Tag Archives: #boutofbooks

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Bout of Books Wrap-Up!

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This round of Bout of Books has officially ended! Like several days ago, because I got way behind with my updates.

Before I get into my wrap-up, here are my Day 7 stats:

Pages read: 166 pages of Fierce Kingdom, 81 pages of Heating & Cooling

Books started: None

Books finished: Fierce Kingdom, Heating & Cooling

So! As you can see, I was actually able to accomplish the goals I set for myself for this readathon: to read three physical books and listen to one audiobook. Here’s what I was able to finish:

Home (Binti, #2)Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud: The Rise and Reign of the Unruly WomanFierce KingdomHeating Cooling: 52 Micro-Memoirs

And I read some of these two also:

An Enchantment of RavensBlue Nights

Bout of Books total stats:

Books finished: 4

Total number of pages/audio time: 571 pages and 6.6 hours of audio

On Sunday, I was really determined to stick to the goals I’d set for myself, and I had a much less busy day planned so I was actually able to get a lot of reading done. I read a bit during the day in between doing things around my apartment, and then met up with friends for Thai food and an escape room in the evening. The escape room was One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest-themed, and it was a lot of fun–we actually ended up escaping much more quickly than we usually do, once we were able to track down the correct medication for the missing patient. Once I got back, I stayed up late finishing both Fierce Kingdom and Heating & Cooling. Fierce Kingdom actually ended up being a bit of a letdown, but I really enjoyed Heating & Cooling–it’s a perfect readathon read.

Overall, I’m glad I accomplished my goals, but it was such a crazy week for me that I didn’t even feel like I was able to read that much. I also didn’t stick that closely to my TBR, and I think if I had I’d probably have enjoyed those books more than some of the ones I ended up reading. August has been a bit of a lackluster reading month for me compared to July (which was wonderful, I read so many awesome things!). I feel like having a stellar reading month last month set me up for failure a bit this month, but oh well! There’s always next month. My wrap-up post for August with reviews will be up in the next few days. I hope those of you participated had a great Bout of Books!

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Bout of Books Updates: Days 4, 5, 6

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(Yep, I’m way behind with this update post! I got super busy this weekend and the blog updates went on the back burner. My wrap-up and day 7 update post will be up soon too!)

On Thursday (day 4), I was able to get a lot of audiobook listening done while commuting and cooking dinner; I finished Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud: The Rise and Reign of the Unruly Woman by Anne Helen Petersen and started a new audiobook, Blue Nights by Joan Didion. I’ve read one other Joan Didion book previously, The Year of Magical Thinking, which focused on the death of Didion’s husband and her subsequent mourning; Blue Nights is another memoir, which focuses on the death of Didion’s daughter.

Friday was a TERRIBLE reading day; I got absolutely nothing done! I went straight from work to dinner and drinks for a friend’s birthday and didn’t get back until late. Although it was a bad day for reading, it was a fun day in general 🙂

On Saturday, I had plans to take a day trip for most of the day to a town about an hour away that is home to a spiritual community of mediums; it ended up being such a gorgeous day and we found this adorable “fairy trail” where people have set up tiny fairy houses all along paths in the forest. My friends got readings done with mediums there, and we explored the community and shops while enjoying the beautiful weather.

When I got home I met up with another friend I’d made plans with, but after that, I was determined to get some reading done! I couldn’t stand the idea of going two days during a readathon with absolutely no reading. So I read a decent chunk of Fierce Kingdom (I’d intended to finish it, but it didn’t end up happening; I wasn’t quite as invested in the story as I would want to be to binge-read the entire thing) and started Heating & Cooling by Beth Ann Fennelly; I had received an ARC copy from the publisher when I was at BookCon earlier this summer. I figured that Heating & Cooling would work well in a readathon because it’s extremely short and divided up into micro-memoirs, which range in length from a few sentences to a few pages. And I was right! It was the perfect way to switch up my reading, and I laughed out loud during several of the first few micro-memoirs.

Day 4

Pages read: 158 minutes of Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud, 16 minutes of Blue Nights

Books started: Blue Nights

Books finished: Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud

Day 5

Pages read:  None!

Books started: None!

Books finished: None!

Day 6

Pages read: 59 pages of Fierce Kingdom, 30 pages of Heating & Cooling, 17 minutes of Blue Nights

Books started: Heating & Cooling

Books finished: None

 

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Bout of Books: Days 1, 2, & 3 Updates

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It’s officially time for Bout of Books!

