March Wrap-Up and Spring Reads

It's hard to think that March is over already! It seems like it went by so quickly. So much happened with our house selling, and inspections, and paperwork, it seemed like I had almost no time to read! However I got in a lot more reading than I did in February and made quite a bit of progress with the RMSC.

I read a total of nine books in March, compared to only three in February. Six of the nine books count for the RMSC!
1. The Relic Master by Christopher Buckley (Review)
2. Bookish by Olivia Long
3. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
4. Bury the Hatchet (Tulsa Thunderbirds #1) by Catherine Gayle
5. Last Play by Taylor Hart
6. Naughty Professor by S.J. Bishop and Jeni Brown
7. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
8. Mary Boleyn; Mistress of Kings by Alison Weir
9. A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

Those six books put me at 9 out of 25 for the RMSC. Which means I've caught up (since I was behind one book at the end of February) and if I read 2 books a month for the RMSC I will meet the goal of 25!

Reading Habits

Last month I was out of my favorite tea and I'm still out. Finding time to go to the tea shop has been harder than I thought it would be and I just found out my favorite tea shop is closing. The owner is retiring to spend time with her granddaughter, which is nice for her but now I'm scrambling for tea! I've been drinking a different tea and its working out well, except for I'm almost out of that tea too. However, I did find a coffee that I *love* and its from Starbucks! But its pre-ground and sold in bags at my grocery store so I can get it at a decent price. I've still been going to Biggby to read at least once a week, I usually get in some good reading time there. I have a new found love for shortbread cookies in the last month. I think it's because the tea I've been drinking is a Scottish tea and it goes so perfectly with the shortbread.

Goals for March

-Read 2 and a half books for the RMSC (exceeded!)

-Buy some coffee and tea (I bought coffee but tea is still lacking)

-Buy a toddler-proof bookmark ( I bought one and The Toddler stole it from the kitchen table and I haven't seen it since)

Goals for April

-Find the bookmark I bought last month

-Find my reading glasses (stolen by The Toddler also)

-Eat more baby carrots and less shortbread cookies

-Read 2 books for the RMSC

Spring Reading

It's hard for me to make a list of books I'm going to read, generally because I choose what to read by how I'm feeling. However, I can kind of give a general idea of the kinds of things I'm feeling like reading right now. 

I'm thinking a lot of Kindle books are going to happen this spring, for several reasons. First, we're moving. The books are getting packed first, and will probably not be the first thing that gets unpacked. The Kindle will be accessible when my physical books are not. Secondly, time. Most of the books on my Kindle are romance, and most of those are on the short side. They'll be easy quick reads when I'm stressed out from packing/unpacking. Third, content. I know that moving will probably not be easy with my anxiety and reading something heavy, or dark, or that I will have to work to get into won't really work or me. Most of the romance novels I have waiting for me are pretty light and that is exactly what I'm going to need. 

However, one exception to the fluff books will be, without a doubt, A Court of Wings and Ruin! I'm so beyond excited for this book. I haven't been waiting this anxiously for a book since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. For Deathly Hallows I went to a midnight release party at Borders, and spent the next 24 hours doing nothing but reading, drinking coffee, and eating lunchables. For A Court of Wings and Ruin there are no release party's, at least none that I know of, and with The Toddler needing to actually sleep at night I probably couldn't go to one anyways. But I have preordered and it should get delivered on release day! So unless our actual moving day happens to be May 2nd, I will be spending that day and night and probably the next day, absolutely devouring A Court of Wings and Ruin. I'm still suffering the book hangover from A Court of Mist and Fury, I can't get into anything right now, even the books I'm currently reading I just want to put them down and go pick up Mist and Fury again. I need A Court of Wings and Ruin, like yesterday. 

I'm trying to decide on a few books to keep out of the boxes just so I have some options. I'll probably keep 3 or 4 out. I'm going to keep going with Deadhouse Gates and Outlander. I've got to read Big Little Lies for the book club meeting on the 28th. I'm thinking I'll also keep out The Perfect Girl and Throne of Glass, so that's a total of five. I guess five isn't bad. 

