TBR Tuesday

Since I talk about books that I'm reading and/or have read already most of the time, I thought today I'd talk about some books that I would like to read. So here are some books that are currently on my TBR that I have not gotten around to reading quite yet:

1. Queen of the Clueless and Icon of the Indecisive by Mina V. Esguerra. These are the sequels to the first book, Interim Goddess of Love, which was recommended by Chachic. I kind of thought I'd read books like this before with humans-turned-goddesses, but it didn't go in the direction I expected and was super cute. The MC is also fairly sure of herself and has a super fun voice. But it was way too short! I need to read the sequels yesterday.






2. mitewacimowina: Indigenous Science Fiction and Speculative Storytelling by Neal Mcleod is an anthology of short science fiction written by Indigenous authors. It sounds fascinating, and I have yet to read any Indigenous sci-fi so I'm curious to see what it's like. It's also not a very popular genre as far as I can tell at the moment.

3. Monkey Beach by Eden Robinson. I've had this on my TBR list for awhile, but this review of Eden Robinson's work by a blogger I like further convinced me that I should read some of her work.

4. The Abominable Mr. Seabrook by Joe Ollman, which I found on one of 49thshelf's amazing lists. I love graphic novels, but what I love even MORE is graphic novel memoirs or biographies, which is what this is. It sounds so cool.

5. Unbuttoned by Christoper Dummitt, which is a history of a former prime minister of Canada, Mackenzie King, and his "secret life." He sounds like an interesting guy, so I would be interested to read more about him. (This book I also found via 49thshelf.)








6. Glass Beads by Dawn Dumont. I loved Nobody Cries at Bingo, so I'm definitely going to put her next book, out in April, on my TBR.

7. Some Kind of Happiness by Claire Legrand. I put this on my TBR after reading about it on Laura's blog, and now I keep hearing more and more good things about this author. Also it's MG, which I haven't read much of for awhile now, and I miss it!

8. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. I think I saw someone recommend this on Tumblr, and they said it was unexpectedly amazing and had great characters, so since I love good characters, I was of course hooked.

 9. When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon. This has been on my TBR since it was called something else, because I am a sucker for alternating POV romances. It comes out in May!

10. The Sidekicks by Will Kostakis. I loved The First Third, so I definitely want to read Will Kostakis' next book. I wasn't able to get my hands on this for awhile because I couldn't find a way to get it in Canada, but since it's being published in the U.S. I think I can find a way now!








So, these are just 10 of the books on my TBR. I have at least four and a half more pages of books I'd like to read, but I won't bore you by talking about all of them.

Which book should I read first? What books are on your TBR? 

5 TBR List Tips

A few weeks ago I was talking to one of my friends, trying to convince her to add a bunch of books to her TBR list, as well as follow a whole bunch of bookish Twitter accounts. She made a comment on how if she did that, her TBR list would be way too long because she would just add everything.

I follow hundreds of websites and bookish people, so my Twitter and Tumblr are always brimming with book recommendations. It could be overwhelming if I just added every book rec I saw to my TBR (to be read) list. (Just for clarification, my TBR list is not a stack of books next to my bed, but a Word document where I write any books that I might be interested in reading. I know some people have a literal, physical TBR.)

Over the years I've learned it's better not to just add every book I see anywhere to my list, because it would be super long and I wouldn't even end up reading most of the books on it. I've come up with a few rules for myself, and I thought I'd share them with you and hopefully it'll help if you ever feel overwhelmed by the amount of book recs you come across. I know it doesn't really matter since a TBR list is basically just a way to record recommendations you've seen, but I feel like the pickier you are about the books on your TBR list, the more likely it is that you'll end up enjoying the books that you do end up buying, or borrowing from the library.

ALYSSA'S TBR LIST TIPS

1. Read summaries, and only add books if they sound interesting to YOU. It does not matter how many places you have seen the book, or if it's been on X or Y or Z bestseller list, if it doesn't sound like something you'd read, just skip over it. I get way more excited about borrowing the books on my TBR list if they already sound interesting to me. I know sometimes it's really hard not to get drawn in by hype, but everyone's reading tastes are different, and if a book isn't catching your attention, just let it go.

2. Add diverse books! Make sure your TBR list is not just full of books about white, able-bodied, etc characters that live in the same country as you. It's important to read about characters who live different experiences than you. If you have trouble finding diverse books, there are a TON of resources out there. You can start with We Need Diverse Books, Disability in Kidlit, Rich in Color, and DiversifYA. I'd also suggest following them Twitter or Tumblr, because it's an easy way to be constantly seeing diverse recs in your feed. If you're looking for books about specific people, Goodreads listopia is a great way to find diverse recs. Also check out the #weneeddiversebooks and #diversereads hashtags.

3. Cull your TBR list. If you've had a book on your list for years and years, maybe it's time to take it off and admit you will probably never read that book. I have books on my TBR list from years and years ago, and since then my tastes have changed quite a bit. There's no point in keeping books on there I know I'm never going to read. This goes for people who have physical book stacks for their TBR too. If you know you're not going to read a certain book, give it away or trade it with someone.

4. I've also just recently started putting a one word explanation for why I added the book to my list. Often I go back to my list months later before I'm going to the library and I completely forget what the books are about, since I only write down the title and the author. It's kind of annoying to have to go look them all up on Goodreads again, so now I just give myself a reminder of why I added certain books to my list.

5. Be open to new things. While it's important to create a TBR list geared to your interests (it is YOUR list, after all), it is also important to keep an open mind about the kinds of books you read. Read outside your genre, maybe try a book that's been hyped up that you don't think you'd like, read a book that a close friend recommended you that is WAY out of your reading comfort zone. Sometimes when you read out of your comfort zone, you end up being pleasantly surprised!

How do you create your TBR list? 

Top Ten Tuesday: TBR List

Top Ten Tuesday is a feature hosted over at The Broke and the Bookish. Today's feature is ten books on your spring TBR list! 

Recently I've been searching for Canadian books and books with global settings to read for my Around the World Reading Challenge, so those are the kinds of books that have ended up on my TBR recently. Here's ten I'm really excited to read - some aren't out yet, but some are and I just haven't read them yet! 

The Outside Circle by Patti Laboucane-Benson and Kelly Mellings is a graphic novel about two Aboriginal brothers. I've become a lot more interested in graphic novels lately, and this one sounded interesting. Also I think I need to read more books with Aboriginal MCs. The Outside Circle is supposed to come out in May 2015. 

A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea by Dina Nayeri is a book about a young woman in Iran. The cover and the premise are both beautiful. 

Listen, Slowly by Thanha Lai I put on my TBR because of the gorgeous cover. It is about a young girl traveling to Vietnam to learn more about her family roots. 

Nothing Like Love by Sabrina Ramnanan. Such a pretty cover, and an intriguing story. It comes out in April, and it is very much anticipated.

Monstress by Marjorie M. Liu - another graphic novel.

Beauty Plus Pity by Kevin Chong I put on my TBR because I found it on a list at 49thshelf.com and it sounded interesting. 

Black Bird by Michel Basielieres I added to my TBR because I really haven't read all that much about Montreal, and it sounds interesting.

Burmese Lessons: A true love story by Karen Connelly I added because I like love stories, and I like memoirs. Although I just noticed that this book is part of a list called "Travelogues of people who should get their head examined" on Goodreads, so we shall see how reading this one goes. 

The Art of Getting Stared At by Laura Langston is by a Canadian author about a girl with a hair loss condition with a name that is impossible to remember. It intrigues me, also because a girl who I used to be in choir with had the same condition. 

I Love, I Hate, I Miss My Sister by Amelie Sarn is a book about sisters, translated from French. What more could you want?

Now I've got to get reading!! What are some books on your spring TBR? (FYI if you're looking for diverse Canadian books, 49th Shelf is awesome for that - especially since they have a global theme this month).