Avanders' 2017 ROOTs - Thread 2

Welcome to Thread #2 for 2017!

This is my life these days:


New baby boy is just about 3 months old (almost) & has changed everything about my life!

Unfortunately, in addition to having an active and lively new addition, I also have over 1000 unread books in my house... plus another 75 or so on the kindle. Whoa. Time to get going on that TBR mountain (and, very importantly, stop buying new ones!!).

Over the past few years, I've read approximately 50-90 books a year... unfortunately, only a percentage of that has been ROOTs. What I'd like to do is read a higher percentage of ROOTs, regardless of the # of books I'm actually reading. Since I read (and write) for a living (law job, not the glamorous author life you may be imagining ;)), my brain's not always primed for more reading in the evenings. Alas, so far (as of end of May 2017), that has not been the case. But there's always.. the rest of 2017. D-:

My ROOT goal this year was updated to 18 since I made better progress in the first part of the year than I expected.

ROOTS Read in 2017 (goal of 12 18 (changed 4/26/17))



Total Books Read in 2017 (goal of 24 36 (changed 6/14/17))

Here're the details:

JAN (4)
XX 1. In Other Rooms, Other Wonders (Mueenuddin) (256) (ROOT 1), January 5, 2017 (give away)
XX 2. Cloud Castle (Stilton) (320) (ROOT 2), January 5, 2017 (keep for permanent collection/kids)
XX 3. Anywhere at Once (826Chi) (263) (ROOT 3), January 7, 2017 (keep for permanent collection/kids)
XX 4. Everything I need to Know About Love I Learned from a Little Golden Book (Muldrow) (96), January 27, 2017 (borrowed from friend)
Ave Page #s read/book in Jan = 233.75 (total pages 935; 30.16 per day)

FEB (3)
XX 5. Sea of Silver Light (Otherland #4) (Williams) (1069) (ROOT 4), February 2, 2017 (give away)
XX 6. Grief is the Thing with Feathers (Porter) (114) (ROOT 5), February 13, 2017 (give away)
XX 7. Fate of the Tearling (Johansen) (496) (audio library book), February 16, 2017
Ave Page #s read/book in Feb = 559.67 (total pages 1,679; 59.96 per day)

MAR (0)
Ave Page #s read/book in Mar = 0 (total pages 0; 0 per day)

APR (8)
XX 8. The Roanoke Girls (Engel) (279) (ROOT 6) & LT ER, April 2, 2017 (give away)
XX 9. Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore (Sloan) (286) (ROOT 7), April 6, 2017 (delete)
XX 10. What to Expect When You're Expecting (Murkoff) (656) (ROOT 8), April 15, 2017 (keep for now (permanent collection))
XX 11. Baby Wise (Ezzo) (279) (ROOT 9), April 15, 2017 (throw give away)
XX 12. Ajax Penumbra (Sloan) (65), April 23, 2017 (delete)
XX -- (short story). Wrong Plane (Sloan) (10), April 23, 2017 (online)
XX -- (short story). Writer and the Witch (Sloan) (23), April 23, 2017 (online)
XX -- (short story). Julie Rubicon (Sloan), April 23, 2017 (online)
XX 13. All the Little Pieces (Hoffman) (504) (ROOT 10 & RL book group Apr), April 26, 2017 (give away)
XX 14. God Help the Child (Morrison) (178) (RL book group Apr), April 29, 2017 (give away)
XX 15. The Importance of Being Ernest (Cline) (84) (ROOT 11), April 30, 2017 (give away)
Ave Page #s read/book in Apr = 291.38 (total pages 2,331; 77.7 per day) (not counting the short stories)

MAY (4)
XX 16. Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and his Years of Pilgrimage (Murakami) (386) (ROOT 12 & RL book group Apr), May 8, 2017 (give away)
XX 17. Spare and Found Parts (Griffin) (384) (library ebook), May 8, 2017 (DNF)
XX 18. Paper and Fire (Caine) (354) (library ebook), May 15, 2017
XX 19. The End of Oz (Paige) (304) (ROOT 13), May 24, 2017 (probably give away)
Ave Page #s read/book in May = 296 (total pages 1,184 (counted only 140 pgs of Spare & Found Parts; 38.19 per day)

JUNE (3)
XX 20. Illustrated Fairy Tales (Courtauld) (352) (ROOT 14), June 9, 2017 (keep for permanent collection)
XX 21. The Cottingley Secret (Gaynor) (416) (ROOT 15 & LT ER), June 14, 2017 (give away)
XX 22. Power Your Happy (Sugar) (256) (ROOT 16), June 29, 2017 (give away)
Ave Page #s read/book in Jun = 341.33 (total pages 1024; 34.13 per day)

JULY (5)
XX 23. The Honours (Clare) (416) (ROOT 17), July 4, 2017 (keep for permanent collection (lending))
XX 24. Lincoln in the Bardo (Saunders) (343) (audio library book), July 5, 2017
XX 25. Acceptance (Vandermeer) (341) (audio & kindle & paper library books), July 10, 2017
XX 26. You'll Never Know, Dear (Ephron) (304) (ROOT 18 & LT ER), July 14, 2017 (give away)
XX 27. The Throwback Special (Bachelder) (224) (audio library book), July 25, 2017
Ave Page #s read/book in Jul = 325.6 (total pages 1,628; 52.52 per day)

AUGUST (4)
XX 28. The Little Book of Hygge (Wiking) (225) (ROOT 19), August 5, 2017 (keep for permanent collection)
XX 29. Underground Railroad (Whitehead) (306) (audio & kindle library book) and (ROOT 20 & RL book group Aug), August 5, 2017
XX 30. Boneshaker (Priest) (416) (audio library book), August 22, 2017
XX --. Re-read (this time, on audio) The Grownup (Flynn) (64) (audio library book), August 12, 2017
Ave Page #s read/book in Aug = 252.75 (total pages 1,011; 32.61 per day)
***Note: In August, I culled 63 books from my shelves!***

SEPTEMBER (3)
XX 31. Scandinavian Christmas (Hahnemann) (144), September 5, 2017 (keep for permanent collection)
XX 32. Hounds of the Underworld (Rabarts & Murray) (204) (LT ER (kindle)) and (ROOT 21), September 21, 2017 (delete)
XX 33. Dreadnought (Priest) (400) (audio library book), September 22, 2017
Ave Page #s read/book in Sept = 249.33 (total pages 748; 24.93 per day)

OCTOBER (5)
XX 34. Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot (Shafer) (432) (ROOT 22), October 1, 2017
XX 35. Murder on the Orient Express (Christie) (256) (ROOT 23), October 5, 2017
XX 36. The Book of Chameleons (Agualusa) (180) (ROOT 24), October 10, 2017
XX 37. Ganymede (Priest) (349) (audio library book), October 20, 2017
XX 38. On What Grounds (Coyle) (275) (audio library book) and (ROOT 25 & Litsy book group), October 25, 2017
Ave Page #s read/book in Oct = 298.4 (total pages 1,492; 48.13 per day)

NOVEMBER (4)
XX 39. The Girl With All The Gifts (Carey) (460) (ROOT 26), November 10, 2017
XX 40. At Death's Door (Price) (64) (ROOT 27), November 13, 2017
XX 41. These Vicious Masks (Shanker) (321) (LT ER (audio cd)) and (ROOT 28), November 18, 2017
XX 42. Bone Gap (Ruby) (373) (ROOT 29) and (re-read, this time in physical form, for Litsy book group), November 24, 2017
Ave Page #s read/book in Nov = 304.5 (total pages 1,218; 40.6 per day)

DECEMBER (6)
XX 43. By Book or by Crook (Gates) (339) (Litsy book group), December 4, 2017
XX 44. The Wonder Weeks (de Rijt) (493) (ROOT 30), December 4, 2017
XX 45. Through the Grinder (Coyle) (270) (audio library book), December 4, 2017
XX 46. Hygge: Comfort & Food For The Soul: A cosy collection of comfort food, drinks & lifestyle recipes for you, your friends & family to enjoy (Cooknation) (96) (ROOT 31), December 4, 2017
XX 47. Bear Stays Up for Christmas (Wilson) (40) (ROOT 32), December 21, 2017
XX 48. Delicious! (Reichl) (416) (audio library book) and (Litsy book group), December 25, 2017
Ave Page #s read/book in Dec = 275.67 (total pages 1,654; 53.35 per day)

