The Guncle by Steven Rowley

The Guncle by Steven Rowley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved it! I had this book sitting on my TBR list for ages and finally picked it up because a bookclub was about to read it. I didn’t make the deadline or the bookclub meeting, but I still felt it was worth reading.

There were so many funny lines in it. I found myself laughing out loud so many times. I don’t mean to say that it was a fluffy comedic book, because it did have a lot of touching moments in it.

I loved it and would recommend it highly.

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Little Women – Louisa May Alcott

100 novel challenge

140+ Classic Books to Read

PBS great American Read

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have seen so many versions of the movie, and each was a little different. I wanted to read the book to see how the story actually goes.

I enjoyed the book a lot, but I realized how so many of the stories in the book were missed in each of the movies. Some of the movies combined several stories. This is understandable, since the book was so long. The story in the book makes a lot more sense.

The book is definitely worth reading, but it does take a long time to get through.

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Book club ideas

Book club ideas to impress your friends

The above linked article tells about what you need to think about to start a bookclub. I included a list of books here, to get your club started.

The Club

The System

The Book

Here’s a list of short books that will give you lots to talk about.

Historical Fiction Books You Don’t Want to Miss

YA LGBTQIA+ Books You Need to Read ASAP

Books With Multiple Perspectives #OwnVoices Novels You Need to Read Right Now

Books Ripped Straight from the Headlines

YA Books Featuring Strong Female Characters

Books That Will Help You Start a Conversation About Social Change

Series Starters We Know You’re Going to Love

Books That Will Make You Cry

Young Adult Fantasy Books You have to Read

Books Being Made Into Movies That You Need to Read ASAP

Engrossing Contemporary Novels to Read Right Now

Electrifying Science Fiction Reads for Newbies

The Clubhouse

The Food

The Discussion

Roses and Rot by Kat Howard

Roses and Rot by Kat Howard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I picked this book up for bookclub. It’s not really a genre that I read regularly, so I was a little bit worried that I might not like it. I loved it! It took a chapter or two for me to get into, but I got to the point where I didn’t want to put it down. I wanted to know what happened to the characters.

It was a lot darker than the books that I usually read, but I am glad that I read it. I would recommend it to those who enjoy darker fantasy books.

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The movie was better

I have been trying to find a bookclub that is a perfect fit for me. I have found two, but I stopped going to others because of a variety of reasons. There were a couple of bookclubs that made me feel this way. They did not like my take on the book, or they loved it and I hated it. No actual bouncer, though.

Must Read Bookclub Books, 2020

Must read bookclub reads 2020

The above linked article lists books that would be great for 2020 bookclubs. I left the update for American Dirt in, because it has some interesting links associated with it. The list is great, and I have heard of several of these.

Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

Followers by Megan Angelo

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins

Update: when I first recommended American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins, I was not aware of the whole context behind the story. I urge you all to read this Buzzfeed article as it breaks down the controversy.

In Five Years by Rebecca Serle

The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez

The Lies That Bind by Emily Giffin

Mysteries/Thrillers

The God Game by Danny Tobey

The Other Mrs. by Mary Kubica

Follow Me by Kathleen Barber

You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

The Eighth Girl by Maxine Mei-Fung Chung

The Herd by Andrea Bartz

Historical Fiction

Lady Clementine by Marie Benedict

All The Ways We Said Goodbye by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig and Karen White

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

The Girl In White Gloves by Kerri Maher

And They Called It Camelot by Stephanie Marie Thornton

The Queen’s Secret by Karen Harper

How to Start a Successful Bookclub

Successful bookclub

The above linked article talks about 4 simple steps to start a successful bookclub. They sound simple enough, but some aren’t so easy. Finding like-minded friends is difficult, and sometimes it’s difficult to agree on a book. Meeting times and places are always difficult, too.

I have been lucky enough to find a few bookclubs where I fit in, and they understand my chaotic schedule. I have been thinking about dropping out of those that do not “spark joy” in my life. I am not thinking of starting up a new one. I’ll just continue on with the ones that make me happy.

So, what are you reading

Again, I missed Wednesday’s post, so Friday will have to do.

I am finishing up Magic for Liars which was for bookclub last week. It’s on audiobook, and I am thoroughly enjoying it.

I am finishing up my Kindle book, Enchanted Ever After. It’s the latest in the Enchanted, Inc series, and I have loved every one of the books so far, including this one.

I am still working on the library book about Alcatraz. I may finish it this weekend.

I have to choose a book stack book to get done. They are starting to take over. It kind of reminds me of The Blob.

1 book ahead of schedule

I started out with a bang with my annual reading challenge. I spent most of the year being many, many books ahead, but I just haven’t been reading as quickly this Fall.

I adjusted my reading goal twice. I started out with 75 books as my goal, but with the children’s books I easily met that goal. So, I adjusted it to 100. Again, I met that easily. I finally settled on 120, taking the children’s books into consideration, and adding a couple of extra adult books to add the 40 ish children’s books to the original 75, plus a couple.

Yesterday, I finished book 105/120. I should be finishing book 106 today. I have several other books that are mostly finished, but a few have to be read in order, because of bookclub deadlines. I have about 6 weeks to go to finish 14 books. I am positive I can do it.

Online Bookclubs

Online bookclubs

The above linked article talks about online bookclubs. These are the ones listed and linked, but the article talks more about them.

The Club

The System

The Book

The Clubhouse

The Food

The Discussion

Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

Followers by Megan Angelo

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins

In Five Years by Rebecca Serle

The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez

The Lies That Bind by Emily Giffin

Mysteries/Thrillers

The God Game by Danny Tobey

The Other Mrs. by Mary Kubica

Follow Me by Kathleen Barber

You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

The Eighth Girl by Maxine Mei-Fung Chung

The Herd by Andrea Bartz

Historical Fiction

Lady Clementine by Marie Benedict

All The Ways We Said Goodbye by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig and Karen White

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

The Girl In White Gloves by Kerri Maher

And They Called It Camelot by Stephanie Marie Thornton

The Queen’s Secret by Karen Harper

Our Shared Shelf

Oprah’s Book Club 2.0

The Rumpus Book Club

Free Minds Book Club

Action Book Club

Books at Work

Reese’s Book Club

The History Book Club

WIRED Book Club

Between Two Books

Belletrist

13. Andrew Luck Book Club

New Adult Book Club

Goodreads Choice Awards Book Club