I've had The Tattooist of Auschwitz on my shelf since it was published. Perhaps I'll finally be brave enough to open it. It's going to be a very tough read emotionally.
Get some snacks it's a long one!! For 2019, I will be posting every Saturday, except for the end/beginning of the month where I'll post my TBR/Wrap Up as close to these dates as possible!
I'm so evil... I kind of want you to read the entire Throne of Glass series just for Kingdom of Ash, and also because I'd love to hear you complain about them all! Hahaha I've had MAJOR struggles with that series, and unfortunately I've read so far into that I feel like I need to just finish it off because I hate not finishing series.
Hahaha same request! Her ToG review is one of my fave and if she continues on with series, so will I! If Emily can survive it, she’ll be my motivation. 😂
Cassidy oh 😯 yikes! I used to hate not finishing a book, can’t imagine struggling with a whole series. The one ☝️ thing that helped me was that I realized that by trying to finish a book I hate, I was wasting precious time that could be used discovering other books. And then read a summary of the spoilers just to know how it ended 😜
@@nishsaw7557 I haven't read it myself (I still haven't read Empire of Storms even), but I would most certainly not recommend it because it's the last book in the Throne of Glass series. I don't think a new reader would understand anything that's going on in Kingdom of Ash if they skip the seven books preceding it.
Definitely do the audiobook for Sadie rather than the print version. It's multi-cast, and since part of the book is the transcript of a podcast they actually DO the podcast in the audio and it's an incredible immersive experience. I'm not sure I would have liked the book so much if I hadn't done the audio, which was fantastic.
Yes! The audiobook is wonderful. I've heard that if you read the print version, you can get the audio versions of the podcast chapters for free. Not sure about that, but it might be worth looking into.
The reason I was interested in this book is because the main character is an autistic female adult and it's written by an autistic female adult. Personally it is my top three favorite books from last year. And it sure has some steamy sex scenes in it that I was not expecting. But I'm like you normally don't read romance at all.
The Shape of Water book was published after the movie that won Best Picture at the Oscars and Del Torro was the producer and the writer of the original story at the same time. It is a complex story on the idea of humanity, but love is a big part of it, so I guess keep that in mind. Personally, I think the story was a masterpiece. And I hope you'll enjoy it at least half as I did hahaha.
Hi Emily, great challenge! Btw The Shape of Water was not adapted into a movie, the movie was adapted into a book! Del Toro did the same with his previous movie Crimson Peak. So, in this case, the original story is the movie, which is great and won an Oscar for best movie. It's not really a romance, but a story about monsters (and the monster is toxic masculinity and the patriarchy haha!). I hope you enjoy the book, but the movie is better, Guillermo del Toro is a great story teller and a fantastic person (he also won for best director and is our national hero here in Mexico lol).
Well in throne of glass, the whole ‘mate’ thing doesn’t disappear. There’s a whole race of characters that are territorial men.. if you can stand that. But plot wise or exploration of fantasy gets a lot better than book 1. Chaol’s character remains dull in my eyes but at least changing from book 1.
Read book 2 from throne of glass. Yes, you may not love it, but I feel like it's refreshing seeing someone being honest about a YA book. I love your honest banter, and honestly it helps me figure out small issues I miss while reading which may be important to have notice of
In my opinon the book who won the Poetry category wasn't the best to start poetry, but the second one (The Poet X) it´s amazing, and a good one to start reading poetry
@@BookswithEmilyFox Emily, skip the first book and do the audio of The Poet X. I don't read much poetry but that book was soooo good. The audiobook is so worth it.
@@BookswithEmilyFox To add to what Fayrose Hajer said about the audiobook, the author herself narrated the audiobook and I have been hearing people loving it It felt like they're at a small cafe, listening to her speak.
I think you should replace the y/a fantasy category by reading a book in the graphic novel and comic category. I would really like to hear your opinion on this books and also they consume so little time that you would have more time to read the other books lol (English is not my first language, so sorry if I made any mistake)
You're English is fine don't worry, I know the struggle though! My issue with comics is that I get most of my books used or from my library through the app Libby (so audiobooks or ebooks) so comics aren't available!
I paused this at 4:47 just to tell you that I totally appreciate that you try to go beyond your reading comfort zone. There are so many other channels that I just can't get into because all of the books are in one category and the BookTuber doesn't try to broaden their horizons at all. I try to be a very diverse reader and I can say that is really one of the main factors that keeps me clicking on literally ALL of your videos. Can't wait to buddy read with you.
I hope you’ll read the second Throne of Glass book, the series does get better. First time I read it I DNF’d after the second book, but when I re-read the series I kept going and from book three onwards it is soooo worth it! Amazing side characters, Celena does become more bearable, and so many strong female characters who you haven’t met yet 💕
You mentioned Becoming and I loved it! I don't read many memoirs, but my goal in 2018 was to try more. I love Tiffany Haddish, but ended up DNFing the audiobook 80% through. It was okay - I rated it 3 stars. I just lost interest. I also adored Sadie - highly recommend the audiobook because it's full-cast and each alternating chapter is a true-crime podcast format. People seem divided I think largely in part to the ending (speculative, which is hit or miss for a lot of people). I found it a bit predictable (the mystery aspect), but still loved it! 💕
I loved An American Marriage and I'll Be Gone In The Dark. Two of my favorites from last year. The Belles was meh. Super hyped when it came out, but nobody's really talked about it since. I don't think anybody's talked about the sequel coming out in March either. I will have to add The Tattooist and All The Light We Cannot See to my TBR.
BookswithEmilyFox oh it’s a real gem of a cartoon. I don’t recall ever being scared of the Sharptooth attack scenes myself but definitely got me into dinosaurs. If you want horror you should google what happened to the voice actress who did Ducky. Be warned, it’s a real tragedy
For the YA sci-fi/fantasy, why don't you read the second Throne of Glass book? You mentioned before that you MAY continue on with the series, and that seems like a good compromise to me. I personally just read the first and second books last year for the first time, and the second book is way way way better than the first one (like personally for me a 2 stars for the first book and a 4.5 for the second)
This is such a cool challenge! As a Fantasy junkie, I really enjoyed All The Light We Cannot See. It surprised me, but I really enjoyed it. I might look into the Goodreads winners myself!
Elevation is NOT horror. That’s what I personally hate about the Goodreads awards. Stephen King gets categorized as horror even though a lot of his books aren’t and he ALWAYS wins because he is a recognizable name and people automatically vote for him. So sad really because then the other authors who deserve it and are actually writing horror don’t stand a chance. The only horror aspect of Elevation came at the very end.
Highly recommend the audiobook for Sadie! It's got a full cast which is fabulous but it's also told in part in a podcast format which is done incredibly well through audio.
What a brave challenge to attempt; I have to say I don't trust goodreads choice awards at all. Like you mentioned, it seems more of a popularity contest and most often very bad books win their categories while quality books don't or are not even nominated. Just the fact that something like Kingdom of Ash, the Cruel Prince and Circe can win or come close to wining their categories makes me severely distrust the whole contest. I will however be reading the Tattooist of Auschwitz, because I got it as a present, and I am severely not ready to cry. xD But looking forward to maybe reading it alongside you and other people who join in! :)
1. All The Light We Cannot See was probably one of the most boring books I’ve ever read and I read this when I was reading a LOT of historical fiction 2. Sadie was my favourite book of the year and is officially my new favourite book of all time. I want to get a tattoo inspired by the silhouette on the cover. I really hope you love it. Everyone needs to read it.
Honestly this is a great idea. I am totally joining in on this. I've already decided on my alternates for the few categories that I'd already read the winner.
I made my list for this exact challenge last month so I'll definitely be joining you. I'm excited! Some of mine are different as I haven't read all the ones you have but maybe I'll add the ones you are reading too! So many books to read this year...
I read Sadie and it was SO GOOD, but it’s pretty dark, especially for a YA. I read the physical, not the audio, and I still thought it was good. I would have done the audiobook, but the waiting list was way too long.
I’ve got 20 pgs of Vengeful left! I don’t know if I’d call sci-fi, though. I feel like it’s more urban fantasy to me. I’m looking forward to your opinions on it. I loved the Shape of Water film, but I haven’t read the book yet. Novelizations are really hit or miss for me. I’ll Be Gone in the Dark was fantastic, but also deeply upsetting. While I was reading it, my grandmother startled me in the middle of the night and I actually cried, I was so afraid. Loved the video, as always! I hope your 2019 is going well so far, and I can’t wait to see what you produce this year.
This challenge is amazing! Last year I could only vote for the best of the best because I don't read popular new releases hahaha so maybe I'll be joining you with some of this books :D
good idea ! I also want to read other genres - actually this videos clearly shows your favorites ones ! I don't read SF or fantasy so I can't help you with that but it's interesting to see that you definitely don't agree with the votings on GR. I have read All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr a few years back (I'm French and it's partially sets in Saint Malo) and I really enjoyed it, though the short chapters and the fast pace intrigued me in the beginning. I also read Educated and loved it (how someone gets to think of its own) and finally I also read McNamara's true crime (she found the Golden Bay killer but yes she died before she could finish her book). A good read but nearly ten months after I don't recall the details or much. I enjoy true crime.
If you enjoyed The Female of the Species, which I know you did, I think you’ll enjoy Sadie. I’ve read both and they have similar premises. Sadie was, in my opinion, really, really good. I highly recommend the audiobook for it.
The shape of water won best movie of the year of 2018. Guillermo did the movie Pans labrynth and other great ones! He also write the the Strain which was a TV show. Love your videos Happy new year!
What a good idea! I've read alot of those books as well, but Sadie is one I havent heard of. I added it to my list! 😊 Some of the winners are confusing....The Poppy War should have won it's category.
Happy New Year ♥️ wishing all the happiness to you and your family! Can't wait to see what 2019 has planned for us. We are gonna crush our reading goals. 📖♥️ I read The Shape of Water, and it was good. I didn't watch the movie yet, but it is on my list 😁 All The Light we Cannot See was a very very good book 😍
Oooh that's a great challenge! Hopefully you love them all. My bookish goals are to read 50 this year (came close last year at 48), and to become a bigger part of the booktube community and grow my channel.
Thanks Emily! I love this challenge. I think I will try it myself! I need to challenge myself this year. I NEED to read more this year. Give The Kiss Quotient a try! I loved it, but I know it's not your favorite genre.
I love this idea!! This year I actually decided to do the same thing and chose 14 of the winners (skipping sequels and categories that are hard to read like cookbooks). Can't wait to see your thoughts as I also read them :) I've started The Great Alone and it's AMAZING so far!! The writing is beautiful; it definitely makes me feel the way that the main character does.
I'm so glad you mentioned the ratings/vote disparity for Shape of Water. Almost all of the categories had winners with more votes than ratings, but that one had the biggest gap I've ever seen.
I wish you had to at least have the book marked as "read" on your account to vote. It's not much but it would already make a difference! People clearly vote for famous authors/books without having read the book - Artemis by Andy Weir last year and now SK for a book that isn't even horror... it takes away any credibility :/
Out of these I've only read All the Lights We Cannot See and Elevation. All the Lights We Cannot See is one of my favourite books ever, it's so beautiful. Elevation is not a horror book at all, so I'm very confused to why it would win that category, or why it was even nominated as a horror book. Probably cause of the name of the author, and everyone just associates King to that genre even though he doesn't only write horror books. It was a pretty enjoyabel book though.
This is exciting! I'm looking forward to see how you feel in the end. I've read The Kiss Quotient (and The Wedding Date - another book nominated in the romance category) and I was disappointed by both of them. The Kiss Quotient is a better book than The Wedding Date but not by much and I say this as someone who actually likes romance. I read like 20 romance books last year (out of 100) and sadly none of the ones I actually enjoyed were even nominated. That being said, many of the booktubers and GR book reviewers I follow who do not typically read romance seemed to really like it so perhaps you will, Emily. I'm reading Circe right now and would definitely put it into the fantasy category. Magic is such a big part of the book and it's almost completely about myths. Of the poetry, both of Amanda Lovelace's poetry collections are basically stand alones. I preferred The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One though.
The Me Before You series is actually really good. The second and third books focus on Lou's journey as she finds out what she wants to do with her life and move on from Will's death. I really liked them, the last book was very moving in my opinion.
I highly recommend not skipping the comics and graphic novel category, as there are some great fantasy/humor reads among them. Plus, you get through them fast and more are released every few months as opposed to every year.
Tbh it's simply because I use my library and I don't go in person. I wouldn't be able to read them and they're not my favorite anyway. I've read some and they're not really for me!
This sounds like a really fun challenge. The only books I've read off this list are I'll be gone in the dark and vengeful and they were both fantastic so hopefully the rest follow suit.
This sounds amazing!! good luck with the challenge!! I dont tend to vote for the goodreads award cuz I feel I can't give a good judgement of the best book when I haven't read all of them And then I would mostly choose the one I've read or the most popular
I loved the land before time "yup yup yup" haha (I saw you comment on someone else's comment that she said qui qui qui in French, so cool to learn how things are translated ^^)
If I remember correctly, The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevado came second in the Poetry category. I would highly, highly recommend it even for people like myself who don't like/read much poetry. This is a contemporary novel made up of poems. It's about a Dominican American girl and deals with many important topics such as parental abuse, body shaming, religious identities, etc. Obviously being poetry it's a shorter read, but I think I would recommend the audiobook for this as Acevado, who is a notable slam poet, reads it herself. This book made me cry in public and was one of my absolute favourites for last year.
I’ve seen a lot of people not like The Belles, if you are not interested in it from the start I wouldn’t waste your time on it. Besides that I can’t wait to pick up Skyward and see if I enjoy Sadie as well (: love your videos I’m so impressed with how many books you read I always look into the books you recommend!
I get where you're coming from regarding the Me Before You series BUT, I am someone who watched the movie before reading the book, and just like most 1st books in a trilogy, the first one wasn't the best one. Kind of slow paced etc. and especially if you know the ending by having watched the movie. It's like you're waiting for the inevitable end. BUT with that being said, the 2nd and 3rd book do make up for the lack of the first one. I really recommend them to you Emily !
everytime you say next category I can't help but think of RuPaul's drag race 🤣I think it would be really funny if you did a reading vlog for the kiss quotient and I'm also really happy you're going to be reading the princess saves herself in this one, it is amazing!!
