October 2022 Reading Update

Can we have a biscuit pleaze?

It's been almost a week since my last update. Jo and I headed back east on Thursday to visit with Jenn in Ottawa and then travel up to North Bay to see my Dad and sister. We just got back yesterday and picked up the puppies from Leela, our pet groomer. She stayed at out house and brought Bonnie and Clyde to the grooming salon with her when she worked. As you can see, they both seem very happy. It's been a concern of ours about what we could do with them if we wanted to travel a bit. So maybe we have a solution for future trips. Leela is calm and the dogs respond to her. Yay!

At Dad's apartment

The flight to Ottawa was miserable. The West Jet plane was older, the seats too close together and uncomfortable. Even the meals you could buy didn't seem very appetizing. It was a relief to get into Ottawa.

Jenn and Grandpa

The hotel in North Bay was comfortable and quiet and they had a very satisfying free breakfast. I highly recommend the Hampton Inn if you're looking for a place. We had a nice visit. Jenn and Jo spent Saturday afternoon checking out clothing shoppes downtown. Jenn is starting a new job and wanted to get some new clothes. I went to Allison the Bookman and only bought 2 books (traveling light, dontcha know!). Then I helped them shop for clothes. The place they liked best was a consignment shop, Clothes Encounters of the 2nd Kind. Lovely store and the lady who owns it also went to Widdifield Secondary School, my old alma mater. 😃

Cousins Patrick and Jenn enjoy a moment

On Sunday back to Ottawa. We had lunch at Johanne and Rick's place, then dinner with Patrick and Lindsay. Our flight back to Comox with Air Canada was so much nicer; a newer plane, TV screens on the seat back, the meal offerings were much nicer. I watched almost all of an HBO series, The Staircase. It was interesting enough.

Did you miss us, Mommy?

But we're home now. I even went for a run this morning. The puppies were happy to see us, and we were happy to see them and get back to our home.

Now.... It's November 1st, All Saints Day and the start of the penultimate month of 2022. I had a reasonable month of reading, but I've got so many on the go right now. A few of them are tomeish. I brought about 3 to read on our trip and didn't finish one, but I did make good headway on Boy's Life by Robert R. McCammon. It's an excellent book. So November will be a month of catching up and setting up my challenges for 2023.

I finished 9 books in October, although I readily admit that many of them were quite short. By my counting I've reached my total of 2022 challenge total of 120 books. Goodreads begs to differ and says I've only read 119. I'll bow to their much better addition capabilities. I'm spending November cleaning up my reading challenges and plan to focus on my Monthly Focus Challenges for November and December. We'll see how that works out. Anyway, here are my stats for October.

Oct 2022 

General Info                Oct                   Total (Including my current read) (Avg per book - 251)  
Books Read -                 9  120           
Pages Read -               1900          30100                           
 

Pages Breakdown 
    < 250                          8 69      
250 - 350                        2 6 
351 - 450                        1   15 
   > 450                                              10
 

Ratings 
5 - star                            1                 12                   
4 - star                            3 57 
3 - star                            4
41 
2 - star                                                   2 
No Rating (NR)             1     8                                                      
 

Gender 
Female                          5                46      
Male                              4                71  
Other                                                   2          

 

Genres 
Horror                           3            5                    
Fiction                                                9    
Mystery                                            33           
Sci-Fi                            1              25            
Non-Fic                         1             15
Classics                                             3
Young Adult                  3             19 
Poetry                           1               3 
Short Stories                                     5 

Plays                            0             1  
 

Top 3 Books 
 

1. White Bird by RJ Palacio (5.0 stars) 

2. Lair by James Herbert (4.0 stars) 

3. Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (4.0 stars)  

Challenges 
1st Annual Reading Challenge (completed 11) 
(None completed) 

Individual Challenge - The Dusty Library #1 - 428 (completed 14) 
1. The Mask of Fu Manchu by Sax Rohmer 3 stars) 

Individual Challenge - The Middle Ground #429 - 855 (completed 9) 
(None completed) 

Individual Challenge - Newest Books #856 - Infinity (completed 40) 
1. Goth Girl and the Pirate Queen (3 stars) 

2. I Know this to be True by Ruth Bader Ginsburg (3.5 stars) 

3. Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (4.0 stars) 

4. White Bird by RJ Palacio (5.0 stars) 

Monthly Challenge - January Focus - Biography (completed 3) 

Monthly Challenge - February Focus (Classics - Books Published before 1900) (completed 2) 

Monthly Challenge - March Focus (Mystery / Noir) (completed 4) 

Monthly Challenge – April Focus (Sci-Fi) (completed 5) 
Monthly Challenge – May Focus (Non-Fiction) (completed 4) 

Monthly Challenge – June Focus (Children / Young Adult) (completed 6) 

Monthly Challenge – July Focus (Fiction 1900 – 1950) (completed 4) 

Monthly Challenge – August Focus (Short Stories / Poetry / Plays) (completed 5) 

Monthly Challenge – September Focus (Fantasy) (completed 4) 

1. A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor (4.0 stars) 

Monthly Challenge – October Focus (Horror) (completed 3) 

1. Day Shift by Charlaine Harris (DNF) (NR) 

2. Lair by James Herbert (4.0 stars) 

3. Over My Dead Body by Sweeney Boo (3.5 stars) 

Currently Reading 

1st Annual Reading Challenge - Begin a Series 

1. Red Rising by Pierce Brown 

2. The Detective’s Daughter by Lesley Thomson 
Individual Challenge (My Dusty Library Books #1 - 428) -  

(Probably not reading any more books in this challenge) 
Individual Challenge (The Middle Ground #429 - 856) -  

#485. Boy’s Life by Robert McCammon 
Individual Challenge (The Newbys #857 - Infinity) -  

#1314. The Twelve by Justin Cronin 

#1337. The Electric Kingdom by David Arnold 
September Focus – Fantasy 

1. The Sea is Full of Stars by Jack L. Chalker 

October Focus – Horror 

1. Mama by Ruby Jean Jensen 

2. Floating Staircase by Ronald Malfi 

November Focus – Mystery (other than Canada/ US / Britain) 

Nothing yet 

Next Challenge Books in Line 

1st Annual Reading Challenge - Begin a Series  

(Won’t read any more books in this challenge) 
2. Individual Challenge (My Dusty Library #1 - 428)  

(No more books in this challenge) 
3. Individual Challenge (The Middle Ground #429 - 856)  

#592. Kyril Bonfiglioli - Something Nasty in the Woodshed 
4. Individual Challenge (The Newbys #857 - Infinity)  

#1079. The Cometeers by Jack Williamson 
5. Monthly Challenge – November (Mystery Other than Can / US / Britain) 

1. Let the Dead Die Young by Malla Nunn (Africa)