It hasn’t been the best of weeks around here, mainly because my beloved uncle is in the neuro ICU with a brain bleed caused by a fall and worsened by his underlying liver failure. We’d love your prayers.  So today let’s talk about books, because books make me happy. *** I read 21 books from June to September, which is about right as far as my pace goes, and half of those were audiobooks. Here, in a sentence or two, is what I thought of them. (I’m not going to summarize, but the links go to Goodreads.) The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway: Short and touching, I appreciated it even more once I found out the main…
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Hey look, mostly adult books last month! In Zanesville by Jo Ann Beard It’s about: A coming-of-age story told from the point of view of a nameless 14-year-old girl who considers herself a sidekick, flying under the radar. She’s got a well-meaning but drunk father, a burnt out mother, an annoying older sister, and a sweet younger brother. More importantly, she has a best friend named Felicia. Although there isn’t really a PLOT, tension does come when the relationship with Felicia is tested because of normal adolescent things – boys, popular girls taking an interest in one but not the other, and family stuff. I thought: It was completely up my alley and I had a really good feeling the whole time I…
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You guys, I was in a total reading slump in April. One nonfiction book on marriage and three children’s books, two of them audio. Sorry. I promise I picked it up in May (so far)! The Proper Care and Feeding of Marriage by Dr. Laura Schlessinger It’s about: The title kind of says it all, doesn’t it? But I just want to add, in case you don’t know who Dr. Laura is, that she is a trained family counselor with many years of experience who now has a radio show. Her fans are rabidly devoted and my husband is among them. I read this on his recommendation. I thought: I find that I agree very much with almost everything she says,…
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Click the titles below to see my review on Goodreads. Fire by Kristin Cashore It’s about: The story is set in the same realm as Graceling, yet it is in a separate kingdom and takes place beforehand. There is only one overlapping character and he is minor in this book. In this story “monsters” are animals or people who have a wildly attractive appearance, and in the case of humans, have a talent for mind reading. Fire is the last human monster, but she tries not to abuse her power. But as civil war seems imminent she is drawn into using it to uncover a plot against the king. There are secrets. And romance. And action, and stuff. I thought:…
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It appears that over half of the books I read most months are juvenile fantasy that I listen to on audio. That’s because I have an hour-long drive to and from work, so I go through them fast. But if you’re looking for literary fiction or classics, don’t worry! I’m working through all the books I own but haven’t read as well. Here’s what I read in February. Click the titles below for full reviews on Goodreads. Fablehaven book 5 by Brandon Mull It’s about: This was the last book in the series, so once again I’m not really going to get into it. I thought: The strength of this series continued through to the end, and I loved every minute…
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