Mount TBR Checkpoint #1

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Life has certainly gotten away from me lately!  I've been busy and focused on lots of things, but not blogging.  That's OK, but I miss it and I have a large pile of books to talk about, some of which are official TBR books. 

In other news, my youngest kid is now 14 and nobody can quite believe it, including her, but since she'll be going to her first dance on Saturday night, I guess it's real.  She's having a birthday hike with friends before that; maybe I'll post a picture or something.  It's lovely weather here at the moment; we've had a remarkably long and cool spring, with a good deal of rain, and everything is beautifully green.  The first spring blossoms (daffodils, tulip trees, and almond orchards) are over, and now we're on to the dogwoods, which I love.  Soon enough, it will get hot and everything will turn brown, so I've been really happy with all this cool green stuff.


It's the first Mount TBR Checkpoint, and Bev has lots of things to ask.

For those who would like to participate in this checkpoint post, I'd like you to do two things:
 

1. Tell us how many miles you've made it up your mountain (# of books read).  If you're really ambitious, you can do some intricate math and figure out how the number of books you've read correlates to actual miles up Pike's Peak, Mt. Ararat, etc. And feel free to tell us about any particularly exciting adventures you've had along the way.
 
I've read 13 books out of 24, which I feel is remarkably good!  That's much better than my usual speed.  However, it must be admitted that I've mostly been doing pretty easy reads....so this will probably slow down.

2. Complete ONE (or more if you like) of the following:
 A. Post a picture of your favorite cover so far.  
 
Most of my covers have been quite, quite hideous, or else utterly nondescript.  I did fall in love with the cover of Germania, though, and it's by far the most fun book cover in this whole list.  Look, it's like a cute little board game with sausages and Valkyries and beer steins!



 B. Who has been your favorite character so far? And tell us why, if you like.
 
Hm, I'm not sure.  I liked a lot of them, but none reached out and grabbed me.
 
 C. Have any of the books you read surprised you--if so, in what way (not as good as anticipated? unexpected ending? Best thing you've read ever? Etc.)
 
The Heart of Mid-Lothian surprised me by being about a prison!  I was expecting dashing Jacobite rebels.  Castledown surprised me by not being a formulaic fantasy novel.

So here is my list of what I've actually read, including some books I haven't managed to review yet:
  1.  They Walked Like Men, by Clifford Simak
  2. Dirt, ed. Mindy
  3. The Best of Leigh Brackett
  4. Shakespeare's Planet, by Clifford D. Simak
  5. The Broken Citadel, by Joyce Bellou Gregorian
  6. Castledown, by Joyce Bellou Gregorian
  7. Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston
  8. My Universities, by Maxim Gorky
  9. Germania, by Simon Winder
  10. The Heart of Mid-Lothian, by Sir Walter Scott
  11. Storm in the Village, by Miss Read
  12. Further Afield, by Miss Read 
  13. The Lottery, and Adventures of the Demon Lover, by Shirley Jackson

Comments

  1. LoryApril 3, 2017 at 3:37 PM

    Good job! I've gotten exactly 1/4 through my pile. Will post an update soon.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Bev HankinsApril 3, 2017 at 6:58 PM

    Doing great! Thanks for checking in.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousApril 6, 2017 at 5:15 PM

    Her first dance! I hope it goes well! Teenage dances always seemed to me like one of life's more unpleasant rituals, but my sister assures me that many people enjoy them tremendously. :p

    I am very impressed, meanwhile, that you've done more than half your TBR goal in only three months. You're a genius!

    ReplyDelete
  4. JeanApril 6, 2017 at 10:43 PM

    Ha! I loved going to dances. Many of my best teen memories are of dances and the after-shenanigans. (Not school dances, those are horrible.) My newly-minted 14yo is a bit nervous, but she'll have several friends there and I hope she'll have fun.

    ReplyDelete

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