Let's Talk about reviewing DNF Books

Let's talk today about reviewing DNF books, or books you didn't finish reading. To be honest, most of the time I don't DNF a book. I'll keep reading on, even if the book isn't something that personally appeals to me. It's probably a book I enjoy some aspects of, because something about the book drew me to pick it up and start reading, but sometimes as I read on it's just not the right fit for my mood or some other reason. Most of the time in the past I didn't know what to do about this.

However, lately I've had several books that I ended up not finishing. I didn't know what to do about it. They were books my friends had recommended to me, that I had been really looking forward to reading. I didn't want to push through them because I definitely enjoyed them, but as the book went on it just wasn't the right read for me. Does that make sense? I don't DNF a book because I think it's a terrible book, but because it wasn't the right book for my mood or what I enjoy in a book or for whatever reason.

Reviewing a book that I didn't finish sounds like something I'd really hesitate to do. I don't ever want to seem like I'm hating a book or going on about negative things about a book. Also, since I didn't finish the book, I didn't want to call it a review because I hadn't yet read the entire book.

This led to my idea of coming up with a way to share my thoughts on the books I DNF without calling it a review. I'm tentatively calling it "Thoughts" for lack of a better name. Here's the description of the series that I've written: "'Thoughts' is an opportunity for me to write down my thoughts on a couple novels that I DNF recently. I didn't want to write whole reviews because I hadn't gotten the full perspective of the novel if that makes sense- although I read most of the novel, sometimes it just doesn't appeal to me personally. However, I still want to briefly share my thoughts, and share why I think this book might appeal more to others and why it personally didn't work for me. This is not a reflection of the books themselves, as oftentimes I definitely enjoyed and loved some aspects of the novel, but wanted to share my thoughts."

So, what are your thoughts? I'm definitely curious to know what others think about sharing your thoughts on DNF reviews. If you all are interested in hearing my first "Thoughts" post, let me know!

From the paper world,
V

Behind the Scenes - How I Write Discussion Posts

I've been thinking more and more lately about ways to expand what I write about on the blog, and trying a few different posts to see if you all would like reading about them. So, today I'm giving you a behind the scenes look at how I write my discussion posts.

Honestly, my discussion posts happen randomly. Sometimes I come up with an idea and my reaction is "This would be fun!" so I'll write down a title for it and occasionally a little blurb and save it as a draft. I'm going to be completely honest, normally those stay as drafts and don't end up turning into anything. When I come up with a discussion post, I typically sit down and write it all out there as it's on my mind. A lot of the times, when I'm reading, I slip into reviewer mode and start to think "This is something I'd like to talk about in my review and bring up how this and this were done in the novel" whereas in discussion posts it's sort of "Here are my thoughts just as I think" and then I'll reread it and edit it later. 

So, how do I write discussion posts? I sit down, come up with an idea, and then just write. That's the most effective way for me to write the posts. It's definitely not a perfect or very organized system, but in blogging my discussion posts tend to be pretty sporadic. I like reading discussion posts and hearing other people's thoughts, but for some reason writing discussion posts for me is something that comes and goes. So whenever I sit down to write one I sometimes come up with a few different ideas and so I'll write them all down and schedule them out some.

In the future, I really do want to start writing more discussion posts. So, I'd love to hear from you all- do you enjoy reading discussion posts? And if you write them, what sort of a system do you have for figuring out how to write them? I'm curious to know if others are spontaneous sort of discussion post writers like myself or if there's a way I could be more organized about this. 

I hope you all enjoyed this sort of behind the scenes post. I guess it was sort of a discussion post on discussion posts, but if you'd like to share your thoughts I'd love to talk about it more! If you enjoyed this, let me know and I'd love to do more posts about my blogging.

From the paper world,
V

I Want to be a Disney Princess

I honestly have no idea where this post came from, but here we are! Today I'm going to share some random facts about myself, in light of it being October and Halloween is coming, in light of October being one of my favorite months, and... Paper Worlds and Swirls of Ink is turning 1 soon! 1 year of blogging! I'm grinning like a fool and happy dancing in my chair as I type that. I can't even believe it. We're going to save the sappy emotional one year celebration post for Halloween/early November time, since that's when I actually created the blog. But anyways, let's talk about Violet, and a few things about myself that you may not yet know!