AND Extra Tracking Notes:

# of Books IN, in 2017:
Jan (18): +15 (TOB books - see >68 Limelite:) + 1 (Dark Humanity kindle) + 1 (what to expect the first year kindle) + 1 (Night Bird Kindle first)
Feb (1): + 1 (In Farleigh Field - Kindle first)
Mar (1): + 1 (Roanoke Girls - LT ER)
Apr (32): + 1 (God Help the Child (RL Book Group)) + 1 (Crimes Against a Book Club (Kindle First)) + 1 (Ajax Penumbra Kindle short) + 11 (birthday gift from MIL) + 1 (End of Oz) + 7 (more bday books) (see >184 for deets) + 1 (And Then There Were Nuns (from SIL)) + 1 (OwlCrate: Upside of Unrequited) + 2 (Book Riot BookMail - Invisible Library & Long Division) + 4 (used: Last Policeman, Murder Off Miami, In the Mother's Land (Maerlande), & Ring of Solomon) + 1 (A Boy Called Christmas - OwlCrate Jr.) + 1 (Caraval - OwlCrate)

May (91): + 1 (LT ER - Cottingley Secret) + 3 (used: Cyteen (BB), The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend, & The Sooterkin) + 1 (Great Passage - Kindle First) +1 (Charlie the Choo-Choo) + 5 (used: Suffer the Children, Tale of Two Biddies, Holmes for the Holidays, More Holmes for the Holidays, A Monster Calls (BB)) + 1 (Mr B's Emporium selection: The Honours) + 2 (Nocturnal Reader's Box: Borne & Normal (Ellis)) + 2 (Blue Spider's Attic Box: The Vengeance of Hera & The Black Hole) + 1 (OwlCrate: Eliza and her Monsters) + 2 (BOTM: The Love Interest and Into the Water (Hawkins)) + 0 (Wonder Weeks - permanent collection) + 9 (from Novel Cure, Used/Kindle: Island of Doctor Moreau (k), A Far Cry from Kensington, Life: A User's Manual, The Millstone, The Debt to Pleasure, The Beastly Beatitudes of Balthazar B, Haroun and the Sea of Stories, The Little Girl and the Cigarette, Our Spoons Came from Woolworths) + 4 (new B&N: Beauty (Pinborough), Everland, Double Feature (King), The Thing Itself) + 5 (new Amazon: City of Miracles, The Library at Mount Char, & How Not to Hate Your Husband; used Amazon: What Was Lost (O'Flynn) & Remainder (McCarthy)) + 29 (Library Clearance Sale: Magic Kingdom for Sale/Sold, And Then There Were None, Dead to the Last Drop, Crooked House (Christie), Murder for Christmas, Valentine Murder, 14 kids books (d/n count - perm. collection), Boomsday, Diary (Palahniuk), American Pastoral, Little Green Men, The Adrian Mole Diaries, The Best American Mystery Stories 2007, How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents, The Stone Raft, Goodbye Columbus, The Ground Beneath Her Feet, Midnight's Children, Winter Garden, I Feel Bad About My Neck, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, The Abduction (Boone), Matched, The Thief Lord, Shiver, The Holly Tree (Dickens), Eats Shoots & Leaves (d/n count - perm. collection), Home Game (Lewis), Early-Start Potty Training, I Was a Really Good Mom Before I Had Kids, Your Baby is Speaking To You) + 1 Bringing Up Boys (gifted in Dec., but never catalogued) + 3 (Spark Joy, Button Holed, Chili Con Carnage - from 2016 but never catalogued) + 4 (used Amazon: Return to Oz, Jack Pumpkinhead & the Sawhorse etc., Jack Pumpkinhead, Wonder City of Oz) + 1 (new Amazon: The Collapse of Parenting) + 8 (thriftbooks: The Marvelous Land of Oz, The Patchwork Girl of Oz, The Victorian Chaise Longue, Ozma of Oz, The Road to Oz (Little Golden Book), Tik-Tok of Oz, The Gnome King of Oz, The Royal Book of Oz) + 2 (owlcrate past boxes: RoseBlood and Daughter of the Pirate King) + 3 (Kindle Amazon: The Magical Mimics in Oz, Ozoplaning with the Wizard of Oz, Queer Visitors from the Marvelous Land of Oz (Illustrated)) + 3 (Book Depository: Strange the Dreamer, HP Ravenclaw Edition (soft), HP Ravenclaw Edition (hard))

Jun (10): + 1 (Kindle First: Stillhouse Lake (Caine)) + 1 (Mr B's: The Gracekeepers (Logan)) + 2 (NRB: Gwendy's Button Box (King) and Pork Pie Hat (Straub)) + 2 (Owl Crate: Sandcastle Empire and New World Rising) + 3 (BOTM: A Million Junes (Henry), Theft By Finding (Sedaris), Chemistry (Wang)) + 1 (LT ER: You'll Never Know, Dear (Ephron))

Jul (32): + 1 (Kindle First: Secondborn (Bartol)) + 3 (kindle: Half a King (Abercrombie); Mycroft Holmes (Abdul-Jabbar); Fear & Sunshine: Prelude (Scherer)) + 3 (BOTM: The Child (Barton); Final Girls (Sager); Ministry of Utmost Happiness (Roy)) + 1 (Mr B's: Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot (Shafer) + 2 (NRB: (Bleed (Kurtz) and Come to Dust (MacLeod)) + 1 (OwlCrate: Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue) + 1 (OwlCrate Jr.: Unicorn in the Barn) + 2 (Lily and the Octopus (Rowley); The Soul of an Octopus (Montgomery) (also Hyperbole and a Half for permanent collection)) + 1 (Emma in the Night arc given to me) + 1 (Prime Day Kindle (Illumination Night (Hoffman)) + 3 (Amazon Prime Day (Bellamy & the Brute (Michaels); Smoke (Vyleta); Serafina and the Twisted Staff (Beatty)) + 1 Amazon (Best Friend's Exorcism (Hendrix)) +3 (used bookstore: Night Soldiers (Furst); Gideon Smith and the Mask of the Ripper (Barnett); The Bear and the Nightingale (Arden) (& another copy of Master & Margarita for Permanent Collection) + 5 (BookOutlet.com: Flights and Chimes and Mysterious Times; Johannes Cabal: The Fear Institute; Metatropolis; The Waking Engine; Vassa in the Night) + 4 (more kindle: The Clockwork Scarab; Forbidden (Dekker & Lee); Queen of Hearts (Oakes); Lyra Novels 5-book omnibus (Wrede))

Aug (43): + 1 (Kindle First: Song of Edmon) + 1 (LT ER: Hounds of the Underworld (kindle)) + 1 kindle (Short Stories from Hogwarts of Power, Politics, and Pesky Poltergeists) + 1 (BOTM: The Blinds) + 1 (MR B's: The Book Collector (Thompson)) + 2 (OwlCrate: The Hearts we Sold and Sleepy Hollow) + 1 (OwlCrate Jr.: The Apprentice Witch) + 4 (BookOutlet because I was ordering a gift and I wanted free shipping :-o: Jackaby; The Crane Wife; The Muse; The Thousandth Floor) + 3 (Book Depository because I wanted different covers than BOTM :-o: Clockwork Dynasty; Fierce Kingdom; A Gentleman in Moscow (plus HP1 in Gryffindor Anniversary special, softcover, for permanent collection)) + 1 (Amazon Used: Can you Keep A Secret) + 1 (Amazon: Hygge: Comfort & Food For The Soul) + 3 (kindle clearance: Steel Magic, Tales from High Hallack, & Reader, I Married Him) + 1 (PageHabit: ) + 7 (BD: The Circus (Levez); Homo Deus; The Mysteries (Tuttle); Spellslinger; Ink (Broadway); The Power (Alderman); Darktown (Mullen)) + 0 (Folio Society for permanent collection: The Castle (Kafka); The Ghost of Thomas Kempe; and The Midnight Folk) + 11 (BookOutlet: Away in a Manger (Bowen); Bread of the Dead (Santa Fe Cafe Mystery); Chapelwood (The Borden Dispatches); Cinnamon Toasted (Spice Shop Mystery); Company Town; Fiddlehead (Clockwork Century, Bk. 5); The Book of Chameleons; The Candy Cane Cupcake Killer (A Fresh-Baked Mystery); The Gingerbread Bump-Off; The Inexplicables (Clockwork Century, Bk. 4); and The Passenger (Lutz)) + 2 (PageHabit Fantasy: The Alchemy of Masques and Mirrors & Glory Road) + 2 (Bibliophile Book Exchange: The Fifth Season & The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August)

Sept (26): + 1 (Kindle First: The Naturalist (Mayne)); + 1 (LT ER: Hiddensee: A Tale of the Once and Future Nutcracker (Maguire) (expected to receive in July; still don't have it!)) + 1 (BOTM: Sourdough) + 1 (Mr. B's: Severed) + 1 (OwlCrate: Before She Ignites) + 1 (OwlCrate Jr.: The Explorer) + 2 (Book Depository (just because): Quartet in Autumn & Witches Abroad (Pratchett)) + 3 (Let's Hygge Book Exchange: Lost Boy; Pumpkin Muffin Murder; Murder at the Vicarage) + 2 (Cozy Book Exchange: Plaid and Plagiarism and No Nest for the Wicket) + 1 (Thriftbooks: Looking Glass Wars) + 1 (LT ER: These Vicious Masks (audio)) + 5 (used bookstore: Unnatural Issue; Mind of Winter; The Big U; Not Flesh Nor Feathers; The Familiar (Vol. 1)); + 2 (Amazon: Insanity (Jace); Night in the Lonesome October) + 1 (Litsy PenPal: Maplecroft) + 1 (BD: Alias Hook) + 1 (Amazon used: Bring Me The Head of Prince Charming) + 1 (Amazon used: Cuckoo Song)

Oct: + _ (ReTelling Book Exchange: ) + _ (Halloween Goes Postal Book Exchange) + _ (All Hallows Read Book Exchange) + 1 (Kindle First: ) + 1 (BOTM: ) + 1 (Mr. B's: ) + 1 (OwlCrate: ) + 1 (LT ER: )

Nov: ... lost count. ;D

Dec:

Thus, my TBRs:
(Total books from prior month, plus books IN, minus books Read (unless otherwise noted))
as of 1/1/17, total books in personal library = 964
as of 2/1/17, total books in personal library = 981
as of 3/1/17, total books in personal library = 980
as of 4/1/17, total books in personal library = 981
as of 5/1/17, total books in personal library = 1006 uh...
as of 6/1/17, total books in personal library = 1095
as of 7/1/17, total books in personal library = 1103 minus 5 otherwise purged = 1098
as of 8/1/17, total books in personal library = 1128
as of 9/1/17, total books in personal library = 1108
as of 10/1/17, total books in personal library = stopped individually tracking, but catalog will be up to date by end of day...
as of 11/1/17, total books in personal library =
as of 12/1/17, total books in personal library =
as of 12/31/17, total books in personal library = ____

(Not counting permanent already-read books, cookbooks, or other reference type books, but yes counting e-books (not duplicates))

Happy new thread!

That's you!!! It's so exciting to see the lovely face behind all of your lovely posts :D

Ditto. It's always interesting to see what LT people look like.

Happy new thread!
And thanks for the lovely pictures!

Hey, it's lovely to be able to put a face to the name - what lovely pictures! Happy new thread! :)

>3 rabbitprincess: thank you!

>3 rabbitprincess: >4 Robertgreaves: >6 Jackie_K: & Lol yes, I agree it's nice to put a face to the personality... I also have my picture on my profile, so I didn't realize I was offering such a treat ;)

>5 MissWatson: Thanks & you're welcome! ;)

Agree - nice pictures. And the baby is cute. Amazing that you are continuing to read, even with a little one. I can't remember if I managed to read anything when my daughter was very small.

Great pics!

Happy new thread, Ava.

I love your stats! And the pics too.

Question: what do those XX mean?

Cute pix!! And cool that you were able to update your goal due to good progress :).

Great new thread! The pictures are so cute. :-) Wishing you continued good luck with tackling the massive tbr mountain.

>8 LoraShouse: thank you! :)
Well, some days it's easier than others to read... sometimes it depends on if I have an opportunity to take a bath... ;p

>9 Tess_W: Thanks!

>10 connie53: Thanks! The double x's indicates that I've finished reading the book.... it made a lot more sense to use them when I listed all the books I'd planned on reading, as well as those read and in the process of reading. Now that I only list read & reading, it seems kind of superfluous ... but habits, I guess ;)

>11 readingtangent: Thanks!

>12 This-n-That: And thank you too! :)

So... I bought more books. :-|
I uh... I need to stop soon.

My new purchases:
1-4. used Amazon: Return to Oz, Jack Pumpkinhead & the Sawhorse etc., Jack Pumpkinhead, Wonder City of Oz)
5. new Amazon: The Collapse of Parenting
6-13. thriftbooks: The Marvelous Land of Oz, The Patchwork Girl of Oz, The Victorian Chaise Longue, Ozma of Oz, The Road to Oz (Little Golden Book), Tik-Tok of Oz, The Gnome King of Oz, The Royal Book of Oz
14-15. owlcrate past boxes (huge sale): RoseBlood and Daughter of the Pirate King
16-18. Kindle Amazon: The Magical Mimics in Oz, Ozoplaning with the Wizard of Oz, Queer Visitors from the Marvelous Land of Oz (Illustrated))
19-21. Book Depository: Strange the Dreamer, Harry Potter: Ravenclaw Edition (soft-cover), HP Ravenclaw Edition (hardcover)

I obviously bought a lot of these for permanent collection for son, but I'll count them as TBRs for now, because I also want to read them ;)

Also, I love these old-timey covers ;)


This is the January owlcrate box:


and this is the March owlcrate box:


And the HP & Taylor books are all just so pretty:
(paperbacks on top, hardbacks on bottom)
and

I uh... I need to stop soon.

Put the credit card down, and step away slowly...

Slowly does it...

You can do it! (aye, right!)

Oh gosh, I need to have some will power! Nice haul!

>14 avanders:
So... I bought more books. :-|
I uh... I need to stop soon.

Why?

>15 Jackie_K: lol working on it.... slowly.... ;)

>16 Tess_W: ;D

>17 Robertgreaves: I like the way you think!
But pragmatically, if I continue to acquire at this rate ... and I continue to read at this rate... well, I will become overrun with books before too long. ;) But so far, it's still okay!

Oh and PS -- some have asked me to share my Mr B's Book Emporium book subscription experience....
I finally posted some pics on a new blog I'm thinking about doing (thinking about because, although it clearly exists, it also clearly only has 1 post so far.. and I'm not sure whether time will allow for more :)).

http://www.bookishmom.com/2017/06/mr-b-reading-subscription-book-1-honours.html

>19 avanders: cool blog! I enjoyed reading about the Mr B experience (I've taken a gift bullet). I do hope you find the time to carry on! :)

Great blog, Ava.

>19 avanders: The book looks so pretty! I hope you enjoy it when you get to it :)

>19 avanders: Nice blog and I'm definitely intrigued by Mr B's Book Emporium. (What would they choose for me? And what would I choose for others if I worked there? What a responsibility!)

I loved the pictures, but they seem to be placed in the middle of the text, which makes it a bit harder to read the post. (Or maybe it's just my browser doing weird things - it happens.)

My mother somewhere found a set of all the L. Frank Baum Oz books. I think I even read them all before I left home. I hope my nieces and nephews got a chance to read them growing up, or claimed them for their daughters; otherwise they will probably soon be sold in the estate sale where they are getting ready to sell my parents' house soon.

I see some Oz books in your book haul that look like modern additions to the list.

Hi Aletheia!

Back from my month-long sojourn in California cleaning out Mom's house and getting it listed. I'm so glad it's done and so glad to be home.

What wonderful pics of you and Malachi.

I think that as long as there is room in your house for books, they are a good influence on Malachi, even at his tender age.

Sounds good, doesn't it?

*smile*

>20 floremolla: >21 connie53: >22 rabbitprincess: >23 Henrik_Madsen: Thank you! I've done a second post... just for book 2 from Mr B's. I still have to do posts on the "mom" part and the "ish" part.... ;p I will have time one of these days, right?! ;p

Henrik - I tried to fix the formatting... I don't think it's fixed, but it was the best I could do and I hope it's better!
And regarding someone picking a book for you... that is just why I had to try it. And now I want to try something else -- it's essentially the same thing here in the States.. called Just the Right Book.. but I'll wait. for now. ;D

>24 LoraShouse: Oh I hope they found good homes too! Even if it is from an estate sale.... :)

>25 karenmarie: and Hello Karen, here too!
I'm glad you are back from your long trip and home and relaxing!

Hmm, that is a good point about the presence of books... perhaps that will work on my husband when I keep acquiring more.... ;D

Book Update

It is already halfway through June!
I'm still reading, though slower than I'd ideally like ;)
I finished the LT ER, The Cottingley Secret


Review based on ARC (Advanced Reader's Copy received for free in exchange for an honest review).

This is one of those books that explores a historical event---in this case, one that happens to be true---from the perspective of a present day woman exploring her past and coming to terms with her life. The historical event is the photographing of fairies by Frances Griffiths and her cousin Elsie Wright in Cottingley. Starting in the early 1920s, Frances and Elsie sparked worldwide interest and debate regarding both whether fairies are real and, in any case, whether they'd in fact been photographed by the girls. This book considers the perspective of Frances in the form of a memoir read by someone (Olivia) in present time. (Exactly 100 years after Frances first saw the fairies in 1917.)

Olivia is a young woman who has just lost her grandfather and is attending his funeral in Ireland. He has left her the memoir in his passing, along with his house, his bookstore, the care of her grandmother with Alzheimer's, and some debt that he'd failed to mention. Olivia unfortunately has a bit of a jerk of a fiancé back in London and a life there that she's increasingly interested in abandoning.

As Olivia reads the memoirs to herself and her grandmother, she learns more about what matters and what is really important in life, not to mention the Cottingley secret and perhaps even a snippet of her own ancestry.

It was an interesting story, well told and pretty well paced. I often didn't love Gaynor's use of metaphor -- what others have found poetic, I have found clunky and oddly cliched (the metaphors seemed to highlight the cliched feelings/thoughts in their attempt to obfuscate them). I also found some of the contradictions annoying (the biggest one being that the memoir was left for Olivia in a package from her grandfather, as noted in the beginning, and discovered by Olivia in the store after is passing, as stated about halfway through). But overall, despite these hitches, I still found the book enjoyable and interesting. I also thought Gaynor did a great job with the family dynamics and reveals. I almost found Olivia's story more interesting than Frances... it was nice that the story (Olivia's) created for the purpose of exploring a different story (Frances) was independently interesting and engaging.

So all in all, some history, light romance, fairies, family and self discovery, and a quaint Irish seaside town made for an enjoyable read.

I wish we rated books on a 10-point scale. Because it's not a 6 (the equivalent of a 3/5), but it's not an 8 either. It's about a 7, maybe a little higher. Because it was an enjoyable read, I'll round to the next up: 4.


I'm currently reading my first Mr B's pick, The Honours and, so far, really enjoying it!
(and I did post a second Mr B "review" on my blog, www.bookishmom.com)

Also still reading The Little Book of Hygge (loooooove this), Acceptance (Vandermeer) (on audio), Lincoln in the Bardo (didn't finish before my audio loan ended... waiting for my hold to come up again :)), and The Wonder Weeks (so many books about child-rearing to read!)

And total books IN in June so far...
1. Kindle First: Stillhouse Lake (Caine)
2. Mr B's: The Gracekeepers (Logan)
3-4. Nocturnal Reader's Box: Gwendy's Button Box (King) and Pork Pie Hat (Straub))
5-6. Owl Crate: The Sandcastle Empire and ??? (2nd book in the box unknown until tomorrow when I receive it!)
7-9. BOTM: A Million Junes (Henry), Theft By Finding (Sedaris), Chemistry (Wang))
10. LT ER: You'll Never Know, Dear (Ephron)
. . .
. . . .

And Baby Update
Well, I don't understand why LT insists upon uploading images sideways and upside down }:(
Soooo I'll just put a couple here.. but I uploaded 7 pics to my profile today... the other 5 (not posted here) are sideways or upside down, but you're free to go browse if you like :)

(I love this outfit)

He's doing well, but starting to teeth, which is hard :(
But still smiles and laughs a lot, which is the best! :D

Malachi's cuter than ever! This is such a nice age when they're learning to sit and really engaging with everyone but teething is the downside. Thanks for sharing :)

I've also had LT spin my images round. I'm uploading from an iPad and wondered if it was an iOS bug. I found that if I altered the image slightly and saved it, it came out right - not an ideal arrangement though.

Hi Aletheia!

Malachi's gorgeous, no two ways about it. I'm sorry the teething's started. I remember lots of drool bibs and rubbing daughter's gums.....

Ha. #Daddy's sidekick. I like it.

I'm jealous - I heard David Sedaris flogging Theft by Finding on Fresh Air with Terry Gross, then saw him ditto with Steven Colbert. I want that book! I've loved his writings/readings for a very long time.

For a new mom you're really doing well on the reading front. I remember reading some of my regular reading books to daughter in utero and before she could understand them - mostly mysteries and G-rated romances. This in addition to the hundreds of baby, toddler, and childrens' books. You go, girl!

What a gorgeous smiley boy! I love the duck outfit!

It still amazes me that after all these hundreds of thousands of years we haven't evolved a less painful and less noisy way of getting our teeth in!

Malachi is beautiful, Altheia! Makes me nostalgic because my boys are now 36 and 37 but it does seem like yesterday.

Thanks everyone! :)

>29 floremolla: it is a nice age... it's crazy how much he keeps growing and developing! I suppose this is obvious to the rest of the world who already has kids... ;)
That's good to know about a "fix" -- but it's bizarre and frustrating that we have to do that at all!

>30 karenmarie: Lol oh yes, sooooooo much drooling! We can't believe how many bibs we go through every day! And keeping our own clothes dry is a lost cause ;)
Yes, I really like most of Sedaris' writing (didn't love the squirrel book), so I was excited that this was an add-on option with BOTM this month! :)
& thanks re book progress... it's shocking to me how little time/energy I have to read! I usually manage a few pages before I fall asleep... but not always!

>31 Jackie_K: that is a good point! And there are other "how have we not figured this out by now"s as well... like how have more baby-clothes makers not yet figured out a way to make clothes that go over a baby's head?! (without being completely stretched out once it's over... ;)) The buttons & zippers folks have figured a lot out.. but some makers don't even put much stretch there. How can that be a thing?

>32 Tess_W: wow, sometimes I think about Malachi growing up... I try to imagine it and I can't. I have a notion that by the time Malachi's my age, I'm going to be in my 70s! But other than that thought.... I can't really contemplate the craziness of it... so cool!

>1 avanders: This is my life these days
Fabulous life!! Love the pics, I can't not-smile at the little face on the left in >28 avanders: !

>27 avanders: I enjoyed The Little Book of Hygge on audio, I think I discovered it on your thread :) I’m wondering about your experience with all the narrators on audio of Lincoln in the Bardo?

Theft by Finding will be easy for you to dip into a couple pages at a time. It started as interesting/quirky reading for several hundred pages and at some point hooked me hard and I don’t want it to end! I’m now in a series of entries about his French lessons (the basis of my favorite essay of his) and am laughing out loud.

>34 detailmuse: it's a pretty sweet life ;) & thanks! & i agree... whenever he breaks out into a smile or grin or laugh... we're all right there with him ;)

Well.... to be honest, it was a little hard to get into Lincoln in the Bardo -- whether because of the narrators or despite the narrators, I'm not sure. But it did hit a point where I was more interested and wanted to keep going.... but then my loan expired and someone else got it. ;P I'm back on the waiting list. I think... maybe if I were in a different state of mind when I started it (i.e., not brand new first time mom), I might have appreciated it more/been able to focus on it more!