I'm really looking forward to April. There's going to be a lot of changes in the next two months but I can't wait to do a post (or four) on the book organization process in the new house! It's going to be a fun month! Happy reading!

What I'm Reading Right Now #10; Reviews, ARCs, and Fun with Formatting

The last week has been full of books! I did a readathon over the weekend, I did ARC's, I tore through A Court of Mist and Fury, and had book club meeting. Some of the books I finished were better than others, all of them had things I wasn't expecting. I finished three books, two of them counted for the RMSC, the 'Whole Deal' post for that can be found here.

Books I finished this week

Image from Goodreads.com

Naughty Professor by S.J. Bishop and Jeni Brown - This was an ARC I received from the authors for an honest review. S.J. Bishop is one of my favorite sports romance authors, I've loved all her books so far and I was really excited to read this one, even though it's not a sports romance. Adam is released from prison, he was convicted of financial crimes and took the fall for his friend Aiden, who he happens to look just like. Adam runs into Aiden and over drinks they decide to switch places. Aiden gets the freedom to travel and do charity work, and Adam gets to run Aiden's million dollar sports drink company, live in his Chicago penthouse and spend his money. When Adam (as Aiden) takes a lecturing position at a local college he meets Syrena and is instantly drawn to her. He doesn't find out till it's too late that she is his stepmothers estranged daughter. He keeps all his secrets from her, trying to shield her from the truth. But when Aiden's past come back to haunt him Adam's secrets come out.
This book had good parts and bad parts, so I'll start with the good.
The Good; I am a sucker for the whole 'oops, you're my stepbrother' storyline. I don't have a stepbrother, but I just love that particular trope. I also love the 'secret baby' trope. They're so much fun to read. The characters were well written. I particularly liked Adam, he was very well rounded, funny, sweet, and seemed like he was genuinely trying to do the right thing. I liked that it took place in Chicago, and not some fictional, unnamed city. Knowing where the location was made it that much easier for me to visualize the story. I was really into this story until about the 90% mark. Up until then it was a great, fun, easy read. Which brings me too the bad parts.
The Bad; This part has SPOILERS. If you don't want to know what happens don't read this part! Also if you are sensitive about miscarriage and/or infant loss this could contain triggers. I know some people hate trigger warnings but I think everyone deserves the right to decide weather they read about triggering subjects or not. So, the bad parts. Syrena has a miscarriage. A pretty violent one. I had an anxiety attack when I read it. I couldn't breathe, couldn't stop shaking, it was pretty bad for me, personally. If I'd known this book contained something along those lines I would not have read it. I would have stuck to S.J. Bishops normal sports romances and totally skipped this one. I actively avoid reading about miscarriages, even in fiction, because I know they have a bad effect on me.. Also, the woman Syrena's ex left her for dies in childbirth or shortly after along with her baby. I was able to over look that one since it's not described in any detail.
Also, the timeline of the story was not well defined at all. I had no idea how much time had passed between Syrena getting back together with Jamie and running into Adam at an awards show. Things really jumped around when Adam had his car accident. It seemed like the accident happened immediately when he left the awards show but then Syrena had to travel to get to where he was and could only skype with Jamie, which doesn't make sense if they were still in New York. I hate to admit this next bit but I hate Syrena's name. I don't like made up names, or 'unique' spellings of established names, and it really bothered me till about half way through the book. Every time I read it my eye would twitch a little until I got used too it.
It seems like a lot of bad, but really 90% of the book was excellent. It was just that last 10% that really got to me. I had a hard time coming up with a rating for this book. I settled on 3 stars, after much thought, because most of the story is excellent. Without the miscarriage part, which I really don't think it needed, there was enough drama going on without that, this would have easily been a 4.5-5 star romance.

