Books Read in June

Oh, yeah - summarizing June, and it's only July 6! This is definitely a record for me. My Big Book Summer Challenge makes it easier, since I have been reading the same book for 2 weeks now so that means fewer reviews to write.

June was a good reading month for me - here's what I finished last month:

• The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey (OH) - YA post-apocalyptic fiction
• The Lightkeeper's Daughter by Jean E. Pendziwol (Canada) - adult fiction on audio
• Her Pretty Face by Robyn Harding (WA) - adult fiction (reviewed for Shelf Awareness)

• Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owen (NC) - adult fiction (reviewed for Shelf Awareness)
• The Reason You're Alive by Matthew Quick (PA) - adult fiction on audio
• They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera (NY) - YA fiction on audio

So, that's a total of six books in June, all fiction, with four adult novels and 2 YA novels. I listened to three books on audio (and all very good - an excellent audio month!). For pure blow-me-away literary power, The Reason You're Alive takes the prize (as Quick's novels always do for me), but I also loved Delia Owen's debut novel Where the Crawdads Sing - I both reviewed the book and interviewed the author and will share the link when both are published on Shelf Awareness next month.

Progress in 2018 Reading Challenges:
This is my favorite part of my monthly summary - updating my Reading Challenges, though I didn't make much progress this month. I once again read only 1 book from my own shelves for my Mount TBR Reading Challenge, bringing my total-to-date to only 11. Since my annual goal this year is 36, I have a long way to go! For the Monthly Motif Reading Challenge, June was Crack the Case, so I counted Her Pretty Face, which is suspense. Nothing new for the Back to the Classics Challenge, but I added one more to the 2018 Badass Books Challenge: a Book that You've Put Off Reading - The 5th Wave fits that category (along with all my other Big Books planned for this summer!). I added Canada to my Travel the World in Books Reading Challenge. For my 2018 Literary Escapes Challenge, I added three new states - Ohio, North Carolina, and Washington - bringing my 6-month total to 17 states, which is well on the way to surpassing my 2017 total of 25. And for my own Big Book Summer Challenge, I finished my first Big Book for 2018 - The 5th Wave (and am well into my 2nd one). There is still plenty of time to join the summer fun - click the link for details!
 
Finally, Bookish Bingo hosted by Chapter Break - not really a challenge per se, but a fun game that I play each month. I filled in 16 squares in June:

Spaces filled in:

The 5th Wave - Missing/disappeared, not a new release, shelf love (TBR), in a series
The Lightkeeper's Daughter - Summer fling, apprentice
Her Pretty Face - Road trip, read a physical book
Where the Crawdads Sing - Free book, accent, jewelry
The Reason You're Alive - Father, anxiety/depression
The Both Die at the End - Audio book, not in a series
Free Space

What was your favorite book read in June? 

TV Tuesday: The Letdown

Searching for a new show to try last week while my husband was out of town (we watch a lot of shows together), I stumbled onto The Letdown, an Australian comedy now on Netflix. Though I am well past the babies, breastfeeding, and diapers stage of life, I found this show about a struggling new mother both hilarious and heartwarming.

Alison Bell plays Audrey, a new mom taking a break from her career to stay home and care for her baby, while her husband Jeremy, played by Duncan Fellows, works hard to support their new family. Audrey wants to be a good mom (or mum, rather) but worries that she is failing miserably at it. Her daughter won't sleep through the night, Audrey and Jeremy can't bear to let her "cry it out," and Audrey is seriously sleep-deprived and misses her old life...but of course, feels guilty about that. She joins a new mother's group, where at first she feels like everyone else is doing a better job than she is at motherhood. Attempts to have a night out, meet up with old work friends, and even take on a temporary job all have disastrous - and hilarious - results.

I expected to find this half-hour comedy mildly amusing (perhaps because my own sons are in their 20's now, so I am well past Audrey's stage of life), but right from the start, it was very, very funny and had me laughing out loud. Any parent will be able to relate to Audrey and Jeremy's struggles to figure out how they fit into their new roles, though the show also deals with other issues as well, including marriage, aging parents, and work lives. The scenes with the new mother's group are especially good, as those characters gradually become a part of Audrey's life. The laughs were expected, but I also grew to really care about Audrey and found each new episode even more warm and engaging. I just finished season 1 today, and it looks like they are set up for a second season - I certainly hope so!

