Tag: Discussion Post

Let’s Talk Bookish: 2022 Mid-Year Bookish/Blogging Goals Update

Published on by dinipandareads20 Comments

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join in the bookish discussion fun, check out the July 2022 prompts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

How are you doing on your reading goals so far this year?

(SUGGESTED BY AMBER @ ESCAPE LIFE IN THE PAGES)
Prompts: Did you set any reading goals for yourself at the beginning of the year? If so, how are you doing with them? Any you’ve already met? Are there any goals you want to add? Did you set any blogging goals? If so, how are you doing with those?

MY 2022 READING/BLOGGING GOALS

The thing with me is that I enjoy setting goals and I love making grand plans for myself but when it comes to 100% follow-through, it doesn’t always go so smoothly. Life happens though and so I’m not trying to be too hard on myself about these things but it’s kinda nice to have something to reflect back on at the end of the year, don’t you think? So in 2022 I set six general reading/blogging goals:

  • Read 150 books
  • Read 50 backlist titles
  • Complete the 2022 Popsugar Reading Challenge
  • Fill in my Library Tracker (for my owned digital and physical books)
  • Grow my blog to 800 followers
  • Start my re-read project (aka the “dinipanda(re)reads project“)

I’m sort of close to achieving three of these goals right now so I’m pretty chuffed about that but I think for now I’ll keep it as it is. If anything, I’ll probably modify the goals that I manage to achieve before the year ends depending on my mood and how much time is left. Now, let’s take a little deeper dive into each goal…

Buckle up, folks, this might be a bit of a long one!

read 150 books

This is my Goodreads Reading Challenge and until now I’ve read 131 of 150 books. I think if I continue reading at my current (slower) pace, I might be able to achieve it in the next two months. If I achieve this soon, I think I’ll increase my read goal in 25 book increments (so 175, 200) until the year ends!

Image shows Goodreads Challenge update. Text says: "You have read 131 of 150 books."
read 50 BACKLIST TITLES

I’ve actually just checked my spreadsheet (cos it’s been a while) and according to my stats, 45.5% of my reads have been from my backlist (YAY!) which is roughly 55 reads? So that means I’ve achieved this goal! Woo, why does it feel so good crossing anything off a list?! 🥳

COMPLETE THE 2022 POPSUGAR READING CHALLENGE

I’ve been participating in the Popsugar Reading Challenge since I discovered it in 2020 and not once have I completed all the prompts. It’s always so disappointing because I usually get very close and I still never manage to read them before the year ends! 🥲 So far this year I’ve completed 27 prompts which are just over half of the prompts. 23 to go!

FILL IN MY LIBRARY TRACKER (FOR OWNED PHYSICAL & DIGITAL BOOKS)

WELL. Hmm, well, I started strong with this prompt early on in the year and I managed to finish cataloguing a decent chunk of my digital books as registered/recognised by Amazon. These are the titles that appeared on my purchase list back in 2012 when I got my first Kindle but I forgot that it didn’t include gifted books from authors or ARCs. I HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU:

If you have your books catalogued, do you count ARCs as part of your digital library catalogue or do you only count purchased/gifted books?

I still haven’t even begun to catalogue my physical books and since I’m now in India and not where my books are in Indonesia, I can’t work on that until I go back—whenever that’ll be. So I guess you can say this goal is having a bit of a *whomp whomp* moment? Heh… 😬

GROW MY BLOG TO 800 FOLLOWERS

I’ve been trying to grow my blog to 800 followers for a little over a year now and I’m kind of really excited that the numbers are finally getting close. I’m now at 787 followers (including email subs) and I can hardly believe I’m 13 followers away from 800?! I’m really hoping that I can at least hit that number by the end of the year. Thanks to everyone who follows and supports my bookish journey! I appreciate you all so, so much! 🥰

start my re-read project (AKA THE “DINIPANDA(RE)READS PROJECT”)

This hasn’t really taken off the way I had planned because life, I guess?! I really thought I’d make a start on it this year because I got really excited to start re-reading a few really popular titles that I remember loving from years ago. I’m still hoping that I can at least re-read one series and that’ll be The Final Empire, Book 1 of Mistborn, which I’ll be buddy reading with Leslie at some point this year.

Did you set any bookish/blogging goals this year? How much progress have you made with your goals? Are you happy with your progress or do you still have a long way to go? Any new goals to add to your list? You got this, friends! 💜

Let’s Talk Bookish: Book to Film Adaptations

Published on by dinipandareads8 Comments

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join in the bookish discussion fun, check out the June 2022 prompts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

BOOK TO FILM ADAPTATIONS

(SUGGESTED BY ARIA @ BOOK NOOK BITS)
Prompts: What are your favorite book to film adaptations? What are your least favorite ones? Do you think that books translate better to movies or shows? Would you rather see a standalone or a book series adapted? What do you think is important for a successful book to film adaptation?

not much of an adaptation watcher/reader

I considered skipping the prompt this week because I haven’t watched many adaptations of the books I’ve read or conversely, I haven’t read the books that I’ve seen the adaptations of. I like to tell myself that I’d rather read the book first before watching any adaptation but then I never get around to reading the book, thanks to my ever-growing TBR 😂, so then I never get around to watching the adaptation. Whoops! When it comes to watching adaptations of books I’ve already read, I always hesitate to do it because I’m worried that I won’t enjoy the film/show if I loved the book, and then I end up waffling on a decision until I simply end up not watching it.

LEAST FAVOURITE ADAPTATIONS

So, with that in mind, it took a while for me to come up with a list of my least favourite adaptations! One of the first that came to mind was Ready Player One. I really enjoyed the book but I thought the film didn’t capture half of what I loved about it. This might be an unpopular opinion but back when I first read Twilight while I was at uni, I really enjoyed the books but the one and only time I walked out of the cinema was when I went to see the first movie (yep, I walked out cos I hated it so much)! 🤣

Film vs tv show, standalone vs series

Honestly, I’m not particularly fussed either way. They can make a book series into a series of films, they can make a standalone book into a film or (mini-)series like they’ve done with many books (Normal People, Good Omens, and American Gods are a few that come to mind). Ultimately, I don’t think the medium matters so much to me as long as the adaptation is well done. I’m a bit picky when it comes to books I love being adapted because I usually prefer if they stay true to the storyline and only make a few changes; there are obviously exceptions, but I mostly like for things to be recognisable or at least for the changes to not detract from the characters or stories.

I thought I’d share a list of the film/show adaptations that I’ve read the books for and have actually enjoyed both versions! Again, this is my opinion so maybe others might not agree but that’s cool!

Favourite film adaptations:

  • Pride and Prejudice
  • Persuasion
  • The Hobbit (I’m sorry but I was bored to tears by the book but the movie is one of my comfort faves!)
  • To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
  • The Princess Diaries
  • The Perks of Being A Wallflower (maybe another unpopular opinion but I enjoyed the movie more than the book, though I did like the book well enough)
  • The Hunger Games
  • Jurassic Park

Favourite show adaptations:

  • The Magicians (I only read the first book because (I’m sorry) it absolutely bored me to tears!)
  • Heartstopper (can’t remember the last time I loved a book and series equally!)
  • Game of Thrones (I binged the first four books in the span of two weeks and ‘warred’ myself out so I took a break and then never picked it back up again, lol)
  • The Umbrella Academy (I didn’t read all the volumes but it was too chaotic for me lol)

What do you think about books being adapted to films/tv shows? Do you prefer one medium more than the other or are you also not particularly fussed? What were your least fave adaptations? Your favourite adaptations?

Let’s Talk Bookish: Books on Vacation

Published on by dinipandareads20 Comments

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join in the bookish discussion fun, check out the June 2022 prompts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

BOOKS ON VACATION

(SUGGESTED BY FIVES @ DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE)
Prompts: What books do you like to bring on vacation? Do you bring any books at all? What kind of books do you think are good for a vacation? How much time do you usually have to read on vacation? What does an ideal vacation with a book look like?

BRINGING BOOKS ON VACATION: YEA OR NAY?

As a mood reader, bringing books on vacation is a must but choosing the books is always a dilemma (and I’m well aware that I’m speaking from a place of privilege). I’m currently on an extended “vacation” to India for the next few months and when I was packing for my trip a couple weeks ago, I struggled to choose which ones to take with me! Do I just rely on my Kindle and pack 1-3 physical books or do I say “who needs clothes when I have books?” Spoiler: I kinda went with the latter! 😂

In general, although I often can’t bring as many physical books as I’d like with me on vacation I do bring at least two and sometimes end up picking up another 1 or 2 along the way, but I always have a fully stocked Kindle and I never go anywhere without my device!

WHAT ARE ‘GOOD’ VACATION BOOKS?

I’m personally not much of a seasonal or ‘moment’ reader because it depends entirely on my mood most of the time. For my current trip away it was a little simpler to pick which physical books to bring because I have buddy reads planned and I had a few titles that I wanted to get to for Pride Month 🌈! For other trips, I’ve focused on bringing physical books that I knew would be easier to read which would usually be romances, thrillers or YA contemporaries. I think the perfect vacation reads are those that don’t require much focus to get through and that are fast paced. Also, definitely not the chonksters but the ones that are easy to hold while lying back!

READING BOOKS ON VACATION: FACT OR MYTH?

I don’t think I’m the only one who believes that they’ll end up reading every book they bring on vacation, right? (no? just me?) 😂 When I go on vacation (or previously staycations) alone, I have much more time because I have the choice to not do anything but laze in bed or by the pool or on the beach with my book. Even if I did go out for some sightseeing and all that, I can take it at my own pace and bring my book along and read when the mood strikes me. But when I’m away with others, I always overestimate just how much time I’ll have to read and end up feeling slightly disappointed that I make so little progress reading! I mean, some people will say the whole point of being on vacation is to do something different but I like my comforts, y’know? 😅

THE IDEAL VACATION FT. BOOKS

I’m such a lazy homebody that my ideal vacation with a book would be me sunk deep in a plush and cosy hotel bed with the windows thrown wide open so the sunlight comes through, surrounded by delicious room service ft. easy to eat nibbles and lots of coffee, and of course, all the books and time to read them! This version of a vacation laying by a private pool or a quiet/secluded beach would also be ideal—just as long as I have all the time I want to read my books! 😍

Do you bring books on vacation? If so, how many? Do you have specific types of reads that you bring or are you more of a mood reader?

Let’s Talk Bookish: Quitting Blogging

Published on by dinipandareads17 Comments

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join in the bookish discussion fun, check out the June 2022 prompts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

Have you ever considered quitting blogging? 

(SUGGESTED BY KRISTIN @ LUKTEN AV TRYKKSVERTE)
Prompts: Have your reasons for blogging changed since you started? If so, what changes have you noticed? Have you ever taken a break from blogging, or thought about it? Have you ever thought about quitting blogging entirely? What stops you? What gives you motivation to keep blogging?

MY REASONS FOR BLOGGING HAVE CHANGED

Actually, yes, my reasons have changed since I first started. I’m sure I’ve mentioned it a time or twenty by now but I started my book community journey on Instagram and started a blog after seeing people comment on how important it is to have this platform to get ARCs. So, yes, although the reasoning is very simplified, I essentially started blogging to get ARCs, specifically from NetGalley. Did it work? It has in a way because I learned about blog tours and connected with indie authors but it didn’t work out in the way I expected—and the joke was on me as an international blogger! 😂 Since realising the limitations of being an international blogger in a non-western location, my reasons for blogging have definitely changed.

If I’m being honest, I think my reasons for blogging would’ve changed regardless because what I get most out of it is really the connections I make with other bloggers—doesn’t that sound cheesy AF? 😂 But seriously, it is mostly about connecting with others who share the same passion and interest, though I also blog to keep track of what I’m reading, to share my thoughts through reviews and other bookish posts (like these Let’s Talk Bookish posts!), and of course, to find out what everyone’s reading and to grow my never-ending TBR!😂

IT’S GOOD TO TAKE A BREAK… OR TWO!

