Category: Calendar Items Page 5 of 21

Third Quarter Check-In: 2022 Plans and Challenges

One of the handful of things I dropped the ball on recently was this check-in. I appreciate—and can use—the time to plan and organize, and hopefully, someone enjoys reading them.

I didn’t have many concrete plans for 2022, but one that I mentioned was “Cut down on my Goodreads Want-to-Read list and the unread books that I own (a perennial project, but I made some strides last year).” How am I doing on that?

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of 2021 9 45 42 144
Current Total 9 50 40 144

That’s…not good. I did have to burn a few Audible credits…and then there was this sale, and…and…ugh. Other than that, I’m still doing pretty well at reading what I buy this year. But, this is really not what I’d hoped to see at this point of the year.
Not great, Bob

Let’s see how I’m doing with the rest of my plans and move on to the Reading Challenges…
2022 Book Challenges

12 Books
I’m doing well with this one, but am a little intimidated by the book I have slated for November—it’s a little on the longer side and if it’s as good as Micah says, I’m going to lose a lot of 2023 to the rest of the series. (a good problem to have)
12 Books Challenge Quarter 3


2022 “Support Book Bloggers” Challenge
Support Book Bloggers Challenge
I decided to nix this one—I’m working on all the things mentioned here, but feel a little uncomfortable doing these things because of a checklist—and even more awkward about discussing it. But I’m mentioning it again, because I like the idea and want to spread the word about the efforts (it’s just not for me)


2022 While I was Reading
While I Was Reading
I’m doing okay on this—as usual, I’m not really planning the books for this challenge. When October hits, if I haven’t read everything on the list, I’ll get serious about hunting.

  1. A book with a question in the title.: I have an idea for this, but I’m not sure a local library will get it next month when it comes out, and I don’t know that I want to spend money on it. Hmmm…we’ll if I have to get clever.
  2. A book of non-violent true crime.: Blessed Are the Bank Robbers: The True Adventures of an Evangelical Outlaw by Chas Smith
  3. A book with a cover you don’t like.: Composite Creatures (the style of the art just bugs me)
  4. A historical fiction novel not set in Europe.: A Snake in the Raspberry Patch by Joanne Jackson
  5. A book with a character’s name in the title.: With Grimm Resolve
  6. A book featuring paranormal activity (fiction or non.): That’s like a third of what I’ve read this year…I guess I’ll go with Amongst Our Weapons
  7. A book with a number in the title.: Citizen K-9
  8. A food related memoir.: I have no idea. Literally.
  9. A book that’s won an award.: I’ve read a few of these, I just need to track down a title for this blank
  10. A middle grade novel.: How to Save a Superhero by Ruth Freeman
  11. A book by an author who shares your zodiac sign.: This one is going to be hard—it also comes close to disclosing more personal information than I want to share—but I think I’ve got one in mind.
  12. A book that’s a combination of genres.: Bloodlines by Peter Hartog (I also used this for the next challenge, so I’ll probably replace this on the final list)

Your TBR Reduction Book Challenge

Your TBR Reduction Book Challenge
I’m hitting the target on this one—I’ve only managed to hit 1 Stretch Goal (I don’t have many books that apply to the stretches, actually). This isn’t helping that much with my reduce the TBR plan, but it’s not hurting it. So there’s that.

In the months to come, I’m going to have to get creative to find a way to match the challenge with a book. I’m eager to see if I can pull it off.
January – New Beginnings I give you permission to read the most recent book you got on top of your TBR.: Bloodlines by Peter Hartog
Stretch Goal – Read the oldest book in Mount TBR it has waited long enough: Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron
February – Valentine’s Day Gift
Is there that book by an author you love you picked up and still haven’t read because you do not deserve it just yet? Other items got in the way? You have for this challenge to pick that book up and read it: Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith
March – Fresh blooms
For the beginning of Spring I want you to open a book in the TBR pile by an author you’ve never read before: The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True by Sean Gibson
April – New Openings
April is derived from the Latin for ‘to open’ In Mount TBR there may be the first book of a series. Your challenge is to read: Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City by K.J. Parker
May – Randommmmm
You MAY pick one random book out of Mount TBR and you must read it: Conjured Defense by J.C. Jackson
June – The Longest Day
Find the longest book in Mount TBR and you must read it: The Border by Don Winslow
July – You Came, You Read and You Conquered
In your TBR there may have been a book you know will be a challenging read. Show it who is the Emperor and read that book until it screams for your mercy and then finish it! AMORALMAN by Derek Delgaudio
August – Holidayyyyy
Pick a book that takes you away to another place. Read it and relax: The Ghost Machine by James Lovegrove
September – Back to School
Pick a book with some link to education. Dark Academia; dangerous school, etc.: The Days of Tao by Wesley Chu (I had a hard time finding something for this prompt, and was so happy when I remembered this started at a summer class)

(Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay)

September 2022 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

Wow, September sped by for me–I felt like I was behind all month, 3 titles felt like they took twice as long as they should have to finish (but never dragged) and I just didn’t produce nearly as much as I thought I would. (although, when do I ever?) Still, all in all, it was a good month–29 titles finished for 7,536+ pages (or the equivalent). My average rating for the month was 3.4 stars–although I’m still thinking about a couple of them, so it might technically be higher (I think I need to write something before I know for sure). 3.4 is a little lower than I’ve been hitting lately, but I’m not complaining–even with a couple of “meh” books, I enjoyed them all.

The Big Project I’d hoped to start two weeks ago, is under way, so expect something new and exciting (at least for me, but I hope for you) soon.

Enough blather, here’s what happened here in September.
Books/Novels/Novellas Read/Listened to

Blood Sugar Travel by Bullet Sympathy for the Devil
4 Stars 3.5 Stars 2 Stars
Be the Serpent Fatal Forgery Spider-Man’s Social Dilemma
Unsure 3.5 Stars 4 Stars
Tracy Flick Can't Win Fallout Adequate Yearly Progress
2 Stars 3.5 Stars 3 Stars
An Easy Death The Days of Tao Snowstorm in August
3 Stars 3.5 Stars Still
Deciding
The Man Who Died Twice Wealth Management The Soul's Conflict and Victory Over Itself by Faith
4 Stars 3.5 Stars 3.5 Stars
Big Red Tequila Dead Man's Hand The Truth
3 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars
Hell and Back Movies (And Other Things) The Stories Behind the Stories
3 Stars 3.5 Stars 4 Stars
The Great Lie Directed by James Burrows All at Sea
3.5 Stars 3.5 Stars 4 Stars
Station Eternity For We Are Many Heads in Beds
4 Stars 3.5 Stars 2 1/2 Stars
Santa’s Little Yelpers Oliver’s Walk
4 Stars 3 Stars

Still Reading

Faith & Life In the Fullness of Time Legends & Lattes

Ratings

5 Stars 0 2 1/2 Stars 1
4 1/2 Stars 0 2 Stars 2
4 Stars 9 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 10 1 Star 0
3 Stars 5
Average = 3.4

TBR Stacks/Piles/Heaps

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of
2021
9 45 42 144
1st of the
Month
8 49 145 145
Added 7 2 4 0
Read/
Listened
6 1 6 1
Current Total 9 50 40 144

Breakdowns:
“Traditionally” Published: 20
Self-/Independent Published: 9

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 0 (0%) 4 (2%)
Fantasy 1 (3%) 21 (9%)
General Fiction/ Literature 2 (7%) 15 (7%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 12 (41%) 89 (39%)
Non-Fiction 4 (14%) 20 (9%)
Science Fiction 5 (17%) 21 (9%)
Theology/ Christian Living 2 (7%) 36 (16%)
Urban Fantasy 3 (10%) 26 (11%)
“Other” (Horror/ Humor/ Steampunk/ Western) 0 (0%) 1 (0%)

Review-ish Things Posted

Other Things I Wrote
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th), I also wrote:

Enough about me—how Was Your Month?

When Archie Met Lily

84 years ago today, Archie Goodwin—one of my top 5 All-Time Favorite Characters — met the only woman who could keep his attention for more than a few months, Lily Rowan. Lily shows up several times in the series and threatens to steal every scene she appears in (and frequently succeeds). Check out this post from Today in Mystery Fiction for the details—one of my favorite scenes, from one of my favorite books in possibly my favorite series—(I think I have 3 or 4 copies of it), so I had to say something.

 

Besides, it’s not like I have a long list of dates associated with fictional events (but really should work on one).

