Books, Dogs, and Rain. :-)

Hello all! I've not been posting on Instagram in July as I had planned, but I got a FABULOUS item in the mail today, so I just had to share it! 😊❤ . . . . In the first photo above, we have my Max standing far too close to the camera but you can just see part of the stand my new item is on. The second photo shows you what's on this stand! 😍❤😍 . . . . It's an Aurora Pop created by Tuesday of @fandom_maasterpieces to show one of the protagonists from Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff! I love this book and I'm in love with my new Aurora Pop! 😍❤😍 . . . . #DogsofInstagram #bookstagram #AmieKaufman #JayKristoff #books #series #AuroraRising ❤❤❤ https://www.instagram.com/p/B0Wjh9PALvt/?igshid=164o7lloonbg8

I'm all signed up to participate in the second Reverse Readathon put on by @deweysreadathon! I LOVE these Reverse Readathons because they start at 5p on Friday! Any Readathon where I don't have to start at 5a on a Saturday is reason to CELEBRATE!!! 🎉❤🎉❤🎉 . . . . Won't you please join me? 🤔😊📚❤ . . . . #Readathon #bookstagram #books #series ❤📚❤📚❤ https://www.instagram.com/p/BymMJR9DgTv/?igshid=kk3g2mo67xru

#IplayTownship 😃❤ https://www.instagram.com/p/BxgjTO3gTJ9/?igshid=60sqrc4lc89q

We're now in hour 11 of this #DeweyApril edition of the #Readathon and the #ReadathonHourlyPhoto Challenge is to share #SeasonalReads. ❤ . . . . So please allow me to share my next book and its sequels! Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire is in a tie for first place in my affections with Every Heart a Doorway when it comes to the #WaywardChildrenSeries. And I love Beneath the Sugar Sky and In an Absent Dream, too! ❤❤❤ . . . . These books are excellent reads for Readathons because they're fast-paced and under or just over 200 pages. They're also excellent reads for Spring. . .or Winter or Summer or Autumn! I really adore this series. Five star reads, all four books. ❤❤❤ . . . . In Photo Two above you'll see a photo for Hour 10's #TheGreatOutdoors prompt. I took this photo around 5:45a this morning, when I was reading Friday's portion of The Maze Runner by James Dashner. I completed Saturday's portion of it during Hour 10. 😊 This photo shows that our Oleander is blooming! And also has my Max patrolling his yard. 😍❤ . . . . And, as always, you'll find the List of Challenge Prompts in the last - or third - photo. 😍❤ . . . . #DogsofInstagram #ArizonaFlora #AZflora #bookstagram #SeananMcGuire @seananmcguire #books #DownAmongTheSticksAndBones #BeneathTheSugarSky #InAnAbsentDream #series #WaywardChildren https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv7nIG1n_5K/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=kx9qsdpb9uua

Hour 4's Photo for the #DeweyApril #Readathon's #ReadathonHourlyPhoto is one I'll share IN Hour 4. I present to you . . . . My Max! Did you all miss seeing him in the months I've been gone? Max is not only my #ReadathonBuddy, he's my puppy-son (six years old next month!), service dog, love, savior, and life. 😍❤😍 . . . . I was able to take this photo because he was whining at me. And the full list of Challenges is once again in Photo Two above. 😍❤ . . . . #DogsofInstagram #ReadathonBuddies #bookstagram #books #series https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv620mUnSAE/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=bnww1pky0djz

For this third hour of the #ReadathonHourlyPhoto Challenge, I'm sharing a #Shelfie with my #Snacks for Hour 2. 😍❤😍 . . . . The shelf in this photo is my main Urban Fantasy series collection. I haven't yet read ALL of the books, but I will! 😁❤ . . . . And my "snack" is #breakfast! A bowl of cereal, which was quick to make and let me get back to my first book of this #DeweyApril #Readathon, The Maze Runner by James Dashner. ❤❤❤ . . . . This time, a cropped version of the Challenge is in Photo Two above. Because I had to expand Photo One, Photo Two couldn't be shared in full. 😕❤ . . . . #DogsofInstagram #bookstagram #books #series https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv6tY8mnqWR/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=164u5bd4lierc

