Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2024 Weekly Check-Ins
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Week 26: 6/20 - 6/27
Happy Thursday! Enjoying an unusually cool day� We’re expecting a high of 79° F. I’m trying to look busy so nobody suggests doing yardwork.2024 Reading Challenges: I’ve read 234 books so far this year (and 20.9% of my ever-growing TBR) with an average length of 336 pages and an average rating of 3.73.
52 Book Club: 44/52 (Summer Challenge 8/8� Time to go for Silver!)
ATY: 34/52 (Summer Challenge 10/12)
Booklist Queen: 43/52
Diverse Baseline: 18/36
Popsugar: 38/50
Robot Librarian: 41/52
ICYMI Backlist: 6/12
Recently Completed:
Perestroika in Paris (52 Book Club Summer #1a � set in Paris/ATY Summer #8a � a dog on the cover) ★★�
Huda F Cares?: NPR 2023 Books We Love ★★★★
Wilmington's Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy (52 Book Club #18 � an apostrophe in the title/Booklist Queen #51 � a place in the title) ★★★★
I Take You (52 Books Summer #4c � jewelry on cover/ATY Summer #3a � author’s initials found in BLOCKBUSTER FILM) ★★
Listen for the Lie (52 Books Summer #3a � a strong opening hook/ATY Summer #9b � red on the cover) ★★★★�
The Rom-Commers (52 Books Summer #8a � at least four Olympic ring colors on the cover) ★★★★
The Buccaneers (ATY Summer #3b � adapted into a movie or series/Robot Librarian Advanced #7 � published posthumously) ★★★★
Dirty Dancing at Devil's Leap (Popsugar #1 - leap in the title) ★★�
Twelfth Knight (52 Books Summer #2c � a character who is a spiritual leader/ATY Summer #8c � purple on the cover) ★★★★
All Our Wrong Todays (52 Books Summer #5c � involving the butterfly effect) ★★★★�
The Parrot and the Igloo: Climate and the Science of Denial (52 Books Summer #2B � an audiobook that is 15+ hours long) ★★�
Currently Reading:
Mental Immunity: Infectious Ideas, Mind-Parasites, and the Search for a Better Way to Think: Reasonable Doubt Book Club (ATY #17 � involving intelligence)
The Familiar (52 Books #49 � set in a city that starts with M/ATY Summer #10c � set somewhere you’d like to visit: Madrid)
Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books (52 Books Summer #1b � a flame on the cover)
Without Children: The Long History of Not Being a Mother: NPR 2023 Books We Love
How To Start A Fire (ATY Summer #6b � the moon on the cover)
The Glassmaker (ATY Summer #9c � set in a city)
Camp Zero: Adventures Underground Book Club (ATY Summer #7c � an element of survival)
Sense and Sensibility: Jane Austen Book Club (Booklist Queen #38 � classic by a female author)
Soul Boom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolution (ATY #3 � a suggestion that didn’t make the final list: a book related to soul)
Tales from the Café (ATY Summer #4b � a translated book)
The Girl from the Sea
QOTW: No, my reading is not cinematic. I get vague impressions, but they don’t coalesce into a cohesive picture. Maybe that’s why I so admire people who can (successfully) adapt/reinterpret the written word for the screen.
ATY Summer Challenge: 7/12 58%Finished: The End of Your Life Book Club This was quite good.
Except for Palestine: The Limits of Progressive Politics read for prompt has red on cover and involves ancient civilizations. I would NOT recommend this book. I'm sure there are other better books out there about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting
Started: Being Seen: One Deafblind Woman's Fight to End Ableism This was for a IRL book club and was so poorly written that I couldn't make myself read it.
Journey of the Mind: How Thinking Emerged from Chaos This is so good! Follows developments in thinking through less complex to more complex creatures.
QotW: Not only do I not visualize, I have recently read two books where I got halfway through them before I realized that they had pictures at the beginnings of each chapter that related to the contents! I'm just not a visual thinker at all unless I'm about to fall asleep. Then I often replay movies in my head.
Happy summer, everyone!Finished:
An Unfinished Life: John F. Kennedy, 1917-1963 (3/5, some of it took place 24 years before I was born)
The information is all good, and it's interesting to see what is and is not the same now in our US and global politics compared to 60 years ago. The author goes into meticulous detail on some subjects. I advise reading carefully the subjects that interest you and skimming the outer paragraphs of the sections that don't. You will already have an overall impression of Kennedy before you hit the presidency years.
The Rules of Supervillainy (3/5, for speculative fiction book club)
It feels like a pastiche of the DC comics universe from the point of view of someone who gets powers and decides to use them selfishly. If you like dark humor or poking fun of certain superhero fiction tropes, then you may give this one a higher rating than I did.
Fall of the Dragons: The Dragon's Apprentice; The Dragons of Winter; The First Dragon (3/5)
Besides the JFK book, this was the other chunker taking up a lot of reading time. Some of the character beats and bits of humor were good in these final tales, but overall, I do recommend just reading Here, There Be Dragons and calling it good. Later books introduced too many characters and wacky concepts to keep track of or even believe.
Currently reading:
Full Circle (reread, still a 5/5 book)
The Dragon Business (heading toward a 3/5)
Padawan (also heading toward a 3/5)
Question of the Week:
I will sometimes picture things in my head as I read, but it is not constant, and sometimes it is not consistent with what is described in the text.
Crowdsource:
Has anyone visited Connecticut or Rhode Island and can recommend any awesome family-friendly locations, lodging, or activities?
Happy Thursday! Finally, it's summer. Sadly, it is showing off with temperatures of 30 Celcius and humidity. In good news: tomorrow temperatures drop back to normal (about 24 Celcius). PS: 13/50
FNL: 26/40
Total: 34/52
Finished
Onderdak by Elisabeth van Nimwegen�
Terrible. I thought about DNF at 60 pages left, so I decided to finish it after all.
Currently reading
Noem geen namen by Astrid Sy
De verdeelde Staten van Amerika by Charles Groenhuijsen
QOTW
Oh yes, I have movies appearing when I'm reading. I can't even imagine how you can read fiction without pictures in your head.
Mod
Yes! Obviously there's the Mystic Seaport in Connecticut, which is set up specifically to be a family-friendly destination. Nearby is the aquarium, which is small but nice. Stonington CT nearby is incredibly charming just to stroll around and find a cute little cafe or antiques store. Both CT & RI have nice beaches - they are mostly on the LI Sound so the waves are gentle. I like Misquamicut in RI, because my cousin used to live near there, but there are many other beaches to choose from. There are lot of tiny bars and restaurants in the area, you can just wander into one. If you're into boxing, there's the Boxing Hall of Fame in CT - I haven't actually been there, but I've always been curious. And of course Newport RI is full of nice mansions to tour - not sure if your kids are into that. (full disclosure: I've never done this, so I don't really know how entertaining it is)
Happy Thursday, everyone!While I was hoping to report another super productive week, I managed to accomplish very few of the items on this week’s household projects list. The reason for that was a dosage increase on my antidepressant medication. I am currently taking twice the dose I started at, and it is kicking my butt. I’m back to taking 2-3 hour naps every day, and just feel like a zombie when I am awake. Based on previous experience, this shouldn’t last for too terribly long, but I may have to power through the drowsiness this weekend to get caught up on all of the things I need to get done.
One thing I did manage to do this week was read. I ended up keeping the television turned off all week, and was able to finish quite a few books as a result. Most of the titles I read were from my “New� Books list, but I also had a chance to read a couple of library books.
Here are my current challenge and TBR totals�
ŷ Challenge: 329/200 (Challenge Complete!)
Mount TBR Challenge: 92/150
📚Physical TBR: 52
📱Ebook TBR: 40
Audiobook TBR: 0
TBR Checklist Total: 92
I did pick up a few new books this week, including: Middle of the Night, by Riley Sager; A Deceptive Composition, by Anna Lee Huber; Dead on Target, by M.C. Beaton and R.W. Green; Love’s in Sight!, Vol. 7, by Uoyama; Lonely Castle in the Mirror (Manga) Vol. 3, by Mizuki Tsujimura; Bitter Waters, by Vivian Shaw; and In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Lying Game, and Zero Days, by Ruth Ware.
“New� Books Bought in 2024: 241
“New� Books Read in 2024: 219
Finished Reading (Fiction):
~One Perfect Couple � This book was such a great read! I thoroughly enjoyed the story and characters, and read most of the book in a single afternoon. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands � This is the second book in the Emily Wilde trilogy. I really enjoyed the story and characters, and thought it was a great sequel to the previous book. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Til Death Do Us Bard � I have to confess that I bought this book because of its title. My preferred D&D class is Bard, so I just couldn’t resist picking up a copy of this book. I ended up really enjoying the story and characters, and actually read most of the book in a single evening. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Slayers Volumes 1-3 Collector's Edition � This is a collection of the first three Slayers light novels (The Slayers, The Sorcerers of Atlas, and The Ghosts of Sairaag). These three books were all re-reads for me, but I enjoyed them just as much as I did the first time. The stories and characters were a lot of fun, and I enjoyed the illustrations that were included in the text. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Slayers Volumes 4-6 Collector's Edition � This collection includes light novels 4-6 of the Slayers series (The Battle of Saillune, The Silver Beast, and The Darkness in Vizendi). All three of these books were re-reads for me, but I really enjoyed having a chance to read them again. The stories were great! 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Slayers Volumes 7-9 Collector's Edition � This collection includes light novels 7-9 of the Slayers series (Gaav’s Challenge, King of the Phantom City, and The Mystic Sword of Bezeld). Books 7 and 8 were both re-reads for me, but this was the first time I’d had a chance to read book 9. I really enjoyed the stories! 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~Slayers Volumes 10-12 Collector's Edition � This collection includes light novels 10-12 of the Slayers series (Conspiracy in Solaria, Delusion in Crimson, and The Dynast Plot). All three of the books were brand new reads for me, and I really enjoyed them. 📚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
~A Trace of Poison � This is the second book in the Phyllida Bright mystery series. I thought this was a good mystery, and a good sequel to the first book in the series. Content Alert: (view spoiler) : ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Finished Reading (Nonfiction):
None
Finished Reading (Manga, Comic Books, & Graphic Novels):
None
Finished Reading (Poetry and Drama):
None
DNFed:
~The Game � I got about three chapters into this book before deciding to DNF. I just wasn’t interested in the story or characters. 📚
Currently Reading:
~The Yu Dragon � This is the fifth (and final) book in the 80AD series. I’m currently just over halfway through, and plan to finish it over the weekend. 📱
~Electra Galaxy's Mr. Interstellar Feller � This book is basically a gender-flipped Miss Congeniality, with a SciFi twist. I’m currently a couple of chapters into this book, and I’m not really enjoying it. I just don’t like the main characters. I’m going to give it a couple more chapters, but I may end up DNFing before next week’s update. Content Alert: (view spoiler) 📚
~Slayers 13-15 Collector’s Edition � This collection includes light novels 13-15 of the Slayers series. All three of these books are brand new reads for me, and I’m really enjoying them so far. Unfortunately, ŷ does not seem to recognize that this book exists, so I can’t provide a link. 📚
~Murder by Invitation Only � This is the third book in the Phyllida Bright mystery series. I’m currently just over a third of the way through this audiobook, and it’s been really good so far.
QOTW:
To be honest, it really depends on the author’s writing style.
Happy Thursday!Finished:
Mirrored Heavens by Rebecca Roanhorse - 4 stars - not for a prompt. I enjoyed it. I still think the first book was the best of this trilogy, though I do like where most of the characters wound up at the end.
Role Playing by Cathy Yardley - 4 stars - for Popsugar's book that centers on video games and Robot Librarian's romance involving characters over 30 years old. Loved the gaming and the surprise queer rep in this. As someone in her forties who also loves to play video games (and is a bit IRL antisocial), I got on well with the FMC, and had so much empathy for the MMC and his struggles. CW: (view spoiler)
Comics and manga:
Cinderella Closet Vol. 4
Cinderella Closet Vol. 5
Queen's Quality, Vol. 19
Skip and Loafer Vol. 9
I am currently at 42/50 prompts for Popsugar (37/45 and 5/5).
Currently reading:
Children of Anguish and Anarchy by Tomi Adeyemi - not currently for a prompt. The library surprised me with another new release trilogy-ender.
Upcoming/Planned:
The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty - for a book about pirates.
QOTW:
I'm always amazed when people say they see books as a movie in their heads, because I just... never have been able to do that. I might visualize particular characters or scenes, but it's something I need to stop and consciously do. Kind of like Lynn said, I have some images in my head and keep track of spatial logistics and prominent character features/clothing, but I don't see everything play out like a cinematic.
The exception is if I've seen a film or TV series before reading a book, or it's a book that was a visual medium first, i.e. a movie/TV show/video game. Then I will often picture specific characters or scenes while reading.
Happy Thursday!Well, on Tuesday, I said to Loree, my colleague, that I wanted a thunderstorm on the weekend. And so the gods answered and we got a thunderstorm that afternoon! It was not in the forecast either. I checked before I left home. I thought it was cool.
Dog is holding his own. He hasn't gotten too worse since his vet appt. I just don't have the $2600 to $5000 for the tests. if they had a payment plan then yeah I would get it done.
I'm half way through Summer Reading Program. I don't do it the week of the 4th and then the last 3 will be the last three weeks of July.
ŷ Challenge 416/400
Finished:
Manga:
Kaiju No. 8, Vol. 10
Light Novel:
I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in the Real World, Too, Vol. 5 (light novel) (I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in The Real World, Too
Isekai Tensei: Recruited to Another World Volume 1
Black Summoner: Volume 5
Black Summoner: Volume 6
Black Summoner: Volume 7
Romance:
Close to the Edge
Reading:
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime (Light Novel), Vol. 1
Black Summoner: Volume 8
86—EIGHTY-SIX, Vol. 1
QOTW:
I have full on technicolor movies going on in my head a lot of time when I read. It also happens when I write too.
I tried to read Off With Their Heads and i was soooo lost because i could not conjure an image in my head because the world description was so sparse. It also was no linear and jumped around the timeline so freaking randomly. I didn't enjoy this book.
I’ve done some adulting this week and applied for two whole jobs. One would be pretty much perfect for me, so fingers crossed. We had a few hot (for here) days but it's cooled slightly today so I feel less sweaty!And I did some reading!
This is Why We Lied by Karin Slaughter for title is a complete sentence. I liked this one lots, despite it being so obvious that it wasn't who everyone thought it was, but that was kind of relevant to the bias of the character. Really felt for the victim.
Private Rites by Julia Armfield for a genre I usually avoid (literary) and ATY (raining cats and dogs). I love her writing, and I think she's spot on about the slow, mundane apocalypse we face. We’ll still be at work and dealing with family stuff as the water comes for us! A bit too much mundane for my tastes, but veers back to weird before it's all over.
Daughter of the Merciful Deep by Leslye Penelope for ATY (BIPOC main character). Historical fantasy about a black town that is due to be flooded by the building of a new damn. I thought the historical aspects were better than the fantasy part, but liked it overall.
QOTW:
I do visualise a lot when reading but character faces always remain kinda vague in my head, unless they're described in a way that reminds me of a real person. I don't recognise people out of context very well, so maybe that's related to the face processing part of my brain. Now if someone has a dog or horse, they'll be beautifully rendered in HD in my head!
Happy Thursday, all!So I did a "thinning of the herd" on my Transformers collection. Out of my collection of roughly 300 Transformers figures, I'm getting rid of about 70. I'm going to a big Transformers convention in a couple of weeks and will try to sell some of them there -- the rest I'll either sell on eBay or give to my nephews and nieces.
No, I'm not getting rid of my entire collection -- just the pieces that are no longer interesting to me. Plus I have to make room for new acquisitions...
Books read this week:
Mammoths at the Gates -- Another excellent entry in the Singing Hills series. I love these novellas about clerics and their super-intelligent bird companions.
Project Hail Mary (reread) -- still as good as the first time I read it. I love Grace and Rocky so much. And I’m looking forward to the movie version -- it’s now in production!
Olivetti -- I never thought I’d shed a tear over a book about a sentient typewriter, but this one did the trick. This was unexpectedly sweet.
Snowglobe -- convoluted dystopian YA novel that tries to make a dig at reality TV but feels like it’s about a decade too late in its commentary.
PopSugar Challenge -- FINISHED
Robot Librarian Challenge -- FINISHED
Extreme Book Nerd Challenge -- 47/50
Extreme Book Nerd Advanced Challenge -- 10/10
Extreme Book Nerd Non-Fiction Challenge -- 10/10
DNF:
Number One Fan -- oh hey, it’s Misery but gender-swapped, by the author of The Book of the Unnamed Midwife. Reading this just made me realize why I disliked both of the aforementioned books, and I finally had to bail.
Currently reading:
On These Magic Shores
Hamlet, Prince of Robots
And Then There Were None
The Prisoner of Cell 25
QOTW:
I occasionally visualize while I read, but not always. Also, because I have a hard time concocting new faces to match the characters, I'll often insert characters from whatever new show or game I'm obsessing over as "placeholders," haha...
Mod
oh now I REALLY want to read this!! It sounds like the perfect offshoot from Our Wives Under the Sea - weird, sad, mundane, and creepy
Greetings. I feel like the Wicked Witch -"I'm melting, I'm melting!"Fortunately temps here in NYC are back down to low 80s during day, and even into the high 60s some nights so hopefully I can reverse that melting!
PS - 39/50 - progress was made this week!
Finished: I've had fun reading mysteries and a romance, plus finished an armchair travel trilogy
Killers of a Certain Age
The Man Who Died Twice - prompt author with vision impairment
The Good Thief's Guide to Amsterdam
One Good Earl Deserves a Lover
Winds of the Steppe: Walking the Great Silk Road from Central Asia to China
Currently reading:
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants
QOTW: I do depending though on the writing, though mostly it is settings I think. Some books are written in a way that feels like a movie unrolling in your mind. But not all writing triggers defined images. That happens most often when it's something familiar, like a book set in Manhattan is going to produce images in my mind, but one set in Timbuctoo is not. I tend to be very visual anyway.
