July Reads

It's the middle of August and I'm only just sitting down (at 2 in the morning) to write my August reads post. It has been a hella busy month so far. The kids started school on Monday and the week before that was preparation for school and moving my mother to a new house etc etc etc. I am wide awake though so lets bust this post out while I can!

The Goose Girl (Shannon Hale)- Not wanting to give too much away about this I'll just say it's a fairy tale retelling about a young princess with the gift of animal speak. It was a beautiful story. My favorite retelling I've ever read. I found out after I'd read this that there are more books! It's a series! That is the best news I've had all year.

Ingo (Helen Dunmore)- Sapphy's father, a man notorious for his love of the ocean, mysteriously disappears off the coast of the family home. Sapphy begins to feel a pull to the ocean and when she notices her brother going missing for hours at a time she starts to realize she is not the only one. I wanted more mermaid stories in my life and this caught my eye. It was an interesting read. I gave it 3/5 stars on Goodreads. Good bones and a surprising ending but the character development and the relationships felt a little off for me personally. I might continue on with the series. I'm curious to see how it progresses.

Of Poseidon (Anna Banks)- Galen and Emma have an obvious connection from their very first meeting. Galen knows something about her that Emma hasn't realized yet and it's his mission to set her on the right path and protect her in the meantime. I thought this would be more lighthearted than it was. Be warned, it gets pretty heavy very early on. There were some good parts and not so good parts. The good- mermaids and mermaid lore, interesting plot idea, swoon worthy cover, great characters. The bad- very Twilight-ish romance and insta-love. It's a good fluffy read if you're looking for a fun beach book.

The House of Hades (Rick Riordan)- I keep saying the most recent Percy Jackson book is my favorite but this one is REALLY my favorite. I enjoyed it so much. The character growth is so great in these books. A pro of characters growing up in the books. The relationships get even stronger, the story gets more interesting and harrowing, there are really awesome new monster characters introduced/reintroduced and more adventure than you know what to do with. Love love love. Gush gush gush. Sad that the series is nearly over for us.

Serafina and the Black Cloak (Robert Beatty)- Set in the Biltmore estate, Serafina has lived her entire life hiding in the basement of the estate where her Pa works. But when children start vanishing in the night Serafina is the only person who knows who the terrifying culprit is- the main in the black cloak. She sets out to uncover the mans identity and save the children. This was a slow build for me but when it finally got to the adventurous parts it took off. It was wonderful and spooky and uplifting. Definitely a book that the kids would love. Something fun to reach for come October, maybe.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane (Neil Gaiman)- Adults are content to walk the same way, hundreds of times, or thousands; perhaps it never occurs to adults to step off the paths, to creep beneath rhododendrons, to find the spaces between fences. I finished this book weeks ago and I am still thinking about it and already wanting to read it again. It is beautifully nostalgic. It was short and scary and held such a feeling of childhood in its pages and when I finished I felt this sad heaviness in my chest because I knew something beautiful had ended. I will own this book and I will buy it for my friends and family. It was a very good book. 

A Monster Calls (Patrick Ness)- I don't want to say anything about the plot. I feel like the less you know the better it is. I implore you to read this before the movie comes out. I honestly don't think a movie will do the feelings of this book justice. I finished this book in one sitting. At 2 in the morning I turned the last page and read it and then I stayed up another hour thinking about it and sitting with it and crying over it and enjoying the fact that a book like this exists. The illustrations were stunning. The words on the pages took my breath away. I immediately purchased a copy of it. Read this book. 

Of Triton (Anna Banks)- In the interest of not giving away anything about the first book of this trilogy I won't mention the plot. I will say that the romance got a little better for me. Less overbearing. I enjoyed this book more than the first. Another very good fluffy read if you're looking for a fun mermaid story. Definitely read the first book first or you will be all sorts of lost.

And that's a wrap on July. So far August has one very good book finished and a handful of graphic novels done and dusted. I hope wherever you are you have a good book for company. Happy reading, friends.

May TBR

I've finally made my way through my giant stack of library books and I can jump into my recent book buys. Is anyone else like this? If you have library books you have to put your own books aside because of extreme anxiety about borrowing someone else's books and getting it back to them in a timely manner... it can't be just me. Anywho, I can't read my own books when I have library books. BUT THE PROBLEM IS I am always putting library books on hold because I hear of some great super cool new book that I want and I can't spend a ton of money on books all the time.... so my library stack is usually pretty big and usually added to like once a week at least. I had to put myself on a library ban. For real. I banned myself from checking out any more books. We still make weekly trips to the library for the kids so it.was.hard. I got through it and now I'm on the other side and I'm about to dive into my OWN books! Worth it in the end.

