Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

Hello and happy Thursday check-in to you all! We finally emerged from the sub-arctic temperatures last weekend and have been able to spend some time outdoors lately. I know winter isn’t done with us yet, but it is great to have a taste of spring.

We are still looking for some monthly group read leaders! Open slots are:
March - The Handmaid’s Tale
June - Middlesex

If you’d like to volunteer, please let me or Nadine know! And thank you to those who have already volunteered! I think it will help move discussion along better this year.

Just a reminder, a list of books selected so far (as well as discussion leaders) is available here:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

On to the weekly check-in!

I forgot to check-in last week (illness+puppy illness+snow+ice = chaos). Of course, I’ve only managed to finish a couple books in the last two weeks.

Books read:

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. I didn’t love this book. I read it for the monthly group read and am very happy to have checked off the Nordic Noir prompt. As for the book itself, the mystery was pretty good, but I really didn’t like nearly everyone being called by their last names. Also, lots of violence against women which was tough to read. Thankfully I was reading it on Kindle so I could just skim those bits if I needed to. This is one of those books that I can recognize as good but that isn’t for me.

(EDIT - I am finishing the next book up this morning so I'm moving it to books read)
Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote. Using this for my book with song lyrics in the title (or it may become my book made into a movie I’ve already seen). I miss Audrey. I have found that I don’t love Holly Golightly nearly as much without Audrey. I’ll stick to the movie, thanks :)

Currently reading:

Beartown by Frederik Bachman. I’m getting a head start on the February monthly read. Beartown was already on my list for a book about sports. I’m still in the midst of all the setup at the beginning, but I’m hoping the story will pick up soon.

Question of the week:
Do you enjoy reading aloud to others? Do you enjoy having someone read aloud to you?

I enjoy reading aloud to my daughter. It’s my favorite way to end the day (though we seem to do it less and less as the years go by). Sometimes I think I would enjoy recording audiobooks (but then I remember I'm not great at distinct voices for each character).
I can manage audiobooks, though I am quite picky about what I like to listen to. I don’t absorb as well when I’m listening to someone else read. My mind tends to wander. I need my eyes locked on to something in order to keep my focus.

Ooh I'm in here early this week! Not much to report as I'm currently reading two doorstoppers: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Catilina's Riddle so it will take me a while to get through them.

I don't think I will have finished those books by the end of the month so I think that I will start on the February group read theme when I finish them. I won't be reading the group read because it's quite expensive to get hold of (being a fairly recent release) and I have no interest in or knowledge of Ice Hockey. Instead I will be reading The Taliban Cricket Club for my book about a sport. I don't really know or care much about cricket either but being British I have a basic understanding in it and am really interested in the awful Taliban regime.

QOTW:

I really like reading aloud although I haven't done so in a long time. I used to read to my younger sister a lot when I was a teenager. She's 6 years younger than me and was always interested in what I was reading. She has grown up to be quite a reader herself and I hope that some of that was from my influence.

I am an aural learner so during school it used to really help me to read aloud in order to better understand the texts we were studying. This meant that I probably read my sister a lot of books that went over her head but she never complained.

My main memories of being read to were of my dad reading me the first Harry Potter book but I got so annoyed by the way he was pronouncing all the names (especially Hermione) that I told him I would just read the second one myself. I hope that I didn't upset him too much with that!

Books Finished:

Helter Skelter - Finally finished!! An account of Charles Manson’s trial and murders. I read it for True Crime. I don’t love the genre of true crime, so this was a slog to get through for me personally. But as far as true crime goes it’s probably one of the better ones.

Books Reading:

The Girl Who Played With Fire -It’s for the next book in a series prompt for me. I read The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo a few years back and never finished the series. I was lukewarm on The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, but I already like the Girl Who Played With Fire a lot more.

QOTW:

I love reading aloud, I teach English at an elementary school and one of my favorite things to do is read to the kids. I also love having someone read to me, I’m a huge audiobook fan!

Evening from the very warm centre of the State of NSW.

This week I haven't read much really. I was in a reading slump and decided to read a couple of my sons books from when he was young.


Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
Artemis Fowl 2 Arctic Incident by Eoin Colfer
Fun books. Enjoyed them very much. Brought me out of my reading slump.

The Sun and Her Flowers by Rapi Kaur
A tad different to the poetry that I usually read. Wasn't really into it even though some of the thoughts in it got me thinking.

Deal of a Lifetime by Fredrik Backman
Interesting story. Rather enjoyed it.

With Love from Miss Lily: A Christmas Story by Jackie French
Nice story. Haven't read the Miss Lily book but this short one was rather excellent.

QOTW

I don't mind reading aloud if someone is actually listening and enjoying it. I used to read to the kids all the time but once they were old enough to read stuff themselves that went by the wayside.

I'm like Sara with people reading to me or when I listen to audiobooks. I need to focus more an d my mind wanders and I'm better with visual stimuli.

@Jess: Beartown, which I think you are referring to with the groupread comment, is about icehockey, not american football. Not that I think it will have any influence on your decision, though :)

So. I read quite a lot this week, as much as work, children, evening meetings and so on allowed me, anyway. But I didn´t finish any of them! And that´s kind of depressing. I´m currently reading 5 different books, if you count Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (with Jim Kay´s illustrations) that I´m reading aloud to my 8-year-old, and that´s a bit too much for my brain at one time, so I´ll have to finish some of them soon.

QOTW
Yes, I read aloud to my children. These days mainly to my 8 year-old son. My two eldest sons (I have three) are 17 and 14, and those days are long gone, where they wanted me to read to them. The 14-year-old halfway listens sometimes. He sat next to us and read Naruto, while we read HP the other day. He reads a lot himself though, and the 17 year old is not opposed to reading either, so I feel like a successful parent after all (this is one of my important points of feeling like a successful parent).
I like having read aloud to me, but it rarely happens. But I did get my 14 year-old to read some of the HP book for me and his brother.

Hello everyone, I've been MIA since mid-December due to illness but I'm back now and catching up on my reading. I'm currently on holiday in sunny Morocco whilst I recuperate so I've managed to read three books in a week. Not sure if any of them fit into challenges yet but I will try to squeeze them in.

