October '10 Recap

October was a great month for completing books in my house! Here's a look back at what I read and reviewed this past month ...

Books: 4 (2,145 pages)

1. Bluff Island Rescue Service, by Stephanie Hubbard (346 pages) - fascinating memoir about overcoming one's past
2. Garden Spells, by Sarah Addison Allen (290 pages) - light and fun comfort read
3. The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova (909 pages) - creepy, fascinating, and highly detailed story of the Dracula legend
4. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, by Steig Larrson (600 pages) - interesting but I'm not sure what is making everyone so madly in love with this book

Audiobooks: 8 (115.42 hours)

1. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson (2.5 hours) - surprisingly good and very short
2. The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde (8.75 hours) - surprisingly wordy but still interesting
3. Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins (11.6 hours) - much better than the first book in the series (The Hunger Games)
4. Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins (11.75 hours) - not as good as book 2 (Catching Fire) but a very fitting end to the trilogy
5. The People of Sparks, by Jeanne DuPrau (7.9 hours) - continues the story of The People of Ember but gets a bit heavy handed, though still enjoyable
6. Bleak House, by Charles Dickens (39.25 hours) - not as good as I remembered from high school but still a good read - I love all the complicated details!
7. The Gathering Storm, by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson (33 hours) - this was a re-read in preparation for the next book in the series, and I REALLY enjoyed listening to this book again
8. Rikki-Tikki Tavi, by Rudyard Kipling (.67 hours) - what a treat to revisit this beloved story with Kiddo!

Since my birthday just passed it's time for me to recap my reading year so I'm off to start totaling things up now.  I'll have a list of my best reads of the year for you later this week!

September '10 Recap

Here's a look at what went on around here in September ...

Books: 6 (1,704 pages)

1. American Widow, by Alissa Torres (224 pages - graphic memoir) - a unique way to look at a 9/11 widow's experiences
2. Kon-Tiki, by Thor Heyerdahl (304 pages - memoir) - I LOVED traveling with Thor across the Pacific on a raft
3. Outcasts United, by Warren St. John (336 - journalism ... maybe?) - fascinating look at a US town and how it deals with an enormous refugee population from around the world
4. Naked in Eden, by Robin Easton (264 pages - memoir) - although I appreciated her story of connecting with nature there were parts that were too "far out" for me
5. Smile, by Raina Telgemeier (224 pages - graphic memoir) - this is my very favorite graphic book ever!!!
6. Once A Warrior King, by David Donovan (352 pages) - a unique look at the Vietnam War from a soldier who lived with the Vietnamese - highly, HIGHLY recommended

Audiobooks: 3 (32.95 hours)

1. We Are Soldiers Still, by Harold Moore and Joseph Galloway (6.75 hours - memoir) - loved the beginning and the look it provided at the Vietnam War in retrospect, but didn't like the 2nd half 
2. Half of a Yellow Sun, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (19 hours - historical fiction) - beautifully written and heartbreaking, but I didn't love it
3. City of Ember, by Jeanne DuPrau (7.2 hours - YA dystopia) - listened to this with Kiddo and enjoyed it more for his sake than my own

I also listened to a lot of Bleak House this month but didn't finish it before the end of the month.


Kiddo's Updates

This month Kiddo shared (via video) the books he's been reading lately and also showed off his Michael Jackson dance moves.  He enjoyed our trip to Gettysburg and also getting to meet the J-crew at the Baltimore Book Festival.  In fact, Kiddo and the older J-boy are both reading Nathan Abercrombie Accidental Zombie: My Rotten Life right now and they are planning their own Skype book club to chat about it sometime soon.


Other Stuff

The Baltimore Book Festival has come and gone.  I had a great time hanging out with all the bloggers that weekend!   My two-part recap is here and here.

I'm participating in two read-a-longs right now, one for Bleak House at The Zen Leaf and one for The Historian at On The Ledge Readalongs.  There's still time to get involved with either one (though honestly I'd push The Historian at this point ...) if you are interested.

My book club venturied into unknown territory when we tried graphic memoirs this month.  It was a fantastic meeting, though one of the girls was a bit confused about what "graphic" means ...

Also, Dueling Monsters: Round 2 is underway now (for October) and we're reading The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and/or The Picture of Dorian Gray.  Both books are very short so you have plenty of time to join in if you want to read one (or both).

It's been a busy but good month around here ... hope your September was a success!

August '10 Recap

Can you believe that summer is basically over?  I mean, I KNOW I crammed a lot of "stuff" into the last few months but still, it really flew by.

Here's what I've accomplished this month in the reading arena:


Books: 5 (1,766 pages)

1. Steve and Me, by Terri Irwin (288 pages)- I loved this look at the Crocodile Hunter's life and passions.
2. Children of God, by Mary Doria Russell (436 pages) - I LOVED rereading this book.
3. The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind, by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer (290 pages) - This is an inspiring true-life story of using what you have to make a difference.
4. Linger, by Maggie Stiefvater -(368 pages) - I like the premise of the paranormal YA series but haven't really been captivated by the books.
5. Finny, by Justin Kramon (384 pages) - We read this for a book club meeting that included an author visit.