Getting into my May TBR- I made it a small stack so that I don't get overwhelmed so there will probably be more than this read but I like to underestimate myself so that later I can exceed my goal and be like way to go, April, you are so good at life and reading and book stuff.

Without further ado, the books I plan to read this month-

The Pigman (Paul Zindel)- This will be a reread for me. I remember really enjoying this book in high school so I'm hoping to still enjoy it. I found it at the used book store for 1 dollar and couldn't pass it up.

The Son of Neptune (Rick Riordan)- My ongoing read-out-loud book with the first born. I really enjoy this Heroes of Olympus series. I'm hoping we'll finish this up in the next couple of weeks.

Dorothy Must Die (Danielle Paige)- I've been scoping out local book shops and saw this at an adorable Beauty and the Beast library-esque place and just thought it looked and sounded cool. I love a good retelling.



The Maze Runner (James Dashner)- I've heard mixed things and I didn't know if I wanted to actually purchase this book but I found it in mint condition at a used book place and thought what the hell. I've actually just finished this one today and I really liked it.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (Benjamin Alire Saenz)- I have heard nothing but good things about this book and I couldn't wait to get to it. I might read this one next. I mean, just the cover is beautiful.

I have a few other recent purchases in mind to start this month (maybe start the Mortal Instruments series finally?) but we'll see how it goes. No pressure!

That's it for me today. Happy reading!

April Reads

April reads- the good, the bad, and the wtf.

The Witches (Roald Dahl)- This is not a fairytale- it is a story about REAL witches. Disgusting, terrible, detestable witches that disguise themselves as nice old ladies. So how do you know when it's a real witch and not just an ordinary old lady? I never read Roald Dahl before the past year and just.. what have I been doing with my life! I adored this book. It was everything I could have ever hoped for. Dahl, that sweet pickled gerkin, is obviously a masterful artist of tale weaving and this is just another example of that.

 The Baby Sitter's Club #1 Kristy's Great Idea (Ann M. Martin)- Kristy and her friends all have babysitting gigs around town and love taking care of kids. Then Kristy gets a (you guessed it!) great idea- start a baby sitter's club! Four qualified sitters, one place to reach them. It has been years upon years since I read any BSB. I love them. Sure, it's like 3rd grade level reading. Whatever. Don't judge me. Still as cute as ever.

The Last Hunt (Bruce Coville)- The conclusion to The Unicorn Chronicles, we find the center of Luster, a vast, magical tree called the Axis Mundi, pierced through and dying by the magic of Beloved, who has finally found a way to enter Luster and finish the slaughtering of the unicorns that she started so many hundreds of years ago. The series is over! Sob. This was a great middle-grade read. I had a few da fuq moments in the past 3 books. If you've read them you can probably guess what they were. The conclusion of the series left me with a little to be desired. I didn't feel that everything was answered when I closed the book. Some lingering doubts, some scowls over things that happened, etc. Still action packed though and it did all come around and reveal itself for the most part by the last page.

How To Be a Woman (Caitlin Moran)- Moran browses through titillating subjects of womanhood (what is so wrong with body hair?) and interjects her feminist wonderings with sordid and often hilarious stories from her own life. I read this for Our Shared Shelf, the Emma Watson Feminist book club. Overall I gave it 4 stars (although after pondering it a bit I felt like it was more of a 3 star book for me) and I did enjoy a vast amount of it but some of it fell flat. It's a very personal book full of very personal opinions so I don't really think that what I have to say about it matters much, to be honest. I will say that there was a fair amount of casual racism and the word tranny was used at least once and that all made me feel a bit squeamish. I felt like the book was touted as being a feminist manifesto but overall it was just a memoir with some opinions thrown in and honestly, the way she used the word tranny and retard made me feel like she is just another white lady feminist and she isn't expanding feminism to be for all ages and races and abilities and genders. So. Eh. I liked it. I just didn't like some parts of it and I did not consider it a feminist book despite it being basically about female issues and such. I DID like the chapter on abortions though. A lot.

The Horse and His Boy (C.S. Lewis)- A young boy named Shasta is on the run to Narnia and freedom with a talking horse named Bree, a young girl named Aravis and her talking horse Hwin. They discover the plan by the Calormen to invade Narnia's neighbor and ally, Archenland. They hurry forward to arrive before the Calormen army and warn the king of the oncoming invasion. So... wow the racism of this book. I know, I know. It was a different time, blah blah blah. But still! It's hard to swallow. It spoiled the entire story. It could have been such a lovely, simple, little fantasy tale but the intense racism thrown onto the Calormen characters was just too much.

The Magician's Nephew (C. S. Lewis)- Diggory and Polly are tricked by Diggory's Uncle Andrew into entering a Wood Between Worlds. A wood full of pools that can lead them to entirely new worlds... The first world they enter gives them far more than they bargained for and a whole lot of adventure. This book made up for the intense racism of the last one. It was beautiful. The perfect fairytale. Essentially this book is the origin story of Narnia and it was awesome to see how things from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe fit together into this story.

The Last Battle (C.S. Lewis)- The conclusion to the Chronicles of Narnia and Narnia itself. SPOILERS. SERIOUSLY. DON'T READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO HAVE YOUR LIFE RUINED. Okay. I was so excited to finish this series. The last book renewed my love for Narnia. I was pumped. Unfortunately it did not have that Narnia magic. It fell flat. I was so excited to see the old, beloved characters come back. Eustace! Jill! Diggory and Polly! The Pevensie children! But of course, it's not that easy is it? Because Susan has grown up and is more interested in 'lipstick, nylons and invitations'. In other words, she has become a woman and likes being a woman and being sexual. So after all that junk with Edmond and saving Edmond and forgiving him for betraying them FOR CANDY they can't put in some freaking effort with their sister if they really think she's that bad off? Of course there's also the ending which is just.. cult-tastic. Like, I know it's supposed to be a religious thing. I get that it's heaven and yadda yadda yay they get to go to heaven. But like.. they DIED. That's the end of the Narnia books? They died? The end? The story was not inclusive at all and it made me feel very iffy about it being a children's book because they are quite impressionable and there's obviously a lot of Jesus stuff in it but I guess most people know that by now so they can wait until their kids are better able to handle that sort of thing. Just so much of it seemed like very lazy, boring story telling. The characters, for the most part, are just spectators watching things happen around them and they are not an active part of it. Disappointing ending.

And that's all I've got for April! A total of 7 books and 2280 pages read for the month and 35 books of my goal of 60 and 11,238 pages for the year. I've already finished one book for May so it's looking pretty good so far! Happy reading.

List 10- Beginning Chapter Books

Reading is a passion of mine, if you didn't know, and passing down the love of reading to my children is one of my top goals as a mother. Over the past few months my 4 year old and I have started diving into the brand new world (for her) of chapter books! Here is my list of 10 GREAT beginning chapter books for you and your preschooler with one sentence on why it's great-

1. Amelia Bedelia (Peggy Parish)- Amelia Bedelia will follow all of your instructions exactly which leads to some pretty hilarious mix ups and shenanigans that will have your kid LOLing.

2. Dinosaurs Before Dark- Magic Tree House #1 (Mary Pope Osborne)- A magic treehouse transports 2 kids anywhere in history that they want to visit so your kid is sure to find a book with a topic they are interested in and learn some cool facts.

3. Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus (Barbara Park)- Junie B. Jones is a sassy little lady with a penchant for getting into trouble and making preschoolers giggle themselves silly.

4. The Mercy Watson series (Kate DiCamillo)- Full of piggy adventures, buttery toast, funny supporting characters and bright illustrations it is sure to be engaging and fun for any beginning chapter book enjoyer. (It is my daughter's personal favorite.)

5. Tales From Deckawoo Drive (Kate DiCamillo)- Following some supporting characters from the Mercy Watson series, these books are just as fun and and colorful as the piggy tales. 

 6. Beezua and Ramona (Beverly Cleary)- A witty, imaginative, joyfully engaging read that anyone with a sibling can relate to. 

7. Fantastic Mr. Fox (Roald Dahl)- Follow Mr. Fox on his clever adventure to outwit the farmers in this brief 96 pages and use your voice acting chops to play it up and make it extra fun.

8. The Princess in Black (Shannon and Dean Hale)- One of my personal favorites because it tosses aside the boring idea of what a princess should be and introduces a fun, kick ass princess that is gorgeously displayed in vivid colorful illustrations.

