Middlegame by Seanan McGuire ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Reread July 2020

Check out my reading vlog!

I reread this a 2nd time as I read the e-arc for McGuire’s newest companion novel, Over the Woodward Wall, see that blog post. I loved it even more getting the extra insight into the side story of Over the Woodward Wall.

Reread April 2020

The Stay Home Reading Rush vlog.

What the fork was 2019 Josh thinking (giving this 4.75 stars). This book is flawless. I think I had such high expectations going in I was overly critical, to the point that I docked it points for a non issue.

This story is so we’ll crafted and the perfect mix of sci-fi and fantasy. It’s also time travel which is the best thing ever. End of story. The one complaint I had last time was about the depth of our villains; this go around, it became very obvious to me why they are the way they are.

God I loved this book. I kinda want to read it again but I should pace myself before I overdue it.
5/5 star

First Read – October 2019

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Introduction 10/21/19

I decided to read this because Lala at the booksandlala youtube channel spoke so highly of the book. It is a scifi-fantasy story about two siblings with potentially god-like powers for nefarious purposes. I seems like everything I would love. Plus, McGuire is the author of another series I’ve wanted to read called the Wayward Children. It’s the winner of Hugo and Nebula awards.

Middlegame by @seananmcguire pic.twitter.com/BIkVVIFPQa

— lala, but on hiatus (@booksandlala) May 1, 2019

My biggest fear her is the hype. There is something special about going into a book you think and hope you are going to like, and then you read it and do love it. Here, there is the opinion of someone I value significantly (granted with limited data). I don’t want to set my expectations too high. Still, I think this is going to be a lot of fun.

Update 10/22/19

I’m almost done. I have a 1/4th left, and I hate it’s almost over. Everything about it is fantastic. I’ve actually stopped reading it to prolong the ending. I am starting my next book in hope that I will get invested in it, so when this is done, I have something else I’m also excited for and into. This story is very well told. I almost wish it was longer just because it is so fast paced. It is very long, nearly 500 pages I think, so it is hardly lacking in material.

I think the biggest flaw in this for me is the basis for the magic. It isn’t badly done. McGuire uses pseudoscience like Astrology, Homeopathy, and Alchemy as a real device by which to do this magic. It’s fiction, but I can’t help but cringe at how so many people don’t see it that way. This is the skeptic in me. It doesn’t lessen the quality of the book, nor do I think most people will be as put off by it as me.

What I have been asking myself is whether this is a favorite of the year. This story is great. It is well written. The plot is well crafted and unique. The characters are largely good characters. The big bad feels a little one dimensional, but most of our other characters are flawed yet well meaning. There is some mystery around the motivations in this book. So, we may get more background to flesh out our main villain. My favorite set of characters are of course the main characters, that is the siblings.

I really appreciate the dynamic they have and the love they share for one another. It’s an easy thing to relate to as someone with two sisters. Siblings are, for at least a part of your life, your best friend, and the bond you share outmatches and outlasts the bonds we share with others. I am really hoping for some heart wrenching moments towards the end. There have already been tough moments between the siblings, and one moment early on almost had me crying. That’s really what solidified the dynamic between the two for me.

Finished 10/28/19

This is a fantastic story founded in characters we are invested in. The story itself is the perfect mixture of science fiction and fantasy. My favorite types of stories are those that incorporate a bit of both but are still grounded in real everyday life. That made this story easy and fun. However, it goes deeper with how it explores the ideas of family and a sibling bond as I mentioned before.

The biggest faults I found in the story were the villains. They felt one dimensional, and they never got fleshed out. There really isn’t a more stereotypical villain then one that seeks to take over the world. What’s more the story’s conclusion (light spoilers ahead), while not exactly predictable, feels like what we would expect.

McGuire still maintains some mystery about the fate of the world. The siblings are real people, but they’re also more than that. They are something not even they understand. What might happen if they ascend to their full power may be itself dooming to the earth. If they don’t, they will just be replaced with another pawn for the main villain. Is it a lose lose or is there hope?

All in all, the story is near perfect in its telling. While the villain is a caricature, our “heroes” are real characters that we can connect to. 4.75/5 stars. I hate not giving it a full 5 stars. I can’t help but wonder if I am being overly critical because I came in hyped up. I remember Viscous was similarly hyped, but I definitely enjoyed this story more.

March Wrap Up & April TBR | 2020

Books I Read in March

1. Inferno: New Tales of Terror by Ellen Datlow ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
2. The Other People by C.J. Tudor ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
3. From the Ashes by Jesse Thistle ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4. We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
5. Radicalized by Cory Doctorow ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
6. Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
7. Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Club by Megan Gail Coles ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
8. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
9. The Raven Boys by Maggie Steivwater ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
10. The Fated Sky by Mary Robinette Kowal ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
11. Ex Libris by Anne Fadiman ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
12. Men Explain Things to Me by Revecca Solnit ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
13. Home by Nnedi Okorafor ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
14. Come Tumbling Down by Seanan McGuire ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
15. Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen MAria Machado ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
16. The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
17. The Glass Universe by Dava Sobel ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
18. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
19. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
20. I Crawl Through it by A.S. King ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
21. Female Husbands by Jen Manion ⭐️⭐️ (DNF at 46%)

This wasn’t a bad month. The ratings aren’t bad, but that makes me wonder if I’ve been too generous with my ratings. The lowest rating was 2 star, but that was a DNF. The next lowest was six 3.5 star books. Then I had eight 4 star books. That leaves two 4.5 star books and four 5 star books. That means ~6 exceptional books. All in all though the month still feels mediocre, so I might need to stop with the 3.5 star books. I’ve been using my rating scale, and most of these ratings are pretty fixed, meaning, slight changes in one area don’t usually change the rating. I still prefer that approach.

April TBR

1. Still: A Memoir by Emma Hansen
2. Conjure Women by Afia Atakora
3. The Apartment by K.L. Slater
4. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
5. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
6. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
7. The Majesty of Law by Sandra Day O’Connor
8. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green
9. Welcome to Nightvale by Joseph Fink & Jeffrey Cranor
10. Carter & Lovecraft by Jonathan L. Howard
11. Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
12. Animal Farm by George Orwell
13. Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman
14. My Real Children by Jo Walton
15. Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King
16. The Conquest of Happiness by Bertrand Russell

Provided by NetGalley and/or publisher for a fair and honest review.

I fell behind and didn’t read all the review books I was given last month, so I need to read those first thing this month. I will say, eight days into the month, I have had a very slow start. That said, I am aiming for smaller TBRs. My goal is 15 books a month, then if I have time I will fit in others. I am planning a few readathons where I want to read other books. Although, I will reassess my progress when they arrive. If you are wondering which readathons I will be doing it is Dewy’s 24 hour readathon and the intermediate reading rush. Next Month, I may be even more conservative and go with 10 books for my TBR then leave a big gap for other readathons or booktube ideas.

February Wrap Up & March TBR | 2020

Books I Read in February

1. The Battle Cry of Freedom by James M. McPherson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
2. Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
3. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison (Blackathon Cont. Challenge) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
4. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison (Reread) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
5. Beloved by Toni Morrison (Blackathon Scifi Challenge) ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
6. Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
7. Not That Bad edited by Roxane Gay ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
8. The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor Lavalle ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
9. The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
10. An American Marriage by Tayari Jones (Blackathon Cont. Challenge) ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
11. Heavy by Kiese Laymon (Blackathon Cont. Challenge) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
12. Lagoon by Nnedi Okorafor (Blackathon Scifi Challenge) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
13. Binti by Nnedi Okorafor (Blackathon Scifi Challenge) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
14. Lagurdia by Nnedi Okorafor (Blackathon Scifi Challenge) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
15. Singin’ and Swingin’ and Gettin’ Merry Like Christmas by Maya Angelou ⭐️⭐️⭐️
16. March by John Lewis et al. ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
17. The Color Purple by Alice Walker ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
18. Let’s Play White by Chesya Burke ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

This was a great month, I enjoyed all the books I read with a few that were a little disappointing. However, there was a large fraction of 4-5 star books which prove it was an objectively good month of quality reading. If you look back on my February TBR post, you’ll see another ~5 books or so that I wanted to read, and it is disappointing that I wasn’t able to read all of them. Moving forward, I am going to try and take it a bit easier on my plans because I don’t like stressing about the books I want to read. This is meant to be fun.

