2020 reading year in review

 2020 Goodreads challenge: 1111
Total books read in 2020 according to Goodreads: 1183
2020 Goodreads challenge completed on: December 12, 2020

3 book challenges completed:

2020 Book Riot Read Harder Challenge (12/25/20)
2020 PopSugar Reading Challenge (12/3/20 (including the Advanced section))
Reading Women Challenge 2020 (9/26/20 (including the Bonus section))

2020 total (from this blog): 1199
Broken down by category:
387 picture books

156 graphic novels

142 comics

125 young adult fiction

104 manga

81 youth fiction

75 adult fiction

75 youth nonfiction

48 adult nonfiction

5 young adult nonfiction

1 magazine

Once again, I'm off by one in my other notebook that I keep track of what I've read in.  It says 1198.  Still not going to try to figure out what's missing/wrong!

My month of the least reading was in August when I read 38 books.
My month of the most reading was in November when I read 229 books.

For comparison, my 2019 totals: 

Total: 1148
549 picture books
182 graphic novels
128 manga
111 youth nonfiction
71 young adult fiction
46 adult nonfiction
33 adult fiction
28 youth fiction
1 young adult nonfiction

For comparison, my 2018 totals:
Total: 1214
431 picture books
254 manga
200 graphic novels
116 youth nonfiction
52 young adult fiction
45 adult nonfiction
44 comics
37 adult fiction
30 youth fiction
3 fanfiction
2 young adult nonfiction

2019 Reading Year in Review

2019 Goodreads challenge: 1111
Total books read in 2019 according to Goodreads: 1145
2019 Goodreads challenge completed on: December 28, 2019
2 book challenges completed: 2019 Book Riot Read Harder Challenge (12/26/19); 2019 PopSugar Reading Challenge (12/22/19 (with only 3 from the advanced section))

Reading Women Challenge 2019 almost completed (I mised one book!)

2019 total (from this blog): 1148
Broken down by category:
549 picture books
182 graphic novels
128 manga
111 youth nonfiction
71 young adult fiction
46 adult nonfiction
33 adult fiction
28 youth fiction
1 young adult nonfiction

My month of the least reading was in October when I read 42 books.
My month of the most reading was in May when I read 177 books.

My notebook says 1149, but I don't know where the discrepancy is and I'm not going back to fix it!  That's a lot of books to comb through! *laughs*

For comparison, my 2018 totals:
Total: 1214
431 picture books
254 manga
200 graphic novels
116 youth nonfiction
52 young adult fiction
45 adult nonfiction
44 comics
37 adult fiction
30 youth fiction
3 fanfiction
2 young adult nonfiction

For comparison, my 2017 totals:
Total: 1041
580 picture books
135 graphic novels
96 youth nonfiction
59 comics
45 youth fiction
41 manga
33 adult fiction
27 young adult fiction
23 adult nonfiction
2 zines

Reading Pagan Every Day

In one of my other tasks as the book reviewer for Pagan Edge magazine (www.paganedge.com), I challenged my readers to read Pagan Every Day with me this year. I got a bit of a late start (oops!), but I'm on task now. It's a such a cool book!

So...if anybody ever reads this blog, if you'd like to read along, please do. :)

And that's why it'll be on my "books i'm reading" list for the whole year. ;)

Library book sale!!!

I went to the Friends of the Library book sale today. We went last year and picked up a lot of books, but they were super expensive (which we didn't realize until we went to pay). This year, the prices were much cheaper--yay!

It's odd, sort of, how things happen. Both my supervisor and one of my professor suggested that I look for this book called Radical Acceptance and wouldn't you know it? There it was at the book sale for $1!

I was also able to get two Serendipity books. One of my personal book challenges is to read all the Serendipity books (well, and the Little Mr. and Little Miss books too).

I got some other books too--a couple that I think are on my to read list. And some fun looking picture books. AND a book for one of my nephews for Christmas.

And I spent less than $11. Go me! ;)

Books from Michigan

By the way, I did find that book, Marked. It was not in a black hole. It was in a place I didn't look because I was SURE that I hadn't even stopped there the night I lost it (i.e., the couch in my parents' basement). My dad found it. :) And I finished the book while I was in Michigan.

