Happy August!

Hello my fellow bookworms,

How have you been doing in terms of your reading goals this year? I have been attempting to keep up with my goals in Goodreads, but I know I can do better! Summer Reading prep at the library had taken over my work schedule and with the end of summer near, is at the end, but it was worth the smiles and fun patrons have shown throughout the summer! It was a little bittersweet this year, as I left the place I had called home for a few years, and miss my friends and the daily visitors. I have started a new journey, though, and am growing one day at a time. I am making new friends and am enjoying the visitors here, too! Summer is flying by, and I am making strides to keep moving forward. I hope you are, too!

For my own personal reading, I have been enjoying gardening and listening to audio books at the same time, and have lots on my TBR (to be read) pile. In case you were interested, here is my updated bingo card from earlier this year (I have some work to do, but at least I made a BINGO!) -->

Here is some fun bookish news for you:

• There's still some summer left! If you are looking for a fun summer read, Amazon has some original stories that are sure to make your summer day at the beach a fun one. Summer Lovin' is a series of six short stories from romance authors Tessa Bailey, Jessica Peterson, Falon Ballard, Rachel Lacey, Sarah Grunder Ruiz, and Rebecca Jenshak that is free if you subscribe to Prime. If you do not, each story is $2. 

• There's a new game you can buy as a book or play online for free called Murdoku. It is sudoku-meets-Clue and a fun way to pass the time online! Try your hand at it and let me know how far you go! (I'm still on the easy puzzles, but it is addicting!) 

• Fun fact: Americans are still opting for print books over digital or audio versions! Check out the statistics from Pew Research and read why even with the want and need for print materials, few of Americans are in book clubs. (Perhaps join a Silent Book Club, for those of us more introverted but want to be social? I am thinking of doing that!

• Have you ever wanted to see into how librarians order books? Booklist allows us to share the latest magazine online via the following link. Check it out for the latest August issue!

• Netflix has an option to watch your favorite books-to-screen.

• There has been a rise in book vacations, as in go retreat somewhere that you can read in peace and/or go visit somewhere you read about in a book. 
• Rest & Read gives women a weekend out in the Welsh countryside.
• Page Break is a New York City retreat, appealing to much of the younger crowd who wants to bond over reading.
• Forest & Fawn is a fantasy readers retreat (mostly for women and nonbinary readers) featured in different areas of the United States, and there is also a Found Family Club where you can meet like-minded individuals and have monthly book discussions, etc. I may or may not be signing up for this...
• Book Lovers' Binge Reading Retreat is for introverts who want to read in Southwest France.
• Ladies Who Lit is a luxury book-themed vacation in areas across Europe. It looks beautiful, if you can afford it!
• Silent Book Club also hosts retreats, so you can get a little solo time reading and some social connection while vacationing. The destinations are worldwide, so take a look and see what is close to you / where you want to go. 
• Travel Advisor also has a list of 6 Literary Trips Every Book Lover Should Take.

Photo by hello aesthe from Pexels

What have you been reading this summer? I have been trying to read the books that influenced Studio Ghibli movies. Spirited Away's book, The Village Beyond the Mist by Sachiko Kashiwaba was really good - though not the same at all what the movie was about. They are both light-hearted stories that will warm your heart, though! I'm currently in the middle of Kiki's Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono, which is actually the first book in the series. At the moment, it is very similar to the movie, and I am enjoying the adventures very much. I am also rereading Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, which is a story that is unlike the movie, but still good.

Hope your summer is fun and you get to finish all the items and books on your summer bucket list. 

Happy Reading! :)

Summertime is here!

Hello My Fellow Bookworms,

I hope you are all having a glorious summer so far! Long time, no see! I apologize for my not keeping on top of my blog. I find myself starting posts, but never finishing them. I hope to start my habit again of posting at least once a month. Life has been a little busy, but whose has not?

I had started hosting a memoir writing group workshop at my local library for women. It is an endeavor I never thought I would do on my own, but once asked by my manager last year, I gave it some serious thought. It was a scary thing for me, as English was never my best subject, but it is also a human thing. Personal stories are so interesting, more so in the fact that women over a certain age are "forgotten" by society, and it should never be that way! Everyone is interesting and has purpose. As it is a workshop for women, I started it in March, in honor of Women's History Month. It has been a fun and yet emotional journey. I found myself writing memoir pieces along with them, and it has been challenging. I enjoy writing for myself, rather than only an academic purpose. Will I ever publish my pieces, though? Only time will tell. 

This year has been a crazy storm of news, both good and bad, that affects libraries, museums, and publishing in general. This year has been hard so far for libraries, with the cut of federal grant funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services ("IMLS"), the dissolution of the Special Libraries Association ("SLA"), and continuous book challenges. If you would like to say, "Hey, I love my library!," you can do so by letting your library know with a heartfelt card or letter, advocating on social media through hashtags such as #DrawnToFreedom or #FundLibraries, or even reaching out to your local representatives and letting them know you love your library! The ALA has a wonderful webpage filled with fact sheets, resources, and even your local representatives' contact information, which can be found here. 

If you are curious as to what the IMLS funded for Illinois, here is a lovely flier that the ALA created on a per-state basis:

(c) ALA, 2025

Want even more of a reason to love libraries? There is a new documentary that was released earlier this spring titled Free For All, and it is now up on YouTube for free via PBS! Sit back, relax, and enjoy this short history into the people who made libraries what they are today. You can also watch a conversation PBS had after you watch the film, if you would like more information into the film:

Miscellaneous book news:

• As of June 27th, the Supreme Court ruled to protect federal broadband programs. What does this mean for you? This decision preserves the current E-Rate program, funding for affordable, high-speed internet at libraries and schools across the country. With all the cutbacks that have been happening in libraries and grants, this win is quite a lot! You can find out more information from ALA here. 

• If you are an author, especially a self-publishing author, this will affect you! Publishers' Weekly no longer accepts books for review submission for free, as it had for over 100 years. Instead, it now costs $25 for each book you submit. More information can be found here.

• Be careful when purchasing new books on Amazon. There are AI clones of books that are floating around, which the original authors are not getting paid for. The covers are being swapped with a fake cover image, AI changes the original language of the book and rewrites the story using a different language, the name of the author is changed - but kept just close enough to confuse people buying the book, and the list of Bad Things AI does grows. Check out the original article from CBC here, if you are interested in learning more. 
  
  
• If you are a teacher or school librarian, you could be receiving audiobooks for free from Libro.fm! Libro.fm is giving away ALC's, or Advanced Listening Copies, to teachers or school libraries who work with students between the ages of 5-18. Interested? Check out the program details here (and also to sign up)!

• An interesting new app that I still need to test is out on the market, promoting that it can read any of your PDF articles out loud for you. It is called ElevenReader Plus and is free to download for both Android and Apple, and although you can pay for a subscription, you can use it for free for up to 2 hours of listening per week. Depending on usage, this is a pretty nice app for those who may need someone to read out loud to them!

• Feeling stressed? Too much "doomscrolling," or scrolling non-stop through social media and/or the news? The Calm app recently had an article stating how we should take a nature break - go outside, breathe the air, embrace the sunlight, go for a walk. All these things can lead to a better mood, less stress, and better cognitive function, and physical health. Bringing a book helps! I enjoy reading in the grass with my cat surveying the sights, or just lounging in the forest and watching deer pass by. It is summer, so enjoy the most of it while you can! (This is not sponsored, this is just something I think is very important for all of our mental health at this time - I am guilty of doomscrolling video shorts!)

I do not have a book review at the moment, but I am in the middle of several books right now. One of which is called Dragonfruit by Makiia Lucier. It feels like a cross between Moana and How to Train Your Dragon. 

Also, I also am being sent a book in the mail that requires a review, so please look forward to it!

I hope you are having a fantastic summer filled with adventures both in your life and on the page. If you would like to, please let me know what you are reading in the comments!

Until next time - Happy Reading! :)

(c) 2025, Once Upon A Book Blog(ger)

The first days of summer

Hello my fellow bookworms!

As of June 21st, summer is finally here! Although, if you live in certain parts of Canada or the United States, you could be subject to wildfire smoke. Stay safe, and be sure to wear those KN95 masks we all stocked up on during 2020 and 2021 while you are outside!

(c) 2023 Little Brown Ink

I recently read the cheesiest graphic novel to date, and I mean that literally, but that helped make it so endearing! The characters all have names that are also the names of different cheeses, which may make this a tough read if you are hungry! The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz is a young adult LGBTQ romance graphic novel that touches upon themes of friendship, acceptance, and being true to yourself.  A quick read, be sure to add this to your to-read list this summer!

I do have some book news for you:

• Tomorrow, June 30th, is "Stuff Your Kindle Day" for you romance lovers. You can choose up to 20 different books on Kindle for free. The event will also happen twice more this year, on September 20th and December 27th. Please visit Romance Bookworms' blog post here for more information! They also have information on a mystery-themed kindle giveaway, so check out the post for more details.
  

• Illinois became the first state in the United States to ban book bans! A historic win for the fight against censorship and librarians everywhere. We can only hope more states will follow in Governor J.B. Pritzker's footsteps!
  

• Penguin Random House is hosting an online summer reading challenge for kids. Download the form and book ideas here!
  

• With the rise in popularity of BookTok (those popular clips on TikTok that showcase the new and popular books everyone is reading today), TikTok is now hosting its own book awards! Check out the article on TikTok here, which lists the categories and information for this year's award ceremony, which was hosted from May 25th - June 4th. 

There are so many new movies and shows that are coming out that are based on books. Holly Jackson's A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, Lye Hye's Webtoon See You in My 19th Life, David Grann's Killers of the Flower Moon, and so much more. What have you been reading / watching so far this summer?

Until next time - happy reading! :)

Spring days are finally here!

Hello my fellow bookworms!

Spring weather is finally making its way to my city, and I couldn't be happier! I missed the birds singing (even though they like waking me up at 3 in the morning), the green grass, the blue skies, the sun. It's funny how long we can go without the sun, but how lovely it is to see it more than once a week again! 

(c) Faber and Faber, 2019

This month was crazy busy for me, but I took part in a book discussion for the poetry book Deaf Republic by Ilya Kaminsky. The book has a plot that is good timing for the current war in Ukraine, but you may need to take breaks if the story is too much at once. April is also National Poetry Month, so I hope you enjoyed a poem, or two! 

You can always visit the official National Poetry Month website, hosted by the Academy of American Poets, where you can order a free poster designed by Marc Brown, the author of Arthur. You can also sign up for a free daily Poem-A-Day and enjoy some culture each morning, delivered straight to your inbox.

(c) HarperCollins Publishers Inc, 2023

I also read Meg Cabot's The Quarantine Princess Diaries, which I have been waiting to read since...the quarantine in 2020 when Ms. Cabot was publishing short chapters each week to help us stop from going crazy staying inside. Her plot was well thought out and brought up good points and pandemic background, but that is one time I do not ever want to relive again. I did enjoy visiting Princess Mia's world, though, and cannot wait for a post-pandemic book to come! :)

Since this month was otherwise madness, I thought I would share some book/library tips and news:

• Starting tomorrow, May 1st, the OverDrive ebook application is shutting down, and you will need to upgrade to the newer version, Libby. 

• If you like to read newspapers and hate paywalls, try accessing the title through your local library's website. Many times, you will be able to read it for free outside of the library, or free while you are inside the library. 

• Reader's Digest also suggests using the free website 12ft.io to overcome paywalls. While it is right to support your local and national journalists, sometimes you just need a quick article or ran out of your free ones for the month. By navigating to this website, you do not have to download any software, just insert the URL of the article or website you are trying to access, then click on "Remove Paywall." Hopefully you will be able to access the site without issue!
  

• The Library of Congress named 25 recordings of popular songs to preserve, chosen based on "cultural, historical, or aesthetic importance." The Super Mario Bros. is the first video game theme to be chosen for this honor!

• If you have kids (or know one that likes to read), they may be interested in Andrew McMeel's Summer Reading Game!

I'm currently listening to the audiobook of Spare by Prince Harry. It is a lot more sad than I anticipated. I hope to catch up on more of my fun reading this next month after classes are over. What are you reading / look forward to reading? 

Until next time! Happy Reading!