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July 2018 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

July's TBR Pile (14/21):

July TBR.jpeg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay (not pictured) ✓
  2. TBR Pile: Little Bee by Chris Cleave
  3. Reading Assignment: How to Fall in Love with a Man Who Lives in a Bush by Emmy Abrahamson
  4. Book of the Month Club (July): Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
  5. Comics Pick: Locke and Key: Heaven and Earth ✓
  6. Comics Pick: The Walking Dead: Here's Negan ✓
  7. Romance Pick: Lord Wraybourne's Betrothed by Jo Beverley ✓
  8. Romance Pick: The Stolen Bride by Jo Beverley
  9. Romance Pick: Emily and the Dark Angel by Jo Beverley
  10. Classics Pick: Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen (not pictured) ✓
  11. Horror Pick: The Boy on the Bridge by M.R. Carey
  12. Young Adult Pick: Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire ✓
  13. Young Adult Pick: Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire ✓
  14. Young Adult Pick: Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire ✓
  15. Mystery Pick: Give Up the Ghost by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  16. Mystery Pick: A Ghostly Light by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  17. Science Fiction Pick: Symbiont by Mira Grant ✓
  18. Science Fiction Pick: Chimera by Mira Grant ✓
  19. Novella Pick: Dusk or Dark or Dawn or Day by Seanan McGuire ✓
  20. Random Pick: Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco
  21. Added: The Walking Dead Vol. 29 ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 3518 pages
Pages Remaining: 660,367 pages

Current Read - Smoke and Iron by Rachel Caine

Books I Gave Up On (0) 

Books bought/received (1) -- Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye. I snapped this up from the clearance section at Half Price Books. We took in three bags to sell and only walked out with 5 books bought (2 for the twins, 1 for me, and 2 for Arthur).

August's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham (iPad)
  2. TBR Pile: Little Bee by Chris Cleave
  3. Reading Assignment: How to Fall in Love with a Man Who Lives in a Bush by Emmy Abrahamson
  4. Reading Assignment: The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert (not pictured)
  5. Book of the Month Club (July): Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
  6. Book of the Month Club (August): TBD
  7. Series Pick: Smoke and Iron by Rachel Caine
  8. Comics Pick: The Walking Dead Vol. 30 (not pictured)
  9. Romance Pick: The Stolen Bride by Jo Beverley
  10. Romance Pick: Emily and the Dark Angel by Jo Beverley
  11. Nonfiction Pick: College Girls by Lynn Peril
  12. Classics Pick: Daisy Miller and Washington Square by Henry James
  13. Young Adult Pick: Unspoken by Sarah Brennan 

Movies watched

  • Rampage -- Way more entertaining than it should have been. Loved it!
  • Please Stand By -- An interesting coming-of-age story.

TV Shows watched

  • Jack Whitehall Travels with My Father S1 -- So incredibly funny! And we're excited to learn that there's going to be another season.
  • Bounty Hunters S1 -- We went on a Jack Whitehall binge clearly. This one was very fun. Here's hoping for another season.
  • The Tick S1 -- J made me watch this one and I loved it so much! 
  • Legion S2 -- Finally restarted the second season.

Comments - A big dip in my reading this month but no worries. I'm now back to my usual reading levels. I've pulled about 20 owned books that I want to read before we move in September. Hoping to get those knocked out and refrain from checking out too many library books.

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Tuesday 07.31.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

June 2018 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

June's TBR Pile (40/44):

June TBR.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Last Castle by Denise Kiernan ✓
  2. TBR Pile: The Rose Labyrinth by Titania Hardie DNF
  3. Reading Assignment: A History of the Wife by Marilyn Yalom ✓
  4. Book of the Month Club (June): The Anamoly by Michael Rutger ✓
  5. Series Pick: Murder on the House by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  6. Comics Pick: Manhattan Projects Vol. 6
  7. Comics Pick: Paper Girls Vol. 1 ✓
  8. Comics Pick: Paper Girls Vol. 2 ✓
  9. Comics Pick: Paper Girls Vol. 3 ✓
  10. Comics Pick: March Vol. 1 ✓
  11. Comics Pick: March Vol. 2 ✓
  12. Comics Pick: March Vol. 3 ✓
  13. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 1 ✓
  14. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 2 ✓
  15. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 3 ✓
  16. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 4 ✓
  17. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 5 ✓
  18. Comics Pick: The Haunted Mansion ✓
  19. Comics Pick: Creatures of the Night ✓
  20. Comics Pick: Moonstruck Vol. 1 ✓
  21. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 1 ✓
  22. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 2 ✓
  23. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 3 ✓
  24. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 4 ✓
  25. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 5 ✓
  26. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 6 ✓
  27. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 7 ✓
  28. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 8
  29. Mystery Pick: A Conspiracy in Belgravia by Sherry Thomas ✓
  30. Classics Pick: Out of Africa by Isak Denison 
  31. Young Adult Pick: The Selection by Kiera Cass ✓
  32. Young Adult Pick: The Elite by Kiera Cass ✓
  33. Young Adult Pick: The One by Kiera Cass ✓
  34. Young Adult Pick: The Selection Stories by Kiera Cass ✓
  35. Zombie Pick: A Mad Zombie Party by Gena Showalter ✓
  36. Carry-over Pick: Parasite by Mira Grant ✓
  37. Added: Across a Star-swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund ✓
  38. Added: The Stanforth Secrets by Jo Beverley ✓
  39. Added: Home for the Haunting by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  40. Added: Happily Ever After by Kiera Cass ✓
  41. Added: The Heir by Kiera Cass ✓
  42. Added: The Crown by Kiera Cass ✓
  43. Added: Keeper of the Castle by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  44. Added: Paper Girls Vol. 4 ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 9362 pages
Pages Remaining: 663,885 pages

Current Read - Symbiont by Mira Grant

Books I Gave Up On (1) -- The Rose Labyrinth by Titania Hardie. I didn't connect to any of the characters and was fairly bored by the fairly large section that I did read. Decided to move along.

Books bought/received (0)

July's TBR Pile:

IMG_4041.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay (not pictured)
  2. TBR Pile: Little Bee by Chris Cleave
  3. Reading Assignment: How to Fall in Love with a Man Who Lives in a Bush by Emmy Abrahamson
  4. Book of the Month Club (July): Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
  5. Comics Pick: Locke and Key: Heaven and Earth
  6. Comics Pick: The Walking Dead: Here's Negan
  7. Romance Pick: Lord Wraybourne's Betrothed by Jo Beverley
  8. Romance Pick: The Stolen Bride by Jo Beverley
  9. Romance Pick: Emily and the Dark Angel by Jo Beverley
  10. Classics Pick: Out of Africa by Isak Denison (not pictured)
  11. Horror Pick: The Boy not he Bridge by M.R. Carey
  12. Young Adult Pick: Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
  13. Young Adult Pick: Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire
  14. Young Adult Pick: Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire
  15. Mystery Pick: Give Up the Ghost by Juliet Blackwell (not pictured)
  16. Mystery Pick: A Ghostly Light by Juliet Blackwell
  17. Science Fiction Pick: Symbiont by Mira Grant
  18. Science Fiction Pick: Chimera by Mira Grant
  19. Novella Pick: Dusk or Dark or Dawn or Day by Seanan McGuire
  20. Random Pick: Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

Movies watched

  • Howard's End -- Have to say that I wasn't the biggest fan of this story. 
  • Emma (2009) -- Love this version on the Austen classic. Romola Garai is perfect as Emma.
  • American Satan -- The classic story of Faust is always good material for a movie. While this one had an interesting take on the story, I don't think it was executed very well. 
  • Forbidden Planet (1956) -- We introduced the twins to this classic science fiction movie.  
  • Tomb Raider -- Meh. 
  • The Girl with All the Gifts -- They amped up the creep factor, but a pretty true adaptation of the book. Really enjoyed this one.
  • A Bad Idea Gone Wrong -- Fun little indie comedy we watched yesterday. Enjoyed it.

TV Shows watched

  • Call the Midwife S2 -- Slowly working my way through this show.
  • Elementary S5 -- Keeping up with the currently airing season.
  • The Bachelorette S14 -- So here for Becca's season!

Comments - Holy cow! I started the month with a giant stack of comics and managed to read almost all of them. I'm so very excited about my reading this past month. Beyond the comics, I knocked out a fun YA series, a couple of nonfiction reads, a few fun cozy mysteries, and the start of a great science fiction trilogy. I can't wait to see what July brings!

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Saturday 06.30.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

May 2018 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

May's TBR Pile (16/17):

May TBR.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Sourdough by Robin Sloan ✓
  2. TBR Pile: Birthmarked by Caragh O'Brien ✓
  3. Reading Assignment: Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery (iPad) ✓
  4. Book of the Month Club (April): Circe by Madeline Miller ✓
  5. Book of the Month Club (May): Skipped as wasn't excited about the books this month...
  6. Series Pick: Through the Zombie Glass by Gena Showalter ✓
  7. Series Pick: The Queen of Zombie Hearts by Gena Showalter ✓
  8. Comics Pick: The Walking Dead Volume 28 ✓
  9. Romance Pick: Slightly Tempted by Mary Balogh (not pictured) ✓
  10. Romance Pick: Slightly Dangerous by Mary Balogh (not pictured) ✓
  11. Romance Pick: Slightly Sinful by Mary Balogh (not pictured) ✓
  12. Classics Pick: Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery (iPad) ✓
  13. Nonfiction Pick: The Little Book of Feminist Saints by Julia Pierpont and Manjit Thapp ✓
  14. Young Adult Pick: For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund ✓
  15. Short Stories: Mad Hatters and March Hares ✓
  16. Science Fiction Pick: Parasite by Mira Grant
  17. Added: The Dress Lodger by Sheri Holman (not pictured) ✓
  18. Added: For Darkness Shows the Stars Short Stories by Diana Peterfreund ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 5065 pages
Pages Remaining: 673,247 pages

Current Read - A Conspiracy in Belgravia by Sherry Thomas

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

June's TBR Pile: I went a little crazy in the comics aisle at the library and broke my library ban hard. But, I'm so excited to read this giant stack of comics. 

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  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Last Castle by Denise Kiernan (not pictured)
  2. TBR Pile: The Rose Labyrinth by Titania Hardie
  3. Reading Assignment: A History of the Wife by Marilyn Yalom
  4. Book of the Month Club (June): TBD
  5. Series Pick: Murder on the House by Juliet Blackwell
  6. Comics Pick: Manhattan Projects Vol. 6
  7. Comics Pick: Paper Girls Vol. 1
  8. Comics Pick: Paper Girls Vol. 2
  9. Comics Pick: Paper Girls Vol. 3
  10. Comics Pick: March Vol. 1
  11. Comics Pick: March Vol. 2
  12. Comics Pick: March Vol. 3
  13. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 1
  14. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 2
  15. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 3
  16. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 4
  17. Comics Pick: Wayward Vol. 5
  18. Comics Pick: The Haunted Mansion
  19. Comics Pick: Creatures of the Night
  20. Comics Pick: Moonstruck Vol. 1
  21. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 1
  22. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 2
  23. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 3
  24. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 4
  25. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 5
  26. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 6
  27. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 7
  28. Comics Pick: Giant Days Vol. 8
  29. Mystery Pick: A Conspiracy in Belgravia by Sherry Thomas
  30. Classics Pick: Out of Africa by Isak Denison (not pictured)
  31. Young Adult Pick: The Selection by Kiera Cass 
  32. Young Adult Pick: The Elite by Kiera Cass
  33. Young Adult Pick: The One by Kiera Cass 
  34. Young Adult Pick: The Selection Stories by Kiera Cass
  35. Zombie Pick: A Mad Zombie Party by Gena Showalter 
  36. Carry-over Pick: Parasite by Mira Grant

Movies watched

  • Mad Max: Fury Road -- Finally saw this one. It has been on my short list since it came out. 
  • Black Panther -- Oh my! Oh my! This may have just become my favorite Marvel movie so far. Such great characters! 
  • Red Dawn (Riff Trax Version) -- Obviously I have seen the original Red Dawn many times, but we watched the Riff Trax version this month and I was dying of laughter!
  • Road House (Riff Trax Version) -- We continued our Patrick Swayze nonsense. Not quite as funny as Red Dawn, but entertaining.
  • Pitch Perfect 3 -- I needed some mindless fun.

TV Shows watched

  • Supernatural S4-5 -- Working our way through this colossal series. 
  • Full Frontal -- We finally caught up!
  • Plebs S3 -- The last episode was a great send-off for the boys.
  • Elementary S6 -- J and I have been watching this one in real time. We usual figure out the killer very quickly, but it's still an entertaining show.
  • The 100 S6 -- Oh my. This show is super cheesy and yet I can't wait to watch it!
  • UnReal S3 -- With J out of the country on a work trip, I get to watch some of the shows that I have ignored in favor of shows we both watch. I finally get to watch S3 for this one!

Comments - Another great reading month in the books. I knocked out a few more book from my unread shelves. I also started a few good series. I even sorted through my unread shelves and put 10 books that I am no longer interested in reading into the "To sell" pile. Here's to June's giant stack of comics. 

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Thursday 05.31.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

April 2018 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

April's TBR Pile (19/26):

April TBR.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Radium Girls by Denise Kiernan (not pictured) ✓
  2. TBR Pile: Parasite by Mira Grant
  3. TBR Pile: The Dress Lodger by Sherri Holman
  4. Reading Assignment: The Words We Live By by Linda Monk (not pictured)
  5. Book of the Month Club (April): Circe by Madeline Miller (not pictured)
  6. Series Pick: If Walls Could Talk by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  7. Comics Pick: Revival Volume 8 ✓
  8. Short Stories: The Emerald City by Jane Yolen ✓
  9. Romance Pick: Slightly Married by Mary Balogh ✓
  10. Romance Pick: Slightly Wicked by Mary Balogh ✓
  11. Romance Pick: Slightly Scandalous by Mary Balogh ✓
  12. Classics Pick: Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
  13. Nonfiction Pick: It’s All Relative by A.J. Jacobs
  14. Nonfiction Pick: Lost San Francisco by Dennis Evanosky and Eric J. Kos ✓
  15. Nonfiction Pick: Lost Worlds of the San Francisco Bay Area ✓
  16. Nonfiction Pick: Bachelor Nation by Amy Kaufman (not pictured) ✓
  17. Spring Into Horror Pick: Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice (not pictured)
  18. SIH Pick: The Great Halifax Explosion by John Bacon ✓
  19. SIH Pick: Alice in Zombieland by Gina Showalter (not pictured) ✓
  20. SIH Pick: The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King ✓
  21. SIH Pick: Jennifer Government by Max Barry ✓
  22. SIH Pick: Dead Bold by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  23. SIH Pick: Penny Dreadful Volume 1 ✓
  24. SIH Pick: The World of Lore Monstrous Creatures by Aaron Mahnke (not pictured) ✓
  25. Added: NOS4A2 by Joe Hill (not pictured) ✓
  26. Added: River of Teeth by Sarah Gailey (not pictured) ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 6237  pages
Pages Remaining: 678,312 pages

Current Read - Circe by Madeline Miller

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (19) -- I escaped my kids for a few hours and hit the library's book sale. I got all these books for $4. 

IMG_1358.jpg
  • Earthly Joys by Philippa Gregory
  • Operating Instructions by Anne Lamott
  • The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman
  • Zorro by Isabel Allende
  • Across the Universe by Beth Revis
  • A Fine Passion by Stephanie Laurens
  • To Distraction by Stephanie Laurens
  • The Black Swan by Mercedes Lackey
  • Four In Hand by Stephanie Laurens
  • All About Love by Stephanie Laurens
  • A Secret Love by Stephanie Laurens
  • The Perfect Lover by Stephanie Laurens
  • Devil's Bride by Stephanie Laurens
  • The Golden One by Elizabeth Peters
  • Love in the Afternoon by Lisa Kleypas
  • Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier
  • Son of the Shadows by Juliet Marillier
  • St. Raven by Jo Beverley
  • Winterset by Candace Camp

May's TBR Pile:

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  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Sourdough by Robin Sloan
  2. TBR Pile: Birthmarked by Caragh O'Brien
  3. Reading Assignment: Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery (iPad)
  4. Book of the Month Club (April): Circe by Madeline Miller
  5. Book of the Month Club (May): TBD
  6. Series Pick: Through the Zombie Glass by Gena Showalter
  7. Series Pick: The Queen of Zombie Hearts by Gena Showalter
  8. Comics Pick: The Walking Dead Volume 28
  9. Romance Pick: Slightly Tempted by Mary Balogh (not pictured)
  10. Romance Pick: Slightly Dangerous by Mary Balogh (not pictured)
  11. Romance Pick: Slightly Sinful by Mary Balogh (not pictured)
  12. Classics Pick: Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery (iPad)
  13. Nonfiction Pick: The Little Book of Feminist Saints by Julia Pierpont and Manjit Thapp
  14. Young Adult Pick: For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund
  15. Short Stories: Mad Hatters and March Hares
  16. Science Fiction Pick: Parasite by Mira Grant

Movies watched

  • Annihilation -- Very different from the book, but I think I liked it. Not a movie for everyone.
  • The Shallows -- Pretty, but the story and thriller aspects were fairly boring.
  • RKO 281 -- The fictionalized account of the making of Citizen Kane. Interesting...

TV Shows watched

  • Magicians S3 -- We finished off this season and oh my, it was wonderful! Can't wait to see what S4 brings.
  • Veep S6 -- We completely forgot about watching the last season of this show. Don't worry, we rectified our oversight.
  • Supernatural S4 -- Plugging away at this series. We finally meet at least one of the angels.
  • The Shannara Chronicles S2 -- We finally finished this series. Kinda sad it was canceled, but oh well.

