Stephany Writes

Categories: Books

My Audiobook Reading Life

I listened to my first audiobook in 2013. It was The Next Best Thing by Jennifer Weiner, read by Olivia Thirlby, and she was a truly fantastic narrator. I loved that she didn’t make up silly voices for the male actors and just narrated the story the way I would read it in my head. After that, I picked up The Paris Wife by Paula McLain, read by Carrington MacDuffie. I didn’t enjoy that listening experience as much, as Carrington used a lot of strange accents and voices throughout the novel. (I would soon learn, though, that Carrington’s way of reading is much more common in audiobooks—and I would come to love that way of reading a novel.)

After that, I took a break from audiobooks for a few years and then slowly started incorporating them into my reading life—five books in 2015, nine in 2017, 20 in 2018, 25 in 2019, and 12 so far in 2020. They’ve been a regular part of my reading life since 2017 and I try to finish two per month, if I can. Obviously, the pandemic and not having a commute anymore threw everything for a loop—I only started reading audiobooks again last month after a three-month break and I’m averaging one per month, but I’m just glad to have the bandwidth to listen again!

People have strong opinions about audiobooks, and I’m not just talking about the lame debate on whether or not audiobooks count as “real” reading. There are those who love audiobooks and those who don’t. Those who only consume books via audio and those who only listen to a few a year. Those who listen at a frighteningly fast speed and those who are happy with normal speed. Those who can only do nonfiction on audio and those who can only do fiction on audio. Audiobook listening comes in all shapes and sizes!

Since I’m a fairly regular listener of audiobooks, I thought it might be fun to take a look into what my audiobook reading life looks like. Let’s discuss!

1. Speed. I listen to most audiobooks at 1.75x speed. For the two mystery series I’m listening to (Sherry Thomas’s Lady Sherlock series and the Louise Penny series), I slow the speed to 1.5x, since I want to be sure I’m not missing any pertinent details. I had to work up to listening at a high speed, though—it wasn’t something I did immediately. I listened at normal speed (1x) for a really long time, until I started growing frustrated with how long it would take me to listen to an audiobook. I could read so much faster! When I discovered I could speed up the narration, it made the listening experience much more pleasant. I first bumped up the speed to 1.25x and then when that started feeling slow, I went up to 1.5x. After a while, I decided to try an audiobook on 1.75x and discovered I could understand the narration and pay attention easily.

I’ve been thinking about trying an audiobook at 2x speed, but haven’t made the switch yet. I’m feeling a little resistant to the idea! Maybe because I don’t know if the point of listening to audiobooks, at least for me, is to get them done as quickly as possible.  The point is to slow down and enjoy someone reading a book to me. (What’s interesting about this speed thing, though, is that I don’t do this with podcasts. I listen to them at normal speed. The few times I’ve sped up a podcast episode, I didn’t enjoy the listening experience as much!)

2. Genres. I love memoirs, YA, thrillers, mysteries, historical fiction, and literary fiction on audio. I haven’t ever tried a romance on audio, but I don’t think I’d be able to handle it! (Oh, the blushing I would do!) I don’t do too much nonfiction on audio, especially heavy nonfiction that requires me to pay attention and take notes. I prefer those books in printed/e-book form.

I really like listening to books that I feel would be a bit of a slog if I had to read them myself (Rules of Civility, I’m looking at you!) There’s something about having someone else read to me and allowing myself to dip in and out of listening as I please that makes the reading experience so much better.

3. Narrators. It’s common knowledge that a narrator can make or break your listening experience. A great narrator who can switch back and forth between accents easily? Perfection! A narrator with a voice that grates on your ears? Ughhhh. It’s often just a personal thing, and I think I’m extra-sensitive about narrators because I’m an HSP. There’s one narrator who narrates a TON of popular fiction titles and her voice graaaates on me. I don’t know what it is about her voice, but it just irritates the hell out of me, ha. Many audiobook readers have their own favorite narrators, but I haven’t come across anyone I absolutely love, although I will say that the narrator for the Louise Penny books is outstanding.

4. Libby vs Overdrive vs Audible vs CDs. I mainly use Libby for audiobook listening. I haven’t felt the need to get an Audible subscription since my library system has a great selection of audiobooks. (It’s actually pretty rare for me to not see an audiobook option!) The wait can get long for popular titles, of course, which is why I focus on backlist books for audiobook listening. It’s a great way to finally read all those books that have been languishing on your Goodreads TBR for years and years! Overdrive works well, too, but I like the interface for Libby more.

When I first started listening to audiobooks, though, I used CDs! (This makes me feel really old, ha.) CD audiobooks come with about an hour of narration per disc (so you can imagine how unwieldy a really long audiobook would be!), and there’s always that annoying task of removing one disc to put in the next one in line when the narration finishes. Such a first-world problem!

5. Little things I hate.

  • When a multiple POV book only has one narrator
  • When an author reads his/her own memoir and doesn’t have any inflections in their tone
  • Really long audiobooks (anything over 14 hours is too long for me!)
  • Not being able to highlight passages (you can bookmark passages in the Libby app, but it’s not the same!)

6. Little things I love.

  • Being able to read a book while I’m doing other things, like cooking dinner or driving
  • Fun accents that really bring the story to life
  • Learning the correct way to say certain things (especially phrases in other languages—I’ve learned all of the correct ways to say the French names in the Louise Penny series!)
  • Audiobooks that feel more like performances (Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan comes immediately to mind)
  • Finally reading books that have been on my TBR for years and years
  • Having a completely different way to consume a book

What are your thoughts about audiobooks—love them, loathe them, indifferent to them? 

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (7.20.20)

Happy Monday, friends! It’s an exciting day here, as I will be going into my office this morning to pick up some of my personal belongings. It will be so weird to make that drive and walk into the office after four months away! When I left the office on March 13th, I imagined we’d be back within a few weeks, so I left everything. I’m looking forward to finally bringing home so many of my office comforts, like my daily cat calendar, my large Yeti tumbler, pictures of the girls, and my cozy blanket. I’m looking forward to seeing some coworkers, too! There’s a limit to how many people can be in the office at one time (I think 25?), but it will be good just to see some faces. (Well, their masked faces!) I don’t plan to be there long, just long enough to grab some stuff, but I am sure I will have lots of FEEEEEELINGS about being there.

Let’s talk about reading, shall we? I finished three books last week and liked everything I read—yay! Here’s what I read:

To Love and to Cherish by Lauren Layne (★★★☆☆)

One-sentence synopsis: Alexis and Logan have been friends for six years, ever since he became a silent partner in her wedding-planning business, and after spending all of that time in love with her, Logan is ready to take their relationship to the next level.

Ooh, the friends-to-lovers trope! It’s one of my faves! (One of these days, I need to write a post about romance tropes. They’re so much fun!) I really enjoyed this book—it’s the culmination of Lauren Layne’s Wedding Belles series and I think it tied up the series nicely, although I will miss these ladies and their partners something fierce! I had trouble liking Alexis for most of the book, especially with the way she constantly went hot and cold with Logan, who was just the most perfect hero. (I mean, how could he not be with his British accent?) Her inner conflict felt right and true, though, and I could understand her reluctance. I just wanted her to see how perfect Logan was for her and to stop jerking him around! Of course, she eventually does and it’s lovely when she lays her heart on the line for Logan.

Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue (★★★☆☆)

Short synopsis: This novel follows the lives of two very different families: Jende and Neni, Cameroonian immigrants who have a six-year-old son, and Clark and Cindy, a wealthy white couple with two sons. Clark is a senior executive at Lehman Brothers and Jende becomes his driver right around the fall of 2007. The differences between these two families are stark and the impending doom of the Lehman Brothers collapse plays heavy in the background.

This book provides a much-needed lens to the immigrant experience in America. The macro- and microaggressions both Jende and Neni deal with as they try to navigate this new world were hard to read about, as was the awfulness of the American immigration system. Jende’s difficulties in trying to become an American citizen place a deep strain on his marriage, and I was once again reminded of the resiliency of immigrants and the unacceptable way they are treated by the courts and by Americans themselves. The characters in this novel are complex and well-drawn. I loved and loathed all of them at separate intervals—Jende could be so lovable and sweet, and then swing around to be rage-filled and hurtful to his family. Clark could be friendly and affable with Jende, but then dismissive and cold toward his wife. It spoke to the complexity of human behavior and the way circumstances can cause us to hurt the ones we love most. I’d caution readers that this isn’t a happy or hopeful book, although there are moments of joy, but it is a true exploration of family, the immigrant experience, and what it means when dreams don’t come true.

The Art of Theft by Sherry Thomas (★★★★☆)

One-sentence synopsis: Charlotte Holmes and her team are back on the case when a blast from Mrs. Watson’s past comes seeking their services to steal a priceless piece of artwork.

These books just get better and better. I love that Charlotte now has a whole team of people working with her, including the suave Lord Ingram who pines for Charlotte in the sweetest way. I’m listening to these books on audio, which is a really wonderful way to consume this mystery series as the accents are perfection. I don’t really have too much to say about this novel, other than the fact that it was propulsive, witty, and sweet, and had a queer subplot that I wasn’t expecting (especially for a novel taking place in the 1800s!) but was really lovely. I highly recommend this series.