First...
I want to be a Disney Princess. It was my childhood dream, it was many a Halloween costume, and I would still be totally fine with an Alan Menken musical score narrating my adventures with my friends and perhaps a Disney Prince. Curious to know my favorite? It is absolutely, without a doubt Belle of Beauty and the Beast. Belle is my favorite because she's a reader and personality wise we are very similar. 'I want adventure in the great wide somewhere' is a quote I painted on to a canvas and have hanging, actually. Also, I love how she is patient and kind but not a pushover- Belle challenges people to be the best they can be. Yes, I am a Disney fan and sing along to all the songs and everything. If you ever want to know more about my love for Disney, I will definitely be able to do a post on it. 

Second...

My reading hasn't been the best it's usually been. Or good at all. I know I've done several posts on this, one from a few weeks ago and one from September, but I'm pretty disappointed about how far behind I've gotten on reading. I've just been so busy it feels like everything else fell to the side, including my reading. I haven't finished more than a book a month since August. So, if you have any tips about how to approach this, I'd love to hear them. My blogging has been affected as well, but sitting down and figuring out a few posts and coming up with something as random and spontaneous and fun as this post has helped a lot!

Third...

I love to travel and experience other cultures and languages. 'I want adventure in the great wide somewhere' is an apt quote to describe how I view travel. Some of my favorite stories come from random journeys with friends and family, and there's something about seeing a new place and being a visitor in another place that gives you more perspective on life, yourself, and the world. 

Fourth...

I love to bake cupcakes, pies, cookies, and try new recipes. I really love cooking as well. I find that trying new recipes is fun and a learning experience, and cooking really relaxes me. Whenever I get together with my mother and we cook, we play music as well (Michael Buble and Lorde have been two that we replay the CDs of) and so I like to do that when I cook on my own as well.

Fifth...

Art museums are wonderful places to explore and wander about in, and I love taking the time to appreciate something that can be moving and mean different things to everyone who walks by it. I think the beauty of seeing art and how the artist wanted to express their view of the world is an interesting way to spend the afternoon.

So, there are five random facts about myself, all starting with the idea to write a post about Disney princesses. So, who's your favorite Disney princess? Do you like cooking or exploring art museums or visiting other places as well? I'll see you all next time!

From the paper world,

V

'Clearing Out My Books' and Other Thoughts on Donating Books

Recently, I became annoyed with my bookshelf. Not neccessarily because it's way overcrowded (although that's definitely the case), but because there were books on there that I either disliked and never want to read again, or felt completely indifferent about and won't pick up, or that I've yet to read and have below zero interest in. So, it becomes time to clear out the shelves. This is something I haven't done in a very long while- maybe that's why the build up is getting so extreme. However, doing this is something that can allow me to organize my shelves (seriously some are jumbled piles and some are double stacked with books it's a mess) and make room for other books.

I just want to say that, despite these not being my favorites, these are books that interested me. As time goes on, and I either read them or don't and lose interest, I've changed as a reader. So, hopefully, these books will be appreciated and beloved by someone else, and I'm happy to provide that opportunity for them. Goodbye, dear books, and may your adventures dazzle another.

Here are the books I got rid of, organized by read and unread.

Read -

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins, 3 Stars

Wither by Lauren DeStefano, 3.5 Stars

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson, 3 Stars

Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer, 3 Stars

A Royal Match by Tyne O'Connell

Started  but Didn't Finish -

Asylum by Madeline Roux

Unread -

Control by Lydia Kang

In the After by Demetria Lunetta

So, there's the beginning of my wanting to go through my TBR, clean it out, and pass some books along to other people who might enjoy them more than I did. Currently, I still have a few of these lying around but want to pass along to others who might be interested, since a few of my book loving friends have yet to read one or two that I think they could enjoy.

How do you clean out your reading piles? Is there a certain criteria for managing your books and what stays and what gets passed along? Let me know if you have any suggestions for going through my books!

From the paper world,
V

What Do You Look For?

Hello everyone! Today's post is a little bit different from others here on the blog. It's definitely still bookish, but it's more of a discussion post and sharing my thoughts on something in particular than it is a part of a series like my Let's Talk and Other Thoughts discussions, but just the random musings of a book blogger. So, what do you look for in a protagonist who tells the story? A narrator for your story is essential to the reading in general. They are your lens, your perspective, your guide into a foreign world, and as such a narrating protagonist can make or break your novel. So, I thought about what makes some books amazing and what makes a protagonist really stand out, and I thought I would list three of these qualities to you all.

A Unique Voice

So, here's the thing. A narrator or protagonist can be unreliable (I mean, the story is coming from their point of view and you're only seeing their side of events) and in other cases they can be reliable. Sometimes they are good people and sometimes they're villains. But in any case, a narrator has to have a unique voice for me. What sets this character from all the others we've read in books? As a reader, can I see their mannerisms and quirks come out from the writing? That's part of what makes a narrator memorable for me.

Flaws
I do not want to read a perfect character. I want to read a character who grows, struggles, and makes mistakes. I want a character that has qualities about himself or herself that they dislike, and has moments where they think back and realize they're in the wrong. If I'm reading about people, then let's have the flawed, imperfect individual who changes and grows.

Depth

Introspection is important in a narrator. They have to be able to see the events going on around them, recognize their place in the happenings, and have the capability to bring more to the story than a record of what happened and who said what. The novel needs to have movement and emotion, and a lot of that comes from the perspective of the narrator. The story reaches a new level when a narrator is able to bring together the events, the characters, and the meaning that is seen through the course of the novel. How do these events impact the narrator, and how do the relationships with the other characters relate? There's something universal about books, and the depth a narrator provides can make a book truly memorable for me.

So, there is a random sort of post about my thoughts on first person narrators and protagonists. I wanted to share this with you all because it'd been on my mind, and I want to hear what you all think of it. I'll see you next time!

From the paper world,
V

Let's Talk the Blogging Life

I've got 99 problems and at least 50 of them involve post drafts and how to schedule reviews. Blogger life.

So, the other day I was talking with a friend and was showing her how I used blogger and this is what my reviews look like, my hauls, how I schedule post in advance, you know, and I realized a few things. First, she was happy I was enjoying myself and shared my enthusiasm. Secondly, talking about blogging mechanics nonstop is not widely considered sparkling conversation to non blogging people. So, I figured who better to talk about blogging life with than with my blogging friends?

Today I pose the question- what is your blogging life like? Let me walk you through my sporadic one. Post inspiration strikes me at random (and typically inconvenient hours), so if I just have an idea but I'm not inspired enough to write it, I'll put the title in as a new draft, and sometimes write down some short notes if there are specific details or examples I want to include later. Then, a blogging storm approaches, and suddenly I'm writing two to four discussions amidst all my reviews for the month that I haven't written on Goodreads. It can be a little crazy. However, other times I'll just write a post here or there, but together it will amount to a solid blogging schedule. And I love that, having enough posts ahead so that if I have blogger's block or a bunch of other things come up, I know the blog is alright and I can just reply to comments if I have no free time. 

But where's the fun in just meeting the minimum? Comments are some of my favorite things about blogging- I love reading comments on my posts, commenting on other blogs to keep in touch, and just connecting with the blogging community. That's definitely one of the best things about being a blogger. So, let's talk about the blogging life for you- share your thoughts down in the comments below, and let me know if you like this series name/set up in lieu of my  'and Other Thoughts' type of discussions (you can find some examples of those when I talk about TBRs, readalongs, and book buying) Although not much has changed aside from the series title and having a specific idea that sparks a general conversation, I'd love your input about these two types of discussion post series, and what other discussions you'd like to see on the blog!

From the paper world,

V

'Sophmore Slump' and Other Thoughts on Sequels

Today I wanted to talk about sequels. The other day, I was reading and there was a comment about how in general sequels can be such huge disappointments after the wonder of the first book. And I thought that while that's true in some cases, there are sequels I've loved and enjoyed even more than the first book, which can be heavy with information, exposition, and introduction. Today I thought I'd share a few sequels I loved, a few I never want to read again, and why I had that reaction/how it compared to the first book.

The Eh

So, why are these four sequels ones that I disliked or was disappointed in? A general answer is the protagonist and character development. I'm the sort who likes a lot of plot development and intrigue, but there has to be compelling characters in order for me to love  series and stay with the story. For these second books, there were several problems. The first two, Insurgent and The Elite, are second books in a trilogy. Whenever these books fall flat it's often called 'sophmore slump', or when a second book is lacking the action and plot development in the first and basically just sitting there staring at the main conflict that can't be resolved until the third book because it's a trilogy. In some aspects, I think Insurgent and The Elite are sophmore slumps for me. However, in both I also found another phenomenon was present- I was annoyed at the protagonists. The narrator would decide that secrecy and deception would be the best options to 'protect everyone' and this trope is something that is tiresome very quickly. 

For the other two, Frostbite and World After, these two are both the second book in a series of five, if I'm not mistaken about Angelfall's intended series length. For both of these, the struggle was found in not much happening. Yes, the protagonists were also annoying here, but in Frostbite, I thought the central conflict/problem was actually just part of the rising action in the story, so I was disappointed by the end. World After seemed to lack the action and compelling story of its predecessor. 

Now, you might be wondering, if I disliked this sequel, did I continue on with the series? For 3 of the 4 books, the answer is yes, and the last book is sitting on my TBR. You might wonder why. The answer is that, simply put, there's enough in the sequel, in the characters and world we met in the original story, that kept me interested in reading on in the journey. I'm not the sort who has to finish every series I pick up. However, there are series where one book isn't the best, but the idea and story interest me enough to go on.

The Favorites

Now, let's talk about some of my favorite sequels and why I think they stand out. (I'm not entirely sure if The Arcana Chronicles -Endless Knight is the sequel- is a trilogy or more, but from the description of the third book and the overall story line I hope this is more than a trilogy. If you know which it is, comment down below and let me know.) 

Anyways, what makes these sequels so wonderful is that they're unexpected, and they further develop and enrich the plot and characters. Breaking Point continues on where Article 5 left off, but everything is still developing. We haven't lost any of the momentum from the first book, the intense tone and action. Instead, we learn more about the characters, who is good, bad, and more complex than they originally appear. The same is true for Endless Knight, where we see characters that weren't featured as much in the first book and yet the main conflict also continues to grow and develop throughout. To be completely honest, Endless Knight is a sequel I loved even more than the first book.

Another sequel I loved more than the first was The Sea of Monsters, where the characters were more interesting and developed than the first book, and the story was entertaining and well written. Finally, I had to mention Unhinged as an example of a sequel I loved because it also has a plethora of plot twists and character development. 

In general, I think what makes a sequel great is plot twists, character development, and a continuation of action and plot development. What are some sequels that fell into the sophmore slump for you, and some that stayed fantastic or even better than their first books?

Curious to see my more detailed thoughts on these sequels?
My Endless Knight Review, My Percy Jackson and the Olympians series Review, My Unhinged Review

And see my thoughts on some of the first books in the series!
Angelfall by Susan Ee (World After), Splintered by A.G. Howard (Unhinged), Poison Princess by Kresley Cole (Endless Knight)

From the paper world,
V

'Buddy Reads' and Other Thoughts on Group Reads and Readalongs

I really should come up with a banner for this series as the posting has become more frequent. Welcome back to another discussion post. Today, we're talking about readalongs- the fun, the good, and the scheduling. 

First off, let me just say I love readalongs/buddy reads. It's a wonderful opprotunity to talk with other bloggers, and since sharing my love of books is what brought me to the blogging world, a readalong is the perfect opprotunity for that. 

My first readalong...

My readalong-ing, for lack of a better term, began in January when I stumbled across the Incarnate Series Read-A-Thon while on a visit to A Backwards Story. I was intrigued, loved the covers of the books, and thought it might be fun. So, I signed up for this readalong she was hosting with Alexa Loves Books. So, way back when in January, I signed up, and not only did I get the chance to discover a wonderful series, I got to discuss them with other bloggers, chat about them on Twitter and tune into the hangouts (I squealed out loud when they read my questions) and even tweet with Jodi Meadows and interview her! None of this would have happened if this readalong hadn't come to pass and led to my discovering a really wonderful series. 

So, there is my readalong origins story, I guess you can say. However, Buddy Reads is something I'd done starting in January as well. Kerrie is a fellow blogger I started reading and discussing books with back in January. We read Angelfall, World After, and Across the Universe over the course of a few months. Having a set goal and someone to discuss my thoughts with really helped me appreciate the books more, and soon I was asking fellow bloggers to read books together and discuss!

Since then, I've done several readalongs, a few within the past months were reading Sekret with Cassi of My Thoughts...Literally! and Hex Hall with Juhina of Maji Bookshelf and Jaspirit of The Reader's Den. I've loved doing these readalongs, but I do think there are some cons to them sometimes as well.

Scheduling. I am terrible at this. Oftentimes I end up reading multiple books if I'm doing several readalongs, and I can mess up when I need to be in what chapter and anything like that. So, if I've ever blundered and fallen behind in a readalong, then I feel super bad because the other person is staying on track and I'm slowing them down, or we can't discuss the book because I'm not in time.

Reading Ahead. Yes, I've done it once. Or twice. But not often, I promise, and sometimes it's just, again, due to my inability to schedule things properly or then maintain them! However, sometimes if there's a cliffhanger, I'll read a chapter ahead. It happens very rarely, but I do feel bad about it!

Differing Opinions. This one hasn't really happened to me yet. Most of the times, the other person/people and I will be in agreement. So, I'll share this one with you- have you done a readalong and one person hated the book and another loved it? How did that affect your discussion?

In general, readalongs, buddy reads, and group reads are fantastic. Not only do you get to compare ideas and reactions with a bunch of other bloggers (and it's always fun to be reading the same thing and talking about that book boyfriend or that crazy plot twist) but you also get to reach out to a lot of other bloggers and discuss. With that in mind, some issues can arise but as long as everyone just tries to enjoy the reading and have a thoughtful conversation, reading with other people is one of my favorite ways to discover new books.

So, let me know what your buddy reads are like down in the comments! Or, if you've got a book you want a buddy to read with, let me know! 

From the paper world,

V

A Discussion with The Library Canary! - Standalones and Other Thoughts on Contemporaries

Before you get started reading here, head on over to The Library Canary to see what Becca has to say.

Hello! Today I'm super excited to be doing a joint discussion with Becca of The Library Canary. Becca is a really awesome blogger who leaves awesome, insightful comments and writes some of the best discussion posts I've read. So, today we're going to be sharing our thoughts with you on:

What makes a good standalone? 

I would recommend going to check out her post first (the first link) and then come back to see my thoughts!

I definitely agree that there's a shortage of standalones in genres other than contemporary. The Coldest Girl in Coldtown is one that I had actually been thinking of as well, since I'm typically a reader of paranormal/supernatural. Personally, I've enjoyed quite a few standalones, but I do agree that there are flaws that many stumble into. Also, there's the idea of standalones that are part of the same universe in a series, which is another thing I think is common in contemporaries as well. 

The main issue in paranormal and supernatural books is world building. You have to create anything from a super power to a world with its own completely new set of rules in a limited page count in addition to everything else that happens in a book like character development, conflict, etc. In contemporaries the author is able to navigate a realistic world and focus more on the story and characters.

Contemporaries in general seem to focus more on the principle character and the love interest and their romance. This, in general, is why I'm normally not the biggest contemporary reader. I tend to like reading about more characters and supernatural goings-on. I hadn't thought of it, but it is true that there are physical characteristics that need to be developed and reiterated in a paranormal in order to help develop the character. For example, what if we only had one book to learn about Karou from Daughter of Smoke & Bone and her peacock blue hair and hamsas? That would have taken away from the idea of how she got that blue hair and why she has those tattoos on her hand. And that's only the beginning, as Rebecca says. There is no set rule for how things operate in a paranormal world, that is completely up to the author. And within the limits of one book, that can mean that other elements of the story have to be pushed back to compensate for the neccessary world building. Even then, there's still the chance of having infodump and the world building overtaking the story entirely. 

Also adding on to what Rebecca said about connecting to the characters in standalones, this is something that can be problematic. I've seen it happen in contemporaries and paranormal standalones alike.

The pacing of the story. This is something that can work for or against the standalone. Sometimes in series you run the risk of the story dragging in a particular book because the overarching plotline needs to develop, or for whatever reason. That's definitely not the case in a standalone, where the only plot is happening in that particular book, but then there can still be problems. 

Endings in general are so difficult! Even as a reviewer, reading the end of a series or standalone is something that really is different for everyone. I dislike every issue and qualm the character had being solved and wrapped up in a bow, and I see that in a lot of contemporaries, yet I typically dislike really open endings as well. There's a balance that has to be maintained, and in a standalone where we've only had a couple hundred pages to be introduced to everyone and everything, it can be hard to maintain that balance.

I absolutely love Rebecca's point about every book being somewhat of a standalone. No one likes the "sophomore slump" or when a book drags in the name of the overarching story. And for standalones, there's a lot to consider in a limited amount of pages. What does make a good book, and where do we find the balance between world, characters, plot, and pages?

So, there is my part of our discussion, be sure to check out Rebecca's, and her wonderful blog as well!

From the paper world,

V

'Monthly Book Hauls' and Other Thoughts on book buying and book buying bans

So, I haven't really given my discussion posts a series name, and that's just because of how sporadic they are and how I write them really defies a specific category beyond 'random discussions'. Today I'm talking about book buying, book hauls, and book bans.

A lot of my blogging is influenced by Booktube, because I was a Booktube subscriber and viewer long before I was a book blogger. However, I am extremely proud of being a book blogger and being a part of that community. It just happens that some of what I saw in Booktube I tried for my blog. Book hauls are some of my favorite Booktube videos to watch, and I go through periods of just wanting to see what everyone's getting/excited about. Lately, I've been doing monthly hauls and linking them to Tynga's Reviews's Stacking the Shelves feature. However, all of the book buying and like I've seen lately has been a little thought-provoking, and I thought I'd share with you all.

To begin with, in the past I've had pretty large book hauls. I think March was probably my record, and that book haul is definitely extensive. April as well, but towards the mid/end of April I noticed that my book buying habits had slowed down noticeably, basically to the point of being non existent. I walked into a bookstore, and walked out without any new additions to the TBR pile. That's pretty surprising, since normally at a book store I want to pick up books. So, how has my book buying changed? Well, I've gotten a lot of books lately that I'm excited about reading, and so I've been less likely to buy new ones. Sure, there are some new releases off my Can't Wait list I might pick up if I see them, and there are always books I could buy, but I haven't felt the need to buy any. Maybe it's the size of my TBR pile, but I honestly think I'm just content with what I've got. And that's a great feeling.

Now, will I still buy books? Yes, probably, if I see something that I really want to pick up. But it's not as if I have a huge list of books that I must buy immediately, and having those particular books is my top priority. I don't feel like I'm in a book buying frenzy. 

However, I'm not on a book buying ban, nor do I think those would work well for me. If I were to do a book buying ban, I would just want to buy books all the more, and it would end badly. As in, the moment the ban was over I'd buy more than I would have if I'd avoided a ban. Also, as I mentioned in my last discussion, I'm a mood reader, and sometimes there's a new release that I really want. So, here are some of the ways I've been limited in my book buying without going on a ban.

-pre-orders

I've pre-ordered a few books lately. Personally, I'm not the type to pre-order a huge number of books, so pre-ordering a few gives me something to be anticipating without the need to go to the bookstore and buy a huge number for myself. Instead, I know something I'm really looking forward to is coming.

-have a can't wait list

These are the new releases, debuts, and sequels coming out that I'm really excited for. I'll probably end up picking up most of these, but it's easier to limit them on a Goodreads list before they are actually published than it is once I randomly hear about all the new books coming out. For me, being aware of the new releases and picking out the ones I'm really excited for helps avoid buying a bunch of books at once.

-exploring your TBR pile

Sometimes, I forget about all of the other wonderful books I have to read on my TBR pile in favor of the newer books I'll purchase. But that's a habit that I've fallen out of recently. I've been pulling books from my TBR, and enjoying discovering something that I picked up awhile ago.

-readalongs and readathons

Sure, nowadays most readalongs are for new release books. But, I participated in the Reboot Readalong, which was hosted by Epic Reads in celebration of the sequel coming out. I had Reboot on my shelves, I saw the readalong info, and I decided it was time to get it off of my TBR and into my currently-reading. Readalongs give you the opprotunity to read some books you might have on your shelf. And readathons, like the ever popular Bout of Books, are exciting because they give you the opportunity to read a bunch of books instead of buying them.

-the library

Ok, I have the worst record at returning books on time. I don't think I ever have before to be honest. They're always late. For me, this option doesn't work as well because two weeks to read books I'm not even sure I'll be in the mood to read in, in addition to a huge TBR pile I already have, makes going to the library not as viable of an option. However, once the TBR pile has diminished, this is an excellent resource.

My book buying has genuinely diminished over the past bit of time. I think I'm just content with the books I have, there are a few must buys waiting on pre-order, and I'm not trying to ban myself from anything. So, this system is working pretty well for me.

What are your thoughts on book buying? Have you ever done a book buying ban? 

From the paper world,

V