2021 Reading: A Study in Emerald

 #6 A book with a gem, mineral, or rock in the title

Okay, this has me way more intrigued than I thought it would. After reading this, I want to know who these characters are. I mean... John Watson was the accomplice with the Rache which makes Sebastian Moran the side-kick for the Detective... Does that mean that the Rache is Sherlock? Or is it Moriarty? I am so interested! Is there more to this than just this one book?!?! I need to know more!

2021 Reading: Jacob's School Play

This book was adorable and I love it as the next installment to the Jacob series.

2021 Reading: Evil Thing

 #37 A book you think your best friend would like

Not only did I just want to finish off this series of books, but I also think that my friend would just really enjoy reading this book.

This book was very different from the others. Most notably because of the lack of magic in the story but also just the sheer downward spiral of the main character. This truly is the story of mental illness coming into being for this person. I don't really know why, but I think this one might have been my favorite out of all of the Disney Villain series.

2021 Reading: In a Dark, Dark Wood

 #29 A book with a black-and-white cover

Once again, I went into this with no knowledge of the plot or anything (I like doing that sometimes, it spices things up). I expected some intrigue, some backstabbing, maybe some mystery...

...What I was not expecting was the most cliche book ever written about teenage female drama ever. The plot was lackluster and predictable. The "action" was bizarre, over-the-top, and unnecessary. And the conclusion was disappointing and unfulfilling.

I checked on some sites to see what other people had to say and I found that many people shared my opinion of the book. It was well-written, but there was just something lacking when it came to plot and characters that could have made the story so much better.

Can't all be winners, I guess.

2021 Reading: Almost a Psychopath

 #3 A book that has a heart, diamond, club, or spade on the cover

This book was really very interesting to read. It read very much like a text book and I suppose that makes sense since it was written by two people from Harvard Medical School. It was very easy to follow (for a layman) and I learned some new things along with being reminded of some things that I had already learned in the past when I have studied (albeit on my own) psychopathy and sociopathy.

2021 Reading: Kissing Doorknobs

I read this book once when I was in middle school, I think. I remember that my friend Willow recommended it to me and I remember being so wowed by it. This book and the subject matter stuck with me for such a long time and I don't think I ever read a book that quite took on the subject matter of OCD like this until Turtles All the Way Down by John Green.

I don't know what reminded me of this book, I just know that it came up in conversation while I was talking with a coworker and I wanted to reread it so badly that I had to inter-library loan it from somewhere else because we didn't have a copy at our library. It's so heartbreaking but also hopeful and eye opening especially when you remember that it was written so long ago that the concept of having a name and proper diagnosis for OCD was still uncommon and the fact that it made such an impact for me after all this time really speaks highly.

2021 Reading: The Odd Sisters

 #48 A book from your TBR list chosen at random

I am determined to finish this book series this year. I love it so much so far. This book was just a tad confusing, I must admit. There were twists in here that I was not counting on and so much was revealed that it's going to take some getting used to in order for it all to make sense in my head. SO MUCH HAPPENED IN ONE TINY BOOK! I honestly don't know how it is going to go on from here or how they are going to resolve it. Or if they even can. I know the next book is about Cruella DeVille, but is there even magic in her story? How will it tie in with the rest of them? What will become of Circe and the triplets? I am so confused and yet so ready for more that I have no idea what is going through my head at any given moment when I think about these books anymore.

Can't wait!

2021 Reading: Not My Father's Son

 #4 A book by an author who shares your zodiac sign

I love Alan Cumming as an actor but I had no idea the trauma that he went through growing up. He seems like such a happy individual (and he is) that hearing the things from his past just breaks my heart and makes me grateful for my own childhood. I'm also glad that he was able to overcome it and go on to live his life and do what he wanted to do. Like I said, I'm a big fan and I hope he plans to do more in the coming years.

2021 Reading: Different Seasons

 #23 A book set somewhere you’d like to visit in 2021

I know at some point I attempted to read 'Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption' but I don't think I ever read any of the other stories, so I figured this would be a good time to dive into this book as a whole. And since there will be no traveling at all this year, why not indulge in a fun fantasy that I will visit Maine one day and pretend that I am in a Stephen King novel.

