Monday, May 4, 2020

Should I Stay Or Should I Go? TBR Edition



I've seen a bunch of people do these TBR posts where they go through their To-Read List and debate whether or not to keep or dump the books.

I want to credit someone because I obviously did not come up with the idea, but I have no idea who started this or which blog I specifically see it on.  So if it's you, let me know and I'll link you up!!




Anyway, I'm going way back-- back to the beginning of my Goodreads List!!  Hopefully after doing this for a while, I'll get the massive list of 755 down to a semi-reasonable number (but probably not).


So, these are the first books I added to my Goodreads To-Read List (2011).


The Books:




In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

On November 15, 1959, in the small town of Holcomb, Kansas, four members of the Clutter family were savagely murdered by blasts from a shotgun held a few inches from their faces. There was no apparent motive for the crime, and there were almost no clues. 

As Truman Capote reconstructs the murder and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers, he generates both mesmerizing suspense and astonishing empathy. At the center of his study are the amoral young killers Perry Smith and Dick Hickcock, who, vividly drawn by Capote, are shown to be reprehensible yet entirely and frighteningly human. In Cold Blood is a seminal work of modern prose, a remarkable synthesis of journalistic skill and powerfully evocative narrative.




  • As a True-Crime junkie, I've always wanted to read this.  It's a fairly long (and I've heard boring) book-- and that's probably why I haven't ever picked it up.  My roots as a True-Crime reader are yelling at me to keep this on my list.
Verdict: STAY






Unpredictable by Eileen Cook

Sophie isn't crazy, she just wants her guy back. And posing as a psychic to give his new girlfriend a fake reading designed to break them up isn't going overboard, is it? Don't answer that.

Faking psychic powers turns out to be fun, especially after a few lessons from Nick, the cute skeptic, who teaches her all the tricks of the trade. But her readings do a lot more than she could have predicted. Now she must decide whether to accept her rising stardom in a less-than-honest line of work-and whether the best option is trying to rekindle her old flame or finding romance with someone new. And, most importantly, she needs to figure out whether the answers lie in the stars-or in herself.








  • This got on my list because I really like Eileen Cook's Young Adult books AND I was into Chick-Lit at that time.  I think I'm kind of NOT as into Chick-Lit as I was and this just doesn't sound like something I'd be into now.

Verdict: GO






Everything We Ever Wanted by Sara Shepard

A late-night phone call on a Sunday evening rarely brings good news. So when Sylvie, a recently-widowed mother of two, receives a call from the head teacher of the school she's on the board of, she knows it won't be something she wants to hear. The school was founded by her grandfather, and she's inherited everything he strived to build up - a reputation, a heritage, the school and the grand old family house. And with this inheritance comes responsibility.

So when her son Scott is whispered to be involved in a scandal that led to the death of one of the boys he coaches at the school, it throws the family into chaos: Sylvie has to decide between her loyalty to the school that has been part of her family legacy for years and her son who she feels wants nothing to do with her. She starts spying on the dead boy's father, making an unlikely connection.Sara Shepard's compelling new novel tells how hard it can be to really, truly connect to people, how making quick, easy judgments can come back to haunt you, and how the life you always planned for - and always dreamed of - often doesn't always turn out the way you imagined at all..



  • I added this one because I was reading and addicted to Pretty Little Liars at this time (it's my guilty pleasure).  I think I'd still like to read an Adult book by Sara Shepard & I really like the ease of her writing so...
Verdict: STAY







The Sunset Strip Diaries by Amy Asbury

There comes a time in every girl's life, where she has to choose good or choose bad. Amy Asbury chose bad, hands down. Good meant wallflowers, secretaries and subservient wives. Bad meant power- and a possible escape from a life of secrets.

At twelve years old she was trying to make sense of a drug-addicted father and his disturbing behavior. By fifteen she was dealing with horrendous depression, blackouts and rape. At sixteen she was in a mental institution for suicidal tendencies and violent behavior. She knew she could never be normal. The only place for a girl like her was Hollywood.

This is a true story of the social ascent (and eventual decline) of a girl in the Sunset Strip music scene of the early 1990's. From crazy parties to glittered junkies and man-eating strippers, Amy has chronicled what life was like back in the days of excess and debauchery. It is not just a fascinating look into an amusing time in pop culture, but also details the mindset of a young woman trying to find confidence and self-worth in a life full of pain and chaos.

The party came screeching to a halt when the Grunge movement took over and heroin became more prominent. How far off track can a person go before it's too late?


  • Rock bios are also in my reading roots.  From time to time, I still really like reading them (I read The Beastie Boys book last year).  They're so full of debauchery and cool secrets.  This isn't from a rock star, which is how I know it'll be more honest!!  No reason for this girl to lie to keep other celebrities happy... 
Verdict: STAY







The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams

Thirteen-year-old Kyra has grown up in an isolated community without questioning the fact that her father has three wives and she has twenty brothers and sisters. That is, without questioning it much - if you don't count her visits to the Ironton County Mobile Library on Wheels to read forbidden books, or her secret meetings with Joshua, the boy she hopes to choose for herself instead of having a man chosen for her.

But when the Prophet decrees that Kyra must marry her sixty-year-old uncle - who already has six wives - she must make a desperate choice in the face of violence and her own fears of losing her family forever.










