3 books: final notes and stats 2020

Ha! Monthly posts about the books we are reading! I'm not getting into why that didn't happen. You can check out my previous post 12 books in 12 weeks if you are curious. but I will tell you what we read for 2020.

Total family books read: 8

The list:

1. The Hobbit
2. The Eye of the World
3. The Great Hunt
4. The Dragon Reborn
5. The Shadow Rising
6. The Fires of Heaven
7. Lord of Chaos
8. A Crown of Swords

We have not finished Path of Daggers in time to make it on this list. I'm hoping we will finish it by the end of January. I'm currently debating 2021 goals. Hopefully there will be a post in a few days to follow up on this.

12 books in 12 weeks: overview

Looking back on my January reading goals they seem so... optimistic. I had no clue a global pandemic would occur. I had no clue a shutdown would happen. I had no clue I would sit at home for months, quarantining, wondering when I would return to work and my children to school. One would think in this perfect storm of events I would read SO MANY books. So many! All of that free time! Sitting around the house! Doing nothing! So many books!

Yeah, I think I read three.

I did paint the entire interior of my house. That was good. We did three rooms last spring/summer so I figured three rooms again this year was a good goal. Instead it was seven - nine, if you want to include the two hallways. One of the rooms was painted twice because after I painted it I decided I hated it and needed to rethink my strategy. Technically the painting isn't done. After months sitting around the house stressing about my job I finally started working from home so I never got to finish. All of the closets and doors need to be done still. I'm thinking that is a couple of weekends in 2021.

There were two funerals. In the middle of a global pandemic, people dying from complications due to covid everywhere, I lost two family members in the spring. My grandmother to a fall. She had Alzheimer's. She forgot to use her cane. She ended up in the hospital on a morphine drip. We got to do one video chat with her where she was really out of it. She only lasted a couple of days. We never got to do a second video chat. Then, my cousin. Also to a fall. We were close growing up but had fallen out over the years. She had been working on straightening her life out. I've been working on picking up the pieces of mine. She fell walking down the street and hit her head so hard she blacked out. A passing EMT happened to find her and call 911. She was taken to the hospital and treated. The following day they realized she was brain dead. So arbitrary. Two people. Both to falls.

Summer was relatively quiet, but October was crazy. My brother's house burned down. He and his pregnant girlfriend and their dogs got out. The house was completely destroyed. They lost pretty much everything. We lost power for 4 days, during a bad wind storm. Mini tornadoes actually damaged so many houses around us. My mother and step father, who just moved around the corner from us, had their roof destroyed. So many neighbors had trees fall on their houses. I was incredibly grateful I happened to have the huge pine tree in my backyard taken down just a couple weeks prior. Our house was lucky enough to escape unscathed. We lost two shingles off of our front steps, which my uncle replaced. One of my twins went to the ER for a body temperature of 95.5. He was diagnosed with diabetes. As upsetting as that entire experience was everyone told me we caught it shockingly quick - that children are normally sick for months and eventually fall into a coma before anyone realizes that something is seriously wrong. 

With all of this going on, on top of a pandemic, a quarantine, and a shutdown... is it really surprising that I only read a couple of books? I think not. I did listen to quite a few audio books while painting, but other than that... nothing. Instead I listened to a lot of TV while working on jigsaw puzzles. When I am stressed out they soothe me.

And we did read quite a lot as a family. Not only did we read The Hobbit, but we have read SEVEN Wheel of Time books!!! The Eye of the World through The Crown of Swords!!! And, we are currently about 3/4 of the way through The Path of Daggers. 

Life has been stressful, but life has been good. And for every tragedy I am reminded of our blessings.

And I think I'm finally ready to read again. I'm not sure I'm ready to blog again - I had intended to blog all about The Wheel of Time but I suppose I will have to save my thoughts for the fourth time I read the book series - but I figure I will take it slow. My current goal is starting tomorrow, for the next 12 weeks (84 days) I want to read 12 books. Since I normally read 2-3 books a week I am hoping to crush this goal. But I'm also setting the bar low. This has been a crazy year and I'm not setting a goal of 24 books just to be disappointed I couldn't focus enough to meet it. I'm hoping the end result will be 13 because I'm hoping we will finish The Path of Daggers, but we shall have to see. We have been struggling with family reading time as we try to adapt to this ever changing craziness of 2020. And, considering I have only read a few books so far this quarantine I might end up with only 8 books. And that is okay.

