It's Monday 11/18! What Are You Reading?

I am late with my post today and typing this from the waiting room of my mom's physical therapy in Connecticut! I drove up here last night to spend a few days with her to help her out post-surgery (and enjoy some time together, too!). I won't be posting on the blog (or, alas, visiting other blogs) as much as usual in the next two weeks. Once I get back from my mom's, my family will be enjoying a nice vacation to St. John (USVI) - my husband's and my 30th anniversary gift to ourselves and our sons! So, life has been very hectic lately (also trying to get my book ready to publish when I get back and hosted dinner for our local support group this weekend), but there should be some rest & relaxation at the end of it all!

Here's what we've been enjoying reading this past busy week:

To kick off Nonfiction November, I finished a book that had been on my TBR shelf for a very long time, In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson. My husband and I enjoy the way Larson takes real-life historical subjects and tells their stories in a compelling, fiction-like way. We both loved his Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America (award-winning and highly recommended), and I think I bought my husband the Berlin book many years ago. It's been sitting on my side of the TBR bookcase ever since he read it! It's the real-life story of William E. Dodd, who was appointed Ambassador to Germany in 1933, just as Hitler's power was growing. The book focuses on the experiences of Dodd and his family (especially his adult daughter who had worked in journalism) in the odd environment of a rapidly changing Berlin that could appear fun and entertaining one day and horrifying the next. It was completely engrossing and fascinating (and chilling) to know what's coming historically, when the main characters did not.

Now, I am reading (almost finished with) Hallelujah Anyway: Rediscovering Mercy by Anne Lamott for one of my book groups this week. I have enjoyed Lamott's memoirs and novels in the past so was eager to read this one. It's a memoir about mercy: what it means, how she finds it in her life, and its relationship with grace. It's all a bit ephemeral and musing, but I enjoy thoughtful books. I'll see what the rest of my book group thinks! It falls back strongly on Lamott's well-known experiences getting (and staying) sober, her religious beliefs (and those of others), and the need for "radical kindness" in our world. I received this book in a Yankee Book Swap at Booktopia a few years ago from a good friend and was pleased to open it up this week and realize it was signed by the author!

On audio, I am listening to Becoming by Michelle Obama, which is just as wonderful as everyone said it was! I'm still in the early chapters, about her childhood in Chicago's South Side, her family, and her early friendships and education. I listened during my car ride last night, up to where she just graduated from Princeton and moved onto Harvard Law School. She is honest, open, and warm, bringing the reader into her world and sharing not just the facts but also her thoughts looking back. It paints a picture of her as a person but also of the times she has lived through and the culture of the world around her. She is close to my age, so I can relate to some of that. As I heard from many people, the book is especially good on audio, read by the author in her lovely, familiar voice.

My husband, Ken, just finished The Infinite Blacktop by Sara Gran. It's Gran's third novel featuring detective Claire DeWitt. This is the first novel he's read in the series, but I heard lots of accolades about this particular book, so I gave it to him for his birthday. In this novel, someone is trying to kill Claire, and in order to save herself, Claire will have to revisit two old, cold cases that she was involved in years ago, in Brooklyn and L.A. The three stories, from three different periods of Claire's life, are intertwined and gradually come together. There were some things he didn't like the novel (including the different storylines), so he didn't fully enjoy it. I think I would probably like it, though, because I enjoy novels like that with disparate threads that gradually weave together. Ah, well, you win some, you lose some!

Ken has now started reading the YA post-apocalyptic thriller, The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey. This is book 2 of the trilogy that begins with The 5th Wave, which my husband, son, and I all loved (we still need to watch he movie adaptation). I read this second book in the series for my RIP XIV Challenge this fall, and I definitely want to read book 3. My son liked book 2 even more than the first book (he liked the emphasis on action and less romance - ha ha). If you enjoyed other YA post-apocalyptic thrillers like the Divergent trilogy, you should definitely give this one a try. We are looking forward to reading book 3, The Last Star. (Oh, that's weird - I just noticed my husband's last two books both start with "The Infinite..."!)

Our son, 25, finished reading a book we gave him for Christmas, Defender by Robert J. Crane, book 1 of The Sanctuary Series. It's a shorter novel than the epic fantasies he usually reads, which is probably why he didn't read it sooner. The setting and plot, though, are right up his alley: "The world of Arkaria is a dangerous place, filled with dragons, titans, goblins and other dangers." He says he really liked it. That's great news because there are at least eight books in the series for him to continue with! Last I heard, he was already well into book 2, Avenger, and enjoying it, too. I'm sure he will be loading up his Kindle this week for next week's vacation!


Last week's blog posts:

Movie Monday: Shaft - a sequel to the 1971 classic starring Samuel L. Jackson - lots of fun!

TV Tuesday: Stumptown - our favorite TV show! Action, suspense, warmth, and humor.

Fiction Review: The Child Finder by Rene Denfeld - suspenseful thriller but with lots of emotional depth

YA Graphic Novel Review: Grimoire Noir by Vera Greentea and Yana Bogatch - dark and atmospheric, with gorgeous, enchanting illustrations

Fiction Review: Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley - the first in the renowned mystery series starring Easy Rawlins

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?