It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

We've gone from being completely SNOWED IN -- to -- opening up the windows in the house and wearing shorts!!  Crazy weather!

But it did allow me to finish quite a few (in my world anyway) books this past week:

FINISHED (Not yet reviewed)

The Coral Thief by Rebecca Stott (our book club choice for February)

The Snake Has All The Lines by Jean Kerr

Please Don't Eat the Daisies by Jean Kerr (both were delightful, but a bit dated)

Washington City is Burning (Mother/Daughter book club selection for February)

CURRENTLY READING:

Nothing!  I have quite a few to choose from, but haven't decided what to tackle next. 

Have a great week -- hope you are enjoying similar springtime weather as we are here -- it's glorious!

What are you reading?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

Kids were out of school on Friday because of snow, more snow in the forecast for this week -- if I see another flake I think I will freak!  I live in the South for a reason! 

As for books....

FINISHED:

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool (5 out of 5 stars...best book I've read in a long time!  Newbery Medal Winner of 2011)

Planting Dandelions by Kyran Pittman (4 out of 5 stars -- life in the maternal trenches behind the white picket fence)

CURRENTLY READING:

The Coral Thief by Rebecca Stott (February book club choice)



Washington City is Burning by Harriett Robinet (Mother/Daughter book club choice)




Hope you live someplace warm and sunny, and if you do, may I come visit?!

What are you reading this week?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

A very slow reading week -- lots of PTA prep work to get ready for our BOOK FAIR!  I will be in literary nirvana all week...hope you aren't jealous!

But a few books read (or partially so) are better than nothing!

COMPLETED:

The Rosewood Casket by Sharyn McCrumb (3 out of 5 stars -- entertaining historical fiction/mystery/ghost story)

CURRENTLY READING:

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool (absolutely LOVING this book -- if I could just find the time to read more than a few pages before I fall hopelessly asleep).

UP NEXT:

February is Black History Month, so I think I'm going to start either:

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

OR

Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (juvenile fiction)

What are you reading this week?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

Vomit and diarrhea have invaded our house...I've been up since 3am with my 4yr old standing over the toilet. Oh. Joy.

With being home all day, and him on the couch, you would think I could get a lot of reading done...but I'm afraid if I crack the cover of a book I will fall hopelessly asleep.

But here are my reading accomplishments from the past week:

FINISHED READING:

Candy Bomber by Michael O. Tunnell (juvenile fiction: a perfect primer on WWII and how the power of one person can make a difference -- 4 out of 5 stars)



Early Candlelight by Maud Hart Lovelace (historical fiction: an adult work by the children's author; lovely, poetic, romantic -- 3 out of 5 stars)



Kilmeny of the Orchard by L. M. Montgomery (vintage fiction:  another wholesome tale by the author of the Anne of Green Gables series -- 3 out of 5 stars -- my first book read on my NOOK!)



CURRENTLY READING:

The Rosewood Casket by Sharyn McCrumb (I'm REALLY enjoying this!  This was passed along by a friend...I would NEVER have picked this to read otherwise.  It involves legends, ghosts, family strife, and a great historical account of Appalachia.  Quite a pleasant surprise!!)




UP NEXT:

Moon over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool (This won the 2011 Newbery Medal for juvenile fiction - so excited to start it!)

 

Summary from B&N:

Abilene Tucker feels abandoned. Her father has put her on a train, sending her off to live with an old friend for the summer while he works a railroad job. Armed only with a few possessions and her list of universals, Abilene jumps off the train in Manifest, Kansas, aiming to learn about the boy her father once was.  Having heard stories about Manifest, Abilene is disappointed to find that it’s just a dried-up, worn-out old town. But her disappointment quickly turns to excitement when she discovers a hidden cigar box full of mementos, including some old letters that mention a spy known as the Rattler. These mysterious letters send Abilene and her new friends, Lettie and Ruthanne, on an honest-to-goodness spy hunt, even though they are warned to “Leave Well Enough Alone.”  Abilene throws all caution aside when she heads down the mysterious Path to Perdition to pay a debt to the reclusive Miss Sadie, a diviner who only tells stories from the past. It seems that Manifest’s history is full of colorful and shadowy characters—and long-held secrets. The more Abilene hears, the more determined she is to learn just what role her father played in that history. And as Manifest’s secrets are laid bare one by one, Abilene begins to weave her own story into the fabric of the town.

I'm off to start another load of icky laundry.  Here is hoping for a vomit-free remainder of the day.

What are you reading this week?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

Nothing like a little snow (or a lot for where I live) to help put you in the reading mood.  Schools are canceled, libraries are closed, I will be hunkered down for the day trying to gain ground on the stack of books that continue to build on my shelves.

The big news this week -- I bought this:

 

I chose this over the other e-products because I am already a devoted Barnes and Noble customer and their e-reader is compatible to my library's downloadable library, where the Kindle is not.  Also, my father-in-law got me a gift card to buy one...so it was a no brainer.  I've spent the week trying to download as many FREE books as possible from Project Gutenberg -- I think I've got every classic title in literature now available on my handy NOOK™.

Now, to this week's reads:

FINISHED THIS WEEK:

By Fire, By Water by Mitchell J. Kaplan (not yet reviewed)

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford (3 out of 5 stars -- did not like it as much as the book-bloggersphere).

The Willoughbys by Lois Lowry (this was our mother/daughter book club selection for January -- it was delightful, charming, quirky and witty -- can't wait to discuss it with our girls).

CURRENTLY READING:

Early Candlelight by Maud Hart Lovelace

Synopsis from B&N:

This historical novel set at Old Fort Snelling in the 1830s is a rich and romantic re-creation of the early settlement period in Minnesota's history. Maud Hart Lovelace's careful research into the documents of the Minnesota Historical Society, combined with her knowledge of the actual setting, enabled her to write a story that conveys a sense of time and place both accurate and compelling for young adults as well as general readers.

I adored the Betsy Tacy series that we read for our mother/daugher book club...I'm hoping her adult works are as endearing as her juvenile contributions.

UP NEXT:

Emily Climbs by L. M. Montgomery (I'm joining a LM Montgomery challenge sponsored by Reading to Know for the month of January -- I've read the 1st in this series and loved it).

 

The Rosewood Casket by Sharyn McCrumb (this is for a mail-book club I belong too -- I've never read anything by this author).

 

 

 

What are you reading this week?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

A new year and a new round of books! I hope everyone had a scrumptious literary holiday -- because I certainly did!

COMPLETED LAST WEEK:

True Grit by Charles Portis (5 stars!  And the movie was AWESOME too!)


Little Heathens by Mildred Armstrong Kalish (2 stars -- I'm reluctant to admit that I found this very popular book dreadfully boring.)


Charms for the Easy Life by Kaye Gibbons (3 stars -- I liked it, but it was heavy on characters, too light on plot.)


CURRENTLY READING:
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford



I bought this book a year ago for a birthday present to myself -- and I'm just now getting around to reading it!

UP NEXT:
I have NO IDEA!  I got a sled full of books from Santa -- so I'm not even sure where to begin. 

What did Santa bring you -- and what are you reading this week?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

Finished, done, complete, over, that's all she wrote...

After 9 weeks of questions, answers, analysis, complaints, euphoria, tears, and heartbreak...I finally finished Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. My review will be up tomorrow and our final read along Q&A will be posted on Wednesday -- but for a teaser here and now -- it was an epic journey that everyone should complete. Was it perfect, no, but in the end the characters wrapped me up and wouldn't let me go.

Currently Reading:

Zoo Story:  Life in the Garden of Captives by Thomas French

Summary from B&N:

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Thomas French goes behind the scenes at one of the country's most popular—-and most controversial—-destinations: zoos.

UP NEXT:

By Fire, By Water by Mitchell James Kaplan

Summary from B&N:
...In this story of love, God, faith, and torture, fifteenth-century Spain comes to dazzling, engrossing life.

I'm eager to get back to a regular reading routine of manageable 300+ page books instead of mammoth 900+ page tomes.

