The 2019 Annual Reading Challenge Discussion Thread - Page 3

stuartjmz · 01-18-2019, 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GeoffR

If you look up the book on the Kobo website, there is an "About this book" panel below the synopsis that shows the word count.

Thank you! Would Alanis say that it was ironic I hadn't read that?

pdurrant · 01-19-2019, 02:55 AM

I'll try to update the list thread index shortly.

latepaul · 01-19-2019, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dazrin

If you use Calibre there is a word count plugin (I'm not at my personal computer so I don't have a link right now.)

For library books, I use two locations for word counts: https://www.bookshout.com/ or http://www.arbookfind.com/ (select parent and then search)

Neither is perfect but they work.

Yes, thanks for replying on this.

I use the Calibre plugin and bookshout or sometimes http://www.wordcounters.com/ to determine word counts. This uses an algorithm to estimate the word count so I prefer another method where possible.

Dazrin · 01-19-2019, 12:16 PM

Right, Readinglength.com also give a word count but it just uses 255 words/page instead of actually counting them (or at leasst pseudo counting them.)

stuartjmz · 01-20-2019, 11:46 PM

Just finished the first of my (mostly) non-English books for my 2019 challenge, and gave it 4 stars on Goodreads:
This book was EXACTLY what it said on the cover: "An INTRODUCTION to Urdu poetry" For that reason, I give it 4/5 and a strong recommendation
...The point of the book is to INTRODUCE Urdu poetry to those who know little or nothing of it (like me), and it does a great job. Especially with all the links to online resources - recitals, videos, websites, translations, and more. The author goes out of his way to urge readers to treat his book as merely the start of their journey into the wonderland of Urdu poetry, and provides a plethora of pointers for furthering the traveller's trip, and makes the prospect VERY appealing.
... I urge anyone interested in poetry to read, listen, watch and learn.

Tarana · 01-21-2019, 10:57 AM

Finished my 10th book of the year already! Getting a lot in mostly because I'm still more or less laid up. Still struggling on purchasing though I've still limited them to current series.

pdurrant · 01-31-2019, 08:33 AM

It's the end of the month! How are people doing? Having fun, I hope!

I'm doing the best I think I've ever done - net reduction of SIX books!

If I continue to reduce my TBR pile by six each month, it will reach zero on 31st January, 2033!

issybird · 01-31-2019, 08:46 AM

I'm on target with my goals, if only just. I need to get a doorstopper started one of these days, but that situation hasn't reached the critical stage.

Most disappointing for me is the anemic quality of the books I've read. Nothing better than three stars and my overall rating is 2.7 according to Goodreads. I will be a while digging myself out of this hole and boosting it to the 3.2 to 3.3 range, which is where I'd like to be.

Part of the problem is that I've been sidetracked by a few books I didn't plan to read and didn't like them terribly; I should stick to the books I have. The other issue and I haven't quite made my mind up is that I rated two favorite authors' (Wodehouse and Trollope) most recent reads at three stars, because I didn't think they were quite up to their typical high standard. But in terms of my enjoyment and in comparison with other books, they both could have been four stars. Do I play the game of upping my ratings to help my overall mark or do I stay with my gut reaction?

sakura-panda · 01-31-2019, 08:52 AM

I didn't finish any books this month, but I did start a new one.

On the other hand, I made some progress on a couple of the longer books that I've been reading, after not reading much the last two or three months of last year.

Maybe I should pick out a light book just so I can have an entry in my January tally. I've been working through some longer material these last few months, but I have some cozy mysteries in my queue that may go pretty quick.

On one hand, I feel like that doing that doesn't fit the spirit of my list. On the other hand, an empty start could be depressing when I'm looking at my list for the next eleven months.

(If not for all the snow days this week -- where I worked from home to supervise my kids -- I would have finished my audiobook *days* ago. I still have three hours or so left on it, about three days worth of commuting.

)

Wearever · 01-31-2019, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

It's the end of the month! How are people doing? Having fun, I hope!

I'm doing the best I think I've ever done - net reduction of SIX books!

If I continue to reduce my TBR pile by six each month, it will reach zero on 31st January, 2033!

Well done pdurrant !

2033 is only 14 yrs from now. I could only hope to get so far ! Although I'm optimistic now , I've read 6 books this month and 3 were in my TBR section.

Wearever · 01-31-2019, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sakura-panda

I didn't finish any books this month, but I did start a new one.

