Friday, August 10, 2012
Top Summer Reads: 5 to 1
Today we have the top 5 of my summer reads. They are new releases by authors I love, so it's no surprise I enjoyed them as much as I did.
1. The song remains the same, Allison Winn Scotch
My favorite part about this book was the look at music and how important it is in our lives. I also thought the characters were so well-written, as was their journey from beginning to end.
2. The next best thing, Jennifer WeinerI loved the look behind the scenes of producing a TV show. I liked how the main characters weren't perfect, too.
3. Another piece of my heart, Jane Green
This seemed like a very real situation, and one that is applicable to many people who have divorced and remarried. I thought looking at these relationships on that level was very moving.
4. Jeneration X , Jen Lancaster
Another hilarious memoir. I love her chapter on flying, because that is how I feel sometimes. I like how real Jen Lancaster is, and how easily I can relate to what she is writing about.
5. Spring fever, Mary Kay Andrews
I didn't start out loving Mary Kay Andrews' books, but this was one of the best. I loved the twist ending.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Top 20 Summer Reads: 10 to 6
In the mix today, we have almost all new releases--except for one memoir that came at the end of my "JFK era" phase, though it was also released recently.
6. I’ve Got Your Number, Sophie Kinsella
I liked this book a lot more than I thought I would--I thought the premise sounded kind of impossible, but it wasn't. I again loved the way technology is starting to become incorporated into novels.
7. Where We Belong, Emily Giffin
A look at motherhood, adoption, and figuring out who we really are. I liked this book a great deal, but it did not move to the top of my list of my favorite Emily Giffin books.
8. Sea Change, Karen White
This book felt a little darker than Karen White's other works, but still incorporated the history of the south and the spiritual elements that I love about her other books.
9. The shoemaker's wife, Adriana Trigiani
I liked Adriana Trigiani's take on historical fiction, because I love her other books. The love story spanned decades and continents.
10. Fairy Tale interrupted, Rosemarie Terenzio
A look at the friendship between JFK and his assistant, very moving.
6. I’ve Got Your Number, Sophie Kinsella
I liked this book a lot more than I thought I would--I thought the premise sounded kind of impossible, but it wasn't. I again loved the way technology is starting to become incorporated into novels.
7. Where We Belong, Emily Giffin
A look at motherhood, adoption, and figuring out who we really are. I liked this book a great deal, but it did not move to the top of my list of my favorite Emily Giffin books.
8. Sea Change, Karen White
This book felt a little darker than Karen White's other works, but still incorporated the history of the south and the spiritual elements that I love about her other books.
9. The shoemaker's wife, Adriana Trigiani
I liked Adriana Trigiani's take on historical fiction, because I love her other books. The love story spanned decades and continents.
10. Fairy Tale interrupted, Rosemarie Terenzio
A look at the friendship between JFK and his assistant, very moving.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Top 20 Summer Reads: 15 to 11
Today, we're back with books 15 to 11. Some of these are new summer releases, but others have been around and I'm just now finding them.
11. Promises to keep, Jane Green.
Anyone who isn't bawling their eyes out at the end of this book is crazy. One of Jane Green's first books set in Amercia (as far as I could tell).
12. Wife 22, Melanie Gideon.
This was a unique premise, about a woman who is completing an online marriage survey. It was a bit predictable, but I liked the way she incorprated technology (Facebook, texts, Google searches) into the book.
13. Eighteen acres, Nicolle Wallace A political thriller--I liked the way we had the perspective of three women and how the plot connected all of them.
14. Where she went, Gayle Forman A Young Adult book that is a sequel to If I Stay. I liked that the book was told by Adam's point of view this time, and how the events of If I Stay impacted him.
15. The Chaperone, Laura Moriarty
A new release--Since I am loving the early 1900s, with my recent obsession with "Downton Abbey," this was fun. It was an interesting take on a woman's life during this time and very unpredictable.
11. Promises to keep, Jane Green.
Anyone who isn't bawling their eyes out at the end of this book is crazy. One of Jane Green's first books set in Amercia (as far as I could tell).
12. Wife 22, Melanie Gideon.
This was a unique premise, about a woman who is completing an online marriage survey. It was a bit predictable, but I liked the way she incorprated technology (Facebook, texts, Google searches) into the book.
13. Eighteen acres, Nicolle Wallace A political thriller--I liked the way we had the perspective of three women and how the plot connected all of them.
14. Where she went, Gayle Forman A Young Adult book that is a sequel to If I Stay. I liked that the book was told by Adam's point of view this time, and how the events of If I Stay impacted him.
15. The Chaperone, Laura Moriarty
A new release--Since I am loving the early 1900s, with my recent obsession with "Downton Abbey," this was fun. It was an interesting take on a woman's life during this time and very unpredictable.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Top 20 Summer Reads: 20 to 16
My poor library account says "you currently have no books checked out." That is almost unbelievable, because I have always had books on hand this summer. So, to catch us up, I'm going to post five of the top 20 books I've read this summer each day this week. Here are my first five:
16: Between you and me, Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus
The authors of The Nanny Diaries, oneof my favorites, are back with a book about family. And fame. And what happens when these two interact.
17: Wallflower in bloom, Claire Cook
Another book about families and fame. This was a fun read--I felt like I was watching "Dancing With The Stars."
18: Alphabet weekends, Elizabeth Noble
An interesting look at the start of a romantic relationship between two friends.
19: Savannah blues, Mary Kay Andrews
One of Mary Kay Andrews' older works, but it was fun to see the other side of the story (I had read the sequel before the original book).
20: Southern charm, Tinsley Mortimer
A look at life in New York City from the eyes of a socialite.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Summer's End
It may not be true, but it feels like summer is basically over. Today is August 1, and on top of that, I saw kids around the schools this morning while Shelby and I were out taking a walk. Soon, we will have all sorts of traffic, Shelby will spend every afternoon barking at kids, and, oh ya, the relaxed mentality I've been loving since summer started will turn into productivity. (I hope.) Hopefully the weather will at least cool down a little if we have to let go of summer.
Even though I'm not in school, I still think of summer as break (in case you couldn't tell by the lack of my posting). I've been working, of course, because you can't really get a break from work for the summer unless you're a teacher or have another really cool job. But I've also been reading, watching the TV shows that are so ridiculous they have to be shown in the summer (or just the really good cable ones that I'm behind on thanks to not having cable), starting random projects, trying to help out with the garden, and traveling.
I'll be sure to catch you up on all of the happenings soon, especially on the books I've been reading and the projects I haven't necessarily been completing.
Even though I'm not in school, I still think of summer as break (in case you couldn't tell by the lack of my posting). I've been working, of course, because you can't really get a break from work for the summer unless you're a teacher or have another really cool job. But I've also been reading, watching the TV shows that are so ridiculous they have to be shown in the summer (or just the really good cable ones that I'm behind on thanks to not having cable), starting random projects, trying to help out with the garden, and traveling.
I'll be sure to catch you up on all of the happenings soon, especially on the books I've been reading and the projects I haven't necessarily been completing.
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Pages In Time
It's probably because I've always been a reader, but when I think about the books that I've read, I think about who I was, where I was in life, when I first read them. Of course, this can't apply to all of the books I've read, because sometimes I read just to read, but I certainly remember my favorites.
Take Harry Potter, as an example. I was able to read the first two without waiting, but had to wait for the rest of the series to be released. When the last one was released, I was in D.C. for an internship, and it was my last day being there. I thought I had reserved it at the local Borders, but when I got there, they had not saved me a book like they said they would and they were out. On top of that, they told me that no other store in the city had copies. I cried on the metro on the way back to my dorm, until I realized that since I didn't have the book to read anyway, I could spend all day looking for a copy. Of course, the first store I went to, the store where I had gone for my first author event, had it, and I spent the day finishing it. (Note: On principle, I protested Borders. I'm not saying that's why they went out of business...I'm just making the comment.)
