Category Archives: Blog Hops

Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: Something I’m Proud of Doing

Hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

Click here to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and here to see the full list of topics for the year.

This week’s prompt was a little tricky for me because I’ve been feeling down in the dumps lately. January isn’t my favourite month of the year, and this one seems to really be dragging on.

I don’t know about all of you, but sometimes my brain likes to focus on the things I wish I’d done differently instead taking note of what I think I’ve done well in life so far. I will take this as a challenge to congratulate myself on how far I’ve come, though!

A white person’s hand and forearm has punched through a yellow wall and is reaching out for help with all five fingers extended. When someone needs help, I’m the sort of person who will leap to the occasion. That’s a positive character trait in many situations, but sometimes it can be taken too far if you don’t also look after your own needs or if the person who wants help doesn’t respect boundaries.

In the past few years, I’ve noticed that it’s slowly become easier for me to realize what my limits are and stop before I’ve been pushed past them.

As a hypothetical example, I can be available to do A or B for someone on the first Tuesday of the month from 7 to 8 pm but not be able to do anything outside of that time frame and never agree to do C, D, or E for them.

It’s a huge win, especially when the occasional person demands I give them all of the letters of the alphabet on any given day and hour of the week and I still stand firm in how much time and energy I actually have for them.

Not only that, but my guilt about saying no is decreasing, too, and I can now more easily end my availability to do A or B temporarily (or even permanently) for people who try to push past my limits one too many times.

 

 

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Top Ten Tuesday: New-to-Me Authors I Discovered in 2022


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

A typewriter with a white sheet of paper stuck in it. The phrase “something worth reading” has been typed on to the sheet of paper. Many of the books I read in 2022 were written by authors I hadn’t tried before. Here are ten of them.

Just like last year, I’ll also be including what books I read from them and whether I want to read more from them in the future.

1. Author: Marlene Campbell

What I Read from Them: Vintage Christmas: Holiday Stories from Rural PEI

Would I Read More from Them? Maybe. I liked some parts of this collection but found other sections a bit too repetitive. Then again, I am not a particularly sentimental person, so other readers might have a completely difference experience with it.

 

2. Author: Sonia Hartl

What I Read from Them: The Lost Girls

Would I Read More from Them? Yes. I loved the author’s tongue-in-cheek approach to the pitfalls of romances between vampires and teenage girls.

 

3. Author: Kate Nunn

What I Read from Them: The Only Child

Would I Read More from Them? No, and it pains me to say that. I loved the premise of this book but found the character and plot development thin and predictable.

 

4. Author: Riley Black

What I Read from Them: “The Last Days of the Dinosaurs: An Asteroid, Extinction, and the Beginning of Our World

Would I Read More from Them? Yes. Not only was Ms. Black an excellent writer, she knew exactly how to translate often complex scientific information into something the average person can easily understand. That’s difficult to do but so meaningful when it does occur.

 

A quiet wooden cabin in a snowy winter woods. The cabin has a stone chimney. 5. Author: Yah Yah Scholfield

What I Read from Them: “On Sundays She Picked Flowers

Would I Read More from Them? Assuming her next work isn’t quite so violent, absolutely. I enjoyed her poetic writing style but can’t handle reading many of the types of scary stuff I loved before this pandemic began.

 

6. Author: Nice Leng’ete

What I Read from Them: “The Girls in the Wild Fig Tree

Would I Read More from Them? Yes. She’s lived an interesting and useful life so far. I’m curious to see what she does with her talents next as she continues fighting to end female circumcision in Kenya.

 

7. Author: Julia Scheeres

What I Read from Them: “Listen, World!: How the Intrepid Elsie Robinson Became America’s Most-Read Woman

Would I Read More from Them? Probably not. This was a neat peek at a portion of history I wasn’t aware of, but the writing style wasn’t my cup of tea.

 

8. Author: Carl Matlock, MD

What I Read from Them: “The Annals of a Country Doctor

Would I Read More from Them? Yes. He was a great storyteller.

