It's Monday 7/17! What Are You Reading?

Is it really July 17th already? How is that possible? We spent the past 4 days traveling up to northern NY state (the town of Potsdam) for my 30th reunion at Clarkson University. Except we didn't actually set foot on campus! I spent all my time at my old sorority house, catching up with old friends, meeting new ones, and laughing a LOT. Lots of old stories floating around, but we also got laughing when we realized we were chatting about colonoscopies and menopause - times change! It was really great to see my old friends, and my husband and I traveled with our camper, so we enjoyed some nice days in gorgeous NY state parks, too (plus a fair amount of rain). We ended up driving back all in one day (which is a lot) and got home last night.

Me with 3 of my fellow '87 graduates on our porch!

So, lots of socializing this weekend, but we always find time for books, too! Here's what we've been reading:

• I am still reading my only summer book group book, I Am Malala: the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai. I've wanted to read this one for a long time and am glad to finally have the chance. It's been great - fascinating and engrossing - about a young girl's childhood in Pakistan, her campaign to support girls' education, and the Taliban's shooting of her. I will probably finish it tonight.
• I am still listening to Almost Autumn by Marianne Kaurin, a YA audio book about a teen girl in a Jewish family in Norway during WWII (I know, I keep saying no more WWII stories, but there are so many in my backlog and so many different angles!). At the start of the novel, the war hasn't really affected her and her family yet, but that is starting to change now.
• On our road trip, my husband and I finished listening to Exo by Fonda Lee, a teen/YA sci fi novel. It takes place about 100 years after an alien race has colonized Earth, Some people were selected to work alongside the aliens and help them, while others (known as Sapiens) have resisted the alien invasion and continue to fight against them. We both enjoyed it - a classic sci fi story with plenty of action and suspense.
• My husband, Ken, finished reading Dust by Hugh Howey, book 3 in the Wool series, which I am dying to read! I just finished book 2, Shift, last month and want to read this one next, while the first two books are still fresh in my mind. This is Ken's 2nd Big Book of the Summer, and will be my third!
• Now, Ken is reading one of my review books, Thousand Cuts by Thomas Mogford, part of the Spike Sanguinetti series. He's just started it, so no word yet on how he likes this thriller/detective series.
• Jamie, 22, is still reading Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson, book 1 of the series, The Malazan Book of the Fallen. It's an epic fantasy of the type he loves that he picked out at his favorite used bookstore recently. He says it's great so far.

 Last week's blog posts:

Movie Monday: Me Before You - a romance based on the best-selling novel

TV Tuesday: Fleabag - funny, moving, outrageous British dramedy

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! 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)