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Smiling Shelves

Mid-Year Book Freakout

7/6/2017

11 Comments

 
I saw this tag by Kate at Opinionated Book Lover last week. I don't normally take a look at the books I've read mid-year (outside of the statistics), but this looks like a fun way to do so!

Best Book You've Read So Far in 2017

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I've had a lot of five-star reads this year, but the one that's stuck with me the most is The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson.

Best Sequel You've Read So Far in 2017

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I've started a lot of series this year. Continued, not so much. I adore the Penderwick series, and I finally let myself read the last book (although there are rumors of a fifth!). The Penderwicks in Spring by Jeanne Birdsall is amazing.

New Release You Haven’t Read Yet But Want To

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I love travel narratives, and I just discovered Tsh's podcast, so At Home in the World by Tsh Oxenreider is a must read for me.

Most Anticipated Release For The Second Half Of The Year

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Okay, technically Goodreads tells me this book was released on June 27, but I don't follow new releases that closely to know what all is out there, so I'm going to count it. I loved 100 Cupboards, so I'm definitely on board for a sequel - The Door Before by N.D. Wilson.

Biggest Disappointment

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New Zealand is on my list of places I want to travel someday, so I was really looking forward to reading Slipping Into Paradise by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson. But something about his writing voice just rubbed me the wrong way, and it was not the enjoyable reading experience I thought it would be.

Biggest Surprise

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I was hugely surprised by how dark The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo actually is. I don't know how Disney ever made a kids' movie out of it. I'm glad I read it, but it was not exactly what I was expecting.

Favorite New Author

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My book club read The Wright Brothers by David McCullough. It wasn't my first read by him, but it was the one where I decided I would do my best to read everything else he's written!

Newest Fictional Crush

I'm rereading Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series this year, and I'm enjoying revisiting Thursday's relationship with Landen. Landen seems like he makes a really fun husband (if you can just work out that whole blinking out of existence randomly thing).

Newest Favorite Character

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Frank is such an incredible character. There were things about the rest of the book that drove me crazy, but I could have kept reading about Frank forever in Be Frank With Me by Julia Claiborne Johnson.

Book That Made You Cry

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Okay, I have to repeat here (should have looked ahead at the categories). The Penderwicks in Spring by Jeanne Birdsall literally had me sobbing. I rarely cry at books, but this one did it!

Book That Made You Happy

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I just finished First Impressions by Charlie Lovett yesterday morning. This book was just so delightfully bookish that I couldn't help but smile while reading it.

Favorite Book To Movie Adaptation You Saw This Year

Um, I have a one-year-old. I haven't watched a movie in a very long time. Sorry, but I can't answer this one!

Favorite Review/Post You’ve Done This Year

Reviews really seem to have fallen by the wayside this year, but here are two posts that I enjoyed writing and discussing in the comments: How Do You Read a Series? and Cover Confusion.

Most Beautiful Book You’ve Bought So Far This Year

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I'm not sure if "beautiful" is the right word, but I love love love the cover of Around the World in 50 Years by Albert Podell.

Books You NEED To Read By The End Of 2017

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This could be a very long list. But I desperately want to read The Shadow Sister by Lucinda Riley. I was planning to get it during my last library trip, but it was already checked out. I was so disappointed! Next time, for sure!
11 Comments
Kate @ Opinionated Book Lover link
7/6/2017 09:34:02 am

Yay! So glad you joined in this fun. I liked this tag a lot. I haven't read any of the books you mentioned, but I do love that cover! :)

Reply
Julie @ Smiling Shelves link
7/9/2017 11:44:24 am

This was a lot of fun! Thanks for inspiring me! :)

Reply
Tanya Patricep link
7/6/2017 01:25:45 pm

I love seeing this tag around and checking out what everyone has read. The cover of Around the world is indeed gorgeous!

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Julie @ Smiling Shelves link
7/9/2017 11:46:30 am

Isn't it? I'll just set it out on my bookshelf and look at it awhile, and get around to reading it one of these years. :)

Reply
Jade @ Reading with Jade link
7/6/2017 02:27:53 pm

It sounds like the year has been treating you quite well so far - I hope that continues.

Lots of new to me titles here, and I'm looking in to the travel narratives.

Reply
Julie @ Smiling Shelves link
7/9/2017 11:47:23 am

It was fun to look back over everything I read so far this year!

Reply
Lindsey link
7/13/2017 10:47:02 am

This is such a fun list! I loved reading The Penderwicks with my son and I'm excited to pick them up again with my daughter soon. They have such a wonderful timeless feel to them.

I remember finishing The Hunchback of Notre Dame and being a little devastated. It's a dark, tough read!

Reply
Julie @ Smiling Shelves link
7/30/2017 03:50:42 pm

Timeless is a good word to describe the Penderwicks series. Unlike many books, they don't feel like they will seem out of date one day. I can't wait to read them with my little guy when he gets older.

Hunchback was so much darker than I expected! That's one classic I will probably not be revisiting.

Reply
Christine @Buckling Bookshelves link
7/18/2017 09:10:13 pm

I do love a good book that can get the waterworks flowing... I really need to get to those Penderwicks one of these days :)

Reply
Christine @Buckling Bookshelves link
7/18/2017 09:13:23 pm

Oh, and I hear ya on the haven't watched a movie thing...it was like an event when I had two book-club-mates over to watch Hidden Figures during little man's nap one weekend last month. And we literally had so little time/desire to watch TV after he hit the toddler stage that we canceled our cable. We still have Netflix, but we have mostly used it to watch Winne the Pooh LOL.

Reply
Julie @ Smiling Shelves link
7/30/2017 03:53:58 pm

Thomas is about the only thing we use the TV for in our house (and my husband and I are slowly working our way through a rewatch of Friends). I was never a huge TV watcher (exception - Gilmore Girls) pre-kid, but I hear you when you say the time/desire is gone. I really don't even feel like watching a movie, even if I had the time. Why would I sit still for that long? I could get so much done during that time! :)




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    My name is Julie, and I own a lot of books. As in, they are stacked on the floor because I've run out of room on the shelves. And those shelves? There are so many books on them that they smile -- not sag; smile. This blog will cover book reviews and all manner of other bookish things.

    You can contact me at julie@smilingshelves.com.

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