BBAW: I read it because of Bloggers

Today we're supposed to blab about books we'd never have found without being a book blogger.  Most of my finds have come from the ARCs I discovered while blogging. I'd never read Michael Connelly, or George Pelecanos; I had a chance to read Sacred Hearts, and Labor Day, and Brutal Telling without having to get in line at the library. 

Of course, I'm going to be honest and say that except for ARCs, most of my book suggestions and new ideas (and there have been over 50 of them) have come from my reading challenge buddies over on LibraryThing.  I would never have read authors like Stephen King, Donna Leon, Monica Wood, and too many others to mention.  It's been an incredible year (I've read 117 books so far) and I look forward to seeing what's up next.

So here's to all of you--Let's go read.

BBAW - Reading Habits

Oh My....it's true confession time.  Today's event features a look at who we bloggers are as readers...sit back and let's get to know Tutu:

First of all, Tutu never used 5 words to say something that could be said with 10, so I'm really going to do something different and try to be brief here....I want to get back to reading.

• Do you snack while you read? If so, favorite reading snack? Coffee and Jelly-beans (but no red or green ones)
  
• Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you? I use that wonderful fluorescent yellow and green tape from Levengers' but I also pencil mark in ARCs.
•  How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears?Laying the book flat open? Bookmarks  
• Fiction, Non-fiction, or both? Both 
• Hard copy or audio books? Both 
• Are you a person who tends to read to the end of chapters, or are you able to put a book down at any point? chapters unless the house is burning down 
• If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop to look it up right away? I make a note and look it up later if the meaning doesn't become clear as I read on 
• What are you currently reading? South of Broad by Pat Conroy
• What is the last book you bought? Sicilian Cooking by Carmelo Sammarco (I got this last month in Sicily at the end of my Sicilian cooking class)
• Are you the type of person that only reads one book at a time or can you read more than one at a time? Always more than one- at least one hard cover, and one audio 
• Do you have a favorite time of day and/or place to read? All day, all nite
• Do you prefer series books or stand alone books? either will do, altho I tend to tire of series that go on forever with nothing new to say 
• Is there a specific book or author that you find yourself recommending over and over? Whatever I'm currently reading
• How do you organize your books? (By genre, title, author’s last name, etc.?) By genre,then alpha by author, but size is always the final determinant 

Well, it's time to round up a cup of coffee and a handful of jelly beans and get back to South Of Broad.

I hope you enjoy your day --mine is rather cool and windy - perfect for curling up to read while the fresh tomato sauce simmers on the stove for dinner. 

BBAW: My Shortlist

This is Book Blogger Appreciation Week, and since I was gone, I haven't gotten too involved in any of the activities planned. The wonderful folks sponsoring this event have graciously provided "prompts" to help us celebrate. Today's prompt: Write a post thanking and spotlighting your favorite blogs that didn’t make the shortlists. This is not as easy as it looks. There are literally hundreds of blogs out there and there's no way I'll ever get to read each and every one. I think we all find the ones that speak to us, and those are the first ones we go to on our feeders every morning. So here are a couple of my favorites: Alyce of At home with Books - her site is visually and cerebrally (is that a word?) so pleasant that I find myself always thrilled to see a new post in the feeder. Plus she has some wicked good contests. Kelly at The Novel Bookworm - she has a sense of humor that matches my own, and she hooked me with her online invitation to 'grab a cup of coffee and a cookie (or two) and let's talk about books'. Coffee, cookies and books? What's not to like? Her site is well designed (I'm jealous) easy to navigate, and always a welcoming spot. Caite's A lovely shore breeze She quotes Emily Dickinson, she loves beaches and lighthouses, and her Tuesday Thingers Meme is one of my favorites. Library Thing (LT) is my all time favorite book site, and Caite helps us all get the most out of it. There are so many many more I'd like to mention, but there are also 100's of books waiting to be read. Enjoy your week. Have you hugged a book blogger today?