I started reading just a couple pages of Theft by Finding last night, and you're right, already it's easy and enjoyable! I can see how you got hooked and why you don't want it to end! He's just such a delightful writer :)

I'm sorry you didn't get through Lincoln in the Bardo it's one of only six reads I've given to a book in the last 10 years. but timing is everything, and I hope you can get back to it when the timing is better. You have a pretty good excuse, I'd say!

*whimper* I want Theft by Finding. Maybe it can be one of my birthday books.

>35 avanders: whew, all those characters/narrators on audio! I have trouble with audiobooks when there are just a few alternating timelines or points of view. Plus, although I'd think audio would be more personal and I'd feel more connected, I actually experience those stories more emotionally removed. Do much better with nonfiction on audio.

>36 karenmarie: 5 stars for Lincoln from me too! I'm eager for you to get the Sedaris book and imagining how much you'll enjoy it :)

Hi Altheia! Hope you and the babe are doing good! This is the time of your life, enjoy it!

>36 karenmarie: You know, I can see why you liked it so much.. now that I've finished it. It wasn't 5* for me, but I still thought it was very good! Especially once I settled into it :)
& I noted on your own thread... I see you now have Theft by Finding ;)

>37 detailmuse: I think that was actually one of the difficulties in really getting into it right away, but I also think it was totally worth it ;)

>38 Tess_W: Hi Tess! Phew, time sure flies these days! Thanks for dropping by.. more update below... :)

First, books:

Phew, the last time I checked in... was around mid-June! I have since finished Power Your Happy, which was okay... I think it is much better aimed at a college-aged girl than someone who's more established in their career/life. But it was okay. I didn't hate it.


I also read The Honours, which was the first book from my Mr B Subscription service, and I really enjoyed it!! It's historical and dense and fantastical and unreliable and psychological ... I will try to write an actual review at some point because I think it deserves it!


And I finished 2 audio books: Lincoln in the Bardo and Acceptance, each of which were for me... Lincoln in the Bardo is unique and grand and touching and funny and ... definitely rises above others. Okay. ;P Many have thoughts on this book; I'm sure I will have nothing original to say about it ;)
And Acceptance was a fine conclusion to the Southern Reach Trilogy.. it wrapped up enough and left open enough and was weird and confusing enough to feel like a good conclusion to it all. Now I feel like I can read his new book, Borne.

I also read You'll Never Know, Dear, an early reviewer from LT. It's a thriller that... well, it wasn't shocking to me at all. I mean, I "figured it out" pretty early on, but it was an enjoyable, suspenseful book, nonetheless. And a quick read. More on that one later... But

Now I'm working on finishing The Little Book of Hygge, The Wonder Weeks, and the enjoyable but large Theft by Finding. I'm also listening to The Throwback Special on audio, which was a Tournament of Books pick and I am really enjoying it! I already bought it for my husband (physical copy), and he's started it and is enjoying it too! It's a "sports book," but it doesn't really read like one. I love the way Bachelder describes the various neuroses/personality tics of his characters.... I'm about a quarter of the way through that so far. Phew!!

I've also, unfortunately, acquired quite a few more new/used books...
29 in July! (so far....)

1. Kindle First: Secondborn
2-4. kindle: Half a King; Mycroft Holmes; Fear & Sunshine: Prelude
5-7. BOTM: The Child; Final Girls; Ministry of Utmost Happiness
8. LT ER: Hiddensee: A Tale of the Once and Future Nutcracker
9. Mr B's: Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot
10-11. Nocturnal Reader's Box: Bleed; Come to Dust
12. OwlCrate: TBD
13. OwlCrate Jr.: TBD
14-15. Amazon: Lily and the Octopus; The Soul of an Octopus (also Hyperbole and a Half for permanent collection)
16. Emma in the Night (arc given to me)
17. Prime Day Kindle: Illumination Night
18-20. Amazon Prime Day: Bellamy & the Brute; Smoke; Serafina and the Twisted Staff
21. Amazon: Best Friend's Exorcism
22-24. used bookstore: Night Soldiers; Gideon Smith and the Mask of the Ripper; The Bear and the Nightingale (& another copy of Master & Margarita for Permanent Collection)
25-29. BookOutlet.com: Flights and Chimes and Mysterious Times; Johannes Cabal: The Fear Institute; Metatropolis; The Waking Engine; Vassa in the Night

Yep. Bookoutlet.com. NOT GOOD FOR ME TO KNOW ABOUT!! ;)

Finally, I wanted to invite y'all to Litsy, if you're not already there. It's an app that's sort of like a cross between instagram and goodreads.. it's easy to pop on and "catch up" right quick.. not a big time investment, per se. And it's very visual ;) And the community is great! If you go on there, add me.. same username - avanders

That's all for now!
Oh, PS, I made my ROOTs goal! Woo hoo!

And a very brief baby update

He's already over 4 months! And his first tooth popped out this weekend! (so, yes, teething, which is hard and sad... But also exciting!) And he rolls and he can sit and stand assisted... and he sure does want to speak, but he hasn't yet. ;) And his favorite book is The Little Blue Truck... and he laughs and smiles a LOT, but also cries from the pain sometimes.. and here he is!



Okay... bedtime!
Oh, PS, other reason I've not been around much (there are many!)... I am doing camp nanowrimo (www.campnanowrimo.org) ... finally, writing! If any of you are there, let me know!

Congratulations on reaching your ROOTs goal, Aletheia. And congratulations to the little one on his first tooth.

Hi Aletheia!

Congrats on the book acquisitions and reaching your ROOT goal. Malachi is absolutely adorable. I hope the teething goes smoothly. Beware when he gets an upper and a lower - I still tease my daughter about the time she bit my shoulder. Besides startling me no end, the bite made a hole in my nightshirt.

And on top of everything else you're nanowrimo-ing. Good luck!

You've reached your goal! Congrats! And you're obviously very busy in real life with Malachi and writing. I hope you enjoy every minute.

Congrats on the roots! Looks like some great book acquisitions!

Congratulations on reaching your goal! Very impressed that you're managing to get so much done. Hope the teething isn't too fretful - our daughter was using a baby-walker (are these frowned upon nowadays?) when teething and chewed on anything she could reach, including the new coffee table. Just like a puppy!

Good luck with the writing - it's something I'd like to try myself but I don't have a 'subject' to write about or an objective to motivate me. I might just sign on to camp nanowrimo and lurk around for inspiration ;)

Congratulations on meeting your goal, Aletheia! Keep on reading, it looks like you've got some good ones on the go at the moment.

I haven't signed up to Litsy as it's only a phone app. I do have a smartphone but am a bit of a Luddite with it, and get stressed out with small keyboards - I'm actually planning on going back to a granny-phone when this one gives up the ghost! I spend too long online as it is, I can do without the internet on the move! If Litsy becomes a web-based thing as well then I will probably sign up then.

Malachi is getting more and more adorable! I remember being a little bit upset when my daughter cut her first tooth - she wasn't particularly bothered by it, but all I could think was that we were losing her lovely gummy smile! Of course her toothy smile is just as gorgeous, but it's sad we'll not see the gums again :)

Love the photos of Malachi. He is adorable! And congrats on meeting your goal. I think you are very brave to count your unread books. I am too afraid. And already overrun. Sometimes I run into books that I didn't realize I already own.

Congrats on the ROOTS! And it's good to see you are adding to the stock so you'll also be here next year...

Malachi is a beautiful child and that first year is just so incredible. They develop so much and as a first-time parent watching all that change is wonderful - and a tiny bit angst-provoking.

Hi Ava, just stopping by to say Hi. I've been away from LT due to RL things, but I'm trying to be better about keeping up.

Gorgeous pictures of Malachi.

Congrats on meeting your goal!

Congrats on reaching the ROOTs goal! And the baby pictures are gorgeous. Pretty sure I didn't read half so much during my daughter's first year.

Hi Aletheia!

I hope you're doing well - busy with Malachi, reading, and nanowrimo-ing.

>52 karenmarie: I hope you are doing well, Ava. And enjoying Malachi!

Thank you everyone for stopping by!

