Dymocks 2020 Reading Challenge Halftime Progress Report

Currently reading:
Aurora Burning


Progress: 17/26
Australian Author: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte (AA) Review Here
Indigenous Author: Catching Teller Crow by Ambelin & Ezekiel Kwaymullina (AA) Review Here
From Top 101: The Cruel Prince by Holly Black Review Here
Kid's Top 51: Withering by Sea by Judith Rossell (AA)
Dymocks 'Book of the Month': House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J Maas (March) Review Here
Re-read favourite book of all time: The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
*Substitution: The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien Review Here, Here and Here.

(I just re-read TTM last year, so I went with my second fave, instead)

Friend's recommendation: Mao's Last Dancer by Cunxin Li (AA) Review Here
Featuring favourite country (France): Josephine's Garden by Stephanie Parkyn (AA) Review Here
From TBR pile: North Star Guide Me Home by Jo Spurrier (AA) Review Here
Award winner: Gemina by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (AA) Review Here
Mystery/Thriller: One Last Child by Anni Taylor (AA) Review Here
Memoir: A Sceptic's Search for Meaning by Mike Willesee (AA) Review Here
Outside usual genre: Entranced by Nora Roberts Review Here
Short stories: Saga Land by Richard Fidler & Kari Gislason (AA)
Self Help/Motivation: Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
Fairytale/Fable adaptation: Beauty in Thorns by Kate Forsyth (AA)
Book 1 in Fantasy series: Midnight Never Come by Marie Brennan
Teaches something new: The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
*Substitution: Hood Feminism by Mikki Kendall Review Here

(Given the current state of the world, this is something that I really want to educate myself on)

Adapted to film/TV series: You by Caroline Kepnes Review Here
Red cover: Cherry Pie by Leigh Redhead (AA)
Colour in title: Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel
Read in a day: Weapon by Lynette Noni (AA) Review Here
About books: The Girl Who Reads on the Metro by Christine Feret-Fleury Review Here
Makes me laugh: Challenge Accepted by Celeste Barber (AA) Review Here
Published this year: Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (AA)
Said I've read but haven't: Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

Dymocks 2020 Challenge Highlights

So we've been at it for four months so far.

With 26 books to read in total, we should be into our 10th read for the challenge. How are you tracking?

Here's what I've read so far:

1.  The Girl Who Reads on the Metro by Christine Feret-Fleury (About books) Review Here (3 stars)
2. Catching Teller Crow by Ambelin & Ezekiel Kwaymullina (AA) (Indigenous Author) Review Here (3 stars)
3. One Last Child by Anni Taylor (AA) (Mystery/Thriller) Review Here (4 stars)
4. A Sceptic's Search for Meaning by Mike Willesee (AA) (Memoir) Review Here (5 stars)
5. Weapon by Lynette Noni (AA) (Read in a day) Review Here (4 stars)
6. Gemina by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (AA) (Award winner) Review Here (4 stars)
7. Challenge Accepted by Celeste Barber (AA) (Makes me laugh) Review Here (4 stars)
8. You by Caroline Kepnes (Adapted to film/TV series) Review Here (4 stars)
9. House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J Maas (Dymocks 'Book of the Month' for March) Review Here (4 stars)
10. Josephine's Garden by Stephanie Parkyn (AA) (Featuring favourite country, France) Review Here (3 stars)
11. Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte (AA) (Australian Author) Review Here (2 stars)
12. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black (From Top 101) Review Here (2 stars)

So tracking just a little ahead of schedule!

I've probably read a few books that match some of the other prompts but I wanted to stay true to my list with this one, since that's the whole point of a challenge! This lot has been a mixed bag so far - some I expected to love ended up disappointing, and others I expected not to like so much blew me away.

Highlights: A Sceptic's Search for Meaning has been my only 5-star read so far, and it was completely unexpected. I didn't expect this one to move me as much as it did! It was such a beautiful story of faith, and I really enjoyed his story.

