Just a Week of Books

Afternoon All,

This week we're going to keep things short and sweet. I've got a three day weekend, some great wine, and the time to just finish some books.

Completed for Challenges: 

• All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood
• #LitsyAtoZ Book A
• America's First Daughter by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie
• Read for my Historical Fiction Book Club

Books Read This Week

I can't quite decide whether or not these are for challenges or just for fun, but I'll list what categories they fall into anyway. 

• A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro 
• The first in a series you've never read before
• The Wedding Shroud by Elisabeth Storrs
• Again, the first in a series you've never read before
• The Immortal Circus Book 1 by A.R. Kahler
• One last time, the first in a series you've never read before. 

Clearly this week I was in the mood for series/trilogies; I blame this on Kricket. 

In more exciting news I've got my books picked out selected for the 24in48 readathon next weekend, I'm so ready to just sit and consume and ignore the real world! I'll be reading the following books: 

1. The Book Jumper by Mechthild Glaser
2. History of Wolves by Emily Fridlund 
3. The Bear and the Nightengale by Katherine Arden
4. The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

These also fall into challenge requirements! Next week I'll post up a more detailed readathon worthy blog post. 

I'm also going to be continuing The Other Einstein by Marie Benadict (yay book club!) And speaking of book clubs, I got my first book for my #CoverToCover group too! Click HERE to get the Goodreads page for it. (I don't want to spoil anything for my friends.)

Until next time, 

-BrainyHeroine

First Week Whirlwind

Happy Sunday Morning! (Settle in with a coffee, this is a long one!)

As the first week of the new year came to a close yesterday I took a breath, looked at my Goodreads book challenge page, and realized that I'd read 10 books and listened to three. All within the first week of the year. So what did I read? I read everything!

Since I had both January 1st and January 2nd off from work, didn't have any chores or responsibilities needing attention, I was really able to start off with a bang, and by bang I mean 8 books fulfilling different challenge requirements.

• Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
• PopSugar's "A book that never fails to make you smile."
• I've been a fan of Frankenstein and his monster for ages; add in the amazing author that is Mary Shelley and I'll always fall for this book. 
• Vlad the Impaler: The Real Count Dracula by Enid Goldberg
• PopSugar's "A book with pictures" 
• One of the "Wicked History" books, this is a great introduction to the real Dracula. Definitely a pick for any young and budding historians. 
• Getting an Academic Job in History by Dana Polanichka 
• PopSugar's "A book with career advice"
• I'm a 25 year old graduate with a history degree, not only does this give out an excellent timeline of what to apply for when, it gives resources, interview questions, and a whole host of informative details. 
• The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison
• PopSugar's "A book written by an author using a pseudonym" 
• Ugh, so this book had actually been on TBR for a while, I'd picked it up from a bargain bin and just hadn't gotten to it yet. Kind of wished I'd passed on it, the style of writing as interesting, the story was good, but it didn't have any of the anticipated "WOW" I was hoping for. 
• How to Fight Presidents: Defending Yourself Against the Badasses Who Ran This Country by Daniel O'Brien
• PopSugar's "A book from a genre you don't normally read" 
• I don't read comedy books! Okay, maybe a few pages in the bathroom but that is really about it. and as a historian I really hate funny books when it comes to history. O'Brien manages to keep historical accuracy while blending in the humor. 
• The Private Letters of Countess Erzsebet Bathory by Kimberly Craft
• PopSugar's "A book of letters" 
• This was a repeat, I'd read this orignally during my research for my capstone paper on Countess Bathory. (Side note she is one of my all consuming obsessions) This is a great insight to her mind.
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• Book Riot's Read Harder "A bestseller published between 1900 and 1950" 
• Published in the roaring 1920's this timeless tale is one I often return to when I need to remember my humanity.
• The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
• #LitsyAtoZ Letter "O" 
• Remember those haunting love story fairy tales you read when you were a kid? The kind where you didn't know what exactly you were reading but you knew they were special? Yeah, that's this. 

Also consumed this week: Victoria by Daisy Goldwin, The Kricket Series by Amy Bartol, and The Grownup by Gillian Flynn.

Currently Reading: All The Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood, America's First Daughter by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie, A Study in Charlotte: Charlotte Holmes #1 by Brittany Cavallaro and The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict.

Oh! Recently purchased: The Book Jumper by Mechthild Glaser (a book about books) and History of Wolves by Emily Fridlund (a debut novel).

I can't wait to keep listening and reading to all these amazing stories, but I'm giving myself the day off to just enjoy and relax. The pace and pressure of the last week was intense, but worth it! I'm also excited to start Litsty Goes Postal book club #CoverToCover book soon!

All the best and happy reading,
-BrainyHeroine

The Joy and Luck of a Book Club

Morning All,

Can we talk book clubs for a moment? I personally belong to two, one that I run and one that I participate in, and then I have a Book of the Month subscription which sort of counts. The club I run is a Historical Fiction book club that was born many years ago thanks to a course on the MOOC site Coursera. Our January book is America's First Daughter by Laura Kamoie and Stephanie Dray. The one that I just participate in is new and one of the Litsy Goes Postal groups (#CoverToCover). #CoverToCover is a little more mysterious, I get to read books selected by 12 other amazing women, write my thoughts in a notebook, send it off to the next person, and get the book and notebook I send out back sometime next year before the cycle starts again.

Now I know the BOTM subscription isn't actually a book club, but A LOT of the books I'm using for the #LitsyAtoZ challenge came from BOTM. Knowing that I have 12 mystery books coming to me means that someone may send me something to fill in a gap on any of these challenges is fascinating to me, and running a club means I get to steer the selection towards something I need if needed. Granted for the HF book club we vote on books, but I'm the one that puts up the selection. February's book is The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict, which I'm using as my "A book I was excited to buy but haven't read yet" book.

There's also just a magic about having a collection of people who are all reading and discussing the same books, especially when one of them is your absolute favorite. I like the conversations that I've had thanks to book clubs, and I love it when people say they hated the book. It is perfectly okay to not like the book! What book club decided that it wasn't?

When you've found your passion about something, regardless of what it is, you want to share it. Books take my breath away, give me far to many emotions, consume me, and sometimes annoy me; and yes I've read books I haven't liked or just couldn't get into, it happens to the best of us.

So find someone to talk to about the books you're reading. I'm sure you'll find it exhilarating and exciting when you see someone else light up the way you did, or when you get into a passionate or loud discussion about why the book was bad in your opinion. Find or create a book club, in person, online, through the mail even! You won't regret it.

TTFN
-BrainyHeroine