Reading Reflection: 2017

In December of 2016, I set myself a series of reading challenges for this year. I decided to tackle a whole bunch of goals, and I actually completed all of them! This post is a look back on everything I accomplished in my reading life in 2017.

My Goodreads reading goal was to read a total of 76 books for the year. I accomplished that and then some, reading a total of 81 books in 2017. You can see all the books I read this year here.

This challenge required participants to read 12 classic novels fitting different prompts throughout the year. I completed all of the categories about a month early! My wrap up post is here.

The Classics Club is a five-year challenge in which participants create a list of classic novels they want to read during that time period. This was my first year working on my list, and my goal was to read at least 20 of the books on my list. I ended up reading 20, so I am on track. You can view my complete Classic Club list here.

This challenge consisted of 40 reading prompts, plus a dozen bonus categories to keep you busy if you finished early. The prompts were widely varied and meant to encourage participants to read a whole bunch of novels that they wouldn't ordinarily pick up on their own.

I finished all of the prompts, including the bonus ones, and I have to say that the mission of this challenge was definitely accomplished. The complete list of what I read is here.

I read so many wonderful books throughout the course of this challenge that it's difficult to say if I had a true favorite. The Bell Jar, A Room with a View, and Germinal became new classic favorites of mine. On the more modern side, this challenge introduced me to The Girls, History of Wolves, Another Brooklyn, American Gods, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, and Maus, all of which I loved. 

Aside from just reading different kinds of books, this challenge also introduced me to audio books, which I had actually never tried before this year. While reading novels the old fashioned way is still my favorite way to experience a story, I've started to use audio books while I exercise now, which has been useful for when I get sick of listening to music.

Overall, this challenge was definitely a success and I'm glad I took it on. There is already another set of prompts for 2018's Popsugar Challenge posted, but I think I'm going to pass for next year. I have my own ideas for what I want to read in 2018, which I will write about later.

The 2017 Mount TBR Challenge required participants to read books that they already owned prior to 2017. As I have a major book-buying problem, this one was right up my alley. I signed up to read 60 novels I had sitting on my shelves, and I met that goal. Here's is a list of everything I read.

Many of the novels I read for his challenge doubled as my Popsugar books, so I don't have a lot to add as far as favorites goes. The point of this challenge was to read things I already owned, and I definitely did that. Embarrassingly enough, what I read here is only a fraction of all the books I own, so I still have some work to do in this area.


This ended up being a great year for reading and blogging, and I feel very proud of completing all of the challenges I took on. I've already got some ideas running through my head for what I want to tackle next year. As always, reading continues to be my favorite hobby and my best escape from dealing with the stresses of the real world. I'm looking forward to continuing on blogging, learning, and growing next year.

December 2017 Reading Wrap Up

Well, it's nearly the end of another year. I feel like 2017 went by in a flash. It's hard to believe that I'm writing my final wrap up post already. It feels like just a few months ago that I was planning out all my reading challenges and now here I am, at the end of all of them. It's a really nice feeling to have accomplished all my goals.

December ended up being a great reading month for me. I finished 13 (!) books in all, and completed all of my reading challenges. Here's the list of what I read:


1. To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han (4/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

2. Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (3/5 stars)

• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book you got at a used book sale

3. The Good Sister by Jamie Kain (4/5 stars)

• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book with a family member term in the title
• TBR Challenge: previously owned

4. The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson (3/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

  
5. The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider (2/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

6. Firecracker by David Iserson (3/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

7. The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton (1/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

8. These Gentle Wounds by Helene Dunbar (3/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

9. The Nest by Kenneth Oppel (4/5 stars)

10. Terror at Bottle Creek by Watt Key (3/5 stars)

11. Seedfolks by Paul Fleishchman (4/5 stars)

12. The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison (3/5 stars)


13. Dark Places by Gillian Flynn (4/5 stars)

My current challenge status is:

• Classics Club: 20/100 (on track to end 12/31/21)
• Back to the Classics:  12/12 - Complete
• Popsugar 2017: 40/40 - Complete
• Popsugar 2017 Bonus Categories: 12/12 - Complete
• TBR 2017: 60/60 - Complete

I read 81 books in 2017!

