Monday, February 20, 2017

It's Monday 2/20! What Are You Reading?

I was just looking back at my post from last Monday, about all the emergencies that cropped up that week and how things were returning to normal! ha ha I should know better than to say that! Our older son went back to campus Wednesday afternoon (after a stomach virus), and his younger brother came home Thursday morning with strep throat! He got on antibiotics and went back to school Friday afternoon...and his brother came home from work last night with a fever and cough. Seems like a bout of bronchitis, which he gets a lot due to his immune disorder. Oh, and now I just got a text from our younger son saying the strep is better but now his chest hurts, and he's coughing. Sounds like another bronchitis...sigh. Yup. We need to install a revolving door here. And invest heavily in antiseptic wipes, which we have been using by the truckload!

The good news is that my husband and I have stayed healthy through all of this (where's some wood to knock on?), and we had a very nice weekend. Lots of work on our mortgage refinance (we got a great deal, but it is a LOT of work) but also two great hikes in lovely, sunny 70 degree weather. We definitely needed that.

And, of course, we make time for reading every day! Here's what our family is reading now:
  • I finished The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith, JK Rowling's pen name for her mystery series starring private detective Cormoran Strike. I gave it to my husband for his birthday and am glad to have finally gotten to it myself. It was excellent - as you'd expect!
  • Next, I returned to Anne Frank Remembered: the Story of the Woman Who Helped to Hide the Frank Family by Miep Glies and Alison Leslie Gold. I started this book on audio back in early January, but my audio download was defective and  ended abruptly in the middle of a sentence! It's a memoir, and the audio narrator was wonderful, with an accent and warmth that makes you feel as if Miep herself was sitting next to you telling her story. I REALLY wanted to finish it on audio, but after waiting for over a month for the audio to come in from my library, I gave up and requested the book. So, I finally got to finish this amazing book (highly recommended!), and there turned out to be a benefit to seeing the book - lots of photos included! Besides, I could still hear the narrator's voice in my head as I read. 
  • And, that led me to return to The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, to re-read the story in Anne's own words. I haven't read it since I was a teenager. My own copy (which was my mother's originally) cost 35 cents and every time I turned a page, it fell out! So, I got a copy at the library this weekend. Even knowing what happens, it is still a compelling, amazing story. I am totally hooked (again).
  • On audio, I am listening to a teen/YA novel, The Forgetting by Sharon Cameron. It's intriguing so far, about a fantasy dystopian world where everyone forgets everything every 12 years...except the main character who remembers everything but keeps that a secret, as she begins to uncover the secrets of her community.
  • My husband, Ken, finished a Christmas gift from me, The Trespasser by Tana French, the latest (#6, I think) in her books about the Dublin Murder Squad. He loves her literary murder mysteries.
  • Now, Ken is reading a review book I got, a noir thriller, Lucky Supreme: A Novel of Many Crimes by Jeff Johnson. The author (it's his debut novel) has been compared to Elmore Leonard and Dennis Lehane. The novel is due out April 4.
  • Jamie, 22, has been reading The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. He is up to book 3, The Dragon Reborn, and enjoying it. Even though he's been sick a lot, I think he's been watching more TV than reading lately.
 Blog posts from last week:
Movie Monday: The Accountant, an intriguing & original thriller

Fiction Review: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, WWII from the perspective of two children

Middle-Grade Review: The Honest Truth by Dan Gemeinhart, a moving, exciting adventure

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.

What are you and your family reading this week?   

16 comments:

  1. I'm reading Crosstalk by Connie Willis and the new novel by Laurie Frankel, This Is How It Always Is. I never read any of J.K. Rowling's adult titles when they came out, and don't know whether to start with A Cuckoo's Calling or The Casual Vacancy!

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    1. Yes, this was my first grown-up JK Rowling - I haven't read Casual Vacancy yet.

      I haven't heard about your other current reads yet, so thanks for the heads-up!

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  2. Ann Frank Remembered sounds fascinating. I think I'd like print for the photos.

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    1. I;m glad I ended up with both - the photos are great, but so was the audio narration - as if Miep was sitting next to me on the sofa telling me her story!

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  3. Would love to listen or read Miep's book so I am going to go looking for it. Would love to listen but love looking at photos too. Your walk in sunny weather sounds perfect.

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  4. Okay, so I get the audio on Audible and our library has a copy of the book in large print which I will get for my sister who is in hospital and will enjoy it. If enjoy is the right word!!

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    1. Wonderful! Now you can listen to the audio AND see the photos!

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  5. Your poor sons! At this point their immune systems are shot so they are picking up everything around them. Total nightmare. I hope you and your husband continue to stay healthy. I am reading "My Sister Rosa" by Justine Larbalestier

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    1. We have immune problems anyway, so infections are always complicated for us, but the fevers are dropping and one son is back to school, so hopefully that'll be it for a while!

      Hadn't heard of Sister Rosa before - hope you enjoy it!

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  6. Sorry to hear your boys have been sick! I hope you're able to stay healthy through all of that.

    The Anne Frank book is on my list for this year. I really want to get to it since I think I read it back in 6th grade! It's been a very long time.

    I've read a few of the Tana French books but not that one. I should go back to the first couple. I think I've read somewhere in the middle of the series.

    Have a great week!

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    1. So far, so good, Julie!

      Same here - it had been at least 30 years since I read it!

      I've only read the first Tana French so far, so I have some catching up to do.

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  7. I hope my sons visit home as much as yours do!

    I would love to reread The Diary of a Young Girl. It has been about twenty years since I've read it, and it would be nice to read it with fresh eyes. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. ha ha - yeah, but maybe not that they get sick quite so much! Those freshman dorms are germ factories!

      More than 30 years for me since I first read Anne Frank! Absolutely amazing so far.

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  8. I am so much in sympathy with you about the audiobook glitch! Argh! I really get annoyed when there is a long pause until the next track begins... You have piqued my interest in Anne Frank Remembered: the Story of the Woman Who Helped to Hide the Frank Family, and my library has it as audio cd's. I've put it on hold and just hope it works.

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    1. It was so frustrating! It just....stopped. Glad I finally got to finish it :)

      Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

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