2. How do you know you’ve just finished a good book? Is it a thinking or a feeling response?
3. When you begin to form your review/rating - what is the first question you ask yourself?
4. Do you do star ratings? Why? Why not? a. If YES i. Explain your star rating system – what does a good book get in your rating system? ii. Is your star rating consistent? ie. are all your 5 star books better than all your 4 star books? b. If NO i. What language do you use to convey the quality of a book in your reviews? ii. Does this form an informal rating or ranking?
5. Do you believe every book has its perfect reader? Does this contradict the idea that a book can be “bad”?
6. What book that you hated have you recommended?
7. What makes a book good, bad or great by your evaluation?
8. When evaluating the quality of a book do you have specific criteria or aspects of the book, such as character development, that you consider? Does this change if you are writing an in-depth review vs. just thinking about the book for enjoyment?
9. Do you consider star ratings or ave. ratings when choosing books to read/add to your TBR?
10. Who on BookTube; does reliable and interesting reviews of books that you know you can use to decide if a book is for you or not. What makes their reviews so good?
11. Does that/those booktuber(s) use different language than you to evaluate and review the overall quality of a book?
2. How do you know you’ve just finished a good book? Is it a thinking or a feeling response?
3. When you begin to form your review/rating - what is the first question you ask yourself?
4. Do you do star ratings? Why? Why not? a. If YES i. Explain your star rating system – what does a good book get in your rating system? ii. Is your star rating consistent? ie. are all your 5 star books better than all your 4 star books? b. If NO i. What language do you use to convey the quality of a book in your reviews? ii. Does this form an informal rating or ranking?
5. Do you believe every book has its perfect reader? Does this contradict the idea that a book can be “bad”?
6. What book that you hated have you recommended?
7. What makes a book good, bad or great by your evaluation?
8. When evaluating the quality of a book do you have specific criteria or aspects of the book, such as character development, that you consider? Does this change if you are writing an in-depth review vs. just thinking about the book for enjoyment?
9. Do you consider star ratings or ave. ratings when choosing books to read/add to your TBR?
10. Who on BookTube; does reliable and interesting reviews of books that you know you can use to decide if a book is for you or not. What makes their reviews so good?
11. Does that/those booktuber(s) use different language than you to evaluate and review the overall quality of a book?
0:00 Intro 0:59 Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce @CharlieBrookReads 4:49 Exhalation by Ted Chiang @ReadingwithTatiana 11:48 O Caledonia by Elspeth Barker @M-J 18:45 Endymion Spring by Matthew Skelton @MatildaGothika 25:42 The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly 39:55 Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb @AbiofPellinor
Join me while I read The Words of Every Song by Liz Moore and The Five by Hallie RubenholdMy Worst Books of 2023Alex Black Reads2024-02-08 | My Worst Books of 2023
Finally, all of the terrible things I read last year!
0:00 Intro 1:46 The Baker's Daughter by Sarah McCoy 3:58 Women Who Love Men Who Kill by Sheila Isenberg 6:23 In the Ravenous Dark by AM Strickland 8:58 The Memoirs of Mary Queen of Scots by Carolly Erickson 11:07 The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides 13:43 The Effects of Light by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore 15:35 The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb 20:08 The Stranger in the Woods by Michael Finkel 26:00 Chaos by Patricia Cornwell 29:12 Last Call by Warren Adler 35:02 Outro
0:00 Intro 1:17 Earthlings by Sayaka Murata 5:11 Girl Sleuth by Melanie Rehak 9:01 Into the Raging Sea by Rachel Slade 13:58 The Necessary Hunger by Nina Revoyr 18:16 The Devil's Advocates by Michael S Lief and H Mitchell Caldwell 21:27 Deep Creek by Pam Houston 26:24 These Fleeting Shadows by Kate Alice Marshall 30:29 Outro
0:00 Intro 0:36 Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi 4:44 Deep Creek by Pam Houston 9:24 Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay 12:54 Flash Fiction: 72 Very Short Stories by James Thomas, Denise Thomas, and Tom Hazuka 15:14 Bo Jackson: Playing the Games by Ellen Emerson White 16:38 The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides 20:32 Magic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews 23:01 Medical Apartheid by Harriet Washington 26:07 I Am Nujood by Nujood Ali and Delphine Minoui 29:28 Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy 33:31 Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb 38:18 Outro
Thanks for choosing my tbr! I have already read two of these and can tell it's gonna be a great year.
0:00 Intro 2:02 The Borrowed by Chan Ho-Kei @MatildaGothika 3:01 A Crime in the Neighborhood by Suzanne Berne @LizSchubert 4:51 The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson @my0.25lifecrisis 5:44 Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin @donna-mariereads 6:25 A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Calletti @donna-mariereads 7:22 The Opposite of Butterfly Hunting by Evanna Lynch @TheBookishLand 8:26 Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice @OnefortheBooks 9:20 The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman @OnefortheBooks 10:18 The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey @themidnightreader 11:11 Piranesi by Susanna Clarke @themidnightreader 11:49 The Secrets of Hartwood Hall by Katie Lumsden @novellenovels 12:52 The Liveship Traders by Robin Hobb @cyyrine 14:26 Good Omens by Neil Gaiman @alexfrankfiction 15:26 Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard @LiteraryGladiators 16:51 The Promised Neverland by Kaiu Shirai, Posuka Demizu @pip4846 18:12 Someone Like Me by M.R. Carey @paperback_cat 19:10 The Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood @ashleybundybooks 20:18 Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts @ashleybundybooks 20:57 A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens @AbiofPellinor 21:41 Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee @AbiofPellinor 22:43 Remnants the Mayflower Project by KA Applegate @timewithbooks
Books Mentioned: The Lost World by Michael Crichton The Witcher by Andrzej Sapkowski Spirits Abroad by Zen Cho All the Sinners Bleed by SA Cosby All Emergencies, Ring Super by Ellen Emerson White The Nine by Jeffrey Toobin
New Year's Book Tag Questions 1. How many books are you planning to read in 2024? 2. Name 5 books that you didn’t get to this year but want to make a priority in 2024. 3. What genre do you want to read more of? 4. Name 3 non book related goals for 2024. 5. What’s a book you’ve had forever that you still need to read? 6. One word that your hoping 2024 will be: 7. Tag a friend!
Books Mentioned: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi Deep Creek by Pam Houston Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy Flash Fiction: 72 Very Short Stories by James Thomas, Denise Thomas, and Tom Hazuka Spirits Abroad by Zen Cho The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb We Had a Little Real Estate Problem by Kliph Nesteroff I Am Nujood by Nujood Ali and Delphine Minoui Medical Apartheid by Harriet Washington
Books Mentioned: 0:00 Intro 1:30 Nancy Drew 4:54 Freed by EL James 6:11 The Goodbye Cat by Hiro Arikawa 7:15 Sink by Joseph Earl Thomas 7:38 The Mysteries by Bill Watterson and John Kascht 9:03 Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard 10:22 Sex Cult Nun by Faith Jones 11:57 Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann 13:16 False Witness by Karin Slaughter 14:38 Endymion Spring by Matthew Skelton 15:50 Ellen Emerson White MG biographies 17:47 13 Tales of Horror by 13 Masters of Horror 18:46 In the Ravenous Dark by AM Strickland 20:45 Spirits Abroad by Zen Cho 21:26 Among the Enemy by Margaret Peterson Haddix 23:03 The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan 23:57 Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford 25:11 Moloka'i by Alan Brennert 26:16 People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks 27:33 Outro
The lateness of this video does not bode well for my end of year content.
0:00 Intro 0:30 After That Night by Karin Slaughter 3:27 Endymion Spring by Matthew Skelton 5:31 Let Us Water the Flowers by Jafar Yaghoobi 8:26 In the Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel Philbrick 10:17 Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker 13:00 Unbound by Tarana Burke 14:55 Jim Abbott: Against All Odds by Ellen Emerson White 15:45 The Necessary Hunger by Nina Revoyr 19:27 The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly 22:45 Made in China by Amelia Pang 25:47 Black Girls Must Die Exhausted by Jayne Allen 27:59 In the Ravenous Dark by AM Strickland 31:54 I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh 33:20 The Devil's Advocates by Michael S Lief and H Mitchell Caldwell 35:52 The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio 37:22 Eva Luna by Isabel Allende 39:35 The Bridge Iain Banks 42:08 Outro
Books Mentioned: Let Us Water the Flowers by Jafar Yaghoobi Endymion Spring by Matthew Skelton After That Night by Karin Slaughter Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker The Devil's Advocates by H Mitchell Caldwell and Michael S Lief The Necessary Hunger by Nina Revoyr Spirits Abroad by Zen Cho In the Ravenous Dark by AM Strickland
This project brought me so much joy this year, and I'm looking forward to continuing it in 2024. Literally recommend me anything! I love trying new things.