March TBR

1. The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
2. Still: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Motherhood by Emma Hansen*
3. Female Husbands by Jen Manion
4. Conjure Women by Afia Atakora
5. The Other People by C.J. Tudor
6. The Fated Sky by Mary Robinette Kowal
7. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
8. Her Bodies and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado
9. Binti: Home by Nnedi Okorafor
10. I Crawl Through It by A.S. King
11. Come Tumbling Down by Seanan McGuire
12. The Glass Universe by Dava Sobel
13. Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman 
14. Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit
15. Inferno by Ellen Datlow (Backlist readathon)
16. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (Backlist readathon)
17. Wenjack by Joseph Boyden (Backlist readathon)

Provided by NetGalley and publisher for a fair and honest review.

*Provided directly by publisher, 

This month, I have several e-arcs that I want to tackle before they are published. I’m also doing a reading challenge of 5 more books (to be released), but I still made this list with the intent of being more conservative. The total number of books I’m aiming to read are ~20 books, but many of them are very short. After this month, I am going to try very hard to read even less. I want to feel a bit less pressure to read so I can spend more time writing my blog posts and doing YouTube videos. I have fallen behind on my blog.

January Wrap up & February TBR | 2020

Books I Read in January

1. Miracle Creek by Angie Kim ½
2. Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald 
3. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant 
4. Robin by Dave Itzkoff ½
5. Scythe by Neal Shusterman 
6. Tehanu by Ursula K. Le Guin ½
7. Underland by Robert Macfarlane 
8. How We Know What Isn’t So by Thomas Gilovich 
9. If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t) by Betty White ½
10. Girls on Fire by Robin Wasserman 
11. The Mismeasure of Man by Stephen Jay Gould 
12. The Road by Cormac McCarthy 
13. Strange Exit by Parker Peevyhouse ½
14. Yes Please by Amy Poehler 
15. Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyeyemi ½
16. The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin 
17. In an Absent Dream by Seanan McGuire ½
18. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy 
19. Wilder Girls by Rory Power 
20. Something Deeply Hidden by Sean Carroll 
21. The Girl from Nowhere by Eliska Tanszer ½

Provided by NetGalley and publisher for a fair and honest review.

This was a great month, but I was worried. I started off slow while I traveled. Then I got the flu for a week. January AYearAthon really saved me (getting me back in the pattern of reading). I think I had a pretty good spread of books. If you saw my 2020 ongoing post, you’ll know I am trying a new rating scheme, and I think it is helping me rate books more concisely. I really like thinking about each piece of it as I think about the score it deserves.
Now, I did DNF two books this month, Underland and The God of Small things. I am still counting them because I was over 70% through them; it was enough. This is another sign of a good start to the year because I can really struggle to DNF a book I am not enjoying or getting into. On top of that, I hit 500 likes on my blog, so exciting! I also started Josh’s Bookish Voyage, my new Booktube channel. I talk all about that in my 2020 reading log as well.

February TBR

1. The Battle Cry of Freedom by James M. McPherson
2. Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward
3. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison (Blackathon Cont. Challenge)
4. Beloved by Toni Morrison (Blackathon Scifi Challenge)
5. Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay
6. Not that Bad edited by Roxane Gay
7. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin
8. Joplin’s Ghost by Tananarive Due
9. Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
10. The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor Lavalle
11. The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
12. An American Marriage by Tayari Jones (Blackathon Cont. Challenge)
13. Heavy by Kiese Laymon (Blackathon Cont. Challenge)
14. Lagoon by Nnedi Okorafor (Blackathon Scifi Challenge)
15. Binti by Nnedi Okorafor (Blackathon Scifi Challenge)
16. Lagurdia by Nnedi Okorafor (Blackathon Scifi Challenge)
17. Singin’ and Swingin’ and Gettin’ Merry Like Christmas by Maya Angelou
18. March by John Lewis et al.
19. Harriet Tubman: The Life and the Life Stories by Jean Humez
20. The Color Purple by Alice Walker

You can hear all my thoughts in my video above, but these are the books I am reading this month. I didn’t mention The Color Purple in the video because I ordered it and forgot to mention it. I have made a very ambitious goal this month, especially since it is a short month. Of course, it is Black History Month. I talk all about that in my video and how I am participating in #Blackathon2020. Check out the link to learn more. In doing that, there are some challenges I will be completing. I am identifying as team science fiction; I’ve marked the books I am reading for that in red above. However, I am reading enough books to satisfy some of the contemporary team (Cont.) which I’ve marked in blue. I will be one short sadly.

