Friday, June 01, 2012

May in Review

What I Learned

I only read 13 books in May... That's kind of depressing, actually. I may have hit 100 books for the year, but I kind of feel like my reading is dragging. I know that to some of you 13 sounds impressive, but I think it sounds kind of depressing. I was hoping to make in 14, but instead I watched the first two episodes of Buffy: The Vampire Slayer with Suey from It's All About Books and a couple other people via Twitter. This is becoming a bit of a tradition with Suey and I, but it was fun to have a couple other people join in. If you have never watched Buffy before there is a very informal group watch that you can read all about on Suey's blog to coincide with the month-long event that Memory is hosting dedicated to Buffy

Anyway, I have learned something huge this month. I have changed as a reader. I used to be atrocious at 'required reading'. It is why I have largely avoided Blog Tours in my time. Then, Trish from TLC Book Tours asked me if I wanted to join in for a tour promoting the e-copy of a C.S. Lewis book. It's always so nice when people remember that I am a fantasy/science-fiction nerd. This lead to me visiting the TLC Book Tour site and seeing that there was a tour for the fourth Bess Crawford novel. And, I am doing really well! The books arrive (eventually), I read them, and then I post about them. When I started blogging I quickly learned that I was terrible at this and made few exceptions. I think I put too much pressure on myself or something, but I am very impressed that my 14th book would have been another TLC Book Tour book that I received yesterday.

New To Me Authors

Stephen Baxter (The Long Earth - Though I have read his co-author Terry Pratchett before.)
Taylor Jones (Dear Photograph)
Rachel Hawkins (Hex Hall)
Jonathan Gottschall (The Story-Telling Animal)
Douglas R. Skopp (Shadows Walking)
Gayle Forman (If I Stay)

Series Talk

Cinderella Fables: 2/2 Caught up!
Mythos Academy Series: 3/3 Caught up!
Hex Hall Trilogy: 1/3
The Guild Comic Series: 2/2 Caught up!
If I Stay duology: 1/2

The Source

Reread: 1
Bought: 2
Gift Card: 1 
Review: 7
Library: 1
E-Book: 1

What I Read

90. Code Name, Verity by Elizabeth Wein (Completed May 6, 2012)
91. Fables - Cinderella Volume 1: From Fabletown With Love by Chris Roberson and Shawn McManus (Completed May 7, 2012)
92. Fables - Cinderella Volume 2: Fables are Forever by Chris Roberson and Shawn McManus (Completed May 9, 2012)
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93. The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter (Completed May 13, 2012)
94. Dear Photograph by Taylor Jones (Completed May 15, 2012)
95. Dark Frost: A Mythos Academy Novel (Book 3) by Jennifer Estep (Completed May 16, 2012)
96. The Unseen by Katherine Webb (Completed May 17, 2012)
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97. Hex Hall (Hex Hall Trilogy, Book 1) by Rachel Hawkins (Completed May 20, 2012)
98. BEA Buzz Books: Excerpts from over 30 Top Fall 2012 Titles (Completed May 21, 2012)
99. The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human by Jonathan Gottschall (Completed May 22, 2012)
100. The Guild Volume 2: Knights of Good by Felicia Day (Completed May 22, 2012)
101. Shadows Walking by Douglas R. Skopp (Completed May 26, 2012)
102. If I Stay (If I Stay, Book 1) by Gayle Forman (Completed May 26, 2012)

Books Added to the TBR Pile

Bought:
Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore (Gift Card)
Cinderella: Fables are Forever by Chris Roberson and Shawn McManus (Gift Card)
The Troupe by Robert Jackson Bennett

Received:
The Unseen by Katherine Webb
The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman
People's Pops by Nathalie Jordi, David Carrell, and Joel Horowitz (Random House)
Heirs of Prophecy by Michael A. Rothman (TLC Book Tour)
A Bitter Truth by Charles Todd (Review Copy)
Hidden Voices by Pat Lowry Collins
Daughter of Winter by Pat Lowry Collins
The Storytelling Animal by Jonathan Gottschall (TLC Book Tour)

11 comments:

  1. I can't wait to get the Long Earth and I REALLY need to read Code Name Verity!!! So if you think 13 books is bad, I read ONE :p I'm hoping June is much much better!

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  2. 13 books sounds good to me, especially this time of year.

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  3. I haven't looked at how much I read in May yet, but I think it was a pretty good month.

    It is always interesting to note how your reading is changing!

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  4. "I know that to some of you 13 sounds impressive..."<---Yep, I would be one of those people! I'm all happy with myself for finishing 9. :)

    Did you enjoy Hex Hall? Annie really likes those books.

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  5. I am always amazed at how much you read and your analysis of it.

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  6. Anonymous2:43 PM

    Well, I only read 4 books (but they were thick!), so you're kickin' my patootie!

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  7. Oohhhh Bitterblue - hope you love it! A great reading month, so congrats. I know what you mean about still being disappointed by great numbers though, I had that as well this month - my slowest month of the year so far. Congrats on realizing you're better at review books too. I find I'm good as long as there are only a couple, and as long as I'm only choosing books I REALLY want to read!

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  8. "I only read 13 books" HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA....ETC.
    Lol I'm sorry that sentence cracked me up lol.. you don't read.. you "inhale" a book lol..I will admit to being a bit envious that I am such a slow reader, but only because you will have read so many more things than I will enjoy!

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  9. I think 13 books is great reading! I'm lucky if I manage to read 5 per month.

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  10. I love Buffy!...Well I love the first 5 seasons, the last two suck.

    And 13 books is still great! You still managed to hit the double digits. :)

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  11. Deslily and I had the same reaction! lol Dear sweet kailana, I know you think you could do better, but I read only 5 books in May, a desolate total that leaves me behind in my goal of 40 books read by June 1. See? you've read 100 now. Feeling any better? lol :-D I know, it's not a competition, it's about what we read and enjoy. I'm happy for you that you read that many books, since you weren't reading much in April (if I have the month right). I'm glad you can do the blog tours, and get free books to review. I am really picky about those, since I struggle to read all the books I buy on my own! I don't want to be deluged with books, which is funny to say, or rather -I want the deluge to be of books of my own choosing, if that makes sense. So I hope you enjoy the wonder of reading lots of new to you authors this year!

    I LOVE Buffy. I just wrote over on Memory's blog on her new post about books about Buffy. I need to get them all. Have you read any of them? Will you during this month of Buffy love? :-)

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