Bookish Quote of the Day!!!

 

High Summer Read-A-Thon ~ August 2024

I've participated in the High Summer Read-A-Thon in the past and look forward to participating in it again this year. 

The High Summer Read-A-Thon is a month long reading event that takes place during the month of August 2024 and is hosted by Seasons of Reading. I figure if I am going to be reading books anyway next month, why not participate in this low key read-a-thon?

Here's the blurb for the High Summer Read-A-Thon ~ August 2024 from the Seasons of Reading:

We start at 12:00 am eastern time on August 1st and end at 11:59 pm eastern time on August 31th. (There is a handy link to a time zone converter in the sidebar menu.) Guidelines for the readathon can be found HERE or you can access in the sidebar menu. Any information you need about the readathon can be found there. Please do be sure to check the guidelines to make sure you're following along correctly. There are specific rules regarding sign up and wrap up, especially in regards to the giveaway.

Click on above links to sign up and learn more about the High Summer Read-A-Thon.

I plan to listen to four audiobooks next month for High Summer Read-A-Thon as follows:

1. The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin
2. Burial Rites by Hannah Kent
3. Spaceman of Bohemia by Jaroslav Kalfar 

4. The Story of English in 100 Words by David Crystal

Usually, I do not like selecting book titles in advance as I tend to change my mind all the time about what I'm going to read next. Since I've been wanting to read the above books for quite a while, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I won't change my mind.

Top Ten Tuesday - Debut Novels I Enjoyed Reading

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Top Ten Tuesday was originally created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

I normally do not keep track whether a novel I am reading is a debut novel or not... Sometimes I find out about a debut novel by other readers or through media hype. So, I had to dig deep to find ten debut novels I read, enjoyed and reviewed here on my blog.

Click on the links below to read my review of each novel.

1. The Second Mrs. Hockaday by Susan Rivers

2. Saving Ruby King by Catherine Adel West

3. Looking For Salvation at the Dairy Queen by Susan Gregg Gilmore

4. Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

5. An Untamed State by Roxane Gay

6. The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian

7. Queen Sugar by Natalie Baszile

8. The Woman Before Wallis by Bryn Turnbull

9. The Good Girl by Mary Kubica

10. Juliet Takes A Breath by Gabby Rivera

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

 

I listened to the unabridged audio version of All Systems Red by Martha Wells, which is narrated by Kevin R. Free. I wasn't a fan of Kevin R. Free's narration of this work, so probably won't seek out other books he has narrated.

Listening time for All Systems Red by Martha Wells is 3 hours, 17 minutes making it a very quick read for me!!

All Systems Red by Martha Wells is short, science fiction novella that's been on my reading wishlist since 2018 or 2019. I was thrilled to have finally listened to All Systems Red recently as I was intrigued by the storyline.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells has a lot of positive reviews and seems to be really well received by many readers. All Systems Red also won both the 2018 Nebula Award for Best Novella and the 2018 Nebula Award for Best Novella. So with its intriguing storyline, the fact that it had won two major literary awards and had been nominated for other literary awards, and is well liked by readers, I wanted to read All Systems Red. 

What I loved about All Systems Red is that it is told through the perspective of a cyborg who has been able to override its original programming and is essentially autonomous. However, its creators do not know this and the cyborg (who calls itself, Murderbot) still works as a SecUnit, a security unit, that has been designed to to protect humans on research missions. I enjoyed reading how human like Murderbot seems to be in many ways, especially after more time spent interacting with other human beings. Murderbot actually loves watching soap operas, which I found humorous. I also loved the world building for All Systems Red as well as the character interactions and how the humans respond to the cyborg once they find out it is autonomous.

However, with all the hype and accolades surrounding, All Systems Red, I was hoping to love it as much as other readers did. But, alas, I didn't love it like I hoped I would. This doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy reading All Systems Red. I did like it, but just didn't love it.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells is also the first book in a series. I do not intend to continue reading the series.

Below is the publisher's summary for All Systems Red by Martha Wells, which I found on Chirp's website:

All Systems Red is the first tense science fiction adventure novella in Martha Wells’ series The Murderbot Diaries. For fans of Westworld and Ex Machina. All Systems Red by Martha Wells begins The Murderbot Diaries, a new science fiction action and adventure series that tackles questions of the ethics of sentient robotics. It appeals to fans of Westworld, Ex Machina, Ann Leckie’s Imperial Raadch series, or Iain M. Banks’ Culture novels. The main character is a deadly security droid that has bucked its restrictive programming and is balanced between contemplative self-discovery and an idle instinct to kill all humans. In a corporate-dominated spacefaring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. Exploratory teams are accompanied by Company-supplied security androids, for their own safety. But in a society where contracts are awarded to the lowest bidder, safety isn’t a primary concern. On a distant planet, a team of scientists are conducting surface tests, shadowed by their Company-supplied ‘droid - a self-aware SecUnit that has hacked its own governor module, and refers to itself (though never out loud) as “Murderbot.” Scornful of humans, all it really wants is to be left alone long enough to figure out who it is. But when a neighboring mission goes dark, it’s up to the scientists and their Murderbot to get to the truth.

I am giving All Systems Red by Martha Wells a rating of 3 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!

Visiting San Diego? Checkout These Independent Bookstores!

I lived in the San Diego, California area for roughly 14 years of my life. I attended junior high school, high school, and part of my college years there. In fact, my parents still live in North County in a small coastal town. So, San Diego, in general, has a soft spot in my heart.

So when I came across an article on San Diego Magazine's website titled, The Best Independent Local Bookstores in San Diego, I couldn't resist reading the article.

I've only been to the Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore in Claremont. In fact, I visited the Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore back in 2015 with my husband and we enjoyed our visit there. See my review of the Mysterious Bookstore here.

I look forward to visiting several of the other indie bookstores mentioned in the above article during future visits to San Diego.

Bookish Quote of the Day!!!

 

Crow Flight by Susan Cunningham

 

I listened to the unabridged audio version of Crow Flight by Susan Cunningham and narrated by Emily Lawrence. 

Listening time for Crow Flight by Susan Cunningham is 9 hours, 56 minutes.

Crow Flight is Susan Cunningham's debut novel and it falls into the young adult romance genre... But also features science and computer science/computer programming as well. For a debut novel, Crow Flight is a really good novel. Overall, I really enjoyed the storyline, the plot details, writing, and main characters for Crow Flight. Crow Flight was the right mix of romance without being cheesy and also it featured a confident, smart, leading female teenager in Gin. I liked all of the main characters; Gin, Hannah, and Felix.

As much as I enjoyed listening to Crow Flight, it wasn't perfect. You knew something bad was coming up ahead in the storyline with regards to Felix's father and his shady dealings from all of the hints being dropped early on in the novel. It was also easy to figure what Felix's dad did that was so shady early on in the novel as well... You just had to sit back and let all play out. So, predictability for Crow Flight was a major issue for me. 

Additionally, I felt like Gin needed to speak up more to Felix about how she felt in their relationship during the second half of Crow Flight. I kind of thought Gin was too passive in letting things unfold the way they did between her and Felix without question. So, this was the other issue I had with the novel.

Otherwise I thought Crow Flight was a good read. I'd still recommend this novel to someone with an interest in crows, computer programming, and young adult romance reads.

Below is the publisher's summary for Crow Flight by Susan Cunningham, which I found on Amazon's website:

The curious flight patterns of crows lead a teen computer programmer down a path of mystery and romance.

Gin trusts logic a little too much. She even designs programs to decide what to eat and how to spend her time. All that changes when she's paired with a new transfer student, Felix, on a computer modeling assignment to explain certain anomalies in the behavior of crows.

Speaking of anomalies, why is Gin so disappointed that Felix isn't a match for her in the dating app she’s designing with local gamers?

