Books #36

[HoGi]

Definitely don't need any more books, but my husband (been together 18 years) has just decided to leave me, so need retail therapy. I'm in the middle of a health kick so dont want to buy clothes as they won't fit me in a fortnight, likewise "bad" food, so books it is! Popped in waterstones and got these.

 

[ordinaryjelly]

It's done.

858 days.
20,592 hours.

And the money I have saved, I know I asked for guesses the other week - not one of you was even close. I am embarrassed to say I have saved £4678.70p.

£60.39 on 99p books. - I would have bought these and they would have been bloatware on my Kindle aside from a few of them.

£2578.31 - on 369 new books hardback/paperbook that were not on WOB yet,l I buy from Indie book shops so pay rrp and not cheapyt Amazon prices. I would probably not even have read about 50% of these.

£1020 - on WOB.

£1,019 - on sprayed edges, special editions, clothbounds etc.

That is a staggering £4678.70p in almost 2.5 years. On average £38 a week . Almost £2k a year.

I realise I am in a privileged position to be able to spend so much on books but watching that amount add up in an account, I moved the amount I would have spent into a saving accout. Once it really started getting closer to £500 it became quite a fun challenge to see how far it could go.

No idea it would be so much. Here's to making better choices, both for me, from a consumerism pov and from an environmental one.

To read A Flicker in the Dark and get a side dose of amnesia....

 

[cill2019]

Hi lovelies!! I haven’t been here for ages because honestly I haven’t picked a book up since January my wee one has been diagnosed with a life long condition and it just knocked the wind out of me and honestly I can’t really concentrate on books. I’ve listened to Harry Potter again and I started Fourth Wing on audible this week but actually reading words on a page
Anyway I had to come and share my joy at finding out that Remarkably Bright Creatures is being made into a film I don’t know if it’s already been discussed by I am DELIGHTED!! And Sally Fields is going to be in it!

Hopefully I’ll be back on full reading form soon

 

[Cheddar Chalpupa]

The meme thread is slagging us off....

 

[veronica71]

Anyone else feel like they read a lot, they know a lot about books and have tons on their tbr or wish lists but then come on here and read peoples posts and realise there are SO MANY OTHER BOOKS OUT THERE you didn’t know about???

 

[ScoutFinch]

I have had a bloody lovely month. Give me bat boys, give me dragons, I want allll the brooding men please ‍

 

[ordinaryjelly]

I am really going against the grain on this thread. And I am not sure I like the feeling. The last month or so some real jealousy of you making book purchases, even if it is 12 in one week , has started creeping in.

I am reading my 3rd to last book. Only just started it this morning. I think I will have finished my tbr next weekend. It feels so weird to I think i will have finished my tbr. But equally I feel sort of freer to not be bogged down by so many books.

I am going to order some books once I am nearing the end of my 2nd to last book.

At the moment I think my order will be

-- Redhead by the Side of the Road by Anne Tyler

-- A Flicker in the Dark by Stacey Willingham

-- Conviction by Denise Mina

-- First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston

My tbr will never again be bigger than 8 books.

Btw. i have been keeping track of the cost of books I would have purchased since my last one on the 29th December 2022. I've been putting that money in a separate bank account, I'll tell you the amount when I purchase my books this week. The amount is staggering.

 

[wishiniwasskinny]

My local library now tells me how much I have saved by using my library. The current amount is

 

[ordinaryjelly]

136 pages to go until the original tbr is finished. It is the weirdest feeling and I am not sure it is in a good way.

I am really busy today so not sure I can sneak much reading in

 

[veronica71]

I’ve never read 11 books in one month before (well certainly not since having kids and I can’t remember before then). It’s been a good reading month.

 

[ordinaryjelly]

Ok, getting towards the edge of my tbr isn't as rewarding as I thought it would be. When I was heading towards 6 - 10 books left it felt amazing and like a weight head been lifted from my shoulders. Now that I have put away all my physical books that I have read (about 60 books) into boxes to be taken home and I can see just the three books I have left, feels weird. I am reading one of those three books and then the two more to come it has made me feel funny. Sort of anxious even though I know at the end of the week I am going to order my new books and am excited to do so.

I guess after having a mammoth tbr for so long it is going to take some getting used. I am glad I have done it though. That pile of tbr physical books was a drain on me. I was asking people for alphabet letters to help me choose books to get through the tbr which I think was the easiest way to do it. Once I got down to about 15 books I used a random generator to pick a number from the order the books were stacked in.

I have said before my tbr will never again get above 8 books. If there were other books that sounded good I am going to write them down and then once I have space on my tbr revisit them and see if I actually want them before I just mindlessly purchase them.