I also found myself thoroughly enjoying Gemina, which was a relief since the first book in the series disappointed me a little.This one came on strong with all of my favourite things, so it was a nice easy read. It was amongst a run of solid 4-star reads so that was a good time for me!

Unfortunately, the last few have been books I expected more from. Four Dead Queens scrimped a little too much on the world-building for my tastes and ended up being rather dull, and The Cruel Prince was dark and disturbing in all the wrong places. 

I've got some great reads coming up that I'm really looking forward to, but since I'm near the halfway mark I think it's time to treat myself with re-reading my favourite book. So The Three Musketeers is up next!

I've also been working on Mao's Last Dancer rather slowly, since it's quite a dense book with a lot of politics and poverty - two of my least favourite things to read about. I'm determined to get through it though! 

Here's the list of what I have left:

1. Kid's Top 51: Withering by Sea by Judith Rossell (AA)
2. Re-read favourite book of all time: The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
3. Friend's recommendation: Mao's Last Dancer by Cunxin Li (AA)
4. From TBR pile: North Star Guide Me Home by Jo Spurrier (AA)
5. Outside usual genre: Entranced by Nora Roberts
6. Short stories: Saga Land by Richard Fidler & Kari Gislason (AA)
7. Self Help/Motivation: Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
8. Fairytale/Fable adaptation: Beauty in Thorns by Kate Forsyth (AA)
9. Book 1 in Fantasy series: Midnight Never Come by Marie Brennan
10. Teaches something new: The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
11. Red cover: Cherry Pie by Leigh Redhead (AA)
12. Colour in title: Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel
13. Published this year: Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (AA)
14. Said I've read but haven't: Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

On we go! Happy reading!

Dymocks 2020 Challenge April Progress

Currently reading:
Mao's Last Dancer
The Cruel Prince

Progress: 11/26

• Australian Author: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte (AA) Review Here
• Indigenous Author: Catching Teller Crow by Ambelin & Ezekiel Kwaymullina (AA) Review Here
• From Top 101: The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
• Kid's Top 51: Withering by Sea by Judith Rossell (AA)
• Dymocks 'Book of the Month': House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J Maas (March) Review Here
• Re-read favourite book of all time: The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
• Friend's recommendation: Mao's Last Dancer by Cunxin Li (AA)
• Featuring favourite country (France): Josephine's Garden by Stephanie Parkyn (AA) Review Here
• From TBR pile: North Star Guide Me Home by Jo Spurrier (AA)
• Award winner: Gemina by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (AA) Review Here
• Mystery/Thriller: One Last Child by Anni Taylor (AA) Review Here
• Memoir: A Sceptic's Search for Meaning by Mike Willesee (AA) Review Here
• Outside usual genre: Entranced by Nora Roberts
• Short stories: Saga Land by Richard Fidler & Kari Gislason (AA)
• Self Help/Motivation: Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
• Fairytale/Fable adaptation: Beauty in Thorns by Kate Forsyth (AA)
• Book 1 in Fantasy series: Midnight Never Come by Marie Brennan
• Teaches something new: The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
• Adapted to film/TV series: You by Caroline Kepnes Review Here
• Red cover: Cherry Pie by Leigh Redhead (AA)
• Colour in title: Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel
• Read in a day: Weapon by Lynette Noni (AA) Review Here
• About books: The Girl Who Reads on the Metro by Christine Feret-Fleury Review Here
• Makes me laugh: Challenge Accepted by Celeste Barber (AA) Review Here
• Published this year: Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (AA)
• Said I've read but haven't: Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

Dymocks 2020 Reading Challenge

So this year's challenge set by Dymocks Books is a set of 26 specific tasks. That makes one a fortnight, so I'm quietly confident.

I'm challenging myself to read at least 13 Australian authors for this one!

