Hands up if you visited my blog on Sunday, and were disappointed to see no rambling post? Well, I’ve got you covered with this very special mid-week rambling, and I’ll even rambling again on Sunday, so you get a double dose this week, aren’t you a lucky bunch. So, I guess I should go ahead and welcome you to the sixth instalment of Ramblings from my pages... This post was inspired by It’s Book Talk’s “5 on Friday: Things I’m Loving Lately” – it differs slightly, similar in that it will feature bookish and non-bookish topics, but different in that I will ramble about things I’m loving, hating, wishing for, links I’ve enjoyed, life updates – you name it, I may just ramble about it. The only staple feature of this post will be concluding it with a cool link I found around the web.
This week’s ramblings topics: Sweatcoin, I reviewed it wrong, book swaps on Instagram, and the five stars of October. Whether you read the entire post or jump to the section(s) you’re interested in, I hope you enjoy my ramblings. Note: if it’s green, it’s a link, click it!
SWEATCOIN
The app that pays you for walking! My son told me about this app on Friday, and I am loving it, so much so, I thought I’d share it with you all, give you a quick rundown, and show you the reward I claimed. Sweatcoin is an app that tracks your outdoor steps and converts them into currency, sweatcoins – I think every 1,000 steps is 0.95 sweatcoins. There is a limit to how many coins you can earn a day, don’t quote me but I think you can earn up to 5 sweatcoin a day. If you subscribe you can earn more per day, and get this, you pay for your subscription with your earned sweatcoins (no actually money involved), so if you do a lot of walking a day, it may be beneficial. To my knowledge the app is in it’s early stages, so more developments are likely to come. Also, you must keep the app running in the background, if you force close it, it won’t track your steps and you’ll lose out!
So once I download the app and got to stepping, I claimed my first reward – a 60 day free trial with Scribd. I was planning to do the 30 day free trial that is available to all new customers, because as you know from my previous rambling, I’m looking for the perfect subscription for audiobooks. For 1 sweatcoin I got an additional 30 days for free!! If nothing else, this app has been worth it for that. I’m not sure how long offers are available, I’m still finding my feet with this app, but when I get excited about something I have to ramble about it!
I’m not being paid in any way to promote this app, and I take no responsible if you choose to download it. The information I have shared is correct to the best of my knowledge but I urge you to read up about it. All I know for sure is that I’m enjoying my access to Scribd, so the offer worked! I think the key is, if you’re signing up for a free trial, make sure to cancel your subscription before the trial is up otherwise you will be charged the fee of the monthly subscription. Who knows, I may just end up keeping Scribd!
Here’s some more offers I’ve seen that caught my eye, but I haven’t signed up to them yet.
I REVIEWED IT WRONG
I bet you read the title of this section and your interest was immediately piqued? My plan worked, because I have no intention of talking about reviews here! I’m joking, obviously I’m going to talk about reviews, and what I mean when I say I reviewed it wrong, I even have a question for you.
I requested a copy of a book on Netgalley, and was granted access to said title. I’m so behind with my Netgalley books that I opted to listen to the audiobook so I could fit in listening whenever I could. I was also sent a print copy of a different book from a publisher as a gift (I didn’t request it), I also listened to this audiobook instead of reading it. So that’s what I mean when I say I reviewed it wrong, I got it in one format and reviewed it in another. Both books will appear in photos on Instagram with my thoughts, I’ll just add in the caption that I listened to the audio. So, my question, be honest, was this wrong? Like completely wrong, or just a little bit cheeky? In my mind, I have so many books to read, I get blogger-guilt occasionally (it’s real, don’t laugh), listening to audio is a way of fitting in a book where I might not have been able to read it that month – the idea that it allows me to get a review up and a book promoted sooner rather than later. I’m curious to hear your thoughts, because if this is frowned upon, then I won’t do it any more, but I won’t know if I don’t ask…
Note: When I left feedback on Netgalley, I did explain to the publisher that I listened to the audiobook etc etc, I don’t know if that makes any difference but I wanted to be clear that I’m not deceiving publishers, pretending to read books when I listened to the audio.