 

An empty church that has white wooden pews and white painted statues of saints on their walls. 9. Author: Daphne du Maurier

What I Read from Them: “Rebecca

Would I Read More from Them? Maybe. I understood why this novel is a classic and did enjoy the storyline itself, but I was exasperated with all of the characters for reasons ranging from how passive aggressive they were to how little regard they had for basic interpersonal boundaries to how much they relied on what other people thought of them when making every single decision in life. Let met take a break from Ms. Du Maurier before seeing if this is a pattern in her work or if her next book will be filled with characters I’d actually want to hang out with in real life. Ha!

 

10. Author: by Deesha Philyaw

What I Read from Them: “The Secret Lives of Church Ladies

Would I Read More from Them? Yes. I connected beautifully with her characters and would love to see what she writes next. She was delightful.

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Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: New Things I’ve Tried Recently

Hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

Click here to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and here to see the full list of topics for the year.

I usually try new things more often during the warm months of the year when it’s easier to travel and there are fewer germs floating around that my household needs to avoid, but I have tried some cool stuff this winter. (No, this isn’t an ad. I don’t do paid or sponsored posts of any sort. These are simply things I’ve tried recently and liked).

Duolingo Math.

Logo for the Duolingo app. The logo consists of the word “Duolingo” written in a plain, bright green font against a white background. There is nothing else to be seen in this image. I was an average math student in school, but I didn’t find it particularly interesting or relevant to my life most of the time. It seemed like something that a few students were naturally good at while the rest of us slogged through it.

When this was released at the end of December, it piqued my interest. Maybe I’d have a different opinion on this subject now that there are no quizzes, exams, or grades to worry about?

Well, it turns out that I’m really enjoying it so far. Turning math into a game makes it practical, fun, and low pressure.

The lessons run the gamut from easy to challenging. There is a section for elementary students as well as a different one for older kids or adults who want to improve their mental math skills, so this is one of those free games that truly does have something for everyone.

 

Station Eleven Novel and Miniseries

Book cover for “Station Eleven” by Emily St. John Mandel. Image on the cover shows four tents that have been erected outside in a field. It is night outside and the cloudless sky is glowing with stars. Each tent has a bright light inside of it as well. The tents are surrounded by a waist-high fence that appears to be made out of hay bales piled on top of each other. I’d heard so many good things about ”Station Eleven” by Emily St. John Mandel, so I finally started watching it this winter.

It follows several of the same characters at different points in their lives as they encounter a deadly form of the flu that kills most of humanity and then about 20-30 years later to see how the survivors have fared.

If you’re comfortable reading about fictional pandemics, this is such an interesting look at how quickly the definition of normal can change. The people who were born after that pandemic had unique and sometimes humorous takes on what life must have been like back when unbelievable luxuries like airplanes, dentists, air conditioning, and the Internet still existed.

Unlike many books in this genre, this one is filled with characters who are kind and decent folks (with rare exceptions). They’re traumatized in the beginning, of course, but the storyline mostly focuses on them doing good things like adopting orphans, preserving as much of the past as they can, and simply surviving in a world where you must grow, knit, build, or scrounge around for everything you need.

I liked the hopeful approach this took to a genre that often assumes the worst about humanity.

The miniseries has been good so far as well. There were some major changes made to certain portions of it in order to help the storyline flow better on screen, but it remains true to the themes and characters of the book. Honestly, that’s exactly what any adaptation ought to do. I don’t need every single line of dialogue to remain identical so long as it still feels like the original.

 

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Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Goals for 2023


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

I like to set (mostly) realistic goals at the beginning of each year. Let’s see how many of these I complete before 2024 sneaks up on us.

1. Read more classic novels this winter. It’s something I do every winter to expand my vocabulary and explore stories that generations of people have loved.

2. Submit a Top Ten Tuesday theme to Jana that she ends up using. (I am 99% joking here, but I mentioned this in a previous goals post a few years ago and would be thrilled if she picked one of my suggestions someday).

