2025: My reading year wrap-up

Posted in The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

It’s the last day of 2025, and before it strikes midnight, it’s time to look back on my reading and blogging stats for the year. Overall, my sense is that it was a good reading year! I definitely read lots of book that I loved… but let’s see what the numbers reveal!

First, according to Goodreads:

*Not sure why this says 160 books read — my challenge and all other stats say 159, which is correct!*

Ha! I forgot that I reread Twilight this year after a visit to Forks over the summer!

I completed my 2025 Reading Challenge… but keep in mind my total includes graphic novels and children’s books as well as novels and big “serious” books.

I’m planning to lower my goal for 2026 by a lot. I’m aiming for 100 books in 2026. I want to give myself plenty of breathing room and allow space for books that take more time and concentration.

I really like the Goodreads graphics that I received in a wrap-up email last week:

Over on Storygraph, different sets of stats and views are available. From my challenge page, here’s where I stand as of December 31, 2025:

*I really like that audiobooks are tracked by hours, rather than pages. Makes sense!*

For my year in review:

*Yup, same books as on Goodreads… although the page count is slightly different, presumably due to accidentally selecting different editions on StoryGraph vs Goodreads*

*Kelley Armstrong doesn’t surprise me at all, but I was really puzzled by Alice Hoffman… until I remembered that I listened to several audiobooks of her short fiction while on a trip last spring!*

*I’m actually surprised that my average rating is pretty closely aligned with the stats from Goodreads, since StoryGraph allows fragments of stars and Goodreads only allows full stars*.

*I gave 5 stars to 30 books in 2025! That’s a pretty awesome feeling!*

This little tidbit made me laugh:

*So clearly not correct! But I guess what I learn from this is that I’ve missed out on marking books as owned on StoryGraph. Note to self: Do better in 2026!*

*More than three, actually — but for the handful of books that I put down within the first chapter or so, I didn’t even bother marking them as DNFs.*

I participated in three private challenges on StoryGraph as well:

Series Progress Challenge: I set myself a goal to read at least five books from series on my TBR — either by starting with the first book or reading at least one more from an already started series. And I did it! I’m planning to do something similar in 2026.
20th Century Decades Challenge: I decided to challenge myself to read one book from each decade of the 20th century. I did pretty well! I still need to read books from the 1920s and 1960s… and since this challenge is just for me — and because I do want to see it through — I’ve extended the end date by three months to give myself more time. My challenge, my rules!
Ideal Bookshelf 2025 Calendar: This was a fun one! As a holiday gift last year, I bought the 2025 Ideal Bookshelf calendar for my daughter, and then treated myself to one as well. My brilliant daughter decided it would be fun to create a challenge for the two of us, with the goal of reading one book from each month on the calendar. And I did it! Since two months were cooking/baking-themed, she made those bonuses. In the end, I read one per month of all the rest, plus one bonus book. We didn’t get the calendars for 2026, so this was a one-time challenge. I loved it!

In terms of blogging stats, I think I had a decent year!

Most of my referrers were search engines and WordPress reader. I had a few very odd days with 1000+ views — which is NOT my norm — and there was no particular reason for it. Chalk it up to a visit from the bots!

According to WordPress, these were my most-viewed posts from 2025:

I’m not sure how real any of this is. It’s not like the most-viewed book review posts got a significant number of comments relative to other book review posts — so again, I’m guessing a lot of this is bot-driven. I will note, however, that my small number of TV-related posts tend to get high numbers of reviews and comments… which is a bit weird for me, since most of my focus is books, not TV. (Sad commentary on today’s society? Or just another weird fluke of search engines and bots?)

Well… that was fun! I tend not to follow stats too closely during the year, but it’s interesting to see all the graphs and trends at year end.

Onward to 2026! Wishing one and all a year full of great books and happy reading hours!

28Dec2025

Audiobooks: The highs and lows… and the change I most want to see!

Posted in The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

As an avid audiobook fan, I spend a good chunk of hours every week plugged in and listening. And I love it! Mostly.

