Question: How long should a book series last?

This post is about a question that came up at our last book club meeting: how long is too long for a book series to go on?

On the one hand, it seemed like most of us come away from reading series with 3 or 4 books in them wishing that they were longer. But on the other hand, after 8 or 9 books, most of us felt like a series was getting too long. In my own experience, if I'm on book 10 or 11 in a series, then chances are, I'm getting tired of it, but I've been reading it for so long that I just want to finish it! (Graphic novels are, however, the exception to this rule.) I think that my favorite series are probably between 3 and 8 books long (3 and below is usually too few, but 8 and above starts to feel like too many...)

Pictured below are three series I really love and which felt, to me, not too short or too long, but just right:

So, what do you guys think? How many books are in your favorite series? How long do you think is too long for a series to go on? Leave your comments below!

Goodreads

Hi guys! Today, I thought I'd write a quick post about Goodreads, which is a really fun site that I like to use to keep track of what I've read and what I want to read in the future. (It connects to Facebook too, so if you already have a Facebook account, it's really easy to use.)

Here's the site address: http://www.goodreads.com/

If you don't have an account, Goodreads will show you a bunch of different titles, and you can select which ones you've read so the site can gauge what kinds of books you like. If you create a Goodreads account (it's free), the site will recommend books for you, and you can also connect with friends through Facebook or Goodreads. I don't know many people on Goodreads, but it's fun to check out what some of my friends are reading or putting on their "to-read" list. :)

Here's what my profile looks like: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5953196-emily

So, if you're looking for a cool way to keep track of what you read and connect with other people who love books, give Goodreads a try!

Upcoming Book Club Titles

Hi guys! (FYI, from now on, I'll try to update this blog more than once a month.) Anyway, here's what we're reading for June:

Incidentally, the movie comes out on June 22nd. :) Anyway, for July and beyond, several people have voted on potential titles, and the following three books tied for first place:

So, question: do we want to pick two and then save the third for another time, or should these books become our Book Club titles for July, August, and September? Let me know what you think, but bear in mind that unless I hear a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth about this, I plan to go ahead and order all three of these in the next week or so. :) (With the Summer Reading Program starting in just a few weeks, and all that's going to entail, I'd prefer to have several future titles figured out in advance.) Thanks for reading and talk to you soon!

Hi guys!

I'm going to try to start updating this blog more often, but for now, I'll just tell you that we now have a Tumblr too. You can see it here: http://ripl-teen-book-reviews.tumblr.com/ Talk to you later!

April Book Club Meeting

Hi guys! Book Club is going to be next Friday, April 6th @ 4pm at 30/31. Come and talk about "The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl" and get your copy of our next book, "Divergent." Hope to see you there! :)

March book and meeting

Sorry I've been so bad about updating the blog!!

We are meeting in March at some point (not sure when exactly).

Here is the book we're reading: Love is the Higher Law by David Levithan

The lives of three teens—Claire, Jasper, and Peter—are altered forever on September 11, 2001. Claire, a high school junior, has to get to her younger brother in his classroom. Jasper, a college sophomore from Brooklyn, wakes to his parents’ frantic calls from Korea, wondering if he’s okay. Peter, a classmate of Claire’s, has to make his way back to school as everything happens around him.

Here are three teens whose intertwining lives are reshaped by this catastrophic event. As each gets to know the other, their moments become wound around each other’s in a way that leads to new understandings, new friendships, and new levels of awareness for the world around them and the people close by.

February Book Club meeting

Our next meeting will be the first week of February. We'll be talking about this book:



Sight by Adrienne Vrettos
Fifteen-year-old Dylan has horrific visions of the last moments of a child's life -- a child who has been abducted, kidnapped, or worse. Dylan gives the police valuable clues that help them to find children's bodies, but she keeps the most personal information about these young victims to herself. Dylan has become used to withholding her sight abilities -- even from her best friend, Pilar -- but the weight of that secret is becoming almost more than she can bear.

Then Cate moves into Dylan's mountain town. Enthusiastic and friendly, Cate seems genuinely interested in Dylan, who begins to reveal a bit about herself. But is Cate all that she seems to be? It's not entirely clear...and it takes the disappearance of Pilar's little sister to finally open Dylan's eyes. In a race against time to save a life, and desperate to focus her abilities so that she herself can survive, Dylan is forced to see more clearly than she ever has before.

If you would like a copy and don't have one yet, let me know!