I’m aiming for 3 audiobooks a week which I think is my normal speed. On top of that, I will be completing the Blackathon book-tag and Instagram challenge where I am going to plug seven books. I’ve decided to treat that like a week long “readathon” where I will try to read these all over the course of one week. I will be doing it the week before the actual Instagram challenge due to personal things.

That comes out to 9 audiobooks (3 weeks) plus 7 for the “Readathon” week. That comes to 16 audiobooks (the exact number of audiobooks I have above). My physical reading assumes I can finish each book with reading on the bus plus a bit of personal time. If I don’t complete a book, that is really where it is most likely to happen. However, I only have two real books with two comics to enjoy. If you want to hear more about my thoughts for each book, check out my YouTube video above!

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2020 Reading Log

Last year, I began to blog about the books I read. I am glad I made that decision, and I am thankful to the friend who shared their blog post of them tracking their reading because it really got me motivated to read. I am going to try and continue that this year! In addition, I am also starting my own Booktube channel, Josh’s Bookish Voyage. I am loving it! Editing was a little scary at first, but it is a process I enjoy doing. Although I still worry that I might not have the time to do all I’d like to do.

Check out my new channel!

Hopefully, I can do both, but my time may end up monopolized by one sometimes. I’m already finding myself behind on my blogs (still 4 or 5 more to write, and I just finished 4!). I am loving making videos though, so it is worth it! I’ve set a limit and sort of a goal of 2 videos per week. This won’t always be feasible, but I know the more excited I get, the more likely I am to spend too much time on this. I am really excited for the channel. I want to point out, my channel name is an homage to Carl Sagan’s Cosmos: A Personal Voyage. He began the series with a moving quote,

We are going to explore the cosmos in a ship of the imagination.

Carl Sagan, Cosmos

I can’t think of a better way to encapsulate what reading means to me. I will continue my monthly updates, and I’ll keep those linked below. This is also where I will keep my complete list of books I’ve read (below). You can also follow me on Goodreads and see my 2020 progress there too! I’ve also added a breakdown of my new approach to rating each book I read.

Monthly Updates

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr
May	Jun	Jul	Aug
Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec

Each month, I’ll share my TBR for that month and review the month before it!

Ratings in 2020

If you read my 2019 stats post, you’ll know I wanted to change how I approach rating the books I read because I felt like I was too generous. My average rating was 4 or 4.5, and the fact is not every book is amazing. It is true that I enjoyed most of what I read. Nevertheless, I wanted to develop a more objective approach, so I broke it down into the factors I consider most important to me in a book.

Key priorities:

• Enjoyment
• Writing style
• Engagement
• Comprehension
• Pacing
• Desire to reread
• “Special”

These can be expanded for fiction/nonfiction which I have slightly different expectations for:

• Plot/Structure
• Characters/Content
• Ending/Summary

This may seem like a very convoluted way of thinking about these, but for me, rating a book isn’t about any one aspect of it. There are books that aren’t the most enjoyable that I feel like are still a positive experience. Sure, some of these matter more. The idea is, I can appreciate certain aspects of a book, and breaking it down is a way of thinking about each one then tying it together. This is still very much a measure of what I like in a book.

I’ve weighted each characteristic based on how important it is to me (see below). That means the rating I give one trait, say enjoyment, will matter more than say the writing style. Comprehension matters because I want to leave the book feeling like I understood what I read, but sometimes, confusion doesn’t ruin the book. Now, each of these will often effect my rating of the other; if I don’t find a book engaging, I probably won’t enjoy it. However, I think there are a lot of eccentricities that go into how we judge a book such that breaking it down feels like the best approach for me.

I mentioned “special” because it gets to the core of that special feeling a book can make you feel. I can read a book that I find enjoyable, engaging, and everything else seem perfect about it, but that doesn’t mean it will necessarily be a profound book to me. I think that should matter. Another trait is my desire to reread a book. Now, together these two are only worth a quarter of a star out of five stars. However, you might see how that can just barely shift a book into lower category. On that note, I am moving away from .25 ratings and rounding to the nearest half; on Goodreads I will round up or down based on if my final number is above or below .5.

This is a breakdown of each aspect of a book that matters to me with a weight to indicate how important it is in the calculation of the final number.

Completed Books

1. Miracle Creek by Angie Kim ½
2. Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald 
3. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant 
4. Robin by Dave Itzkoff ½
5. Scythe by Neal Shusterman 
6. Tehanu by Ursula K. Le Guin ½
7. Underland by Robert Macfarlane 
8. How We Know What Isn’t So by Thomas Gilovich 
9. If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t) by Betty White ½
10. Girls on Fire by Robin Wasserman 
11. The Mismeasure of Man by Stephen Jay Gould 
12. The Road by Cormac McCarthy 
13. Strange Exit by Parker Peevyhouse ½
14. Yes Please by Amy Poehler 
15. Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyeyemi ½
16. The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin 
17. In an Absent Dream by Seanan McGuire ½
18. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy 
19. Wilder Girls by Rory Power 
20. Something Deeply Hidden by Sean Carroll 
21. The Girl from Nowhere by Eliska Tanszer ½

Updated 1/31/2020

*Novella(s)

Provided by NetGalley and/or publisher for a fair and honest review.

In an Absent Dream, by Seanan McGuire ★★★★½

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Read 1/26/20 – 1/27/20

Let’s be clear, Seanan McGuire is perfect in all ways; she can do no wrong. I think anything and everything I’ve said about the Wayward Children’s series (Books 1, 2, and 3) pretty much apply here. Not since Harry Potter have I felt such a strong connection to a world. I said something similar about Scythe by Neal Shusterman, which will almost certainly be in my top books of the year (I should do that for 2019…). However, McGuire’s Wayward Children series is something different. It connects to me and my my fantastical imagination in a way that Scythe just can’t. That is why I will forever love this series and lament the day we have to see it end.

Seanan McGuire continues the series by taking us on yet another fantastical tell of longing to belong. In this tale, we follow a young girl who travels to a goblin market where fair trade is everything. There, she befriends a young girl. What follows is her attempt to learn the rules of the road. All the while, it seems there is a tug-a-war between the goblin market and earth. This is a story about fairness, and when we think about that, we have to think about what traveling does to our family. Children are young and impressionable; we don’t know what we want. When faced with the facts of reality we come to realize sometimes life isn’t fair. Sometimes life means making hard choices that don’t end well either way.

I am now one away from being caught up with this series. Book five has only just come out, and I will probably read it in March (February is black history month; spoilers for February TBR post). Once I do that, I’ll probably start the series over again. Ever since I started reading one of these a month, the highlight of my month has always the Wayward Children series. I want to be forever lost in this world. Except, I don’t really, because as great as it sounds, it is still so full of sad endings. Nevertheless, I read this, and I feel like I am a part of the story. I write about what these characters do, and my instinct is to talk as if I was a part of the journey with “we”, “us”, and “our.” I realized that and was amazed that I was talking as if this was my story too. That speaks to how engaging these stories are. I feel like I am a part of this story; every action they make is my own.

Do I need to say it? I highly recommend this book and series. 4.5/5 stars

Rating Break Down
Writing Style: 10/10
Plot: 8/10
Characters: 9/10
Ending: 9/10
Engagement: 9/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Comprehension: 10/10
Pacing: 8/10
Desire to Reread: 10/10
Special: 7/10
Final Rating: 4.65/5
Note, each rating is weighted based on personal importance.

Strange Exit by Parker Peevyhouse ★★½

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor Teen for providing me with an electronic advanced copy (e-ARC) to provide a fair and honest review.

Published: 1/14/20

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Started 12/22/19

I’m about 75% through Strange Exit, and I am not loving it. I’m going to finish it because I don’t absolutely hate it, and I want to push through it to provide the best review possible. I will say it’s an interesting idea; essentially earth has been destroyed, and there are a ship of humans who had to take it to survive. However, they had to be put in homeostasis which seemed to involve this virtual reality system to help them cope with the trip. It seems like they only took kids, for whatever reason, and, honestly, I don’t quite understand why we had this setup. I guess it’s something to do with re-population and an innate “right” to be saved over adults who’ve had a chance to live their life. Unfortunately, it just feels like a convenient way to write a YA novel.