So, hopefully I will see you again in 12 weeks with a list of 12+ books! Happy reading!

a shadow in riverclan

Featherpaw and Stormpaw are at their warrior ceremony. Leopardstar asks Featherpaw if she will serve and protect her clan, even at the cost of her life. This question causes Featherpaw to reflect on her past. She thinks back on the death of her mother, how so many other cats viewed her and her brother as half clan, and how her father, Graystripe, ultimately had to return to ThunderClan. She and Stormpaw take their vows and are renamed Feathertail and Stormfur. This should be the happiest moment of Feathertai's life - but it is not. As Feathertail and Stormfur stand vigil, Feathretail reflects back on the rise of TigerClan, the imprisonment of half clan cats, and how Stonefur was murdered, how Graystripe saved them. She remembers the battle that followed and how Leopardstar asked them to return to RiverClan. Feathertail confesses to Stormfur that she wonders if they made the wrong choice. Should they have stayed with ThunderClan? But Stormfur feels they need to put the past in the past and move forward. Feathertail tries, but she feels she cannot trust any of her clanmates, so she pulls away from them. One day Ferncloud accidentally chases a squirrel onto RiverClan land. Feathertail kills it and offers it to her. Some RiverClan warriors overhear and it turns into a fight. Feathertail is in trouble with Leopardstar asks her how she can betray her clan this way but Feathertail feels Leopardstar is the real traitor. Stormfur tells Feathertail that she needs to pick what clan she wishes to be loyal to, as she cannot be loyal to both. 

Sasha and her kits, Moth and Hawk, stray onto RiverClan territory. Blackclaw wants Leopardstar to chase them away, but Feathertail speaks up for them and Leopardstar listens to her. Feathertail is jealous of how easily Sahsa, Mothkit, and Hawkkit fit into clan life. She feels they are more accepted than she is. One day Hawk falls into the river and Feathertail saves him. Because of this, she and Sasha start to grow a friendship. Feathertail asks after the kits' father and Sasha tells her he is dead. Because of her friendship with Sasha, Feathertail starts opening up to her clanmates. She even confides in Sasha about what Tigerstar did to her and her brother. When Leopardstar names herself as Hawkpaw's mentor and Mistyfoot as Mothpaw's mentor Feathertail knows Leopardstar is doing this to show the new apprentices are fully clan cats. But she worries about Leopardstar's influence on Hawkpaw. One day Sasha confesses to Feathertail that Tigerstar is her kits father. Feathertail feels betrayed by this secret. She doesn't blame the kits and doesn't want to see them cast out of the clan, but her friendship with Sasha is over. She starts to withdraw from the clan once again. Sasha tells Feathertail that she is leaving. She worries if she joins the clan then everyone will realize who her kits' father is. 

Time passes and winter comes. A fox attacks the camp and Hawkpaw saves Feathertail and Stormfur. Leaopardstar is grateful to the apprentice but Feathertail feels her words are a lie. The next day Leopardstar puts together a patrol to make sure the fox is gone for good. She takes Hawkpaw, Feathertail, and Stormfur. They find the fox and fight. Leopardstar sacrifices herself to save her clanmates, and for the first time Feathertail realizes her leader really does care about her. She attacks the fox, unwilling to let Leopardstar lose a life. On the walk home she and Leopardstar finally make peace between them. At the next Gathering Leopardstar tells everyone how Feathertail and Stormfur saved her life. Feathertail finally realizes she has found her home and starts to let her clanmates back in again. One night she dreams of Oakheart, who tells her that her clan needs her, and that she might not survive. Feathertail happily accepts her duty, as she now knows loyalty to her clan and will do anything to see them survive.

This was such a sad story. I'm glad to see things from Feathertail's perspective as she never really had a voice. And it makes sense why she would fall for Crowfeather, since she was struggling to find acceptance within her own clan. I always assumed that if either of them struggled it was Stormfur. After all, I assumed when cats look at Feathertail they would see Silverstream but when they looked at Stormfur they would see Graystripe. And Stormfur was the one to leave them for the Tribe and Brook. Feathertail had a very difficult life. Much of it was her own fault for pulling away and not letting any cat in, but that is a logical reaction to the level of betrayal she experienced. But in the end she found acceptance and died a true warrior to her clan, and I think she would have found peace in that.

the wheel of time

First of all, I want to say I am so thrilled to be rereading these books - and to my children! My first time reading them easily spanned 10-15 years. You tend to forget even the most basic things when that happens. I remember reading one of the books in the middle and going "who the hell is Egeanin and why do I care about her?!?" That was how spaced out my reading was. The second time through it took me a few years (which is understandable considering how many books there are) but I read it straight through (well, as straight through as I'm capable of reading considering I usually have 6 different books going at once) and walked away with a much better grasp of the story line.

This time I'm thrilled to not only be sharing my absolute favorite book series ever with my children, but I'm also looking forward to paying attention to certain themes. Specifically, I want to pay attention to all of the prophecies and symbolism as well as the Forsaken. I want to dive deeper into Min's viewings, Egwene's dreams, and Elaida's foretellings. The moments when someone says something either prophetic or foreshadowing without realizing it - and by these moments I don't mean Siuan sitting around musing how she can be stilled for what she is doing. That is a given. Rather, I mean Egwene sneaking Rand around so he can avoid the Amyrlin, and Moiraine thinking to herself that if Egwene isn't careful she will be Amyrlin herself one day. And, of course, the Forsaken. I always have a hard time following them around from book to book. I always forget where they are currently and when they pop up I am always caught off guard. Some of the male Forsaken I have a hard time keeping straight. The females I can always keep separate because their motivations are so diverse, but the men all seem to roughly want the same thing and be motivated by the same thing - half of them seem to be doing this because they are jealous of Lews Therin. Them I do have a hard time keeping straight. And, like I said, I always forget where they are and when they pop up I'm always wondering if I should have remembered something or if I'm even keeping them straight.

So, I will have the posts that follow 4-5 chapters each. However, it will not be the major breakdown that most other books get from me. The chapters are just too long and have too much crammed into them. I could probably do one post for each chapter and still feel like I'm leaving important information out. Plus, I'm sure I will be reading these books a fourth time again one day. No point in covering everything the first time through! As I read maybe I will see another theme I want to explore. 

buffy the vampire slayer: part twenty-three

First we see Willow continue down her dark magic path. She and Tara get into fight over Willow's magic use. Refusing to see that there might be a problem, Willow deflects and accuses Tara of fearing that Willow isn't really a lesbian. They were supposed to go on a date together but their fight causes Tara to go alone where she is attacked by Glory. This angers Willow and she seeks revenge. Yes, Tara is attacked. Yes, the revenge is against Glory. Yes, it is easily justified. But this is the beginning of Dark Willow. Unable to accept things not going the way she wants she lashes out at Tara then Glory. This, in turn, will lead to her trying to magically manipulate things into what she wants them to be in the future.

We also see Buffy and Spike grow closer. It is not the closer that Spike wishes for, but Buffy comes to accept that she can completely trust Spike. Giles and Xander are not happy about this but Willow accepts it and even uses magic to help Spike reach Dawn to try and save her.

We also see the difference in Buffy and Giles. Buffy has Glory utterly defeated. She is unable to kill her, as Glory is a god. When Glory turns into Ben (who can be killed) Buffy gives Ben an ultimatum that he and Glory are to leave or Buffy will end them. Ben agrees. Buffy leaves to go save Dawn and Giles comes along and kills Ben. As he does it he muses that Buffy knows Glory will one day return and exact revenge, but she still cannot bring herself to commit murder. Giles, however, has no qualms about this. Buffy might be the Slayer, the instrument of the council, but there are lines she will not cross no matter what. Giles, on the other hand, will cross those lines to save the world and his Slayer.

Lastly, we see Buffy's love for Dawn as she sacrifices herself so that Dawn might live.

Favorite episode? It is a touch choice between "Tough Love" and "The Gift," but I think "Tough Love" wins. Spike's hints that he would do anything to save the one he loves (Buffy), Dawn putting the attack on Tara into perspective - even Willow's awful accusations against Tara as she refuses to face her growing problem. Overall it is a very gut-wrenching episode.

The episodes:

Tough Love - Season 5, Episode 19

Synopsis - Glory deduces Tara is the key and attacks her, causing Willow to retaliate.

Spiral - Season 5, Episode 20

Synopsis - Buffy has everyone (including Spike) flee Sunnydale once Glory realizes Dawn is the key. Giles becomes injured so the group turns to Ben for help - but he turns into Glory and abducts Dawn.

