Michaela and I needed a book from a celebrity book club for a PopSugar Challenge, and we chose this one because it sounded SUPER COOL. It was not, in fact, what we expected. In fact, the impact of this one was seriously lackluster. Here’s why!
PopSugar Reading Challenge
Betwixt the Books: Naked by David Sedaris Review
Michaela and I picked this one out for a PopSugar challenge for a book popular the year we were born, and really thought we’d like it. We didn’t! We were surprised! And sad! Find out why…
January 2017 Wrap Up
This is a bit later than I anticipated, but here it is! I read 5 books in the first month of 2017, and I completed 5 PopSugar challenges. It was also a strange conglomeration of a bunch of different genres, physical books, audiobooks, etc. I’ve only review 2 of these on the channel so far, so I promise there is something interesting in here!
Betwixt the Books: Pop Sugar Reading Challenge 2016 Wrap Up
When Michaela said she needed a 2 minute video of us dancing, I should have said no. I’m glad I didn’t though, because this is one of the funniest videos that we’ve made in a while that Michaela put SO MUCH WORK INTO. Speaking of, from Michaela:
The song is Destroying the World by Algar… just some happy 8-bit music to dance to.
I apologize for this being a tad late. I’m the one that wanted to do something schmancy. I think it was fun to do … even if it took literal hours for me to edit… I PUT EFFORT IN GOD DAMMIT … and we got to be a bit silly and relaxed.
Some of you might note that we did not complete all 40 challenges, and we didn’t even really finish a couple, but we are halfway through them and we do plan to continue on… so you can’t fault us that much for saying they are WIP. If you want to hear why we are okay with not reaching the goal and why we are still willing to do another challenge despite failing the first time around we did a lovely discussion of it. Check that out if you so desire.
As far as everything else goes,
we wish you luck in the new year, whether you will be challenging yourself or not. With this or one of the many other challenges there are out there. I have been ruminating on making a couple of challenges for myself personally to try and complete, based on my own aspirations.
Again, HAPPY NEW YEAR … shall it be fruitful, gossamer, and ebullient…. everything that the past year has not been for me. New beginnings and all that.
Betwixt the Books Discuss! Reader’s (Booktuber’s) Guilt
Michaela and I did a thing! Would you look at that. This is generally referring to our struggles with our Popsugar Reading Challenge this year, and how our reading in general has been affected by the challenge and our booktuber duties. We discuss strategies for removing this guilt from our lives while also getting things like challenges done. Also we’re, like, together and awesome so. Worth the watch!
August 2016 Wrap Up
So, maybe August wasn’t as great as July. It still wasn’t bad! I listened to 2 audiobooks, read 4 books and ticked off two more categories for my PopSugar Challenge. It also includes more re-reading than usual, but I’ve already admitted to that so. There you have it. Somehow I am still 2 books behind in my Goodreads reading challenge (I want to read 100, I’ve read 65), but I hope to pick those up soon!
MASSIVE End of the Year TBR
Do you guys remember that PopSugar Reading Challenge TBR I did at the beginning of the year? Well, it really wasn’t cutting it. I haven’t been reading nearly enough of my challenge picks, and it’s time to change all that. I’ve updated my TBR and gotten serious about this thing! Here we go!
From the Notebook: July 2016 Wrap Up
GUYS. I read NINE books in July! What a spectacular feat. Four of them were even for my Popsugar Challenge. Not to mention the fact that I even LIKED most of them. I also did really well for reviewing the books I was reading, even if my Winner’s Curse review won’t be out until Friday and I haven’t filmed my Assassin’s Heart review yet. Both are coming, I promise! Other than that, here we go!
May 2016 Wrap Up
Instead of a From the Notebook video, you get a wrap up a few days early! Even early, May was a MUCH better reading month to me than April. I’ve gone from 10/40 in the PopSugar Reading Challenge to 15/40 AND I’m almost halfway there in my Goodreads goal of reading 100 books this year. Go me!
Posts mentioned in video:
- April 2016 Wrap Up
- Review: A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
- From the Notebook: Why There’s No Love Triangle in ACoMaF
- Betwixt the Books Reviews: A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki
- #imbibliomancy: Drunk Book Club with Death Vigil by Stjepan Sejic
- Review: Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare
- Thesis Thursday: Big News that has Nothing to do with My Thesis
April Wrap Up + PopSugar Challenge Update
If we’re being honest, this is the saddest wrap up I think I’ve ever written. Seriously. I know that April isn’t QUITE over yet, but I can promise you that I won’t be reading anything else over the weekend because I have a LOT to do.
I read four books in April. Four. Three, if we’re being truthful, all the way through. And none of them counted a thing for my PopSugar Challenge, so that is still standing at 10/40, as it was in my March wrap up. Here’s what I DID read in April!
If the Oceans Were Ink by Carla Power is a powerful spiritual memoir about her friendship with a Muslim Sheikh and her desire to understand the Quran for herself. This is for my Spiritual Journeys class, and by far is my favorite that we’ve read in the class. I wrote a longer review of it if you’d like to learn more!
Though I did not read the entirety of this work, I am counting Fyodor
Dostoyevsky’s Notes from Underground to this list. I gave it two stars on Goodreads, because what I did read was almost impossible to get through and really, really boring. It was useful for my senior seminar, yes, but as pure reading enjoyment … no. I also didn’t review this, and have no plans to. You’re welcome.
I FINALLY FINISHED GET IN TROUBLE BY KELLY LINK! If you didn’t catch Michaela’s last 30 Seconds to Disagree, then you might not understand why that’s all in CAPs but … trust me. I’ve had Taylor’s copy of this book in my apartment since last semester, and he was getting really angry with me about it. BUT. I finally finished it! A longer review of this will be coming in May.
My one enjoyable, read it in a day read–my only for a while, really–
was Renee Ahdieh’s The Rose and The Dagger. This is the sequel to The Wrath and The Dawn, which was one of my favorite books of 2015 AND the very first book I showcased in my Worth It Wednesday series. A longer review of this will be coming later, but … well. I have thoughts. And not all of them good, sadly.
So … yeah. That’s it. There should have been more, but there wasn’t. School is crazy, guys. Hopefully May will bring better things! At the very least, school ends pretty soon, so I should have more opportunities to read then!
My Life is a Notebook 