BookTubeAThon 2014 [TBR]

The thought of an actual, planned TBR pile gives me anxiety. LOTS of anxiety. But read-a-thons are about challenging yourself, eh?

Here are the week's reading goals set by the BookTubeAThon's creator, Ariel Bissett:

1. Read a book with pictures:

It is a book. And it is made up of pictures. Challenge #1: check!

2. Start and finish a series:

As seems to be the trend, I am choosing a duology; both books a relatively quick read. I'm not sure how well this particular challenge will go; if, at the end of the week, I feel up to reading these two books, then I will. If not, I wont be disappointed.

3. Read a book with red on the cover:

Might I draw your attention to the red ribbon braided into her hair?

I am not in the habit of reading an unfinished series all at once—sidenote, in case you were unaware: I have recently completed Cinder and will be done with Scarlet tonight—but OH. MY. I am in love with this story.

4. Read a book someone else has chosen for you:

I will not be doing this challenge. It is difficult enough for me to plan ahead and possibly read something I may not be in the mood for. The added stress of reading something someone else has chosen for me is unnecessary.

5. Read a book from the genre you have read the least from this year:

Once again we have Cress by Marissa Meyer, counting toward two challenges this week. This book falls under the genre of Science Fiction and Steampunk.

6. Read a book-to-movie adaptation:

It is not a movie, but will be. That counts, right?

7. Read 7 books stories:

The original goal was to read seven books, but with how well my reading has been going this month and how anxious I am to be creating a TBR, I am afraid that saying I will read seven actual books may be pushing my luck - not to mention setting myself up for major disappointment (my average is 2-3 books a week). So, I have tweaked the challenge a bit; allowing novellas to count toward the final number as well.

And here they are:

▫ Cress (The Lunar Chronicles #3) by Marissa Meyer
▫ Carswell's Guide to Being Lucky (The Lunar Chronicles #3.1) by Marissa Meyer
▫ Glitches (The Lunar Chronicles #0.5) by Marissa Meyer
▫ The Little Android (The Lunar Chronicles #0.6) by Marissa Meyer
▫ Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh
▫ If I Stay by Gayle Forman
▫ Where She Went (If I Stay #2) by Gayle Forman

. . . .

And there you have it: my first ever, official TBR! Anyone else participating in the BookTubeAThon this year?

Bout of Books 10

It's that time again, guys!

Bout of Books 10 is here and, along with it, a ton of fun, new challenges! I am so very much looking forward to participating. Will I see you there?

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 12th and runs through Sunday, May 18th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 10 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

2014 challenges [+ 2013 review!]

2013 has come and gone and it is now time to create a new list of goals that we would like to accomplish in the coming year. Personally, I will not be making a list of resolutions like I did last year because I always end up pushing them to the side a few months after I make them; which, lets be honest, is actually kind of depressing. So, instead, I have comprised a list of bookish (and not) challenges that I would like to complete by 2014's end. But, before that, a review of the reading goals that I had set during 2013.


2013 Review:

Reading Challenge -

✓ 1. Read 65 books: I completed this goal—and my original goal of 40—several months before 2014; finishing the year with a grand total of 82 books (plus 5-6 novellas which were not included in that count).

☓ 2. Read at least one classic: Unfortunately, I did not get around to finishing this goal. I picked up quite a few books from a library sale over the summer that I had every intention of reading, but ended up being distracted by newer, more exciting reads. Perhaps classics are not a reading goal I should force myself to complete, but rather something that I pick up when I feel like it.

☓ 3. Read at least three books that have been on my physical TBR shelf for a while: I was SO. CLOSE. Reached by Ally Condie and The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey were two books that had been sitting on my shelf for quite some time, staring me down every time I bypassed and grabbed another book. I was also planning to pick up Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick—which is the oldest book on my TBR shelf—but was not really up for getting back into the story at that time.

✓ 4. Read at least three books/series from the Science Fiction genre: I have stated it on this blog a thousand times, but I made this goal because I have a bad habit of writing off all Science Fiction books as clichéd or boring. Due to this goal, however, I discovered quite a few amazing series this year that fall under that genre, including: the Across the Universe trilogy by Beth Revis, books one and two in the Chaos Walking trilogy, and The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey.

✓ 5. Finish ten series/trilogies: Whoop, whoop! To see the entire list, click here.

✓ 6. Read The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak: I honestly did not think I would finish this book before 2013 came to an end. The Book Thief was so intimidating going into (which is one of the reasons I put off reading it so long in the first place), but when I finally did pick it up—during the first few weeks of December—I fell in love.


Overall, I would definitely call this year a success, reading-wise. I have always had a love for reading, but it was not until the middle of 2012 that I actually started collecting books and viewing my thoughts and opinions as more than just a hobby, and rather as something that I generally enjoy doing and consider a passion. My collection has grown so much in the last two years, and I have discovered so many amazing books and series through BookTube, my blog, Goodreads and the bookish community that I foresee nothing but continuous growth for the future. I absolutely enjoy discussing my opinions and hearing the thoughts of others as they pertain to certain books, raving over gorgeous book covers, reveling in sneaky book snippets, and counting down the favorites of a certain genre. But, most of all, I enjoy reading, and I look forward to the worlds and characters I will discover in 2014; whether those worlds are new or old; just beginning or coming to an end.


2014 Goals:

Reading Challenge -

1. Read 70 books: I think this is manageable, considering the number I ended the year with in 2013.

2. Read three books that have been on my physical TBR shelf for at least six months: This widens the time-gap and gives me more of a choice when it comes to completing this goal.

3. Reread three books (not including Harry Potter): Honestly, I do not think I reread any books in 2013 and I would really like to rediscover some of my favorites; particularly those that have sequels/conclusions being released in the near future.

4. Finish ten series/trilogies.

5. Read I Am the Messenger by Marcus Zusak: I loved The Book Thief so much that I decided to check out some more of Zusak's work, and this book has received a lot of great reviews.

6. Read Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen: Another book I have heard great things about.


Harry Potter Reading Challenge -

It has been a few years since I have read the entire series, altogether—usually I just pick out my favorites and reread those—so I would like to rediscover the world and characters and magic as a whole, rather than in bits and pieces. Also, I have yet to watch the final two movies (ouch, my childhood...), so I am hoping this helps me jump the hurdle of not wanting them to end.

. . . . 

And there you have it! What goals are you setting for yourself this year, reading or otherwise?

Bout of Books 8.0

I AM DOING A THING. A READING THING.

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 19th and runs through Sunday, August 25th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 8.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

Sounds like a lot of fun! This will be the first time I have ever participated in any sort of read-a-thon, so I am a tad anxious. And also excited! Want to sign up/learn about the rules and schedule(s)? Go here:

Goals:

1. Read at least three books

Three books a week is relatively average for me, so I feel like this is a safe goal to set. Since this is my first Read-A-Thon, I am going to take it easy on myself and go with the flow. If I happen to read more than three books? Awesome!

2. Complete a series

I have a ton of books on my TBR shelf that are final books in a series; ones that I just cannot bring myself to read for whatever reason. My goal is to finish at least one of them.

3. Read at least 3-3 1/2 hours a day

I easily put in an hour and a half, Monday-Friday, at work; so I figure two more hours on top of that should be no big deal.

And that is it! Like I said before, I am not really in any hurry to

 READ MORE BOOKS THAT I HAVE EVER READ BEFORE!

or anything, so there is not much I am looking to accomplish during this Read-A-Thon except to have fun and enjoy the company of my fellow readers. :) Good luck to all of those participating!

Road Trip Wednesday #1 (155):

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing-or reading-related question that begs to be answered. In the comments, you can hop from destination to destination and get everybody's unique take on the topic.

This Week's Topic is: What was the best book you read in October?