9. Emma and the Blue Genie (Cornelia Funke)- Another book full of colorful illustrations that depict an adventure between a girl and her dog and the genie she finds washed up on the beach.

 The BFG (Roald Dahl)- A hilariously ridonculous fantastical tale of a girl and the Big Friendly Giant that kids laugh out loud to and can't get enough of. (Bonus- read it now and watch the movie when it comes out!)

 

February Reads

Another month of good reading. The cold months are very good for that. Here's what I read in February...

I Feel Bad About My Neck And Other Thoughts On Being A Woman (Nora Ephron)- A collection of short chronicles on being a woman and the anxiety and maintenance of getting older. I'd heard a lot of her books mentioned recently and randomly saw this book at our local library while I was waiting on an audio book of hers to arrive. So I grabbed and thought it would be a fast, easy read, which it was. It was not entertaining for me however. Maybe I'm not at the right age. Maybe I'll appreciate it more when I'm older. I think it could be one of those things, you know? This time around it wasn't great. I did love the final chapter, where she talks a bit about death and knowing your own mortality and such, but the rest was a bit of a dud for me.

Heartburn (Nora Ephron)- Ephron relives the demise of her own marriage in a tale told from the perspective of Rachel, who at 7 months pregnant discovers that her husband is having an affair and is in love with another woman. This book was not bad. I have to preface with that. It was fine. It was funny in parts. Maybe Ephron is just not my jam because it wasn't side splitting to me the way it seemed to be to other people. We all have our things, right? I listened to the audio book of this, read by Meryl Streep, and I think that was a lot of the problem. Meryl Streep was phenomenal. Truly. She did a great job! It was just that it was a 179 page book and it was FIVE AND A HALF HOURS of audio. I could have finished it in under 2 hours and that's all I could think while listening to it. I think it would have more enjoyable for me if I'd read it rather than listened to it.

The Distant Hours (Kate Morton)- A mysterious story following 3 elderly sisters and the secrets they have kept for over 50 years. A young woman stumbles upon them while trying to unravel her own mother's past. Kate Morton, I think I love you. I read The Forgotten Garden a while back and loved it. This book has taken me months to plow through, not because of any fault of it's own but because I've been entranced with library orders and since I OWN this book it didn't have the same shiny appeal of library books with a very loud return date. HOWEVER, it was fantastic. It was a toss back and forth between the 1940's and the 90's, which I am always intrigued by, and had the makings of a delicious historical mystery thriller. A spooky old castle, secrets long hidden, an English country side, a dark and stormy night... I'm glad I own this one.

The Elite (Kiera Cass)- I blogged about reading The Selection in January and now I'll tell you all about how I felt reading the rest of the series, so spoiler warning in case you are reading these! The Selection has been narrowed down from 35 girls to 6. Amid growing threat from outside rebel forces, America has to decide where her heart lies. With Prince Maxon or with her first love? This was another fun, fluffy read. It's great for a quick reading escape if you like some marshmallow romance. Admittedly, the lack of character development for like 2 and a half books was throwing me off but I DID enjoy it. Because I know there are a lot of people reading it I don't want to give anything away!

The One (Kiera Cass)- The Selection is nearly over. One must be crowned. Again, I don't want to give anything away! This was my favorite of the series so far. I thought the plot thickened nicely. The emotions were a little over simplified and it had me cussing at imaginary people a few times but sometimes that happens with books, am I right? #booknerdlife

The Heir (Kiera Cass)- SPOILERS, TURN AWAY NOW Princess Eadlyn has grown up hearing about her parents' epic story of finding true love and happily ever after through The Selection but she isn't interested in finding a Prince Charming of her own. Fate intervenes and this princess is going to have to put on a brave face and make her way through her very own selection. But she has no plans to fall in love or end her Selection with a ring on her finger. It was a little meh to go from America's story to Eadlyn's because I liked America. I also wanted to hear all about how America and Maxon fixed the country and got rid of those pesky rebels but that is largely skipped over in this book. I know there are short stories and such so maybe I will search for those. I also found Eadlyn slightly insufferable through a lot of it but I think you're meant to? She had her endearing moments and I loved her brothers and their whole family dynamic.The end of this caught me completely by surprise!  

I do have to say that I love love love Kiera Cass as a person and want to be buddies with her and her acknowledgement sections were often my favorite parts of the entire book because she is SO CUTE. Those book covers are also SUPER swoon worthy. Love them. 