The audiobook experience can be highly rewarding, but I have a few pet peeves that I’d love to see audiobook producers address.

Without further ado, here’s a guide to what I love about audiobooks… and what I think needs to change:

THE HIGHS:

Being able to listen on the go: I listen to audiobooks on my daily commute and on my weekend walks. It’s a wonderful way to fit in more reading time.
Terrific narrators: Not all narrators are equally talented, but there’s something amazing about finding a new favorite. A great narrator brings the story to life, embodying the characters’ voices, keeping the story moving, and providing emotion and movement to the narration.
New ways to enjoy rereads: I find myself going to the audiobook versions of books I want to reread, such as when I want to reread the previous book in a series before a new book comes out. It’s a great refresher, doesn’t eat into my print reading time devoted to new books, and often gives me a new perspective on books I’ve already read.
Keeping up with reading commitments: I’m always overloaded with books to read, and among those are my commitment books — especially, books for my book group, which has monthly picks as well as longer-term group reads. I tend to end up with the audio version of at least several of our monthly picks. This helps keep me on track, while also (like the previous bullet point) keeping me from feeling like I’m diverting attention from one of the many other books I want to be reading

THE LOWS:

Names: It can be tough to pick up unusual names just from the audio. I’ve had several experiences where I only realized I was “seeing” a character’s name wrong after looking at the print synopsis. I try to be careful to vet name and place spellings against a print edition before posting reviews, but sometimes one will slip through the cracks.
Details: When a lot of characters are introduced at once, or key information is shared in a detailed way, it can be tricky to keep track when I only have the audiobook. For example, one really enjoyable summer romance from this past year included a large family gathering, and it was practically impossible to sort out which children and spouses belonged to which of the characters. Sure, it was explained when they were introduced, but that’s a lot to keep track of while listening, without a visual reference.

MY MAJOR PET PEEVE ABOUT AUDIOBOOKS — AUDIOBOOK PUBLISHERS, I’M BEGGING YOU TO FIX THIS!

Breaking this one out from the lists above because it’s such a biggie for me! It is incredibly frustrating that audiobooks tend not to include certain vital pieces from the print editions.

First, the author notes: I’ve very rarely experienced audiobooks where these are included. And yet, author notes can add so much to the overall reading experience. If an author is sharing background on why they wrote the book, historical resources, inspiration, etc, I want to hear it!

Second, other extras: I’d like it if the “About the Author” info were also included in the audiobook. In terms of acknowledgments, maybe that would be less engaging to listen to, but I’d still like the option. Some print editions include extras like a Q&A with the author, and I’d want that too!

Third, visual references: I’ve listened to a couple of audiobooks that had downloadable materials available as well, such as the maps or photos that accompany a print edition. This seems to be rarely done, yet feels essential to me, and should be standard for all audiobooks.

My imperfect solution to some of these issues is to try to borrow a hard copy or e-edition of the book at the same time I’m borrowing the audiobook, but that’s not always possible. Library wait times for different editions don’t generally sync up. I’ve learned that for non-fiction books, where visual materials are more often included, it makes sense to wait and try to borrow both print and audio at the same time. For fiction, I find it makes less of a difference in terms of enjoying the content, although there’s still the issue of missing out on the notes and other extras.

So, why don’t audiobooks include these items?

I’ve found a few discussions on Reddit and elsewhere that include some reasons that may apply. Many of these come down to cost: Production costs and process are dependent on the length of the book. Anything beyond the actual book content adds expense and work.

It’s also mentioned in several posts that listeners in general don’t want the extras — but I wonder how true that is (I WANT THEM), and how that’s determined.

I’ve also seen comments that it may be an author’s choice. Again, I wonder whether this is always the case, or if different publishers/platforms have a definite approach for all audiobooks that they produce.

As a big fan of audiobooks (yes, I’m totally hooked and wouldn’t make it through daily drives without them), I can safely say that I’ll continue listening to audiobooks no matter what. But — the experience would be greatly improved (in my humble opinion) if audiobook productions included at least some of the extras, or made them available as free downloads.

