October 2015 Review

Photo of the month: pumpkin selfie

Wow. This was quite the month. Most of it is fuzzy due to my bipolar mixed state which gobbled up most of my conscious activity. But I'm starting to emerge, thankfully.

At some point, I decided to choose this crying piggy bank as my monthly topper - probably because I spent a huge chunk of money on my new contact lenses, but it may also have been because the picture's really darned cute. I've decided to include it now, even though it doesn't summarize the month as well as I'd expected at one foggy moment in a long foggy month.

I'd say more about my month, but I'm a bit foggy. :) So I'll let the posts and pictures say the rest:

I'm currently reading or listening to:

Abnormal Psychology Posts

Clinical Mental Health Diagnosis: Biological Assessment
Clinical Mental Health Diagnosis: Psychological Assessment
Does the DSM-5 Encourage Overmedication?
Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome - the Basics
Panic Disorder
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Hoarding and Body Dysmorphic Disorders

Book & Movie Reviews

Knights of Badassdom (2013)
The Hobbit, by J. R. R. Tolkien
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
Anna Dressed in Blood, by Kendare Blake
Girl of Nightmares, by Kendare Blake
Bloodchild and Other Stories, by Octavia E. Butler
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Carmilla, by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
Severed, by Frances Larson
My Life as a White Trash Zombie, by Diana Rowland
Let Me In, by John Ajvide Lindqvist
The Tide, by Anthony J. Melchiorri

Month's most popular post: Carmilla, by J. Sheridan Le Fanu

Books completed:

Already started this series. Thought it would be a nice addition to A More Diverse Universe, The Halloween Reading Challenge, and R. I. P. X

This has been collecting virtual dust in my Audible library. Thought it would be a nice addition to The Halloween Reading Challenge, and R. I. P. X

I started this a long time ago for my bookclub and wasn't able to finish it on time. Figured now was a good time since the review would fit in well with A More Diverse Universe, The Halloween Reading Challenge, and R. I. P. X

Read this so that I could discuss it with my Abnormal Psychology Prof

Read this classic vampire story for 
The Halloween Reading Challenge, and R. I. P. X and The Classics Club

I read this to supplement my study of The Epic of Gilgamesh.
This is a classic text discussing the theories about the relationship of the flood myths in Gilgamesh Epic and the Old Testament.

I was supposed to finish this 12-part series for my bookclub a while back, but I only got through 7. I'm slowly trying to finish the series because it is rather interesting. 

This book has been hanging out in my Audible library for quite a long time.
In my efforts to decrease my TBR pile, I read it. Thought it would fit in nicely with
The Halloween Reading Challenge, and R. I. P. X

How could I resist? 
Thought it would fit in nicely with The Halloween Reading Challenge, and R. I. P. X

This is my RL book club pick for November

I actually didn't finish this one. I got about 3 hours into the 14 hour book.
I was interested in what Greenberg had to say about the problems with the DSM classification system (for there are many)...and he had some good ones
But with his bashing of psychiatry he promotes stigma and ignorance of mental health by encouraging the people who believe that mental illness either doesn't exist ("it's all in their heads") or is caused by a weakness of character.
Although interested in what he had to say, the book made me so angry that I couldn't listen anymore.

Picked this up off the Audible New Release section.
Figured it'd be one last hoorah for the Halloween season.

Movies/Shows watched:

Watched this with my boyfriend. Thought it would be a nice addition to The Halloween Reading Challenge, and R. I. P. X

Watched this horror flick with my boyfriend, but since I only gave it 3 snowflakes, I decided not to review it. 

Thought it would be fun to watch the movies after reading the book.
This is the original Swedish version of the movie

This is the American remake of the Swedish film.
I expected it to be a remake of the Swedish book, but it wasn't.
Watched it after reading the book.
I like to compare different adaptations.

Watched this while I was giving platelets. Wow. It was pretty amazing. 

Went to this in the theater with my sister and her son.
While not as hilarious as the first, it was a fantastic sequel. 

Next Month's Blogging Activities Include

Sci-Fi Month 2015 @Rinn Reads

The Classics Club (My List)

I'm participating in Nonfiction November hosted  by Doing Dewey, Sophisticated Dorkiness, I'm Lost in Books, and Regular Rumination.  I will also be participating in the I am Malala readalong in the last week of November. I'm hoping to take this theme to heart and catch up on my non-fiction reviews in November. :)

This post is linked up to the Facebook Group The Sunday Salon. "The Salon is open to anyone who'd like to discuss books of a Sunday (or, frankly, any other day of the week). ... Discuss what you're reading here, or link to relevant blog posts, or comment on one anothers posts. Enjoy."

This post is also linked up to the Sunday Post at Caffeinated Book Reviewer. "The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog, showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead."