What Challenges I Am Doing This Whole Year!

I loved my challenge post from before and it was a lot of fun to put the pictures together.  Okay so I might have just completely overwhelmed myself--but I want to motivate myself to read more!!  I am hoping I can read a lot over the summer too. So here are the reading challenges that I'm doing this year:

Challenge #1:
Absolutely am super excited for this one because I have been wanting to finish sequels/series! There are points attached to the books that I do finish so even if I don't get a lot done its not like I didn't do anything!

http://novelheartbeat.com/2014/12/2015-prequel-sequel-challenge-sign-ups/

Challenge #2:  This challenge is all about spelling out Mocha Girls 15 with the titles and author's last name of books.  This was is going to take some planning, but I really liked the concept.

http://www.mochagirlsread.com/2015-mgr-reading-challenge/

Challenge #3: 2015 Book Riot Read Harder Challenge---I liked this one because it is going to encourage me to get some variety. They picked 24 "tasks" and I am a little bit interested to see if I like all of the tasks...a couple will be really easy--others will be really hard.  I am excited to join the Goodreads group and Tweet with #ReadHarder

http://bookriot.com/2014/12/15/book-riot-2015-read-harder-challenge/

Challenge #4:


I am sure everyone has seen this....I am excited to see how many of these I can get.  I'm not going to necessarily try to do all of them...just see how far I can get!  http://www.popsugar.com/love/Reading-Challenge-2015-36071458

Challenge #5: 2015 TBR Pile Challenge

I talked about Roof Beam Reader's pile challenge earlier this month.

Challenge #6: 40 Book Challenge with school--I started this in August with the students--but I don't know where I am exactly and I need to figure that out!!  And I will finish with this school year and start back up again the next school year so I need to keep it on here so that I can keep track.



WOW LOTS OF READING!

50 Question Survey Part 1

From The Classics Club 50 Question Survey that I stumbled on awhile back--I am going to do this in two parts. 

1. Share a link to your club list.
2. When did you join The Classics Club? How many titles have you read for the club?  I joined the club in 2013.  I have finished five books....unfortunately I'm behind my idea of reading 10 a year.
3. What are you currently reading? I'm currently listening to Queen of Babble Gets Hitched by Meg Cabot and reading Seeing Redd by Frank Beddor
4. What did you just finish reading and what did you think of it? I just finished listening to The Brothers by Chris Stewart-- I loved it and it is the first in the series so I'm excited to get the next books.
5. What are you reading next? Why? I want to read the second book in The Great and Terrible Series--the series I mentioned earlier.  The first book is really like chapter 1 of a six part series.
6. Best book you’ve read so far with the club, and why? My favorite Classics Club book so far would have to be 1984.  I loved teaching it to my six seniors!
7. Book you most anticipate (or, anticipated) on your club list? I am excited to re-read Little Women again. 
8. Book on your club list you’ve been avoiding, if any? Why? I am avoiding Pickwick Papers because I started it and it was very boring.
9. First classic you ever read? Um....not sure-I have read Classics since I was very young
10. Toughest classic you ever read?  The Fountainhead
11. Classic that inspired you? or scared you? made you cry? made you angry?  My favorite classic will always be The Blue Castle 
12. Longest classic you’ve read? Longest classic left on your club list? One I've read? Maybe Catch-22...actually probably The Fountainhead....left on my list? Probably Les Miserables
13. Oldest classic you’ve read? Oldest classic left on your club list? Not sure of the oldest....
14. Favorite biography about a classic author you’ve read — or, the biography on a classic author you most want to read, if any? I have read many sections of biographies on Jane Austen and Louisa May Alcott and I have enjoyed both 
15. Which classic do you think EVERYONE should read? Why? I think everyone should read 1984.
16. Favorite edition of a classic you own, if any? I love Oxford Classic editions of my book
17. Favorite movie adaption of a classic? Love the newest Pride and Prejudice
18. Classic which hasn’t been adapted yet (that you know of) which you very much wish would be adapted to film. I would love to see a new version of Anne of Green Gables
19. Least favorite classic? Why?  Not a big fan of Steinbeck books
20. Name five authors you haven’t read yet whom you cannot wait to read. Emily Bronte, H.G. Wells, John Milton, A.A. Milne, and Tennessee Williams
21. Which title by one of the five you’ve listed above most excites you and why? Wuthering Heights 
22. Have you read a classic you disliked on first read that you tried again and respected, appreciated, or even ended up loving?  Catch-22
23. Which classic character can’t you get out of your head?  I love Mr. Darcy :)
24. Which classic character most reminds you of yourself? I have always related to Anne Shirley
25. Which classic character do you most wish you could be like? Valancy Stirling from The Blue Castle

Book Review: The Wish List

Title: The Wish List

Author: Eoin Colfer

Genre: Drama

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Why Did I Read? My book club suggested it.

Summary: Meg Finn has gotten herself in some trouble...really big trouble because it got her killed! On her way to either heaven or hell she gets stuck in limbo.  She has an equal amount of good and evil in her "aura". She goes back to Earth to try to help with the amount of good and helps out the man that she was robbing when she died.  He has three things that he wants to do before he dies, and she helps him get it done.  

What Did I Love:

• I liked the plot line--it seemed very well planned out and I liked how the characters developed. 
• Speaking of characters--Meg is a strong female character that seems to learn a lot and tries to improve.  

What Did I Hate:

• The audio book is unique.  It is read by a British narrator, and he probably does it right--with the Irish accents too.  However, it made it hard for me to multitask and listen at the same time.  

2015 TBR Pile Challenge List

This year I want to try again with the 2015 TBR Pile Challenge with Roof Beam Reader.  I am excited to get through some of the books I didn't get through last year and add some more to the list!

So this year's list will be (the first four are what was on last year's list that didn't get done):

1. The Help by Kathryn Stockett (2009)
2. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (1999)
3. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin (2011)
4. Lady Susan by Jane Austen (1791)
5. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (1847)
6. The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen (1988)
7. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd (2002)
8. A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray (2003)
9. The Princess Bride by William Goldman (1973)
10. The Firm by John Grisham (1991)
11. The Maze Runner by James Dashner (2009)
12. Son by Lois Lowry (2012)

I gave myself quite the variety so hopefully that helps!

Bout of Books Wrap-Up

A successful Bout of Books to me is when I have read everyday--even if it is just a little bit.  Then if I finish a book that is a bigger plus! I successfully did both despite being in school!  Today was a super long day so sorry this is all you're going to get, but I successfully read about 75% of a book in a week. Not bad!

Bout of Books Day 7

This last day of Bout of Books has been a lot of different kinds of reading for me.  I love the #insixwords challenge from Falling Down the Book Hole for today because I can tell you about everything that I've been reading today and give it to you in SIX WORDS OR LESS!! Eek!

My new fiction book: Seeing Redd by Frank Beddor--Off on a new adventure

January 2015 Ensign---Put God First In Your Life

Old Testament 2 Kings 9-13--Be obedient to the prophets

New Testament Luke 1 and Matthew 1--My soul doth magnify the Lord

Book of Mormon 1 Nephi 1--See the tender mercies from above

Bout of Books Day 6

I just barely finished my audio book!  The book is pretty good..probably 3.5 out of 5 stars by the time I get to doing a review--probably next week sometime when Bout of Books is over.  I'm just proud that I got it done.  That's actually why this post is so late--too late for Bout of Books--is because I just barely finished.  So to make sure that this post ends up on today, that's probably all I'm going to say. I'm going to probably pick a new audio book to start listening to and go keep cleaning.  I have gotten a lot of the kitchen done with the need to declutter!

Bout of Books Day 5

I have about 45 minutes or so left of my audio book, The Wish List.  Too bad I'm falling asleep while I am writing because I would probably try to finish it tonight. Oh well--probably tomorrow. Today's challenge is your book in pictures.  So let's see what we can find:

http://www.catholic.com/blog/michelle-arnold/the-debate-at-the-pearly-gates

http://chevsy.deviantart.com/art/devil-born-from-flame-105039846

http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/File:Insane_old_man.jpg

Bout of Books Day 4

I am continuing to keep working on reading The Wish List by Eoin Colfer.  I should finish this week if I just keep going at it. I thought it would be a good book to do today's synopsis challenge on from Lulo FanGirl. I need to write a summary in 3-5 sentences.  Here goes:

Meg is a teenager girl that has gotten into the wrong crowd that do a lot of criminal activity.  This activity causes an older man to be injured and her death. For Meg's life, it is not clear if she should go to heaven or hell, and she gets a chance to correct it by helping the injured older man fix the things that he has regretted over his lifetime--his wish list.

Tired tonight...so it is going to be short today.

Bout of Books Day 3

Day 3 :)

So here we are on day 3...just got done with an awesome Twitter chat! In terms of my progress yesterday--I did not get very far, probably about a half an hour of reading on the drive.  I need to really close this computer, turn off the noise and loose myself in a book! I should probably grade a bit too--or clean--or something.  My idea of getting going on the first full week of the New Year with all of these new habits is NOT going well! Okay self-ranting moment over.

From Goodreads

From Goodreads

Today's challenge is a character coupling hosted by Writing My Own Fairy Tale.  The idea is to hook up characters from two different books.  Sounds like fun, though it took me a bit to think of who to connect.  I would totally hook up Harry Potter with Alyss Heart, because of what they have in common but also how different their lives are.  They both use magic, have both lost their parents of were killed by their arch nemesis and have to fight the arch nemesis for control over their domain.  They also both know what it is like to live in a non-magic world.  However, there are differences in how their magic works, and I think they would both benefit from having someone that understood their past experiences and support the sacrifices they have to make.

Bout of Books Day 2

At least this is the only thing that isn't really falling off the New Year's Resolutions idea...I have been wanting to read more and work less into the evening so my house can be a bit cleaner--but no such luck yet.  Maybe one day.

Courtesy of Goodreads

I did get a bit more of Wish List read yesterday. Now that I'm finally in to it more, it is actually getting a bit easier to follow the audio book and plot.  I was a little worried it was going to be a book that I wouldn't be a big fan of.

The challenge for today is pretty cool--Top 10 Recommendations in a Bookstore from Tree of Reverie.  First of all I have to say that it really depends on what department that I'm in and who I am recommending to. Since I am a teacher I am often recommending books to students.  Right now they are working on a 40 book challenge which also has them do a variety of genres.  So I organized my list by genre.

Realistic Fiction:
1. The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline B. Cooney
I chose this book because I love the story--it really keeps you guessing.  It also starts off a quartet, and now apparently there is a fifth book so I should stop saying that but then you have a lot more books to read!
2. Angels Watching Over Me by Lurlene McDaniel
I chose this book because it is a story of perseverance and not giving up.
3. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
I chose this book because it is an issue that we really need to do need to talk about and I think this book gives you a perspective that you don't get everyday.

Traditional Literature:
4. The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
It is a short book!  You probably already know the story--but that you can get through another book.
5. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
Anne is a great character that has a lot of trouble growing up--so figure out how she survived and what she had to go through!
6. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
There are four girls that all go through different experiences.

Science Fiction
7. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
The boy who is chosen out of nowhere to become the next space warrior against the Buggers!

Historical Fiction:
8. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
This is a great book about the Holocaust from a different perspective--look at the relationship between the characters and you will learn a lot and have an awesome book at the same time.

Fantasy:
9. Fablehaven by Brandon Mull
This is a great book about the fairy world and other animals that live all around us--what are you missing on a regular basis?

Biography/Autobiography:
10. Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
This is a girl who was about your age--who had to go through the Holocaust inside a very small space as she hid from the Nazis--how did she do it?

Each question that the challenge asked too:

• Why did you choose these books?--I wrote this underneath each book
• What would you say about each of these books when recommending them to a customer or library patron?--Honestly I would say exactly why I picked it and probably a bit of a summary so that they know what it is about.
• What would be close favourites for book recommendations that didn’t make it onto your list? The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery is my absolute favorite book. I was thinking about poetry books because these are the books that I need to make sure they read--Casey at Bat came to mind too.
• Is there anything else that you’d like to mention about the books you’ve chosen to include on this list? Bottom line--pick a book and if you don't like it then pick something else!

Bout of Books Day 1

So as the first day of Bout of Books, this is typically when I plan what I'm going to read and set goals.  This time around Bout of Books felt that they didn't want to set goals.  So I'm not going to set goals specifically as a to-read list for this week.

1. Wish List by Eoin Colfer (Audio book)
2. Seeing Redd by Frank Beddor
3. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by 
4. Book of Mormon
5. New audio book (Because I hope to finish Wish List during the week)

There are two challenges for today that I thought I would pop on to because they are both pretty low-key and quick to do.

The Book That is talking about New Year's Resolutions with books.  One of the things that I have been thinking about is a challenge that I found out about on Prequel and Sequel Challenge Novel HeartBeat and read some series that I've been wanting to read again/finish etc.

1. Anne of Green Gables series--reread as an adult--I've done #1-3 as an adult a few times but not past that
2. Harry Potter series--I've never actually read #5-7 a second time after publishing--I've started #1-4 a few times to go through the whole series and I just have lost steam each time
3. The Face on the Milk Carton--there was a new conclusion book that I found that I want to read--and I want to go back and reread the first books again
4. Finish Fablehaven 
5. Re-read and read Dan Brown Robert Langdon series
6. Finish Looking Glass series

Caught RedHanded is a Book Scavenger Hunt....the link has the specifics of what to find. This is what I found: 

My finds--explained below

Book with the color yellow: Silver Linings Playbook

Find an author's name with the letter "S": Sarah Dessen--Just Listen

Find a book with a female protagonist: The Face on the Milk Carton

Find the longest book you own: Norton American Literature Anthology

Find a book with a map in it or on it: Lord of the Rings Trilogy

Find a book with a face on it: Anne Frank the Diary of a Young Girl 

Find something on your shelf that isn't a book: My bookshelves have a lot of things on top--typically shoe boxes that store mementos/scrapbook items

Excited for the upcoming week of reading!!!

End of Year Reading Survey

I came upon this survey by Perpetual Page Turner that asks questions about what you read over the past year.  I thought that it seemed like a fun thing to get involved in. 

Stats:

Number Of My Books I Read: 30 books

Number of Re-Reads: Zero

Genre You Read The Most From: Surprisingly fantasy…between book club things and Fablehaven I have become a bit of fan

Best in Books:

1. Best Book You Read In 2014?

This was tricky…I have three. I think even though it sounds like what everyone is saying: The Fault in Our Stars was the one that I really connected with on an emotional level. On an intellectual level, I connected to The Night Circus.  On a “ooh I want to recommend this to my students” that would be The Looking Glass Wars

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

Gone Girl—oh my don’t read it unless you want to read some really dirty stuff

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read in 2014?

The Kite Runner ended up surprising me because it took me a bit to get into and then I ended up enjoying it a lot by the end.

4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did) In 2014?

If I Stay—if I found out a student had read  TFIOS I immediately recommended this one—great genre for them right now. 

5. Best series you started in 2014? Best Sequel of 2014? Best Series Ender of 2014?

Fablehaven is the series I started this year---and I really need to get the last one read. So that

would be the best sequel too... In terms of series ender, I didn’t actually read one.

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2014?

I have gained a new appreciation for Neil Gaiman…yes I blame my book club J

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?

I don’t usually read the fantasy genre—I like reality type books—so The Night Circus was really amazing.

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?

The Looking Glass Wars

9. Book You Read In 2014 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

No Promises in the Wind and The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle—ah the life of a teacher

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images
/I/51QXd-ThaTL.jpg

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2014?

A certain cover of The Looking Glass Wars

11. Most memorable character of 2014?

Liesel from The Book Thief

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2014?

Actually….The Book Thief had so many historical connections

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2014?

The Fault in the Stars

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2014 to finally read?

Allegiant

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2014?

“Life takes us to unexpected places sometimes. The future is never set in stone, remember that.” 

― Erin Morgenstern, The Night Circus

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2013?

Shortest: The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Longest: Gone Girl

17. Book That Shocked You The Most

(Because of a plot twist, character death, left you hanging with your mouth wide open, etc.)

 As much as I did not like the writing of Gone Girl—that plot was really shocking!

18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)

(OTP = one true pairing if you aren’t familiar)

Hazel and Gus from TFIOS

19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

King and Maxwell from Split Second

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2014 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

Grip of the Shadow Plague

21. Best Book You Read In 2014 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:

The Looking Glass Wars or The Night Circus

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2014?

I don’t get crushes…..

23. Best 2014 debut you read?

The Plague Legacy: Acquistions by Christine Haggerty

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?

The Night Circus

25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?

The Looking Glass Wars

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2014?

The Fault in Our Stars

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

The Sea of Trolls

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

Gone Girl

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2014?

The Ocean at the End of the Lane

30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?

Thirteen Reasons Why

Book Blogging

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2014?

 Honestly not sure…I stumble on blogs all the time but I don’t know when

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2014?

The Book Thief Review

3. Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog?

With the lack of blogging…not a lot of discussion has occurred…

4. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc.)?

Probably Bout of Books

5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2014?

 My favorite was doing a Right Now I Am….I hadn’t blogged in so long and it felt good to put writing what was going on

7. Most Popular Post This Year On Your Blog (whether it be by comments or views)?

Which apparently is the one that got the most views too!

A is for Allegiant was the one that got the most comments I think ever on Inspirefly

8. Post You Wished Got A Little More Love?

Honestly…just looking at the numbers I really can’t pick because the ones with lower numbers were probably not that great of posts.  But one actually surprised me…the Grip of the Shadow Plague Book Review

9. Best bookish discover (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?

A little book called The Book Whisperer that I’m still reading

10.  Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?

I did do 30 books like I challenged myself on Goodreads to do

Looking Ahead Books 2015

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2014 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2015?

The Help

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2015 (non-debut)?

The Plague Legacy Book 2

3. 2015 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?

Don’t know any debuts coming….

4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2015?

See above

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2015?

Keep up on my blog!

6. A 2015 Release You’ve Already Read & Recommend To Everyone: N/A

Bout of Books 2015 Part 1

Super excited for this year's Bout of Books! It is a great way for me to kick off my 365 project. I have an excuse for a week's worth of posts! :)  Perfect timing--and I'm excited to start off the year right with reading.

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 5th and runs through Sunday, January 11th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 12 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team.

Top 10 Books that Inspire Me

I was nominated on Facebook to list the 10 books that inspire me.  I thought this would be a good blog post for the end of the week.

1. Book of Mormon from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
       This book needs to be number one--because it is the most important book in my life.

2. The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery
      This is my favorite novel when I have to pick.  I actually used this with my students in our five things about you in a bag assignment and one thing had to be something that inspired you. The quote that I love from this is about how if you can stand to be in someone's company for more than 30 minutes you can be best friends for life--and it works!

3. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

    An amazing story of courage, determination, and it is just so well written.

4. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

    I love this story! I love the romance, the history, the sacrifice--my favorite Dickens book

5. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

    This is the first book that I threw against the wall...I was so mad about Laurie and Jo--but that really influenced me in what it meant to write about your life.

6. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

    I loved this story---it was so well written and beautiful story. It reminds us to take every moment and just live!

7. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

    Quite the ethical dilemma--and it really makes you think!

8. The Chamber by John Grisham

    It was one of the first moments in which you really start to think about the death penalty....along with a book I just finished by him called Confession

9. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

   As someone who finds the negative in a lot of things...this book spoke to me as a young child and it still does--it is great to commiserate with Alexander once in a while!

10. The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

  My favorite book in high school, and it really influenced what I viewed was a friendship prior to a dating relationship.

Bout of Books!

It is time again for Bout of Books! I am excited for the new week to try to get some reading done.  As I mentioned in my last post--I have a lot of books that need to be gotten through!

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 18th and runs through Sunday, August 24th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 11 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

 The first day of school is that Wednesday so I hope that my reading ends up being more than just the audio book in the car on the way back and forth. I will post goals later in the week, I hope to have a better idea of what next week brings before I set those.

Right Now I Am....

So as promised...life update time.  As I was thinking about how I wanted to do this I thought of how one of my favorite bloggers Trish does it (Check her out at Love, Laughter, and a Touch of Insanity).  I messed with the order a little so that the two things people really need/want to hear about are at the top, but the headings are all her.

Feeling: Better. This is the most often question that I'm getting from people right now which is why I put it first. I had surgery last week of July to hopefully deal with the pain I have been dealing with since April last year. We haven't had a diagnosis really until now--possibly endometriosis.  I have taken a while to heal but I am pushing through thanks to pain killers.  The nice thing about still healing is that the pills work better and I am in less pain longer.

Yep coming home with boxes was not in the plan
This is only half of them too

Loving: The time off...so in part of my life update I must update everyone that I no longer work at Cedar Ridge Academy. I will be starting at Vernal Middle School teaching 7th grade English in just a few days--first day of school is about a week away. I really needed the time off....though not as early as CRA wanted me to be. They decided to lay me off a month ahead of time. Prompted me to have to pack up my room late at night and not having closure with the students. Just liked to remind me why I was leaving--I was done not being treated like a professional or a person.

Listening To: Almost done with City of Bones--two discs left.  Will probably put it in when I get done with this. Also listening to The Confession by John Grisham and enjoying it.  It has been awhile since I've read a Grisham novel.

Reading: I have a lot of books juggling right now.  The Classics Club spin book was #17---so for me Fahrenheit 451. I also want to get in on Austen in August--so I'm going to read Lady Susan because it is also on my TBR Pile List....though I really need to start it!  Still reading Fablehaven #5--current really wanting to get through it so I can move on.  Just been busy with other things and not in too much of a reading mood.  And I need to start Gone Girl for book club.

Watching: Lots since I have been in bed or on the couch for about a week and a half. I got through two seasons of How I Met Your Mother.  I have loved seeing how well they really set us up for the series finale....and the connections to Friends.  Maybe one of these days I will devote a blog post to it....since I did when the series finale came up.

Eating: Anything that sounds good....I was cooking more in July because I was home and then I lost my appetite and I bet a couple of pounds after surgery.  Appetite back to normal so that's good.  Hopefully going to do some freezer meals in the next few days for the school year.

Making: I am knitting a great purple blanket....can't wait to show it to you. I finished a yellow one earlier this summer that will be featured in a new blog post to come.

My awesome planner :)

Planning: Mentally constantly writing to-do lists and then writing them down--I have my planner that I bought at the beginning of the year and I am using it more now than I did at my job--more time to write again.  I am re-evaluating what I want...plans for the blog, plans for writing more, planning ideas for school...I think my brain is more active now that I'm not at school but easier to shut it off when I go to sleep.

Hope that fills everyone in...as always I am a pretty much open book so ask away :)

Classics Club Spin Challenge

So I haven't blogged in awhile and I seriously owe my readers a life update--and that was the plan for today. But it is late, I'm tired and the update part is just going to have to wait.  I will update tomorrow--I hope! :) But I want to hop on this challenge because I haven't done this before. This challenge is done by the Classics Club . So I go through my Classics Club Reading List to pick 20 books that I will put in a numbered list.  They will tell everyone a number tomorrow--and then we read the book that goes with that number in about a month and a half.  Sounds great to me, especially since I haven't looked at this list since I wrote it! (And I seriously should update with what I have read)

So here are my 20--here goes nothing.

Ones that would be really hard to do by October--because they are really long or I have given up on them before:
1. The Pickwick Papers
2 Mansfield Park
3. Les Miserables
4. We the Living
5. Anna Karenina

Ones that I want to read:
6. Lady Susan
7. Things Fall Apart
8. The Secret Garden
9. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
10. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Wouldn't Be too Hard to Do:
11. Little Men
12. The Cask of Amontillado
13. Emma
14. Pride and Prejudice
15. Oliver Twist

Miscellaneous because I need 5 more:
16. Wuthering Heights
17. Fahrenheit 451
18. Gulliver's Travels
19. Their Eyes were Watching God
20. The Three Musketeers

The Templar Legacy (Book Review)

Title: The Templar Legacy

Author: Steve Berry

Genre: Drama

Rating: 2 out of 5

Why Did I Read? I read Jefferson Key awhile back, which was the first exposure I had to the author and his character Cotton Malone.  I had been wanting to read the first book he wrote with the character for awhile now.  And so I put this book on my TBR Pile Challenge List and finally got around to reading it.

Summary: Cotton Malone use to be a Justice Department agent--on an exclusive version of the CIA--trying to protect our security.  After getting tired of playing the game, he retired to Copenhagen, Denmark.  His old boss, Stephanie Nelle, is coming to the area to visit and when they meet for coffee, a man commits suicide. This starts a whirlwind journey as Stephanie tries to discover the treasure hunt her deceased husband was on. But she isn't the only one, and these people are willing to kill for it.  But what are they looking for?

What Did I Love:

• It was a kind of interesting story....but really I didn't love it.
• I did like how at the end he had a note about what was true in the book and what wasn't--a must with all historical fiction books

What Did I Hate:

• Boring!! 
• Hard to follow! 
• Do not do on audio book--you will want to be able to remind yourself who characters are by flipping back in the book.  The narrator was fine--I've actually listened to something of his before, and I like him--it is just too hard to follow.

Another note about this book: it does bring into question Christian beliefs of resurrection.  If you are not into having your beliefs separate from a book--do not read!

Book Review: The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Title: The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Author: Neil Gaiman

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 3 out of 5

Why Did I Read? We chose it for book club in June.

Summary: Sussex, England. A middle-aged man returns to his childhood home to attend a funeral. Although the house he lived in is long gone, he is drawn to the farm at the end of the road, where, when he was seven, he encountered a most remarkable girl, Lettie Hempstock, and her mother and grandmother. He hasn't thought of Lettie in decades, and yet as he sits by the pond (a pond that she'd claimed was an ocean) behind the ramshackle old farmhouse, the unremembered past comes flooding back. And it is a past too strange, too frightening, too dangerous to have happened to anyone, let alone a small boy.

Forty years earlier, a man committed suicide in a stolen car at this farm at the end of the road. Like a fuse on a firework, his death lit a touchpaper and resonated in unimaginable ways. The darkness was unleashed, something scary and thoroughly incomprehensible to a little boy. And Lettie—magical, comforting, wise beyond her years—promised to protect him, no matter what. (From Goodreads.com--which was nice because I'm not sure how I would start to summarize this!)

What Did I Love:

• It is a quick read--though it does take a minute to get going
• Analyzing the symbols

What Did I Hate: A bit boring and strange. I started with a 2 rating because it was really just okay...but I came to like it a bit more when discussing it with the book club. It has a lot of symbolism and enjoyment that comes from analyzing it.  I probably won't read it again, but if you like Neil Gaiman I highly recommend it.