PenPal Readers discussion

This is a thread for discussing the Summer Read More Challenge and how it's going for you, what books you're reading, and all things summer and books! If you're looking to sign-up, visit this thread...

I am currently reading

Currently reading Split Second

finished also how do you add the next book after you finish one?

Cindee wrote: "finished The Dreadful Tale of Prosper Redding also how do you add the next book after you finish one?"

That's Great! You can add your next book into the next empty row.. Mods will re-sort the list daily to group all readers books in together

Anne ✨ wrote: "Cindee wrote: "finished The Dreadful Tale of Prosper Redding also how do you add the next book after you finish one?"

That's Great! You can add your next book into the next empty row.. Mods will r..."
ok thanks

Even if they aren't sorted by name, all the points are tallied in alphabetical order by name on the sweet shop page.

Anyone want to do a buddy read or something like that?

Currently reading

Syndi wrote: "Currently reading Split Second"

Syndi - Congrats on reaching SUGAR SYRUP SENTENCE SQUASH already!

Jazzy - we might need to think up higher levels in the challenge to keep up with the pace of the power readers :) LOL

Such fun! The flavors are making me want to eat ice cream too much though!

I just signed up for this challenge. I am currently reading A Storm of Swords by George RR Martin :)

Cindee wrote: "I am currently reading "

I LOVE the cover on this book. I totally have to read it, just for the cover HA! I'm finishing up Darkest Minds by same author, and enjoying it.

Just finished The Rose Society and The Midnight Star, last night I started The Bear and the Nightingale.

Annie wrote: "Just finished The Rose Society and The Midnight Star, last night I started The Bear and the Nightingale."

Ooh I loved The Bear and the Nightingale.. I hope you enjoy it.

I have been putting in the HYPERLINKS...and came across a wonderful forgotten classic Syndi had added called Helen's Babies . I got up at the ungodly hour of 6 am and started reading it - til it was hours later and I had it finished! First published in 1876, it's a hilarious story of a 28 year old bachelor who sells white goods in the city and one summer takes charge of his sister's two boys in the country for 10 days whilst his sister is away with her husband.

PS I will be away to Gdansk in Poland on hols M-F next week huzzah!

Jazzy wrote: "I have been putting in the HYPERLINKS...and came across a wonderful forgotten classic Syndi had added called Helen's Babies . I got up at the ungodly hour of 6 am and started readin..."

I never heard about this book before and I regret it. This book is really funny. I laughed out loud listening to the audiobook version while working (my friends were probably looking at me, shocked by my sudden laughter haha)

I'm currently reading First Family by David Baldacci

It's the fourth book in the King & Maxwell series. The First Lady's niece was abducted on the night of her birthday, and private investigators slash ex-Secret Service agents Sean King & Michelle Maxwell are enlisted to help find her.

Way to go Cindee, Kyle, Mion, and Syndi for the quick jumpstart on your summer reading goals! I hope you're enjoying the delicious SUGAR SYRUP SENTENCE SQUASH flavor :)

And I hope everyone's having fun setting their own goals for reading this summer! :)

Anne ✨ wrote: "Annie wrote: "Just finished The Rose Society and The Midnight Star, last night I started The Bear and the Nightingale."

Ooh I loved The Bear and the Nightingale.. I hope you enjoy it."

I ended up reading it way past my bedtime last night.... hello coffee.... but I am really enjoying it! I'm halfway through the book. What are you reading now?

Yesterday I got stuck in and finished both Gumshoe by Neville Smith, which was a fantastic little gem full of laughs and A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess which was exceptionally clever with the language. Burgess was a linguist, and he used this background to depict his characters as speaking a form of Russian-influenced English.

During the blackout in WWII, while Burgess was away serving in the Army, a gang of American deserters attacked his wife, who was pregnant with their first child, in a brutal mugging. She lost the baby, and would never conceive again. From this traumatic event sprung the idea for his most well-known book which asks the question, is it morally right to take away someone's free will to keep society safe?

Currently Reading

Annie wrote: "What are you reading now?"

So, I just finished An American Marriage, a contemporary novel about love, marriage, justice, about a couple dealing with the aftermath of the husband being imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit, and how it impacts the relationship.

And now I've just picked up Legendary book two in a YA fantasy series about two sisters who get caught up in in a magical game world called Caravel, with high stakes for playing the game and figuring out the mysteries.

I feel like I'm running into a lot of DNFs right now - nothing seems to be interesting or attention-keeping and I'm wondering how I've managed to run into so many annoying/awful books at the same time - so I've decided to get through An Intimate History of Humanity and finally tackle Les Misérables.

I've also borrowed The Silent Cry from the library, but I'm not sure it's fitting to my mood right now.

How did you find An American Marriage? I was thinking about reading it a couple of weeks ago, but I was on the fence about it.

Sorry Mion, maybe try an easy read to ease back into things? What genre do you like and maybe we can recommend something? Hope the new books are more successful!

Annie wrote: "How did you find An American Marriage? I was thinking about reading it a couple of weeks ago, but I was on the fence about it.

Sorry Mion, maybe try an easy read to ease back into things? What gen..."

I really liked An American Marriage. The racial/justice element is more of the backdrop, the focus is really on relationships, and people's expectations, duty, love, and morality. There were really interesting characters and perspectives in the book, and the whole story was really engaging. I listened on audio and the narrator was excellent.

Mion - sorry about the reading slump. When that happens to me I'll often turn to easy-breezy chick-flick type reads that are usually quick reads, simple, and pleasing :) HA!

Mion wrote: "I feel like I'm running into a lot of DNFs right now - nothing seems to be interesting or attention-keeping and I'm wondering how I've managed to run into so many annoying/awful books at the same t..."

Les Miserables, THE BRICK! My favourite book EVER...E V E R!!!
Best to read it and fill out other books alongside it. I laughed, I cried. I remember starting it and thinking, When will Jean Valjean appear, When? and there's a few other tangents he goes on. Remember they were getting paid by the volume as it would probably be in the papers before it was turned into a book.
Just go slow. And love it. x

For my birthday, my boyfriend bought me ten books from my read list. Unfortunately a lot of the books I want to read the books aren't in my public library (not a big horror selection lol!)

I finished Envy last night and now I'm going to read Road to Perdition. When I was younger my dad always watched the movie. I never saw the movie but I heard many years ago that it was based on a graphic novel and I always wanted to read it. I'm glad I was able to find it and now I can read it!

After I finished RtP I'm going to read Deadeye Dick. :)

Jazzy wrote: "Mion wrote: "I feel like I'm running into a lot of DNFs right now - nothing seems to be interesting or attention-keeping and I'm wondering how I've managed to run into so many annoying/awful books ..."

I am haunted by same thoughts! I'm thoroughly enjoying it, although I'm still a bit intimidated by the length of it! Thankfully, the Estonian translation has been printed in three different books, so I don't have to carry all of it around all the time!

I've managed to get out of the slump by reading Bonjour Girl which I probably enjoyed so much because of the slump. Easy reads are great!

I feel like my to-read pile is growing so much, but I'd really like some recommendations about summery books. The weather here has been cloudy for quite some time now and I'm beginning to miss the hot rays of sun.

We're two weeks in! We have 32 participants, and over 140 books on the spreadsheet already! The reader flavour board is looking yummy and colourful!

Prize Drawing: We've done our first random drawing, and the winners are:
Chloe
Mion

We'll be having 5 more prize drawings (every two weeks), so plenty more chances to win (nominal bookish prize).

We hope everyone is having a great start to summer, and the PenPal summer challenges are encouraging you to READ MORE!.

Anne ✨ wrote: "Annie wrote: "How did you find An American Marriage? I was thinking about reading it a couple of weeks ago, but I was on the fence about it.

Sorry Mion, maybe try an easy read to ease back into th..."

I think you have convinced me! Hopefully can read it over the summer :)

Ah, I hate having trouble with wrong page counts on Goodreads.
I finished Relvis mehed (Men At Arms) a while ago and it bothers me so much that Goodreads lists the page count as 312 while in reality it's 336. I understand it's the same as listed on the publisher's website, but it's also incorrect there. Anyone else run into this kind of issue?

For the time being, I've decided to use the real page counts in the editions I use instead of the ones listed on Goodreads when the page count is listed differently.

Mion wrote: "Ah, I hate having trouble with wrong page counts on Goodreads.
I finished Relvis mehed (Men At Arms) a while ago and it bothers me so much that Goodreads lists the page count as 312..."

You can add your own edition of a book! that might be helpful in these cases

Also Mion, which one of the books entitled "The Distance Between Us" are you reading? There are several by different authors and I can't find it ;)

Currently reading The President Is Missing. I was 59 out of 101 on the Hold list at the library but my boyfriend came through and snatched it off the library shelf and got it for me while he was at work! LOL!

100 pages in and the President isn't missing yet.

Jazzy wrote: "Also Mion, which one of the books entitled "The Distance Between Us" are you reading? There are several by different authors and I can't find it ;)"


I'm pretty sure it's this one: The Distance Between Us. It'll be impossible for me to list the page numbers until the book actually comes out in July, but I received an arc copy from Netgalley, so I can read it now already.

Also, I'm having so much fun with Les Misérables! I'm taking it slow and it's just so good! Javert's so exciting.

I'll see about adding a new edition whenever I'll get back to my computer again

Mion wrote: "Ah, I hate having trouble with wrong page counts on Goodreads.
I finished Relvis mehed (Men At Arms) a while ago and it bothers me so much that Goodreads lists the page count as 312..."

Me too!! I just wrote down the exact number of pages I read in the spreadsheet. I always find book using their ISBN numbers, so maybe it'll help in decreasing the possibility of entering the wrong book version.