First was Eleanor & Park. A re-read for me but just what I needed to get me back into the swing of things.

Then I read Belle Epoque which was a nice fluffy poolside read. I enjoyed it even though the main character was super annoying. Luckily the supporting cast were all pretty interesting. A follow up novel from Isabelle's point of view would be welcome.

Finally I read Fairest of All: A Tale of the Wicked Queen. It is the third of the "Disney villain" books I've read by this author and so far this is the best. More focus on the actual villain and backstory than the "weird sisters" characters. The best so far.

Not currently reading anything as I ran out of books I had brought with me and the hotel library is sorely lacking in English language books but I fly back to the snowy UK tomorrow so I will be back on with the reading then.

QOTW: I read out loud to my three year old nephew all the time, which he loves, but I don't like doing it with anything more than a picture book. I'm a very fast reader and my voice can't keep up with my eyes so I often end up getting tongue tied because I'm reading ahead.

The same with someone reading to me. If I can see the text I've read the page a long time before they can read it out loud so my mind wanders whilst I wait for them to catch up.

Sarah wrote: "Hello everyone, I've been MIA since mid-December due to illness but I'm back now and catching up on my reading...Not currently reading anything as I ran out of books I had brought with me and the hotel library is sorely lacking in English language books but I fly back to the snowy UK tomorrow so I will be back on with the reading then."

Oh, the horror of running out of books on a holiday!!! (The fear of this is the reason why I always bring WAY too many books with me. And you never know what you feel like reading, right?)

Happy Thursday! We had a very brief thaw here in northern NY, got rid of most of the snow on my deck, but now it's back to cold and snow and more snow.

This week I finished 6 books. I am now 9/50.

A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James - I listened to the audiobook, started this in December and this book made me WORK for it, it took a long time to finish. Not an easy read; ultimately felt worthwhile, but it was tough to get to that point. I came close to DNFing, only a trusted friend's recommendation kept me going. James is an amazing author, he created individual voices for each character (something SO MANY authors try to do, but most fail at), AND he showed true character growth and change, I was amazed at what he did. I wasn't planning to use this for the Challenge, but I put SO MUCH of myself into it, I have to check a box too! (if that makes sense?) For now, I'm using this to check of "different ethnicity."

Sex Object: A Memoir by Jessica Valenti - this was just okay. I read it in one big compulsive gulp, and it inspired emotions, but the rest of the book did not live up to the promise of the introduction. (This seems to happen a lot to me with this sort of book.) I read this for the "feminism" category, but now I'm reading The Mother of All Questions and it is blowing me away, so I'm going to use "Mother" for the "feminism" category, and for now I'm not checking off any categories with this book.

The Bat by Jo Nesbø- I read this for "Nordic noir" and I really enjoyed it. I'd previously read another Harry Hole novel and it was interesting to go back to the beginning and see how Harry's series got its start. I'm definitely going to read all the other Harry Hole books.

Blankets - a graphic novel by Craig Thompson - I read this for "author with your name" (because, yes, my name is secretly Craig*) The artwork was great but the autobiographical story didn't really engage me. I was left with the feeling that this book was probably really meaningful to Craig Thompson, but not so much to the rest of the world.

* No, not really ;-)

Astonishing X-Men, Volume 1: Gifted by Joss Whedon - this was so much fun!! Joss Whedon is a writing superhero!

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli- I read this because I wanted to read it before seeing the movie, but I can also use it for "LGBTQA+". I expected this to be amazing and I was very disappointed. I plan to never read any more books by this author, ever.

QOTW I do like reading aloud, to a receptive audience. I used to get piles of picture books out of the library to read to my kids every night, and some nights I enjoyed that more than they did. Back when I wasn't working, I would volunteer at my daughter's preschool to read to the kids, and I do have fond memories of that. As my kids got older, I started reading chapter books to them, and that was fun for a while, but now they prefer to read their own books. If there was more time in each day, I would carve out some time to read to them again.

I'm like you, Sara, about being read to: I'm very visual, and my mind wanders if I don't have something to look at. So, no, I don't exactly like being read to. BUT I love audiobooks! If I'm doing something like driving or washing dishes or mowing the lawn, that shuts off the "wandering" part of my brain, and I can focus on the story. I always have an audiobook queued up and ready to listen to when I'm driving. (But only when I'm driving alone - my kids can't stand listening to my audiobooks. That's their punishment when they miss their schoolbus, they have to listen to my audiobook while I drive them to school. I used to download Percy Jackson books for family trips, but they finally put their feet down and said NO MORE. They like Percy Jackson, they just don't like audiobooks in my car.)

Johanne wrote: "@Jess: Beartown, which I think you are referring to with the groupread comment, is about icehockey, not american football. Not that I think it will have any influence on your decision, though :)

S..."

Oops I clearly misremembered that! I think I just looked at the blurb and filed it under 'sport that is not really played in the UK that I know nothing about'. I've edited my comment.

Wow lots of early check ins this week! Being on the East Coast of Canada there are typically few before I see it :) we also had a nice thaw this week but my 3 year old is fighting a nasty cough so we haven’t gotten out much.
I only finished 1, The Bat for my Nordic Noir. I liked it and may read another in the Harry Hole series but I found it lagged at times. I’m more than halfway through another so hoping to get through at least 2 before next check in.

QOTW
I love reading to my kids and exposing them to different people and ideas through books. But I dislike being read to and I hate audiobooks

Hi everybody!

I haven't participated in the check-ins yet this year, since I had surgery in December and am still recovering. I am feeling a lot better, though, so now I want to participate in the group again instead of just reading your comments.

I have finished three books this week (I am still at home, not working, so there is some more time to read):
The Rosie Project, which I thoroughly enjoyed, more so, than I had thought. Might use it for the book I meant to read in 2017 or a book about mental health and am using it for AtY's book you expect to make you laugh.

Es bleibt in der Familie. Sommerdahls vierter Fall the fourth book in the Danish detective series around Dan Sommerdahl, the bald detective. Very good book, evolving around a secret that has murderous consequences. Might use it for book about mental health or next book in a series, book about death or grief, and for AtY's book that is connected to the element water (cover).

