Pam Webb

a writer's journey as a reader

Archive for the tag “reading challenges”

13 Jun 2026
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Really Good Reads:


Open book with text 'Reading Challenge Sparking Joy & Imagination!' and 'Reading Challenge Explore The World!' with colorful fireworks emerging from it
Reading Challenge completed!

As of June 8th, I hit my yearly goal. Still not sure how I read 101 books since January. I think it’s because I have stopped playing Angry Birds. Just a thought.

I don’t remember how I came across Goodreads, yet it has made a huge impact on my reading life. Not only am I able to look up books, I can read reviews before committing to a book, but more importantly I can keep track of the books I’ve read. It’s disconcerting how many books I have started, wondering why the plot sounds familiar. Goodreads reminds me I’ve read it before, usually about three years ago.

You’re right. I should remember my books. I should also remember all my former students’ names, especially when they remember me when we surreptitiously meet in stores, at the library, sometimes in restaurants, but I fail at that as well. Too bad there isn’t a Goodteach, where I could log in so I can quickly look my students up, then again there are probably concerns about data collecting.


Onward–

Goodreads also helps me in reading choices as I deliberate upon a book that catches my eye.

Ratings and reviews can make a difference; however, while I acknowledge they are helpful and can sway my decision in whether or not to add a book to my TBR list, or my book bag, when it comes to writing a review I have my own system.

Goodreads uses a 5 star rating system with the following definitions:

1 star

1 star – didn’t like it

2 stars

 2 stars – it was OK

3 stars

 3 stars – liked it

4 stars

 4 stars – really liked it

5 stars

5 stars – it was amazing

Since I began the Goodreads Reading Challenge several years ago I have developed my own rating system:

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 5 stars–memorable, highly recommend, can’t wait to share this find with others

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️4 stars–likable, a couple of aspects were bothersome (e.g. characters, plot development, writing style, etc.)

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 3 stars–read it, although skip read some parts due to triggers, or parts were somewhat boring or redundant, or the book rankles my verisimilitude tolerance (I leave the rating blank since I dislike leaving negative commentary)

⭐️ ⭐️ 2 stars–if a book is just okay I usually don’t finish reading it which means no review and if I don’t read the book how can I justify leaving a review? It gets marked Did Not Finish so I won’t get tempted again (which does happen—a great title tends to lure me in).

⭐️ 1 star–some Goodreads readers save this rating for books they hate. Why did they even read it then. I know right away if I don’t like a book, usually by the first couple of pages. Honestly, if I didn’t read the book, I simply mark it as a DNF and leave no review.

Do you have a rating system?

Also, do ratings and reviews influence whether you read the book?

Posted in Book Boosters, Books, popular books, reflections and tagged , , , ,
02 Jan 2024
7 Comments

Tally Up: Books in Review


Nifty Beans! My yearly challenge is designated as 101 books, which I have been surpassing, especially now that I’m retired. I hit 171 this year. Woo Hoo! Maybe I should readch for165 or even 175. Then again, I really like the sound of 101, even more so when I pass it up big time.
Goodreads provides a colorful graphic off all the books I read in 2023. It’s fun to revisit all those books read throughout the year. Here are the highlights:

Book with most pages:

626 pages–read it again for a book club–twice is enough

I really enjoyed Doerr’s first book, All the Light We Cannot See, reading that one twice as well, since I devoured it in one sitting and after a student presented it as her author spotlight I reread it and was glad I did. However, even after a second reading of his second book, Cloud Cuckoo Land, which I read for the library book club, I am still not a huge fan. One reason is that it is vastly different in theme and style. While it is still well-written, it did not resonate with me quite like his first. I watched the film adaptation of AtLWCS on Netflix, and as they say, “The book is the book and the movie is the movie.”

I look forward to his next book. He is a writer worth waiting for.

Book with fewest pages:

a quick book at 21 pages

This is for those who enjoy fables/parables like Animal Farm and animal dramas like Watership Down. A quick read and one read is enough.