>42 Robertgreaves: Thank you! & Nice seeing you over on Litsy! :)

>43 karenmarie: Thank you! Ooph .. teething was *rough* for a *while*... but the past few days seem to have been better. He has 2 bottom teeth right now... we were sure more were coming all over, but they seem to have settled a bit. Anything to give the poor lil guy a break! He's still teething, but it's mild and manageable most days... Lol oh yes, looking forward to his strong spirit biting ALL the things! ;p

>44 MissWatson: Thank you! Yes, busy... I enjoy the things. I get stressed out sometimes too, but I enjoy the things at least ;) (the things: Malachi, writing, life)

>45 Tess_W: Thank you! And yes, so many exciting book acquisitions... Not great for the TBR. ;p

>46 floremolla: Thank you! I guess baby walkers are frowned upon by some -- my doctor actually included a note in my last "4 month old" follow up saying not to use them. We haven't really, but I think... what works for your family works for your family. He's not quite ready for something like that anyway.. almost, but not quite. He needs just a little more up-right-ness when he's sitting and standing ;) Thanks re the writing! It did not go as expected, but in a good way! I met my goal, but the "book" went in various directions. I think I have a better idea of what I want to do with it now.. I need to organize it all in Scrivener and then edit and keep going. Perhaps something to do in November for the "real" Nanowrimo :) Did you end up lurking around for inspiration?

>47 Jackie_K: Thank you! And yes, definitely had some good ones on the go! I still do, I think. (book update will come next :))
Litsy - I was also a little surprised & sad that it's only on the phone and not on a regular website at all! I can understand getting frustrated w/ small keyboards... I was surprised that I ended up preferring the touchscreen keyboard, and even the "portrait" rather than "landscape" keyboard... I was sure I'd hate it. But I think I prefer that itty bitty keyboard now because my thumbs don't have to stretch as much and my iPhone *often* (but in no means always) guesses my poorly typed words correctly ;)
Oh wow, that's so nice that your daughter wasn't much bothered by her new tooth! Malachi was VERY bothered. I mean, he loves it. But there was a lot of pain. He apparently has very "strong gums" (or thick gums.. is that the same thing?)

>48 billiejean: Thank you! Ha, yeah, counting unread books was supposed to be a motivation in not "collecting" as many. It hasn't really worked out that way ;P But at least this way, I know what I have! Lol, but yes, like you say, it does happen that I sometimes run into a book I didn't realize I have ;P Thus, I end up with duplicates from the library clearance sales... but I try to access my LT catalog whenever I can to try to minimize that!

>49 Henrik_Madsen: Thank you! Lol oh yes, there is no danger of me reading all 1000+ of my TBRs before next year ;D
Yes, lol, watching him change so much sometimes day-to-day is both wonderful & a little angst-provoking!

>50 connie53: and >53 connie53: Hello! & Thank you! I've also been away quite a bit ;P
It's amazing how quickly time is going these days! And i see those numbers of unread posts getting higher and higher and start to feel overwhelmed :-o
I try to keep up... not always so great at it ;) But things are going well! :) :)

>51 LoraShouse: Thank you! Ha, I can definitely see why reading becomes less important! I have whole days where I don't read! :-o But then I have little spurts and it seems to be at a decent balance these days.. :)

>52 karenmarie: Hello! Yes, doing well.. so busy! Malachi keeps our hands full! He's almost crawling and likes to walk (while you're holding his hands, of course)... it's amazing how fast they develop!

Books

Okay, here's my review for You'll Never Know, Dear by Hallie Ephron


Review based on ARC (Advanced Readers Copy received for free in exchange for an honest review).

I really enjoyed reading this book. It wasn't quite what I was expecting. I was expecting something extra creepy and maybe in the horror camp. This was more suspense, maybe a little lite-horror, some relationship building, and just good story-telling.

It's called "A Novel of Suspense," and I would agree with that. Even though you may (I did) "figure it out" really early in the novel, it still reads really well and still creates a tension and a suspenseful feeling as you quickly turn the pages to find out if you're right, *how* you're right (or wrong), *why* you're right (or wrong), and most of all, how it all resolves anyway.

I love the creepy doll backdrop and I enjoyed the different perspectives from which the book is told. Although I am not always a fan of the back and forth, and certainly not when such perspective is used for convenience, in this book, it really just worked. It was a quick and definitely enjoyable read for me, and I easily recommend to those who are looking for a quick, rainy-day read. A strong FOUR stars!


I also finished The Little Book of Hygge by Meik Wiking


This was just a wonderful little happiness bundle. It explains everything about meerr... Hygge, and a lot of the background/reasoning/data behind it. A spattering of recipes/instructions are included, but overall it just provides an understanding of this wonderful, big concept (in a little book) of Hygge. No, hygge shouldn't (can't really) be commercialized, but if more of us practiced it--well, that would just be wonderful. Now onto recipes (I bought a different book, Hygge: Comfort and Food for the Soul (no touchstone?? go here), which includes a briefer description and a bunch of recipes :))


and The Throwback Special (audio) by Chris Bechelder

As I mentioned above, this was a Tournament of Books pick, and I really enjoyed it! I don't tend to stray toward sports books, but this was really more about the relationships and quirks/idiosyncrasies of men who gather to relive a sports-based tradition every year. It is a quick read/listen .. I also gave it to my husband to read, and he also read it quickly. There are 20 men in the book (not to mention the other side characters), and at first, it seems a little difficult to keep them straight (here, the audio version probably helped a little, with the different voices), but after a while, the more "main" characters shine through and you realize you don't really need to focus on the specifics of the others..


and The Underground Railroad (audio & kindle) by Colson Whitehead

This was an intense education. While (minimally) delving into magical realism, Whitehead deeply explores the very realistic, the very human side of slavery: the evils and pains, the hope, the fear, the brutality, the sacrifice. I could barely stop reading/listening. (I had to check this out from the library on audio & kindle because someone STOLE MY COPY?!) Although there was a small portion in the latter third that was a bit too expositional for my tastes, overall it was an impressive, moving read. Highly recommended. (obvious trigger warnings)



I am still casually reading The Wonder Weeks and the enjoyable but large Theft by Finding...

But otherwise, I am reading Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot (a Mr. B's pick!) and listening to The Grownup (which I have already read and really liked, but thought a quick re-read (listen) would be nice ;P).

Baby
He's growing fast! Already > 5 months! Here're a couple shots of him.. the first is him seeing/hearing wind (aggressively) blow our weeping willow for the first time... startling! ;) And the second is just him happy about the wind and being outside :)

Thanks for the update. You get in an amazing amount of reading!

Love the pictures! He is a happy little bundle!

Sounds like some great reads, Altheia, and also some BB's for me! He is just darling!

He's growing up fast isn't he - gorgeous boy!

>56 avanders: Aw, what a smile! Gorgeous :))

>55 avanders: great reading achievement, I don't know how you do it. I've got The Underground Railroad - not sure when I'll be ready for it though. Very apposite as I've been helping a client write a policy for the UK's Modern Slavery Act which requires all companies over a certain turnover threshold to audit their supply chains, etc, and develop an anti-slavery policy. Shocking that these things are still going on below the radar but good to know that not only large companies but all the companies in their supply chains will need to address this issue.

>54 avanders: catch 22 for me, I'm afraid - you can't get into a nanowrimo cabin without having an idea what you're going to write about, so I can't get in to get inspiration for something to write about :/ I'll need to focus!

Well. I'm just a bad ROOT participant these days! Seems I can't get myself on here for long enough to go visiting other people's threads, beyond, occasionally, a thread or two. I am sorry! But know I am thinking of you all!! I keep my LibraryThing tab open at all times and it's there as a constant reminder :)

LT is just the hardest for me to quickly "pop in" on because I want to visit everyone's threads (and there are so many!), and I feel guilty when I only hit one or two... so I think, "I'll have more time later"... and then the threads get bigger and bigger and then.. well, then I'm here again...

>57 MissWatson: thanks! it doesn't feel like it some days ;p

>58 connie53: Thank you! :)

>59 Tess_W: Thanks and ... oops! ;) Hope you enjoy them ;)

>60 Jackie_K: He seems to be growing up SOOOO fast!!

>61 floremolla: Thanks :)
Well... audio books helps... but otherwise, it feels, very slowing... ;)
Wow that is fascinating and I agree -- shocking that these things are still going on! And great to know that it's being addressed :)

Oh... about the nanowrimo cabins... really??? I guess I did happen to have something to put in there... can you not write something like "I'm still working on this"? Maybe not. Bummer!! I didn't realize how protected those things were ;p Even now that the camp is over, the cabin I was in (which wasn't really all that active anyway) is no longer accessible to me. But I think there's a main forum too.. maybe there's stuff there?