Kleine Stadt der großen Träume: Roman which is Beartown in German (translation of the German title equals something like 'Little town of big dreams'. Totally not what I expected, but nonetheless a really good book, that surprised me in its intensity. I did not foresee what happened and was deeply affected by it. I liked the characterization that didn't need so much Information about each of the characters but still made them accessible. The way in which Backman doesn't morally point fingers, but still manages to show the consequences of people's actions is very convincing and made me think a lot about society and the difficulty of doing what is right above doing what is expected or wanted by society or what is seemingly easy for the individual person. Also the hints at what actions (or the lack of having acted) people might regret are subtle but hit the spot. I might use it for book about or involving sport or book about a problem facing society today or book set in a country that fascinates me.

Last week I finally read The Hate U Give and also think it is a great and wonderful and important book that everybody should read. I have recommended it a few times already. Also a book where I was often afraid to find out what happened next because I knew it was sadly so realistic.

Currently reading:
Die Wurzel des Bösen: Sommerdahls fünfter Fall, the next book in the Danish detective series mentioned above.

Ich bin nicht alt, nur schon sehr lange jung: Wie dein Leben mit jedem Jahr besser wird (English translation is roughly: I am not old, I have just been young for a long time) which is a light-hearted book about the feelings and changes that go along with becoming older and the weird habits that the author developped and that I can at least Party relate to (or at least laugh about)

Listening to the audiobook Die Wurzel alles Guten: Roman a book by a Finnish author about the journey of two half-brothers trying to find out more about their father whom neither has met after the age of three. It is read by a wonderful German actor and funnily quirky.

I need a lot of easy reading these days and will see about slotting the books in the prompts, later.

QOTW:

I rarely read aloud to others, but think it is probably a good idea to do that more often since it is a totally different reading experience.

I like being read to, but that also rarely happens. I used to enjoy it a lot when my dad read to me when I was little and pretended to fall asleep (snoring loudly and artificially) as soon as the characters in the stories were tired or went to sleep. I really believed he had fallen asleep, too.

Certain audiobooks give me a really good feeling and help me relax (especially the German Harry Potter audiobooks which I have listened to many, many times) and when I am stressed out I listen to them to help me relax and go to sleep.

Other than that I listen to audiobooks only when I am doing something else, like driving, travelling in general, cleaning, walking.

Blankets - a graphic novel by Craig Thompson - I read this for "author with your name" (because, yes, my name is secretly Craig*) The artwork was great but the autobiographical story didn't really engage me. I was left with the feeling that this book was probably really meaningful to Craig Thompson, but not so much to the rest of the world.

* No, not really ;-)

You are hilarious! Where do come up with this stuff??*

*Kidding!

The only books I finished this week were YA reads. I read Everything, Everythingby Nicola Yoon in a night. Wasn't crazy about it. I mostly read it because my students (8th grade girls) are devouring it and I wanted to be able to talk to them about it. I used it for the Favorite Prompt from Previous Challenge - it fit a whole slew of prompts I really enjoyed, so I chose "Book Becoming a Movie in 2017." I wish I had watched the movie before reading it so I could have used it for that one! I'm having a hard time with that one since I almost never watch the movie first on principle!

I also finished The Upside of Unrequited for the prompt A Book with Characters Who Are Twins. I really enjoyed it. I know a previous poster didn't like Becki Albertalli's other book (Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda), but this one made me laugh and it definitely brought back ALL the angsty feelings of adolescence.

Right now I am working on One of Us Is Lying for the Title with Song Lyrics prompt. A little less than 100 pages to go, so I should be done by tonight.

I'm also listening to Spoonbenders on audio just for fun, but I realized after getting into it that I can use it for the time travel prompt. Woo. I like the book so far! It is definitely interesting and sort of wacky, which is a nice break from some of the more intense reads I've read lately.

Next on the list is The Nightingale as a past Goodreads award winner and I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter for the author of a different ethnicity prompt.

Right now I am 9/40 for the Goodreads Challenge.

QOTW:
I love reading aloud to both my 8th graders AND my 13 month old. I am shocked at how much the older kids still love being read to. My son, on the other hand, can't sit still long enough to enjoy much beyond a few words, but I will still read to him as he runs around everywhere.

Audiobooks are a newer obsession of mine. I NEVER listened to an audiobook before last spring, but since then I listen to 1-2 every month. I commute over an hour a day, so it is huge to have that time feel more meaningful and engaging. I actually look forward to it most days when I am getting into a book! Plus, I've been flying through my TBR list with the addition of these extra books - huge perk.

Mike wrote: "You are hilarious! Where do come up with this stuff??* ..."

LOL!! I couldn't help myself ... I learned from the master!!

Nadine wrote: "Mike wrote: "You are hilarious! Where do come up with this stuff??* ..."

LOL!! I couldn't help myself ... I learned from the master!!"

Wow. Praise from Caesar. I am humbled.*

*with sincerity.

I only finished one book The Girl Who Played with Fire. I liked it more than the first but man-oh-man do these book take me forever to read. I have the the third one, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, loaded and ready to go and I even have the audiobook to go with it so maybe that'll make it a faster read. As of right not I don't plan on using either one of these for the challenge but who knows if shuffling later on in the year will happen.

3/52

QOTW Its cute reading aloud. My nephew is in the "why" stage so after reading everysentence it's always "whyyy?" and I say "I don't know we have to read and find out!"

Miriam wrote: "Hi everybody!

I haven't participated in the check-ins yet this year, since I had surgery in December and am still recovering. I am feeling a lot better, though, so now I want to participate in the..."

Welcome back, Miriam - I hope your recovery goes smoothly!

Johanne wrote: "Oh, the horror of running out of books on a holiday!!! (The fear of this is the reason why I always bring WAY too many books with me. And you never know what you feel like reading, right?)"

Me packing books for a trip

So, here in NC it's nice and balmy - no, wait, it's chilly - nope, warmish but raini-- well, there's the sun again. And now it's freezing. That's about how the last week went!