Comments - Wow! I read over 6000 pages this month! I don't quite believe it. I don't feel like I've been reading excessively, but apparently I have found more time for it. Really hoping to keep this going and read more great books in May!

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Monday 04.30.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

March 2018 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

March's TBR Pile (15/16):

Mar TBR.jpg
 
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The History of Love by Nicole Krauss (not pictured) ✓
  2. TBR Pile: The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant ✓
  3. Reading Assignment: Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning ✓
  4. Book of the Month Club (February): The Philosopher's Flight by Tom Miller ✓
  5. Book of the Month Club (March): Not That I Could Tell by Jessica Strawser ✓
  6. Series Pick: Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins ✓
  7. Series Pick: Spirit Bound by Rachel Hawkins ✓
  8. Series Pick: Ramses the Damned: The Passion of Cleopatra by Anne Rice ✓
  9. Comics Pick: The Wicked + the Divine Vol. 6 ✓
  10. Comics Pick: One Week in the Library by W. Prince, John Amor, and Frazer Irving ✓
  11. Romance Pick: A Summer to Remember by Mary Balogh ✓
  12. Classics Pick: Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell ✓
  13. Nonfiction Pick: The Words We Live By by Linda Monk
  14. Carryover Pick: As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner ✓
  15. Added: Glamour in Glass by Mary Robinette Kowal ✓
  16. Added: 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 4582 pages
Pages Remaining: 684,549 pages

Current Read - If Walls Could Talk by Juliet Blackwell

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (1) -- I picked up Blood and Thunder by Hampton Sides based on the recommendation from a bookseller at my local independent bookstore.

April's TBR Pile:

April TBR.jpg
 
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Radium Girls by Denise Kiernan (not pictured)
  2. TBR Pile: Parasite by Mira Grant
  3. TBR Pile: The Dress Lodger by Sherri Holman
  4. Reading Assignment: The Words We Live By by Linda Monk (not pictured)
  5. Book of the Month Club (April): TBD (not pictured)
  6. Series Pick: If Walls Could Talk by Juliet Blackwell
  7. Comics Pick: Revival Volume 8
  8. Short Stories: The Emerald City by Jane Yolen
  9. Romance Pick: Slightly Married by Mary Balogh
  10. Romance Pick: Slightly Wicked by Mary Balogh
  11. Romance Pick: Slightly Scandalous by Mary Balogh
  12. Classics Pick: Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
  13. Nonfiction Pick: It’s All Relative by A.J. Jacobs
  14. Nonfiction Pick: Lost San Francisco
  15. Nonfiction Pick: Lost Worlds of the San Francisco Bay Area
  16. Nonfiction Pick: Bachelor Nation by Amy Kaufman (not pictured)
  17. Spring Into Horror Pick: Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice (not pictured)
  18. SIH Pick: The Great Halifax Explosion by John Bacon
  19. SIH Pick: Alice in Zombieland by Gina Showalter (not pictured)
  20. SIH Pick: The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King
  21. SIH Pick: Jennifer Government by Max Barry
  22. SIH Pick: Dead Bold by Juliet Blackwell
  23. SIH Pick: Penny Dreadful Volume 1
  24. SIH Pick: The Worlds of Lore Monstrous Creatures by Aaron Mahnke (not pictured)

Movies watched

  • Justice League -- Wow that was boring... 
  • The Foreigner -- James Bond as a villain was the perfect choice. And Jackie Chan is amazing in this low-key roll. Really enjoyed this one!
  • War Dogs -- Mediocre in my opinion. I realize that it's based off of a true story, but I just didn't find it super fascinating.
  • Star Wars: The Last Jedi -- Oh so good! Star Wars isn't my number one fandom, but I do enjoy the movies. This one was just great.
  • The Mummy -- We were bored. So much exposition.
  • The Imitation Game -- We finally watched this one. So so good!
  • Rubber -- That was one of the weirdest movies I've ever seen.
  • Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle -- Arthur and I watched this one. Pretty entertaining.
  • Neighbors 2 -- Mediocre comedy. There were a few scenes but that's it.

TV Shows watched

  • The Magicians S3 -- Love love loving this season! The departures from the books really do make sense and I love all the character growth.
  • Another Period -- So dumb, but I love it!
  • Happy S1 -- Such a strange show.
  • Supernatural S3 -- Still working through this series a few episodes at a time.

Comments - Another awesome reading month! So excited that my momentum has continued through the early spring. On to April!

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Friday 03.30.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

February 2018 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

February's TBR Pile (23/28):

Feb TBR.jpg
 
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson (iPad) ✓
  2. TBR Pile: Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins ✓
  3. Reading Assignment: Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (iPad) ✓
  4. Book of the Month Club (December): The English Wife by Lauren Willig ✓
  5. Book of the Month Club (January): As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner
  6. Book of the Month Club (February): The Philosopher's Flight by Tom Miller
  7. Series Pick: The Stone Angel by Juliet Dark ✓
  8. Series Pick: A Toxic Trousseau by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  9. Series Pick: The Gunslinger by Stephen King ✓
  10. Comics Pick: Saga Vol. 8 ✓
  11. Comics Pick: Moonshine Vol. 1 ✓
  12. Comics Pick: Forbidden brides of the faceless slaves in the secret house of the night of dread desire by Neil Gaiman ✓
  13. Comics Pick: Low Vol. 1 ✓
  14. Comics Pick: The Last Temptation
  15. Comics Pick: Kingsman: The Secret Service ✓
  16. Comics Pick: Monstress Vol. 2 ✓
  17. Comics Pick: Revival Vol. 7 ✓
  18. Comics Pick: House of Mystery: Room and Boredom
  19. Comics Pick: Jane by Brosh McKenna ✓
  20. Comics Pick: ApocalyptiGirl ✓
  21. Romance Pick: A Summer to Remember by Mary Balogh
  22. Nonfiction Pick: Literary Wonderlands by Laura Miller ✓
  23. Nonfiction Owned Pick: The Poet and the Murderer by Simon Worrall ✓
  24. Random Pick: Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal ✓
  25. Added: The Day the Dead Came to Show and Tell by Mira Grant ✓
  26. Added: Revival Vol. 4 ✓
  27. Added: Revival Vol. 5 ✓
  28. Added: Revival Vol. 6 ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 4617 pages
Pages Remaining: 689,131 pages

Current Read - As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (2) -- While on my weekend retreat, I picked up two books at the used book store. Really excited for both of these as I keep hearing them recommended on multiple podcasts.

IMG_8889.jpg
 

March's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The History of Love by Nicole Krauss (not pictured)
  2. TBR Pile: The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant
  3. Reading Assignment: Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning
  4. Book of the Month Club (February): The Philosopher's Flight by Tom Miller
  5. Book of the Month Club (March): TBD
  6. Series Pick: Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins
  7. Series Pick: Spirit Bound by Rachel Hawkins
  8. Series Pick: Ramses the Damned: The Passion of Cleopatra by Anne Rice
  9. Comics Pick: The Wicked + the Divine Vol. 6
  10. Comics Pick: One Week in the Library by W. Prince, John Amor, and Frazer Irving
  11. Romance Pick: A Summer to Remember by Mary Balogh
  12. Classics Pick: Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
  13. Nonfiction Pick: The Words We Live By by Linda Monk
  14. Carryover Pick: As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner

Movies watched

  • Logan Lucky -- We usually enjoy Soderbergh's movies. 
  • Mr. Right -- Hilarious! We do love Sam Rockwell in this house.
  • Heavy Metal -- Wow! What the hell did I just watch?
  • Murder on the Orient Express -- Really enjoyed this one, especially all of the blocking, camera angles, and use of glass.

TV Shows watched

  • The Magicians S3 -- Excited to start the journey on the Muntjac.
  • The Good Place S2 -- Holy cow that was a crazy season...
  • People of Earth S2 -- I'm still loving this show.
  • Last Week Tonight -- So glad it's back!

Comments - Another amazing month of reading! I have no idea how I read as much as I did, but I'm totally here for it. Let's hope I can keep this rolling into March...