I read a lot of really great young adult novels this month, with To All the Boys I've Loved Before, The Good Sister, The Nest, Seedfolks, and Dark Places earning high marks from me.

My least favorite read of the month was The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender, which had a weird, meandering plot and a terrible ending.

Next month will bring with it my new reading challenges. The start of a fresh year is always exciting, and I'm happily planning out what literary mountains I want to climb next. Reading is so important to me that I can't imagine my life without books...or without this blog for that matter. This has become a space for me to record all my feelings and memories about what I'm reading before the details start to slip away. I wouldn't remember half of what I read without this place, so I'm going to continue doing all of this in the new year. Who knows, maybe I'll do even better in 2018.

The Good Sister by Jamie Kain

The Good Sister was one of those young adult impulse purchases from Barnes and Noble that I'm so fond of making. I saw it, thought it sounded interesting, bought it, stuck it on my bookshelf, and forgot about it for years. When I was looking for some quick reads to finish off my TBR challenge, this one seemed to fit the bill. It also had the bonus of including a family member term in the title, so I could use it to finish off my Popsugar challenge bonus categories as well.

Much like one of the last young adult books I read, To All the Boys I've Loved Before, this one ended up surprising me. From the description on the inside flap, I was expecting a standard teen drama. What I got was surprisingly emotional and authentic.

The plot is told from the viewpoints of three teenage sisters growing up in a dysfunctional family. Their parents, Lena and Ravi, lived on a hippie commune when they were babies. Eventually, the commune fell apart and the family was forced to move to a normal house in Northern California. Both Lena and Ravi are unsuited to be parents, and when their oldest daughter Sarah is diagnosed with leukemia, the stress of going through her treatment and her subsequent relapse break them up. The girls live with their mother for the most part, but she often is out with her various boyfriends, so they are on their own a lot.

Sarah, who defied the odds and survived two bouts of leukemia, is the glue of the family. She is kind, responsible, and looks out for her sisters. Rachel, the middle daughter, is wild. She doesn't get along with anyone in her family and engages in very risky behaviors. She's always felt left out, because she was both the typical middle child, and wasn't a genetic donor match for her sister. She fell into the background of the family a lot growing up, and doesn't feel particularly connected to anyone now. Asha, the youngest sister, is a bit of a lost soul. She is extremely close with Sarah due to her being a genetic donor match. She donated bone marrow to her growing up and feels a deeper connection to her than most sisters have. She also has her best friend Sinclair to keep her grounded, but she still doesn't have a lot of self confidence or plans for what she wants to do with her future yet. The girls are essentially on their own, drifting around without the normal authority and structure most families have.

At the beginning of the story, tragedy strikes when Sarah is killed in a mysterious and seemingly random accident. Without their "good" sister to hold everything together, Rachel and Asha spiral deep into their grief. It turns out that there's more to Sarah's death than meets the eye, and each sister holds a key to explaining what really happened. As the narration skips around from girl to girl, including Sarah, who speaks from the afterlife, the sisters must deal with the secrets, guilt, and fear they are carrying inside of themselves and try to come to some kind of peace.

This book had me hooked from page one. The pace of the story was excellent, with Kain dropping just the right pieces of the puzzle at just the right times for the reader to put the complete story together. Her writing felt very genuine too, with each sister having a unique voice and motivations. None of the characters were all that likable, but they were undeniably human. As I found out more and more about them, I became invested in their stories and wished for them to pull themselves together and find some happiness. When I found out the truth of what happened with Sarah, it was a punch to the gut, and complicated enough to make me really think about how blame, guilt, fear, and secrets can all combine in terrible ways.

The idea to have Sarah help narrate from the afterlife was also well done. Her sections have a different gravity to them than the others, and aren't cheesy or overly sentimental. I liked being able to see her perspective even though she was no longer with her sisters. It fit perfectly within the story. Like all people who are considered to be "good," she has her own set of flaws, and being able to see her thoughts added a lot to the development of her character.

