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Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Meant To Read in 2020 (but didn’t get to)

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snowy10

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Books I Meant to Read In 2020 but Didn’t Get To.

I recently did a similar post about the books I bought in 2020 but didn’t read. For this week’s prompt, I thought I’d look back at the quarterly TBR list Top Ten Tuesday posts from 2020, and see how well I did at reading the books I said I’d read.

Overall? Not too shabby!! Here are the books that are left, along with a note on whether I still plan to to read them. Starting with:

Winter 2020: Only two left unread:

  • Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir: Still plan to read? YES. High priority for 2021!
  • Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik: Still plan to read? YES. Also high priority!

Spring 2020:

  • Red Sky Over Hawaii by Sara Ackerman: Still plan to read? YES
  • The Jetsetters by Amanda Eyre Ward: Still plan to read? Probably not — I seem to have lost interest.

Summer 2020 – I read all the books!

Fall 2020:

  • Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse: Still plan to read? I’m thinking no. Even though I was excited for this initially, after reading a bunch of reviews and synopses, it just doesn’t draw me in.
  • Dying with Her Cheer Pants On by Seanan McGuire: Still plan to read? YES. It’s Seanan McGuire, so the answer has to be YES.
  • The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman: Still plan to read? YES for sure, but I just haven’t been feeling any urgency around this one. I do intend to read it eventually.

That’s seven, so I’ll also include unread books from my “most anticipated” posts from 2020:

  • When We Were Magic by Sarah Gailey: Still plan to read? YES. I don’t know why I didn’t get to it when it came out, but I do own a copy and absolutely want to read it.
  • Malorie by Josh Malerman: Still plan to read? Probably. I liked Bird Box, so I’m curious to see what comes next… but it doesn’t feel all that important to read any time soon.
  • Parable of the Sower (graphic novel): Still plan to read? YES. The novel of Parable of the Sower is one of the most powerful books I’ve ever read. I’ve been waiting to read the graphic novel until it suits my mood, but I definitely do plan to get to it.

What books did you mean to get to in 2020, but didn’t? Have you read any of the books on my list? And if so, which do you think should be top priority?

Here’s hoping we all get to our 2020 books, plus all the great books ahead in 2021!

Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Resolutions for 2021

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snowy10

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Resolutions/Hopes for 2021.

I’m not a big fan of making resolutions. I’ve been around enough years to know that most don’t stick. But I’m not opposed to setting a few goals, so…

Here are some low-key bookish goals for 2021:

Read whatever I feel like. Okay, I say this every year… and every year it’s worth repeating. It’s easy to get caught up in ARCs and reading schedules, and that’s fine — but I know what makes me happiest is to read whatever I want, whenever I want. And reading is for happiness, right?

Resist the urge to over-request. I’m looking at you, NetGalley request button! I love NetGalley, and I so appreciate how wonderful it is to have access to all these amazing early review copies! But I need to keep better perspective, and not allow myself to overwhelm my to-read plans with nothing but ARCs.

Organize my bookshelves — again! — and donate the never-gonna-read books and the read-’em-but-don’t-need-to-keep-’em books to the library (once their donation center reopens).

Stick to my series reading plans for 2021! Subject to change, of course, but I do want to get to the books and series that I set as my priorities.

Updated to add: After this post was already up and published, I realized I forgot one goal! So, my late addition is… Tackle one or two of the heftier non-fiction books on my shelves (mostly a variety of history books) by reading them in small bites, just a few chapters per week. Slow and steady, so I get to enjoy them without feeling like I’m missing out on reading fiction too.

And a couple of blogging goals too:

Update my Book Blog Meme Directory page. It’s been a while since I’ve gone through and checked all the links, made sure all the listed memes are still current, etc. It’s clean-up time!

Go through old posts to make sure that images and links still work. This is a big, tedious job, but if I do it in little bites over the course of the year, it should be okay.

What are your bookish, non-bookish, or blogging resolutions for this year? Whatever you’re resolving or hoping for, I’m wishing you all a happy and healthy year. It can only get better, right?

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Book Releases for the First Half of 2021

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snowy10

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Most Anticipated Book Releases for the First Half of 2021.

I highlighted some of the upcoming releases I’m most excited for in my winter TBR post from a couple of weeks ago — but it’s always fun to look ahead and make even more reading plans! So, here are ten MORE books releasing between now and the end of June that I’m super excited to read.

  1. The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah (2/2)
  2. A History of What Comes Next by Sylvain Neuvel (2/2)
  3. Later by Stephen King (3/2)
  4. An Unexpected Peril (Veronica Speedwell, #6) by Deanna Raybourn (3/2)
  5. Whisper Down the Lane by Clay McLeod Chapman (4/6)
  6. Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian (4/20)
  7. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (5/4)
  8. People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry (5/11)
  9. The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren (5/18)
  10. Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid (5/25)

What new releases are you most looking forward to in 2021? Share your links, and I’ll come check out your top 10!

Top Ten Tuesday: Home for the holidays

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Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is a Holiday Freebie, where we each come up with our own holiday-themed top ten list.