How they met 84 years ago, when Archie’s only in his mid-30’s, is beyond me. But Math was never my strong suit, I’m sure it makes sense, surely Charlie Epps (or Larry or Amita) could explain it to me.

August 2022 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

Okay, in August I finished 30 books, for 8,494+ pages or the equivalent (Audible Originals really mess me up with the page estimates). No stinkers this month—3.8 average stars. I successfully wrapped up the 20 Books of Summer Challenge, got a few Q&As in, and…well, that’s about it, actually.

I’ve got a great-looking stack of books for September, and a few Q&As lined up. I’ve also got a fun project that should be kicking off this month that will last for a good chunk of the rest of the year. I’ll talk more about it before it launches, but I’m going to keep my powder dry for now.

Enough about that—here’s what happened here in August.
Books/Novels/Novellas Read/Listened to

Hell of a Mess True Dead The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon
4 1/2 Stars 5 Stars 4 Stars
Summerland Composite Creatures 1 2 3 Count with Me on Granddad's Farm
3 Stars 3 Stars 4 Stars
Divine and Conquer Plugged Persecution
3.5 Stars 3 Stars 3 Stars
When Sorrows Come One Decisive Victory The Heron
5 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars
The Story Retold Roses for the Dead Grave Reservations
5 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars
Final Heir Out of Spite, Out of Mind The Case of the Missing Firefly
5 Stars 3.5 Stars 4 Stars
Roxanne The Art of Prophecy The Alchemist and an Amaretto
4 Stars 5 Stars 3 Stars
The Ghost Machine Her Last Breath Down the River Unto the Sea
3 Stars 3 Stars 3.5 Stars
We'll Need a Bigger Mirror Christ of the Consummation</a Confronting Jesus
3 Stars 5 Stars 3 Stars
Greywalker Soul Taken Mistletoe and Crime
3 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars

Still Reading

Faith & Life Be the Serpent Blood Sugar

Ratings

5 Stars 6 2 1/2 Stars 0
4 1/2 Stars 1 2 Stars 0
4 Stars 10 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 3 1 Star 0
3 Stars 10
Average = 3.8

TBR Stacks/Piles/Heaps

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of
2021
9 45 42 144
1st of the
Month
9 50 41 143
Added 7 2 7 3
Read/
Listened
8 3 3 1
Current Total 8 49 45 145

Breakdowns:
“Traditionally” Published: 18
Self-/Independent Published: 12

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 1 (3%) 4 (2%)
Fantasy 4 (14%) 20 (10%)
General Fiction/ Literature 0 (0%) 13 (7%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 11 (38%) 77 (39%)
Non-Fiction 0 (0%) 16 (8%)
Science Fiction 3 (10%) 16 (8%)
Theology/ Christian Living 3 (10%) 34 (17%)
Urban Fantasy 7 (24%) 23 (12%)
“Other” (Horror/ Humor/ Steampunk/ Western) 0 (0%) 1 (1%)

Review-ish Things Posted

Other Things I Wrote
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (6th, 13th, 20th, and 27th), I also wrote:

Enough about me—how Was Your Month?

July 2022 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

This was a busy month, both behind the scenes and visible. I finished 33 titles–which included a lot of smaller reads–booklets, novellas, and whatnot–both in terms of what I read and bought, so that makes some of the numbers bigger than usual. Those 33 titles were made up of 8,409 pages (or the equivalent) and not only were there a lot of them, I enjoyed them, too–3.7 average stars (including 6 5-Stars, believe it or not, I barely do).

So, here’s what happened here in July.
Books/Novels/Novellas Read/Listened to

Songbird A World Without Whom The Law
4 Stars 3.5 Stars 4 Stars
The Botanist My Mess Is a Bit of a Life Long Lost
5 Stars 2 Stars 3 Stars
Short Tails The Emotional Life of Our Lord The Self-Made Widow
3 Stars 5 Stars 5 Stars
AMORALMAN How the Penguins Saved Veronica Condemned
3 Stars 5 Stars 3 Stars
Breaking Point Guidebook for Instruction in the Christian Religion Fighting for Holiness
4 Stars 5 Stars 3 Stars
With Grimm Resolve The Diary of a Bookseller The Prince of Infinite Space
4 Stars 3 Stars 3 Stars
Whispers in the Dark Mortgaged Mortality Ghost of a Chance
4 Stars 3.5 Stars 3 Stars
Cyprian of Carthage Heaven Is a World of Love The Jigsaw Man
3 Stars 3.5 Stars 5 Stars
The Deepest Grave On Eden Street Bark to the Future
4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars 4 Stars
Dead Against Her The Lord's Work in the Lord's Way and No Little People The Life of God in the Soul of Man
3.5 Stars 3 Stars 3 Stars
Encouragement for the Depressed The Expulsive Power of a New Affection The Attributes and Work of God
3.5 Stars 3.5 Stars 3.5 Stars

