TOO MANY READATHONS.... But I want to do them all!

Why do I feel the need to do ALL OF THE THINGS while working full time and getting a Masters in Public Health!? I dont know WHY I think I am Wonder Woman and can do that, participate in readathons, blog, keep up to date on all of my BookTube subscriptions, exercise, cook dinner every night, watch TV and spent QT with my boyfriend, squeeze in the Redskins games, and see friends and family. I CRACK myself up... But, I still continue to try. Sigh.

Having said that, I do want to talk about some upcoming readathons. I am trying to participate in Contemporaryathon this week but I have read 51 pages so I am going to take it as a fail and move on. I am going to finish what I am reading and try to do that quickly so I can move on....

There are two readathons (thought there were 3) I would like to participate in in the upcoming two months. The good news is while the next few weeks are going to be insanely stressful, I will have almost a month and a half off and I hope to read lots. Also, I am about 10 books away from my yearly goal for 2017  but I don't see myself finishing 10 before Dec 31 but perhaps! Stranger things have happened.

I have made notes about what I may fit into these challenges based on what I also currently feel like reading. Keep in mind, I will come back to edit my final TBRs!

Minimoji-A-Thon – Nov 23 - 30, 2017

• Challenges (please refer to the original Google Doc for the original emojis):
  •  – A book set during winter: Snow Like Ashes
  •  – Read a book with green on the cover: Summer Days and Summer Nights
  •  – A book that has the Christmas spirit (a Christmas book)
  •  – A book with angels in it
•  – Read for 60 minutes straight without checking your phone: 
•  – A book with a reflective cover The Dazzling Heights
•  – A book you received as a gift
•  – A book that has red & white on the cover: The Girl in 6E
•  – New year, new book! Start a new series: Throne of Glass
•  – Ghost of Christmas past; read a book that has been haunting your TBR for over a year: Throne of Glass
•   – A warm/fuzzy read: HP & the Prisoner of Azkaban  -  Illustrated Ed
•  – Shiny new toy, read a new book that you’ve been dying to get your hands on: The Dazzling Heights
•  – A book featuring sports (bonus points for a wintery sport): HP 3 - Illus Ed
•  – Read a book with snow on the cover: Snow Like Ashes
•  – A book that features family or food: Wonder
•  – A book with bad reviews
•  – A book that features travel
•  – Dreaming of Christmas in July. Read a book set during the summer: Summer Days and Summer Nights
•  – Fa La La La L-ISTEN to an audiobook!
•  – Freebie: Wonder

My Official TBR:

Grinchathon – Dec 17 - 23, 2017 

(more info here- credit to Izzy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZCZzrNFllM )

• Anticipated Read
• Mental Health Read
• Feel Good Read
• Black Cover
• Book set somewhere warm or looks like a warm read
• Diverse Read
• Dark Read/Thriller

Spookathon Wrapup!

I only ended up finishing 2.5 books and edited my TBR.... just a bit. Considering there was a death in the family, I had a midterm and paper due that week in Grad school, worked full time, squeezed in 5 walks, and started a #7daychallenge for Shakeology/Beach body which required 50 oz of water a day, a 30 minute workout and clean eating for the week; I suppose I have to give myself some credit since I read 773 pages during the week, as well.

Here were my reads and stats:

4 stars. I really liked the book. I had a few small issues with it but overall, it kept me super interested and was a fast-paced read.



I could be wrong but I vaguely recall this having mixed reviews. I have owned this for a long time so I was happy to finally get it read. I actually was quite surprised by this book and loved it. 4.5 stars.


read this on 'audio'. Changed it out for the 'childhood fear' challenge -- the word 'lightning'. This is a re-read for me so I can finally finish the series. So cute. Love it. I won't rate it yet because I did not get half way!

Stay tuned. Two more readathons to come in the month of November!

October Readathons!!!

Hello all - 

I am just swinging by to tell you about the two readathons I plan to take part in during the month of October! It's that fall-spooky-cool-snuggly-football-sweater weather time of year... and that means it's perfect for reading spooky thrillers and dark fantasies.... anything with that fall-ish vibe. And of course, it's the perfect time for Harry Potter, so you know I will be including the next illustrated release in my readthons! 

I plan to participate in Spookathon which takes place from October 16 - 22, 2017! This is hosted by BooksandLala, Bookerly, and Paiges Pages. This is a very popular readathon. So many wonderful BookTubers take part in this, do daily Vlogs, blogs, challenges, wrap-ups, etc! It's so exciting each year! The information for Spookathon can be found here on Twitter: Spookathon 2017 (They also have a bunch of videos linked by the hosts which are super fun to watch.) The Reading Challenges are as follows:

• A thriller.
• A book with a spooky word in the title.
• A book about a childfood fear of yours.
• A book with orange on the cover
• A book with a spooky setting.
• Group Read: A Stranger in the House.  

The second readathon I plan to be a part of is the FrightFall readathon. You can find all of the information you might need here:  FrightFall 2017 The challenges are:

• Read a scary book

That is it! Easy Peasy! :) You can use the following when posting on social media: #FrightFall You can sign up here: Sign up!

Here is my TBR (and my very first #bookstagram picture that I actually staged and LOVE! 

I hope you plan to partake in a Fall readathon or two. Be sure to comment and let me know what you will be reading this fall!

Happy Autumn!!! 

Readathon Wrap-Up!

This will be up shortly!!

Biannual Bibliothon Day 1 Blogger Challenge!

The first day blog challenge is answering the following questions:

1.What are you planning to read for the Summer Biannual Bibliothon?

• Isn't that a great question? I have changed my TBR a million times but here is the 'plan', but it will probably be changed up a time or two mid-readathon!
• • Group book (Flame in the Mist by Renee Adieh)
  • N/A
  • Read from a host's favorite genre (options are: Magical Realism, Historical Fiction, High/Epic Fantasy, Diverse Books, Dystopian/SciFi, Paranormal or Urban fantasy)
  • Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling Illustrated Edition
  • Read a book that has been or is still banned
  • The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (and Harry Potter!!)
  • Throwback challenge (I picked graphic novel)
  • Saga: Vol 4 by Brian Vaughan
  • Book to movie/tv adaptation
  • Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling Illustrated Edition
  • Read a book you've seen somewhere other than BookTube
  • A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
  • LGBTQIA
  • Simon vs the Homosapiens Agenda by Becky  Albertalli

2.What is your favourite genre to read in Summer?

• That's tough b/c this year, I have read a lot of fantasy but typically, I feel like that is a Winter kind of genre. I would say thriller and contemporaries but this summer I have mixed it up quite a bit.

3.Where is your favourite place to read in the summer?

• The pool or the beach. I just get distracted too easily!

4.What is your favourite challenge done in the Summer Biannual Bibliothon?

• Read a book in a day. It's hard but it's SO rewarding!

5.What fictional character would you hang out in the summer if you could?

• That is a very hard question. Hermione, perhaps!!

6.What are your plans for summer?

• I live about 20 min outside DC in the suburbs or Maryland so we go to the Eastern shore, to the beach, 3 times a summer b/c my BF LOVES it! So, we have already gone twice. We have one more trip planned (the week grad classes start again!!) and I am going to see my mom for a short trip to FL in August as well! Other than that, I took off this summer for classes so I am reading!!!!

7.Do you have summer reading playlist,If not what would be on it?

• Not particularly for summer but, I keep a few spotify playlists up to date. I have a country one, a workout (running) one, and an alt/indie one.

8.What is your favourite summer movie?

• Probably a silly 80's movie. I can't think of anything off hand.

9.What book do you read every summer,if not what thing do you do every summer?

• I don't have one. But our beach trips are definitely every single summer for the past 4 without fail.

10.What other book tags are you planning to do this summer?

• I am not sure what tags I will do but I am taking part in many readathons!!
• Biannual Bibliothon
• Book Tube-a-thon
• International Buddy-a-thon
• Bout of Books
• ARC August

Readathon Frenzy!!