Here's the list, and my picks so far:

• Australian Author
• Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte (AA)
• Indigenous Author
• Catching Teller Crow by Ambelin & Ezekiel Kwaymullina (AA)
• From Top 101
• TBA
• Kid's Top 51
• TBA
• Dymocks 'Book of the Month'
• TBA
• Re-read favourite book of all time
• The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
• Friend's recommendation
• Mao's Last Dancer by Cunxin Li (AA)
• Featuring favourite country (France)
• Josephine's Garden by Stephanie Parkyn
• From TBR pile
• North Star Guide Me Home by Jo Spurrier (AA)
• Award winner
• Gemina by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (AA)
• Mystery/Thriller
• One Last Child by Anni Taylor (AA)
• Memoir
• A Sceptic's Search for Meaning by Mike Willesee (AA)
• Outside usual genre
• Entranced by Nora Roberts
• Short stories
• Saga Land by Richard Fidler & Kari Gislason (AA)
• Self Help/Motivation
• Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
• Fairytale/Fable adaptation
• Beauty in Thorns by Kate Forsyth (AA)
• Book 1 in Fantasy series
• Midnight Never Come by Marie Brennan
• Teaches something new
• The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
• Adapted to film/TV series
• You by Caroline Kepnes
• Red cover
• Cherry Pie by Leigh Redhead (AA)
• Colour in title
• Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel
• Read in a day
• Weapon by Lynette Noni (AA)
• About books
• The Girl Who Reads on the Metro by Christine Feret-Fleury
• Makes me laugh
• Challenge Accepted by Celeste Barber (AA)
• Published this year
• Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (AA)
• Said I've read but haven't
• Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

Are you doing this one, or any other challenge this year? Let me know! 

Challenge Review: Becoming

My #dymocks52challenge book 15/38, for week 29.

Title: Becoming
Author: Michelle Obama
Published: 13/11/18
First appearance in 101: 2019 (#14)
Years in 101: 1
2019 101 ranking: #14
Rating: 4 stars


Why I chose this book:
New to the list this year, Michelle Obama's biography is a book I've wanted to read since I've learned of its existence late last year. I always figured she'd have an interesting story to tell, so I was happy to add this one to the list when it came to filling in the extra spaces.


Thoughts:
Definitely an interesting story to tell! There's a lot of substance here, and a message of hope and perseverance that I think will always be relevant. I loved the way it was written, and even with all the political stuff I stayed interested throughout.

You can read my full review on Goodreads here.


Verdict: Was it worthy?

Absolutely. A powerful voice, and one I think we could all do to listen to. I can't imagine a time when the themes of her story won't be relevant. Her strength of character is evident, and I think this book will continue to inspire for as long as there are people reading it.

Challenge Review: The Happiest Refugee

My #Dymocks52challenge 12/38 for Week 26.

Title: The Happiest Refugee
Author: Anh Do
Published: 1/9/2010
First appearance in 101: 2011
Years in 101: 8
2019 101 ranking: #25
Rating: 4 stars

Why I chose this book:
This was one that featured in every single list for the past five years (and beyond). I know of Anh Do and have enjoyed his comedy however his book never really drew me in. With this challenge, however, and his consistent appearance on the list, I thought it was time to give him a chance.

Thoughts:
This book right here makes me so glad I decided to do this challenge. It was so much more enjoyable than I was expecting! I think I read it in a day? It just held me captivated the entire time! It's such a fascinating story and there are a lot of dark moments but it's told with such humility and honesty and comes across as an inspiring story of hope and perseverance. I loved it so much.

You can read my full review on Goodreads here.


Verdict: Was it worthy?

A hundred times yes! This is a unique Aussie voice that has a heck of a story to tell. It's such an uplifting read and is incredibly powerful the way it goes about it. I loved it from start to finish and it was such an easy, enjoyable reading experience. I hope to see it on the list for many more years to come so people like me finally get around to giving it a chance.

The List, Explored

Choosing 38 books for my refined Dymocks 52 Challenge was not an easy task.

Particularly since I'd miscalculated, and originally only planned for 34 books.

I didn't want to randomly choose my list, nor did I want to just pick the stories that most appealed to me. The whole point is to challenge myself; to read books that seem deserving that I am otherwise unlikely to read.

