Monday, April 18, 2016

It's Monday 4/18! What Are You Reading?

Happy Monday! Whew - it's been a super-busy hectic one here so far, so I am running a bit late with my reading update. We've been shifting a lot of what used to happen on Sundays to Mondays (family dinner, refilling meds, etc.), plus I had PT this morning. But, it was a very quiet weekend with a lot of productivity around the house - finally sorted through many years' of filing, took 2 huge boxes of papers to a local shredding event, and cleared off the towering piles on two filing cabinets - woohoo! Those clear surfaces sure look good!

As always, we all enjoyed our reading this week, too:
  • I finished The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens, the selection for my neighborhood book group last week. It's an unusual mix of mystery/thriller and introspective novel about how our pasts affect our lives. It was very engrossing & we had a great discussion over it.
  • Now, I am reading The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy by Rachel Joyce, companion novel to The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry (which I loved!). I picked it up randomly in the library a couple of months ago, and it is due back (no more renewals) next week...and I discovered that my book group chose it for our next book for May! It's nice to return to those familiar characters (though I wish I remembered more details from Harold Fry), and it has the same sort of philosophical tone to it. I'm enjoying it so far.
  • I am listening to a middle-grade audiobook, Upside-Down Magic by Sarah Mlynowski, Lauren Myracle, and Emily Jenkins. At first I thought it was just a cute little story, but I'm realizing there's a lot more depth to it than I first thought. It's very good & will appeal to younger middle-grade readers.
  • My husband, Ken, finished one of my recent favorites, Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, a thoughtful post-apocalyptic story about a traveling Shakespearean acting troupe. You can read my gushing review at the link! He really enjoyed it, too.
  • Now, he is reading another book I just finished reading: The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens! When he heard how much we liked it at book group and that it was a mystery/thriller, he was sold.
  • Last I heard, Jamie, 21, was re-reading the first two books in the A Pattern of Shadow and Light trilogy by Melissa McPhail: Cephrael's Hand and The Dagger of Adendigaeth, in preparation for reading book 3. 
  • Craig, 18, is reading To Live by Yu Hua for his World Lit class. His older brother read it when he was in high school, too. He says it's a lot better than Like Water for Chocolate so far! ha ha - that wasn't one of his favorites.
On a side note, I discovered that my physical therapist and his fiancee also love to read, so we've had some great book discussions while he's working on my shoulder! He likes the same kind of fantasy novels as my older son, so I brought him a list of Jamie's favorites, and he was thrilled. Don't you love meeting another book lover and talking books??

A few new posts on the blog last week, though it was a hectic week with my mom visiting:
TV Tuesday: The Catch, a fun new series featuring a suspenseful & sexy chase


Fiction Review: The Good Luck of Right Now by Matthew Quick - another fun, quirky, funny Quick novel with a lot of heart

Saturday Snapshot: Spring? Really? - photos from our roller coaster spring

What are you and your family reading this week?    

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

23 comments:

  1. That does sound like a busy (and productive) kind of week! I have all sorts of projects planned for the next few months. Something about spring seems to shout "Go clean and organize!"

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    1. Yes, doesn't it?? And it feels so good to clear clutter & see those horizontal surfaces again!

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  2. Sue isn't it wonderful to meet another book lover in person. I just love it when that happens. Thanks for the tip about Chris Cleave's book, I haven't read him before, but I know the publicists who sent it all voted that it was their fav book of the month.

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    1. Yes! I meet book lovers everywhere & it's always exciting :)

      Enjoy the Cleave novel!

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  3. Fun to hear about your PT & trading book titles! And the cleaning out must feel very good. I never got around to Harold Fry, & am aware of it, now another one! I'll put it on the list, & maybe get to it. I loved Station Eleven, too!

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    1. Oh, definitely move Harold Fry up your TBR list - it's a wonderful book - funny & fun but also with layers of emotional depth.

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  4. It is so fun to see a doctor/PT person who loves books! My dental hygienist loves to read, and we always chat about books while she cleans my teeth. Haha!

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    1. I used to have a dental hygienist who loved to read, too, Ricki, but it was so frustrating because I couldn't talk while she had her hands in my mouth! lol

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  5. Ugh. I need to do filing! That is one of my least favorite things...
    I loved Upside Down Magic, and I went in about like you did, and I ended up feeling like you are now. It is a fun story, but also with an important theme.

    Happy reading this week! :)

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    1. Me, too! That's why it piled up so high. When all the contents of our office closet rained down on our heads one day, I realized we had to tackle it finally!

      Glad to hear you liked Upside-Down Magic, too.

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  6. I think I've read Upside-Down Magic...is it an older book? That title just rings a bell with me....

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    1. No, a new release, Melinda - probably last fall (I'm a bit behind on my new-release audios!)

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    2. Oh! Are you thinking of Half Magic? One of my all-time favorite Edward Eager books from when I was a kid (and enjoyed by my sons, too).

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  7. The best people in the world are those who love to read as much as we do! While I was keeping watch over my ailing mother, I found that one of the nurses was an avid reader of Ta-Nehisi Coates, whose book, Between the World and Me is amazing. We has some fabulous conversations about different writers.

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    1. It's an amazing way to bond with strangers, isn't it?

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  8. The Life We Bury sounds like an introspective read. How often do you meet up with your book group? Wow!

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    1. My neighborhood book group meets roughly every 6 weeks...but I belong to several others, too! They keep me very busy, but I love them :)

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  9. I loved Harold Fry so I need to try that companion novel. Sounds good. Did your husband like Station Eleven as much as you did? I'm going to look into The Life We Bury. Have a great week!

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    1. Well, I LOVED Station Eleven and was my usual gushy self over boos that I love - my husband isn't a gusher, but he said it was excellent!

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  10. Love Song sounds promising. How nice that you can share books with so many people in your life!

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    1. It's a wonderful way to bond with friends, family, and even strangers!

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  11. I think this is a record: I have not even heard of any of the books the Jackson family is currently reading. Oh man. this is bad.

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    1. ha ha - you made me laugh when I read this, Anne! You haven;t heard of Station Eleven? It was on many Top 10 lists from 2014 (or 2015?). The Life We Bury surprised me, though - I'd never heard of it either, until my book group chose it...but I found that it was VERY popular. My library had a wait list 35 people long for it and even used copies were going for $9 online. Now I see why - my husband is enjoying it now.

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