I’ve seen this meme around, not really knowing what it was. When I finally realized what it was…I knew I should be doing it.

Down the TBR Hole is a meme started and hosted by Lost in a Story. It revolves around cleansing your TBR of all those books you’re never going to read and sort through it all to know what’s actually on there.

Which I could really use.

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Here’s the rules spiel:

Most of you probably know this feeling, your Goodreads TBR pile keeps growing and growing and it seems like there is no light at the end of the tunnel. You keep adding, but you add more than you actually read. And then when you’re scrolling through your list, you realize that you have no idea what half the books are about and why you added them. Well that’s going to change!

It works like this:

• Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
• Order on ascending date added.
• Take the first 5 (or 10 (or even more!) if you’re feeling adventurous) books. Of course, if you do this weekly, you start where you left off the last time.
• Read the synopses of the books
• Decide: keep it or should it go?

I’ll be doing 5 at a time. I probably won’t be doing this weekly, but I’ll try to do a post a month at least. I’ll also post the verdict at the bottom as a “Keep” or “Toss”. I hope y’all enjoy this one!!

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The Book: The Bell Jar Sylvia Plath
Why it was added: I probably added it when I was on my kick of reading classic books. I thought to be a good reader, I had to read the classics, so I added a lot to my TBR or bought them around that time. I still have this copy laying around somewhere.
My current feelings: I…really don’t know. I’m not much interested in classics anymore, and The Bell Jar is one of those books where I feel like I should read it because I know a lot of people who’ve liked it, but at the same time, I have no personal interest in it. But if this post series is meant to do anything, it’s to focus my TBR on books I actually want to read.

Verdict: I’ll be tossing this one.

The Book: The Alchemist of Souls by Anne Lyle
Why it was added: I honestly can’t remember why I added this one. All I know is that I have a nearly brand new copy of it on my shelves, the bottom stained orange. That means that it’s been on my shelves for quite a while, since I got the orange shelves to begin with. Either way, I think it might have had something to do with the sword on the cover.
My current feelings: Now that I’ve reread the summary, I’m actually pretty interested in this one. It talks about Native American legends, but in Victorian England, so that’s definitely something to watch out for. I’ll probably read it soon because it sounds interesting, but I’ll have to keep an eye on how it treats Native legends.

Verdict: I’ll be keeping this one for now.

The Book: Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
Why it was added: I added this book soon after I finished reading Gone Girl, which I read soon after the movie, when everyone was reading it or watching it. I didn’t know what it was about, I just added it based off the fact that Gillian Flynn had written it.
My current feelings: I feel like this novel will get too much on my nerves. It sounds like it could be very ableist and, honestly, I have no interest at all with it. It sounds like every other thriller book I’ve read.

Verdict: I’ll toss this one.

The Book: The Novice by Taran Matharu
Why it was added: I think I added this one when I first saw the cover, when this book was first coming out. I didn’t know much about it, but I think I knew that it was YA fantasy, so I just added it without really reading what it was about.
My current feelings: While this still sounds like a typical YA fantasy, I’m still interested in reading it. It’s a short series, and it sounds interesting and just slightly different enough that it won’t read like every other YA fantasy out there.

Verdict: I’ll keep it.

The Book: The Emperor’s Blades by Brian Staveley
Why it was added: Like The Alchemist of Souls, I honestly can’t remember why I added this one. However, unlike The Alchemist of Souls, I do not have a copy of this book on my shelves.
My current feelings: This sounds like such a stereotypical high fantasy story written by a white man. (Goes to check if the author is actually a white man … he is.) While I really love the cover … it just sounds too stereotypical for me to even bother reading this one.

Verdict: I’m tossing it.

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Five more down, official tally of Toss vs. Keep is now…

Keep: 7
Toss: 8

I was really indifferent with a lot of these books, but I think rereading the summaries (or, even, reading them for the first time) really put me in the right place. If you’re still unsure if you want to join in on this bookish meme, I highly recommend it if you’re struggling with an overwhelming TBR!

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