>62 avanders: Oh, I hope you enjoy it!
& Thank you! He's got some pretty eyes ;)
Awesome that you've done the "real" Nanowrimo :) I ... don't know how to find you on there? I looked around and I see that there are "writing buddies" but I can't find how to add them... do you know?

Books
Let's see.. since last check-in, I've "read" Boneshaker


on recommendation from someone on Litsy (on audio) and I REALLY enjoyed it!!!

I *really* enjoyed this book and kept wanting to get back in the car so I could listen to more! **Listened to audio read by Kate Reading and Wil Wheaton.**
(I have already put the 2nd audio on hold at my library, put the 3rd on my wishlist, and bought the 4th and 5th bc my library didn't have those ;))

I guess about this, I'd say: a machine is built in the late 1800s in alternative Seattle and either malfunctions or is used with ill intent, either way resulting in the destruction of the city, the death of many, and potentially the release of toxic gas that causes the city to be quarantined. Fast forward 15'ish years to this book.

I enjoyed the relationships, the characters, the city, the premise, and the steampunk'ness that, nevertheless, didn't feel too kitch'y. I particularly liked Lucy and Dr. Minnericht as side-characters, but felt that Briar and Zeke were strong main characters.
Yay for fun fiction!


And I Re-"Read" (this time, on audio) The Grownup


Which I loved just as much on audio. ... It's a novella. And it's creepy and weird and unsettling.


I'm still reading Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot and am more than halfway through... it is definitely starting to pick up!
I'm also reading an LT ER, Hounds of the Underworld, which is quite a bit better than I was expecting. I don't know why I wasn't expecting it to be that good since I requested it... something about ARCs available only as ebooks... some sort of prejudice I guess ;)

And I'm reading Hygge: Comfort & Food For The Soul: A cosy collection of comfort food, drinks & lifestyle recipes for you, your friends & family to enjoy because I think I want more Hygge in my life ;)

ALSO, in response to an unintentional "challenge" from my husband, I culled 63 books from my shelves!! I decided to do a "giveaway" on Litsy (am I enticing anyone to go over there yet? ;)) for a dozen of them... and I'm going to bring the rest to a local bookstore to see if I can get book credit. I should do that more often ;)

And, perfectly in line with my book hoarding sickness, I have also ACQUIRED FORTY books already in August:

1. Kindle First: Song of Edmon
2. LT ER: Hiddensee: A Tale of the Once and Future Nutcracker (Maguire) (still haven't received!)
3. LT ER: Hounds of the Underworld (kindle))
4. kindle: Short Stories from Hogwarts of Power, Politics, and Pesky Poltergeists (well I had to check these out, right?)
5. BOTM: The Blinds
6. MR B's: The Book Collector (Thompson)) (soooo excited!)
7-8. OwlCrate: The Hearts we Sold and Sleepy Hollow
9. OwlCrate Jr.: The Apprentice Witch
10-13. BookOutlet because I was ordering a gift and I wanted free shipping :-o: Jackaby; The Crane Wife; The Muse; The Thousandth Floor
14-16. Book Depository because I wanted different covers than BOTM :-o: Clockwork Dynasty; Fierce Kingdom; A Gentleman in Moscow (plus HP1 in Gryffindor Anniversary special, softcover, for permanent collection)
17. Amazon Used: Can you Keep A Secret (Kinsella)
18. Amazon: Hygge: Comfort & Food For The Soul
19-21. kindle clearance: Steel Magic, Tales from High Hallack, & Reader, I Married Him
22. PageHabit: (Fantasy) (on its way)
23-29. Book Depository, because I have a sickness: The Circus (Levez); Homo Deus; The Mysteries (Tuttle); Spellslinger; Ink (Broadway); The Power (Alderman); Darktown (Mullen))
--. Folio Society for permanent collection: The Castle (Kafka); The Ghost of Thomas Kempe; and The Midnight Folk
30-40. BookOutlet, because I really really have a sickness: Away in a Manger (Bowen); Bread of the Dead (Santa Fe Cafe Mystery); Chapelwood (The Borden Dispatches); Cinnamon Toasted (Spice Shop Mystery); Company Town; Fiddlehead (Clockwork Century, Bk. 5); The Book of Chameleons; The Candy Cane Cupcake Killer (A Fresh-Baked Mystery); The Gingerbread Bump-Off; The Inexplicables (Clockwork Century, Bk. 4); and The Passenger (Lutz)

Images of some of the new books I'm most excited about (because pictures are fun ;)):

. . . . . . . . . . . .

Hi Ave, good to see you are 'back' again. I certainly get your feeling of awe when you see all those threads growing. Just take your time and enjoy your little boy. They grow up so fast. We will be here waiting.

Hi Aletheia, that's an impressive haul, and some gorgeous covers, too. Good luck with reading them all!

Hi Aletheia! I agree with Connie, it's all about baby at this stage and no-one's expecting you to keep up (except yourself possibly ;)). That's a great haul of books, some BBs for me - plus a hygge-bullet because I'll need that stuff to get me through another grey winter :)

Congratulations on that sweet boy of yours - he's adorable! And congratulations for meeting both of your goals for the year!!!!!

Just got caught up on your whole new life with beautiful Little New Life. I am in love with your charmer -- your pics of Malachi have captured a true squirming bundle of joy and it gladdens my heart to see him grow in front of my eyes. Welcome to the world, Future Reader!

But I am exhausted reading about all your activities beyond motherhood! You are a dynamo of creativity and achievement -- reading, reviewing, cataloging, blogging, writing. Woman! thou art phenomenal. A much deserved congratulations on achieving your ROOT goal already. I am put to shame.

You have also put me distinctly at the back of the pack in the ranks of Book Acquisitors. As a fellow addict, seeing the evidence of the depth and breadth of YOUR addiction for acquiring books lets me believe that I must be almost cured of mine!

Now off I go to check out Mr. B's Emporium. You are a links minx!

Congrats, Altheia! You will get some "time" when baby goes off to college!

Whoa, awesome book haul!!!

Always glad to see you when you have the time! Don't worry about not having lots of time for us -- that's par for the course with the wee ones! Just post cute pictures once in a while ;)

Hey, I am not a busy new mom, wife and working lady and I don't have time or energy to visit all the threads I want to visit. You have plenty o' reason to be elsewhere. You keep up with everyone much better than do I.

Malachi is the cutest little fellow. I love his expressions. Hope the teeth all come in asap so he doesn't feel poorly.

The book haul is SWEET. Let me know what you think about Gentleman in Moscow I have heard nothing but great things about it.

That is a very impressive haul. I don't recognise anything I already have or have read, so can't enthuse about anything specifically, but I shall vicariously enjoy that lovely feeling of acquired new (to me/you) shiny books.

Well done on the mini-purge too - baby steps :)

Hi Aletheia!

More than 40 books in August since I assume that 40 by the 24th gave you a whole additional week to acquire new ones.

I hope you, your husband, and Malachi are doing well.

>56 avanders: impossibly, there's starting to be a little-boy (vs baby) look in his face!! (Maybe it's the teeth??)

Congrats on meeting your Root goal and relishing in books and family!

Hi Aletheia, just wanted to let you know you're not forgotten! Hope you are having a wonderful time with your beautiful boy (and your millions of books!!).

Hi Aletheia! What Jackie said. You're missed!

Hi Aletheia! Hope you and Malachi are having the time of your lives!

Just echoing the others, hope all's well with you and yours :)

I miss you too! Happy times!

You have been busy, Ava. Amazing all the things you have done with that young cutie to look after. Interesting blog and nice book haul. I hope that something good is keeping you away from your thread.

Hi Aletheia!

What >81 karenmarie: Meg said. You're missed.

It's coincidental that it's been exactly one month since I came by to say you're missed, Aletheia. I hope things are going well for you.