On that note, I don’t love the writing of this book. It reads very YA but not just in style of substance as well. I don’t mind a YA perspective, but I want depth in my story and characterization. I am mildly interested in what is going on , but to me it just all seems bland. Obviously, I wish I was more excited by the book. Something seems to be going on with the ship, and they have to wake up all of the people in the virtual reality to avoid a major catastrophe. The novel, it seems, revolves around this task, so naturally it’s not an easy task to wake them up. I’m not entirely sure how it all fits together because it seems very convoluted, and what I do understand feels like plot convenience.

I understand the nature of writing is creating, but I a good story should sell the idea and plot naturally (particularly the plot given a specific idea). I feel bad because I am very happy to have been granted this arc. However, it just isn’t a book for me. I think YA readers are probably more likely to enjoy it.

Finished 1/23/20

I finished the book, and while I enjoyed the ending, overall my opinion isn’t very high. I’ll admit I don’t read that much YA, but it’s a genre that personally I’ve been trying to explore more to figure out what type of way works for me. I couldn’t connect with the characters, and the most exciting thing about the plot was the idea. Of course, an idea doesn’t write a book. There were some things that seemed convenient for the sake of the plot, the sake of action, and for the sake of emotion. Obviously these are all necessary to develop a new story. However, it just didn’t work for me.

By the end, the plot drove everything. It wasn’t a special accomplishment of the characters. The ending was near, so the characters arbitrarily make progress where they couldn’t before. I will probably read another book by Parker Peevyhouse, specifically because I know one Books and Lala gave a decent rating to one of them. I recognize her name for a reason, so I don’t want to give up on Peevyhouse just yet. It may just be at this novel isn’t that great, or maybe she isn’t right for me. Thanks to the publisher Internet galley forgive me that we reviewed this book. 2.5/5 stars

Rating Break Down
Writing Style (7%): 5/10
Plot (15%): 5/10
Characters (15%): 4/10
Ending (1%): 7/10
Engagement (5%): 5/10
Enjoyment (25%): 4/10
Comprehension (20%): 8/10
Pacing (2%): 7/10
Desire to Reread (5%): 0/10
Special (5%): 0/10
Final Rating: 2.38/5
Note, each rating is weighted based on personal importance.

January AYearAThon: Reading Red

You can watch my video where I discussed the AYearAThon readathon on my new Booktube channel, Josh’s Bookish Voyage!

This month I chose to participate in the January AYearAThon readathon where I read as many red covers, as I could, for one week. Now, I don’t intend to participate in the AYearAThon moving forward, but I like to participate in at least one readathon every month because it helps me read more. I chose this readathon because it seemed like an easy one too get invested in that covered a lot of the books I wanted to read (soon). The objective was pick books with a certain color on the cover, so I chose red. The rules technically said to read a cover of that color not with that color, but I allowed for a little wiggle room.

Overall this was a very successful readathon. I’ve read more books this week than I think I ever have before in a week (9). Of course, some of these are novellas, or just very short books, but even still, it was a challenge but one I thoroughly enjoyed. I went in with what I thought was a very ambitious goal, expecting to read 7 or 8 books. I had had a slow start to the month (year, decade!) and was hoping to get myself back into the swing of things. Once I started with my regular reading routine, I really got into it. By the end, I even threw in a 9th book!

This month I read If You Ask Me, by Betty White. I was very hesitant to read this one because as much as I love Betty White I wasn’t sure how much I would like it. In the end, I enjoyed it, but it was a little lackluster. I had an overall better experience with Robin by Dave Itzkoff. It was a fantastic book that I recommend to any Robin Williams fan. The next one that I read was Underland by Robert McFarland, and I was really excited about this one. Sadly, I was very disappointed by what I read; it just was not what I thought I was getting when I started it. Luckily that was really the only novel that severely disappointed me. Every other book I read I either loved or was at least glad I read it.

I read How We Know What Isn’t So by Thomas Gilovich. This is a book that I had on my TBR for a while because it is considered a standard book and the skeptic community. It’s about the fallibility of human reason, and I really enjoyed it. I was hesitant because these types of books about human bias and human psychology can easily be very esoteric and difficult to read. However, that was not the case. This one was written away that was very easy to consume, and I highly recommend it! A more esoteric book was be The Mismeasure of Man by Stephen Jay Gould. That one I enjoyed, but I did not much appreciate the way in which Gould structured the book.

In fiction, I finally read Scythe by Neal Shusterman. I added this one to by TBR at the last second because I had been so hesitant to read it. There are so many hyped YA books, and so far, I have really not loved them. Luckily, I gave this one a shot, and it is amazing. I haven’t been this excited for a series in a while. Another book that I read was the 4th book in the Earthsea Cycle, Tehanu by Ursula K. Le Guin. It was fine. I haven’t loved reading them, but I am trying to read one a month so as to get a full review of the series. I enjoyed it more than the others, but it still isn’t something I love. You’ll see my review of that sometime in the spring.

The last book I read (this isn’t in the order I read them) was Girls on Fire by Robin Wasserman. I read this one because I haven’t been reading a lot of general thrillers, and I wanted to tackle that section of my TBR. This was one of several books I bought after the positive review by Books and Lala, and while I trust her opinion, I’m finding it hard not to go off books that I am more excited for on my own than purely off her suggestion. Of course, there is a reason I trust her judgement! It did not fail me because I loved this book. It is a story about these teen girls who get into some drama, and I am here for it. I absolutely adored that book.

I read so many books part of me is worried I am leaving one off! This is the first time I created a readathon post after finishing it, but the holidays and January are such a busy time. You may have noticed, I attached a video at the top of this discussion. That is my first attempt at posting a video for Booktube! It is essentially me talking about the same stuff as here. I may or may not continue to do blogs and videos for the exact same content, but that is the goal!

I am so grateful to the leaders of the AYearAThon readathon. I had been having a serious slump this month from the traveling followed by the flu for a week. I was getting really disheartened about reading, but now I leave this week with 9 new books and a renewed vigor. I was shocked I read so many nonfiction, but I suppose those are the ones I wanted to read. I think I owe some thanks to Olive at abookolive for being one of the key people getting me inspired about nonfiction. Overall, I loved this readathon! I would say it was a real success not just in quantity but specifically in the quality of books that I read.

The Mismeasure of Man, Stephen J. Gould ★★★

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Read 1/18/20 to 1/19/20

The Mismeasure of Man was a poignant book about the use of racism, sexism, and xenophobia to fuel misinformation and bad science to support the bigoted views of scientists throughout history. Gould tells a story about how bigotry can drive us to believe things that aren’t true, even in science. I read this novel right after How We Know What Isn’t So where it talked all about human bias and how it can lead us to believe in untrue things because of our, or someone else, preconceived beliefs.

A key point in that book is how science is probably our best tool to try in avoid said deception. Of course, that makes this book all the more discouraging considering how rampant bias has allowed racist and sexist bias to exists throughout scientific history. In this way, it is clear that science is not immune from such biases. It highlights how even scientists need to be acutely aware of these biases not only in our everyday life but also in the science that we do. If our goal is to reach the truth, then there is a clear path forward to do so.

Gould uses this book to discuss a series of cases where scientists use bad judgement, lies, and bad methodology to reach what are clearly preconceived conclusions based on their personal bigotry. They do so by manipulating their approach, manipulating the data, or outright misrepresenting what they find to get to their conclusion. This is a necessary book, and I implore every scientist to read it. It doesn’t matter if this is your field. Don’t assume you are a immune to this type of fallibility (in your science and in how you treat people).

My biggest problem with this book is it overall structure. The way Gould presents the book is very in-cohesive. As I said, it covers a series of examples where bias has produced bad science. He does not shy away from this shameful side of science, but he fails to create an overarching narrative. Each example felt separate. Moving from one example to the next meant I had trouble retaining the details of most of them. I don’t expect to memorize everything he tells me, but I would have liked a more succinct conclusion to each example that tied it to the next one so we have a better overall picture. The book doesn’t flow well. Sure, I leave the book with the point across, but I think each example could have been tied together more effectively.

All together, I do not regret reading this. I’ve already said I think other people should read this too,especially scientists. Not all works of science are the easiest to read. Some people would rather ignore history rather than acknowledge the fallibility or the harm that the that their history has caused. As I am a part of this institution. Therefore, I am have to be able to defend science against these actions that abuse the institution of science. It is the job of scientists to demonstrate how science is still the best tool to avoid misinformation, misdirection and bigotry. Still, I am not rating this on principle but on its merit as a book. 3/5 stars

Stephen J. Gould discusses the use of IQ tests to suggest black people are less intelligent.

