Library Checkout: May 2017

Are we halfway through the year now? Is that how this works? Mind blowing when you stop and think about it for it a second…

ANYWAY. All that old lady rambling about the speed of time means that it’s time to look at another month’s library reading! Library Checkout is hosted by Charleen @ It’s a Portable Magic.

 

I feel like I spent a lot of time at the library and reading library books but I don’t think my actual numbers are that impressive. I know that I only read 10 books in May and I’m definitely used to more robust numbers. It was another gut punch of a month and I’m still working on getting my reading focus back.

Still, 10 books is 10 books!

So let’s look at the library then shall we?

Read
The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel (wow, that’s some kind of book eh??)
Call the Midwife: A True Story of the East End of London in the 1950s by Jennifer Worth (love the show, the book was also wonderful)
Bette and Joan: The Divine Feud by Shaun Considine (this was such good fun – these women were incredible)

Returned Unread
American Wife by Curtis Sittenfield (I took this book out a second time, read around 200 pages and realized I did not care about it AT ALL. So I stopped and moved on)
The Invasion of the Tearling by Erika Johansen (I had to – someone was waiting for it and I couldn’t renew – I will get it out again and actually read it!)

Currently Out
The Girl Who Walked Home Alone: Bette Davis, a Personal Biography by Charlotte Chandler
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

On Hold
Nothing right now. But I think I’m going to try and get my hands on Anne Rule’s The Stranger Beside Me...

What about you? What did you find at the library? Link up with It’s a Portable Magic!

Library Checkout – April 2017

Another month, another Library Checkout! Visit Charleen @ It’s a Portable Magic for the full story!

Well as you all know, my reading wasn’t strong in April. And while I found that I had a hard time finding time to read, that my focus was lacking when I did read, a funny thing happened when I was at the library: I got excited about the books I was finding.

For a hardcore booknerd this might not seem that noteworthy. But I was struggling, you guys. Instead of seeing possibilities when I looked at the books I had to read, I saw one other thing I had to do. When I looked at my TBR stacks, I didn’t see stories, I saw chores.

But the trips I took to the library had me leaving with a smile. I got that feeling you get when you know you’ve found exactly the books you were looking for.

I didn’t read a lot this month but I feel like everything will be better in May. So here’s what the month with the library looked like:

Read
Sisi: Empress On Her Own by Alison Pataki (the first book was better)
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne (so fun)
The Kept Woman by Karin Slaughter
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Elena Ferrante
Possessed: The Life of Joan Crawford by Donald Spoto

Returned Unread
The Lights of Paris by Eleanor Brown

Currently Out
American Wife by Curtis Sittenfield (for the second time)
The Invasion of the Tearling by Erika Johansen
The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel (currently reading)
Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth
The Girl Who Walked Home Alone: Bette Davis, a Personal Biography by Charlotte Chandler
Bette and Joan: The Divine Feud by Shaun Considine (can you tell that I have a new obsession?)

On Hold
Nothing right now. See list above!

What about you? What did you find at the library? Link up with It’s a Portable Magic!

Library Checkout – March 2017

Another month just about over, which means it’s time to look at how we used the library via Charleen @ It’s a Portable Magic.

I felt like I was in the library all the time this month but the actual reading shows that I didn’t get through whatever I brought home very quickly. I bought a lot of books this month (bad, bad) and was excited about a lot of them. In a way you could say that I was just sticking to my blogging goal of reading the books I already have?

Read
Three Sisters, Three Queens by Philippa Gregory
Sofia Khan is Not Obliged by Ayisha Malik
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (I’m a proper Canadian now, guys!)

DNF’d
The Sellout by Paul Beatty
Queen Margot by Alexandre Dumas (I got 200 pages in and just did not care. However, I recently found the non-fiction version of the story and the showdown between Catherine de Medici and her daughter, Margaret of Valois and I’m super excited about it)

Returned unread
none, yet…

Currently out
The Lights of Paris by Eleanor Brown (anyone read this? I loved The Weird Sisters but have been avoiding this for some reason…)
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
The Kept Woman by Karin Slaughter

On hold
Sisi by Alison Pataki (I really really liked the first one, The Accidental Empress)
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Elena Ferrante (conversion complete)

There you have it. Kind of a low-key library month. If you used the library this month, visit Charleen to link up!

Library Checkout: February 2017

I’m trying not to be an apologist blogger anymore so I won’t apologize for not putting up blog content. I totally feel bad about it and I’m alive. Just…really terrible at putting up blog content!

This is why the library checkout, hosted by Charleen @ It’s a Portable Magic, is so great. We all get content and I don’t have to use my brain too too much. (What is wrong with my brain, you guys? It feels mushy)

Although, really, it’s been a shameful month at the library. You’ll see. I just have so many stacks of books at home and I’m starting to feel really terrible about not reading all of them, all the time. It’s a horrible feeling and I’m hoping it goes away if I focus on my own books for a while. I’m really terrible at that, though. I’m the kind of reader that’s like “OH THAT’S SO SHINY AND NEW, LET ME HAVE IT NOW.” I need to get more in the mindset of “These books aren’t going anywhere. I don’t need to have this book in my possession this instant.”