What are your reading this week?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

It's been a MONTH since my last Monday post -- primarily because I've been knee deep in my Lonesome Dove read along that it's hard to post a weekly update when that is all I am reading!  But, I have accomplished a few things this week that might be worth noting:

FINISHED AND REVIEWED:

The Sunflower by Richard Paul Evans (2 our of 5 stars)

Traveling with Pomegranates by Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Kidd Taylor (4 our of 5 stars)

 (A truly poetic, mother-daughter spiritual, travel memoir)

UP THIS WEEK:

Lonesome Dove Chapters 31-40 -- this has been so much fun! And after a slow start, I'm really finding my grove with this book.  Our last two sections have been fabulous!  And the discussion questions are like something out of English Lit 401.  There is still time to join our "cattle drive!"

and

Lydia Cassatt Reading the Morning Paper by Harriet Scott Chessman



Summary from Goodreads:  Set in the lively Parisian art world of the 1880s, this novel imagines a poignant time in the lives of the American impressionist Mary Cassatt and her sister, Lydia. Lydia narrates the story as she poses for five of her sister's paintings. Ill with Bright's disease and conscious of impending death, Lydia contemplates her narrowing world. The novel's subtle power comes from its sustained inquiry into the very evanescence of life that the paintings record.

Although not one of my original selections, I'm reading this to complete my Women Unbound reading challenge! 

DID NOT FINISH:
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeliene L'Engle


This was our Mother/Daughter book club selection....thought I could remember most of it, but my 40 year old brain was not up to the task.  Daisy daughter didn't finish it either.  Drats, I hate not finishing a book.

Busy week ahead:  two field trips, two fall festivals, one PTA meeting, one opening night (Hamlet, at The Rep) and HALLOWEEN! 

Have a great reading week!

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

Finished and reviewed last week:
The Mother Daughter Book Club by Heather Vogel Frederick (3 out of 5 stars -- my daughter enjoyed it much more than I did)




Finished but not yet reviewed:
Wildflower by Mark Seal (an amazing story about a remarkable woman who met a tragic and untimely death -- highly recommended). 

Should finish this week:
The Many Lives and Sorrows of Josephine B. by Sandra Gulland
(This was set aside due to other books that needed to be read for book club)

Up Next:
Get ready for Wild West Wednesdays and our read along of:

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Our read along starts on October 1st  with our first discussion post on October 6th.  Here is our schedule if you are interested in joining us!

The full reading schedule:

October 6th--Chapters 1-10--My Friend Amy

October 13th--Chapters 11-20--Amused by Books

October 20th--Chapters 21-30--Gerbera Daisy Diaries

October 27th--Chapters 31-40--My Friend Amy

November 3rd--Chapters 41-50--Amused by Books

November 10th--Chapters 51-60--Gerbera Daisy Diaries

November 17th--Chapters 61-70--My Friend Amy

November 24th--Chapters 71-80--Amused by Books

December 1st--Chapters 81-90--Gerbera Daisy Diaries

December 8th--Chapters 91-101

 Have a great week -- what are you reading?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

Finished and reviewed last week:

The Sweet By and By by Todd Johnson (1 out of 5 stars -- I was probably overly harsh on this book -- 1 star maybe extreme, but I wouldn't give it much more than 2 -- it was a rambling mess with no plot).

CURRENTLY READING:
The Mother Daughter Book Club by Heather Vogel Frederick

This was our choice for our own mother/daughter book club.  My nine year old, who is reluctant to read anything, devoured this book and the 2 sequels.  It was her selection.  I, on the other hand, am not quite sure what to think of it.  The premise of mothers trying to encourage their girls to read Little Women is charming, but it is filled with "tweens" being VERY mean to each other and exhibiting rude behavior that I would never tolerate.  It will be an interesting discussion on Tuesday, that is for sure.

Up next:

I have NO idea!  I have three books checked out from the library, that upon first glance, looked really interesting. Now that they are home, not so much.  I still need to finish Josephine B...hopefully I can get that done.

What are you reading this week?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

I've been MIA for two weeks:  vacation, 12th anniversary, road-trip, death of a friend, funeral -- very little reading occurred during that period.