What do you think? Is there anything you have in mind that could improve your audiobook experiences?

13Dec2025

Goodreads: New approach for pre-publication ratings

Posted in The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Goodreads users have long complained about those annoying 1-star or 5-star reviews for books that don’t even exist. As in… OMG, I love this author so much that as soon as a new book is announced, I’m going to go give it 5 stars! And of course, the opposite as well: This author sucks, and I know this new book will suck too, no matter what it is, so I’m sticking it with a 1-star rating!

Those of us who are long-term, regular Goodreads users have expressed frustration over this for years — and I can only imagine how disheartening it is for authors to see their upcoming new releases getting rated before their content has even been shared. These pre-release ratings — especially when ARCs aren’t even available yet — skew numbers and overall make the general rating scores less meaningful.

As of this month, Goodreads is taking action to address this issue. They’ve introduced new guidelines and controls for pre-release ratings, requiring reviewers to identify the source of the copy they’ve read before being able to save a rating. The specifics can be found here, but I’m sharing a screenshot for convenience as well:

I decided to test this out for myself! I went to the page for a not-yet-published book on my to-read shelf, and clicked on the stars underneath the book image to add a rating. Here’s what pops up next:

After clicking the Netgalley option, this is what I see:

And that’s it! Looks like I can go ahead and submit the rating at this point. (I didn’t — I didn’t actually read the book I picked, and I’m not sure it’s even available for review yet.)

Will this help fix the problem?

Well, maybe a little bit. It still relies on users’ honesty and integrity. There’s nothing to stop me from submitting this, and I’m not under the impression that the source choice is actually verified in any way. (That seems like it would be an impossible task, given the millions of people who review on Goodreads.)

I do think one little detail may help rein in those who want to rate without reading (#2 in the guidelines above):

Tell us where you received the book (ex. directly from an author, publisher or other source). Once submitted, you cannot edit or delete your book source. Your book source will be displayed on the book page when you write a review alongside your rating.

Here’s a screenshot of what this looks like, appearing at the top of a posted review:

The source entry can’t be changed or removed — so it’s kind of like it’s going on your permanent record. Will that make people think twice about submitting invalid reviews? Will that lead to more policing by Goodreads or publishers, or possible reports from other Goodreads users to note if someone seems to be abusing the pre-release ratings function?

Final note: While the source is required before sharing a rating, users can still post review content without the extra step. So, for those dying to say… OMG this is my favorite author and everything they write is amazing and this book will be too — they still can! They just can’t tack 5 stars onto the gushing comments any longer… unless they want to.

Hmmm. Call me skeptical, but after writing all of this, I don’t see this new approach actually making a difference.

What do you think? Will this new approach improve the Goodreads rating accuracy? Or is this just a band-aid for a problem that can’t be solved, other than by blocking any ratings until a book actually comes out?

19Oct2025

My Classics Club Spin book for fall 2025 will be…

Posted in Bookish Thoughts, Fun and Whimsy, The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Earlier in the week, I shared a post with my list of books for the newest Classics Club Spin challenge (see it here), and today, this spin’s number was announced. (For those keeping track, it’s CCSpin #42, and for me personally, #14!)

Hosted by The Classics Club blog, the Classics Club Spin is a reading adventure where participants come up with a list of classics they’d like to read, number them 1 to 20, and then read the book that corresponds to the “spin” number that comes up.

For CCSpin #42, the lucky number is:

And that means I’ll be reading:

My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin
Published 1901

Synopsis:

‘The fierce, irreverent novel of aspiration and rebellion that is both a cornerstone of Australian literature and a feminist classic

Miles Franklin began the candid, passionate, and contrary My Brilliant Career when she was only sixteen, intending it to be the Australian answer to Jane Eyre . But the book she produced-a thinly veiled autobiographical novel about a young girl hungering for life and love in the outback-so scandalized her country upon its appearance in 1901 that she insisted it not be published again until ten years after her death.

