Always Looking Up

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Ten Books I’ve Recently Taken Off my TBR

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl. This week is a “Spring Cleaning Freebie”. Some of the suggestions for that vague theme were books you’re planning to get rid of for whatever reason, book’s you’d like to clean off your TBR by either reading them or deciding you’re not interested, books that feel fresh and clean to you after winter is over.

As I recently went through my books (again) and was very harsh with myself over what books I actually still want to read and what ones I want to keep because I liked them a lot – I cut down my seven boxes of books, graphic novels, comics and uni textbooks to just three boxes. I was very impressed with myself. Here are ten of those many books that I decided that I’m no longer interested in reading and have taken them off my TBR, ready to take to a charity shop when they open again.

Sekret by Lindsy Smith
I tried this, only read a chapter or two, couldn’t get into it so put it down and just don’t want to give it another go.

Nevernight by Jay Krstoff
This is another book that I DNF’d a long time ago and have finally decided that I’m not interested in it.

The Riddle of the Sands by Erskine Childers
I bought a collection of classics maybe eight years ago and this was one of them. I think I read two or three of them but I was finally honest with myself that I’m not going to read any of the others, including this one.

Fractured and Shattered by Teri Terry
I read Slated way back in 2016. I enjoyed it then so I bought the next two books in the trilogy but then never continued on with the series. It’s been so long since I read Slated that I’d have to reread that in order to read the rest of the trilogy and I’m just no longer interested in it.

Always Looking Up by Michael J. Fox
I had a phase when I was a teenager of collecting and reading autobiographies. This Michael J. Fox one is one I bought then, and I just never read it.

Portrait of a Spy by Daniel Silva
I can’t remember the reason why I bought this book; I must’ve liked the sound of it when I bought it but now I’m no longer interested.

The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
I love the original Bourne movie trilogy, so I thought I’d try the book. Think I bought it when I was in university so that’s almost ten years ago and I’ve never even picked it up, so it was time to give up on that idea.

Tuck by Stephen R. Lawhead
This is the last book in a Robin Hood retelling trilogy where I read the first two, Hood and Scarlet, but never got around to finishing the series. This is another case where it’s been so long since I’ve read them that I’d have to reread the first two, and I don’t have copies of the first two books anymore so that’s just not going to happen.

Leaving Berlin by Joseph Kanon
Another sort of spy/crime thriller that I bought for some reason and have then never really wanted to read.

Are there any books you plan to spring clean off your TBR?

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Ten Books That Have Been On Your Shelf From Before You Started Blogging That You STILL Haven’t Read Yet

Top Ten Tuesday is a feature run by BrokeAndBookish each week. This week it’s time to be honest and to shed a light on the books that have been on our shelves since before we started blogging. I set this blog up in the summer 2013 but only started regularly blogging from the start of 2014. So these books will have been sitting unread on my shelves for at least two and a half years.

Always Looking Up by Michael J Fox
I love Back to the Future and Michael J. Fox so when I went through a bit of an autobiography phase many years ago, his was one of the ones I bought. I still haven’t read it.

The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper
When there was a film adaptation of The Dark is Rising in 2007 I was all like, “I want to read the book before seeing the film” so I bought a big bind-up of all the books in the series. I’ve still not read any of the books and I’ve also never seen the film.

Last Man Standing by David Baldacci
This book actually belonged to my grandfather. I think we got it him for Christmas one year, he liked it and when I said I was interested in it he let me have it.

The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
I love the Bourne film trilogy so thought “Why don’t I give the book a go?” but that still hasn’t actually happened.

The Magicians Guild by Trudi Canavan
I bought this book years ago when it seemed to be everywhere in bookstores. Maybe I haven’t read it because I’ve kind of drifted away from fantasy over the past few years… who knows?!

Jack Reacher: One Shot by Lee Childs
My gran bought this for me when the Jack Reacher film came out in 2012. I love spy/thriller stories so I don’t know why I haven’t read it yet.

So I couldn’t find ten unread books that have been sitting on my shelves for over two years. I’ll take that to mean that by 2019 all the books that I have currently unread will pretty much all be read and my unread books will be new ones! What books have you still got sitting unread on your shelves?

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Top Ten Unread Books that have been on my Shelves the Longest

Top Ten Tuesday is a feature run by BrokeAndBookish each week – I’m thinking I might not take part every week but just see if a week takes my fancy. This week’s topic is actually called FREEBIE – so you can either pick a previous topic you missed out on or choose a new one. So this week I’ve decided to go through my shelves to find out which books have been sitting there the longest and I haven’t picked them up yet. I’ve worked this out by looking at the publication date (with the hardback books this worked especially well) and if I can remember if I was in school/college/university when buying the book.

The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan CooperFullSizeRender (55)
Publication date: 2007 Been on my shelves for over seven years
I bought this (or more precisely I think I got my mum to buy it for me) when I heard that a film of the same name was being released. I always liked reading the book before seeing the film and when I realised the film was based on one book in the series I got the complete collection. I have yet to watch the film or read the book.

Life and Laughing by Michael McIntyre
Publication date: 2010 Been on my shelves for four years
I went through a stage of buying and reading a lot of autobiographies but then I just stopped so I’ve got a few on my shelve that I haven’t actually read. Michael McIntyre is a British comedian and it’s thanks to him I now have a word for that drawer you have in your house that is full of random stuff – it’s called the Man Drawer. This was definitely a Christmas present from my mum but it as a kind of joint-present since she’s read half of it (but not finished it) and I’ve never started it.
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