Still Reading

The Story Retold True Dead

Ratings

5 Stars 6 2 1/2 Stars 0
4 1/2 Stars 1 2 Stars 1
4 Stars 7 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 7 1 Star 0
3 Stars 11
Average = 3.69

TBR Stacks/Piles/Heaps

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of
2021
9 45 42 144
1st of the
Month
5 52 43 141
Added 6 4 13 3
Read/
Listened
3 6 15 1
Current Total 9 50 41 143

Breakdowns:
“Traditionally” Published: 23
Self-/Independent Published: 10

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 0 (0%) 2 (1%)
Fantasy 0 (0%) 16 (10%)
General Fiction/ Literature 2 (6%) 13 (8%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 13 (39%) 66 (39%)
Non-Fiction 4 (12%) 16 (10%)
Science Fiction 1 (3%) 13 (8%)
Theology/ Christian Living 10 (30%) 31 (18%)
Urban Fantasy 3 (9%) 16 (10%)
“Other” (Horror/ Humor/ Steampunk/ Western) 0 (0%) 1 (1%)

Review-ish Things Posted

Other Things I Wrote
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, and 30th), I also wrote:

Enough about me—how Was Your Month?

Second Quarter Check-In: 2022 Plans and Challenges

Catching up on things like this is a nice way to spend a day off, I guess. Earlier, I checked-in on my 20 Books of Summer Challenge, and now let’s take a look at the rest.

One of the few concrete plans that I shared back in January was “Cut down on my Goodreads Want-to-Read list and the unread books that I own (a perennial project, but I made some strides last year).” How am I doing on that?

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of 2021 9 45 42 144
Current Total 5 52 43 141

The good news is that I’ve read most of what I’ve bought this year, I’m just not whittling away at the older things. But I do fully expect to see a noticeable change in the physical and e-book numbers by the end of this quarter. Actually, I’ll probably see a noticeable change in the audiobooks, too–I have a handful credits set to expire soon. Well…this is discouraging.

I’m doing a little better with the rest of my plans. A little.

Let’s move on to the Reading Challenges…
2022 Book Challenges

12 Books
I’m still on track for finishing this one with no effort (although I didn’t finish the one I’d earmarked for June in the month, but I should have it done by the end of today/mid-tomorrow)
12 Books Challenge Quarter 2


2022 “Support Book Bloggers” Challenge
Support Book Bloggers Challenge
I decided to nix this one–I’m working on all the things mentioned here, but feel a little uncomfortable doing these things because of a checklist–and even more awkward about discussing it. But I’m mentioning it again, because I like the idea and want to spread the word about the efforts (it’s just not for me)


2022 While I was Reading
While I Was Reading
I’m doing okay on this–as usual, I’m not really planning the books for this challenge. When October hits, if I haven’t read everything on the list, I’ll get serious about hunting.

  1. A book with a question in the title.:
  2. A book of non-violent true crime.: I have an idea or two about this one.
  3. A book with a cover you don’t like.: I have a couple of contenders for this one. It’s possible that when I read them, they’ll win me over, so I’ll hold my ifre on this.
  4. A historical fiction novel not set in Europe.: I’ve read a couple already this year that would technically work, but I’m going to see if I get a more straightforward historical fiction.
  5. A book with a character’s name in the title.: I’ve got With Grimm Resolve coming up this month.
  6. A book featuring paranormal activity (fiction or non.):
  7. A book with a number in the title.: Citizen K-9
  8. A food related memoir.: I have no idea. Literally.
  9. A book that’s won an award.:
  10. A middle grade novel.: How to Save a Superhero by Ruth Freeman
  11. A book by an author who shares your zodiac sign.: This one is going to be hard. That it also comes close to disclosing more personal information than I want to share.
  12. A book that’s a combination of genres.: Bloodlines by Peter Hartog (I also used this for the next challenge, so I’ll probably replace this on the final list)

Your TBR Reduction Book Challenge

Your TBR Reduction Book Challenge
I’m hitting the target on this one–I’ve only managed to hit 1 Stretch Goal (I don’t have many books that apply to the stretches, actually). This isn’t helping that much with my reduce the TBR plan, but it’s not hurting it. So there’s that.

In the months to come, I’m going to have to get creative to find a way to match the challenge with a book. I’m eager to see if I can pull it off.
January – New Beginnings I give you permission to read the most recent book you got on top of your TBR.: Bloodlines by Peter Hartog
Stretch Goal – Read the oldest book in Mount TBR it has waited long enough: Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron
February – Valentine’s Day Gift
Is there that book by an author you love you picked up and still haven’t read because you do not deserve it just yet? Other items got in the way? You have for this challenge to pick that book up and read it: Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith
March – Fresh blooms
For the beginning of Spring I want you to open a book in the TBR pile by an author you’ve never read before: The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True by Sean Gibson
April – New Openings
April is derived from the Latin for ‘to open’ In Mount TBR there may be the first book of a series. Your challenge is to read: Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City by K.J. Parker
May – Randommmmm
You MAY pick one random book out of Mount TBR and you must read it: Conjured Defense by J.C. Jackson
June – The Longest Day
Find the longest book in Mount TBR and you must read it: The Border by Don Winslow

(Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay)

June 2022 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

I didn’t expect June to be as productive as this—especially because a few books in the middle took a day or so longer than I’d estimated. That doesn’t happen that often, but I’ll take it. The short version: 26 books, 7,251+ pages (or the equivalent)–with one audio-only novella that I don’t have a page count on; 3.7 Average Stars—with one I’m still not sure how to rank—I had a bunch of 4-Stars this month that helped to make up for the 1-Star that I’m still rankled about (I’m also rankled about the gag order from the Book Tour group I’m no longer working with).

I have one abandoned and two still-in-draft-mode non-review posts I’d hoped to get up, but in general, my output was pretty good.

All in all, it was a pretty decent month. Let’s take a deep dive into what happened here in June:
Books/Novels/Novellas Read/Listened to

Attachments Dirt Road Home Gated Prey
I Just Don’t Know 3 Stars 4 1/2 Stars
Adult Assembly Required In Divine Company There Goes the Neighborhood
5 Stars 4 Stars 1 Star
Hellbound Guilds & Other Misdirections Crazy in Poughkeepsie Noodle and the No Bones Day
3 Stars 3.5 Stars 4 Stars
How to Take Over the World Deep Hole Payback
3 Stars 3.5 Stars 3 Stars
You Are Not Your Own We Are Legion (We Are Bob) Against All Odds
4 1/2 Stars 3 Stars 4 Stars
The Lost A Wash of Black An Explorer's Guide to John Calvin
4 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars
Love and Other Monsters in the Dark Holy Chow Amari and the Night Brothers
4 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars
Movieland Their Dark Designs Growing Downward
4 1/2 Stars 3 Stars 3 Stars
Daughter of the Morning Star The Border
4 Stars 5 Stars

Still Reading

The Story Retold Faith & Life Songbird
A World Without Whom

Ratings

5 Stars 2 2 1/2 Stars 0
4 1/2 Stars 3 2 Stars 0
4 Stars 10 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 2 1 Star 1
3 Stars 7
Average = 3.7

TBR Stacks/Piles/Heaps

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of
2021
9 45 42 144
1st of the
Month
6 53 40 141
Added 4 6 4 2
Read/
Listened
5 7 1 2
Current Total 5 52 43 141

Breakdowns:
“Traditionally” Published: 12
Self-/Independent Published: 14

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 1 (4%) 2 (1%)
Fantasy 1 (4%) 16 (12%)
General Fiction/ Literature 5 (19%) 11 (8%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 10 (38%) 53 (39%)
Non-Fiction 1 (4%) 12 (9%)
Science Fiction 3 (12%) 12 (9%)
Theology/ Christian Living 4 (15%) 21 (16%)
Urban Fantasy 1 (4%) 13 (10%)
“Other” (Horror/ Humor/ Steampunk/ Western) 0 (0%) 1 (1%)

Review-ish Things Posted

  • Black Nerd Problems (Audiobook) by William Evans & Omar Holmon: Essays on Life, Race, and Nerddom
  • A Snake in the Raspberry Patch by Joanne Jackson: A Family and a Small Town in Upheaval In the Shadow of a Brutal Crime
  • In a House of Lies by Ian Rankin: The Past and Present Collide for Rebus, Clarke, and Fox
  • What Is Christianity? by Herman Bavinck, Gregory Parker Jr. (Translator): Short, Sweet, To the Point
  • Dirt Road Home by Alexander Nader: From the Motor City to Small Town Tennessee
  • Attachments (Audiobook) by Rainbow Rowell, Rebecca Lowman: I Stumble All Over the Place Trying to Talk About This
  • Noodle and the No Bones Day by Jonathan Graziano, Dan Tavis (Illustrator): A Great Dose of Adorableness to Pick Up Your Day
  • Adult Assembly Required by Abbi Waxman: She Gets by with a Little Help from Her Friends
  • In Divine Company by Pierce Taylor Hibbs: Communication Failure?
  • Crazy in Poughkeepsie by Daniel Pinkwater: “Crazy” Might Be An Overstatement, How About “Ridiculously Odd”?
  • Payback by RC Bridgestock: A Decent Start for this Procedural Series
  • Magic Kingdom for Sale–Sold! (Audiobook) by Terry Brooks, Jeremy Arthur (Narrator): A Nostalgic Trip I Maybe Shouldn’t Have Taken
  • Against All Odds by Jeffery H. Haskell: It’s the Chance He’s Gotta Take
  • The Lost by Jeffrey B. Burton: Mace and Vira Race the Clock to Find a Kidnapped Girl
  • We Are Legion (We Are Bob) (Audiobook) by Dennis E. Taylor, Ray Porter (Narrator): Big Laughs and Big Ideas Litter this SF Adventure
  • Love and Other Monsters in the Dark by K. B. Jensen: A Truly Impressive Batch of Short Fiction
  • Holy Chow by David Rosenfelt: Keeping the “Semi” in Andy’s Semi-Retired Status
  • An Explorer’s Guide to John Calvin by Yudha Thianto: Calvin 101
  • A Wash of Black by Chris McDonald: This is How a Series Should Start
  • Movieland by Lee Goldberg: It’s No Walk in the Park for Eve Ronin

Other Things I Wrote
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (4th, 11th, 18th, and 25th), I also wrote:


Enough about me—how Was Your Month?

May 2022 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

The quick-and-dirty version of this post is: I read or listened to 24, with 3,878+ pages or the equivalent (there was an Audible Original there, so the page equivalent would be 250-350 more), and the average rating was 3.58. Not a spectacular month, but a good one. Quicker-and-dirtier version: I read Don’t Know Tough this month, along with a few other (mostly good) things—it was a good month.

It was also an ambitious month on the writing front—hopefully, that continues.

Enough with the preamble, here’s what happened here in May:
Books/Novels/Novellas Read/Listened to

The Knave of Secrets Rosebud Tuesday Mooney Talks To Ghosts
3 Stars 2 1/2 Stars 3.5 Stars
The Cartographers Repentance Funny Farm
4 1/2 Stars 3 Stars 3 Stars
Revenge Tour Right Behind Her Lifesign
3.5 Stars 3.5 Stars 3.5 Stars
Conjured Defense The Doctrine of Scripture The Traitor's Heir
3.5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars
Nothing to See Here This is Going to Hurt Heroic Hearts
4 Stars 3.5 Stars 4 Stars
Augustine of Hippo Don't Know Tough Magic Kingdom for Sale–Sold!
3.5 Stars 5 Stars 3.5 Stars
Jacked Black Nerd Problems In a House of Lies
3 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars
What Is Christianity? A Line to Kill A Snake in the Raspberry Patch
4 1/2 Stars 3 Stars Still Deciding

Still Reading

The Story Retold Faith & Life You Are Not Your Own
Attachments

Ratings

5 Stars 1 2 1/2 Stars 1
4 1/2 Stars 2 2 Stars 0
4 Stars 5 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 9 1 Star 0
3 Stars 6
Average = 3.58

