On My Nightstand September 28, 2024

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cozy cat time

It’s Saturday night and I am attempting to stay up for the premier of the 50th season of Saturday Night Live. The odds aren’t good, but we’ll see.

We’re all feeling better and it’s already time to start figuring out winter sports. But first it’s the best reading month of the year- October! I just love to curl up with spooky stories or atmospheric mysteries this time of year.

Have a great week everyone!

Quote of the Week

“You know she would make a splendid Lady Catherine de Bourgh.”
— The Hotel by Elizabeth Bowen

cat after the sun came out today

On My Nightsand This Week

Kindle- Vanished by Wil Hylton - I just started this book tonight and so far I’m fascinated. It’s about finding wreckage from WWII in Palau.

Audio- Pacific by Simon Winchester - This one’s interesting too. It’s all about the nations surrounded by the Pacific Ocean.

Paper- Devil-Devil by Graeme Kent - Still working on this one! I should finish before the end of the weekend. I’m enjoying it and am glad there’s a couple more in the series.

reading by the fire

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On My Nightstand September 21, 2024

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reading with a cat

This week passed by in a haze of ginger ale and vicks vap-o-rub. Me and both kids were sick with various maladies. We’re all on the mend now, but this weekend has been busy catching up with what we missed when we slept last week. I knew when the kids went back to school this was bound to happen.

Have a great week everyone!

Quote of the Week

“With rifles twirling and hands slapping stocks in unison, it was a picture to warm and drill instructor’s heart, if drill instructors had hearts.”
— Micronesian Blues by Bryan Vila

My Nancy drew collection

On My Nightsand This Week

Kindle- The Daughters of Block Island by Christa Carmen - This has been living on my kindle for a while. I decided to pick it up this week because I need a book set in Rhode Island for my challenges. It’s a great ode to gothic novels from the past, and perfect reading for this time of year.

Audio- You Like It Darker by Stephen King - I am loving these short stories so far.

Paper- Devil-Devil by Graeme Kent - Never got to this last week. I’ll start tomorrow.

full moon

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On My Nightstand September 15, 2024

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a tuxedo cat peers over the top of a nancy drew book- this cat ignored me all day until this moment

I’m waiting for the Solstice on the 22nd to fully declare it full on Spooky Season, but I’m starting to let my Halloween stuff creep into my every day life. Yesterday my daughter and I went thrifting and we bought a few things for the upcoming weeks. Maybe also I am safe to start buying some candy to keep and give out to trick or treaters, but only the things we don’t really like. The good stuff will be bought as late as possible.

My September reading is going well. I’ve been enjoying all of my Reading Around The World books. I am also finally watching through The Gilmore Girls (official last woman on Earth to do so I think.)

Have a great week everyone!

Quote of the Week

“Why is everything banana colored?”
— The Hotel by Elizabeth Bowen

thrifted glass pumpkin

On My Nightsand This Week

Kindle- Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane - Taking a break from my reading challenges for a bit because the change in weather made me in the mood for some Lehane.

Audio- You Again? by Nick Spalding - I picked this only because I knew it was set in the Maldives, but it’s actually been a lot of fun. It’s kind of romanceish, and full of shenanigans. I found it on Everand, but it’s also included on Kindle Unlimited at the moment.

Paper- Devil-Devil by Graeme Kent - I’m about to start this mystery set in the Solomon Islands tonight, and really looking forward to it.

Cat naps

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September 2024 TBR

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August Beginning TBR: 416
August Ending TBR: 416

(This is two months in a row that my TBR count has stayed the same despite reading 10+ books.)

Books read in August as of 8/25: 10

Reading USA progress: 34/51

Reading Canada progress: 3/13

Reading The Americas progress: 24/46

Reading Africa progress: 31/53

Reading Asia progress: 35/45

Reading Oceania progress: 7/15

Reading Europe progress: 7/51

For several years now I have been working on reading a book set in each country on Earth. Also I set a yearly goal to read a book set in every US state (plus DC) and every Canadian province.

I spent the summer chasing the new releases and reading what I wanted. But now it’s back to school time and I’m getting serious about working towards my reading goals. I’m hoping that aside from finishing my Reading USA and Reading Canada challenges before the end of the year I can also finish Reading Asia and Reading Oceania. I’ve found some great titles for September so I’m really looking forward to my reading this month!

