Month In Review: August 2020

How on earth is it September already?! Seriously, how is it possible that we only have four months left of this year?! I’m not sure where 2020 is going, although I can’t deny I’ll be glad to see the end of it. August was all about our redecorating project and moving in afterwards, and we’ve spent the month painting like crazy and getting everything ready to move in next door. We finally managed to do so about two weeks ago, and although there are still some minor tasks to complete, we are more than happy with the result so far. The whole ordeal did leave me feeling slightly slumpy though, so fingers crossed a little relaxing (and yes, baking!) will chase that slump away before it sticks…

Below two ‘before’ (or rather ‘during’ as I forgot to take pictures before we first started) and ‘after’ shots in case you were wondering why I have been absent lately. 😉 Also, I’m in love with my new bookcase!!! ❤

Next: the bookish numbers.

• Number of books read in August: 8
• Total number of books read in 2020: 165
• Total number of pages read in August: 2.670
• Total number of pages read in 2020: 55.262

As I already suspected, I wasn’t able to read much during August. It’s a miracle I even made it to eight books at all to be honest, even though it’s been ages since my total has been this low. In fact, the last time I read less than 15, let alone less than 10 books, was back in April-May 2018 when we went on our Eurotrip… That said, at least I did enjoy most of the books I picked up last month, so that is at least something I guess.

Month In Review: July 2020

How on earth is it August already?! Seriously, I’m not sure were 2020 is going, although I can’t deny I’ll be glad to see the end of it. July was all about our home improvement project, as we’re moving next door and the place needed a lot of TLC before it was habitable again (part of the structure is over 100 years old…). I’ve been prepping during July while the workers did their thing; sewing new curtains, a sofa cover and painting bits and bobs to speed things up… The painting has begun in earnest now, so you will probably not see me around much this month or at least until we have finished moving. Wish me luck! xD I have a bunch of posts scheduled and ready to go, so the blog won’t be empty at least. 😉

Next: the bookish numbers.

• Number of books read in July: 22
• Total number of books read in 2020: 157
• Total number of pages read in July: 7.367
• Total number of pages read in 2020: 52.592

I ended up reading more than I thought I would in July, mostly because the first part of the home improvement project was a bit delayed and I used the time to binge-read my pending ARCs. I was quite lucky with my reading choices in general too, and found quite a few new favorites including my eleventh 5 star read of the year. I also had 6 books with a 3 star rating or below, but overall I can’t complain.

Best of… June 2020 @AlixEHarrow @RachelAmphlett @PeterSwanson3 @simone_stjames

I can’t believe it’s been a year since I last wrote one of these posts with my monthly highlights! Whoops? I had originally decided to include this new feature in my monthly wrap ups, but I just felt there were too many facts squeezed into one little post and the whole purpose of putting my favorite reads in the spotlight was lost. So this is me giving those favorites their well deserved extra attention! I was really lucky with my reading choices in June and managed to enjoy the mayority. There were a few that stood out above the rest, but there is one title that simply blew me away and became an easy choice for this month’s favorite… Did you guess already which one? Without further delay, June 2020’s favorite is… *drumroll*

…

…

…

…

…

The Ten Thousand Doors Of January by Alix E. Harrow!! I still can’t believe it took me this long to read this absolutely stunning read, and I already can’t wait to revisit the story in the future.

What I said in my review:

“What an absolutely stunning and breathtaking read! I don’t even know where and how to start explaining this beauty of a story, as The Ten Thousand Doors Of January is one of those books where you should go in blind in the first place to fully explore and capture its magic.”

“It’s an absolute masterpiece I cannot recommend enough. I’m truly lost for words here, and will just throw in the following cliche phrase to finish these rambles: ‘just read the damn book‘. Trust me, you will be in for an absolute magical treat!”

Click here for my full review

January-June 2020: The Numbers

Call me a nerd, but I do love my graphics posts! I first started properly keeping track of my reads in Excel back in 2016, making it possible to finally put together some graphics. I’ve done a bunch of ‘The Numbers’ posts over time, including my 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 posts, and it has been revealing interesting things about my reading habits. So why stop? 😉 Let’s talk nerdy and see what my numbers were like for the first six months of this year, shall we?

First of all some quick facts. In the first six months of 2020 I read no less than 135! books with a total page count of 45.333 pages; an average of about 336 pages per book. This is way more than I expected and if I keep this up I will end up reading even more than my previous record in 2019… Although I don’t think I can actually keep up this pace. The average rating is 3,76 stars, which is higher than in 2019 and I’m definitely happy about that. No less than 41 books had a 4,5 or 5 star rating and 34 books received a rating 3 stars or below… Which means I enjoyed reading about 74,8% of the books during the year, again higher than in 2019. Not that bad at all! Another fun fact: 59 of the 135 books I’ve read so far were actually ARCs; about 43,7% of the total. This means I’m close to keeping my promise to get the ARC ratio below 40%, so I’m quite happy with that.

And now some graphics for those who like them as much as I do. 😉

Month In Review: June 2020

Well… Shoot. The first six months of 2020 are now officially over and I really feel like demanding a refund. I seriously don’t even want to stand still by the current situation in our country and the world for that matter… It’s been hard to focus especially on all things blogging and social media recently, which probably explains why I’ve been less present even though I do seem to get those reviews written somehow. On a brighter note, I received a belated birthday present last month: a shiny new kindle! Not a moment too late as my old one was about to give the ghost haha. I also found a new favorite cookie recipe: the perfect combination of crunch and gooey center! ❤

Next: the bookish numbers.

• Number of books read in June: 27
• Total number of books read in 2020: 135
• Total number of pages read in June: 9.270
• Total number of pages read in 2020: 45.333

I ended up reading a LOT in June… And this has mostly to do with the fact that the only time I manage to forget about the fact that the world is going to shit is when I read or bake. I was quite lucky with my reading choices in general too, with only six titles having a 3 star or below rating (one was a DNF though) and four titles with a (nearly) perfect rating.

Month In Review: May 2020

May, May, what to say about you? I seriously don’t even want to stand still by the current situation in our country and the world for that matter… Nor the fact that I haven’t been able to leave our house since March and I’ve been going stir crazy. Needless to say my anxiety has been through the roof, and I’ve been distracting myself by reading and baking a LOT. It’s been hard to focus especially on all things blogging and social media recently, which probably explains why I’ve been less present even though I do seem to get those reviews written somehow… Anyway, here’s a dose of fluff to help distract ourselves from the whole mess that is the world right now.

Next: the bookish numbers.

• Number of books read in May: 25
• Total number of books read in 2020: 108
• Total number of pages read in May: 8.631
• Total number of pages read in 2020: 36.063

I ended up reading a LOT in May, and that has mostly to do with the fact that the only time I manage to forget about the fact that the world is going to shit is when I read or bake… I was quite lucky with my reading choices in general too, with only 8 titles having a 3 star or below rating and a whopping 9 titles with a (nearly) perfect reading. True, my only new 5 star is a reread so technically it doesn’t count, but I take what I can get.

Month In Review: April 2020

April, April, what to say about you? I’ve been going stir crazy after over six weeks of obligatory quarantine and not being able to go outside unless it’s in our garden… (Before you ask: we have a country wide lockdown in Argentina and nobody is allowed to go outside for exercise or social visits; only for shopping for essentials between 7AM and 5PM and those people with essential jobs. Of course I wouldn’t go out in the first place as the Hashimoto’s disease made sure I’m high risk…) Anxiety has been high, especially since we now officially have the virus in our town too… I’ve been distracting myself with books, baking, drawing and my pets, but it’s been hard to focus especially on all things blogging and social media. I guess all the unplanned baking did mean lots of treats to eat; my hubby isn’t complaining haha. A selection below, although I confess I made lots more. xD I also loved how the latest bookmark came out!

The bookish numbers:

• Number of books read in April: 24
• Total number of books read in 2020: 83
• Total number of pages read in April: 7.644
• Total number of pages read in 2020: 27.432

I managed to read a lot in April, probably partly thanks to the OWLs Magical Readathon, but I also had quite a few short and quick reads… But even though I did find a new 5 star read, as a whole I haven’t been all that lucky with my reading choices. No less than 10 titles were 3 star or below and that even includes a DNF… And only 4 books received an (almost) perfect rating. Fingers crossed May will bring me more luck!

Month In Review: March 2020

March, March, I really don’t know what to say about you… I don’t think I’ve had a birthday month this depressing before to be honest, and I think I’ll just skip pondering about it any longer and go straight to the bookish March instead.

The bookish numbers:

• Number of books read in March: 18
• Total number of books read in 2020: 59
• Total number of pages read in March: 6.421
• Total number of pages read in 2020: 19.797

I managed to read both more and less than expected in March. More, because I squeezed in two 600+ books and read a further 16 books, and less because I should have been able to read more with all that time spent cooped up inside… But I’ve been struggling to keep concentrated lately and my reading speed has suffered. I did have a fantastic month quality wise: two new 5 star reads and only three books below 4 stars! I’m definitely more than happy with that.

Month In Review: February 2020

I still can’t believe it’s March already! Where did February go?! Anyway, like I mentioned a while ago, I’ve decided to take it easy with all things blogging this year both because I’ve been in a blogging slump for months now and I needed to start focusing on my health again. February was my first full month of more exercise and a healthier diet… It seems to have worked, because the first 16 pounds are gone!! Way better than I could have hoped to be honest, as my Hashimoto’s seriously slows down any progress. Fingers crossed things will keep going this way!

We also went on an impromptu mini camping trip during February, spending a wonderful few days close to the river… But the biggest change in our lives apart from my new healthier lifestyle was without doubt the arrival of a new kitty. Felix adopted us as he showed up at our front door one day, demanded to be let in and refused to leave afterwards… Delilah and Jasmine still are not amused at all, but I hope things will become easier soon. xD

Now to the bookish numbers:

• Number of books read in February: 16
• Total number of books read in 2020: 41
• Total number of pages read in February: 5.186
• Total number of pages read in 2020: 13.376

As expected, I read less than usual during February, and even getting to sixteen books was mostly thanks to a couple of short and superfast reads. No new 5 star reads this time around, although I managed to enjoy most of my reads during February with only two titles 3 stars or below. Not bad at all!

Month In Review: January 2020

The first Monday of February already, and it is time to look back at the first month of 2020… Like I mentioned a few days ago, I’ve decided to take it easy with all things blogging this year both because I’ve been in a blogging slump for months now and I needed to start focusing on my health again. About two weeks ago, I changed my eating habit to mostly fruits and veggies (no alcohol and soda was easy as I hardly drink those anyway, no sweets including chocolate a tad more difficult; no flour products and less cheese considerably more complicated though xD). I’m also focusing on exercising 1-3 hours at least 5 times a week, which I hope will start giving results in the near future. 😉 And yes, this means no baking for the time being! And less reading too, as that exercising time has to come from somewhere haha. February will most definitely not as successful as January bookishly speaking…

Now to the bookish numbers:

• Number of books read in January: 25
• Total number of books read in 2020: 25
• Total number of pages read in January: 8.190
• Total number of pages read in 2020: 8.190

I definitely read more than I thought I would during January, especially if you consider I read the majority of the titles during the first 20 days of the month. I also had FIVE!! new 5 star reads, something that I don’t think ever happened before in just one month, and to top that I had three further books with a nearly perfect rating too… I did also have a DNF and five titles with 3 stars or below, but overall I’m not complaining at all.