It's Monday 7/18! What Are You Reading?

Hosted by The Book Date

I'm back!

As I mentioned in my quick July 4 post, my husband and I left that day for a very long road trip out to Oklahoma and back. While there, in my husband's hometown, we had a funeral for my father-in-law and fulfilled his last wishes to be buried there, next to his wife and daughter. 

Friends and family came from near and far--all of whom we hadn't seen in many years (we moved him to Delaware 8 years ago)--and despite the circumstances, it was wonderful to see everyone again and reunite. Both my husband and I had best friends from high school in attendance (I grew up in Rochester, NY, but my best friend and I both married men from Oklahoma, and she lives there now--crazy, right?). And it's the first time all of our family has been together since my mother-in-law's funeral 12 years ago. The service was moving and very personal, filled with stories and memories from family and friends. I think my father-in-law would have loved it! He was known for his large collection of hats, so we brought them along to display at the funeral, and each grandson chose one to keep.

My husband with our three nephews in Grandad's hats

 

That was followed by a graveside military funeral, with the flag presented to our nephew, who was very close to his Grandad and also a Marine, so that seemed appropriate. We had a nice lunch afterward, before everyone headed back home. We hit the road again for another four-day drive the next day.

 
The only dark cloud on an otherwise perfect send-off was that our older son got COVID last week (caught at work) and was unable to fly out for the funeral. He has the same immune disorder I do, plus tick infections, so he is improving bit by bit but still quite debilitated. I know he was crushed to miss his Grandad's funeral. Both of our sons became very close to him these last eight years and helped to care for him.

Though this certainly wasn't a vacation, it was the first time my husband and I have been able to travel in several years (due to not wanting to leave my father-in-law for long because of his dementia), and the long days in the car gave us a chance for some much-needed downtime. You can see additional road trip pictures in my video, Friday Reads 7-15-22.

 

So, here's what we've all been reading the past two weeks, including lots of Big Book Summer reads (more details on the first three books listed here in my Friday Reads video):

I finished reading Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir on our trip. YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK!! Yes, it has some similarities to The Martian, with suspense, science, and humor, but this novel has so much more. It is incredibly heartwarming and moving, and I loved every page and never wanted it to end. It is an absolute delight and now in the running for my best book of the year!

 

Next up, I started another novel from my Big Book Summer stack, Lucky Turtle by Bill Roorbach. This was a Booktopia selection and is about a teen girl, Cindra, who gets sent to a rehabilitation camp in Montana after getting in trouble with the law. There, she meets a mysterious young man named Lucky, who is the subject of many rumors among the girls. It's a love story covering many decades (and going back generations), with plenty of action and unexpected plot twists. It's beautifully written and so compelling, I have been staying up too late reading!

 

In the car, my husband and I selected another Big Book to listen to on our long trip, Since We Fell by Dennis Lehane. This psychological suspense novel centers on Rachel, an up-and-coming journalist until she has a breakdown on-air. As Rachel's life comes undone, there is one bright spot: her perfect, supportive, kind husband. As you might have guessed, there are secrets behind the scenes of this ideal marriage. Lots of twists and turns in the last third of this book! It made the miles fly by.

 

My husband, Ken, has been reading his second Big Book, The Kingdom by Jo Nesbo. He always enjoys Nesbo's dark Scandanavian thrillers. This one is a stand-alone novel, not about Harry Hole, and Ken is enjoying it.

 

While recovering from COVID, our son, 27, has had LOTS of reading time. He caught me up this morning. He has been binging on Michael G. Manning series! First, he finished the Mageborn series, with book 5, The Final Redemption (after re-reading books 1, 2, and 3 and reading book 4). Next, he read the trilogy, Champions of the Dawning Dragons, which is about the sons and daughters of the main characters in the Mageborn series. And now, he's reading the next trilogy after that, which returns to the main character of the Mageborn series, with Mordecai, book one of The Riven Gates series. He says the main character is very compelling. Whew! I'm glad he has such wonderful distractions and escape while sick.

I only managed one blog post after we returned last week--so much to catch up on!

Fiction Review: A Lite Too Bright by Samuel Miller - excellent road trip mystery, as a young man searches for his grandfather's legacy (and a Big Book) - great on audio!

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?