My September TBR:

1) 102 Minutes by Jim Dwyer (work book club)

2) Tales From The Torrid Zone by Alexander Frater (Reading Oceania Fiji)

3) Micronesian Blues by Bryan Vila and Cynthia Morris (Reading Oceania Micronesia)

4) Pacific by Simon Winchester (Reading Oceania Tuvalu)

5) Vanished by Wil Hylton (Reading Oceania Palau)

6) Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones (Reading Oceania Papua New Guinea)

7) Devil-Devil by Graeme Kent (Reading Oceania Solomon Islands)

8) A Tortise for the Queen of Tonga by Julia Whitty (Reading Oceania Tonga)

9) Mother, Nature by Jedidiah Jenkins (Reading USA state TBD)

10) The Daughters of Block Island by Crista Carmen (Reading USA Rhode Island)

11) Sunburn by Laura Lippman (Reading USA Delaware)

12) Moonflowers by Abigail Rose-Marie (Reading USA Kentucky)

13) Not What She Seems by Yasmin Angoe (Reading USA South Carolina)

14) Dandelion by Jamie Chai Yun Liew (Reading Asia Brunei)

15) Central Asia by Adeeb Khalid (Reading Asia Tajikistan)

16) You Again? by Nick Spalding (Reading Asia Maldives)

17) The Meeting Point by Lucy Caldwell (Reading Asia Bahrain)

18) The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng (Food And Lit Litsy challenge Malaysia)

19) Author A Month challenge on Litsy- something by TJ Klune

20) The Hotel by Elizabeth Bowen (Chapter a day buddy read on Litsy)

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On My Nightstand August 4, 2024

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national gallery of art

I worked this week, but I spent a few of the evenings visiting the local sights since my kids are out of town. They don’t love going to art museums or zoos with me, so I just go when they’re gone. Now the kids are back and we’re getting ready for fall sports next week. Summers never last as long as I think they will!

I also spent some time going through my reading plans for the rest of the year. I read quite a few new releases and ARCs this year which has been fun. However I am really behind in my reading goals. So I planned a way so that I can at least finish my Reading Oceania and Reading The USA challenges.

Quote of the week:

“I started doing several different breathing exercises at once that all canceled each other out.”
— All Fours by Miranda July

national botanical garden

On My Nightstand This Week:

Kindle - The Rhino Keeper by Jillian Forsberg - An ARC for a historical fiction book coming out in October.

Audiobook - The Empire of Gold by S.A. Chakraborty - I bought myself a paper copy of this last year for my birthday, but I realized I just find them much more enjoyable on audio. So I switched to audio but kept my copy of the beautiful book for my shelf.

Print - Tales From The Torrid Zone by Alexander Frater - This one will be with me for a while. I’m enjoying the travel memoir that takes place in various tropical countries, but it’s not something I can curl up with and read for hours.

the national zoo

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#JIAM Audiobook Mini-Challenge Results

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I had fun taking part in the #JIAM Audiobook Mini-Challenge with Caffeinated Reviewer and That’s What I’m Talking About.

I finished two of the three challenges I was trying for, and started another.

  • Love your Library (listen to 3 audiobooks from your local library)

  • Going the Distance (listen to 3 audiobooks over 12 hours each)

  • Tackle your Audiobook TBR Pile (listen to 3 audiobooks you already own)

If you want to join sign up here and post reviews here.

#JIAM Audiobook Mini-Challenge

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I’m looking forward to taking part in the #JIAM Audiobook Mini-Challenge with Caffeinated Reviewer and That’s What I’m Talking About to celebrate audiobook month in June.

There are a list of challenges to chose from- the three I’m going to try for are:

  1. Love your Library (listen to 3 audiobooks from your local library)

  2. Going the Distance (listen to 3 audiobooks over 12 hours each)

  3. Tackle your Audiobook TBR Pile (listen to 3 audiobooks you already own)

If you want to join sign up here and post reviews here.

Show Us Your Books March 2024

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I can’t believe it’s March already! (Maybe I say that every month. I don’t know.) Either way I’m grateful that I got in the habit of tracking my books on LibraryThing and Litsy so I can go back and see what I read in these months that seem to move at light speed.

February was a great month. I’m still keeping up with my challenges as you can see here- I’m reading about the environment, reading from the Tournament of Books Long List, and reading from across Oceania. All of this has led me to some great reads I wouldn’t have read otherwise, and to some stinkers which we won’t discuss here.