I was drawing a blank, until I started thinking about holiday celebrations in books, and from there, I started thinking about great fictional families that I’d want to celebrate the holidays with.

So, ta-da! Here are ten fictional families who I wish would invite me over for some holiday cheer…

  1. The Weasleys (Harry Potter series): I mean, obvious, right? I love the entire Weasley brood, and I hope if I went the Burrow for the holidays, I’d get one of Molly’s traditional sweaters.
  2. The Bennets (Pride and Prejudice): Or really, one of several families in Jane Austen novels, mainly because I’d like to dress up and go to one of their balls.
  3. The family of All-of-a-Kind Family (All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor): I loved these books as a kid, and always wished I could celebrate Hanukkah or any of the Jewish holidays with them! Even living simple lives, they make everything seem like such fun.
  4. The children of Marsyas Island Orphanage (The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune): Let’s hear it for found families! I love this book, and love the way the children and their headmaster form such a warm and wonderful family. I think opening presents with this group would be all sorts of fun.
  5. The Columbia Basin Pack (Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs: Here’s an entirely different sort of found family — the werewolves of the Mercy Thompson series. The pack house seems like such a fun place to be, even though it’s usually crowded, loud, and bit out of control. I can only imagine how wild Christmas morning must be. (I kind of hope it’s a tradition for all the big wolves to wear Christmas jammies too…)
  6. The Covey family (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han): I love Lara Jean’s family dynamic and how awesome her dad is, and you just know that the food will be amazing — especially if Lara Jean is doing the cookies!
  7. The March family (Little Women by Louisa May Alcott): Christmas won’t be Christmas without any presents! But hanging out with Jo and Beth (my faves) and Marmee would be awesome anyway.
  8. All the characters in In a Holidaze (by Christina Lauren): To be honest, I’m not sure if I’m more interested in the people or in their Christmas cabin, but either way, I’d love to be there.
  9. The Murry family (A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle): Hanging out with Charles Wallace and Meg would be fun, and I bet their Christmas would be all science-y and also filled with witches.
  10. Emily & Simon and everyone else in Willow Creek (Well Met by Jen DeLuca): I know the Willow Creek Renaissance Faire is a summer event, but can you imagine how amazing it would be as a Christmas celebration? All those fabulous costumes and revelries in the snow?

That’s it! I wasn’t sure I could get to 10, but somehow I made it (mainly by including a couple of family-esque groups as well as more traditional families). I’d be happy to be invited to celebrate with all of these folks!

What was your holiday topic this week? If you wrote a TTT post, please share your link!

Top Ten Tuesday: So nice, I’ll read them twice!

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Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Books I Want To Read Again.

I’m a big fan of re-reading — sometimes to get a refresher on an ongoing series before reading a new installment, sometimes just for the pleasure of revisiting a book I’ve already loved.

Here are 10 books I’d love to read again (and for some, again and again…):

 

  1. Dune by Frank Herbert: With the movie coming out in 2021, it’s about time that I re-read Dune. I originally read the series over 20 years ago, and can’t remember much except for the terrifying sandworms.
  2. The Folk of the Air trilogy by Holly Black: Actually, I’m already rereading these books! I read the trilogy at the beginning of 2020, and loved them enough to now want to listen to the audiobooks.
  3. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen: This is the only Austen novel that I haven’t already read more than once, and I’m fuzzy on the details, so I think a re-read is in order.
  4. Daisy Jones and The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid: I loved Daisy Jones, and I’ve heard that the audiobook is amazing, so I’d love to check it out.
  5. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte: I’ve only read Jane Eyre once, and pretty recently at that. I think a re-read will help me appreciate it even more.
  6. Soulless by Gail Carriger: Ideally, I’d like to reread the entire Parasol Protectorate series. These books are so much fun.
  7. Mariana by Susanna Kearsley: Or really, any of a handful of books by this author, which are all so romantic and swoonworthy.
  8. The Toby Daye series by Seanan McGuire: I’ve re-read several of the more recent books in the series, to prep when new books were being released, but I’d seriously love to go back to the beginning and listen to all the audiobooks.
  9. The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow: One of my favorites from 2019, and such a beautiful book. I’d love to experience it all over again.
  10. A Witch in Time by Constance Sayers: This one was a 2020 favorite, and it was so lovely that I’d like to read it one more time.

What books do you most want to re-read?

If you wrote a TTT post, please share your link!

Top Ten Tuesday: Thankgiving gratitude

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Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is a Thanksgiving Freebie, so I thought I’d put together a list of the top ten things I’m grateful for right now.