That said, it’s always good to take a break… or two or more, even! I’ve taken one unexpectedly long 3-4 month break last year and another shorter break earlier this year. I didn’t take those breaks because I didn’t enjoy blogging anymore but I was feeling overwhelmed and unmotivated and my mental health was Not Great™️. I missed engaging and writing but taking that breather to do other things (like gaming) or even simply focusing on reading without worrying about writing reviews was exactly what I needed. If you do feel this way, or even if you don’t, know it’s 100% okay to take a break—the community will still be here whenever you decide to return! 😉

I WILL NEVER STOP… 🎶

(Does anyone else start singing that *NSYNC song whenever you think the words “I will never stop” or is it just me?)

Back to the question: have I ever thought about quitting blogging entirely? Nope, I haven’t and I mean, it’d be premature of me to say I’ll never stop (heh) since I don’t know what’s gonna happen in the future, but right now I still really enjoy blogging. I think it is easy to feel demotivated sometimes when you see others posting so much and so often, also, I don’t know about you but the imposter syndrome I feel a lot of the time is no fun, especially when other bloggers are posting such smart, interesting and original content. Still, at the end of the day, I’m mostly blogging for me but it’s the connections I make, all the new books I discover, all the amazing posts I read, and all the people who read my posts too, that motivate me to come back and keep doing this!

What about you, friends? Have your reasons for blogging changed? Have you ever taken a break or thought about quitting blogging? If you have thought about it but haven’t yet, what is the thing that’s motivating you to keep doing it?

Let’s Talk Bookish: Tracking Reading

Published on by dinipandareads18 Comments

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join in the bookish discussion fun, check out the May 2022 prompts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

Tracking reading

(SUGGESTED BY ARIA @ BOOK NOOK BITS)
Prompts: Do you keep track of the books you read? If so, do you use Goodreads? Storygraph? Another platform? Has the way you keep track of your reading changed since you started blogging? What are the pros and cons of tracking your reading?

TRACKING MY READING VIA GOODREADS (+STORYGRAPH, KINDA)

I do keep track of the books I read. Until now, I mostly use Goodreads but since the beginning of 2022, I’ve started to dabble with Storygraph and the 2022 Ultimate Book Blogger/Reader Spreadsheet made by Kal @ The Reader Voracious. My main platform has always been Goodreads but I’m starting to become more partial to the spreadsheet as it allows me to track more all at once!

Let’s be friends on Goodreads!

GOODREADS VS STORYGRAPH VS SPREADSHEETS

I first signed up for Goodreads in September 2012 but I didn’t start actively using it until a few years later. I started getting “serious” about using it in 2018 when I discovered the existence of the book community and of bookstagram and book bloggers! I still do the most tracking on Goodreads although I’m not always the best at marking what I’m “currently reading” as I’m reading it. I think I’ve at least gotten a little better at it because I have the Goodreads Reading Challenge to keep me motivated.

Since I started to track reads using the blogger/reader spreadsheet I’ve been using it alongside GR and it has actually motivated me to keep my GR as updated as possible. I track start/end dates on the spreadsheet and it has made it much easier to update my GR, even if I don’t mark the book as “currently reading” from the start!

Of these three platforms, I use Storygraph the least. I don’t find it as easy to navigate but I do like the way their stats are presented so I’m hoping to eventually update all my reads on there by the end of the year. So far I’m only using it to track my buddy reads (which is probs my favourite feature of the site) and that has been fantastic!

Let’s be friends on Storygraph!

changes in tracking habits and the pros/cons

I think the biggest change for me has been the inclusion of tracking my reading with the spreadsheet this year! It definitely takes more work to log everything including publication years, page numbers, etc., which you obviously don’t have to do but I find that I actually enjoy it. The biggest pro of tracking reads is that it gives a complete picture of what you read and depending on what you track, it can also give you a nice overview of your reading habits. I love seeing how many books I read, what genres I actually read the most/least, the average length of books that I choose, and other bookish stats.