>65 MissWatson: >66 floremolla: >67 LauraBrook: >68 Limelite: >69 Tess_W: >70 rabbitprincess: >71 enemyanniemae: >72 Jackie_K: >73 karenmarie: >74 detailmuse: >75 Jackie_K: >76 karenmarie: >77 Tess_W: >78 floremolla: >79 connie53: >80 Familyhistorian: >81 karenmarie: >82 karenmarie:

Hello everyone and thank you all for visiting and for your wonderful thoughts and statements and sentiments!!

I've been stopping by many of your pages, but wish to say it here too:
Hello... sorry for such a long absence! I kept seeing that "unread" number get higher and higher and was completely intimidated... Finally, I figured it's better to just stop by and say HI. :)
I wish I had time to go through these threads and read all about what you've all been doing and reading! But, alas, I very much do not. But I think of you often!! And my "hello" is heartfelt and repeated often in my own head ;)

I'm not sure how I will remain involved next year, but I will be around in some fashion!
xo

>69 Tess_W: lol! My book acquisitions have... become problematic. I need to log and get it under control! ;p

>76 karenmarie: "and your millions of books" lol! ;D

>83 avanders: Aww that's so sweet that you continue to think of me :) {3

Ahhh! Life (i.e., "baby") Update
Time passes SO FAST!!!!!!!

Here's little buggy -- this is the most recent pic I have on this computer (and my phone is out of commission right now), and it's already a month-and-a-half old!!


He's so big now. He sits, stands, crawls at the speed of light.. and he can walk too, though not completely on his own yet. He LOVES books. He just stares at them intently and looks back and forth at the pictures, words, and pages as I read to him. He also loves to eat! And play and get into anything that causes mischief. He's a wonderful sleeper..... once he's actually asleep. Getting him to that point can be a challenge. But he's an 11-12 hour a night kiddo.

And we'll be finally starting him in daycare next month! I think it's time for him to start playing w/ other kids more ;) And since most of my friends' kids are quite a bit older, I think daycare is the right place for that to happen :) Of course, that carries w/ it all kinds of trepidation, but we'll take it as it comes.

Also, you can't tell from the pic, but he has the coolest color eyes... they're mostly this light green, with a dark blue ring, and with a cool yellow color close to the pupil that you can only see when his pupils are constricted. Of course, I may be biased on how cool it is..... ;D

Yay for a new photo of Malachi. What a darling boy he is.

Thank you for the update.

Take care and happy holidays to all three of you!

So glad to see you post! Terrific pic and such a happy update!

Great photo!

Books!

Yep, that has happened too.... a little, anyway :)
I have to update my top-o-the-thread posts, but since I last posted (in August?!), I've read 15 books:
1. Scandinavian Christmas
2. Hounds of the Underworld (ARC/ER kindle) (also a ROOT)
3. Dreadnought (audio)
4. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (Mr. B's) (also a ROOT)
5. Murder on the Orient Express (while on the train!! ;)) (ROOT)
6. The Book of Chameleons (ROOT)
7. Ganymede (audio)
8. On What Grounds (mixed paper & audio) (also a ROOT)
9. The Girl With All The Gifts (ROOT)
10. At Death's Door (graphic, adorable) (ROOT)
11. These Vicious Masks (ARC/ER audio (CD)) (also a ROOT)
12. Bone Gap (re-read, this time in physical form) (again)
13. By Book or by Crook
14. The Wonder Weeks (skimmed anyway) (ROOT)
15. Through the Grinder (audio)

I'm currently reading:
1. Delicious! (mixed physical and audio)
2. Tale of Two Biddies
3. Hygge: Comfort & Food for the Soul

I've also disbanded my RL book group for the time being...
Mm. And I've acquired an inordinate number of books. Since August 24th?! Really....
let's see, looks like 136, not counting the kids books for Buggy. :-D Actually, that could've been a lot worse. ;p
And I have maybe another 10 on the way..

So... ending the year with >1200 unreads books in the house. Not actually terrible... ey? ;p
Phew. I think that's about it!

Hi Aletheia, he looks big! And happy, which is the most important thing of all. Enjoy your time with him!

>86 karenmarie:. Love that picture. He is really a big little boy now.

Buggy? That's what my niece and her wife call my darling great-nephew Oliver. He's 2 1/2.

I can see that my job here is to make you feel about Mt. TBR. 1200 is nothing, a mere bagatelle. I have over 1800. So the question is, does that make you feel better or worse? AT my current rate of ~100/year, that's 18 years and I'm already 64. Plus, of course, this year I will only have read 40% ROOTs and 60% new. I'm in trouble!

Just consider what a great example you're giving Malachi with books everywhere. *smile*

Thanks for the updates, Aletheia, and the cute photo of Malachi - he looks such a happy wee boy. Sending you all season's greetings and hoping you continue to find time for reading, especially together!

He's precious, Aletheia. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

What a happy picture! It is a amazing how much time they take up isn't it but definitely worth it. Have a happy holiday season. There is nothing like having little ones around to make it magic.

What a lovely boy, and such a winning smile! It's good to see you here, even briefly - just pop in when you can!

Re: daycare - my daughter has been in nursery since she was 11 months old (she's just turned 4 - how did that happen?!), and I couldn't rave more about it. It's been brilliant for her, she has come on leaps and bounds and the staff have always gone out of their way to get to know her and her needs (plus I'm pretty sure it has well and truly saved my sanity). It made going back to work so much easier knowing she was being so well cared for. I bet Malachi will have a brilliant time.

Such a cute photo! It's always good to hear from you and catch up a little bit on the kiddo and reading. I think I read Delicious not too terribly long ago - hope you enjoy it :)

Wonderful to see an update from you, and a new pic of Malachi :). He's still so cute! I'm glad things are going well for you and that you've managed to read so much. Looks like you enjoyed all of the books to some extent, too, which is always nice! Hope you have a merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Belated season's greetings, Aletheia! See you in the 2018 ROOT group I hope :)

>91 connie53: >92 karenmarie: He's huge! And very happy ;) Thank you!

>93 floremolla: lol yep! He was (and still is, when he's not in constant motion) such a cuddle bug when he was born.. and the name has stuck ;D That's awesome re Oliver!
1800... well, I seem to be building my mountain up to the height of yours ;D My numbers are similarly, erm, disheartening. But not really... we love these books! They all represent potential ;)

>94 Tess_W: You bet! & thank you!

>95 Familyhistorian: Thank you! & Merry Christmas & Happy 2018 to you too!

>96 Jackie_K: Thank you!

>97 Caramellunacy: Thank you! I try... I'm still debating on doing an official 2018 ROOT challenge.....
That's so wonderful to hear about your / your daughter's experience with day care!! We're experiencing some trepidation ;p But once he starts, I'm sure we'll be so happy for it!

>98 readingtangent: Thank you! I did enjoy Delicious... Not every single thing about it, but most of it. And the "overall" it, too ;)

>99 floremolla: Thank you! Yep... either I'm getting better at picking books to read or less discriminating ;D Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you, too!

>100 avanders: Thank you & Seasons Greetings to you too! As I mentioned just above, I'm still debating on doing an official 2018 ROOT challenge..... I don't want to flake, but I love the group...
We'll see how the next couple days go ;) I just finished a 75-book purge....

What an adorable nickname! He is certainly a fine looking little man. That smile...

I too increased my TBRs, but who cares? I am listening to a Tim Dorsey and while it is making me laugh, it is so silly that I don't need to go any further. I will be tossing/sending to Goodwill all the remaining Dorseys in my library. Books in, books out. It all averages in the end.

>102 avanders: Thanks! His laugh is pretty cute too ;D (I think all babies' laughs are cute...)

Oh yeah, I totally understand that.. you get to a certain point in some series where... you're done. Even if you enjoyed it ;)

Hi Aletheia!



Peace, Health, and Happiness in 2018

End of 2017 wrap-up.. (Books)

I read 48 books (woot!!), of which 32 were ROOTs (that's actually pretty great for me!). It's 67%. Of course my definition of "ROOT" might need to be a little less flexible. But still ;p
..

I guess that's a pretty brief wrap-up. :-D

>105 floremolla: in the circumstances, that was a pretty great achievement, well done!

Thanks Karen! And to you too!!

>106 avanders: It was more than I expected to do, in the circumstances ;D
Thanks!

Yes, 48 books is an awesome achievement with a baby in the house! Hope you all have a happy new year :)