It's Monday 6/5! What Are You Reading?

Busy week here, and I wasn't feeling great. Not a full-blown "crash" or flare-up but just run-down and worn out all week. I probably should have listened to my body and rested more, but I kept pushing on. We helped our son move from one apartment to another last week in his college town nearby. I'm doing a bit better this morning, and we actually got some things done around the house this weekend, with our son's help - removed every screen in the house, washed them and the windows, and put everything back together. It looks great, and we are hoping this will cut down on the dust and pollen in the house. Cleaning windows & screens is a very satisfying job because you can see the results so clearly!

And, of course, we all enjoyed our books this week. Here's what we've been reading:

• I got about halfway through my first Big Book of the Summer, The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater, a teen/YA novel. I'm enjoying it so far, though it is a bit violent. I'm a huge fan of Stiefvater's novels, but this one has been sitting on my shelves for way too long. For me, the Big Book Summer Challenge also gives me the chance to make a sizeable dent in my TBR shelves, for the Read My Own Damn Books Challenge. Unfortunately, I had to set it aside half-read (which I hate to do) when I realized my time to read a review book due this week was running out! 
• So, now I am reading The Atlas of Forgotten Places by Jenny D. Williams, my next review book for Shelf Awareness (you can check out my first Shelf Awareness review here). It's a good one so far that gripped me right from the first pages. It takes place in northern Uganda, where a young American aid worker who left on a 3-week vacation in the area goes missing. Her aunt, who also worked for an aid organization in Uganda, comes from Germany to look for her. It's excellent so far, and the setting is fascinating to me, since I know nothing at all about Uganda or its culture or history.
• I finished listening to Projekt 1065 by Alan Gratz, a teen/YA novel, in record time. It came out last fall, but I'd been postponing listening to it because I kind of OD'ed on WWII stories. That turned out to be irrelevant, as this is a completely original story about a young boy who joins the Hitler Youth in order to be a spy for the Allies. It was compelling and chilling from beginning to end, with plenty of fast-paced suspense (and also a lot of violence, obviously). I also enjoyed Gratz's YA novel Code of Honor.
• Now, I have started listening to Scar Island by Dan Gemeinhart on audio. It's a middle-grade novel about a boy sent to a creepy reform school set on a rocky island by itself. I've only just started it, but supposedly some sort of accident is coming up that leaves the boys without adult supervision...so I am expecting a sort-of Lord of the Flies situation. I really enjoyed Gemeinhart's Some Kind of Courage and especially The Honest Truth.
• My husband. Ken, is reading his first Big Book of the Summer, Paul of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson. This is a kind of spin-off novel from the classic Dune series, written by the original author's son and a co-writer. Dune is one my husband's favorite novels, so he's enjoying this one so far.
• Jamie, 22, is continuing to re-read the Tunnels middle-grade series by Roderick Gordon, in preparation for finally reading the last book of the series (#6, Terminal).  Last week, he finished book 3, Freefall, and book 4, Closer. He is now reading book 5, Spiral, so he's almost done! These are all Big Books - Jamie laughed about my Big Book Summer Challenge because he said he only reads books longer than 400 pages!

Blog posts last week:

Movie Monday: Hidden Figures - a triumphant story based on real-life events

Teen/YA Review: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas - a powerful, compelling, important novel that should be required reading for every American - don't miss this one!

Fiction Review: The Last Neanderthal by Claire Cameron - my first Shelf Awareness review and a wonderful novel!

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?  

You can also follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page. 

Remember to sign up for my Big Book Summer Challenge! It just started, so you have plenty of time (until September) to read just 1 book (more if you want) with 400+ pages. Everyone has a chunkster like this (or dozens of them, like me!) on their shelves or TBR list, I hope you'll join the fun! (you don't need a blog to sign up - see the challenge page for details)