LauraBrook's 2015 ROOT challenge

Hello to everyone - I'm back once again!

This year shouldn't be quite a screwy as last year was, life-wise. I'm going to bump up my goal just a little, then, and aim for 60 books total.




Last year my goal was 50, and I hit that without too much of an issue. I'd like to get a little more pressure on myself to read the heaps I have around the house. I've also got a goal of quitting my library job this year, so that should cut down on the amount of "OMGIneedtoreadthisRIGHTNOW" books that I haul home from work 5 days a week. (I wish I was kidding, it's every shift that I leave with something. It's a joke with my co-workers if I ever leave without something.) That being said, I already have a decently sized stack of books that I know I can read and get rid of, and that's inspiring. Plus, I've partially pulled out the books on my living room shelves that I think I can do the same for, and having those spines sticking out is making me a little OCD crazy.

Another minor aim for 2015 is that I will do my best NOT to renew unread library books. If I haven't gotten around to them in the 3 weeks I've already had them, they can go back and I can request them again at another time. This makes me a little panicky and nervous, but if I can step outside of my head for a few seconds and see what's really happening, I feel like a ninny and all of that anxiety goes away.

So - good luck to one and all!

Good luck, Laura! I must admit to feeling slight palpitations myself at the thought of returning library books unread. I've been renewing an awful lot this year and will cheer you on as you try not to renew your own library books :)

An impressive goal, good luck!

Good luck! I have the same library book problem (plus I always seem to end up getting more than I have time to read...I ought to curb my checking out in the first place!).

2> Thanks! I had a mad dash of renewing yesterday afternoon, so I got it in under the wire. This may be the hardest goal to keep for me.

3> Thank you, Tess!

4> Thank you, Caramellunacy! That's part of my problem too, I always over-check-out. I could read all of them if I didn't work, but I seem to forget that point when my card is in hand. :)

Hello again to another year filled with the pursuit of read-ingness! I would not be able to resolve to not renew library books. I'd be a nervous wreck. But best of luck to you! And a Happy New Year!

Terri, it's making me nervous just thinking about it, if I'm honest. But if I've started a book, I can renew away, so that's something. (Don't tell anyone, but I'm pretty sure that I'll break that goal within the week. Sssshhhh.....)

Hee hee ... Always nice to know you're not the only one... I'm on my third (and final!) renewal w one library book at home right now... Want... To... Read... It!!

Good luck with your goals!

I can't imagine trying not to renew library books. After the second renewal I often still have a hard time finishing them in time.

Hello Laura, welcome back and good luck with both challenge.

Maybe you should make a ticker for the books you do bring back. It might help.

I don't have the library problem because I buy everything I want to read. I'm not sure which is worse.

I have an 800-page chunkster on my table now that only has one more (out of 6) renewals left. I'll never finish it in time, so I'm hoping no one else wants it and I can check it back out the day after I return it!

I don't read library books at all. In the long run, it's cheaper for me to buy or d/l the books. I can't seem to get to the library when books are due and end up paying more sometimes than if I had bought the book used. Therefore Kindle and the thriftshop is my friend!

8> Thanks, avanders, I'm having a bit of a problem not renewing one book in particular right now. If I start it in the next couple of days, I can renew it, though, so I'll just have to make a point to pick it up tomorrow morning!

9> I know, Familyhistorian, it's tough, isn't it?

10> Hi Connie, thank you! I've just quit my library job, so the number of books shouldn't be too bad any more. Though I do have a bunch of holds that are on their way towards me now... I think the library thing is worse than owning them, honestly. That way they're always there, waiting for you, and you're much less likely to forget about reading it, you know? I can rationalize with the best of them! ;)

11> Terri, I hope you could check it out again!

12> Tess, that's a very good point! I like using PaperbackSwap for some things (plus, it's a good way for me to put some of the books I no longer want into a good home), and I've been just starting to check Kindle for cheap copies of books I'd like to read (some of them I already own a physical copy of). I try not to go to thrift stores just because I'll probably leave with something I didn't expect or need, like a giant vintage lamp or something, but if I was more organized about wish listing and TBRing, thrifting would be the way I'd go.

I've got a few ROOTs read!

Book 1 Food: A Love Story by Jim Gaffigan 4 stars, and a keeper for now. May get rid of it in the future.