BOOK SWAPS ON INSTAGRAM
Book mail is the best mail, especially when it comes accompanied with gifts! You guys should know by now that I love instagram, it was my first bookish platform, and where I first discovered just how amazing the book community is! Find me on Instagram – @keeperofpages. One of the things I’ve recently discovered on Instagram is book swaps, I took part in two this month. So I thought I’d share with you all the wonderfulness I received, and how you can get involved.
The first swap is run by Emily, @busymamabookclub, every month she posts the book swap theme, and people sign up to take part. Once sign ups have closed, she pairs you up with someone in the same country (cheaper postage), and you then arrange your book swap with your partner. You exchange wishlists, set a budget if you want, and then shop, wrap and send to your partner, so they receive the parcel in time for the announced ‘busy mama book swap’ reveal day, where everyone shares their parcels using the hashtag #busymamabookswap. For the month of October, I was paired up with @zukythebookbum. Zuky sent me the ultimate bookish night in parcel, it was so good, the author of the book, Joe Hart, reposted it on his Instagram page!
The second swap I took part in was the #HalloweenBOOkswap2018, arranged by the lovely ladies who run @blackheartreads book club – Lindsey, Janelle and Jennifer. This swap was a ‘secret Santa’ style swap, you filled in a form with your wishlist, likes and dislikes, and then you wait for your parcel to arrive. A budget was set so the value of what you received was equal to what you sent. And guess what, Zuky was lucky enough to get me, again! And, I didn’t think it was possible but she outdid her previous parcel!
I’m still cleaning up bits of shredded paper (thanks, Zuky!!!!) but it was so worth it. I host Stephen King readalongs all the time on Instagram, and Pet Sematary is the January book I chose, so Zuky’s got me covered! For Halloween candy, I put on my form Candy Canes (because they’re not just for Christmas!) – and she did, ladies and gentlemen, she got me candy canes in October!! and if you remember in a previous rambling, I was talking about how much I’m obsessing over Mary Shelley and Frankenstein – well look, Zuky got me a Frankenstein print, which I love! And the candle, chocolate, my lil’ Halloween man. Wasn’t this just the most thoughtful gift! Thank you so much, Ms Zuky Red 😉🖤
THE FIVE STARS OF OCTOBER
I’m still not entirely sure if I want to reinvent my wrap up post, or scrap it for good, but I do know my favourite books of the month deserve a little shout out! So my standout reads of the month were:
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah – I listened to the audiobook and my review is scheduled for Friday, but you should know, I’m going to be raving about this book forever, because I loved every listening minute. I recommend the audiobook especially, because Noah narrates it himself.
The Lingering by SJI Holliday is part psychological thriller, part ghost story. I buddy red this one with Eva @ Novel Deelights and we both really enjoyed it. I’m kicking off the blog tour with my review tomorrow.
The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter was all kinds of incredible, if you missed my review, it’s here.
LINK AROUND THE WEB
To Be Read Calculator | Read it Forward
Have you ever wondered how long it will take you to read all the books in your TBR pile, enter three figure into this calculator and find out! – TBR Time.
I hope you enjoyed reading this post as much as I enjoyed writing it, and you’ll join me this coming Sunday for some more ramblings. And FYI, I have 4 more blog tour commitments to fulfil, and you’ll be happy to know, none of them fall on a Sunday!
If you missed my last rambling you can find it here – topics: Audiobooks, BookBuddy Pro, Lauryn Hill and Jhene Aiko
Keeper of Pages 
I’ve never listened to an audiobook, but a book is a book. If someone read it to you that would count! I went to a talk at my sons school a few years ago about reading and the guy was really clear about audiobooks, listening to stories, reading and rereading all being valid, positive ways of experiencing a story and indeed said being read to allows the listener to visualise the story. My narrow reading mind was broadened, I read to my kids if they want and I smile positively when I see my teen still rereading Harry Potter 3 years on!