I enjoyed the vast majority of the book, with the only one notable exception - the treatment of Asha's friend Sinclair. He is initially described as having a very fluid sexuality. He switches between wearing traditionally male and female clothes, and feels attracted to both men and women at different points in the story. I like to see diverse characters included in young adult fiction, so I thought that he was great. He was an amazing friend to Asha throughout the story, and was there for her in a way her family members were not able to be. My issue came in at the end of the novel, when it becomes clear that he has some romantic feelings for Asha. Before he makes his feelings known, Kain has him stop wearing female clothing and switch to "normal" boy clothes and hairstyles. At one point, Asha comments that "all he wears these days are normal guy clothes." He also professes to being "confused" before about liking boys or girls before settling on Asha. I felt like this was a bit of a cop out on an interesting character. He should be able to love Asha when he is wearing a dress just as well as when he is wearing jeans. If he's bisexual, he shouldn't have to say he was just "confused" to date a girl. He should still be bisexual. These changes just hit me wrong. I didn't like that he morphed into a straight male at the last minute.

Nevertheless, The Good Sister ended up being a complex and emotional story that I enjoyed a lot. The intricate plot, unique narration style, and beautiful writing combined to create something quite special. This isn't a happy book. Rather, it is a book that looks very honestly at the imperfections in people and the messiness of human relationships. It examines how hurt, jealously, revenge, guilt, and pain can come into our lives and drive our actions in ways we don't expect. It is raw, gritty, and wonderful, often at the same time. This was a very moving read that I'm glad I happened to pick up.



Challenge Tally
Popsugar Bonus Challenge (a book with a family member term in the title) 12/12 - Complete!
TBR Challenge (previously owned): 56/60

Total Books Read in 2017: 71

Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

One of the last remaining categories in my Popsugar challenge is to read a book that I got at a used book sale. I had to go out special to find a novel for it, because I don't generally buy used. I like to keep my bookshelf looking neat and clean, so I usually buy new. I'm not adverse to books looking like they've been loved and read, but creases, stains, and tears of unknown origin kind of freak me out. Luckily for me, I live close to the biggest used bookstore in the state of Florida, Haslam's. The shop is gigantic, so I could really be picky about the condition of the used books I was interested in.

After a little while searching, I found a copy of Bud, Not Buddy in pretty good shape. Judging by the perfectly smooth, not-at-all-creased binding, I doubt it had ever been read. The only indication it wasn't new was that the pages were a bit yellowed. As this was a children's classic that I hadn't gotten around to yet, I decided that this would be my pick. I paid a whopping $3.95 for it and got started reading.

The story is set in Depression-era Flint, Michigan, and follows a young African American boy named Bud Caldwell. Bud's mother passed away four years prior to the novel's start, and since his father has never been in the picture, he's bounced between group homes and foster families ever since. He was six when his mother passed, so his memories of her are a bit fuzzy. He carries around all he has left of her in a battered suitcase - a picture of her from when she was a kid, a few smooth rocks with indecipherable writing on them, and a stack of four flyers advertising a jazz show starring "Herman E. Calloway and the Dusky Devastators of the Depression!!!!!!"

After Bud gets into a fight with a boy at his latest foster home, he decides to run away from the system and seek his fortunes elsewhere. At first, he considers trying to make his way to California, where he could get a job picking fruit. After those plans fall through, however, he starts thinking about the flyers in his suitcase, The only reason for his mother to hang onto those old jazz show advertisements, he reasons, must have been because Herman E. Calloway is his father. It makes perfect sense in his head, so he sets off on a journey to find Mr. Calloway and start living with a real family again.

