2021: April wrap-up

April 2021 WRAP-UP

Phew, this was a busy month, ending with a liturgical marathon, as we finally had our Great Week (Orthodox services are so deep and powerful, and also quite long, especially during this very special week) and Pascha (aka Easter), almost a month after everyone else.

I have been also reading a lot, as much needed time off at the end of the day, but as I’m in the middle of so many books, my stats are actually not very impressive.
The big news was my first participation ever in the Club organized by Simon at Stuck in a Book. This time, in was the #1936Club.

Two other big highlights were
my buddy read of Before the Coffee Gets Cold,
and the beginning of another buddy read: The Archipelago of Another Life

📚 Here is what I read in April:

18 books:
6 in print 
with 1,377 pages, a daily average of 45 pages/day
12 in audio
= 24H39
, a daily average of 49 minutes

9 in nonfiction:

  1. The Book of Micah
  2. The Book of Joel
  3. The Book of Obadiah
  4. The Book of Jonah
  5. The Book of Nahum
  6. The Book of Habakkuk
  7. The Book of Zephaniah
  8. The Book of Haggai – these first 8 books were as audiobooks, for The Classics Club and the Books in Translation Challenge
  9. A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life, by George Saunders

5 in mystery:

  1. Murder in the Mews (Hercule Poirot #18), by Agatha Christie
  2. Appointment With Death (Hercule Poirot #19), by Agatha Christie
  3. Hercule Poirot’s Christmas (Hercule Poirot #20), by Agatha Christie – these first three were as audiobooks, for The Classics Club
  4. Double Indemnity, by James M. Cain – ebook for the #1936Club and The Classics Club
  5. Piège pour Cendrillon, by Sébastien Japrisot – French ebook for the The Classics Club

2 in literary fiction:

  1. The Old Capital, by Yasunari Kawabata –  ebook for  The Classics Club
  2. First Person Singular, by Haruki Murakami

1 in historical fiction:

  1. The Swedish Cavalier, by Leo Perutz – ebook for the #1936Club and The Classics Club

1 in science-fiction:

  1. How to Mars, by David Ebenbach – ebook received for review

MY FAVORITE BOOKS THIS PAST MONTH

A Swim in the Pond in the Rain    The Swedish Cavalier

READING CHALLENGES & RECAP

Classics Club: 47/137 (from November 2020-until November 2025)
Japanese Literature Challenge: 12 books 

Total of books read in 2021 = 60/120 (yes, already at 50%!)
Number of books added to my TBR this past month = 11

OTHER BOOK  REVIEWED THIS PAST MONTH

The Black Lizard

GIVEAWAYS

The open giveaways are on my homepage

Books available for swapping

REVIEW COPIES AVAILABLE

Posted on my homepage

And we offer a Book Box!
And monthly raffle with a Newsletter
(see sample with link to sign up)

MOST POPULAR BOOK REVIEW THIS PAST MONTH

Arsene Lupin

click on the cover to access my review

MOST POPULAR POST THIS PAST MONTH
– NON BOOK REVIEW –

My top 10 books for the 1936 Club

BOOK BLOG THAT BROUGHT ME MOST TRAFFIC THIS PAST MONTH

Stuck in a Book
please go visit, there are a lot of good things there!

TOP COMMENTERS 

Marianne at Let’s Read
Iza at Books & Livres
Judy at Keep the Wisdom
please go and visit them,
they have great book blogs

BLOG MILESTONES 

2,326 posts
over 5,470 followers
over 219,700 hits

📚

Come back tomorrow
to see the books I plan to read in May

📚 📚 📚

How was YOUR month of April?

Nicole at Feed Your Fiction Addiction
has created a Month In Review meme
where you can link your monthly recap posts
Thanks Nicole!

 

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2021: March wrap-up

March 2021 WRAP-UP

I introduced my February recap saying we were getting closer to a Covid vaccine. I didn’t think things would suddenly accelerate, at least in some areas. So I just got my first vaccine yesterday!

March has been an interesting reading month, with the highest number of books read per month I believe, and possibly also for the first time more audiobooks than books in print!!
I have discovered that listening to audiobooks and doing jigsaw puzzles (checked out at my awesome public library) was indeed a great way to relax.

The focus these past 3 months has been on Japanese literature, for the Japanese Reading Challenge 14, and I managed to read 12 books, so actually 3 more than originally planned. This is also the most I have read for this challenge.
I’m actually going to read more Japanese fiction, even if the challenge is technically over.

I have also restarted posting notes from my Orthodox reads.

BUT, I am again way behind in my reviews, as I haven’t had time to participate in the Sunday Post, where I usually do short reviews.

📚 So here is what I read in March:

16 books:
7 in print 
with 1,859 pages, a daily average of 59 pages/day
9 in audio
= 39H17
, a daily average of 1H16

6 in nonfiction:

  1. The Book of the Song of Songs
  2. The Book of Wisdom
  3. The Book of Sirach
  4. The Book of Hosea
  5. The Book of Amos – these first 5 books were as audiobooks, for The Classics Club and the Books in Translation Challenge
  6. Less Than Fully Catholic, by Trisha Day – written by a friend

5 in literary fiction:

  1. Kusamakura, by Natsume Soseki
  2. Le Mineur, by Natsume Soseki – French ebook
  3. To the Spring Equinox and Beyond, by Natsume Soseki – this one and all the above were ebooks for The Classics Club,  the Japanese Reading Challenge 14, and the Books in Translation Challenge
  4. Klara and the Sun, by Kazuo Ishiguro – for the Japanese Reading Challenge 14
  5. Before the Coffee Gets Cold, by Toshikazu Kawaguchi – for the Japanese Reading Challenge 14. And Buddy read

5 in mystery:

  1. Cards on the Table (Hercule Poirot #15), by Agatha Christie
  2. Dumb Witness (Hercule Poirot #16), by Agatha Christie
  3. Death on the Nile (Hercule Poirot #17), by Agatha Christie – these 3 were audiobooks for The Classics Club
  4. The Black Lizard/Beast in the Shadows, by Edogawa Rampo – ebook for The Classics Club,  the Japanese Reading Challenge 14, and the Books in Translation Challenge
  5. Rien ne t’efface, by Michel Bussi – French audiobook

MY FAVORITE BOOKS THIS PAST MONTH

This is too hard, I have to pick four this time!!

