A little over a year ago, Heidi at Rainy Day Ramblings posted an interesting topic during her "Tell Me Something Tuesday" - do you participate in Waiting on Wednesday, and do you read the books you highlight? Waiting on Wednesday was a weekly feature hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine in which bloggers highlight an upcoming release they're eagerly anticipating. Since that blog hasn't been active in awhile, Tressa at Wishful Endings started hosting Can't-Wait Wednesday, with the same premise.
WoW/CWW is a meme I've been participating almost every week since I started blogging. It's fun to spotlight upcoming releases, fangirl about them a bit, and even introduce other readers to books they may not have been aware of. So, I thought it would be fun to look back through my archives and figure out how many of those books I've featured I've actually read - and if not, why not.
I looked at all my CWW posts for 2019, assuming that at this point in 2020, they've all been released:
Total posts: 44
- I've read 19 of the books I featured (43%)
- I DNFed 5 of them (11%)
- 20 are unread (~45%)
- Of those 20, 13 are still on my TBR (29.5%) and 7 have been deleted
When I look at the books I did read, one general pattern stands out - I tend to read anticipated releases by authors I've read and enjoyed before (in this case, Sophie Kinsella, Fiona Davis, Beatriz Williams, John Marrs, Jenn Bennett, Blake Crouch, etc.). I know I can rely on them to deliver amazing stories.
And what about the ones I haven't read yet? There are so many reasons why I might not have picked up an anticipated release: maybe I'm no longer interested in it; maybe the release date was so far away that I've forgotten about it; maybe it's moved down my TBR because I've added other books to the top; maybe I haven't been able to get a copy from my library yet. And, there just aren't enough hours in the day to read every book I want to read!
So, how about you? Do you find yourself always reading those books you're really anticipating? Or does it depend?
I'd say I read about 50% of the books I'm anticipating, and I really wish that figure was higher. I get distracted by new books all the time, and I know I've books on my bookshelves that I'm really excited about. Yet month after month goes by, and I don't get to them.
ReplyDeleteYes, I'm the same way - there's always new books that I'm also excited about, and it becomes a juggling act!
DeleteHahaha I'm sure that I barely read any of the anticipated released. There are always way too many books I'm excited for and don't have the money to buy them all. Such bookworm struggles!
ReplyDeleteHaha, yes! I was actually a little surprised by how many I had read (or at least tried to read).
DeleteYou are like in my head. I wasn't feeling the TTT this week, so I did a top ten of CWW picks, which I ended up loving. I actually track them in my spreadsheet, and mark when I read them. The biggest barrier for me is getting the book. If my library has it or I can get an ARC, I will read it. I have had a good track record too. I was impressed when I took a look back.
ReplyDeleteGreat minds think alike! Yes, I would agree that actually getting a copy of the book can be one of the biggest reasons why I do or don't read an anticipated release. I get most of my books from the library, and if there's a huge wait list, it can kind of put me off the book.
DeleteNot sure how many of my CWW picks that I have been able to read. There are so many amazing books that I would definitely like to be able to pick up and then I have a lot of books in my shelves that I still need to read. I need so many more hours in the day!
ReplyDeleteMe, too! I keep trying to make a dent in my unread physical books and it never seems to get smaller1
DeleteInteresting! I started participating in CWW this year. So far, I’ve read 1 of the books I featured. The only reason I read it is because the publisher saw my post, and the book turned up on my doorstep. I’m bad at reading new releases because I can’t afford them. I have to wait until used copies show up or the library gets them. That sometimes takes years.
ReplyDeleteAj @ Read All The Things!
I get it! My library is generally really good about getting new releases, but that doesn't mean I can always get them right away.
DeleteI've probably read about half of the books I've featured on CWW. There have been a few where I've lost interest along the way, but mostly I have tons of them sitting on my shelf or on my kindle waiting for me to finally make time for them. The never ending juggling act, lol.
ReplyDeleteHaha, exactly!
DeleteMore than half is not bad at all! I'd say I read less than 50% of the most anticipated releases, I tend to read books that were published earlier more often.
ReplyDeleteYes, I tend to read way more backlist books than new releases, as well. They're often easier to get my hands on!
DeleteThis makes me want to do my own breakdown. I would say, yes, I read most of them since I tend to highlight books I am the most excited about which means I usually end up purchasing them.
ReplyDeleteNice!
DeleteI've been trying not to buy too many books, so I mainly rely on my library. But, even when I buy books, that doesn't mean I read them right away!
This is interesting! I used to do CWW a lot and I'm curious how many I went on to read. :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, it was fun to look back on it!
DeleteSuch a cool way to reflect on WoW! I try to cull my GR list every year and that way I can check on whether I will read them. Sometimes if there are lots of negative/positive reviews for a book I was anticipating I will push it up or off the TBR. There are lots of unread on my shelves, though. ;)
ReplyDeleteAh, so true about reviews! I have deleted stuff from my TBR purely based on bad reviews.
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