Curtis' writing is a pleasant mix of upbeat humor and more serious emotions. The entire story is narrated from Bud's eleven-year-old point of view, meaning that the reader has to fill in the blanks and connect the dots between events that he doesn't understand. This process doesn't feel like a chore, however, because Bud is such a cute and likable character. He lives by several rules he made up, called "Bud Caldwell's Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar Out of Yourself." These rules show off how perceptive and fun-loving Bud is, despite his lack of knowledge about the world. Two of my favorites were Rule 83, which states that, "If an Adult Tells You Not to Worry, and You Weren't Worried Before, You Better Hurry Up and Start 'Cause You're Already Running Late" and Rule 16, which says, "If a Grown-up Ever Starts a Sentence by Saying, 'Haven't You Heard,' Get Ready, 'Cause What's About to Come Out of Their Mouth is Gonna Drop You Headfirst into a Boiling Tragedy."

As Bud moves around from town to town, he encounters some of the hallmarks of the Depression, including a Hooverville, the formation of a worker's union, redcaps working at train stations, big bands, and (unfortunately) some racism. As this is a true middle grades novel, nothing described is too graphic or intense, and Bud interprets everything he comes across as an interesting adventure rather than a social problem. Adult readers will be able to pick up the underlying issues and sadness in the situations Bud discovers, while younger readers will learn a little bit of history. Curtis' writing walks that fine line between being truthful and being depressing with skill, which is probably why this novel is the recipient of so many young adult literary awards.

Alongside the historical aspects of the novel are the emotional aspects of Bud's story. His search for his family is so earnest and innocent that it tugs on the reader's heartstrings and makes you cheer him on. When he finally finds Herman E. Calloway, things don't turn out exactly how he was envisioning, and the twist in the storytelling is clever and touching. This is, simply put, a nice book that makes you happy.

The only aspect of it that bugged me a little had more to do with my age than with anything Curtis did as a writer. Bud, Not Buddy is most definitely for children. As I mentioned earlier, adult readers will be able to pick up on the underlying tensions and issues in the plot, but even with that available to me, I felt too old to be reading this. Everything that happened was so sanitized for kids that the story felt too lighthearted for what it was describing. This was a three star read for me, but it's a four or five star read for a child. I would probably have a much deeper appreciation for this novel if I had come across it at the right age.

Even so, I did enjoy Bud, Not Buddy, and I understand why is it considered one of the classics of children's literature. Its blend of humor and emotion create a nice backdrop for a story about a boy who just wants to find where he belongs in the world. Bud's eternal optimism and determination will make me remember this heartwarming little read for a long time.


Challenge Tally
Popsugar Bonus Challenge (a book you got at a used book sale) 11/12

Total Books Read in 2017: 70

December 2017 Reading Plan

It feels difficult to believe, but the last month of 2017 is here. My focus for reading will be two fold this month - first, I need to finish up my reading challenges. Second, I need to plan out what I want to read in 2018. I did well sticking to my plan throughout this year, and I really enjoyed my challenges. I think I want to do something a bit less structured next time around. I'm still marinating on that though. Whatever I decide, my planning posts will be coming.

For now, here's the plan for how I want to finish up 2017. I need to read six more books for my TBR Pile Challenge and I have to read two more for the Popsugar bonus categories. Here's the plan:


1. Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book you got at a used book sale

2. The Good Sister by Jamie Kain

• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book with a family member term in the title
• TBR Challenge: previously owned

3. The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

  
4. The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

5. Firecracker by David Iserson

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

6. The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

7. These Gentle Wounds by Helene Dunbar

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

This is more reading than I usually plan for, but all of these titles are young adult fiction, so I'm thinking I should be able to make it through them all. I will have finished everything I set out to do in 2017 if I can make it!

November 2017 Reading Wrap Up

November has come and gone and, happily, I had a pretty good reading month. Here's the breakdown:


1. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke (4/5 stars)

• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book from a genre/subgenre that you've never heard of - Mannerpunk
• TBR Challenge: previously owned

2. American Gods by Neil Gaiman (5/5 stars)

• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book based on mythology
• TBR Challenge: previously owned

3. Pointe by Brandy Colbert (4/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

  
4. A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall (3/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

5. Boys Don't Knit by T.S. Easton (3/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

6. This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales (2/5 stars)

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

My current challenge status is:

• Classics Club: 20/100 (on track to end 12/31/21)
• Back to the Classics:  12/12 - Complete
• Popsugar 2017: 40/40 - Complete
• Popsugar 2017 Bonus Categories: 10/12
• TBR 2017: 54/60

I have read 68 books so far in 2017!

I had two very strong reads this month, and both were from the fantasy genre. American Gods and Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell were both long, intricate books that were totally worth the time. I've moved away from reading fantasy novels in recent years, and these two stories pulled me right back in and reminded me of what I liked about the genre.

My least favorite read this month was The Song Will Save Your Life, which contained some truly illogical plot points. It stretched the boundaries of my disbelief way too far, and featured an unlikable protagonist to boot. 

December is going to be a sprint to the finish for me - I'm very close to completing everything on my original goals list for the year, but I'm going to have to read a whole bunch to make it happen. Luckily, I will have my winter break to fit more books in.

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

One of the more difficult prompts in the Popsugar Reading Challenge this year is to "read a book from a genre you've never heard of before." As an avid reader that picks up a wide variety of different books, I was hard-pressed to find a genre that I hadn't at least heard of before. I turned to the internet for help (as one does in these situations) and stumbled across something called mannerpunk - a genre which blends fantasy elements together with the strict societal hierarchies typical of a Jane Austen novel. Some sources also call this genre "fantasy of manners." While the boundaries between this and other subgenres under the umbrella of fantasy literature are a bit vague, mannerpunk is essentially a fantasy novel, generally set in the past, where magic exists alongside strict societal rules. Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell was given as an example of this genre on several websites, and I already owned it on my Kindle, so I decided to give it a try.

The plot concerns two men, the eponymous Strange and Norrell, who work together to bring magic back to 19th century England. The novel is set up like a nonfiction text, complete with copious footnotes, describing the curious history of these magicians as they try to bring practical, helpful magic out of the realm of Merlin and into their modern era. Strange and Norrell are extremely different characters. Strange is adventurous and open, while Norrell is cautious and guarded. Strange wants to tread into areas of magic that have lain undisturbed for centuries, while Norrell wants to discard the dangerous elements of magic from the past and take things in a "safer" direction. Strange wants to train up new magicians to preserve the presence of magic in England, while Norrell wants to be the only magician and gatekeeper of magical knowledge. These differences lead the pair to quarrel frequently, but being the only two magicians in town, they always find their way back to each other in the end. Eventually, both end up dabbling in magic that is dangerous to them and to the world at large, and they must try to team up and set things right again.

This book is surprisingly long (my version had nearly 900 pages), and I experienced a lot of changes in mood while reading. I've endeavored to create a timeline of my thoughts below:

100 pages in: Okay, this is cleverly written - I like the tongue-in-cheek humor and period language. I can't really tell what the story is yet though...and where the heck is Jonathan Strange? It's all Norrell so far...

200 pages in: So...are we ever going to get to Strange? I still have no idea what the overall story will be, and Mr. Norrell isn't incredibly interesting. There are a lot of digressions with minor characters happening too and I have no idea what they connect to...

300 pages in: Oh my god, this story will never end. This is going to take forever to finish!

400 pages in: Okay, I can get through this - I just need some breaks. I'll read another two percent then go get a snack. Another two percent and I'll check my email. Another two percent and I'll clean the bathroom...

500 pages in: Well, now Jonathan Strange has been around for a bit now and he's pretty interesting. I like the differences between the two characters. They both seem like real people, with individual strengths and flaws.

600 pages in: Things are definitely picking up now, and I can start to see where the story is headed. The minor characters' storylines are starting to connect up and I think I know what the overall conflict is now.

700 pages in: Whoa, this is really intricate and well-crafted. All that world-building is starting to pay off now.

800 pages in: Can't. Stop. Reading.

When I finished:This is one of the best fantasy novels I've ever read. Beautiful Complex. Happy. Sad. Everything. I'm in a book coma.   

