It's Monday 5/14! What Are You Reading?

Whew, another exhausting weekend! We drove to Connecticut Friday evening to spend the weekend with my family for my mom's birthday and Mother's Day (fun but tiring) then rushed home Sunday in time for our son to get to work and to celebrate my father-in-law's 93rd birthday! Lots of celebrations (and cake) this weekend. It was good to see everyone and spend time together. Now we have less than two weeks until my oldest son's college graduation! Yikes - I need to plan the party, order announcements, etc.

Even in the midst of noise and chaos, we still enjoy our books. Here's what we've been reading this past week:

• I finished another Booktopia book, My Life with Bob: Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues by Pamela Paul, the editor of the New York Times Book Review and host of its weekly book podcast. I enjoyed this memoir told through books and could relate to some of her experiences.
• Now, I am reading Fates & Furies by Lauren Groff for one of my book groups this week. I'm not sure what to think of this one so far - it's a little weird. It's the story of a marriage, told first from the husband's perspective and then from the wife's. The narrative style is strange, though - third-person (an odd choice, I think, given the concept behind the novel) and a bit distanced. Also, I suspect that I am missing a bunch of mythological and literary references! We'll see how it goes - I'm not even halfway yet.
• I am still listening to The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah on audio, a novel I had heard rave reviews of. It's been excellent (I am nearing the end) and compelling. It starts in 1974, with a 13-year old girl as the main character, about a family that moves to Alaska. The husband/father was a POW in Vietnam and is clearly suffering from PTSD (though that diagnosis didn't exist back then) and moves the family to a remote cabin in Alaska impulsively. Things go well at first (it was summer!), but once winter begins, his mental condition deteriorates rapidly. Since he is at times abusive, parts of the book are difficult to listen to, but it's a moving, immersive, and powerful story.
• My husband, Ken, is reading The Troop by Nick Cutter, a thriller I gave to my dad as a gift that was among the many books we inherited from him when he died three years ago. Ken and I both love reading his old books because he shared our love of reading, and it makes him feel close. I have heard this one is a bit gruesome, but my dad loved it!
• I'm guessing that our son, Jamie, 23, is still reading the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. He is on book 7, A Crown of Swords, but without much reading time. Graduation is just two weeks away, so he is super busy with both school and job hunting.

Blog posts from last week:

TV Tuesday: Instinct - a funny detective show starring Alan Cumming

Author Interview & Fiction Review: My Ex-Life by Stephen McCauley - insightful & funny

Fiction Review: The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin - 4 siblings learn the dates of their deaths

Fiction Review: All the Beautiful Lies by Peter Swanson - a twisty & suspenseful mystery set in Maine

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?  
 
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3 generations: Grandad, Dad, and son!