And from another edition:

Trapped on her parents’ farm in the hardscrabble Australian outback, sixteen-year-old Sybylla Melvyn loves the bush but not the toil it brings. She longs for refinement, and most of all she longs to achieve great things.

Suddenly she falls under the gaze of wealthy, handsome Harry Beecham and finds herself choosing between the conventional path of marriage and her plans for a ‘brilliant career’.

My Brilliant Career has been on my to-read list for a few years now. I don’t recall exactly how I first came across this book, but I believe it’s thanks to stumbling across it on someone else’s blog! I’m always up for exploring more Australian fiction, and this early 20th century classic sounds like a book that’s right up my alley

For my 2025 spins, I’ve been focusing on 20th century literature — inspired by a reading challenge to read (at least) one book from each decade of the century. My Brilliant Career was originally published in 1901, and helps me check off one of my remaining decades!

I’m excited to start My Brilliant Career — probably in a few weeks, after I finish up a few more ARCs for upcoming new releases. The deadline to finish this spin book is December 21st, which gives me plenty of time. I’ll be back with my reaction before then.

What do you think of my spin result this time around?

Here’s my list of 20 titles for Classics Club Spin #42:

The House on the Strand by Daphne DuMaurier
The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
A Damsel in Distress by P. G. Wodehouse
The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart
This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
White Fang by Jack London
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
Frederica by Georgette Heyer
The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin
A Damsel in Distress by P. G. Wodehouse
The House on the Strand by Daphne DuMaurier
My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin

My previous Classics Club Spin books:

Are you participating in this Classics Club Spin? If so, what book will you be reading?

15Oct2025

Getting ready for the next Classics Club Spin (CC Spin #42; fall 2025)

Posted in Bookish Thoughts, Fun and Whimsy, The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 19th October we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 21st December, 2025.

We’ll check in on the 21st December to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

Go to your blog.

Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.

Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday 19th October 2025.

We’ll announce a number from 1-20.

Read that book by 21st December.

My spin lists are usually a mix of books from different decades and centuries, but in 2025, I’m focusing on books that count toward my 20th Century Decades reading challenge (for which I’m aiming to read one book published per decade). All of the books on my list fit the decades I haven’t completed yet for the challenge. (You’ll note a few listed more than once – I’m weighting my list towards books I truly want to read!)

Here we go!

Here’s my list of 20 classics for the next Classics Club Spin:

The House on the Strand by Daphne DuMaurier
The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
A Damsel in Distress by P. G. Wodehouse
The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart
This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
White Fang by Jack London
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
Frederica by Georgette Heyer
The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin
A Damsel in Distress by P. G. Wodehouse
The House on the Strand by Daphne DuMaurier
My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin

Wish me luck! I’ll be back on October 19th to reveal my spin result!

My previous Classics Club spins:

CCSpin29: The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
CCSpin30: Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
CCSpin31: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
CCSpin32: O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
CCSpin33: Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
CCSpin34: Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
CCSpin35: Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
CCSpin36: A Night to Remember by Walter Lord
CCSpin37: Howards End by E. M. Forster
CCSpin38: The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
CCSpin39: An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
CCSpin40: Dracula by Bram Stoker
CCSpin41: The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

10Aug2025

Late summer clean-up: ARCs, subscriptions, and TBRs (oh, my!)

Posted in Blogging, The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

It’s that time of year again… the point, close to the end of summer, when I look at all my reading plans and commitments, and feel entirely overwhelmed.

And so, I’m doing something about it.

I know we book bloggers and avid readers say this constantly — it’s so easy to get bogged down by ARCs and other reading obligations, and not make time for reading on a whim (which is my favorite way to read).

I’m not a huge fan of reading challenges, simply because I don’t like the pressure of structuring my reading around checking off prompts on a list. I know people LOVE reading challenges… but they’re generally just not for me, other than some very loose challenges around the number of books read in a year, or my current reading challenges on Storygraph (20th Century Decades Challenge and a challenge shared with my daughter focused on a bookish calendar we both own).