Image from Goodreads.com

Last Play by Taylor Hart - This was such a sweet romance! When Roman Young, star QB for the Dallas Destroyers, has to go home to Utah to sell his uncle's Inn he meets Katie Winters. She's strong, and funny, and married. Roman fights his growing feelings for her but when he finds out her husband was killed a year ago he has to decide if he really wants to sell the Inn and be done with Wolfe Creek Utah or if he could have a future with Katie and her son Josh. This was definitely a slow burn romance. There were so many times I was reading, going 'kiss her, kiss HER, KISS HER ALREADY!' I liked Katie's character. She's so strong, and so broken, but her willingness to dedicate herself to the people she loves is amazing. The town of Wolfe Creek was full of interesting characters, and the snowed in town was the perfect setting. I did feel like the whole story was a little bit rushed though. I would have enjoyed more details about the town and the people, just as context for the story. The whole 'small town' thing makes me think of Moose County from the 'Cat Who...' books by Lillian Jackson Braun, and the details about the setting are one of the best things about those books. I was surprised that this was a clean romance book. There was no sex. It wasn't a bad thing, it didn't take away from the story at all, it just wasn't what I was expecting. I gave it 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Image from Goodreads.com

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas - OMG. This book. Let me start by saying I loved the first book. I thought it was so amazing. But this book, this ending, totally blew the first book away. This does contain SPOILERS for the first book, so if you're planning on reading it skip it! Feyre, a mere human, has saved the Fey people of Prythian from the clutches of Amarantha. She spilled Fey blood and shredded her own soul in order to do it, but Tamlin, High Lord of the Spring Court, and all the Faeries are safe. Feyre struggles with her own guilt and depression over what she had to do, while Tamlin struggles with his need to keep Feyre safe. When Rhysand, High Lord of the Night Court cashes in on the bargain he and Feyre forged Under the Mountain, she begins to see that there may be other options for her besides being a caged pet of the Spring Court. With war coming from Hybern, Feyre has to decide what's best for herself and the people of her land, human and Fey alike.
I cried so hard during this book. Feyre's journey to heal herself is beautiful, and painful, and so amazingly written. And the romance! Talk about a slow burn romance! This takes it to another level! I feel like I can't write too much with out giving away too many details, but this book is amazing! I know I'm using a ton of exclamation points but really, this book needs all the exclamation points!

Books I'm currently reading;

Images from Goodreads.com

Deadhouse Gates by Steven Erikson - I starting to question if I should keep reading this series. It's really taking me forever to get into this one. Granted, I haven't given it much time in the last week, but the other books I'm reading aren't taking this long to get involved in. The first book took a long time to get into also but I felt like it really paid off at the end. I'm going to try and keep going with this one for one more week and then we'll see how I feel about it.

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon - I didn't give much time to this one in the last week either. I don't know how much I'll get to read it this coming week but I'm going to keep going.

Some Practical Magic by Laurie Carroll-Kuna - I was given a free copy of this one for review. I'm about a quarter of the way through it and it's really good so far! I love books about witches, especially in a modern setting, and that exactly what this one is. I also have the sequel, That Old Black Magic, so I'm excited to read that one too.

What's up next;

That Old Black Magic by Laurie Carroll-Kuna (Free copy for review)
Practicing Normal by Cara Sue Achterberg (ARC)
Anaconda by Lauren Landish
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Coming Soon on the Blog;

Reading Habits Post #2; Coffee Shops - I had meant for this post to go up last week but with the Book Club post needing to go up I had to push it back.
Still working on the 'Books I Want to Re-read' post, there are a lot more of them than I originally thought.
March Wrap-Up post is coming early next week! I going to be a long one!

Wow! This post turned out a lot longer than I thought it would. I'm playing with some formatting things on this post, since I'm still learning what all the buttons do so if something doesn't look right let me know!

Holy Cow It's A Readathon Weekend!

Two posts in one day? I know I'm going a bit over board but this has special circumstances! I just got my first books for review from Netgalley.com! They are not new books, but if I want to get new books to review in the future it's probably a good idea for me take this seriously.