Book 2 Realms of the Earth Angels by Doreen Virtue 4 stars, and a keeper

Book 3 The Mystery of the Blue Jar by Agatha Christie, 3 stars, ebook keeper

Book 4 Sorcery & Cecelia: Or, the Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede, 4 stars, keeper

So not really doing a great job at getting rid of books so far, I admit, but I'm having a friend come over this weekend who will hopefully help me get rid of a few titles!

That's a good start to your ROOTing!

Also, at least you're not reading a bunch of duds!

I really enjoyed Sorcery & Cecelia quite a bit - in college a friend and I played a similar "letter game" as the authors (to much merriment but much less literary success). I've just recently read Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal, which has a similar Regency comedy of manners with magic feel to me (though it cannot touch the Odious Marquis), so enjoyed that one too. Maybe it's time to pick Wrede back up again!

>13 LauraBrook: "I think the library thing is worse than owning them, honestly. That way they're always there, waiting for you, and you're much less likely to forget about reading it, you know": So true!!

And congrats on your ROOTs pulled so far!

>13 LauraBrook: All my books are keepers, they just move to another place on the shelves. And my TBR is not getting any smaller right now. Bought 6, read 6 (almost that is)

Ack, haven't been here in FAARRRR too long! Sorry, everyone - I've been busy reading! :)

>14 MissWatson: Thanks!

>15 Caramellunacy: I know, I'll take good keepers over duds any day. I'm envious that you and your friend wrote a story back and forth! How did it turn out? Any chance we could read it? :) Shades of Milk and Honey is on my TBR list as well, I'm looking forward to the day I actually get to it! You should definitely pick up some more Wrede!

>16 avanders: Thank you!

>17 connie53: Thank you for saying that, Connie, I was giving myself a bit of a complex over doing the exact same thing! Now I can tell people (or rather, my Mom) to lay off, my friend Connie does the same thing! :)

*********************

Book 5: Through Time Into Healing by Brian L. Weiss. Fascinating account of past life regression and how it helped one patient in particular to heal her life. 4.5 stars, keeper.

Book 6: The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon. 4 stars, keeper. The first in a purported 7 book series, I started out reading and ended up doing most of the "reading" via an audiobook, and it was much easier to keep my attention and the complex world-building straight. That's unusual for me, it's usually the opposite. Book #2 was just published in hardcover about a month ago.

Book 7: Parters In Crime by Agatha Christie. 4 stars, ebook, keeper. I'm really enjoying the Tommy & Tuppence series more than I thought I would, and this sort of collection of short stories was truly delightful.

Book 8: Xingu by Edith Wharton. 4.5 stars, ebook, keeper. This novella was surprising in its timeliness and social accuracy. Wharton is one of my favorite authors for a reason, and this was a nice little reminder of that.

Book 9: The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo. 5 stars, keeper. One of my book clubs won the Book Club Girl sweepstakes package, and this title was the one our group chose to receive and also do an hour Skype session with the author at our meeting. The author was wonderful, funny, smart, warm, engaging, and we couldn't have had a better chat! This book is one of my favorites of all time. It reminded me a little, in feel, of Memoirs of a Geisha, though the two stories aren't at all similar aside from a female main character. I went into reading this without really knowing what it was about, and I think that's best. Suffice to say that I gobbled it up in just over a day, and while she didn't say she was, I hope that we hear more about the characters in other books in the future!

Book 10: Ellen Middleton: A Tale by Lady Georgiana Fuller. 2.5 stars, ebook, and a keeper only because it's an ebook. A choice for my real-life classics book club, it felt a little too all-over-the-place for me to really like it. Nothing happened for the first 10%, then BOOM something happens, and much DRAMA and ANGST and RIDICULOUS BEHAVIOUR AND THINKING happens, and then the last 10% it gets super religious. Weird! It was chosen because it's a book that Emily Dickinson read and wrote about to her friends, and the picker wanted to read something that she knew Ms. Dickinson read. I'm sure in its time it was more "normal" and people didn't notice all the crazy-pants DRAMA (and yes, that should be in all caps) as much as all of us did.

Book 11: The Pioneer Detectives by Konstantin Kakaes. 4 stars, ebook, keeper. This tale of the Pioneer spacecrafts that are still cruising through outer space was fascinating to me. I wish there were more books out there about the subject.

Book 12: A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor. 4.5 stars, ebook, keeper. The second in the St. Mary's series, and I loved every second of it!