Hello all! I've missed you! I'm sorry for abandoning Instagram for so long, but I have returned to participate in the #ReadathonHourlyPhoto Challenge for #DeweyApril offered by @deweysreadathon for this April's Dewey's 24-Hour #Readathon! 😍❤ . . . . Here is my first photo: #TheStack! And following is my #GettingtoKnowYou #Survey! 😍❤ . . . . 1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today? I'm currently in my bed in Tucson, Arizona, U.S.A.! ❤ . 2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to? Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire! ❤ . 3) Which snack are you most looking forward to? I don't know. I didn't make a snack plan for this time around! 😲🙈 . 4) Tell us a little something about yourself! I am disabled and LOVE to read! Since November and stopping my daily Instagram posts, I've been participating in #ReadingRivalry. I'm obsessed! #TeamMadHatter #RRMadAboutBooks for April! 🤣❤ . 5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to? I've been participating since April or October of 2016! I'm most looking forward to reading as many books in my stack as possible! 😍❤ . . Lastly, you'll find the #ReadathonHourlyPhoto Challenges in Photo Two above! ❤😍❤😍❤ . . . . #bookstagram #SeananMcGuire @seananmcguire #JamesDashner #GillianFlynn #JayneAnnKrentz @jayneannkrentzauthor!#books #DownAmongTheSticksAndBones #BeneathTheSugarSky #InAnAbsentDream #TheMazeRunner #DarkPlaces #Untouchable #series #WaywardChildren #TheMazeRunnerSeries #CutlerSutterandSalinas (at Casas Adobes, Arizona) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv6i0QcH-EJ/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=jh9joao1mg8k

This photo is a throwback to when my Max was an itty-bitty baby-baby. It is for today's November 26th #bookscoasttocoastnov post: #CyberMonday - #EbookLove. Even though I didn't read 1984 by George Orwell as an e-book; it was downloaded as an #audiobook from @audible! 😄😍❤ . . . . I listened to this book on Thanksgiving. While I really enjoyed it, I can't now remember how it ended! I do remember that I found this story to be very interesting and rather creepy. 😊❤ . . . . Also, the reader - Simon Prebble - did an EXCELLENT job performing this story. I gave him five stars and the story four stars. 😊❤ . . . . Turn to Photo Two to see this audiobook against a collage of photos featuring the hawk we had in our front yard the other day! This hawk was BIG! 😨 It sat in our front yard so long that I wondered if it had just eaten and couldn't fly, but when I went outside, it flew up to the telephone pole on the right side of the collage. 😊😍❤ . . . . I was a little nervous about going outside with this hawk, but I just couldn't take Max barking at it any longer. And it turned out okay. 😊❤ . . . . Lastly, you may have noticed that I haven't posted since Wednesday, I think. 😔 I'm sorry for missing out on so many days of posting. 😕 I'll try to do better starting later today. 😊 . . . . For now, it's 12:34a on 11/26 and I want to read more in For a Few Demons More by Kim Harrison! 😄❤ . . . . #DogsofInstagram #AZhawks #AZfauna #SonoraDesert #bookstagram #GeorgeOrwell #SimonPrebble #books #1984 #classicbooks https://www.instagram.com/p/BqoqVRHnKb6/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1w0u45xkcnjbm

#TomeTopple Update! I finished my second tome almost three hours ago with my reading buddy on Twitter. #OrangeTheCompleteCollection Volume 2 was pretty good! I really enjoyed the story told in #Orange. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it! 😄❤ . . . . I do wish we could have been told more about the changed future for Naho, Suwa, Kakeru, Azu, Taka, and Hagita. But I'll still give this story four stars. 😊⭐⭐⭐⭐❤ . . . . After Orange, there was a short story called #HaruiroAstronaut. It was rather confusing, as two of the guys were drawn such that they looked almost exactly like Kakeru and Suwa! And the main characters - twins, Chiki and Mami - looked like a cross between Naho and Azu! And not all of the characters could tell the twins apart, so there was confusion there, too. I'd give this story maybe 3.5 stars, but the whole book is going to get four stars. 😊❤ . . . . I'm also still reading For a Few Demons More by Kim Harrison. You can see it in Photo Two! I didn't read much yesterday, and I've read even less today, but I'm going to read more now, while my Max sleeps beside me. 😍❤😍 . . . . #TomeTopple7 Stats to Date: ~1,046 pages read (plus 102 in For a Few Demons More), 2 books completed, 3 reading challenges DONE! 😄🎉📚❤ . . . . #DogsofInstagram #bookstagram #IchigoTakano #KimHarrison #books #OrangeVolume2 #ForaFewDemonsMore #series #OrangeManga #TheHollows https://www.instagram.com/p/BqeFKT4DeMq/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=akx31kef0q4o