I can't tell you how many years I've put off reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, because war stories just don't appeal to me in the slightest. However it's appeared consistently in the Dymocks 101, never at a spot beyond #6 (2018) and even took out first place three years in a row (2014, 2015 and 2016). Despite my reservations, this was the first book I added to my challenge list.

It's also worth mentioning that I've already read a lot of the books listed each year. Re-reading old favourites, while entertaining, would have nullified the point of the challenge. So look in vain for titles like Lord of the Rings, Throne of Glass, 1984, Harry Potter and many more favourites, both classic and modern.

To determine the most worthy books, I began by reviewing the lists for the past five years. Some appeared on their own, others as part of its series. (For the sake of numbers, I've included only the first book in series.)

Upon my review, I discovered 9 unread books that have made the list every time:

1. The Book Thief - Markus Zusak (AA)
2. The Happiest Refugee - Anh Do (AA)
3. Jasper Jones - Craig Silvey (AA)
4. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
5. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
6. The Light Between Oceans - M. L. Stedman (AA)
7. The Narrow Road to the Deep North - Richard Flanagan (AA)
8. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
9. Assassin's Apprentice (The Farseer Trilogy) - Robin Hobb

AA = Australian Author

Seems that we are quite partial to our homegrown authors!

I have to admit - I was not comforted by these titles. Several I've had no intention of ever reading (Hichhiker's Guide ... , The Narrow Road ...) and others I've attempted in the past but cast aside after a chapter or two (Light Between Oceans, Assassin's Apprentice). Yet here they were, consistently proving they had won the hearts of Australian book lovers.

On to the list they go.

The next step was to look for the books that had made it four of the five past years - another six books emerged.

10. The Goldfinch - Donna Tartt (-2016)
11. The Husband's Secret - Liane Moriarty (AA) (-2015)
12. The Martian - Andy Weir (-2015)
13. My Brilliant Friend (The Neapolitan Series) - Elena Ferrante (-2015)
14. The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society - Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows (-2016)
15. Ready Player One - Ernest Cline (-2015)

(- the year they missed out)

Again,  mostly books I'd never thought a lot about reading. Sci-fi, lit fic ... eh. And that potato one? I almost don't want to read it just because its title is so obnoxious. How anyone remembered the name of this book is beyond me.

Naturally, it was then the books that had three mentions:

16. Shantaram - Gregory David Roberts
17. All the Bright Places - Jennifer Niven
18. Big Little Lies - Liane Moriarty (AA)
19. Reckoning - Magda Szubanski (AA)
20. A Little Life - Hanya Yanagihara 
21. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck - Mark Manson

Now here was something fun: Finally my list had its first two non-fiction offerings!

Not particularly happy with the voters for delivering me Shantaram, though. This is a 936-page monster I am NOT looking forward to tackling.

(I'm sure there were some other 3/5 options that I neglected based on page-count alone - Anna Karenina didn't get a second glance at all.)

With what I believed to be 12 more choices to go, I decided it was time to have a little fun with it.

A common book lover problem is buying more books than one can possibly read, and having them sit, neglected, on bookshelves for years. I am no exception. My next step was to compare the 101 lists from 2012-2019 against the books already on my shelves. It produced six more titles not already on my list:

22. The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova
23. The Final Empire (The Mistborn Series) - Brandon Sanderson
24. Wool - Hugh Howey
25. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine - Gail Honeyman
26. Boy Swallows Universe - Trent Dalton (AA)
27. Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicles) - Jay Kristoff (AA)

Admittedly, the last three are recent purchases bought to celebrate the 2019 list. I love that 3-for-2 deal.