Book 13: When A Child Is Born by Jodi Taylor. 4 stars, ebook, keeper. Book 2.5 in the St. Mary's series. A fun, shorty romp.

Book 14: The Spiderwick Chronicles Movie: The Movie Storybook by Tracey West. 2.5 stars, goner. This was fine, but I'd rather just watch the movie again instead.

That's all for now! And I realize that while I've just finished book #50 this year, the vast majority of them have been from the library. Thankfully that is already cutting way down since I quit my job there about 6 weeks ago, and what I've been reading from there is mostly graphic novels, or new releases I don't necessarily want to shell out my money for just yet.

Book 15: Moab Is My Washpot by Stephen Fry. 4 stars, keeper. I love Stephen Fry - maybe "adore" is a better word - and I'm so glad I finally got around to reading this first memoir of his. While it wasn't always an easy read (he doesn't really have chapters, and his fabulous vocabulary can slow down your reading speed a bit, which is totally worth it), it was interesting, if not fascinating. Knowing a little about the traditional British schools, it was nice to learn more about how they're set up and run, the rules, etc, and though it wasn't that long ago, it seems so old-fashioned and human-paced and wonderful. If you're a fan of Mr. Fry, do yourself a favor and pick this one up.

Book 16: Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman. 3 stars, keeper. Like any collection of short stories, some hit better than others. My favorite was "Orange", it's one that I keep thinking about. There were other very good ones, and the worst was just "good". Overall, not a bad collection.

Book 17: Imagist Poetry: An Anthology 3 stars, keeper. A 2013 SantaThing present, this collection of poetry wasn't quite what I was expecting (shorter, tighter poems, versus the longer, rambling ones that a lot of them were) but it was still nice to read. It's certainly something I'll hang on to and dip into now and again throughout my life.

>18 LauraBrook: and >19 LauraBrook: Oooh, I'm really looking forward to reading The Bone Season one of these days (it's a ROOT) :) Congrats on all of your reading! Over 50 already this year and 17 ROOTs!

Safe to say that "real life" has totally flooded everything else. Between worrying about my Uncle, trying to keep my Mom healthy, and working, I haven't been here in over a month. And that makes me really sad. I miss all of you guys, and am so far behind on my own threads (not to mention everyone else's) it's pretty terrible. Let's see how well (or not) I've done on this ROOT challenge since April. I haven't paid attention to what I've been reading at all, so let's check it out!

Book 18: Grammar Girl's 101 Misused Words You'll Never Confuse Again by Mignon Fogerty. 4 stars, keeper. A nice quick reference that should really be kept next to my computer instead of on the big guest room bookshelf. Her books are accurate, slim, and not at all intimidating.

Book 19: The Face of a Stranger by Anne Perry. 4.5 stars, keeper. The first in the William Monk series, I initially wasn't sure what to think about reading Ms. Perry. After all, all I knew of her was her murder of her friend's mother when she was a teen, and that she's a prolific writer. I'd heard mixed things about her other well-known series featuring Thomas Pitt, and had only heard good things about this one, so I gave it a shot. And I'm so thrilled that I did! It's really excellent, and the premise of having a main character who's unreliable only due to his amnesia was an interesting one. Watching him solve these crimes and figure out who he was and who he wants to be was such a pleasure and a joy - it was better than expected on most every level, and I'm now a confirmed fan of this series. Can't wait to get to the next one, A Dangerous Mourning.

Books 20 & 21: The Spiderwick Chronicles, books 1 and 2 by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi. 3 stars each, and they're both gone. If I had a young kid to pass these along to, I would. As it was, I enjoyed them, but I know I'm not going to read them again. If I feel the need, I'll just watch the very good movie.

Book 22: The Martian by Andy Weir. 5 stars, keeper. Wow. I almost wish I would've read this as opposed to listen to the great narration by R.C. Bray. The one thing you can't do is listen faster than someone is talking, and I wanted to read quicker several times throughout this book so I could find out what happens. (Also, some of the terminology was hard for me to understand - I should probably say that I understand words by how they're spelled - though after a few hours I got the gist of it.) Truly excellent, and a thrill ride, and I'm very much looking forward to the movie whenever it comes out. And Matt Damon seems to be the perfect choice for the main character.

Book 23: A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor. 5 stars, keeper. This is one of my all-time favorite series, and this third book did not disappoint.

Book 24: The Real Life Downton Abbey by Jacky Hyams. 3 stars, keeper as it's an ebook. A NF book detailing life of both upstairs and downstairs at country houses.

Book 25: The Ruby in the Smoke by Philip Pullman. 3 stars, keeper as it's an audiobook. The first in the series, I was underwhelmed by this one. I think I would've enjoyed it more in print - no fault of the narrators', it was just more difficult to me to keep everyone straight once Sally changes locations. I'll give the second book a shot, but I'm in no rush.

Book 26: The Hurricane Sisters by Dorothea Benton Frank. 2 stars, and it's out the door! One of my bookclubs is part of the Book Club Girl giveaway that was originally supposed to be 6 months long, and is now I think going to be 15 or 16 months long. This is one of those books. After seeing Dottie's books at work (and how often they're checked out) I was curious to try her writing. I wasn't thrilled, sorry to say. For me, it was an easily predictable storyline with mostly mean-spirited and dim main characters. I read the first 3 chapters, skimmed a few chapters in the middle, and then read the last chapter/epilouge. It all ended up exactly like I thought it would. I don't know if I'll give her another shot or not simply because there's so much out there to be read yet. She's not a bad writer, and please give me recs of your favorites since I don't know anyone who reads her stuff, but maybe she's just not for me.

Book 27: The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Other Stories by Ernest Hemingway. 2 stars, keeper by default. This was my choice for my classics book club, and I can now say that Hemingway just isn't for me any more. I really liked him when I started reading him in high school (this has more to do with my self-perceived intellect level than anything else), but now I think I'm kind of done. I'll read the 4 others of his that I have on my shelf, but no more. Every story here featured an asshole male narrator doing terrible things for no real reason to humans and animals and none of it really made sense. Yuck.

Books 28, 29, 30: Roman Holiday, A Trail Through Time, and Christmas Present by Jodi Taylor. 5 stars and all keepers. Books 3.5, 4, and 4.5 in the St Mary's series are relentlessly fun, interesting, funny, and thrilling. More more more!

Book 31: Beautiful Beloved by Christina Lauren. 3 stars, keeper as it's an ebook. A short story about Chloe and Bennet and their sexcapades after the birth of their first child. Fine fluff and it introduces the main character for their next full-size book.

Book 32: Sweet Filthy Boy by Christina Lauren. 3 stars, and a goner. The start to another series for this author duo, it was enjoyable enough, but unlike their first series, this one just seemed to have sex for sex's sake that usually didn't advance the main relationship at all. Still, it's fluff and not an economics textbook, so hey, that's alright.

Not too bad for not paying attention to what I was reading from where! Here's hoping I can keep posting more regularly now. :)

Yay, The Martian! That was a good one. Really looking forward to the movie.

And welcome back!!

Thanks, rp - I missed you!!!!!

It's good to see you again, and hopefully real life will give you some slack. There are some very interesting books in the Monk series, hope you enjoy them!

>21 LauraBrook: wow looks like you did great in your absence! Sorry RL is stressful these days; hope you find respite soon!

And >21 LauraBrook: and >22 rabbitprincess: re The Martian I agree! I really enjoyed it and agree that Matt Damen is a great pick! Also... I don't know if you have "overdrive" with your library, but with it, you *can* speed up the narration. E.g., Dorothy Must Die is read by a sloooooow reader... so I listen at 1.75 speed and it's almost perfect for me :) (but you can speed it up and slow it down easily)

>25 avanders: I do have overdrive, and I didn't know about that feature! It sounds like it can really come in handy. Thanks for letting me (us) know!!! :)

>26 LauraBrook: yep.. I love it :) (you're certainly welcome!)

>24 MissWatson: I don't know how I missed you, MissWatson! I'm so sorry! So far, no luck on real life giving me slack, it's just become, let's say "interesting" in a couple of new directions. Ugh.

A very few more to add to my totals here.

Book 33: By the Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie. 4 stars, keeper (ebook). The second-to-last Tommy & Tuppence book, which makes me sad!

Book 34: Sense and Sensibility: A BabyLit Opposites Primer, 4 stars, keeper. Cute board book!

Book 35 The Queen Is Dead by Kate Locke, 4 stars, keeper. I don't know why it took me so long to get back to this great trilogy, but at any rate, this book #2, unlike so many others, was really good! I've got the last one on my coffee table waiting for me as I type this!

Book 36 Storm Front by Jim Butcher, 4 stars, keeper. Again, no idea why it took me so many years to finally get around to this series, especially as so many of my friends have rec'd this to me! Lots of fun!

Book 37 The Princess and the Pony by Kate Beaton, 5 stars, keeper. I will buy and adore everything this woman does!!!!

My friend's daughter has the Sense and Sensibility board book! She also has the P&P one. They are so adorable!

I'm getting her The Princess and the Pony for her birthday :)

They really are adorable. I want them all for myself! I think she'll love the Princess and the Pony. Who wouldn't love a take charge princess with a farting pony?!?

Book 38 The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom. I wasn't enchanted with this book - in fact, I found it hard to care much about what happened. 2 stars, goner.

Book 39 Domestic Manners of the Americans by Frances Trollope. A book club pick, this is an entertaining and veeeeery detailed tour of every aspect of American society over 100 years ago. I liked it, and I suspect I may have enjoyed it more if I could have devoted more focus to it. As is, it was good and I'm glad I read it. 3 stars, keeper for now.

Book 40 Minding the Manor by Mollie Moran. Fantastic! The diary of a 1930's kitchen maid, Mollie is full of spunk and good humor and hard work and a zest for life that's catching. I totally loved this book. 5 stars, keeper

Book 41 The Miser of Mayfair by Marion Chesney. A pleasant start to a cozy little Victorian series, perfect for reading it in bed before sleep. 3 stars, keeper (ebook).

Book 42 Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. Magical and wonderful, I felt like my entire world was pleasantly plunged into the welcoming embrace of this book. A new favorite. Keeper, 5 stars

Book 43 The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. I don't know how this book about decluttering is so addictively readable and insightful and funny all at once, but it is. While I know I can't/won't do all of the activities laid out here, I can certainly do some of them. If you don't want to spend the $10ish on this, I highly recommend checking it out at your local library. 5 stars, keeper

Book 44 A Spirited Tail by Leighann Dobbs. Book two of a cozy mystery series, I found the parts with the talking cats and dogs more interesting and believable than any part with humans, so what does that say?!? It was fine, and I'm curious enough about the others in the series that I'll eventually pick them up, but I'm in no rush. 2.5 stars

Book 45 The Monogram Murders by Sophie Hannah. Don't know how Ms. Hannah has done this, but I almost prefer her new Poirot book more than the originals! C'est impossible! But it's not. Full of twists that I never quite figured out, the thing I noticed most about this book was the lack of either technological non-advancement (having to wait for the post, etc.) or the racism that pops up sometimes. It's just readable, without anything quietly pulling you out of the storyline. Excellent, and I can't wait for the next one (and I do hope there's a next one)! 4.5 stars, keeper

Book 46 Fodor's Escape to Provence by Nancy Coons. A pretty, nicely-sized book with short magazine-type articles about various aspects and sights to see in Provence with lovely photos accompanying. A pleasant way to spend a half hour. 3 stars, already gone.

Book 47 Handwritten Recipes by Michael Popek. Just fine, it was nice to read the old recipes, and a good reminder of how much American food "trends" have changed over the years. 3 stars, and given to a friend.

Book 48 Postern of Fate by Agatha Christie. A bit more muddled than her other Tommy & Tuppence books, which is a shame since it's the last one. Enjoyable still, and I so appreciate that she's aged T&T appropriately throughout the series. Lovely and nostalgic, even if it's a bit problematic plot-wise. 3 stars, keeper bc it's an ebook.

Book 49 The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes. This has been sitting on my shelves to read for at least 7 years, and I've been "really wanting to read it" ever since. I figured it was finally time. And honestly, while it's dated (simply because the genetics field has changed so rapidly since this publication), it was a bit of a letdown. What I was expecting from this was only found in the last 7 or 8 chapters/100 pages, so I got stalled - a lot - in the first two thirds over several months. But once I gave myself permission to skip ahead, I did enjoy the last bit and wanted more. 3 stars, and already gone.

Book 50 Let's Bring Back by Lesley M.M. Blume. A lifelong Nostalgist, this book was seemingly tailor-made for me. Nearly everything in here was something I've either actively longed for a return, or now I do wish it would re-appear. Wonderful. 5 stars, keeper

Book 51 One Hundred Ways For A Cat to Train Its Human by Celia Haddon. A gift from last year's 75er Xmas Book Swap (from lunacy), this shorty was a quick and amusing read about how cats can train their owners/staff. Cute and funny and uncannily true. 3 stars, and I don't know if I'll keep it or not.