Finished
Untangled: Guiding Teenage Girls Through the Seven Transitions into Adulthood - this was great. It's my *book about mental health* and I liked the focus on health! It guides you through the normal transitions of teen girlhood, rather than obsessing about all the dangers we tend to worry about. It addresses when you should be concerned, but mostly talks about effective ways to cope with your daughter doing the work of becoming a self-sufficient, healthy adult.

DNF
Beartown - I feel like the odd one out, but this didn't appeal to me at all. All the characters were either mean or pathetic or both, and I was getting no pleasure from reading. So I looked up a synopsis, and found that the main action is around (view spoiler)[a girl being raped, and then victimized by the community because her report is going to wreck their high school hockey team. (hide spoiler)] I really just don't want to read about that. I wish I had known about this plot point - I would have avoided this one. I still want to check out Backman's other stuff because I adored A Man Called Ove. This just wasn't a good choice for me.

In Progress
Feet of Clay - just what I want right now. A comfort read with some humor and fabulous characters I want to hug.

Started
Paradox Bound - I loved 14 and really liked The Fold, so I have high hopes. So far it's a lot of fun. Super creepy bad guys!

QOTW

Almost forgot!

I love reading aloud to my daughter because at heart I'm just a big ham. This is my outlet for all my frustrated theatrical aspirations. It's fun to try doing unique voices for each character and trying to accentuate the humor. Kids' books are so much fun.

I also like when my 9yo reads to me, because she is so expressive for someone her age, and seems to have fun figuring out how to use volume, tone, and emphasis to good effect.

Hello,

I finally finished Different Seasons this week for a book made into a movie I've already seen. There were four stories in this book.

I read it for Rita Hayworth and The Shawshank Redemption that was made into one of the best movies ever made. The story was okay, but the movie was much better. I couldn't get Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins out of my head the whole time I was reading it, which made it better than if I hadn't seen the movie first. 4 out of 5 stars

The second story Apt Pupil was by far the most horrific story I've ever read. It was about a Nazi war criminal and a 14 year old boy who idolizes him (it only gets worse). It was clever and well written, but I hated reading it. 1 out of 5 stars

The third story The Body was really good, but I have no desire to see the movie Stand By Me, which is based on it. 5 out of 5 stars

The fourth story Breathing Method was okay but weird. 3 out of 5 stars

Overall, I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars.

Jess wrote: Oops I clearly misremembered that! I think I just looked at the blurb and filed it under 'sport that is not really played in the UK that I know nothing about'...

Yeah, you could also file icehockey under "sport played very little in Denmark, though more than american football". But I know how important it is to our neighbours the Swedes, and I like Fredrik Backman´s books, so I was going to read it anyway. Only corrected it, so people didn´t get confused :)

Forgot to answer the question...

I loved reading to my daughter all the way up through 7th grade.

I like being read to and enjoy audio books sometimes but prefer reading, because I can go back and figure out what's going on if I need to.

Question of the week:
Do you enjoy reading aloud to others? Do you enjoy having someone read aloud to you?

I was not a great reader to my kids as I am a speed reader. I am OK with audio books in the car.

Hi everyone! Hope everyone is having a better week than I am. I can't wait to turn the calendar to February in hopes that things will improve. Between being sick, having a setback in my surgery recovery, family members in the hospital, and a coworker quitting (meaning my next 90 days will be insanely crazy at work), I'm crying uncle. No more!! I might have to take a day off next week to just lay in bed and read.

I finished 2 books for Popsugar this week, so I’m currently at 7/50.

Books I read this week:
Seeing Red by Sandra Brown for a book by a local author (20). This was typical Brown with a rugged, anti-authority, sexy male interacting with a beautiful, naïve yet stubborn female. Steady pace, then chaos over the last 10% or so. It kept me hooked and reading instead of sleeping on a flight.

The Night Sister by Jennifer McMahon for a book by an author with the same first or last name as you (A7). I really enjoy reading McMahon’s books; she is a great storyteller. This one involved 3 different timelines and several POV, but it is still easy to follow. The chapters are short, which makes it way too easy to keep reading, even though it is way past time to go to sleep. If you liked The Winter People, you will like this.

My Man Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse for the Around the Year challenge. This was a short, fun palate-cleanser after reading a couple of fast-paced books. I enjoy British humor, so this served its purpose.

I am currently reading:
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley for the Around the Year challenge.
Stillhouse Lake by Rachel Caine for the Around the Year challenge.

QOTW: I enjoy reading to my nieces and nephews who are all under the age of 8. Other than that I don’t read aloud. I do enjoy having a book read to me via audiobooks, though. Most of the audiobooks I listen to are essays or non-fiction because it seems to be easier to listen in short bursts with them. For longer road trips I will listen to a novel, but occasionally I have to rewind a couple of minutes because I get distracted or my mind wanders.

Unauthorized Cinnamon wrote: "I also like when my 9yo reads to me, because she is so expressive for someone her age, and seems to have fun figuring out how to use volume, tone, and emphasis to good effect...."

This is one of my favorite things about reading out loud with my daughter. I think it has made her a better reader. She understands inflection, tone, how to convey emotion, etc when she reads aloud.

I also do enjoy trying different voices (not sure I'm any good at it). It's easier for me to do with a picture book since I don't have to remember how I did each character's voice for a larger book (looking at you Harry Potter) :)

I didn't participate in the check-ins for the last two weeks because I didn't find the time and I rarely had time to read anyhow so there was not much to give an update about.

Books read:
Abandon for the criminallygoodbookclub on Instagram. I used it for the prompt A book involving a heist - it was ok, but I didn't love it.

I also finished Stillhouse Lake and that one I really loved! So much that I immediatly bought the second book in the series.

Currently rearding:
Killman Creek this is the above mentioned second book in the series. I'm about 90% trough and it's equally great!

Gefrorener Schrei (German edition of The Trespasser - the german title translates to Frozen Scream, I really don't know, who is responsible for these titles :-D). It's a very well written police procedural and so far I absolutely love it! I'm usually a fast reader but somehow I need ages with this book - but that's doesn't say anything about how much I'm enjoying it. Needing that much time probably is just due to all the other things I have going on in my life right now, so sadly time to read is very scarce.