What I’m Reading This Week

I’m currently speeding through The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes. I was on page 125ish on Saturday evening but then got to a point where I couldn’t put it down and read 150 pages alone on Sunday. It’s so good!

I’m also dipping in and out of Down with Love by Kate Meader, which is also outstanding. The voices in this novel are so distinct—the male voice is so unflinchingly honest and I love it—and I’m just thoroughly enjoying my time with this romance and don’t want it to come to an end!

Later this week, I’ll start Circe by Madeline Miller. It’s my July book for the Unread Shelf Challenge, and the prompt was “voted on by #bookstagram.” I’m not part of #bookstagram, so I picked two books outside the genres I normally read and had my Instagram peeps vote on which one I should read (the other book was Recursion by Blake Crouch)—Circe won by a landslide, so I hope it lives up to the hype! (Lots of people told me it was in their faves!)

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (7.13.20)

Happy Monday! If you’re reading this in Feedly or another feed reader, you’ll want to click through to see my brand-new blog design! Yay! I’m so happy with it and it feels like the perfect change. And it was only $20! (I used HelloYayDesign and was really impressed with how thorough the installation instructions were. Plus, she edited the blog header for me for free!)

Last week, I finished two books so it was a much lighter reading week than last week, haha, but finishing six books in a week was crazy. Here are my reviews:

Circling the Sun by Paula McLain (★★★★☆)

One-sentence synopsis: A fictionalized account of the life of Beryl Markham, a celebrated horse trainer and the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic.

I really enjoyed this book! While I expected to read more about her journey to becoming an aviator, it was mostly about her teenage years, her tumultuous twenties, and her horse training career. I loved Beryl so very much. She’s an unconventional woman who makes a lot of terrible mistakes with men, as many women in their twenties are wont to do. I loved the setting of this novel (it mostly takes place in Nairobi) and all of the eclectic characters. I would definitely recommend this book, and just about everything Paula McLain writes. I love her writing!

The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez (★★☆☆☆)

One-sentence synopsis: The attraction between Kristen and Josh grows stronger every day, but it can’t go anywhere because Josh wants a big family and Kristen can’t have children.

Ugh, this book. It’s like the author was trying to fit as many problematic elements into one novel. First, there’s the idea that Kristen is “not like the other girls,” something Josh explicitly states early in the novel. She’s a cool girl, ya know! She’s crass and sarcastic and looooves eating. Ugh. Second, there’s the infertility plotline. I loved how honest this book was about periods and infertility, but I hated how much shame Kristen had about her condition and upcoming hysterectomy. I really wish the author had taken a different tactic with this—it honestly didn’t fit Kristen’s personality to be so ashamed of her malfunctioning uterus. I know that can lead to sooo many complicated feelings, but none of those were fully explored. Most of the novel is about Josh wanting to be in a relationship with Kristen and her going hot and cold on him again and again, and I was so frustrated by her. I just wanted her to tell him why she didn’t want to commit! Be honest! The plot device of one character keeping a huge secret from another character is my least favorite, and it was particularly brutal in this novel. I also want to caution sensitive readers because the novel takes a complete left turn about three-quarters of the way in that I wasn’t expecting and it made a previously light-hearted novel feel heavy and tragic. Not what I expect from my romance novels! Anyway, as you can probably tell, this isn’t a book I would recommend but I’m willing to give the author a second shot. I hear her next book is better.

What I’m Reading This Week

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (7.6.20)

You guys. I have so many book reviews for you today! It’s slightly embarrassing, haha. I finished SIX books this week. Now, to be fair, one of those books was Anna Karenina, which I’ve been reading since January. Another was an audiobook. And I did have a three-day weekend where I didn’t have any plans. But still! That’s a lot of books to finish in a week. Whew. Prepare yourselves for many reviews.

Books Finished

Always on My Mind by Jill Shalvis (★★★☆☆)

One-sentence synopsis: After Leah tells a little white lie to her best friend Jack’s ailing mother that she’s dating her son, Leah and Jack have to pretend to be dating.

This book was just plain fun! The trope of the fake relationship will always be one of my favorites, but it also had a touch of a “second chance romance” since Leah and Jack were best friends growing up and they nearly took their friendship to the next level after high school, but instead, Leah bolts out of town to become the next baking darling. While I’ll admit that I sometimes didn’t feel the strongest connection between Jack and Leah and wanted Leah to be slightly less standoffish, this novel did give me all of the happy feels. I especially loved all of the other relationships in the novel, such as Jack’s relationship with his mom and Leah’s relationship with her grandma.

Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker (★☆☆☆☆)

One-sentence synopsis: It’s been three years since Cass and Emma went missing and then Cass returns with an insane story involving kidnapping and a mysterious island and this plea: find her sister!

I hate-read this. I kept hoping it would get better and then around page 150ish, I realized it wasn’t going to and gave up on liking it. I did want to figure out what happened, which is why I kept reading, but the reveal was completely ridiculous. And, listen, I am usually here for the outlandish thrillers. I’m not as much of a critic of thrillers as some people are, but this one was just silly and improbable and nothing about the characters made sense. I think the author had a good idea for this novel—discussing narcissism and how it affects family dynamics and future generations—but it was just so poorly executed.

Open Book by Jessica Simpson (★★★★★)

One-sentence synopsis: Pop star Jessica Simpson tells her life story, from her early beginnings as a church kid to her career as a pop singer and beyond.

I loved this memoir! It was one that came highly rated and it lived up to all of my expectations. Growing up, I wasn’t allowed to listen to secular music so I had to listen to NSYNC, Britney, BSB, Christina, etc., in secret. But one pop singer I was allowed to listen to—due to her Christian background—was Jessica Simpson. I fell in love with her music first and then Jessica the person via her reality TV show, Newlyweds. So I’ve always been a big fan of hers, and I’ve become an even bigger one after reading her memoir. Jessica is brutally honest and intensely vulnerable in this book, and she doesn’t hold back. Not about her marriage to Nick Lachey (and their not-so-friendly divorce), not about her toxic relationship with John Mayer, not about her problematic drinking habits stemming from sexual abuse in her childhood. I loved learning more about the ins and outs of the entertainment business as well as her sweet romance with her husband Eric. I could gush about this book forever. It’s everything I want in a celebrity memoir!

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (★★★☆☆)

One-sentence synopsis: A sweeping novel about the lives of a whole host of Russian characters, including the title character, Anna, who’s in a lackluster marriage and begins a scandalous relationship that ends in tragedy.

I finally finished! It took me 162 days to read this novel, all of which was on the Serial Reader app. I’m surprised by how much I enjoyed it, even though there were many times that reading felt like a slog. (Which is why reading in small increments worked really well!) I also relied on LitCharts to break down certain chapters to help me interpret the meaning behind them, another thing I would highly recommend. These classic novels are sometimes really difficult to understand at times, no shame! All that said, I was still super fascinated by this novel and its complexities. I found myself loving and loathing all of the characters at different times, and I’m actually sad not to spend time with Levin and Oblonsky and Anna and Vronsky and Kitty and Dolly on an everyday basis. Do I think this is “greatest work of literature ever?” Not really, but it was an enjoyable read and I’m glad I can mark this classic off my list.

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo (★★★★★)

One-sentence synopsis: Writer and speaker Ijeoma Oluo discusses some of the most pertinent issues about racism and systematic oppression today.

This book is everywhere right now, and for good reason. Ijeomo Oluo talks readers through some of the most important questions you may be asking as you begin the work of anti-racism. Things like, “What is intersectionality and why do I need it?”, “What is the school-to-prison pipeline?”, “How can I talk about affirmative action?”, “What are microaggressions?”, etc. Ijeomo speaks from the heart and is brutally honest with her advice. Some of my key takeaways from this novel:

  • Racism exists to exclude people of color from opportunities so there are more opportunities for white people.
  • Antiracism work is about more than seeing the humanity of people of color – it is about dismantling the systems that try to keep POC down.
  • Knowing where our privilege lies allows us to identify where we have power and access to change the system.
  • Believing POC experiences with police is CRUCIAL. This is not only to validate their experiences but to help dismantle a history of police brutality. POC should be able to trust the police as much as white people do.
  • Microaggressions normalize racism. They reinforce racial stereotypes. They dehumanize POC. They keep white supremacy in place.

Field Notes on Love by Jennifer E. Smith (★★★☆☆)

One-sentence synopsis: Hugo and Mae are an unlikely pair, thrown together for a week-long train ride from New York to California.

This was such a cute read! I really enjoyed it. I loved the way the relationship between Hugo and Mae evolved, from uneasy strangers to friends to… more than that. There were also some other really fun elements to the story, such as the fact that Hugo is a sextuplet and all the baggage (and good things!) that comes along with those relationships. Mae is a budding film student and takes on the task of interviewing people on the train for a new project. And the parental relationships in this novel were so perfect. YA novels don’t always get it right when it comes to parents and kids, but this one definitely did. I’d recommend this book!

