30 Books I'm Grateful to Have Read by 30

When I made my 30 by 30 list a few years ago, I gave myself a bonus task of reading the 30 books Huffington Post recommended reading before your 30th birthday.

The short version: I failed miserably at this task.

The long version: By my count, I've read 7 of HuffPo's recommended 30 books. And of those seven, I read every single one of them because I wanted to anyway, not because it was on this list. I've come to realize that proscribed lists of books to read are just never going to work for me. There are books on this list I have absolutely no interest in, and books on this list I'm excited about, and books on this list that peak my interest but, if I'm realistic, I'll never actually read. So rather than calling this one a failure, I'm calling it a success: success in helping me realize that strict reading lists aren't my jam.

That said, I'm a sucker for a good list, and I love a milestone as much as anyone else. And so even though my 30th birthday was two months ago now, I'm sharing the 30 books I'm grateful to have read by my 30th birthday--even if they don't appear on anyone's master list:

Readathon and I'm Ready for Action

It's one of the greatest reading weekends of the years, fellow bookworms: Readathon is nearly upon us! I'm so looking forward to taking a day away from reality to immerse myself in books, books, books. I've got a varied and ambitious stack: my main goals are to finish The Mothers, and catch up on a large chunk of The Count of Monte Cristo. But I've collected some other books that have been eying me (and a few shorties to help fill small gaps in the day) and I'm ready for action on Saturday:

Week in Reading: July 11th

It's Monday, it's a new week, and I feel like my reading priorities have shifted approximately 10 times over the last week. I finished The Tenth of December, by George Saunders, for a book club buddy read over the weekend (adored it and all its strangeness--why did I let this wallow on my shelves for so long?), and read most of The Affair, by Colette Freedman for another book club that meets this week (let me spare you the pain: it's been a long while since I read anything so overwrought, overwritten, cliche, and generally awful without adding it immediately to the DNF pile, though I do think it will make for very interesting book club discussion). I also finished The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater, following an emergency sprint to the library to secure a physical copy when I realized my library hold on the digital copy had expired 12 hours earlier than I thought it would. While I was there, I went ahead and picked up the rest of the series, because hey, why not? So Blue Lily, Lily Blue will most definitely be on my stack this week.

Week in Reading: May 2nd

Greetings from the arc formerly known as my house, friends. We're on day 6, I think, of straight downpours (though it feels like day 600), and looking a forecast of more of the same this week.

We did get a brief glimpse of moody sun in Western Maryland yesterday, where I was volunteering at the end of a 100-mile ultramarathon. I suppose I can't complain too much about rain (or mud) after those folks braved 30 hours of it. The finishers were soaked to the core, and the very last stretch was almost all uphill on a solid mud slick. Pretty impressive stuff.

Social Justice Book Club: June Book Pick

We're not quite finished the first round of the Social Justice Book Club, true, but I'm comfortable enough calling it a success to go ahead and pick the book for round 2: The Long Shadow of Small Ghosts, by Laura Tillman. (Thanks to Julianne for the recommendation!)

Because so many have other reading commitments, and I know some readers weren't able to join us this time around because of delays in getting a copy of Just Mercy, #SJBC will become an every-other-month reading event. So we won't be diving into The Long Shadow of Small Ghosts until June (but I wanted to get the book announced ASAP so folks (like me!) had time to get their hands on a copy).

The more the merrier--link up below if you're interested in joining! No pressure--the link-up just helps me (and others!) keep track of who's participating so we know where to go to discuss.

And stay tuned next week for a wrap-up of this first edition of the Social Justice Book Club, and a call for your input in shaping how we move forward!

Week in Reading: April 18th

Happy Tax Day, fellow Americans! (Happy April 18th, non-U.S. readers!)

As promised, I've done a lot of traveling and not a lot of writing. Not as promised, I haven't done a lot of reading: I spent a surprising amount of my six hours of airport time and two hours of flight time this weekend talking to strangers instead of reading. Who even am I?

Which means this week's reading stack looks almost exactly like last week's...

Looking Ahead: April Books I Can't Wait to Read

Spring publishing season is sneaking up on me more quickly than I like to admit... and though the influx of shiny new titles will be even larger next month, as everyone gears up for the infamous Summer Reading Season, there's no shortage of books calling my name this month:

Week in Reading: April 4th

Welcome to the first iteration of April's weeks in reading. The next three months for me feature a ton of meetings and lots (and lots and lots) of travel, which means I'll likely be reading a lot, but writing very little. My goal, at a minimum, is to keep up with weekly reading posts so the books I'm reading get a little bit of attention (and, of course, I'll still meet my paid review deadlines). Anything beyond that will be a bonus! Having set expectations accordingly, on to this week's reading stack:

Week in Reading: March 21st

Heyo, wouldja look at that, I'm still here! Mostly. Work's been busy, and I've been spending my limited free time trying to read all the things. Which has meant limited brain power and/or spare time to write any things. C'est la vie.

Luckily, there have been some goooood books keeping me occupied of late.

Great Book Club Books to Read Instead (or After!) of Defending Jacob

I wrote last week about how much I disliked Defending Jacob -- for a variety of reasons, none of which we need to re-hash here. But I fully admit that, despite its weaknesses, it made for an excellent book club discussion at my book club's meeting last month. With that in mind, here are a few suggestions that I'd offer up to book clubs interested in something similar:

Looking Ahead: March Books & Happenings

In like a lion, out like a lamb, right? I'm ready for the lamb part, personally. I love winter until about mid-February, and then I am Over. It. (But I digress.)