Five Star Reads

On Fragile Waves by E. Lily Yu - Wow, this book was a punch in the gut. I can’t believe more people aren’t talking about this book about refugees in Australia and Nauru.

Four Stars

The Girl In The Tower by Katherine Arden - I enjoyed this one- it was a lot more action packed than the first in the series. I also liked the changing relationships between the siblings and loved the horse. I’ll read the 3rd but I’m going to wait until November at least because these are definitely cold weather books.

This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger - The first 30 pages of this took me two days to read because it was so slow, and then I finished the last 400 or so in 24 hours. I’m glad I didn’t give up! The story of 4 orphans trying to make their way to St Louis by canoe was a good one.

Koala by Danille Clode - A natural history of the koala. I really enjoyed this. Who knew reading about the different types of eucalyptus trees could be so interesting?

The Death of Expertise by Tom Nichols - This book was as depressing as it was interesting. Notably it was written before the pandemic so today’s reader is left feeling like there’s a lot missing from the discussion. However the points made still feel spot on as someone who works for a firm where thought leadership used to be a big part of our business.

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This post will be shared with Quick Lit on ModernMrsDarcy.com

On My Nightstand October 30, 2022

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Thank you all for your well wishes last week. It was a long week of funerals and ceremonies, but I’m glad my friend had such a fitting send off.

This weekend is Confirmation for my son, and then early Thanksgiving since everyone will be together. We’re looking forward to that!

In between I plan on sneaking off to read. I need to re-charge somehow! Here’s what’s on my nightstand this week.

No Exit by Taylor Adams - I’m about halfway through this one, and I love the creepiness factor,

Tell Me More by Kelly Corrigan - I’ve enjoyed other books by Corrigan, and am looking forward to this one.

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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.

On My Nightstand October 23, 2022

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This week didn’t turn out like I had planned. Very sadly, one of my best friends passed away last week. I am still reading, but soon I will need to stop and regroup. For now, here’s what’s on my nightstand this week.

What Storm, What Thunder by Myriam J A Chancy - The #FoodandLit club on Litsy is reading and eating from Haiti this month. I’ll admit I picked this one based on the title and cover alone.

On the Slab Pie by P.D. Workman -- Another cozy mystery for my work book club. I hope after this we’re done with these for a while.

Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny -- Slowly re-reading this series before the new one comes out in November!

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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.

On My Nightstand October 16, 2022

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Th book The Good Left Undone by Adriana Trigiani next to a plate with a sandwich, a pickle, and chees-its. All are outside on a table on a sunny day.

I way underestimated the available hours in my schedule last week, so I’m playing catch up this morning (and maybe working a little ahead?)

I was in the office four days, my son has homecoming plus two cross country races, and my daughter had soccer and extra dance classes. I guess we’re all trying to fit what we can in while there’s still some sunshine and daylight to be had!

Here’s what I have on my nightstand this week. A lot of it is leftovers from last week, which I never posted about because I lost track of time then too. That’s October!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder Joanne Fluke - I’m about a chapter in on this one. So far it’s a typical cozy mystery involving baking and death. (This one is free for Amazon Prime members.)

What Storm, What Thunder by Myriam J A Chancy - The #FoodandLit club on Litsy is reading and eating from Haiti this month. I’ll admit I picked this one based on the title and cover alone.

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins - I finished Jane Eyre last week, so this was the natural next read. I have a hardcover version of this, but I noticed it’s also available on Kindle Unlimited.

Horseman by Christina Henry - Reading this for a book club, and it’s a little more yuck than I prefer, but it’s not terrible.

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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.

On My Nightstand October 2, 2022

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A small pumpkin on a red book with Scrabble tiles that spell OCT

October is here! I am so excited. I pulled all of my decorations and flannel PJs out of the attic last night. I had planned on reading for a good chunk of the time yesterday, but then I fell asleep. Now that I’m caught up on rest I’ll try again today!

A few of the challenges I’m participating in the month are:

Who ever said reading wasn’t a team sport??

I also have my very own October Bucket List that I’m trying to complete.

Happy reading this week! Here’s what’s on my nightstand:

All the Queen's Men by SJ Bennett - I loved the first book in this series about Queen Elizabeth solving mysteries, and turned to the second after watching so much news coverage of her amazing life last month. You really can believe that she solved mysteries in her spare time.