QOTW
I like reading aloud. Since I don't have kids and my husband doesn't like to be read to I sometimes just read aloud for myself. It's a totally different reading experience than reading silently and sometimes I really enjoy that. Being read to I don't enjoy nearly as much. I listen to audio books on my daily commute to and from work but my mind wanders and I miss out on many aspects of the story. Apparently I cannot focus properly if my eyes aren't glued to the pages ;-)

7/50

I finished reading:
Heartless for A book from a celebrity book club - a great book until the end...
The Wrath and the Dawn for A book you meant to read in 2017 but didn't get to - LOVE THE BOOK
The Rose & the Dagger for The next book in a series you started - Great ending to the books.

Currently reading:
Illuminae - rereading to read the next book
Beneath the Sugar Sky for A book that's published in 2018
PostSecret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives for A bestseller from the year you graduated high school.

QOTW:
I love when people read to me. I read most of my books by audio books.
I have 2 kids so I read out loud often but I don't like to...

Happy Thursday!

I'm still struggling with reading. I want to read so many books all at once that I end up not reading any books at all! Or just starting a bunch and reading about 2 chapters and picking up a new one!

Finished

Rick Steves' Snapshot Norway - hoping to plan a trip there within the next year. Definitely loved reading his overviews of different cities and regions. Most excited to visit Bergen after reading this!

Currently Reading

How to Train Your Dragon - using this in my expansion of children's literature. Not sure what/if I'll count it for anything.

Little Women - now I'm starting to get a little annoyed. I just read a whole chapter of articles or whatever from their newspaper or something like that and I don't see how it's relevant to the story. Can we just get back to the "little women" please?!

Mary Queen of Scotland and The Isles - just started this one and I'm so excited! I've been in a huge historical fiction/non-fiction kick (which is part of the reason why I haven't read/finished any books lately.) I just added over 15 historical fictions books but they're mostly about the Tudors. Does anyone have any suggestions within the genre outside of that specific family/time period?

QOTW

I love reading to small children but not to older children/adults. I find that my eyes move a lot faster than my mouth and I trip up over my words more often. I don't much care for being read to, again, unless by small children, because, again, my eyes move faster than other peoples mouths. I love being able to give children the practice but sometimes I just want to take the book and read it myself :) Side not - I do love audiobooks but I usually listen to them at 1.25-2 speed!

Books that tick off prompts

Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan. I’m using it for the favorite past prompt (being made into a movie because it combines my two fave things: books and movies). I really enjoyed it and plan on picking up the next one. It also ticks off the 500+ page prompt on Modern Ms. Darcy.

Books that don’t tick off prompts:

Caught by the Scot by Karen Hawkins. Historical romance that I found to be very meh.

The Alienist by Caleb Carr. Picked it up to read before I watch the series. Historical murder mystery. I enjoyed it and will probably pick up the next one.

QOTW:
I don’t mind reading to people. I do it in class a lot. I used to be the elementary special ed para and I had kids read to me all the time – Click, Clack, Moo, Cows that Type was my favorite. I hate audiobooks though. I finished one last year for the Read Harder challenge (or this one) solely because there was a crying baby on my plane.

Elizabeth wrote: "I also finished The Upside of Unrequited for the prompt A Book with Characters Who Are Twins. I really enjoyed it. I know a previous poster didn't like Becki Albertalli's other book (Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda), but this one made me laugh and it definitely brought back ALL the angsty feelings of adolescence.
."

I loved Simon Vs. and my students are currently devouring that one. But I really did not like The Upside of Unrequited, I think I just did not like the main character and I couldn't get around that.

I finished reading The Other Einstein for the "a novel based on a real person" prompt.

There were interesting bits, but by and large it was a generic tale of doomed romance with famous names inserted as characters, and it wasn't something I would ever read again or freely recommend.

Continuing with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo for the Nordic noir prompt. Took a little while to get into this one, but at 1/3 of the way in, I'm interested.

Reading Ricochet Joe Kindle in Motion just for fun. I don't think it fits any category, but it's been a couple years since I've read anything by Koontz and I needed a little fix.

15/50 with 10 books finished.

Last week was:
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson Nordic Noir

Winter by Ali Smith Next book in a series I'm reading & Published in 2018.

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson A past Goodreads Choice Award Winner.

I like the Larsson, it is uncomfortable and creepy as a good thriller should be.

Ali Smith is wonderful. This next book in the 'Seasonal Quartet' is not as stunning as Autumn but fantastic and enjoyable.

The Tyson is okay. I liked it but it is no A Brief History of Time

QOTW:
I am reading The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy to my 10 year-old son at bedtime this week and I'm loving it.
I consume many books while driving via e-audiobook, so it goes without saying that I enjoy being read to.

I didn't finish any books...but made substantial progress on War and Peace , Wuthering Heights and a smattering of other books.

Ed wrote: "I didn't finish any books...but made substantial progress on War and Peace

Great book! Enjoy.

Carol wrote: "Hello,

I finally finished Different Seasons this week for a book made into a movie I've already seen. There were four stories in this book.

I read it for Rita Hayworth and The Shaws..."

My husband would agree with you about Shawshank Redemption being the best movie ever made.

Hello from icy Montréal,

We had school's off on Tuesday because of the freezing rain. And since I am working in a school I was able to get the day off with my sons.

I finished The Nightingale for the book in a celebrity book club. I wasn't sure to read it because I read a lot of thing about WWII, but I am glad I did. It was very good. Five-stars good. I was trying to hide my tears in the train when reading it, but failed. I connected with the older sister (Vianne), her decision, the way she thinks. The only things that bothered me is that I read it in english and since the book take place in France I could'nt help but translate it in my head.

I am now reading The Amulet of Samarkand for a book received as a gift. I participate in a Secret Santa on another group on Goodreads and that's the book that I received. Pretty good so far.

QOTW: I love reading to my sons, but now the older one prefer to read on his own. But what I like best is when my younger son who doesnt read yet, ask his older brother to read him something. It's perfect.

This week I finished:
Prodigal Summer - (#40) I could have done without the sex scenes (there weren't many and they weren't overly graphic, I just don't enjoy reading about sex at all, haha), but other than that it was really good. Comparable to Kingsolver's gem of The Poisonwood Bible.

