Salmon Run Under It

Schools been running for over two months, and I'm still exploring my new library day. Foolishly I like to go every week, at which time I pick up enough books for the next month. And then I drown in pages, but it's a good way to go. Lately I've been trying Thursdays, since I'm picking up at a kid at the city bus stop conveniently outside the library. If I'm early, I go in and browse. If I'm late, I'm unconcerned since he can do that. And I bring along any handy volunteers I can get my hands on.

My two goals this week were to get my library numbers down, and to check out all the books I needed for my yearly challenges. This goals are not actually compatible, you may notice. I had two books waiting for me on the hold shelf, and then I searched through the teaser display at the front looking for books that satisfy my various geographic challenges. And then I got the next six books for my Reading My Library challenge. So I came home with:

• The Yellow Birds, Kevin Powers. I saw this in the Quick Picks section and was intrigued.
• Final Sail, Elaine Viets. I'm hoping this takes place in Central America.
• The Round House, Louise Erdrich. Quick Pick from North Dakota.
• The Fifth Assassin, Brad Meltzer. Quick Pick from Washington D.C.
• After Dead, Charlaine Harris. I thought this hold would take longer to appear; it's a list of what eventually happens to everyone from the Sookie Stackhouse books.
• Battle Magic, Tamora Pierce. Another hold my library delivered super-efficiently.

Over in the kidlit section, I examined the penultimate section of the J Fiction, and from the six shelves I chose:

• Listen!, Stephanie Tolan. Some kind of dog story; I'm hoping it takes place in West Virginia or maybe South Carolina.
• The Shadow Thieves, Anne Ursu. Because I liked Bread Crumbs so much. My cover is much cooler, though.
• Navigating Early, Clare Vanderpool. Again because I recognized the author. Also, I hope the characters escape from Maine and move the book to a geographically desirable state.
• Paperboy, Vince Vawter. I've been interested in this book due to some reviews I liked. Also, I'm interested in selective mutes.
• Coyote Autumn, Bill Wallace. Another dog story, which I hope takes place in an obscure state.
• The Templeton Twins Have An Idea, Ellis Weiner. I'm a sucker for books about odd smart kids.

Also, I got another music CD.

This means I leapt up to 49 things out on my library cards, and I can't age fast enough to surpass that, so no new book from the store for me this week. I've got to read all the Cybils books while getting my library count down -- I think the mid-twenties would be a good place but that's a far way off.

November Is For Library Books

 
Well, I'm still not really finishing anything, but at least I'm opening a few books. Occasionally. I think my November reading will have to concentrate on Getting My Library Pile down, and then December will be a mad dash to finish my challenges. Wish me luck.

I'll sign in at Book Journey or Teach Mentor Texts as a proof of concept that someday I want to be the person who thinks about what she is reading. Maybe next week?

This week I managed to finish:

• Edge Chronicles 7: Freeglader,  Paul Steward. kidlit. Part of my Reading My Library quest; sadly I feel that the seventh book was not a great entry to this series. Lovely vocabulary, though.
• Looking For Alaska, John Green. YA. I spent the entire book recoiling in horror from the cigarette smoke, which completely distracted me from the themes, characters, and plot.
• Bone: Quest for the Spark 1, Tom Sniegoski. Another Reading My Library pick, which gave me the chance to see what these Bone books my kids have read are all about. 
• UnBEElievables: Honeybee Poems and Paintings, Douglas Florian. kidlit poetry. Rather dull picture book instructing kids about bees. A 2012 Cybils nominee.

What am I currently reading?  I have my basic bag of library book, my own book, book club book, and NOOK. I've added a library book doomed to be called back Real Soon Now. 

• Elephant Run, Roland Smith, Kidlit. A Reading My Library pick that takes place in Burma.
• The Queen's Pawn, Christy English. A story of Queen Eleanor, King Henry, and a woman they both love. Pretty decent, but I can't remember how it showed up on my TBR list.
• Chime, Franny Billingsley. Audio YA. Now she is blaming her jealousy on bad magic. Way to build credibility, kid.
• Sidekicked, John David Anderson. Kidlit. The super hero is not coming to the rescue.
• Congo, Michael Crichton. NOOK. November book club book. The gorilla is headed for the jungle.
• Conspiracy, Lindsay Burokers. NOOK. Another assassin story. I only read this after I've completed a NOOK library book, and since I haven't completed anything in weeks, it's been languishing.
• Keep Me Forever, Rosemary Laurey. I think the set-up is finished.
• Abraham Lincoln: Prairie Years, Carl Sandburg. Lincoln is elected President.
• A General Theory of Love, Thomas Lewis. Just starting this.
• Senrid, Sherwood Smith. YA. Senrid might take back his country.
• The Pickwick Papers, Charles Dickens. Lots of dull lawyer stuff.
• A Parent's Guide to Developmental Delays, Laurie Lecomer. What interventions look like.

What will I read next? I've got a werewolf book up, some more Reading My Library picks, and the new Sarah Rees Brennan. If only my fingers remembered how to turn pages...

2013 Challenges:

1. Cybils: 54/74.  Read a picture book.
2. Where Am I Reading?: 36/51. I'm STILL four books behind quota. I need Alaska, Delaware, Indiana and Nebraska, to name a few. Time to go specifically hunting. And then read those hunted books.
3. Crazy Quilt Colors: 6/9. Need patterns, green, and brown. Does Bronze count as brown? I have that one out from the library. 
4. Reading My Library: Finished two, working on the next. On kidlit S's.
5. Best of the Best 2012: 57/25. I have one out from the library now. Also slogging through CHIME.

Coming Up For Air

 
I've been in a bit of a reading slump, during which I've read very little new books, instead visiting my favorite bits of many old favorites but not completing anything, old or new. But with November looming ahead of me, it's time to get serious about my various challenges or face the dread prospect of Lists Uncompleted.

I'm not signing in at Book Journey or  Teach Mentor Texts since I haven't reviewed anything in MONTHS, but I'll keep the links around in case next week I start recording my literary life again.

This month I have read:

• Dark Currents, Jacqueline Carey. This was for Felicia Day's Vaginal Fantasy book club.
• Far From the Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity, Andrew Solomon. My cousin helped edit this book.
• Warrior, Zoe Archer. This was for last month's Vaginal Fantasy book club.
• Wonder, R.J. Palacio. This is a Cybils pick.
• Sammy Keyes and the Killer Cruise, Wendelin Van Draanen. The conclusion of a great kidlit series.
• Eight Million Gods, Wen Spencer. Technically I've previously read the ARC, but this was the real deal.
• Spy to Die For, Kris DeLake. Sequel to a book I liked.
• Drama, Raina Telgemeier. Another Cybils pick, this one a graphic novel.

In late September I read:

• Stronger, Michael Carroll. Another strong Quantum series book.
• The Runaway King, Jennifer A. Nielson. This might have been a Cybils book, in addition to being a Family Book club pick.
• The Elusive Mrs Pollifax, Dorothy Gilman. I'm enjoying this series a lot. Thanks MM!
• When Diplomacy Fails, Michael Z Williamson. Another spy action book, about as different from Mrs Pollifax as humanly possible.
• Born of Night, Sherrilyn Kenyon. Another Vaginal Fantasy pick.

What am I currently reading?  I have my basic bag of library book, my own book, book club book, and NOOK. And I'm trying to cherry pick the easy read books so I can get my library count down to a reasonable number (I'm getting close!) And I have the six books that I'm reading deliberately slowly, so they turn up every week.

• Chime, Franny Billingsley. Audio YA. Still disliking this. She continues to be insane, to wallow in false guilt, and now adds in pathetic jealousy of other girls. Hitting so many bad buttons!
• Sidekicked, John David Anderson. Kidlit. Dark tale about children trained as sidekicks. Mine.
• Congo, Michael Crichton. November book club book.
• The Edge Chronicles 7: Freeglader, Paul Steward & Chris Riddell. RML pick. Since I haven't read the first six book, I'm finding the characterization a bit thin.
• Looking For Alaska, John Green. NOOK. I'm too cranky to enjoy this story about kids drinking and smoking. Basically, anyone who thinks smoking is cool is hard for me to emphasize with.
• Conspiracy, Lindsay Burokers. NOOK. Another assassin story. I only read this after I've completed a NOOK library book, and since I haven't completed anything in weeks, it's been languishing.
• Keep Me Forever, Rosemary Laurey. I think the set-up is finished.
• Abraham Lincoln: Prairie Years, Carl Sandburg. Lincoln is elected President.
• A General Theory of Love, Thomas Lewis. Just starting this.
• Senrid, Sherwood Smith. YA. Senrid might take back his country.
• The Pickwick Papers, Charles Dickens. Lots of dull lawyer stuff.
• A Parent's Guide to Developmental Delays, Laurie Lecomer. What interventions look like.

What will I read next? I don't know -- I can't decide anything lately.

2013 Challenges:

1. Cybils: 53/74.  Finished YA Science Fictii.
2. Where Am I Reading?: 36/51. I'm STILL four books behind quota. I need Alaska, Delaware, Indiana and Nebraska, to name a few. Time to go specifically hunting.
3. Crazy Quilt Colors: 6/9. Need patterns, green, and brown. Does Bronze count as brown? I have that one out from the library. 
4. Reading My Library: Reading one now.
5. Best of the Best 2012: 57/25. I have one out from the library now. Also slogging through CHIME.

What I Read Lately

 
Well, despite my complete silence this summer, I did maintain my book-a-day pace. It was mostly library books, which is a shame. Next year I hope to concentrate on my personal groaning bookcase of not-yet-read material. Also I hope not to let vacations and a demanding reading schedule cancel my blogging, because soon I will have no idea what I read this summer.

I'll go sign in at Book Journey's round-up of what people have read, are reading, and will read. I'm also heading for  Teach Mentor Texts. I'm hoping this inspires me to actually talk about what I've read, instead of just listing it.

This week I read:

• The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, Anne Fadiman.
• My Name Is Mina, David Almond
• Friends With Boys, Faith Erin Hicks
• The Whys of a Philosophical Scrivener, Martin Gardner
• The Drowned Cities, Paolo Bacigalupi.
• Assassins in Love, Kris DeLake
• Enclave, Ann Aguirre
• The Bestseller Job (A Leverage Novel), Greg Cox

Earlier in September I read

• One More Theory About Happiness, Paul Guest
• Liar and Spy, Rebecca Stead
• Blood Trade, Faith Hunter
• Lies, Knives, and Girls in Red Dresses, Ron Koertge
• Sometimes a Rogue, Mary Jo Putney
• How To Fake a Moon Landing, Darryl Cunningham

Back in August I read:

• Darkroom, Lila Quintero Weaver
• Boy Princess Vol. 1, Seyoung Kim
• P.S. Be Eleven, Rita Williams Garcia
• Intruder (Foreigner 13), C.J. Cherryh
• The Curiousities, Maggie Stiefvater....
• The Four Corners of the Sky, Michael Malone
• Smokescreen, Nancy Hartry
• Libriomancer, Jim C. Hines
• The Amazing Mrs. Pollifax, Dorothy Gilman
• Constellation (Liaden Universe Vol 1), Sharon Lee & Steve Miller
• The Shape of Desire, Sharon Shinn
• Rapture, J.R. Ward
• Crucible of Gold, Naomi Novi
• Will Grayson, Will Grayson, John Green & David Leviathon
• Night of the Howling Dogs, Graham Salisbury
• National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry, J. Patrick Lewis
• The White Giraffe, Lauren St. John
• Shine, Lauren Myracle
• Children of Scarabaeus, Sara Creasy

I also reread a handful of books, but I lost the records, which is why it looks like I'm short on my book-a-day goal. I know I reread all the Harper Collins books, for example, as well as all the Aurora Teagarden series.

And in July I read:

• Poppy Done to Death, Charlaine Harris
• Platypus Police Squad: The Frog Who Croaked, Jarrett J. Krosoczka
• Husbands, Jane Espenson
• The Last Dragon, Jane Yolen
• Mercy Thompson: Moon Called Vol 2, Patricia Briggs
• Mercy Thompson: Moon Called Vol 1, Patricia Briggs
• Endgame, Ann Aguirre
• Limits of Power, Elizabeth Moon
• Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax, Dorothy Gilman
• Banner of the Damned, Sherwood Smith
• Biggles of the Special Air Police, W.E. Johns
• The Mountain Valley War, Louis L'Amour
• The Black Hawk, Joanna Bourne
• Limbo Lodge, Joan Aiken
• Ted of the Mounties, Eileen Heming
• The False Prince, Jennifer A. Nielsen
• I, Robot, Isaac Asimove
• Zoobreak, Gordon Korman
• The One and Only Ivan, Katherine Applegate
• Lord of the Fading Lands, C.L. Wilson
• The Wake of the Lorelei Lee, L.A. Meyer
• Poison Princess, Kresley Cole
• Dragon Tide, Sharon Lee & Steve Miller
• Zoobiquity, Barbara Natterson-Horowitz

What am I currently reading?  I have my basic bag of library book, my own book, book club book, and NOOK. And I'm trying to cherry pick the easy read books so I can get my library count down to a reasonable number (I'm getting close!) And I have the six books that I'm reading deliberately slowly, so they turn up every week.

• Chime, Franny Billingsley. Audio YA. I'm not really enjoying this much; I find the main character to be insane, which makes her a dull narrator. Also, she enjoys wallowing in guilt, which I tend to avoid. 
• Born of Night, Sherrilyn Kenyon. Last month's Vaginal Fantasy alt pick. I'm finding it rather redonkulous but amusing.
• The Runaway King, Jennifer A. Nielsen. Kidlit. The September Family Book Club book. Postponed until the end of the month so that we can join up with another family, so I'm reading some other books first.
• Here Lies Bridget, Paige Harbison. YA. NOOK. From the Best of the Best teen list. It starts with the main character getting detention, which does not excite me to go on reading.
• Conspiracy, Lindsay Burokers. NOOK. Another assassin story.
• Sidekicked, John David Anderson. Kidlit. Dark tale about children trained as sidekicks. 
• Far From the Tree, Andrew Solomon. Hey, my cousin helped edit this book.
• Keep Me Forever, Rosemary Laurey. We have thrown a jewel thief into the plot.
• Abraham Lincoln: Prairie Years, Carl Sandburg. Time to pick a Republican presidential candidate.
• A General Theory of Love, Thomas Lewis. Just starting this.
• Senrid, Sherwood Smith. YA. Movers and shakers consider Senrid.
• The Pickwick Papers, Charles Dickens. A good time in the country.
• A Parent's Guide to Developmental Delays, Laurie Lecomer. How to get your kid evaluated.

What will I read next? I don't know -- I can't decide anything lately.

2013 Challenges:

1. Cybils: 49/74.  Working through poetry. I have a deep stack at home now.
2. Where Am I Reading?: 36/51. I'm four books behind quota. I need Alaska, Delaware, Indiana and Nebraska, to name a few.
3. Crazy Quilt Colors: 6/9. Need patterns, green, and brown. Does Bronze count as brown?
4. Reading My Library: Liar and Spy was good.
5. Best of the Best 2012: 57/25. I forgot that I can count the ones I read too early now that the timed portion of the challenge is done.

Friday Night Book Club

My book club met tonight, although only about half of us made it. That's why our club is about the perfect size -- not too big when we all show up, but big enough even with low attendance. We picked The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman as the book. It was a good selection in that everyone liked it, although it didn't generate a lot of controversy. Some of us had gone ahead to read other books in the series, which is a sign of popularity -- one purpose of our book club is to find good books, so that's a sign that something worked.

Turns out that one member had recommended this for us several years ago, but for some reason it didn't get picked. Maybe that's why I recognized the title on my New Zealand's friend bookcase, which led to my reading it and suggesting it again when we needed a fast book for our September meeting. The stress of having such a late pick led us to spend the rest of the evening plotting the rest of our year (and trading cooking hints, at which I contributed several imaginative ways to mess up.

In case anyone wants to follow along with us for the rest of the year, here are the picks:

October (romance) 
The Grand Sophy
by Georgette Heyer.  Yes, we have read this before, but we picked it again because it is awesome and the library has many copies. Feel free to enhance your month with additional Heyers if you feel the need.

November (sci fi. Sorta.) 
Congo
by Michael Crichton
We wanted to read a Crichton, but this one looked rather long, so we pushed it back a month to give us a running start. Some of us had read this in the distant past and remembered a variety of interesting characters, which sounded good.
December (ya)  
Will Grayson, Will Grayson
by John Green & David Levithan
This is a nice short children's book for our December, written by two fairly famous YA authors. I've already read this -- I brought the audio tape for my summer car trip and then couldn't listen to it with the kids around because of all the swearing. But it's a cute read. 
January (movie) 
Much Ado About Nothing
Joss Whedon (Director)

Possible for later: 

• Fantasy, YA - Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey
• Mystery - Shop Till You Drop (A Dead-End Job Mystery #1) by Elaine Viets
• Bring a Friend Non-Fiction - Far from the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity by Andrew Solomon
• Non-Fiction - Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison by Piper Kerman
• YA based in Seattle- Runner by Carl Deuker 

But I Repeat Myself

 
These status reports aren't as important this summer, as I'm also keeping a list for the book-a-day summer attempt. But I'm also doing challenges and stuff, so since all my blogging is really talking to myself, I guess I don't care if I repeat myself a few times.

I'll go sign in at Book Journey's round-up of what people have read, are reading, and will read. I'm also heading for  Teach Mentor Texts. This is a catch-up post -- last week I forgot to post (AGAIN), so I'm incorporating those books into this week.

This week I read:

• Hide and Seek, Kate Messner. Kidlit. Turns out this is the second in a series, but other than a thinness to characterization this didn't slow things down. And, to my delight, the book decamped for Costa Rica after a few pages.
• A Bone to Pick, Charlaine Harris. I am zipping through all the Aurora Teagarden books. I think this might be my favorite Harris series.
• Nick and Tessla's High-Voltage Danger Lab, Bob Pflugfelder. Kidlit. This was a present from LibraryThing Early Reviewer, and it's a fun kids adventure with the bonus of tips to creating some nifty inventions that I can see my kids actually doing.
• Real Murders, Charlaine Harris. Aurora Teagarden's first book.
• Shakespeare's Landlord, Charlaine Harris. Lily Bard's first book. Darker than the Teagarden books, since Lily's backstory is so much grimmer than Aurora's.
• Flanagan's Smart Home,  Barbara Flanagan. Self-Help? Advice on simplifying and enriching your home.
• Succubus On Top, Richelle Mead. I think I prefer my fluffy urban fantasies to have heroes as protagonists, so I'll probably stop reading these. Georgina does too much bad stuff.
• The Dreamer, Pam Munoz Ryan. Kidlit. Magic realism biography of a great poet; I grabbed this for my Reading My Library quest and it was delicious.
• Planesrunner, Ian McDonald. YA. A Cybils SF finalist that I avoided because I hated the cover, but was pleasantly surprised to find I liked the book. I've passed it along to my high schooler.

Last week I read:

• The Ascension, Michael Carroll. YA. Book two, which takes places about five minutes after book one, which meant that all the stuff I had forgotten mattered. The pacing didn't work for me, but I enjoyed it enough to order up the third book from the library.
• Four Corners: A Journey Into the Heart of Papua New Guinea, Kira Salek. A memoir of a young girl's solo adventuring into wild and foreign places that aroused all my parental instincts -- she didn't seem at all prepared for what she found. I didn't trust her judgement of places or people, which meant that I got bored by her conclusions based on those judgements.
• The Fire Lord's Lover, Kathrynne Kennedy. A Vaginal Fantasy pick from May; the language grated on my but I ended up liking the characters more than the first hundred pages predicted I would.
• The Mirage, Matt Ruff. I've finally read on of Ruff's books, which confirmed that I'd probably like them all. 
• The Lost Fleet: Beyond the Frontier: Guardian, Jack Campbell. Some interesting twists at the end (well, I think it's the end) of Black Jack's return. 
• The Worst-Case Scenario: Deadly Seas, David Borgenicht. Kidlit. Other than the dreadful final reveal, it was a fun read (I survived!). Has the usual problems with ridiculous choices, of course.
• Last Scene Alive, Charlaine Harris. 2nd to last Aurora Teagarden book. I can't find the next one!

What am I currently reading?  I have my basic bag of library book, my own book, book club book, and NOOK. And then I have the other books that I'm pushing through so I always have something I can finish, or right now, the books I have to turn in before I head out on vacation. And I have the six books that I'm reading deliberately slowly, so they turn up every week.

