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SATURDAY SMORGASBORD: My May TBR

Posted on May 4, 2019April 30, 2019 by Jaymie

Every month I track my reading, and I also set aside some books I want to prioritize for that month. I have a ridiculous number of books on my shelves that I bought, intending to read them, but they wait and gather dust. Then, I am trying to read more nonfiction, so I put a couple of those books on a list so I don’t forget about that goal. I have library hold requests for books coming out this summer as well as books already available if I can just find the time. Also, I have books I would love to to read again so I can lose myself in characters and stories I already know I love. And then I have the review books from publishers that have to take a priority in my reading because I am on a schedule, and I made a commitment to read them. It’s a lot to juggle, but if I set some goals, I have a fighting chance of getting to at least a few of these before the calendar flips to June.

These are the books I am prioritizing for May 2019.

Nonfiction

I am still working on my 2018 goal of learning as much as I can about the Enneagram. While I am reading a book on the topic right now, I have at least two on my TBR shelves including The Complete Enneagram. I love the work of Ally Carter, so I had to pick up her nonfiction book about writing, Dear Ally, How Do You Write a Book? And I have also started following Sarah Bessey on social media this year, and I like her a lot. So I picked her book, Jesus Feminist, up, too, and it is sitting in a pile, waiting for me to get to it. Maybe in May!

My TBR Shelves

Summer of a Thousand Pies is one of those books that once I read the description, I couldn’t stop thinking about it! I also picked up the new Star Wars book recently, Master and Apprentice. I hope to get to that in May. Then Alyssa Cole has a THIRD book out in her Reluctant Royals series, and I still haven’t read book 2, A Duke by Default. So it’s my goal to get that read in May.

Library Holds for May

I already have these three romances on hold at the library – The Flatshare (May 28), The Unhoneymooners (May 14) and Smitten by the Brit (May 28). My local library is amazing!

New in May

These four books are at the top of my list for May. I’m hoping I can pick these up or find them at the library. Mr Lemoncello’s All-Star Breakout Game is the latest in the fantastic Mr. Lemoncello series for kids. No Saving Throw is the first in a new cozy mystery series with a gaming theme. Millenneagram is a new Enneagram book, and Wooing Cadie McCaffrey is the latest Christian fiction book from the author of The Secret Life of Sarah Hollenbeck.

Review books for this summer

Finally, these are some of the ARCs I MUST get to very soon. The Scent of Murder is the first book in a new mystery series. Solving for M is a new middle grade novel that I am super excited about. Cherry Scones & Broken Bones is book two in a cherry themed mystery series after Cherry Pies & Deadly Lies, which I loved. Finally, Call It What You Want is the latest from Brigid Kemmerer, who is a must-read author for me. I’m looking forward to this stand alone YA novel.

What will YOU be reading in May?

SATURDAY SMORGASBORD: My 2017 Favorites

Posted on January 6, 2018December 30, 2020 by Jaymie

I read a lot of books every year. I like to keep track of what I read every year and see how it stacks up to years before. Here are some of my reading statistics for 2017.

2017 Stats

Through the course of 2017 I read 308 books. There were 26 more that I started but did not finish.

Of those 308, the break down for target audience is

127 adult
98 middle grade
63 teen/young adult
10 picture books/early readers
9 transitional chapter books
as well as 19 graphic novels for various ages

The genre breakdown (some books are counted in two categories) is

77 mystery
73 realistic
72 fantasy
35 science fiction
18 romance
17 non-fiction
6 Christian fiction
5 Christmas
4 historic fiction
3 memoirs/autobiographies
2 dystopian
3 suspense

This year most of the books I read were from the library (104). I read 59 books from my To Be Read shelves (which are overflowing), as well as 58 advanced reader copies from publishers. I also re-read 47 favorites this year.

I read more fantasy and nonfiction last year and more realistic fiction and science fiction this year. And I can see what difference not teaching has made in my reading. Last year I read a lot more picture books and early readers. This year there were more books for teens and adults.

2017 Favorites!!

I read a lot of books every year. I often don’t remember all the details, but I remember how they made me feel. I remember which books follow me throughout the year – how I feel when I see them in the bookstore or library or online. These are the ones I want to go back and read again. These are the ones I recommend over and over and over.

You can see my list of favorites from 2016 here. Last year I had five middle grade books, two YA books, and three books for adults (all fiction). When I went back through my list of the 300+ books I read in 2017, I came up with 50 that were candidates for the best of the year. I whittled that list down to ten – only one middle grade this time, five YA books, two adult fiction books and two nonfiction. And here they are:

10. Nothing to Prove – A fantastic non-fiction book. I hope to read it again this year and complete the Bible study that goes with it. You can read a little about this here and my full review here.

9. Barking Up the Wrong Tree – I loved this romance book, second in a series. I reviewed the third and final book in the series earlier this week. You can read my review of book one here. Book 2 is even better than the first! I enjoyed the chemistry between the main characters.

8. Draw the Circle – This is a forty day prayer journey. This is one I will go back to again and again. You can read a little about this book here. I’ll be doing a full review later in 2018.

7. Alien Education – This is book 15 in the Alien series by Gini Koch. This is my favorite fiction series. I included book 14 in my list last year. Book 16 releases in February. I just finished a re-read of the whole series, and I was struck again by how fun this particular book is. I know it is because so much of the story centers on the kids. I can’t wait to see what happens next! You can read my thoughts about this book here.

6. The Names They Gave Us – This book stuck with me all year because there were so many times in it where I felt known and understood in the description of the main character. You can read my review here.

5. It’s Not Me, It’s You – This book was not at all what I expected – in all the best ways! I loved the unusual format and the terrific characters. I actually have two books by this author on my list for 2017! You can read my review here.

4. Greetings from Witness Protection – This has a fantastic premise and the main character is a delight. I hope there will be more books with these characters. You can read my review of this one here.

3. Letters to the Lost – Another fantastic book for teens and young adults. I am chomping at the bit for her new book that comes out this spring since this one was so great! You can read my review here.

2. Prince in Disguise – This was a late addition to my list as it came out in December. Reading it was like eating a favorite dessert. I savored each page, giggling. The writing is so smart and the characters are delightful. This is the second book I have on my list from Stephanie Kate Strohm. You can read my full review here.

#1 – A List of Cages – Oh, this book. Whenever I see it I think about how the characters impacted me. They have followed me all year long. It’s a difficult read, but worth every tear and every tissue. You can read my review here.

As always, if you are looking for even more fantastic books, you can always check out my Five Star Reviews to see all of my favorites! I had a hard time choosing only 10 from all the terrific books in 2017. I have high hopes for great reading in 2018!

SATURDAY SMORGASBORD: My 2016 Favorites

Posted on January 7, 2017December 30, 2020 by Jaymie

I read a lot of books every year. A lot of times, I don’t remember all the details about the books I read. But I always remember how I felt when I finish. I remember which books follow me throughout the year – how I feel when I see them in the bookstore or library or online. These are the ones I want to go back and read again. These are the ones I recommend over and over and over.

When I went back through my list of the 304 books I read in 2016, I came up with 28 that were candidates for the best of the year. I whittled that list down to ten. And here they are:

10. The Scourge by Jennifer Nielsen

I read this one earlier this year, so I don’t have a review posted here at The Neverending TBR. This is a fantastic middle grade fantasy from the author of The False Prince. You can read more about The Scourge here.

9. Alien Nation by Gini Koch