It amazes me how the film writers turned Shawshank Redemption from this short story into a movie. I guess I can say that about most of the stories. I'm always amazed at things like that. I've never seen the movie for 'Apt Pupil' but I'm sure that it is just as good as the others.

2021 Reading: Of Human Bondage

 #41 The longest book (by pages) on your TBR list

Surprisingly, I have owned this book as well as the movie adaptation starring Bette Davis for THE LONGEST time, but have never once picked either up until this year. Now that I am done with the book, I plan to watch the movie as well and then I can scratch both off of the list.

There was a particular passage in this book near the beginning that really struck me and I knew that I needed to get it down so that I remembered it.

"[...]It is an illusion that youth is happy, an illusion of those who have lost

it; but the youth know they are wretched, for they are full of the truthless

ideals which have been instilled into them, and each time they come in

contact with the real they are bruised and wounded. It looks as if they

were victims of a conspiracy; for the books they read, ideal by the ne-

cessity of selection, and the conversation of their elders, who look back

upon the past through a rosy haze of forgetfulness, prepare them for an

unreal life. They must discover for themselves that all they have read

and all they have been told are lies, lies, lies; and each discovery is another

nail driven into the body on the cross of life." (pg. 106)

I also kept thinking about the Persian carpet that Cronshaw gave to Philip in Paris and said that it held the answer to the meaning of life but it he had to figure it out for himself otherwise the answer would be meaningless. I wracked my brain about that for so long until I suddenly, and out loud, said "IT REALLY TIED THE ROOM TOGETHER" and then immediately face-palmed with my fist. *sigh*

Despite my wanting to smack the main character in the face for his constant indecision and lack of self preservation in the face of toxic women, I really enjoyed this book.

2021 Reading: Pet Semetary

 #46 A book from your TBR list you meant to read last year but didn’t

This has actually been on my TBR list for a very long time. I watched the movie as a part of my "Shitty 80's Horror Movie" review series that I used to do for this blog (which I should totally get back into, BTW) and I knew that I wanted to read it so that I could compare them. Now I guess I have to watch the new one that came out a few years ago.

 I love King's writing so much. There's just something about it (his older stuff anyway. I've heard some things about his later stuff that make me think I wouldn't like it as much) that draws you in and makes it so you don't think you can put it down.

2021 Reading: Mother Knows Best

 #27 A book about a social justice issue

Alright, let's see if we can BS our way into making this book about social justice... Hmmm. Well, there's the part about the mother enslaving the dead to do her bidding like slavery? No? Or keeping her young daughters captive in the forest away from the rest of the world like a weird cult away from the rest of society? Still no? How about the oppressive nature of being not only a woman, but a witch in the times surrounding these types of stories where females were thought to be weak-minded and frail, unable to fend for themselves?

Yeah, I give up. Let's just say I stretched it a bit just so I could fit this book in because I wanted to read it, and I didn't really want to read a serious book about social justice issues that might bum me out because I've had enough serious shit to deal with lately as it is and I just wanted something fun.

Yeah. Let's go with that.

2021 Reading: Mistress of All Evil

 #36 A book that has fewer than 1,000 reviews on Amazon or Goodreads

I can't believe this book doesn't have more reviews. This is a fantastic book and I was hooked the moment I picked it up. Of all the villains, I think this one is the one that interests me the most and I know that the movies are out there, but I just like this storyline so much better. The way the stories are interwoven with all the rest of the Disney characters and how they all feed off of one another is fascinating. I can't wait to move on the next one and find out more.

2021 Reading: A Storm of Swords

#49 A DNF book from your TBR list

This one was originally on my 2019 list as "#34 A book that includes a wedding"

Hahahaha! See what I did there? "Includes a wedding"?

I'm hilarious.

This one took me such a long time to get through and I think it was just a bunch of medical stuff on top of another semester of school starting and I was just NOT in the mood to read at all until nearly the end of February. It was a pretty blah time. And then it was April and the show came back and I didn't want to read, so that delayed it even more I ended up reading one or two chapters while I sped through other books just to make progress on the list since I was so far behind.

Fast forward and I completely just ended up not reading anything in 2019 because of school and work and a thousand other things that kept me occupied.

But I'm finally done now... Two years later. And I am so damned confused.

2021 Reading: I Left the House Today!

 

This book feels like it was written about me. Especially for how I have been feeling lately about everything. I never want to go outside or talk to people and just getting up the energy or the wherewithal to do anything that involves any kind of exertion on my part is simply too much to bear.  

2021 Reading: Stay Sexy & Don't Get Murdered

 #35 A book in a different format that what you normally read (audiobooks, ebooks, graphic novels)

This book was on my reading list last year and I was so upset that I didn't get to it that I knew I needed to read it this year somehow. This seemed like the perfect way to do that since I tend to listen to podcasts or audiobooks in what little time I spend in the car or sometimes even in the shower.

I found myself laughing hysterically at this book (especially the parts that they got Paul Giamati to read). It was a bit more somber than I was thinking it would be, but considering who the authors are and the context of the stories they chose to tell, I'm not surprised. Either way, I really enjoyed it and I'm glad that I got the chance to hear them tell it in their own voices like I always do on the podcast every week.

2021 Reading: Poor Unfortunate Souls

 #31 A book that has the same title as a song

I know that I have read this book before, but since I am reading the rest in the series, I knew I wanted to read this one again so that I could have more context for the story and also have this one fresh in my mind as I go on to the rest of them. I'm very excited.

2021 Reading: Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress

 

I'm really loving these cute little books that play into the destruction of gender norms with children and I am so happy that my library (with as many problems as it has) is letting our children's librarian order these books. So very happy. This was a cute story and I hope that we get even more like it as time goes on.

2021 Reading: The Beast Within

 #20 A book about do-overs or fresh starts

I have read several versions of this tale and this is one of the most interesting. I like the idea that the curse for the Beast came on gradually as his actions caused others pain so he slowly turned into the creature. Once again, the Odd Sisters play a huge part in this story and the outcome for all characters. It’s interesting that all of these tales not only take place in the same universe, but also share characters and plot lines that are important to the over all story of all the tales. I believe that’s why the Odd Sisters are so important.

2021 Reading: Hello, Red Fox

 

I had never seen this book before, but one of my coworkers told me that it was cute and that I should take a look. Totally adorbs.

2021 Reading: Fairest of All

#7 A book where the main character works at your current or dream job

 Who doesn't want to be a beautiful queen as their dream job?

I decided that this year I was going to read the entire Disney Villain series by Serena Valentino because I really enjoyed Poor Unfortunate Souls and I think there is going to be a new one coming out soon and I thought it was time to catch up. 

It's very in right now to get into the story from the villain's perspective or to give background to "evil" characters and this book is just delightful. The progression of the story and its subtle differences to the tale that we know are both refreshing and heartbreaking when you see the villains as real beings. I know that the Odd Sisters feature heavily in the other books as well as having a book of their own and I would love to get to know their story better.

2020 Reading: Audiobooks

So, as I was listening to the third audiobook of the year, I thought of the fact that I haven't listened to an audiobook in a long time. I did the whole podcast thing for such a long time and then I ran out and was completely miserable. I have a lot of time to listen to stuff in front of the computer at work so it is in the perfect time to listen to an audiobook. 