The Weight of the World - Season 5, Episode 21

Synopsis - Willow must try to wake Buffy after she falls into a coma over the loss of Dawn. Glory prepares to go home.

The Gift - Season 5, Episode 22

Synopsis - Everyone shows up to stop Glory and Buffy realizes what her gift is.

buffy the vampire slayer: part twenty-two

First we have an introduction to Warren. It is a minor moment in a minor episode, but he will become important in the next season.

Then, Joyce dies an incredibly ordinary death that will force Buffy to grow up before she is ready. This also causes Buffy's love for Dawn to begin to shift from older sister/younger sister to more of a mother/daughter relationship.

Then we see an introduction to Willow and dark magic. After Joyce dies Dawn wishes to bring her back from the dead. Tara is dead set against it, stating it is forbidden, while Willow makes excuses, citing the difficulties. Willow quickly backpedals when Tara insists it doesn't matter how difficult it is. But once she and Tara leave, Willow subtly gives Dawn the book that will help her. In the end Dawn breaks the spell and Joyce does not come back, but the beginnings of Willow's path is revealed.

Lastly there is Buffy and Spike. The beginnings of their relationship continue to develop when Spike is taken by Glory's minions. After Buffy and her friends rescue Spike, Buffy pretends to be the Buffy-bot to find out if Spike revealed the truth about Dawn. When Spike reveals he did not and forbids the Buffy-bot from telling Glory anything, Buffy kisses Spike for real.

My favorite episode? "Intervention." The Buffy/Buffy-bot confusion alone is amusing, but really it is Spike's refusal to sell out Dawn and Buffy kissing Spike that make this episode my favorite.

The episodes:

I Was Made To Love You - Season 5, Episode 15

Synopsis - The gang runs into a sex-bot that is looking for her creator.

The Body - Season 5, Episode 16

Synopsis - Joyce dies.

Forever - Season 5, Episode 17

Synopsis - Joyce is buried. Spike helps Dawn try to bring her back.

Intervention - Season 5, Episode 18

Synopsis - Buffy heads to the desert to find out more about her powers while the rest of the gang catches Spike with his Buffy-bot. Then Glory's minions abduct Spike, believing him to be the key.

buffy the vampire slayer: part twenty-one

These next few episodes have two major things happen. One, Buffy and Giles tell everyone where the key is - and Dawn and Spike discover the truth. And two, Buffy and Spike start to actually develop a relationship.

Other major things happen as well. Willow and Anya start to develop a relationship. The bombshell that Glory is a god. The reveal that Ben and Glory are the same person. But these pale in comparison.

First, Dawn knows something is up about herself, something that no one will tell her. She can brush off the ramblings of the crazy people she runs into but she has a harder time brushing off the ramblings of her mom. And it is hard to brush off all the comments when everyone keeps saying the same thing. Meanwhile, after the Watchers Council reveals that Glory is a god, Buffy and Giles tell their friends the truth about Dawn. Everyone's sudden odd behavior around Dawn causes Dawn to break into Giles's store, looking for answers. Spike goes with her, in part because he has feelings for Buffy so he wants to watch out for her kid sister and in part because he does genuinely like Dawn. Spike is there when Dawn discovers that she is the key. She goes home and freaks out, cutting herself. In the end she runs away and finds herself at the hospital. While there she talks to Ben, who turns into Glory at the mention of the key. Everyone shows up and saves her and Buffy tells her that she is her sister, and she an their mom do love her. Things start to settle down for Dawn.