I have one issue with this whole review thing right now. I'm currently reading six books. SIX. So this weekend, I'm going to read as much as possible. I might even ask my mom to come babysit on Sunday so I can read all afternoon. My goal is to finish at least three books by Monday morning. I might have to temporarily DNF list one or two books so I can get to the review books in a timely manner. Which I'm okay with since it is only temporary and I'm not very far in to any of the books I'm reading right now.

I'll update this post (hopefully) multiple times this weekend and share my progress. This is where I'm at as of 2 pm on friday 3/24;

Outlander - pg 7
Deadhouse Gates - pg 58
A Court of Mist and Fury - pg 8
Naughty Professor - 14%
The Wall of Winnepeg and Me - 3%
Last Play - 21%

Update #1- 10 PM 3/24

Outlander - pg 7
Deadhouse Gates - pg 58
A Court of Mist and Fury - pg 26
Naughty Professor - 55%
The Wall of Winnepeg and Me - 3%
Last Play - 21%

I spent the afternoon playing in the backyard with The Toddler, I didn't get as much reading done as I could have. Really, though, she's more important than anything and it was the first warm day this spring. So I'm staying up a bit to read.

Update #2 - 3:30 PM 3/25

Outlander - pg 7
Deadhouse Gates - pg 58
A Court of Mist and Fury - pg 39
Naughty Professor - FINISHED
The Wall of Winnepeg and Me - 3%
Last Play - 21%

I finished Naughty Professor around midnight last night. It was...not what I thought it was going to be. Full review coming next week sometime. So far most of today has been spent at Home Depot, but I'm home now and The Toddler is about to take a nap, which equals reading time!

Update #3 - 12 AM 3/26

Outlander - pg 7
Deadhouse Gates - pg 58
A Court of Mist and Fury - pg 53
Naughty Professor - FINISHED
The Wall of Winnepeg and Me - 3%
Last Play - FINISHED

I didn't get as much reading in on Saturday as I would have liked. I have finished two books so far this weekend and the goal was three so I'm doing good there, however with the rest of the books I'm really at the beginning of all of them. I think Outlander is going to land on the DNF list for now. I'm debating between ACoMaF and Wall of Winnepeg to tackle next.

Update #4 - 11 PM 3/26

Outlander - pg 7
Deadhouse Gates - pg 58
A Court of Mist and Fury - pg 160
Naughty Professor - FINISHED
The Wall of Winnepeg and Me - 3%
Last Play - FINISHED

So I didn't get as much reading done this weekend as I thought I would. I only finished two books, but I made a lot of progress with A Court of Mist and Fury. I'm hoping to hit page 200 before I go to bed tonight.

What I'm Reading Right Now

I feel pretty awesome about the last week. I finished three books and they all counted for the RMSC! Which puts me up too six books read out of the goal of 25! The updated 'Whole Deal' post about the RMSC can be found here.
However my TBR pile is ever growing. In addition too the books I picked up in my last 'What I'm Reading' post I got a few more at the used bookstore. And then I ordered a few (seven) books from thriftbooks, And then I went to the other used bookstore. So, altogether I've added eleven books in the last week. None of them count for the RMSC (this year) but I'm probably going to read, at least a few of them, this year.
Look at me, thinking ahead! Already planning for the RMSC next year! Although, in all honesty, I probably have enough books to keep me doing RMSC's for the next four years, without buying anything. But not buying books isn't really an option.

Here are the books I FINISHED in the last week;
The Relic Master by Christopher Buckley- I really liked this one. It got 4 out of 5 stars. Read my full review here.

Bookish by Olivia Long- This book was...not great. It wasn't terrible but it wasn't as good as it could have been either. 2.5 stars out of 5. You can read my review on Goodreads here.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky - 5 stars. I can't believe I didn't read this till now. I saw the movie when it first came out on DVD, so I knew, more or less, what happened, but as always, the book was better. I do think that I would have enjoyed it a hundred times more if I'd read it in high school, but I did love it, even as an adult.

Here are the books I'm currently reading;
Deadhouse Gates by Steven Erikson - Still working on this one. I'm going slow and taking my time, because there are a hundred new characters in this one. It picks up right where Gardens of the Moon left off time-wise, but geographically it starts on a whole other continent with a whole bunch of new info and characters and once again you are plunged into this world with little to no info about whats actually happening. Which I'm fine with. I actually like it that way, its like learning a new language by immersion. Like, just drop me off in Brazil and let me figure it out. Not really. But kind of.

Bury the Hatchet by Catherine Gayle - Sports romance! Usually I read football romances. I'm not much into hockey, but this story sounded really good so I'm giving it a try. I really like it so far. The main characters are great, Tallie has so much to figure out, like she's just floating and shes really got to get it together. And Hunter. OMG Hunter. Talk about a book boyfriend. He's got it together and everything is getting turned upside down. This is the first in a series so I might have to try the rest of the series. Maybe. I have not had good experiences with romance series.

What's up next*;
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
Love in Lingerie by Alessandra Torre
Three Sisters, Three Queens by Philippa Gregory
Craving Her Curves by Nora Stone
*These are books I may or may not read, or at least start, in the next week. Having a list helps me not have to stare at my shelves/Kindle for an hour trying to decide what to read.

What's up next on the blog;
I've got so many posts backed up that I might keep doing three posts a week instead of two. I don't think two is enough. Next week I'm starting a series on my reading habits. The good ones, the bad ones, and everything in between.
I'm also doing a post about kids books! The Toddler loves to read and we've gotten some really great books from the library recently and I wanted to share.
A couple of reviews might get thrown in there too, we'll see how many books I finish!

Review of The Relic Master by Christopher Buckley

Image and blurb from Goodreads.com 

The year is 1517. Dismas is a relic hunter: one who procures “authentic” religious relics for wealthy and influential clients. His two most important patrons are Frederick the Wise, Elector of Saxony and soon-to-be Cardinal Albrecht of Mainz. While Frederick is drawn to the recent writing of Martin Luther, Albrecht pursues the financial and political benefits of religion and seeks to buy a cardinalship through the selling of indulgences. When Albrecht’s ambitions increase his demands for grander and more marketable relics, Dismas and his artist friend Dürer conspire to manufacture a shroud to sell to the unsuspecting noble. Unfortunately Dürer’s reckless pride exposes Albrecht’s newly acquired shroud as a fake, so Albrecht puts Dismas and Dürer in the custody of four loutish mercenaries and sends them all to steal Christ’s burial cloth (the Shroud of Chambéry), Europe’s most celebrated relic.

On their journey to Savoy where the Shroud will be displayed, they battle a lustful count and are joined by a beautiful female apothecary. It is only when they reach their destination that they realize they are not alone in their intentions to acquire a relic of dubious legitimacy. Filled with fascinating details about art, religion, politics and science; Vatican intrigue; and Buckley’s signature wit, The Relic Master is a delightfully rich and intelligent comic adventure.

I've read a lot of historical fiction over the years. It's one of my favorite genres, but rarely is historical fiction funny. This book was funny. There was one particular reference to 'man-jam' that made me actually set down the book so I could belly laugh without loosing my page. I loved the fast pace and the short chapters, it made the whole thing go by very quickly. Most of the characters were very well written and by the end of the book I cared as much about them as they did each other. Even the German mercenaries who had been sent with Dismas and were relatively flat characters, were very endearing by the end of the book, as their loyalty and friendship to each other, and eventually to Dismas and the others, really showed who they were. 

What I loved the most was the time that The Relic Master was set at. It's set in 1517-19. I could tell you all about what was happening in England at that time. Henry VIII was preparing for the Field of the Cloth of Gold, the summit where the entire English court would go the France and meet with Francois 1 near Calais in 1520, he was still happily married to Catherine of Aragon and his affair with Betsy Blount was just ending since she was pregnant with his son in early 1519. But for all I know about England in that time period, my knowledge of the rest of Europe, and the world for that matter, is almost nothing. So to get to see a view point of the rest of Europe during that time was very interesting for me. The fact that there wasn't even a mention of England was pretty cool for me because it put those events into perspective. The whole of Europe was not focused on the royal court of England, which is easy to loose sight of when that's all you read about. 