Other individual books have held their place in my memory--the book I was reading when I first talked to Nathan (a Phillipa Gregory), the books my mom read to me (A Wrinkle In Time, Where The Sidewalk Ends), the first book I remember reading by myself (Little House In The Big Woods). I loved the Princess Diaries books, and used to go to the bookstore the day they came out; the first ones I was still in high school, and the last one, I got on my first business trip in Arizona.
Today, a new book from my favorite author, Emily Giffin, comes out and I feel like it's Christmas. But I also remember first reading them--the first two after my first semester of college and the most recent one on my day off, right before we got married, plus the two between--and I love seeing how much has changed. So yes, while I am of course excited to sit down and read (or devour) the book, I also love how it, like so many others, reflects the changes in my life and lets me look back on the journey of life that has lead me to where I am today.
Take Harry Potter, as an example. I was able to read the first two without waiting, but had to wait for the rest of the series to be released. When the last one was released, I was in D.C. for an internship, and it was my last day being there. I thought I had reserved it at the local Borders, but when I got there, they had not saved me a book like they said they would and they were out. On top of that, they told me that no other store in the city had copies. I cried on the metro on the way back to my dorm, until I realized that since I didn't have the book to read anyway, I could spend all day looking for a copy. Of course, the first store I went to, the store where I had gone for my first author event, had it, and I spent the day finishing it. (Note: On principle, I protested Borders. I'm not saying that's why they went out of business...I'm just making the comment.)
Other individual books have held their place in my memory--the book I was reading when I first talked to Nathan (a Phillipa Gregory), the books my mom read to me (A Wrinkle In Time, Where The Sidewalk Ends), the first book I remember reading by myself (Little House In The Big Woods). I loved the Princess Diaries books, and used to go to the bookstore the day they came out; the first ones I was still in high school, and the last one, I got on my first business trip in Arizona.
Today, a new book from my favorite author, Emily Giffin, comes out and I feel like it's Christmas. But I also remember first reading them--the first two after my first semester of college and the most recent one on my day off, right before we got married, plus the two between--and I love seeing how much has changed. So yes, while I am of course excited to sit down and read (or devour) the book, I also love how it, like so many others, reflects the changes in my life and lets me look back on the journey of life that has lead me to where I am today.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Camp NaNoWriMo: Seeking Inspriation
Man, if Camp NaNoWriMo was read 50,000 books during the month of June, I'd be rocking it. All of my favorite authors have new books that I've managed to score at the library, so I have been reading, reading, reading. And loving it.
Reading/writing my book? Not so much. My book is not interesting to me, and I wonder, if I'm bored writing it, will people be bored reading it? I expressed this to my friend Laura at the Camp Social this week, and she said all of the authors she has talked to say the same thing at some point in the process. So at least I'm not alone here. BUT I am sure that didn't happen to them during camp month. So my solution?
Start a completely different project. Yes, this is truly crazy. But for the first time, I was out and about and struck with an idea and it wouldn't leave my head. So I've been thinking about it, writing down notes, writing an intro, and loving it.
My word count has taken a hit, as in it hasn't really gone anywhere. But I have found my insipration again, and I guess that counts for something, right?
Reading/writing my book? Not so much. My book is not interesting to me, and I wonder, if I'm bored writing it, will people be bored reading it? I expressed this to my friend Laura at the Camp Social this week, and she said all of the authors she has talked to say the same thing at some point in the process. So at least I'm not alone here. BUT I am sure that didn't happen to them during camp month. So my solution?
Start a completely different project. Yes, this is truly crazy. But for the first time, I was out and about and struck with an idea and it wouldn't leave my head. So I've been thinking about it, writing down notes, writing an intro, and loving it.
My word count has taken a hit, as in it hasn't really gone anywhere. But I have found my insipration again, and I guess that counts for something, right?
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