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Ransom Riggs)- A horrible tragedy sends 16 year old Jacob on a journey to the island his grandfather escaped to during WWII. There he plans to search for answers to all of the mystery surrounding his grandfather's early life but what he finds is more than shocking. Uncovering secrets older than he could imagine, he immerses himself in a world of peculiar children and dangerous enemies. I loooooved this book. It has been on my to read list for over a year and I randomly purchased it last weekend for funsies and I'm glad I did because I would have wanted to own it anyway. It's beautifully told and the old photographs that go along with the book are fantastic. My copy had an interview with the author and I think that made it even more fun and interesting. The story is haunting and equal parts sad and liberating. It is such a diverse and intricate world you step into. 
  

Insurgent (Veronica Roth)- Possible Spoilers The 2nd book in the Divergence series, Insurgent follows Tris in her escape after the attack on her old faction. War is blooming. Haunted by her grief and decisions, Tris must learn what being Divergent truly is and embrace it no matter the cost. I loved this book. It definitely has middle book syndrome. The story drags a little for a while. I see a lot of people complaining about the characters changing so much between the last book and this one but like... they kind of went through a lot, right? To me it made sense that they were different people and they didn't have the same characteristics we'd grown used to. You have to get used to the new dynamic but that's how life actually is, right? People change, especially under stress. Anyway. I really enjoyed it. Very excited to read the next one and FINALLY watch the movies. 

The Sense of an Ending (Julian Barnes)- Thinking he'd left his childhood friends behind, Tony is surprised when his closest friends return, one of them from the grave, after he is well past middle age. He is forced to reconsider his relationships and things he thought he'd understood all along as a mysterious new legacy is put before him. This was very compelling. So much of it was really rather scary. The big ideas and grand gestures and plans of youth replaced by essentially just letting life happen to you in later years. The philosophy aspect, which I'm sure is very interesting for some people, was pretty meh for me because I don't really care but the human parts were very raw and I felt like I was watching a wound closing and being opened again. I did not see the end coming at all.  

I'm about to head off on a walk to the library for more books. A heaping pile of books are waiting on hold for me there and I am a delighted lady. Happy reading!

January Reads

Hard to believe January is already done and over with and in the bag. The Winter months always seem to be good for my reading. All of that snuggling under blankets and trying to cuddle up and stay warm means more reading. Here's what we started our year off with-

The Mouse and the Motorcycle (Beverly Cleary)- Ralph the mouse lives in the knothole of a hotel room. When he makes friends with a little boy who comes to stay, the boy lets him borrow his toy motorcycle and makes little Ralph's dreams come true. Starting off strong with some Cleary. Always good for the soul. I had so much fun reading this book with the kids and they enjoyed it as well. One of those books that they begged for more than one chapter at a time. It was a quick read for us and such a sweet book to cuddle up to.

The Reapers are the Angels (Alden Bell)- Temple is a young girl wandering on her own in a fallen world where a plague of the dead haunts everyone. I picked up this book because I'd heard a few people talk it up. I wasn't hugely impressed. The writing style is lovely and the characters are really well developed and full but something was just missing for me. Maybe it was reading it so close to The Girl with All the Gifts that did it in for me because that book was so devastatingly good but although I enjoyed this book as a whole, it didn't ring any bells for me. It had some really interesting differences to other books in the zombie genre so I'd definitely recommend anyone interested in that genre to check it out. I enjoyed that in general the book had little to do with the zombies and more to do with what life for people living in a world like that would be like.

 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (J.K. Rowling)- The final chapter of the Harry Potter series. I hadn't read this book since it's release date however many years ago and I remember being disappointed with it. I think it was mostly that I was disappointed that the books were coming to a close or maybe 20 year old April was just too young to appreciate it. For whatever reason, I enjoyed it so much more this time around. And now that I've finished reading the entire series again (many of those books for the 5th or 6th time) I get to start it all over again with my kids which is actually kind of exciting.

The Last Olympian (Rick Riordan)- The campers of Camp Half-Blood have been preparing for a full year to battle against the newly risen Titan lord Kronos. Percy Jackson must face the unfolding of the long awaited prophecy as a battle for Western civilization plays out in the streets of New York City. Another last for us. The first born and I were so sad to be done and we sped through it much faster than usual, reading multiple chapters after school as well as before bed time. I think this book was definitely the best of them all and it was very fulfilling to see the character bloom and come into their own. We're reading The Lost Hero now, which still has some of our Olympus friends in it, which dulls the blow of goodbye a little bit.

Tuck Everlasting (Natalie Babbitt)- Winnie Foster stumbles upon the Tucks quite by accident while attempting to run away from her stuffy home. Once she learns their secret, events unfold that will tie the family to her forever, quite literally. I had never read this and was looking for an easy read. It's a charming book and I thoroughly enjoyed it. A very quick read if you're looking for one but definitely full of enough action and pretty words to keep you interested.

 

Autobiography of Red (Anne Carson)- A book in verse, Carson re-imagines the Greek myth of the red winged monster Geryon. It was wholly beautiful and heavy and tender. The writing style was perfectly unique and the story was gripping and heart breaking. I can't wait to read more by Anne Carson now that I've discovered her.

The Selection (Kiera Cass)- A selection of 35 young women is chosen from the country to attempt to win the heart of Prince Maxon. It's a chance to change their lives and take them out of the caste they were born into. I started this book not entirely sure what I'd think. I'd seen it on a few book lists and had some friends recommend it to me. I did enjoy it. It's definitely fluff reading but there's nothing wrong with some fluff in your life. It took me about half the book to really get into it but once I did I was hooked. I'd describe as being like Cinderella entering The Hunger Games. There's a little danger, a lot of pretty dresses, some love triangle action. A good read for when you don't want to ponder things too hard.

Divergent (Veronica Roth)- A dystopian world where the people are divided into factions dedicated to a specific virtue. Sixteen year old Beatrice must choose a faction to dedicate her life to on the appointed day. Can she choose what she feels is right for her or will she stay in the comfort of her family's faction? I don't know why I haven't read these before. It's right up my alley. I just kept forgetting about them, to be honest. I've even made myself stay away from the movies all this time because I prefer to read the books before I see the movie. I picked it up on a whim simply because I saw it at the library and was like why not and I'm hooked. Hooked I tell you. I stayed up way later than I should  have reading this book and I had to text my sister the next morning and bed her for the next book (knowing she owns them) so that I wouldn't have to wait on the library to mail it to us here in the boondocks. I'm sure most people have read this by now so I don't really have to talk it up but if you like dystopian YA, like The Hunger Games for instance, you'll probably like this. A lot. BRB, gotta go finish these books.


That's a wrap for the first month of 2016. I hope you're reading something good and staying warm. xx

December Reads

December has been a nice, cozy time for curling up with good books. I've enjoyed a lot of really really great books which is an awesome way to end the year.

The Family Under the Bridge (Natalie Savage Carlson)- This delightful Parisian tale follows hobo Armand as he finds, befriends and becomes 'grandfather' to a little family of 4 (and their 'dog that should be white') that he finds camped under his bridge one winter. This was one of our family books this month and it was a lovely, sweet little book to curl up to. It has illustrations for the younger crowd that still needs/wants pictures in their books and short enough chapters that you can read just a bit at a time. The french words were fun to pronounce and we got a giggle out of that.

When Santa Fell to Earth (Cornelia Funke)- When Nikolas Goodfellow's unreliable reindeer Twinklestar bolts and leaves him stranded in a small town, he must repair his caravan and hit the road before the big bad Goblynch and his Council of Yuleland finds him.Cornelia Funke penned a charming, curious new take on the tradition of Christmas and Santa. I enjoyed this so much. It's great for early readers and kids that still love picture books because it has illustrations throughout. The story is sweet and a perfect little Christmas/Winter family read.

Emma and the Blue Genie (Cornelia Funke)- Another by Ms Funke, this one follows Emma on a magical adventure as she finds and frees a blue genie and sets off with him and her noodle tailed dog to Karim the Genie's homeland to save his magic. Alice and I read this one and it's a GREAT choice for kids that are just starting out with chapter books. We actually listened to the audio book and followed along with the actual book because it has lovely full color illustrations on nearly every page and it was really engaging and fun. I liked hearing Funke read it herself. She has a very pleasing voice and accent.

The Night Circus (Erin Morgenstern)- With no notice the circus appears. Its doors only open from nightfall to dawn. Within the black and white adornments, 2 ancient illusionists have pitted their best students against each other. I feel like opinions with this book have been very divided. You love it or you hate it. I loved it. It is a slow burn kind of read. I started this about 2 months ago and it took me this long to finish it, mostly because I had a lot on my plate but also because it does start off rather slowly. But, it was enchanting to me. I was enthralled and by the middle of the book I had a hard time putting it down. The action winds down about 30ish pages from the end, though, and it got a little slow and boring for me after that. Overall very enjoyable though. I was excited that this was a NaNoWriMo book. That is really fascinating to me.

The Girl with All the Gifts (M.R. Carey)- I don't feel like I can properly give this book any sort of intro or description. I can't remember how I found this book, but I'm so glad I did. One of my favorite reads of the year. It was beautifully written, poignant, fast paced, heart wrenching and left me with an aching in my chest. I mean, Joss Whedon loved it so what would I expect other than awesomeness.

And that's it for 2015! I've loved this year for reading. I've discovered a lot about what I like and what I'm most interested in, which is mostly children's lit, and this year my kids and I have started reading chapter books together which has honestly been a dream come true. I'm excited for the next year of reading! 

October Reads

I had every intention of reading some scary books this month for Halloween but it just didn't work out that way. I do have a zombie book waiting for me at the library so I'll read something scary around Halloween. Counts? Counts.

Lets get to it. No scary stories but still a lot of reading was done!

 

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (J.K. Rowling)- Harry's 6th year at Hogwarts. Junk is getting real on the Voldemort front. This was my very first audio book of all time. I grabbed it because I'd heard such rave reviews and it certainly delivered. Jim Dale is phenomenal. I am now addicted to audio. I obviously loved the book because I love Harry Potter for life. I am about to pick up the 7th one and start on it to round out my year of reading HP all over again. 

Last Chance Out (Staci Rizner)- Set in the near future, a group of teenagers flee South Carolina and cross the east coast to New York in hopes of getting on one of the last space shuttles off of Earth. Smart, talking, thinking dinosaurs, created by the government in an attempt to stop WWIII, are ravaging the country and killing people. I read this at like 16 or 17 years old and I wanted to read it again because of memories. The author was a teen when she wrote it and she's from my state which is how I found out about her back in the day because she was on the local news. The description does not do it enough justice. It's much weirder than it even sounds. It's not awful but it's obviously written by a 15 year old. I would actually totally buy this and have it in our family library because it's so crazy and entertaining. If you like crappy Sci-Fi channel movies, this is your jam.

A Wind in the Door (Madeleine L'Engle)- All of the main characters from A Wrinkle in Time return for another adventure, this time with Meg and Calvin leading the way. I love this author, I love this family, I love these books. They are like comfort food. I crave them. There is never a time that isn't perfect for L'Engle. If you like deliciously wonderful thought filled sci-fi, this is YOUR jam.

The Titan's Curse (Rick Riordan)- The 3rd book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. This book finds our favorite demi-gods and satyr friend in another rough and tumble adventure, this time with Annabeth kidnapped and another war among the Gods looming over everyone's head and obvs the stubborn Gods aren't listening about a Titan threat. Obviously, Percy and friends much save the day! An Ollie and me read. We are steadily working our way through the series and we both enjoy it a lot. I'm happy to have found a fantasy series that my kid loves so much. This one was just as fun as the last 2 but with a little more heartbreak involved. so beware.

 The Dragonslayers (Bruce Coville)- Witches? Check. A fire breathing dragon? Check and check. A ragtag group of characters hellbent on slaying the dragon? Check. A heartwarming ending? Check! Bruce Coville must be in everyone's bookshelves, right? He's a standard little kid read. Ollie and I read this one together in a couple of nights and I loved getting back to some Coville. He's so fun. In fact we ordered Into the Land of Unicorns because I need some more Coville. Must read for kids.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (Mindy Kaling)- I love Mindy and I really wanted to love this book. I thought I would. It was another audio book selection and I thought I'd enjoy hearing her read her own stuff but it was pretty lackluster, I'm sad to say. This is a collection of essays it feels like and I agree with a Goodreads review I saw that said she hasn't lived enough life or done enough things to fill a book yet and so she was just kind of putting out weird opinions, like what sort of chest hair she prefers on a man, which would be fun but it felt jumbled and scattered to me. I really thought it would be quirky and endearing and it was fun in some parts and the last few chapters really drew me in, but mostly I was bored. Boo. I think if you are looking for some really light, fluffy reading, this could be great.

That's it for October! Happy reading.