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Showing posts with label Monday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Monday. Show all posts

It's Monday, What Are You Reading?

Monday, April 23, 2012

Good morning, fellow Monday Morning Readers!  It's been a long time since I have been able to participate in a weekly meme of any kind, so welcome to Book Addict Reviews any fellow bloggers who have not been here before!  I'm glad to be back!

This week, I finished When She Woke by Hillary Jordan.  Amazing speculative fiction a la The Handmaid's Tale about a woman's place in society and reproductive choice.


I am also reading The Latte Rebellion, by Sarah Jamila Stevenson.  This young adult novel tells the story of a group of mixed race friends who start a website to sell t-shirts to people with latte-colored skin as a way to raise money for a summer vacation.  What starts as a joke about their shared experiences as people of mixed racial backgrounds becomes a social justice movement, leading to serious consequences for the girls when their school labels them terrorists.


I'm about to start My Name is Mary Sutter, a historical fiction novel about a woman fighting to be recognized for her medical skills in the mid-18th century.  I guess I must be on a feminist fiction kick right now, since the last few things I have read are falling in that theme.  Given the current state of political discourse about women in this country, I guess maybe that makes sense...



Finally, I am listening to The Grapes of Wrath on audiobook.  I'm glad that I decided to listen rather than read it, because I really feel like the narrator is doing a wonderful job with the character's voices and emotions.  It is the tale of the Joad family-chased off their land during the Depression by the landowners and their tractors, the family takes off west in a converted jalopy, hoping to find work and prosperity in the promised land of California.  Heartbreaking, infuriating, filled with moments of quiet grace, this American classic is a must read.


Have a wonderful reading week, everyone!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Sunday, September 12, 2010


Welcome to another Monday morning!  Since last Monday was Labor Day, I chose not to labor on my blog, so this is a review of my reading for the last couple of weeks.

Books I finished:








The Midwife's Tale, by Gretchen Moran Laskas
(Review coming soon!)






Next on my literary horizon:

The Chalk Circle Man, by Fred Vargas



When strange, blue chalk circles start appearing overnight on the pavements of Paris, the press take up the story with amusement and psychiatrists trot out their theories. Adamsberg is alone in thinking this is not a game and far from amusing. He insists on being kept informed of new circles and the increasingly bizarre objects which they contain: empty beer cans, four trombones, a pigeon’s foot, four cigarette lighters, a badge proclaiming “I Love Elvis,” a hat, a doll’s head. Adamsberg senses the cruelty that lies behind these seemingly random occurrences. Soon a circle with decidedly less banal contents is discovered: the body of a woman with her throat savagely cut. Adamsberg knows that other murders will follow.  (from Goodreads)


One Day, by David Nichols


Emma and Dexter meet for the first time on the night of their graduation. Tomorrow they must go their separate ways. So where will they be on this one day next year? And the year after that? And every year that follows? Twenty years, two people, ONE DAY. From the author of the massive bestseller STARTER FOR TEN.  (from Goodreads)


Bad Monkeys, by Matt Ruff

Jane Charlotte has been arrested for murder.
She says she's a member of a secret organization devoted to fighting evil. She says she's working with the Department for the Final Disposition of Irredeemable Persons—aka "Bad Monkeys."
Her confession lands her in the jail's psychiatric wing and earns her countless hours of poking, probing, and questioning by a professional. But is Jane crazy or lying?
Or is she playing a whole different game altogether? (from Goodreads)

Have a wonderful reading week, everyone!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Monday, August 30, 2010

Thanks to Sheila at Book Journey for hosting this Monday morning Meme.  It gives blogger a chance to review their reading for the previous week, and look ahead to all the literary goodness in store for the week ahead!

I realize now that I was fairly ambitious last week-I must have blocked the fact that I was going back to work from my mind completely!  Still, it was a pretty good reading week.


I finished reading and reviewing:










Seems like a lot of us had a Mockingjay sort of week.  I loved it, though I'm noticing that some people felt like it was a let-down.  I'm only sorry that the series is over!  As I was reading Mockingjay I tried to make myself slow down, knowing I would only read it for the first time once.  I may as well have been trying to stop a Mack truck with only the power of my mind!

Here's what's on tap for this week:

The Passion of Alice, by Stephanie Grant


It's 1984. Alice Forrester is a twenty-five-year-old anorexic who has just experienced heart failure when she is taken to the emergency room of Seaview Hospital, renowned for its eating disorders clinic. There, family and friends in league with staff and doctors intently try to steer her toward recovery. But it's not that simple. She passes time at the clinic waiting to find out what is wrong with her. What happened. When and how the damage was done. Along the way, Alice encounters a fascinating array of oddballs and misfits - Dr. Paul, the physician who clinically evaluates and monitors this disparate group of afflicted young women; various members of the psychiatric support staff whose treatment of anorexia revolves around a chillingly familiar twelve-step program; wraithlike, flaxen-haired Gwen, whose anorexia ultimately turns into tragedy; and finally Maeve, raucous, vulgar, tender, and kind, who shakes up Alice's life and opens her eyes. (from Goodreads)


Whisper to the Blood, Dana Stabenow


Inside Alaska’s biggest national park, around the town of Niniltna, a gold mining company has started buying up land. The residents of the Park are uneasy. “But gold is up to nine hundred dollars an ounce” is the refrain of Talia Macleod, the popular Alaskan skiing champ the company has hired to improve their relations with Alaskans and pave the way for the mine’s expansion. And she promises much-needed jobs to the locals.

But before she can make her way to every village in the area to present her case at town meetings and village breakfasts, there are two brutal murders, including that of a long-standing mine opponent. The investigation into those deaths falls to Trooper Jim Chopin and, as usual, he needs Kate to help him get to the heart of the matter.

Between those deaths and a series of attacks on snowmobilers up the Kanuyaq River, not to mention the still-open homicide of Park villain Louis Deem last year, part-time P.I. and newly elected chairman of the Niniltna Native Association Kate Shugak has her hands very much full. (from Goodreads)



The Battle of Jericho, by Sharon M. Draper


Sixteen-year-old Jericho is psyched when he and his cousin and best friend, Josh, are invited to pledge for the Warriors of Distinction, the oldest and most exclusive club in school. Just being a pledge wins him the attention of Arielle, one of the hottest girls in his class, whom he's been too shy even to talk to before now.
But as the secret initiation rites grow increasingly humiliating and force Jericho to make painful choices, he starts to question whether membership in the Warriors of Distinction is worth it. How far will he have to go to wear the cool black silk Warriors jacket? How high a price will he have to pay to belong? The answers are devastating beyond Jericho's imagination.(from Goodreads)



Shoot to Thrill, by PJ Tracy


t begins with a floater.
When Minneapolis homicide cops Rolseth and Magozzi are called to a derelict stretch of the Mississippi River, they see a bride, facedown, dead in the water. And when the Monkeewrench crew – computer geeks who made a fortune on games, now assisting the cops with special anticrime software – are invited by the FBI to investigate a series of murder videos posted to the Web, it’s not long before the group discovers the frightening link between the unlucky bride and the latest, most horrific use of the Internet yet. Using their skills to scour the Net to prevent more killings, the team must race against the clock…before it’s too late. (from Goodreads)



Have a great week everyone!


It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Monday, August 23, 2010

Welcome to another edition of It's Monday, What Are You Reading, hosted by Sheila at One Person's Journey.

For me, it's more like a "Where have you been for the last two weeks post?", since I somehow missed the boat last week.    School starts today, and while my blog may have been slightly neglected, my classroom looks wonderful :)

So, since my last Monday post, here's how things stack up:

Books read:















Deception, by John Kellerman (review coming soon!)



Reading has definitely slowed down in my world-darn that having to work thing, anyway!  So, what's up next?


Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins


I was informed that my copy is on it's way from Amazon!  I read the first two in late winter, and cursed my friends who recommended Hunger Games for not waiting a few months so I could just read all three at once!

Wild Ginger, by Anchee Min


The Red Guards have branded Wild Ginger's deceased father a traitor and eventually drive her mother to a gruesome suicide, but she fervently embraces Maoism to save her spirit. She rises quickly through the ranks and is held up as a national model for Maoism. Wild Ginger now has everything, even a young man who vies for her heart. But Mao's prohibition on romantic love places her in an untenable position. Into this sexually charged situation steps Maple, creating an uneasy triangle that Min has portrayed with keen psychological insight and her characteristic gift for lyrical eroticism.(from Goodreads)



The Passion of Alice, by Stephanie Grant


It's 1984. Alice Forrester is a twenty-five-year-old anorexic who has just experienced heart failure when she is taken to the emergency room of Seaview Hospital, renowned for its eating disorders clinic. There, family and friends in league with staff and doctors intently try to steer her toward recovery. But it's not that simple. She passes time at the clinic waiting to find out what is wrong with her. What happened. When and how the damage was done. (from Goodreads)

Whisper to the Blood, Dana Stabenow


Inside Alaska’s biggest national park, around the town of Niniltna, a gold mining company has started buying up land. The residents of the Park are uneasy. “But gold is up to nine hundred dollars an ounce” is the refrain of Talia Macleod, the popular Alaskan skiing champ the company has hired to improve their relations with Alaskans and pave the way for the mine’s expansion. And she promises much-needed jobs to the locals.