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Wednesday 02.28.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

January 2018 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

January's TBR Pile (18/20):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman ✓
  2. TBR Pile: Nefertiti by Michelle Moran ✓
  3. Reading Assignment: Arabian Nights ✓
  4. Book of the Month Club (December shipped late): The English Wife by Lauren Willig
  5. Book of the Month Club (January): As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner
  6. Series Pick: Spellcasting in Silk by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  7. Series Pick: No Time Like the Past by Jodi Taylor ✓
  8. Nonfiction Pick: The Origin of Satan by Elaine Pagels ✓
  9. Classics Pick: The Bostonians by Henry James ✓
  10. Comics: The Walking Dead Vol. 27 ✓
  11. Comics: Diana Prince Wonder Woman Vol. 1 ✓
  12. Comics: Diana Prince Wonder Woman Vol. 2 ✓
  13. Comics: Diana Prince Wonder Woman Vol. 3 ✓
  14. Comics: Diana Prince Wonder Woman Vol. 4 ✓
  15. Comics: Wonder Woman Rebirth Vol. 1 ✓
  16. Comics: Wonder Woman Rebirth Vol. 2 ✓
  17. Romance Pick: The Governess of Highland Hall by Carrie Turansky ✓
  18. Romance Pick: The Daughter of Highland Hall by Carrie Turansky ✓
  19. Romance Pick: A Refuge at Highland Hall by Carrie Turansky ✓
  20. Added: A Haunting is Brewing by Juliet Blackwell ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 5561 pages
Pages Remaining: 693,748 pages

Current Read - The English Wife by Lauren Willig

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

February's TBR Pile:

Feb TBR.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson (iPad)
  2. TBR Pile: Hex Hall by Rachel Hawksins
  3. Reading Assignment: Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (iPad)
  4. Book of the Month Club (December): The English Wife by Lauren Willig
  5. Book of the Month Club (January): As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner
  6. Book of the Month Club (February): TBD
  7. Series Pick: The Stone Angel by Juliet Dark
  8. Series Pick: A Toxic Trousseau by Juliet Blackwell
  9. Series Pick: The Gunslinger by Stephen King
  10. Comics Pick: Saga Vol. 8
  11. Comics Pick: Moonshine Vol. 1
  12. Comics Pick: Forbidden brides of the faceless slaves in the secret house of the night of dread desire by Neil Gaiman 
  13. Comics Pick: Low Vol. 1
  14. Comics Pick: The Last Temptation
  15. Comics Pick: Kingsman: The Secret Service
  16. Comics Pick: Monsters Vol. 2
  17. Comics Pick: Revival Vol. 7
  18. Comics Pick: House of Mystery: Room and Boredom
  19. Comics Pick: Jane by Brosh McKenna
  20. Comics Pick: ApocalyptiGirl
  21. Romance Pick: A Summer to Remember by Mary Balogh
  22. Nonfiction Pick: Literary Wonderlands by Laura Miller
  23. Nonfiction Owned Pick: The Poet and the Murderer by Simon Worrall
  24. Random Pick: Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal

Movies watched

  • Geostorm -- J downloaded this just for me and my love of disaster movies. Way too much talk and not enough crazy action sequences.
  • Colossal -- This movie did not go where I thought it was going to... Interesting, just unexpected.
  • The Big Sick -- Mom and I watched this before I left Indiana. So so good. 
  • Blade Runner 2049 -- I really enjoyed this one. There were a few issues, but overall I think it was a very solid movie.
  • Kong: Skull Island -- Haha! This was my silly pick. Love some giant animals and destruction.
  • The Light Between Oceans -- I wanted to watch the movie ahead of last Sunday's book club discussion of the novel. Fairly accurate translation of the book to screen. 
  • Thor: Ragnarok -- Oh so good! I laughed at loud at some many parts (the snake story!) but it was also a great examination of the characters. 

TV Shows watched

  • The Bachelor -- Was excited to be at my mom's house when the season started. We love/hate The Bachelor!
  • People of Earth S2 -- Such a weird and twisted show. We love it!
  • The Good Place S2 -- Oh my, this show just keeps surprising me.
  • Happy S1 -- J's new pick. Very dark and twisted, but with some great scenes.
  • The Librarians S4 -- This season is a bit more sentimental than I would like, but it's our light-hearted show.

Comments - Wow! Check out those reading totals! I had no idea I would get so much reading done in January. A lot of the pages were read while still in Indiana before traveling back home. I know my reading pace will not continue, but it was nice to start the year off right. Looking forward to what February brings!

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Wednesday 01.31.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

December 2017 Wrap-up

December's TBR Pile (8/12):

Dec TBR.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman (January meeting)
  2. Series Pick: The Water Witch by Juliet Dark ✓
  3. Nonfiction Pick: Goldilocks and the Water Bears by Louisa Preston
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Star of the Sea by Joseph O'Connor ✓
  5. Carryover: Bonk by Mary Roach ✓
  6. Currently Reading: A Vision in Velvet by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  7. Carryover/Must Finish Read: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon ✓
  8. Cozy Mystery: Spellcasting in Silk by Juliet Blackwell
  9. Paranormal Fiction: The Stone Angel by Juliet Dark
  10. Added: A Christmas to Remember by Lis Kleypas, Lorraine Heath, Megan Frampton, Vivienne Lorret ✓
  11. Added: Christmas Magic by Ginny Baird ✓
  12. Added: The Sometime Bride by Ginny Baird ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 3334 pages
Pages Remaining: 699.309 pages

Current Read - The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman; No Time Like the Past by Jodi Taylor; Wonder Woman Comics

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (2) -- Both came from my Broke and the Bookish Secret Santa.

  • I, Jane by Diane Haeger
  • Hand Lettering by Megan Wells

January's TBR Pile (no picture as I'm still in Indiana):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman
  2. TBR Pile: Nefertiti by Michelle Moran
  3. Reading Assignment: Arabian Nights
  4. Book of the Month Club December (my first one shipped late): The English Wife by Lauren Willig
  5. Book of the Month Club (January): As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner
  6. Series Pick: Spellcasting in Silk by Juliet Blackwell
  7. Series Pick: No Time Like the Past by Jodi Taylor
  8. Nonfiction Pick: The Origin of Satan by Elaine Pagels
  9. Classics Pick: The Bostonians by Henry James
  10. Comics: The Walking Dead Vol. 27
  11. Comics: Diana Prince Wonder Woman Vol. 1
  12. Comics: Diana Prince Wonder Woman Vol. 2
  13. Comics: Diana Prince Wonder Woman Vol. 3
  14. Comics: Diana Prince Wonder Woman Vol. 4
  15. Comics: Wonder Woman Rebirth Vol. 1
  16. Comics: Wonder Woman Rebirth Vol. 2
  17. Romance Pick: The Governess of Highland Hall by Carrie Turansky
  18. Romance Pick: The Daughter of Highland Hall by Carrie Turansky
  19. Romance Pick: A Refuge at Highland Hall by Carrie Turansky

Movies watched

  • Christmas in the Smokies -- Love a good cheesy Christmas movie. Although this one suffered from an unneeded religious bent.
  • A Christmas Prince -- My silly Netflix movie. Mildly entertaining while I addressed Christmas cards. 
  • A Dogwalker’s Christmas Tale -- Silly stupid romantic comedy, but I do love my cheesy Christmas movies.
  • Christmas Crush/Holiday High School Reunion -- Super silly movie, but I enjoyed it. Totally Mean Girls 10 years later and set at Christmas.
  • My Santa --  Not my favorite. There was no chemistry between the leads.
  • Christmas in the City -- Weird carryover from Christmas Crush, but this one was decent.
  • Merry Kissmas -- Loved the Nutcracker theme of this one. 
  • The Italian Job -- J was surprised that I had never watched this one. Very enjoyable 1960s action film.
  • Naughty & Nice -- Except for the male lead's name (seriously Pepper?), I actually enjoyed this one.
  • How Sarah Got Her Wings -- Tone was off on this one. Not a huge fan.
  • La La Land -- I finally watched this one and completely fell into the movie. Love the entire look and feel of this one.
  • A Princess for Christmas -- Definitely cheesy in places, but I liked this one.
  • Christmas Inheritance -- This one was better than I thought it would be.
  • Me Before You -- How did I miss seeing this movie? I loved the book when I read it a few years back. Definitely a tear-jerker.
  • Bridget Jones's Baby -- I enjoyed the first two movies, I enjoyed this one. Love Colin Firth, not a huge fan of Renee but that's okay.
  • Rough Night -- I was under the impression that this was a crazy comedy, but it was a lot darker than I was anticipating. Still pretty decent. 
  • Maleficent -- I actually really liked this one. Maybe because Maleficent was always my favorite the Disney villains.
  • Shin Godzilla -- Our New Year's Eve movie pick. The twins were a bit bored, but I really enjoyed it.

TV Shows watched

  • People of Earth S1 -- We finished the first season before I left. Holy cow! That was good! Can't wait to start S2.
  • Dirk Gently S2 -- J gets to watch the finale without me. Boo! Hope I can stream it here...
  • Lizzie Borden Chronicles -- So campy! But I'm loving it!

Comments - For the crazy traveling and random childcare crap this month, my reading totals are very respectable. My last book of 2017 was finished on Dec. 22nd. From there I'm counting any reading for 2018 as I'm not likely to finish another book before the New Year. I'm also looking forward to all the new reading challenges. On the watched front, I knocked off a huge list of movies for the holidays. Byproduct of the kiddos not sleeping while here in Indiana. Oh well, at least I was fairly entertained.