Then there is Buffy and Spike. Leaving Spike's love aside, Buffy starts to depend on him. When Glory confronts Buffy in her home, she turns to Spike to watch her mom and sister for her. She refuses to pay him, telling him he is the only one who can protect her family, and Spike doesn't push the issue. When Dawn runs away every splits up to look for her. Buffy and Spike pair up. When they confront Glory, who has Dawn cornered, Spike doesn't think twice and attacks her. When Spike finds out that Dawn is the key he keeps her secret - which will become especially important in the future. Signs start to point to Buffy actually opening up and starting to trust Spike. Then, however, Spike confesses his love for Buffy and they have a major falling out. Buffy might not mind Spike's help, and might have even allowed herself to start to depend on him between her mom's illness and the need for help in protecting Dawn, but she draws the line here. She even goes so far as to uninvite Spike from her house. This is a pretty big deal as she knows Spike is stealing from her, as she has caught him in her house when he thought he was alone. Granted, she didn't know he was stealing her pictures and her clothing, but she did know he was stealing from her. But Spike's thefts don't really bother her. Neither does Spike knowing intimate details about her family. Her mom's illness is one thing, but the truth about Dawn another. She knows Spike has the tendency to sell people out, so long as he comes out on top. Yet she lets him walk away knowing the truth about Dawn. Part of it could be she knows Spike does not like apocalypses - after all, that is partly why he teamed up with her against Angel. And part of it is she feels like she can't kill Spike so long as he has the chip in his head. But she is trusting him not only with the fate of the dimensions, but with Dawn's life. And there is only one person Buffy loves the most in the world and that is Dawn. But on another level Buffy knows Spike has no interest in hurting her mom and sister. Whatever the fight is between Buffy and Spike, between Slayer and vampire, Spike has never hurt Buffy's family and has even tried to protect them when there was no gain for himself.

Favorite episode? "Blood Ties." Everything comes out in the open.

The episodes:

Triangle - Season 5, Episode 11

Synopsis - Willow and Anya's jealousy over each others relationship with Xander comes to a head when they accidentally summon a troll (who happens to be Anya's ex boyfriend).

Checkpoint - Season 5, Episode 12

Synopsis - The Watchers Council arrives to "test" Buffy to see if she is worthy of their knowledge about Glory.

Blood Ties - Season 5, Episode 13

Synopsis - Buffy and Giles tell everyone the truth about Dawn. Dawn and Spike discover it accidentally later on when Dawn asks Spike to help her break into The Magic Shop.

Crush - Season 5, Episode 14

Synopsis - Drusilla comes to town and Spike's true feelings for Buffy are revealed.

a character exits: graham

Graham is a member of the Initiative alongside Riley and Forrest. The three are close friends until Buffy enters their lives. However, unlike Riley's relationship with Forrest, Graham continues to be Riley's friend and tries to play peacemaker between Riley and Forrest. He doesn't disapprove of Riley's relationship with the Slayer and he respects Riley's decision to leave the military for Buffy. When Riley becomes sick Buffy reaches out to the government for help and it is Graham who comes. He does try to ask Riley to return to the military, but Riley rejects his offer. In the end, Buffy is so wrapped up in her mother's illness that Riley realizes he has no real place in Buffy's life. Graham's offer starts to sound better and Riley ultimately leaves with his friend.

buffy the vampire slayer: part twenty

Let us take a moment to talk about Tara. Up until this moment she has always been an outsider in Team Buffy. Everyone likes her, everyone goes out of their way to make her feel welcome and accepted, but no one really knows her. This is partly Tara's own fault, as she is afraid to open up to other people. She tries to be open about this with Willow, but Willow doesn't understand because she doesn't see it. When Tara's family comes to visit everything is forced to come to light. Tara is terrified that she has demon blood and is terrified that the people she has come to care about will turn against her. This isn't what happens. Instead everyone accepts Tara, she finally finds her real family in Willow's friends, and it comes out that the demon blood myth is just that - a myth used to keep the women of her family in line.

Then there is Joyce. She continues to get sick, and Buffy's desire to be strong for her mom and Dawn's sake continues to drive a wedge between herself and Riley. During the course of Joyce's illness she comes to realize Dawn isn't actually her daughter. During her recovery she confronts Buffy about this and Buffy confirms it. Joyce realizes though that Dawn is important and feels like her daughter. She begs Buffy to care for and love Dawn if anything happens to herself.

Meanwhile things between Buffy and Riley fall apart. Riley wants to be the supportive boyfriend who comforts Buffy, but Buffy feels no one can see her struggle. Then Spike goes out of his way to drive a wedge between Buffy and Riley. Spike starts trying to be there for Buffy during her struggles and, surprisingly, she lets him. Spike uses this to rub salt in Riley's emotional wounds. Riley finds himself turning to vampires to try and understand Buffy (along with her relationships with both Angel and Dracula) better. Spike uses this to break them up. Riley attacks Spike and calls him out on it - causing the two guys share a moment where they have a heart to heart about how they are both in love with a woman who will never love them in return. In the end Riley leaves, rejoining the army with his friend Graham. After a conversation with Xander (where he accuses Buffy of treating Riley like the rebound guy) Buffy tries to stop him from leaving but she arrives too late.

