Tag Archives: Top Ten Tuesday

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I’m modifying this week’s prompt a little bit because I’m the sort of reader who gleefully makes bookmarks out of all sorts of unconventional things when I read physical books. In fact, I can’t remember the last time I bought or used a traditional bookmark!

No, this post isn’t going to be about me using oreos and milk or a soft taco as bookmarks. None of the things I’m about to mention have damaged books in any way. They’re just a little off the beaten path.

1. Toilet Paper

It may be unnecessary to specify that this is clean, unused toilet paper, but I’ll do it anyway. Sometimes it’s the best available bookmark when you’re in the washroom reading, need to get up, and don’t have any other way to mark your page.

2. Receipts

They’re bookmark shaped, right? Why not put them to use once you’ve bought your products.

3. Leaves 

Like the toilet paper, I only ever used clean, dry leaves. The bigger they were, the better.

4. Greeting Cards

They’re generally taller and wider than traditional bookmarks, but they seem to have about the same thickness. This is a good thing in my opinion. They won’t tear easily, but they also won’t damage the spine of a paperback.

5. Tissue Paper

I was desperate, and it did not work well due to how easily tissue paper tears.

6. Playing Cards

My family always had extra packs of playing cards lying around when I was growing up. Sometimes I’d grab a card as an impromptu bookmark.

How about all of you? What unconventional bookmarks have you used?

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I struggled with this week’s prompt, so my list is going to be shorter than usual. Coming up with snappy titles is something I have to work hard on, but I did come up with a few interesting ideas.

I’d change Jean M. Auel’s The Land of Painted Caves to What Ayla Knew.

Why: The final book in the Earth’s Children series turned out to be heavily centred on the main character’s transition into a powerful member of her society once she arrived at the place she intended to spend the rest of her life. I wish the title had better reflected what actually happened to her.

I’d change F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby to Rich People’s Problems.

Why: Since that what this book was about, why not be honest about it so you attract the right readers? *shrugs*

I’d Change Richard Adams’ Watership Down to The Rabbit Chronicles

Why: This is something I put off reading for years. If I knew it was an adventure novel starring rabbits, I would have checked it out much sooner!

I’d Change Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book to Raised by the Dead. 

Why: The word play makes me smile. Normally, the dead are the ones being raised, and in a totally different context than a baby growing up in a cemetery.

I’d change J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Silmarillion to Tales from the First Age

Why: The original title didn’t capture my attention at all. I had no idea who or what a silmarillion was. It sounded like something math related, and I was totally uninterested in reading that sort of thing. At least my revised title gives hints about when these stories take place in the Lord of the Rings timeline.

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This week I had no idea what to say about any of these books, so I’m simply going to list them with links to their Goodreads pages for anyone who wants more information.

I’ve read the first nine from front to back. Someday I hope to be able to get through all of A Tale of Two Cities, too.

1. 1984 by George Orwell

2. Molly: An American Girl: 1944 by Valerie Tripp

3. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

4. The Two Towers (The Lord of the Rings #2) by J.R.R. Tolkien

5. One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss

6. 11/22/63 by Stephen King

7. The Day the World Came to Town: 9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland by Jim DeFede

8. These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901 by Nancy E. Turner

9. The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing

10. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

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I decided to narrow this week’s topic down by only discussing books that have been or will be published in the autumn of 2019. When I actually read them depends on how long the wait lists are at my local library, but I’m hoping at least a few of these titles will become available soon.

1. Title and Author: Highway of Tears: A True Story of Racism, Indifference and the Pursuit of Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls by Jessica McDiarmid
Why I Want to Read It: The murders and disappearances of Indigenous women is a serious issue here in Canada. Our mainstream media isn’t giving this topic the attention it needs, so I’m glad to see there’s a book about it.
Publication Date: Today

2. Title and Author: Alex McKenna & the Geranium Deaths by Vicki-Ann Bush
Why I Want to Read It: A witch who can speak to ghosts? Sign me up! I’ve also been trying to read more novels about characters who are trans in general, so that addition to the plot is icing on the cake.
Publication Date: Today

