February Mid-Month Check-In
Checking in from slow reading to solve mysteries in Get a Clue and reading for Black History Month
Hi friends! I hope you are all doing well and welcome back to Do Good With Books.
I know it’s been awhile since I’ve last posted on here, but I wanted to provide a little update on where I am in regards to my reading so far this month and see how you’re all doing.
Mainly my month’s been focused on reading books for Black History Month and participating in Get a Clue Readathon hosted by Rainy Blue Reads, so that’s kind of what this blog is going to be focused on and let’s get into it.
Black History Month Reads
One of my reading goals for this month was to actively ensure I was reading books by Black authors in honor of Black History Month and I’m happy to say that I have read two books by Black authors so far this month. Since both of them were advanced reader copies that I had on my shelves, I’m going to provide a quick review on each book.
Under the Neon Lights by Arriel Vinson
Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers for providing me with a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Under the Neon Lights is really good debut and I think Vinson has a bright future ahead of her.
From the very first page, I could hear Jaelynn's voice as she talks about her love for WestSide Roll and the community she's found there as a result, as well as addressing the ongoing concerns of gentrification in Black neighborhoods. Captivating yet relatable, I feel like a lot of readers can connect with Jaelynn. Vinson's world-building with describing WestSide Roll really help bring this story to life, and she also does a great job with building up the relationship between Jaelynn and Trey. However, there were too many side characters to keep track of and I felt that Jaelynn’s character development in the second half of the book was rushed.
Nevertheless, I really enjoyed reading this book.
Way Off Track by Carl Brundtland
Thank you to Edelweiss and Kids Can Press for providing me with a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Emphasizing the importance of hard work as well as living with integrity and humility, Way Off Track is a great novel for young readers looking to gain valuable life lessons in and outside of sports. Mixing funny hijinks with highlighting Jamaican culture, Carl Brundtland's series opener on the retelling of the West African myth of Nansi will be a new favorite for readers.
Get a Clue Readathon
All the books I’ve read so far this month have been tied to the Get a Clue Readathon in one way or another. Technically, I started late on this readathon because I originally signed up as a Junior Detective but then switched over to Senior Detective since there was a bit more fun involved with being a Senior Detective.
But that does come with trying to catch up on the various room prompts that drop throughout the readathon and finding books that I can get through quickly in order to catch up. I was lucky enough to catch up on a lot of my room prompts through the mid-month chaos portion of the readathon this past weekend where you pretty much get to read whatever and have it count for 100 points to your team, so I’m mostly back on track with the room prompts.
Since I’ve already talked about almost half of the books I read for this readathon when I was going over my Black History Month books, here are the other three books I’ve read this month for Get a Clue.
Lavender Clouds by Bex Ollerton
This book was so relatable in terms of being neurodivergent and living with a mental illness. Lyrical yet approachable writing, Ollerton brings important representation in Lavender Clouds that’s not often talked about in books.
Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily R. Austin
Weirdly comforting at times, Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead is the type of story we need now amidst the chaos going on in our world and Gilda is a character you can’t but root for even though her life is in shambles.
Dear Mothman by Robin Gow
Navigating grief and moving forward after losing a loved one, Dear Mothman poignantly captures Noah's journey to healing through his fascination with Mothman. Gow's writing is absolutely beautiful and the audiobook narration really captures the feelings Noah has throughout the book.
For anyone who felt like the weird kid, Dear Mothman is for us.
What’s Next
I still have ways to go with Get a Clue and I’m continuing to seek out opportunities to read books by Black authors for the rest of February, but I’m also looking ahead to what my reading will look like in March.
So far, I’m going to participate multiple readathons throughout the month of March and I have been planning what my TBRs will look for each of them. The only month-long readathon I have planned for March is Realmathon hosted by CoverswithCassidy and since that readathon is read whatever you want that’s going to help with the TBRs for the other readathons I’m doing.
Though I don’t know 100% what my reading will look like for the rest of February or in March, I’m looking forward to what new books I will find and love.
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