We’re three quarters through 2019; time for another reading challenge update. I’m still using Goodreads to track, and as of this morning, I’ve completed 141 books this year, 49 of them over the last quarter (July-September).
Of the 49:
- 24 Fiction / 25 Non-Fiction
- 24 Paper Books / 25 Audiobooks (all my audiobooks were non-fiction this quarter and all my non-fiction were audiobooks)
- 33 New Books / 16 Rereads (I gave myself permission to do the rereading I was craving)
Here are the highlights from the past few months:
Rereads & All-Time Favorites:
- Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling. I don’t know what you’re doing with your life if you haven’t read these yet.
- The Raven Cycle Series by Maggie Stiefvater
- Six of Crows / Crooked Kingdom couplet by Leigh Bardugo. Fantasy heist. Do I need to say more? (They are also in production with Netflix for a tv show based on these books along with Bardugo’s Grisha Series)
- Carry On by Rainbow Rowell. My favorite stand-alone book . . . that now has a sequel, Wayward Son!
Notable New Reads:
How (Not) To Ask a Boy To Prom by S.J. Goslee: I wrote a separate post on this one and my aspirations to be a writer like this author. Fake dating trope done queer. Excellent.
Real Queer America by Samantha Allen: Non-fiction. An account of LGBT stories in red states from a transgender reporter. I loved this narrative, full of hope and strong communities.
Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell. Non-fiction. Gladwell’s latest book is all about how we so often misunderstand each other, the why, what it says about us, and how to do better. It’s characteristic of all his books with strong story and a new perspective.
Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell. Like I’d leave the most anticipated book of the year off this list? Carry On sequel where the Watford gang road trips across America – vampires, truck bed kisses, floral suits . . . I could read about Simon and Baz forever. Also, this back cover tagline that makes me cry every time I read it: Your hero’s journey might be over – but your life has just begun.
The F*ck It Diet by Caroline Dooner. Another one I’ve already posted about, but I’ll recommend it again: a great, body/fat positive and feminist response to diet culture. All about healing our relationship with our bodies and with food.
One quarter left! It looks like I’ll surpass my goal of 150 books . . . maybe I’ll make it to 200? That is, if I don’t spend another week like this last one just reading fanfiction . . . (if only that counted).
With Love,
Natalie