Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
A hearty and warm welcome from the still snowy state of Massachusetts, which is covered in a blanket of Mother Nature's white fury. Wish me luck, because I have appointments today.
For today's Top Ten Tuesday, we are sharing bookish discoveries we made in 2025. If I spent more time in the publishing world, this would be an easier list to compile. Oh, why didn't God make me rich instead of beautiful? LOL!
Top Ten Bookish
Discoveries in 2025
- I need more humor in my life. I love dramatic fiction, stories that tug at every heartstring, and stories that make me feel deep emotions. I enjoy nonfiction that provokes thought, explores Scripture, and develops my personal and professional skills. But reading books like Captain LOL and Rubber Chicken: Har Har by Craig Yoe and My Dad Thinks He's a Scream by Katrina Germein reminded me that laughter is some of the best medicine. In addition to more funny kidlit titles, I want to read more rom-coms this year.
- I prefer digital and audio reading to print these days. Digital and audio provide me greater flexibility with my reading. I am on the road so much that I would never read half of what I do in a year if it were not for my Kindle and Audible.
- I can't take how many unread books are in this house. Call it clutter rage, but I cannot stand how many books in the house have not been read. It's not just my books either. My husband has shelves of books, the majority of which he has not even cracked the cover open. I will always have my favorite collections, but I refuse to keep so many unread books on my shelves.
- I want more blogging time. Last year, my schedule just about killed me. The only thing that kept me sane was blogging and conversing with all of you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
- More than ever, I want to write at least one book a year. Balance is the key here. I waste too much time when I am overwhelmed. I create a schedule that leaves little downtime. Did you know that in 2025, only 1.5% of licensed agents sold between 20 and 29 houses?* Guess who is in that 1.5%? Yup, I am good at what I do. It's just so demanding at times that it leaves little room for anything else. If I want to make this a reality, I have to look at other commitments or restructure my business.
- I decided to give up the goal of exploring new genres. I know what I like. I enjoy cozy mysteries, historical fiction and nonfiction, Amish fiction, romance, true crime, kidlit, Christian fiction and nonfiction, and personal and professional development. Memoir and poetry make it on my list of likes, but I don't read a ton of either. While it's good to step out of my comfort zone, with limited reading time, I am going to embrace the genres I enjoy most.
- I enjoy author newsletters. Though they come too frequently, I like seeing them in my Inbox. It helps me discover new books sooner. So, even if all I do is add books to my Goodreads list to read later, I don't forget about them.
- I wish my Kindle library were easier to keep track of. Gosh, it is nearly impossible for me to easily see the books in my Kindle library. This is where the books get forgotten, because I don't always add e-books to Goodreads when I grab them.
- Window shopping at bookstores is okay. Until recently, every time I visited a bookstore, I felt like I had to buy a book. Why is that? Walking through a local bookstore is such a calming experience for me, and so many of the locals have unique settings, decor, or book swag that I'm teaching myself to just enjoy browsing.
- I can't commit to street teams or book launch teams until I create a better schedule. I've been part of street teams and book launch teams in the past, but 2025 was a total fail for me. I Heard the Bells by Darlene L. Turner et al. and The Christmas Book Flood by Roseanna M. White are fine examples. I posted on social media about them, but the books remain unread, which isn't fair to the authors who count on me to do what I said I would. No more until I can lighten my workload.
Thanks to Freepik for the image
Tell Me Something Tuesday (TMST) is hosted by Jen Twimom at That's What I'm Talking About. TMST is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. Participation is optional, and you can leave your comments in the weekly post when you participate. Check it out if you're interested in joining.
I didn't even need to think twice about this week's topic: What's your favorite decade and why?
Is there really any reason to ask why? The 80s brought us:
- The space shuttle
- Personal computers
- Pac-Man
- The Internet
- The Color Purple, The Alchemist, The Handmaid's Tale, The Polar Express, Matilda, and Ramona Forever
- New musical talents of Guns N' Roses, Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Whitney Houston, Bon Jovi, Asia, Wham!, Run-D.M.C., and Def Leppard
- Monumental years for Michael Jackson, Journey, Foreigner, Prince, The Cars, and AC/DC
- E.T. and two of the three original Star Wars movies
- Cabbage Patch Kids, the Rubik's Cube, and Nintendo
- Cheers, The Golden Girls, Family Ties, The Facts of Life, Growing Pains, Dallas, Dynasty, Magnum P.I., Knight Rider, and Miami Vice
- Neon everything, feminine dresses with ruffles and puffy sleeves, shoulder pads (okay, maybe this one wasn't great), leg warmers, chunky earrings and bracelets, and stirrup pants as mainstream fashion
On a more personal level, it meant:
- Hanging out at the Fairfield Mall
- Taking the Pepsi challenge
- Spending hours at the Just Fun Arcade
- Rollerskating
- Visiting Canada and Bermuda
- Graduating from high school
- Moving out on my own
- Giving birth to our son
Some of my greatest challenges and memories took place in the 1980s. The world might not have been perfect, but it sure could be fun.
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