Audiobooks: 4 (50.5 hours)

1. Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee, by Dee Brown (14.3 hours) - This is currently in contention for my favorite, most meaningful book of this year.
2. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins (11.2 hours) - I wasn't as into this YA book as I'd hoped to be.
3. We Were Soldiers Once ... And Young, by Col. Harold Moore and Joseph Galloway (16 hours) - It was well worth listening to this story of a huge battle in Vietnam.
4. A Morbid Taste For Bones, by Ellis Peters (9 hours) - This mystery series from the 11th century was entertaining.

Mom and Son Book Club: 0 books

That sounds bad but in reality it is good.  Kiddo is reading more and more on his own now.  He still wants me to read books TO him but this past month we've all been to busy to sit down that long.  Now that he's back in school he's required to read 20 minutes per day and summarize in one sentence what he's read.  I'm hoping to get him reading some more challenging books soon.  

Also, we're going to try to use some of our free time this holiday weekend (Labor Day here in the US - everything is closed on Monday) to make book review videos together. Hopefully you'll see some of them up here within the next few weeks..



Other Stuff

I co-hosted a read-a-long of CHILDREN OF GOD with Florinda @ The 3 Rs.  It was great to revisit this powerful book and share it with other readers.

I've also been gearing up for the Baltimore Book Festival (Sept. 24-26).  This year I'm moderating two panels on 9/26.  At 1pm I've got a fantastic group of book bloggers who will introduce blogging to the Festival audience and at 3pm I've got another fantastic group, this time book clubbers, who will share tips on making your club the best it can be.  I'll be sharing more about who is on these panels and where you can find them within the next week.


Although things have been crazy, we've had a great summer at our house.  Hope you can say the same!

Monthly Recap: June & July '10

My oh my ... where HAS the summer gone?!  In just a few weeks Kiddo will head back to school and the weather will start to cool off, and then, before you know it, Christmas will be here.  AAAAAHHHHHH!

So ANYway ... My summer has been fantastic so far.  I told you a little about it a few weeks ago and I do hope to get another post up (at some point) but for now it's all I can do to keep my head above water ...

I didn't get a chance to tally up my reading numbers at the end of June since I was on vacation so here's double month recap for June and July.  I hope your summer reading has been successful!


Books: 10 (2,692 pages)

JUNE - 846 pages

1. Beatrice and Virgil, by Yann Martel (224 pages) - a very odd story
2. The Battle of the Labyrinth, by Rick Riordan (384 pages) - it was fun continuing this series
3. A Fox in the Dark, by Alison Green (31 pages) - an adorable children's book
4. Unsigned Hype, by Booker T. Mattison (207 pages) - way out of my normal reading range

JULY - 1,846 pages

1. The Eyes of Willie McGee, by Alex Heard (416 pages) - fascinating but troubling true story
2. Little Brother, by Cory Doctorow (416 pages) - a bit over-the-top for me
3. The Color Purple, by Alice Walker (304 pages) - beautiful and amazing and I loved it
4. Both Ways is the Only Way I Want It, by Maile Meloy (256 pages) - short story collection read for my book club
5. Crazy for the Storm, by Norman Ollstad (304 pages) - an amazing but true survival story
6. Beyond Smart, by Linda Morgan (150 pages) - some good info but not the book for me

Audiobooks: 12 (87.2 hours)

JUNE - 61.25 hours

1. Suite Scarlett, by Maureen Johnson  (9 hours) - fun YA story
2. Persuasion, by Jane Austen (8 hours) - very enjoyable, excellent narration
3. The Burning Land, by Bernard Cornwell (11.25) - exciting new installment to his Saxon series
4. Indian Heroes and Great Chiefs, by Charles Eastman (2.5 hours) - fascinating look at historical figures
5. The Wind in the Willows, by Franklin Grahame (5.25 hours) - rather disappointing ... 
6. The Basque History of the World, by Mark Kurlansky (12 hours) - would have been better if I were more interested in the topic
7. Misty of Chincoteague, by Marguerite Henry (3.25 hours) - revisting an old favorite with Kiddo
8. The Lost City of Z, by David Grann (10 hours) - creepy and fascinating true story

JULY - 25.95 hours

1. Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen (7.5 hours) - lots of fun
2. The Things They Carried, by Tim O'Brien (7.25 hours) - disturbing and powerful Vietnam stories
3. The World’s Greatest Short Stories, by various authors (8.7 hours) - dramatizations from Old Time Radio (review coming soon)
4. Blizzard: The Storm That Changed America, by Jim Murphy (2.5 hours) - fascinating and brief look into America history

Mom and Son Book Club: 3 books

• A Fox in the Dark – Kiddo and I did a video as part of our review
• The Battle of the Labyrinth - we're slowing coming to the end of the Percy Jackson series ...
• Misty of Chincoteague - I was shocked at how much Kiddo enjoyed this old favorite of mine

Other Stuff

I  co-hosted a read-a-long of The Color Purple in July.  I truly loved that book and was glad to have people to discuss it with.


