Oh, hey, reading, I sort of miss you. I read a total of 12 books in March, including 3 audiobooks for about 3000 pages and 29 hours of audio. But this month was extra crazy because it was the launch not only of Foreword Literary Agency, but also of Bloggers Recommend. I’m guessing Bloggers Recommend will be interesting to more of you, so for those of you who are looking for a literary agent, I’ll just tell you to see my Submissions page.
Bloggers Recommend is another project that Nicole and I started. Basically it is an aggregate of bloggers, well, recommendations for the best new books coming out in a given month. The March newsletter was primarily recommendations from myself and Nicole, but the April newsletter showcases much of our advisory board. Readers, we’d love for you to subscribe and get our future (once a month) email lists; bloggers, we want your recommendations (by April 20th for the May newsletter)!
Audiobook Frances and Bernard by Carlene Bauer, narrated by Angela Brazil and Stephen R. Thorne Life after Life by Kate Atkinson, narrated by Fenella Woolgar
Fiction The Water Witch by Juliet Dark Angelopolis Danielle Trussoni The Smart One by Jennifer Close The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout The Liar’s Gospel by Naomi Alderman Amity & Sorrow by Peggy Riley
Historical fiction The Edge of the Earth by Christina Schwarz
Nonfiction/Memoir The World’s Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette’s, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family by Josh Hanagarne
Note: Some of these books were provided to me for review.
So I read 13 books this month, including 5 audiobooks. This was a total of 2700 pages and about 57 hours of audio. I could have easily finished one more book in print, but I had to stop myself so I could get some work done. I’m hoping March - when I’ll have more day-to-day help with the kids - will mean more work getting done during the day and thus more reading done in the evening.
What I Reviewed:
Audiobooks The Eleventh Plagueby Jeff Hirsch, narrated by Dan Bittner Parlor Gamesby Maryka Biaggio, narrated by Leslie Carroll The Good House by Anne Leary, narrated by Mary Beth Hurt
Audiobook Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland’s History-Making Race Around the World by Matthew Goodman, narrated by Kathe Mazur Hand Me Down by Melanie Thorne, narrated by Ali Ahn The Dead Shall Not Rest by Tessa Harris, narrated by Simon Vance Heft by Liz Moore, narrated by Kirby Heyborne and Keith Szarabajka The End of the Affair by Graham Greene, narrated by Colin Firth
Fiction The Demonologist by Andrew Pyper The Crooked Branch by Jeanine Cummins Above All Things by Tanis Rideout The Demon Lover by Juliet Dark
Note: Some of these books were provided to me for review.
So, I finished 13 books this month. That is down quite a bit from my averages over the past year or two, but I am guessing that this is probably my new normal with agenting (although the fact that I watched all 7 seasons of The West Wing this month probably didn’t help either). This is why I am transitioning to only two print/ebook reviews per week, plus an audio review. I will occasionally have other content as well, but those of you who do not use RSS to read my blog should count on posts Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday (review, review, audiobook review, Sunday Salon).
This month’s breakdown includes 8 print or ebooks for a total of about 2900 pages and 4 audiobooks for a total of about 38 hours. Below you can see the books I reviewed this month, followed by the other books I read this month.
What I Reviewed:
Audiobooks The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis, narrated by Adenrele Ojo, Bahni Turpin, and Adam Lazarre-White The Confidantby Helene Gremillion, narrated by Ellen Archer The Bro Code for Parents by Barney Stinson and Matt Kuhn, narrated by Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris) Habits of the House by Fay Weldon, narrated by Katherine Kellgren
Audiobook The Ice Cream Girls by Dorothy Koomson, narrated by Parlor Games by Maryka Biaggio, narrated by The Good House by Ann Leary, narrated by
Fiction Life After Life by Kate Atkinson All This Talk of Love by Christopher Castellani
Historical Fiction Shadow on the Crown by Patricia Bracewell Leaving Everything Most Loved by Jacqueline Winspear Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler
Nonfiction Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain
Young Adult Fiction The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau
Note: Some of these books were provided to me for review.
YOU GUYS. IT IS DECEMBER. W.T.F. By about 1/3 of the way through November, I actually finished reading everything I planned to review in 2012, so I read mostly books from my shelves that I’ve been wanting to get to for a couple of weeks and have now started on 2013 books. You’ll be able to check out my top books of (top books reviewed in) 2012 in just a few short weeks on December 18th.
I’m not even going to play around, I totally rocked my reading in November, 19 books finished. Only 4 were audio, though, and I only listened for 32.5 hours, which is way below my normal. I haven’t finished an audiobook since November 20th, evidently Thanksgiving time is not good for my listening. Print and ebooks, though, dang, I can’t complain about getting through 15 of them. Actually, I’m so far behind on reviews that my print AND ebook right now are both rather involved nonfiction. I don’t want to keep finishing at such a quick pace until I get a bit caught up.
Audiobook
Bigger Than a Breadbox by Laurel Snyder, narrated by Laurel Snyder The Art Forger by B.A. Shapiro, narrated by Xe Sands The Leopard by Giuseppe di Lampedusa, narrated by Edoardo Ballerini
Fiction The Trial of Fallen Angels by James Kimmel, Jr. The Promise of Stardust by Priscille Sibley A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True by Giuseppe di Lempedu
Historical Fiction The Aviator’s Wife by Melanie Benjamin The Italian Woman by Jean Plaidy Love in the Years of Lunacy by Mandy Sayer
Speculative Fiction Blackout by Mira Grant The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell Level 2 by Lenore Appelhans (YA)
Nonfiction You’re Not Fooling Anyone When You Take Your Computer to a Coffee Shop: Scalzi on Writing by John Scalzi History in an Hour: Henry VIII’s Wives by Julie Wheeler History in an Hour: 1066 by Kaye Jones 200 Classic Mistakes and How to Avoid Them-A Misstep-by-Misstep Guide by Howard Mittelmark and Sandra Newman
Note: Some of these books were provided to me for review.
I am SHOCKED, but I actually ended up finishing 17 books this month. That is a fairly typical month for me, if perhaps ever so slightly on the low side, so why am I shocked? Well, the beginning of this month had me reading like molasses. By the 10th I had only finished 3 books. I was pretty sure I was in store for a terribly slow month and that there was no chance I’d finish my books for 2012 and make it to reading my own books in November.
Not that I totally made my goal. As of Halloween night I’m about 100 pages away from the end of one book and still have one more in print and one more egalley to read to finish out this year, but I’m hoping I can finish those in the next few days. I also have one 2013 book I have to read in early November, but I’m hoping I can spend at least 3/4 of the month reading my own books (not counting audio), so maybe I’ll knock 7 or 8 books off of the great TBR.
Of the 17 books I finished in October, 6 were audiobooks for a total of 56 hours and the other 11 were print or ebooks, for a total of about 4100 pages. I reviewed 14 books, including 4 audiobooks this month, as well as posting one Saturday Story Spotlight.
Audiobook
Toby’s Room by Pat Barker, narrated by Nicola Barber (no review) Becoming Clementine by Jennifer Niven, narrated by Kathe Mazur Astray by Emma Donoghue, narrated by Kristine Hvam, James Langton, Robert Petkoff, Suzanne Toren, and Dion Graham Sutton by J.R. Moehringer, narrated by Dylan Baker The Dangers of Proximal Alphabets by Kathleen Alcott, narrated by Carrington MacDuffie
Fiction
The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker A Royal Pain by Megan Mulry Strong Poison by Dorothy L. Sayers The Stockholm Octavo by Karen Engelmann Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver The Start of Everything by Emily Winslow
Nonfiction Consider the Fork: A History of How We Cook and Eat by Bee Wilson
Note: Some of these books were provided to me for review.
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