A downside to tracking reads is the added pressure I think it gives to continuously keep up a certain reading pace. There have been moments when I look at what I’ve read over a period of time, I think “omg, that’s all I’ve read?” and then I feel pressured to read more. It’s definitely silly and there are certainly going to be good/bad reading days but that’s just life! I feel like a lot of us already put a lot of pressure on ourselves to always churn out content and to read all the books to stay relevant, and we don’t need to put more pressure on ourselves.

Do you track your reads? Do you use more than one platform to track or do you use spreadsheets too? Do you enjoy tracking your reads or do you think it adds pressure to your reading that you’d rather not have?

Let’s Talk Bookish: Making Friends Through Blogging

Published on by dinipandareads32 Comments

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join in the bookish discussion fun, check out the May 2022 prompts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

Making friends through blogging…

(SUGGESTED BY RACHEL @ A BOOKWORM’S PARADISE)
Prompts: Is blogging a good platform for making friends? Is it only new bloggers that are going to make friends with one another? Does blogging allow for connecting with people of different ages and different backgrounds? How easy or hard has it been for you to make friends through blogging?

BLOGGING AS A PLACE TO MAKE FRIENDS

I don’t know why it’s (still) surprising to me but I do think blogging is a good platform for making friends. I had a personal blog for several years before I took a break and started book blogging but even though I didn’t have as much engagement on that blog, I still managed to make a few good friends who I’m still in touch with now!

Something that I’ve found increasingly more difficult as I get older is making friends IRL (I feel like such a flop saying that but it’s true, lol) and while I don’t think making friends online is a breeze, I do think that having that digital barrier makes it a little less intimidating? I also think that connecting via a platform like blogging is easier because you’re interacting based on something you’ve read/seen that interests you too.

GLOBAL CONNECTIONS

I definitely think that it’s easier to make connections with people from different backgrounds and ages because that’s not the main focus of blogging and so that’s secondary to whatever you’re connecting over. I do think there are different cliques within the community though and I think the age/backgrounds can change depending on what genre(s) you read and what group you interact with more. As someone who dabbles in just about every genre and doesn’t specifically focus on romance or fantasy, I’ve found it’s easier to connect with people over a wider range of books.

This it totally random but I personally love checking out the country statistics on my blog and seeing where my visitors are from—unsurprisingly, most are from the US/UK but I’ve got views from the most random places too, like Macedonia, Martinique, Bhutan, and Kazakhstan amongst others.

IT HASN’T BEEN SUPER EASY BUT ITS BEEN FUN!

I feel like I got a little lucky when I first started blogging because I immediately connected with a few new bloggers and their enthusiasm made me feel less hesitant to put myself out there while blog hopping and really engage and interact with others. I wouldn’t say its been particularly easy to make new friends but I’d like to say that I have made a few over the years and I just hope that they enjoy interacting with me as much as I do with them! 😅

There are always so many new faces and I can hardly keep up with the blogs I follow as it is most of the time, but I try to blog hop and discover new bloggers as often as I can. I don’t think only new bloggers are capable of making friends but I think it does depend on how much you engage/interact! I love finding new content with similar tastes as me and it’s great when the engagement becomes mutual; sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t and that’s okay.

I have to say that I really appreciate all the bloggers who have become friends and who take the time to engage on a regular basis both on the blog and through Twitter. I hope you know how you are and know that I appreciate you all so much!!! 💜

Do you think the blogging platform is a good place to make friends? Have you made any good friends on here or do you struggle to connect with others?

Let’s Talk Bookish: Buying vs Borrowing Books

Published on by dinipandareads27 Comments

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join in the bookish discussion fun, check out the May 2022 prompts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

How do you decide what books to borrow or buy?

(SUGGESTED BY JILLIAN @ JILLIAN THE BOOKISH BUTTERFLY)
Prompts: Do you buy a lot of books? Do you borrow books from a library, or from friends? What do you look out for in books you buy? Are there any book genres you typically buy more of? Do the types of books that you buy differ from the types of books you typically borrow? Do you prefer to borrow or to buy books?

DO *i* buy a lot of books?