3. Enjoy lots of ghost stories. Those of you who have read this blog for a while will know how much I like them in general, but they’re even more amusing on cold, dark winter nights.

4. Attend more library and other bookish events either virtually or in person. They’re such a great place to learn about our world and meet other friendly book lovers.

5. Read more nonfiction. I love learning about everything from science to history at my own pace and without any pesky tests or grades to worry about.

6. Patronize independent bookstores. This pandemic radically altered my habits, and it’s been years since I shopped for something other than food, medicine, or to replace something like shoes or a shower curtain that have worn out.

7. Eat more food featured in books. For example, last year I finally tried Turkish delight for the first time after spending many years wondering what on earth Edmund was talking about in C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. What other literary or bookish foods or beverages should I enjoy next?

8. Try poetry again. I loved it when I was a teenager but have struggled to get back in that genre since becoming an adult.

9. Buy bookish socks. Do I need more socks? Well, technically no, but surely there is something to be said for adding just one more pair of socks to the rotation if they make a clever reference to something literary, right?

10. Convince the entertainment industry to make excellent film or television adaptations of all of our favourite books. Hehe!

 

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Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: What I Think of New Year’s Resolutions

Hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

Click here to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and here to see the full list of topics for the year.

Seven paper airplanes are flying over a dark grey surface. The first six are white and flying in straight perpendicular lines. You can see white lines shooting out behind them. The seventh is read and flying in a zig-zag line with a white zig-zag line trailing behind it. I believe New Year’s Resolutions, as well as goal setting activities in general, are a fabulous starting point.

In my experience, longterm change is most likely to happen when you set a goal, make incremental changes that guide you closer to it, and then gradually build on them over time instead of trying to fix all of your habits at once.

For example, an hour of vigorous exercise will be extremely difficult at best for someone who hasn’t exercised in years. They might be so sore or injured the next day they will be scared off from trying again.

A 10 minute walk every day (or every other day, or what have you) is a much easier goal to accomplish for someone in that position, and it can be gradually increased or replaced with more strenuous workouts as you grow stronger and figure out what other types of exercise you actually enjoy doing.

So I like the idea of New Year’s Resolutions, but I think it’s better to keep your expectations reasonable when you’re trying to change something about yourself. Many incredible things are possible in life, but they rarely if ever  happen overnight.

I also believe in celebrating effort and partial success. If you didn’t reach your goal but you did make progress towards it and built up healthy habits along the way, that’s still counts as a win in my opinion.

 

 

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Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2023

  
Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Just like I say every time seasonal TBR posts come up, I won’t be able to come up with a full ten answers or predict everything I’ll read over the next few months. I admire those of who you are that methodical, but that’s not quite how my reading habits work.

With that being said, these books will hopefully be included along with the usual mood reads and whatever intriguing stories I happen to stumble across at my local library this winter and spring.

 

 

Old Babes in the Woods: Stories by Margaret Atwood Book cover. Image on cover shows a drawing of a white cat with yellow and black eyes staring straight ahead at the reader.

Old Babes in the Woods: Stories by Margaret Atwood

Release Date: March 7

Why I Want to Read It: I’ve loved most of Atwood’s stories and give everything she publishes a shot.

 

 

Piñata (Hardcover) by Leopoldo Gout book cover. Image on cover shows a drawing of a creature wearing a hood and a hat that is comprised of about a dozen spikes coming out of what appears to be a human skull.

Piñata by Leopoldo Gout

Release Date: March 14

Why I Want to Read It: I am not very familiar with indigenous Mexican lore and am looking forward to learning more about it here.

 

 

A House With Good Bones by T. Kingfisher book cover. Image on cover shows silhoutte of a buzzard sitting in a house with green wallpaper and white trimmed walls and door frame.

A House With Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

Release Date: March 28

Why I Want to Read It: I’m a new fan of Kingfisher’s work and want to try everything she’s written so far!

 

 

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Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: My Goals for 2023

Hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

Click here to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and here to see the full list of topics for the year.