My summer has been wonderful so far, both on the personal front and on the reading front.  How is summer treating you?

May '10 Recap

Reminder: I’m co-hosting a read-a-long of Alice Walker’s THE COLOR PURPLE in July. You’ll have a chance to sign up soon!


Books – 3 (538 pages)

• The Invention of Morel, by Adolfa Bioy Casares – 90 pages – very intriguing short story
• One Amazing Thing, by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni – 240 pages – somewhat disappointing
• Alone: Orphaned on the Ocean, by Richard Logan & Tere Duperrault Fassbender – 208 pages – fascinating story makes up for choppy writing

Audiobooks – 5 (37.4 hours)

• Remarkable Creatures, by Tracy Chevalier – 10.25 hours – my FAVORITE book of the year so far
• The Time In Between, by David Bergen – 8 hours – didn’t really like it
• The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, by Alexander McCall Smith – 8.25 hours – slower paced than the TV version
• The Invisible Man, by HG Wells – 6.2 hours – creepy and fascinating
• The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes, Volume 1, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – 4.7 hours – not one of Doyle’s best

Other Stats

• I attended MY first ever Book Expo America in New York City, followed by THE first ever Book Blogger Convention. It was an amazing experience and I recommend saving your pennies now so you can attend next year. You can read about my experiences and check out the photos here.
• I highlighted two special bloggers: One Day At A Time, and My Two Blessings.
• Lucky me, I got to meet author Laurie R. King at a local library.
• AND my sister had her third son on May 29 – yay!

My month was pretty amazing in the “general life” department and rather pathetic in the bookish department, but I guess you can't win ‘em all! How was YOUR May?

April '10 Recap

Here’s a quick look at what I’ve been doing around here this past month …


Books = 5 (1,869 pages)

• Venetia Kelly’s Traveling Show, by Frank Delany (448 pages) – meandering but enjoyable
• Old Man’s War, by John Scalzi (320 pages) – a lot of fun to read
• Between Friends, by Kristy Kiernan (336 pages) – another hit for this author
• Time Bandit, by Andy and Johnathan Hillstrand (240 page) – just like the show Deadliest Catch on Discovery Channel
• Stranger in a Strange Land, by Robert Heinlein (525 pages) – great story but got weird near the end

Audiobooks = 5 (38.6 hours)

• Three Cups of Tea, by Greg Mortensen (13.5 hours) – I wasn’t a fan
• Genesis, by Bernard Beckett (3.85 hours) – predictable but not all bad
• Teacher Man, by Frank McCourt (9 hours) – loved this one
• Star Trek, by Alan Dean Foster (8 hours) – just like the movie
• Candide, by Voltaire (4.25 hours) - satire. enough said.

DNF = 1

• Folly, by Laurie R. King – I’ve realized that I need to stick with her Mary Russell books; they are more my cup of tea.
  

Other Things

• If you are in the MD/DC/VA area (or somewhere nearby) and you haven’t added yourself to the local blogger list, please do that so we can all be in touch regarding upcoming bookish events.
• I wrote about the importance of organizing your affairs in case the worst happens.
• Kiddo and I saw DisneyNature’s Oceans – we told you about it here.
• I also shared about Sharing on Google Reader – are you doing it yet?

That was my month … how was yours?

March '10 Recap

Aah, the end of March ... that means Spring is ALMOST here! I had a pretty good month on the book front ...

Books - 5 (2,036 pages)

• The Wives of Henry Oades – sparked great conversation between Hubby and I
• The Help – was a great choice for book club
• The Sparrow – this is a MUST READ book for everyone – seriously!
• Silver: My Tale as Written by Me With a Goodly Amount of Murder – Long John Silver seen in a whole new way
• Black Hills – I’m very conflicted about this book …

Audio Books - 6 (56.1 hours)

• Kindred – highly, highly recommended
• Treasure Island – revisiting an old favorite
• Black Wave: A Family’s Adventure at Sea and the Disaster That Saved Them – an inspiring true story
• Crocodile on the Sandbank – a fun romp in Victorian era Egypt
• A Darker Place – fictional account of infiltrating a suspected cult
• Outliers: The Story of Success – absolutely FASCINATING look at what makes people succeed

Other Stuff

• THE SPARROW Read-A-Long ended this month and I’m thrilled with the result. From the comments on my review it seems we’ve convinced even more people to read this amazing book- YAY!
• I shared with you why THE POISONWOOD BIBLE is one of the few books I recommend everyone to read.  I should mention that THE SPARROW is the other book I continually recommend.
  
