Monday, January 30, 2023

It's Monday 1/30! What Are You Reading?

Hosted by The Book Date 

Life

I guess I spoke too soon and jinxed myself last week because my health worsened again. I just have no energy and have been sleeping my life away. I think it's just a matter of getting the right combination and dosing of thyroid meds, so I'm hopeful I can get back to feeling better after I talk to my doctor this week and maybe get another set of lab tests.

I did start the week off well and finally got to enjoy a walk at our local nature center with one of my closest friends ... long overdue! It was a gorgeous day--the only one all week with blue sky--and we talked nonstop and enjoyed catching up.


Blue skies and our lovely creek

Our iconic covered bridge
 

I'm continuing my #sky365 daily photos, even when I don't feel well. The clouds' patterns and textures have been interesting, but I'd really like to see some sunshine and blue sky! This was probably the most gray and overcast January I've seen in my 33 years in Delaware. 

Pretty clouds but I'd like to see the sun!

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On the Blog

No energy meant very little blogging (sorry for those blogs I didn't have a chance to visit last week!). I'm very glad I decided this year to reduce the number of reviews I write. I did manage to finally sign up for my 2023 Reading Challenges, so you can check those out.

Who else out there is already planning what to read for Big Book Summer 2023??

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On Video

 I didn't have the energy to record new videos last week, either, but luckily, I had recorded several the week before:

Top 10 Novels Read in 2022 - a quick recap of my favorite fiction last year

Top 7 Nonfiction Books Read in 2022 - the best of the best!

So, if you're looking for outstanding books to read, check out my top picks. I still have one more Best Of video to edit, covering my favorite YA and middle-grade books from last year.

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What We're Reading
  
(Just a note that I finally finished Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver on audio, and it was outstanding! Definitely going to be a top book of 2023. The audio took me a full month to finish, but I was sorry when it ended and am missing the characters. It's wonderfully written, clever, funny, heart-breaking and heart-warming.)

I finished reading The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck, my first classic of the year. I've never read Buck before and learned that she lived in China as a child and went back as a young adult. This book is set mostly in rural China in the 1920's, during the revolution, about a farmer named Wang Lung, the slave woman, O-lan, he takes as a wife, and the children they have. The family endures terrible hardships, including drought, floods, and near-starvation, but ultimately they thrive due to Wang Lung's connection to the land. It was a captivating story that I thoroughly enjoyed (though I wouldn't have wanted to be female in 1920-30's China!).
 
 

Now I am reading a review book from last year, A Serpent's Tooth by Matty Dalrymple. This is book 5 in her Ann Kinnear series, about a women who can sense and communicate with spirits. Her brother acts as her business manager, and she hires out to people who want to hear from the dead. Each book has a mystery at its heart and thriller-type action, but with a supernatural twist that I love. I've only just started this one, but it takes place at a family-run winery located in southeastern Pennsylvania (about 15 minutes from where I live!). I love her writing, the characters, the suspense, and how she makes each location an integral part of the story. Book 6 was just released, and I have that one, too, to look forward to!
 
 

I started--and finished--a middle-grade audio book, Land of the Cranes by Aida Salazar. It's an immigration story but different than ones I have previously read. Nine-year-old Betita lives with her parents in East LA. They are descended from Aztecs, who originally lived in the southwest U.S. in a land called Atzlan. When their home in Mexico became too violent and dangerous, they migrated to the US and to their people's original homeland. Betita's Papi gets arrested by ICE and deported to Mexico, and Betita and her mom have applied for asylum. On a trip to the border to visit Papi through the fence, her uncle misses their exit, and they end up at customs, crossing the border. Betita and her mother--eight months pregnant--are sent to a detention center, where they are kept in a cage on a cement floor with 30 other mothers and children. All of this is told in lyrical verse from Betita's perspective. I loved listening to this powerful, poignant story on audio, but I see that the print version includes drawings and you can see the poetry structure, so I think that both versions would be wonderful.
 
 

My husband, Ken, is still reading No Plan B by Lee Child and Andrew Child (his brother). This is Ken's all-time favorite series, and I get him the latest book each Christmas. He is, of course, enjoying it!
 
 

Our son, 28, is still reading The White Tower by Michael Wisehart, book 1 in The Aldoran Chronicles, in preparation for book 2, which he just bought with a Christmas gift card.

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What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.  

What are you and your family reading this week?

Thursday, January 26, 2023

2023 Reading Challenges


I enjoyed my 2022 Reading Challenges (see how I did at the link), so I'm signing up for the same ones this year.

