Christmas is next week, and I’m only just getting around to posting my first Christmas book tag of the year. Better late than never I suppose, but this does mean I only have one week to post the three Christmas tags I have in my queue. Wish me luck, and be prepared for a Christmas onslaught on my blog.
I was tagged by Swetlana at The Caffeinated Bookworm Life, and Meghan at Meghan’s Whimsical Explorations & Reviews. Thanks both so much for the tag, I had a lot of fun with this one so I hope you enjoy reading my answers just as much.
Received an ARC and Not Reviewed it
I’m a little stumped on what to put for this one. I have three ARCs sitting in my queue to review; one I’ve read and do plan on reviewing when my ‘epic review slump’ is over, another I’m currently reading, and the last I still have on my TBR list. However intentions don’t write reviews so for this one I am going to have to say…
Have Less than 60% Feedback Rating on NetGalley
You’d think based on my answer for the previous question though would be another ‘naughty’ answer, but I like to keep my NetGalley ratio firmly above the sites recommended 80% and currently I’m sitting at 95%.
Rated a Book on Goodreads and Promised a Full Review was to Come on Your Blog (and Never Did)
Another ‘nice’ answer to add to my list. I have been behind on my reviews for a while, some books which I read back in June or July I’ve only just gotten around to posting in November/December, but when I say on Goodreads my full review is to come it will eventually appear on my blog.
Folded Down the Page of a Book
Nope, this goes against everything I stand for when it comes to books. I want to keep them as pristine as possible and won’t even crack the spines when I read paperbacks.
Accidentally Spilled on a Book
You’d think based on my answer to the previous question that this would be another ‘nice’ answer. Unfortunately it isn’t. I mainly read during my daily commute to and from work, and as the books I read are carried in the same bag as my lunch there have been some spillages. The worst was when I got pineapple juice on my brand new copy of City of Ghosts.
DNF-ed a Book this Year
Yes and no. There was a close call with The Lantern’s Ember; I started reading it during my November reading slump and was mentally unable to get into the story. I wasn’t in the right mood for it so I added it back onto my TBR list. I do plan to get around to it (hopefully soon) but technically I did start it and technically I didn’t finish it so it counts against me in this tag.
Brought a Book Purely because it was Pretty with no Intention of Reading it
I’ve brought books solely based on the gorgeous covers, because I’m weak, and while at the time I’ve had every intention of reading them they sit on my TBR list for so long that I soon lose interest.
Read Whilst you were Meant to be Doing Something Else (like Homework)
Oh all the time. Occasionally while I’m at work if I’m waiting for a system to load or data to copy (which can take a while) I will pull out my phone and do some snaky reading on the sly.
Skim Read a Book
Not on purpose, sometimes I find myself skimming paragraphs or pages if my mind wanders while I’m reading but I’ll always have to go back and re-read what I’ve skim read so I’m counting this as…
Completely Missed your Goodreads Goal
The way things are going at the moment I think I’m on track to miss my goal this year. I will have been the first year I’ve missed a Goodreads goal since I first set one, but 125 books just ended up being a little too unachievable when I take into account my mental health the past few months.
Borrowed a Book and Not Returned it to the Library
Nope, although I was once accused of doing just that. My local library re-shelved one of the books I’d returned without scanning it back into the system, they kept sending me letters until I went into the library found the ‘overdue’ books I still ‘had to return’ and proved to them I had actually returned it.
Broke a Book Buying Ban
Oh all the time. I’m too weak when it comes to books and combined with the fact that there are so many amazing releases out there I feel like whenever I set a book buying ban I’m just tempting fate.
Started a Review, Left it for Ages then Forgot what the Book was About
Another no. Most times I write my reviews a day or two after I’ve finished reading the book, so everything that happened is fresh in my mind. Recently I have been in a review slump, and haven’t reviewed any of the books I’ve read since mid-October, but I do have some rough notes so I won’t forget what I want to say about them.
Wrote in a Book you Were Reading
Are we counting high school project books which I had to annotate as part of my GCSE and A level exams? I’m going to say yes, because they were books I was reading and I did write in them, so technically it counts.
Finished a Book and Not Added it to your Goodreads
This is a firm no. Ever since I created a Goodreads account for my blog I’ve added everything I’ve read onto it. How would it count towards my Goodreads Reading Challenge if I didn’t?
Borrowed a Book and Not Returned it to a Friend
Nope, I get very paranoid about having things in my possession that technically aren’t mine (most of the times it’s when I’ve borrowed money from a friend rather than books but still). If someone has lent me something I make it a priority to have it returned as soon as possible.
Dodged Someone Asking if they can Borrow a Book
Another no. I’m usually very keen to lend people books, especially if it’s a favourite of mine which I’ve convinced them to read it so it becomes a favourite of theirs.