As for ARCs… it’s the eternal struggle! It’s wonderful to get early (free!) access to new and upcoming books, but they come with strings attached — namely, to read them and review them relatively near to their release dates. It’s easy to click that NetGalley request button every time some shiny new book catches our eyes… but then we need to find time to read them all!

I keep a spreadsheet of my ARCs, sorted by release date and with subtotals by month. (Yes, I’m an Excel nerd, and proud of it!) Despite trying to restrict my requests to no more than a few books per release month, somehow it’s all gotten away from me recently. So, I decided to take action.

I just went back to my NetGalley shelf, looked at all my upcoming ARCs, and put a cold, hard question to myself: How much do I really want to read each of these books? Are these books that would call to me if I were browsing in a library or bookstore? And, maybe most importantly, do I want to read these particular books more than all the other books already on my shelves?

I was able to identify about five books that didn’t feel all that important to me. Maybe something had caught my eye in the first place, but in going back through the list, I could honestly admit that I wouldn’t feel sorry to let them go. And that’s what I did: I went to the feedback page for each book, and clicked on the “I will not be giving feedback for this book” option. And lo and behold, the books are no longer on my active shelf. Instant sense of relief!

I’ve gotten myself down to 10 ARCs left for the remainder of 2025, plus 2 for 2026 releases… and that feels manageable. Of the ARCs I’m still planning to read, I can sincerely say that I’d read these books even if I didn’t have ARCs. And of course, if I start one and find it’s not grabbing me, I’m going to use that “not giving feedback” option. (Try it! It’s really freeing!)

Going forward, I plan to be much more restrictive with myself in terms of requesting ARCs. For certain authors and series, absolutely yes — but for new-to-me authors or books that look cute or fun or interesting but aren’t yet on my radar, I’m going to make my best effort to hold off on hitting the request button. If I still want to read a certain book by the time it’s released, well… there’s always the library!

I do hesitate a bit to acknowledge both cutting back and pruning my NetGalley shelf — does this mean I’ll be less likely to get approved for future ARCs that I really want? But you know what? That’s a risk I’m willing to take! Again… libraries!!

My other clean-up projects are a little simpler (I hope!). First, I get way too many book-related emails — I’m on so many lists about price deals and new releases and publisher spotlights, and I end up just deleting most of them anyway. (A lot of these can probably be traced back to entering giveaways… so hard to resist!). Anyway, one of my goals for these new few weeks is to get a little ruthless and click on the unsubscribe option as often as possible.

As for the TBR clean-up… well, this is a never-ending goal, but it’s nice to make a little dent. I tend to mark books as to-read on Goodreads every time a new title catches my eye, whether from reading a review or seeing an article about the author or stumbling across an interesting social media blurb. It needs to stop! My TBR on Goodreads is well and truly out of control, and I could probably stand to delete hundreds of books that I’m clearly never going to actually read! I started tinkering with this a bit over the weekend, and have gotten my Goodreads to-read shelf down from 856 books to 696 so far!

My physical shelves at home are another story, and I’ve been working on these all year. I started selling on Pango Books last year, and it’s helping me cull the books I don’t really need to keep. I haven’t done a tremendous amount in terms of actual sales, but even just listing the books is helping me separate out the ones I don’t need to keep and move them into storage bags. As a result, I’m able to free up some shelf space, which lets me make things a bit tidier and easier to enjoy.

This week, I’ve been adding more books to my Pango listings and dropping the prices on books that have been listed for a while, just to see if that helps move more books out of my house. Hint: If you’re new to Pango and use the discount code in my sidebar, you get a discount!

I’m also shuffling off a bunch of older, shabbier books that aren’t quite in sellable shape (or might be so old that no one would be interested), using them to restock my Little Free Library whenever the space empties out.

The goal, of course, is to improve my reading life! To me, that means free myself from reading obligations and deadlines, and basking in the luxury of reading whatever suits my mood in any given moment.

Here’s to reading on a whim!

Has anyone else considered getting off the ARC merry-go-round? How are you feeling about your reading commitments these days? And do you have any tried-and-true approaches for making sure you can read according to your whims? Please share your thoughts!