Not going to lie, I really hope that you enjoy more of your reading this year because last year was ROUGH...I hope this isn't setting you up for a book slump or simply just hating what your reading. I want to read a number of the books on your list and hopefully I'll be able to read them at the same time.
Honestly looking back it doesn't look that bad stat wise... but I read a lot of "meh" books for sure! I'm super excited for 2019 and the first two books I've finished (although the first one I only had 50 pages left lol) were 5 stars so I'm hopeful :P
Goodreads is definently a popularity contest where people vote or review based on authors, covers, etc and not necessarily on having read the book. I just saw that the Winds of Winter you know the next ASOAF/GoT book? The one that hasn't come out yet? The one that no one knows when will come out? That book has 4,4 stars based on over 6.000 reviews on Goodreads...
I haven’t read The shape of water but I’ve seen the movie and I really can recommend it. It’s a really good movie and moved me a lot. I think it also won an academy award.
FOR ANYONE INTERESTED:
Fox Book Club (to buddy read!): bit.ly/2BXYoj9
My Goodreads Page (to keep up with my reading!): bit.ly/2a9Qoki
I've had The Tattooist of Auschwitz on my shelf since it was published. Perhaps I'll finally be brave enough to open it. It's going to be a very tough read emotionally.
Fox Book Club yeaah. Love the picture representing the club though ahahah
her red lipstick and black sweater next to the vengeful cover was such an AESTHETIC
I never saw it that way but now I wanna create a collection of outfits that match book covers 💖
Disappearing Emily snow globe 🤣
My camera loves it more than me. I couldn't deal so I got rid of it.
Can't share the spotlight.
Get some snacks it's a long one!!
For 2019, I will be posting every Saturday, except for the end/beginning of the month where I'll post my TBR/Wrap Up as close to these dates as possible!
donnne 💕
I love your videos, this is great news.
I thought it would be nice to try and be consistent! It's as close as it's gonna get because TBR/Wrap Up can't always be on the same day lol
When you read Sadie get the audio book. It is fantastic and so immersive
Who wants to participate in this reading challenge? :D
BookswithEmilyFox 🙋♀️
I’m reading The Dry right now.
BookswithEmilyFox me🥰🙋🏾♀️
I will probably read a few of them! its actually great challenge 🙌🏽
I am also doing one of these on my channel! I am really looking forward to it!
I'm so evil... I kind of want you to read the entire Throne of Glass series just for Kingdom of Ash, and also because I'd love to hear you complain about them all! Hahaha I've had MAJOR struggles with that series, and unfortunately I've read so far into that I feel like I need to just finish it off because I hate not finishing series.
Oh it's still a possibility lol
My friend has most of them so if I'm ever in the mood... it will happen!
Hahaha same request! Her ToG review is one of my fave and if she continues on with series, so will I! If Emily can survive it, she’ll be my motivation. 😂
Cassidy oh 😯 yikes! I used to hate not finishing a book, can’t imagine struggling with a whole series. The one ☝️ thing that helped me was that I realized that by trying to finish a book I hate, I was wasting precious time that could be used discovering other books. And then read a summary of the spoilers just to know how it ended 😜
Would you recommend to read kingdom of Ash as a standalone?
@@nishsaw7557 I haven't read it myself (I still haven't read Empire of Storms even), but I would most certainly not recommend it because it's the last book in the Throne of Glass series. I don't think a new reader would understand anything that's going on in Kingdom of Ash if they skip the seven books preceding it.
Definitely do the audiobook for Sadie rather than the print version. It's multi-cast, and since part of the book is the transcript of a podcast they actually DO the podcast in the audio and it's an incredible immersive experience. I'm not sure I would have liked the book so much if I hadn't done the audio, which was fantastic.
I agree! Definitely think I enjoyed the audiobook way more than if I had read a physical copy.
Ah a few people have mentioned it so... hop I go on that waiting list too lol
Yes! The audiobook is wonderful. I've heard that if you read the print version, you can get the audio versions of the podcast chapters for free. Not sure about that, but it might be worth looking into.
I LOVE audiobooks but I physically read this book and read it in one day, which I don’t do often. I’m sure either audio or physical is great!
oh cool thanks for the heads up :)
oh girl, you gonna hate the kiss quotient 😂
Let's be honest.... I have a feeling I might lol
I totally want to read this but I think Emily will hate it.
100% lol. I liked it though xD
I read it and I kind of like it but yep, she will hate it 😂😂😂
The reason I was interested in this book is because the main character is an autistic female adult and it's written by an autistic female adult. Personally it is my top three favorite books from last year. And it sure has some steamy sex scenes in it that I was not expecting. But I'm like you normally don't read romance at all.
The Shape of Water book was published after the movie that won Best Picture at the Oscars and Del Torro was the producer and the writer of the original story at the same time. It is a complex story on the idea of humanity, but love is a big part of it, so I guess keep that in mind. Personally, I think the story was a masterpiece. And I hope you'll enjoy it at least half as I did hahaha.
