It's Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA

A bit of a slow reading week ... I'll blame it on the husband! He had several medical appointments this week, which I had to take him to. He was also working from home and I never get as much reading done -- for whatever reason -- when he's at home. 

I've also noticed that reading on a screen, whether on the iPad or on my computer screen (for NetGalley), slows down my pace considerably. I'm not a very fast reader to begin with and the added strain on my eyes doesn't help! I'm trying to balance out my reading, not only content- and genre-wise, but also the platform.

[To rehash the concept :: post what you read last week, what you're reading now, and what you plan to read this week. If you have a review of the book(s), great! If you have a picture of the book(s), wonderful! If you have a book giveaway, fantastic! If you just list the title(s) of the book(s), not a problem! Make it as simple or as complex as you need it to be. At least, that's the message I got. This version of the meme is hosted by Jen and Kellee of Teach Mentor Text, which, in turn, was inspired by Sheila over at Book Journey, who hosts the original It's Monday! What Are You Reading?]

WHAT I READ LAST WEEK:

Adventure Time, Volume 1 by Ryan North, Braden Lamb, and Shelli Paroline

Legends of Red Sonja by various

Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer by Katie Alender

Princess Ugg, Volume 1 by Ted Naifeh

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

Bo at Ballard Creek by Kirkpatrick Hill

The Walled City by Ryan Graudin

WHAT I PLAN TO READ THIS WEEK:

When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc & the Creation of Hip Hop by Laban Carrick Hill

An update of sorts

Like I mentioned in my last It's Monday! What Are You Reading? post, I spent over a month back in Los Angeles visiting family and friends. My intention was to read during every spare moment, but it didn't really work out that way. 

I was lucky, though, that I had access to a wonderful public library system, the independent bookstore I used to frequent, and my old local comic book store. I had no shortage of books to read ... I just needed to buckle down and read! But it can be a bit difficult when you're distracted by the Pacific Ocean right in front of you:

I remain friendly with the owners of {pages}, the local indie bookstore I mentioned above. I popped in to buy a book and say hello, and one of the owners was nice enough to lend me a box of Simon & Schuster F&Gs (folded and gathered). By far, my favorite is Hug Machine by Scott Campbell (publish date August 26, 2014):

I'm lucky enough to still be close to my former library colleagues, and it was wonderful catching up with them ... and talking shop. Even though I haven't worked in over a year I fell right into their conversations about cataloging, shelving, and book suggestions. Gosh, I miss those ladies!

In the end, I managed to keep pace with my book-a-day goal and came back to Maryland having read 33 books. I'm on track to complete my goodreads Reading Challenge early. More importantly, I'm having fun doing it!

I'm currently trying to balance my reading load by rotating through my must-read piles: Capitol Choices nominees, Netgalley ARCs, graphic novels/comics, and new books. My local library system doesn't have many of the books I need to read for CapChoices so it looks like I'll be making a trip to a bookstore very soon. (Shh! To read, not to buy.) I'm downloading books left and right from Netgalley and I know I'll never catch up, but it satisfies my hoarding nature to have them on my Kindle. I've noticed that the books that are only available to read on the computer are killing my eyes and causing headaches, so I have to limit those books to graphic novels that I can read in a relatively short amount of time.

In other news, I recently joined Blogging for Books and I have the book in my hands, but I need to approach the reading differently than I'm used to. As in, I actually have to pay attention, take copious notes, and form an opinion about it. My hope is to get some coherent thoughts down and post a review on my friend's blog and have a giveaway of the book. Stay tuned!

Lastly, if you're into visiting book festivals, you'll find me at two upcoming events in the DC area: the National Book Festival (August 30 @ the Walter E. Washington Convention Center) and Small Press Expo (September 13-14 @ Marriott Bethesda North Hotel & Conference Center). I'm volunteering at both so if you see me, please say, "Hi!".

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA

I'm back from five weeks of visiting family and friends in Los Angeles. You may have noticed that my last few posts were image-less and it's because I was working solely from my iPad during my vacation and couldn't figure out how to easily import the book cover images into Blogger. My plan is to go back and add the images, but don't hold your breath. My follow-through is not always great.