 The Miner The Black Lizard

 Klara and the Sun Rien ne t'efface

READING CHALLENGES & RECAP

Classics Club: 32/137 (from November 2020-until November 2025)
Japanese Literature Challenge: 12 books 

Total of books read in 2021 = 42/120
Number of books added to my TBR this past month = 10

NO OTHER BOOKS  REVIEWED THIS PAST MONTH

GIVEAWAYS

The open giveaways are on my homepage

Books available for swapping

REVIEW COPIES AVAILABLE

Posted on my homepage

And we offer a Book Box!
And monthly raffle with a Newsletter
(see sample with link to sign up)

MOST POPULAR BOOK REVIEW THIS PAST MONTH

The only woman in the room

click on the cover to access my review

MOST POPULAR POST THIS PAST MONTH
– NON BOOK REVIEW –

The top 8 books to read in March 2021

BOOK BLOG THAT BROUGHT ME MOST TRAFFIC THIS PAST MONTH

Caffeinated Reviewer
please go visit, there are a lot of good things there!

TOP COMMENTERS 

Marianne at Let’s Read
Judy at Keep the Wisdom
Iza at Books & Livres

please go and visit them,
they have great book blogs

BLOG MILESTONES 

2,313 posts
over 5,460 followers
over 217,360 hits

📚

Come back tomorrow
to see the books I plan to read in April

📚 📚 📚

How was YOUR month of March?

Nicole at Feed Your Fiction Addiction
has created a Month In Review meme
where you can link your monthly recap posts
Thanks Nicole!

 

 

2021: February wrap-up

February 2021 WRAP-UP

Time flies! Which is a good thing, as it means we are getting closer to warmer days, and to getting a COVID vaccine.
I am very happy with my reading schedule these days, focusing more on my TBR. And with reviewing a lot of what I have been reading, mostly thanks to doing short reviews for my Sunday Post.
I hope this will allow me soon to catch up with reviews I was supposed to write in 2020.

📚 So here is what I read in February:

13 books:
9 in print 
with 1,759 pages, a daily average of 62 pages/day
4 in audio
= 24H06
, a daily average of 51 minutes

4 in nonfiction:

  1. In Praise of Shadows, by Junichiro Tanizaki – for The Classics Club,  the Japanese Reading Challenge 14, and the Books in Translation Challenge
  2. Le Jourde & Naulleau, by Pierre Jourde and Eric Naulleau
  3. The Book of Proverbs – audiobook, for The Classics Club and the Books in Translation Challenge
  4. The Book of Ecclesiastes – audiobook, for The Classics Club and the Books in Translation Challenge

4 in literary fiction:

  1. L’Anomalie, by Hervé Le Tellier
  2. Hikikomori and the Rental Sister, by Jeff Backhaus
  3. A Cat, a Man, and Two Women, by Junichiro Tanizaki – for The Classics Club,  the Japanese Reading Challenge 14, and the Books in Translation Challenge
  4. Encre sympathique, by Patrick Modiano

4 in mystery:

  1. Murder in Mesopotamia (Hercule Poirot #14), by Agatha Christie – for The Classics Club
  2. Dans l’oeil du démon, by Junichiro Tanizaki – for The Classics Club,  the Japanese Reading Challenge 14, and the Books in Translation Challenge
  3. Gone by Midnight, by Candice Fox
  4. La Vallée, by Bernard Minier – French audiobook

1 in poetry:

  1. The Half-Finished Heaven, by Tomas Tranströmer – for The Classics Club and the Books in Translation Challenge

MY FAVORITE BOOKS THIS PAST MONTH

   L'Anomalie Hikikomori

READING CHALLENGES & RECAP

Classics Club: 20/137 (from November 2020-until November 2025)
Japanese Literature Challenge: 6 books 

Total of books read in 2021 = 26/120
Number of books added to my TBR this past month = 30

OTHER BOOKS I REVIEWED THIS PAST MONTH

The Toughest Sudoku Puzzle Book Word Detective 3rd Grade Ocean Life

Zoo animals Brain Candy Stone Killer

GIVEAWAYS

The open giveaways are on my homepage

Books available for swapping

REVIEW COPIES AVAILABLE

Posted on my homepage

And we offer a Book Box!
And monthly raffle with a Newsletter
(see sample with link to sign up)

MOST POPULAR BOOK REVIEW THIS PAST MONTH

Arsene Lupin

click on the cover to access my review

MOST POPULAR POST THIS PAST MONTH
– NON BOOK REVIEW –

Sunday Post #38

BOOK BLOG THAT BROUGHT ME MOST TRAFFIC THIS PAST MONTH

That Artsy Reader Girl
please go visit, there are a lot of good things there!

TOP COMMENTERS 

Marianne at Let’s Read
Judy at Keep the Wisdom
Deb at Readerbuzz

please go and visit them,
they have great book blogs

BLOG MILESTONES 

2,306 posts
over 5,430 followers
over 215,590 hits

📚

Come back tomorrow
to see the books I plan to read in March

📚 📚 📚

How was YOUR month of February?

Nicole at Feed Your Fiction Addiction
has created a Month In Review meme
where you can link your monthly recap posts
Thanks Nicole!