So obviously, I ended up really liking this novel, but at the same time, I can't recommend it to that many people. The amount of patience required to get through the first half is intense. The beautiful and imaginative ending is well worth the time investment, but few people have the reading stamina to make it that far these days.

If you do manage to power through the slow beginning, you are rewarded with wonderfully strange plot points, intricate connections between characters, clever comments on themes ranging from loyalty to race relations, perfect dry wit, and a resolution that is a near perfect blend of happy and sad. Susanna Clarke's world-building is tremendous. Her magical 19th century England feels fully developed and the mannerpunk elements she crafts are the perfect backdrop for a story about gentleman magicians. The mix of aristocratic stuffiness and fantastical magic was a truly winning combination. Mannerpunk is a genre worth exploring further.

Those looking for a fast-paced story should stay far away, but fantasy lovers looking to sit down and savor an epic tale of manners and magic will fall in love with Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. This novel is well worth the time investment if you have the patience to take it on. While I can't give this novel my highest rating due to the slow beginning, it is definitely destined to become one of my top reads of the year. I'm so glad I chose to explore the mannerpunk genre and that this was the book I chose to do it with.


Challenge Tally
Popsugar Bonus Challenge (a book from a genre you've never heard of before ) 10/12
TBR Challenge (previously owned): 50/60

Total Books Read in 2017: 64

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

I first became interested in American Gods when I saw previews for the television adaptation a while back. I was already a fan of Gaiman's writing from The Graveyard Book, and the images coming out for this new show were really intriguing. Of course, I had to read the book before I could watch the TV version, so I did what I normally do - I went out and bought the book, stuck it on my shelf, and forgot about it for several months.

I remembered that I wanted to read it when I was searching for book recommendations for my Popsugar Challenge bonus categories. One of my remaining reading prompts was to read a book based on mythology, and American Gods was the recommendation that popped up on all the sources I checked. I decided to give it a shot, despite its length (with the end of the year approaching, I have to read quickly to finish up my challenges). I ended up being glad that I did, because this quirky novel was actually really cool.

The plot follows an ex-convict named Shadow. At the novel's start, he is just finishing up a three-year stint in prison for an undisclosed crime. He is focused on keeping his head down and doing his time, and is looking forward to reuniting with his wife, Laura. On the day he is set to be released, he receives a terrible blow - both Laura and best friend were killed in a car accident the previous day. With nothing left in the world for him to go back to, Shadow isn't sure how to continue on. He is leaves prison in a state of shock and grief.

As he mulls over his situation on the plane ride to his wife's funeral, he meets a mysterious figure named Mr. Wednesday. Wednesday offers him a job performing various odd jobs, which Shadow eventually accepts because he doesn't have any other prospects lined up. It doesn't take long for Shadow to realize that there is something different about his new employer. Wednesday seems to be able to do the impossible, and the places he goes and people he interacts with see to be impossible too. Working for him is like living in a fever dream, with each new errand he performs stranger than the last. Eventually, Shadow discovers the reason for this strangeness. Wednesday is actually a god. Wednesday is Odin, from Norse mythology.

Once Shadow realizes who he is working for, an entire new world opens up before his eyes. He learns that America is full of the gods of old, from all of the religions around the world. Believers from the past brought them here through their prayers in times long gone by, and they linger here still, even though the vast majority of people who worship them are dead and gone. These old gods are slowly fading away; they die when they are completely forgotten by everyone, which is happening fast in America. As Wednesday eventually explains to him, America worships new gods now - technology, guns, media, drugs, and others like them are the new order of the day. Wednesday is on a quest to help the old gods regain the powers they once had and take a final stand against the new gods, and he needs Shadow's help to do it.

The novel is told mostly from Shadow's point of view and has a real "road trip" feel to it, as he is traveling from place to place with Wednesday for most of the story meeting up with different old gods and trying to persuade them to join forces. Occasionally, chapters featuring the backstories of how different gods traveled to America pop up, which provide interesting backstory and world-building. I actually liked these interludes the most, as they were well-written and made me think. Gaiman doesn't explain every last detail of how the world in American Gods works - he gives you just enough to puzzle over and sink your teeth into. Reading this novel is an active experience that requires you to put the pieces together yourself and encourages you to think beyond the surface level of the story. I usually find novels that are purposely confusing to be annoying, but I thought that the technique was very well done and worked well here.