>30 LauraBrook: Book 45 The Monogram Murders is sitting on my shelf but I have been putting off reading it not sure if it would be a let down after reading Dame Agatha. It is good to hear that it is so well done.
Book 48 I enjoy the Tommy and Tuppence books. Have you seen the new series about Tommy and Tuppence? It is a really different take on the twosome. I just saw the first episode - it looks like it is a serial so you have to start from the beginning.

>30 LauraBrook: wow that's a lot of reading! Congrats! Only 9 more!

>30 LauraBrook: Cheering along with Ava!

>31 Familyhistorian: I think you'll like The Monogram Murders. And I agree with you about the new Tommy & Tuppence. They tried to make it too "modern" or something, and it doesn't quite work for me. Things are stretched out or skipped to make it seem more fast-paced, I think. I like both of the main actors, but I'm not in a hurry to watch the second story.

>32 avanders: & >33 connie53: Thanks, ladies! I think I'll be hitting my mark soon!

Book 52 Not Your Mother's Meatloaf A sex education comic book by Saiya Miller. This was fine. I'm sure I'd love it if I wasn't a straight lady, and I certainly appreciate and am thankful that this is out there for people who aren't heterosexual, or are younger than I am ( I'm mid-30's). 3 stars and it's already on to its' new home!

Book 53 The Predictions by Bianca Zander. A Book Club Girl win for one of my book clubs, this story of a girl growing up on a commune in 1970s New Zealand and her life over the next 5 (?) years was good, and while the writing is wonderful, I found it too easy to let it sit on my coffee table for days on end. 3 stars, and it's already gone!

Book 54 The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie. The fourth Hercule Poirot adventure was quite a ride! If I hadn't watched the David Suchet episode recently, I wouldn't have figured out who-dun-it. (Also, I wonder why they changed some basics of the story like they did - why make it an industrial-set instead of an English town one?) 4 stars, keeper, really wonderful.

Book 55 Dad Is Fat by Jim Gaffigan. I mostly listened to this one (narrated by the author, and he does a good job), but I realized that I also had a physical copy, which was nice to look through at all of the pictures. 3 stars, though I suspect that if I had kids I may have given it 4. And it's already with it's new owner!

Books 56, 57, 58, & 59 Speaking From Among the Bones, The Curious Case of the Copper Corpse, The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches, and As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust by Alan Bradley. I LOVE the Flavia series, and despite my initial hesitation at the location change for one of these books, I ended up really liking it a lot. These are all keepers, and I'm impatiently waiting for the next book! 4.5 stars each.

Book 60 The Uninvited by Cat Winters. Another Book Club Girl win. Of the two of us that managed to finish this, we both felt that it was a bit too stutter-y, story-wise, until the twist in the last 75ish pages. And the twist really only made things make sense. I've seen A LOT of 5 star rave reviews out there, but for me this was just an average 3 star-er. Already gone.

Book 61 Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie. I don't know if any of you guys have read this or not, but I was surprised by how much I did not like this book! Peter is an immature jerk, Wendy seems like a dopey pushover, the parents are TERRIBLE PARENTS, and it just didn't seem real to me. It wasn't something I could get lost in, I just kept tossing it down on the ground and rolling my eyes. 2 stars, but only for the status it has kept in our cultural conciseness, and for the Disney cartoon that I enjoyed so much as a kid. I'm keeping my copy only so I don't ever have to buy another one again.

Book 62 A Touch of Gold by Joyce and Jim Lavene. The second in the Missing Pieces series, this had a good adventure and mystery, and we get to know more about the residents of Duck and of Dae and her grandfather as well. 3 stars, and I'm currently reading #3 - this one is a keeper because it's an ebook.

Book 63 Simon's Cat Off to the Vet by Simon Tofield. An ER win, I loved this book. I received this last Wednesday, the same day that I took one of my cats to the vet for some surgery, so it was a timely gift. This is a great, funny, honest comic series about the cats in our lives. 4.5 stars, and a keeper!

Wahoo!!!!!! I hit my goal, and with months to spare! Don't worry, I'm going to keep going. There are several small stacks of books on one of my living room chairs (maybe 80-100 books) that are "read and get rid of" titles, so I'm planning on going through some of those before the year is out.

