(yes the emoji in the title is a megaphone, shh) I WANT TO HEAR ABOUT THE THINGS ON PB THAT YOU’RE PROUD OF HAVING MADE!!! a forum post or review that you’re proud of writing, a list or quest where you’re particularly proud of your curation, the sky is the limit🗣️🗣️it’s time to be self-centered!

Edit: Several of us will be doing a buddy read of this starting on August 9! Anyone else is free to join us!

Ode to the Half-Broken has been on my radar for a bit and has been bumping its way further and further up in my TBR, I was planning to start it sometime soonish, but now that it's on this quest I thought I'd see if anyone was interested in planning a buddy read? I figured I'd post here to gauge interest and then if there's interested folks we could decide together when would be a good time to start!

Alright friends, you know the drill… what’s a recent complaint (no matter how big, small, silly, dramatic, serious, etc) that you need to shout to the void?!🗣️

Good evening Bookaholics!

How has everyone's week finished? I hope it was all good!

My question for everyone today actually pertains to bad books 🫣

What was the last bad book you read? And what made you dislike it?

I'm in a pretty bad moment of my life right now, trying to figure everything out and not loose hope, so I was wondering what books made you feel like everything is gonna be alright? Books that gave you hope? Made you feel better or gave you strength to get up and deal with whatever you had to at that moment?

I'm trying to find more people to be friends with who have similar reading tastes or simply other things in common for me to be able to yap with them. So let's write about ourselves in as little or as much detail as we'd like and find like minded folks to be friends with! I'll start with my intro in the comments :)

I'm trying to find more people to be friends with who have similar reading tastes or simply other things in common for me to be able to yap with them. So let's write about ourselves in as little or as much detail as we'd like and find like minded folks to be friends with! I'll start with my intro in the comments :)

Since we’re over halfway through the year now (scary) what’s everyone’s favourite book released this year?

And what are some books still to be released that you’re looking forward to?

I'm trying to find more people to be friends with who have similar reading tastes or simply other things in common for me to be able to yap with them. So let's write about ourselves in as little or as much detail as we'd like and find like minded folks to be friends with! I'll start with my intro in the comments :)

This morning I woke up in a terrible mood for no clear reason. Unfortunately for my husband, he is the one that has to deal with my grumpy ass, so I warned him as soon as he woke up. His first question wasn't "Did you get enough sleep?" (I never do) or "Do you need to eat something?" (always). Instead it was "Did something bad happen in your book?" Because, also unfortunately for my non-reader husband, he has to deal with me venting (or raving) about whatever book I'm reading that day.

Later, while walking the dogs, I put my headphones on to listen to an audiobook like usual, but never hit play. And that's when I realized my favorite hobby was a huge source for my bad mood. Don't get me wrong, there are other factors likely contributing to my bad mood (gestures to the world around us), but reading is my comfort, my escape, and one of the few things I can somewhat control. So, instead of playing my audiobook, I started doing what I do best: ruminating.

Here's a glimpse of what was running through my head: I should be reading the ARCs coming out this month. I should be reading more non-fiction. I should be reading the last book I need for the Summer Readalong. I should be reading more philosophical books and classics. I should catch up on my backlog of book reviews. I should be reading more Quest books. I should be listening to this audiobook, because I have a feeling I'll really like it, even though it isn't capturing my attention right now.

I've learned over the years to recognize when I start "shoulding" myself, I'm actually shaming myself. That's not always the worst thing - sometimes I SHOULD be doing things that I don't want to do, like taking my car in for its oil change or making the appointments I've been putting off. But I logically know that I shouldn't be shaming myself for my hobby! Hobbies are supposed to be fun and relaxing! So how did reading end up on the same list as an oil change?

Now is also probably a good time to mention, I'm neurodivergent, and a couple of the ways it manifests in my life are demand avoidance and lack of motivation to start tasks. One of the workarounds I've built into my life is having external pressure like a deadline or being accountable to someone else - but that backfires when I have too many deadlines or too many things I feel accountable for, which is exactly where I am this month.

This feeling isn't exclusive to neurodivergents, but I think it's important to share that my dopamine system (part of the body's natural reward system) works differently because I'm neurodivergent. The feeling of accomplishment that hits others after they've finished a task, never hits me. I have literally never felt accomplished in my life, even for major milestones like finishing advanced degrees. The closest I have ever come to feeling accomplished is a temporary sense of relief that it's over. So my TBR can feel like a stressor without a reward at the end, just a little relief (and let's be honest... I'll just add more to my TBR).

So I'm writing this partly to stop the rumination from eating up my whole day and partly because I know I'm not the only person who has accidentally turned a hobby into a second job. And honestly mostly because the only reliable way I've found to be kinder to myself is to pretend that I'm talking to someone else. So this is what I would say if someone else told me they were feeling this way:

1. You spend a lot of time and effort on writing reviews, so the author/marketing team will still be happy with a late one.
2. Nobody is checking to see if you've read their book recommendation yet. They will be excited whenever you can dedicate the time and energy to their book rec because they are hoping you will enjoy it too.
3. Those philosophical, classic, and non-fiction books aren't going anywhere. You want to read them so you can think on them, and you have no thinking to spare right now. Reading them right now would be wasting them.
4. Pushing through books you aren't excited for will just burn you out and then you'll actually never get to the books you are telling yourself you should be reading right now.
5. The world is literally on fire, be gentler with yourself - the world isn't going to be.

So, in answer to my husband's question: nothing bad happened in the book I'm reading. The bad thing was intentionally avoiding the books I want to read in lieu of the books I think I should be reading.

If you're somewhere similar this week, I hope this helps you a little too. Let me know which book you actually want to read this week and then put the rest back on the shelf (literally or metaphorically). They'll be there whenever you actually want to read them.