This month I sat down and made a dent in my old ARCs! Posted reviews for some I had read and not reviewed, as well as just sitting down and reading some older ones that needed finishing or tackling in general. I read 10 old review copies and also DNFed four old ones, which at this point is a win, because now I can remove them from the pile. I feel really proud of myself! Anyway, here are the books I finished this month:
The books I loved the most were Managing Bubbie, which was a very good-humored and touching story of how a Jewish woman brought her family to safety during the WWII years in Europe, and the way she always kept her cunning and fighting spirit. Truly a story I can recommend reading. I also really loved The Test, which is a story that won’t leave you cold. I couldn’t believe how much stuff can be packed in a tiny novella like this and how conflicted it might leave you after you read it. I willl be posting a review soon! Angie was also a great book which I’ve reviewed here. All the others were okay, but didn’t quite grip me – except for Skyships over Innsmouth, which I found quite poorly written. I guess I picked up a lot of poorly written ARCs back in the day! Which is evident by my four DNFs, which I won’t even be mentioning this time.
Now tell me, how is your ARC reading going?
~ For Those Who Are New To The Meme ~
Anyone is free to participate! If you want to, just link up anytime during this month and refer to this page as to the rules of what to put in your post and how to link up. The next State of the ARC post is going to be on (most likely) June 28th or 29th, so if you can’t make this one, mark it down!
~ My Current State of the ARC ~
I am happy to say that this is the second lowest my ARC stack has ever been. Definitely moving in the right direction!
A chart: 6 ARCs not due yet, 58 overdue and still unread and 7 read with a review due to be posted
~ The ARCs Bingo! ~
I have finally added a fantasy ARC to the bingo! I think I’ll have to tackle my oldest ARC soon. And I’m not sure I even have an illustrated one!
An ARCs bingo sheet with no romance, nonfiction, overdue, ARC about mental health / with good rep, diverse, fantasy and scifi slots filled
~ Culprits Hauled ~
I’ve hauled a smaller amount of ARCs in May, and I’m very happy about that. But the ones I did haul are pretty exciting! I sincerely recommend reading Have You Seen Luis Velez – I’m reading it right now and it’s the sweetest, most heart-warming story ever. I’m also quite excited about The Fall and Rise of Sadie McQueen, as I enjoyed the last novel by Juliet Ashton, The Sunday Lunch Club (review here).
And that’s it! How’s your ARCs bingo going?
I’m Evelina and I blog about books that made an impression on me. I love middle grade, women’s, scifi and some literary too.
I’m actually doing fine. I keep a spreadsheet which makes sure I review on time. It used to be all I had was Netgalley. But now I have Edelweiss and print ARCs and blog tours and 6-7 audio publishers. Without the spreadsheet something would get overlooked. If I don’t have a review spot I try not to get the ARC. I have about 10-15 on Netgalley, usually only 1-2 from Edelweiss and about 5 audios at a time I’m reviewing over the next couple moths. Blog tours are the hardest because they don’t always get me the review copy timely.… Read more »
I also keep a spreadsheet, but I still don’t review on time 😀 me being a mood reader gets in the way (a lot, actually). So I always know what I need to review, but I can’t always get them finished on time. Wow, that’s a very short time for the blog tour! One of the reasons why I don’t do blog tours almost at all.
Congrats on knocking down some of those old ARCs! I’ve stopped requesting ARCs so I can spend more time reading my owned books and catch up on my last few overdue ARCs. I think I only have about 15 to go now and then they’ll all be complete!
Thanks! Yeah, I’ve also thought of doing that many many times, but as soon as I get them lower, I cave, go and request something xD I need some self control, honestly. And 15 is a great number 🙂 can’t wait till I get there!
Progress looks good! I used to feel kind of guilty for DNF-ing an ARC, but not anymore. There are too many books still on my TBR, and other ARCs to get to as well.
Indeed! I have also stopped feeling guilty for DNFs much. Especially if they’re badly written!
You are doing so great! Sadly, I’ve fallen way behind after taking my new job and trying to work both jobs. I have got to buckle down and get those reviews written.
Don’t burn yourself out, Laura! It’s what happened to me. Take it slow 🙂 your health and well-being is more important.
I did really well last month and read all of my May ARCs on schedule, and I only have two for the month of June. I’ve started working my way through my backlogged ARCs, so I might actually start using this meme the right way (sharing my overdue ARCs that have been read instead of my upcoming ARCs). Right now your meme helps me stay organized, and it’s a good reference point for the month, but I do think I’ll start including which backlogged ARCs I’ve managed to read as well. It looks like you were able to knock out… Read more »
Yay, go you!! That’s awesome progress! Really happy to hear. I’ve also been cracking down on those old ones, and it just feels so good. Kind of like spring cleaning 😀 I’m so glad to hear that the meme has helped you clean out your ARCs. It really does make me very happy 🙂
Honestly I cannot not read an ARC! I feel guilty especially as I requested them. If I got some by publishers without requesting I guess I would feel less guilt butI am too small of a blogger and international to be gifted these…. so I am doing great especially as I don’t request much to keep room for moody reads!
I feel guilty too, but most of mine come from before I had a blog and knew how it worked. When they’re so old, it hardly even matters! I do alright with my current ones. But I feel really bad about print ARCs! I only have two right now, one unsolicited. I will eventually get there 🙂
DNFing is still good, it’s no use having all that stuff on your list if you don’t even want to read them anymore. I DNFed one of my oldest ARCs recently because I just wasn’t interested in it 🙁
Yes, DNFing is very liberating that way 🙂 I have only recently “discovered” it xD
That’s great to get so many cleared in a month, especially with those DNFs which were simply cluttering up your shelf.
I’ve got some good looking books lined up for June including a Baroness Orzy short story collection from the 1910s which is being republished!
Ooh, that sounds interesting! I love backlist ARCs like that.
Good job making a dent in your ARCs! I feel super behind and can’t seem to stay ahead of the game on mine, but hopefully I will start to make a dent in them soon!
I was there for the past two years! I know what you mean 🙂 I hope you can – it gets easier if you slow down on requesting new ones. Often easier to be said than done though 😀
The Rise and Fall of Sadie McQueen has such a bright and pretty cover! And I’m so glad you managed to make a dent in your arcs! I was making really good progress with my NetGalley arcs, but then I went to two book events in the same week, and now I need to work on the physical arcs I acquired!
Yep, the cover is super cute. She also writes so nicely so I’m quite excited for that one 🙂 oh dang! Two book events huh. Maybe it’s good I can’t go to them cause I feel I’d end up the same 😀
Wow! You’re really doing your thing with those ARC’s! I wish I could do as well with my TBR pile, which seems hopelessly hopeless right now.(lol) Kudos to you! Hugs…RO
Thanks! It just seems so, but in reality I still have a lot of them left xD
Well done you! I need to try and make a dent in mine, it’s getting out of hand
Thank you! 🙂
I have a copy of Managing Bubbie, and since you loved it, maybe I’ll read it soon after the two ARCs that I’m reading.
Really? Yes, you should definitely read it! It’s a great book. I know I’ll remember it for a while. Hope you like it too 🙂