@MadDashReading Great minds think alike! 😊 Thank you so much for my #BookCupidSwap package. You sent all of my favorite treats! I can‘t wait to dig in!
@candority

Even though it was accidentally opened a few weeks ago 😬, thanks again @Lauram for my #BookCupidSwap package! I kept my promise and have not even looked at it until today. 😊
@candority

@BookwormAHN Ashley, thank you so much for my birthday mail & bookmarks! It was so sweet of you to think of me! 😊

@CoffeeNBooks Harper! Thank you so much for my birthday surprise! 😊 Book mail is the best and birthday book mail is even better. And, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!! 😊😊😊

Both packages for #BookCupidSwap went out today and should arrive within the next few days! 😊😊
@candority

This showed up yesterday as well! Glad you put the stickers on it @MadDashReading or I may have thought it was my Book of the Month package and opened it as well! 😉😉 Can‘t wait til 2/14!
@candority #BookCupidSwap

@Lauram Thank you so much for my #BookCupidSwap! Since it came from Amazon, I opened it up, not realizing what it was 😬. (We kind of get...a lot of Amazon deliveries). But I will hide it away until 2/14! Also- super excited about the Cadbury milk tray. I‘ve always heard them mentioned in books but never had my own. 😊😊
@candority #BookCupidSwap

January reads. I think Love, Hate and Other Filters and Blood, Water, Paint were my 2 favorites.

I really had no idea what to expect when I started this one, but WOW. It was so good. I used to steer clear of books written in verse until I read The Poet X and realized that some books in verse are better than others. This one combines verse & prose and does it so well. This is the type of book that has me making a list of everyone I need to recommend it to!

I figured that since I had really liked the other two books by Samira Ahmed, I‘d feel the same about this one. Alas. I think that the topic didn‘t grab more than anything. There was a big focus on Alexandre Dumas and artwork and I just...didn‘t care. 🤷🏼‍♀️ Not a bad book, just not for me.

I‘ve had this on my shelf for awhile, but didn‘t realize until I read Internment that it was the same author. I thought Internment was very powerful, but think I liked this one even more. Internment was set in a “potential” future, but Love, Hate & Other Filters could happen today.

Read this for #LMPBC, and was not familiar with it at all. While it was a book that I could not put down, there were aspects of each sister‘s story that I struggled with. I‘ll leave it at that. 😉

@Tattooedteacher @Sarahreadstoomuch @EH2018

I really enjoyed this one. While it is definitely a romance/will they or won‘t they type of story, there are some much deeper story lines about making difficult choices and stepping outside your comfort zone in order to be the best person you can be.

@CatGusMax Look what finally arrived!! 😊😊 Thank you so much for everything. I am super excited for both of these books! I LOVE the mug and have already had to hide the gummy worms from my daughter. 😁 Thanks again!!
@bookish_wookish #LittleChristmasSwap

We binge watched Derry Girls last week, so I was looking for books set during The Troubles. This one is the first of The Troubles Trilogy and follows Sean Duffy, the only Catholic police officer in a Protestant neighbor, as well as on the force. I really enjoyed it. There was a good amount of dark humor as well as history that was weaved through the story, and I have already downloaded book 2.

Not book related- but if you haven‘t already, you should probably turn on the news. 😣🤯😣😡🤬

This had a lot of good reviews on Amazon and was free for Kindle Unlimited. I gave it 96 pages and decided to call it quits. Everything just felt too forced to me- the dialogue, the relationships, etc. And the writing reminded me of a low quality middle grade book. I really wanted to like it-I love WWII historical fiction-but I just couldn‘t make it happen

1. Well it‘s “back” to school for my kids and I—even though we are still virtual. We‘ll be trying to get back in the groove.

2. There are some great trails about 2 minutes from where we live. A mom friend and I took our kids on a two hour hike. There was a little grumbling, but everyone ended up having a good time.

@Cupcake12

#MotivationalMonday

I really enjoyed this series. As I mentioned before, these aren‘t books I would have chosen for myself, but after I completed the first one, I had to keep going! There are A LOT of players involved, and I admit to getting confused occasionally (this is why I don‘t read Game of Thrones or LOTR), but I devoured the 3 books.

First completed book of 2021! Second in the series- I am devouring these! Each book has ended with a huge cliffhanger, so I am thankful for my kindle and the ability to immediately download the next one. Starting the 3rd and final book today.

Ok, the final tally for books read in 2020 was 86. Not too shabby, but definitely down from last year. I blame it on the Covid slumps I hit throughout the spring and summer. We‘ll see what 2021 brings!

Whoa. This book was powerful, and I‘m so glad we read it for #LMPBC. I will be recommending this to my students.
Oh, and it will be going out in the mail tomorrow! @Tattooedteacher @Sarahreadstoomuch @EH2018

I‘ve said it before, but I really wish there had been books like this when I was younger. I love reading stories with strong young women speak up for themselves and fight for what they want. Tying this in with the Cinderella story is another cool element.

I think I read this one in less than a day. 😁 It wasn‘t quite what I was expecting- somehow I missed the Groundhog‘s Day aspect of it- but I enjoyed it. The ending was a bit predictable, but I didn‘t mind. Glad I read it!

I will read any Jenny Colgan book I can get my hands on. They may be predictable at times, but they are always enjoyable. This one is no different. The first of 3, it is set in a girls boarding school and follows Maggie, a new teacher at the school. I think the school setting makes the story even more appealing to me, and I am looking forward to books 2 & 3.

