Something about Summer

I know I've said this before, but there is just something about summer and books for me. No other season holds the same reading appeal as summer. Maybe it's due to the library reading program when I was a child that rewarded my obsession, er, I mean habit. Maybe it was the fact that during college and even for quite some time afterward, summer was the only time I got to read for fun. Whatever the cause, summer says reading to me.

And, this summer has meant lots of trips to the library...obviously. (Sometimes I think my blog title should be "What I picked up at the library today"...boring, I know, but it sure captures what I write about). I'm thinking of abandoning the library books though and digging out one of my favorite series. Yep, Harry Potter, here I come.

The release of the final movie has made me want to read the series again. I've never seen any of the films, but I'm getting the itch to see what all the hype is about. Before I do that, though, I think the books deserve one more reading.

I probably should ask my husband's permission before embarking on this project. It's a whole lot of pages. Hmmm...maybe not. I'm afraid he might look at me like I'm crazy. (And he'll figure it out quickly enough).

One other reason I have for re-reading the books - I would like to read them with my soon-to-be sixth-grader in mind. He's asked about reading them, and I've put him off for now. So, this would give me an opportunity to evaluate whether or not he's ready.

So, Harry, Hermione and Ron, here I come. Can't wait to spend some more time with you!

In the Pile

First of all, I really enjoyed the "Uglies" series by Scott Westerfeld. If you liked the Hunger Games, I think you would enjoy this teen sci-fi series as well. It doesn't quite match up to the Hunger Games, but really, that's a tall order, don't you think? So, check it out...Uglies, Pretties, Specials and Extras.

I went to the library to return a few things and can't leave without taking home some replacements.

On my nightstand:
Ratio (a book about cooking) by Michael Ruhlman
In This Mountain by Jan Karon
Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult...better purchase some tissues
Unlocked by Karen Kingsbury...they were talking about this book on the radio a few days ago
Death in the Andes by Mario Vargas Llosa...my book club book, haven't convinced myself to read it yet. This is not good, because book club is mere days away.

Also, on my nightstand, not from the library:
The Help...I want to re-read this before the movie comes out in August
Tunnels...started it and may need to start over.
The Hole in our Gospel...ditto. I was doing really good about reading this for awhile. Need to get back to it.

Obviously, that's more than enough to keep me reading for awhile.

What are you reading?

A Trip to the Library

It's time for a trip to the library again. We have a stack of things to return and I'm in need of a few new books for the TBR pile.

I had a dream last night that I showed up at book club in July without realizing I never read the book, didn't even check it out. So, first on my list, is a book by Mario Vargas Llosa. We are free to choose any book that he has written, so I think I'll just see what's there. (This might necessitate a trip to the main library, as the branch I usually visit doesn't seem to have any of his books).

Also, I'm hoping they have in Pretties by Scott Westerfeld. I really shouldn't read it until I read The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson series) so that my son can read it. To be honest, I'm not terribly excited about reading it. Thus, the procrastination.

We'll see what else finds its way into the pile. Stay tuned.

Spring Reading Thing Wrap-Up

Summer is here! And spring is past. Although in Kansas, it's felt like summer for a few weeks now. Spring apparently made an early departure.

I basically didn't do so well on the Spring Reading Thing hosted at Callapidder Days. It wasn't that I didn't read. As you can see from the list on the sidebar, I did plenty of reading. I just didn't want to read what was on my list. Sometimes a list works for me and sometimes it doesn't.

I set my goal pretty low...just 6 books. I knew I would read others. How did I do?

I read Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (book club) and Left Neglected. I checked out Green but didn't get it read before needing to return it. And, I have a good start on The Hole in Our Gospel and am about halfway through The Good and Beautiful God.

Even though I didn't do so hot on my list, it's still fun to participate in these challenges and gets me thinking about what I'm going to be reading.

And now, on to summer...my favorite reading season of all.

If you want to see how other readers did, go here!

I lost my list!

Oh man, I haven't done a very good job keeping my list for 2011 in the sidebar updated recently. But, I had a piece of paper sitting by the computer with all the books I had read listed, just waiting for the day I would finally update this blog.

Well, I'm ready to update my blog, but my list is nowhere to be found! Aghhh. So, I've come up with a few that I read but am definitely missing some. Bummer. I'm hopeful that the library can look up what I recently checked out, because all the books were from there. We'll see.

What I'm reading now...

Well, I just finished "A Homemade Life", which is my book club book for this month. I'm hosting, and it was my second time reading it. This time I felt like it read more like a cookbook. The first time it seemed more like a memoir. It will be interesting to see what the rest of the group thinks.

Still working on "The Good and Beautiful God" and the next Mitford series book (also a re-read for me).

With most of my free time these days, I'm watching 11- and 12-year olds play baseball.

Happy Reading!

Read this book!

I've used this title before. I really mean it this time.

Get "Heaven is for Real" and read it! Wow. Not only is the story amazing, but it also references my hometown (the likelihood of this in your average book is pretty slim, since I grew up in a very small town near the Kansas-Colorado border).

Last night, I fell asleep while Phil was finishing this book. I woke up at about 11:00pm. He finished shortly thereafter and insisted that I read it (I was already planning to. I checked it out from the library for myself but let him have first dibs). At midnight, I still wasn't asleep, so I picked up the book (I have a couple others I'm in the middle of, but neither were particularly appealing at midnight). I didn't put it down until I was finished. And, I have no idea what time that was.

It is a very fast read and an amazing story about a little boy who got a glimpse, or perhaps more than a glimpse, of heaven. It's particularly a timely read for anyone who attends our church, as we're studying the book of Revelation.

Read this book. Really. :)

Request Crazy

I went a little request crazy at the library lately, and they're all becoming availabe at the same time.

Here's what I picked up yesterday:
Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo
The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom
On Borrowed Time by Dave Rosenfelt

Here's what is waiting for me now:
The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin
The New York Regional Morman Singles Halloween Dance by Elna Baker

And, I still have 5 more not yet available! And 5 others that were already in my possession that still need read. Some are going back unread. :(