Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Discoveries I Made in 2025

I couldn’t think of ten different discoveries for this post, but I did share five about my reading habits, fun concepts, and my thoughts on books as a whole!

I don’t mind eBooks as much as I originally thought.

I always thought that I’d read eBooks as a last resort – when I was on vacation and I didn’t want to carry a dozen books with me across the country. But, I’ll be honest, the convenience of eBooks, on my phone especially, means I don’t have an excuse not to be reading. Unfortunately, Amazon doesn’t like to play nicely with OverDrive making reading on a Kindle a little clunkier than I’d like, but I still like my Kindle Paperwhite because it’s easier on the eyes than my phone, plus it’s battery charge lasts a really long time making it great to travel with!

I’ve found reading at night with just the Kindle screen with a low light rather than having my bedside light on allows me to relax more quickly and fall asleep more easily. If you’re on the fence about trying eBooks, I’d suggest that you try one and see what you think! (Take a look at your local library, to try an eBook for free!)

I loved listening to Kate McKinnon’s middle grade book as an audio.

I’m not always the biggest fan of audiobooks. For whatever reason, I’m not a huge fan of headphones, earbuds, etc. which means it’s harder to listen to an audiobook when doing other project. But, I think when you find a great narrator, it doesn’t matter and you will gladly listen to an audiobook.

Kate McKinnon has started writing for a middle grade audience with her series The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science. Let me tell you, she narrates the books with her sister and they are absolutely hysterical! I was walking on a trail near my house and literally laughing out loud as I listened to the series. If you’re looking for the most bizarre and funny series, you’ll definitely want to check out this middle grade series.

If I own a book, it’s not going to make me want to read it.

While I love having books in my house, I’ve come to realize that just because I have a book on my shelf, it doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll read it! It’s such a weird thing, I’ll get books that I’m so excited to read and add them to my bookshelves in my office and there they sit. I think, in my head, I realize that I’m not rushed to read it unlike a library book that has a due date and so they tend to sit there, rather than reading them.

It’s fun when an author creates a playlist for their book. 

I’ve seen this off and on, but I think it’s such a fun idea when an author creates a playlist that goes along with their story. I don’t see this often in middle grade books, but I’ve seen it both in young adult titles and a couple of romance books too. Check out these titles, if a playlist piques your interest:

• Icebreaker by Hannah Grace
• Better Hate Than Never by Chloe Liese
• The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore

I like talking about books, it doesn’t really matter on what type of platform.

I recently started posting videos to Instagram with books that publishers have been sending me and while I’m not necessarily the most comfortable in front of the camera, I really enjoy talking about books. And that helps with my nerves in front of the lens. I was a bit startled this holiday season when friends and acquaintances commented on my Instagram videos. I’m not sure why I thought they’d exist on the internet and the people I know would never see them, but apparently that’s how my brain was working. Thankfully, everyone has been quite excited and kind about them, so that’s been really fun!

What kind of bookish discoveries have you made in the past year? Anything that surprises or excites you?

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.