Happy Thursday.Our weather has been better this week.
This is the third week in a row where I finished 2 books. I know some of you read five books a week, but for me this is unusual and an accomplishment.
It's half way through the year and I've finished half the number of books I said I'd finish. I'm ahead on my PS and ATY prompts (based on the number I said I'd do) and I'm ahead on my summer prompts. I'm on track for my series a month and mystery/thriller a month. I have summer vacation coming and I'd like to get ahead of my reading since I think the fall is going to be really busy.
Finished:
Brisingr
ATY prompt: A book involving a wild animal or endangered species, in the content, title, or on the cover
Popsugar prompt: A book that features dragons
Summer Prompt: A book with more than 400 pages
A Death at the Party
ATY prompt: A book with a botanical cover
Popsugar prompt: A book that takes place over the course of 24 hours
Summer Prompt: A book with a cover of a nature scene without people
Series - 6/12
Nobel laureates - 3/5
Mysteries/Thrillers - 7/13
ATY - 23/45
PS - 16/30
Summer - 5/12
Currently reading:
Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story - 85% done
In a Free State - 25% done
Buddy Reads:
This Present Darkness - 75% done
Hollow City - 30% done
QOTW: Sometimes. Some authors paint better pictures of their characters and their setting. I must occasionally have pictures or I wouldn't be disappointed sometimes with casting in movies I of books I like.
Mod
ATY prompt: A book with a botanical cover
Popsugar prompt: A book that takes place over the course of 24 hours
Summer Prompt: A book with a cover of a nature scene without peopl..."
Oh how exciting! the main character's name is NADINE! Now I'm all set if one of next year's categories is "a character with your name." BRING IT ON
Happy Thursday! I had a couple of vacation days I needed to use before the end of the fiscal year, so I used the time to do a little clothes shopping, including finally checking out a little place that opened in town with an eclectic collection, but fantastic prices. I unfortunately didn't manage to find the main thing I was looking for, business casual khaki capris, but I did get two new bathing suits, which I've been needing.I also had my first summer reading program, and considering I forgot to advertise it (summer reading has a lot of moving parts!), the attendance wasn't too bad.
Finished:
Witch Hat Atelier, Vol. 11 - Better than the previous volume, but that cliffhanger! This is the last volume I can get for the time being, since the next volume only came out last month, so none of the libraries near me have it yet.
Wandering Stars - I read this for Camp TOB, so I put most of my reading efforts into finishing it in time for the weekly discussion. I wasn't aware when I started that it was a companion book to the author's previous work, There There, and the concession seems to be that you need to read that one first to fully appreciate this one. I'm inclined to agree. There was enough going on to keep me reading, but a lot of the time I found I didn't particularly care about these characters. I would, however, read a book entirely about Lony.
Currently reading:
He Must Go Walk the Woods So Wild
The Burning Plain and Other Stories
Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss, and What I Learned
Deephaven
Glitter and Concrete: A Cultural History of Drag in New York City
Brandon wrote: "Has anyone visited Connecticut or Rhode Island and can recommend any awesome family-friendly locations, lodging, or activities?
I grew up in CT, so I'll add a couple of ideas: the Peabody Museum just reopened after a massive renovation; Lake Compounce is a great local theme park; and I want to give a special shoutout to the Barker Character, Comic, and Cartoon Museum, since it's in my hometown.
As for RI, my parents lived there when they were first married, and they still make a point of going back about once a year, usually stopping at George's of Galilee for clam chowder and clam cakes, and to walk on the beach next door.
QOTW: It depends on the book, and my mindset when I'm reading. Sometimes images come and sometimes they don't, but I don't really think about it that much.
Hi all! We've been so busy this week. We went to the Museum of Play last weekend with Girl Scouts. It was fun, but exhausting and took me over a day to recover. This weekend I'm running a yard sale, but the weather for Saturday is supposed to be thunderstorms with hail and gusty winds! Yikes! We have lots of space in the garage, but will people come in that weather?? I've put SO much time and energy into this thing, I really want to make some money! I haven't read much this week, being so busy and then tired as a result. I did listen to a few more chapters in Schindler’s List. I've got 5 more hours to go and he's about to make his list. He's already improved the lives of so many people, I kinda didn't realize I still had the titular list to read about!
Last night I started listening to Beyond Magenta: Transgender and Nonbinary Teens Speak Out. I'm only a chapter or 2 in, but so far it's good.
Otherwise, I tried to pick up a couple of physical books, but didn't read more than a couple of pages in any of them.
QOTW: Yes, I picture pretty much everything I read. I guess it's like a movie in my head. I sometimes don't fill in faces very well, but there's always someone there.
Nadine in NY wrote: "Dubhease wrote: "A Death at the PartyATY prompt: A book with a botanical cover
Popsugar prompt: A book that takes place over the course of 24 hours
Summer Prompt: A book with a cover of a nature s..."
No!!!!!!
Happy Thursday! This last weekend I had a trip with my whole family in Mexico- I only went for 4 days, but it was really nice! It rained a bunch, so it wasn't too crazy hot, and it was just nice to hang out with my parents and nieces and everyone.Finished:
Memorial- I really loved this book. Found myself tearing up a lot while reading this. I love the way the author writes, and will be adding everything he's written to my tbr.
-no prompt
Confounding Oaths- this was a fun historical, cozy fantasy. It's my second netgalley book- I have a couple more I need to get to now
-38 A cozy fantasy book
Currently reading:
They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us-slowly working through this book of essays. I like them,, but not as much as I was expecting
Until I Meet My Husband- listening to this memoir about growing up queer in Japan
Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk- currently paused. I had two hours left when it got returned to libby. Pretty annoyed that I messed up the timing on this. I meant to listen to it at the airport and on the plane, and it would have been perfect, but then got distracted at the airport...
QotW:
I think I have vague pictures in my head about what I'm reading. The only time it gets really clear is when something doesn't make sense and I have to reread a passage to figure out what exactly was going on- where did the hat come from? how was the house laid out again?
Hope Lyn is feeling better soon. Oh I hear you on Netgalley. I suddenly have like 6 books in the queue and I'm a slow eBook reader (I'm still hovering at 92% thankfully). I am vaguely annoyed that 2 of them came from the publisher with like 2 days before publication. I can't read them that fast!But I am finally reading again.
The Tail of the Tip-Off(Mrs. Murphy, #11) by Rita Mae Brown (ps 12. A book from an animal's POV) I originally pulled this out of the tbr pile for women in sports but even though it's set in a woman's basketball court it's barely about it. So since Mrs. Murphy is a talking cat, I counted this (plus talking dogs, owls, possums and god knows what else). I used to love this series 25 years ago. Now I'm ready to root the rest of them out of the tbr pile and donate them unread. If I didn't need something for this prompt I would have DNFed this
The X-Files: Perihelionby Claudia Gray (PS 50. A book that starts with the letter "X") Not the book I originally selected for this but I got this arc from Netgalley so I read it. I enjoyed it except for the fact that chain smoking man and the whole syndicate thing was way too much part of this. I know the author from fanfic actually.
QOTW Honestly I occasionally see images as I read but it is rare. I am not one who sees it in my head (not even when I'm writing my own fiction) I wish I could do it more easily
It’s my birthday today! :) I spent the afternoon with my mom and had a delicious sushi lunch. Then I played a fairytale-themed escape room in a box. (We did manage to escape the enchanted forest). And I finished the day by playing bingo. (I didn’t get a bingo, though.) It’s tricky celebrating on a Thursday so the festivities continue tomorrow when we’re going to dinner and seeing a play. Finished
Zero Days. Ruth Ware novels are hit or miss for me. This was a miss because of how stunningly stupid the main character was. We’re talking she suspected someone of murdering her husband, but kept taking their advice and believing what they said was true levels of stupid here.
The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After. I’d read most of these second epilogues already, but not Violet in Bloom. It was a bittersweet story, but I enjoy anything with Violet Bridgerton in it.
E is for Evidence. I like when books are only as long as they need to be. This was a nice, concise mystery and satisfying to read.
Reading
Black Powder War
QOTW
I have a movie playing in my head while I read books. If I can’t conjure the movie, then I’m disconnected from the book and will probably either DNF or end up rating it pretty low.
Laura wrote: "Happy Thursday! Enjoying an unusually cool day� We’re expecting a high of 79° F. I’m trying to look busy so nobody suggests doing yardwork.2024 Reading Challenges: I’ve read 234 books so far this..."
You know, I always see your completed lists and I just have to commend you. Because You always seem to have at least one place to put the books you read. Lately, I have had SO many books that I have very much enjoyed but, unfortunately do not fit any of my challenges.
So bravo for you, on having more will power, determination, and forethought than me.
Heather wrote: "It’s my birthday today! :) I spent the afternoon with my mom and had a delicious sushi lunch. Then I played a fairytale-themed escape room in a box. (We did manage to escape the enchanted forest). ..."Happy birthday. Sounds like fun
Nadine in NY wrote: Oh how exciting! the main character's name is NADINE! Now I'm all set if one of next year's categories is "a character with your name." BRING IT ON"
Ooh, now that you put that out there I feel like you might have just jinxed us. Better start looking for a Jessica character now.
Cornerofmadness wrote: "I am vaguely annoyed that 2 of them came from the publisher with like 2 days before publication. I can't read them that fast!..."One of the publishers that sends me paper books has started sending them the week before publication. I'm just going to assume that they don't expect release day reviews because I never have a quick turnaround on them.
Heather wrote: "It’s my birthday today! :) I spent the afternoon with my mom and had a delicious sushi lunch. Then I played a fairytale-themed escape room in a box. (We did manage to escape the enchanted forest). ..."Happy birthday! I need to try an escape room some day, preferably not one with a scary theme.
Wow, can't believe it's Friday! Meant to post this yesterday, but I ran out of time since I got busy.Doing okay for the most part. Wish I could get away from this heat though. Temps over 105(F) so it's been miserable which has caused my face problems to act up. We had rain one day this week, and I doubt we're getting any more any time soon. Wish we we were though. That rainstorm we had was nice. Thundered so loud to the point it sounded like firecrackers.
Other than that though not much else going on. School starts up this coming week so I'm looking forward to that, kind of. That's my only major thing at the moment though.
Onto my book news.
Book News:
Since we're at the end of June, I ended up reading 12 books this month. So proud of that number. I was in a reading slump for a bit so it was nice to get out of it. Whether I'll have time to read that much in July because of school is another story, I'll probably read half of that.
That said, my favorite book of the month turned out to be:
LatinoLand: A Portrait of America's Largest and Least Understood Minority
And since we're halfway through the year, these are my top 3 books:
1.) Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
2.) Of Orcas and Men: What Killer Whales Can Teach Us
3.) Under the Bridge
*
While I didn't finish reading anything this past week, I still have been reading. These are the ones I've been mainly focused on:
LatinoLand: A Portrait of America's Largest and Least Understood Minority
All in Her Head: The Truth and Lies Early Medicine Taught Us About Women's Bodies and Why It Matters Today
Fandom, Second Edition
I'm slowly starting to create my July TBR. Given this extreme weather we've been having I'm thinking of including some environmental books.
QOTW:
Do visual images appear to you as you read? Or are you a reader who doesn’t necessarily or ever have visual images in your mind as you read.
It usually depends on the book and the topic. Most of the time I can see visual images in my mind. The one thing I struggle with though is visual images of people. I'm good at scenery and description and such, but I have a hard time picturing people.
Happy Thursday!I've been having a bit of a hard time reading lately. It's mostly because I don't have as much free time and by the time I can sit down and read I am too tired to get much, if any, read.
I spent Tuesday & Wednesday doing some heavy yard work. There's a rock wall that runs the property line between my Dad's house and ours and it has had this fern that grows wild just taking over it so I decided it was time to tackle that. Last Year I had managed to clean off my side of the wall so I just did a quick clean up of that first before attempting my Dad's side of the wall. I managed to fill up the back of my truck with a few hundred pounds of debris in two days. I then hauled it off to town to the green waste pile. I still have about four feet of stuff to get off the top of the wall. I did the sides over there but, just couldn't do anymore, my body was too sore. Plus this little section of fern is the hardest because it is growing on the top (flat) section off the wall and has about two inches of dirt and bound up roots under it.