TBR Stacks/Piles/Heaps

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of
2021
9 45 42 144
1st of the
Month
6 45 42 144
Added 3 9 3 1
Read/
Listened
3 2 5 4
Current Total 6 53 40 141

Breakdowns:
“Traditionally” Published: 19
Self-/Independent Published: 5

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 0 (0%) 1 (1%)
Fantasy 4 (17%) 15 (14%)
General Fiction/ Literature 2 (8%) 6 (6%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 9 (38%) 43 (39%)
Non-Fiction 3 (13%) 11 (10%)
Science Fiction 1 (4%) 9 (8%)
Theology/ Christian Living 4 (17%) 17 (16%)
Urban Fantasy 1 (4%) 12 (11%)
“Other” (Horror/ Humor/ Steampunk/ Western) 0 (0%) 1 (1%)

Review-ish Things Posted

Other Things I Wrote
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th), I also wrote:


Enough about me—how Was Your Month?

May Calendar

Towel Day ’22: Do You Know Where Your Towel Is?

(updated and revised this 5/25/22)

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy has a few things to say on the subject of towels.

A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have. Partly it has great practical value. You can wrap it around you for warmth as you bound across the cold moons of Jaglan Beta; you can lie on it on the brilliant marble-sanded beaches of Santraginus V, inhaling the heady sea vapors; you can sleep under it beneath the stars which shine so redly on the desert world of Kakrafoon; use it to sail a miniraft down the slow heavy River Moth; wet it for use in hand-to-hand-combat; wrap it round your head to ward off noxious fumes or avoid the gaze of the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal (such a mind-bogglingly stupid animal, it assumes that if you can’t see it, it can’t see you); you can wave your towel in emergencies as a distress signal, and of course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean enough.

More importantly, a towel has immense psychological value. For some reason, if a strag (strag: non-hitch hiker) discovers that a hitch hiker has his towel with him, he will automatically assume that he is also in possession of a toothbrush, face flannel, soap, tin of biscuits, flask, compass, map, ball of string, gnat spray, wet weather gear, space suit etc., etc. Furthermore, the strag will then happily lend the hitch hiker any of these or a dozen other items that the hitch hiker might accidentally have “lost”. What the strag will think is that any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his towel is is clearly a man to be reckoned with.

Hence a phrase that has passed into hitchhiking slang, as in “Hey, you sass that hoopy Ford Prefect? There’s a frood who really knows where his towel is.” (Sass: know, be aware of, meet, have sex with; hoopy: really together guy; frood: really amazingly together guy.)

Towel Day, for the few who don’t know, is the annual celebration of Douglas Adams’ life and work. It was first held two weeks after his death, fans were to carry a towel with them for the day to use as a talking point to encourage those who have never read HHGTTG to do so, or to just converse with someone about Adams. Adams is one of that handful of authors that I can’t imagine I’d be the same without having encountered/read/re-read/re-re-re-re-read, and so I do my best to pay a little tribute to him each year, even if it’s just carrying around a towel.

Some time in 7th or 8th grade (I believe), I was at a friend’s house and his brother let us try his copy of the text-based Hitchhiker’s Guide game, and we were no good at it at all. Really, it was embarrassing. However, his brother had a copy of the novel, and we all figured that the novel held the keys we needed for success with the game (alas, for us it did not). My friends all decided that I’d be the one to read the book and come back in a few days as an expert.

I quickly forgot about the game. Adams’ irreverent style rocked my world—could people actually get away with saying some of these things? His skewed take on the world, his style, his humor…and a depressed robot, too! It was love at first read.

It was one of those experiences that, looking back, I can say shaped my reading and thinking for the rest of my life (make of that what you will). Were my life the subject of a Doctor Who or Legends of Tomorrow episode, it’d be one of those immutable fixed points. I read the books (particularly the first) so many times that I can quote significant portions of it, and frequently do so without noticing that I’m doing that. I have (at this time) two literary-inspired tattoos, one of which is the planet logo*. In essence, I’m saying that Adams has had an outsized influence on my life and is probably my biggest enduring fandom. If carrying around a (massively useful) piece of cloth for a day in some small way honors his memory? Sure, I’m in.

* I didn’t know it at the time, but Adams didn’t like that guy. Whoops.