  • Cults. They're one of those topics that fascinate me.  I can't help it, I'm just weirdly interested in them-- kind of the way I get about serial killers.  It's just so foreign to me that I must know more.

  • Verdict: STAY






    So Much to Tell You by John Marsden

    Scarred, literally, by her past, Marina has withdrawn into silence. Then, at her new boarding school, she is set the task of writing a diary by her English teacher, and finds a way of expressing her thoughts and feelings and of exploring the traumatic events that have caused her distress. Through Marina's diary we gain an insight into life on her dormitory, and her difficult relationship with her father, who injured her in an angry moment. Eventually, Marina makes tentative friendships and, in a moving denouement, is reconciled with her father.








    • I used to want to read these issue books all the time-- the darker the issue, the better.  I think my tastes are moving away from these kind of stories.  I mean, I'll still read some, but I don't think I want doom and gloom all the time.  This sounds like a pretty harsh topic-- even though I do like "diary books".
    Verdict: GO








    The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers (#1) by Lynn Weingarten

    If there's an upside to having your heart broken, it's this: A broken heart makes you brave.

    The first day of sophomore year doesn't go the way Lucy planned. After a summer apart from her boyfriend, she's ready to greet him with a special surprise and instead gets a shocking one in return: He's breaking up with her. Beyond devestated, Lucy has no idea how she's going to make it through homeroom, let alone the rest of her life.

    Enter three stunning girls with the unnatural ability to attract boys and an offer Lucy can't refuse: They can heal her heart in an instant. And then she'll be one of them - a member of a sisterhood that is impervious to heartbreak and has access to magic distilled from the tears of brokenhearted boys. But to gain their power, Lucy must get a guy to fall in love with her the old-fashioned way, and then break his heart in the next seven days.

    While the sisterhood may need another Heartbreaker, Lucy's only desire is to get her ex back. But how far is she willing to go, and who is she willing to cross to get what she wants?



    • Dude, yes!!!  I'm so glad 2011 me was so smart to add one of my future favorite authors so early in my Goodreads Life.  I really love all of Lynn Weingarten books (Wherever Nina Lies, Bad Girls with Perfect Faces, etc.), so I need to read MORE of her (and it would be really cool if she would write a NEW book too!!)
    Verdict: STAY









    Have you read any of these??  Which do you think I should keep or get rid of?

    (I haven't actually deleted any yet, so these verdicts aren't final)



    18 comments:

    1. I do try and go through my Goodreads here and there and narrow things down. It can be tough though! LOL I haven't read any of these, but like you, I'm fascinated by true crime and serial killers and I really love dark issue books. :)

      -Lauren
      www.shootingstarsmag.net

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. I have never done any narrowing since I started Goodreads, so it was definitely time!! And YES, Serial Killers and True Crimes are just hard for me to take off my list.

        Delete
    2. This is such a fun idea! My GR list is insane I am sure. I enjoyed In Col Blood but I read it a long time ago. I think it still might be worth a read.

      fishgirl183 @ nitelitebookreviews

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Good to know about IN COLD BLOOD. I definitely have been thinking of reading that for several decades....

        Delete
    3. It's so interesting to go back and look at what books we were interested in years ago! Really shows how our tastes change.

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. SO MUCH. My tastes are definitely different than in 2011, which is before I even started blogging!

        Delete
    4. In Cold Blood is one of those classics everyone talks about. I have never read it myself, but I have only heard praises for it.

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. I've heard good things and I've heard it was boring. That's why I was sort of questioning it, but I love True Crime so much that I couldn't get rid of it without trying!

        Delete
    5. This is such a good idea. I agonize over every book too. Though I think 755 IS a reasonable number hahah. Mine used to be like, 3k, but luckily it's mildly reformed to about 1400. I love that you went back to the very start too- I think those are a lot of the ones most likely to be dumped. I also wholly agree with keeping any and all cult books. I love a cult book!

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. YAY cults!!! Wait... that sounded weird. Oh well, YAY cults!!! I love a cult book or show-- it's so fascinating how they get the people to believe!! Also, OMG 3k!!! That intervention was needed!!😂😂

        Delete
    6. Ah that Sara Shepard book has been on my TBR since forever. I loved her PLL series, even if it got a bit long at times ahah, but I'm curious to see how she does in adult books! :)

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. I'm reading THE PERFECTIONISTS right now!! I can't help myself!!

        Delete
    7. painter in round rock tx Looking for a House Painter, in Round Rock TX, you can trust? Kolor Pros has been in the business for 30 years! We hire only expert Painters, and offer a 2 year ...

      ReplyDelete
    8. American Board of Plastic Surgery Discovering nightlife in Seoul is anything but a troublesome assignment. Wherever you go, you will see Koreans, expats, companions, couples, understudies and financial specialists celebrating it up.

      ReplyDelete
    9. American Society of Plastic Surgeons Discovering nightlife in Seoul is anything but a troublesome assignment. Wherever you go, you will see Koreans, expats, companions, couples, understudies and financial specialists celebrating it up.

      ReplyDelete
    10. tulsa family dentistry Care Family Dentistry is a family-friendly, comfortable environment for patients of all ages. We believe that healthier teeth equal a healthier you. We’ll help you achieve this through regular dental checkups and by improving your general dental health and maintenance techniques.

      ReplyDelete