2018....So Far

In my goal to read 52 books this year, I am a bit behind...for am I?  Shall we dive and discuss?

So far, chronologically, I have read the following:  

1. The Lowcountry Bombshell by Susan M. Boyer (Paper Chase/January book):  This one is the second in the series.  We read the first last year in this same book club and enjoyed it enought to read the second one...or so we thought.  While it was okay,  I did enjoy the first one more.
2. The Broken Road by Richard Paul Evans:  Another series by one of my favorite authors.  From the prologue, I was not sure if I would be as hooked, but I quickly caught onto the story line.  Just a thought...it does seem to echo the plot line of his The Walk series.  We'll see as the second one comes out later this spring. This time instead of walking across America, the main character will travel Route 66.  
3. Leaving Atlanta by Tayari Jones (Paper Chase/Heasley Prize author):  This one we added to our book club reading list when we learned this author will be Lyon College's Heasley Prize author.  Then, this past week, I learned Jones' latest novel has been chosen for Oprah's Book Club.  Nice.  Hope to read that one before her May appearance here in my home town.  Nice.
4. Camino Island by John Grisham:  This one I picked up at my mother-in-law's.  Seemed to have a slow start...or maybe so because I have other reads going on at the same time and I kept putting it down?!  Then, I became hooked and learned much about selling of rare books.  Interesting!

The books in bold?  Books in my TBR pile...that I already owned.  Yes, of that goal of 52 reads, hope that 26 of those are books I already own.  Hummmm...we'll see.  So many good books out there!

Books I Am Currently Reading:

1. To Kill a Mockingbird...with my sophomores.  Such a good novel!  So happy to be reading and teaching/leading the discussion on this one again!
2. The Crucible...with my seniors.  I am enjoying the discussions on this one also as we make many connections to fake news.  Good stuff.
3. Content-Reading That Rocks and Works by Rebecca Harper:  the current book club read for ARA's book club.  We meet live with author four times!  Yay!

Current Bible Studies/Devotions:

1. My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers:  a devotion I read each morning as part of a Joanna Weaver's daily study
2. Awaken by Priscilla Shirer:  a devotion I read each morning
3. The Patriarchs by Beth Moore with my Making Choices Bible Study
4. Kingdom Authority by Adrian Rogers for our Sunday evening study
5. The Bible...every day in my Quiet Time

Maybe?  Just maybe...I am not too far off my book-a-week goal!

What are YOU reading good?!  I would love to hear your recommendations!

Enjoyable Seasonal Reads

It's the most wonderful time to the year...to continue reading!

Following is the list of Christmas novels which I have read...thus far...:

1. The Christmas Angel Project by Melody Carlson - Dec. 4
2. The Afterlife of Holly Chase - Dec. 19
3. The Christmas Secret by Wanda E. Brunstetter - Dec. 20
4. The Noel Diary by Richard Paul Evans - Dec. 22

The Christmas Angel Project:  This one is a re-read, a book I chose for our Paper Chase Book Store Book Club.  Enjoyed it just as much the second time as it reminds me of this very book club, a group of ladies who gather to chat about books and just enjoy their time together. Then, one of the ladies passes...and life continues.

The Afterlife of Holly Chase:  A re-telling of A Christmas Carol, this young adult novel introduces the reader to Holly who has been the Ghost of Christmas Past for five years now.  Do people deserve not just a second chance...but a third chance?  Maybe?  Grace says yes.

The Christmas Secret:  A novella centered around a diary and an entry that reveals a secret, this one introduces a young bride-to-be who suddenly finds her world upside down, but one who continues to turn to the Lord.  Her Man is persistent, digging for answers, traveling to tell the story further, accepting the results.

The Noel Diary:  The first in a series of three (the next two to-be-released) reads, as the author tells us, very similar to his life as a writer.  An author, the main character's mother passes, resulting in his returning home to face what he left behind, what is there now, and what will be.  Yes, this one also centers around a diary!

Still to read this season:

1. The Christmas Train by David Baldacci
2. A Wreath of Snow by Liz Curtis Higgs

Yes, 'tis the season...to read!

What are you reading good this Christmas?

ARA Book Club Reads

This year we began something new:  ARA hosted its first ever book club.  Seems fitting does it not for the state reading group to read?!

This has been the best experience for me!  If the other participants have enjoyed this as much as I, then, we have had some ecstatic readers!  AND these authors will meet with the participants at conference next week!  Fun!

AND...I have the six authors/books lined up for 2018!  More about that later!