I’m so thankful for:

  1. The health and wellbeing of my family and friends, and my own health too
  2. The upcoming inauguration on January 20, 2021! So thankful that the US will finally have competent, honorable leadership.
  3. Related to #2, but it deserves its own recognition: Shattering the glass ceiling! Hurray for our first woman VP.
  4. Zoom and FaceTime — yes, I’m sick of Zoom work meetings, but I’m so grateful that I connect with family across the country.
  5. Having a job. Can’t take it for granted, when so many don’t. I’m grateful to have steady employment and benefits right now.
  6. A never-ending pile of good books to read!
  7. Being able to stream so much great entertainment.
  8. Living in a place with (mostly) year-round sun, so even if I’m always home, I can get outside to read in the sun or go for long walks.
  9. Medical professionals, teachers, supermarket staff, and all the other front-line workers performing essential services.
  10. All the responsible people who wear masks and practice social distancing.

And of course, I can’t forget to say THANK YOU to all the wonderful people in the blogging community. I love the support, connection, insights, and fun!

What are you thankful for this year?

If you wrote a TTT post, please share your link!

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten terrific fictional pets

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Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Characters I’d Name a Pet After, but I thought I’d switch it up a bit and focus instead on great doggos and kitties in fiction.

Who doesn’t love a good animal story? Here are some of the very good dogs and cats of my recent reading:

Favorite dogs:

1. Rollo (Outlander by Diana Gabaldon)
2. Mutt (Kate Shugak series by Dana Stabenow)
3. Mouse (Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
4. Jess (A Boy & His Dog at the End of the World by C. A. Fletcher)
5 & 6. Little Ann & Old Dan (Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls)
7. Bongo (The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher)

TV Rollo

And a few cool cats too:

8. Adso (Outlander by Diana Gabaldon)
9. Medea (Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs)
10 & 11. (because they’re a pair, and I can’t exclude either one!) Cagney & Lacey (Toby Daye series by Seanan McGuire)

TV Adso (cutie pie)

What great dogs and cats of fiction can you think of?

If you wrote a TTT post, please share your link!

Top Ten Tuesday: Seanan McGuire Book Titles that Would Make Great Song Titles

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Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Book Titles that Would Make Great Song Titles. As I was perusing my bookshelves for inspiration, I realized that I need look no further than one particular author…

It’s not exactly a secret that Seanan McGuire is one of my favorite authors. Besides the fact that her books are excellent, they also tend to have terrific titles. Here are ten (from books written as both Seanan McGuire and Mira Grant) that I can easily imagine as song titles too.

  1. Rolling in the Deep (what? there’s already a song with this title??? but is it about killer mermaids?)
  2. Into the Drowning Deep
  3. When Will You Rise?
  4. Down Among the Sticks and Bones
  5. Come Tumbling Down (no, not the John Cougar Mellancamp song — that one is actually “Crumblin’ Down”)
  6. Kingdom of Needle and Bone
  7. A Red-Rose Chain
  8. Dusk or Dark or Dawn or Day
  9. Midnight Blue-Light Special
  10. Sparrow Hill Road

What do you think of my choices? And what book titles can you imagine as great song titles?

If you wrote a TTT post, please share your link!

Top Ten Tuesday: Non-bookish hobbies

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Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is non-bookish hobbies. Wait, is there such a thing? You mean there’s something people do for fun that doesn’t include books???

Honestly, other than reading, there’s really not that much I’m doing for fun these days… so I thought I’d include my current hobbies and my pre- (and hopefully post-) COVID activities too.

Pre-COVID, some of my favorites hobbies and amusements:

  • Travel (Oh, I miss travel so much!)
  • Museums
  • Hiking, especially at state and national parks
  • LIve theater
  • SEEING FAMILY

And these days…

  • Long walks
  • Jigsaw puzzles
  • Phone/Zoom/FaceTime with distant friends and relatives
  • Binge-watching TV series

… and that’s all I can think of that doesn’t include books or reading!

As for today — Election Day — I’m grateful to have my job, blogging, and participating in TTT to distract me. This is going to be a LONG day.

What are your favorite non-bookish hobbies? What are you doing to entertain yourself during COVID?

If you wrote a TTT post, please share your link!

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten (OK, actually eleven) Witchy Books for Halloween!

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Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is a Halloween Freebie. I’m keeping it simple and featuring books about witches — mostly books I’ve read, plus three from my TBR list that I’m really looking forward to.

  1. The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow — a 2020 favorite! (review)
  2. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
  3. Storm Cursed by Patricia Briggs — part of the ongoing Mercy Thompson series, but this one has some very bad witches in it! (review)
  4. The Ghost Tree by Christina Henry — despite the title, this book has much more to do with witches than ghosts. Loved it. (review)
  5. A Witch in Time by Constance Sayers — another 2020 favorite (review)
  6. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare — not actual witches, but about witch hunts in the Colonial era. I think every kid who grew up in Connecticut (like me!) read this book at some point. (review)
  7. Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor (review)
  8. The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe
  9. Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian — new release coming in April 2021
  10. The Factory Witches of Lowell by C. S. Malerich — coming in November 2020, and I think it sounds amazing.
  11. The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson — haven’t read yet, but I intend to!

Yes, that actually makes eleven books. I realized I had an extra, but couldn’t decide which one to drop!

What are your favorite witchy books?

I’d love to hear about your Halloween topic, so please share your TTT link!

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