Congrats on meeting your goal! :)

Congrats on finishing early!

>35 LauraBrook: Yay congrats!

Congrats!!!!

Yeah! Congrats!

Congrats on reaching your goal!

Thanks, everyone! Once again, I can't believe it's been so long since I've been on LT. All I can do is blame real life and extreme tiredness. Even though I've pulled around 100 books off of my shelves as "read and get rid of" I can't seem to actually get rid of them - and most are in my library system, so it's not like I couldn't easily read them again. Mostly I'm worried that I'll be "wasting money" in case I love it and I need to re-buy it for my keeper shelves. And since I've already spent $ on them, shouldn't I at least sample them first? I don't know. This is what's currently holding me up from getting rid of a bunch of books I don't really have room for anyways. Please tell me someone can relate!

Book 64 A Spirited Gift by Joyce and Jim Lavene Another fun adventure in the series set in Duck, NC. Read and passed along. 3 stars

Book 65 A Wreath for Emmett Till by Marilyn Nelson A wonderfully powerful prose poem with illustrations, a gift from a friend. 5 stars, keeper, and very lovely.

Book 66 Immortal In Death by JD Robb. Number 3 in the series, and it's just as fun and fast as the others. 3 stars, keeper.

Book 67 Sex Criminals, Vol. 2 by Matt Fraction. The second compiled paperback of the Sex Crimes comics, it fell a little flat to me. Adding new characters helped, but like so many second books, it just seemed to be stalling, setting up things for books to come. 3 stars, and will keep for now.

Book 68 Step Aside, Pops by Kate Beaton. 5 stars, fantastically funny and smart and usual. Beaton is one of my author gods. Keeper!

Book 69 The Big Four by Agatha Christie. 4 stars, keeper, and another twisty adventure with Hercule Poirot.

Book 70 The Unstrung Harp by Edward Gorey. Keeper, 4 stars, and just as dark and amusing as always. Love him!

Book 71 A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny. Wow! I don't know why I don't just gobble these books up one after the other! I always wait to read the next one, for no real reason, and then when I start again, the real world falls away and I'm transported to Three Pines once again. Wonderful. 4.5 stars, keeper.

Bok 72 A High-End Finish by Kate Carlisle. Eh. The first in a new series, I was underwhelmed by it. After plugging away for 75 pages I let it sit for a couple of weeks (it was my purse book), and when I went to pick it up again, I realized I just didn't care about anything or anyone in there. So I asked my Mom if what I thought happened, happened, and she said "yes", I put it right on PaperbackSwap and it was out the door. 2 stars, gone!

Book 73 A Halloween Treat and Edward Gorey's Ghosts by Edward Gorey. Keeper, and a flip/double book. Halloween Treat was only okay, seemed too cutesy for his usual. But Ghosts was really creepy and fascinating, a collection of illustrations featuring ghosts in all of this books. 2 stars for Treat, 4.5 for Ghosts, 3 average.

Book 74 The Male Member by Kit Schwartz An add-on from someone on PaperbackSwap, I thought it would be a funny book about male genitalia - while there were a few chuckle-inducing moments, it was more serious and interesting than I suspected. Though a little dated (1985), it was still interesting enough to keep me reading until I finished it. 3 stars, and a keeper for now.

Book 75 The House Party by Jeanne Savery. A recommendation (from someone here on LT, though I have zero idea who) as a good introduction to historical romances, it was good, but didn't make my heart sing. With a seemingly non-traditional plot, it was a nice treat to actually read a book that wasn't such a trope instead of picking up a book to try it out and making myself dizzy from rolling my eyes so much that I put the book back on the shelf. 3 stars, and a goner.

Book 76 The Haunted Looking Glass by Edward Gorey. A collection of some of Gorey's favorite classic ghost stories, this was a perfect October spooky read, easy to read a story or two and then let them digest for awhile. Bonus of some of his illustrations throughout. 4 stars, keeper.

Congrats on reaching your goal!

You have reached your goal! Congrats.



Even though I've pulled around 100 books off of my shelves as "read and get rid of" I can't seem to actually get rid of them - and most are in my library system, so it's not like I couldn't easily read them again. Mostly I'm worried that I'll be "wasting money" in case I love it and I need to re-buy it for my keeper shelves. And since I've already spent $ on them, shouldn't I at least sample them first? I don't know. This is what's currently holding me up from getting rid of a bunch of books I don't really have room for anyways. Please tell me someone can relate!

