The Big Read

When I went to the library yesterday, I saw a table with a sign that said "Take Your Free Book." Free? Wow... I felt like asking someone, "Are you sure?"

But yep, our library is participating in the Big Read project and is giving away copies of the latest one, My Antonia by Willa Cather. I snatched one up in a hurry along with pamphets and other materials they had there to promote.

I left all happy with my free book thinking, "how cool is that?" I hope they continue on and that the program is succesfull for them. They are doing a TON of stuff geared around this book in the next month. I hope I can get to some of it.

How I'll Be Spending My Eveing.....

Going to see Muse tonight! Here's a little taste of what we're in for....

Do you think my eyes and ears can handle it? I'm excited..... and nervous. This is going to be a different kind of crowd than what I've been experiencing so far this summer! I may feel a little out of place! And as much as I love loud, I'm taking the ear plugs this time!

But wow.... you gotta love that guitar playing! Especially the bass!

A Meme

Here's a recent meme that's been going around, one that made me think and think, so I figured I'd better join in!

If you could have super powers what would they be and what would you do with them? (Please feel free to be selfish, you do not have to save the world!) To just never get tired and always have a constant energy reserve!

Were you to find your self stranded on an island with a CD player...it could happen...what would your top 10 bloggers island discs be?

All three Josh Groban cds
The Beatles #1s Album
Carpenters Greatest Hits
Pirates of the Caribbean Soundtrack (first movie)
Bateman Begins Soundtrack
The Secret Garden Broadway Show Soundtrack
Any Mannheim Steamroller Christmas cd
A compilation of Tchaikovsky’s greatest works


If you were a smell what would it be? The cool, fresh smell of the air after rain

What bird would you most like to be? A meadowlark, they seem so happy!

If you were a bird who's head would you poo on? Sheesh, I don’t know! Osama?

Are there any foods that your body craves? Chocolate. Chocolate. Chocolate.

What's your favourite time of year? Autumn, I love everything about this time of year!

What's your favourite time of day? Morning, after everyone else if off to school and work.

If a rest is as good as a change which would you choose? I’m sort of in the mood for a change! Ewww.... scarey!

If you could have a dinner party and invite any 5 people from the past or present who would they be? (Living or deceased.) Wow, I’ve so stressed on this question!

King Authur, so I can get the REAL story (I DO believe in him!) and if he can’t make, it he can send any one of his knights in his place!
Helen Keller, (but her interpreter doesn’t count) because she would be so inspiring to learn from!
Abigail Adams, because I think she is an amazing lady.
Mandy Patinkin, because I just think he’s cool.
And Josh Groban, of course, so he can sit at my piano and sing to me... I mean... to all of us!

Misc. Book Thoughts for the Day

What I'm thinking today, regarding books anyway:

• I need to read one other Markus Zusak book.... Underdog. It's on Amazon for a mere $80! What's up with that? Out of print already? Rare, and collectible? Hmmmm.....
• Like I mentioned in a previous post, I'm starting to gather a bunch of YA books to read over the next few weeks for the book fair. I hope I find some great ones!
• Bud is getting off to a good start in his AP English class and has read Animal Farm, and The Lord of the Flies so far. Next up is Robinson Crusoe.
• I'm so excited for my book club in a couple of weeks! We'll be talking about Stephenie Meyer's books and every one is buzzing! I hope to have a ton of people here.
• When will the next Eragon and the next Inkheart books be out? I'm going to go crazy!
• I decided to make good use of my Amazon Wishlist this coming holiday season, something I've not really done before. It will be interesting to see if it is beneficial. Do you think someone will buy me the Underdog book? I'm going to put a bunch of piano/music books on there too I think.

I guess that's all of my main book thoughts for today!

Have a great weekend people!

Review: Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner

BOOK: The Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner

Rating: A

Genre: General Literary Fiction

For: both the Awards Challenge and the Pulitzer Challenge

Pulitzer Prize in 1972

I've had this book on my shelf for quite awhile now and it feels good to have finally read it! I must say, I really enjoyed it a lot! This story about a handicapped man writing his grandmother's history kept me totally interested all the way through. It's mostly about the grandma and her life in the late 1800's trying to make it the wild west with a man who has big dreams that never seem to get fulfilled. I thought her husband was great! But he did drive her crazy and in the end some not too good things happened. Then, the story would flip to the current time (1970) and we'd learn more about the guy writing about his grandma and the struggles and problems he is facing.

I've read one other Wallace Stegner (Crossing to Saftey) and totally enjoyed that too. I'll have to continue to add his books to my list!

Preparing for the Book Fair

The job I've had in the PTA for the past six years or so has been to head up the book fair. We usually do a Scholastic book fair and have a great time promoting it, doing book talks for the kids, and running it for two different weeks in during the year.

So, it's coming up again in October and we've been given the list of books that Scholastic will be pushing this time around. Today, I went to track down a few of them at the library. I wasn't very successful, but I did come home with these books:

Incantation by Alice Hoffman

Things Hoped For by Andrew Clements

The Old Willis Place by Mary Downing Han

Code Orange by Caroline B. Cooney

Ones I put on hold:

Love, Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Igraine the Brave by Cornelia FUnke

Song of the Sparrow by Lisa Ann Sandell

Paint the Wind by Pam Munoz Ryan

Rules by Cynthia Lord

The Homework Machine by Dan Cutman

Diary of a Whimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

Flush by Carl Hiaasen

And now I just realized that Things Hoped For is a sequel so I need to go back for:

Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements

So, that should keep me busy for the next little bit!

It's kind of like my own little intense month-long book challenge... to read as many new-ish YA novels advertised by Sholastic Book Fairs as I can!

Anyone read any of these and have anything to say about them?

Booking Through Thursday: Goldilocks

Booking Through Thursday

Okay, so the other day, a friend was commenting on my monthly reading list and asked when I found the time to read. In the ensuing discussion, she described herself as a “goldilocks” when it comes to reading–she needs to have everything juuuuuust right to be able to focus. This caught my attention because, first, I thought that was a charming way of describing the condition, but, two, while we’ve talked about our reading habits, this is an interesting wrinkle. I’d never really thought about it that way.

So, this is my question to you–are you a Goldilocks kind of reader?
Do you need the light just right, the background noise just so loud but not too loud, the chair just right, the distractions at a minimum?

Or can you open a book at any time and dip right in, whether it’s for twenty seconds, while waiting for the kettle to boil, or indefinitely, like while waiting interminably at the hospital–as long as the book is open in front of your nose, you’re happy to read?


If everything had to be just right, I'd get no reading done at all! So, no, I'm for sure not a Goldilocks reader and can read pretty much anywhere, anytime. The only time I CAN'T read, is if my mind is worried or stressed and can't concentrate. For instance, I have a hard time reading at the doctors office, because I'm usually too nervous... same with reading on a plane, it's hard for me to concentrate because I'm too nervous about flying, though I still do read there, I just have to have an "easy" book!