On the other hand, I made some progress on a couple of the longer books that I've been reading, after not reading much the last two or three months of last year.

Maybe I should pick out a light book just so I can have an entry in my January tally. I've been working through some longer material these last few months, but I have some cozy mysteries in my queue that may go pretty quick.

On one hand, I feel like that doing that doesn't fit the spirit of my list. On the other hand, an empty start could be depressing when I'm looking at my list for the next eleven months.

(If not for all the snow days this week -- where I worked from home to supervise my kids -- I would have finished my audiobook *days* ago. I still have three hours or so left on it, about three days worth of commuting.

)

Hang in there sakura-panda.

I've been there as well. What helped me was to read a short story of an author I really like. Some short stories are 80-100 pages. I like that they are short and will hold my interest while I'm trying to decide on other books to read.

Wearever · 01-31-2019, 09:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by issybird

I'm on target with my goals, if only just. I need to get a doorstopper started one of these days, but that situation hasn't reached the critical stage.

Most disappointing for me is the anemic quality of the books I've read. Nothing better than three stars and my overall rating is 2.7 according to Goodreads. I will be a while digging myself out of this hole and boosting it to the 3.2 to 3.3 range, which is where I'd like to be.

Part of the problem is that I've been sidetracked by a few books I didn't plan to read and didn't like them terribly; I should stick to the books I have. The other issue and I haven't quite made my mind up is that I rated two favorite authors' (Wodehouse and Trollope) most recent reads at three stars, because I didn't think they were quite up to their typical high standard. But in terms of my enjoyment and in comparison with other books, they both could have been four stars. Do I play the game of upping my ratings to help my overall mark or do I stay with my gut reaction?

That's a good question . I would leave them as you found them, and perhaps re read them again another time, to see if you still feel the same about the ratings.

Dazrin · 01-31-2019, 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

It's the end of the month! How are people doing? Having fun, I hope!

I'm doing the best I think I've ever done - net reduction of SIX books!

If I continue to reduce my TBR pile by six each month, it will reach zero on 31st January, 2033!

I have only finished 3 books and barely 1/2 of my page goal. It does not look like I will be able to finish anything today either.

astrangerhere · 01-31-2019, 11:57 AM

I will update this later with my stats, but I only have a net reduction of 2, which is not to my liking.

I am really concerned that reading book club books (I read both but neither were on my TBR as I got them from the library) is hurting my goals. I am going to have to find a way to balance my personal reading and participation in the club. I really enjoy the club, but usually the only way for it to fill my goals is if my nomination wins. Must ponder.

Tarana · 01-31-2019, 02:19 PM

Well, it's the end of the month and I've had both success and failure on my goals. Success in that I've finished 15 books (and may add another book and magazine before end of day). Failure in that I have spent a lot of $$ in January, so above my Jan 1 TBR for now. Two storybundles and one audiobook were outside my goals of this year. The rest are in series I'm focusing on this year.

Kindle Unlimited is helping me get through the Ed McBain series without purchasing more, but my .99 special ends in March.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
The 2019 Annual Reading Challenge List Thread	pdurrant	Reading Recommendations	38	04-07-2019 09:44 AM
The 2017 Annual Reading Challenge Discussion Thread	pdurrant	Reading Recommendations	377	02-07-2018 10:12 AM
The 2016 Annual Reading Challenge Discussion Thread	pdurrant	Reading Recommendations	460	01-08-2017 03:33 PM
The 2015 Annual Reading Challenge Discussion Thread	Nyssa	Reading Recommendations	517	01-02-2016 01:46 PM
The 2014 Annual Reading Challenge Discussion Thread!	Nyssa	Reading Recommendations	943	01-26-2015 08:05 AM

01-19-2019, 02:55 AM	#32
pdurrant The Grand Mouse 高貴的老鼠 Posts: 71,496 Karma: 306214458 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Norfolk, England Device: Kindle Voyage	I'll try to update the list thread index shortly.

01-19-2019, 12:16 PM	#34
Dazrin Wizard Posts: 2,631 Karma: 73864785 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: PDXish Device: Kindle Voyage, various Android devices	Right, Readinglength.com also give a word count but it just uses 255 words/page instead of actually counting them (or at leasst pseudo counting them.)