This NEW photo is for the November 21st #TomeTopple #TomeToppleChallenge - #TowerofTomes - and #jayjaysbookishbirthday - #Friendsgiving - AND #bookscoasttocoastnov - #FavoriteFictionalFamily! 😄😍❤ . . . . It's not a very tall Tower of Tomes, but these seven books were heavy! You can kinda see my hand holding them upright on the bottom left! 😄😍❤ . . . . I would more or less happily attend Friendsgiving celebrations with any of the friend groups in these three series: #TheHollows with Rachel, Ivy, and Jenks; #Orange with Naho, Kakeru, Azu, Hagita, Taka, and Suwa; or #HarryPotter with Harry, Ron, and Hermione! 😄🎉❤ . . . . And for Favorite Fictional Family, I really think the Weasleys in the #HarryPotterSeries by #JKRowling might be my very favorite. I desperately want to be adopted by Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. 😄❤ . . . . I apologize for the fact that the books are blurry. As I said, I had to hold the books upright. Either I wasn't holding them steady or my camera was focused on Max, but as he looks kinda blurry, too... 🤔🤔🤔 . . . . #DogsofInstagram #CurrentRead #bookstagram #KimHarrison #IchigoTakano #books #ForaFewDemonsMore #OrangeTheCompleteCollection #series #TheHollowsSeries #OrangeManga #manga https://www.instagram.com/p/Bqd4-pUj1fE/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1lzwvp1kls6bo

This November 20th post is for the #TomeTopple #TomeToppleChallenge - #TomeTropes - and #jayjaysbookishbirthday - #Jokester - AND #bookscoasttocoastnov - #CurrentlyBurning! 😍❤😍 . . . . If you look at this photo and feel a sense of déjà vu, haha the joke's on you! ("Look Ma, I made a rhyme! 🤣) I shared this photo as yesterday's November 19th post! Only without the candle burning in the inset! 🤣😍❤ . . . If that's not enough for Jay's #Jokester task, in the Hollows series by Kim Harrison, Jenks is a bit of a jokester, to Ivy and Rachel's chagrin. 😉❤ . . . . For the #CurrentlyBurning portion of today's post, I lit my Marauders' Map candle from @cauldroncandleco to go with the final four Harry Potter books in the stack on the right. It is burning in the inset with my two #CurrentReads and my Dad to watch over it. 😍❤😍 . . . . I am still reading both For a Few Demons More by Kim Harrison (The Hollows series book five) and Orange: The Complete Collection, Volume 2. The plan I shared earlier for reading the latter is proceeding as I wished. Although my buddy and I did complete Orange early in the afternoon and then read Chapter One in Haruiro Astronaut. But still! MOST of the third third of the book is left for us to read together tomorrow. 😃😊❤ . . . . For #TomeTropes I love, ALL of these books work. Most of them for the strong friendships: in Orange we have Naho, Kakeru, Azu, Hagita, Taka and Suwa; in #TheHollows - Rachel, Ivy, and Jenks; in the #HarryPotterSeries - Harry, Ron, and Hermione; in the #AnitaBlakeSeries - Anita, Micah, Nathaniel, Jean-Claude, Damian, and lots of others! And in the #KingkillerChronicles, we have a Fantasy with a strong male who is rather broody and I just love him to bits. 😄😍❤ . . . . I hope you don't mind that I recycled yesterday's photo for today. I'm tired and couldn't think of something else to post for the Jokester or Tome Tropes tasks. 😕 . . . . It's not yet midnight here, but I think I'm going to try for sleep. I only got six hours last night and it was not enough. 😴😴😴 . . . . #DogsofInstagram #bookstagram #KimHarrison #IchigoTakano #JKRowling #LaurellKHamilton #PatrickRothfuss #CurrentRead https://www.instagram.com/p/BqbqKyEnlOb/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=efhq8d6hetd1