But even in the film their love story was so cringe worthy
@@markandreychernetskiy6893 yeah, I can see how it might be cringy for some people
I'm still traumatised by that movie😂
@@aflowerthatcannotbebloomed 🤣🤣
@@1802andrada but I did love pan's labyrinth & crimson peak
But why did the snowglobe leave us so soon 😢
My camera kept focusing on it :(
Maëlys Reads Hahahah see my comment about her zooming in on it while sipping the tea👌🏻
@@BookswithEmilyFox a modern tragedy
There can only be one of... ME!
BookswithEmilyFox I have to vote for the snowglobe then, sorry
Hi Emily, great challenge! Btw The Shape of Water was not adapted into a movie, the movie was adapted into a book! Del Toro did the same with his previous movie Crimson Peak. So, in this case, the original story is the movie, which is great and won an Oscar for best movie. It's not really a romance, but a story about monsters (and the monster is toxic masculinity and the patriarchy haha!). I hope you enjoy the book, but the movie is better, Guillermo del Toro is a great story teller and a fantastic person (he also won for best director and is our national hero here in Mexico lol).
If Elevation is horror than I'm a ballerina at the Bolshoi. It was a decent read but it's not horror. This is why goodreads awards is an utter joke.
Definitely not horror!
But is it good despite it not being horror? I've only heard one star reviews so far
A gomez it’s nothing groundbreaking, but I enjoyed it.
@@amygomez3223 Even if you dont like it that much, it is only 130 pages. I read it in 2 hours.
YOU CHOOSE FOR YA FANTASY:
Read The Belles, Skip the one category or Read book 2 from Throne of Glass?
The belles was soo good! I'm so excited for the new one!
I vote you read “The Belles” as it’s a different kind of story for you. I’m very curious to hear your opinion on it.
Throne of Glass...I would love to see a reading vlog of this book. I loved watching you bash the first book.
Well in throne of glass, the whole ‘mate’ thing doesn’t disappear. There’s a whole race of characters that are territorial men.. if you can stand that. But plot wise or exploration of fantasy gets a lot better than book 1. Chaol’s character remains dull in my eyes but at least changing from book 1.
The Belles
Read book 2 from throne of glass. Yes, you may not love it, but I feel like it's refreshing seeing someone being honest about a YA book. I love your honest banter, and honestly it helps me figure out small issues I miss while reading which may be important to have notice of
In my opinon the book who won the Poetry category wasn't the best to start poetry, but the second one (The Poet X) it´s amazing, and a good one to start reading poetry
Lucas Giovane I agree!! I’m not in love with the new “modern poetry” genre. The Poet X read like a super quick, but beautiful story :)
I'll add it to my list and I'll try to find time for it!
@@BookswithEmilyFox Emily, skip the first book and do the audio of The Poet X. I don't read much poetry but that book was soooo good. The audiobook is so worth it.
@@BookswithEmilyFox To add to what Fayrose Hajer said about the audiobook, the author herself narrated the audiobook and I have been hearing people loving it It felt like they're at a small cafe, listening to her speak.
I think you should replace the y/a fantasy category by reading a book in the graphic novel and comic category. I would really like to hear your opinion on this books and also they consume so little time that you would have more time to read the other books lol
(English is not my first language, so sorry if I made any mistake)
You're English is fine don't worry, I know the struggle though!
My issue with comics is that I get most of my books used or from my library through the app Libby (so audiobooks or ebooks) so comics aren't available!
your face when the romance category came up lol
We know it's my favorite one!!
The Sadie audiobook is the best audiobook I have ever listened to. I highly recommend it!
I paused this at 4:47 just to tell you that I totally appreciate that you try to go beyond your reading comfort zone. There are so many other channels that I just can't get into because all of the books are in one category and the BookTuber doesn't try to broaden their horizons at all. I try to be a very diverse reader and I can say that is really one of the main factors that keeps me clicking on literally ALL of your videos. Can't wait to buddy read with you.
You have to read Sadie on audiobook - best audiobook I’ve ever read!!
all the light we cannot see is incredible
That snow globe kills me 😂😂
I hope you’ll read the second Throne of Glass book, the series does get better. First time I read it I DNF’d after the second book, but when I re-read the series I kept going and from book three onwards it is soooo worth it! Amazing side characters, Celena does become more bearable, and so many strong female characters who you haven’t met yet 💕
You mentioned Becoming and I loved it! I don't read many memoirs, but my goal in 2018 was to try more. I love Tiffany Haddish, but ended up DNFing the audiobook 80% through. It was okay - I rated it 3 stars. I just lost interest.
I also adored Sadie - highly recommend the audiobook because it's full-cast and each alternating chapter is a true-crime podcast format. People seem divided I think largely in part to the ending (speculative, which is hit or miss for a lot of people). I found it a bit predictable (the mystery aspect), but still loved it! 💕
I cannot wait to read Becoming!! Others have also commented on TH book so I'll be prepared for it!
