Cue the confetti cannons and fireworks! Bloggin' 'bout Books is TWENTY years old today. I can't believe I've been a part of the book blogging world for two whole decades. Astounding. In that time, I've read and reviewed hundreds of books, "met" lots of lovely blogger friends (some of whom I've been privileged to meet in person as well), made countless comments on other book blogs, participated in tons of blog tours, Book Blogger Hops, Top Ten Tuesdays, etc., and never taken a long blogging break. Participating in the book blogging world over these years has been a joy. Thank you for chilling here with me in my humble little corner of the Web. 

Stephen over at Reading Freely asked if I had any big plans to celebrate this milestone. I've been contemplating that, actually. I haven't been organized enough to come up with an amazing giveaway (Sorry!) and I've never been comfortable being on camera so I can't do a birthday candle blowout video like the cool Bookstagrammers do, but I have been thinking about my goals going forward. One result of being a long-time reader and book blogger is that I own mountains of books—some that have been sent to me by authors and publishers, some that I have purchased, some that just magically appear in the night while I'm sleeping. My bookshelves are literally bowing under the weight of my physical book collection. And we're not even going to talk about the 1000+ titles on my Kindle! While it's always good to have reading options, I feel like my hoarding book collecting is getting a little out of control. So, for my 20th blogiversary, I'm going to embark on a year-long book-buying ban so that I can concentrate on reading the books I already have and clearing off my poor overcrowded shelves, both physical and virtual. I'm a big library user; that won't change. I'll still read books I don't own, I just won't buy anymore. For a year. Think I can do it? I do, especially since I've been on a last meal-type book buying spree lately. Ha ha.

To show you what I'm dealing with, here are some unfiltered shelfies. (Instagram worthy, they are not!) I have two large bookshelves in my living room, which means that the first thing people usually say when they walk into my house is, "Whoa! That's a lot of books." And it is. My main bookshelf, which is about 9 feet tall and 12 feet long, houses both review books and those I've purchased. Next to it, my desk (which is probably 8 feet tall and 8 1/2 ish feet wide) holds review books as well as a few library books. The red cart on the left contains the rest of my library books as well as read titles waiting to be reviewed and books that will go into my Little Free Library when there is space. Under my desk, I have more donations for my LFL. 

There are other bookshelves in my home, but they house my husband's books. He may have just as many as I do! The struggle is real...

First Ten Books I Reviewed on Bloggin' 'bout Books (Cover Edition) 

- titles link to my blog review -

1. The Peacegiver: How Christ Offers to Heal Our Hearts and Homes by James L. Ferrell—August 13, 2006

2. The Known World by Edward P. Jones—August 14, 2006

3. Break No Bones by Kathy Reichs—August 18, 2006

4. The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards—September 1, 2006

5. Peace Like a River by Leif Enger—September 13, 2006

6. Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns—October 15, 2006

7. Two Little Girls in Blue by Mary Higgins Clark—November 2, 2006

8. The Ruins by Scott Smith—November 4, 2006

9. The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean—November 30, 2006

10. Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear—December 18, 2006

There you go, the first ten books I reviewed on this blog TWENTY years ago. Have you read any of them? What did you think? What was the first book you reviewed on your blog? I'd love to know! Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog.

Happy TTT!

Yep, it's true. This is my 1000th post here at BBB. I know, I'm kind of blown away, too.

This blog has come a long, long way since the day I created it. It's opened the doors to so many great opportunities - from getting to interview bestselling authors to having portions of my reviews published in magazines and books to just being able to talk shop with other bibliophiles. It's been an amazing trip. I can't wait to see the blog evolve even more between now and my 2000th post!

Because I'm incredibly grateful to all of you for making book blogging so fun and rewarding, I thought I'd host a little giveaway to celebrate this momentuous occasion. What am I offering? How about a $25 Amazon gift card? I wish I could send one to each of you, but, since my last name isn't Trump, I've only got the one. Still, it's a nice little prize, no?

Okay, so, if you're interested in throwing your name in the (proverbial) hat, here's what you do:

1. Leave a comment on this post answering the following question: What one book do I have to read this year? It can be a new release, a classic, whatever. Just give me a good must-read title to add to my always-growing TBR pile. Doing this will earn you one entry. P.S.: If you do not have a public blog, which you update frequently, please leave an email address in your comment so I have a way to contact you.

2. I'm not going to make you follow my blog or Like my page on Facebook or any of that stuff in order to get extra entries (although I would, of course, be honored if you choose to do these things), but I will give you points for spreading the word about this contest. For every method used (Facebook, Twitter, your blog, etc.) you will receive one extra entry into the giveaway.

3. That's it! Other deets: The giveaway will run until January 20 at midnight. The contest is open to all of my readers, wherever you happen to live. Good luck!