Unfortunately, my left arm is gonna be out of commission on hard labor for two weeks after my trip to the doctors today. I'm not allowed to lift anything heavy. It kind of sucks because the weather has been super sunny (and HOT) which is the best time to catch up on yardwork here. I have a bunch of weedwacking to do and I'm gonna maybe try some this weekend since I mostly use my other arm anyway for that.
I watched The Origin on Hulu (although I watched it on Disney) which is based on the book Caste...OMG it was good. Now for sure I gotta read the book. It's been on my list for a long time, just haven't gotten there yet.
2024 Challenges:
Popsugar: 35/50
ATY: 49/52
Robot Librarian: 41/52
A to Z: 25/26
Physical TBR: 0/95
Kindle TBR: 1/120
ŷ: 109/100
TBR Goal: 0/215
Book Clubs:
PS Monthly: 21/55
Reese: 31/95
Oprah: 12/101
Jenna: 7/65
OSS: 6/39
Finished:
3 finished, 0 Completed Popsugar
Garlic and the Witch
Although this was the second book, I feel like how it started should have been in the first book.
Things in the Basement
Loved this one!
Tidesong
This one could work for dragons but, I already had that filled.
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Currently Reading
The Quarter Storm
The Great Divide
While We Were Dating
Lies My Teacher Told Me: A Graphic Adaptation
The Covenant of Water
The Complete Persepolis
Mary Poppins and Mary Poppins Comes Back
Magazines: (11/146)
Read since last check-in: 0
Question of the Week:
I do visualize some things but not movie quality. If I have seen the movie or show before reading it I will have a better time visualizing a story by picturing those actors while reading.
I actually had a discussion about this with my sister a few weeks ago. I was reading and the house was quiet and she came home and was saying it was too quiet but, since I had been reading I told her I can't read with noise. She said she still needs the noise to read. Then I said, why? don't you hear it in your head when your reading it? and she said Nope. I have one of those brains that is never quiet and she has a quiet one, even when reading. Maybe that's why reading is not as enjoyable for her.
Jessica wrote:I watched The Origin on Hulu (although I watched it on Disney) which is based on the book Caste...OMG it was good. Now for sure I gotta read the book. It's been on my list for a long time, just haven't gotten there yet.
OMG it was amazing wasn't it! One of my favorite movies of the year so far. And I read the book this year too. I had tried to read it before, but had a hard time understanding it. Once I saw the movie though it made reading the book so much easier to comprehend. It's my favorite book of 2024.
Laura wrote:The Parrot and the Igloo: Climate and the Science of Denial (52 Books Summer #2B � an audiobook that is 15+ hours long) ★★�
Nice. I got this book when it was released in hardback last year, but this year the paperback came out so I'm planning to read this come July. I know you gave it a 3-star rating, but I'm curious what you thought of it.
Mod
uh oh. I read There There when it first came out, which means it's been long enough now that I barely remember any of it.
I read 'There There' when it came out, but I have yet to read the new one. I'll probably get to it at some point if I have a chance, but not this year since I already have a lot of books on my pre-order wish list.
Heather wrote: "It’s my birthday today! :) I spent the afternoon with my mom and had a delicious sushi lunch. Then I played a fairytale-themed escape room in a box. (We did manage to escape the enchanted forest). ..."Happy Birthday! I've always wanted to try an escape room! Enjoy the second part of your celebrations!
I've thought about doing an escape room a few times, but my anxiety and fears override that desire. I always have to know where the exits are. Hope you have a great time though!
Heather wrote: "It’s my birthday today! :) I spent the afternoon with my mom and had a delicious sushi lunch. Then I played a fairytale-themed escape room in a box. (We did manage to escape the enchanted forest). And I finished the day by playing bingo. (I didn’t get a bingo, though.) It’s tricky celebrating on a Thursday so the festivities continue tomorrow when we’re going to dinner and seeing a play."Happy Birthday, Heather! I hope you enjoy the play tonight!
Mod
That happened to me with GR giveaways - I have to assume the publisher finds it more beneficial to drum up interest AFTER publication, because there was no way I was reading and reviewing it quickly enough to get it out by pub day!!!
The Tail of the Tip-Off(Mrs. Murphy, #11) by Rita Mae Brown (ps 12. A book from an animal's POV) I originally pulled this out of the tbr pile for women in sports but even though it's set in a woman's basketball court it's barely about it. So since Mrs. Murphy is a talking cat, I counted this (plus talking dogs, owls, possums and god knows what else). I used to love this series 25 years ago. Now I'm ready to root the rest of them out of the tbr pile and donate them unread. If I didn't need something for this prompt I would have DNFed this
Aw sorry to hear this - I used to love this series too, and I thought about picking up a volume for the "animal POV" category!
Mod
sounds like fun!!
Mod
happy birthday!!!
Happy Friday, y’all.This week has been challenging due to the high temps (meaning mostly housebound) and the pre-colonoscopy diet and prep. (Procedure completed on Tuesday.) And an emotional rollercoaster.
My walking has suffered mostly due to the heat with heat indexes being in the low 100s. I did get a few outside things done but only a bit at a time.
And, I DNF’d a book. That is something I seldom do.
On the plus side, Doni responded to my wish for a pen pal…and, although I got the letter the day of the procedure (and having it gave me a warm feeling), my aftereffects of it all, left me with no ambition and sleeping a lot. I hope to respond this weekend.
Oh, and plus number 2: I picked up 6 of the GNs that I had on hold!