15Jun2025

My Classics Club Spin book for summer 2025 will be…

Posted in Bookish Thoughts, Fun and Whimsy, The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Earlier in the week, I shared a post with my list of books for the newest Classics Club Spin challenge (see it here), and a few days ago, this spin’s number was announced. (For those keeping track, it’s CCSpin #41, and for me personally, #13!)

For CCSpin #41, the lucky number is:

And that means I’ll be reading:

My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
(The Corfu Trilogy, Book #1)
Published 1956

Synopsis:

‘What we all need,’ said Larry, ‘is sunshine…a country where we can grow.‘

‘Yes, dear, that would be nice,’ agreed Mother, not really listening.

‘I had a letter from George this morning – he says Corfu’s wonderful. Why don’t we pack up and go to Greece?’

‘Very well, dear, if you like,’ said Mother unguardedly.

Escaping the ills of the British climate, the Durrell family – acne-ridden Margo, gun-toting Leslie, bookworm Lawrence and budding naturalist Gerry, along with their long suffering mother and Roger the dog – take off for the island of Corfu.

But the Durrells find that, reluctantly, they must share their various villas with a menagerie of local fauna – among them scorpions, geckos, toads, bats and butterflies.

What fun! I’ve been tempted to read this book ever since seeing promos for the Masterpiece series (The Durrells in Corfu), which aired 2016 – 2019. I held off on watching the series so I could read the book first, and then never got around to that either! So, I’m very happy with this spin result, and if I love the book, maybe I’ll finally get around to the TV version as well.

For my 2025 spins, I’ve been focusing on 20th century literature — inspired by a reading challenge to read (at least) one book from each decade of the century. Once I finish My Family and Other Animals, I’ll be able to check off the 1950s!

At just under 300 pages (Kindle edition), this book shouldn’t take a tremendous amount of time, so I may hold off on starting it for a bit… mainly because I’m swamped with other books from my TBR at the moment.

Overall, I’m really looking forward to reading My Family and Other Animals. The deadline to finish this spin is August 24th. I’ll be back with my reaction before then.

What do you think of my spin result this time around?

Here’s my list of 20 titles for Classics Club Spin #41:

Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir by R. A. Dick
A Damsel in Distress by P. G. Wodehouse
Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
Peony by Pearl Buck
White Fang by Jack London
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
Foundation by Isaac Asimov
Frederica by Georgette Heyer
Dragonwyck by Anya Seton
The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin

My previous Classics Club Spin books:

Are you participating in this Classics Club Spin? If so, what book will you be reading?

12Jun2025

Getting ready for the newest Classics Club Spin (CC Spin #41; summer 2025)

Posted in Bookish Thoughts, Fun and Whimsy, The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

It’s time for another Classics Club Spin!

Here are the dates and guidelines from the host blog:

On Sunday 15th June, 2025 we’ll post a number from 1 through 20. The challenge is to read whatever book falls under that number on your Spin List by the 24th August, 2025..

We’ll check in on the 24th August to see who made it the whole way and finished their spin book!

What’s Next?

Go to your blog.

Pick twenty books that you’ve got left to read from your Classics Club List.

Post that list, numbered 1-20, on your blog before Sunday 15th June 2025.

We’ll announce a number from 1-20.

Read that book by 24th August.

My spin lists are usually a mix of books from different decades and centuries, but in 2025, I’m focusing on books that count toward my 20th Century Decades reading challenge (for which I’m aiming to read one book published per decade). All of the books on my list fit the challenge! And they’re all books I’d want to read anyway… so this should be an exciting spin, no matter which number comes up.

Here we go!

Here’s my list of 20 classics for the next Classics Club Spin:

Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne DuMaurier
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir by R. A. Dick
A Damsel in Distress by P. G. Wodehouse
Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
Peony by Pearl Buck
White Fang by Jack London
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
Foundation by Isaac Asimov
Frederica by Georgette Heyer
Dragonwyck by Anya Seton
The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin

Wish me luck! I’ll be back on June 15th to reveal my spin result!