So, here are the ones that I listened to this year:

2020 Reading Challenge List

#1 A book that's published in 2020 : The Conference of the Birds
#2 A book by a trans or non-binary author : If I Was Your Girl
#3 A book with a great first line : Catch-22
#4 A book about a book club : Honey, Baby, Sweetheart
#5 A book set in a city that has hosted the Olympics : Jack the Ripper
#6 A bildungsroman : Don't You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey
#7 The first book you touch on a shelf with your eyes closed : Invisible
#8 A book with an upside-down image on the cover : Stranger Things: Worlds Turned Upside Down
#9 A book with a map : Devil in the White City
#10 A book recommended by your favorite blog, vlog, podcast, or online book club : My Sweet Audrina
#11 An anthology : Night Shift
#12 A book that passes the Bechdel test : The Handmaid's Tale
#13 A book with the same title as a movie or TV show but it unrelated to it : Lost
#14 A book by an author with flora or fauna in their name : Princess Diarist
#15 A book published the month of your birthday : Cannibalism: A Perfectly Natural History
#16 A book about or by a woman in STEM : Girling Up
#17 A book that won an award in 2019 : Trust Exercise
#18 A book on a subject you know nothing about : Raising Dairy Goats
#19 A book with only words on the cover, no images or graphics : On the Shortness of Life
#20 A book with a pun in the title : Love in Vein II
#21 A book featuring one of the seven deadly sins : Butter
#22 A book with a robot, cyborg, or AI character : Machines Like Me
#23 A book with a bird on the cover : Jailbird
#24 A fiction or nonfiction book about a world leader : Cartoons of World War II
#25 A book with "gold," "silver," or "bronze" in the title : I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer
#26 A book by a WOC : I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
#27 A book with at least a four-star rating on Goodreads : The Trouble with Poetry and Other Poems
#28 A book you meant to read in 2019 : Calling Maggie May
#29 A book about or involving social media : Free to Fall
#30 A book that has a book on the cover : Fahrenheit 451
#31 A medical thriller : The Silent Patient
#32 A book with a made-up language : Desperation
#33 A book set in a country beginning with "C" : Anne of Green Gables
#34 A book you picked because the title caught your attention : Choke
#35 A book with a three-word title : As You Wish
#36 A book with a pink cover : Workin' It!
#37 A western : Brokeback Mountain
#38 A book by or about a journalist : Sharp Objects
#39 Read a banned book during Banned Books Week (Sept 27- Oct 3) : Two Boys Kissing
#40 Your favorite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading Challenge : Stay Awake
#41 A book written by an author in their 20s : One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
#42 A book with "20" or "twenty" in the title : Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
#43 A book with a character with a vision impairment or enhancement (a nod to 20/20 vision) : Seeing Red
#44 A book set in Japan, host of the 2020 Olympics : Colour Me In
#45 A book set in the 1920s : Cocaine Blues
#46 A book by an author who has written more than 20 books : Artists in Crime
#47 A book with more than 20 letters in its title : No One Here Gets Out Alive
#48 A book published in the 20th century : Death in a White Tie
#49 A book from a series with more than 20 books : Overture to Death
#50 A book with a main characters in their 20s : Persuasion

Date Started: January 1, 2020
Date completed: December 31, 2020
Books finished in challenge: 50 of 50
Books finished in total for year: 83

2020 Reading: Honey, Baby, Sweetheart

#4 A book about a book club

Went into this book with no idea what to expect. Thought it might turn out to be another one of those meet-cute summer romance books you usually find. Was pleasantly surprised to find that it was not. It's sort of refreshing to find a book where the girl, while she does fall for the "bad boy" type, she gets herself out of it with the help of friends and family (in this case, her book club) and soul searching and self-discovery happens in the process. It’s got funny bits, and sad bits, and bits where you want to punch people... It’s got it all.

2021 Reading: Loki

This book was so cute. I like how they just disregard everything in both the movies and the comics just to make it cutesy for tiny children. I knew this had to be my first book of the year. Just something to make me smile.

2020 Reading: Trust Exercise

#17 A book that won an award in 2019

This book turned me in all kinds of directions. First you think it's one thing, then it's another, then it's another. One thing is for sure, you cannot trust this book. All the characters seem flighty, like they have no idea what they want or where they are at any given moment. And I know that for the first part they are young teenagers, but even when they are grown, that feeling does not get any better. There is not one character that has it all together and I think that is the point of the book. Another point is the issue of trust. Because there is none. And given the characters and the way that they act, not only to other people but to themselves, there should be none. I would not trust a single character, teen or grown up in this entire book.

