Doctor Who Reflection: “Eve of the Daleks”

I’m a little late to the party due to a busy weekend, but I’ve finally had the chance to sit down and watch the Doctor Who New Year special “Eve of the Daleks.” Unfortunately, I didn’t derive much from this one, but there are a couple things I wanted to talk about. Including my unending frustration with time loop episodes in general and (of course) Yaz’s confession.

Top Reads of 2020

I haven’t had a good year in blogging, but I’ve had a great year in reading. In hoping to continue one goodness and pursue another, here’s my top five reads of 2021. Hoping to start doing regular posts, Fridays at 11AM when I can manage, perhaps with a few “special event” posts interspersed. Also, fair warning, although I do link to my reviews for all books, I wrote more in-depth reviews for some than others. A couple of these are just emotional expressions, but linking anyway.

Ranking My Fantasyland Required Reading

“Don’t think of this as a class, think of this as a book club.”

Those were the opening words of my Fantasyland prof this semester. A low-level English course, I signed up mostly because I needed more credit hours and class pickings were slim this spring. (Seriously, it’s not reassuring when you sign in to schedule for the next semester and you’ve taken almost all the available classes in your department. And the remaining ones all filled the same time slot. Yay…) And honestly, it was a relief. I stopped reading during the pandemic due to mental stress and a general lack of focus, so I was hoping it would propel me back into the reading landscape.

Did it work?

I currently have seven new books on my shelf from the Book Outlet and four ebooks checked out from the library. You tell me.

Pondathon Sign-Up and TBR

What is the Pondathon?

The Pondathon is a co-operative and story-driven readathon hosted and run by CW from The Quiet Pond. The aim of the Pondathon is to read books and collect points to protect the friends over at The Quiet Pond from the encroaching malevolent forces that threaten our friends in the forest.

Have fun participating in the Pondathon readathon by joining one of five teams, each with a unique way to collect points and signing up! You can also follow the story of the Pondathon as it unfolds, and participants can also complete ‘side quests’ during the readathon to collect extra points. The readathon takes place from January 24th 2020 to March 7th 2020. More information about the readathon can be found here.

5 Ways to Better Enjoy Books in 2020

The arrival of 2020 means a whole new year of reading. And since January is a time of making goals and making changes, maybe it’s time to consider changing your approach to reading. You might just find that it makes the experience that much more satisfying.

Here are five ways to better enjoy books in 2020.

12 Most Anticipated Early 2020 Releases

Within the past year, I’ve become far more attentive toward bookish communities. Before this, I’ve never really been aware of upcoming releases unless it was for a series or an author that I already knew and loved. I was content to find books in the store, blissfully unaware of all those on the cusp of being born had to offer.

So much for that.

Here’s my top twelve most anticipated releases for the first half of 2020.

Doctor Who Reflection: “Spyfall, Part 1”

The much-anticipated season 12 premiere of Doctor Who finally graced our screens last night. Entitled, “Spyfall, Part 1,” this episode marks the second season of Jodie Whittaker’s run as a the Thirteenth Doctor, as well as her first two-part episode.

And what an episode it was! Infusing the classic Who outrageousness with classic spy tropes, “Spyfall, Part 1” leaves the viewer eager for more. Luckily, we don’t have to wait long, as the next episode airs this Sunday in Who‘s usual time-slot.

In the meantime, I want to reflect on this episode.

New Year’s Resolutions 2020

A new year, a new chance to embrace new opportunities. Although it’s way too early to see where 2020 is going to take me, and I’m not a Fool enough to think I can maintain any sort of schedule for the year, I’m establishing some achievable resolutions to help guide me.

Top Reads of 2019

2019 was my year of getting back into recreational reading, and it was a very good year. I’ve read 45 books over the course of the year, with only 9 of those being assigned reads. Out of those, I’m presenting my top reads of 2019 in five categories, reflecting on what made them effective in my eyes.

Too Far: Thoughts on Spoiler Culture

I’m making a bold move this Nanowrimo. I’m daring to write a book where I tell the reader the ending at the beginning. I am completely spoiling the end of my book for my readers without a care in the world, and I am doing it because I am sick and tired of the downright disrespectful extremes spoiler culture has gone to.

Spoiler culture is, in its only redeeming quality, an interesting phenomenon. In essence, it refers to the expansion of the traditional definition of “spoiler” – an element of a disseminated summary or description of any piece of fiction that reveals any plot elements which threaten to give away important details (Wikipedia) – to encompass revealing any details about a piece of fiction, to the point where it’s virtually impossible to even mention fiction in a public setting. Because, no, it hasn’t always been that way.