So no guilt needed Janel, now I’m off to download that walking app!
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I think I listened to 3 audiobooks in total last year, and this year, 3 in one month! I went through a slump this month, and audiobooks were all I’d listen to, and now I love them, and I’m reading books again too.
Enjoy Sweatcoin! – and if the Scribd offer is still available, they have access to loads of ebooks and magazines too!
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I love these posts!! And there I am, a whole segment basically all about me 💁♀️ I’m so glad you loved both of your parcels! It will be interesting to see what we receive this month in the swaps since we’ve now both got people with different reading tastes and who don’t know each other as well!
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See, this was much better than being included in yesterdays post right 😂 I think it’s also more challenging to shop when you don’t know the person, and have different tastes, but challenge accepted!
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Definitely 😛 it’s defo more challenging but hopefully it’s all good!
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I don’t think it matters how you ‘read’ your books, whether it be audio, ebook or print. You’re still providing a review. I sometimes sign up to read Pigeonhole books of ones that I have got from Netgalley already. It means I can read two books at once and so clears that review off Netgalley (I’m really really behind!). Not quite the same as audio but I’m not somebody who could concentrate on an audio book anyway. I would say the book is the book is the book.
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Thanks for commenting, I was racking my brains about whether I should have listened to the audio or not. It was one of the books from my Netgalley shelf that had fallen into the dreaded 3 month shelf, and the audio allowed me to review it this month rather than it still be unread. But I just needed that reassurance that it was an okay thing to do, lol.
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Me. 🙋♀️ Even though you warned me 🤣
A book is a book, in my opinion. Although an audiobook can depend on the narrator and maybe a listener will have a different experience than a reader.
Zuky is most definitely the queen of book swapping! Those gifts are incredibly well thought out and thoughtful.
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I’m super picky with narrators, I usually veto about 10 before I find one I can listen to. Only once did the sample let me down, and I bought the audio for 2.99 so I had to listen to it till the end, it was awful. If it was a review copy and the narration was poor, I’d just switch to ebook, and include a note that I do not recommend the audio, lol!
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I can’t imagine that a publisher would be upset about you listening to the audiobook instead of physically reading it. I don’t think it really affects the review. I’ve seen reviewers say something was too dense or confusing on audio so it’s one that’s better for a print copy, or some criticism of the reader, but beyond those things what’s the difference, really? I think that’s so thoughtful that you mentioned it to the publishers!
I want to check out sweatcoin, that sounds promising! I wish I’d had that when I lived in NYC, I’d have been maxing out their daily limit 😂 now I work at home so I’m not sure how much sense it makes for me, but it still seems worth a try. Thanks for sharing that!
Zuky’s packages look incredible, how thoughtful and creative are those!
I did miss your ramblings and glad to see them posted again 😊 I can’t wait to read your review of Born a Crime, such a fantastic book!!
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I don’t think there’s much difference either, and I’m so picky with narrators, I listen to about 10 different samples before I find a narrator I can listen to for an entire book, lol. I felt bad for listening to the audio when I was sent a physical copy, but it meant I was able to review the book this month, it’d still be sitting unread on my shelf otherwise.
Even working from home it’s beneficial, because it’s free, so no matter how many steps you get a day, it isn’t costing you anything, and when I checked why it doesn’t count indoor steps, I got the impression that it’s something they’re working on.
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That’s good to know about the indoor steps maybe changing. I’m gonna try it out, like you said, the longer Audible trial sounds worth it alone. I haven’t really made the leap to audiobooks yet but I understand your pickiness with narrators, there are podcasts I find myself avoiding just because I don’t like listening to the host. I imagine it’s even tougher for the many hours invested in audio books!
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I often read audios to get through more books, not always review requests, but it certainly helps.
I love those book swaps 💖
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It’s so strange because last year I think I listened to 3 audiobooks in total, and this year, I’ve listened to three in one month. They will definitely become a staple part of my reading life! You might have commented on a previous rambling but just in case, what app/subscription do you use for audiobooks?
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I subscribe to Audible. I like the fact you can return audios if you don’t like either the book or narrator, and now I can buy credits for £6 if I run out during the month.
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O I never knew you could return them! How many credits do you get per month, I thought it was just one? How many credits does £6 get you? Sorry for all the questions but I’m trying the Scribd trial but they don’t have some books that I want to listen to, but audible have them.
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No problem, I don’t mind at all 🙂 I can’t remember when they started offering me extra credits, I think I’d been a member for a while. The offer is 3 extra for £18. The audios are so much more expensive now so it’s well worth it. Do you have an Apple device? It might be worth checking iBooks if so, they do audios as well.
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I do, all my devices are apple, I never even thought to check there, thanks!
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Good luck 😊
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I often listen and read the same book. I always forget to mention what I thought of the audio in my reviews that I listened to some of the book. I think we just have to what we can do to get through as many books as we can and give ourselves a break from the guilt. I agree too a book is a book.
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Thanks for commenting, and you’re right, anything that helps us get through more books cannot be a bad thing 🙂
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I think Pet Cemetery is King’s scariest book I’ve read! I’m totally going to check out the book swap’s, how fun!
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Yes, there’s so many different ones to take part in, some are regular and some one-off, but they’re so much fun! And I like that you exchange wishlists so while the items are a complete surprise, you’re guaranteed a book you will read 🙂
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Just depressed myself by realising I need to live until I’m 140 to get through my tbr and that means never buying another book!!
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You’re welcome, haha!!! I guess now, more than ever, you need to prioritise your TBR!!! Drink lots of water, eat healthy, moderate exercise, 140 is totally liveable 😉
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I think listening to an audiobook is fine even if you got a print copy or ecopy. The story will be the same either way. I tried to figure out how long it would take for me to finish my TBR but for some reason it won’t work for me.
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The consensus seems to be that listening to the audio is fine so I’ll continue doing it for a few books as it’ll help me get them reviewed quicker 🙂
Oh, is the link no longer working, or just not loading for you?
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I just went and tried it again and it worked I just probably didn’t have good enough internet connection. If I go by my owner TBR I will have them read in 2 years but if I go by my want to read shelf on Goodreads it will be 11 years.
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2 years would be accurate if you don’t buy another book again, I don’t see that happening, so you’re looking at 11 years 😂
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Yeah I don’t see that happening either lol. 😂
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Another brilliant post! I love the look of Sweatcoin especially if it gives my free books for walking. I was approved for a book on NG a while ago but when I realise the book was rather large I knew I would prefer it on audio instead. I haven’t listened to it yet and will have to decide what to do about my feedback on NG.
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When I submitted feedback, I submitted the review as normal, then in the ‘notes to publishers’ section, I apologised for taking so long to review the book and stated that I listened to the audio so I could fit in listening at any spare moment, thus getting it read quicker than if I waited to read the ebook.
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Brilliant idea thanks!
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These posts are pure brilliance. LOVE reading them. As for audiobooks I say don’t feel guilty at all. I think the publisher would rather you *read* the book in some format or another rather than not reviewing it at all. Sometimes audio is just more convenient if you’re busy. 🤗😘
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Thanks, Beth! That seems to be the general consensus, that audiobooks are okay, which is good because I’m hooked on them at the moment. 🙂 xx
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Ahh, that TBR calculator is a neat find! very interesting and also slightly depressing 😀 here are my results:
Reading all 581 books will take:5 years and 6 months
You will finish your TBR pile on:May 15, 2024
And you will be: 36
Love your bookswap photos- absolutely wonderful and it most certainly is lovely to receive such great book mail!
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I think you’ve got the latest finish date I’ve seen yet, haha. But, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing – when that zombie apocalypse comes, you’re sorted!
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