I'm on the waiting list for Sadie as an audiobook!
I loved An American Marriage and I'll Be Gone In The Dark. Two of my favorites from last year. The Belles was meh. Super hyped when it came out, but nobody's really talked about it since. I don't think anybody's talked about the sequel coming out in March either. I will have to add The Tattooist and All The Light We Cannot See to my TBR.
Yeah I think i'll skip that category since it's not even close to being the winner anyway lol
I always cry when Littlefoots mom dies and the Diana Ross song If We Hold On Together thats at the end credits just gives me the FEELS 😭😍
I haven't rewatched and I'm too scared to! lol
BookswithEmilyFox oh it’s a real gem of a cartoon. I don’t recall ever being scared of the Sharptooth attack scenes myself but definitely got me into dinosaurs. If you want horror you should google what happened to the voice actress who did Ducky. Be warned, it’s a real tragedy
All I remember is "oui oui oui" lol
I don't think I want to know so I won't google it!
BookswithEmilyFox oh, you saw the French dub? She goes ‘yup yup yup’ in the English one. Cool
I only spoke French as a kid haha Good to know what it is in English!
For the YA sci-fi/fantasy, why don't you read the second Throne of Glass book? You mentioned before that you MAY continue on with the series, and that seems like a good compromise to me. I personally just read the first and second books last year for the first time, and the second book is way way way better than the first one (like personally for me a 2 stars for the first book and a 4.5 for the second)
That's not a bad idea!
This is such a cool challenge! As a Fantasy junkie, I really enjoyed All The Light We Cannot See. It surprised me, but I really enjoyed it. I might look into the Goodreads winners myself!
The Amanda Lovelace poetry books are amazing! So excited you are going to read them.
Elevation is NOT horror. That’s what I personally hate about the Goodreads awards. Stephen King gets categorized as horror even though a lot of his books aren’t and he ALWAYS wins because he is a recognizable name and people automatically vote for him. So sad really because then the other authors who deserve it and are actually writing horror don’t stand a chance. The only horror aspect of Elevation came at the very end.
I'm so excited you're reading An American Marriage, I found it very moving and written very well. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Highly recommend the audiobook for Sadie! It's got a full cast which is fabulous but it's also told in part in a podcast format which is done incredibly well through audio.
Sadie was in my top 5 reads of 2018. Heart breaking but incredible story telling.
What a brave challenge to attempt; I have to say I don't trust goodreads choice awards at all. Like you mentioned, it seems more of a popularity contest and most often very bad books win their categories while quality books don't or are not even nominated. Just the fact that something like Kingdom of Ash, the Cruel Prince and Circe can win or come close to wining their categories makes me severely distrust the whole contest.
I will however be reading the Tattooist of Auschwitz, because I got it as a present, and I am severely not ready to cry. xD But looking forward to maybe reading it alongside you and other people who join in! :)
The audit book for Sadie is really good! I would recommend listening to it for sure if your library had the audio book.
1. All The Light We Cannot See was probably one of the most boring books I’ve ever read and I read this when I was reading a LOT of historical fiction
2. Sadie was my favourite book of the year and is officially my new favourite book of all time. I want to get a tattoo inspired by the silhouette on the cover. I really hope you love it. Everyone needs to read it.
Honestly this is a great idea. I am totally joining in on this. I've already decided on my alternates for the few categories that I'd already read the winner.
I love Jane Harper. I felt like her writing and plot were very good. Imo, the second book took it to another level 👌🏼
Definitely listen to the audiobook for An American Marriage! The narration is fantastic 😊
I made my list for this exact challenge last month so I'll definitely be joining you. I'm excited! Some of mine are different as I haven't read all the ones you have but maybe I'll add the ones you are reading too! So many books to read this year...
I read Sadie and it was SO GOOD, but it’s pretty dark, especially for a YA. I read the physical, not the audio, and I still thought it was good. I would have done the audiobook, but the waiting list was way too long.
The Dry is a really good book. Jane Harpers latest book , The Lost Man is great.
The Dry is so good! A quick read.
The Last Black Unicorn was hilarious on audio. I loved it!
I’ve got 20 pgs of Vengeful left! I don’t know if I’d call sci-fi, though. I feel like it’s more urban fantasy to me. I’m looking forward to your opinions on it. I loved the Shape of Water film, but I haven’t read the book yet. Novelizations are really hit or miss for me.
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark was fantastic, but also deeply upsetting. While I was reading it, my grandmother startled me in the middle of the night and I actually cried, I was so afraid.
Loved the video, as always! I hope your 2019 is going well so far, and I can’t wait to see what you produce this year.