With March comes a slew of new and exciting books I can't wait to put my paws on:

Looking Ahead: New Books Coming in February

First of all, how is it February? Second of all, how are we expected to read this many great books in the shortest month of the year??

Week in Reading: February 1

I'm a day late and a dollar short in getting this week's reading up, but c'est la vie. The reading stack is still promising for the week, though I'm not sure how much time I'll actually be able to set aside for some of these chunksters....

The Books That Pull You In

I've been in an odd reading slump lately; I'm reading a ton, and a lot of it is very good, but nothing is pulling me in and holding my attention the way I'd like it to. So I did what I always do in situations where I want to talk about books but don't know what books I want to talk about: I asked Twitter.

What's the last book you read that pulled you completely in and wouldn't let you look away?

— Kerry McHugh (@kerryamchugh) January 25, 2016

#24in48: Preparations and The Stack

It's back! #24in48 is here here here here here! Well, it's here tomorrow, anyway, which means it's not too late to sign up to join us for a whole weekend of snacks, reading, and talking about reading.

I'm facing a rare weekend of all pleasure reading: I've met all of my review deadlines for February books, and haven't yet received my batch of March reading from my editors. Which means this weekend is all about Clean Your Reader and Read My Own Damn Books. Here's what I'm eying:

Ten Notable Books from 2015 I Haven't Read... Yet

Despite the fact that over 90% of my reading in 2015 was frontlist (books published in 2014 or 2015), I still feel like there were SO MANY excellent books released in 2015 that I just didn't find the time for. I even own several of them (the best laid plans and all that...); here are ten I definitely plan to make time for in my 2016 reading:

The 2016 #ReadHarder Book Challenge

The ever-brilliant Rachel is back on Book Riot again this year with another round of the Read Harder challenge... and I'm in!

The 2015 Read Harder Challenge was one of the first challenges I've ever actually completed in my entire time as a book blogger (ok, well, I technically haven't finished yet, but I'm 1.5 books away with 2 weeks to go and I WILL DO THIS THING), and I loved the diversity of the tasks. This year's list is, of course, no disappointment.

I'll be keeping track of my progress here throughout the year, with updates for each category as listed below. And because I'm also participating in Andi's #ReadMyOwnDamnBooks movement, and of course my own #CleanYourReader reading challenge, I'll be aiming to read as many of these as possible from my existing collection. Which, at first glance, actually should not be that hard.

1. Read a horror book 

2. Read a nonfiction book about science 

3. Read a collection of essays

4. Read a book out loud to someone else

5. Read a middle grade novel

6. Read a biography (not memoir or autobiography)

7. Read a dystopian or post-apocalyptic novel 
8. Read a book originally published in the decade you were born 
9. Listen to an audiobook that has won an Audie Award 
10. Read a book over 500 pages long 

11. Read a book under 100 pages 
12. Read a book by or about a person that identifies as transgender 
13. Read a book that is set in the Middle East 
14. Read a book that is by an author from Southeast Asia 
15. Read a book of historical fiction set before 1900 
16. Read the first book in a series by a person of color 
17. Read a non-superhero comic that debuted in the last three years 
18. Read a book that was adapted into a movie, then watch the movie. Debate which is better.
19. Read a nonfiction book about feminism or dealing with feminist themes 
20. Read a book about religion (fiction or nonfiction) 
21. Read a book about politics, in your country or another (fiction or nonfiction)

22. Read a food memoir 
23. Read a play 

24. Read a book with a main character that has a mental illness

---

Who else is in??

Nonfiction November Plans

Nonfiction November is back again this year, and I'm excited to be emphasizing some non-fic selections in my November reading... just as soon as I wrap up my current reads. In an effort to continue to focus these precious few deadline-light weeks on backlist and wrapping up my annual reading challenges, here's what I'm eying for the month:

From my 2015 TBR Challenge list:

• The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year Old Boy with Autism, by Naoki Higashida 
• Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, by Cheryl Strayed (don't judge me for the fact that this book has been on more challenge and readathon lists than I can count on one hand)
• When Women Were Birds: Fifty-Four Variations on Voice, by Terry Tempest Williams (because lots of bloggers and reviewers I trust have said this is a must-read)
• How to Live, Or a Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer, by Sarah Blakwell 

For the 2015 Read Harder Challenge:

• At Home: A Short History of Private Life, by Bill Bryson (a microhistory)

And a few just-because alternatives:

• Notorious RBG: Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, by Irin Carmon; Shana Knizhnik
• Furiously Happy, by Jenny Lawson
• Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Undercover Women in the Civil War, by Karen Abbott 
• H is for Hawk, by Helen MacDonald
• The Skies Belong to Us: Love and Terror in the Golden Age of Hijacking, by Brendan I. Koerner (a Paperback to the Future pick from Liberty)
• Come As You Are, by Emily Nagoski (not pictured because it's a late addition to my list, recommended by Rachel)
• Chi Marathon: The Breakthrough Natural Running Program for a Pain-Free Half Marathon and Marathon, by Danny and Katherin Dryer (also not pictured because it's also a late addition, but an appropriately themed one for my latest running activities)

I obviously won't get to all of these, but a girl can dream...

What are your favorite non-fiction picks? What should I have added to my stacks?

Looking Ahead: November Books & Reading Events

October set the bar pretty damn high as reading goes, but that doesn't mean I'm not excited for a few promising books in November:

Contemporary Nigerian Voices

This piece originally ran in Shelf Awareness for Readers.

Until recently, I'm ashamed to admit, my reading of Nigerian authors was limited to the works of Chinua Achebe (which are certainly worth reading, if you haven't already). I had been overlooking a host of more recent fiction from Nigerian voices, all of which work to highlight the complex and often misunderstood history and culture of this unusual country.