As she enters Felix's world and digs further into the data behind crow behavior, Gin uncovers a terrible secret. And the wrong decision could equal disaster squared...

I am giving Crow Flight by Susan Cunningham a rating of 3.5 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!

New to Me Little Free Library Finds in Danville, California!!

Woodranch Clubhouse

As many of my blog readers already know, I love Little Free Libraries!! I try to find as many new to me Little Free Libraries as I can. Plus, revisit ones that I love.

On Sunday evening, my husband and I visited two new to us Little Free Libraries in Danville, California. One was at a neighborhood clubhouse and the other one curbside in front of a home.

I left behind five books in total, but I didn't bring any used books home with me as none of the choices at either Little Free Library caught my interest.

Have you discovered any new to you LFLs or revisited ones you've already discovered previously? Let me know in the comment section below!

172 Alta Vista Way, Danville, CA

Top Ten Tuesday - Ten Things I Loved About Overkill by Paul Offit M.D.

 

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Top Ten Tuesday was originally created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

I truly enjoyed reading Overkill: When Modern Medicine Goes Too Far by Paul A. Offit M.D. earlier this year. In fact, I rated it 5 stars out of 5 stars when I reviewed it in April. Click on the link above if you'd like to read my full review of Overkill.

Otherwise, read on to see the top ten things I enjoyed about Overkill: When Modern Medicine Goes Too Far by Paul A. Offit M.D.

1. Overkill is a nonfiction book that is science and medicine related. So, if you're into health/medicine/science related books, then this book is for you.

2. Overkill is well written. It's easy to follow and not dry or heavy that the layperson wouldn't be able to follow it... Or be turned off by the writing or subject matter. In fact, it is engaging and written for the layperson.

3. I love how well organized Overkill is! It comes with both a prologue and epilogue. Plus, it is organized into six distinct sections/topics with three to four chapters in each section that pertains to the topic of each section.

4. Overkill doesn't have to be read in order. You could, in theory, skip around and read which ever chapter grabs your attention the most and go from there. I happened to listen to the audio version of this book, so I didn't skip around.

5. In Overkill, I loved how relevant each of the topics/chapters were with regards to health matters that effect our lives. Paul Offit M.D. debunks several health myths (backed by science) in his book. I have new found knowledge and am more educated due to reading this book when it comes to my overall health. There are medical procedures (and so on) that are outdated, but these procedures are still in use today by many doctors.

6. Overkill is written by Paul Offit M.D. I've read and reviewed three nonfiction books by Paul Offit M. D. and have yet to be disappointed with anything he has written. I'd pretty much buy and read anything he's written as I've enjoyed reading his books very much.

7. Overkill comes in hardback, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats. I listened to the unabridged audio version of Overkill, which I recommend if you enjoy audiobooks.

8. I like the art work and cover design for Overkill.

9. Overkill is less than 300 pages.

10. I liked Overkill so much that I've even given it as a gift!!

Florida Department of Education Recommends Pride & Prejudice to Read about ‘American Pride.’ Say What?!

Seriously, I can't believe my eyes!! I read on Book Riot's website an article titled: Florida Recommends PRIDE & PREJUDICE to Read about ‘American Pride.’ Not kidding. by Jeff O'Neal. In the article, Jeff O'Neal wrote the following:

Florida, ground-zero for book-banning and censorship, continues to fumble the point of books and reading with its recent decision to include Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice in a list of recommended books for reading about ‘American Pride.” The Department of Education’s inclusion of Austen’s 1813 novel comes with no explanation, excuse, or apparently abashedness. About the only thing you can say for P&P’s relation to America is that it was published after the Declaration of Independence—that is the United States actually existed. I don’t think the U.S. is even mentioned in Pride & Prejudice. Is it possible that someone just saw the word “Pride” in the title and threw it in? And is this actually the explanation that makes the most sense, dumb as it is? I think so.

I am baffled as to why the Florida Department of Education has included Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen on a list of books to read regarding American Pride.