I’ve drafted this post before at least twice.
I keep trashing my drafts.
I don’t know why. TBR shame? Who knows.
So, inspired by Xandra, Laura, Sahi, and Amy, I’m finally doing this tag.
Oh snap, here’s a link to the original at Jami Shelves!
A book that you feel you need to read because everyone talks about it
By golly, this prompt sounds familiar.
What book am I thinking of?
OH, RIGHT, IT’S RED, WHITE, AND ROYAL BLUE.
I SEE IT MENTIONED ON THE BLOGS AT LEAST ONCE PER DAY.
THIS IS BECOMING EXCESSIVE.
A book that’s really long
I STILL haven’t finished the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy because the final book is over 600 pages and I am not in the mood.
Especially as the plot is building up to a massive battle.
I hate war novels. It’s going to be unpleasant.
A book that you’ve owned/had on your TBR for too long
I bought Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore in…2016?
It’s been languishing on my bookshelf.
I got to Robin Sloan’s follow-up Sourdough BEFORE this one.
It’s a magic Indiana Jones bookstore! Why don’t I want to read it?
A book that is required reading
(eg, school text, really popular classic – something you feel obligated to read!)
Queer history is important.
I bought a big ol’ book of history with color pictures.
It’s important, sure…
…but so daunting and not…very…fun.
A book that intimidates you
My girlfriend suggested I read Salt.
She likes dark books about science and monster hunters.
I….don’t.
Like The Wicker King, this book features sad kids.
It’s A Series of Unfortunate Events with added fantastical trauma.
Eeeeeeeeeurgh I don’t know about this one.
A book that you think might be slow
Little Women is VERY thick and has TINY, tiny print.
It’s so often billed as children’s lit, which…seems suspect.
I really want to read it! I do!
It just…seems…boring.
A book you need to be in the right mood for
Trainwreck: The Women We Love to Hate, Mock, and Fear…and Why looks good…in theory.
The news is enough of a trainwreck for me, so I’m never in the mood for more cultural disappointment.
I know lots of people are angry. I’m angry, too. I’m just…tired.
I’m TIRED.
I’M ALREADY IN THE MIRE. JUST LEAVE ME HERE.
A book you’re unsure if you’ll like
I read half of one Kiersten White novel and it was a MISTAKE.
I bought And I Darken a while ago.
It’s queer alt-history Vlad the Impaler…as told by the woman who wrote The Chaos of Stars.
WHAT SHOULD I DO??
Woof.
WOOOOOOOOF.
I picked up Kill the Farmboy today instead of any of these books.
I’LL GET TO THEM WHEN I GET TO THEM…if ever.
Narrative Paradise 
Wow I got to know about a lot of weird books in your post 😜😜😜 I love the way you write.. you are so funny !!!!
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Aww thank you! That’s nice to hear when I write a post that feels whiny.
And yes…I read some weird books. I love a wacky twist!
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Ohh it wasn’t whiny.. it was funny and entertaining 😊😊😊 I’m liking this wacky books idea, so I’ll have explore a few of them…
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Brilliant post! There are so many books I feel this reticence about too. My advice on little women is to think about leaving it on the shelf. It’s one of my childhood favourites for sure, but it definitely wanders into preaching territory and every character is so good and so wholesome… Don’t get me wrong. I adore the book. But it’s one that I don’t feel reads as well when you’re an adult. Some books I feel belong to a certain time in our lives… Or maybe that’s just me lol!
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Thank you! It feels weird to be ambivalent about books, but I’m glad I’m not the only one.
Aaaaaagh. I’ve heard similar criticisms about Little Women so that’s probably good advice. Greta Gerwig’s movie is coming out and the story is being painted as a feminist masterpiece, which is WHY I wanted to read the book. Proooobably I’ll force myself to read it, hate it, and go, “EMER WAS RIGHT.”
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Oh I’m super curious to see what she does with her adaptation of it. As long as it’s nothing like the mini series that aired on BBC the Christmas before last then I’ll be happy. I think it was aired on masterpiece(?) in other territories. But it aged up the youngest sister in the series and suddenly her childish quibbling made her seem sociopathic!!! Not a smart move AT ALL imo 😂😂😂 Well if you do read it I hope that you’ll find something to like in it 🙂
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I’m pretty sure Florence Pugh was cast as Amy and she’s NOT a teenager? So I wonder if they’re not only going that route, but the sociopath interpretation is really common! Honestly, I buy it. I HATE Amy.
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😂😂 Amy is very hateable…is that even a word???😂😂
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It is and she is.
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‘And I Darken’ is one of those books where at first, I wasn’t too sure and then I loved it, and then I wasn’t sure again. I love the alternative retelling of the Vlad story and how badass Lada can be, but there are still some parts that didn’t really need to be there/didn’t really fit the alt re-telling but made it more streamline female falls for male sort of story. But! I do love how gritty and rough it feels. I read the first two pretty quickly but still haven’t picked up the third, if that says anything. I probably didn’t help much, but hey, maybe you would like it!
Also, I am there with you for ‘Red, White, and Royal Blue.’ I’m still hesitant because it has gotten SO MUCH hype.
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Okay, that fits a lot of the reviews and feedback I’ve read. Will read with caution.
I finally caved and bought Red, White, and Royal Blue and I really enjoyed it?? It works as a romance, but it has much more depth than I expected. It’s also an wish fulfillment alternate history about the 2016 election, so there were tears on my end.
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Oh my God, the hype for ‘Red, White, and Royal Blue’ has been INSANE but honestly I’m not that interested in it at all. I don’t like romances (gay or straight) that much and I’m not into royal drama. I’m pretty sure when I see the hundredth article about the real royal family I throw up in my mouth a little (Do I really care if one of the royal kids just got a haircut? How… are these people… interesting?) I’ve got about a million ‘TBR’ books I’ve been holding out on, and I missed out on ‘Little Women’ when I was younger too. I hear it’s an outstanding book but damn, it is long. My mom has old copies of ‘Little Women,’ ‘Little Men,’ and ‘Jo’s Boys.’ They’re still mostly in good condition, so I have no excuse! 😛
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Little Women is SO long. That’s what’s been stopping me from reading it! There’s long, and then there’s long with small print. I won’t stand for it.
I finally caved and read RWRB and enjoyed it WAY more than I’d expected. If you’re not into romance, I probably wouldn’t recommend it (it’s not my favorite either.) The politics, however, and the characters were v. good.
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