As far as things I didn't like; I bought into Dismas being desperate and all that as for making the shroud in the first place, but once he was in Savoy and they had a plan in place, it seemed like there was an easier way to do what they were trying to do. I kept wondering why they didn't just tell Albrecht they'd switched the shrouds and leave the Chambery shroud where it was since Dismas was so sure it was fake anyway. The plan itself was a problem for me too. It was never really a clearly defined plan. They bought the fabric in Basel, but then never talk about a plan again, and when to get to Savoy it's never really talked about either. I felt like the reader was left to figure it out through conjecture, and while that works sometimes here I felt like I was just left out and standing on the edge with no idea what was going on. Thankfully this book was entertaining enough that it didn't matter much and I didn't really think about it much until I was done reading.  
I also thought, that with the back drop of Luther and the religious climate in the book one of the main characters would go through some kind of religious awakening and decide to follow Luther on his reform, but that never happened. Luther was discussed often and Durer seemed to side with him as far as the church went but no ones attitude or religious beliefs were affected by the events in the book. Dismas went on being skeptical, Durer quietly supported reform and kept being a good catholic, and Magda's  beliefs were never mentioned. 

The things I liked far outweighed the issues I found with this book. Also it gets extra credit for using the word 'man-jam' which I'm still laughing about. I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes historical fiction, has a good sense of humor, and doesn't mind a bit of rough language and religious jokes. If you liked Lamb by Christopher Moore, you will probably like The Relic Master. 

Rating; 4 saints jaw bones out of 5

February Wrap-up

 

It's March! I wanted to start doing a wrap-up post at the end of every month, just to recap what books I read in the last month, progress on the RMSC, and reading habits/issues that I'm noticing. 

So February. It wasn't my most prolific reading month. I read three books, only one of those counted for the RMSC. 

1. The Yellow Wallpaper (Gilman)

2. Detroit; An American Autopsy (LeDuff)

3. Gardens of the Moon (Erikson) -This one counted for the RMSC

As far as the RMSC goes...

I've read 3 books out of the goal of 25, which puts me one book behind. As of now I need to read 2.2 books a month in order to finish on time. Realistically, if I can finish two books a month and get aout half way through a third book I should be okay. 

Habits-

I ran out of my favorite black tea about a week ago and then I ran out of my morning coffee three days ago. Lack of hot beverage has thrown me off and a shopping trip may be in order. I've been going to Biggby Coffee a couple of nights a week to get in some dedicated reading time and I've really enjoyed that, I call it my Mom-cation (mom+vacation). Also, I need a better bookmark. The Toddler loves to steal my bookmarks, so I'm always losing my place and can never find one when I need one.

Goals for March-

-Read 2 and a half books for the RMSC

-Buy some coffee and tea

-Buy a toddler-proof bookmark

That's it for February! Hopefully March brings a ton of good books and lots of reading time and coffee!

Read My Shelves Challenge - The Whole Deal (Updated 5/23/17)

I've decided that the Read My Shelves Challenge needs a post dedicated to posting updates; including rules as they are added, the official Did Not Finish list, the official list of books I've read for the challenge, and any other information I think needs to go on here. I might even Pin it on Pinterest.

I'm also going to include a list of abbreviations since I seem to be using an awful lot of them recently. 

Goal of the Read My Shelves Challenge; To read the books sitting on your bookshelves, on your GoodReads Want-To-Read list, on your e-reader, or in your Audible library (or whatever other format you have), that you've been meaning to read but haven't gotten to yet. To cultivate the habit of reading and love the books you have. 

