Memberbell7(she/her)

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Joined
Nov 16, 2007
Real Name
Mary
About My Library

My personal library is an odd assortment of books that I want to have to reread whenever I feel like and about 200 titles (give or take) that I haven't yet read, but either figured were too long to borrow from the library or were inexpensive purchases at a used book sale.

About my collections:
Your library includes books I actually own.
To Read is, with few exceptions, books that I own and have not read.
Previously owned includes read books that once were part of my personal library, or books that I started and reviewed. If a book passed through my hands entirely unread, I simply delete it.
Wishlist is books that I want to own; usually they are also in my "Read but Unowned" collection.
School Books are books that are in my mental library but not necessarily representative my tastes, since I read them primarily for college English classes.

About my ratings:
I rate based on how well I liked a book; I refuse to make a judgment about a story's innate worth because I recognize the variety of taste in readers, and even how my own mood can affect what I think when I'm reading. That being said, here's what I mean when I say -
1 star - Forced myself to finish it
2 stars - Dislike
2.5 stars - I really don't know if I liked it or not
3 stars - Sort of liked it; or didn't, but admired something about it despite not liking it
3.5 stars - The splitting hairs rating of less than my last 4 star book or better than my last 3
4 stars - I liked it and recommend it, but probably won't reread it except under special circumstances (ie., a book club or series reread)
4.5 stars - Excellent, ultimately a satisfying read, a title I would consider rereading
5 stars - A book that I absolutely loved, would absolutely reread, and just all-around floored me

I very rarely finish a book I would rate lower than a 3, so my ratings are skewed positively. I can generally scale how much I liked a book, but I'm less consistent about how much I didn't like it.

About Me

I am a librarian living in western Massachusetts, where I was born and raised. I can barely remember not being able to read, and have always been happiest when someone - my parents, an author - was telling me a story.

Fantasy, science fiction and historical fiction are my go-to genres. I'm a fairly eclectic reader, however, and will try just about anything except horror. I'm always looking for more books to add to my toppling TBR pile and expanding my reading more.

When I'm not reading, I enjoy watching sports (NY Giants football, Boston Red Sox, Boston Bruins and tennis) and knitting. I've started puttering in my family history and genealogy as well. I have a habit of coming up with odd bits of trivia that no one cares about (that librarian thing again) and obscure words make me ridiculously happy.

You can find what I'm reading as well as pictures of knitting projects and just general life commentary, on my current 75 Book Challenge thread.

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Massachusetts
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