Wrapping Up July 2021

Hello Reader! I don’t have much to ramble about today, so let’s just jump into my reading stats for this month:

Books Completed This Month

📚 Jo: A Graphic Novel by Kathleen Gros ⭐⭐ .5

📚 Piranesi by Susanna Clarke; Science Fiction ⭐⭐⭐⭐

📚 Improbable Libraries: A Visual Journey to the World’s Most Unusual Libraries by Alex Johnson; Nonfiction, Photography ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Average Rating: 3.83⭐s

Additional Books Read (but Not Completed) This Month

📚 Disruptive Witness by Alan Noble; Nonfiction – Theology (reading for at least the third time)

📚 Americanon: An Unexpected History of the U.S. in Thirteen Bestselling Books by Jess McHugh; Nonfiction – History, Literature

📚 Discernment (Legacy Chronicles #3) by Lauren H. Salisbury – Biblical Science Fiction

📚 Love People, Use Things by Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus – Nonfiction, Minimalism/Personal Development

July Goals Follow-Up

Originally posted here.

• Finish reading: Americanon by Jess McHugh, Jo: A Graphic Novel by Kathleen Gros, and Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
  • 2 out of 3 isn’t bad!
• Read Discernment (Legacy Chronicles #3) by Lauren H. Salisbury
  • I at least started reading it, so that’s something.
• Then (if school and life are calm enough) read these books:
  • The Librarian of Boone’s Hollow by Kim Vogel Sawyer; Historical Fiction (1930s Kentucky, USA); previous DNF
  • When Twilight Breaks by Sarah Sundin; Historical Fiction (1930s Germany)
  • School and life were not calm enough
• Commemorate Jane Austen July by watching a film adaptation of one of her works
  • I checked two out from the library, but did not watch them.
• Participate to some degree in Plastic Free July 
  • This, too, kind of fell by the wayside. I’m trying to be more conscientious about what I buy and throw away and especially the packaging of the things that I buy, but I didn’t fully get into the challenge.
• Keep up with school, especially the IT group project that is due at the end of the month
  • This is almost all that I did!
• Post here twice a week (or more)
  • Until this last week, I did! I’m content with how this went even if it wasn’t exactly what I hoped to achieve.
• Interact on bookstagram even if I don’t have time to post my own content there
  • Nope, sorry. I popped in a few more times this month than I had been in the spring, but I still wasn’t all that active on the platform.

Other Highlights

• Attended the Oklahoma Library Association annual conference
  • This was my first time attending a conference like this and it was extremely interesting! I sat in on panels and interactive sessions on everything from cataloging to youth programming and health literacy to building community partnerships. There was so much information and support for Oklahoma libraries and librarians! I also got to meet people who work in libraries all over the state and learn about them. Following this, I hope to become more involved with OLA.
• Movies Watched: A Plastic Ocean: We Need a Wave of Change (2016) ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (heartbreaking documentary); Love on Safari (2018) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Podcasts Enjoyed: Speaking with Joy Summer Book Club episodes
• Music of the Month: A playlist I affectionately dubbed “Forest Fairy” because it’s built around the somewhat ethereal sense of nostalgia that driving with the windows down outside of town brings. It reminds me of summer as a child, when I lived in my imagination, but it also is very reflective of where I am now. It’s also got some Anne of Green Gables vibes because one of the founding songs was used as the theme song in Netflix’s Anne with an E. I’ve not yet finalized the order of this playlist, so it’s best listened to on Shuffle and with a healthy dose of imagination and sunshine.

What was your favorite part of July, Reader? Mine has to be the OLA conference.

Until the next chapter,

Jana