Cooking The Books by Chelsea Thomas - I’ve read a few from this series featuring murders at an upstate New York apple orchard. They’re good for fun, easy reads.

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen - The latest chapter a day read with the Pemberlittens on Litsy. This is one of my favorite Austen books, and I’m really looking forward to it.

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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.

September Reading Plans

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Pine trees in the snow

I just did a big clean out of my bookshelves and realized just how bad my unread books problem has gotten. So, my September reading plans include really trying to read some books I already own instead of getting more from the library. That said I really want to read the Three Pines series again, in order, before the next one comes out in November. I’m also running out of time on my 2022 challenges, and gearing up for Scarathalon reading next month.

So many books, so little time!

Litsy A to Z Challenge Results

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It’s that time of the year when I either finish the millions of challenges I signed up for last December or realize I’m going to fail miserably. I’m happy to say for the second year in a row I finished the A to Z challenge on Litsy.

This is a fun and easy challenge because for the most part it works out when you read a lot of books. There are several tracks, but I simply aim to read a book starting with each letter of the alphabet. At then end though I had to search for books beginning with ‘K’ and ‘X’ so I’m going to share my list here for anyone else in a similar predicament.

Note: I know these challenges aren’t for everyone, but I love them. This isn’t meant to make anyone feel like I think you should be doing more with your reading life. It’s just one of the ways I track my reading and try to get my TBR down to a manageable level.

A - The Awakened Kingdom by N.K. Jemisin

B - Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

C - The Cold Millions by Jess Walter

D - Dolly Parton, Songteller by Dolly Parton

E- Even As We Breathe by Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle

F- The Farm by Tom Rob Smith

G- Gone Crazy in Alabama by Rita Williams-Garcia

H- The House In The Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune

I - The Impossible First by Colin O’Brady

J- The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner

K - The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

L- Leave The World Behind by Rumaan Alam

M- Mollie Garfield in the White House by Ruth S. B. Geis

N- Naked and Marooned by Ed Stafford

O- Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

P- The Pearl That Broke Its Shell by Nadia Hashimi

Q- The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee

R- The Resisters by Gish Jen

S- Sleeping Giants by Sylvian Neuvel

T- The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E Harrow

U- Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey

V- Vietnamese Food Any Day by Andrea Nguyen

W- What Unites Us by Dan Rather

X- X by Sue Grafton

Y- The Year of Pleasures by Elizabeth Berg

Z- Z by Therese Fowler

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March Reading Stats

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Mabry Mill

Mabry Mill

March was a great reading month. We had a few days that were perfect for reading outside, plenty of audiogardening, and a short road trip that supported my reading habits. I noticed I was quick to bail on books that didn’t grab me right away. I have mixed feelings about bailing on books, but overall I do think it allows me to read more books that I like.

Total Read: 17 books read - 6 audio and 11 print. As I mentioned I bailed on five others.

TBR: Started at 849 and ended at 852. Could I have really added 26 books to my TBR? I guess so. I really need a month off to read.

Challenges: Reading Asia -1 (Nepal), Food and Lit - 1 (Ethiopia), Bookspin Bingo - 5 Bingos!, Reading Canada - 1, Chunkster Challenge - 52% done with Les Miserables

April should mean warmer weather for gardening and reading outside, but it also means spring sports for the kids so we’ll see. I have some good books planned for the month, so that should keep me motivated!

January Stats

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Finally gave in and set up a home office, and the cats wasted no time in taking it over.

Finally gave in and set up a home office, and the cats wasted no time in taking it over.

Read: 18 books (11 audiobooks, 7 print)

Challenges:

Reading Asia: 1 Book

Reading Europe: 1 book

Food and Lit: January was Brazil. I bailed on the one book I tried, ate Brazi bites, and listened to some Brazilian music which I enjoyed.

Bookspin BINGO: 15 read, 2 bails, 2 BINGOs

Chunkster Challenge 2021: 30% through Les Miserables (Really love this book)

Beginning TBR: 843

Ending TBR: 839

Overall a prolific month, but I still feel distracted. I was hoping to leave that in 2020, but the year is young.

Show Us Your Books is next Tuesday, so I’ll share favorites then!