I think I did a decent job reading a variety of books this week, and I'm hoping to at least keep up this pace for the next few weeks until the kids go back to school.

[To rehash the concept :: post what you read last week, what you're reading now, and what you plan to read this week. If you have a review of the book(s), great! If you have a picture of the book(s), wonderful! If you have a book giveaway, fantastic! If you just list the title(s) of the book(s), not a problem! Make it as simple or as complex as you need it to be. At least, that's the message I got. This version of the meme is hosted by Jen and Kellee of Teach Mentor Text, which, in turn, was inspired by Sheila over at Book Journey, who hosts the original It's Monday! What Are You Reading?]

WHAT I READ LAST WEEK:

Courtney Crumrin, Volume 6: The Final Spell by Ted Naifeh

The Favorite Daughter by Allen Say

The Great Trouble: A Mystery of London, the Blue Death, and a Boy Called Eel by Deborah Hopkinson

The Meaning of Maggie by Megan Jean Sovern

Ms. Marvel, Issue 5 written by G. Willow Wilson, illustrated by Adrian Alphona

Ms. Marvel, Issue 6 written by G. Willow Wilson, illustrated by Jacob Wyatt

My Father's Arms Are a Boat by Stein Erik Lunde, illustrated by Oyvind Torseter, translated by Kari Dickson

Princess Ugg, Issue 2 by Ted Naifeh

The Wicked + the Divine, Issues 1 and 2 written by Kieron Gillen, illustrated by Jamie McKelvie

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

The Walled City by Ryan Graudin

WHAT I PLAN TO READ THIS WEEK:

How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare by Ken Ludwig

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA

[To rehash the concept :: post what you read last week, what you're reading now, and what you plan to read this week. If you have a review of the book(s), great! If you have a picture of the book(s), wonderful! If you have a book giveaway, fantastic! If you just list the title(s) of the book(s), not a problem! Make it as simple or as complex as you need it to be. At least, that's the message I got. This version of the meme is hosted by Jen and Kellee of Teach Mentor Text, which, in turn, was inspired by Sheila over at Book Journey, who hosts the original It's Monday! What Are You Reading?]

WHAT I READ LAST WEEK:

All Different Now: Juneteenth, the First Day of Freedom by Angela Johnson

"What was before / would be no more."

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

Feathers: Not Just for Flying by Melissa Sweet

The Mysteries of Maisie Hitchins: The Case of the Stolen Sixpence by Holly Webb

A Pond Full of Ink by Annie M. G. Schmidt

Illustrator, Sieb Posthuma, does a great job of illustrating in a very European 1970s style to match the time period the poems were originally written in the Netherlands. I always wonder about translations, and I wonder even more about translated poetry: are the names the same? Is there rhyming involved in the original poetry? It'd be interesting to learn about translator David Colmer's translating process.

Salt & Storm by Kendall Kulper

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

WHAT I PLAN TO READ THIS WEEK:

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA

[To rehash the concept :: post what you read last week, what you're reading now, and what you plan to read this week. If you have a review of the book(s), great! If you have a picture of the book(s), wonderful! If you have a book giveaway, fantastic! If you just list the title(s) of the book(s), not a problem! Make it as simple or as complex as you need it to be. At least, that's the message I got. This version of the meme is hosted by Jen and Kellee of Teach Mentor Text, which, in turn, was inspired by Sheila over at Book Journey, who hosts the original It's Monday! What Are You Reading?]

WHAT I READ LAST WEEK:

Alexander, Who's Trying His Best to Be the Best Boy Ever by Judith Viorst

Baby Bedtime by Mem Fox

Bear Sees Colors by Karma Wilson

Blue on Blue by Dianne White

Boom Boom by Sarvinder Naberhaus

Draw! by Raul Colon

The First Snowfall by Anne Rockwell

Go, Shapes, Go! by Denise Fleming

A Home for Mr. Emerson by Barbara Kerley

Joltin' Joe DiMaggio by Jonah Winter

Moses: The True Story of an Elephant Baby by Jenny Perepecsko

One Big Pair of Underwear by Laura Gehl

The Sleeper & and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman

Square Cat ABC by Elizabeth Schoonmaker

When Aunt Mattie Got Her Wings by Petra Mathers

"How come Aunt Mattie's sick, Lottie? She's a nurse."

