It's Monday 8/13! What Are You Reading?

Well, I did some catching up on blogs last week and wrote quite a few posts and reviews, but this Monday post might be all that I can manage for this week!  It's going to be insanely busy, with my son's 18th birthday, a weekend away with extended family starting Friday, and so many things to get done before then that my to-do list is overflowing the page!


Truly, reading is my one refuge when things get this hectic.  Here's what we read last week:

• I finished Explosive Eighteen by Janet Evanovich, laughing all the way.  It was a nice bit of fun escapism, just what I needed last week!
• Next I read a new teen/YA novel, The Unbearable Book Club for Unsinkable Girls by Julie Schumacher.  I requested a review copy of this novel because I read that the author was from Delaware and the story was set here as well, but I ended up really liking this teen summer novel very much.
• And now (drumroll please...), I have finally started 11/22/63 by Stephen King, my last selection for My Big Book Summer Challenge.  This one definitely qualifies as a big book, at 849 pages.  It will also help me meet my weight-training goals, as the hardcover edition we have is a brick of a book!  It is excellent so far - I LOVE time travel stories, so I know I will enjoy this very much.
• My husband, Ken, finished Ready Player One by Ernest Cline and loved it as much as my son and I did!  If you are also a fan of this unique novel, check out my review with a link to Cline's own Easter Egg contest, just like in the book!
• Ken is now back to reading A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin, one of his Big Books this summer.
• Jamie, 17, finished Taliesin by Stephen R. Lawhead, Book 1 in The Pendragon Cycle series.  He said it was very good, and he is looking forward to reading more of the series. Now he is focused on trying to finish up the last of his high school work and get ready for college.
• Craig, 14, is reading In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez, as required reading for his freshman year of high school which starts in 2 weeks!  He's not really enjoying this novel so far.

I wrote two reviews last week:  Ready Player One by Ernest Cline and Sharp North, a teen/YA dystopian novel by Patric Cave.  I also posted my summary of Books Read in July (better late than never!).  And if you want to get to know me better, check out my top ten lists from last week, of the blog posts that provide the best glimpse of me - there is one list for this blog (grown-up books) and one for my Great Books for Kids and Teens blog.  I also posted a link to a fun list based on an NPR poll:  the 100 Best-Ever Teen/YA Novels.  This was an interesting list since it was based on a public poll.  Check it out.

What did you and your family read last week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, with a kids/teen version hosted by Teach Mentor Texts.)