Year End Reading Stats And Goals For 2021

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So, I don’t really care about my stats this year. I read 208 books, but for some of them I was so distracted and checking Twitter every 1.5 seconds. It’s a high number, but it doesn’t mean much. Still it is interesting to me to see what my reading year looked like so that next year I can compare.

I like to binge read certain authors

There were 8 authors that I read three or more books from this year. In 2020 these eight authors made up 18% of my reading: Stephen King (8), LM Montgomery (7), Louise Penny (7), Jane Austen (4), Frederik Backman (3), William Kent Krueger (3), Ann M Martin (3), Colson Whitehead (3)

Audiobooks Were My 2H2020 Coping Mechanism

I went crazy with the audiobooks this year, mainly in the 2nd half of the year. When I couldn’t sit still to read I could put my ear buds in and listen while I walked or puttered. In 2020 45% of my reading was via audiobook.

I Felt Like All I Did Was Re-Read, But It Wasn’t As Much As I Thought

My re-reading this year wasn’t as high as I thought it was- only 17%. I don’t take issue with re-reading like some people do, but I am glad to see that more than 80% of the books I read helped take some of the stress off my TBR.

Non-fiction Isn’t That Hard

Again, this stat surprised me. I didn’t think I would have had the patience to read much non-fiction this year, but it was actually 22% of my reading.

2020 Challenges

No I’m not talking about the challenges of a crazy year. I’m talking about the challenges I signed up for.

  • I read books from 20 countries and 34 states

  • I read and cooked from 9 different cookbooks (dropped this one when getting groceries got hard)

  • I read books from 11/12 #AuthorAMonth authors from Litsy. I skipped Mary Roach. One of her books almost made me vomit on metro once. This was my favorite- it was challenging and fun at the same time.

  • I read books that started with every single letter of the alphabet.

2021 Goals

I set my overall goal for 200 books again, but in 2021 I want to read more chunky books, be more intentional about reading from my TBR, take part in #AuthorAMonth again, and take part in various Litsy challenges like Litsy A to Z, Food and Lit, Reading Asia, and Reading Europe.

I’m looking forward to a better year in all sorts of ways for 2021!

The Trouble With Theme Reading

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This month I’ve been taking part in a reading challenge on Litsy. The goal is to earn points for my team by reading as many books about Halloween and dark and twisty mysteries as I can. It’s been fun, and I’ve met some great people, but boy am I tired of unreliable narrators and psychopaths. There are still 8 days left in October, and I’m not sure I’m going to make it to the finish line.

This isn’t a job, and my team will win nothing but bragging rights, but also I live in fear of letting people down. That said, if I read any more about murder I might never read again. (My solution- re-read the Baby-Sitters’ Club. Not a super good use of my time.)

Does anyone else have these problems reading on theme? Right now I can’t wait for it to be November so I can curl up with something cozy.

Halftime Reading Goals Progress

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Can you believe it? 2016 is half over. Any resolutions I made to improve myself in January have been long abandoned, except for the ones related to reading. I'm still trying to meet my 2016 reading goals for non-fiction, reading out loud, and classics.

Goal #1:

Read 50 non-fiction books, at least 40 from a list I curated from my TBR.

Progress: I have read 28 non-fiction books so far this year, but only ten are from my list. I'm in the middle of a huge book from my list now, so progress will be made this summer.

Goal #2:

Read the 5 chapter books on this list out loud to my kids.

Progress: I have read three chapter books out loud to my kids (plus numerous story books), but none were from my list. Not to fear, we have started two books from the list, so this shouldn't be a total shut out.

Goal #3:

Read these 8 classics in 2016.

I've read 3/8, almost half of my list. I would have read Grapes of Wrath too, but for some reason I've been waiting for weeks for my library hold.

Reading Challenges:

Modern Mrs. Darcy's reading challenge:

I only have 2 books left for this one -- "A book chosen by your sibling, spouse, child, or BFF", and "A book that was banned at some point".

BookRiot's Read Harder Challenge:

I've read 10/24 books for this challenge. Time to step it up! I'm starting with my selection for 500+ pages - City on Fire.

Books on the Nightstand Summer Reading BINGO:

I am super excited for my BINGO card - this is my 3rd year doing this, and I think it's my best yet.  I usually try to read the whole square, and I usually get pretty close.

My TBR

I started the year with 400 books on my TBR, and am down to 383. Not bad, since I feel like I've added about a thousand books since summer reading lists started coming out.

Happy reading!