Dear Fahrenheit 451: Love and Heartbreak in the Stacks: A Librarian's Love Letters and Breakup Notes to the Books in Her Life - (#39) I was so excited about this one since I'm such a book-lover. I think I was hoping for more...more in-depth reflections on the books she liked. But I still enjoyed it overall, and added some of her recommendations to my TBR list.

Island of the Blue Dolphins - (#21) I hadn't read it as a child, and it was ok...not as moving as I expected.

Win Your Case: How to Present, Persuade, and Prevail--Every Place, Every Time - This one doesn't fit any prompts, but I was interested in the topic. A few of his statements irked me, but other than that he made some good points, and I'm curious about how criminal defense lawyers feel about his theories.

Right now I'm reading At Home in the World: Reflections on Belonging While Wandering the Globe, which is reactivating my wanderlust, and Becoming a Person of Influence: How to Positively Impact the Lives of Others. I'm rolling my eyes at some of the stories in this one, but there are also some thoughtful takeaways.

QOTW:
I don't enjoy reading out loud, but I love being read to, which is why about half of my books are the audio version. I am forever grateful for my local library's wide selection and convenient offering of digital audiobooks through Overdrive. <3

Carol wrote: "Hello,

The second story Apt Pupil was by far the most horrific story I've ever read. It was about a Nazi war criminal and a 14 year old boy who idolizes him (it only gets worse). It was clever and well written, but I hated reading it. 1 out of 5 stars..."

Apt Pupil was made into a movie as well, starring Ian McKellen. Sounds like you wouldn't enjoy it, though. I thought it was just OK.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118636/

This week was a big deal for me - completed my college course last Friday! Had to give a 5-minute presentation to the whole class and actually survived the experience, which was a pleasant surprise. :p Did get evacuated from the building at the end of the day because of heavy snow though!

Reading-wise I've been a little slumpy this week. Finished a book at the start of the week which was just really depressing and since then have only read one novel and a very short book of poetry, with long periods of "i don't know what to reeead" in between.

Anyway this week's books were

Once Upon A Time in the East: A Story of Growing Up (fulfilled "author of a different ethnicity" prompt)
This was the really depressing one. I wasn't surprised - the blurb makes it abundantly clear that it won't be cheerful going in but, well, let's just say I most likely wouldn't have purchased this if I'd seen a full list of trigger warnings beforehand.

(I wish books had an official content-warning system like DVDs and video games do.)

The Gracekeepers (fulfilled "local author" prompt)
Gobbled this down in two sittings. Nice bit of far-future fantasy. A sea circus, mysterious magic and maybe-mermaids, a bear, lowkey f/f love story. If that doesn't sell it to you I don't know what would.

Goblin Market
Lovely but I'll need to read it again to get it - I'm not great with poetry, it's so short that it only skims the surface of my brain and then it's over.

Currently reading The Night Brother.

QOTW: Love being read to, always have. When I was a very young child, my mum would sometimes have to read me 5 picture books a night before I'd finally get to sleep.
There's nobody for me to read aloud to though - even tried the dog once, he wasn't having any of it.
I should really try audiobooks at some point, I do remember liking read-along books-on-tape as a kid.

Another busy week and I’ve started a few longer, deeper books. It can be such a pleasure to read quality writing in literature that I don’t mind the slow down.
8/50
Finished:

#4 Book involving a heist --Master Thieves: The Boston Gangsters Who Pulled Off the World’s Greatest Art Heist -- This is the work of Stephen Kurkjian, a Boston Globe columnist that has been following the break in at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum since March of 1990. For those not familiar with the break in, 13 works of art, valuing over $500 million dollars, were stolen from the Museum on Saint Patrick’s Day Night in 1990. The thieves, dressed as police officers, quickly gained access to the museum and subdued the two 20 something security guards. They had free range throughout the museum. They had free range and spent roughly 90 minutes selecting the pieces to steal. The best known of the works is Rembrandt’s The Storm on the Sea at Galilee, his only nautical piece. To obtain the works, they pulled them from the walls and cut them out of their frames! Clearly, the work of those uneducated in art and its value! The thieves have never been caught and 27 years later the art remains unseen. Kurkjian shares his roughly 10 theories on how it might have been done, all dealing with the mob. I didn’t buy the theories. Even with frayed edges, these works could have value in the overseas black market and the Boston mob didn’t have those kind of connections. On a more positive note, the crime did highlight security issues in the art museum world and shined a light on possible issues to possibly frugal minded museum trustees. If you are ever in Boston, please visit this delightful museum, the former home of a spunky high society wife of a diplomat. It is like no other museum! https://www.gardnermuseum.org/
And Charles Kuralt's America for a different challenge.

Reading:
#20 Book by a local author – Kingdom of Happiness: Living the Beatitudes in Everyday Life – Great piece breaking down the Beatitudes and incorporating them in your life. I’m even participating in an 8 day challenge on them! Fun!

#38 Book with an ugly cover – Death Comes for the Archbishop– One of Willa Cather’s masterpieces! It’s a richly unfolding of a young bishop (who obviously ages into an elderly archbishop) as a Frenchman he navigates the 1800s New Mexico. This will not be a quick read.

Not the question of the week, but Sara’s mention of Breakfast at Tiffany’s Holly Go Lightly being less likeable in the book! Yes!!! I read it a couple of years ago and couldn’t get over how different (not just the ending was) but the characterization. George Peppard (in his heyday, not when he loved when a plan came together) as Paul/ Fred was too handsome and, well, straight, as well as Audrey’s charm compared to Holly’s book persona.

Real QOTW:
I enjoy audio books during my commute, which is sort of reading aloud. I’ve been to a couple author readings over the years and they were great. That said, I prefer to read quietly. I will do dramatic readings of children’s books for the nephews, but they aren’t up with Death Comes For the Archbishop for at least 15 more years!

Until next week!

Good morning! It was starting to feel like I was always going to be sucked into work stuff on Thursday morning instead of settling in with my coffee and posting early in my day.

Finished:
Persuasion, my favorite book. I just felt like reading it, though it also could fill several challenge prompts.

Sociable, an arc I learned after I requested it that I would probably hate... and I did. How much of that was genuine and how much was my own expectations making me extra critical... who's to say.