This is November 19th's post for the #TomeTopple #TomeToppleChallenge - #PreviouslyToppledTomes - and #jayjaysbookishbirthday - #AllPlannedOut - AND #bookscoasttocoastnov - #SquadGoals! 😄😍❤ . . . . For today's daily #TomeTopple7 challenge, my Previously Toppled Tomes that I both own and still have from the library are on the right. They're stacked in order from most recently read to first read, top to bottom. 😄😍❤ . . . . On top is the tome I finished just last night: #OrangeTheCompleteCollection Volume 1 by #IchigoTakano! Then we have #HarryPotterSeries books seven through Four, which were read in #TomeTopple6. And on the bottom we have #CrimsonDeath by #LaurellKHamilton and #TheNameoftheWind by #PatrickRothfuss , which were read in August of 2017's Tome Topple, my first. 😊😍❤ . . . . The only two of these editions that I've actually read are the first volume of Orange: The Complete Collection and Crimson Death. The others were all purchased after the Tome Topples in which I read them. 😊❤ . . . . For #jayjaysbookishbirthday All Planned Out task, I present to you my Plan for Reading #Orange! I read Volume 1 over three days - one Part per day - and I'm tentatively planning to read Volume 2 the same way! If my buddy read partner agrees. 😊❤ . . . . And for #bookscoasttocoastnov Squad Goals task, I present to you the two squads in my #CurrentReads! In Orange, Volume 2, the friendship between Naho, Kakeru, Suwa, Hagita, Azu, and Taka is fabulous! I especially loved how they all contributed to a special message to give to Kakeru in the relay race. 😍❤ . . . . And in #ForaFewDemonsMore by #KimHarrison, I would love to count Rachel Morgan, Ivy Tamwood, and Jenks among my friends. Their friendship is #GOALS, too! 😄😍❤ . . . . Lastly, it's now technically 12:10a on November 20th. I apologize for posting my November 19th post late, but I was participating in a reading sprint and it only ended at 11:45p. And I'm not the fastest typer on my phone's tiny keyboard. 😕 . . . . I was reading For a Few Demons More by Kim Harrison in the sprint, though, and I made it to page 66! Now to finish Chapter Five and then I can go to sleep. Good night! 😄😴 https://www.instagram.com/p/BqZK2CCHaf8/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1lnsl6oyv5ncw

#TomeTopple Update! I forgot to tell you all on Instagram that I finished my first tome last night! I completed Orange: The Complete Collection, Volume 1 by Ichigo Takano at about 10:30p on November 18th. 😊😍❤ . I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. It was a solid four-star read for me. And that's despite the fact that I wanted to slap Naho upside her head a few times in Part 3. 😕😄⭐⭐⭐⭐❤ . . . . Also, I missed out on participating in ALL three photo challenges yesterday. But this book works for the November 18th #TomeTopple#TomeToppleChallenge task! It was to share a Seasonal Tome, I think. And this book has a fall scene on it! The trees may have all or most of their leaves, but they're changing color! 😍❤ . . . . Today, November 19th, I started reading Orange: The Complete Collection, Volume 2 by Ichigo Takano. I'm buddy reading it with a friend on Twitter. 😊❤ . . . . Also today, I started the Hollows series book five, For a Few Demons More by Kim Harrison! I'm not very far into it - only read two chapters - but I'm very much enjoying this story so far! 😄❤ . . . . Today being November 19th, I will try to post a photo or three for my photo challenges. But it's after 9p here now, so I might go to bed instead. I can STILL feel the effects of my late night on Saturday-Sunday. 😕❤ . . . . #DogsofInstagram #bookstagram #IchigoTakano #books #OrangeTheCompleteCollection #OrangeVolume1 #series #Orange #OrangeManga #OrangeSeries #manga https://www.instagram.com/p/BqY1tpSnzFf/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1w9a3asgtb7ab

#TomeTopple Update! I finished my non-tome book at about 9:20a on Sunday, November 18th! I read some of it - much of Book One and part of Book Two - and listened to the rest. I think I listened to it more than I read it. 😊😍❤ . . . . This audio edition performed by Frank Muller was EXCELLENT. I give his performance five stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐❤ . . . . The story gets just four stars from me. I never laughed or cried while reading it, so even with Mr. Muller's excellent narration, I only really - REALLY - enjoyed this story. But that's an improvement on my three-star ratings for books one and two! 😄⭐⭐⭐⭐❤ . . . . Max is in the second and third photos. These pictures have already been shared on here, but they show the physical book, so I'm sharing them again. 😍❤😍 . . . . It's now after 10:15a and since I stayed up all night and into the morning to finish this book, I'm going to sleep. Good night! Or rather, Good Day! I'm gonna sleep! 😄❤😴😴😴 . . . . Just so's you know, I did read Letters 7 and 8 in Orange: The Complete Collection, Volume 1 last night. I finished the 17th's allotment at about 11:30p on the 17th. I'll finish this book when I'm again awake. For now... Sleep! 😴😴😴😴😴😴 . . . . #DogsofInstagram #TomeTopple7 #bookstagram #StephenKing #FrankMuller #books #TheWasteLands #series #TheDarkTower #TheDarkTowerSeries https://www.instagram.com/p/BqVHf4GHWCb/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=16em39hg3pnhv