Syndi wrote: "Mion wrote: "Ah, I hate having trouble with wrong page counts on Goodreads.
I finished Relvis mehed (Men At Arms) a while ago and it bothers me so much that Goodreads lists the page..."

If your version doesn't exist you can create one!

Mion wrote: "Jazzy wrote: "Also Mion, which one of the books entitled "The Distance Between Us" are you reading? There are several by different authors and I can't find it ;)"


I'm pretty sure it's this one: [..."

Oh and don't worry about which version is hyperlinked, it is just to clear up any confusion about which BOOK it is and which author and someone may have a look through all these books and authors and find a little hidden gem.

Jazzy wrote: "Mion wrote: "Jazzy wrote: "Also Mion, which one of the books entitled "The Distance Between Us" are you reading? There are several by different authors and I can't find it ;)"


I'm pretty sure it'..."

Thank you so much, Jazzy for creating all the hyperlinks!!!!!!

I'm finding it really helpful, as I've been browsing the list, and it's so great to be able to quickly visit the book's GR page and read a bit about it. I'm finding some really interesting new books to add to my TBR!

Currently listening to The God Delusion on Audible with my audible credit. I've never listened to anything by Dawkins before so it'll be a first time experience for me. Also it's cool that it's narrated by him.

As for books I'm reading, I hope to be able to pick a book I want to read. I have so many books at my disposal right now but I'm just torn between so many! It's Octavia E. Butler's birthday today so maybe I'll read a book of hers this evening. :)

For those who like sci-fi I highly recommend the Earthseed series from her! Parable of the Sower is the first book.

I'm currently reading "Nick Newton: The Highest Bidder" which I received through Netgalley. I can't find the book on Goodreads nor even in any of the online shops for details like page count. And although the publishing date on Netgalley says 19th June, even the publisher's website has no information regarding the book. I guess I'll list the book when I finish it and claim the book point and leave the page points whenever I find out the actual number (since Kindle only shows me the percentage)

Mion wrote: "I'm currently reading "Nick Newton: The Highest Bidder" which I received through Netgalley. I can't find the book on Goodreads nor even in any of the online shops for details like page count. And a..."

If it's available you can switch to showing the page number on your kindle if that helps. I even went into OCLC here at work to find out some information on the book and couldn't find anything either.

On Herring Cove Road: Mr. Rosen and His 43Lb Anxiety doesn't have its page number listed either (that I could find). I had to go to Amazon so I know how many pages the book is. One of the reasons I hate exclusively kindle-published books or netgalley books. All the metadata inconsistencies can be frustrating!

Quick question! Is there a reason the spreadsheet has some page numbers in green instead of the brown? Just curious!

Kyle wrote: "Currently listening to The God Delusion on Audible with my audible credit. I've never listened to anything by Dawkins before so it'll be a first time experience for me. Also it's cool that it's narrated by him.

As for books I'm reading, I hope to be able to pick a book I want to read. I have so many books at my disposal right now but I'm just torn between so many! It's Octavia E. Butler's birthday today so maybe I'll read a book of hers this evening. :)

For those who like sci-fi I highly recommend the Earthseed series from her! Parable of the Sower is the first book."

I read her Patternmaster series not so long ago. I like the sound of the Earthseed books... might just have to try those next!

Kyle wrote: "Quick question! Is there a reason the spreadsheet has some page numbers in green instead of the brown? Just curious!"

Perhaps when I created more rows they didn't format correctly?

Can anyone who likes audiobooks recommend me one with a really good narrator?

So far, I've only enjoyed audiobooks with David Tennant's involvement (Doctor Who books and How to train your dragon series)

I like Kara Shallenberg. Her reading is fast but clear.

Mion wrote: "Can anyone who likes audiobooks recommend me one with a really good narrator?

So far, I've only enjoyed audiobooks with David Tennant's involvement (Doctor Who books and How to train your dragon s..."

I think that's because EVERYONE loves David Tennant :D

How about Stephen Fry Reading Sherlock Holmes The Definitive Collection....?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViL0r...

I've never been one for audiobooks, but Stephen Fry is such a good reader I'm gonna start it now!

EDIT...it's this book here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Stephen Fry is amazing! He does all the accents and voices of all the characters the way you're supposed to! I'm nearly through A Study in Scarlet and it's so good!

Mion wrote: "Can anyone who likes audiobooks recommend me one with a really good narrator?

So far, I've only enjoyed audiobooks with David Tennant's involvement (Doctor Who books and How to train your dragon s..."

The Butcher Boy's audiobook is really good. It's narrated by the author.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is also a really good audiobook.

If you're a fan of nonfiction, Anthony Bourdain narrated all of his books (or at least two of them) and they are really good books. It's even better with him as a narrator.

Kyle wrote: "Mion wrote: "Can anyone who likes audiobooks recommend me one with a really good narrator?

So far, I've only enjoyed audiobooks with David Tennant's involvement (Doctor Who books and How to train ..."

Oh I love Tinker, Tailor...