BBAW: Setting Goals

Even though I’m pretty reactionary about the abundance of goal-setting in public education right now (i.e., Isn’t “read 25 books this year” a good enough goal? Do we really need 12-year-olds to make goals like “Improve my ability to make text-to-self connections” or does that take some of the joy out of the whole enterprise?), I’m ready to set a concrete goal for this blog: write more. I don’t think it’s realistic to review every single book I read here (even my beloved Goodreads account has fallen by the wayside this summer), but I do think I can write some kind of something (and not always a meme, for the love of Pete, although they are quite nice) once a week. For a year. I can assess myself next year during Book Blogger Appreciation Week and then this all will have come full circle in a very satisfying way.

BBAW: Thanks for the Books, Bloggers

School is kind of kicking my butt these days (in an absolutely good, but constant and overwhelming way), so today’s BBAW post is basically going to be a list of books that I may have picked up someday, but definitely was driven/shamed into reading when the rest of the  world did, thanks to book bloggers and Google Reader.

• Honestly, seriously: The Hunger Games. I mean, I loved Gregor the Overlander, and I would have picked it up eventually, but it hit the blogosphere so hard that I would have been ashamed to leave it unread for a minute longer than I had. This is also true for Wintergirls.
• Masterpiece, when I heard about the E.B. White Readaloud Award
• Mairelon the Magician, thanks to The Enchanted Inkpot’s book club
• Books 85-100 on Fuse #8′s Top 100 Picture Books poll. As a middle school librarian, I don’t get to rock the picture books too often, so taking the time to read through this list is great exposure to all the greatest hits. So far I’ve been especially happy about Little Pea, Anatole, The Gardener, Swimmy, Dinosaur Bob and His Adventures with the Family Lazardo, and The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry and the Big Hungry Bear.

BBAW: Reading Meme

I love memes. For the lazy/stressed out/timid blogger like me, they are such a boon to get you writing and just posting SOMEthing, for the love of God. So thanks, Book Blogger Appreciation Week for providing this quick and easy one. So here are my five-word answers to the BBAW reading meme:

Do you snack while you read? If so, favorite reading snack?
No snacks, but sometimes chips.

Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you?
Library books, so no pens.

How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears?
Bookmarks, always. Punish dog ears!

Laying the book flat open?
Not usually. Hurts my brain.

Fiction, nonfiction, or both?
Both, plus comics and poetry.

Hard copy or audiobooks?
Bad at listening. Reading easier.

Are you a person who tends to read to the end of chapters, or are you able to put a book down at any point?
Section breaks good, chapters better.

If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop to look it up right away?
No way. It’s not homework.

What are you currently reading?
Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie
(That worked out well!)

What is the last book you bought?
Absolute Sandman, worth the cash.

Are you the type of person that only reads one book at a time or can you read more than one at a time?
The more, the merrier. Mostly.

Do you have a favorite time of day and/or place to read?
On train. In bed. Always?

Do you prefer series books or stand alone books?
Trilogies not always necessary, please.

Is there a specific book or author that you find yourself recommending over and over?
Tamora Pierce. The Lightning Thief.

How do you organize your books? (By genre, title, author’s last name, etc.?)
Genre, kinda, Size, mostly. *sigh*

So easy, and now I’m radiating a sense of accomplishment.

BBAW: Thanks, bloggers.

So, even though I am one of the most half-assed book bloggers on the planet, I thought participating in Book Blogger Appreciation Week would spur me to greater action. (Plus, who doesn’t need some appreciation, however unmerited, right?) There are daily blogging topics for the week, but of course, I’m going to screw this up from the beginning and not really do the alloted Monday task, which was to give shoutouts to blogs that didn’t make the awards shortlist. Honestly, the shortlist is really long, and although I cast some votes myself, there were some categories where I didn’t recognize any of the blogs, and it seemed like all of my favorite bloggers were pretty much covered somehow. So here are some shoutouts for shortlisted bloggers that are meaningful to me:

• Yay for MotherReader for hosting the 48 Hour Book Challenge that inspired me to attempt YA book blogging in the first place.
• Yay for Renay at YA Fabulous for her candor, which I find utterly inspiring.
• Yay for Stainless Steel Droppings for hosting the reading challenges with the best logos… cf. R.I.P. IV, for which I’m humbly attempting Peril the First and submitting my reading pool here:

1. Affinity by Sarah Waters
2. Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan
3. The Dark-Angel by Meredith Ann Pierce
4. Button, Button by Richard Matheson (short stories!)
5. The Night Country by Stewart O’Nan
6. The Suicide Collectors by David Oppegaard
7. Absolute Sandman, Vol. 1 by Neil Gaiman
8. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare