Reading In the Summertime

I'm clinging to my blog by this weekly update, although at least I'm thinking a little about what I would say if I did write about my reading. Maybe in a few weeks I'll actually type them down.

It was a lazy week; I let the boys sleep in and loll about to decompress from the school year. They even declined a trip to the local amusement park, preferring to avoid the AM hours. In July we have our trips and vacations planned, so we'll be more active.

I did enjoy going through the first season of Buffy with my new teenager. I highly recommend that as a coming-of-age show for parents and teens, since it takes aim at the stresses of adolescence and makes them cheesy and literal. Yes, that friend you met on the internet is a demon. Yes, boys have an evil beast within. Yes, you are doomed to die. Yes, the things you do mean life or death to the universe.

What have I read this week? I shall tell bookjourney's crew about it, and, since so much of my reading is kidlit, also link to Teach Mentor Texts:

• The Human Division, John Scalzi. I like the way his books sound light and fluffy, all snark and dialogue, and then suddenly there's a paragraph that lets you know that things are real all the way down.
• Crow, Barbara Wright. It's very depressing to read historical fiction when you know things are going to end badly but the characters are all hopeful.
• Perdition (The Dred Chronicles), Ann Aguirre. I noticed the writing was a bit careless, but I still liked the situations and characters.
• The Battle of the Sexes in Science Fiction, Justine Larbalestier. Sometimes it's nice to read English PhD papers, with all their fancy words and stuff. I also got some recommendations out of this one.

Also some picture books which I put on my Reading My Library Quest page.

What am I currently reading?

• My Real Children, Jo Walton. I expect to love this.
• The Martian, Andy Weir. NOOK Sword & Laser's pick last month.
• The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison. I snuck this onto my phone. It is delicious.
• Cathedral of the Wild, Boyd Varty. A memoir of growing up in Africa.
• Tinker, Wen Spencer. I'm rereading to see how it works with Wood Sprites.
• The Golden Leopard, Lynn Kerstan. Library books keep pushing this NOOK book out of the way.
• Inkheart, Cornelia Funke. Recommended by Talbot Hill Elementary book club.
• The Son of Neptune, Rick Riordan. Following up on this series.
• Cathedral of the Wild, Boyd Varty. Present from LibraryThing EarlyReaders.

Reading intermittently, and deliberately slowly. These never change much:

• Out to Canaan, Jan Karon. Some reunions, which probably mean more to people who read the earlier books.
• A General Theory of Love, Thomas Lewis. The importance of childhood learning in intimacy.
• The Pickwick Papers, Charles Dickens. Quite dull.
• How To Write Science Fiction & Fantasy, Orson Scott Card. How to live the life of a real writer.

What's up next? Mostly NOOK reads, plus my travel books for visiting Texas with.

2014 Challenge Progress:

1. Cybils: 48/77. Have a pile of the next category but haven't stared anything yet.
2. Where Am I Reading? 29/51. Added North Carolina. If I don't finish something on Monday (and I haven't started anything relevant) I'll be officially behind schedule on Tuesday. Guess it's time to start seeking out books.
3. Alphabetically Inclined: 17/26. No change. Luck is not favoring me. Am reading an "M" book, which will help.
4. What's In a Name?: 6/7. Division is a school subject!
5. Book Bingo: Finished a square!  Seven boxes into the next one.
6. Gentle Spectrum Challenge: 8/10, 9/10. Need a cheesy title -- I can't believe it's taking so long!
7. Small Fry Safari: 7/8. No change. Still need something precious.
8. PoC Speculative Fiction 6/5: No change.
9. Best of the Best 2012: 52/25.  Ready to start Ready Player One.
10. Reading My Library: Working hard on it. Well, except that the library just closed for a year, so not so much when the current pile is done.