FINISHED LAST WEEK:
Nothing!

CURRENTLY READING:

The Sweet By and By by Todd Johnson

Summary by Goodreads:

Among the longleaf pines and family farms of eastern North Carolina, days seem to pass without incident for Margaret Clayton and Bernice Stokes until they discover each other in a friendship that will take them on the most important journey of their lives. Margaret, droll and whip smart, has a will of iron that never fails her even when her body does, while Bernice, an avid country-music fan, is rarely lucid. Irreverent and brazen at every turn, they make a formidable pair at the home where they live, breaking all the rules and ultimately changing the lives of those around them. Lorraine, their churchgoing, God-questioning nurse, both protects and provokes them while they are under her watchful eye, as her daughter, April, bright and ambitious, determinedly makes her way through medical school. Rounding out the group of unlikely and often outrageous friends is Rhonda, the Bud-swilling beautician who does the ladies' hair on her day off and whose sassy talk hides a vulnerable heart, one that finally opens to love.

I hated The Help -- but I would gladly read it again to save me from this suffering -- it has been a painful reading experience. I must finish -- it is my book club choice this month, and we meet on Thursday.

And:

The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B by Sandra Gulland

Summary from Goodreads:

Young Josephine Bonaparte shines at the center of a new, sweeping, romantic work of historical fiction by Sandra Gulland: detailed and exhaustively researched, compelling and powerful, The Many Lives and Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. is the first in a trilogy of fictional novels tracing the actual rise of a young European noblewoman who would one day stand next to Napoleon.

I started this before all the aforementioned drama -- I hope to resume once I'm finished the above.

Here is to getting back in the reading grove! 

Also, check out my new read along project with Amy at My Friend Amy and Leah at Amused by Books!

What are you reading this week?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

It's been a bleak reading week -- sometimes life just happens.


REVIEWED LAST WEEK:
Still Alice by Lisa Genova (4 out of 5 stars -- one of my favorites to read this year)


DID NOT FINISH:
The Invisible Mountain by Carolina de Robertis (lovely, but took more patience than I had available)


CURRENTLY READING:
The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. by Sandra Gulland (one of my Women Unbound challenge selections).

Summary from Goodreads:

Young Josephine Bonaparte shines at the center of a new, sweeping, romantic work of historical fiction by Sandra Gulland: detailed and exhaustively researched, compelling and powerful, The Many Lives and Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. is the first in a trilogy of fictional novels tracing the actual rise of a young European noblewoman who would one day stand next to Napoleon. From the heartbreak of lost loves to the horror of revolution to the hope of new days, it's an intimate epic any romance lover will love.

Not sure how much reading I will get done in the next few weeks -- I will be gone for the Labor Day weekend, so no Monday post from me next week. But stay tuned -- I have a big reading announcement planned for Wednesday, September 8th! Get your Cowboy boots ready!

What are you reading?

It's Monday -- What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at One Persons Journey Through a World of Books. It's is a weekly event to celebrate what we are reading for the week as well as books completed the previous week.

REVIEWED LAST WEEK:

One Day by David Nicholls (2 out of 5 stars -- really disappointing)

Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart (3 out of 5 stars - Quaint and nostalgic)


FINISHED (not yet reviewed):

Still Alice by Lisa Genova

(Wow -- fascinating and terrifying, especially since I almost put the milk in the cabinets instead of the refrigerator!  Will definitely read more by this author -- I loved it, I'm adding it to the "staff picks" on the library shelf).

CURRENTLY READING:

The Invisible Mountain by Carolina De Robertis

Busy week ahead -- I start back to work at the library tomorrow, I have to take dinner to a family on Tuesday, I have dental appointments for 2/3rds of my children on Wednesday -- and I have my FIRST PTA meeting on Thursday! I am terrified! I'm trying to remember my Robert's Rules of Order! "I need a motion, is there a 2nd? "All in favor say AYE -- the motion passes!" I wish it was that easy.

I hope I get to read a little bit this week.

Have a great week -- what are you reading?