A funny library story from while I was in Michigan visiting family. The Grand Haven library, the Loutit District Library has recently been rebuilt. I hadn't been in the new library until I visited this time. A friend of my parents' works there. So, one day, when my dad was home from work, we went to the library after lunch. We wanted to see our friend and my dad hadn't seen the new library.

By the way, the library is beautiful! I wish I lived in Grand Haven again so I could go there all the time. :)

Our friend wasn't back from lunch yet, so I made my dad wander with me. And of course, I found some interesting books I wanted to read! I asked my dad if he had a library card and he said no. So I asked him to go get one so I could get some books out! I had read through nearly all of the books I had brought with me. And I found some really awesome doggie art type books (These Were Our Dogs and Lost). My dad, who is the awesomest, went and got a library card. :) Isn't that funny?

So, that was my Michigan vacation. Well, that and the three days I spent in airports because my flights kept getting delayed. I read a lot.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Black hole of books?

I'm officially on winter break from school. And I'm in Michigan, visiting my family & friends. Of course, I brought a ton of books with me! I read one whole book on my plane rides. :) Yay!

I started reading the Marked series (or is it the Chosen series and Marked is one of the books?) by Cast & Cast. I was really into it too, it was interesting and I was nearly done. And suddenly, the book has disappeared into a black hole because I can't find the damn thing ANYWHERE!

I was reading it on Monday before my best friend came over. It was dark and she was unfamiliar with the road up to my parents' house. So when she called my cell, I put the book down on my bed (I thought), grabbed my phone and fleeces, and ran upstairs to meet her at the end of the driveway. And later the next evening, after our adventures talking all night and in Ann Arbor, I can't find the book. I thought maybe I had brought it upstairs, but it's not there. I thought it had fallen under or behind the bed, it's not. I thought I brought it into one of the other rooms, it's not there. I CAN'T FIND IT AT ALL! Where could it possibly have gone but in a black hole?

I'm upset because it was good and I'm almost done, but also because it's a library book!!! :(

Wish me luck. My last option is asking my best friend if it somehow ended up in her bag.

Hello, Cruel World

I borrowed Hello, Cruel World: 101 Alternatives to Suicide for Teens, Freaks & Other Outlaws by Kate Bornstein from the library out of curiousity. Yes, I've been suicidal before. No, I wasn't went I borrowed it. I hung onto it for a couple months (see, that hoarding), always intending to read it, but not doing it. Finally, about a month and a half ago, I was feeling pretty bad--not suicidal, but probably not too far off either. And I started to read it. I read it in two nights. It made me cry. It's such a wonderful book and it's not all about how not to commit suicide. It's about things to do when you feel bad and accepting yourself and not feeling alone. I now adore Kate Bornstein (okay, so I kinda did before, but this made it better!).

Since I read this book (and took it to therapy with me to show my therapist), I've been looking for a copy for myself. I needed one--there are places I have to highlight and post-it note and bookmark. I ordered it from amazon.com right after that therapy session I mentioned, thinking that amazon is pretty good at getting things to me quickly. Nope, amazon said 4-6 weeks (I swear, when I ordered it, they said in stock). So I went to every Borders in the area (Arborland, downtown, even Brighton)--nothing. I went to Shaman Drum. Nothing. Shaman Drum was helpful, though, they said that it looked like the book sold out of its first printing and no warehouses have it in stock. I was sad. I NEEDED this book. But I hung in there, thinking amazon would come through after 4-6 weeks.

It's been 4-6 weeks. Amazon is sending the rest of my order (FINALLY!), but no Hello, Cruel World. The new estimate is late May!!

Well, I had an ill-fated drive up to Flint tonight for some recruiting (I got stuck in bad traffic, then couldn't find the place) and on my way home, I decided to treat myself and stopped at the new shopping complex a couple exits north of my home exit. There's a Johnny Carino's there and a B&N. I thought, well, I haven't tried this B&N, so I'll look. Can you believe they had FIVE copies??? So, I bought it, but now it's too late to cancel the one from amazon. *laughs* I'm gonna end up with two copies of this amazing book. And you know what? That's okay. :)

Once I start rereading, I'll post some quotes. I can't recommend this book enough. Pick it up, even if you're not suicidal and if you are, it's a must.