May 2020 Month in Review

June 1, 2020

Newsworthy

Um. When did it become June? Seriously. I blinked and May ended. How… odd.

My mood is improving as the weather does. Having the windows open, listening to birds chirp, my dog bark, and the men work in the fields is doing a lot for my spirits. I’m also trying really hard to get 30 minutes of yoga in a day. I find my depression symptoms are shrinking. Still present, but smaller.

May is my birthday month! My birthday fell on a bright, sunny, warm Saturday and I made the most of it. My husband and I grabbed coffee and bagels to go and had a picnic on a friend’s lawn so we could share birthday wishes (her birthday is also in May!). I participated in a book club video chat, went on a 3-mile hike with my husband in a county park, and we got sushi carryout for dinner. It was practically perfect. In fact, my birthday was the most normal feeling day I’ve had since quarantine started.

Other things in May — Work is starting to gather into a new normal and feel more manageable. I had a birthday lunch with one May birthday buddy and a birthday dinner with another — both outside with our own meals at an appropriate social distance. A friend bequeathed me some sourdough starter, so I’m starting to learn the fine art of bread making. It’s harder than I imagined. …Oh! And we got a new dishwasher! It’s the little things.

The farm is coming along. The meat birds had their bad day and new chicks are arriving later this week. The eggs birds have moved into their permanent coop with an attached yard. Spring crops are all in the ground and summer vegetables have (mostly) been seeded. And, the coup-de-grace, my father-in-law has now come up for the summer to help out. I like him a LOT. But 3.5-4.5 months is a long time. We’ll see how I manage.

 

List of Reads

As the weather has improved, I’ve taken to sitting outside in the afternoon (with SPF 50 and a big, floppy hat) to read. It’s helped me make a lot of progress! I don’t feel like I’m reading anything amazing, but I’m reading consistently again, and that’s what matters.

May Books:

Read 10 total books

 

MUST READ this month:

Confession: Nothing blew my socks off. #SorryNotSorry — I’ve been reading a ton of less-than-great fiction because it’s what I can focus on. Book club books were interesting and provided good content for conversation. Other than that, I’ve been reading vampire smut… It’s fun to read, so sue me!

Meh. I wasn’t into it this month:

The Witches of East End by Melissa de la Cruz–  A fun, quick, read. This book club selection is my 3rd de la Cruz book and I knew going into it I wouldn’t be impressed. Her writing just never works for me. All the right parts are here for an amazing story but it never slid into place. That said, I completely understand why this was turned into a TV show! Though, honestly, I would have expected The WB to option it over Lifetime. 😉

 

May TBR:

  • Kids Lit Book Club – Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
  • West Side Stories – Witches of West End by Melissa De La Cruz
  • VACB Book Club The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin
  • Science Fiction/Fantasy Book Club: TBD by TBD (The original book we chose is out of print… we’re pondering and trying again)
  • The Great Newbery Challenge – Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman
  • #ReadingValdemar – Oathbound by Mercedes Lackey
  • Buddy Read with Kim @ Traveling in BooksAmberlough by Lara Elena Donnelly

 

2020 Reading Goal Updates:

  • May Book Club and Goal-Specific Books Omitted: 1/5
  • Overall 2020 Reading Challenge: 43/60 (71%)
  • Non-Fiction Consumed: 6/12
  • Series Progress:
    • New Series Started: 8
    • Series Completed: 5
  • 2020 Great Newbery Challenge: 1/20 (5% complete)
    • You can follow The Great Newbery Challenge over the years here.

I’m counting my goal-specific books as only one missed this month. I didn’t finish reading my work book club book, The Inevitable, despite the fact that I tried super hard. Reading non-fiction on paper just isn’t cutting it for me in this environment. But, I also never received my copy of Binging with Babish from the library due to quarantine. I watched many YouTube videos, got copies of recipes from clubbers who had the cookbook, and still made quite a few recipes. I won’t count Binging with Babish as read until I have the book in my grubby paws but I will count it as completed for book club. I was easily able to participate!

I READ MY FIRST NEWBERY AWARD WINNER! It took the entire first half of the year. Yikes. My current plan is to reserve a bunch from the library and take a week off in August or September where I will read one every day. That should help me get back on track fairly quickly. But I need the libraries to open up a bit more first…

If you’re curious about why I chose the goals I did for 2020, you can see my reading and blogging goal post here.

 

Tsundoku Life

It wouldn’t be tsundoku if I didn’t have a gigantic pile of books and bookish things going on in my life!

On the Blog:

I finally feel like I’m back on the blogging horse! To keep me focused during COVID-19, I’ve started using my habit tracker app again. This reminds me to do things like write book reviews, schedule posts, and blog hop. It’s nice to be back.

Book Reviews

Death by Tsundoku Series Posts

Top Ten Tuesday

Other Posts

 

2020 Blogging Goal Updates:

  • Book Review Word Count Average: 633
  • Total 2020 Posts Published: 56/100 (56%)
  • Total Series Posts Published: 18/24
    • #ReadingValdemar: 6
    • Building Better book Clubs: 4
    • Solving for Tsundoku: 3
    • Between the Lines: 5
  • Newbery Winner Reviews Published: 6/10 (60%)

I’m glad I have these blogging goals. When you’re measuring success, you always need to set a baseline. It was hard for me to do so because I had to switch blog hosts two years ago and lost a lot of historical data on the way. Last year was an odd year, as due to the farm move I lost the blogging plot for summer.

Now that we’re almost halfway done with the year, I see I’m doing much better with my blogging goals than I expected. I’m staying on top of reading and posting, despite all the crazy in my life for once. It’s nice to know I’m on track to meet, if not beat, these goals. Yay!

If you’re curious about why I chose the goals I did for 2020, you can see my reading and blogging goal post here.

 

Blog Projects and News

Classic Remarks is finally on Death by Tsundoku! Krysta and Briana at Pages Unbound have brought back their meme from 2016 & 2017, Classic Remarks. I started blogging in December 2015 and only started to find and follow other bookish blogs near the end of 2016. I didn’t discover Pages Unbound until mid-2017 and by that point, Classic Remarks had ceased to exist. I’m so glad that I have an opportunity to participate in this revival! One of the things I admire most about Pages Unbound are the thoughtful, intelligent, and relevant discussion posts they present. Always a well-formulated argument that explores both sides while presenting a firm position. I love it. I believe participating in Classic Remarks will help me become a better discussion post writer. I look forward to participating when I can and growing this skill over the rest of the year.

Classic Remarks Posts on Death by Tsundoku:
A Classic I Have Always Loved
Which YA Book Would You Like to See Become Classics?
Did Shakespeare Write Shakespeare? 

Back to buddy reading! If you’ve been following my blog the last three months, then you know I’ve really struggled with quarantine and COVID. My mental health hasn’t been great meaning my reading and blogging suffered as a result. Thankfully, I am feeling a lot better and making more time for reading again. My mind can focus again! It’s time to dig back into my book club books and buddy reading. This month, I’ll be reading Amberlough by Lara Elena Donnelly with Kim @ Traveling in Books. It feels good to get back into buddy reading, to have someone to hold me accountable, and to have an opportunity to discuss as I read. In fact, I even wrote a post this month celebrating the magic of buddy reads. Obviously, I’m stoked.

 

Summer 2020 will be very different from the previous Summers of my life. Fewer BBQs, fewer parties, less live music, and less time with my friends. I know I’m not alone in this. I hope that you all find ways to continue to connect with those you love, stay safe, and stay healthy all summer long. We got this.

Happy Reading,

Jackie B.

Jackie B Forman

 


What do you think?

  • Have you read any of the books I mentioned above? What are your thoughts?
  • Did you discover any amazing new reads in May? What are your recommendations?
  • What awesome stuff did you get up to in May? I’m curious about your life outside of books!
  • Are you interested in participating in a buddy read with me later this year?

29 Comments

  • Laila@BigReadingLife June 1, 2020 at 11:50 am

    Sounds like things are looking up. I’m so glad. Mostly I”m glad you’re feeling better.

    • Jackie B June 1, 2020 at 4:34 pm

      Thanks, Laila! It’s amazing how good weather and exposure to people, even at a great distance, can improve one’s mood.

  • Krysta June 1, 2020 at 1:17 pm

    I’m glad you’re starting to find your spirits lift a little! I know it’s important for me to try to get outside for a walk at least once a day. I think the sunshine does me a lot of good! Otherwise, I’m just staring at my computer screen all day.

    • Jackie B June 9, 2020 at 10:31 am

      The sunshine is essential! With all the rain we’ve been getting lately, I’ve been keeping my eyes glued to the radar to see if I can step out for a walk between showers. Even just being outside without sun is something. Movement. I definitely need movement.

      • Krysta June 9, 2020 at 1:25 pm

        Sometimes I just open the door and stare wistfully outside and that makes me feel like I accomplished something. Rain can be no fun!

  • Sam@WLABB June 1, 2020 at 5:56 pm

    I love that you have a farm and are making your own bread. I guess it’s the city girl in me that aspires to do such things. Sourdough is so good too. True story, when we went to Disneyland, they had a sponsored attraction by some bread company. You watched a little movie (narrated by Ellen) about sourdough, walked through some stuff to look at, and then got some bread to eat. Um, we went back several times. Can’t wait to hear about your bread

    • Jackie B June 9, 2020 at 10:33 am

      Hahaha — I love it! Sourdough is my favorite, too. I’d watch a film about sourdough if I got to eat some bread samples for free, for sure.

      I’m still working on my free-form loaves & sandwhich bread. But the rest is coming along swimmingly. I have a killer sourdough waffle recipes I love. And I’ve nailed cinnamon raisin bread and its related variations (just straight up cinnamon, cinnamon sugar, switching up other dried fruit or nuts for the raisins, etc.). I’ve gained a TON of weight. But, honestly, I don’t care because it’s helping me stay happy. That’s more important right now.

  • Captain's Quarters June 1, 2020 at 7:42 pm

    Happy Belated Bday Matey! So glad ye had a good one.
    x The Captain

    • Jackie B June 5, 2020 at 9:56 am

      Thank you, Cap’n! It was the best day of quarantine thus far. XD

  • Grab the Lapels June 2, 2020 at 7:46 pm

    May was a hard month because we had no clue when we would be going back to work at the library. It was all up to the governor, who didn’t inform us until a Friday that we would be open on Monday across the state. I got into the groove of being around people, hopping away from people, trying to glare at people who don’t wear masks. I feel like part of returning to work is trying to regain some sense of community, because during a pandemic other people sure feel like the enemy. I also have a birthday in May, though it was weird this year because there were no Cinqo de Mayo parties to attend. We also had our anniversary.

    I’m so glad you’re reading the vampire smut. I need to get to my smutty vampire books, but skip all the audio editions. The readers just drive me insane.

    • Jackie B June 9, 2020 at 10:51 am

      You had so much going on in May! That’s a lot to try and deal with — but I’m so glad happy things were in there, too. 🙂 Even if it wasn’t the sort of usual birthday or anniversary, celebrations matter.

      Yeah, rebuilding a sense of community is hard in this environment, but I’m glad to see people trying. Particularly if they are trying in a safe way! Very few places in Madison are properly open again, and those that are have a ton of safety precautions in place. Most places are still curbside pickup or delivery. We really can only go out to parks… But at least with all this land we have space for social distancing picnics! It’s nice for people to bring their own food, beverage, and chairs and hang out. I’ve missed people a lot.

      Oh yes, I just picked up the new two smutty vampire books. XD I hope to get this whole series read this year. It’ll help with my reading challenge! 😉

      • Grab the Lapels June 9, 2020 at 12:03 pm

        I’ve heard from a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin-Madison that there is quiet talk of the university not reopening in the fall. That may have been just talk, and it was weeks ago that she said this, so who knows what’s changed.

        A lot DID happen in May. Each week feels like a new planet.

        • Jackie B June 9, 2020 at 12:31 pm

          It’s not as quiet at they think it is… nothing’s open in the city really, people aren’t going out to the places that are open, and the university isn’t doing tours or much of anything. Most of the public schools are waiting to see what UW does before making their own choices, so everyone is keeping their ears to the ground for that decision.

          McSweeney’s had a great article about how time is all different now: https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/heres-how-time-works-now

          • Grab the Lapels June 10, 2020 at 10:05 am

            Wisconsin’s COVID rules and culture is SO DIFFERENT from what’s going on in Indiana.

            • Jackie B June 10, 2020 at 10:23 am

              That’s what I hear! David’s brother came to visit us the last 5 days (we needed to get him out of there for a bit) and on the drive up he was shocked at the inability to get anything other than gas. Nothing is open. Then when he was here, we couldn’t go anywhere or do anything. He was all, “Why am I even up here?” (To keep you sane, little borther, but we weren’t going to tell him that). We just put him to work on the farm. XD

              • Grab the Lapels June 10, 2020 at 10:50 am

                Erm, did he really think he was going to drive to Wisconsin and then go all the places? That’s exactly what we’re not supposed to do anywhere. And it’s even worse when someone travels outside of their community and touches all the things and breathes in all the places. I’m definitely not sure what he was expecting.

                • Jackie B June 12, 2020 at 3:32 pm

                  Haha. He sorta did. At least, more places than we were able to go. just out to eat or something. I don’t blame him – he didn’t expect to be trapped doing farm work all day. XD

                  He’s from Southern Indiana. I mean…

                  • Grab the Lapels June 12, 2020 at 7:33 pm

                    I remembered that he’s in Indiana. We’ve been open for weeks compared to you guys. What a rascally goofball.

                    • Jackie B June 14, 2020 at 9:04 pm

                      Now that is a description of my brother-in-law I’m stealing and using over and over again.

                    • Grab the Lapels June 15, 2020 at 12:37 pm

                      I must confess, I stole it from the Cartoon Network Adult Swim show Metalocalypse. There’s an episode in which the world’s greatest metal band adopts a teenage boy in an effort to reduce their tax contribution, but the teen is out of control. They take the boy to the vet to get him neutered because, as the lead singer of the band notes, when he was a kid they had a dog that was too excited, a real “rascally goofball” that calmed down after it was fixed.

                    • Jackie B June 15, 2020 at 2:22 pm

                      I haven’t seen a ton of Metalocalypse, but what I have seen is gold. Hence the reason that’s so funny. Pure gold.

  • Cheryl @ I Heart Fictional People June 2, 2020 at 10:02 pm

    Depression has reared its ugly head this past month for me, so I know the feeling. I love hearing all of the positives going on in your life and that you’re feeling better. Sitting outside to read sounds so peaceful. I should do that. 10 books is awesome! My goal is always 5. I haven’t read any of those, but I’m definitely intrigued by some of those covers 🙂

    • Jackie B June 5, 2020 at 10:16 am

      Ugh, I’m sorry that you’ve felt the pain too, Cheryl. Everything going on in the world has definitely thrown my emotions and my biology into turmoil! Gotta stay focused on the positives in this crazy world, right?

      Reading outside is lovely — until the bugs come by. XD I now have to wear bug spray on the regular to keep them away. But it’s still better than inside all the time!

      I don’t have a goal for reading each month, but I typically end up between 8-11. I participate in so many book clubs I need to read that many just to keep up! O_o

      Thanks for stopping by and commenting, Cheryl. It has been great to meet you!

  • Lashaan Balasingam @ Bookidote June 6, 2020 at 10:50 am

    Happy belated birthday, Jackie! I’m glad that you had a marvelous day and could make it a day feel “special” by making it “normal” unlike the usual quarantine days! 😛 I’m also glad to hear that those depression symptoms have calmed down and I hope that it only gets better from now on! I still need to read The Ten Thousand Doors of January myself. It has only received super high praise from just about every fan of fantasy out there! 😮 Happy reading and stay safe!

    • Jackie B June 9, 2020 at 10:30 am

      Thank you! We’re all trying to figure out the new normal. While Shelter-in-Place restrictions are lifted in my town, very few public locations are open. Most restaurants are only doing carry out. Your options for going “out” include parks, trails, and lakes. That’s about it. We’re still seeing cases increase, but that has a lot to do with protesting and riots. Here’s hoping those participating are staying safe!

      The Ten Thousand Doors of January is wonderful. Though, we had a really interesting discussion in my SFF Book Club. About 1/3 of us loved it (oh hai), 1/3 felt meh, and 1/3 didn’t care for it. No one hated it. But it’s a very slow burn character driven novel. Set your expectations accordingly to your love for that sort of book.

  • PerfectlyTolerable June 9, 2020 at 10:34 am

    Happy belated birthday!! I’m glad you were able to have a relatively normal day. It sounds like it was full of fun activities! I hope you have a great June <3

    • Jackie B June 12, 2020 at 11:34 am

      It was so nice to forget that quarantine was happening. Technically our Shelter-at-Home order is over, but I don’t feel like anything has changed. Only a handful of restaurants are open and most public entertainment locations are still closed. It’s… so weird.

      I hope you have a good June, too!

  • Danielle Hammelef June 19, 2020 at 11:58 am

    Your birthday sounds perfect and exactly how I’d love to celebrate mine. Sushi is my favorite and I always treat myself to it on my birthday too. My mood definitely improved with the weather warming up and with it my windows open for fresh air. Sometimes it feels like we aren’t threatened by COVID-19 anymore, just for a few minutes. Our state is still on partial lock down and I miss my live exercise classes, but am not ready to risk my health for them anyway.

    • Jackie B July 6, 2020 at 11:50 am

      Thanks, Danielle! It was an awesome day after a slog of repetitive days. I, too, miss my exercise classes. My gym is open again, but I’m just not going to go back this year, I don’t think. They have many great precautions in place. But it’s the other patrons I don’t trust as much. There are cameras you can log into to see how busy things are and I’m seeing a lot of behaviors that make me feel unsafe. I hope that we get back to live exercise classes soon, though. I don’t push myself as hard when I’m solo!

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