Three days in, I’d say this readathon is going pretty well, even if I haven’t read quite as much as I expected to at this point (I never do).

I kicked off my readathon once it hit midnight Sunday night/Monday morning, which is how I prefer to start readathons, with An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson (I received an ARC at BookCon). So far, I’m all about it. There are fae, it’s creative, the main character is an artist, there are hints of darker tones and bits of darkness in fae/human interactions, and I like the writing style. I’m hoping this book will help tide me over until the next ACOTAR books start being released!

On Monday, I was able to listen to a bunch of my current audiobook, Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud: The Rise and Reign of the Unruly Woman by Anne Helen Petersen, during my commute and lunch break, and when I got back from an absolutely insane/terrible day at work, managed to start reading Binti: Home by Nnedi Okorafor after watching Bachelor in Paradise. (I know, I know, but it’s such fun trashy TV.) The reason I started another book instead of reading more of An Enchantment of Ravens is that I’ve been specifically saving Binti: Home for this readathon, and since it’s very short I wanted to it to be the first book I’d finish during the ‘thon.

On Tuesday, I again audiobooked during my commute and lunch break at work, but ended up getting home later than I thought I would for the second day in a row. I’d intended on finishing Binti: Home on this day, but I was just too sleepy; I read another decent chunk of it before I had to give in and go to bed.

Wednesday is my day off from work, so I was finally able to finish a book (yay!) by completing Binti: Home. I actually liked this one a lot more than the original Binti; things became more complex and a lot happened in a very short period of time. It definitely is a big lead-up to the third and final novella, however, and does end on a cliffhanger. I actually hadn’t known when I started it that it would be a middle book, but that’s OK; I really like this series and will definitely pick up book 3, Binti: The Night Masquerade when it’s released in January.

I listened to a bit more audio while running errands, went to a library book sale (and bought soooo many books!) and then decided I was in the mood for something different, so I ignored my currently reading pile (which has 6 books on it) and my readathon TBR (because when have I ever stuck to a TBR?) and picked up my Book of the Month pick for August, Fierce Kingdom by Gin Phillips. It’s a fast-paced, shorter suspense novel about a woman and her four-year-old son trapped at the zoo with a gunman, and takes place over the course of 3 hours. I figured that the fast pace of the book would help me pick up my reading pace since I feel like I’m a bit behind where I wanted to be midway through the week.

An Enchantment of RavensToo Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud: The Rise and Reign of the Unruly WomanHome (Binti, #2)Fierce Kingdom

Reading stats:

Day 1

Pages read: 14 pages of An Enchantment of Ravens, 27 pages of Binti: Home, 81 minutes of Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud

Books started: Binti: Home

Books finished: None

 

Day 2

Pages read: 57 pages of Binti: Home, 59 minutes of Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud

Books started: None

Books finished: None

 

Day 3

Pages read: 78 pages of Binti: Home,  49 pages of Fierce Kingdom, 65 minutes of Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud, 10 pages of An Enchantment of Ravens

Books started: Fierce Kingdom

Books finished: Binti: Home

 

How is everyone else’s Bout of Books going so far? Let me know in the comments!

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Bout of Books TBR!

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Bout of Books

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda Shofner and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 21st and runs through Sunday, August 27th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 20 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

 

It’s almost time for Bout of Books, one of my favorite readathons!

August has been a super readathon-ish month for me. Usually I do only one readathon per month, or more usually none at all, but this month I’m going straight from Tome Topple, which focuses on reading books longer than 500 pages, to Bout of Books, during which I typically focus on reading several short books. This round, I’m really hoping to read at least 3 physical books and 1 audiobook. I think that’s a solid goal. I’m planning on posting updates throughout the week here and on my Instagram account.

Here’s my TBR:

 

Heating & Cooling by Beth Ann Fennelly (ARC) – I received an Advance Reader’s Copy of this collection of micro-memoirs from the publisher (W.W. Norton) at BookCon. It’s very short and I know very little about it, but I like the idea of jumping into something new during a readathon. I’ve never even heard of a “micro-memoir” before, but I like the idea!

Dusk or Dark or Dawn or Day by Seanan McGuire – all I needed to know about this one was that it’s a Seanan McGuire novella about ghosts. Done.

Binti: Home by Nnedi Okorafor – I read Binti for a previous readathon, and found that the pacing, plot, and the fact that it’s YA made it a perfect quick read. This sequel is longer and focuses on Binti’s return home to Earth after attending school on another planet, something that’s forbidden where she’s from.