"She isn't sick; she's ninety-nine years old."

"Wow," said Herbie.

"You mean it's like her motor is all worn out?"

"That's right, Herbie. I don't know when I'll be back."

"Why was Aunt Mattie smiling, Lottie?"

"I think she was happy, Herbie ... she said someone was waiting for her at the gate."

"The gate of heaven?"

"It sounded more like an airport, Herbie."

"Doesn't it feel like Aunt Mattie should be here?"

"She is, Herbie, in our hearts."

"Maybe our hearts ache because Aunt Mattie is moving in."

Winter Is Coming by Tony Johnston

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

Salt & Storm by Kendall Kulper

WHAT I PLAN TO READ THIS WEEK:

The Mysteries of Maisie Hitchins: The Case of the Stolen Sixpence by Holly Webb

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA

I'm slowly making my way through the box of Simon & Schuster F&Gs I borrowed from the local independent bookstore here. I'm also taking advantage of the much larger county library system here that has so many more of the books I need to read for Capitol Choices.  

[To rehash the concept :: post what you read last week, what you're reading now, and what you plan to read this week. If you have a review of the book(s), great! If you have a picture of the book(s), wonderful! If you have a book giveaway, fantastic! If you just list the title(s) of the book(s), not a problem! Make it as simple or as complex as you need it to be. At least, that's the message I got. This version of the meme is hosted by Jen and Kellee of Teach Mentor Text, which, in turn, was inspired by Sheila over at Book Journey, who hosts the original It's Monday! What Are You Reading?]

WHAT I READ LAST WEEK:

The Farmer and the Clown by Marla Frazee

The Manhattan Projects (Volume 1): Science, Bad written by Jonathan Hickman and illustrated by Nick Pitarra

Mumbet's Declaration of Independence by Gretchen Woelfle

The Scraps Book: Notes From a Colorful Life by Lois Ehlert 

This One Summer written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki

Thomas Jefferson: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Everything by Maira Kalman

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

Salt & Storm by Kendall Kulper

WHAT I PLAN TO READ THIS WEEK:

The Mysteries of Maisie Hitchins: The Case of the Stolen Sixpence by Holly Webb

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA

Ah, summer! How I love thee, especially when I'm in a beautiful climate conducive to reading outdoors. I am currently on summer vacation with my kids for a month back in my hometown along the Pacific Ocean. Between meeting up with friends and former colleagues/co-workers, I've been trying to get some reading in. I'm particularly enjoying anything that constitutes "fun summer read" while I lounge on the beach, listening to the waves crashing, and letting my mind wander occasionally.

I was lucky enough to borrow a box of Simon & Schuster F&Gs from the local independent bookseller. Lucky me, I know the owners and they've always treated me so well. It's really special that they continue to welcome me even after I've moved across the country. I feel like I have an added connection to them because I worked with some of their kids when I was a school library media specialist in town; in fact, one of the kids was in the first class I worked with as a classroom assistant 12 years ago, before I worked in the library! Hooray for independent bookstores!

[To rehash the concept :: post what you read last week, what you're reading now, and what you plan to read this week. If you have a review of the book(s), great! If you have a picture of the book(s), wonderful! If you have a book giveaway, fantastic! If you just list the title(s) of the book(s), not a problem! Make it as simple or as complex as you need it to be. At least, that's the message I got. This version of the meme is hosted by Jen and Kellee of Teach Mentor Text, which, in turn, was inspired by Sheila over at Book Journey, who hosts the original It's Monday! What Are You Reading?]

WHAT I READ LAST WEEK:

East of West, Volume 1 written by Jonathan Hickman and illustrate by Nick Dragotta

Give and Take by Chris Raschka

Hug Machine by Scott Campbell

"My hugs make the biggest feel small. / The smallest feel big."

Manifest Destiny (Volume 1): Flora and Fauna written by Chris Dingess and illustrated by Matthew Roberts

WHAT I'M READING NOW:

Salt & Storm by Kendall Kulper

WHAT I PLAN TO READ THIS WEEK:

 This One Summer written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki