Friday, 2 August 2019

Chuckles Weekend Roundup


Welcome to my feature Chuckles Weekend Roundup where I will be looking at what books I've received, anything interesting I've done or bought or watched and other random stuff. I'll be taking a look back at what happened in my blogging world too, sort of like The Sunday Post that some of you do! 

Please note that I'll be visiting your STS/SP as normal, but I don't follow or leave comments on blogs run by Google Plus, or DISQUS as I refuse to join something just to leave comments, and I won't allow DISQUS to follow new people, update my profile or post tweets 'on my behalf'. I am the only one who does that on my social media! I won't comment on any blog that makes me sign in using another account. Sometimes, I have problems leaving messages on blogs hosted by Wordpress-they try to block me because I deleted my account with them but I will persevere as it only happens the odd time!
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I'm so sick of this hot weather! *grumbles* Most creatures hibernate during winter but I'd hibernate through summer if I could. I feel a bit like a grumpy bear at the moment and just wish the cooler days would come back! I'm also a nervous wreck now that the Ashes has begun AND my football team is short on players with the league starting again tomorrow ARRGGHH! Last season for St Mirren was tense and horrible with looming relegation to panic over, so I expect more of the same this season. Who said sport is meant to be fun???!!!

It's been another good reading spell, reading three novels and a novella since Sunday, which I'm pleased about. I'm moving my Sunday Reading post to today to become a Friday Reading post! It will go up after I post this one. I'm creeping towards the magic number of 999 on my Tackling The TBR, I feel motivated and ready to read more. Things are going well with my challenges and I'm putting together my Autumn Reading List ready to start on next month. I'm already excited about some of the planned reads! Books added today were bought previously but are just being added to my Goodreads TBR today.

PAPERBACKS/HARDBACKS 





Chuckles Blogging World
I'm looking at getting rid of Bloglovin and Twitter to regain some of my sanity. I do hope to find more time to spend on the fun stuff like Pinterest instead! The Sunday Reading Roundup will be moving after today to become the Friday Reading Roundup.

Book Reviews 

Chuckles Mini Reviews Catchup

Chuckles Retro Review-The First Days (ATWD #1)

Rhiannon Frater-Fighting To Survive (ATWD #2) 

Rhiannon Frater-Siege (ATWD #3)

Regular Posts 

Chuckles Sunday Reading Roundup

Around The Blogs With Chuckles

Top Ten Tuesday

Books From The Backlog

Discussion Posts

Chuckles Chuntering

Book Challenges 

Tackling The TBR

Films & TV
This week I watched the start of the Ashes Cricket on TV and got nervous about it. I also reviewed a few films!

Chuckles Film Reviews

Book Tags/Blog Awards

The Guilty Reader Book Tag
https://chucklesbookcave.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-guilty-reader-book-tag.html 

I Dare Ya Book Tag
https://chucklesbookcave.blogspot.com/2019/08/i-dare-ya-book-tag.html 

Currently Reading/Up Next 
Since Sunday, I've read three books and a novella which I'm pleased about, so my summer reading continues on at a good pace. I've just started Origin and then I hope to be reading two more from my horror/thriller category!


  
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Chuckles Chuntering


You ever have days when you feel annoyed and frustrated for no actual reason and want to kick the wall? I've been in that mood for two weeks now and it is putting me in a rotten mood! I'm pretty sure it is this continued hot and stuffy weather. We had a minor thunderstorm two nights ago and rain for two days but it is still that nasty humid sticky heat that saps your energy and concentration. There still seems to be no end in sight and I'm longing for the cooler days of autumn to come soon! But it is only August so there will be more misery to come! My dad is pretty much in the same mood so we can at least whine to each other about it! 

I'm getting increasingly annoyed with the few social media platforms that I'm on. Bloglovin stopped working for a whole day and when it came back it wasn't showing all of the blog posts. I know this because I visited the blogs and saw more posts than bloglovin were providing. I'm pretty annoyed by this as I'm missing posts I want to comment on. It makes me wonder how many posts I've missed over the years I've used it. My mood did not improve when I saw that bloglovin actually displays our reviews on their site with its own comments page! Hey muppets, I did NOT give permission for you to do that!!! If they do that, some potential visitors will comment there and not on my blog! I'm not happy with that! 
https://www.nosegraze.com/bloglovin-is-stealing-posts/ 

It seems that there are ways to stop them but I don't understand the technobabble! Where do I find my header.php file to add the code to block bloglovin? I have no clue! Has anyone tried any of these things as I don't want to screw up messing with stuff I don't understand? I need to find a way to do this before I stop using bloglovin as even if I close my account with them, they can continue displaying my content on their site! Here are some ways to supposedly stop them. I'm still trying to understsnd the instructions!
https://a1websitepro.com/bloglovin-stealing-your-page-views-block-them/

Does anyone here use Feedly? I'm considering either using that or just visiting each blog by putting the address into the bit you do that in and going there myself. I'm concerned how much time it would take so I'd like to know if Feedly is worth the bother of setting up as an alternative. Does it let you block those stupid Russian sex bots? Does it have ads everywhere in your feed? It is simple and user friendly? Is it better than bloglovin? Do they also steal your content to put on their own site? Is it easy to delete if I change my mind about switching to it?  

As for Twitter, this new design really is the last straw for me. I hate it and it's crap! The whole page is clogged up with so much crap I don't want to see and that I can't get rid off. I'm trying to block it with Adblock but it keeps coming back ie who to follow and what I might like. It's annoying and I hate it showing up in the middle of the posts I'm reading. I also hate how big the trending thing is in the sidebar. I hate the layout and how it looks cluttered. I particularly hate having to continually change from top posts to latest posts every time I visit my home page. Nothing about it is set up to be useful to me and I'll be deleting my account for good this time, maybe as soon as the weekend. You'll still be able to find me on Goodreads and my blog though.
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Books From The Backlog-The Fall Of Man


Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those neglected books sitting on your bookshelf.  You might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in your stacks. Go to Carole's blog and add your blog post link in to join in the fun! Hosted by Carole at https://carolesrandomlife.blogspot.co.uk/

This seems like a fun feature and I have been planning to take part since Carole launched this so at last, here we go! I have a TON of unread books to choose from in various genres and I'm looking forward to sharing some of them with everybody. 


Mankind was wiped out in the blink of an eye. Hordes of mindless, flesh-hungry zombies ravaged the world and left a bloody trail of death and ashes in their wake. Sarah survived that nightmare eight years ago with her son who was born on that fateful day. Now as they struggle to eke out a living in the apocalyptic ruins of Virginia, they hear word of a safe haven in the next state over. A place where she'll no longer have to wonder if her son will live to see tomorrow.

There's just one problem. Standing between them and paradise is over a hundred miles of more than just the undead. Cannibals, lunatics, and murderous bandits prowl the landscape, searching for their next victims. But facing an impossible journey, Sarah may just have the ace that they need to make it: an unexplainable and frightening power her son possesses that will either turn the tide and deliver them to salvation or bring about their destruction and leave them to join the ranks of the dead...  

Zombies! I can never resist these guys! I've had this series for a good few years but only remembered to add it to Goodreads this spring. I think I got it around 2015. Anyway, one of the many series that I need to get reading! 
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Thursday, 1 August 2019

I Dare Ya Book Tag


I found this tag through a bloglovin search. The version I saw was posted by blogger  https://audielou.com/2019/ who saw it at https://theelderbooksblog.wordpress.com/ blog. I have no idea who started it as it is too time consuming to go search for it. 

1) What book has been on your shelf the longest?
One book from my childhood that I kept was 'Bears in the night' by Stan Berenstain. It's not related to the books with Brother and Sister Bear. This book features a whole tribe of young bears going out for a midnight adventure. I love it!

 
2) What is your current read, your last read and the book you'll read next?
My last read was Plain Jane, a novel based on Henry VIII's third wife Jane Seymour. I'm just about ready to start Robert Boren's The Plan, a prequel to the Bug Out series. Next up for me will be Origin by Jack Kilborn.


3) What book did everyone like but you hated?
My book tastes are not the same as most bloggers I come into contact with. I'm not a fan of romance, contemporary, crime, YA and kids, and epic fantasy. I read only certain types of fantasy and SF, limited types of thrillers. I'm more about Indie horror, creature feature and apocalypse books, political memoirs and diaries, mountain expeditions, The Tudors. So really most of the popular books amongst bloggers never hit my radar! Lots of people seem to like Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, Patrick Ness, Holly Black, Seanan McGuire, Gregory Maguire, Joseph Heller but I never liked their work.


4) What book do you keep telling yourself you'll read but you probably won't?
I either want to read it or I don't, plain and simple. At the moment I have too many awaiting my attention but what I have I do intend to read at some point, otherwise I'd get shot of it.

5) What book are you saving for retirement?  
I'm trying to get through as many of the buggers as I can right now so my future self can enjoy re-reading lots of favourites! I'm not trying to save anything!
 
6) Last page: read it first or wait 'til the end?  I've never seen the point in reading the end of the book to see if the ending was worth reading a whole book for. My gran's sister used to read mysteries and always needed to know who the killer was before reading the book. Surely that just spoils the whole book! I want to be excited and entertained and not know what is coming next!

7) Acknowledgment: waste of paper and ink or interesting aside?
I don't regard it as a waste of paper. It gives the author a chance to thank people for helping them get that book out and promoted. I have been surprised to be included in a few acknowledgment sections and it does feel great to be mentioned, so it serves a purpose!

8) What book character would you switch places with?
With the favourite genres of mine being horror and apocalypse, you really don't want to swap with any of those characters unless you want trauma, pain, death and disaster in your life!

9) Do you have a book that reminds you of something specific in your life?
Yes, Harry Potter. I'd loved reading while I was a kid and student  but stressful jobs ended my reading around 1995. In 2003 I went off work with depression and had to give up my job. On a whim I joined a book club that sends those magazines every month and the joining offer had the first four Harry Potter books for about £3 or £4. I decided to try them as something different and hoovered them up! It sparked off my love of reading again and I've never looked back.  Thank you JK Rowling!

10) Name a book that you aquired in an interesting way?
I don't think I really get my books in exciting ways! Most purchases are Amazon, gifts or charity shops! I don't go to book conventions or author signings. My dad did queue up at a shopping centre to get a local footballer's book bought and signed for me. 


11) Have you ever given a book away for a special reason/to a special person?
I never give away my beloved books other than donating the books to charity shops when I'm finished with them. I have in the past bought books to be gifts for people but not second hand from my collection.

12) Which book has been with you to the most places?
I don't carry the same book around with me. I take whatever book I happen to be reading but I might have taken this on holiday a couple of times.


13) Any required reading you hated in high school that wasn't so bad years later?
I hated pretty much all of the required reading at school-DH Lawrence, George Orwell, George Bernard Shaw, Arthur Miller...it turned me off the so called classics. I tried a few others but just didn't like the style of them and I still don't go near them.

14) Used or brand new?
There is nothing like getting that shiny brand new book in your hands, the soft rustle of new pages, that new book smell...I love it! But I enjoy browsing second hand bookshops and charity shops to find a bargain or buying second hand on Amazon. A lot of my political books were published in the 70's and 80's so most of them are used books.  

15) Have you ever read a Dan Brown book?
Yes. I very much enjoyed the Da Vinci Code. I thought Digital Fortress was a decent read too. I DNFed Angels and Demons as it hit a slow patch in the middle but I still might give it another chance as I enjoyed the film.

 
16) Have you ever seen a film you liked more than the book?
I always think of Jaws. It was a poor book overall with all that stuff about Ellen having an affair with Hooper. Had it stuck to the shark story, it might have been recent. I totally love the film and watch it all the time. It's probably the most watched film in my collection. There are others where the film was better like 


17) Have you ever read a book that's made you hungry?
I do get a bit hungry and jealous when I'm reading Harry Potter and see all those descriptions of the feasts they have! I also really want to try Butterbeer and some of the tasty sweet treats that they have!


18) Who is the person whose book advice you'll always take?
I don't ask for book advice generally. I look at book blogs I follow and decide for myself if a book interests me or not. I know my book tastes better than anybody. I do like looking at blogs I follow for suggestions about new books coming out or good backlog books. I then research the books on Goodreads to find out about tropes and plot devices before I decide. I have found some great books through my blogging friends reviews.

19) Is there a book out of your comfort zone that you ended up loving?
I'm not interested in robots and space conspiracy type things but reviews by blogger friends brought me to Murderbot. Finding a robot programmed to kill to defend humans, with a love for space based drama series and a social anxiety issue was a lot of fun. I'm not a gamer but I really enjoyed Ready Player One with the 80's retro vibe. I don't like romance in my books but I seem to love it in Tudor fiction about Henry and his Queens for some reason!


Want to take part? Consider yourself tagged!
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The Guilty Reader Book Tag


This tag was said to be created by ReadLikeWildfire on Youtube, but the video is now unavailable. I saw this tag on this book blog http://emilythebooknerdxo.blogspot.com/ through a search for book tags on bloglovin. These great guilt meter graphics were created by https://alysinbookland.wordpress.com/ so please credit her if you decide to use them! 

1) Have you ever re-gifted a book you've been given?
No I don't think I've ever done this. If I don't enjoy a book or no longer want it, I used to trade it with other readers on a UK swapping site but now they are all donated to either charity shop or the library of a men's club my dad and uncle go to.


 2) Have you ever said you've read a book when you haven't?
Never. I don't see the point in that because as soon as someone who has read it asks you a few questions about it, you are going to look like the biggest muppet ever!

 
3) Have you ever borrowed a book and not returned it?
Um yes. I borrowed this book from the library. It was a big encyclopedia style book about the autopsy of JFK and I was forever borrowing it. One time I forgot about it and never returned it but the library never seemed to notice it and never asked for it back. It still sits on my shelf and I'm ALWAYS feeling guilty about it.

 
4) Have you ever read a series out of order?
I don't like reading a series out of order and usually try to find book one. But when I first heard the term 'urban fantasy' many years ago, I found a pile of names like Charlaine Harris, Kelley Armstrong, Patricia Briggs and Jeaniene Frost, and went to the local library to seek them out. Our library is well out of date and hopeless but I was able to find two of the authors but only the second books in both the Southern Vampire and Otherworld series so I checked them out as it was my only way to try the authors. I loved both and bought the whole series of each!

 
5) Have you ever spoiled a book for someone?
Not knowingly. I try to avoid huge spoilers in my book reviews but if I have to talk about something, I do warn of upcoming spoilers.

 
6) Have you ever dog-eared a book?
*ahem* As a child, yes, I'm ashamed to admit it! I was forever doing that. As I got older I started to respect my books more but I still feel guilty about those poor books!

 
7) Have you ever told someone you don't own a book when you do?
Nope. I've never been ashamed about the type of books I read and I never will be. If others have a problem with my book tastes then it's their problem and tough luck! If someone is asking to borrow a book, I wouldn't lie and say I don't own it-I'd just say that I don't loan my books to anyone, as I don't trust other people with my babies!

 
8) Have you ever told someone you haven't read a book when you have?
Nope! I always review what I read on Goodreads and mostly on my blog so I have no interest in lying about what I've read for any reason.

 
9) Have you ever skipped a chapter or a section of a book?
If I'm reading non fiction and it includes things that are just really dull, I have been known to fast skim or miss out the odd bit. Usually I fast skim to get by the offending bit. I sometimes skip a few pages to ignore badly written sex scenes, or go a few pages ahead if a dog is in danger just to make sure it survives, then I go back to the pages where it was in danger!

 
10) Have you ever bad-mouthed a book you actually like?  
No, I see no point in this at all! If you feel the need to lie about your opinion of a book to friends to avoid ridicule, I suggest changing your friends!

Want to take part? Consider yourself tagged! 
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