Broke the Spine of Someone Else’s Book
Like I said in a previous question I don’t even break the spines on my own books, doing it to someone else’s would just be a major no.
Took the Jacket off a Book to Protect it and Ended up Making it More Damaged
I don’t think so. Normally because of the fact that I like all my books to be pristine I’m very away of the ones I’ve damaged in some way and I’m not remembering any damaged hardbacks sitting on my shelves. Plus hardbacks tend to be more sturdy than paperbacks.
Sat on a Book Accidentally
No, most of my books live on my shelves and I largely read on my Kindle. I have knelt on my Kindle before; it was on my bed, slightly wrapped up in my duvet, and when I went to kneel on my bed to reach something in my wardrobe I landed on my Kindle. Technically I could say ‘nice’ for this question, but as kneeling on a Kindle is worse than sitting on a book (in my mind at least) I have to go with…
Final Verdict
Naughty: 9 | Nice: 11
I’ve got to admit I’m a little surprised by this, mainly because I feel like I have more bad book habits than good ones. Still I managed to claw it back somewhere.
Looks like I’ve been good enough to ensure I still get a visit from Santa this year.
My tags:
Malanie at Malanie Loves Fiction
Marie at Drizzle and Hurricane Books
Sophie at Blame it on Chocolate
Do you think you’d end up more ‘naughty’ than ‘nice’ this year, or have you been good enough you’d have plenty more ‘nice’ answers than anything else? Have you ever sat on, spilled on, or cracked the spine of a book you were reading? Let me know, and if there’s anyone out there who wants to take part consider yourself tagged.
Oh yup! I’m adding this onto my 2019 blogmas list. I’ve already got 3 of them on there, I can add one more! 🙂
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Never too early to start planning 2019 Blogmas I guess, but this is a great tag to take part in! 😀
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A part of me regretted not working on them earlier in the year like I wanted to, but this time if I feel the need to work on one or two before December, I’m not going to force myself to stay away 🙂
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Yeah why not? Better than leaving it to the last minute and having to rush (which is what I always do with literally everything). 🙂
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Yeah exactly! This week coming up was literally written up a week ago so I understand what you mean lol 🙂
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A week in advance is still ahead of me at the moment, I seem to be in a writing slump at the moment.
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Hey Beth 🙂
I enjoyed reading your answers here and I can definitely relate to some of these. I recall a recent time at work (during a particularly slow shift) when I got to read a few pages of a book using the Kindle app of my phone. On another note, I think a goal of 125 books a year is extraordinary and it is all right to not meet this goal. (I would be happy to achieve just half of that!) I think we should read at a pace that we’re comfortable with, and that reading should bring us joy instead of stress. All in all, health comes first 🙂
Great post! Wishing you a merry Christmas ❤
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Ha, yeah it seems to be the bad bookish habits we all share right?! 😀 Oh slow shifts at work at killer, we can’t really be blamed for reading sneakily when we have the chance. Yeah I’m not pushing myself this month; if I meet my goal then great, if not then I’ve still read more books this year than I did last which is something I’m proud of either way. 🙂 Exactly, and that’s one of my goals for next year to focus more on my mental health.
Thanks so much, and I hope you have a brilliant Christmas too. 🙂 ❤
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Yes I think either way ~120 books a year is a huge success and you should absolutely be proud of it 😀
I want to focus on my mental health for next year as well. This year has definitely been stressful for me (and it’s partly my own fault because I try to do too much at once!) so I want to take it easy in 2019 🙂
Hoping that you have a wonderful Christmas too ❤
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Oh definitely, even though I didn’t make it to 120 either I got more read this year than I did last year so it’s a win in my mind! 😀
Maybe 2019 can be the year we both get our mental health back on track. It’s strange how it can completely derail everything else isn’t it? I’m sure either way 2019 will be a much better year for us both. 🙂
Thanks Sophie. 🙂 ❤️
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I like focusing on mental health as a goal in addition to all the other things that we want to get done. It is important to keep our minds healthy right? I find that when I am too stressed, it takes the enjoyment out of things that I usually enjoy like reading and writing, which defeats the purpose of having hobbies since they should be things that I enjoy doing. So this year I’m hoping to be mindful about when I am stressed and taking a step back when I feel that way.
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It’s definitely my goal, I feel like last year I was too focused on other things and because of everything I had going on my mental health really suffered. This year it’s going to be a priority of mine. I’m going to make sure when it comes to reading and blogging and all aspects of my life my first priority is myself and my health rather than anything else.
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Absolutely 🙂
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AHHH TYSM FOR TAGGING ME BETH! ❤ ❤ ❤ i need to hurry and do this before Christmas, i think i'm going straight to the //////worst reader ever, take away her reading privileges//// list slkdjf
i think i'm the absolute worst at DNFing books. it's just, there are so many i want to read, why waste time on a book that's boring??? i've even DNF'd on a blog tour once, and ever since they've issued warnings that if you're going to DNF, you have to do a special promo post instead of a review
*hides*
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That’s all right, and yeah I know the feeling because I still have a few Christmas tags to get through and not enough time to get through them all. (Also you may surprise yourself, I ended up getting more ‘nice’ answers than I thought I would).
Oh oops, but I get what you mean because there are so many books out there we all have on our TBR lists why are we wasting time on books we’re not enjoying?! Maybe next year will be the year I give up on books I don’t enjoy rather than trying to slog through them regardless, hoping they’ll get better (they rarely do). 🙂
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Oh wow, this was actually a pretty close call! I would have taken you for someone who would get Nice on every answer, Beth… Honestly, you are the sweetest bookish soul around! (I’m glad you’re not so Nice, though, that would have been pretty boring hahaha)
I’m so sorry about your City of Ghosts copy! I’ve had more spillages than I can count, but that’s because I’m a klutz… I’ve also had spillages on my laptop, bed, anywhere imaginable and that shouldn’t be spilled on. Sigh.
I have to say, though, you were mostly a very considerate person throughout this tag and most of your “infractions” are purely accidental or standing in the grey area. So not really Naughty at all!
Thank you so much for tagging me for this, and good luck getting all your tags posted by Christmas 🙂 ❤
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Yeah, but if I’m being honest before I counted back I did think I had more naughty answers than nice so I was pleasantly surprised. Also I’m on the right side of “pretty close” in this case! 😀
Ahh, thanks, but I’m also probably the clumsiest person you’ll ever meet so that out balances it, and yeah we all need a little variety in ourselves. 🙂
The spillages relates back to me being so clumsy (and yeah I get you because you should see my laptop!)
I was probably a little tough on myself with some of these answers, but I’ll settle for being in the grey area. Maybe that’s a reason I love morally grey characters so much, there a kinship there! 😀
Thanks, and that’s all right. 🙂 ❤️
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Ahah I love this tag so much and wow, I admire your NetGalley ratio and how when you promise reviews are coming they’re always coming. I tend to promise a review coming soon, but then…. sadly they never come haha I really need to make some progress on that for sure 🙂 thank you so much for tagging me! 🙂 ❤
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It’s a fun one for the run up to Christmas. 🙂 Yeah I’ve worked hard for that NetGalley percentage so I try to keep it as much as I can. Maybe that can be a resolution for the new year, but yeah it can be hard when we read so much quicker than we review.
That’s all right. I’ll be looking forwards to seeing your answers for this one. 🙂 ❤️
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This is such a fun tag and love your answers 🙂 Nice one on having your Netgalley approval ratings at 95%! hehehe I can relate to cover buying for sure! hehe definitely relate to reading while I should be doing something else as well 😉
Thanks so much for tagging me!! 😀 ❤
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Thanks so much. 🙂 Yeah I’m kind of proud of that feedback rating, which is why I always try and keep it above 80%. It’s something we’ve probably all done at least once, there’s no denying the urge to read especially if we’re in the middle of an amazing book right?!
That’s all right. 🙂 ❤️
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Haha, you are very well balanced, i say! 🙂
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Yep, just leaning slightly more to the nice side which is the best side to be in my opinion! 😀
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Hey this isn’t too bad! And I feel like most of the things you marked as naughty are pretty harmless 😉 That’s a shame about the pineapple juice on your book omg!
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Yeah, and the most important thing is that I’m more on the nice side of things than the naughty side! 😀
Discovering that when I got to work sucked, I would have preferred water to pineapple juice because I feel that wouldn’t have been so bad.
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Yay you’re on the nice list! 😀 Great answers for this tag Beth! Oh no reading that you spilled pineapple juice on your book was so sad. I’ve had issues with putting my book in my backpack too. Sometimes when it rains my bag isn’t waterproof clearly and things get wet 🙄
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Yep, better nice than naughty on my opinion! 😀 Thanks so much Meghan, yeah of all the things to spill on one of my books why did it have to be pineapple juice. I feel like water on it’s own wouldn’t have been as bad, but even rain on books isn’t great.
We need to be more careful in the future I guess. 🙂
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Haha I agree!
You’re welcome, I know that leaves it all sticky! 😦 Yeah rain makes everything so damp
Haha, yes!
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At least with just water you have hope of it drying out. No such luck with pineapple juice.
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Oh no 😦
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This seems like a fun tag, I might have to do it sometime before Christmas, I just love doing tags.
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It really is, and if you want to have a go at this one then feel free. 🙂 Hopefully you’ll be able to post it before Christmas! 😀
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