Third Son's a Charm, which I read in one day featuring a past-midnight push to the finish line I paid for the next day because I'm too old for that stuff. But it was really, really good.

Currently reading:
The Sound and the Fury, a book from a celebrity book club (Oprah) and also my first effort in the "read a classic book that's sitting on your shelf gathering dust each month" quest.

QOTW: I haven't had much of a chance to read aloud since I haven't spent time around children since I babysat in high school, but my cousin and his wife just had the first baby in the family and I really want to read to him! I do audiobooks and I've been to author readings, which are great so I suppose I like being read to myself.

Good Morning,

Not a ton of progress since last week, only one more book but that's better than none.

Finished:

The Boy Is Back - for a book by a local author. I didn't love it or hate it. I enjoyed the story but didn't like how it was told through text messages, emails, etc. I didn't realized that's how the whole series is written. So, this will probably be the only book in Meg Cabot's Boy series I read.

That puts me at 2/52.

Currently Reading:

Turtles All the Way Down - for a book about mental health. It was a suggestion and I enjoyed The Fault in our Stars a few years ago. I haven't started reading it yet but my plan is to get a couple of chapters read during my lunch hour at work today.

QOTW:

I don't have kids, so I don't read out loud at all. It's not that I don't enjoy it, it's just that I don't ever do it. I can say that I do enjoy being read to. I love a good audiobook.

Hey all! This is my first check-in because I hadn't even realized the weekly check-ins were a thing! *headdesk* Anyhow, I'm chugging along, finished three books and working on my fourth now.

The Force Awakens (Star Wars Novelization): Yes, I fell down the black hole of Star Wars fandom (again) and so decided that the novelization would fill out "book made into a movie I've seen". The book was fine, some more details and character beats than they were able to fit into the movie, but the writing was fairly simple. Which, I get it, it's the novelization of a movie. Just don't go looking here for classic literature or anything.

The Obelisk Gate: The Broken Earth #2: Just gonna copy/paste the first, non-spoilery, part of my review: I cannot rave enough about N.K. Jemisin's Broken Earth series. Her first in the trilogy, The Fifth Season, was a masterclass in world-building and storytelling. This fulfilled my prompt for "A book by an author of a different ethnicity than you" and I'm going to use "Next book in a series" to finish out the trilogy. Love, love, love this story.

Annihilation: This fulfilled my "book I meant to read in 2017" prompt, and here's my review: Weird and creepy and hard to put down. Annihilation had been recommended to me by several friends, but it took me a long time to finally get around to reading it. I'm glad I did - this is a really introspective book and I'm really curious how they've transformed it for the upcoming movie. I'm on the wait list for book 2, so we'll see where VanderMeer takes Southern Reach going forward.

Currently working on Truly, Madly, Guilty, and then I've got Gardens of the Moon up next.

hi! checking in on week 4...I've finished Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons
I've also started 4 more and will settle on finishing You
QOTW: I used to read aloud to my boys every night, now they're 19 and 23, so I only get to read aloud to my little nephew and niece if I'm babysitting, but I enjoy reading aloud.
I've been to Author meet and greets and I enjoyed listening to them read to me, but I don't think I'd like to sit and listen to someone else read. I have yet to get an audio book and try listening to a book.

I finished only one book this week

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - for my cyberpunk book, though it would easily fulfill several other categories for me.

Currently reading:

A Study in Scarlet Women - for my book with alliteration in the title

I, Ripper - for my book about a real person

Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened - for past Goodreads choice winner

Bloodline - have not fully decided which category this will be for as I can use it for a couple

QOTW

I do not particularly like reading to others, but as I live alone it's never really become something to do.

But I do a LOT of audiobooks as I travel a great deal and it helps kill time on long car trips.

This week I finished The Bear and the Nightingale for a book with an animal in the title. I loved the premise and imagery, but my interest waned a little bit during the final quarter. I still enjoyed it overall though.

I am currently reading The Underground Railroad for a book by an author of a different ethnicity than me.

QOTW
I love reading to my 14 month old son! He recently started walking and he walks over to me with the book he wants me to read to him. Then he snuggles in my lap and listens to his book (unless he loses interest first).
I don't listen to audiobooks. I am curious to try one, but I love reading books so much I always choose that over an audiobook. As a child, I loved when my dad used to read to me. One of my favorite memories is him reading The Hobbit to me.

Here's what I finished this week:

3. The next book in a series you started - The Miserable Mill by Lemony Snicket
One of my favorite series. My dad used to read aloud to me (even though I could read). Now I'm reading it aloud to my son and he has become OBSESSED. For school he is supposed to read (or be read to) for 20 minutes a day. We usually read Lemony Snicket for about an hour every day.
21. A book with your favorite color in the title - The Color Purple by Alice Walker
I listened to this on audio. Alice Walker reads it herself, which I like. I didn't care for the book just because of personal tastes, but I recognize objectively, that it is a very good book in all regards.
36. A book set in the decade you were born - 1984 by George Orwell
I liked this one. I was surprised at how modern it felt even though it was written in the 40's. I also liked that some of the twists and turns were unpredictable. A lot of older books seem to be predictable just because the tropes have been done and redone for decades since. This one seemed unique in some ways which was nice.

I'm currently still working on all the things I was last week, which I don't expect anyone to remember or care, but I'm tired of posting the same 3 books. I've also added Pinkerton's Great Detective: The Amazing Life and Times of James McParland for the True Crime prompt. It doesn't really seem true-crimey so far, but it came up in my library search for it, and it was the one available on audio that sounded most interesting.

QOTW:
I love reading aloud to my son! I think the Lemony Snicket books are some of the best books to read aloud. As I said above, my dad used to read them to me. Although I was a tween and could obviously read them myself, it was a nice thing we shared, and he always did the stupidest voice for Violet. I, of course, have given Violet the same voice when reading it to my son. It's fun figuring out the voices and accents of each new character in the books, and Olaf's disguise persona always gets his (or her) own voice.

As far as people reading aloud to me, I do listen to audiobooks, which is essentially the same thing. However, I only do that while driving or cleaning. I don't think I would like just sitting on the couch listening to someone read anymore. My mind would wander, or I would feel like I needed to get up and do something.