This is one of my favourite annual prompts for the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge.

Two stick figures are standing on a line that’s supposed to represent a hill. One character is walking down the hill towards a white portion of the page where there is a sign that has “2022” written on it. The other character is looking up towards a sign that says “2023” and walking up the hill on the yellow portion of the image. Out of my goals for 2022, I succeeded at practicing Spanish every single day and finding a better treatment regiment for my migraines.

I made a few new online friends but none in person due to trying to avoid Covid germs.

I lost a small amount of weight and spent a decent amount of time outside even if I didn’t do all of the hiking and nature walks I hoped for. (My health made it hard to exercise and eat the way I hoped to some days or even weeks, but my fingers are crossed that this year will be easier now that I’m having fewer migraines and know more about my triggers for them).

Meditation was a total bust for me last year.

So I’m going to recycle a few of these goals for 2023.

I would like to:

 

  • Spend more time socializing with people in person as safe opportunities for that arise.  Hopefully, this will lead to a new friendship or two, but meeting new folks in general would be fabulous as well.

 

  • Meditate for five minutes every day.

 

  • Try a new restaurant or type of food every month. I don’t go out to eat much in general, but I tend to visit the same spots every time when I do eat food I haven’t made. It’s time to give my tastebuds a workout.

 

  • Develop a conversational understanding of Spanish. This past year of studying it has taught me to recognize a lot of common words and even understand the gist of some sentences or brief conversations, but I don’t yet know enough to have a full, long, or detailed conversation in it. Maybe 2023 will be the year I take the leap into speaking and understanding it in real time without having to look up so many words?

 

  • Join a walking or hiking club, maybe? This would tie into some of my 2022 goals about spending more time hiking and going on nature walks as well as my current goal of meeting new likeminded people.

 

  • Improve my graphic design and SEO skills. I know my local library offers free courses on those topics, so I’ll probably start there.

 

Let’s see how it goes.

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Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Books of 2022


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

I thought this topic would be an easy one, but it turned out to be a little tricky! I found many wonderful books last year, but my list of all-time favourites continues to shift over time.

Feel free to read my full reviews if you wish, but I also condensed my favorite thing about each book into one sentence each in this post (mostly). That, too, was much harder than it seemed at first.

 

Dead Voices by Katherine Arden (My Review)

What I Loved About It: The spooky setting was fabulous.

 

White silhouettes of two buildings and two people against a red background. The person on the left has the numbers 2022 next to them and is peering over the edge of their building. The person on the right has the numbers 2023 next to them and is holding up their arm to warn the 2022 person to stop. My Evil Mother by Margaret Atwood (My Review)

What I Loved About It: The main character was delightfully hard to figure out. Was she a good guy or a bad guy? How about her mother? I’m still not entirely sure!

 

Voices in the Wind by Joshua Scribner (My Review)

What I Loved About It: Tornadoes frighten me, but this tale made me see them in an entirely new light.

 

The Wendigo by Algernon Blackwood (My Review)

What I Loved About It: The main character was blissfully unaware of his deepest character flaws, and that made his adventure much more dangerous than it should have been.

 

A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers (My Review)

What I Loved About It: The peacefulness and low stakes of the main character’s mission made this a comfort read for me.

 

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers (My Review)

What I Loved About It: I loved catching up with the characters I met in A Psalm for the Wild-Built again.

 

Samantha, 25, on October 31 by Adam Bertocci (My Review)

What I Loved About It: The protagonist had a crappy retail job and yearned for more which made her feel much more real to me than someone who has it all figured out in life.

 

Vespasian Moon’s Fabulous Autumn Carnival by Berthold Gambrel (My Review)

What I Loved About It: At least half of the characters felt untrustworthy at any given moment, but all of them seemed like super interesting folks to hang out with.

 

A photo of a glowing analog clock that’s about to strike midnight. It is surrounded by glowing white lights and white and blue fireworks against a black sky.

