The First Fifty

I began drafting this blog on July 1^st in hopes of posting right after the July 4^th vacation week. My plan was to have finished half of my Goodreads Reading Challenge for 2018 of 100 books and list them along with the reason I chose to read them. Not reviews, or even if I liked them, just the circumstances that led be to pick it up, download, borrow, buy or listen to a particular book.

Now, it’s Labor Day and I finally finished the 50^th book. (According to Goodreads, I’m 17 books behind in my Reading Challenge, so I’ll try to keep this short and get back to reading).

Without further ado and/or Columbus Day, the following is the first half of my 2018 Goodreads Reading Challenge:

Title -  Author  - Why I Chose

Little Fires Everywhere- Celeste Ng  - Peer pressure, I saw ‘everyone’ reading it

How to Find Love in a Bookshop -  Veronica Henry - It sounded cozy. About books & writing

Sisters First - Jenna Bush Hager - Needed an audiobook for cleaning house

Tell Me More - Kelly Corrigan - By Glitter & Glue author, I’d been anticipating 

The Hideaway-  Laura K. Denton - My book club’s January pick.

Graduates in Wonderland -Jessica Pan - Downloaded from library late-night 

So Far Away-  Meg Mitchell Moore - Waiting for new & realized I missed this one

Icing on the Cake - Ann Marie Roache - New release from a friend

The Dry - Jane Harper - My book club’s February pick

I’ve Still Got It… - Jenna McCarthy - Wanted something funny after The Dry

Party of One…  - Dave Holmes - Was in mood for a funny audio memoir 

The Captain’s Daughter - Meg Mitchell Moore - New release I was waiting for

The Truth According to Us - Annie Barrows - I can’t remember why I picked this

Digging In - Loretta Nyhan - New release from a friend

An American Marriage - Tayari Jones - Christmas gift. Oprah’s pick

Alternate Side - Anna Quindlen - I never miss her new releases

Educated: A Memoir - Tara Westover -  Read great reviews and saved for vacation

Every Note Played - Lisa Genova  - Recommended by a friend

Frat Girl - Kiley Roache - Daughter of friend’s first book

Townie - Andre Dubus III - Wanted a memoir audio book for plane ride

Welcome to Night Vale -  Joseph Fink - Recommended by my daughter

Hot Mess - Emily Belden - My book club’s April pick

Boys in the Trees - Carly Simon -  Wanted another memoir for audio

My Dear Hamilton - Stephanie Dray - Bought the day of release, loved previous book

Force of Nature - Jane Harper - Liked first book, decided to try second

Less - Andrew Sean Greer - Gave in to Amazon & Goodreads rec’s

Etched in Sand - Regina Calcaterra - My book club’s May pick

The Address - Fiona Davis - Recommended by a friend

Girl Unbroken - Regina Calcaterra - Sister’s version of Etched in Sand, HAD to read

Lawn Boy - Jonathan Evison - Lucky Day shelf at library. Like the cover

All the Little Lights - Jamie McGuire - Follow the author, new release

As Bright at Heaven - Susan Meissner - Recommendation from book club friend

The Woman in the Window - AJ Finn - My book club’s June pick

Beartown - Fredrick Backman - It was finally available at library! 

Everything I Never Told You - Celeste Ng - Heard it’s better than Little Fires (true) 

I Have Lost My Way - Gayle Foreman - My daughter wanted me to preview

Truly Devious - Maureen Johnson - I follow her on Twitter and was intrigued

The Divorce Papers - Susan Reiger - I thought I had to read before Heirs (false)

The Heirs - Susan Reiger - Recommened thru Goodreads

Designing Your Life - Bill Burnett and Dave Evans - My daughter’s college’s reccomendation

White Houses - Amy Bloom - My book club’s July pick

Now That You Mention It - Kristan Higgins - I follow her on Twitter, sounded good

I am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter - Erika L Sanchez -  Recommended by book club friend

Lilac Girls - Martha Hall Kelly - My book club’s August pick

The Perfect Couple - Elin Hilderbrand - Eagerly awaited to read on vacation

The Summer Wives - Beatirz Williams - Sounded good for vacation 

Crazy Rich Asians - Kevin Kwan -Movie looked great and I  Always try to read book first

Clock Dance - Anne Tyler - New one from her, chose audio

Good Luck with That -  Kristan Higgins - New release by author I read recently 

Next Year in Havana - Chanel Cleaton - Recommended by a friend (not Reese)

That’s 50! For a sneak peek at the next 50, I am currently reading China Rich Girlfriend by Kevin Kwan because it's the second in the trilogy and super fun. I am also listening to Curtis Sittenfeld’s newest release: You Think It I’ll Say It because I love her style and quirky storytelling.

I try to review everything I read on Goodreads so catch me there and send me some recommendations. I hope to update this before NYE!

Ally