My previous Classics Club spins:

Spring 2022 (CCSpin29): The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer
Summer 2022 (CCSpin30): Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
Fall 2022 (CCSpin31): A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
Winter 2022/2023 (CCSpin32): O Pioneers! by Willa Cather
Spring 2023 (CCSpin33): Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay
Summer 2023 (CCSpin34): Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Fall 2023 (CCSpin35): Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
Winter 2024 (CCSpin36): A Night to Remember by Walter Lord
Spring 2024 (CCSpin37): Howards End by E. M. Forster
Summer 2024 (CCSpin38): The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
Fall 2024 (CCSpin39): An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
Winter 2025 (CCSpin40): Dracula by Bram Stoker

8May2025

Retail Therapy: Puzzles for Book Lovers (part 1)

Posted in Fun and Whimsy, Real Life, The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

We booklovers tend to spend most of our “just for me” shopping dollars on books… but sometimes, it’s fun to branch out and consider book-adjacent little treats. So today, I’d like to share some of my favorite jigsaw puzzles, which are great in their own right, but also, especially great for book lovers!

Before the pandemic, I probably hadn’t done a jigsaw puzzle in over 10 years (or more). But during the pandemic, I got totally hooked, and ended up doing about one per week (and probably would have done even more, except I tend to get a bit obsessed when working on a puzzle and had to set myself some limits).

I’ve slowed down since then, so now it’s much more of an occasional hobby than a continuous activity — but I’m still always on the lookout for a great puzzle, especially when there’s a book-related angle to it!

For today’s Retail Therapy round-up, I’m focusing solely on bookish puzzles — and in fact, this is only part 1! I have so many bookish puzzles to share that I’ll just focus on one publisher this time around, and will be back with a part 2 in another week or so. I’ll also be sharing yet another post on non-book-related puzzles that I’ve found especially pretty or interesting or unique. There are a lot!

Note: This post contains affiliate links. When you click through a link and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you.

Onward: Puzzles for Book Lovers, part 1!

Here are some favorites. Why not see if any appeal to you as well?

The puzzles below are all from the world of Laurence King Publishing. They make high-quality puzzles filled with intricate details and eye-catching designs.

The World of Jane Austen

Purchase links: Amazon – Bookshop.org

The World of Shakespeare

Purchase links: Amazon – Bookshop.org

The World of Dracula

Purchase links: Amazon – Bookshop.org

The World of Frankenstein

Purchase links: Amazon – Bookshop.org

The World of Charles Dickens

Purchase links: Amazon – Bookshop.org

The World of the Brontës

Purchase links: Amazon – Bookshop.org

The World of King Arthur

Purchase links: Amazon – Bookshop.org

The World of Bridgerton

Purchase links: Amazon – Bookshop.org

These are just a few of their puzzles — they’re all amazing. Each puzzle has a lot of details from the world it portrays, and comes with a fold-out poster than includes a guide to all the places and characters hidden (or not so hidden) in the illustrations. The puzzles themselves have cleanly cut pieces with a satisfying snap, and are high quality and sturdy.

Keep in mind, there are plenty more from this “World of” series to choose from! Of the others I’ve found so far, some are related to books that I don’t particularly care for (The Great Gatsby), some are from worlds/series/books that I just haven’t read in-depth (or at all) yet, and some are on my maybe/someday list. Whether or not I’m interested in the actual subjects, the puzzles themselves look great!

Stay tuned — I’ll be back with more puzzle recommendations in my next Retail Therapy post!

4May2025

Kindle unboxing: The arrival of my new Kindle Paperwhite

Posted in The Reading Life by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Earlier in the week, I shared the sad tale of the demise of my beloved Kindle Oasis. After almost eight years of happy reading, during which I took excellent care of it, one little slip resulted in it cracking on my kitchen floor. Oh, the horror!

After a suitable period of mourning (roughly, two hours), I went ahead and ordered a replacement. Amazon no longer sells the Oasis, so after reading a bunch of reviews, I decided to go with the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition.

My new Kindle arrived this week — let’s take a look!