• If you are a LOST fan, I hope you’re following along with my episode recaps each week on the LOST Books Challenge blog. There are just a few episodes left until (as my husband says with heaps of sarcasm) "Don't tell me. They get FOUND." ~LOL~
• We got some GREAT news on Kiddo's health issues - lots of celebrating going on around here.

That was my month - how was yours?

February '10 Recap

February, oh February. Every month I say “maybe next month will be better” and every month it SO isn’t. This month … well, let’s just say it was crazier than ever and leave it at that. :) Regardless of the drama I was still able to read and listen to a reasonable amount, so YAY!


Books - 3 (1,107 pages)

• Ace of Cakes, by Duff & Willie Goldman – If you are a fan of the show Ace of Cakes on Food TV then you will love this book. I certainly did!
• Alias Grace, by Margaret Atwood – This is a beautifully written story that really makes you think. I loved it.
• The Titan’s Curse, by Rick Riordan – Finally a Mother & Son Book Club book!

Audio Books - 4 (55 hours)

• The Eye of the World, by Robert Jordan – Revisiting an old favorite.
• The Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemingway – My first Hemingway and I’m now in love with his writing.
• The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood – A creepy look at a possible future that I’m glad I read but didn’t really like that much.
• On The Road, by Jack Keruac – This one was a complete waste of time IMO.

DNF (Did Not Finish) - 1

• The Golden Ass, by Lucius “Africanus” Apulieus – I really want to try this one again with a different translation.

Other Stats

• I was absent from the blogosphere quite a bit of this month. First there was the Snowpocalypse, then Hubby ended up in the hospital with a staph infection (he’s home and doing MUCH better now), then my cousin was in from Georgia for a few days. I was getting overwhelmed so I stepped back from the computer for a while. Life is getting back to “normal” now … I think.
• The Really Old Classics Challenge that I was co-hosting ended this month. I'm hoping to have a recap of it soon.
  
• I’m co-hosting a read-a-long of THE SPARROW that is going until March 30. I’d love to have more people join in so please check out the details. This is a book that is well worth reading and discussing!
• And the best news of all is that I’m going to BEA/BBC in New York City in May and I am SO EXCITED!!! I’m still looking for a roommate or two so please let me know if you are interested.

That was my month - hope you had a great one!

January '10 Recap

Welcome to the end of the first month of 2010 ... and I can't believe I just said that. Here's what I was able to accomplish book-wise this month:


Books - 5 (1,827 pages)

• Volsungasaga - 120 pages - a rather unique ancient Norse epic
• Warbreaker - 592 pages - fantastic stand-alone fantasy novel
• Out of Africa and Out of Africa - 462 pages - beautifully written short stories about 1930s Africa
• Shanghai Girls - 336 pages - about the relationship between two sisters who escape China during WWII and settle in San Fransisco
• The Cruelest Miles - 317 pages - true story of the 1925 Serum Run dogsled relay in Alaska

Audio Books - 3 (32.25 hours)

• Half Broke Horses - 8 hours - a prequel of sorts to THE GLASS CASTLE, but not as good
• Isak Dinesen - 21.5 hours - biography of the interesting life of the famous author of OUT OF AFRICA
• The Pearl - 2.75 hours - I was not a fan of this Steinbeck story at all

Other Stats

• Kiddo turned 8 this month and he was also featured in our local newspaper in a story about playing ice hockey despite health problems.
• I celebrated my 2nd blogiversary this month and also posted goals for the upcoming year.
• My dare-ees are progressing nicely on their reading and movie watching ... at least, those who are still up for the dare are!
• Kiddo and I haven't been reading much this month at all ... maybe a chapter or two of THE TITAN'S CURSE, but that's about it. Between family health issues, school, hockey, birthdays, and snow, our schedule has been go go go all month. Hopefully February will allow me more time to schedule in some reading together.
• Oh, and I finally took my Christmas decorations down on January 23. Sad that it took me so long, isn't it? It was getting rather embarrassing ...

That's all I've got for this month. Hope your January was a good one. :)

December '09 Recap

Aah, the end of another year ... how the time does fly. It will be REALLY hard trying to write 2010 rather than 2009 (and dare I admit that I actually wrote 2007 on a check the other day?!)

I recapped my reading year back in November when I celebrated my birthday so you won't see any huge year-end recaps here this month. Instead I've got my regular monthly recap ... and I must say, I'm rather pleased with it this month.


Books - 8 (2,025 pages)

• The Better to Hold You by Alisa Sheckley- 305 pages -typical werewolf book, but fun
  
• Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater - 400 pages - interesting new take on werewolves
  
• Cleopatra's Daughter by Michelle Moran - 228 pages - great book
  
• Medea by Euripides - 20 pages - a bit disappointing
  
• A Christmas Carol: Special Edition by Charles Dickens - 124 pages - love this one!
  
