It's Monday, What Are You Reading? (Oct. 18, 2010)

It's Monday, What are you reading is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.  

 

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading, is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

This was not my favorite week. My bronchitis didn't respond to the first antibiotic. So I visited the doctor again and went on a stronger antibiotic. I think, finally, that the cough is going away. I was disappointed not to be able to attend the Book Blogger Get-together at the Twin Cities Book Festival this past weekend but I think the rest was better for me. 

I only read two books during the week.

I thought Troubled Waters by Sharon Shinn was a wonderful read. I look forward to reading more in this new fantasy world. Click on the title to see my review.

Harvest Moon, the anthology with stories by Mercedes Lackey, Michelle Sagara, and Cameron Haley, took the most time this week. I just couldn't get into the 500 Kingdoms story by Mercedes Lackey that took up the first third of the book. I thought the story had some interesting bits. I liked the inside look at the Greek cods and the Persephone myth but I thought the story just dragged. I really enjoyed the story by Sagara that told how Kaylin Neya first became a part of the Hawks. The third story was by an author new to me. The main character managed to combine gangsters and magic.

This weekend, I decided to hold my own Middle Grade Read-a-thon. I had won a pack of 5 middle grade books recently and the need to rest made this a good time to read them.

I began by reading Spaceheadz by Jon Scieszka. This was a fun story about a fifth grader who needs to help some aliens recruit SPHDZ to keep Earth from being turned off.

The Case of the Case of Mistaken Identity by Mac Barnett is the first in the Brixton Brothers series about a young boy who wants to be a detective and learns all about detecting by reading the Bailey Brothers mysteries. 

Amelia Rules: The Tweenage Guide to Not Being Unpopular by Jimmy Gownley was a graphic novel. I enjoyed this middle grade take on popularity.

We the Children (Benjamin Pratt and the Keepers of the School) by Andrew Clements is the first book in a planned 6 book series. This one was mainly set up and introduction of characters. I was interested enough that I will be reading the rest as they become available.

Nightmare at the Book Fair by Dan Gutman was the story of a non-reading boy who is knocked unconscious by a pile of books when he was setting up for a book fair and wakes to find himself in a book himself. Each chapter places our hero in another genre of books. I found it really funny.

Since I know that the next week is going to be really busy, I decided to schedule these reviews for later publication. I have set them up so that there will be a new review each Tuesday and Thursday on my Ms. Martin Teaches Media blog.

The next book I plan to read is The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff. I am attending Kidlit Con 2010 in Minneapolis this weekend and will have a chance to meet her and Maggie Stiefvater and other authors and bloggers too. I am really excited to take part in this. I just mapquested the driving directions.

However, before Kidlit Con 2010, I have a busy week here at school. We have Parent-Teacher Conferences this week. Monday and Tuesday are 7:30 AM to 7:00 PM workdays for me. Wednesday is only 7:30 until 11:30 AM though and Thursday and Friday are days off. My friend and I will be leaving for the Cities on Friday afternoon and returning home late on Saturday evening.

I don't know how much reading time will fit into this week's schedule. I am planning to bring my Kindle and books to be autographed to the Cities with me. I hope to have some time to read.