Average book length in 2023: 299 pages (not a fan of super long books, unless the writing is amazing)

My average rating for 2023: 4.3 (check out my Reader Roundup posts for those fabulous five star books)

Highest rated on Goodreads: 4.40

rated a solid 5 with me

First review of 2023:

started off with a 5 star

Last review of 2023:

And ended with a five star revisit to a childhood classic

Going through my personal book collection I came across Marguerite Henry’s Wagging Tails. Published in 1955, my brother owned this book first and also first owned our collie mix, Toby. My brother being nine years older than me, passed on the book and the dog when he got busy being a teenager. This is the one book I have leftover from my childhood. I’m not sure why I’ve kept it all these years, especially since I am definitely a cat person. It might be because Toby was an exceptional dog, and I thought it a very big deal him giving me this book. I think I drove him a little crazy with how I always got into his stuff. He finally gave me his marble collection after years of messing with it. Little sisters must be pain for older brothers.

Feeling nostalgic on 123123 I reread these twenty-three stories and once again appreciated Marguerite Henry’s affinity for telling a story. Although she is best known for her horse stories, like Misty of Chincoteague, her love of animals comes through with each dog story presented.

Hey readers and Book Boosters:

Did you have any reading goals this year?

Do you participate in the Goodreads Challenge?

Posted in reflections and tagged , , ,
22 Dec 2019
9 Comments

Revisit to a Perfect Club


Back in August 2018 I discovered the Perfect Club. This was my partial introduction:

I am always interested in reading what others are reading. Somehow I discovered The Classics Club, and the main requirement is to create a list of at least 50 classics and set a read-by date. This club and I shall become besties, I know it. They are friendly and flexible and have all kinds of reading activities going on all the time. This is a better discovery than a new gelato flavor.

I proposed I would complete my reading by December 31st, 2019. Well—that isn’t going to happen. I have strayed from my list a multitude of times to pick up a new shiny. No regrets. I do relish reading, new or classic. A good read is a good read. Below is my revised and tweaked classics list. UPDATE: The list is now completed as of 6/24/20!

* indicates read and reviewed already in Goodreads.

Any of these titles look familiar to you? What would you add to the list? Are you going to join me over at The Classics Club?

  1. Green Willow by B.J. Chute*
  2. The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli*
  3. Blue Willow by Doris Gates*
  4. This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart*
  5. Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl*
  6. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl*
  7. Charlie and the Glass Elevator by Roald Dahl*
  8. Housekeeping by Marilyn Robinson*
  9. Gilead by Marilyn Robinson*
  10. Princess Bride by William Goldman* (reread)
  11. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf*
  12. The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula Le Guin*
  13. The Loving Spirit by Daphne du Maurier*
  14. The Kitchen God’s Wife by Amy Tan*
  15. The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty*
  16. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (reread)*
  17. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn*
  18. Carry On, Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse*
  19. Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce*
  20. The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells*
  21. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisnero*
  22. The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken*
  23. A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving*
  24. The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier*
  25. Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome*
  26. A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines*
  27. Swallows and Amazon by Arthur Ransome*
  28. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury* (reread)
  29. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver*
  30. Persuasion by Jane Austen* (reread)
  31. Howard’s End by E.M. Forster*
  32. Woman in White by Wilkie Collin*
  33. The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle*
  34. King Solomon’s Mine by H. Rider Haggard*
  35. The Breaking Wave by Nevil Shute*
  36. The City of Gold and Lead by John Christopher*
  37. Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev*
  38. The Spectator Bird by Wallace Stegner*
  39. The Least of My Brothers by Harold Bell Wright*
  40. The Stranger by Albert Camus*
  41. Lust for Life by Irving Stone*
  42. Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney*
  43. Childhood’s End by Arthur C. Clarke*
  44. Work by Louisa May Alcott*
  45. Lady Susan by Jane Austen (reread)*
  46. Moonfleet by J. Meade Falkner*
  47. My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin*
  48. On the Beach by Nevil Shute*
  49. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley*
  50. Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell*
Image result for december 31 2019
Posted in authors, Books, reading, reflections and tagged , , ,

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