• The Language of Bees by Laurie R. King - 432 pages - not my favorite Mary Russell but still good
  
• The Little Stranger by Sarah Water - 463 pages - really enjoyed it, has similarities to The Turn of the Screw
  
• Bill Bryson's African Diary - 53 pages - quick and interesting
  

Audio Books - 1 (15 hours)

• Affinity by Sarah Waters - 15 hours - VERY atmospheric, a great gothic novel
  
  

Other Stats

• Kiddo & I did a Mom & Son Book Club post about A Christmas Carol. Now we're back to reading The Titan's Curse, book 3 in the Percy Jackson series; we'd put it aside for Christmas but now we're ready to continue.
  
• I wrote about two book & movie combinations: Moll Flanders and Julie & Julia.
  
• My TBR list gained 5 titles this month and Kiddo's gained 1. (But that isn't really an accurate statistic. I count books as added to the TBR only after I post about them on Friday Finds ... and considering that I have 10 more books to post about, well, you see what I mean.)
  
• I'm currently listening to an audio of Isak Dineson's biography; she's the author of Out of Africa. I've got the movie (which I LOVE) and the book checked out from the library and I'm only waiting to finish the biography before diving into both of them.
• I've got a great reading plan for 2010 and I'm really hoping to stick to it. I've left myself plenty of room for flexibility (I hope!) so I'm optimistic that I'll meet my goals for the year. At least, I'm keeping my fingers crossed....
  

2009 is almost gone, 2010 is just about here ... wow, that was certainly fast. I wish all of you a wonderful time celebrating tonight, and a safe and happy 2010!

November '09 Recap

I hope you all had a lovely November! Mine was packed, hence the reason I'm finally getting around to my recap this far into December. I began my new blogging year when I celebrated my birthday early in the month and let me tell you - it feels GREAT. I've rethought my reading goals for the coming year and plan to focus more on things I WANT to read rather than things I SHOULD read ... just wait until you see how much fun I'm having with my reading in December!

But back to November, here's what I read ... and I'm pretty proud of it:


Books - 9 (2,603 pages)

• The Gathering Storm - 783 pages - I am still super excited about this book
  
• The Sea of Monsters - 279 pages - the continuing adventures of Percy Jackson
  
• The Woodstock Storybook - 154 pages- a quick glimpse at an amazing event
  
• The Wet Nurse's Tale - 272 pages - great heroine in this unusual story
• Alex & Me - 226 pages - enjoyable and educational
• Ivy & Bean: Doomed to Dance - 136 pages - hilarious kids book
• The Saint and the Fasting Girl - 330 pages - unexpectedly captivating and quite good
• TIME Greatest Discoveries - 121 pages - high-level overview of some amazing discoveries
• My Life in France- 302 pages - surprisingly sweet story of life, love, and food
  

Audio Books - 2 (13 hours)

• The Hot Zone - 11 hours - really good and horrifying true story
• The Best Christmas Pageant Ever - 2 hours - laugh-out-loud funny with a great moral
  
  

Other Stats

• Two books for Mom & Son Book Club this month! YAY! We finished reading Sea of Monsters and listened to The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. Plus I also read the Ivy & Bean book to Kiddo, even though we didn't do an official book club post about it.
  
• My TBR list gained 6 titles this month and Kiddo's gained 3.

Phew! Now that's done, I can focus on December - woohoo!

October '09 Recap

October was a great month for me. Kiddo continues to recover from his surgery and he's back to playing ice hockey three times a week - YAY! I cohosted the Dueling Monsters Read-A-Long with Fizzy Thoughts and we both had a blast with it. I went to a blogger awards ceremony for Maryland bloggers. And best of all, I got to participate in a book tour for a series of books I've been reading since the 1990s; you can check it out here and I'll be updating my blog with even more pictures as soon as I can.

This was a decent month for reading as well ...

Books - 7 (1,765 pages)

• A Thread of Grace (426 pages) - EXCELLENT book set in Italy during WWII
  
• In The Arms Of Immortals (291 pages) - it had promise ... but I didn't like it
  
• How To Raise A Modern Day Joseph (220 pages) - very practical Christian parenting advice
  
• Coventry (157 pages) - fantastic WWII story that my Gram also loved
  
• Frankenstein (256 pages) - I was rather disappointed in this one
  
• The Blessings of a Skinned Knee (258 page) - more practical parenting advice
  
• Two Histories of England (157 pages) - a fun look at history from a new perspective
  
  

Audio Books - 1 (32 hours)

• Knife of Dreams (32 hours) - I've already read this book and listened to it previously but I still enjoyed it this time around
  
  

Other Reviews - 2

• Sunnyside Blues - my friend Nancy guest-reviewed this for me
• The Transformation Study Bible - I didn't read all of this but I did spotlight it here this month
  
  

Other Stats

• No Mom & Son Book Club this month. :(
• My TBR list gained 9 titles this month and Kiddo's gained 1.
  

My birthday is coming up in just a few days and that means it is almost time for my annual blogging recap! I'm busily counting up totals - pages read, books added to my TBR list, challenges completed, etc. - so I can share them all with you later this week. I can't believe how fast this year as flown by ...

