Time to read Tuesday

   Tuesday. Again. Man those come fast!

   I've managed to stop and start the same 3 books over and over for about 2 months now. This is so unlike me. The ones I'm stop/starting are The Shadow of Night, A Dance with Dragons, and The Scorch Trials. So I just decided to give them a rest. I'm going to table them for now. So these are the two new books I am reading/will be reading.

The Giver by Lois Lowry

   This young adult book has been around for a long time. First published in 1993, I've been hearing about this book for quite some time. For some reason, I totally had the wrong impression of it. I thought it was some "Where the Red Fern Grows" type of book, and in reality, it's more like a "Insurgent" or even, on a very base level, "The Hunger Games."
   Dystopian literature has been on my radar for a couple years now. In this novel, Jonas lives in a perfect little world, where everyone is assigned everything in life, even down to their mother, father, and sibling. When he gets the news that he was chosen for a very special role, his whole life, and everything he knows about it is turned upside down.
   I'm not too far into this one yet. This is the one I'm listening to at work. But it's keeping my attention. And that's all I ask for in a book!

The Causal Vacancy by J.K. Rowling.

   Everyone who knows me knows that I am a Harry Potter freak. And I'm not ashamed. HP is my favorite series and I'm a huge Jo Rowling fan. So when we heard she was coming out with an adult fiction book, I knew I wanted to read it. I hope I can go into it without expectations. I know it's not going to be anything like HP, of course, but I love Jo Rowling for her writing style and how she can weave a story and suck you in. I'm hoping this novel does the same for me. I have it in my possession, but have yet to crack it open.

So, what have you all been reading? Anything that's so awesome that I should just drop everything and read it? I do so love books like that!

Time to Read Tuesday

**DISCLAIMER**   

Blogger is being a meanie poo-poo head and not publishing my scheduled posts. Hmph. So here's YESTERDAY'S, and I'll post today's MANUALLY later, I suppose.

   Well, since I'm still reading the same books I was last week (dude. Having a kid and having a hobby really sucks all my free time! Oh, and there's a few TV shows we watch, too), I decided to post about some children's books that we've been reading. Maylee just loves books and reading. She loves to know who writes and illustrates the books, too. If I don't tell her, she always asks, then nods her head like she's tucking that information away in her mind to use at a later date. Love that kid.

   So we'll start with picture books today. Here's some great books or series that she really enjoys. (And just for reference, she's a 4-year-old that's been in 2nd year preschool.) These are just fun before-bed books we like to read.

Should I Share My Ice Cream? by Mo Willems.

   The author Mo Willems is a big hit in our house right now. He writes really funny books and the illustrations are really fun and cool. This series is the Elephant & Piggie books. Elephant goes through all kinds of different emotions in deciding if he should share his ice cream with his best friend, Piggie. (The mom in me is glad of the sharing lesson, but NO!! Don't share an ice cream cone! Blech. Germs.)


 

The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog by Mo Willems.

   For the record, I don't like this series nearly as much as the Elephant and Piggie books. I think Pigeon has a bit of a bratty attitude that I don't really like. But the little scooty chick is super cute in these.

Just a Little Critter collection by Mercer Mayer

   I am so, so happy that my little one likes these classic books. I loved Little Critter growing up. He's so real (I mean, other than being some kind of animal) in his attitude and scenarios. And he's adorable.






   Well, that's all for now. I'd love to hear some of your kids' favorite books. Also, I'd really love to hear some favorite beginner chapter books. I think we're heading that way soon, in our household!

Time to Read Tuesday

  First off, I wanted to tell you a few things that have been going on in my library world. Just in case you don't know, or I have a new reader (Hi new reader!!), I am a librarian in a small/medium-sized library district. I work in the Technical Services department. When describing my job, my favorite thing to tell people is that "all new books come through MY hands first, in some capacity." Doesn't that just sound dreamy? Anyway, our library has an initiative on the ballot to open a new library in our county seat of Hillsboro!! The thought of us opening a new branch is very daunting and exciting. So, if you have any kind of library initiative in your area, please consider voting for it. It will create jobs, increase educational resources in the area, offer programs of all kinds, both fun and educational, and just be a good place to hang out!

   The other thing is that some of my co-workers and I have a book review blog, JCL Reads, that we contribute to. It's part of the "Missouri Book Challenge" and quite a few libraries participate. It's a fun thing to do, and it's also fun to "compete" with co-workers to see who reads the most. So it's a fun little site to check out. (Wow, that's a lot of "fun" in two sentences, huh?)

  I've been going through peaks and valleys in my reading. I get a good book and I voraciously read through it. Then I get a book that isn't as interesting, and I drag my way through it. Usually, even if a book doesn't have me on the edge of my seat, I still read through it pretty quickly, but I seem to be a bit draggy lately and not reading as much as usual. Anyway, I'll give a little overview of a couple hits and misses I've read lately. Let's start with the not-so-great and save the bests for last.

Misses: 

 A Feast for Crows by George R. R. Martin.
   4th book into the series. It took me FOREVER to finish this. Just not attention-grabbing. Almost none of the characters we know and love or hate. Too long. I almost never say that, but there just seemed to be so much extraneous stuff. I don't know, my bar was set pretty high with the first book in this series, and none of them since then have lived up to the first one. And Martin has a knack for doing things to his characters that really piss of readers. Not sure if that has a different effect on other readers, but for me, it just makes me want to stop reading. Though I probably won't - I'm much to invested, especially time-wise, in the series.

Smokin' Seventeen by Janet Evanovich.
   Another case of a series not living up to its previous books. I've had the feeling that this series, while very funny and quick, easy reads, are very much declining. There are most definitely still laugh-out-loud moments, the story lines are getting more stupid and as much as I hate to say it, the writing just isn't as good as it once was. Plus, I hate that she sacrifices quality and quantity just to churn these books out every year (and this case, 2 books in less that a half year). The print is ridiculously big and the margins are even more ridiculously sized. Little things, I know, but when you notice a beloved and fun series in decline, you notice more and more things that make you roll your eyes.

 Hits: 

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness.
   Man, this book was good! A nice, big book and so well-written. I've dubbed this a "smart" vampire and witch novel. Not hokey and full of history, intrigue, and smart characters. You can read my quick review here.

Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson.
   Jenny Lawson, better know as The Bloggess, is as irreverent and hilarious as they come. This memoir tells about her life growing up, her trials with debilitating depression and anxiety, and life as a wife and mother. If you want to laugh until you pee your pants one minute, and tear up because of sympathy with major struggles, this is the book you want to read. Warning: Not for the faint of heart. She's odd, cusses worst than a sailor, and refers to her lady parts more often that a two-cent whore.




   So, what have you been reading? What do you think of your local library? Are you a book hoarder, or not really interesting in reading at all? Or more likely, just can't seem to find the time? I'm oh-so-interested in your reading lives.

Oh, and because I feel like no post of mine is complete without a complimentary digiscrap page, I give to you my favorite page I created so far...ever.

Full-sized image and credits here

Until next time, friends,

Time to read Tuesday

OK, this is the scenario I'm in right now. I started listening to this book at work months ago (you all know how I like to listen to audio books while I'm at work). Now I'm far enough into it that I HAVE to finish, but the main character is really started to get on my freaking nerves!! Do you ever do that? I would probably stop reading it if I didn't have so much time invested in it already. And speaking of time, you all know it never takes me this long to read/listen to a book, so that kinda tells you that I've been reluctant to listen to it.

Anyway, even with that being said, I like the book alright. I mean, I'm reading it, aren't I? Plus, what I didn't mention is that it's the 2nd book in a 2-book series, so I can't NOT finish it. I have to know how the stories wrap up.

Just tell us what the book is already!!! (That's what I can hear you all yelling at me). Well, here 'tis.

Eona by Alison Goodman

I DO like IT because it has interesting Chinese folklore and I get to learn about a different culture, even if it is a fantasy-type story. Plus, it has a kick-ass female main character, which I always appreciate, even if I want to bean her over the head with her own swords quite often.

Also, just as an aside, on my Kindle right now I'm reading the classic novel Great Expectations by Dickens. I'm reading this because they made a mini-series that's going to be on Masterpiece Theater in April and I LOVE anything Masterpiece, so I wanna know the story. It's starting slow, but I hear it really is a good one. It's not a classic for nothing, you know.

Oh, and another aside, did you all notice how I just jumped back into blogging like nothing happened and I didn't just lose like a whole month? Yeah...we'll pretend that didn't happen.

Love to all,

Time to read Tuesday!

Yo yo Random readers! Today is Tuesday and that means:

Reading! Books! Words! Libraries! Illustrations! Love, love, love!!! You's alls know me and my books. If you're on my actual blog, and not just reading on an RSS feed, you'll see my Library thing widget there on the right. I keep track of every book I read. I started doing this almost 10 years ago. I like to look lovingly at this list and remember what I was doing, what was going on in my life, and even who I was when I was reading a certain book. You know how some people are transformed back to a memory when they hear a certain song? That's what happens to me when I see the title of a book I've read. 

So recently, like say the last 6 months, I haven't read as much as I "normally" would. I tell ya, having a 3 year-old, plus a hobby that I adore, really putting my reading time in a crunch. But when I get my hands on a book that I really love, it's still an all-consuming experience for me. Plus, I still listen to audio books while at work, so I get books read that way, as well. Anyway, guess what I got for Christmas?? If you guessed a Kindle, you would be RIGHT!! I know I blogged before about how I wasn't sure I wanted one, but I decided I DID want one, and Santa (read: my wonderful hubby) got me one! I've already read one book on it (a really long one), and I really like it. I love how light it is, and I can hold it any way and still be really comfy.

So, onward to what I've been reading. If you've read my blog at all, you know my reading style is all over the place. I love novels, fantasy, and young adult (and even some bigger children's) books. I just got done reading the final installment in the Inheritence series by Christopher Paolini, aptly titled Inheritence. Now, I started reading these books long before they got super popular. I picked Eragon up because the author is from the town my Mom and sisters lived in at the time, Bozeman, Montana. I thought it was a pretty cool link, so I picked it up and read it. Paolini was like 12 or some ridiculous age when he started writing these, and I was very impressed with the caliber of writing for such a young author. Some people would argue with that, but for someone of that age (hell, any age) to set up a whole fantastical world in such detail is talented. And that's that. Anyway, I was really looking forward to this last book to finish out the series. I wasn't disappointed. I won't write a review or anything, but just suffice it to say I was pleased with the way the series ended. I always hate the end of a long series, but I also can't wait to get to the final word.

I'm also *trying* to get through the most popular series of the year from last year, the Song of Ice and Fire (more popularly known as The Game of Thrones series). I got through books 1 and 2 with no problems. Book 3 I had to be really pushed by some online friends to finish. I was glad I finished it. Now I've been reading the 4th book for like 3 months. I just can't seem to get through it. I know I'll like it if I just buckle down and read it, but I just need to do it. Not sure why I'm dragging my feet so much. Hmmmm.

So this post has ended up being a book (ba-da-bah! I'll be here all week, folks!). I'll just say go read a book and be done with it. 

Go read a book. I'm done.