Notable Quotable: Ashley Poston (#207)

"Never give up on your dreams, and never let anyone tell you that what you love is inconsequential or useless or a waste of time. Because if you love it? If that OTP or children's card game or abridged series or YA book or animated series make you happy? That is never a waste of time. Because in the end we're all just a bunch of weirdos standing in front of other weirdos, asking for their username."
     --Geekerella 

Third Quarter Review 2018

I saw a quarterly stats review on both Geeky Zoo Girl and Curiosity Killed the Bookworm. I really like this idea so I'm going to do my own version!

Third Quarter Books(July-September)
Total Books: 15
Paperback/hardcover: 7 (46.7%)
Audiobooks: 8 (53.3%)
Total pages: 6,067
Yearly Total Books: 54
┉┉┉
Own: 6 (40%)
Borrowed: 9 (60%)
┉┉┉
New: 14 (93.3%)
Rereads: 1 (6.7%)
┉┉┉
Male Authors: 3 (20%)
Female Authors: 12 (80%)

I had another really good reading quarter; I gave these books an average star rating of 3.9 stars. I only DNF'd one book. There were three 5 star books: Bossypants by Tina Fey, In the Afterlight by Alexandra Bracken, and Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are So You Can Become Who You Were Meant To Be by Rachel Hollis.

Genre breakdown
This quarter sci-fi and historical fiction were my top read genres. Though many of the historical fiction had elements of fantasy to them, they were manly historical. I even dropped a middle grade book into the mix.

Middle Grade: 1 (6.7%)
YA: 9 (60%)
Adult: 5 (33.3%)
┉┉┉
Contemporary: 2 (13.3%)
Fantasy/Sci-fi: 5 (33.3%)
Historical: 5 (33.3%)
Dystopian:  1 (6.7%)
Memoir: 1 (6.7%)
Nonfiction: 1 (6.7%)

Length
0-150: 0
150-250: 1 (6.7%)
250-350: 4 (26.7%)
350-500: 7 (46.6%)
>500: 3 (20%)

Reading Goals Update!
Goodreads goal: 27/25 books (ahead) - I did it! I hit my goal this quarter. Naturally, I'll continue reading through the rest of the year. Let's see how many books past my goal I read! (Goodreads counts all the books toward my goal, but I'm only counting books I physically read, which is why this count is different from my official Goodreads count.)

Finish the Series: 6/8 series (on track) - I only finished one series this quarter, but it was one that I also started this quarter so that's something. I'm feel certain that I'll complete this goal by the end of the year, maybe even surpass it.

Read it or Leave it: 3/21 books (way behind) - I don't think I've made any progress this quarter, which just goes to show you that I'm not really interested in many of the books on this list. It may just be time for me to say goodbye to some of these. I'll definitely know by the end of the year which ones I do want to keep.

Notable Quotable: Maureen Johnson (#206)

"It took a lot of women like that, a lot of women who said 'I'm not going to do what you expect me to do, because you have no idea what I'm capable of. I'm going to get dirty and use tools and live the way I want' to move the world forward."
     --The Last Little Blue Envelope

Notable Quotable: Marissa Meyer (#205)

"The first time, he had wondered why she liked books so much, and if it had anything to do with why he liked spaceships. Because they could take you somewhere far, far away."
     --Stars Above

Notable Quotable: Tricia Levenseller (#204)

"I value other traits above an affinity for torture and power over those weaker than oneself. I value brilliant minds, honest souls, and those with long endurance. I forge relationships based on trust and mutual respect, not fear and control. "
     --Daughter of the Pirate King

Top Ten Tuesday: Longest Books I've Ever Read

The Top Ten Tuesday has a new home. It's hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

According to Goodreads, these are the ten largest books that I've read. I've taken the audiobooks out of this list, so it's strictly books that I've physically read and boy are these some big books!

1. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling (850 pages) - No surprise here that my largest book is a Harry Potter book; they did get so big in the end.

2. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (838 pages) - This book took me so long to get through but dang it, I finished it and I had a party to commemorate it! Unfortunately, I did not like it nearly as much as I thought I should.

3. Winter by Marissa Meyer (827 pages) - I waited with high anticipation for this last installment and I was not disappointed. I loved reading this book so much, it was a great conclusion to a wonderful series.

4. The Broken Crown by Michelle West (764 pages) - Once upon a time, I had to read this for work and I did not enjoy it at all. I don't remember it being this long, but that may have been because I skimmed sections of it.

5. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (759 pages) - More Harry Potter! This is one of my favorites in the series and the longer these books are, the better, right?!

6. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (745 pages) - I remember being so engrossed while reading this book and just hating the ending. It was so anticlimactic.

7. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling (734 pages) - Holy cow! I forgot how big this book  sort of can't believe I read something this big when I was 10!

8. Eldest by Christopher Paolini (704 pages) - This book was like nails scraping on a chalkboard for me. I read this back when I still had the compulsion to finish every book and series I started.

 

9. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss (662 pages) - I enjoyed this book so much; I read it while I was living in New York and it took me a while to get through but it was the beginning of an amazing adventure.

10. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (652 pages) - It's no coincidence that there are four Harry Potter books on this list. They have shaped the way I read now, so it would make sense that they top this chart.

Notable Quotable: Kasie West (#203)

"Possibilities don't hurt as much as realities. Possibilities are exciting and endless. Realities are final."
     --By Your Side