Anne of Green Gables Readalong Sign Up

Believe it or not I have never read Anne of Green Gables and noticed that some of my favorite bookblogers, Kami, Suey and Jenni are hosting a readalong in March. I recently picked up an ebook copy and audio book copy so I figured why not join in. 

So here are all the details in case you want to join too! There is a sign up linkup on Kami's Library Thoughts  and you can use the hashtag #GreenGablesRAL on social media to interact with others.

Schedule

Chapters 1-13: March 1-11

Chapters 14-26: March 12-22

Chapters 27-38: March 23-31

Discussion Posts

March 11 on Suey's Blog

March 22 on Kami's Blog

March 31 on Jenni's Blog

I am also going to count this in with my Middle Grade March (more on that to come) and one of my classics for the year. Looking forward to reading this with everyone!

Early Reader Bedtime Story: My Tooth is About to Fall Out by Grace Maccarone

Read for: Early Reader Challenge/ Munchkin will start loosing teeth soon

Synopsis: "A young girl is about to lose her first tooth."

My Review: A bit of an oldie but a goodie. There are a few books out there about kids loosing their teeth but not nearly enough. Munchkin is approaching that time so I figured we better get to reading some of them. This was a great Level One early reader book, lots of sight words and easy words to sound out. The sentences were simple and with plenty of repetition and rhymes. Munchkin enjoyed the story and it does take some of the fear out of loose teeth and makes it something to look forward to instead.

My Rating: This was a great book and Munchkin enjoyed reading it on his own. A perfect way to combine their growing skills and what is happening to them.  We give it a rating of Four Paws.

Good Night! Sweet Dreams!

Review of The Storied Life of AJ Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

Read for: Highly Recommended/ Recent Purchase

Synopsis: "As surprising as it is moving, The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry is an unforgettable tale of transformation and second chances, an irresistible affirmation of why we read, and why we love.

We are not quite novels.

We are not quite short stories.

In the end, we are collected works.

A. J. Fikry's life is not at all what he expected it to be. His wife has died; his bookstore is experiencing the worst sales in its history; and now his prized possession, a rare collection of Poe poems, has been stolen. Slowly but surely, he is isolating himself from all the people of Alice Island—from Chief Lambiase, the well-intentioned police officer who's always felt kindly toward him; from Ismay, his sister-in-law, who is hell-bent on saving A.J. from his dreary self; from Amelia, the lovely and idealistic (if eccentric) Knightley Press sales rep who persists in taking the ferry to Alice Island, refusing to be deterred by A.J.'s bad attitude. Even the books in his store have stopped holding pleasure for him. These days, he can only see them as a sign of a world that is changing too rapidly.

And then a mysterious package appears at the bookstore. It's a small package, though large in weight—an unexpected arrival that gives A.J. the opportunity to make his life over, the ability to see everything anew. It doesn't take long for the locals to notice the change overcoming A.J., for the determined sales rep Amelia to see her curmudgeonly client in a new light, for the wisdom of all those books to become again the lifeblood of A.J.'s world. Or for everything to twist again into a version of his life that he didn't see coming."

My Review: I have had a lot of people recommend this book to me, saying it is a book for book lovers, so I finally caved. It really took me a good 50 pages to get into the story but eventually the characters found their way in and I was able to sink into the story. I found the characters unique and relatable, and I loved the small town, island setting (also relatable being in the Island State). I loved the little notes at the beginning of each chapter with a bit of life advice, though again it took a few to figure that out. It was a slow moving story with some twists but they were pretty easily spotted but still added an element to the story anyway. Some how this book did end up getting pretty emotional for me and I my eyes may have leaked a time or two. Definitely glad I read it.

My Rating: It took me a while to finally pick this book up but it was worth the wait, as said in the story, books have to find you at just the right time.  I enjoyed it and would recommend it though it doesn't have to be a must read but a worth while read.  I give it a rating of Four Paws.

Personal March Reading Challenge: Try A Chapter - Subscription Box Books

If you have visited either here or on my Instagram (@EasternSunset9) you will know that I have tried out quite the variety of Book Subscription Boxes, everything from the popular Owlcrate to the no longer existent NovelTea Club and Geek At Heart boxes, and in that time period I have accumulated quite a few books that have not exactly been on my radar but seem within my reading genre tastes (at least somewhat, I don't subscribe to mystery boxes because I don't read mystery), and many of them have remained unread.

Part of my goal this year is to clear out quite a bit of my bookshelves of books I don't like or will never read.  So I was inspired by the Try a Chapter Challenge that I saw on Little Book Owl's Youtube Channel and the recent Owlcrate-a-thon readathon for all these unread Owlcrate Books (that I missed in February). 

So my goal is to try a chapter from each one of these books on my Book Subscription Box TBR shelf and see if it is something that I will be reading within the year or if it is a book I should unhaul.  I will complete this challenge during the month of March, with 20 books that means about 2-3 books at least a week.  I will have a wrap up at the end of March to let you know my thoughts on these books.

Have you ever done this before? How do you handle clearing out your TBR shelves? If you receive book boxes are you good about reading them right away or are you like me and let them pile up?

It's Not Monday Reading List

Its Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Shelia at Book Journey. Share what books you have finished in the last week, are currently reading and what might be coming up next!

Reviews Posted Last Week:

Links will take you to my review

Survive the Night by Katie Ruggle (Romance Week)
Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage by Jennifer Ashley (Romance Week)
Landscaper Series by Robin Stone (Romance Week)

 Books Finished Last Week:

Reviews will be posted at a later date

Smuggler's Run
You'll Be Mine
Ain't She Sweet
Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage
Poison Study

Currently Reading:

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin - Print - On Page 79 of 260
The Star Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi - Audio - 27%
In the Labyrinth of Drakes by Marie Brennan - Audio - 48%
The Plague of Giants by Kevin Hearne - Print - on page 28 of 624

Pages Read/ Time Listened
86:32 Hours Listened (19:04 listened this week)
5,652 Pages Read (790 this week)

Books Added to Shelves Recently: TBR
Plague of Giants by Kevin Hearne
Moonsilver by Kathleen Duey
Silver Thread by Kathleen Duey
The Silver Bracelet by Kathleen Duey
Mountains of the Moon by Kathleen Duey
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
I Love My Love by Reyna Biddy
The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin
Gods of the North by Lucy Coats
We Have Always Lived in a Castle by Shirley Jackson
Life Changing Manga of Cleaning Up by Marie Kondo
To the Sky Kingdom by Tang Qi
Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage by Jennifer Ashley
Letters from Wolfie by Patti Sherlock
Ketchup Clouds by Annabel Pitcher
Dead Man's Walk by Larry McMurtry
Luck Love and Lemon Pie by Amy E. Reichert
Beartown by Fredrik Backman
The Coincidence of Coconut Cake by Amy E. Reichert
Listen, Slowly by Thanhha Lai
Ravenous by MarcyKate Connolly
Monstrous by MarcyKate Connolly
The Astounding Broccoli Boy by Frank Cottrell Boyce
Terrier by Tamora Pierce
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
As Brave as You by Jason Reynolds
Smuggler's Run by Greg Ruka
The Lost Stone by Jordan Quinn
The Scarlet Dragon by Jordan Quinn
Sea Monster by Jordan Quinn
Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller
The Wolves of Winter by Tyrell Johnson



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I hope that you all had a great week last week and enjoyed my romance week here on the blog. It was a nice break from all the fantasy to sit and read a bunch of romances.   I am definitely a little all over the place with my reading this year, I am not sticking to my TBR lists like usual but reading more of the books that I recently purchase or that I just feel like reading.  It is kind of refreshing and I may try to have a bit of a smaller TBR next month so I can play it a little loose and see how it goes.  I do have a couple of readathons and a personal challenge coming up next month so that will be exciting and I will be seeing a lot of books leave my TBR shelves!

How has your February been going? Have you stuck to the books you selected to read this month or are you a mood reader?