Even though I know it’s true, it feels like a lie.

Anyway, let’s get to the shame of my month at the library.

Read
The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante (ohhhh I loved this one! Remember when I was super lukewarm about My Brilliant Friend? I take it back. Give me all the Ferrante books!)
Three Sisters, Three Queens by Philippa Gregory (I’m still reading this as I write this. I’m really enjoying it but it’s dense and long and I know someone’s waiting for it so I’m trying to read as fast as I can)

DNF’d
Everyone Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave (I don’t know what happened here – I have loved all of Cleave’s other work. This one felt inauthentic and forced. Since someone was waiting for it, I decided to just send it back)

Returned unread
The Butcher’s Hook by Janet Ellis
Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld (this is the second time I have returned one of her books to the library unread even though I really enjoyed Eligible!)

Currently out
Hitman Anders and the Meaning Of It All by Jonas Jonasson

On hold
Nothing right now but I’m thinking about putting a hold on the next Elena Ferrante book…maybe Emily Climbs too…

Library Checkout – January 2017

Even though I’ve committed to reading more of the books I already have in my possession, I am not actually capable of turning my back on my library.

Partly it’s that I need the peace and quiet in my work days (my library is a block from my office) but I also just really like accessing free books.

Because dear Shannon is busy being super brilliant and academic, she’s handed the reins of the Library Checkout over to Charleen @ It’s a Portable Magic (Hi Charleen!). Same idea, new home.

My month at the library looked like this:

Read
Along the Infinite Sea by Beatriz Williams
An Untamed State by Roxane Gay (whyyyyyyyyy didn’t I buy this?)
The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Unbearable Lightness of Scones by Alexander McCall Smith

Did Not Finish
Court Lady and Country Wife: Two Noble Sisters in the Seventeenth Century England by Lita-Rose Betcherman – I should have been ALL OVER this. But I was so bored reading about all the men doing things.

On Hold
Thought about putting holds on Canada Reads finalists but…every other book nerd in Canada will be doing the same thing. I bought two of them instead.

Returned, Unread
The Lost Sisterhood by Anne Fortier

Currently Out
Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld
The Butcher’s Hook by Janet Ellis

If I’m honest, I might be returning the last two unread. I think I’ve lost interest? They are due back early next week, maybe over the weekend. Are either of these must reads?

How was your month at the library? Visit It’s a Portable Magic to link up!

Library Checkout – September 2016

Did September feel like the longest month ever to anyone else? Maybe it’s just that it was an eventful month so it feels long? Like, if I look back to the long weekend, that feels like years ago.

It was a fairly solid reading month. The great thing about September is that things go back to normal. I mostly really like normal. I’m hoping to finish one more book before the month is actually over so that I can say I finished 14 books this month but I’m not totally sure that it will happen.

That said, I’ve been pretty happy with my reading this month. It started a little slowly, I wasn’t loving the books I was reading but they weren’t terrible. The later half of the month saw an uptick in book love.

And now it’s time to join Shannon in looking at library reading this month!

Library Books Read
Dear Fang, With Love by Rufi Thorpe
The After Party by Anton DiSclafani
Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta
Bellweather Rhapsody by Kate Racculia
Little Sister by David Hewson

Checked Out, To Be Read
Shopaholic to the Rescue by Sophie Kinsella
The Big Four by Agatha Christie
The Accidental Empress by Alison Pataki
Nights of Rain and Stars by Maeve Binchy
Laura Lamont’s Life in Pictures by Emma Straub

Returned Unread
All the Stars in the Heavens by Adriana Trigiani – I’m still kind of regretting this

On Hold
None, currently BUT I did put Bellweather Rhapsody and The Accidental Empress on hold. AND I’m the very first person to read their copy of The Accidental Empress. Hold progress.

Did you get anything great at the library this month?

Library Checkout – August 2016

We are getting to the end of summer and I for one could not be more thrilled about it. I am more than ready for cooler temperatures, rainy days, more layers and pumpkin-spiced everything. I don’t even like things pumpkin-spice flavoured, it’s just a sign that summer is but a memory. And now that it’s the end of August (again, hooray!), it’s time to join Shannon @ Rivercity Reading in looking at how we used the library this month.

Another fairly quiet month for me. I am looking forward to more piles of books in fall, and chilly, rainy, grey days to enjoy them on.

Library Books Read
Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg (at least I didn’t buy it)
The Assistants by Camille Perri (which I loved and devoured in a day)
The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson (ended up loving it, will post soon)

Checked Out, To Be Read
All the Stars in the Heavens by Adriana Trigiani
Dear Fang, With Love by Rufi Thorpe
The After Party by Anton Disclafani
Under the Udala Tree by Chinelo Okparanta

Returned, Unread
None this month!