Abbreviations; (updated 4/22/17)

RMSC - Read My Shelves Challenge

TBR - To Be Read

DNF - Did Not Finish

GR - GoodReads

LT - Library Thing
ARC - Advance Reader Copy (Authors or publishers sometimes give these to reviewers to get reviews and spread the word on a book before it's release)
YA - Young Adult
MG- Middle Grade 

Official List of Books Read for RMSC; (updated 4/22/17)

1. The Walking Dead Vol. 10 (Kirkman)

2. Friends With Partial Benefits (Young)
3. Gardens of the Moon (Erikson)
4. The Relic Master (Buckley)
5. Bookish (Long)
6. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (Chbosky)
7. Bury the Hatchet (Gayle)
8. Last Play (Hart)
9. A Court of Mist and Fury (Maas)
10. The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata

Official DNF List for 2017; (Updated 5/23/17)

1. Happily Ever All-Star (Sosie Frost)

2, Friends With Full Benefits (Young)

3. Billionaire Impossible (Anna Collins)
4. Deadhouse Gates (Erikson)
5. The Wall of Winnipeg and Me (Zapata)
6. Carnivalesque by Neil Jordan
7. Beauty and the Baller by Abbi Hemp
8. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
9. Carnivalesque (Jordon)
10. Beauty and the Baller (Hemp)

The Rules;

1. Only books I owed as of midnight on January 1st, 2017 count toward the total for the challenge.

2. Books I own and have previously read do not count.

3. Books I started but did not finish do count.

4. You don't have to finish every book you start. If you don't like it, donate it and move on to the next book.  

This page will be updated as the year goes on. I will try to link to it if it's mentioned in a post, and will try to put a date next to any updates, just for my own records. 

What I'm Reading Right Now (Sort of) and Thoughts About What Counts

This post was supposed to be written on Friday. It's Wednesday. And I really don't have anything new to add to my currently reading list. I've decided to DNF list a couple of books, but I haven't started any new ones.

Remember how I said The Toddler had a cold last week and we were snuggling on the couch. Well, now I've got the cold. And holy crap does it suck. I've been sleeping A LOT (and thankfully, so has The Toddler) and not doing much of anything else. The house is a mess, I've had to turn down a showing because it's such a mess. I've got a lot of catching up to do on just about everything. Today is the first day in almost a week that I haven't felt like death but I'm going to continue to take it easy so that I don't get sick again, at least for a couple more days.

I wrote last week about running into a bit of a rough patch with the RMSC. This week the rough spot continues. Everyone in my house is sick, it's a vicious cycle. The Toddler got it from her grandma, and gave it to me, and I gave it to The Husband, and now we've all got The Plague. I haven't read anything in days and I can feel a reading slump coming on. I can sit and scroll through the hundreds of books on my Kindle and not find a single thing I want to read. I can stand and stare at my (beautifully organized) bookshelves and not find a single thing there either.

On the other hand, I can scroll through Pinterest and find book after book that looks/sounds amazing, but of course I don't own any of those books so it doesn't really help. I keep thinking that I need to read something short and quick to get me back into the reading groove, and one book keeps coming to mind. The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. I read it in high school and it really stuck with me though the years. I remember going 'Jackpot!' in my head when I found a copy of it at Secondhand Prose, and though I've kept it for years I've yet to read it. But I have read it in the past, so I can't decide if it should count for the challenge or not. I'm reading it anyway, of course, but I can't decide if I should count it. This had got me thinking about other things that may or may not count.

First, books that are part of a series. Like the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series by Tad Williams. I've got all the books in the series but I have only read the first book and maybe half of the second book, and that was years ago now. So, I need to reread the series from the beginning, but does the first book count towards the challenge since I've already read it? The point of the challenge is to read books I already own, but do only unread books count?

When I originally came up with this challenge the goal was to read books I own but have not read yet. Counting books I've read already is not what the challenge is supposed to be about, it's about reading new things. So, I think if it's something I've already read, even if it's part of a series, it doesn't count.

But that brings up the next thing. Books that are half read? Going back to the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series. I read half of the second book but didn't finish it. It was a good book, I just got into a reading slump and never picked it back up. Since it was never finished does it count? I think so. One of the reasons I decided to do the challenge was to actually read the books on my shelves, including the half read ones that I never got around to finishing.