This challenge is amazing! Last year I could only vote for the best of the best because I don't read popular new releases hahaha so maybe I'll be joining you with some of this books :D
The Dry and Force of Nature are SO GOOD! I think you’ll like Jane Harper :)
Oh my goshhhh the land before time!!!!!! Petreyyyyyyy! Long necks don’t play with three horns 🦕🦖
The main thing I remember is "oui oui oui" and the leaf lol
good idea ! I also want to read other genres - actually this videos clearly shows your favorites ones ! I don't read SF or fantasy so I can't help you with that but it's interesting to see that you definitely don't agree with the votings on GR. I have read All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr a few years back (I'm French and it's partially sets in Saint Malo) and I really enjoyed it, though the short chapters and the fast pace intrigued me in the beginning. I also read Educated and loved it (how someone gets to think of its own) and finally I also read McNamara's true crime (she found the Golden Bay killer but yes she died before she could finish her book). A good read but nearly ten months after I don't recall the details or much. I enjoy true crime.
If you enjoyed The Female of the Species, which I know you did, I think you’ll enjoy Sadie. I’ve read both and they have similar premises. Sadie was, in my opinion, really, really good. I highly recommend the audiobook for it.
‘All the lights we cannot see’ is good. Chapters are short so you will fly threw it
The shape of water won best movie of the year of 2018. Guillermo did the movie Pans labrynth and other great ones! He also write the the Strain which was a TV show. Love your videos Happy new year!
What a good idea! I've read alot of those books as well, but Sadie is one I havent heard of. I added it to my list! 😊 Some of the winners are confusing....The Poppy War should have won it's category.
Happy New Year ♥️ wishing all the happiness to you and your family!
Can't wait to see what 2019 has planned for us. We are gonna crush our reading goals. 📖♥️
I read The Shape of Water, and it was good. I didn't watch the movie yet, but it is on my list 😁 All The Light we Cannot See was a very very good book 😍
I’m not really into romance or contemporary books either, thrillers & dystopians are my jam...but the kiss quotient was great!
Oooh that's a great challenge! Hopefully you love them all. My bookish goals are to read 50 this year (came close last year at 48), and to become a bigger part of the booktube community and grow my channel.
Educated was one of my favorite reads of last year 🙌 So happy it's been getting the recognition it deserves!
The Shape of Water is a novelization of the film. This kinda confrims your "tea break" theory imo.
Thanks Emily! I love this challenge. I think I will try it myself! I need to challenge myself this year. I NEED to read more this year. Give The Kiss Quotient a try! I loved it, but I know it's not your favorite genre.
I love this idea!! This year I actually decided to do the same thing and chose 14 of the winners (skipping sequels and categories that are hard to read like cookbooks). Can't wait to see your thoughts as I also read them :) I've started The Great Alone and it's AMAZING so far!! The writing is beautiful; it definitely makes me feel the way that the main character does.
I'm so glad you mentioned the ratings/vote disparity for Shape of Water. Almost all of the categories had winners with more votes than ratings, but that one had the biggest gap I've ever seen.
I wish you had to at least have the book marked as "read" on your account to vote. It's not much but it would already make a difference!
People clearly vote for famous authors/books without having read the book - Artemis by Andy Weir last year and now SK for a book that isn't even horror... it takes away any credibility :/
Just for me... please... in a video can you zoom in on your snow globe face when you sip the tea?? Just once!😂😂😂
lol I'll keep that in mind 😂
Out of these I've only read All the Lights We Cannot See and Elevation. All the Lights We Cannot See is one of my favourite books ever, it's so beautiful. Elevation is not a horror book at all, so I'm very confused to why it would win that category, or why it was even nominated as a horror book. Probably cause of the name of the author, and everyone just associates King to that genre even though he doesn't only write horror books. It was a pretty enjoyabel book though.
Haha the camera became obsessed with the creepy snow globe 😂
Definitely recommend listening to the audiobook for Sadie! It's super good.
I'll be gone in the dark was EXCELLENT.
This is exciting! I'm looking forward to see how you feel in the end.
I've read The Kiss Quotient (and The Wedding Date - another book nominated in the romance category) and I was disappointed by both of them. The Kiss Quotient is a better book than The Wedding Date but not by much and I say this as someone who actually likes romance. I read like 20 romance books last year (out of 100) and sadly none of the ones I actually enjoyed were even nominated. That being said, many of the booktubers and GR book reviewers I follow who do not typically read romance seemed to really like it so perhaps you will, Emily.
I'm reading Circe right now and would definitely put it into the fantasy category. Magic is such a big part of the book and it's almost completely about myths.
Of the poetry, both of Amanda Lovelace's poetry collections are basically stand alones. I preferred The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One though.
The Me Before You series is actually really good. The second and third books focus on Lou's journey as she finds out what she wants to do with her life and move on from Will's death. I really liked them, the last book was very moving in my opinion.
I LOVE The Dry. And Force of Nature. One of my new favorite author and favorite books of 2018.
Yes! Also The Shape of Water was not even a book first. It was a novelization. I was surprised that it was even nominated because of that.
I really really loved The Great Alone. I'm excited for you to read it!
bookywooky89 i loved this book
Good luck with your challenge! I was also obsessed with The Land Before Time! 😍
I'll be gone in the dark was really great. I was surprised how much I liked it. I listened to the audio book and would recommend that as well.