On Hold
Nothing but I’ve been toying with the idea of putting My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier on hold for a while. Thought about doing the same with Erik Larson’s Thunderstruck but then I realized that I always love his work and just bought it.

Not a huge library month quantity-wise, but a mostly quality library month.

Library Checkout – July 2016

Every month Shannon @ Rivercity Reading encourages us all to show off what we read/took out from the library.

While Shannon had a great month at the library , this has not been a strong library month for me! I have no excuses or reasons. I had a PILE of books out from the library to start and then I started returning them but didn’t take anything else out because I have SO MANY books at home that need reading.

Still trying to dig my way out from under the piles of books I have ambitiously purchased or borrowed (from friends, not the library). But in the meantime, this is what July at the library looked like.

Library Books Read
The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler (had high hopes for this one, it never quite took off for me)
The House Girl by Tara Conklin
The Radleys by Matt Haig
Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngoze Adichie

Checked Out, To Be Read
Cecilia, or Memoirs of an Heiress by Frances Burney (an ongoing project…hoping to return the library copy as soon as my order comes through from Oxford University Press but…it’s been a while and no dice. Update: I emailed them to ask about the status of my order and they had no answer but are apparently sending me a replacement copy…guys, this is the second time I’ve ordered something with them that has turned out very poorly.)

Returned, Unread
The White Russian by Vanora Bennet (I read a couple of pages and decided that the first person perspective was going to make me nuts)
The Careful Use of Compliments by Alexander McCall Smith (For various reasons, not the right book for me right now and I saw someone was waiting for it…)

On Hold
I should probably just remove this category from my rundown altogether. I can’t see myself putting anything on hold anytime soon.

Library Checkout: June 2016

A bit different this month – I feel like June has lasted forever and I’m constantly surprised that it’s not already July. Still, June is ending which means it’s time to join Shannon @ Rivercity Reading in looking at library use! Hoping your reading takes off for you soon, Shannon!

June has been a busy month. Lots of socializing. And it’s been warmer which means that I’ve been driving into work more often (to avoid getting home and vomiting because the bus isn’t air conditioned and I am not made for that…First. World. Problem) so I’ve lost some reading time there as well.

One thing that hasn’t fallen away is my use of the library though. Out of the 11 books I’ve read this month, 6 of them have been library books. These sunny days also make it impossible not to walk over to the library at lunch to pick up more books and read in the grass outside.

So let’s get to the rundown.

Library Books Read
Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist by Sunil Yapa
Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye (really liked this one!)
The Wife, the Mistress, and the Maid by Arial Lawhon
Secret Lives of the Tsars: Three Centuries of Autocracy, Debauchery, Betrayal, Murder and Madness from Romanov Russia by Michael Farquar (this was amazing)
The Little Book by Selden Edwards (I finally, finally finished this…it’s been a process that I will post about later)
Midwives by Chris Bohjalian

Checked Out, To Be Read
The White Russian by Vanora Bennet
The House Girl by Tara Conklin
The Careful Use of Compliments by Alexander McCall Smith
The Radleys by Matt Haig
The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler

Returned, Unread
None yet but who knows at this point. I wish I could get back the time I’ve spent with The Little Book.

On Hold
Still not doing the library holds thing. I just like the browsing.

How did your June at the library look?

Library Checkout: May 2016

Another month gone by! And so it’s time to talk about library books, thanks to Shannon @ Rivercity Reading.

Shannon didn’t use her library much this month, but I did. Especially when you consider that, overall, I didn’t read that much. I’m hoping to finish one more by the end of the month but that would still only bring me to 12 books read total.

Still, I wasn’t going to not go to the library. It’s not even that I haven’t been enjoying the books I’ve been reading – for the most part, I really have. I’ve just been adulting and that’s taken some time out of reading. But hey – the pace of summer is slower right? More reading time is just around the corner.

Here’s what I managed with the help of my library this month:

Library Books Read
Twain’s End by Lynn Cullen
Flappers: Six Women of a Dangerous Generation by Judith Mackrell (YAS to this book)
The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen
Dietland by Sarai Walker (still in love)
Tiny Little Thing by Beatriz Williams
The World According to Bertie by Alexander McCall Smith

Checked Out, To Be Read
The Wife, the Maid and the Mistress by Ariel Lawhon (second time checking this out, better read it this time)
The White Russian by Vanora Bennett
Jane Steele by Lindsay Faye (someone is waiting for this one now so I either need to read it ASAP or return it)
The Little Book by Selden Edwards (read the first page, SO intrigued)
Midwives by Chris Bohjalian
Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist by Sunil Yapa (which apparently also has someone waiting for it and I totally found it on the shelves…not sure I can handle this kind of pressure)

Returned, Unread
None this month, huzzah!

On Hold
Maybe one day I will get into holds…

Did you go to the library this month? What did you take home?