Children of the New World by Alexander Weinstein – I’m so interested in this science fiction short story collection and I hope I have time to at least start it next week. Short stories can be a great way to get in little chunks of reading during a readathon.

The Brides of Rollrock Island by Margo Lanagan – I’m at the very beginning of this book, which focuses on a small island where men steal selkies for their brides and is sort of creepy and dark fairytale-esque so far. I really like Lanagan’s writing style.

An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson (ARC) – I received an advance reader’s copy of this book from the publisher (Margaret K. McElderry Books) at BookCon as a happy accident–I just managed to be at the right place at the right time to get in line for a copy of this fantastic-sounding book. It sounds sort of A Court of Thorns and Roses-esque in a very good way; it’s released on September 26th.

And an audiobook or two, TBD! It depends on whether or not I finish my current audiobook (A Scot in the Dark by Sarah MacLean) and which of my library holds come in on time. Audiobook possiblities:

A Scot in the Dark (Scandal & Scoundrel, #2)The Rogue Not Taken (Scandal & Scoundrel, #1)Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud: The Rise and Reign of the Unruly Woman

 

Who else is participating in Bout of Books??? I’m excited!

 

 

 

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Bout of Books Wrap-Up (And Days 6&7 Updates)

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So that’s a wrap for Bout of Books! It’s always fun to have a readathon going to help inspire you to read more than you normally would. I definitely wouldn’t say I got a crazy amount of reading done this week, but I think I did a decent job and most importantly have (for the most part) really enjoyed the books I chose.

On Saturday, I had a very productive readathon day. I did have to work, but I listened to the audiobook of Trainwreck: The Women We Love to Hate, Mock, and Fear..and Why by Sady Doyle on my commute and also while running a bunch of errands afterwards, so my day was doubly productive. When I got home, I finished reading The Beauty by Aliya Whiteley, which turned out to be very good and even weirder than I expected it to be (which is a good thing in my book). It also had more plot twists than I anticipated, so I couldn’t have stopped reading it even if I’d wanted to. I meant to pick up another print book after that, but I started getting some things done around my apartment while listening to Trainwreck and couldn’t stop; it’s very short as far as audiobooks go, and the subject matter is super absorbing. I actually finished it late Saturday night and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a feminist nonfiction read.

Sunday was Mother’s Day, so I spent most of the day with my family and didn’t get quite as much reading done. I did start a new audiobook, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert, but only got a little bit into it. I also read a little more of Windwitch by Susan Dennard, which is slower-paced than I had expected.

Here are my stats for the readathon as a whole:

Total books read: 3

Pull Me UnderThe BeautyTrainwreck: The Women We Love to Hate, Mock, and Fear... and Why

Total pages read/audiobook time: 432 pages and 464 minutes of audio

Books started, but not finished: 3

Windwitch (The Witchlands, #2)The LoverBig Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear

And here are my stats for the last two days of the readathon:

Day 6

Pages read: 237 minutes of Trainwreck, 74 pages of The Beauty

Books started: None

Books finished: The Beauty, Trainwreck

Day 7

Pages read: 12 minutes of Big Magic, 37 pages of Windwitch

Books started: Big Magic

Books finished: None

 

How did Bout of Books turn out for you guys? Let me know!

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Bout of Books Updates: Days 3-5

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Here are my updates at the end of day 5 of this round of the readathon! I’m still having a great time doing Bout of Books, although it hasn’t been perfect: in the past 3 days, I managed to actually finish a book (!) and started a new audiobook, but have been struggling a bit with my physical book reading. My goal for the readathon was to finish 3 books, so I definitely have a ways to go if I want to accomplish this.

Wednesday was my day off from work and I thought I’d be able to get a ton of reading done; I ended up being busier than expected but still managed to get through a decent chunk of Kelly Luce’s Pull Me Under and Susan Dennard’s Windwitch. To mix things up a bit, I started The Beauty by Aliya Whiteley, a short novel set in an isolated community of men after a pandemic has killed all of the women in the world. It’s definitely a very strange story, but the writing is skillful and lyrical.

On Thursday, I finally managed to finish Pull Me Under, a book I’ve been meaning to read for the past 6 months. For most of the book I was enjoying the story, particularly the discussions of Japanese culture, and was thinking about rating it 4 stars; however, for me the book really fumbled with how it handled the main character’s emotions and growth toward the end and it ended up being only a 3-star read. I also read a bit more of The Beauty, which quickly took a very odd turn; I’m really curious to see how the author handles things going forward.