But what about books like The Yellow Wallpaper, that I read and then bought a copy, but never read the copy I own? I'm thinking no, that it shouldn't count. I've read the book, even if it wasn't the copy that's sitting on a shelf upstairs, I've read it.

Quick summary of newly established rules;
Books I read and then bought - don't count.
Books I bought and then read - don't count.
Books I bought, started, but didn't finish - do count.

So this is where I am this week. Hopefully by Friday I'll be feeling better and be able to post a better update.

The First Book of 2017!

It wasn't the book I expected it to be. And it doesn't count for the Read My Shelves Challenge. But I read the first book of 2017! How to Manage Your Home Without Losing Your Mind By Dana White. She's one of my favorite bloggers, my favorite podcasts, but I'd never bought any of her e-books until this one went on sale for $1.99. On January 2nd. So I loved it but it doesn't count for the RMSC. I actually read the whole thing in one sitting, I did skip over a few bits about decluttering because she covers that pretty well in the podcast but after I do the "28 Days to Hope for Your Home" part from the appendix I might go back and read those parts.

Also, I'm reading four books at a time right now! That's crazy! I don't usually do more than two, but they are all so different and in such varying formats that I'm able to do it right now. Only three of them will count for the RMSC, I bought The Nesting Place; It Doesn't Have to be Perfect to be Beautiful by Myquillyn Smith this afternoon because the e-book was on sale for $1.99. I kind of have a thing for homemaking books at certain points in the year, and New Year's is one of those times. I'm trying to make progress on all the books everyday, the e-books and the Walking Dead graphic novel should be finished by tomorrow. I pretty bad at updating my page count (or percentage) on GoodReads unless I'm having a hard time finishing a book for whatever reason, then I need the motivation of seeing the updated percentage to keep me going. Sometimes I have a hard time concentrating on one thing at a time so I find it easier to read multiple books and switch between them frequently than try and force myself to read one, because I know I will get bored and set the books down and not pick up another one for a year. That's how I got into my reading slump a few years ago.

So, recap;

RMSC: 0/20
Reading goal for the year: 1/35

Hey, look! I made a blog!

A reading blog! Because I want to read more. In 2016 (and 2015, and most of 2014) I found myself in a reading slump. I finally got out of it in the fall of 2016! I was so happy, I felt like myself again! But I realized exactly how many unread books I have on my book shelves. It's a lot. A lot, a lot.
So in 2017 my goal is to read only (mostly) books I already own. I can't honestly say I won't buy any new books, or receive them as gifts, and I'm in the middle of a few series that have new books coming out in the coming year and I'm sure I'll be buying them, and some of those new books will get read. But, I want to make an intentional effort to read books I already own, some of which have been sitting on my shelves for years. I'm calling this the Read My Shelves Challenge. I've done the Goodreads reading challenge, but this will be a bit different because only books that I own on or before midnight on December 31, 2016 will count. My goal is to read 20 books for the RMSC. I'm counting e-books I already own because even though they don't necessarily take up room on my book shelves, I own them, and I have hundreds of unread books just sitting on my kindle waiting for me. I think 20 is a good number, since I know I'll be picking up a few new books and I'm part of a book club that meets once a month, so a good total goal for the year is 35 books.
Over the next year I'll be posting what I'm reading, any challenges or road blocks that come up, and probably other stuff about my reading habits, as I try to make better use of my down time and prioritize reading. I know I have some challenges going in to this and over then next few weeks I'll be posting as I formulate my game plan for the coming year. Not having any readers of this blog is probably a good thing for me right now so I won't be sharing this anywhere just yet. Knowing no one is reading will allow me to not feel guilty if I run into problems but the anxiety that someone might read it will keep me accountable. Yay for social anxiety!

So as a recap;
Read My Shelves Challenge! 2017
Total goal; 35 books read
Books I own goal; 20
People reading this blog; 0 (I hope)