Septemeber '09 Recap

Ah, September ... it was a month of absolute craziness at my house. I prepared for and ran a panel about book clubs at the Baltimore Book Festival, spent a short weekend at the beach, and Kiddo had his feeding tube put in. On top of all that, my Gram and Grandpa couldn't go back home to Florida in September as scheduled because Gram was diagnosed with cancer and needs to be treated asap. Needless to say, all those things combined did not make for a good reading month. Honestly I'm surprised I did as well as I did!


Books - 4 (1,024 pages)

• The Unlikely Disciple (324 pages) - this will generate some great discussion at book club this month
  
• Till We Have Faces (324 pages) - this book reminded me of why I don't like CS Lewis
  
• Emmanuel Kolini: Unlikely Archbishop of Rwanda (228 pages) - very interesting subject matter but not the best book
  
• Cranford (148 pages) - what a wonderfully unexpected find this book was!
  

Audio Books - 2 (25 hours)

• Ines Of My Soul (12.5 hours) - a very rich and detailed historical novel
  
• The Odyssey (12.5 hours) - I enjoyed this ancient classic very much

Mom & Son Book Club

• We're working on Sea of Monsters, book 2 of the Percy Jackson series. We got off of our one-chapter-a-night schedule but hopefully we'll be able to finish within the next few weeks. Kiddo's cousin sent him books 3, 4, and 5 as a get well gift so we won't have to wait for them at the library anymore - yay!
  

DNF - 1

• I gave up on My Antonia this month. I didn't like it in high school and I still don't like it today.
  

Other Stats

• I finally caved and joined Twitter this month. If you're on there too you can find me @Age30Books. Let's tweet! (Kiddo loves the concept of "tweeting"!)
  
• My TBR list gained 13 titles this month.
  

Kiddo continues to recover from his surgery and adjust to life with a feeding tube. And yesterday his doctor said he could start adding foods back in slowly, starting with potatoes ... so he got his Burger King french fries yesterday - woohoo!

August '09 Recap

The end of August ... *sigh* ... means the end of summer. :( I had big plans for this summer but few of them came to be. Ah well, we still had a great and safe time, and that's really all I can ask.

Below are my measly stats for this month. Ok, so my audio book total isn't that measly, but my "real" book total certainly is! As always, the links take you to my reviews.


Books - 3 (953 pages)

• Golden Boy (337 pages) - a memoir of growing up in 1950s Hong Kong - I loved this book
  
• Old World Daughter, New World Mother (224 pages) - reconciling feminism and family - well written and interesting
  
• The Lightning Thief (392 pages) - for online book club and Mom & Son book club - read aloud to Kiddo who really loved it
  

Audio Books - 6 (83.25 hours)

• The Iliad (16.75 hours) - the epic Greek poem by Homer - this classic was the perfect kind to experience as an audio book
• A Study in Scarlet (4.5 hours) - the first Sherlock Holmes story - I liked it but not as much as other Holmes adventures
• The Voyage of the Narwhal (13.25 hours) - a fictional 1850s polar expedition - a bit slow but the ending made it worthwhile
• Jane Eyre (18 hours) - the classic tale - still loved it after all these years
• Agincourt (16.25 hours) - a novel of the historic battle - I didn't really like this one
  
• Beside A Burning Sea (14.5 hours) - a fictional tale of a shipwreck during WWII - somewhat predictable but still very enjoyable
  

Mom & Son Book Club

• As I mentioned above, we read The Lightning Thief this month. You can check out our joint review here - it includes a video of Kiddo. :)
  
  

Other Stats

• I wrote about some of my favorite books from the preblogging days as part of the weekly meme "My Favorite Reads". This month I shared books by Fantasy author Melanie Rawn.
  
• I picked up an audio book of some Sherlock Holmes stories but gave up on it once I realized it was a radio dramatization - NOT what I was looking for at all.
  
• My TBR list gained 12 titles this month and I added 3 to Kiddo's list.
  

Now Kiddo is back to school, we are getting into our "normal" routine, and our fall schedule is heating up. Let's see how this affects my reading time!

July '09 Recap

This was a great month for reading/listening for me, much better than the last few months. Here's a recap of my July ... as always, links take you to my reviews.


Books - 7 (2,842 pages)

• The Triumph of Deborah (355 pages) - a retelling of the Biblical story of Deborah - quite good
  
• Castle Rackrent (176 pages) - for the 1% Well Read Challenge - not so great
  
• The Local News (368 pages) - for a blog tour - I have mixed feelings on this one
  
• The Art of Racing in the Rain (336 pages) - for book club - not bad, but didn't live up to the hype for me
  
• Don't Call Me A Crook! (255 pages) - from publicist - quite different and interesting
  
• Gone With the Wind (1,048 pages) - for online book club - FABULOUS! - review coming soon
  
• The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (304 pages) - for book club and online book tour - I LOVED this book! - author interview coming soon
  

Audio Books - 4 (52.25 hours)

• Moll Flanders (12.5 hours) - for the 1% Well Read Challenge - this classic was lots of fun!
  
• Tides of War (17.75 hours) - epic set in ancient Greece - not a big fan of this one
  
• The Survivors Club (11.5 hours) - why some people survive disasters - quite interesting
  
• The Horse Boy (10.5 hours) - a family's unique response to autism - fascinating
  

Mom & Son Book Club

• Um ... no progress here. BUT Kiddo's tutor has been helping a great deal this summer and I think he'll be ready for 2nd grade by the end of the month.
  
  

Other Stats

• I wrote about some of my favorite books from the preblogging days as part of the weekly meme "My Favorite Reads". This month I talked about The Mists of Avalon, Treasure Island, and Sarum.
  
  
• I listened to a few hours of Jules Verne's 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA but I gave up on it after a while. I've realized that for me, Verne's books are meant to be read not listened to. I'll definitely pick up a "real" copy of this one at some point.
  
  
• My TBR list gained 19 titles this month.
  

Hope you all are having a wonderful summer!

June '09 Recap

This first month of summer was a killer for me as far as reading goes. I only completed a small number of books (although I've got a few others almost finished) and really don't feel all that accomplished at the moment. But I DID have a great vacation and I AM enjoying the warm weather, so those are good things.

Here's a recap of my June ...

Books - 3 (992 pages)

• A Sense of the Mysterious (224 pages) - fascinating collection of essays on science and personal creativity
  
• Belong to Me (390 pages) - had some great characters but I didn't love it
  
• The Last Queen (378 pages) - LOVED this book
  
• I'm also steadily working on Gone With the Wind but since it has over 800 pages I won't be finished for a while (and I'm not including those pages in this month's count as the book isn't finished yet).
  

Audio Books - 2 (27.5 hours)

• Wuthering Heights (11.25 hours) - this is an all-time favorite of mine and I tremendously enjoyed revisiting it
  
• The Egyptologist (16.25 hours) - an odd book but I enjoyed it
  
• I'm also working on both Moll Flanders and Tides of War ... just a few cassettes to go in each book.
  

Mom & Son Book Club -

• We didn't read together at all this month but Kiddo did read some of a Star Wars book on his own while we were in Disney - that's a big deal for him!
  

Other Stats

I gave up on several books this month:

• Red Rain - the story couldn't keep me interested
• Journey to the Center of the Earth - the audio book narrator was horrendous
• The Secret Doorway - I did read the most important parts though

I added 6 books and a movie to my TBR list, had lunch with a fabulous blogging buddy and wrote a post commemorating D-Day. And of course I visited Disney World for about a week - ah, heaven!

How did June treat all of you?

May '09 Recap

Can you believe that we are already almost halfway through 2009?! Good grief!

My reading was a bit off this month due to all the stuff going on with Kiddo (see below) as well as the death of Hubby's aunt. There were many days when I couldn't even pick up a book because I knew there was no way I could concentrate on it.

Despite all that I'm still pleased with the bit of progress I did make this month. Here's what I read:


Books - 4 (1,480 pages)

• The Lost Men (384 pages) - great book - read because I really wanted to, AND it counts for the Read Your Own Books challenge and the Non-Fiction Five challenge
  
  
• Evelina (512 pages) - for the 1% Well Read Challenge
  
  
• Little Bee (266 pages) - for my book club
  
  
• The Secret Keeper (318 pages) - for a book blog tour - and here's a link to a thought-provoking guest post by the author
  
  

Audio Books - 5 (46.2 hours)

• The Island at the Center of the World (15 hours) - very interesting - counts for Non-Fiction Five Challenge
  
  
• The Willoughbys (2.9 hours) - because it looked fun
  
  
• Number the Stars (2.75 hours) - because it was immediately available through my online library
  
  
• Gates of Fire (18 hours) - on the recommendation of another blogger
  
  
• Mr. Pip (7.5 hours) - on the recommendation of several bloggers
  

Mom & Son Book Club - 2 books

• We didn't do a traditional Mom & Son Book Club this month but we did read together. Our two books, which we read repeatedly, were George and the Dragon and Puff the Magic Dragon.
  
  
• And speaking of Kiddo, thank you again for all your comments and prayers for Kiddo this past month. He's doing really well for now. He's drinking enough of the high calorie/protein drink to please the doctors and avoid the feeding tube - yea! He gets a break from tests until the end of the summer. At that point they'll reexamine him and determine if more foods need to be removed from his diet or if we can start adding things back in. I'll keep you posted on any news.
  

Other Stats

• I gave up on one book this month: Going Postal (audio book). I'd like to try this again another time though, but not on audio I think.
  
  
• My TBR list gained 19 titles this month. Ugh. How am I ever going to read all those books?!
  
  
• Favorite books: This month I really enjoyed every book I read. Both LITTLE BEE and THE LOST MEN were fabulous reads, for very different reasons. THE SECRET KEEPER was great too. EVELINA was lots of fun to read. The audio books were all enjoyable, again for different reasons. Now that I think about it, this is the first month this year where I haven't had a book that I really disliked!
  

How was YOUR month?

April '09 Summary

Well, I didn't do as well as I hoped this month but I still did pretty good!


Books 3 - (1,052 pages)

• Locked Rooms (402 pages) - for my Month of Joyful Reading
  
  
• The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (340 pages) - for my book club
  
  
• Receive Me Falling (266 pages) - from the author
  
  
• Plus I quit a book after 44 pages (Fiction) and started another which I'm enjoying immensely (The Lost Men).
  
  

Audio Books - (19.3 hours)

All the audio books were "just because" books that I've had on my TBR list.

• The Time Machine (3.8 hours) - found out this also counts for the 1% Well Read Challenge
  
  
• The Secret of Lost Things (11.5 hours) - not really a big fan
  
  
• The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (4 hours) - not bad
  

Mom & Son Book Club - 0 books

• We haven't been reading but we HAVE been working on Kiddo's reading skills.
  

Other Stats

• I gave up on Lies My Teacher Told Me (it wasn't what I expected and I couldn't get into it), Fiction (not the right time for me), and Away (not a big fan).
  
• My TBR list gained 13 books and Kiddo's gained 2.
  
• Favorite books: I did really enjoy Receive Me Falling but I wouldn't call it a favorite. Unfortunately, the rest of the books this month were just so-so.
  
• One author guest post by Erika Robuck.
  

How was YOUR month?

March '09 Summary

Well, I didn't do as well as I hoped this month but I still did pretty good!


Books - 9 (2,931 pages - great number, huh?)

• Homefront (312 pages) - from the author
  
  
• A Monstrous Regiment of Women (326 pages) - for my Month of Joyful Reading
  
  
• A Letter of Mary (315 pages) - for my Month of Joyful Reading
  
  
• The Moor (369 pages) - for my Month of Joyful Reading
  
  
• O Jerusalem (425 pages) - for my Month of Joyful Reading
  
  
• The Castle of Otranto (128 pages) - for the 1% Well Read Challenge
  
  
• Justice Hall (352 pages) - for my Month of Joyful Reading
  
  
• The Bean Trees (336 pages) - for book club
  
  
• The Game (368 pages) - for my Month of Joyful Reading
  
  
• I am ALMOST finished with Locked Rooms (the most current in the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series) but it will have to count toward April's totals.
  
  

Audio Books - 3 (42.43 hours)

All the audio books were "just because" books that I've had on my TBR list.

• Moby Dick (15 hours)
  
  
• People of the Book (13.93 hours)
  
  
• Sword Song (13.5 hours)
  

Mom & Son Book Club - 0 books

• We HAVE been reading but I haven't written up the posts yet ...

Other Stats

• My TBR list gained 29 titles and kiddo's list gain 4.
• Favorite books: The Moor, Homefront, and People of the Book. I wish my book club hadn't outvoted People of the Book - that would have been excellent for discussion!
  
• Two author posts, both by Laurie R. King - here and here

On the whole, my totals aren't bad this month. I really wanted to be finished with the Mary Russell books but I'm not far off my goal so I'm not really disappointed. How was YOUR March?

February '09 Summary

Whew, another month has just flown by. Can you believe it? I mean, I know February is the shortest month of the year but this one feels like I sneezed and it was over.

I did have a good reading month though ...

Books - 5 (1,889 pages)

• Island (295 pages)
  
  
• Phineas Finn (776 pages)
  
  
• The Long Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven (242 pages)
  
  
• Alpine Americas (256 pages)
  
  
• Delta of Venus (320 pages)
  

Short Story/Essay - 2 (40 pages)

• The Fall of the House of Usher (20 pages)
  
  
• The Pit and the Pendulum (22 pages)
  

Audio Books - 1 (15.25 hours)

• Change of Heart (15.25 hours)

Mom & Son Book Club - 2 books (480 pages)

• Wizardology (32 pages)
  


• The Ark, the Reed, & the Fire Cloud (448 pages) - this link brings you kiddo's review and this one brings you mine

Books I Gave Up On - 1 (after 2 cassettes)

• How to Read and Why, by Harold Bloom - I had this on audio and I'm thinking that is not the best way to approach this book. I often found myself daydreaming instead of listening. After 2 cassettes I put it aside to listen to something else, and I never got back to it. I renewed it from the library 3 times and I've finally decided that I'm simply not going to listen to any more. I would like to actually read it at some point though.
  

There were no stand-out favorites this month. Most of what I read was good (other than Island and Change of Heart, which were horrible) but not great.

In other news, I did finally get to see a Kindle 2 in person this month. I've never even seen a read Kindle 1 but can I tell you it was not at all what I expected? My boss bought it for his wife and since she and I share books, he asked me to download a few for her as a surprise. It was very easy ... and sort of fun. I'm still not convinced that I will ever want one but I was impressed all the same.

How did your month go?