Do you reserve some books for reading later in the year or do you dive right in to your most exciting reads right away?
I do a bit of both but generally I'll read what is exciting to me as I find it. In terms of prompts I try to knock out some of the least appealing ones earlier in the year so that there is better opportunity to have a more exciting book/prompt pairing later in the year.
Carmen wrote: "FinishedShadow and Bone for a book by or about a journalist. It wasn't planned for this prompt at all, but in the 'about the author' section it was mentioned she worked as a journalist for a while and so I said it counted! Really enjoyed it, 4/5. Also worked for ATYs silhouette on the cover."
I was thinking this would be a prompt that I would have to seek out instead of coming across organically but Shadow and Bone is one of the books the book club I sponsor at school is reading this semester. So, that will cover that prompt.
Errlee wrote: "Joanna wrote: "lso the Canada Reads long list just came out. I always try to get through the five short list books, but I've requested some of the long list ones that are more interesting to me fro..."Lucky, my library doesn't even have them all - or at least didn't when the list was announced last year. They don't have some of the long list entries I'm interested in this year, but hopefully if those books make the short list, they will order them! The long list is here, for anyone who wants to check it out: https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/...
Short list to be announced January 22 for those who want to wait!
Mod
The first was Nevada. This was for A book by a trans or nonbinary author.
The second book I read was Queens of Geek..."
I'm just here to say I love your profile pic :-)
@Christy, for set in Zimbabwe I really liked NoViolet Bulawayo's 'We need new names' - she's a Zimbabwean author.
Currently reading Supermarket - Bobby Hall Prompt #25 - A book with only words on the cover no images or graphics.Flynn is stuck—depressed, recently dumped, and living at his mom’s house. The supermarket was supposed to change all that. An ordinary job and a steady check. Work isn’t work when it’s saving you from yourself. But things aren’t quite as they seem in these aisles. Arriving to work one day to a crime scene, Flynn’s world collapses as the secrets of his tortured mind are revealed. And Flynn doesn’t want to go looking for answers at the supermarket. Because something there seems to be looking for him. A darkly funny psychological thriller, Supermarket is a gripping exploration into madness and creativity. Who knew you could find sex, drugs, and murder all in aisle nine?
QOTW: I try to save but of course i cant resist!
Sara wrote: "The Perfect Horse: the Daring U.S. Mission to Rescue the Priceless Stallions Kidnapped by the Nazis by Elizabeth Betts - I had the opportunity to see the world-renowned Lipizzaner Stallions perform about 10-12 years ago and it was such an experience! I wish they would come here again so I could take my daughter (she was with us the first time but was only a toddler)...."We saw them several years ago as well, and they are amazing. I haven't read this book yet (it's actually on my bookshelf) but I did read Operation Cowboy: The Secret American Mission to Save the World's Most Beautiful Horses in the Last Days of World War II two years ago and the story is incredible.
My reading year is off to a good start, I am now 2/50 for the Popsugar challenge, and have ticked off prompts in several other challenges as well.
Finished this week:
Anonymous Complaint: A Nurse's Story by Robbi Hartford - used for "A book you picked because the title caught your attention," it caught my attention because my sister is a nurse. It's interesting, though it meandered off track a few times and there was more about her love life than I expected in a book about her career. I actually think it works for the Bechdel prompt, but I refused to use it for that one because frankly I was a little put off by how much time was spent on romance when the issue was that her career was at risk. Very judgy of me, I know.
Down the Rabbit Hole: Curious Adventures and Cautionary Tales of a Former Playboy Bunny by Holly Madison - used for "A book with a pink cover." I had ordered this from my library last year to use for the prompts "read two books with the same title," but it didn't come in on time so I had to read something else for that. Since I finally got this one, I figured I might as well read it, and as my overflowing bookshelves are surprisingly devoid of pink, it was great to slot it in to this prompt.
Can You Feel This? by Julie Orringer - this was an Amazon Original (the Inheritance Collection), it's a short read but very intense.
The Lion's Den by Anthony Marra - this was an Amazon Original (the Inheritance Collection). It's a short read with a stronger ending than beginning (the first half, short as it was, dragged for me).
QOTW: Most years I go straight for the books I'm most excited for. This year I decided to concentrate on making a dent in my challenges right away. Also, I'm planning to do some of the harder prompts first, because last year I dove right into my favorite prompts and then the end of the year was a bit of a struggle.
Mod
That sounds fun!! I just looked it up on my library's Overdrive and there are two versions in my library. Which narrator were you listening to?
Haven't posted in ages, although l did basically finish the 2019 challenge. Hope to keep up with this year's updates.Finished: The Impossible Girl (medical thriller)
Started: A Beginner's Guide to Free Fall (20-letter title, a bonus is that one of the main characters is a journalist, although I have another book lined up for that prompt.)
Lights on the Sea (translated from Spanish)
I don't usually save books for specific time periods.
Mod
I'm surprised there's such a difference between Canadian & US dates, too. Looks like Amazon is happy to sell me the Canadian hardcover, but for ebook and American hardcover, I have to wait. I use my library, so that means I have to wait.
Back to work for three days this week after Christmas and New Years break. But still managed to squeeze some readings in. No snow here yet but I sort of want the snow to come instead of the grey and dark and dirty season we are having now. PS: 1/50 ATY: 1/52
Finished:
Pompeji (Popsugar: book with a map, ATY: Book not containing A, T or Y in the title): It took me a while to get into but in the end I liked it. Interesting about what happened as the vulcano erupted and the signs leading up to it. 3 stars from me.
The House We Grew Up In: Have not fitted this into any prompt yet, Thinking it might fit into some. I am open for suggestions. It was the first Lisa Jewell book I have read and I liked it a lot. Had to read it now as it was due to the library. 4 stars from me.
Currently reading:
Sleeping Beauties: Popsugar: Author who has written more than 20 books, ATY: Author whose last name has one syllable
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: reread for me but reading it aloud for my daughter. I have read them in English before and now reading the illustrated version in Swedish for my daughter. Might use this for the prompt with visual impairment.
The Lightning Thief: reading aloud for my son. Have not read myself before so don't know if I can slot it in somewhere. My son wanted to hear it again as his teacher at school has read it aloud for the class.
All above books are read or being read in the Swedish edition. So far no English books for me this year.
QOTW: Do you reserve some books for reading later in the year or do you dive right in to your most exciting reads right away?
Not really as much of my reading is dictated from availability at the library. Sometimes I reserve popular books and then you just have to read it when it is available for you.
Finished: 0.21/50 As mentioned last week, I'm reading two entire manga series to count as "one" book for the challenge (because I really want to finish these series').
So, counting toward "book set in a town that hosted the Olympics" I've completed XXXHolic, Omnibus 1 and xxxHOLiC Omnibus 2 .
Counting toward "a book from a series with more than 20 books" I've read Tsubasa Omnibus 1, Tsubasa Omnibus 2, and Tsubasa Omnibus 3.
Still going on both series'!!
Currently Reading
Tsubasa Omnibus 4 for "book from a series with 20 books"
xxxHOLiC Omnibus 3 for "book set in a city that hosted the Olympics" (Tokyo).
The Wilderness Journal: 365 Days with the Philokalia for a "book who's title interests me". This'll be here all year, folks! XD
QOTW
I was going to go in challenge order for reading this year, but I absolutely could not wait to dive into Tsubasa/xxxholic again. Plus, they both need read simultaneously, so I'm going to finish those, then just go in challenge order from there (except for where my monthly book club books fit in). I'm excited to read some of the books on my list, but I'm ok waiting to read those (just not Tsubasa/xxxholic. They're one of my favourite manga series', and I've been dying to reread them for forever!).
@Nadine I listened to the version narrated by Harlan Ellison. Good fun!
Thanks so much for the country recommendations, everyone! I've definitely got The Salt Houses and We Need New Names on my list now (and hopefully they'll work for prompts).
Finished:A Christmas Carol - Did this one for a book I meant to read in 2019. I pretty much knew the story already bc I watch every movie version that comes out.
Pride & Prejudice - It took me about half way through to get into it.
Currently reading:
Jane Eyre
qotw: Right now I'm starting with the books I already have on my Kindle then I'll probably do the prompts in order.
I finished 4 books this week: Starters, InterWorld, Solo, and Still Alice.Still Alice is the only book that I read this week for the Popsugar Challenge. I am using it for #22 A book about of by a women in STEM. If anyone is looking to read something fictional for this category than I would definitely suggest. It still delves into some science topics without being overwhelming in that aspect and really tugged on my heartstrings. I have had a physical copy of this book on my bookshelf for year and cannot believe that I just got around to reading it.
Question of the week:
Do you reserve some books for reading later in the year or do you dive right in to your most exciting reads right away?
I have a bad habit of reading the things I am most excited for early in the year. It tends to make it sort of difficult me towards the end of the year as I am left with prompts that can only be filled with books I'm not really excited to read. I am going to try to make a conscious effort to read some of those types of books earlier in the year so I hopefully don't hit a brick wall towards the end of this year.
(2/40)Yay, I got another challenge down with 09. A book with a map - The Black Prism!
I am currently gonna start challenge 33. A book with at least a four-star rating on Goodreads. I am rereading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which I am enjoying since I forgot the last time I read potter!
Happy Thursday and Check-In Day!I seem to be the outlier in the conversation occurring between the ATY and Popsugar prompts. I was not enthused by the ATY prompts so am not reading for that one. When posted, the Popsugar list had me so excited I wanted to start right away as I saw a large amount of cross-over between my TBR and the prompts and they felt like ones I had not already seen in previous challenges unlike the ATY prompts.
Completed:
Mr. Dickens and His Carol- My first book of the year and what a fantastic way to start! It opens with Charles Dickens having lost his Christmas Spirit and self-confidence due to being harassed by the needs of his family/friends and failure of Chuzzlewit. His editors request a short Christmas book be written; giving him two weeks to write. He decides to revisit old, much loved places in the hopes they will inspire his quill. Containing many of the characters and sayings from A Christmas Carol this was a delightful reimagining of the process of this famous author.
(PBT Goodreads group- BINGO Challenge)
Currently Reading:
I Was Anastasia
(Popsugar- Meant to Read in 2019)
When the Sea Turned to Silver
(Popsugar- Book with Silver in title)
(Read Harder- Middle Grade book not set in US or UK)
QOTW:
This is the year of trimming my massive TBR so I am currently choosing what I want to read and then fitting it where I can in to a Popsugar prompt. I may need to revise this towards the middle of the year if there are a large number of prompts unfilled. For my challenges I am in through the PBT Goodreads group those books are more specified.
Nadine wrote: "PFFFT stop being jealous. Last night I walked to my car with snowflakes blowing into my eyes and down my neck."Hahaha I always say I love snow, but I know it's just the idea of snow that you get in the movies. I've only seen it a few times, and never as bad as people further north have! I mostly just want to have that unexpected day off work (which I know doesn't happen much for y'all either--it's like, the only perk of living in a metropolitan that doesn't have the means to deal with ice). I know I wouldn't handle living in that climate well, though...
I spent all of today thinking it was Wednesday until I saw this thread! Oops!This week I finished....nothing. Double oops. Not a good start to the year! I am almost done on Red Sister though so I'll be caught up soon. I'm enjoying the book, but I do keep thinking of how different The Sound of Music would've been if Maria had been one of these nuns...
I do have a typical book-lover dilemma in that I've had too many library holds come in at once so I have no idea what I'm going to read next.
QOTW: I always try to do the prompts that I don't have many options for first but I never end up sticking to my plans and end up just reading what I feel like
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Terry Pratchett (other topics)Jeffrey Eugenides (other topics)
Ruth Goodman (other topics)
L.M. Montgomery (other topics)
Marie Brennan (other topics)
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I am now reading River of TeethThe River of Teeth for the book by a non-binary author. Although this book has gotten mixed reviews, I am enjoying it. I should be able to finish this book in the next day or so and move on to my next prompt. Which is yet to be decided. There are so many books I am looking forward to reading. I will have to wait and see what kind of mood I am in when I am done with this book.
My goal this year is to read 52 books and to help keep myself on track also do a weekly check in. Yahoo, so far on track.
Question of the week:
Do you reserve some books for reading later in the year or do you dive right in to your most exciting reads right away?
I make plans in my head, but they are always changing. I am a mood reader and I need to read what I like at the time.