The Letdown is currently available on Netflix.

Not really a trailer, but here is a brief scene from the show, from one of the mother's group meetings, where they were asked to bring a parenting book they recommend, and Audrey misunderstood (sleep deprivation!) and brought Frankenstein:

Movie Monday: Game Night

As regular readers of my blog know, we've had a rough month or so around here. In the midst of a string of crises a few weeks ago, my husband and I were in desperate need of a light, funny movie to escape into, so we chose Game Night from Redbox. To be clear, when I first saw the previews and ads for this movie in the winter, I did not plan to see it - I thought it looked kind of stupid. Then, I heard a good review of it from my friends at Pop Culture Happy Hour, one of my favorite podcasts, so I decided to give it a try. This thriller comedy turned out to be a lot of fun, surprising, and very funny.

Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams star as Max and Annie, a married couple who are highly competitive and love to play games. They often host game nights for their friends. On this particular night, they've invited two other couples over for games and worked hard to hide their game night preparations from their creepy neighbor, Gary (played by Jesse Plemons). Max's super-successful brother, Brooks (played by Kyle Chandler) shows up. As usual, Brooks one-ups Max and hosts another game night at his expensive house the following weekend, and explains that he's booked a special surprise for the night - a murder mystery put on by a local company. Soon, a fake FBI agent shows up at the house to kick off the evening's fun - he explains that one of the guests will be kidnapped and the others have to follow the clues to find him or her. In the midst of his explanation, two thugs show up and violently take Brooks away. Max, Annie, and their friends assume this is the fake kidnapping and set off to follow the clues. What they don't know is that Brooks was really kidnapped by some serious criminals and is involved with some scary stuff.

What follows is a comedy of errors, as the couples set off to find Brooks, not realizing they are following real thugs carrying real guns. As you can imagine, this leads to plenty of suspense and lots of laughs. Though I expected the sort of slapstick, silly comedy I don't really enjoy, this movie turned out to be really, truly funny and quite clever in a unique blend of thriller and comedy. Bateman and McAdams are excellent in these roles and play off each other perfectly. Their acting and the writing are absolutely hilarious, but it is also a suspenseful thriller with plenty of surprising twists along the way to an ending we never saw coming. All in all, it was exactly what we needed that weekend: a lot of laughs and a lot of fun.

Game Night is currently out on DVD and available streaming on Amazon.



    

It's Monday 7/2! What Are You Reading?

It's July?? How'd that happen? It feels sudden but on the other hand, we were glad to say good-bye to June. It was a pretty rocky month around here. Here's to smooth sailing the rest of the summer!

Our youngest son is recovering wonderfully from his concussion - much quicker than expected. He says the headache is mostly gone, no nausea or motion sickness, and he's feeling much better. Just a bit of lingering fatigue and spaciness - like when I burned my hand cooking dinner last night and asked him to bring me the aloe. He went upstairs for about 15 min, came down and looked at me blankly when I asked if he'd found the aloe! He said, "See what I mean?" ha ha But overall, he is doing great and recovering faster than expected. He even moved into his new college duplex last week, to join his friends. So, life is returning to normal. In fact, we are suddenly back to an empty nest, as our other son left to stay with his girlfriend for a while.

Lots of catching up last week around the house, with my writing, etc., but we always have time for our books! Here's what we've been reading this past week:

• I am still reading my second Big Book for my Big Book Summer Challenge: Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon (book 2 in the Outlander series). This 700+ page chunkster has been in my plans the past three years for Big Book Summer, so I am glad to finally be reading it. And it is just as compelling and engaging as Outlander was. It's quite different, since much of it takes place in 1744 Paris, rather than the Scottish Highlands, but Claire and Jamie are just as wonderful. Since I also recently finished watching season 1 of the TV show, they now feel like old friends. I am nearing the end now (well, it's all relative with such a long book!).
• On audio, I am listening to Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, a freebie from SYNC one summer. I thought that since my book reading is focused on Big Book Summer, and I haven't read a classic for my 2018 Classics Challenge in a few months, audio would be a great way to fit one in. I last read this novel in 9th grade and remember enjoying it. I am loving it this time around - I'd forgotten that Dickens had a good sense of humor! My neighbors probably thought I was crazy last week - walking around my neighborhood with my earbuds in, laughing out loud! I may have even snorted once or twice.
• My husband, Ken, is also reading his second Big Book of the summer and one of my all-time favorites, Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. This was one of my Big Book Summer reads a few years ago, and Ken gamely watched the movie adaptation with me, even though he found it pretty confusing. It's a complicated but engrossing book, with multiple interwoven stories that show how we are all connected across space and time. He didn't have much reading time last week, since he was away at a business conference.
• Our son, Jamie, 23, finished book 9, Winter's Heart, of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. He has now moved onto book 10, Crossroads of Twilight. It's Big Book Summer all year-round for him; he rarely reads a book with under 400 pages! 
• And our younger son Craig, 20, makes another rare appearance here: he normally doesn't like to read (I would claim he was swapped at birth but he looks just like me), but the restrictions post-concussion (no screens, no noise, no reading) left him with nothing to do. Like with his last concussion, he turned to the Harry Potter audio books, not only to ease his boredom but also to provide the comfort of favorite old stories and characters. I think he is still listening to The Goblet of Fire, but since he is feeling better and I see the old cassette player & tapes in his room here and not at school with him, I suspect he is back to his non-reading status! 

Last week's blog posts -

Movie Monday: Every Day - based on David Levithan's popular YA novel

TV Tuesday: For the People - a new legal drama from Shonda Rhimes

Teen/YA Review: They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera - a moving, original story

Saturday Snapshot: Family Road Trip Memories - Just a few highlights of our 15+ years of road trips - feeling nostalgic!

And speaking of road trips, one of my essays, The End of the Road, was published in the July/August issue of Your Teen magazine. You can read an online version here.

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? 

The 2018 Big Book Summer Reading Challenge is on, and there is still plenty of time to join! It's easy-going, like summer - you only need to read one book with 400 or more pages sometime between now and the end of summer (early September) to participate (though of course, you can read more Big Books, if you want to). It's great motivation to tackle some of the bigger books on your shelves or TBR that usually get overlooked. Check out the details at the link and join the fun!

Saturday Snapshot: Family Road Trip Memories

Saturday Snapshot is hosted by Melinda at West Metro Mommy Reads.

This week, one of my articles was published in Your Teen magazine's July/August issue: End of the Road, an essay about our family road trips. Here is the online version of it on their website.

I was already missing our family trips and feeling in desperate need of a vacation, so the publication of this essay has me going down memory lane (or memory highway)! With all our varied crises lately, we haven't had time for even a weekend trip or a vacation with just my husband and I. So, here are just a few of the highlights from our 15+ years of cross-country family road trips:

Our first road trip in 2000! 1 hr into a 10-day drive, our toddler yelled, "All done!"

Riding a camel at the Knoxville Zoo, 2001

Hiking in Bryce Canyon, 2002

Escalante Petrified Wood State Park, UT 2002

Mount Rushmore, 2003

Doyle's Falls - Shenandoah NP, 2004

Hiking at Petit Jean SP, Arkansas 2004

The Notch Trail - Badlands NP, South Dakota 2005

Happy travelers!

Digging for diamonds - Crater of Diamonds State Park, AR 2007

Canoe camping - Buffalo National River in AR - 2007

Carhenge - Nebraska 2008

Rocky Mountain National Park 2009

Bandolier National Monument - New Mexico 2010

Acadia National Park, Maine 2013

Our last family road trip - hiking in White Mountains, NH 2014

sigh...makes me want to hit the road!

Hope you are enjoying a wonderful weekend!

Teen/YA Review: They Both Die At the End

I've been hearing rave reviews of the teen/YA novel They Both Die At the End by Adam Silvera since its release last fall, so I was glad to have a chance to listen to it on audio last week. This warm, moving, original story lived up to all its hype.

In the near-future, people are informed by Death-Cast, calling between midnight and 3 am, that they will die that day. This has given rise to a whole new vernacular, with Deckers being those who've been informed, a Twitter-like social media site called CountDowners, and an app called Last Friend. At the start of this novel that takes place in a 24-hour period, both Mateo and Rufus get the call from Death-Cast. For various reasons, they are each separated from their friends and family and reach out on Last Friend, where they find each other (after some humorous mismatches on both parts). The two boys, both 18 or nearly so, meet up in the early morning hours and spend their last day together wandering around New York City together. Along the way, they have some necessary stops to make - at the hospital to visit Mateo's dad, for instance - but they both also want to make this last day count. Rufus has lived a pretty good life, though his past year has been filled with personal tragedy, but Mateo is a shy, introverted guy who feels like this is his last chance to really live - and Rufus is happy to help him. The two young men form a surprisingly strong connection in that day, for two people who started out as strangers.

I know this premise sounds incredibly depressing - and it is sad to witness two young lives cut short - but the story is also uplifting, moving, and sometimes even funny. Witnessing this close bond form between Mateo and Rufus in such a short time is heartwarming, as if they both find exactly what they need in the other. Their day together is a mix of tying up loose ends and saying good-bye with living for the moment and enjoying their last hours. Chapters alternate between their two viewpoints, but other perspectives are also woven into the story - some other Deckers informed that day and some people who will cross paths with Mateo and Rufus in unexpected ways. It was wonderful on audio, with different first-person narrators for the two boys helping to immerse you in the story. I came to love Rufus and Mateo and root for them to make the most of their last day in this compelling and wholly unique novel about life, love, and loss.

384 pages, HarperTeen
HarperAudio

Listen to a sample of the audio from the beginning of the novel, starting with Mateo's narration.

Purchase They Both Die At the End from an indie bookstore:


Or order They Both Die At the End from Book Depository, with free shipping worldwide.

TV Tuesday: For the People

One of the new shows that my husband and I enjoyed this spring was For the People, a new legal drama. I was particularly interested to see it since two Hollywood writers I follow, Liz Craft and Sarah Fain, had worked on the show's pilot (I enjoy their podcast Happier in Hollywood). Think of For the People as Grey's Anatomy for the legal profession (with good reason - it's another Shonda Rhimes show) - new lawyers learning how to do their jobs, facing off against each other, and hooking up together outside of court. We enjoyed season 1 and are looking forward to season 2.

The show takes place in the Southern District of New York Federal Court, apparently a big deal known as "The Mother Court." The cast is mostly broken up into two teams. Hope Davis stars as Jill Carlan, head of the Public Defenders' office, with her team of newbie lawyers including Jay, played by Wesam Keesh, and besties Allison and Sandra, played by Jasmine Savoy Brown and Britt Robertson, respectively. On the opposing side is Roger Gunn, played by Ben Shenkman, heading up the Prosecutor's office and overseeing new prosecuting attorneys, including the smart but arrogant Leonard, played by Rege-Jean Page; prickly and brilliant Kate Littejohn, played by Susannah Flood; and Allison's boyfriend Seth, played by Ben Rappaport. It sounds confusing with so many actors, but you quickly get to know them, just like the new raft of interns at the start of a Grey's Anatomy season. Vondis Curtis-Hall is excellent as Judge Byrne, and Rahvaunia also adds a spark as Court Clerk Theresa. Each episode focuses in on one case, from both the perspectives of the defense and the prosecution, plus new insights into the backgrounds and personal lives of the lawyers themselves.

We enjoyed the first season very much. We quickly got to know the characters and soon became invested in them. The acting and writing is all top-notch, and the cases themselves often touch on ripped-from-the-headlines issues, usually showing the shades of gray in what might seem like a straightforward case from the outside, like the kid being tried as a terrorist who basically got caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time by some bad people. The combination of the court cases and the personal lives of the lawyers and others involved in the legal system makes for some compelling TV, as it has in other legal dramas. We'll definitely be watching season 2.

There are 10 episodes in season 1 of For the People. All ten are still available for free On Demand if you subscribe to cable. Oddly, only episodes 1 and 7 - 10 are currently available for free on the ABC website (though you can unlock episode 6 with a cable subscription). You can watch episodes on Amazon streaming starting at $1.99 per episode or $14.99 for the whole season. I think the show might also be available on Hulu streaming (I'm not 100% sure since we don't get Hulu, but it looks like it).

Watch the Trailer:

Movie Monday: Every Day

For years, I have heard great things about David Levithan's YA novels, but I still haven't read one for myself. So, I was glad for the opportunity to see a movie adaptation of one of his recent books, Every Day. I enjoyed this unique but warm and sweet story.

To say that Every Day has an original plot is an understatement. Its main premise is that a young entity - nicknamed A for simplicity - has no body of its own but wakes up in a different teen body each morning, moving from one host body to another every 24 hours. On the first day that we are introduced to A, he wakes up in the body of Justin, played by Justice Smith, a wealthy star high school athlete who is dating a sweet girl named Rhiannon, played by Angourie Rice. Rhi notices that something is different about Justin on that day, but she likes it - he is kinder and more attentive, and the two of them enjoy a "perfect day" together. Except that the next day, Justin doesn't remember much about that day, while a new girl in school named Amy (who is A's next person to inhabit), seems weirdly attuned to Rhi. Each day, in his/her new body, A seeks out Rhi and eventually explains to her what is happening. Of course, she doesn't believe it at first (who would?), but after A comes to see her in the guise of several very different teens on consecutive days and shows Rhi how much he/she knows about her, Rhi finally believes. From then on, it becomes a very unusual kind of love story because the two of them did fall in love that very first day when A inhabited Justin's body, but how can this possibly end happily? Can they continue this way forever, with A in a different body each day?

It's a strange story, but I enjoyed the movie, just accepting its premise and going along for the ride. It's a sweet, if very unusual, love story, and the ending is satisfying, even though it obviously couldn't be a perfect happy ending for all. One minor thing bothered me a bit. Although the movie's creators did a good job of putting A into a diverse group of bodies each day of different races and genders, including a bit of gender fluidity and even one overweight teen, they were all mid- to upper-class kids who lived comfortable, often even pampered, lives with lovely homes, kind parents, and their own cars. Why didn't A ever wake up in the body of a homeless kid or a teen responsible for his younger siblings because his dad was in jail and his mom was an addict? I was a bit annoyed at the lack of diversity in terms of class and wealth. But, overall, that is a minor quibble. For the most part, this was a light, fun movie with plenty of warmth and even some insights about what's important in life and what life is all about. I enjoyed it. And now, I would really like to read the novel it was based on - and other Levithan novels as well - to see how that compares to the movie.

I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below - have you read the book? Seen the movie? Let me know what you thought.

Every Day is currently available for streaming on Amazon, starting at $4.99, or on DVD, as well as through other venues (but not on Netflix).



    

It's Monday 6/25! What Are You Reading?

Once again, it's been two weeks since my last Monday post, and those two weeks have been exhausting, stressful, and chaotic. I won't bore you with the long details, but here's a quick recap. Older son battled his recently worsened chronic illness symptoms to manage to go to a huge outdoor music festival with friends, where his phone was stolen and car keys were lost. Younger son was assaulted in Rome during his study abroad program - punched and kicked in the head - and suffered a concussion, so we had to bring him home early. We'll be seeing our concussion specialist (this is his 2nd) today, but he has already been improving a bit every day since he returned home Thursday night, so we are all relieved.

Yes, so we've been just a little distracted! However, when it feels like the world is falling apart around us, that's when our books are the most comforting and when we most need that lovely bit of escape from reality. My husband and I are enjoying the Big Book Summer Challenge, and we are all enjoying our books. Here's what we've been reading the past two weeks:

• I finished reading my latest review book, Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owen. I chose this one to both review and interview the author, and boy, did I choose well! I absolutely loved this novel set in the coastal marshes of North Carolina, about a young girl left to fend for herself after her family abandons her. There is also a murder mystery and some romance woven in. It's a very immersive novel, with the author bringing the unique coastal marsh environment to life. I can't wait to talk to the author later this week! The book comes out in August.
• After that, I got back down to business with my Big Book Summer Challenge and finally started reading Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon (book 2 in the Outlander series). This 700+ page chunkster has been in my plans the past three years for Big Book Summer, so I am glad to finally be reading it. And it is just as compelling and engaging as Outlander was. It's quite different, since much of it takes place in 1744 Paris, rather than the Scottish Highlands, but Claire and Jamie are just as wonderful. Since I also recently finished watching season 1 of the TV show, they now feel like old friends.
• On audio, I finished The Reason You're Alive by Matthew Quick. This was classic Quick, with a powerful story told by a unique narrator of the type that readers rarely hear from, combining emotional depth with laugh-out-loud moments. It's about a Vietnam vet who still struggles with PTSD and other effects of his time in war but loves his son (whom he has nothing in common with) and his young granddaughter. The narrator at first comes across as crass, outspoken, and offensive - and he is all of those things! - but the more you get to know him, the more you see the layers behind that initial impression. Just as mind-blowing as Quick's other novels, this is a must-read. Check out my review even if you don't think the description here sounds like what you'd normally read.
• I also listened to They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera, a unique YA novel that was warm and moving. It's set in a near-future world where a company called Death-Cast calls you after midnight to let you know you will die that day. Both Mateo and Rufus get the call early one morning and, since both are separated from their friends and family for various reasons, both reach out using the Last Friend app and find each other. The novel covers a single day - their last - that they spend together, building a surprisingly strong connection in a short time. I had heard good things about this novel, and it lived up to the hype.
• And, this morning, I just started listening to Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, a freebie from SYNC one summer. I thought that since my book reading is focused on Big Book Summer, and I haven't read a classic for my 2018 Classics Challenge in a few months, audio would be a great way to fit one in. I last read this novel in 9th grade. I am already enjoying it - I'd forgotten that Dickens had a good sense of humor!
• My husband, Ken, finished his first Big Book Summer read, Burn by Nevada Barr, a book I gave to him for Christmas. He and I love Barr's Anna Pigeon thrillers because they are all set in National Parks (which we love), starring a park ranger. I chose this one specifically because it is set in New Orleans, where we used to live (and still one of our favorite places in the world!), and he enjoyed it very much - said it had even more suspense than the others in the series.
• Now, Ken is reading his second Big Book of the summer and one of my all-time favorites, Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. This was one of my Big Book Summer reads a few years ago, and Ken gamely watched the movie adaptation with me, even though he found it pretty confusing. He was likewise a bit confused at the end of the first section of the novel, but I think, like me, he will love to see how it all comes together - the more you read of this novel, the more engrossing it becomes.
• Our son, Jamie, 23, is reading book 9, Winter's Heart, of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. He loves this series (and might even be onto book 10 by now). It's Big Book Summer all year-round for him; he rarely reads a book with under 400 pages! 
• And our younger son Craig, 20, makes a rare appearance here: he normally doesn't like to read (I would claim he was swapped at birth but he looks just like me), but the restrictions post-concussion (no screens, no noise, no reading) leave him with nothing to do. Like with his last concussion, he has turned to the Harry Potter audio books, not only to ease his boredom but also to provide the comfort of favorite old stories and characters. He listened to The Chamber of Secrets in Italy, The Prisoner of Azkaban when he got home, and is now listening to The Goblet of Fire - on cassette! When he saw the library had a very long wait for the digital downloads, he dug out our old books on tape and a cassette player (yes, we still have those).

Blog posts from the past two weeks - not a lot of time for writing lately!

Teen/YA Review: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey- a fast-paced YA post-apocalyptic novel that I loved - and my first Big Book of the summer!

Fiction Review: The Lightkeeper's Daughter by Jean E. Pendziwol - engaging story of two intertwined lives

Saturday Snapshot - Happy Father's Day! - memories of my dad

TV Tuesday: American Gothic - we all loved this fun, suspenseful show

Fiction Review: The Reason You're Alive by Matthew Quick - powerful, moving & funny!

Saturday Snapshot: Father's Day Hike - beautiful summer day

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? 

The 2018 Big Book Summer Reading Challenge is on, and there is still plenty of time to join! It's easy-going, like summer - you only need to read one book with 400 or more pages sometime between now and the end of summer (early September) to participate (though of course, you can read more Big Books, if you want to). It's great motivation to tackle some of the bigger books on your shelves or TBR that usually get overlooked. Check out the details at the link and join the fun!

Saturday Snapshot: Father's Day Hike

Saturday Snapshot is hosted by Melinda at West Metro Mommy Reads.

 So, this past week was chaotic, crazy, and stressful. Last Saturday, shortly after I posted my Snapshot post (sorry I didn't have time to visit other blogs), our son called from his study abroad program in Italy to tell us he'd been assaulted. Long story short, a few locals jumped him and his 5 classmates in Rome, walking home late at night, and our son got the worst of it - punched and kicked in the head. He went to the ER and got stitches, but he also had a concussion. He has a history of concussion and his symptoms were severe, so we were very, very concerned. His symptoms weren't improving much during the week, so we arranged to bring him home on Thursday. He is now back here, safe and sound and beginning to heal.

My husband and I did take some time out on Father's Day to get outside and enjoy a short hike - a welcome respite in a very stressful weekend:

The start of the path on a beautiful day!

Tunnel through the trees

Lots of GREEN!

Ferns

Hiking selfie

Bridge over the creek

Reflections in the pond

Duck family on the pond

Hope you are enjoying the weekend!