Pages

Monday, April 5, 2010

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's that time of the week again!  Don't forget to head over to Sheila's blog and see what others are reading this week!

Last week I actually finished two books!  I reviewed Better, by Atul Gawande, and my review of The Time Machine, by H.G. Wells, will be posted on Wednesday.


I went a little overboard at the library this weekend and went home with 10 books.  (What can I say?  I don't make decisions when I don't feel well.)  The two I'm starting with are The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riordan, and Stern Men, by Elizabeth Gilbert.


Turns out Under the Dome, by Stephen King, is now ready to be picked up at the library (just hours after I left with 10 other books, of course).  So my new conundrum is going to be: do I start this 1000-page behemoth now, or wait until the last second to pick it up in order to give myself a chance to finish some of the classics I picked up this weekend?  I'm leaning towards waiting.  This is something I think I'm going to need to prepare myself for.


That about sums it up for me.  Before I go, though, I do want to brag just a little bit about the seafood gumbo my husband made last week.  I loved it so much, I posted about it.  Check it out!

14 comments:

  1. I haven't heard of Stern Men until now but I added it to my list as I am currently devouring Eat, Pray, Love.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Despite my best intentions, I still haven't read Stern Men (or any of Gilbert's pre-Eat, Pray, Love books). I'm curious how you react to it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Isn't it amazing how those library books just jump into our arms? I renew my books all the time. I think it will be a while before I can convince myself to read the new Stephen King novel. I have to be in the right mood for it.

    Enjoy your books!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Seafood Gumbo?! Yuuum.

    I LOVE coming home from the library with an armful of books. I don't know about the Stephen King book. THAT is going to take some time :)

    I enjoyed your Atul Gawande review.

    Have a great week! Lynne's Book Reviews

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great week and this one looks equally interesting! Enjoy your reading! If you get a chance, my Monday: http://www.rundpinne.com/2010/04/its-monday-what-are-you-reading-5-april.html

    ReplyDelete
  6. Amy, definitely put off the behemoth to the last minute and read as much of anything you can't renew first. Then read Stephen King and renew everything else for as long as you can!

    I feel like my reading is way off the track compared to what everyone else is reading! In the past couple of weeks I have read Emma, Wuthering Heights, Her Fearful Symmetry and Of Bees and Mist. Three are fairly dark and one (Emma) total fluff. It's time for light and entertaining!

    For at least the first half of *Emma* I wondered why I was reading it. It was boring unless the reader was interested in a lesson on early 1800s manners, mores, and the lifestyle of the rural gentry. I think I may have felt similarly about *Persuasion.* Don't know that I'll be reading any more Austen for a while.

    I actually enjoyed *Wuthering Heights* all the way through. I had a whole new perspective on it the second time around. Who knows why Heathcliff was really brought into the family, but I saw him as a bullied and abused child who didn't fit in to his foster family, and grew into an angry and vengeful man. Yes, he loved Catherine obsessively. And she loved him, but saw him as an unsuitible match for herself because of the class difference. As an adult all of his actions were aimed at taking revenge on the people who had hurt him as a child, as well as their families. Not so very different from modern day as seen in school shootings and domestic violence issues.

    *Of Bees and Mist* was definaietely the darkedst of all. I didn't enjoy reading it, and yet I couldn't put it down. At one point I wondered why I was reading it. Then the person who recommended it said that it was the best description of toxic relationships to be found. And the reason I couldn't put it down clicked. Was there light at the end oif the tunnel? You'll have to read it yourself find out.

    I know Amy has reviewed *Her Fearful Symmetry* earlier in this blog. In general I enjoyed reading the book, and honestly found the premise fairly reasonable - because I believe in the supernatural. But now that I think about it - this was another exercise in toxic relationships from a different and somewhat more comfortable perspective.

    Don't know what I'm going to read next. I have some short story anthologies at home, but I need to get out my list and make a trip to the library.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Stern Men is new to me. I do that too at the library.... leave with way too many and then sit and long to get to them while I read other books.

    Have a greta week and here's hoping you make a dent in those library reads ;)

    ReplyDelete
  8. I stopped at the library on my way home this afternoon and picked up two for this week. I have heard very mixed reviews of *The Lacuna* by Barbara Kingsolver; and I also got *The Host* by Stephenie Meyer.

    Love today's avatar.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Stern Men looks to be a thick read, but that could just be because my head is foggy from being sick. I'll give it a few days and then try again. It's hard for me to concentrate right now.

    I'm going to have to pick up Under the Dome this weekend, so I'm going to read as many short classics as I can in the meantime (starting with Of Mice and Men).

    Mom - I'm glad you liked Wuthering Heights! I was surprised by how much I liked it. Her Fearful Symmetry was definitely more of a thinker than I expected. And I think you'll really like The Host! I definitely enjoyed it.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I'm curious about Under the Dome. Enjoy your reading week!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I leave the library with lots of books, many times, but not because I found them on the shelf. Nope, I use my library's online services, place holds and wham!!! A ton of books. :)

    Happy Reading!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Two of your books are on my TBR as well - The Lightning Thief (which, against my better judgement I saw the movie first and liked it but I have a daughter so I blame her) and Under the Dome which is a task in itself and truthfully, I'm scared! I've heard good things about UtD so we'll see when I read it. Good luck. I'd wait on it til the last second, also!

    ReplyDelete
  13. I read Under the Dome in a couple of days. I just had to see what was going to happen! Good luck with whatever you decide to read first!

    ReplyDelete
  14. I can't wait to read Under the Dome. I'm a secret Stephen King fan!

    ReplyDelete