Great expectations for #BoutOfBooks 29

I felt like doing another read-a-thon this month and signed up for Bout of Books, which is a week-long event (17-23 August) that is more relaxed compared to Dewey’s 24h read-a-thon. The idea however is similar, reading books together and having fun. As always I will mainly be interacting on Twitter (@Urlphantomhive) with maybe some updates on the blog. There are some challenges along the way to participate in, I am particularly looking forward to Thursday (Book Spine Poetry). Now, for arguably the best part: the anticipation and selection of what I am going to try to read!

I never used to make much reading plans, but I did it for the last event, and it worked better than anticipated so here I am again with my planned reads. First, I have accumulated some currently reading titles again, so I want to clear my shelf.

Most of these I was already reading for the Reverse Read-a-thon last week, but I didn’t get to finish them yet.

• The Golden Compass is a Children’s classic that I am only now reading for the very first time. So far, I am really enjoying it.
• Breath from Salt is a non-fiction about the history of Cystic Fibrosis and the path to the treatments that are now becoming available to people with CF. I find this very interesting from a professional perspective, but I think it will also be great for people who are interested in rare diseases and medicine.
• Yesterday I read The Clouds from the Aristophanes collection. I enjoy reading his plays so I hope to maybe read another one next week.
• How To Be a Woman is a pick for the feminist book club (based on Emma Watson’s Our Shared Shelves). Not something I would normally choose, but that’s what book clubs are for. I have so far only read the introduction.
• The Doomsday Book I got from a friend who told me it would be something I would love to read. I am only just starting but she might be right.
• I am reading Mrs. Dalloway via the Pigeonhole, but am a couple of days behind. I recently also read Flush from Virginia Woolf and an assay on how to read a book. This is the first one with such a stream of consciousness-ness, that I still need to get used to a little.
• And last but not least, Djinn City – predecessor of The Ghurka and The Lord of Tuesday (probably one of the most original reads of the year for me).

Of course, I couldn’t help but select some books also to start during the read-a-thon. It might be a bit too optimistic, but we will see how far I get.

• Down World is a recent eARC that I received. It was pitched as a mix of Stranger Things and Dark – so it sounds really promising.
• Binti I got last week in a little buying spree on Amazon. I have been curious of the series for a while, so I hope to start it next week.
• The Five I bought after the internet and my sister recommended it to me. Also, after reading The Angel of the Crows (which features Sherlock Holmes as an Angel trying to solve the Ripper murders – click here for the review) I got thinking about the victims. Plus an account of lower class Victorian England is not something I often see.
• The Silence of The Girls was recommended to me by a lot of people lately, and perfectly fits in the string of Troy retellings that I have been reading this year. Very much anticipated by me.
• Darius Grey is Not Okay I got as a Kindle deal for 1 or maybe 2 euros. The reviews sounded interesting, so I want to give it a try.
• The Haunting of Tram Car 015 I bought after the Hugo awards is the aforementioned book buying spree.
• The Crying of Lot 49 is next month’s selection for my other book club. I wouldn’t have chosen it myself at first but satire sounds like it could be fun.
• Finally, Chosen Ones is another eARC that I got a little while back and I really hope to start next week.

So, have you read any of these books? Which should I prioritize? Are you participating in Bout of Books or another read-a-thon? – Let me know in the comments!

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About Bout of Books

The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda Shofner and Kelly Rubidoux Apple. It’s a weeklong readathon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 17th and runs through Sunday, August 23rd in YOUR time zone. Bout of Books is low-pressure. All reading-in-place times, Twitter chats, and exclusive Instagram challenges are completely optional. For Bout of Books 29 information and updates, visit the Bout of Books blog.

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