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Thursday 01.04.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

November 2017 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

November's TBR Pile (14/20):

Nov TBR - Read.jpeg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman ✓
  2. MVPA Book Club Selection: Bonk by Mary Roach
  3. Series Pick: In a Witch's Wardrobe by Juliet Blackwell (not pictured, library hold) ✓
  4. Nonfiction Pick: 1776 by David McCullough
  5. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Star of the Sea by Joseph O' Connor
  6. Classics Pick: The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton ✓
  7. Currently Reading: Hexes and Hemlines by Juliet Blackwell ✓
  8. Currently Reading: The Devil in the Shape of a Woman by Carol Karlsen ✓
  9. Scary Pick: Omega Days by John Campbell ✓
  10. Library random pick: Bad Girls Throughout History by Ann Shen ✓
  11. Extra: Tarnished and Torn by Juliet Blackwell (not pictured, library hold) ✓
  12. Extra: A Vision in Velvet by Juliet Blackwell
  13. Extra: Spellcasting in Silk by Juliet Blackwell
  14. Extra: A Toxic Trousseau by Juliet Blackwell
  15. Added: A Bridge Across the Ocean by Susan Meissner ✓
  16. Added: The Coldest City by Antony Johnston ✓
  17. Added: How to Talk to Girls at Parties by Neil Gaiman ✓
  18. Added: Saga Vol. 7 ✓
  19. Added: East of West Vol. 7 ✓
  20. Added: The Demon Lover by Juliet Dark ✓

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 3643 pages
Pages Remaining: 702,643 pages

Current Read - Bonk by Mary Roach; A Vision in Velvet by Juliet Blackwell

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

December's TBR Pile:

Dec TBR.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman (January meeting)
  2. Series Pick: The Water Witch by Juliet Dark
  3. Nonfiction Pick: Goldilocks and the Water Bears by Louisa Preston
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Star of the Sea by Joseph O'Connor
  5. Classics Pick: ???
  6. Carryover: Bonk by Mary Roach
  7. Currently Reading: A Vision in Velvet by Juliet Blackwell
  8. Carryover/Must Finish Read: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  9. Cozy Mystery: Spellcasting in Silk by Juliet Blackwell
  10. Paranormal Fiction: The Stone Angel by Juliet Dark

Movies watched

  • Get Hard -- Somewhat entertaining. 
  • Sky High -- J was surprised I had never seen this one. It was way better than I thought it would be based off the description. 
  • Hotel Transylvania -- Arthur's pick. Decent animated movie.
  • Hotel Transylvania 2 -- And then Arthur had to watch the sequel.
  • The Hitman's Bodyguard -- J's pick and a highly entertaining one at that. Loved it! We laughed so hard.
  • Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets -- I wanted some fun Luc Besson and this delivered. Plot holes, but it was entertaining.
  • The House -- Definitely had entertaining parts. Love Raffi!
  • Lost in La Mancha -- Wow! That film production was a train wreck!
  • Hearts of Darkness -- Documentary kick last week... Pretty interesting
  • Man of Steel -- J finally convinced me to watch this one (after an entire bottle of wine) and it was just as bad as I thought it was going to be. Ugh!
  • Batman v Superman -- This movie was so boring! And 3 hours long! I'm amazed I made it through. Really the only parts I cared about where scenes featuring Alfred and Wonder Woman. Otherwise, didn't care. 
  • Suicide Squad -- This one was just confusing. What was the tone? Did any character grow? What changed in the DC Universe after this movie? 

TV Shows watched

  • Stranger Things S2 -- Holy cow! Still adore this show even though I felt like this season was a lot of set-up for season 3 instead of a contained storyline.
  • Star Trek: Discovery -- Still sticking with this one even with the issues. We finished the first half of S1, but there were problems.
  • Zapped -- Our current random British comedy. It has it's moments. 
  • Stan vs. Evil S1 -- Oh my! This was way too funny!

Comments - November turned out to be a great reading month. I thought I was going to hit a slump after October's craziness, but I surprised myself. I read a ton of books and knocked out a few reading challenge slots. On the TV and movie front, we watched a fair amount. We even forced ourselves to watch the start of the DC Universe movies even though they were painful. We'll see what happens for December... 

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Thursday 11.30.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

October 2017 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

October's TBR Pile (12/20):

OctTBR -- Read.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly √
  2. Series Pick: Secondhand Spirits by Juliet Blackwell (not pictured) √
  3. Nonfiction Pick: Reading People by Anne Bogel √
  4. Nonfiction Pick: The Last Stand by Nathaniel Philbrick
  5. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl
  6. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett (iPad)
  7. Scary Pick: The Dream Cycle of H.P. Lovecraft
  8. Scary Pick: The Gates by John Connolly √
  9. Scary Pick: Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff √
  10. Scare Pick: 99 Coffins by David Wellington
  11. Scary Pick: Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson
  12. Scary Pick: 8.4 Peter Hernon √
  13. Nonfiction Scary Pick: The Devil in the Shape of a Woman by Carol Karlsen
  14. Nonfiction Scary Pick: The Poet and the Murderer by Simon Worrall
  15. More Nonfiction: The Tea Reader edited by Katrina Avila Munichiello √
  16. Food Pick: Voracious by Cara Nicoletti √
  17. Cozy Mystery: A Cast-Off Coven by Juliet Blackwell (not pictured; library hold) √
  18. Added: The Mummy by Anne Rice (iPad) √
  19. Added: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson (not pictured) √
  20. Added: Haunted Castles by Ray Russell √

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 3606  pages
Pages Remaining: 706,286 pages

Current Read - The Devil in the Shape of a Woman; Hexes and Hemlines

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

November's TBR Pile:

NovTBR.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
  2. MVPA Book Club Selection: Bonk by Mary Roach
  3. Series Pick: In a Witches Wardrobe by Juliet Blackwell (not pictured, library hold)
  4. Nonfiction Pick: 1776 by David McCullough
  5. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Star of the Sea by Joseph O' Connor
  6. Classics Pick: The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton
  7. Currently Reading: Hexes and Hemlines by Juliet Blackwell
  8. Currently Reading: The Devil in the Shape of a Woman by Carol Karlsen
  9. Scary Pick: Omega Days by John Campbell
  10. Library random pick: Bad Girls Throughout History by Ann Shen
  11. Extra: Tarnished and Torn by Juliet Blackwell (not pictured, library hold)
  12. Extra: A Vision in Velvet by Juliet Blackwell
  13. Extra: Spellcasting in Silk by Juliet Blackwell
  14. Extra: A Toxic Trousseau by Juliet Blackwell

Movies watched

  • Why Him -- Stupid, but it had it's moments.
  • The Little Hours -- Fairly entertaining. Apparently we decided to go from one Franco to the other this month...
  • Spiderman: Homecoming -- We finally saw this and really enjoed it. A good sueprhero movie that didn't dwell so much on the teenage angst. Thank goodness.
  • Despicable Me 3 -- Mildly entertaining
  • Crimson Peak -- Finally! It's been sitting on the server for so long and we finally watched it.
  • The Haunting (1963) -- A very true adaptation of the book. The voice-over is weird, but I see what the filmakers were trying to do.
  • The Haunting (1999) -- Such a bad movie. After reading the book, I understand just how bad it is...
  • Baby Driver -- We're huge fans of Edgar Wright and this did not disappoint. And the soundtrack is amazing.

TV Shows watched

  • Episodes S5 -- Sad this show is over, but it was oh so good! And I don't even mind the feel-good ending.
  • Last Week Tonight -- Always a bit depressing, but we love it.
  • Adam Ruins Everything -- Even Arthur enjoys this one.
  • Avatar S3 -- Arthur and I finally finished this series. 
  • Dirk Gently S2 -- Love this totally weirdo show!
  • The Good Place S2 -- Every week we debate theories about what is going to happen. Love it!
  • Star Trek: Discovery S1 -- We're still watching and have our theories, but still waiting for more philosophical discussions...
  • Stranger Things S2 -- Oh my goodness!!!

Comments - I killed the FrighFall Readathon this month! 8 of my 12 books read were "scary" reads. And I passed 3500 pages for the month. November won't be this good for reading, but I'll take some entertaining reads.

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Tuesday 10.31.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

September 2017 Wrap-up

MonthlyWrap-up.png

September's TBR Pile (7/10):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff √
  2. Series Pick: Paper and Fire by Rachel Caine √
  3. Nonfiction Pick: The Last Stand by Nathaniel Philbrick
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa (put in the sell pile; just not speaking to me anymore)
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: One Night for Love by Mary Balogh √
  7. Comic Pick: The Wicked + The Divine Vol. 5 √
  8. Added: The Great Quake by Henry Fountain √
  9. Added: The Lost City of Z by David Grann √
  10. Added: Ash and Quill by Rachel Caine √

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 2320 pages
Pages Remaining: 709,892 pages

Current Read - The Last Stand by Nathaniel Philbrick

Books I Gave Up On (1) -- Children of Eden by Joey Graceffa. A YA Dystopian novel that I just couldn't get into. I think this one would have grabbed me when I was 15. Alas, I am not 15 and consequently I am just bored by it.

Books bought/received (1) -- I ended up preordering Anne Bogel's Reading People. Because I preordered, I get the audio version read by Anne herself as a bonus. 

October's TBR Pile:

OctTBR.jpg
  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
  2. Series Pick: Secondhand Spirits by Juliet Blackwell (not pictured; library hold)
  3. Nonfiction Pick: Reading People by Anne Bogel
  4. Nonfiction Pick: The Last Stand by Nathaniel Philbrick
  5. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl
  6. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett (iPad)
  7. Scary Pick: The Dream Cycle of H.P. Lovecraft
  8. Scary Pick: The Gates by John Connolly
  9. Scary Pick: Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff
  10. Scare Pick: 99 Coffins by David Wellington
  11. Scary Pick: Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson
  12. Scary Pick: 8.4 Peter Hernon
  13. Nonfiction Scary Pick: The Devil in the Shape of a Woman by Carol Karlsen
  14. Nonfiction Scary Pick: The Poet and the Murderer by Simon Worrall
  15. More Nonfiction: The Tea Reader edited by Katrina Avila Munichiello
  16. Food Pick: Voracious by Cara Nicoletti
  17. Cozy Mystery: Cast-Off Coven by JUliet Blackwell (not pictured; library hold)
  18. The Mummy by Anne Rice (iPad)

Movies watched

  • Wonder Woman -- Finally! And it was so good. Sure, there are some issues, but I loved seeing a badass female superhero lead a movie!
  • The Great Wall -- Our silly big blockbuster pick. We made an agreement to not pick on the historical inaccuracies. Otherwise we would have never made it through the movie.
  • Hot Tub Time Machine -- We needed a good silly comedy one night. This is a go-to!
  • The Island of Lost Souls (1932) -- A classic from our Science Fiction Top 100 list. Definitely better than the crazy remakes...
  • Sausage Party -- J's pick. It was thoroughly stupid, 
  • Boss Baby -- Arthur's pick. Actually a pretty decent animated movie. Alec Baldwin voicing the baby was perfect casting!
  • The Lost City of Z -- Amazingly this movie did not make me as angry as I thought it would. Decent adaptation of a book based on a true story of exploration in the Amazon. I would watch it again... 
  • The War of the Worlds (1953) -- It's been years since I watched this one. Part of the Top 100 Science Fiction Movies. We're making our way through the entire list, watching some for the first time and rewatching others.

TV Shows watched

  • Ken Burns' The National Parks -- We finally got around to watching and it was beautiful. 
  • Supernatural S2 -- Working our way through the series slowly, but surely...
  • Rick and Morty S3!!! -- Woot woot!
  • The Good Places S2 -- Oh man! The first two episodes were great. I can't wait to see where they go with this season.
  • Star Trek: Discovery -- We're reserving judgement in the hopes that the show is more philosophical than action, but the first two episodes were pretty good at setting up the series.
  • Avatar: The Last Airbender S3 -- J finally fixed the files (they were in Hebrew), so Arthur and I can finally finish the series.

Comments - So I didn't reach my pages read goal of 2500 pages this month, but I wouldn't call the month a failure. I knocked off some decent reads and one bad one (Fates and Furies). I read two more volumes in one my newest favorite series, The Great Library. We also watched a fair amount of movies and watched a fair amount of TV. October's TBR pile is very ambitious, but I'm hoping to knock out at least half of the books pictures> I would love a good showing for the FrightFall Readathon.

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Monday 10.02.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

August 2017 Wrap-up

August's TBR Pile (11/14):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: We are Never Meeting in Real Life by Samantha Irby √
  2. Series Pick: Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare √
  3. Nonfiction Pick: ???
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Turn of the Screw by Henry James √
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: Simply Unforgettable by Mary Balogh √
  7. Young Adult Pick: Dearly, Beloved by Lia Habel (DNF)
  8. Added: The Wicked + The Divine Vol. 1 √
  9. Added: The Wicked + The Divine Vol. 2 √
  10. Added: The Wicked + The Divine Vol. 3 √
  11. Added: Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine √
  12. Added: Simply Love by Mary Balogh √
  13. Added: Simply Magic by Mary Balogh √
  14. Added: Simply Perfect by Mary Balogh √

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 3861 pages
Pages Remaining: 712,212 pages

Current Read - One Night for Love by Mary Balogh; The Great Quake by Henry Fountain

Books I Gave Up On (1) -- Dearly, Beloved by Lia Habel. I enjoyed the first book (Dearly, Departed), but could not get into this one at all. It was just boring me. After about 75 pages, I decided to let it go and move on to something I want to read.

Books bought/received (0)

September's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff
  2. Series Pick: Paper and Fire by Rachel Caine
  3. Nonfiction Pick: The Great Quake by Henry Fountain
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: One Night for Love by Mary Balogh
  7. Comic Pick: The Wicked + The Divine Vol. 5

Movies watched

  • Westworld -- We figured we would watch the original movie before embarking on the tv show.
  • Arrival -- I liked it, but not sure if the hype was worth it.
  • True Grit -- J couldn't believe I hadn't seen either the old one or the remake. We watched the remake. Really good western.
  • Fantastic Beasts -- Fun movie. Nothing earth shattering, but a fun movie.
  • Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 -- Of course we enjoyed this one.
  • King Arthur -- Way too much plot shoved into this one movie. 
  • xXX: Return of Xander Cage -- Utter ridiculousness.

TV Shows watched

  • Ken Burns National Parks
  • Supernatural S1 -- We finally finished the first season and started S2!
  • Last Week Tonight
  • Full Frontal
  • Episodes -- So so glad this one is back. We love it so much.
  • Bachelor in Paradise -- My silly guilty pleasure

Comments - Getting sick did wonders for my reading totals this month. I don't imagine that September will be as good, but I am hoping for some good reads. 

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Thursday 08.31.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

July 2017 Wrap-up

July's TBR Pile (10/13):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty √
  2. Series Pick: The Wicked Will Rise by Danielle Paige √
  3. Nonfiction Pick: 50 Great American Places √
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Kingdom of Ohio by Matthew Fleming
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: ????
  7. Carry over: Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel √
  8. Added: Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare √
  9. Added: Christmas Present by Jodi Taylor √
  10. Added: Yellow Brick War by Danielle Paige √
  11. Added: Locke and Key Small World √
  12. Added: The End of Oz by Danielle Paige √
  13. Added: Dead Feminists by Chandler O'Leary and Jessica Spring √

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 2944 pages
Pages Remaining: 716,073 pages

Current Read - We are Never Meeting in Real Life by Samantha Irby

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

August's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: We are Never Meeting in Real Life by Samantha Irby
  2. Series Pick: Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
  3. Nonfiction Pick: ???
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: Simply Unforgettable by Mary Balogh
  7. Young Adult Pick: Dearly, Beloved by Lia Habel

Movies watched

  • Tucker and Dale vs. Evil -- Showed this horror comedy to the twins. They really enjoyed the absurdity.
  • Cockneys Vs. Zombies -- Holy hell that was funny! I love my zombie movies and this one was a joy.
  • Oh Brother Where Art Thou? -- Don't think the twins fully appreciated this one as it was their first Coen Brothers and they haven't read The Odyssey. But they did like it.
  • Empire Records -- J and I rewatched this one night. Love Rex Manning Day!
  • Kubo and the Two Strings -- The twins didn't get to see this! Thankfully we have it on the server. Such a great movie.
  • Paul -- Introduced the twins to this fun movie.
  • Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World -- Alex requested to watch after reading the comics. Lots of fun!
  • Escape from New York -- Some great cheese to share with the twins.
  • Hidden Figures -- J and I finally got to watch it. Such a good movie. Now I need to read the book.
  • Popstar -- Way funnier than it should have been! We seriously laughed too hard.

TV Shows watched

  • Doctor Who S10 -- Oh my! What a season ender! 
  • The Bachelorette -- I'm still watching...
  • Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell -- Finally started watching this mini series. Love love love it! 
  • Big Little Lies -- I finished the book for book club so I thought I would try and squeeze in the series before club. 
  • Supernatural S1 -- J and I are making our way through the first season. Loving rewatching the episodes almost 12 years late.

Comments - Decent reading this month. I finished off the Dorothy Must Die series, started The Mortal Instruments and Gone with the Respiration. Plus, we managed to watch a decent amount of new (and old) movies. Added bonus, I finished the Big Little Lies TV adaptation. Very good!

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Sunday 07.30.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

June 2017 Wrap-up

June's TBR Pile (8/12):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah √
  2. Series Pick: Dorothy Must Die Stories Vol. 2 by Danielle Paige √
  3. Nonfiction Pick: ???
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: Secrets of the Heart by Candace Camp √
  7. Carry over: The Kingdom of Ohio by Matthew Flaming
  8. Short Stories: Dorothy Must Die Stories Vol. 3 by Danielle Paige √
  9. Added: Roman Holiday by Jodi Taylor √
  10. Added: Wonder Woman The True Amazon by Jill Thompson √
  11. Added: Zombies A Brief History of Decay by Olivier Peru √
  12. Added: A Trail Through Time by Jodi Taylor √

Picture Book Roundup:

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 2034 pages
Pages Remaining: 719,017 pages

Current Read - The Wicked Will Rise by Danielle Paige

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

July's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
  2. Series Pick: The Wicked Will Rise by Danielle Paige
  3. Nonfiction Pick: 50 Great American Places
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Kingdom of Ohio by Matthew Fleming
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: ????
  7. Carry over: Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel

Movies watched

  • The Man in the White Suit -- 1951 thriller starring Alec Guiness
  • Destination Moon -- One of the Top 100 SciFi movies. I wanted a space movie and picked this one to watch. Robert Heinlein was a consultant on the film. Fairly realistic space movie for the 1950s.
  • The Creature from the Black Lagoon -- Been years since I watched this. Definitely one of the better monster movies even with all the cheese.
  • John Wick 2 -- Definitely not the level of the first one, but I still really enjoyed it.
  • Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels -- Introduced this one to the twins. They loved it.
  • Seven Samurai -- Introduced this masterpiece to the twins. They were bored initially, but really got into the second half.
  • The Birds -- Introduced the twins to Hitchcock, starting with my favorite!
  • Snatch -- Finished out the "sequel" to Lock, Stock. The boys enjoyed it more than Lock Stock.

TV Shows watched

  • Supernatural S1 -- J and I are slowly plugging away at this one.
  • Last Week Tonight
  • The Bachelorette -- Finally on track wth watching and listening to my podcast (Here to Make Friends). I'm in agreement with the podcast ladies that the last four will be Peter, Dean, Bryan, and Eric. I'm pulling for Peter but I have a feeling that Bryan wins.
  • Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell -- Started this mini series while J was gone one night. Read the book a few months back and have been meaning to watch. Episode 1 was really good.

Comments - Decent reading and media viewing this month. I didn't read quite as many pages as i would have liked, but I did knock off some good books from my TBR pile. And I finished my book club book with almost a week to spare!

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Friday 06.30.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

May 2017 Wrap-up

 

May's TBR Pile (6/11):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: (Already read)
  2. Series Pick: Roman Holiday by Jodi Taylor
  3. Nonfiction Pick: The Island at the Center of the World by Russell Shorto √
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Kingdom of Ohio by Matthew Flaming
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: The Hidden Heart by Candace Camp √
  7. Carry over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  8. Added: Step Aside, Pops by Kate Beaton √
  9. Added: Anno Dracula by Kim Newman √
  10. Added: Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige √
  11. Added: Dorothy Must Die Stories Vol. 1 by Danielle Paige √

Picture Book Roundup:

  1. Super Rawr! by Todd H. Doodler
  2. Lost Cat by C. Roger Mader
  3. Bear is Not Tired by Ciara Gavin
  4. Hot Rod Hamster and the Wacky Whatever Race! by Cynthia Lord
  5. Patrick's Dinosaurs by Carol Carrick
  6. Teachers Rock! by Todd Parr
  7. T. Rex and the Mother's Day Hug by Lois G. Grambling

1,000,000 Page Goal:

Monthly Total: 2286 pages
Pages Remaining: 721,051 pages

Current Read - Secrets of the Heart by Candace Camp

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

June's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
  2. Series Pick: Dorothy Must Die Stories Vol. 2 by Danielle Paige
  3. Nonfiction Pick: ???
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: Secrets of the Heart by Candace Camp
  7. Carry over: The Kingdom of Ohio by Matthew Flaming
  8. Short Stories: Dorothy Must Die Stories Vol. 3 by Danielle Paige

Movies watched

  • Iron Eagle -- J made me watch it. Total 80s cheese. And for the life of me, I can't figure out the geography of the movie...
  • The Hunger Games; Mockingjay Part 2 -- I finally finished the series. I liked a few of the sequences (the oil in the courtyard, so gross!), but overall I was disappointed. 
  • Pete's Dragon -- Arthur and I watched this one night while J was out of town. Confused by the tone although the little kid that played Pete was great.
  • Logan -- Finally! This has been on J and I's list since it came out (we're parents of tiny kiddos, no movies in theaters for us right now). Such a different X-men movie, but I loved loved loved it! And that little girl that played X-23 was amazing!
  • Fire Birds -- Another J pick. This one was a complete Top Gun rip-off movie that was even worse than Iron Eagle. Didn't think that was possible!
  • Brewster's Millions -- I haven't watched this movie in years. A nice rewatch for Memorial Day Weekend.

TV Shows watched

  • Brooklyn 99 -- Since we finished 30 Rock, this has been J's go-to short fun show for lunch and random nights. I didn't watch every episode, but I did watch a fair amount of them. We are completely caught up with the series and man that finale was a killer!
  • The Magicians S2 -- Holy cow was that a crazy season finale! Where are they going to go in Season 3?
  • Elementary S5 -- J and I guessed the big Sherlock twist before it was revealed, but overall a solid series. 
  • Doctor Who S10 -- We're watching this basically in real time. Love Peter Capaldi! And Pearl Mackie is pretty entertaining. Plus Michelle Gomez returns!

Comments - My reading just tanked this month. I was very busy and distracted and apparently just didn't prioritize much time for reading. I hope I get it back on track for June. I need some de-stressing...

Next up on the TBR pile:

jujutsu11.jpg liminal.jpg jujutsu12.jpg enchantra.jpg water moon.jpg uzumaki.jpg alley.jpg deserter.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg book of the most.jpg great big.jpg jujutsu13.jpg jujutsu14.jpg jujutsu15.jpg seoulmates.jpg twisted1.jpg lore7.jpg jujutsu16.jpg twisted2.jpg twisted3.jpg twisted4.jpg
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Wednesday 05.31.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

April 2017 Wrap-up

Monthly-TBR.jpg

April's TBR Pile (13/16):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie √
  2. Series Pick: A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor √
  3. Nonfiction Pick: The Bust Guide to the New World Order √
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Tuscany for Beginners by Imogen Edwards-Jones √
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: So Wild a Heart by Candace Camp √
  7. Carry over: Dead Feminists by O'Leary
  8. Carry over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  9. Carry over: Everyday Sexism by Laura Bates √
  10. Added: Atlantia by Ally Condie √
  11. Added: Saga Vol. 6 √
  12. Added: East of West Vol. 5 √
  13. Added; East of West Vol. 6 √
  14. Added: The Walking Dead Vol. 25 √
  15. Added: The Walking Dead Vol. 26 √
  16. Added: Lady Killer by Joelle Jones √
  17. Added: You're Doing a Great Job by Biz Ellis and Theresa Thorn √
     

Picture Book Roundup:

  1. That's Not My Dragon
  2. Hap-pea All Year by Keith Baker
  3. Absolutely One Thing by Lauren Child
  4. It Came in the Mail by Ben Clanton
  5. Poo in the Zoo by Steve Smallman
  6. One, Two, Three, Mother Goose by Iona Opie
  7. Monster Park by Annie Bach

1,000,000 Page Goal

Monthly Total: 3888 pages

Pages Remaining: 723,337 pages

Current Read - Anno Dracula by Kim Newman

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

May's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: (Already read)
  2. Series Pick: Roman Holiday by Jodi Taylor
  3. Nonfiction Pick: ???
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Dante Club by Matthew Flaming
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: The Hidden Heart by Candace Camp
  7. Carry over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

Movies watched

  • Godzilla (2014) -- Unintentional comedy. Seriously, who writes this stuff? My biggest pet peeve: the writers apparently do not know geography.
  • Moana (2016) -- I finally got to watch this gem. So so good! And the music is amazing.

TV Shows watched

  • Legion S1 -- Oh so good! We sped through this season. I can't wait to see what that they do for a second season!
  • The Magicians S2 -- Very different from the book, but we love it.
  • UnReal S2 -- One of my guilty pleasure shows.
  • The 100 S4 -- Another guilty pleasure.
  • 30 Rock S6-S7 -- Finally finished with this series. It was something fun to watch during a lunch or while the kids were running around playing. 
  • Avatar S2 -- Arthur and I watch any episode with lunch some days.
  • Rick and Morty S1-S3 -- J got me started watching this. How did I miss this show?

Comments - So my big blog transfer happened this month and was an obstacle to reading. I'm definitely okay with how much I read, but a bit disappointed at the amount of time I was dealing with blog stuff instead of reading. Hopefully May settles down (although I still have a ton of behind the scenes work to do for the new blogs).

categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Sunday 04.30.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

March 2017 Wrap-up

 

March's TBR Pile (14/17):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey √
  2. Series Pick: Fairest by Marissa Meyer √
  3. Nonfiction Pick: The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell √
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: The Golden Prince by Rebecca Dean √
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Carry over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  7. Short Stories: Stars Above by Marissa Meyer √
  8. Comic Pick: Love Hurts by Kim Andersson √
  9. Comic Pick: Monstress Vol. 1 √
  10. Comic Pick: Pretty Deadly Vol. 1 √
  11. Comic Pick: Pretty Deadly Vol. 2 √
  12. Library Pick: Dead Feminists by O'Leary
  13. Added: Hark! A Vagrant by Kate Beaton √
  14. Added: Winter by Marissa Meyer √
  15. Added: Hamilton The Revolution by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter √
  16. Added: When a Child is Born by Jodi Taylor √
  17. Added: Unmentionable by Therese Oneill √
  18. Added: Shitty Mom by Laurie Kilmartin (reread) √

Picture Book Roundup:

1,000,000 Page Goal

Monthly Total: 3966 pages

Pages Remaining: 727,225 pages

Current Read - Everyday Sexism by Laura Bates

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

April's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
  2. Series Pick: A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor
  3. Nonfiction Pick: The Bust Guide to the New World Order
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Tuscany for Beginners by Imogen Edwards-Jones
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Romance Pick: So Wild a Heart by Candace Camp
  7. Carry over: Dead Feminists by O'Leary
  8. Carry over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

Movies watched

  • The Huntsman: Winter's War -- Storyline not good at all, but those costumes were to die for!
  • X-Men Apocalypse -- Not the worst X-Men movie, but definitely not the best. And about 30 minutes too long.
  • Rogue One -- Finally got to see this one. Love love loved it!
  • Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (RiffTrax version) -- J's birthday movie pick. RiffTrax made it almost watchable...

TV Shows watched

  • UnReal S2
  • Last Week Tonight (catching up)
  • The Bachelor
  • The Magicians S2
  • Legion S1
  • Emerald City S1
  • Elementary (catching up)
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Friday 03.31.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

February 2017 Wrap-up

 

February's TBR Pile (9/12):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: (already read)
  2. Series Pick: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer √
  3. Nonfiction Pick: The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell
  4. Carry-over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  5. Carry-over: The Daily Show by Chris Smith √
  6. Carry-over: The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett √
  7. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Burning Bright by Tracey Chevalier √
  8. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic
  9. Added: A Study of Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas √
  10. Added: The Very First Damned Thing by Jodi Taylor √
  11. Added: Tales of the Peculiar by Ransom Riggs √
  12. Added: Cress by Marissa Meyer √
  13. Added: A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor √

Picture Book Roundup:

  1. Frankie Stein by Lola M. Schaefer
  2. Michael Recycle by Ellie Bethel
  3. Funny Face, Sunny Face by Sally Symes
  4. Animals by the Numbers by Steve Jenkins
  5. Toys Meet Snow by Emily Jenkins
  6. I Wanna Go Home by Karen Kaufman Orloff

1,000,000 Page Goal

Monthly Total: 2989 pages

Pages Remaining: 731,191 pages

Current Read - The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received (0)

March's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey
  2. Series Pick: Fairest by Marissa Meyer
  3. Nonfiction Pick: The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell
  4. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Golden Prince by Rebecca Dean
  5. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
  6. Carry over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  7. Short Stories: Stars Above by Marissa Meyer
  8. Comic Pick: Love Hurts by Kim Anderson
  9. Comic Pick: Monstress Vol. 1
  10. Comic Pick: Pretty Deadly Vol. 1
  11. Comic Pick: Pretty Deadly Vol. 2
  12. Library Pick: Dead Feminists by O'Leary

Movies watched

  • Allegiant
  • Cinderella
  • My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2
  • Love and Friendship
  • Doctor Strange
  • Bad Moms

TV Shows watched

  • 30 Rock S2-4
  • The Great British Baking Show S7
  • Avatar S1 (rewatching this with Arthur)
  • Broadchurch S1

Comments - For being the shortest month of the year, I killed it with my reading. I really tried to focus on reading in my spare time as opposed to always turn to tv. Seemed to have paid off!

categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Wednesday 03.01.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

January 2017 Wrap-up

 

January's TBR Pile (7/10):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling √
  2. Series Pick: The Poisoned Season by Tasha Alexander
  3. Nonfiction Pick: Buffering by Hannah Hart √
  4. Carry-over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  5. Comic Pick: Revival Vol. 3 √
  6. Comic Pick: The Runaways Complete Collection Vol. 1 √
  7. Added: The Bargain by Jane Ashford √
  8. Added: A Flaw in the Blood by Stephanie Barron √
  9. Added: The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett
  10. Added: Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor √

Picture Book Roundup: Finally getting back to the library for new-to-us picture books

  1. Yellow Copter by Kersten Hamilton
  2. Too Many Moose! by Lisa M. Bakos
  3. A Poem in Your Pocket by Margaret McNamara
  4. H.O.R.S.E. by Christopher Meyers
  5. The Awful Aardvarks Shop for School by Reeve Lindbergh
  6. Take Away the A by Michael Escoffier
  7. Bike On, Bear! by Cynthea Liu
  8. Curious George Discovers the Stars by Bethany V. Freitas
  9. Never Play Music Next to the Zoo by John Lithgow
  10. Zoo Zoom! by Candace Ryan
  11. Meet Tracker by Geof Smith
  12. The 329th Friends by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat
  13. The Sandman by William Joyce
  14. Don't Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late by Mo Willems
  15. My Pet Book  by Bob Staake
  16. Half of an Elephant by Gusti
  17. Miss Fox's Class Shapes Up by Eileen Spinelli

1,000,000 Page Goal

Monthly Total: 1793 pages

Pages Remaining: 734,180 pages

Current Read - Voyager by Diana Gabaldon; The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett; the Daily Show An Oral History by Christ Smith

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Books bought/received

February's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: (already read)
  2. Series Pick: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
  3. Nonfiction Pick:
  4. Carry-over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  5. Carry-over: The Daily Show by Chris Smith
  6. Carry-over: The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett
  7. Read Your Book Shelf Pick: Burning Bright by Tracey Chevalier
  8. Discworld Pick: The Light Fantastic

Movies watched - See all the movies watch in January in my New Movie Posts here and here. We didn't make it to 31 movies this month, but we did watch a fair amount of new-to-me movies.

TV Shows watched

  • UnReal S1 - Finally watched this show during break. A very intriguing soap opera.
  • Ben and Lauren: Happily Ever After? S1 - Haha! My mom made me watch this one. Those two are ridiculous.
  • The Paradise S2 Episodes 2-3
  • The Bachelor S21 - So far, I'm loving Nick as the Bachelor. So much more personality than the last bachelor, Ben. And my three picks, Vanessa, Rachel, and Danielle, are still in it!
  • Sherlock S4 - J and finished this in the span of about a week.
  • Gilmore Girls S6 and S7 - I finally finished so I can watch the mini series.
  • Those Who Can't - J and sped through this series...
  • Superstore - And this one...
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Wednesday 02.01.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

December 2016 Wrap-up and Monthly TBR

 

December's TBR Pile (8/11):

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling
  2. MVPA Book Club Selection (February): Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris √
  3. Series Pick: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  4. Nonfiction Pick: 13 by Nathan Lachenmeyer √
  5. Carry-over: The Lady and Her Monsters by Roseanne Montillo √
  6. Jar Pick: A Poisoned Season by Tasha Alexander
  7. Jar Pick: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
  8. Added: Glitches by Marissa Meyer √
  9. Added: The Queen's Army by Marissa Meyer √
  10. Added: The Little Android by Marissa Meyer √
  11. Added: Bossypants by Tina Fey √
  12. Added: High Rise by J.G. Ballard √

Picture Book Roundup:

1,000,000 Page Goal

Monthly Total: 1421 pages

Pages Remaining: 735,973 pages

Current Read - Voyager by Diana Gabaldon! Still plugging through it...

Books I Gave Up On (0)

Challenges Completed  - I finished out my 52 Books in 52 Weeks Challenge right at Christmas. Perfect timing... And I finished out the Book to Movie Challenge with my last book of 2016.

Books bought/received

2016 Total Spent: $21.25

Comments - Another month come and gone. December was definitely not my month when it came to lots of pages read, but I did manage to sneak in a few books here and there. Here's to starting 2017 off right with some great book picks!

January's TBR Pile:

  1. MVPA Book Club Selection: The Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling
  2. Series Pick: The Poisoned Season by Tasha Alexander
  3. Nonfiction Pick: Buffering by Hannah Hart
  4. Carry-over: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
  5. Comic Pick: Revival Vol. 3
  6. Comic Pick: The Runaways Complete Collection Vol. 1
categories: Monthly Wrap-Up
Monday 01.02.17
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 
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