01-20-2019, 11:46 PM	#35
stuartjmz Nameless Being	Just finished the first of my (mostly) non-English books for my 2019 challenge, and gave it 4 stars on Goodreads: This book was EXACTLY what it said on the cover: "An INTRODUCTION to Urdu poetry" For that reason, I give it 4/5 and a strong recommendation ...The point of the book is to INTRODUCE Urdu poetry to those who know little or nothing of it (like me), and it does a great job. Especially with all the links to online resources - recitals, videos, websites, translations, and more. The author goes out of his way to urge readers to treat his book as merely the start of their journey into the wonderland of Urdu poetry, and provides a plethora of pointers for furthering the traveller's trip, and makes the prospect VERY appealing. ... I urge anyone interested in poetry to read, listen, watch and learn.

01-21-2019, 10:57 AM	#36
Tarana Wizard Posts: 3,977 Karma: 38840460 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Minneapolis Device: PWSE, Voyage, K3, HDX, KBasic 7 & 8, Nook Glo3, Echos, Nanos	Finished my 10th book of the year already! Getting a lot in mostly because I'm still more or less laid up. Still struggling on purchasing though I've still limited them to current series.

01-31-2019, 08:33 AM	#37
pdurrant The Grand Mouse 高貴的老鼠 Posts: 71,496 Karma: 306214458 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Norfolk, England Device: Kindle Voyage	It's the end of the month! How are people doing? Having fun, I hope! I'm doing the best I think I've ever done - net reduction of SIX books! If I continue to reduce my TBR pile by six each month, it will reach zero on 31st January, 2033!

01-31-2019, 08:46 AM	#38
issybird o saeclum infacetum Posts: 20,210 Karma: 222235366 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: New England Device: H2O, Aura One, PW5	I'm on target with my goals, if only just. I need to get a doorstopper started one of these days, but that situation hasn't reached the critical stage. Most disappointing for me is the anemic quality of the books I've read. Nothing better than three stars and my overall rating is 2.7 according to Goodreads. I will be a while digging myself out of this hole and boosting it to the 3.2 to 3.3 range, which is where I'd like to be. Part of the problem is that I've been sidetracked by a few books I didn't plan to read and didn't like them terribly; I should stick to the books I have. The other issue and I haven't quite made my mind up is that I rated two favorite authors' (Wodehouse and Trollope) most recent reads at three stars, because I didn't think they were quite up to their typical high standard. But in terms of my enjoyment and in comparison with other books, they both could have been four stars. Do I play the game of upping my ratings to help my overall mark or do I stay with my gut reaction?

01-31-2019, 08:52 AM	#39
sakura-panda Guru Posts: 923 Karma: 9558874 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Southeast Michigan, USA Device: 2017 10.5" iPad Pro (Kobo, NOOK, Kindle, Google Play Books & Scribd)	I didn't finish any books this month, but I did start a new one. On the other hand, I made some progress on a couple of the longer books that I've been reading, after not reading much the last two or three months of last year. Maybe I should pick out a light book just so I can have an entry in my January tally. I've been working through some longer material these last few months, but I have some cozy mysteries in my queue that may go pretty quick. On one hand, I feel like that doing that doesn't fit the spirit of my list. On the other hand, an empty start could be depressing when I'm looking at my list for the next eleven months. (If not for all the snow days this week -- where I worked from home to supervise my kids -- I would have finished my audiobook days ago. I still have three hours or so left on it, about three days worth of commuting. )

01-31-2019, 11:57 AM	#44
astrangerhere Professor of Law Posts: 3,638 Karma: 65526796 Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Chapel Hill, NC Device: Kobo Elipsa, Kobo Libra H20, Kobo Aura One, KoboMini	I will update this later with my stats, but I only have a net reduction of 2, which is not to my liking. I am really concerned that reading book club books (I read both but neither were on my TBR as I got them from the library) is hurting my goals. I am going to have to find a way to balance my personal reading and participation in the club. I really enjoy the club, but usually the only way for it to fill my goals is if my nomination wins. Must ponder.

01-31-2019, 02:19 PM	#45
Tarana Wizard Posts: 3,977 Karma: 38840460 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Minneapolis Device: PWSE, Voyage, K3, HDX, KBasic 7 & 8, Nook Glo3, Echos, Nanos	Well, it's the end of the month and I've had both success and failure on my goals. Success in that I've finished 15 books (and may add another book and magazine before end of day). Failure in that I have spent a lot of $$ in January, so above my Jan 1 TBR for now. Two storybundles and one audiobook were outside my goals of this year. The rest are in series I'm focusing on this year. Kindle Unlimited is helping me get through the Ed McBain series without purchasing more, but my .99 special ends in March.

Advert

Advert