I went with a bundle option (more on purchase options later), and the various pieces arrived separately. Shown above — the box with the Kindle itself (left), plus the docking station (top right) and cover (bottom right).

You may be asking, why does a Kindle need such a big box?

Great question! It doesn’t. What a weird packing choice — it was just a mostly-empty box with the little Kindle box in it, no packing materials or anything else. Moving on…

I was happy to open up my boxes and start looking at the new Kindle! It’s very easy to get started — the new device was already registered to my account, so getting started consisted mainly of pressing the power button.

Once I turned it on, it just took a minute to sync with my wifi and load all my existing Kindle content.

The other items in my bundle are the cover, which is pretty much just what I expected, and the the wireless charging dock, something not available with the Oasis. I think I’m going to like it!

My first step, after opening the box and turning on the new Kindle, was comparing the Paperwhite to the Oasis.

The Oasis (right) is square. There’s something about its sorta-clunky shape that I actually loved! It felt good in my hands, substantial but not heavy. The new Paperwhite (left) has different dimensions, and may take me a minute to adjust to.

And yet… the actual screen size is exactly the same! So the reading experience should be just about identical, with the same amount of text per page, depending on the settings I select.

(The main feature that Oasis-lovers seem to complain about is the lack of physical page turn buttons on the the Paperwhite. I didn’t use mine all that often on the Oasis, so it doesn’t feel like a loss for me, but I get that it could be hard to give up if that’s what you’re used to.)

So… first impressions?

I noticed that even with the same brightness levels selected, the Paperwhite has a more muted tone than the Oasis. Perhaps that’s because it has warmth settings that the Oasis doesn’t have, giving the option for an amber-toned reading environment. I have warmth set at zero for now, but I’m still noticing a slightly different look from the Oasis.

It’s really not a big deal, though, and I think I’ll get used to it. Other than that, the Paperwhite is easy to use, has the same reading options and interfaces as the Oasis, and seems like a perfectly fine choice for my needs! I did notice certain features in the settings that the Oasis doesn’t have, such as Vocabulary Builder and others — not sure that I’ll use any of these, but we’ll see once I settle in a bit more.

Really, the only hiccups so far have to do with the cover. I ordered a black cover for my new Kindle, and didn’t consider the fact that my husband has the same cover on his! To avoid confusion, I’m going to send mine back and get a different color.

The other hiccup relates to missing a feature of my Oasis cover. I’ve loved having this “origami” style of cover for my old Kindle, which is incredibly useful for hands-free reading. Sadly, Amazon does not sell a standing/origami cover for my new model — and while I see a bunch of varieties sold by other manufacturers, reviews about quality and fit are mixed, at best. I’ll have to find another solution for propping up my Paperwhite!

Apart from the minor cover-related hiccups…

I’m happy with my new Kindle and its assorted accessories, and look forward to a long, happy reading life together!

And the kitty approves! Or is indifferent… who knows?

Details: Here’s the run-down on what I bought:

First, it’s good to note that Amazon has a trade-in program for devices. Read about it here. By trading in a previous device, you get a gift card and a discount on your new device purchase. My trade-in gift card was a whopping $5, but the valuable piece is the discount: 20% off the new Kindle, which made the idea of replacing my poor damaged Oasis a lot easier to accept.

I purchased the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition in metallic black. This Kindle features auto-adjusting front lighting, 32 GB storage, USB-C charging, and is waterproof (although I wouldn’t want to put that to the test!).

Dimensions and specs (click images to enlarge):

Amazon offers bundled pricing, which saves a bit vs buying the accessories separately. I opted for the bundle which includes a fabric cover and the wireless docking station. Other bundles (at a higher price) include leather covers in a few color options, but I’m perfectly happy with fabric.

Available add-ons include screen protectors and a protection plan. I didn’t opt for either — but I’m considering the protection plan. There’s a 30-day window to add this. For $25, it provides two years of replacement coverage. That wouldn’t have helped me with my Oasis… but in case I get stupidly clumsy again with my new device, it might be nice to have.