Down to the last 7, I thought it was time to allow for some random choices. The only stipulation was that they be chosen from this year's Top 101. Here they are:

28. Simon VS the Homo Sapiens Agenda - Becky Albertalli
29. Fight Like a Girl - Clementine Ford (AA)
30. Circe - Madeline Miller
31. Mythos - Stephen Fry
32. The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart - Holly Ringland (AA)
33. Becoming - Michelle Obama
34. A Discovery of Witches - Deborah Harkness

And then of course I discovered I'd neglected four weeks of the remaining year, so added by random choice:

35. Crazy Rich Asians - Kevin Kwan
36. Scrublands - Chris Hammer (AA)
37. Normal People - Sally Rooney
38. Nine Perfect Strangers - Liane Moriarty (AA)

So there you have it! The complete list of 38 books I intend to get though in the next 38 weeks! 14 Australian authors, four non-fiction books, and so many I've been putting off for years. Wish me luck!

Stay tuned for updates, stats and more.

Happy reading!

Blogger Life (1)

So apparently if you want people to actually read your blog you have to put effort into it?

I mean, that sounds HARD.

But here I am anyway, writing an actual post instead of just clicking the 'post to blog' button on my latest Goodreads review.

So.

What is it that book-loving blog readers like to read about? I need hints here people.

Shall I start with why I'm giving this blog-writing thing another crack?

Yes, I say 'another' and that's not a typo. I've tried in the past. I have. I'm not lazy, I swear. I'm just too busy reading. I'm a book lover, remember?

But I've decided to start making a little more effort because I'm one of those book lovers who is a wannabe writer. And of course part of being a writer is writing. Regularly.

I HAVE SO MANY IDEAS. I just completely suck at putting them on paper.

So here's to this blog getting my creative mojo flowing.

I'm hoping it'll be a fun learning experience, and that maybe I'll write stuff that people will actually want to read. If you're paying attention, you might even get that sneaky access to my rough drafts. Which may not seem that exciting now but, trust me, it's gonna make you feel super special when the polished versions are published and I become a household name. (So modest, I am so, so modest.)

So thanks for reading and feel free to leave your thoughts!

***

Question Time: (I've seen this on other blogs; it's clearly an important part.) Do you blog? And if so, why?

NaNoWriMo

So I've signed up for NaNoWriMo for the first time in my life.

NaNoWriMo: That's National Novel Writing Month, for the uninitiated. November, every year, people from all over the world dedicate themselves to churning out 50,000 words of a complete novel. Apparently the prep is a year-round thing - so I'm a little late, boarding the ship at the start of the designated month - but hey, I've always been decent at 'winging it'. (I definitely had to Google how it all works, though.)

I have found that it really helps with the motivation. I've felt the urge to write quite strongly this past month or so, and have been attempting short stories and other writing adventures. But NNWM (is there a rule against shortening it further?!) has inspired me to put some serious effort into a novel I've been working on for years. I've got outlines, sketches, spin-off stories, character summaries etc. but haven't put a great deal of effort into writing the actual story and bringing it all together. So it's nice to finally be spending some time nurturing this one, and coaxing the story out of my mind and on to the page.

At the same time, I'm so eager to get my work out into the public domain, so I'm frustrated at how long this writing process is going to be. So I'm also toying with the idea of putting more effort into the side projects and short stories. But I also feel like I can only write these things when I get creative flares and can punch out a story in one go. I'm notorious for failing to finish my work.

All I know is that I have this burning urge to tell my stories, and have other people read them. I need to create, and I want to give birth to characters that truly come alive. I have such high hopes for my big dreams.

Writing is hard work, man. But I'm looking forward to the extra motivation that NNWM will provide.


***


Find me, friend me! And share your writing journeys with me! Username: KrystalLee6363

A Modern Legend

I never had any intention of sharing a lot of personal information about myself here. This is really about writing, and books, and stories. However the story I feel driven to share needs a little background info.

As much as I love reading and writing, these things alone don't pay the bills. My full time job is actually retail: I work for Foot Locker. Retail has a pretty bad rep, but I quite enjoy it. Every day is different, and I get to meet some really interesting people.

For the past few months, I've been spending most of my work days running our store's House of Hoops section. This branch of FL is dedicated to Nike basketball, and brings me plenty of customers who are dedicated to the sport. 