One of my long-delayed goals is to write up a good all-purpose Tribute to Douglas Adams and his work post, and another Towel Day has come without me doing so. Belgium. Next year . . . or later. (he says for at least the 8th straight year, a work ethic I like to believe Adams would endorse).

In the meantime, here’s some of what I’ve written about Adams. A few years back, I did a re-read of all of Adams’ (completed) fiction. For reasons beyond my ken (or recollection), I didn’t get around to blogging about the Dirk Gently books, but I did do the Hitchhiker’s Trilogy:
bullet The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
bullet The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
bullet Life, The Universe and Everything
bullet So Long, and Thanks For All The Fish
bullet Mostly Harmless
bullet I had a thing or two to say about the 40th Anniversary of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
bullet Last year, I took a look at the 42nd Anniversary Illustrated Edition of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Also, I should mention the one book Adams/Hitchhiker’s aficionado needs to read is Don’t Panic by Neil Gaiman, David K. Dickson and MJ Simpson. If you’re more in the mood for a podcast, I’d suggest The Waterstones Podcast How We Made: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy—I’ve listened to several podcast episodes about this book, and generally roll my eyes at them. But this is just fantastic. Were it available, I’d listen to a Peter Jackson-length version of the episode.

I’ve only been able to get one of my sons into Adams, he’s the taller, thinner one in the picture from a few years ago.

You really need to check out this comic from Sheldon Comics—part of the Anatomy of Authors series: The Anatomy of Douglas Adams.

TowelDay.org is the best collection of resources on the day. One of my favorite posts there is this pretty cool video, shot on the ISS by astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti.

Even better—here’s an appearance by Douglas Adams himself from the old Letterman show—I’m so glad someone preserved this:

Love the anecdote (Also, I want this tie.)

April 2022 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

I’m running a day late with this, but it’s that kind of week (I’m just glad I got to this before Friday). In April I finished 23 books, for 5904 pages (or the equivalent), and I gave them an average of 3.8 stars. That’s nothing to sneeze at–a better month than March, too. And that’s with two books under 3 stars.

This month was longer than I realized it was, looking over the list of books from this month, I was thrown a couple of times–I read that this month?

So, here’s what happened here in April.
Books/Novels/Novellas Read/Listened to

Duckett & Dyer: Dicks For Hire What Are Christians For? Kaiju Preservation Society
4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars 5 Stars
Citizen K-9 Under Lock & Skeleton Key Fight and Flight
3.5 Stars 3.5 Stars 3 Stars
Dead in the Water Constance Verity Destroys the Universe Instruction in Christian Love [1523]
4 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars
Meat is Murder How to Be Perfect Amongst Our Weapons
4 Stars 4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars
Force of Nature The Cutting Season Old Made New
4 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars
Blessed Are the Bank Robbers Goodbye, Things Ordinary Grace
2 1/2 Stars 2 Stars 4 Stars
Face to Face with God Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City The Return of the King
3.5 Stars 3.5 Stars 5 Stars
Taming Demons for Beginners Of Claws and Fangs
3 Stars 4 Stars

Still Reading

The Story Retold Faith & Life Tuesday Mooney Talks To Ghosts
Repentance: Turning from sin to God

Ratings

5 Stars 2 2 1/2 Stars 1
4 1/2 Stars 2 2 Stars 1
4 Stars 11 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 4 1 Star 0
3 Stars 2
Average = 3.8

TBR Stacks/Piles/Heaps

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of
2021
9 45 42 144
1st of the
Month
7 47 43 145
Added 3 3 3 2
Read/
Listened
4 5 4 3
Current Total 6 45 42 144

Breakdowns:
“Traditionally” Published: 19
Self-/Independent Published: 4

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 0 (0%) 1 (1%)
Fantasy 2 (9%) 11 (13%)
General Fiction/ Literature 1 (4%) 4 (5%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 6 (26%) 34 (40%)
Non-Fiction 3 (13%) 8 (9%)
Science Fiction 4 (17%) 8 (9%)
Theology/ Christian Living 4 (17%) 13 (15%)
Urban Fantasy 3 (13%) 11 (13%)
“Other” (Horror/ Humor/ Steampunk/ Western) 0 (0%) 1 (1%)

Review-ish Things Posted

Other Things I Wrote
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, and 30th), I also wrote:

Enough about me—how Was Your Month?

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