Rating Break Down
Writing Style (7%): 7/10
Content (15%): 10/10
Structure (15%): 5/10
Summary (1%): 7/10
Engagement (5%): 5/10
Enjoyment (25%): 5/10
Comprehension (20%): 6/10
Pacing (2%): 5/10
Desire to Reread (5%): 2/10
Special (5%): 10/10
Final Rating: 3.11/5
Note, each rating is weighted based on personal importance.

Scythe by Neal Shusterman ★★★★★

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Read 1/16/20

I’ll admit I did not have high hopes for this book. I have this irrational fear of YA novels where I always assume I won’t like them. To be fair, I often don’t, but it is hard not to hear so much praise for this series and not give it a try. What’s more, the premise is pretty cool. I made a last second decision to include this book in my January AYEARATHON because I was reading so many nonfiction novels and wanted an easy read. Obviously, I am glad I did. I have not been so excited about a book in so long. It is so refreshing to be this excited over a new series, so excited that I have to resist the urge not to drop everything and finish the series.

Let’s start with the premise. In a twisted utopia free from death, population control requires that Scythe’s be tasked with deciding who should die, albeit at a much lower rate than was once natural. Admittedly, it feels like a stretch. One could argue population is already running out of control even with the natural levels of death. One might say the better approach is to have stricter rules on certain types of care. For instance, one kid rebels by making his parents pay to have him revived after several near deaths experiences. I find it hard to believe that type of abuse of resources would be allowed. Nevertheless, this is fiction, and I am perfectly capable of accepting the premise necessary to set up the story.

The story itself is fantastic. I thought Shusterman did a great job exploring the morality of this world and the morality that Scythes have (or don’t have). What’s more, I was surprised multiple times in this novel. Every-time I thought, “I’m loving this but it is clearly going this direction”, Shusterman would prove me wrong. To me, that is part of the reason I can so readily let go of the stretched premise. It also speaks to an expert level of writing that I need more of. I am eager to read more of his books, even beyond the Scythe trilogy.

It is written in a way that is engaging and exciting. It was indeed easy to read as I had hoped, but I don’t think Shusterman had to sacrifice the substance to make that happen. To me, that is the making of a great book. Lastly, I could so easily reread this book. I rated it 8/10 on re-readability but really, it may be more. I loved it. Highly recommend. 5/5 stars

Rating Break Down
Writing Style (7%): 10/10
Plot (15%): 10/10
Characters (15%): 8/10
Ending (1%): 9/10
Engagement (5%): 10/10
Enjoyment (25%): 10/10
Comprehension (20%): 10/10
Pacing (2%): 10/10
Desire to Reread (5%): 8/10
Special (5%): 10/10
Final Rating: 4.80/5
Note, each rating is weighted based on personal importance.

Girls on Fire by Robin Wasserman ★★★★

Read 1/14/20 – 1/15/20

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I started reading this fresh away from Robin, which I did not want to end (his life or the story ☹). I was thrilled when I quickly became engrossed by the narrative of these girls. The novel is a very slow build because for much of it, it isn’t clear where it is going. However, I don’t think a lack of predictability is necessarily a bad thing. In fact, I think the fact that the story worked so well without giving it away along the way is a fantastic feat.

The story begins following two main girls. A good girl and a bad one (for all intents and purposes). I found the characterization to be more complex than that, but it is a good surmise of how it appears to start. The bad girl begins to have a large influence on the girl until something happens that causes things to change. What unfolds is a complex web of teenage drama that was surprisingly entertaining. It was dark, twisted, and a pleasure to follow.

I loved how wild things got in what was a shockingly short amount of time. By the end, it builds to a dramatic and fairly satisfying conclusion. I definitely recommend this book. 4/5 stars.

Rating Break Down
Writing Style (7%): 8/10
Plot (15%): 8/10
Characters (15%): 10/10
Ending (1%): 7/10
Engagement (5%): 10/10
Enjoyment (25%): 9/10
Comprehension (20%): 9/10
Pacing (2%): 8/10
Desire to Reread (5%): 0/10
Special (5%): 5/10
Final Rating: 4.15/5
Note, each rating is weighted based on personal importance.