Anyway two and a half more books to go and then it is done. And despite feeling a bit icky now, I think once I can say zero/0/none of the original tbr remain it will feel good.

851 days without purchasing a book.

(I have had book tokens/books passed on to me/bought for me)

 

[Marylou]

New thread my lovlies My favourite on Tattle.

The place where your TBR pile will grow.
Your bank balance will shrink.
You'll never be judged by anyone for your choice of book.
Opinions are shared and we respectfully disagree or agree.


Old thread

Books #35

My Nan was a big reader - she was very poorly for a long time and reading was the only thing that she could manage to do and it rubbed off on me that way. Both my kids are readers - the eldest at 10 has really got into in the last year and I quite often find him still reading at 9pm

tattle.life

 

[Cheddar Chalpupa]

It's very apt because on Monday I had exactly £20 in my bank to last me until today, so I bought Anthony Horowitz's new one - haven't touched it! Literally went without a lunch on my in office day the other day because I bought a book that I couldn't wait 4 days for. That I haven't touched.

 

[ordinaryjelly]

I'm the anomaly where the tbr is shrinking and the back account is growing. I have been putting the money I would have spent on a book into a different account. I'll tell you the actual amount when I get to 0 books. Eeep

 

[HoGi]

oh @HoGi i hope you’re doing okay i can’t imagine how hard that is remember you always have a group of book friends here if you want to talk x

that’s a great haul! i LOVE the look of the crime scene one, i love puzzle books and it looks so fun.

Thank you! I am doing a lot better than I was 6 days ago when he said it.

I have been shocked with how many amazing people I have around me both IRL and online, sounds corny but I am blessed.

I know in my heart of hearts it is the right decision, doesn't make it any easier but I will be ok. I am looking forward to my own house where I can have as many books as I like without any judgement (husband isn't a reader).

I havent had a colouring book for yeeeears, other hobbies got in the way. So looking forward to some mindfulness mixed with puzzles.

 

[ordinaryjelly]

Gang, I am half way through book 8 of the books left on my Kindle.

Which means I have 7 to go.

I think I am going to buy two or three physical books when I get down to 3 books left on my Kindle. I am ready for some physical books after so long on the Kindle. But the anxiety over choosing which books is horrible. I thought it would be easy after all this time! Today is day 838 since I bought a book.

Home Truths by Charity Norman is on my list, fit now. Suggest me books!

 

[veronica71]

I don’t mind trigger warnings if they are subtly placed so you can avoid if you don’t want to find too much out about the book.

I’d like them to ban putting you’ll never see the shocking twist coming off the front cover!!!

 

[ordinaryjelly]

Well, here we are. I am reading the second to last book. I only started it this morning and am only about 60 pages in. Then I have one last book - False Witness by Karin Slaughter, it was a 99p purchase on 8th January 2022. I wish I had kept a special book for last.

Do I feel glad I have done this? Yes and no. It feels really good to be unburdened by an ever growing stack of books that I know I cannot read in my lifetime. I have a consumerism for consumerisms sake issue. But on the other hand it almost makes me sad to not have a lovely pile of books to look at and use as my library, like a cosy safety blanket.

Here's to only eight books on my tbr, we will see if I can manage it.

I realised earlier this week that if I waited until today to order my next books (I am a WOB user) they wouldn't be here in time.

So I have -

Redhead by the Side of the Road by Anne Tyler
A Flicker in the Dark by Stacey Willingham
Conviction by Denise Mina
(all from WOB, I gave the 4th to my mum)

Then I thought I deserved one brand new book so ordered

The Profiler by Helen Fields from Blue Bear Bookshop.

My tbr -

 

[ordinaryjelly]

That is totally inspiring! How did you do it, did you put the money away every time you saw a book you would have bought otherwise? Or did you just sort of average out based on past purchases? It's an incredible amount of money, think of the book spree you could go on now!

I put the money into a separate bank account everytime I considered paying £x for a book and where/cost. It started mounting up surprisingly quickly.

Thinking about it I wish I had included an "Influenced by Tattlers" line because you all were responsible for a fair sum

 

[Caffeine Fiend]

I'm actually a clinical psych, with my own issues, but this is a book thread and not a come to Jesus one. I will always put an emphasis on personal responsibility though.

Now, back on topic. What are we all reading this weekend?

I think I am going to pick up either The Profiler by Helen Fields or Sociopath by Patric Gange.

This thread has actually been a great support to me for a long time. So its made me quite sad to see that tbh. Ive always felt this is a great thread where everyone is supportive regardless of what is being spoken about, not just books.

Its probably my time to head out. Take care.