What I’m Reading This Week

  • Circling the Sun by Paula McLain (ebook) – I have about 100 pages left in this novel, which is a fictionalized retelling of the life of Beryl Markham, who was the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. I’m really loving it!
  • The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez (ebook) – I just started this contemporary romance so I don’t have too much to report about it just yet. It seems to have mixed reviews, though, so we’ll see!
  • The Art of Theft by Sherry Thomas (audiobook) – I’m starting the fourth book in the Lady Sherlock mystery series today. I’m so excited to dive back into Charlotte Holmes’ world!
  • Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue (print) – Once I finish Circling the Sun, I’m going to pick up this beloved novel. It’s been on my shelf for way too long!

What are you reading?

Categories: Books

What I’m Reading (6.29.20)

Happy Monday, friends! What a crazy weekend for me—I experienced my first bout with vertigo! Y’all, I do not recommend it. It’s awful. It came on suddenly on Saturday afternoon and I spent the rest of the day in bed because moving my body brought on intense dizziness and the worst nausea I’ve ever experienced. (And, at the risk of being TMI, I threw up once after trying to pick up groceries that had been delivered to my door. I have never dealt with any kind of motion sickness, so this was so unreal to me.) Even sitting up or focusing on my phone for too long brought on the dizziness. Thankfully, my symptoms improved drastically on Sunday. No more nausea or vomiting, just some light dizziness if I leaned down or moved too quickly. I really hope this is an isolated incident! It’s not something I want to repeat, no way!

Okay, let’s talk reading! I finished two books last week and really enjoyed both of them, yay! I’m also in the process of reading five books at once right now, haha. All five are vastly different from each other, so it’s not hard to keep everything straight, but whew, that’s a lot of books for me to be rotating through!

Books Finished

Romancing the Duke by Tessa Dare (★★★★☆)

Short synopsis: Izzy Goodnight is left penniless after her father dies, but then her late godfather bequeaths her a castle and it seems like her luck is turning around. Only problem? The castle still belongs to Ransom, a duke who was left blind after a duel, and he’s not willing to give it up.

I really enjoyed this historical romance (and it’s only after reading a review that I realized it’s written to be a “retelling” of sorts to Beauty and the Beast). Izzy was such a great character and so was Ransom with his curmudgeonly ways. (I love a good grumpy hero!) They had such an instant chemistry, and watching them fall in love and let down their guards with one another was so beautiful. There was also this really fun side plot involving fantasy stories that Izzy’s father wrote (with Izzy at the center of them). These stories were immensely popular and inspired people to dress up as the characters and travel together to events, and some of those fans even came to the castle once they found out Izzy was staying there. It was a fun detail—the fans weren’t creepy or overwhelming, they just wanted to tell Izzy how much the stories meant to them—and I loved it a lot.

This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger (★★★★☆)

One-sentence synopsis: It’s 1932 and four young orphans run away from their school to sail down the Mississippi River in a canoe in search of a better life.

When I talked about this book last week, I mentioned that I wasn’t enjoying it as much as I had hoped. I struggle a lot with character-driven novels because I typically need a plot to propel me forward. But some character-driven novels work really well for me, especially if the characters are complex and well-drawn. This novel had somewhat of a plot, but it was mostly about the lives of these four orphans and the crazy characters they meet along their journey. However, as the story progressed, I found myself deeply enthralled by the story and the lives of these characters. I found my heart hurting for the main character, Odie, as he encountered things that no young kid should have to deal with. And when it ended, I closed the book and let out a happy sigh. It was a lovely story and I truly missed those four kids when I finished it. Don’t expect this to be a fast-paced read, but if you let yourself sink into the story and take it slowly, I promise it will be worth it.

What I’m Reading This Week

> Open Book by Jessica Simpson (audio). I’ve heard nothing but rave reviews about Jessica Simpson’s memoir and so far, a little less than 40% in, I can see why. Jessica’s honesty is evident throughout the pages and it’s really fun to dive back into the world of early-aughts pop singers!

> Always on My Mind by Jill Shalvis (e-book). This sweet contemporary romance by one of my faves is fulfilling all my happy, romance-y feels right now. It’s a friends-to-lovers romance, and I always love those.

> So You Want to Talk about Race by Ijeoma Oluo (print) – I’ve had this book on my shelf for a long time, always meaning to get to it. I’m reading a few chapters a day so I can soak in the knowledge slowly and take notes as I go along.

> Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker (print). This thriller has a really crazy premise and I’m not sure if I’m totally buying it. I’m about halfway finished with it and I’ll probably see it through to the end, if only to leave a super snarky review. 😉

What are you reading?