It's Monday 4/12! What Are You Reading?

It was kind of a rough week for me physically, still struggling with this relapse of my chronic illnesses that began last March. I even had to spend one day in bed, but the up side was lots of reading time last week! And I had a good appointment with my Lyme specialist, so I am newly committed to keep pushing forward, trying new treatments, increasing doses, and yes, more lab tests, too! To give you an idea of my foggy state of mind last week, I spent an hour writing, editing, posting, and sharing a book review ... then finally realized I'd reviewed the same book the week before!

Felt crummy last week but that left plenty of reading time on the deck!

 

On the brighter side, I decided to take a short trip to the beach this coming week, on my own. We had to cancel mid-week camping plans because my husband's work schedule is so crazy, so friends are lending me their beach condo (which is empty this week) for a mini getaway! After this past year, I am looking forward to some quiet alone time and a change of scenery. I love the ocean 💕 and find it instantly calming and peaceful. Besides packing today, I will make sure I have plenty of audiobooks on my iPod for the drive!

Can't wait to be back at the beach!

 

For more on what I am currently reading and just finished, check out my Friday Reads video--a short overview from last Friday (and to hear me gush over A Gentleman in Moscow). 

Here's what we have all been reading this week:

I finished reading A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles for one of my book groups. I said to my husband one night, "When everyone I know says a book is amazing, I should listen!" Why did I wait so long to read this one? It's about Count Alexander Rostov, a 33-year-old poet in 1922 Russia who is put before a Bolshevik tribunal, where they determine he is "an unrepentant aristocrat." He is sentenced to house arrest in the grand hotel, Metropol. He's been living in a luxury suite there for years, but now he is moved to a tiny room in the attic. He can move freely around the hotel but can not leave the premises. He struggles at first, but a precocious nine-year-old girl named Nina, who also lives at the hotel, introduces him to an entire world behind the scenes of the familiar hotel (think Eloise in Moscow). Rostov is also naturally resilient and upbeat. The novel is warm, funny, and engrossing and is all about living in the present and finding small joys in every-day life--all very uplifting. I loved everything about it, and my book group rated it an unprecedented 9.6 out of 10!

Now, I am reading Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote, a gift from my Easter basket. I've never read Capote before, though I saw the famous movie adaptation with Audrey Hepburn. I watched the movie a long time ago and didn't remember much of the plot, but it's impossible to read the book without picturing Hepburn in the lead role (even though she's blond in the book). In case you're not familiar with it, it's the story of a young woman named Holly Golightly, as told by an unnamed male narrator who lives in the apartment above hers in a brownstone in NYC. Holly is an unusual woman, to say the least. She has loads of charm and poise and hobnobs with wealthy men, though her own past is quite mysterious. I really enjoyed this novella, with its rich descriptions and dialogue that make you feel like you are right there, in post-war New York with them. I actually finished it last night, though there are three short stories by Capote included in the book that I am still enjoying.

On audio, I finished listening to a YA novel, One Way or Another by Kara McDowell. I love novels that play with time, and this one is about alternate timelines. Seventeen-year-old Paige struggles with anxiety and is in love with her best friend, Fitz, but he's always dating someone else. Now, as much as she hates even trivial decisions, she has a big one to make: go with Fitz to his family's mountain cabin for a Christmas worthy of a Hallmark holiday movie (and Fitz just broke up with his latest girlfriend) or go to NYC with her mother for her dream trip of a lifetime. As she's agonizing over the choice with her friend in a store, Paige slips and hits her head. From then on, the novel splits into two different storylines: on one path, Paige goes to the cabin with Fitz and his family and on the other path, she goes to New York with her mom. I like that this novel is fun, with the alternate timelines and rom-com feel, but it also tackles the serious issue of Paige's crippling anxiety and self-doubt.

Now, I am listening to Forest Dark by Nicole Krauss. I really loved Krauss' earlier novel, The History of Love, which has two disparate stories/characters that eventually come together in a story about (you guessed it) love. I also read her next novel, Great House, a finalist for the National Book Award, which was also good, though it felt a bit too bleak for my tastes. Forest Dark is so far following a similar approach as those earlier novels, in starting out with two separate stories, with just a location/place in common between them. Sixty-eight-year-old Epstein has just gone missing in Tel Aviv, and his daughters are staying at the city's Hilton, as they try to figure out what happened to him and what to do next. The story flashes back to Epstein's past, where he grew up in Long Island and later became very successful and wealthy. In an alternate storyline, a successful female novelist has writer's block, so she leaves her husband and children at home to travel to Tel Aviv, where she also stays at the Hilton. She has stayed there every summer of her life, and she has a vague idea to set her next novel there and is hoping the surroundings will get her writing again. That's it so far, but as always with Krauss, it's very well-written, intricate, and engaging.

My husband, Ken, is still reading The Night Fire by Michael Connelly. This is book three in the Renee Ballard series, and the second one that teams up Ballard with classic Connelly character Harry Bosch. My husband and I both love Connelly's books and the Harry Bosch series. Ballard has been an excellent addition to Connelly's thrillers, as a younger, female lead character. We both enjoyed her debut in The Late Show, and my husband also read book two, Dark Sacred Night (I have some catching up to do). In this book, Bosch and Ballard team up again to tackle a cold case that was important to Bosch's mentor who just died. Apparently, the two of them begin to really come together as a team in this novel, so that sounds great to us! Ken's already enjoying it. Thrillers are his favorite kind of book, and it's so much fun to just get sucked right into a gripping story.

Our son, 26, finished re-reading Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson, book three in the Stormlight Archive series, in preparation for book four, which his girlfriend got for him (released in November). I love how she understands his love of reading and of favorite book series, even though she's not a big book lover herself. This is one of his favorite authors, and he loves this series! He lugged this 1248-page hardcover book home with him over Easter, and has now started the much-anticipated book 4, Rhythm of War, which is about the same length! He's in heaven with these huge books in a favorite series by a favorite author! 

 

Last week's blog posts:

Fiction Review: Rabbit, Run by John Updike - interesting & engaging, though I had some mixed feelings

Fiction Review: Heart Spring Mountain by Robin MacArthur - take 2! Still liked it 😀

Middle-Grade Review: The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart - loved it! Warm, funny, moving story of grief, loss, family & friendship

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?