• The Wake of the Lorelei Lee, L.A. Meyer (audio). We're making good progress, what with pirate attacks and violence and stuff moving the action along. 
• Poison Princess, Kresley Cole. YA For the Vaginal Fantasy book club, although I'm behind -- this is the alt pick for May, so I still haven't watched the end of that episode. My son read this first and recommended this to me, although I'm having consent issues with the first half.
• Lord of the Fading Lands, C. L. Wilson. (NOOK). Again for the Vaginal Fantasy book club; I'm only a little behind, as this is the alt pick for the June episode.
• Shine, Lauren Myracle. YA From the Best of the Best teen list. I also have the audio for Chime, the book that confused the presenters of some award so that they accidentally called the author of Shine when Chime won. Or maybe it was the other way around.
• The Frog Who Croaked, Jarrett J. Krosoczka. Kidlit. I WON this by reading a lot back in the 48 Hour Reading Challenge. I'm so EXCITED.
• Zoobiquity, Barbara Natterson-Horowitz & Kathryn Bowers. Interesting popular science book about the relationship between animal and human health and what vets and doctors could learn from each other. This must be finished by Thursday.
• National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry, ed. J. Patrick Lewis. Stunning photographs accompany the often cute poems. I keep it on my bedside table and read a few each night, since poetry satiates me quickly. It's from the Cybils finalists.
• Keep Me Forever, Rosemary Laurey. The main couple have met, although she doesn't know he's a werewolf and I'm not sure he understands about her being a vampire.
• Abraham Lincoln: Prairie Years, Carl Sandburg. He's back to work after being in Congress.
• The Why's of a Philosophical Scrivener, Martin Gardner. Confronting the reality of evil.
• Senrid, Sherwood Smith. YA Senrid is making his move to get his kingdom back.
• The Pickwick Papers, Charles Dickens. Mr Pickwick is arrested (again?).
• A Parent's Guide to Developmental Delays, Laurie Lecomer. The bits on vestibular and proprioceptive delays are very familiar to me.

What will I read next? Well, the library wants Banner of the Damned back, so that's a priority. I got Sidekicked as a present, so that's high on my list (unless a kid steals it first). The Four Corners of the Sky is the next book on my official TBR list. My book club will pick something next Friday (without me!) or I have The Lost Prince waiting on my NOOK.

2013 Challenges:

1. Cybils: 41/74.  Working through poetry. I'll have to pick up the pace on chapter books.
2. Where Am I Reading?: 29/51. No change. I can't believe how many North Carolina books I've read -- can't someone move south one state?
3. Crazy Quilt Colors: 5/9. Need patterns, yellow, green, and brown. I absentmindedly picked up a blue book at the library, but I already have one of those.
4. Reading My Library: The Dreamer was a very pleasant read.
5. Best of the Best 2012: 57/25. I forgot that I can count the ones I read too early now that the timed portion of the challenge is done.
6. Summer Reading Goal: So far so good. I'm building up a bit of a reserve for my vacation.

Stocking Up at the Library

We are preparing for a long journey, which for me means a trip to the library. Audio books are a great solace to me when trapped in small moving containers, especially when I am operating those containers. It was fun to bring along A and some friends, especially when one friend managed to unlock her library book after some mishaps involving lost and late books.

I picked up five six holds (an extra one showed up between when I picked up my holds and when I checked them out, so I scooted across and grabbed it too), one impulse pick, and several spare audio books:

• Last Laughs: Animal Epitaphs, J. Patrick Lewis & Jane Yolen. Cybils poetry book.
• Chime, Franny Billingsley. I think this is a Best of the Best selection. Audio book.
• One More Theory About Happiness, Paul Guest. The next book on my official TBR list.
• Stronger, Michael Carroll. 3rd book in Superhuman series, officially for X but I'll probably read it too. The books seem to be closely linked so it's better to read them close together.
• Darkroom: A Memoir in Black and White, Lila Weaver. A Cybils YA graphic novel.
• Boy Princess 1, Kim Seyoung. A manga I heard mentioned somewhere.
• Midnight Blue-Light Special, Seanan McGuire. I grabbed this from the hot-pick section, because I think I need a Blue book for a challenge. Also, I keep hoping to like McGuire's books but I can't get into her other series. I'll see if book 2 of this one grabs me.

I crept back up to 43 things out on my library cards, but more of those are CDs which aren't a huge time commitment, since I just play them while doing chores. It includes one audio CD which has gone missing, so I'm hoping that floats to the top real soon. This means I get to buy a book, which I did from paperbackswap.com:
Real Murders, by Charlaine Harris

I'll go share my Library Loot at the event co-hosted by Claire from the Captive Reader and Marg from The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader, where all the library addicts compare their treasures. And I think I'll sign up at Tynga's Stacking the Shelves, which asks for all the books acquired, which this week is just the library stuff plus one.