Hello Everyone -

I am so excited to take part in THREE readathons that are overlapping next week! The first is Book Tube-a-thon. The second is the Biannual Bibliothon. And I am taking part in an International Buddy-a-thon. There is no way I can do all of the challenges for one, much less for all three. I always have high hopes but I read less than a quarter of what most BookTuber's read during readathons so I will do my best. I will have a lot of overlapping challenges. I have posted them below. There are also a lot of books that fit many challenges. It seems like every book I wanted to pick had a person on the cover. :)  Wish me luck -- this is such an ambitious TBR!
If  you want more information for the readathons, I have included that too!

Also, Hardbackhoarder on YouTube created an AWESOME google doc to share for tracking Book tube-a-thon here - check her out on YT here: Hardbackhoarder

Book Tube-a-Thon (July 24 - 30, 2017)

Info here

• Read a book with a person on the cover
• A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
• Read a hyped book
• Simon vs the Homosapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
• Finish a book in one day
• Night by Elie Wiesel
• Read about a character that is very different from you
• The Association of Small Bombs by Karan Mahajan (Audio book)
• Read a book completely outdoors
• Saga: Vol 4 by Brian Vaughan
• Read a book you bought because of the cover
• A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'engle
• Read 7 books

Biannual Bibliothon (July 23 - 29, 2017)

Info here

• Group book (Flame in the Mist by Renee Adieh)
• N/A
• Read from a host's favorite genre (options are: Magical Realism, Historical Fiction, High/Epic Fantasy, Diverse Books, Dystopian/SciFi, Paranormal or Urban fantasy)
• Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling
• Read a book that has been or is still banned
• The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (and Harry Potter!!)
• Throwback challenge (I picked graphic novel)
• Saga: Vol 4 by Brian Vaughan
• Book to movie/tv adaptation
• Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets
• Read a book you've seen somewhere other than BookTube
• A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
• LGBTQIA
• Simon vs the Homosapiens Agenda by Becky  Albertalli

Buddy-a-Thon (July 28 - 30, 2017)

My buddy is kayleebob on twitter and she is in Canada, while I am in the US! I am very excited to read with her and read her recommendation!

• A book with a strong friendship
• A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
• A book that takes place outside the country you live in.
• Night by Elie Wiesel (Also, our buddy read!)
• A book recommended by your international buddy. 
• Simon vs the Homosapiens Agenda by Becky  Albertalli

My final TBR:

Are you taking part? If not, what are you reading this summer? Let's chat!

Update on life - & next Read-a-Thon

My second semester of grad school is getting ready to wrap up and I cannot even tell you how much I am looking forward to the only summer I will not be taking classes until I get my MPH! This semester, I am taking the dreaded Biostatistics and it has been KILLING me! Many a' tears have been shed. Literally.

It is nearing the end and the final is May 19th and of course, unfortunately, it is cumulative and not open book. I have NO idea how I am going to get through it, but I have to b/c it is 30% of our grade.  I also have my behavioral health exam but it's take-home so I feel better about that. The next three weeks with school and two back to back out-of-town weddings are going to be very trying but May is here and the reward will be incredible!

I am VERy much looking forward to reading A LOT this summer. Of course, albeit a very stupid idea, I am going to try to participate in the Bout of Books readathon in May... before school is over which is downright silly but this is one of my favorite readathons so I want to at least try! I will be using the template below and have absolutely no idea what my TBR will look like yet. To find our more information go here:  http://boutofbooks.blogspot.com/

I will keep you updated and post again with my TBR and will be sure to post a wrap up, like I did for the Borrrow-a-thon!

Til then, live well!!

Time Devoted to Reading

I will be reading a day/on the weekend/all week.

My Goals

• [this can be as detailed or as vague as you'd like]

Books to Read

• [add the books you hope to read here] [or don't add any. your call.]

Updates

Monday
Number of books I've read today:
Total number of books I've read:
Books

Borrow-A-Thon Wrap Up!

Hello everyone!

I recently participated in the Borrow-A-Thon readathon from March 19 - 26th. I actually was pretty successful considering I work full time, am in grad school part time, had my parents staying with me, and two bridal functions all in the same week!

The challenges were:

1.  a book you would like to purchase
2. a graphic novel
3. an author you've never read before
4. a book that has been recommended
5. a book that's cover has your favorite color
6. a book that features a library

While I tried to select more books to complete these challenges (the more, the better, right!?), I figured I would only get through three. And since there was overlap, I technically completed EVERY challenge but one! :)

I started and completed the books below and in order. Under each, I will give my thoughts, when I read each, and what challenge/s they fulfilled. 

 This book fulfilled challenge #6 - Featured a library! It was a short book and had pictures. It was only 96 pages and I finished it during the first day's sprints. While this is a strange book, I was so intrigued and wanted to see what happened next. It was a very easy and fast read. It was different from anything else I had ever read before so I appreciated that. I would gave this book 4 stars.

The second book I read - the very same day, was Saga, Volume One. This fulfilled challenge #2 and was 160 pages. I LOVED every second of it. I have tried a few graphic novels in the past but this was the first to grab my attention and keep me 100% invested. I loved the character, the story development, the variety of stories being told, the art, etc. I already have the next volume waiting for me at the library. I can't wait to see what happens next. I was waiting to find a graphic novel that captured my attention and this one was it! I love it so so so much! I will read all of them! I gave it 5 stars!

I read this book third and started it on the second day but did not finish it until March 26th! It was only 173 pages. This book technically fulfilled every other challenge, but #5, having my favorite color. It actually helped me complete #'s 1, 3, and 4. It was a book I have been wanting to purchase but had not found at a reasonable price. It was an author that I had never read before, as well as, a book that had been recommended to me by so so many on the BookTube! :) I liked it... It actually reminded me of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. I may have liked this one more. It held my attention more in the beginning than in the end, which is strange. But, I liked hearing about the worlds where everyone came from. I think the second book will be better than the first but it will be interesting to see which direction they take the story. I liked it but did not love it. I would give it 3.5 stars.

This was the only book I did not read and the challenge I did not complete was #5 - favorite color on the cover. I almost started it the last day but knew I could not complete it so I continued with the previous book I was reading before the readathon started (The Raven Boys).

SUMMARY:  I borrowed every book from my local library. Overall, I only read 4 days of the readathon but read a total of 429 pages and my average rating was 4.16 stars. I completed 5 of the 6 challenges but only read 3 books. I am pretty happy with my results, seeing as I had so much going on that week! 

Thank you so much to the hosts of the readathon and thank you for always making those sprints fun! You can find the hosts on YouTube and Twitter. Details below. 

The next Borrow-A-Thon is from November 5 - 12, 2017. Details will be available in the future here: https://twitter.com/BorrowAThon 

HOSTS:

+ObbsandLala - YouTube Channel: youtube.com/c/booksandlala

@rmrickfack - YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/rmfickfack (creator of the challenge)

@mrh0691 - YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7mHzg6HxBdRewfZN4GicMA

Optimists Die First - Book Review!

Optimists Die First -- By: Susin Nielsen

I recently read this book and did not have any expectations going into it, as I am more into YA fantasy, rather than contemporary but I LOVED IT! There have been several YA contemporary books that while others absolutely loved, I did not feel the same about. I sometimes think it's because I am older and see life differently now. Perhaps though, it was just the specific books because this one, I absolutely adored. I loved the characters and thought they were a good mix of quirky, nerdy, sweet, realistic, and funny. There were quite a few quotes that I highlighted in my e-book that really got me thinking. I truly believe everyone has a story and our experiences shape who we are today. This book highlights a few young adults that have gone through traumatic events that have altered their life in some way. It has affected how they live and they are all trying to work through it. Oddly enough, as I was reading it, I was smiling.... and happy. When I told my boyfriend what the story was about, he told me it sounded so dark, depressing, and tragic. I guess saying it out loud did make it seem that way, but the story overall is uplifting and hopeful. I don't know much about specific mental health issues so I am not sure if the author portrayed the mental health aspect of it correctly but because there is a spectrum, I thought it was done well. I read this book in two sittings and really enjoyed it!  I highly recommend it for a quick read! 

When I finished the book, I tweeted about it and the author tweeted back - which is always a nice touch! Leave a comment below if you plan on reading it!

Til next time.... 

~Corinna

Book Hauls and NetGalley.com

Hello everyone!

As you all know, I am super into reading since I discovered BookTube about a year ago. Starting Grad School, DEFINITELY hindered that rekindling of love for books but I have been reading more this past year than  in the last decade or so, even with school. I try very hard to make time for it. I sometimes get lost watching videos and not spending that time reading which I hope to remedy but let's face it -- BookTube is fabulous!

I recently made a Book Outlet purchase (pics below).

And yesterday, I went to the used bookstore near me for the first time in forever! I did not find as many books as I had hoped but hauled them in a picture below!

I recently found out about NetGalley, thanks to BookTube. It is a place where you can requests e-ARC's... which are essentially e-books that are Advanced Reading Copies! So I can read and review them before they come out. I requested a few and did not get my hopes up b/c I am new to this 'blogging' thing. But, I ended up receiving a bunch. I unfortunately, have yet to review any. Currently, I am finishing up 'The Edge of Everything' which is an incredible debut! I love it so far and I am 3/4 of the way through. After that, I will start my first ARC in order of when they are coming/came out. My first one came out 6 days ago on the 21st of February and I will start with that one so I can do a review! That book is called 'Optimists Die First' by Susin Nielsen. Per NetGalley's website, here is the posted summary:

Sixteen-year-old Petula de Wilde is anything but wild. A former crafting fiend with a happy life, Petula shut herself off from the world after a family tragedy. She sees danger in all the ordinary things, like crossing the street, a bug bite, or a germy handshake. She knows: life is out to get you. 

The worst part of her week is her comically lame mandatory art therapy class with a small group of fellow misfits. Then a new boy, Jacob, appears at school and in her therapy group. He seems so normal and confident, though he has a prosthetic arm; and soon he teams up with Petula on a hilarious project, gradually inspiring her to let go of some of her fears. But as the two grow closer, a hidden truth behind why he’s in the group could derail them, unless Petula takes a huge risk. . .

Book Haul from BookOutlet and my cute lil Bella in the background!

Just because I cannot help but take pictures of pretty books!

The Front Cover is made of vellum-like material!

Haul from Friends of the Library Bookstore!

Don't forget to come back to see my review and other bookish and crafty updates!

Until then... be well!

Updates

Hi everyone!

Wow! It's been way too long since I have updated this Blog! A few quick updates:

• I started Grad School!!! At the end of August 2016, I started the Masters Program at UMD - School of Public Health! 
• My boyfriend moved in mid-August, as well!
• I revived my love for books! 

Now that those announcements are out of the way, I will expand on the last one. I would guess about a little less than a year ago, I discovered the BookTube community. It's just a way of saying videos about books on YouTube. I have always been a reader and have always owned way too many books. I used to read websites and go to the used bookstores for hours and come home with 20 books for less than 20 bucks! I got away from that a little bit but always still read. I started a book club at work, etc. But technology has grown so much and social media has created so many new platforms that when I learned about BookTube, my love for books in an obsessive way came back full force. I now participate in Read-a-thon's despite my lack of time. I take lots of book-ish pictures and post them on Instagram and my Amazon wish list has doubled in size! I highly recommend the following sites for cheap books btw: Book Outlet and Thrift Books .  I got rid of a lot of my older books but could not donate a lot of them... so I have only been adding to my collection, which is quickly taking over the hallway. Pics below. I am very much into YA Fantasy but still read almost all genres. 

I hope to update this blog more often but with working full time, taking two grad school courses a semester and trying to still live a life with my boyfriend, family, pets, and friends, it is extremely challenging. 

I found the time over break to make a few cards for upcoming events. The only one I can share with you that has passed is posted below. It was the card I made for Mike's birthday. 

Weekends are pretty full of studying (since most of our assignments are due every Sunday at 11:59pm but I hope to take part in the #LoveAThon read-a-thon. You can find information below as well.

You can sign up here (SuperSpaceChick's blog)

Catch ya on the flip side! 

~Corinna