Aside from puzzling over the plot points of the novel, American Gods offers up several interesting themes to think about. The idea of tradition vs. modernization runs deep here, but not in a way that feels preachy or moralizing. Similarly, the ideas of loyalty, religion, family, and love are present throughout the story. This is a extraordinary novel about ordinary ideas, and this juxtaposition of the bizarre and the practical makes for a really unique reading experience. The book feels like a labor of love. Nothing is missing.

I really enjoyed reading American Gods. I honestly haven't been this intrigued by a novel in a long time. There were some parts in the middle where I felt the story dragged on a bit too long, but overall I really liked it. The plot was interesting and original, the characters were well-drawn and lovable, and the ending was twisty and fantastic. The book begs to be reread in order to catch more of its secrets and clever references. I will probably pick it up again someday and see if I can dive a little bit deeper into the story it is telling. American Gods, even more than The Graveyard Book, made me a fan of Neil Gaiman. I'm going to be thinking about this one for quite a while. 



Challenge Tally
Popsugar Bonus Challenge (a book based on mythology ) 9/12
TBR Challenge (previously owned): 49/60

Total Books Read in 2017: 63

November 2017 Reading Plan

Some crazy work circumstances and a few slow reads have made me fall a little behind in my reading challenges lately. I would hate to miss my goals right at the end of the year, so I need to rally! Here's the plan this month:

1. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book from a genre/subgenre that you've never heard of - Mannerpunk
• TBR Challenge: previously owned

2. American Gods by Neil Gaiman

• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book based on mythology
• TBR Challenge: previously owned

3. Pointe by Brandy Colbert

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

  
4. A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

5. Boys Don't Knit

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

*Bonus

6. This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales

• TBR Challenge: previously owned

My strategy is to power through some of the Popsugar bonus books, then clear some of the young adult backlog I've got going on off my shelves. All of those reads will help with my TBR challenge, which I still have 12 books left on. If everything goes according to plan this month, I will be set to race to the finish line with my challenges in December. I'm going to try to make reading a priority again this month, and not let work get in the way. Hopefully I can get it together!

October 2017 Reading Wrap Up

October is at an end and I only read a small fraction of what I wanted. Unfortunately for my reading life, my work life got in the way. I'm moving most of my selections to November. Hopefully, I will have more luck that month.

I finished a grand total of two novels in October, making this my least productive reading month of the year. Boo. Anyway, here's what I did manage to get done:


1. Dune by Frank Herbert (4/5 stars)

• Classics Club: #47 on my list
• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book that's more than 800 pages

2. Dracula by Bram Stoker (3/5 stars)

• Back to the Classics: A Gothic or Horror Classic
• Classics Club: #60 on my list 
• Popsugar Challenge (bonus category): A book mentioned in another book
• TBR Challenge: previously owned

My current challenge status is:

• Classics Club: 20/100 (on track to end 12/31/21)
• Back to the Classics:  12/12 - Complete
• Popsugar 2017: 40/40 - Complete
• Popsugar 2017 Bonus Categories: 8/12
• TBR 2017: 48/60

I have read 62 books so far in 2017!

The best thing about this month was finishing my Back to the Classics challenge! I'm so happy to have finished for the third year in a row! I definitely want to do it all again next year.

With only two books read, it seems pointless to do a "best and worst of the month" reflection. Besides, neither of the books I read will become special favorites of mine. They are both classic, and I did enjoy them, but they both had boring stretches that caused me to dawdle while reading them. With the month I've been having at work, my brain just wasn't eager to jump into my October picks. I am hoping that I can recharge and do better in November.

Dracula by Bram Stoker

I had to read a Gothic or horror classic this year for my Back to the Classics challenge. I had been meaning to read Dracula for years, so I figured that now was the time to actually do it. The fact that it's Halloween season was an added bonus too - it made the reading extra spooky.

