Merry Christmas! It's Chrsitmas Day, and so what better day to think about whether my behaviour over the past year has me on Father Christmas' Nice List. I don't know about you, but for me. Christmas just isn't Christmas without a visit from Father Christmas. To find out if I am on his Nice List, I have stolen the The Naughty or Nice Book Tag from Cait of Paper Fury. So let's see, shall we?
Ahem. There are quite a few. But that doesn't mean I won't review them. Except for those I never requested/accepted in the first place and aren't my cup of tea. The others will get reviewed at some point. But being a mood reader, I can't just pick up a book because I have to review it. I can only read what I fancy reading. But I'll read and review once I'm in the right mood. Some of the ARCs from this year I've yet to read, but am looking forward to. Click the images to go to Goodreads.
So. I am currently at 53% - even though at the end of last year, it was at 63%. The reason for this? I have requested more books through NetGalley than physical ARCs, but 1) I'm not the fastest reader, and 2) I read a large number of physical bought books this year, especially for Mental Illness in YA Month, as well as a fair number of physical ARCs I already had. So I requested more, but didn't necessarily read more? I'm not sure. I hope I read more. Will find out when I finish my year long recap. But by trying to do better, I did worse :(
I review everything I read on my blog, and every review I post is transferred to Goodreads. I might not review the book as soon as I finish it on Goodreads - especially now as I'm trying to schedule my posts in advance - but the review always ends up there in the end. Always, always.
Look, this is mostly on ARCs, and so I don't think it matters. The few finished copies I do fold page corners on are my books. Yes, I used to think it was sacrilege, but I need to know where quotes are for my reviews, and I have yet to find sticky markers that do the job well enough without falling out or just looking messy. I don't fold the corners in other people's books. And it's only occasionally. But they're my books, so you can't complain.
No. No. This is sacrilege! Unless I'm reading on my Kindle and I'm able to prop it up while I'm eating, I don't read while eating. - for this very reason. Unless I'm eating biscuits. And you can't spill biscuits. Crumbs are easily brushed out, but I don't get crumbs on my books much anyway. But spillages... I just don't understand how that would happen. Just... why?
Look, I don't do this often. I hate DNF'ing books. But if a book is problematic, or I'm just really struggling to find anything I enjoy about a book, I will put it down. Life's too short. This year, I DNF'd two that I can remember. Cold Iron by Miles Cameron for racism, and The Sisters of the Winter Wood by Rena Rossner, which I so wanted to love, because I was so excited to read it, but just really couldn't get on with the writing, sadly. It just irritated me.
I'm taking it we're not counting buying books for other people, right? I can't afford to buy books that I don't intend to read at some point. I've definitely bought books after reading proofs because I wanted to support the author, and have a finished copy to re-read at a later date. But not books I never intend to read. I don't really get that, to be honest.
To be honest, I don't have a lot of important things that need doing. I don't read while I'm working. Otherwise... I mean, I get my housework done and stuff, cook my dinner, bathe. I don't skip those things to read. But I don't know if they're considered important?
Nope. Never. I don't know how, for one thing, and for another - and this relates - I don't actually see words when I read, I see the story happening. My imagination takes over, and I watch the story unfold. I can't do that if I'm skipping words, because every word paints the picture - even if it's just my ability to read the characters' minds, or to feel the wind, or so on. To skim read a book, I wouldn't be "watching" it, and if I'm not "watching" it, I do not enjoy reading. Discovering I'm able to "Watch" the story unfold in my imagination is the only reason I read now. Before my imagination kicked in, I absolutely hated reading. Reading words on a page is boring. "Watching" a story is amazing.
Only because I don't have one. I stopped setting myself Goodreads goals years ago, when I discovered I found them stressful; trying to meet them put pressure on myself, and just wasn't enjoyable. I like counting up how many books I've read at the end of the year, but aiming for a certain number of books just isn't enjoyable for me.
Again, only because I don't ban myself from buying books. I might tell myself I really shouldn't be buying any books right now... and then decide I can't go without owning certain books, but I don't actually ban myself from buying them. But to be honest, I manage to keep things balanced. If I can't buy a book this month, I'll reserve it at the bookshop I work in and buy it next month, so I'm never struggling with my money.
I add books to my "Currently Reading" shelf as soon as I start reading them. It makes it easier to find the book when it comes to grabbing info from Goodreads for writing my review. It's automatic these days.
But only just! My memory is a bit like a sieve, and I only blog on my days off. If I'm working several days in a row, and I finish a book at the beginning of those days, I do start to lose things I want to talk about. I've started having to make notes to myself, "XYZ, ABC, 123." Just little pointers to remind myself of a paragraph or two for a review. But I never leave it too long, because even my pointers won't make sense to me. I can't do it.
Naughty - 4 | Nice - 9
Wahey! At least when it comes to reading and blogging, I'm doing pretty well! Which is lucky, considering I signed up for the Book Blogger Secret Santa! So Father Christmas will be visiting this year! Hurrah!
How did you do with this list? Are you naughty or nice? Feel free to steal for your own blogs! Do you fold over the corners of the pages in your books? Spilt food on books? What's sacrilege to you when it comes to books? And tell me about the pretty books you've bought!
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Aww JO YOU'RE SO NICE!! You're like the nicest person I've seen do this tag lmao 😂😂I'm so proud! And all the respect to you never reading to procrastinate other important things. I do...all the time. Haha. And I definitely confess to buying books I'm not sure if I'll read. I bought the Six of Crows collector's edition but afjdkls it's SO BEAUTIFUL. And I do want to reread but I'll probably listen to the audio instead. I am the worst.😂
ReplyDeleteHahaha! Such a goody-goody ;) I don't really have important things to do! So it's not really hard, lol.
DeleteOk, so I've realised that I have a book that I was sent, unsolicited, to review, and had decided not to read because of reviews I'd read, but was going to keep because IT'S GORGEOUS! But recently the author has been pretty crappy towards book bloggers, so it's going to have to go. I don't care how pretty it is, I want nothing to do with her.