This post is also for #jayjaysbookishbirthday - #TravellingBook - and #bookscoasttocoastnov - #bookcrown - AND the #TomeToppleChallenge - #ReadingSpot! 😄😍❤ . . . . I am reading The Waste Lands by Stephen King - and also Orange: The Complete Collection, Volume 1 by Ichigo Takano (not pictured) - on the couch in the living room. My legs are covered by two blankets because it gets chilly this close to the window. 😄❤ . . . . My #bookcrown is rather awkward, don't you think? But it hopefully work. I used the illustrated pages in this book to make the low dips and the pages between the illustrations are the spires. 😍❤ . . . . The book in this photo is, of course, my #CurrentRead, #TheWasteLands by #StephenKing! It's my #TravellingBook for Jay's challenge! Because in this book, Roland, Susannah, Eddie, and Jake (!!!) are travelling to the Dark Tower. On foot no less! Turn to Photo Two to see the cover of The Waste Lands with my Max. 😄😍❤ . . . . Did I tell you that I finished Book One - Jake last night? I finished it at just before 7:00p on November 16th. That put me beyond the halfway point! How did I accomplish this miracle of reading 157 pages in this book in one day? Why, by getting the audiobook from @audible! 😄❤ . . . . Listening while reading along greatly helped me make progress in this story. 😊❤ . . . . Last night I also read the first four of 12 Letters in #OrangeTheCompleteCollection Volume 1! In other words, I am a third of the way done with the first compendium of Orange! I reached this goal at 10:15p on the 16th. 😄❤ . . . . Tonight I'd love to finish The Waste Lands, but probably I'll still be reading it come tomorrow. I'm also hoping to read Letters 7 and 8 in Orange, having read Letters 5 and 6 earlier this afternoon. Then I'll be on target to finish my first tome for #TomeTopple7 tomorrow! 😄❤ . . . . Since it's now 6:53p here, I'd best get to reading! 😄📚🎉❤ . . . . #DogsofInstagram #TomeTopple #CurrentlyReading #ReadingWithDogs #bookstagram #books #series #TheDarkTower #TheDarkTowerSeries https://www.instagram.com/p/BqTc9rNHh63/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=x32bmrkhqt3c

Today's November 16th photo serves THREE purposes! #JayJaysbookishbirthday - #FantasyFun - and #bookscoasttocoastnov - #FlatlayFriday - AND the #TomeToppleChallenge - #TomeToppleTBR! 😄😍❤ . . . . #TomeTopple7 started almost 20 hours ago for me, at midnight on November 16th! It runs through 11:59p on November 29th. And these times are for you, too, in whatever time zone you're in! 😄❤ . . . . The books in the first photo are what I'm mostly hoping to read in this round of #TomeTopple. #TheWasteLands by #StephenKing is NOT a tome in this edition (422 pages), but I'm still reading it, so that's why it's in this #TBR Photo. Earlier today I made it past the halfway point! Tomorrow I'll start Book Two on page 219. 😄😍❤ . . . . I stopped reading The Waste Lands at dinnertime so as to start my first tome, #OrangeTheCompleteCollection: Volume 1, by #IchigoTakano! I'm hoping to finish this book no later than Sunday so that I can start Volume 2 on Monday! 😄😍❤ . . . . I'm also planning on reading the next three Hollows series books by #KimHarrison during this two-week 'thon. #ForaFewDemonsMore (512pp), #TheOutlawDemonWails (496pp), and #WhiteWitchBlackCurse (549pp) aren't all +500-page books, but The Outlaw Demon Wails is close and since together the three books add up to 1,557 pages, I'm going to count all three as Tome Topple reads! 😄😍❤ . . . . Lastly, #It by Stephen King is in this photo, too. I'm still on page 251 in it, having read NOTHING since November 4th. 🙈😕 I'd kinda like to finish it this month, so a Tome Topple read it might be. 🤔 . . . . For #FantasyFun, all but one of these books are fantastical in some way. Do you know all of their genres? 🤔😄😍❤ . . . . And for #FlatlayFriday, it should be obvious that I laid the books flat on my bed for this photo! 😄😍❤ . . . . Turn to Photo Two if you'd like to see my Max looking at me! I had to pretend to fall forward onto the bed to get this shot. 🤣😍❤ . . . . #DogsofInstagram #bookstagram #books #series #CurrentRead #TheDarkTower #TheDarkTowerSeries #CurrentlyReading #Orange #OrangeSeries #TheHollows #TheHollowsSeries https://www.instagram.com/p/BqRBn1nHJbN/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1rvchm8gm6dj5