QOTW: Do you enjoy reading aloud to others? Do you enjoy having someone read aloud to you?

I would say when my boys were small I loved reading to them at night before bed. I do enjoy still reading aloud to others although too keen on someone reading aloud to me.

As far as my progress, another week has passed of no reading (Akkk). But going to try and get some done this weekend for sure.

Happy reading All!!

Taylor wrote: "Happy Thursday!

I'm still struggling with reading. I want to read so many books all at once that I end up not reading any books at all! Or just starting a bunch and reading about 2 chapters and pi..."

I love historical fiction! It's harder for me to find historical fiction I really like than sci-fi or fantasy, so I end up reading those genres more. But I can recommend a few: Burial Rites,The Distant Land of My Father, Beside a Burning Sea, The Poisonwood Bible, The Feast of All Saints, and People of the Book. They're from various time periods and none of them Tudor England. I hope you like some of them.

Finished
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - As I said in another thread, the book wasn't bad, but this genre was not for me.

The Self as Subject: Autoethnographic Research into Identity, Culture, and Academic Librarianship - I read this as professional development. It was an interesting research method, but I only connected with a few of the essays.

Currently Reading
The Miniaturist - I'm a little more than 100 pages into the book. I'm really liking it! I've never read historical fiction set in Holland before, and since I read a nonfiction book about the VOC last year, I'm following along pretty well.

QOTW
I'm not very good at reading aloud, but I enjoy reading books to my neice when I visit her. I really enjoy listening to audiobooks on long drives and when I'm cleaning the house. I'm picky about narrators, though.

Hello from snowy Nebraska. We are warming up now but have had three snow days in the last two weeks. I always think I'll get more reading done on snow days, but the plan of a blanket and a book gets thrown out when the kiddos want to play a board or card game.

I only read three books this week- all for young people again.
The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives was heartbreaking. How fast two lives can change forever. I picked it up without knowing it was nonfiction and realized it would work for the true crime prompt. Hooray.
The Sidekicks was one I found just browsing the library shelves in hopes of finding a book for my reading committee. This isn't a book for the committee, but I'm glad I found it.
They Both Die at the End- I wasn't sure if I really wanted to read this one, but it was getting really good reviews. I'm glad I read it as I liked it.

I am currently reading The Jane Austen Project and I'm not liking it at all. I would skip it, but I am reading it with my sister, mother, and daughter so I will push through.
I am also reading The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey but I haven't gotten to spend much time on this as I have library books coming due. Too many books to read- I love having that problem.

QOTW:
I love reading aloud and started reading chapter books to my kiddos when they were too young to even understand them. I can remember crying my eyes out on the last chapter of Winnie-the-Pooh (when Christopher Robin gets too grown for his bear) and my kiddos wondering what was wrong. We also read tons of picture books. School teachers would ask me to come in and read to their class. Now that my kiddos have grown (the oldest is 21 and the youngest is 14) I don't get to read aloud often.
I also like it when someone reads to me, especially if I have something to keep my hands busy. I love that we can talk about the books we have enjoyed together for years.

Happy Reading this week!

The kidlets finally got to make a snowman, so winter is welcome to end now (before we’ve had such dry snow they couldn’t manage it.)

This week I listened to Big Girls Don't Cry: The Election that Changed Everything for American Women as he Book I saw someone reading in public. It was a good reminder of the Obama/Clinton primary while I wait for my turn at the What Happened audiobook at the library. I may read The Secretary: A Journey with Hillary Clinton from Beirut to the Heart of American Power if I get it before What Happened, since that gives me a good timeline of events.

Then I read Passing and Deep River with my 1001 group. The first I’m waiting to slot into a prompt until I finish the rest of the book, since I have a complete works. The second I put in as my about grief and death. They were both really good reads and I highly recommend them.

Right now I’m listening to Believe Me: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Jazz Chickens, which at the halfway point is surprisingly boring. I’m sort of between reads otherwise - started Paddington Bear and The Rainbow but neither is super catching my attention.

And still plugging away at Wuthering Heights on the Serial app.

QOTW: I mostly love reading to the girls - I’ll admit, sometimes on the millionth read of the same book with ten sentences in it, I get bored.

I like audiobooks and podcasts, but I don’t think I’d like someone just reading aloud to me. I listen to most audiobooks at 1.25-1.5 speed and I think I’d be frustrated not to be able to control the pace.

Good Morning Everyone!!

Finished two books this week:

Dark Matter (Book I Meant to Read in 2017 But Didn't Get to). Loved it loved it loved it. I powered my way through this. Couldn't put it down.

Matilda (Childhood Classic I've Never Read). Very good book. Followed the movie it was based on very closely.*

*I made a joke. That's what I do.

Currently Reading

Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World (Microhistory) It's the audiobook I listen to when I'm in the car. I haven't been making any long trips lately so it's slow going but interesting.

The Complete Tales by Beatrix Potter (Book by an Author with the Same First or Last Name As You). Of course, my real first name is Beatrix.* I was going to read just the Peter Rabbit story for this, but that seemed like too little, so I decided to read everything she'd ever published.

Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI (True Crime). I had downloaded Waking Gods last night for Next Book in a Series You Started, but then Flower Moon became available off my waitlist. Therefore priorities changed, and I'll get back to Waking Gods soon enough.

*Still a lie

QOTW

I loved reading to my kids when they were younger, but that time has passed. Not a fan of being read to, however (audiobooks are the exception). I lose focus easily and it's a lot easier to hit rewind than it is to ask someone to read that last bit again.

Jessica wrote: I don't listen to audiobooks. I am curious to try one, but I love reading books so much I always choose that over an audiobook. As a child, I loved when my dad used to read to me. One of my favorite memories is him reading The Hobbit to me. "

I prefer reading over audiobooks as well, but they are handy when driving or when your hands/eyes are otherwise occupied. Good narrators are a must. I would suggest looking for books where the authors are the narrator. My first audio, besides Harry Potter, was Hitchhiker's Guide and that one is very well-done.

My dad used to read me The Hobbit as well! That is one of my earliest memories.