Dracula is narrated through a collection of letters and journal entries written from the perspectives of several different characters. The novel opens with the journal of Jonathan Harker, a young solicitor who is on his way to Transylvania to help a client purchase some real estate in London. This client, Lord Dracula, lives in a ruined castle situated in a gloomy and isolated forest. When he first arrives at the castle, Harker is intrigued by his eccentric and hospitable host. However, his interest soon turns to fear as the days go by and Dracula's true nature and intentions are revealed--he is a vampire that is looking to move to England for a fresh supply of victims. Unwittingly, Harker helps him travel to London. Once Dracula is loose in the city, the real adventure begins.

From this point forward, the story shifts perspectives between several different characters who are all drawn into Dracula's dark path. The cast includes Mina Harker, Jonathan's fiancee,  Lucy Westenra, Mina's dear friend, Arthur Holmwood, Lucy's fiancee, Dr. Seward, the man in charge of a local asylum, and, of course, the vampire expert, Dr. Van Helsing. Their stories begin separately, but are gradually drawn together as they unite to try and put an end to Dracula's reign of terror. Their quest to track him down takes them across Europe and brings them face to face with many unspeakable terrors. Eventually, they arrive back where the story started, Transylvania, for one final battle.

Dracula is one of those larger-than-life characters that every lover of the classics should get to know. He is the source of all the characteristics we have come to expect from a vampire: He must sleep in his native soil, he doesn't have a reflection, he must be invited inside a dwelling before he can enter, he has very pointy incisors, and he fears garlic and crucifixes. He has super-human strength and an aristocratic, intelligent demeanor. He mixes being suave and personable with being animalistic and wild. He is absolutely the best part of the novel, but aside from the beginning section of the story when he imprisons Jonathan in his castle, he doesn't appear in it very much. I found myself wishing for way more of him, and way less of the supporting characters.

The exception to that is the character of Dr. Van Helsing, who has become a classic literary hero in his own right. Van Helsing serves as the source of knowledge about vampires in the novel, and becomes the fearless leader of the group as they work together to find and slay Dracula. His skills, intelligence, and calm, kind demeanor are indispensable to the story and make him stand out from the sea of rather interchangeable, bland supporting characters that surround him. As an additional bit of character-building, his journal entries in the novel contain quite a few comical misspellings and misinterpretations of English words, due to his Dutch heritage. He is one of literature's most famous "tough guys," so I'm glad to have met him.

I wish that I could spend a few more paragraphs talking about how much I loved this novel, but the truth is that aside from liking some of the characters, I found Dracula to be a little bit boring. This is primarily due to its epistolary format. The letters and journals of the characters go into such meticulous detail about their plans that the reading often felt very slow. In particular, their quest to destroy the boxes of Transylvanian dirt that Dracula brought to London with him take up way too many pages. I was expecting that a book focused on finding and killing a powerful vampire would have me on the edge of my seat, but alas, that was not how I felt while reading. Some parts were exciting and interesting. Many parts were not.

However, despite my dissatisfaction with some sections, I am still glad that I read Dracula. It was mostly enjoyable, and getting to know the classic literary characters it contained made it worth the read. I was expecting a little more excitement, but I have to cut the novel some slack--it was one of the first books of its kind, and the modern horror stories that thrill audiences today have grown out of what Dracula established. This was one of the last classic monster novels I hadn't read, so I'm glad to have experienced it.

On a happy side note, this was my very last book for my Back to the Classics Challenge this year! I'll be writing a wrap up post for that soon. I also managed to fit this into my Popsugar bonus challenge-Dracula is mentioned in To Kill a Mockingbird, which I noticed while reading it to my classes this year.


Challenge Tally
Classics Club Challenge (#47 on my list): 20/100
Back to the Classics Challenge (a Gothic or horror classic) 12/12 - Complete!
Popsugar Bonus Challenge (a book mentioned in another book) 8/12
TBR Challenge (previously owned): 48/60

Total Books Read in 2017: 62