Let’s Talk: August Reading Prompt Jar Wrap Up

At the beginning of this month I decided that I’d choose all of my August reads – with the exception of ARCs and book club reads – by pulling prompts out of a jar. With August coming to a close (Miss Swift was right, August really did slip away into a moment in time) I thought it would be fun to look back on the prompts and books I read this month.

When I started this method of choosing my reads, I thought that it would be a fun experiment and a way to help me expand my reading comfort zone, and it really was! I had so much fun with this and was always so excited to see which prompt I would pull once I had finished a book. In starting this, I had also hoped that it would not only help me read more, but also help me read books that I maybe have been putting off or wouldn’t ordinarily pick up. It did that and then some! As of writing this post, I have read 16 books throughout this little challenge – and hopefully a few more by the time the 31st rolls around!

When it came to picking which books I would read, besides them obviously needing to match the prompt chosen, I wanted to make sure that I was picking new books or books that I’d been putting off and not just rereading. There were quite a few prompts I pulled where I could’ve just been like, “I’m gonna reread an old favorite!”, but I knew that this entire process would be more fulfilling if I went with books I hadn’t read before, and I’m really glad that I did. 

I won’t lie, there were for sure some prompts where I went, “I have no idea” or the only books I could think of were ones that I’d already read, and this is when search engines really came in handy. What was so great about doing it this way, was that I ended up reading some books that I’d never even heard of before! I loved that through this process I not only got through some of the books that have been sitting on my TBR, but I also discovered books that I didn’t know existed. 

Of the 16 amount of books, I read during this challenge, 8 were books that were already on my TBR. 5 were books that I’d heard of but weren’t really on my radar. 3 were books that I’d never heard of before

Originally when I planned this wrap-up post, I was going to share a few my thoughts on all the books that I read but I ended up getting to more books than I had anticipated. While there weren’t any books that I hated, there were for sure ones that I liked more than others, so I thought I’d feature those in this post.

Prompt: The first book in a series

Choice: Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert

I’ve been meaning to get to the Brown Sisters series as I’ve heard lots of good things about it and when I saw this prompt, I knew right away that this was the book I should pick up. I liked that both characters were able to express their vulnerability and that their relationship didn’t magically fix any of the issues that they were personally dealing with. I thought it was a fun and entertaining read, and I’m looking forward to continuing the series.

Prompt: A book with a green cover

Choice: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

I’ve had Mexican Gothic on my TBR for a super long time, but for some reason I just hadn’t picked it up. I’m glad that through this I ended up finally reading it. This was one of the craziest books I’ve read recently. I know that lots of people either loved or hated this one, I personally really enjoyed it. It had an intricate and complex storyline that kept me interested from start to finish. There were many times where I found myself saying, “Oh my gosh, no way!”. I thought that the plot twists made sense and that it overall was a really interesting story.

Prompt: A book with an alliteration in the title

Choice: Catch and Cradle by Katia Rose

This is one of the books that I hadn’t heard of before, but I’m really glad that I found it! This New Adult read is great for readers who still love YA, but want a bit more mature characters and storylines without fully jumping into the Adult genre. I loved the found family aspect to this book as well as the characterization and growth of our main characters.

Prompt: A book with a pink cover

Choice: When You Get the Chance by Emma Lord
Bless you, Emma Lord for consistently giving me books that make me happy and help me get through tough times! I had very high expectations for When You Get the Chance and luckily they were met. I just really adored this book. I’ll be posting a full review next week, so be sure to keep an eye out for that and you’ll be able to read my full thoughts!

Prompt: A book about or involving a sport

Choice: The Game Can’t Love You Back by Karole Cozzo

In case you don’t know this about me, I absolutely love baseball. Baseball is super special to me, as it’s a passion that I share with my dad. I also really enjoy reading sports books, so I’ve been looking for more of those. As a woman who loves baseball but has had to deal with her fair share of men acting as though I’m not at all knowledgeable about the sport, any book about a girl asserting her place in a male dominated sport is something I will check out. While there were some parts of the book that I didn’t particularly vibe with, overall I really enjoyed this book and see myself going back to read it when I’m looking for something fun and enjoyable.

Prompt: A book with a plant in the title or on the cover

Choice: This Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayron

If I made a list of things that I love, some things you would find on the list are: plants, Greek Mythology, and gothic vibes. Luckily for me, This Poison Heart has all of them. The second I started it, I was instantly drawn into the world and I had a very difficult time putting the book down. It was simply magical. I’m so excited for the sequel, and know that I’ll be rereading it many times during the wait.

Overall I had so much fun with this project this month and I do think that it helped me branch out and check out some books that I maybe wouldn’t have read before. I felt really excited to read this month, and I think that this prompt jar was a big part of it. I definitely will continue adding prompts to the jar and will probably pick a few reads like this every month. If you haven’t tried something like this before but are curious about it, I would absolutely recommend it!