I love interacting with people who are passionate. People who have been wearing Jordans since they were kids, people who have to have the latest in b-ball fashion, young people who are just starting to build their collections. People of all ages who feel alive every time they set foot on a court. People who are just learning to play. People who are looking for their very first pair of basketball shoes, and people who are replacing the latest pair of shoes to be falling apart from abuse on the court. People who idolise Lebron, Kyrie, Kobe ... people who are inspired, and inspiring.

I love to hear their stories, and yesterday I met a girl whose story will stay with me for a long time.

She was young - eleven or twelve, I think. Athletic, and decked out in her basketball uniform after the morning's game. She came in with her mum, looking to try a pair of new Kyries, being familiar with the previous model.

When we realised the Kyrie IV wasn't going to work for her, I suggested some other models, and her mum saw more time was needed so she went to move the car, leaving her daughter alone to continue trying shoes.

I'd been flat out since I'd started, but somehow it was suddenly just the two of us, and not another customer in sight.

So to fill the silence while we tried some different styles, I asked this girl how often she played basketball. And she opened up to me.

This girl plays seven days a week. 

She trains with her team(s), she trains on her own, and she plays games on weekends. She plays during school, and after. She would play more if she could, but something was stopping her.

See, during her lunch hours, she wanted to play basketball. As her friends preferred to sit around gossiping, she would instead play ball with the boys. This, however, caused a bit of trouble for her because some of the boys she played with were the boyfriends of her friends. 

She was bullied for it. Some of the girls played on the same ladies team, and they would throw balls at her, claiming it was accidental. They seemed to think she was trying to steal their boyfriends. So she had begun to avoid playing with the boys.

The way she spoke so plainly about it broke my heart.

In truth, it took my back to my own high school days.

I had been the same as this girl - I chose to spend my lunchtimes playing soccer with the boys, because sitting around gossiping about reality TV just didn't excite me. The fallout wasn't a good time for me. 

This girl's story took me back to my own experiences, but I could tell I was facing a girl who was much stronger than I was at that age.

She moved on to tell me how she was training hard for upcoming tryouts, working to be equally dexterous with each hand because that was important in being picked for the team. She spent her own time honing her skills, working hard to become better. I admire the hell out of that.

This girl was being bullied because of the insecurities of others, but she was still out there, busting her guts to be better. To progress, and advance. She wouldn't have mentioned the bullying if it didn't bother her, but she wasn't letting it slow her down. I told her she should never stop doing something she loves because of what others think, and she nodded as though she was inclined to think that way already.

I wanted to offer some meaningful words of encouragement, but it felt inadequate when I was already so floored by her resilience. In the end, I just said exactly what I was thinking: 'You know what? With your dedication, and your attitude, you are going to go far in life, girl. You're incredible.'

The small talk dwindled, her mum returned, customers came flooding back, and the girl picked out some Hyperdunk X that fit her like a glove.Time resumed.

The whole experience was so valuable to me, and I'm so glad to know that there are young people out there like this girl who will become the strong, fierce women of the future. 

These are the stories that are so easily overlooked, that I want to tell. People who are fighting their own battles, pushing themselves every day for things they believe in. Today, this girl is fighting bullying so that she can play more of the sport she loves. Who knows what future this will build for her? Maybe one day she'll go pro, and be a role model for girls who will be in the same position she once was. And she'll be able to make their lives that much brighter because she'll be the living proof that says, 'Look what we are capable of.' 

There are so many stories like this one, waiting to be told. So many people carving paths that will make this world a better place. It's the small acts of rebellion against the boxes we are forced into that will allow society to grow and thrive.

My writing veers towards myths and legends, and I feel like yesterday I caught a glimpse at the early days of a modern legend. This girl will go on to do great things, I am certain. 

I feel so privileged that she opened up to me, and shared a little of her story with me, and I hope one day I can share stories like hers with the world so that more people can take notice of the overlooked who are so worthy of our admiration.