2020 Reading: As You Wish

#35 A book with a three-word title

This movie remains, to this day, one of my favorites of all time. I can quote the whole thing at the drop of a hat and I think I have seen it maybe a thousand times. It's amazing. The actors, the sets, the story, the music... Just everything is perfection. And this book with little inside stories and peeks into the making of the script and the movie magic, backstage gossip just makes the movie all the more special to the inner child in me that still loves this movie with all my heart. I love that so many people put their thoughts and words to this books, not just Cary. It's clear that everyone involved really loved this project and I think that really shows.

2020 Reading: Love in Vein II

#20 A book with a pun in the title

Of course I had to put something by Poppy on here. I can't go very long without reading one of his books. Plus the pun in the title just makes it so much better. I know the stories aren't really by him, but there are some good ones in here, including the story by Neil Gaiman that I read the graphic novel for last year about Snow White being a vampire. Good story.

2020 Reading: Long Story Short

Okay, this book was hilarious. It was kind of like that book I read a while ago that boiled down books into tweets and texts but even funnier because these are visual and just so spot on about this classic books. The one for Dracula had me laughing so loud that my coworkers had to come over and see what I was doing. I think the whole book only took me about 8 minutes to read during my lunch break and it was so worth it.

2020 Reading: Jack the Ripper The Casebook

#5 A book set in a city that has hosted the Olympics

What better book to read about London than a book about Jack the Ripper, huh?! This book didn't really tell me anything I didn't already know (because look who you're talking to here) but it was fun to look at all the memorabilia that they added in to make it interesting. They had little newspaper clippings and police reports, that I mostly could NOT read because the hand-writing was terrible and tiny.. they even threw in some of the notes that the police received during the murders that they believed came from the killer. Quite the little treasure trove for a little murderino like me. I like little things like that. I have one for Jim Morrison and one for Salvador Dali as well.

2020 Reading: Choke

#34 A book you picked because the title caught your attention

I suppose it was the title added with the cover that really caught my attention, but that's not the point. I pretty much new exactly what this was about before I even read the description or opened the book. I think there is something like this in every school all over the country (at least there was in my school and those in the counties around ours when I was growing up) and you would hear stuff about it all the time on the news. While I never really participated in this particular type of paraphilia, I know that it exists and that it can be dangerous. This book just further proves that point. I hope that more people read this, especially younger people, and learn the dangers. God, that makes me sound old, but I just want people to kink responsibly.

2020 Reading: The Conference of the Birds

#1 A book that's published in 2020

Just when I think that this might be the last of this series of books, they have to end on another cliffhanger like that. I honestly don't know where the story could go from here, but I'm kind of excited to see. There are some aspects of the story that I saw coming (not going to spoil anything, but they deal with certain relationships) but then there were others that I did not. I some times put my thoughts in the place of the children and think if I would like to be where they are and stay young forever and I would just hate the idea. Never growing up and being treated as children even if you were nearing a hundred years old. No thank you. But if that was all they knew... I don't know. I haven't heard much of another book, but if there is one, I hope I don't have to wait too long for it.

2020 Reading: Free to Fall

#29 A book about or involving social media

This book surprised me greatly. I really had no idea what it was about when I picked it. I admit that I looked on an online list when choosing for this category (I though it was fitting given the prompt) and this just happened to be a book that our library was getting rid of so I snagged it before it was thrown away and decided to use it as my choice. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I enjoyed it very much. It struck on points of a future that could very well happen where people are too reliant on social media and technology in general and fail to actually look around them and use their instincts. I'm hesitant to use the phrase "it really makes you think" because that sounds cliche but it does bring some things to light about our own lives as they are now.

2020 Reading: A Map of Days

This book was sort of a middle ground because I needed to read the book that came after it for the challenge this year, not to mention I was supposed to read the one before this last year... It just needed to be read. I don't know what it is about this series exactly, but I really enjoy reading it. Maybe it's the coming-of-age aspect or even the feeling different aspect of the characters that's mingled into it, but it definitely makes the story unique makes you want to keep going on the to the next and the next every time a new one comes out.