Because I was listening to the audio version of Pull Me Under during my commutes to and from work, I was left without an audiobook on Friday. There were a few available from my library’s Overdrive app that I was interested in, but I ended up choosing Trainwreck: The Women We Love to Hate, Mock, and Fear…and Why by Sady Doyle and narrated by Alex McKenna. The narrator was a big reason I picked this one up; McKenna also narrated Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler, which has been one of my favorite audiobooks to date. I got completely sucked into this nonfiction book on Friday and listened to it for several hours, which is super rare for me as I struggle with paying attention to audiobooks. This book offers really interesting cultural criticism about why we tear famous women down while discussing tons of examples, both historical and modern. It’s so good that I may even finish it in the next few days.

 

So here are my stats for days 3-5:

Day 3

Pages read: 86 pages of Pull Me Under, 28 pages of Windwitch, 11 pages of The Beauty (125 pages total)

Books started: The Beauty

Books finished: None

Day 4

Pages read: 63 pages of Pull Me Under, 14 pages of The Beauty (77 pages total)

Books started: None

Books finished: Pull Me Under

Day 5

Pages read: listened to 215 minutes of Trainwreck

Books started: Trainwreck

Books finished: None

 

How is everyone else’s Bout of Books so far?

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Bout of Books Days 1&2 Updates

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We’re two days into Bout of Books! Things started off really well for me–I kicked off the readathon late Sunday night (technically after midnight on Monday) by starting The Lover by Marguerite Duras, a short novel that was on the top of my readathon TBR. It ended up being a bit different than I expected; instead of a fast read, the writing is actually very complex and I found myself rereading a lot of her sentences. Her style is complex and disjointed; each few paragraphs the narrative jumps forward and backward in time, so it’s definitely not a quick type of read. I still would really like to finish it during the readathon if I can, although I was only able to get through about 15 pages.

During the day on Monday, I listened to the audio version of Pull Me Under by Kelly Luce (I also have the physical book and I’ve been alternating between the two) during my commute to and from work; I’m really enjoying this story so far. It’s about a woman who killed her bully as a child and has since completely reinvented her life; however, when the death of her father brings her back to Japan, the country of her childhood, she’s forced to confront a lot of things she has kept buried.

I had a long day at work and when I got home I wasn’t feeling ambitious enough to pick up The Lover, so I read a bunch of Windwitch by Susan Dennard instead. This book is the second in a series focusing on two female friends with different magical powers; one can always tell truth from lies, and the other can sense the emotions and connections between other people. I’m definitely liking it so far; another viewpoint character has been added and I really like her, which means that I’m very into four of the five viewpoint characters (one of the love interests really rubs me the wrong way, but I still like the series a lot overall).

Unfortunately, Tuesday wasn’t nearly as successful of a reading day. It ended up being an absolutely crazy day at work, and I had plans to see a movie with friends right afterward (Guardians of the Galaxy 2!  It was such a fun movie). The only reading I got done was a brief audiobook session of Pull Me Under during my lunch break. Wednesday is my day off, however, so I’m hoping to make up for some lost reading time today.

Here are my stats:

Day 1

Pages read: 15 pages of The Lover, 64 pages of Pull Me Under, and 30 pages of Windwitch (109 pages total)

Books started: The Lover

Books finished: None

 

Day 2

Pages read: 10 pages of Pull Me Under

Books started: None

Books finished: None

 

How is everyone else’s Bout of Books going so far? Let me know in the comments!

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Bout of Books Days 6&7 Updates & Wrap-Up

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So, this round of Bout of Books I relied heavily on mood-reading, which I’m totally OK with. Sometimes I just get in the mood for graphic novels and/or urban fantasy and/or YA, and this time all three of these moods overlapped and I was somehow able to accommodate them all in a week. Which is pretty cool! I did deviate a lot from my TBR list, but again, this happens sometimes when I spend too much time making TBRs and feel like I’m pressuring myself. I feel like as soon as 2017 started I was putting pressure on myself to #readmyowndamnbooks when I really should instead just be reading what I want to read. Overall, it was a really fun week of reading, and I think it definitely helped kickstart my reading for 2017.

Books finished: 7

Alex + Ada, Vol. 2 by Jonathan LunaMagic Shifts (Kate Daniels, #8)Magic Binds (Kate Daniels, #9)Giant Days, Vol. 1 by John AllisonRelish by Lucy KnisleyGiant Days, Vol. 2 by John AllisonAlex + Ada, Vol. 3 by Jonathan Luna

Books started, but not finished: 2

Poison Princess (The Arcana Chronicles, #1)So Much for That Winter

#readmyowndamnbooks: None

Library books read: 5

 

And here are my stats for days 6 and 7:

Day 6

Pages read: 162 pages of Poison Princess

Books started: none

Books finished: none

Day 7:

Pages read: I have no idea, I was sort of skimming/re-reading the Dark Elements trilogy by Jennifer L. Armentrout and I didn’t really keep track

Books started: I mean, I guess I re-started the Dark Elements trilogy

Books finished: none, really

 

See any books you like? How did your Bout of Books go?

 

 

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Bout of Books Days 4&5 Updates

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There was a bit of a drop-off in my Bout of Books participation during Days 4 and 5 compared to the first few days, because work. But! I still managed to read two more graphic novels and start two other books–one is a bind-up of two novellas and an actual book on my physical tbr shelf, and the other is the first book in a romantic post-apocalyptic YA fantasy series.

I’m continuing to fail very hard at my goal of reading my own books, but as I haven’t yet posted about my reading goals of 2017, I’m deciding that it doesn’t count yet. I ended up going back to the library on Tuesday because I literally could not resist, and picked up four books–the next volumes of Alex + Ada and Giant Days, as well as Poison Princess by Kresley Cole (because I decided I was really in the mood for a new YA series) and Lord of the Flies by William Golding (because I have no idea how I haven’t read this book yet). So far Poison Princess seems like it’s a mash-up of like 18 different genres and like it’ll probably be a bit of a mess, but hopefully in a fun way. And for a classic, Lord of the Flies strikes me as a faster read and maybe something I can finish this weekend. So, I’m probably going to be putting the whole #readmyowndamnbooks thing on the back burner until Bout of Books is over, since mood reading seems to pair well with readathons for me.

Here are my stats for days 4 and 5:

Giant Days, Vol. 2 by John AllisonAlex + Ada, Vol. 3 by Jonathan Luna

Day 4

Pages read: 136

Books started: Giant Days, Vol 2

Books finished: Giant Days, Vol 2

Day 5

Pages read: 158

Books started: Alex+Ada, Vol 3, Poison Princess

Books finished: Alex+Ada, Vol 3

 

How is everyone else doing with Bout of Books so far?

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Bout of Books Days 1, 2, and 3 Updates :)

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So far, Bout of Books is going wonderfully, and as always, this readathon really comes at the perfect time. I was out of town visiting friends in New York for New Years’ weekend, so I started Bout of Books on Monday on the plane ride home by finishing a re-read of Ilona Andrews’s Magic Shifts, the 8th book in her Kate Daniels series, and starting the newest and penultimate book in that series, Magic Binds. Tuesday was a long day back at work; unfortunately it was one of those 12-hour workdays that never seem to end, but I picked up Thai food on the way home and settled in with Volume 2 of Alex + Ada by Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn, a graphic novel series set in the near future that focuses on robots and ethics. I also read a bunch more of Magic Binds, which I was able to finish this morning since it’s my day off. I actually had a really productive reading day and was additionally able to finish the first volume of Giant Days, a graphic novel about three friends in their freshman year of college by John Allison and Lissa Treiman and Relish by Lucy Knisley, a graphic memoir about the author’s relationship with food. I also started So Much for That Winter by Dorthe Nors, an unconventionally formatted novella collection.

I always have these intentions of reading a bunch of books on my physical TBR shelf for readathons, but it usually doesn’t end up happening and I end up seduced by library and ebooks instead, since they tend to be my faster reads. For the first part of the readathon at least, I’ve really been in a graphic novel mood and I’m even tempted to return to my library to look for the next issues of Giant Days and Alex + Ada, so we’ll see how that goes.

Magic Shifts (Kate Daniels, #8)Alex + Ada, Vol. 2 by Jonathan LunaMagic Binds by Ilona AndrewsGiant Days, Vol. 1 by John AllisonRelish: My Life in the Kitchen

Here are my stats for the readathon so far:

Day 1

Pages read: 171

Books started: Magic Binds

Books finished: Magic Shifts

Day 2

Pages read: 246

Books started: Alex + Ada, Vol 2, Relish

Books finished: Alex + Ada, Vol 2

Day 3

Pages read: 456

Books started: Giant Days, Vol 1; So Much for That Winter

Books finished: Magic Binds, Giant Days Vol 1, Relish

Is anyone else participating in Bout of Books? How is the readathon going for you? Let me know!