I got my hands on the audiobook :)
You should read Me before you the book is better than the movie
Lora Andreeva I have to agree. I did not like book 2 though.
All the Light We Cannot See DESTROYED me in the best way possible. My favorite book I read in 2018, and quite possibly my favorite book of all time.
i cant stop looking at that snow globe of your face HAHAHAHAHAH omg i cant stop laughing
I just read Educated and i LOVE IT so much!! would highly recommend
I highly recommend not skipping the comics and graphic novel category, as there are some great fantasy/humor reads among them. Plus, you get through them fast and more are released every few months as opposed to every year.
Tbh it's simply because I use my library and I don't go in person.
I wouldn't be able to read them and they're not my favorite anyway. I've read some and they're not really for me!
haha yes little foot ^^I loved those movies, maybe I should read that book. :)
honestly, i also had a dinosaur phase as a child, and i'm kind of tempted now to read that book, and The Great Alone also sounds good
This sounds like a really fun challenge. The only books I've read off this list are I'll be gone in the dark and vengeful and they were both fantastic so hopefully the rest follow suit.
Great idea for a challenge! And Elevation is definitely not horror. No idea why they'd categorize it as such, other than it being Stephen King.
This is a very ambitious challenge. Good luck with it!
This sounds amazing!!
good luck with the challenge!!
I dont tend to vote for the goodreads award cuz I feel I can't give a good judgement of the best book when I haven't read all of them
And then I would mostly choose the one I've read or the most popular
I loved the land before time "yup yup yup" haha (I saw you comment on someone else's comment that she said qui qui qui in French, so cool to learn how things are translated ^^)
I loved 'The Nightingale' by Kristin Hannah so 'The Great Alone' is on my tbr as well for this year. Can't wait to hear your thoughts!
“I mean the average person ar-focusing on my face!!! I’m removing it, you don’t deserve it!” I’m dead.
If I remember correctly, The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevado came second in the Poetry category. I would highly, highly recommend it even for people like myself who don't like/read much poetry. This is a contemporary novel made up of poems. It's about a Dominican American girl and deals with many important topics such as parental abuse, body shaming, religious identities, etc. Obviously being poetry it's a shorter read, but I think I would recommend the audiobook for this as Acevado, who is a notable slam poet, reads it herself. This book made me cry in public and was one of my absolute favourites for last year.
Elevation is not a horror! It was so disappointing, but you can definitely read it in an hour and I want to read all of King's books someday.
I’ve seen a lot of people not like The Belles, if you are not interested in it from the start I wouldn’t waste your time on it. Besides that I can’t wait to pick up Skyward and see if I enjoy Sadie as well (: love your videos I’m so impressed with how many books you read I always look into the books you recommend!
I love this idea for a 2019 challenge. Great idea and unique! I’m excited to hear what you think of all these
I get where you're coming from regarding the Me Before You series BUT, I am someone who watched the movie before reading the book, and just like most 1st books in a trilogy, the first one wasn't the best one. Kind of slow paced etc. and especially if you know the ending by having watched the movie. It's like you're waiting for the inevitable end. BUT with that being said, the 2nd and 3rd book do make up for the lack of the first one. I really recommend them to you Emily !
The Shape of Water won Best Picture at the Oscars in 2018!
I just literally laughed out loud. You say it’s a popularity contest and your camera zooms onto the snow globe XD
...and I'm not winning clearly XD
everytime you say next category I can't help but think of RuPaul's drag race 🤣I think it would be really funny if you did a reading vlog for the kiss quotient and I'm also really happy you're going to be reading the princess saves herself in this one, it is amazing!!
Not going to lie, I really hope that you enjoy more of your reading this year because last year was ROUGH...I hope this isn't setting you up for a book slump or simply just hating what your reading. I want to read a number of the books on your list and hopefully I'll be able to read them at the same time.
Honestly looking back it doesn't look that bad stat wise... but I read a lot of "meh" books for sure! I'm super excited for 2019 and the first two books I've finished (although the first one I only had 50 pages left lol) were 5 stars so I'm hopeful :P
The Great Alone was my favorite book for last year!
Just picked up The Last Black Unicorn from the library! It's a genre that I usually don't read so I was excited to see it here :)
Goodreads is definently a popularity contest where people vote or review based on authors, covers, etc and not necessarily on having read the book. I just saw that the Winds of Winter you know the next ASOAF/GoT book? The one that hasn't come out yet? The one that no one knows when will come out? That book has 4,4 stars based on over 6.000 reviews on Goodreads...
I want to dive into the world of Brandon Sanderson, but it's so overwhelming. o.o Could you do a "how to start Brandon Sanderson" guide? XD
I haven’t read The shape of water but I’ve seen the movie and I really can recommend it. It’s a really good movie and moved me a lot. I think it also won an academy award.