Well… *side-eyes the small stack of books I just bought earlier today* Sometimes, I guess? Hah, who am I kidding! Yes, I buy pretty much 95% of my books. The other 5% are ARCs or books I borrow from Kindle Unlimited, which is the only platform I use to borrow books from. I don’t have access to a library where I’m from (Indonesia) and so if I want to read anything, whether it’s old or new, I have to buy it myself.

KINDLE UNLIMITED OR NOTHING

The only borrowing of books that I do these days is through my Kindle Unlimited subscription. Most of the books I read on KU are romance and since it’s a genre that I’ve been reading more of over the last two years, it’s been a really great resource for me since I tend to read pretty quickly. If I had to buy all of the books that I read through KU I very likely wouldn’t read half the number of books that I do and I would also be a very very poor panda! 🥲

BUYING VS BORROWING GENRES

I never actually thought about the differences in genres of the books I buy vs the books I borrow. As I mentioned, most of the books I read on KU are romances, so that’s obviously the main genre of the books I borrow. That doesn’t mean I don’t borrow other kinds of books—I’ve found a few indie fantasies and some graphic novels on KU but they’re not as common finds for me. This also doesn’t mean I don’t buy any romances because I still very much do and there have been times when I’ve loved a book I read on KU so much that I went and bought myself a copy! I think for the genre of eBook I buy the most, it’s still gonna be romance because it’s just harder to find physical copies locally and most of the time I don’t have the patience to wait for international shipping (especially not with the panini).

Now that I’ve thought about the genres, I’ve noticed that most of the books that I buy physical copies of are contemporary fiction or fantasy (usually YA). I try to buy at my local store as much as possible and these are the genres that are most commonly found in store. When I buy special editions they also tend to be fantasy (either YA/Adult) but I think that’s mostly because they’re the ones that are offered through the sub boxes that I know of.

MY PERSONAL PREFERENCE

As it is, I don’t really have much of a choice whether I borrow or buy a book! I think if I had access to a library I would definitely prefer borrowing books over buying them because I do spend a significant amount of money on books—and I realise this is very much a privilege because I don’t have any other adulting responsibilities aside from a few monthly bills! Again, it’s a choice to buy books because it’s not like I don’t have any reading material or an empty existing TBR… 🙃 But I think being able to borrow books would also help me be more discerning with the ones that I add to my shelves because then the books I choose to buy would be the ones I know I love, would probably re-read and I want to keep forever.

So, what about you friends? Do you mostly borrow or buy your books? Do you notice a difference in the books you buy vs borrow? Do you prefer to buy or borrow?

Let’s Talk Bookish: The Makings of A Great Audiobook…

Published on by dinipandareads16 Comments

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join, check out the April 2022 prompts and May 2022 prompts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

THE MAKINGS OF A GREAT AUDIOBOOK

(SUGGESTED BY MIKAELA @ MIKAELA READS)
Prompts: Do you listen to audiobooks? If so, what makes a good audiobook? Is it the narrators or does it depend on the genre? What are some of your recommendations for amazing audiobooks? If you don’t listen to audiobooks, why not, and do you ever plan on doing so?

LISTENING TO AUDIOBOOKS

I listen to audiobooks but not very often. I remember trying one for the first maybe 4 years ago and it just didn’t work for me. I can’t recall which book it was but my attention drifted so quickly that before I knew it, 20 minutes had passed and I could recall nothing of what I’d just heard. I quickly realised that I needed to focus all my attention on listening otherwise I wouldn’t retain anything. Audiobooks also worked for me if I read along with the physical/ebook as it helped me to keep focused. Honestly, every time someone mentions actively doing something while listening to audiobooks I’m left in awe because how?! I truly wish that I could work or do other things while listening and be able to remember and process everything that happens but my brain, she says no.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THEM FT. MY FAVOURITES

Aside from having to intensely focus on the audio, the narrator is probably the most important factor in determining whether or not I’ll enjoy an audiobook. I love narrators that are able to create clear and varied tones for the different characters—the ones who are able to embody them and really make their various personalities shine through. Accents, I find, are also very important and I find it incredibly distracting when an accent comes off weirdly but I do love when narrators have accents that fit the story (like with Shuggie Bain (Scottish) and Milkman (Irish)!). I also don’t mind if there are sound effects, like in full productions, as long as they don’t overshadow the narration or become overly repetitive or distracting.

