How do you select your next read? (February 2023 reads)

After I am done with a book, I ask myself “what should I read next?”

This year, I am doing an A-Z challenge by the author’s first name. I started my year going in order where it was A for Alex Michaelades (The Silent Patient) and B for Brit Bennett (The Vanishing Half). Then it quickly went out of order. It jumped to E for Eve Rodsky (Find Your Unicorn Space: Reclaim Your Creative Life in a Too-Busy World) because I heard about this book on a podcast. Then afterward it was Prince Harry’s memoir, Spare. When I borrowed Spare from the library, I was on a very long waitlist. I think I was 2000th+ in line and I am not exaggerating. I did not mind the wait because I could read other authors from now until it was my turn, but then a few days later, I was able to borrow Spare. There goes my attempt in reading my next book in alphabetical order.

My Reading life in 2022…and my January 2023 reads!

Here is a review of my reading life from 2022 via StoryGraph. I thought it would be fun to add a slider option to compare my reading life from six months ago. Note: The first photo is data up to December 2022 and the second photo is data from June 2022.

I finished 2022 by reading 49 books!

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Do you keep a reading log? (December 2022 reads)

I think I need to keep up a reading log to keep track of what I’m reading. Maybe I could journal a line or two on what I think of the book at that moment. Sometimes I forget about my thoughts on the book by the time I write these reviews. For me, my setup is pretty simple: I keep little notes throughout the book. If it’s a physical book, it’s post-it notes with the date of my reading reflection. If it’s an e-book, I just add an e-note. I have nothing for audiobooks, but I hardly read those anyways. I would like to keep my reading log reflections in one place like a journal though. That would be nice.

Do you keep a reading log? Comment below!

Reads for November 2022

Here are my spoiler-free reviews for November.

What is your reading speed? (October 2022)

I have come to accept my reading speed varies by what I am reading. Before I use to push myself to read fast just to say I finished a book in x amount of days. But then I realized that speeding through reading is not the same as engaging in my reading. I would find myself reading slower because I want to hang on to every word the author says. If it’s a story based on a historical event, I like to pause my reading and type “did [name of event] really happen?” and go on a deep dive. If I am reading a poem, I like to re-read and analyze and reflect on what I just read. I don’t think poems — especially profound ones — deserve a skim.

September 2022 reads

I’ll keep this month’s reflection reads post simple. I’ve been pretty tired all week. The last two weekends we’ve been out of town — one weekend was recreational and the weekend after was volunteering where I was one of three chaperons handling 30 high school students. This weekend we decided to relax at home…and finally begin work on our pergola project. It’s funny how we are working on our pergola after the SoCal heatwave.

Books as decor? (May 2022 read)

I meant to post this on Friday, but I’ve been nursing a cold for the past few days. It’s not COVID.

I came across this hilarious Buzzfeed article where actress Ashley Tisdale admits she made her husband buy 400 books to fill this gorgeous bookshelf for an Architectural Digest photoshoot. I think what they did was harmless. They bought from a bookstore supporting the shop, the publishers, and the authors. I think it’s all good. It wasn’t like they bought fake books made of woodblocks or plastic. It wasnt like they claimed they read all these books. Here is a glimpse of the books on their shelf, and I have to say, it’s incredibly random. Do I see them read any of these books in their leisurely time? Uh….I really don’t know. I just assumed her husband bought the first 400 unique books he could find.

What do you do when you are in a reading rut? (April 2022 reads)

I was in a reading rut until I came across the Graphic Novel Reading Challenge hosted by the Los Angeles City Public Library. The challenge was to read graphic novels through March and into early April. It was a fun way to get myself out of a reading rut.

I felt like most of the books I’ve read this year were intense and serious. According to my Storygraph, the majority of the books I read are informative, emotional, and reflective. 70% of my reading this year are non-fiction. I thought reading a light-hearted young adult book would lift things up and it did not do the trick. When I participated in the Graphic Novel Reading Challenge, I discovered how enjoyable graphic novels can be (even if the topics were not so fun and light-hearted). What I like about graphic novels is that it presents really hard and complicated topics into something that is easy to understand without infantilizing the message.

February 2022 reads

…or shall I say read. There were plenty of books I read, but I wanted to finish The Final Revival of Opal and Nev from beginning to end.

The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton

“How did I not just let life run me over? I’m sorry, I don’t usually use this word, but it’s because f*(|< that. I believe in myself above all.”

Dawnie Walton, The Final Revival of Opal & Nev

This book has an unusual format through a series of interviews a la VH1 “Behind the Music.” Across four decades it goes back and forth with the interview format with the main characters and other music industry folk and family, the Editor’s notes, and “present day” with the main character, S. Sunny Shelton, who has a connection with the band. Opal and Nev is a fictional short-lived interracial rock-and-rock duo in the 1970s — don’t expect it to be a story about interracial romance because this is not it. The story focuses on Opal, the African-American half of the duo, who had to deal with racism throughout her musical career. As her fame and voice diminished into obscurity, Nev’s star rose. Then you have Sunny devoted to weaving the story of Opal and Nev. There’s more to it, but I don’t want to spoil any of it. I guess I was expecting a long epic musical career, but that may have been naive of me.

I’ve been on the waiting list for this book for many weeks in the library and I finally got it! It arrived in time for Black History Month! Though the theatre kid in me enjoyed acting out each character, I would re-read this book in audiobook format to hear their take on it. Plus there were some lyrics sprinkled in the book where I would like to catch the tune through the magic of audiobooks. When I read it, I really tried my best punk rock impression.

#whatsonyourbookshelfchallenge: Deb, Sue, Donna, and Jo. 

December #whatsonyourbookshelfchallenge

Here are some books I finished in November going into December. I can’t believe I’ve gone through an entire year reading at least 21 minutes per day! Even after this year is over, I can’t imagine a day when I am NOT reading something.