This year, we hosted these reads:

1. Teamwork by Amanda Mayeaux and Monique Wild
2. Towers Falling by Jewell Parker Rhodes
3. Jerk, California by Jonathan Friesen 
4. The Reading Makeover by Danny Brassell
5. Fuzzy Mud by Louis Sachar

The authors of the first four met live with the book club participants on Facebook.  Brassell met via Facebook video.  Fun.  Interesting.  

For most of the meetings, I sat right here in my chair, in the comfort of my own home, with a cup of flavored coffee nearby (tonight's drink is hot apple cider...yum!)  For some, though, I was in a different state; for another, I sat in a Sonic parking lot, for I could not arrive home in time to post the 5-7 questions every 7-10 minutes or so.

Having spent several hours with these fellow readers, I am really looking forward to meeting the book club participants...I hear their voices.  I have appreciated their input and thoughts and suggestions.  Now, I just would like to see their faces!

Won't you join us in 2018?

Grand announcement coming next week:  authors...titles...going to be fun!  Right here!

July 2017's Reads...

Only two...this makes me a bit sad...but...I attended meetings for 19 days straight  (back to back...with no overlap)...AND I am reading several others right now!

So about those two, which totals 30 books (so far) for 2017, which means I am a couple of books behind my goal to read a book a week this year...

29. Teaching Reading with YA Literature - Jennifer Buehler - NCTE Reads Bk Club - July 12
30. Jerk, California by Jonathan Friesen, July 30

23-28: Several Summer Reads

23. Towers Falling by Jewell Parker Rhodes - June 24

24. First Impressions by Sarah Price - June 29 

25. To the One Who Conquers by Sam Storms - July 2

26. Lowcountry Boil by Susan M. Boyer - July 4

27. A Court of Thorns and Glass by Sarah J. Maas - July 5
28. The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead - July 6

20-22: Broken, Death, and Blooms

My last three books have been quite the interesting mix!

20.  The Broken Way by Ann Voskamp

This one I read this spring with my bible study group called Making Choices.  Meeting bi-weekly, this book also came with enrichment materials, including a study book and a video for each meeting.  I gained some powerful nuggets from this study:  we have to be broken...not to be remade, but to be reshaped into who we are to become.  Very powerful.

21.  Death Comes to  Pemberly by P. D. James

This one I read for the Paper Chase Book Club's monthly meeting, also as re-read for me, as we had chosen this one about four years for our faculty read.  I finished it wanting to read Pride and Prejudice!

22.  When the Morning Glory Blooms by Cynthia Ruchti

This one I read for the Women's Bible Cafe Online Book Club...just a few days late...as it was May's book!  Loved this book...when I finally got into it.  For several years, I have planted morning glories (have some sprouting now!) and will plant now with a new focus...and will attempt to harvest the seeds this fall.  Loved the intertwining stories of Becky, Ivy, and Anna.  Really good.

What have you been reading good so far this summer?  My pile is huge and my commitment to book clubs almost daunting...but exciting.  More to come!

16-19: Four More Reads!

This spring has been so very busy:  my daughter graduated high school, completed many events for various organizations, and finished Year 26 of teaching high school English.

BUT...during that I read four books.  Always just a bit of time can be found to read!

16.  Lessons I Learned in the Dark by Jennifer Rothschild:  I purchased this book at Women of Joy in April when I heard the author speak...learning then about her blindness, learning more about her life as I read her book.  Inspiring.  Very.

17.  The Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen:  May's book for Paper Chase Book Club was mine, so I chose this one, one that had rested on my book shelves for some time.  Loved it!  The ladies also gave it great reviews, appreciating the pull of the bonds of family members and places, questioning the fantasy of the alligator,  loving a good romance.  :)

18.  Long Way Gone by Charles Martin:  This one I finished in May...for April's reading for the Women's Bible Cafe Online Book Club.  For the first time, I wanted...and want still...so much so to learn to play the guitar.  Really!  For this book, one might should begin with the author's afterward, for I would have more appreciated the retelling of the story of the prodigal's son.  Powerful.

19.  Teamwork by Amanda Mayeaux and Monique Wild:  This was the first read for Arkansas Reading Association's first ever book club that we hosted online in a Facebook group.  Fun, exciting, and a time of learning.  I went into this study...and having nearly finished 26 years of teaching...thinking I knew much about teamwork, but...I learned much!  Always a good thing.

Summer is here.  School is out...and the pile of books for book clubs is increasing.  Read here about my summer reading commitments.  Yay!

Happy reading!