Author: Rachelle

Down the TBR Hole #102

Published on by Rachelle
Image: hjl

How it works:

  • Go to your Goodreads want-to-read shelf.
  • Order on ascending date added.
  • Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
  • Read the synopses of the books
  • Decide: keep it or should it go?
My shelf is up two books to 1148.  Though I finished several books, I also added several to my wishlist.
This week’s books:

The Broken Sword by Molly Cochran and Warren Murphy – KEEP.  This is the 2nd book in the “Forever King” series, and I got it through Netgalley before I realized it was a sequel.  I haven’t read the 1st book, The Forever King, yet, so I’m going to keep this one at least until I do.

Censored by Matthew Fellion and Katherine Inglis – KEEP.  This is another book I got through Netgalley, and my plan is to read it at some point during a future Banned Books Week.

Of Myst and Folly by Leah Cutter – GO.  I don’t remember how I got this ebook, but I suspect it was a freebie.  Regardless, I have a hunch that this book is not going to be something I will enjoy.

Wrestling with Gods ed. by Liana Kerzner and Jerome Stueart – KEEP. Short-story anthologies are always hit or miss for me, but I’m willing to try this one out.

The Pearl and the Carnelian by Annabel Fielding – GO.  This is another ebook that I’m not sure where I got it from, but I have a hunch it’s just not for me.
My want-to-read shelf is back down to 1146 books. The next post will be a mixture of ebooks and physical books that I own, so I’m not sure what the results will be.

#FitReaders Check-In

Published on by Rachelle
  • This check-in is for April 2nd – 8th.
  • I haven’t lost any weight this week.
  • I finally got half of one of my raised garden beds filled with the soil mixture I’m making, but that was very hard on my back, so I’m delayed (again) until next weekend. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate.  I will probably only have one garden bed this year, instead of the two that I had planned.
  • If you have a Fitbit, you can find me HERE.
  • Active Days: 4/5
  • Steps: 30,350
  • Miles: 12.32/17.26
  • Total Miles: 196.15/900
  • Active Minutes: 114/150

Building the Book Fort

Published on by Rachelle

“Building the Book Fort” is a weekly post where I track my bookish life.

Currently Reading:

  • Nothing Much Happens by Kathryn Nicolai
  • The Bookshop That Floated Away by Sarah Henshaw
  • The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper
  • Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

Finished:

  • Broken (In the Best Possible Way) by Jenny Lawson
  • The Magician’s Lie by Greer Macallister
  • Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

Total pages read this week: 849

TBR Mountain: -12

Total books read: 21 of 80

This has been a fantastic reading week! I’m ahead on my TBR goal, after finishing 3 excellent books (and deciding to let go of a couple), and I only need to finish 6 books by the end of the month to get back on track with my reading goal for the year. I’m not 100% sure I’ll be able to do that, but I will likely get close since there is a 24-hour readathon coming up near the end of the month.

What are you reading? Let me know in the comments!

Down the TBR Hole #101

Published on by Rachelle
Image: hjl

How it works:

  • Go to your Goodreads want-to-read shelf.
  • Order on ascending date added.
  • Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
  • Read the synopses of the books
  • Decide: keep it or should it go?
My shelf is up one book to 1148.
This week’s books:

Everyone Loves You When You’re Dead by Neil Strauss – GO.  This is a book of celebrity interviews, and I mistakenly thought it was all interviews of musicians when I bought it.

Power Hungry by Howard Weinstein, Masks by John Vornholt, and The Captain’s Honor by David Dvorkin and Daniel Dvorkin – KEEP.  These are books 6, 7, and 8 in the “Star Trek: The Next Generation” series, and I eventually want to own and read all of them.

The Possessed by Elif Batuman – GO.  I want to be the kind of reader who loves Russian novels and would love to read this book about Russian novels, but I’m not.  I only got through Anna Karenina by listening to the audiobook, and I’ve put off starting War and Peace for over a decade.  Russian novels are dark and depressing, and the Russian History course I took in college was so dark and depressing that I steered clear of anything having to do with Russia for months.  It’s time to let this book go.

Shakespeare Wrote for Money, The Polysyllabic Spree, and Housekeeping Vs. The Dirt by Nick Hornby- KEEP. I have greatly enjoyed most of Hornby’s novels, and I found all three of these books containing his articles from “The Believer” magazine in a used bookstore.

Touching Darkness by Scott Westerfeld – KEEP.  This is the second book in the “Midnighters” series, and I loved the first book, The Secret Hour.
My want-to-read shelf is down one to 1146 books. The next post will be full of ebooks I own, which are usually hit or miss as far as what I will decide to keep.  Most of my ebooks are freebies I got during times when I was on some type of book-buying ban or didn’t have money to spend on anything other than necessities.

#FitReaders Check-In

Published on by Rachelle
  • This check-in is for March 26th – April 1st.
  • I haven’t lost any weight this week.
  • More rain and high winds kept me from doing much of anything in the yard this weekend, and then the Boyfriend got sick, so my energy has gone toward taking care of him and everything he usually does along with my share of the chores.
  • If you have a Fitbit, you can find me HERE.
  • Active Days: 5/5
  • Steps: 33,544
  • Miles: 13.70/17.26
  • Total Miles: 183.83/900
  • Active Minutes: 176/150

Building the Book Fort

Published on by Rachelle

“Building the Book Fort” is a weekly post where I track my bookish life.

Currently Reading:

  • Nothing Much Happens by Kathryn Nicolai
  • Broken (In the Best Possible Way) by Jenny Lawson
  • The Bookshop that Floated Away by Sarah Henshaw
  • The Magician’s Lie by Greer Macallister

DNF:

  • Bookends by Zibby Owens
  • A Tale of Light and Shadow by Jacob Gowans

Finished:

  • The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec
  • The Librarian of Crooked Lane by C.J. Archer

Total pages read this week: 474

TBR Mountain: -7

Total books read: 18 of 80

I finally finished one of my physical books, and because I also DNF’d one I’m now back to meeting my TBR goal for the year, and I only need to finish or get rid of one more book for the month. I ended up being two books behind on my reading goal, so I will need to finish nine books this month to get back on track. Luckily, a readathon is coming up toward the end of the month.

What are you reading? Let me know in the comments!

Down the TBR Hole #100

Published on by Rachelle
Image: hjl

How it works:

  • Go to your Goodreads want-to-read shelf.
  • Order on ascending date added.
  • Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
  • Read the synopses of the books
  • Decide: keep it or should it go?
My shelf is down one book to 1147.  I finished an audiobook this week.
This week’s books:

Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan – KEEP.  I knew that this book wasn’t considered to be cozy or a comfort read and that it was dark, but I didn’t realize just how dark until I read the Goodreads synopsis.  I still want to read it, but I won’t be picking it up when I want something light.

At the Existentialist Cafe by Sarah Bakewell – KEEP.  I’ve always been interested in Existentialism, probably because of its connections to France, and I’ve wanted to read more about it for quite some time.

Get in the Van by Henry Rollins – KEEP.  This is Rollins’ book about his time being the frontman of Black Flag.  Punk is one of my favorite musical genres, and Rollins has been one of my favorite artists for years.  I have most of his books, have been to his shows, met him twice, and even exchanged a couple of emails with him because that is the type of down-to-earth guy he is.  I will read this book at some point, probably while listening to my Black Flag records.

Inner City Sound ed. by Clinton Walker- KEEP. Speaking of Punk, this book is all about the Punk and Post-Punk movements in Australia.  It’s set up like a scrapbook, in the same way as The Riot Grrrl Collection, which I absolutely loved, so I’m looking forward to when I finally get around to reading this one, probably while listening to more of my records by the bands featured in the book.

A Pianist’s Landscape by Carol Montparker – KEEP.  I have loved the piano since I was 12 years old.  It all started with a keyboard I got as a Christmas present and teaching myself to play it using music books from my failed attempt at learning the french horn a couple of years prior.  My Mom got me piano lessons, and though I had to quit those lessons and haven’t played in years, listening to piano music immediately helps calm me down when I am stressed.  Reading about the piano or books by pianists has a similar effect.
My want-to-read shelf is holding steady at 1147 books. I’m going to be skipping a bunch of books in the next post because they’re all books I’ve read before, by the same author, but I want to read them again so have put them on my want-to-read shelf (I read them years before I was on Goodreads).  Despite that, we’ll still be in the middle of all of the books I finally added to Goodreads in November 2017.

#FitReaders Check-In

Published on by Rachelle
  • This check-in is for March 19th – 25th.
  • I haven’t lost any weight this week.
  • Thunderstorms and high winds kept me from doing any gardening stuff yesterday, but today is supposed to be warm and sunny.  I’ve got a lot to get done today, but I should have some time this afternoon to do at least a couple of things outside.
  • If you have a Fitbit, you can find me HERE.
  • Active Days: 2/5
  • Steps: 37,925
  • Miles: 15.47/17.26
  • Total Miles: 170.13/900
  • Active Minutes: 63/150

Building the Book Fort

Published on by Rachelle

“Building the Book Fort” is a weekly post where I track my bookish life.

Currently Reading:

  • Nothing Much Happens by Kathryn Nicolai
  • The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec
  • Bookends by Zibby Owens
  • The Librarian of Crooked Lane by C.J. Archer

Finished:

  • Sew You Want to be a Hero by Andrew Seiple

Total pages read this week: 450

TBR Mountain: -5

Total books read: 16 of 80

I still haven’t finished any of my physical books so I’m still a book behind my TBR goal. I also need to finish 4 books to keep up with my reading goal. I might finish 2 books this weekend, but I doubt I’ll be able to finish 2 more by the end of the month.

What are you reading? Let me know in the comments!

Down the TBR Hole #99

Published on by Rachelle
Image: hjl

How it works:

  • Go to your Goodreads want-to-read shelf.
  • Order on ascending date added.
  • Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
  • Read the synopses of the books
  • Decide: keep it or should it go?
My shelf has increased to 1148.  I finished a book but added several to my wishlist.
This week’s books:

American Wolf by Nate Blakeslee – KEEP.  Wolves are my favorite non-domesticated animal.  I will read just about any book about them, Fiction or Non-Fiction, provided they are not vilified.  According to the Goodreads synopsis, this book is about a specific wolf but tells a much larger story about wolves and the controversy surrounding their conservation and protection.

Beauty and the Beast: Lost in a Book by Jennifer Donnelly – KEEP.  “Beauty and the Beast” has always been my favorite fairytale, and one of my favorite Disney movies, so this book was a bit of an auto-buy for me, especially since it involves books.

Killer Librarian by Mary Lou Kirwin – KEEP.  This one will get the 50-page test because the synopsis isn’t too promising and there are only 2 books in the series.  This first book only has an overall rating of 3.38 stars, which is another indicator that it might not be all that good.

The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper- KEEP. I read this book when I was a teenager after I had seen the movie starring Daniel Day-Lewis.  Scenes from both still come to mind, and I’ve always wanted to re-read the book now that I’m considerably older.

The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane – KEEP.  This one is a novel about the Civil War written only 30 years after the war ended.  I’m sure it will be a difficult read, but I am interested to get a perspective from a time in which many of the people who lived through the war were still alive.
My want-to-read shelf is holding steady at 1148 books. The next post will start to get into the physical books about music and musicians that I own.