September in Review

October 3, 2016

month in review

Newsworthy

 

At the beginning of the month, I gave Death by Tsundoku a makeover. I also decided to more actively network for fellow blogger-friends, and I started a new series of posts called Between the Lines, focused on better understanding books, trends in writing, and the labels associated with these ideas. I have found so much joy in all of this.

There are so many things I love more about my new blog setup. But, I’m still running into a few issues. Gravatars aren’t working, likes for comments aren’t appearing– I still have so much to learn.

A huge shout out to my fellow book bloggers who have helped me through this. You guys testing everything has really helped a ton. And, an even bigger shout out to my admin DarthGoat. I couldn’t have done this without you. Literally.

I’m certain more changes appear as the next few months rattle by, but for now, I’ll focus on Between the Lines and tweaking my blog to work as I expect it to. I can’t wait to see what the next few months hold!

Any suggestions for blog improvement?

 

List of Reads

With my blog overhaul, kicked my reading into gear somehow and read a TON. I honestly have no idea how that happened, and I certainly don’t expect a repeat here. I also discovered the joy and terror which is NetGalley and Blogging for Books. Expect to see a lot of these posts over the next few months!

September Books:

Read 23 total books (HOW?!?!?!)

 

september-1 september-2 september-3 september-4 september-5

september-6

Currently Reading – 4 books

  • Creating a Lean Culture: Tools to Sustain Lean Conversations by David Mann
  • Influencer: The Power to Change Anything by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Greeny, David Maxfield, Ron McMillan, and Al Swizler
  • Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  • Hogwarts: An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide by J.K. Rowling
  • Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman by Lindy West

(You can tell which of books are for work. I’m barely budging on them and they’ve been here for months. Oops. I should actively try to knock those off before the holidays, at least…)

You MUST READ this month:

Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea: This was one of two 5-star books I read this month. The other is The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. Both are brilliant in their own right. But Narwhal fills me with sooo much joy. I’ve already read this short graphic novel 6 times since I got it on September 7th. It’s adorable and makes me happy no matter how I’m feeling. <3

DANGER! Avoid this month:

Vampire Academy. I read a number of 2-star books this month, but I’ve decided this is the least desirable since it tricks you by pretending to be something paranormal YA lovers would like. All the YA paranormal romance bits are present. Yet the writing is barely adequate, the story is confusing, and the pacing is wrong. The other 2 star books are redeemable; in most cases a properly edited edition would improve the rating (I’m looking at you poorly edited ARCs). Vampire Academy? I don’t think you have a chance for redemption. Sorry.

Challenge Update

As the Quarter 4 begins, and I realize how far behind I am in some of my challenges… well, I’m in a bit of a crunch now. It looks like going forward I’ll need to restrict my reading as much as I can to only challenge books.

Check out my challenge statuses as they update here.

Tsundoku Life

It wouldn’t be tsundoku if I didn’t have a gigantic pile of books waiting for me! Sadly, I barely read any of the books my friends lent me. And, I went a little crazy with the library books this month. Plus I overly committed to NetGalley? Yikes.

Yeah, there’s no way I’m getting through this list. Sorry friends, I am still unlikely to read the books you lent me. Please forgive me.

TBR: Library Books

  • Naruto, Vol 7 by Mashashi Kishimoto
  • A Thousand Nights by E. K. Johnson
  • This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki
  • At Home with Madhur Jaffrey by Madhur Jaffrey
  • We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
  • The Broken Kingdoms by by N. K. Jemisin
  • The Sigh by Marjane Satrapi
  • Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White
  • Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdian
  • Uprooted by Naomi Novik
  • The Forbidden Library by Django Wexler

TBR: Lent from Friends

  • Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
  • When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
  • Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai
  • One Crazy Summer by Rita-Williams Garica
  • Wolf in White Van by John Darnielle
  • Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

NetGalley ARCs

  • Vibrant India by Chitra Agrawal
  • A Perfect Score by Craig and Katheryn Hall
  • Love Letters to the World by Meia Geddes
  • Threat of Sky and Sea by Jennifer Ellision
  • It Started with Goodbye by Christina June
  • From Panel to Screen by Drew Morton

Book Club Reading

  • Our Shared Shelf- Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D. Kristof
  • Kids Lit – The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Regan Barnhill
  • West Side Stories – Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
  • Brunch Books – The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

I think my prioritization will be book clubs, followed by library due dates interspersed with NetGalley ARCs. any other ideas?

How did I end up with so many books to read? Does anyone have any tips to help me stop doing this to myself? Sheesh.

Happy Reading,

Jackie B.

Jackie B Forman

6 Comments

  • Sarah October 3, 2016 at 9:36 am

    I’m blown away by your blog! I love all of the work you put into it this month, the changes look fantastic! And holy cow, 23 books reviewed! That’s amazing! You have such a passion for reading and it shows in every review. I also love that you pick books from all different areas, cook books, fiction, memoirs, etc. There is really something here for everyone! I love reading your reviews. It helps me narrow down my personal list since my free time is limited, it’s nice to read an honest review with the good and the bad!

    Not to add too many more books to your reading list, but if you’ve never read the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich, you might want to check it out (the first book is One for the Money). It isn’t a complex book, but her character development is great. She combines romance, comedy, murder and mystery all in one. However, once you’re hooked… there are 20+ books on the series and she is still writing them. It’s great if you want to read a book that makes you laugh and only want to spend about 2-3 hours reading it.

    • Jackie B October 6, 2016 at 12:26 pm

      D’aw, thanks Sarah!! I really appreciate it. I don’t know how I blazed through 23 books this month… That’s a really high bar to try and maintain… O_o

      One for the Money didn’t really resonate with me, but I’ve been told that I need to keep reading them by many people. Apparently, the writing gets a lot better after the second book. 😉 It’s certainly on my TBR… we’ll see if I ever get to it! Thanks for the recommendation, they are always welcome.

  • Amanda @Cover2CoverMom October 5, 2016 at 9:15 pm

    How in the world did you manage to read 23 books, write blog posts, AND be super active on other blogs?!?! I’m not sure you are human… Congrats on a fabulous September. Looking forward to what you have in store for us in October 🙂

    • Jackie B October 6, 2016 at 12:33 pm

      Thanks! Honestly, Amanda, I have absolutely no idea how that happened. It’s like once I realized it I fell into a black hole for all these tasks, too. I think everything caught up with me, finally! I can’t wait to see what you have in store too. 🙂

  • Read Diverse Books October 6, 2016 at 10:21 pm

    Hey, it looks like I can comment with my wordpress account now! 😀 Glad to see this is working. I can relate so much with the technical issues of blogging. I started with a self-hosted blog from day 1 and had to learn quickly to fix them or just accept my fate. It’s not always fun.
    Your TBR is huge and intimidating. Take it easy and enjoy yourself! But if you can read 23 books in one month, then it may not be so hard for you to get through your giant stack of books. Good luck!

    • Jackie B October 9, 2016 at 8:21 pm

      Yes! It is so gratifying to get something working again. Self-hosting has its challenges, but I love it nonetheless.
      I don’t know how I managed 23 books last month. I must have not done anything else? I am hoping to at least make a tiny dent in my TBR… Thanks for the well-wishes, I’ll need them!

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