Finished:
An Excellent Mystery � ALCM, PAS. A Brother Cadfael mystery of a missing person. Book #11 in series. 4*
Heaven and Earth (Bk #2) � Audible. No challenge. A Nora Roberts Trilogy #2. I really enjoy her paranormal stories. 4*
Aunt Dimity's Death � ALCM. I know that Aunt Dimity has more books in the series (book #1), but she is dead. This one involves her will and the search for missing history of her daughter by the granddaughter. 4*
Suspect � PS #12 (animal POV), PAS. The story of an injured cop, who is seeking to return to the force and solve the mystery of the murder of his partner, and the injured military dog he takes on. 4*
Under the Whispering Door � ATY #26. Second TJ Klune book that I have read…and I am hooked on this author. Thanks, all, for introducing me to these books. 4*
DNF:
The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born � no challenge. This book was on the plan for the African author for ATY, but I read another for that prompt. I made the decision to DNF this book due to the small single-spaced font that made it difficult for these old eyes as well as the fact that the writing left me wondering what the point was. The main character was called the man…lower case, which made him insignificant (never having a name) whose actions through the 19% I read was of non-consequence. I had to push myself to read it, so I gave up.
Currently Reading:
The Man Who Played with Fire: Stieg Larsson's Lost Files and the Hunt for an Assassin � Kindle. No challenge. 30%. Nonfiction. I actually read some in this during the wait for the procedure!
Aunt Bessie Finds � Audible. 58%. A fun listen and a continuation of a series.
Foundation � PAS. 59%. I want to read this because I have a later book in the trilogy…but science fiction is a bit difficult and I am hanging in by my fingernails while Assimov builds his world.
One for Sorrow: A Ghost Story � PAS. 11%. I don't like mean girls stories. Not sure if I will continue with this unless the ghost shows up soon.
Just Starting:
Walden � PAS. 1%
Scarlet � PAS, PS #37 (NaNoWriMo). 1%. I inadvertently skipped this book earlier in the year and read #3 before this one. Trying to catch up.
On Deck:
A People's History of the American Revolution: How Common People Shaped the Fight for Independence - Kindle. 12%
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life � ATY #27. This will be a second attempt at reading. I have decided to do this through Audible or Hoopla Audio rather than the actual book.
PS 15/50
ATY 26/52
GR 95/200
QotW: Do visual images appear to you as you read? Or are you a reader who doesn’t necessarily or ever have visual images in your mind as you read.
I am not aware of visualizing as I read, although I do dream stories. Like others, I may picture scenery or places, but seldom faces.
Happy Friday! It’s been a busy but good week; one of my friends was in town from Chicago last weekend so we got to have dinner and see a local show (Something Rotten is great fun!), then hubby and I investigated a local Italian coffee spot (delicious) and we just got home from a pre-anniversary camping trip 😀 much fun! Now I'm shifting into baby shower mode. Send good thoughts that no m*rder occurs this weekend lol. I’m also still glued to the Olympic trials (SUPER bummed about Athing Mu missing the 800m but thrilled for Shaine Casas in swimming and so many others) and the Guardians remain on a tear in baseball! Yay sportz!
And of course in between all of that I’ve been reading:
Pocket Apocalypse - 4.5 stars. Loveable characters aside, I’ve been impressed with Seanan’s decisions to tackle bigger ethical questions in UF and her enthusiasm for diving into Aboriginal Australian folklore in this volume in particular. More please!
Project Hail Mary - 4 stars. Entertaining, and extremely well-performed and well-produced on audiobook. Set in space
Once & Future, Vol. 1: The King is Undead - 5 stars. For whatever reason, summer is when I seem to glom onto comics. Picked this one up on a whim earlier in the week and was not disappointed. I adore Gran!
PS 28/50
ATY 35/52
Mount TBR 16/48
Currently:
The Creation of Eve - huzzah for tackling the owned backlog! The Renaissance is a period that I have yet to be bored with, and Sofi is a great main character.
Emma - my goal is to finish the last few Jane Austen books this year and this one is moving quickly! I don’t love Emma as a character, which seems to be the general consensus, but I’ll happily rewatch Clueless once I’m done 😂 Set in the snow
Chaos Choreography - my Kindle read for the camping trip! Back with Verity after two books with Alex, and I have to say I’m anticipating an Antimony book sooner rather than later.
QOTW: Do visual images appear to you as you read? Or are you a reader who doesn’t necessarily or ever have visual images in your mind as you read?
Sometimes, although not necessarily always! Books like Jade City with a ton of action are easy to imagine, but Fancasting characters helps, if a character's voice or description fits a certain actor.
@Nadine - I am currently reading the autobiographical Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer, about a quarter through it and keep thinking you *might* be interested - although I can never predict with you! Why thinking of you? Author lives in Fabius, NY and is a professor at the forestry college at SU. Thus the indigenous culture, wisdom, and spirituality mostly covered so far are Onondaga and the nearby Onondaga Nation. Also of course geography, environment etc. is all local and clean up of Onondaga Lake mentioned in passing - this was published around 2013, it is autobiographical and she moved to the area as a single parent wit 2 daughters in late 80s early 90s which I think ties in with when they started cleaning up the lake - after I gradusted from SU Law. I am enjoying the autobiographical and much of the science and indigenous cultural info woven into it. It does get preachy here and there - to me - but the autobiographical part keeps pulling me back. I just read about her first day after dropping her youngest at college. Oh and earlier chapters reminded me so much of my agricultural roots - growing up on a farm upstate. That started with the Maple Sugar chapter.Thought you might be interested. It's my book for PS prompt indigenous NF.
Mod
oh this really made me laugh!!!!
Mod
Yeah I know she's local, and I did like that aspect of Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses, too. It's not often you get to read about the Onondagas! But overall she just annoyed the crap out of me and I have blocked the details from my memory but I do know I eventually vowed I would never read another book by her. I can't handle that "meaningful spiritual" stuff, it drives me right up a wall.
Nadine in NY wrote: "Oh how exciting! the main character's name is NADINE! Now I'm all set if one of next year's categories is "a character with your name." BRING IT ON .."I hope that isn't a prompt.
I'm not sure if Nadine Walsh is everything you'd want for a namesake character. It's a mystery and most characters in the book are flawed, because secrets make mysteries work. I thought it was a 4 star book because it was tight, provided a few good candidates for who might be the titular death. And the ending made sense.
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants is on my TBR. I just don't know when I'll get to that one.I've slowly started planning my July reads and I've got 3 pre-order books that are coming that month too.
Heather wrote: "Zero Days. Ruth Ware novels are hit or miss for me. This was a miss because of how stunningly stupid the main character was. We’re talking she suspected someone of murdering her husband, but kept taking their advice and believing what they said was true levels of stupid here. ..."I thought her books kept getting better, until Zero Days. The who did it was obvious and it didn't seem like her typical book. She is usually one of my favourite authors and I didn't like it. I remain hopeful for her new one.
Mod
I don't know why, but whenever I run into a "Nadine" in a book, she's ... not a great person. There's a Nadine in Crazy Rich Asians and she's a catty gossiper. There's a Nadine in Fourth Wing and she hates the protagonist (although they do cease to be enemies after a while). There's a Nadine in The Stand and things definitely don't go so well for her. I can't remember the name of the book but I know there was a Nadine in a book my grandmother read and she was a scheming bitch.
So, I am prepared for "Nadine" to not be so great LOL
Nadine, NetGalley has an app which is what I use for audio or graphic novels, and for the ebooks that don't offer a kindle format.
Happy Friday!It's been a week. So last week we had issues with our internet and so our provider sent some guys out to investigate and they did in fact fix it. Apparently we needed a new cable. So this week the separate team of cable-burying guys came out and they're like yeah your yard is crazy (and that's valid, it's a big hill with retaining walls and whatnot) if you want us to bury this we need you to get a locator to mark any private lines that are in the yard. So several attempts to get literally anybody to call me back we finally got a locator to come out and mark stuff. The utility marking people will hopefully come next week. It's never simple is it?
Finished:
My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, Vol. 2: I've been waiting for Vol 2 pretty much since the first one came out and after many delays and pushbacks it's finally published! I loved it, but also the end felt too sudden? Like the author just wanted to be done and so just sort of ended it. Not the most satisfying.
Behind the K-pop Mania: Unveiling the Global Sensation: 1 star. Go jump in a well, popsugar, this prompt sucked.
Currently Reading:
The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder: David Grann is one of my faves, I'm so excited for this
QOTW:
I'm very visual! A good book will fully become a movie in my head; I can picture all the characters, hear their voices, see the rooms they're in. It's probably why I don't like fiction on audio...the voices aren't "right".
Nadine in NY wrote: "Theresa wrote: "@Nadine - I am currently reading the autobiographical Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer..."I've taken to skimming those parts ... my 'go to' mechanism when the rest of the book is good, except for the spiritualism/religious preaching. So not my thing. Oh and I just read a whole little section about using gender pronouns when talking about land, plants, animals so that you begin to respect them and not willingly set out to harm them (the environmental spiritualist take) -- that made me laugh - not because it's ridiculous just that it dates this writing given the current American obsession with inclusive gender discussions and not being a male/female pronoun. Being fluent in languages which assign gender to every single noun, I tend to think a bit that way anyway - that everything in nature is a he or she. It's my agricultural roots and dependence as a farm child on nature for livelihood that informs my treatment and relationship with nature not pronouns used - respectful but I loathe 'grubbing in the dirt'.
Yes, this is amusing me - she's just pushing in the chapter on beans that everyone should plant a garden because it will improve their relationship to and treatment of nature -- nope. It's grubbing in the dirt to me.
I do agree with you though, you never get to read about the Onondagas! It's the main reason I acquired this book in the first place.
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us (other topics)The German Girl (other topics)
Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body (other topics)
The Change (other topics)
The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Chris Cleave (other topics)Jane Oppenheimer (other topics)
Rachel Howzell Hall (other topics)
Michael Sims (other topics)
Brené Brown (other topics)
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It's summertime! It's hot, it's humid, it's muggy, it keeps raining, the air is like soup, and the bugs are very happy.
It's almost July, which means I've chosen my favorite book of the month of June (Husbands & Lovers), and my favorite book of the second quarter (The Gift of Rain), and my favorite book of the first half of the year (The Gift of Rain).
Admin stuff
The group has spoken! We will NOT be changing our name!
The poll to pick a pirate book is still open for another week - vote here:
/poll/show/2...
And the July group read will be starting in a few days, reading Crying in H Mart. Erin has volunteered to lead the discussion for July!
Let me or Lynn know if you're interested in leading the August or September discussion (or any future month).
I have swamped myself in NetGalley books. I currently have FIVE books waiting to be read, and a sad feedback ratio of 29%. Naturally, I'm now thinking about requesting audiobooks from them, too. How do you listen to an audiobook from NG? Normally all my audiobooks are from Libby and I listen to them via the Libby app.
I had big hopes of reading many books, but that didn't really happen because we had the graduation to attend and my mom was visiting and then my dog needed three teeth pulled at the vet (and she might still have some sort of abscess he couldn't find) ... so I've been distracted by all these (very valid and important!) real life things.
This week I finished 1 book, and I DNFed 1 book.
Wicked by Jennifer L. Armentrout - Armentrout has a condition that causes her retinas to gradually degrade, so I read this for "author with impaired eyesight." It was okay, which is pretty much exactly what I expected from it, so I was satisfied. The plot was predictable but entertaining. (I was startled by the explicit sex scenes, since I thought this was YA - I never would have gotten this as an audiobook if I'd known, because I don't mind READING explicit sex scenes, but I find it uncomfortable to have to listen to it via audiobook.) I probably won't continue the series (unless we get another "impaired eyesight" category!)
And I DNFed
The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna - this was going to be my "author from Africa" for AtY but it was so trite and the writing was so clunky and the plot made no sense that I just could not with this book. I really really dislike that writing style that involves lots of repetition and sentence fragments to try to amp up the drama, plus this was first person present tense which I generally cannot stand. There are way too many great African authors out there that I could read for this category, I don't need to waste my time on this one.
Popsugar 96% 48 /50
Must Reads 60% 6 /10
AtY 79% 41 /52
2024 pub 30% 15 /50
Question of the Week
Do visual images appear to you as you read? Or are you a reader who doesn’t necessarily or ever have visual images in your mind as you read.
I was just talking to Lily about this the other day! We both agreed that we aren't sure LOL I see SOME images in my head, I keep track of things spatially, and I picture basics like "gray sweater" or "oak tree" but I don't have a crisp detailed photographic image in my head. I usually do not see detailed facial features, although sometimes a character will remind me of an actor and then I picture that person.