The Story of Sigurd the Dragonslayer by Liam G Martin (My Review)

What I Loved About It: It’s always cool to reimagine origin stories for famous characters.

 

Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher (My Review)

What I Loved About It: Wholesome horror is hard to find, but this book flirted with that idea in some delightful ways.

 

May 2023 be a fantastic reading year for all of us.

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Top Ten Tuesday: Most Recent Additions to My Book Collection


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Suspicious pug being held by man wearing a pink t-shirt and pale yellow long-sleeved shirt as the man types on a laptop.

Not my dog or my spouse…but look at that adorable little expression on the pup’s face!

If you’re a new reader of this blog, let me explain something quickly before diving into my list.

Over the past few years, I’ve made a serious effort to put indie and small press authors at the top of my priority list for reviewing. I love well-known authors, too, but they have so many more opportunities to be introduced to new readers than someone who self publishes their work or who has secured a book deal with a tiny publishing company.

I believe in supporting other writers and giving them some free exposure on my friendly little corner of the Internet when I can.

So don’t be surprised if you’ve never heard of any of these folks.

Honestly, I’ll be shocked if you do know about them, but please tell me what you think of their work if that’s the case. I haven’t read these titles and therefore can’t endorse them…yet?

All I know is that I was intrigued enough by them to download them when they were free. If you follow me on Mastodon, you’ll see a list of free books every Thursday and occasional retweets of other free books on other days.

 

When the Last Story Gets Told by C.S. Anderson book cover. Image on cover shows a bonfire burning brightly against a black night sky outdoors. No stars can be seen, only the orange and yellow flames of the fire as it devours black sticks.

When the Last Story Gets Told by C.S. Anderson

Genre: Speculative Fiction
Why I’m Intrigued: I love campfire stories, and this sounds like it could be a good one.
Book cover for Hellf on the Shelf - A Christmas Short Story by Rumer Haven. Image on cover shows the upper half of the face of an Elf on the Shelf doll. It has brown hair, pale skin, and blue eyes, and it appears to be turning it’s head and staring quizzically at an out-of-focus Christmas tree behind it. The tree is decorated with yellow, blue, and red ornaments as well as some silver garlands and a red star at the top of it.
Genre: Fantasy, Holiday, Speculative Fiction
Why I’m Intrigued: The premise sounds creative and whimsical.

 

 

Another Four Break Time Stories by Mark Hayes Peacock book cover. Image on cover shows a handwritten letter on a white sheet of paper. The letter is partially obscured by a white envelope and even more obscured by notebooks and other items on the desk.

Another Four Break Time Stories by Mark Hayes Peacock
Genre: Fantasy
Why I’m Intrigued: I always look up authors before writing reviews about their books. Mr. Peacock’s blog was such a warm and friendly place that I want to see if his stories have that same vibe. Here’s hoping that they do!
A Short Story of Life and Death by Thibault Cottet book cover. Image on cover shows a woman wearing a white early 1800s dress sitting in a wooden swing in an autumn woods. A half-grown fawn is grazing on grass next to her calmly.
Genre: Fantasy (Probably?)
Why I’m Intrigued: Based on the sneak peek of the first page or two, the genre seemed more complicated than the blurb or cover covered. It’s always interesting to have the possibility of being surprised by what you read and where the plot goes. Also, look that that gorgeous cover! Don’t you want to gently step into it and quietly observe the interactions between the fawn and the young woman in the white dress?

Driving in the Dark by Jack Harding book cover. Image on cover shows headlights barely piercing the darkness on an abandoned highway at night. Pine trees line each side of the road, and a sky filled with stars looms overhead. This was taken from the perspective from someone riding in the vehicle, I’d presume.

Driving in the Dark by Jack Harding
Genre: Christmas Horror (which I only learned was a micro-genre this year!)
Why I’m Intrigued: Driving on winter roads is frightening. I can think of so many different perils on the road for this character, half of which could and often do happen in real life.
Hangry As Hell by Ward Parker book cover. Image on cover shows a pair of white vampire hands with razor-sharp black fingernails clutching up at a pint of type 0 blood in a plastic bag.
Hangry As Hell by Ward Parker
Genre: Fantasy, Humour
Why I’m Intrigued: Getting hangry is one of my character defects. Ha! It’s also cool to see vampires mentioned who aren’t young, healthy, and lusting after teenage girls.
Zombie Turkeys by Andy Zach book cover. Image on cover is a handprint of dark blood (or maybe chocolate?). The liquid on the thumb has begun dripping down and making that print look like the face of a turkey.
Zombie Turkeys by Andy Zach
Genre: Horror, Thanksgiving
Why I’m Intrigued: It’s really hard to find non-sappy books about Thanksgiving. This might just be reviewed here for next Thanksgiving if it’s not too gory and the storyline is good.
Deal or No Deal - A Case From the Midnight Files by William Meikle book cover. Image on cover shows a man wearing a 1940s style jacket and hat standing outside at night under greenish street lamps. There is a menacing hooded figure in the background who seems to be turning its head to peer at him.
Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Horror
Why I’m Intrigued: Most characters who sell their souls actually believe in the concept of a soul. I can see how it would be a lot easier to buy souls from people who think they aren’t actually giving anything away.
 The Man in White by Elle Otero book cover. Image on cover is a drawing of the silhoutte of two figures wearing flowing robes walking outside under the light of a gigantic full moon.
The Man in White by Elle Otero
Genre: Horror or Inspirational….or maybe a quirky combination of both?
Why I’m Intrigued: Will this be closer to the horror or inspirational genres? Maybe it will be one of those rare books that’s both? The blurb is so vague I can’t tell, but that’s what makes trying new authors so worthwhile.
Rattlebones - an AI Ghost Story by Matilda Scotney book cover. Image on cover shows a robot with three sea green glowing eye-like things on its face looking at a computer.
Genre: Paranormal Science Fiction
Why I’m Intrigued: I’ve read a ton of ghost stories and robot stories, but it’s pretty rare for the two to be mixed together in my experience. Can you tell I’m drawn to authors who push the boundaries of their genres and play around with what readers expect to happen next?

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Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Hope Santa Brings This Year


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Last year I spun this topic to include all sorts of bookish things I’d like for the winter.. This year I’m going to attempt to answer the question directly, albeit with a little bit of a speculative fiction twist in some answers. Santa doesn’t visit my house, but maybe a fairy godmother or an attentive publishing company will pay attention?

Two presents. One is bigger and wrapped in white paper with red stars on it and has a yellow ribbon. The smaller one is wrapped in red paper with white fir trees on it and has a yellow ribbon. 1. New Books From Authors Who Didn’t Publish Anything New in 2022

I was thrilled to read a new Becky Chambers book in 2022. Now it’s time for Sarah Waters, Rivers Solomon, Nnedi Okorafor, Alex Cross, and Andy Weir to do the same thing in 2023.

 

2. A Magical Book That Recovers Lost Memories

3. A Magical Book That Dampens Difficult Memories

Wouldn’t it be nice to have more say in what we do and don’t remember?

 

4. A Book About the Psychology of Pain and Chronic Illness

I was originally going to request that it be nonfiction, but a fictional story might work, too.

In early 2022, I was officially diagnosed with migraines. While trying a few different treatments for it I’ve become quite interested in the coping mechanisms people create to deal with pain and chronic illness. For example, I try to find the humorous side of my diagnosis when possible and feel odd going into too much detail about how it affects me with most people. (My current treatment regiment does reduce symptoms if I follow the protocol,  but it can’t completely eliminate everything).

 

5.  Well-Written Sequels to All of the Books that Make Readers Yearn to Know What Happened Next 

Not everything needs a sequel, of course, but if they do, I’d want to see copies of those books magically arrive at the homes of everyone who can’t wait to keep reading.

 

6. Books That Make Me Laugh

There’s no such thing as too many humorous books if you ask me.

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