What I love about reading audiobooks is how much more engaged I feel with the story and how the narrators bring the characters and settings to life. I also love how quickly I can get through a book when listening to it—I’m most comfortable listening at x1.5-x1.9 speeds although I’ve tried faster speeds but again, my brain says no. 🤣

Full cast productions are by far my favourite and I don’t think there’s anything I don’t love about them. Sadly, I haven’t read too many of them but I’m always on the look out for more so if you have any recommendations I’d be keen to know what they are! These are some of my favourites:

Nonfiction books that are narrated by the author are usually a win for me but I have found one or two where I’ve struggled a bit to follow along but that’s mostly because my brain just can’t sync up with their fast cadence. I’m not much of a NF reader but audiobooks work best for me when I do pick them up. Some of my favourites are (the latter two aren’t narrated by the authors but they were very engaging narrators!):

As for the genres, I tend to mostly listen to nonfiction, fantasy or contemporary fiction. Funnily enough I haven’t yet listened to a contemporary romance audiobook but I do have one or two lined up that I’m looking forward to trying. Here are some of my favourite audiobooks so far:

Do you listen to audiobooks a lot or do you also struggle a bit like me? What do you love about them or what is it you struggle with most when listening to audiobooks? Do you listen to specific genres or all of them? What are you favourites? I’d love your recommendations, please! 💜

Let’s Talk Bookish: To Annotate or Not to Annotate…

Published on by dinipandareads25 Comments

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join, check out the April 2022 prompts and May 2022 prompts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

TO ANNOTATE OR NOT TO ANNOTATE…

(SUGGESTED BY ARIA @ BOOK NOOK BITS)
Prompts: …that is the question*. Do you like annotating books? If so, how do you annotate them? Is there a difference for you between ebooks, physical books, and audiobooks? If you’ve ever had to annotate books in school, does this affect your willingness to annotate the books you read for fun? What are some downsides to annotating books in your opinion?

ANNOTATING BOOKS: YEA OR NAY?

Until this year, the most annotating that I’ve ever done was highlighting favourite passages on my Kindle and occasionally writing a few notes with my thoughts/reactions. I never really considered annotating my physical books until I saw this post by Sumedha @The Wordy Habitat on how to annotate books when you’re reading for fun. I’ve always been curious when I see people annotating their books but I never thought it was something I wanted to do until I read Sumedha’s post and now I’m so glad that I’ve done it!

I’ve since developed a love of using sticky tabs to annotate and while I don’t take the task too seriously, I’ve come to realise how helpful it is to have these tabs to look back on when I write my reviews. I really shouldn’t be surprised about this fact so I don’t know why I am! 😂 I have to admit that I’m more partial to annotating physical books simply because I love using sticky tabs (is that sad and do I really care if it is? No, it just is lol 🤪)!

ANNOTATING EBOOKS VS PHYSICAL BOOKS

The main difference when I annotate ebooks and physical books is that my ebook annotations are usually much simpler. Unless I read on the Kindle app via mobile or browser, Kindle doesn’t show the different highlight colours so everything that I highlight is essentially clumped together in my notes section. For that reason, I tend to write more notes with each highlight when I’m reading on my Kindle than I do if I annotate physical books. When I read physical books I mostly use transparent sticky tabs to mark various elements that I want to remember—mostly focusing on themes, world-building, important plot points/events, romance (if any) and gripping quotes. I have written notes in books (in pencil!) but I still don’t do it often and for some reason, I still haven’t taken to writing on sticky notes and placing them in books either. If something really strikes me as an *important thought* I usually open up my Notes app and jot it down but again, I don’t do that often. This means that I rely on the sticky tabs to remember the good/important bits and considering how horrible my memory is, I’m somewhat surprised that it actually works. But since it does, I’m not particularly keen to change my method.