Mount TBR Reading Challenge 2023 hosted by My Reader's Block - Now in its 12th year!

This year, I am setting my goal at Mt. Vancouver, 36 books from my TBR shelves. I missed my goal of 48 the past two years (33 TBR books last year), so this seems more realistic. Even though I rarely buy books for myself, I seem to be losing the battle, and my TBR bookcase now has double rows on two shelves! I realize, though, that with library books for book group, graphic novels from publishers, and new releases for the annual Booktopia event, this is a more reasonable goal.

Note that the challenge allows e-books and audios to count, but my main goal is to get through some of the physical books I own, so I usually only count physical books. This challenge has monthly review link-ups.

 


 2023 Monthly Motif Reading Challenge hosted by Girlxoxo.

I enjoy this challenge every year! I hit eleven of twelve of the monthly motifs last year, so I will try to hit them all in 2023! This also has monthly review link-ups.

JANUARY- New Year, New Direction “Read a book with one, or more, ‘directional’ words in the title.” ie. (into, over, out, behind, left, right, down, up, north, south, out, etc.) 

FEBRUARY- If You Have A Garden and a Library… Read a book with a plant or flower on the cover.”

MARCH- Animal, Number, Color, NameRead a book with an animal, number, color, or name in the title.

APRIL- I Like Big Books “Read a book over 400 pages long or listen to an audiobook over 14 hrs long.”

MAY- In It To Win It “Read a book that involves a game or contest of some sort.” ie. Virtual reality, video games, war games, psychological mess-with-your-mind games, characters who participate in a contest, or a story in which the character takes on a personal challenge. 

JUNE- Take the Plunge “Read a book from any genre that is set on or near a body of water- lake, ocean, pool, river, etc.” 

JULY- I Need Only One WordRead a book with only one word as the title.”

AUGUST- A Book and a SongRead a book with the same title as a song you’ve heard.”

SEPTEMBER- Speculative Stories “Read a book from the speculative fiction sub-genre” i.e. a book with elements that do not exist in the real world.

OCTOBER- Spellbinding or Spooktacular “Read a book that involves something spooky or magical or both.”

NOVEMBER- Around OR Out of this World “Read a book set in a country other than the one you live in OR read a book that takes place in space or on another planet.”

DECEMBER- White-out “Read a book with a wintry setting or a book with a mostly white cover.”

 

Classics Challenge

In a sad turn of events, the Back to the Classics Challenge that I join every year is not running in 2023. I looked all over and couldn't find another that fits for me (just one that requires 12 classics that fit into monthly themes). So, I guess I'm on my own this year! I'm posting the 12 categories from the Back to the Classics Challenge 2022 because they make it more fun, and I am again setting my goal to read 6 classics this year (I read 7 last year).

1. A 19th century classic. Any book first published from 1800 to 1899 -

2. A 20th century classic. Any book first published from 1900 to 1972. All books must have been published at least 50 years ago; the only exceptions are books which were written by 1972 and posthumously published.

3. A classic by a woman author.

4. A classic in translation.  Any book first published in a language that is not your primary language. You may read it in translation or in its original language, if you prefer. 

5. A classic by BIPOC author. Any book published by a non-white author.

6.
 Mystery/Detective/Crime classic. It can be fiction or non-fiction (true crime). Examples include Murder on the Orient Express, Crime and Punishment, In Cold Blood.

7. A classic short story collection. Any single volume that contains at least six short stories. The book can have a single author or can be an anthology of multiple authors.

8. Pre-1800 classic. Anything written before 1800. Plays and epic poems, such as the Odyssey, are acceptable in this category. 

9. A nonfiction classic. Travel, memoirs, and biographies are great choices for this category.

10. Classic that's been on your TBR list the longest. Find the classic book that's been hanging around unread the longest, and finally cross it off your list!  

11. Classic set in a place you'd like to visit. Can be real or imaginary -- Paris, Tokyo, the moon, Middle Earth, etc. It can be someplace you've never been, or someplace you'd like to visit again.

12. Wild card classic. Any classic book you like, any category, as long as it's at least 50 years old!  

 


2023 Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge hosted by Escape with Dollycas Into a Good Book.

This type of challenge was a new for me in 2021, and I enjoyed it in 2022, too! You just track the books you read, trying to cover all letters of the alphabet (first letter of the title, not counting articles). The past two years, I filled in 21 of 26 letters. I just read the fine print and learned that for Q, X, and Z, they can be the first letter of any word in the title, so maybe that will help me!

 

2023 Nonfiction Reader Challenge hosted by Book'd Out.

I always sign up for a nonfiction challenge, and I enjoyed this one the past two years, when I read 13 nonfiction books each year. I am once again signing up for the Nonfiction Nosher category and shooting for reading at least 12 and hitting as many of the 12 categories as I can (last year I got 9 of the 12 categories).

History
Memoir/Biography
Crime & punishment
Science
Health
Travel
Food
Social Media
Sport
Relationships
The Arts
Published in 2023

 


Diversity Reading Challenge 2023 hosted by Celebrity Readers.

This is also a familiar challenge for me that I enjoy every year. I read 45 diverse books last year (out of 75 books total), so I will aim to hit that high of 45 again this year! This challenge also includes monthly mini challenges (I hit 8 of them last year) and a link-up for reviews.  

Mini-Challenges:

JANUARY – diverse folktales/culture/mythology; or diverse retelling; or non-western setting
FEBRUARYpoc: Black/African American
MARCH#ownvoices; or gender: female authors in male-dominated genres/non-fiction
APRIL – poc: Middle Eastern/South Asian
MAYpoc: East Asian/Southeast Asian/Pacific Islander 
UNE
LGBT+ pride summer: sexuality and gender identity
JULY – LGBT+ pride summer: sexuality and gender identity
AUGUSTmental health/addiction
SEPTEMBERpoc: hispanic/latinx
OCTOBERphysical/sensory/cognitive/intellectual/developmental disabilities
NOVEMBERpoc: Native American
DECEMBERreligious minorities

 

Travel the World in Books Reading Challenge hosted by Mom's Small Victories (great blog!)

I signed up for this one back in 2014, so this is a continuation (it's a perpetual challenge) - I can't wait to see what places I visit in books in 2023! In 2021, my books took me to 36 places outside the U.S., covering 17 different countries, but in 2022, I only read books in 16 places outside the U.S. and 14 different "countries" (and that was including Mars, Venus, and the Moon - lol). So, I hope to get back on track this year with more global reads.

 


2023 Literary Escapes Challenge hosted by Escape with Dollycas Into a Good Book.

I love tracking where I read domestically, as well. In 2022, I read books set in 25 different states. I'm looking forward to reading in even more states this year!

 


Big Book Summer Challenge (link to 2022; 2023 link will go up in May) hosted by Book By Book (me!)

My own annual challenge that I host each summer, beginning Memorial Day weekend (end of May) and running until Labor Day (first Monday of September). Hope you'll join me for the laid-back fun this summer!

What Reading Challenges are you doing in 2023?

Monday, January 23, 2023

It's Monday 1/23! What Are You Reading?

Hosted by The Book Date

Life

Ahhh ... it was nice to return to "normal" life last week after our hectic, last-minute travel week. Even better, with all of my medication changes and my doctor's help, I think my thyroid and other hormones are finally stabilizing. Last week was the best I've felt in many months! I am gradually trying to regain my stamina by walking a little bit every day and very slowly re-starting some light weight work. 

#sky365 Day 20 - this was one of our better days last week!

Even better, I am able to do some things again! I went to my neighborhood book group last week for the first time in eight months--victory! And I had the energy to plan meals and cook more (instead of the afternoon agony of "what are we going to make for dinner?"), including a belated birthday dinner for our son, who turned 25 while we were in Texas.

Happy 25th!

Last night, we celebrated Chinese New Year with delicious takeout. This is one of many "small celebrations" we enjoy this time of year, in the doldrums between the December holidays and spring. You can check out my video, Celebrate Everything, Big and Small!, for more ideas (it's taken from a chapter in my book about living with chronic illness, but this is a great way to add joy to any life!).

Happy Chinese/Lunar New Year! Year of the Rabbit
 

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On the Blog

Lots of end-of-year catch-up last week! New posts:

Best Books Read in 2022 - includes some fun facts & stats about my reading, my top picks in different categories, and my Top 10 (or whatever) Lists. 

2022 Reading Challenges Wrap-Up - a great reading year with lots of fun challenges! 

__________

On Video

2022 Reading Wrap-Up and Best Books of the Year! - a video version of my year-end wrap-up

Friday Reads 1-20-23 - brief weekly recap of what I'm reading 

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What We're Reading
 

I finished reading The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections by Eva Jurczyk, a novel about an older woman put in charge of the rare books department of a large university when her boss has a stroke and the mystery of a valuable book that's gone missing . I enjoyed it, but I was surprised by the wide range of reactions in my book group discussion! For more details, check out my quick Friday Reads video



Now, I am reading The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck, getting off to a good start for my 2023 Back to the Classics Challenge! I've never read Buck before and learned that she lived in China as a child. This book is set mostly in rural China in the 1920's, during the revolution, about a farmer named Wang Lung and the slave woman, O-lan, he takes as a wife. I just finished a section about a year-long drought that sent their family to starvation and near-death--wow. It's an engrossing, captivating story so far.
 
 

I thought I'd try something different and attempt to read two books at once, one fiction and one nonfiction. I chose The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin, a book I bought years ago. I love Gretchen's Happier podcast. I tried reading this one at naptime in the afternoon and my novel at bedtime. That plan isn't working very well for me! As usual (and as I suspected), I am so engrossed in the novel that I want to read it anytime I have reading time. I'm still trying to fit this one in at random times (one of my goals this year is more downtime and more fun for myself), and I did manage a few short sections this weekend. It's good so far, supporting all the great content on her podcast.
 

On audio, I am still listening to Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver, one of my all-time favorite authors. It's a novel about a boy named Damon (nicknamed Demon), based loosely on David Copperfield by Charles Dickens. Instead of London, it's set in modern-day Appalachia in the mountains of southern Virginia. Like Dickens, it delves into important issues of poverty (only in America) while also being very entertaining. Kingsolver is a great storyteller, and this is definitely one of her best! I'm loving it so far and having fun recognizing the parallels to David Copperfield (though you don't need to have read that to enjoy this). I'm close to the end now, rooting for Demon in spite of his awful circumstances. This is a must-read novel!

 

My husband, Ken, finished reading Sand by Hugh Howey. We are both huge fans of his Silo trilogy (Wool, Shift, Dust), which was excellent. Here he explores a different post-apocalyptic world, one buried in sand, with four siblings who get lost after their father dies. Ken says it was excellent. Howey is such an incredible writer--I can't wait to read this one, too!

 

 Now, Ken is reading another Christmas gift from me, No Plan B by Lee Child and Andrew Child (his brother). This is Ken's all-time favorite series, and I get him the latest book each Christmas. He is, of course, enjoying it!

 

Our son, 28, finished Enchanter by Terry Mancour, book 7 in the Spellmonger series. He discovered this series last year and has been quickly devouring it! Next, he read The Silence of Unworthy Gods by Andrew Rowe, book 4 in Arcane Ascension, another favorite series. And now, he's rereading The White Tower by Michael Wisehart, book 1 in The Aldoran Chronicles, in preparation for book 2, which he just bought with a Christmas gift card.

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What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.  

What are you and your family reading this week?
 
And do YOU read one book at a time or juggle them?

Friday, January 20, 2023

2022 Reading Challenges Wrap-Up

Here's my annual recap of the reading challenges I participated in last year. I think I did pretty well, and I enjoyed all of these! I'll post the summaries below, and you can see the full lists of books I read for each challenge on my 2022 Reading Challenges page.

 

Mount TBR Reading Challenge 2022 hosted by My Reader's Block

My goal: 48 books from my own shelves (Mt. Ararat)

Result: 33 books (counting only print books, not e-books or audios)

Try again this year!

 


2022 Monthly Motif Reading Challenge hosted by Girlxoxo.

Goal: 1 book for each Monthly Motif (12).

Result: I hit the target for 11 of the 12 months!

Close! Try again this year!

 

Back to the Classics Challenge 2022 hosted by Books and Chocolate.

Goal: Read 6 classics in 6 of the 12 categories

Result: I read 7 classics in all that fit into 6 categories.

Success!

 

2022 Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge hosted by Escape with Dollycas Into a Good Book.

Goal: Book titles that fit onto 26 letters of the alphabet.

Result: I read books with titles starting with 21 letters of the alphabet (same as in 2021).

Try again this year!

 

2022 Nonfiction Reader Challenge hosted by Book'd Out.

Goal: 12 nonfiction books (Nonfiction Nosher category)

Result: I read 13 nonfiction books that fit into 9 of the 12 categories.

Success!

 


Diversity Reading Challenge 2022 hosted by Celebrity Readers.

Goal: 40

Result: 45 (I read 33 diverse books in 2021), and I hit 8 of the 12 mini-challenge categories.

Success!

 

Travel the World in Books Reading Challenge hosted by Mom's Small Victories

Goal: No particular goal, but in 2021, my books took me to 36 different places outside the U.S., in 17 different countries

Result: 16 books set outside the U.S. in 15 different places (including Venus, Mars, and the moon - ha ha!)

Success, but I'd like to read more globally in 2023.

 

2022 Literary Escapes Challenge hosted by Escape with Dollycas Into a Good Book.

Goal: Nothing specific, but I read books set in 23 different states in 2021.

Result: I read books set in 25 different states.

Success, but I'd like to read even more geographically broadly in 2023.

 

Big Book Summer Challenge hosted by Book By Book (me!)

(Note that you only need to read one Big Book of 400 or more pages to participate)

Goal: No specific goal, but I read 12 books for Big Book Summer 2021.

Result: I read 13 Big Books in summer 2022!

Success!


Readers Imbibing Peril XVI Challenge:

Goal: No particular goal, but I read 11 RIP books in fall 2021.

Result: I read 15 RIP books in Fall 2022.

Success!

 


Fall Into Reading Challenge, featuring Book Bingo, hosted on YouTube by:

Goal: BINGO!

Result: I filled 10 of the 12 spaces, with BINGO in lots of different directions!

Success!

Thursday, January 19, 2023

Best Books Read in 2022


First, I'll share some stats and fun facts about my reading year, then my Top Picks in different categories, and finally my Top 10 (or whatever) lists in each category. It was an outstanding reading year, so I had some tough choices to make.

You can see a complete list, with links to reviews, of all the books I've read since 2015 at the Book Reviews tab.

Stats and Facts

Total Books Read in 2022 = 75 (a few less than the previous year)

 

Adult Fiction = 45 (60%)

Adult Nonfiction = 13 (17%) – 6 were memoir

Teen/YA = 6 (8%)

Middle-Grade = 13 (17%)

 

Of Those:

Audiobooks = 29

Graphic Novel/nonfiction = 6

Short Story Collections = 1

Classics = 7

Poetry = 0


Fun Facts:

Women Authors = 38 (51%)

Diverse books = 45 (60%)

From my own shelves = 33 (44%)

Re-reads = 0

Authors read more than once in 2022: Matty Dalrymple (2) and Emily St. John Mandel (2)

Shortest book:  History Comics: The National Parks by Falynn Koch

Longest book: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas

Average book length: 347 pages

Pages read: 26,380

 

Top Picks - Best of the Best

Best Adult Fiction 

 Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

 


 

Best Nonfiction  

The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hinton

 


 

Best Memoir   

These Precious Days by Ann Patchett

 


 

Best Audio

 The Sentence by Louise Erdrich

 

 

 

 Best Teen/YA

 Kent State by Deborah Wiles

 

 

 

Best Middle-Grade  

Denis Ever After by Tony Abbott

 

 

 

Best Graphic Novel/Nonfiction
Booked by Kwame Alexander

 


 

Best Classic 

 The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury

 

 

Top 10 (or Whatever) Lists

Lists are alphabetical, except for the Fiction list (the first 4 are those I liked best). Some books appear on more than one list.

Top 10 Adult Fiction

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger

Kindred by Octavia Butler

Lucky Turtle by Bill Roorbach

Hearts in Atlantis by Stephen King

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michelle Richardson

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

The Sentence by Louise Erdrich

The Overstory by Richard Powers

 

 

 

Top 7 Nonfiction/Memoir

Black Boy by Richard Wright

History Comics: The National Parks by Falynn Koch

Six Walks: In the Footsteps of Henry David Thoreau by Ben Shattuck

These Precious Days by Ann Patchett

Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand

The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hinton

Walden by Henry David Thoreau

 

 

Top 3 Teen/YA

Kent State by Deborah Wiles

Like a Love Story by Abdi Nazemian

A Lite Too Bright by Sam Miller

 

 

 

Top 7 Middle-Grade

Behind the Mountains by Edwidge Candicat

Booked by Kwame Alexander

Denis Ever After by Tony Abbott

History Comics: The National Parks by Falynn Koch

Mysteries of Trash and Treasure: The Secret Letters by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Ruby Lee and Me by Shannon Hitchcock

Set Me Free by Ann Clare LeZotte

 

 

Top 3 Graphic Novel/Memoir

Booked by Kwame Alexander

The Creepy Case Files of Margo Maloo: The Tangled Web by Drew Weing

History Comics: The National Parks by Falynn Koch

 

 

Top 10 Audiobooks

Behind the Mountains by Edwidge Candicat

Denis Ever After by Tony Abbott

The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn

Horse by Geraldine Brooks

Kent State by Deborah Wiles

Like a Love Story by Abdi Nazemian

A Lite Too Bright by Sam Miller

The Sentence by Louise Erdrich

The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hinton

These Precious Days by Ann Patchett

 

What were YOUR favorite books read last year?