hallo_hannah
1185 points
Post from the Die Rettung forum
hallo_hannah commented on a post from the Pagebound Club forum
I was wondering if most people read on a kindle or not, as I find it hard to with the bright light? But it’s also cheaper. What do you guys think? 💭
55hallo_hannah started reading...
Die Rettung
Charlotte McConaghy
0Post from the Brave New World forum
This constant change of perspectives stressed me out so much! This really is an absolute fever dream. I need a short break 😵💫
0hallo_hannah commented on a post
Maybe I missed it, but it seems like the Ford they deify in this book is the real Henry Ford? That would be so fascinating considering what we’ve seen about this societies emphasis on mass production (even mass production of children) and “consumerism” which they keep mentioning!
I think Henry Ford was alive when this book was published, I wonder what he thought of that?
4hallo_hannah commented on a post from the Pagebound Club forum
Hey everyone!
As we (rapidly) approach the end of the year, a few friends and I have planned and designed a Reading Challenge Bingo Board for 2026, and thought it would be cool to share it with you all.
The main board has most of its prompts aimed at people on Pagebound (eg. Gain a new Main Quest badge, read a book from J&L’s favourite shelves) and is designed to be easily used by anyone, no matter the speed or type of books you usually read. We have intentionally made the prompts general, so that they can fit in with any other reading plans and goals you might have next year.
There aren’t really any rules, but I’ll list a few things you should be aware of.
⭐️ The prompts in the cross section of the board are the easiest, and bingo can be achieved with very few books (+ your reading goal, which is the centre square). ⭐️ Feel free to use one book to tick off multiple squares (or not). I think it would be fun to have an unofficial competition to see who can tick the most boxes with a single book. ⭐️ Some of the prompts are very difficult in that they require you to read a lot of books (get all Special Event badges, get gold in a Main Quest), but it’s obviously completely up to you which squares you aim for. It is designed to be used for the entirety of the year, so I tried to put some tricky ones in there. ⭐️ Two of the prompts involve a ‘Mini Board’. These are genre or topic specific bingo boards (with only 9 squares) that we have also designed. There are 10 at the moment but if the interest is there we do have plans to make more as we go. These two prompts are marked with an asterisk (*). ⭐️ In the Mini Boards there are a few prompts that are indicated with a plus sign (+), these have corresponding quests in Pagebound even if the name of the prompt is slightly different. Feel free to reach out if you’re confused which one we are referring to, and also feel free to read a book outside the quest that fits.
You are very welcome to use this in your own groups, by yourself, or reach out if you want buddy to share your progress with. Some of us are using discord to facilitate our bingo chats, let me know if you’d be interested in that - but otherwise I’m looking forward to seeing your reading around on PB. Excited to see what the wonderful world of books and Pagebound have in store for us in 2026!
Thank you to the amazing people that contributed to this in various ways, big and small x
Happy reading all!
Loving honks, Goosie 🪿
Links: Main Bingo Board Mini Boards: Fantasy, Romance, Classics, Litfic, Sci-fi, Horror, Retellings, Non-fic, Mystery, Smut.
41Post from the Brave New World forum
hallo_hannah started reading...
Brave New World
Aldous Huxley
0hallo_hannah finished reading and wrote a review...
Set in 15th century China, the book follows the life of Tan Yunxian, a girl born into a wealthy family. Growing up, she learns to be a doctor (which, back then, was extremely rare for women). During this time, she also gets to know Meiling, a young midwife in training. Even though their families and occupations are of different status, they become lifelong friends and can learn from each other. When Yunxian is married off to her selected husband, she loses the opportunity to see her friend or to practise medicine. How will she live her life in a society where she's so strongly patronized and externally determined?
Usually, I find historical novels quite boring, but I really had fun with this one. Ancient China is a topic I know very little about and many facts were really fascinating for me. I was often torn between being impressed by how progressive some of the practices were (especially compared to Europe at the same time) and being frustrated by the structure of society. It took me a few pages to get used to the writing style, using expressions like "child palace" for "womb" or calling your mother "Respectful Lady". (I've read several comments by people with Chinese roots saying that this kind of language is not authentic and sounds quite strange. I definitely don't have the knowledge to judge on this, but I think it is worth mentioning.) The medical parts were very interesting. Several times I was surprised how much can be accomplished by non-invasive treatment, Yunxian's diagnostic skills were even more impressive - having in mind that the story is based on a real person. In the first half of the book you get quite a good look at all the disadvantages women had in this society. It bothered me a little that in the second half things seemed to go so well for so many female characters: If you really wish for it (and maybe know the right people), you can have a great and fulfilled life. I also would have loved it if there had been a little more female rebellion.
I would recommend this book, even if you're not really into historical novels - and especially if you know little to nothing about ancient China.
0hallo_hannah commented on ChaosReader's update
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Winter 2026 Readalong
Read at least 1 book in the Winter 2026 Readalong.
8Post from the Lady Tan’s Circle of Women forum
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