3. Title and Author: How We Fight For Our Lives by Saeed Jones
Why I Want to Read It: 2019 has not been a year of reading many memoirs or autobiographies for me. I’m trying to change that before the year ends for good.
Publication Date: October 8

4. Title and Author:The Body: A Guide for Occupants by Bill Bryson
Why I Want to Read It: I never grow tired of reading books about all of the unusual things the human body can be capable of doing.
Publication Date: October 15

5. Title and Author: Small Hearts by Bryan W. Dull
Why I Want to Read It: I’m still deciding if this is the right book for me, to be honest, but I do like the idea of reading about the aftermath of a school shooting rather than the crime itself.
Publication Date: October 15

6. Title and Author: Supernova Era by Liu Cixin
Why I Want to Read It: There aren’t many books out there about supernovas. I get excited every time I find another one.
Publication Date: October 22

7. Title and Author: When They Come for You: How Police and Governments are Trampling our Liberties – And How to Take Them Back by David Kirby
Why I Want to Read It: Civil liberties are important. It’s crucial for everyone to know what their rights are and how they should respond if their rights or the rights of someone close to them are violated.
Publication Date: October 29

8. Title and Author: The Forgotten Girl by India Hill Brown
Why I Want to Read It: So many of the books on my list this week are serious. A fun, middle-grade horror novel might be just the thing to help me relax after them.
Publication Date: November 5

9. Title and Author: The Deep by Rivers Solomon
Why I Want to Read It: I love the origin story of these characters’ ancestors. The thought that pregnant slaves who were thrown overboard ships hundreds of years ago somehow managed to thrive on the ocean floor is fascinating.
Publication Date: November 5

10. Title and Author: Wild Life: Dispatches from a Childhood of Baboons and Button-Downs by Keena Roberts
Why I Want to Read It: The author of this memoir spent part of her adolescence in a remote part of Botswana thanks to her parents’ field work with baboons. This sounds like such a cool way to grow up that I’d love to know more about it!
Publication Date: November 12

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I honestly don’t have much to say in the introduction to this post this week, so let’s jump straight into my list.

Title and Author: Networking for People who Hate Networking: A Field Guide for Introverts, the Overwhelmed, and the Underconnected by Devora Jack
What It’s About: The title says it all.
Why I’m Avoiding It: Most of the reason why I haven’t read this book yet is because there’s a long list for it at the library. I’m also a little worried about it being one of those “just pretend like you’re not an introvert and magically don’t get nervous!” sort of books.

Title and Author: Tell It to the Bees by Fiona Shaw
What It’s About: Two women falling in love in the 1950s in a rural British town.
Why I’m Avoiding It: I had major issues with certain plot twists in the film. I don’t know if the book followed the same path, so I’m a little hesitant to give it a try.

Title and Author: The Ministry of Truth: the Biography of George Orwell’s 1984 by Dorian Lynskey
What It’s About: Why George Orwell wrote the famous novel, 1984.
Why I’m Avoiding It: I’m trying to take a long break from the dystopian genre as a whole. I know I’m going to enjoy this book once I’m in the right frame of mind for it. Right now, I need lighter, fluffier tales.

Title and Author: Haben: The DeafBlind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law by Haben Girma
What It’s About: The title explains it all.
Why I’m Avoiding It: As I said earlier, these days I’m more into short, fluffy reads. I’m saving this book for when I’m ready for something serious and thought-provoking again.

Title and Author: Suzanna by Irene I. Blea
What It’s About: Child marriage, desperate loneliness, and what I think may turn out to be an emotionally abusive relationship.
Why I’m Avoiding It: This book sounds like a powerful read, but I don’t think I can handle such heavy themes at the moment.

Title and Author: Wilder Girls by Rory Power
What It’s About: A F/F romance, a deadly disease raging through an isolated school, and the mystery of what might lie beyond the fence the students have been forbidden from walking past.
Why I’m Avoiding It: Just about everyone loves it. I’m simultaneously excited to read it and worried that it won’t live up to the hype for me.

If you’ve read any of these books, please do share your thoughts on them.