Apart from the room problem I can relate, Laura. You have bought the books, meaning to read them and getting rid of them unread feels not right. So I have a few boxes with books I took off my shelves, but they are still waiting to leave the house unread. I just can't get myself to do that.

Thanks, Tess and Connie!

And Connie, I'm so glad to hear I'm not alone in the struggle! It's so difficult, even though I can step outside of myself and see that it really shouldn't be. *sigh* Oh well. In related news, I just added a bunch of books to my LT library. Problem, Laura?!? ;)

>45 LauraBrook: I loved adding books to my LT account. My whole library is there now. And it is so much easier to keep up with read, bought, unread, borrowed books. I used to make lists per year in Excel now I do the same on LT and loving it!

>42 LauraBrook: woot! Congrats on all your extra reading!

>44 connie53: Chiming in re your question ...
Also definitely can relate!
In the past, I've gotten rid of massive amounts of books for various reasons and it definitely was difficult to do! But if you're really trying to whittle the stacks down, one rule I've used for myself is, if it's easy to find in used bookstores or library book sales & will be cheap to replace when I'm actually ready to read it, or if it's readily available from the library, go ahead & let it go.... Of course, easier said than done ;) And it's been years since I've had to "whittle" the stacks down. I'm getting back there though.... Need to rein myself in!!

>46 connie53: lol!! Me too!!! All my friends thought I was crazy for putting it in excel - glad I wasn't alone!
Also, I have almost my whole library in both LT catalog and Goodreads catalog.. I'm only missing about 100 books that I acquired in Oct & Nov that I haven't put in yet :-o

>47 avanders: You have a job to do there, Ava! I wish i could help. I love to do that.

>48 connie53: that is such the right attitude to have about it... I've been feeling very overwhelmed w/ my "to do" list lately, but I need to remember all the joy I take in ALL the things I've committed to! :)
Thanks for your wish to help ;)

I'm so glad to be in such good company! I received a dozen books for Christmas from various people (with more to come), not to mention the used ones I've ordered online recently. *gulp* I'm going in the "wrong" direction! Oh well. It's looking like both of my real-life book groups will be coming to an end very soon, which is pretty wonderful for me. I know I'll stay in touch with most of the people on an individual basis, and it will leave me with not only more money (no longer tracking down obscure books online) but LOTS more reading time! Only good things!!!

Book 77: Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson. Originally I read it as a library book, bought a copy for a friend for Christmas, and found out that she already received it as a present! So I got to keep it for myself. :) A funny and interesting look at depression and her wonderfully joyous and crazy life. I'm a big fan of The Bloggess. 4 stars, keeper

Book 78: The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley. She's really a wonderful writer, and time slip kinds of books are among my favorite. The only thing I don't love is the long length of her books (mostly because I tend to listen to them and it takes months to get through half), though it's not the worst thing in the world. If you're a fan of historical fiction and/or time travel-y books, I wholeheartedly recommend Kearsley. 4 stars, keeper.

Book 79: The Mystery of the Blue Train by Agatha Christie. Another Poirot adventure. I didn't love this one as much as I have some others, but it was still a darned good tale. 3.5 stars, keeper.

Book 80: The Mystery of the Spanish Chest by Agatha Christie. A Poirot short story, very good, and it makes me want to re-watch this episode of the series again! Today may be the day, as it's a snow/sleet storm and I'm all tucked in. 4 stars, keeper. (I read the ebook single from my library, but I own a physical copy as well.)

Book 81: A Cook's Tour by Anthony Bourdain. This was just fine. He retells adventures and stories that were also episodes on his show, so there was a fair bit of re-hashing things. Still, he's a captivating writer, and I appreciate his curmudgeonly attitude to things - and his iron stomach! 3 stars, keeper.

Book 82: Emma by Jane Austen. The first half seemed to drag on forever, but it started to pick up speed after that, and the last 100 pages were delightful. My first read of this book (though I'm very familiar with the story due to the various movie/TV adaptations), and it won't be my last. A re-read just won't happen any time soon. 4 stars, keeper.

Hoping I can get three more crossed off before midnight on Thursday!

Well, you moving fast, Laura!