Books Mentioned: The Heartbeat of Trees by Peter Wohlleben Sex Cult Nun by Faith Jones Faithless by Karin Slaughter The Dead are Arising by Les Payne and Tamara Payne A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith Exhalation by Ted Chiang When They Call You a Terrorist by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha Bandele Beyond Reach by Karin Slaughter Jennifer Capriati by Ellen Emerson White O Caledonia by Elspeth Barker Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann The Kate Daniels Series by Ilona Andrews
If it wasn't for Anna Karenina, I would be very confident.
Books Mentioned: The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb Magic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews The Necessary Hunger by Nina Revoyr Flash Fiction edited by James Thomas, Denise Thomas, Tom Hazuka The Bridge by Iain Banks The Devil's Advocates by Michael S Lief and H Mitchell Caldwell Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Books Mentioned: Faithless by Karin Slaughter Sex Cult Nun by Faith Jones The Katie Daniels Series by Ilona Andrews The Dead are Arising by Les Payne Exhalation by Ted Chiang A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann Beyond Reach by Karin Slaughter Let Us Water the Flowers by Jafar Yaghoobi
Books Mentioned: The Memoirs of Mary Queen of Scots by Carolly Erickson Review: youtu.be/RBWHsVJSUhY?si=vUYAShl-vGptoKqH The Tomorrow Series by John Marsden Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien Reading vlog: youtu.be/8w5JnheBVKs?si=KwDDyBBUV9TqwWAP The Good Girl by Mary Kubica Water: Tales of Elemental Spirits by Robin McKinley and Peter Dickinson Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri A Fifty-Year Silence by Miranda Richmond Mouillot The No. 1 Lady's Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith Fallout by Sara Paretsky The Elusive Family Secret by Ken Astley Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb The Effects of Light by Miranda Beverly Whittemore The Walls by Hollie Overton
Books Mentioned: 0:00 Intro 0:40 Long May She Reign by Ellen Emerson White 4:07 Indelible by Karin Slaughter 6:58 Pageboy by Elliot Page 10:12 Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan 14:04 The Tomorrow Series by John Marsden (Darkness Be My Friend, Burning for Revenge, The Night is for Hunting, The Other Side of Dawn) 21:06 Momfluenced by Sara Petersen
I might not be keeping up with youtube, but at least I'm still vlogging.
Books Mentioned: Long May She Reign by Ellen Emerson White Indelible by Karin Slaughter Pageboy by Elliot Page Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan Darkness Be My Friend by John Marsden Burning for Revenge by John Marsden The Night is for Hunting by John Marsden The Other Side of Dawn by John Marsden Momfluenced by Sara Petersen Exhalation by Ted Chiang Sex Cult Nun by Faith Jones
Intro 00:00 Come Fly the World by Julia Cooke 00:59 The Effects of Light by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore 03:15 The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb 06:10 Outlawed by Anna North 10:40 Stay True by Hua Hsu 13:29 Trespasses by Louise Kennedy 16:00 The Walls by Hollie Overton 18:03 We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib 21:00 Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie 22:39 The Road Home by Ellen Emerson White 25:22 When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi 27:43 The President's Daughter by Ellen Emerson White 29:37 White House Autumn by Ellen Emerson White Long Live the Queen by Ellen Emerson White All Boys Aren't Blue by George M Johnson 33:52
Let's just talk about how great Ellen Emerson White is and pretend I didn't read anything else.
Books Mentioned: The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb Come Fly the World by Julia Cooke Outlawed by Anna North Trespasses by Louise Kennedy The Walls by Hollie Overton We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie The President's Daughter by Ellen Emerson White Long May She Reign by Ellen Emerson White
Books Mentioned: A Faint Cold Fear by Karin Slaughter Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews Cult Classic by Sloane Crosley Finding Me by Viola Davis The Good Girl by Mary Kubica Tomorrow When the War Began by John Marsden The Dead of Night by John Marsden A Killing Frost by John Marsden A Fifty Year Silence by Miranda Richmond Mouillot An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good by Helene Tursten Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce Somebody's Daughter by Ashley C Ford When I Hit You by Meena Kandasamy
Books Mentioned: A Faint Cold Fear by Karin Slaughter Greatest Closing Arguments in Criminal Law by Michael S Lief and H Mitchell Caldwell Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel The Good Girl by Mary Kubica A Fifty Year Silence by Miranda Richmond Mouillot Tomorrow When the War Began by John Marsden A Killing Frost by John Marsden Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews When I Hit You by Meena Kandasamy