Down the TBR Hole Revisited (2 of 3)

By only cutting one out of ten last week—by dint of reading it—I wondered if this revisiting was really worth the trouble. This week’s results were more encouraging.

This meme was created by Lia @ Lost in a Story—but Jenna at Bookmark Your Thoughts is the one that exposed me to this, and as my Goodreads “Want To Read” shelf is scarily long, I had to do this.

The Rules are simple:

1. Go to your Goodreads to-read shelf
2. Order on ascending date added.
3. Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books.
4. Read the synopses of the books.
5. Decide: keep it or should it go?
6. Keep track of where you left off so you can pick up there next week! (or whenever)

What distinguishes this series from the Mt. TBR section of my Month-end Retrospectives? Those are books I actually own while Goodreads contains my aspirational TBR (many of which will be Library reads). The Naming of the two is a bit confusing, but…what’re you going to do?

(Click on the cover for an official site or something with more info about the book)

	Miss Kopp Investigates by Amy Stewart My Thoughts: My enthusiasm for this series has waned, as evidenced by the fact that I’m not two behind. I’m not sure why I put this on the list—maybe just to nudge my memory that these books exist? I will admit, though, that this sounds more interesting than the sixth book. I guess that’s enough to justify keeping it on the list. Verdict: A tepid
	The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde My Thoughts: I really do want to like Fforde, so a YA Fforde book about an employment agency for wizards? Sounds interesting. The agency being run by a 15-year-old who starts receiving visions about protecting the last dragon? Now you’ve really got me intrigued. Throw in a cover featuring a dragon and a VW bug and you make it hard not to judge a book by its cover. Verdict:
	The Forgotten Girl by Rio Youers Blurb: A 26-year-old street performer is beaten up by thugs looking for his girlfriend. A girlfriend he doesn’t remember. Apparently, she has the “ability to selectively erase a person’s memories—an ability she has used to delete herself from Harvey’s mind. But emotion runs deeper than memory, and Harvey realizes he still feels something for Sally. And so—with the spider threatening—he goes looking for a girl he loves but can’t remember,” and danger ensues. My Thoughts: I wish I remembered why I put this on the list in the first place, maybe it’d convince me to keep it there. Verdict:
	E.B. White on Dogs by E.B. White Blurb: A compilation of “the best and funniest of his essays, poems, letters, and sketches depicting over a dozen of White’s various canine companions” put together by White’s granddaughter. My Thoughts: Do you have to ask? Verdict:
	Monkey Around by Jadie Jang Blurb: “Barista, activist, and were-monkey Maya McQueen was well on her way to figuring herself out. Well, part of the way. 25% of the way. If you squint…” My Thoughts: When the blurb for an Urban Fantasy starts like this, I stop paying attention, and click the “Want to Read” button. Also, Paul’s Picks had good things to say. Verdict:
	The Burn by Kathleen Kent My Thoughts: The Dime was so good, I added the rest of the trilogy without looking at what they were about. I really don’t care, just need to fit them into the queue. Verdict:
	The Pledge by Kathleen Kent My Thoughts: See above. Verdict:
	Surviving the Extremes: What Happens to the Body and Mind at the Limits of Human Endurance by Kenneth Kamler Blurb: “A true-life scientific thriller no reader will forget, Surviving the Extremes takes us to the farthest reaches of the earth as well as into the uncharted territory within the human body, spirit, and brain…Divided into six sections—jungle, high seas, desert, underwater, high altitude, and outer space—this book uses firsthand testimony and documented accounts to investigate the science of what a body goes through and explains why people survive—and why they sometimes don’t.” My Thoughts: My daughter (or was it her boyfriend) talked about needing to read this for a class—or maybe it was recommended by a professor—and thought it might be fun to read to talk about with them. But then the class didn’t happen or something…I really don’t remember. But they didn’t end up reading it, and I’m not super interested in it. Verdict:
	The Exodus Betrayal by N.C. Scrimgeour My Thoughts: It’s a cyberpunk-y SF thriller that I’m just not in the mood for. This time, it’s despite the nice things Paul’s Picks had to say. It’s probably pretty good, but I just know I’m not going to get around to it. Verdict:
	The Library: A Fragile History by Andrew Pettegree Blurb: “Perfect for book lovers, this is a fascinating exploration of the history of libraries and the people who built them, from the ancient world to the digital age.” My Thoughts: A history of libraries? That sounds pretty good. But it also sounds like a lot of work. When I read about this at Witty and Sarcastic Book Club, the idea intrigued me. But lately, the part where Jodi wrote, “There was just no excitement shown in the pages. I felt like the authors weren’t really all that invested in what they were writing. And that sort of rubbed off on me a little bit,” speaks loudly to me. Verdict:

Books Removed in this Post: 4 / 10
Total Books Removed: 5 / 33

Anyone out there read any of these books? Did I make the right call with any of them?

(Image by moritz320 from Pixabay)