But before she can make her way to every village in the area to present her case at town meetings and village breakfasts, there are two brutal murders, including that of a long-standing mine opponent. The investigation into those deaths falls to Trooper Jim Chopin and, as usual, he needs Kate to help him get to the heart of the matter.

Between those deaths and a series of attacks on snowmobilers up the Kanuyaq River, not to mention the still-open homicide of Park villain Louis Deem last year, part-time P.I. and newly elected chairman of the Niniltna Native Association Kate Shugak has her hands very much full. (from Goodreads)


Patternmaster, by Octavia E. Butler

 
The combined mind--force of a telepathic race, patternist thoughts can destroy, heal, rule. For the strongest mind commands the entire pattern and all within. Now the son of the Patternmaster craves this ultimate power, He has murdered or enslaved every threat to his ambition----except one. In the wild, mutant--infested hills, a young apprentice must be hunted down and destroyed because he is the tyrant's equal....and the Pattermaster's other son. (from Goodreads)

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Monday, July 19, 2010

 Thanks to Sheila at One Person's Journey Through Books for hosting this weekly meme, letting book bloggers share what they've been reading.  I tell you, my reading has become so much more diverse since doing this whole book blogging thing!  Thanks to my fellow book bloggers for the inspiration and book ideas! (And no, you're not seeing double-if you read this post at Second Childhood Reviews, that's because it's same blogger, different blog, and I'm cheating this week!)

Another week gone, another week closer to going back to school.  Ah, well, at least I had a good reading week!



Children's/YA Books Completed This Week:




Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riordan
(Review coming soon on Second Childhood Reviews!)

Adult Fiction Completed This Week:




Wild Seed, by Octavia Butler
(Review coming soon)

Books I'm Hoping to Get to This Week:

Stargirl, by Jerry Spinelli (YA)
10 Things I Hate About Me, by Randa Abdel-Fattah (YA)
Mind of my Mind, by Octavia E. Butler

...and whatever else I decide to pick up off the shelf.  After a month of reading for class, I want to keep my options open!

Have a great week, everyone!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Monday, July 05, 2010

It has been all young adult, all the time in my house this week!  I am deep in the midst of reading books for a webquest assignment, a diversity in young adult literature presentation, a literature share, and book reviews. The books I've reviews on my new blog, Second Childhood Reviews, are listed below.  Come on over and check it out!  Here's how my week went:














The God Box, by Alex Sanchez (review coming soon!)



Right now I am starting a novel about a high school boy who falls for the new girl, only to find out she was born a bay, called Almost Perfect.  I also have some more Alex Sanchez books and some more Francesca Lia Block books to get to.  I'll be reading Kate DiCamillo's The Magician's Elephant, as well as The View of Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg, and Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan.  I may even get to an adult novel this week, of time permits.  I hope that everyone has a great reading week!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Monday, June 28, 2010

Happy Monday!  Last week was a good one for me for reading and blogging-got lots of things accomplished!

Books I finished last week-











 




Up this week-

Little Be-Bop, by Francesca Lia Block

Rainbow Boys, by Alex Sanchez

The God Box, by Alex Sanchez

Speak, by Laurie Halse Andersen

Luna, by Julie Ann Peters

The Perks of Being A Wallflower, by Stephen Chobsky

Most of the above books will be reviewed on my new blog, Second Childhood Reviews, which I started as a special site for the children's and young adult books I read.  Besides the book reviews, I'll try to have parent and teacher resources about the books as well.  Come check it out!

Happy reading this week!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Monday, June 14, 2010

Happy Monday Morning, faithful followers and fellow bloggers!  I hope that you all had a successful reading week...

...as I did not.  The start of summer break coincided with a language development class that is kicking my patootie, to put it politely.  I did manage to get two books completed this week.  The first, The Bodies Left Behind by Jeffery Deaver, is reviewed here.  The other, The Way Things Look to Me, by Roopa Farooki, I just finished last night-review to come soon.

There are so many things in my TBR pile that I am excited to get to, but I've started to feel a little guilty about the books that have been on my shelves for (literally) years that I still haven't read, so I went with one of those, a Karin Slaughter book I got from my mom about a year or so ago, called Undone.  What I really should do is rearrange my bookshelves-the oldest books are in the back behind all of the new ones I get.  That sounds like an excellent project for a rainy day like today...oh.wait...I have two more papers and a chapter to read before next week...stupid too-much-work-for-a-four-week-class class!  Ah well, my next class is Children's Literature-surely I'll get to read lots of great YA stuff for that class that can actually count towards my 100+ goal!  Have a great reading week everyone!
 
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