Happy 4rth of July!

My kids are off with their dad, my niblings are off with their parents, and I am basking in the warmth of Austin.  If I stay too long it will become HEAT, but right now I'm just enjoying a summer of sweating rather than shivering.  We did make it to the pool a few times, but I was not tempted by the ice cubes pushed around the pool by the chill wind.

So, did I read anything while traveling?  I sign up with the others at Bookjourney's blog to share what we are reading, have read or plan on reading.

This week I finished some things:

• The Help, Kathryn Stockett (NOOK)
• Green Princess Saves the Day, Alyssa Crowne. For Reading My Library
• POD, by Steven Wallenfells, a Cybils book
• Saba: Under the Hyena's Foot, Jane Kurtz.  Another Reading My Library choice.
• Switching On the Moon, ed by Jane Yolen and Andrew Fusek Peters, a Cybils poetry finalist.
• Born Standing Up:  A Comic's Life, by Steve Martin
• Crunch, Leslie Connor, a middle grade Cybils finalist
• Smile, by Raina Telgemeier, a Cybils graphic novel now running around the neighborhood
• This Lovely Life, Vicki Forman
• Strange Blood, by Lyndsay Jayne Ashford

What trends do I see?  I had a lot of fun reading this week; all of these were fast reads, even the heartbreaking book by Vicki Forman.

I hit my library's ebook selections hard for my NOOK, and only bought along a few paper texts for times of electronic blackout or battery recharging.  So only four five books open on my trip:

• Truth and Beauty, Ann Pratchett (NOOK)
• Little Fuzzy, H. Beam Piper (NOOK)
• Moonshine, Rob Thurman
• Spilling Ink, Ellen Potter and Anne Mazer
• Darwin Arkwrignt and the Peregrine Pact, by A.J. Hartley

At home I have left book marks in:

• Feng Shui, Robin D Laws. On loan from my brother.
• The Battle for Azeroth, ed. Bill Fawcett. Analysis of the World of Warcraft MMORPG.
• Omnitopia , Diane Duane (audio).
• Territory, Emma Bull (vacation book)
• Downbelow Station, C.J. Cherryh. Reread.
• Bad Prince Charlie, John Moore (vacation book)
• The Rogue's Return, Jo Beverly (vacation book)
• The Secret Duke, Jo Beverly. Found under my bedside table with a bookmark.
• How I Met My Countess, Elizabeth Boyle. Also found.
• The Terrorists of Irustan, Louise Marley. I snuck this into my vacation pile.

I'll keep clearing out my library stacks, both electronic and physical, as my next reading priorities.

Quick stats on my Challenges:

A-Z: 38/52. Nothing new. Still stalled.  I have an "X" book waiting, though.
Cybils: 49/76. Big jump!  Comparatively speaking.
Global Reading Challenge:12/21. Stuck.
Read Around the World: 13/20. We've got a new batch of picture books that advance things.
Science Book Challenge: 2.141/3.141... No change.
Stream: 3/3, 1/3, 3/3, 3/3. This is really fun. I have to rein myself in from splitting in too many directions, though.
Take a Chance: 5/10. I'm picking through the Economist's list for #4.
20/11: 17/20. No change.
What's In a Name?: 5/6.  Must read book with movement in title.
Where Am I Reading?: 23/50. I added Mississippi.