It's Monday, What Are You Reading? (Nov. 15, 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.

I had a good week but not a good reading week. My presentation to the school board on Monday night went well. And my road trip to the Cities on Thursday night was great. But both really cut into my reading time. 

I finished only three books this week.

I thought Play of Passion by Nalini Singh was excellent. I loved the romance and was intrigued by the politics of the world. I can't wait to see if the heroes manage to thwart the villains in the forthcoming books. My review is here.

I read Scourge by David H. Burton. This was a good middle grade steampunk adventure. My review is here.

I also read Wren Journeymage by Sherwood Smith which adds a fourth volume to the Wren series. This was a good finale. The review will be posted soon. I recommend it for those who remember the Wren series -- good middle grade heroic fantasies.

I just began reading Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. It is the sequel to Beautiful Creatures which was one of my favorite books from 2009. This is another young adult paranormal romance. 

Next week I plan to tackle some of the books that I have for review. I currently have quite a number in that group. I'll be trying to read the ones for the books that are being published in December.

My Soul to Steal by Rachel Vincent is the 4th in the Soul Screamers series. These a good young adult paranormals with an unusual main character. She is a banshee. This one is due out on Dec. 28.

Don't Sweat the Small Stuff by Don Bruns is a humorous mystery. This one will be published on Dec. 6.

Once in a Full Moon by Ellen Schreiber is a young adult paranormal with a love triangle and werewolves. What could be better? This one is due out on Dec. 28.

If I manage to get all three read, maybe I can get to some of the ones I said I would read last week. 

What did you read? What's coming up for you? Leave a link and I'll be glad to pay you a visit. 

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. 

YA Review: The Kings of Clonmel by John Flanagan

I have not disappeared off the ends of the earth. I have been reading. You can see the evidence here as I posted a review of The Kings of Clonmel on my other blog -- Ms. Martin Teaches Media. I am trying to limit this blog to my YA and adult reading and shift my middle grade reading to that blog.

I do have a question for this blog relating to the covers. To the right is the cover of the book I read. This book was published by Random House Australia.

Below is the cover for the US edition which will be published by Philomel on May 18, 2010. There are some major differences in the way the book is portrayed.

My thoughts are that the Australian cover portrays the characters as younger than I think they would be in the story. Also I get a little "Lord of the Rings" vibe from that cover which is missing from the US cover.

The US cover seems to focus more on the action aspect of the book as it depicts a scene from late in the novel and with no recognizable characters.

Does that say something about the marketing? Are US kids more likely to choose a book with action on the cover rather than portraits of the characters?

I am just curious. I will admit that I would purchase the book with either cover. All I'm looking for on the cover is John Flanagan's name and Ranger's Apprentice as the series. The rest of the cover could be blank for me. I am already hooked.

What will Dan and Amy do next?

Are you a fan of the 39 Clues books? The most recent (book 6) was released this week and I couldn't wait to read it. This one is In Too Deep by Jude Watson. Dan and Amy are in Australia and, as usual, they are in lots of danger from other Cahills as they search for the clues that will make them the most powerful people in the world.

Here is a brief blurb for the book: A hint from their parents’ past puts Amy and Dan on the trail of secrets their grandmother Grace would NEVER have wanted them to know. Awful memories begin to crowd in on Amy, just as her enemies circle closer. How far would she go to protect Dan? How much of a Cahill is she prepared to be? Perhaps Grace was right – some secrets are better left buried.



If you like the books, you should also check out the website where you can go on missions and play games. There are also prizes to be won.

There was recently a webcast with five of the authors that gave students a chance to solve problems like Dan and Amy and win a clue for the 39 Clues website. Take some time and see if you have what it takes to be an Advanced Agent!