Me Reading Longer Books

So, you might have seen a discussion post about long books before. However, today I wanted to share my take on reading longer books. For me, this is typically when reading an adult fantasy novel. I've read some pretty long books over the years (I looked back on my Goodreads and one of my longest novels read that I'd recorded on there was 725 pages and that was City of Heavenly Fire), but lately when I picked up novels like A Game of Thrones of Outlander, I've noticed a trend.

After about 400 or 500 pages in, I'll put the book down and pick up another. It's not like I do this on purpose, it's just after that time I end up picking up another book, start reading them both at the same time, and then eventually continue on with the other book. Then I try to go back and read on with the longer book. I'm not saying I'm a fan of reading this way- honestly I want to read these series with longer books. For some reason, I just end up reading bigger books as several installments of 400 or 500 pages each.

How do you all read longer books? Do you read them at once, while reading several books, or like I do?

From the paper world,
V

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

Let's Talk Questions About Posting

I have a question for you book bloggers out there, and you blog readers. It’s a very simple one, but one that I still haven’t figured out the right balance of. How do you know what type of posts to post, and how often? I’ve been posting some interviews and discussion posts lately with Top Ten Tuesdays and reviews, but I never know when how much is too much. That is to say, are two of a certain type of post (i.e. review, list, discussion, etc.) too much to have posted back to back? When is too much too much?

I know this is something that has probably crossed a lot of bloggers’ minds, which is why I come asking for some feedback. And as people who read blogs, what do you like to see in other's posting? There are some regular weekly features that I like to participate in, and then I also try to post either a discussion, tag, review, or something else. So there's some variety, and December is typically one of my favorite blogging months from last year because it was a time to really look back at all of the books of the year, talk about the ones I loved, and then move on to looking forward to next year's books as well. But, I want to make sure that I'm maintaining a balance of posts. 

So, now I want to hear from you. What do you think about posting, and what types of posts you want to see? Let me know in the comments.

Also, Rebecca of The Library Canary did a discussion post months ago about How Often to Post that I think is really thought provoking and I remember first making me think about post content. I definitely recommend looking into her discussion about it!

From the paper world,

V

Let's Talk Historical Fiction

Ok! So, normally I don’t read historical fiction. Normally I don’t post rambly posts. But, today, I wanted to talk about historical fiction, which is a genre I honestly don’t read much of. However, I’ve been reading a very long YA historical fiction novel lately, and I just have to talk about it and how it’s been making me think about YA historical fiction in general. The book is Brazen by Katherine Longshore, which came out earlier this year and was one that tons of book bloggers were excited to talk about. And I can honestly see why. I’m not going to be doing a review of it right now, but reading Brazen has made me want to talk more about YA historical fiction, what I like about the genre, and more!

So, to begin let’s talk about something specific to Brazen but that indicates something very important to how I read historical fiction, and that is- I must have an interest in the historical time period the book is set in. Brazen, if you are unfamiliar with this book, is set in Tudor England. This is an era that always fascinated me. It was a time of turbulent change, with the glitz and glamour of the old court serving as a background for huge political upheaval and, of course, Henry VIII’s six marriages. I always thought that this was a time of interest to me. Sometimes, I may pick up a novel that I’m not very familiar with the setting of, but that is alright because it takes me to my next point.

Sometimes (and this is not always 100% true, but it’s something I’ve noticed recently) I enjoy reading books about times or people I’m not very familiar with, because it includes the element of surprise. Yes, I know historical fiction is just that- fiction- but I like knowing some aspects of a book but learning more about characters or a time period I wasn’t as familiar with and then researching it more after I read. (Yes, I have done that with one or two books before.) With Brazen, the story revolves around Henry Fitzroy and Mary Howard. I know of Henry Fitzroy but I don’t know anything beyond the basic of he was Henry VIII’s son. So, not knowing anything of what’s happening with those two characters but being familiar with the Tudor court and the other main characters has been interesting. (Oh, and I’ve loved how this book has talked more about how the day to day court life was, but I’ll save all of this for my review of the book later.)

So, in general, I am definitely wanting to read more historical fiction, and talk about what works for me in book genres and what doesn’t. If you have any historical fiction recommendations for me, let me know in the comments, or if you have another genre you want me to share my thoughts on in a more discussion post, comment! Before I go, though, I’ll leave you with some historical fiction novels I’ve read and enjoyed!

My List of Top Historical Fiction and SciFi from the beginning of the year

The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner

Sekret by Lindsay Smith

My Review of Sekret

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

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