ARE THERE DOWNSIDES TO ANNOTATING?

I wouldn’t say that there are really many downsides but I’m also not thinking overly much about it! 😂 One that quickly comes to mind is that if you write in your books they probably won’t be as easy to sell as most(?) people tend to want “pristine” books rather than well-loved ones with writing and other things in it. Obviously, it’s not everyone because I personally have enjoyed finding annotations in my book(s) as I love to see what others think/feel about it and whether it’s the same as me.

Perhaps another downside is becoming too focused on annotating and losing the enjoyment of the read. There have been points during certain reads where I realised I became so focused on wondering what I should mark that I actually stopped myself from becoming immersed in the story. Thankfully, I didn’t get too far into these reads before I realised what I was doing, after which I told myself to chill and just mark whatever I feel like, even if that means tabbing huge chunks of the book because at least then I’d actually have the chance to enjoy the read since I’m annotating for fun anyway!

Do you annotate your reads or is it not for you? If you do, do you annotate your ebooks, physical books and audiobooks differently? (Also, very curious how you annotate audiobooks if you do it!) Do you think there are downsides to annotating?

Let’s Talk Bookish: Eating, Reading & Books to Make You Hungry!

Published on by dinipandareads12 Comments

Quick edit: I just learned of some changes to the Let’s Talk Bookish weekly meme so I’m now updating this introduction session. Since April 2022, Rukky @Eternity Books will no longer host LTB and instead, Aria @ Book Nook Bits will be its new host—congratulations, Aria! 🎉 With the change, there are also four brand new headers, so be sure to check out Aria’s announcement post + May 2022 prompts! The April 2022 prompts are still listed on Rukky’s page.

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts!

Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:

EATING & READING: YEA OR NAY?

(SUGGESTED BY FIVES @ DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE)
Prompts: Do you ever (carefully) eat and read at the same time? Or are your books too precious to possibly get dirty? Perhaps eating and an audiobook? Do any books ever make you hungry? Is there a time and place for a nice snack or meal with a good book, or should books be focused on independently?

eating & reading: yea or nay?

Eating while reading is something that I do on occasion but I haven’t made it a habit because I can be quite clumsy and no matter how careful I am I somehow always end up marking a page or two in whatever I’m reading! This usually only bothers me when I’m it’s a nicer copy or special edition but if it’s easily replaceable, then I don’t mind it too much. If I do feel like munching while eating I usually go for things that are easy to eat like cookies, popcorn or crisps. I’ve actually started to eat my crisps with chopsticks—a hack I learned from my sister and as much as I suck at using chopsticks, it has actually been great cos I hate sticky fingers! 😂

What I love about eating and drinking while reading is that, for me, it sets the tone for a cosy day. In the mornings, I love to snuggle up with my book on my reading chair with a coffee + brekkie, while in the afternoon it’s usually a cuppa tea + whatever snack I’m craving, and in the evenings it’s usually a glass of spiked chocolate milk lol!

do BOOKS MAKE ME HUNGRY?

The answer to this question is a resounding YES! I get hungry while reading… a lot? 😂 I’m quite the foodie IRL and whenever I treat myself, for whatever reason, it usually involves books and food. As much as I’m an emotional reader I also feel like I’m a “hungry reader” because it doesn’t take that much for me to conjure up the images of whatever food descriptions I read! I’m currently reading Fake It Till You Bake It and it’s making me crave cupcakes like you wouldn’t believe—and I’m *this close* to baking tomorrow so I can eat a cupcake while reading!

On that note, here’s a list of books literally off the top of my head that I remember made me pretty hungry and I would definitely recommend having a snack on hand while reading these titles:

legends and lattes
with the fire on high
sourdough
chef's kiss
pumpkinheads
battle royal
that secret crush
a magic steeped in poison
six crimson cranes
summer strawberries at swallowtail bay
the little swiss ski chalet

Well, this was a fun topic to talk about! Do you like to eat (or drink) while reading? Do books tend to make you hungry? What are some of your favourites? I’d love to know!