It's Monday 7/15! What Are You Reading?

Another hectic, stressful week here, but I am making the most of a quiet Monday all to myself. We have another very busy week coming up, with lots of appointments and stuff scheduled for me three evenings in a row (I normally stick to just one evening a week out of the house). So, I am gearing up for another crazy week! But we had a quiet weekend, and I am feeling a bit better physically this morning than I have been lately.

With the oppressive heat and humidity we've had here and all the crises, reading and Big Book Summer have definitely been the best part of summer for me so far! Here's what we have all been reading this past week:

I finished my 2rd Big Book of the Summer, a re-read of The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, and I still sobbed my heart out, the second time around! Besides reading it to discuss this week in book group, this also happens to be one of my Top 5 Books Of All Time (don't ask me to name all five because they keep changing, but this one is always up there!). I LOVE this unique novel with all my heart, and as soon as I began reading it again, I remembered why. It is warm and sweet and clever and smart and joyful and sad. I am a huge fan of time travel novels to begin with, but this one, which is essentially a love story, is my favorite and so beautifully written. I think it's been at least 10 years since I first read it, and I enjoyed it just as much the second time and stayed up much too late every night because I hated to set it down....maybe that's why I've been so exhausted! I finished it this weekend, and I am already missing Henry and Clare. If you somehow missed this unique and moving novel, it's a must-read!

Now, I am back to my 2nd Big Book of the Summer (which is now my 3rd), Fly by Night by Frances Hardinge. It's a middle-grade fantasy novel that has been on my shelf for a loooong time - since its release in 2008! It's set in a world where books are banned and few people know how to read, but orphan Mosca was secretly taught to read by her father. She runs away from her cruel uncle and pairs up with a con-man named Eponymous Clent. Mosca is very smart but also very naive, having grown up in a small, remote village. It took me a while to get into this one, mainly because I'm not a huge fan of fantasies set in made-up worlds and it's a unique and complex set-up, but I am enjoying it now that I've gotten used to its eccentricities. It's clever, action-packed, and funny.

On audio, I am listening to another Big Book: The Book of M by Peng Shepherd, a novel that was released about a year ago that I have wanted to read ever since I heard about it. It's a post-apocalyptic tale about a mysterious condition that quickly spreads across the world. It causes people to lose their shadows, which oddly also causes them to gradually lose their memories. The author uses multiple narrators, all living in this strange post-apocalyptic world (with some flashbacks to how it all happened) and trying to escape its effects. This novel made it onto a bunch of Best of 2018 lists and has been compared to The Passage and Station Eleven, two books I loved. It's already gripping, and I can't wait to see what happens next! My only problems are weird post-apocalyptic dreams, and I can't seem to get my iPod to turn off "Shuffle" mode, so I get very confused each time it jumps to a random chapter! (Oh, duh - I just looked it up - why didn't I do that a week ago??)

My husband, Ken, is reading his third Big Book of the summer, The Crow Girl by Erik Axl Sund, which I picked out for him at Northshire Books (recommended by the booksellers there) at Booktopia this year. It's a Swedish thriller about a serial killer. On the cover, it says, "the most disturbing book you'll read this year," and he says that so far that is absolutely true! He says it makes it sound as if most of Sweden's citizens are child abusers; I didn't realize this one dealt with kids or I might have chosen something different, but he is sticking with it and says it's suspenseful and intriguing. At 866 pages, it might take him a little longer than his last Big Book.


Our son, Jamie, 24, is now reading a new-to-him series, An Assassin's Blade trilogy by Justin DePaoli, described as a dark epic fantasy. He says the books are shorter than what he usually reads and not as well-written as his favorites, but he's enjoying it. I am guessing he hasn't had much reading time, since he spent the past four days visiting his girlfriend at her parents' house.




Blog posts last week:

 TV Tuesday: Imposters - this clever, suspenseful, darkly funny show is one of our favorites!

Fiction Review: Harry's Trees by Jon Cohen - a warm story about nature, healing, and connecting

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.

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

What are you and your family reading this week?

Remember to sign up for the Big Book Summer Challenge! It's easy-going, like summer - you only have to read one book of 400 or more pages between now and September (though you can, of course, read more!) It's lots of fun and a great way to add extra enjoyment to your summer! All the details are at the link - you can sign up there if you have a blog or, if not, just leave a comment on that page or sign up at the Goodreads group linked from that page. Join the fun!