But one good thing does come of this. When Xander and Buffy have their blow up over Riley, Buffy makes some catty comments about Xander and Anya's relationship. This causes Xander to do some self reflecting. He goes home and tells Anya just how much he loves her.

Favorite episode? Honestly, they are all very good. Spike's backstory and offer of friendship to Buffy in "Fool for Love," Buffy and Giles's determination to protect Dawn in "Shadow," Joyce's realization that Dawn isn't her daughter and her determination to love and raise her anyway in "Listening to Fear," Xander doing some real growth and confessing love to Anya in "Into the Woods" - these are all incredible moments. But the best episode is Tara breaking free from her abusive family and finding her real family in "Family."

The episodes:

Family - Season 5, Episode 6

Synopsis - On Tara's birthday her family arrives to take her away.

Fool for Love - Season 5, Episode 7

Synopsis - While fighting with a regular vampire, Buffy gets staked. She seeks Spike out to find out how he took down two slayers.

Shadow - Season 5, Episode 8

Synopsis - The doctors find a shadow in Joyce's head. Meanwhile Glory summons a demon to find the key - and much to Buffy and Giles's horror it does.

Listening to Fear - Season 5, Episode 9

Synopsis - The tumor in Joyce's head makes her see and say things, causing her to realize Dawn isn't her daughter. Meanwhile Ben summons a demon who kills crazy people.

Into the Woods - Season 5, Episode 10

Synopsis - Buffy and Riley's relationship implodes.

buffy the vampire slayer: part nineteen

This is, hands down, my all time favorite season of Buffy!

We start off with the beginning of the end of Buffy and Riley. First Dracula comes to town and Riley has to wrestle with his Buffy insecurities as he watches Buffy fall under Dracula's spell. Buffy ultimately defeats Dracula but all Riley can do is draw parallels to Angel. Then Xander moves out of his parent's basement. While Buffy and Riley help him pack, Riley confesses to Xander that he knows Buffy does not love him. This is followed by Riley falling ill from the Initiative experiments on him. Buffy worries for him, but Riley refuses to seek out help - in part because of fear of what the government will do to him next and in part of fear of being Buffy's "normal" boyfriend. This causes fighting between them. In the end Buffy reaches out to the Initiative and it is revealed that Graham has been in contact with Riley, trying to convince him to accept their help. Riley does have the operation in the end, saving his life, but it doesn't help that Graham rubs in just how normal Riley is in comparison to Buffy. It also doesn't help that Spike has been rubbing in the same comments, or that Dawn slips up that Buffy doesn't want Riley patrolling anymore because he is now weaker. And while Riley is going through all of his problems Joyce starts to fall ill, causing Buffy to pull away from Riley to focus on her family. Riley does have a champion in Xander, who tries to drop hints to Buffy about how unhappy Riley is, but his hints go over Buffy's head.

Then there are the minor notes that Spike begins to realize he has fallen in love with Buffy. Giles decides to leave Buffy's life only for her to ask him to be her Watcher again. Still looking for some direction in his life, Giles decides to run the Magic Shop. And Tara struggles with still feeling like an outsider in the group.

But most importantly is the introduction of Dawn. The season starts with the fight against Dracula, but at the end of that episode Buffy walks into her room to find a stranger and demands to know who she is and what she is doing there. Then Joyce refers to her as Buffy's sister and from this moment forward the magic is cemented and everyone believes Dawn is a constant fixture in their lives. Joyce has a moment where she sees through the magic when she falls ill and passes out, but once she comes to she is back to believing Dawn is her daughter. Buffy rapidly finds out the truth as she searches for a reason for her mom's sickness. When she finds out she is furious that monks rewrote her life and her memories - along with everyone else's. But when she tells Giles the truth she comes to realize just how innocent and helpless Dawn is, and just how much she needs to protect her. Buffy and Giles decide to keep the truth to themselves for now and Buffy goes home - to care for her sick mom AND comfort her scared sister.

My favorite episode is "No Place Like Home." Buffy discovering the truth about Dawn and deciding it doesn't matter, she will protect her - both from the forces of evil that seek to use her and from the truth of her birth - no matter what, is exactly why Buffy is the hero.

The episodes:

Buffy vs Dracula - Season 5, Episode 1

Synopsis - Dracula comes to town, looking to seduce Buffy. Dawn enters Buffy's life.