Still reviewing my 2020 reads. 😁 I really enjoyed this one. This is not a time period I usually read about, for whatever reason- it may be time to change that. I liked that this was a quick read, and while it was somewhat predictable, it was still a sweet Christmas story.

@Hestapleton Winchester also wanted me to thank you for the box. She loves it. 😁 #Bestof2020Swap

@Hestapleton you totally get me! I love everything! I have a bit of an addiction to coffee mugs and this one is perfect! I LOVE candles, especially now that I am teaching from home, and coffee scented is even better. I can‘t wait to try the coffee and dig in to the books! Oh, and I am VERY excited about the Dr. Teal‘s. Thank you so much!!!
#Bestof2020Swap @candority

This is the 2nd book of the Moose Springs, Alaska series. While I did not like it as much as The Tourist Attraction, I still enjoyed the story and adventures of the residents of Moose Springs. Looking forward to Book 3. 😊

This will be my last book of 2020! It is not one I would have chosen for myself. But I run a virtual book club where I teach, and one of the students suggested we all read this one. Reid is the 18 yo daughter of a Duke, but has been raised as a boy, as her father had no male heirs. Her secret is discovered, and in order to prevent her father from losing his land & her family from being charged with treason, she agrees to complete missions for 👇👇

My #ElfSwap arrived today! @sharread Thank you so much for everything- I know I am going to have to share the candy cane spoons with my daughter. 😊 Thanks again!!

@Avanders

Lots of company while I read today. ☺️😻

Shannon! Your #jolabokaflodswap package arrived! 😊😊 Thank you so much- I‘m looking forward to reading this one (hopefully before I have to go back to work 😉). And the chocolates are already hidden from the rest of my family, as they are all my favorites! Thanks again!!
@Scochrane26 @MaleficentBookDragon

Danielle, thank you so much! Everything from the wrapping paper to the chocolate (I can‘t WAIT to try the chocolate peanut butter cookie bar!!) to the book is perfect! And I love that it is all Canadian. 😊 Merry Christmas! ❤️🎄
@StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego @MaleficentBookDragon
#JolabokaflodSwap

@Hestapleton your #Bestof2020Swap package finally went out! It SHOULD arrive by Tuesday. 😊🤞🏼
@candority

Woohoo! One of my #jolabokaflodswap packages has arrived! 😊😊

@StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego @MaleficentBookDragon

And- my #Bestof2020Swap package was delivered! 😊

@Hestapleton I have not mailed yours yet—waiting on one more thing. If it does not show up on the next day or 2, I will mail everything else and then send along the missing item whenever it arrives!

@candority

My #ElfSwap package went out today!
@Avanders

Came in the mail today! 😊
#LMPBC @SarahReads @Tattooedteacher @EH2018
#Round10

1 #LittleChristmasSwap and 2 #JolabokaflodSwap packages went out today and are on their way! 🙂 🎄

@bookish_wookish @MaleficentBookDragon

I really enjoyed this one. It was a quick, light read that had me laughing out loud more than once. Years ago, there was a show called Northern Exposure that I loved. It was set in a tiny Alaskan town and had a number of quirky characters. This book reminded me a lot of that. This is the first of 3 in the Moose Springs series, and I already have book 2 ready to go!

This one is a low pick, high so-so for me. This is not the type of book I normally pick up, and I really like that it was so different from my normal reads. I was not expecting the appearance of the monster/madness and liked that part as well. I do think the story could have been about 100 pages shorter and am not sure how there is going to be a 2nd book. But I will read it when it comes out!

Oddly, there were a lot of similarities between this one and The Chaos of Standing Still. The main characters struggle with anxiety that stems from past traumatic events. They both meet great guys who are accepting of their quirks. And they both are on a mission. In this one, Molly meets a homeless girl named Red and is determined to get her back to her family by Christmas. This one was written in verse form.

Ryn hasn‘t been able to move on since her best friend‘s death on New Year‘s Day. She has one unread text message on her phone that she can‘t read—it is the last thing she has of her friend. Trapped in an airport on New Year‘s Eve, 1 year after the accident, Ryn meets Xander. The two of them collect a quirky cast of characters and have an evening of adventures. Is it enough to help Ryn move on?

1. Indiana originally, but Maryland for the last 20+ years.
2. 🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️
3. Anne of Green Gables
4. Jaws (and Shaun of the Dead, and Christmas Vacation and It‘s a Wonderful Life and...😁)
5. Right now, Schitt‘s Creek.
6. Eddie Vedder/Pearl Jam
7. Blue
8. Historical fiction or lit fiction
9. I teach high school, so I have been working from home since March. 😳
10. 3 cats and one retired racing greyhound.

#MeetTheLittens

For the most part, I liked this one. I seem to find myself drawn to stories about chefs/bakers who begrudgingly end up in the country but gradually realize that rural life is what they had needed all along. 😁😁 That said- Livvy‘s self sabotaging ways got a bit tiresome. But overall I did enjoy the story.

Whenever I need something light and upbeat, Jenny Colgan never lets me down. Her Christmas books always get me in the holiday spirit and make me want to move to Scotland. 😊

This was a sweet story that I really enjoyed. Kendall and Max witness a traumatic event while in New York that leaves them both shaken. They decide to complete a number of random acts of kindness before New Year‘s Day and end up learning a lot about themselves.

Just dropped this in the mail yesterday for #lmpbc. Anxious to hear what the rest of my group thinks!

@Tattooedteacher @Sarahreadstoomuch @EH2018

So—I like all of the above. 😁😁 I like coffee/peppermint/old book scents and really anything coffee, book or pop culture related. Blue is my favorite color.
#Bestof2020Swap @candority