Monday, February 14, 2011

It's Monday 2/14! What Are You Reading?

Happy Valentine's Day!  My wonderful husband, Ken, asked me to marry him 23 years ago today (this photo is from about that time).  I can't imagine sharing my life with anyone else - we've been through so much together, good times and bad, and he's always there to support me.

One of the many things we share together is our love of books and reading.  We had a very busy week (yes, again), including a whirlwind trip back to my hometown of Rochester, NY, this weekend for my great-aunt's funeral.  We all enjoyed some good books this week:
  • I finished reading Stones Into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, not Bombs, in Afghanistan and Pakistan by Greg Mortenson for my library's book discussion last week (I read the last page and the epilogue right after the meeting ended!), a follow-up to his first book, Three Cups of Tea.  Everyone in the book discussion was fascinated and impressed by what Mortenson has achieved, though we all agreed we wouldn't want to be married to him!
  • Just as I was hurrying to finish Stones into Schools for the library book discussion, I realized that another of my book groups is meeting THIS Wednesday, leaving me only 7 days to read the 700-page The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb.  I can't usually read in the car, but I made an exception this weekend.  It's an excellent, gripping novel so far, about a couple who worked at Columbine High School at the time of the shootings.
  • My husband, Ken, is reading Under the Dome by Stephen King and enjoying it very much.
  • Jamie, 16, didn't have much time for reading this week, between school, homework, and the trip (he drove part of the way), but he has started The Books of Umber 3: The End of Time by P.W. Catanese.
  • Craig, 13, is re-reading Nick of Time by Ted Bell in preparation for an oral report for his English class.
  • On audio, I've been listening to a new teen book, Thunder Over Kandahar by Sharon E. McKay.  Ironically, since I was reading Stones Into Schools last week, this new audio is about two young girls in a rural Afghanistan village who are eager to attend the new school recently built by an American charitable organization.  It's excellent so far.
  • On the way to and from Rochester, our whole family listened to The Story of Cirrus Flux, a fast-paced middle-grade novel about two orphans in 1783 London, on the run from various evil foes who want to steal a magical token.  Now that we're back home, we need to find time to finish it!
Last week, I posted a review of Musicophilia by Oliver Sachs and a tribute to beloved children's author Brian Jacques who passed away last week.

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.)

3 comments:

  1. Oy, 700 pages in just a couple of days?! Best of luck! Happy anniversary & V-Day...and thanks for stopping by :)

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  2. The Story of Cirrus Flux sounds like a good one for a long drive. Your description makes it sound like a fast paced story. I still haven't brought myself to read Three Cups of Tea. I've heard it's hard to get through. But Stones into Schools sounds like a good one too.

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  3. Julie -

    I found both Three Cups of Tea and Stone Into Schools pretty easy reading just because they are both so fascinating. I do think Stones Into Schools is better written, though (Three Cups of Tea was co-written with a journalist).

    Sue

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