Real Me - Season 5, Episode 2

Synopsis - Life from Dawn's point of view as Harmony tries to kill Buffy.

The Replacement - Season 5, Episode 3

Synopsis - A Toth demon tries to use a weapon on Buffy but accidentally uses it on Xander instead, separating him into Xander's good qualities and bad qualities.

Out of My Mind - Season 5, Episode 4

Synopsis - Buffy's mom falls ill, Riley is dying from the government experiments preformed on him, and Spike discovers a way to get the chip out of his head.

No Place Like Home - Season 5, Episode 5

Synopsis - Buffy starts to think her mom's illness might have a supernatural origin, but in search for answers she instead discovers that Dawn isn't actually her sister.

3 books & reading goals

I know, I know. You are looking at this reading goal and going "Wait... what?!? Only THREE books?!?"

Yes. Only three books.

We have decided to do something new this year and I hope it works out okay. We have decided to drop kids/middle school level books entirely and read The Hobbit followed by the Wheel of Time series. Total (including the prequel Wheel of Time book) that is 16 novels. 1 for The Hobbit, 14 for the Wheel of Time, and 1 for New Spring. It is going to take a LONG time to read these long books (with tiny print). In light of that I decided this goal should go from January 2020 to December 2025, encompassing Vampire Kitten's and Lone Wolf's middle school and high school years. Using this logic we should (hopefully) read 2.7 books a year to stay on track. After doing the math, for this year alone we only need to read 31 pages a week. While that doesn't sound like a lot I imagine it will be a bit of a struggle. We already have a hard time setting aside family reading time and now the level of book we will be reading is much harder. And we are getting a late start to this year thanks to our return flight snafu.

However, I am hopeful we finish before they graduate!

The whole point of starting these family reading sessions (other than passing on a love of reading, I hope/hoped) was to read advanced books. That is why we started with easy chapter books when they were so young. It seems silly to read them middle school level books when they can read those on their own. I briefly debated reading them some young adult books but the truth is they could probably tackle those on their own if they wanted to. Once you reach a middle school reading level most adult fiction isn't much harder - just longer. With that in mind it occurred to me they might never read The Hobbit on their own. Or they might not discover the Wheel of Time until far later in their life - if at all. I wanted to pass on the books that shaped my love of (adult) reading. So while we will skip The Shinning and It we can at least do my favorite fantasy novels.

With this in mind we are officially shelving all individual reading goals indefinitely. They might get pulled out again next year, at least for me, but I have no intention of pulling them back out any time soon for the family. Now, with that in mind, we will continue to track what we read but there will be no goals and no rewards. Our focus going forward is just to enjoy family time. So there will be monthly posts listing the books we have read. There might also be posts reflecting on the books we are reading together (like I do with some of the book series that I read).

This year's books will be The Hobbit, The Eye of the World, and The Great Hunt. Potential posts about them soon!!!

200 books: final notes and stats

Here we go with another breakdown of stats that no one but me cares about!!! Now, what were our goals? A minimum of 200 books with a minimum of 100 read by me, 50 read by Vampire Kitten, 25 read by Lone Wolf, 13 books read by with Little Legs, and 12 books read as a family. We surpassed these goals!

Total Books Read: 340

Total Number of Books Read as a Family: 16

Broken Down By Person
Little Legs: 49
Lone Wolf: 50
Vampire Kitten: 107
Wandering Falcon: 118

Now, more interesting stats

Graphic Novels Total Read: 136

Total Number of Graphic Novels Read as a Family: 0

Broken Down By Person
Little Legs: 3
Lone Wolf: 28
Wandering Falcon: 39
Vampire Kitten: 66

Chapter Books Total Read: 204

Total Number of Chapter Books Read as a Family: 16

Broken Down By Person
Lone Wolf: 22
Vampire Kitten: 41
Little Legs: 46
Wandering Falcon: 79

This year chapter books won by a landslide! Last year's count was slightly different as Family did not have its own category. But from a rough glance I read roughly the same number of books as last year and Vampire Kitten read more! Little Legs and I read WAY more books together then we did last year. I've already decided that next year we are going to do something completely different.

The "awards":

Most Books Read: Wandering Falcon with 118

Most Graphic Novels Read: Vampire Kitten with 66

Most Chapter Books Read: Wandering Falcon with 79

New post about 2020's goal soon!