Whoops!

I think I may have made a few too many commitments this year and am therefore (yet again) struggling to keep up with blog posts etc. I hadn't realised I'd been quite so slack, actually, but I suppose I feel like I have blogged each time I make a comment on Goodreads.

Well, here's an update on my progress to date:

I've adapted my rules a little since I began full-time work (and therefore barely have time to think, let alone read, most days). As such, I have now included unabridged audiobooks in my book count, but only ones of books longer than 200 pages (or longer than 4 hours-ish). This means that I'm now up to 66 finished books for the year, which isn't too bad I suppose.

As I still intend to comment on each book I've read so far, I guess I should get started...

Book 6: Knitting Rules!: The Yarn Harlot's Bag of Knitting Tricks - Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

Part anecdotal, part instructional, entirely hilarious. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The discussions of knitting mishaps particularly impressed upon me the need (for certain items at least) to knit up a gauge swatch before launching in to a project. I also found a lot of details that resonated with my own knitting addiction, particularly the trick of hiding skeins of yarn all over the place once the main storage area is at full capacity, though I haven't yet begun hiding my yarn behind books on the shelves. I frequently received funny looks from family, friends, and members of the public due to laughing out loud at this book.

I'll have to go back and refresh my memory on the others I've read before commenting on them - a sign that I really should have blogged about them when I actually read them rather than half-a-year later!

Not Reading So Quick-ly...

Sorry, terrible pun. Anyone who knows me personally should really be aware of my addiction to bad puns by now, though.

The last two books I read have been keeping within the theme of historical romance. Both were by Amanda Quick, and both were ebooks checked out of the library. Have I gushed about how much I love overdrive media yet? It's a brilliant system that I use frequently for both ebooks and audiobooks. It's fabulous for those of us who don't like to leave the house.

Book 1 was Desire by Amanda Quick. The story centered around a landless knight, Gareth of Wyckmere - the Hellhound, bastard son of the liege-lord to manor on the island of Desire, and the female protagonist, the only remaining member of the family from Desire, Clare. To sum up, Gareth is presented as a suitor to Clare, who is, of course, not convinced at first that he's suitable. The usual sort of story ensues, etc, etc. I don't enjoy the medieval settings as much as I do the Regency/Victorian ones, but there were certainly some very funny moments in this book that made me laugh out loud. 

Book 2 was Mischief by the above author. I really enjoyed this particular books, perhaps because the main characters, Imogen and Matthias, were involved in the study of an ancient civilisation, and I am a Classics nerd so I can relate to that fascination. There were a few parts that seemed a little redundant, but on the whole I thought that the story was fairly well crafted and that it was perfect for a rainy Sunday afternoon - exactly the time when I read it. I always like reading books about society in London during the Regency period and the events in this book involving balls and house-parties, and the incongruous behaviour of the main characters, were quite enjoyable.

Now that I've finished my big knitting project I shall hopefully read a few more books this week. Perhaps I might even read something that's not by Amanda Quick!

I don't call myself the Grand High Procrastinatrix for nothing!

And so, as with any goals that I, or anyone else for that matter, have set for myself, the reading challenge has been neglected for the past week or so. This is mainly due to my inability to share my obsessive nature equally between hobbies as I recently began playing World of Warcraft once again, although this time with my group of friends from up north so it's both a good opportunity to chat and to kill blob-monsters/spiders/baddies du jour.

I managed to finish reading one library book, however, which was yet another historical romance set in the Regency period. 

Seducing the Governess by Margo Maguire.

The title Seducing the Governess gave away most of the story in only 3 words. The book itself was a little confusing at first as there were jumps between separate story-lines, the first concerning the hunt for an ailing peer's lost grand-daughters, the second concerning the developing romance between a governess and her employer and the events surrounding his household etc. I found the transition between the story-lines to be anything but seamless: I would at one moment be enjoying the antics of Mercy, the governess, and her interaction with her employer when an asterisk would appear and it would switch to the search for these unknown girls that I'd completely forgotten was a part of the novel. Also, the ending seemed extremely rushed off and anticlimactic (insert drôle comments here). I did enjoy it while I read it but I'm not sure I'd read it again.

I currently have a figurative stack of Amanda Quick ebooks to read, plus Terrier by Tamora Pierce, the second, third and fourth in Geroge R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series, Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel, the Ramona Quimby series by Beverly Cleary and, of course, Snuff by the incomparable Sir Terry. If I ever actually read any of these it will be marvellous so I shall be positive ad hope that my procrastination levels will soon reduce.

Progress on the Reading Challenge

Well, so far I have finished 2 books - both over 250 pages I might add:

1. Affair - Amanda Quick
2. Mystique - Amanda Quick

They are both (trashy) romance but I haven't been up to anything "heavier" since I finally managed to finish Game of Thrones after 6 months of erratic reading.

Affair was quite charming, in my opinion. I really liked the female protagonist straight from the start. For a historical romance it wasn't too anachronistic/confused with regard to the flora and fauna of Blighty (taken with a pinch of salt just like watching movies or period dramas). The secret society and "mesmerism" aspects were really quite interesting and I actually laughed out loud at the more humorous parts of the book - eliciting bemused looks from my husband. I liked it enough that I'll most likely read it again and bought myself a copy of the ebook. 

Mystique was a little less enjoyable. I found it difficult to get into the first few pages, although I grew to like the characters and the storyline and in the end I put down the book (well, the ereader) with a contented sigh, pleased at the outcome. I think that these books are somewhat formulaic but then I actually find it refreshing to read something that goes in the direction you expect it to follow so you don't end up disappointed. I'm not sure if I would purchase Mystique, but I'd probably check it out of the library again in the future.

As you can see, I don't feel the need to hide my guilty pleasures. I've been told I wear my heart on my sleeve but I think that really that's just a polite way of saying I over-share all the details of my life with anyone and everyone. In that vein I shall continue listing even the most ridiculous of books I read this year and what I think of them - at least until I forget or give up.

Alive and well and not living in London + 2012: the year of books

I'm alive. I'm reasonably well, too.

I recently joined up to a group on Ravelry whose aim is to complete 12 crafting projects within 12 months (I have overly simplified the aim). I'm sure I'll discuss my progress for this challenge more closely on my craft blog. The idea caused me to think about other ways this could influence 2012 for me, as I'm looking at The 144 as a way of achieving my crafting goals and actually getting some stuff done. How could this be applied to other areas of my life that are important to me? It came to me that, as reading has always been quite a central focus of my personal identity that has in recent years fallen by the way-side, perhaps a reading goal would be an enjoyable personal challenge. 

Just as the knitting/crocheting group I joined has a number of rules, it seems only logical to create my own guidelines for this challenge, and they are as follows:

1.  There are no genre restrictions.
2. The books can be in any format i.e. paper or electronic.
3. The entire book must be read within the set 12-month period. This does not, obviously include parts such as the publishing details, the index etc., nor the excerpt chapters of other books by the author designed to entice you to purchase and read that book next. So long as the entire story within a volume of fiction has been read then it counts towards the final tally. If a book was partly read last year, discarded, then picked up again this year it is only eligible provided I go back to the beginning and start again. 
4. Novels containing fewer than 200 pages do not count as a full book, but may count as part of a book. This may seem a little strange but I know that if I allowed myself to read very short books as part of the challenge, there is the potential that I might sit and read 10 books a day. 200 is still very short in my opinion, as, when I was 16, I managed to read at least 250 novels within the year, many of which were at least 500 pages in length. I don't seem to have that same capacity these days, but I feel that this challenge is a good starting point for gaining back that stamina.
5. Picture books don't count.
6. Neither do audiobooks. Anyone who knows me well will be aware of my habit of listening to audiobooks as I knit, iron etc. The fact is that, although these audiobooks are always unabridged, I am not reading them myself.
7. Abridged volumes don't count, either!

Well, that seems to be enough to start with and as I have 3 library ebooks due for return in as many days I'd better get on with it!