May and June Reads

I have not read very much in the past few months. It is sad. 

With the trip and then packing and preparing for the move and then moving and then unpacking and getting our house put together I haven't had as much time or energy to put into reading. 

But I did read a few books over the two month period. 

1. While I was in Europe my Susan Branch book, Martha's Vineyard, Isle of Dreams came in the mail. 

I couldn't wait to dig into this book. 

I started it immediately and finished it a few days later on May 1st so I am counting it as a May read. 

"In the winter of 1982, long before she became the watercolor artist and author we know today, Susan Branch, 34-years-old and heart-broken from the sudden and unexpected end of her marriage in California, "ran away from home" to the Island of Martha's Vineyard.

It was meant to be temporary, a three-month time-out from the daily grind of being broken up and miserable, but within days of her arrival, alone and not quite in her right mind, Susan "accidentally" bought a tiny one-bedroom cottage in the woods. And that is how she discovered she was moving 3,000 miles away from everyone and everything she had known and loved." (Goodreads)

I loved every second of it. I have said it before and I will say it again. Susan is a wonderful writer and she is someone that as you read her words, you just want to be her friend. 

I got to meet her a few weeks after finishing this book and it was amazing. 

I wanted to read the entire set of books about her life all the way through again as soon as I finished this... and I will be doing that at some point soon. 

5 stars. *****

2. The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes

 "At the heart of the story is Wanda Petronski, a Polish girl in a Connecticut school who is ridiculed by her classmates for wearing the same faded blue dress every day. Wanda claims she has one hundred dresses at home, but everyone knows she doesn’t and bullies her mercilessly. The class feels terrible when Wanda is pulled out of the school, but by that time it’s too late for apologies. Maddie, one of Wanda’s classmates, ultimately decides that she is "never going to stand by and say nothing again."(Goodreads)

I read this book out loud to Abi and Maddy for Bookworm Club. 

It was hard to put down so we finished it in one night. 

It is very short so that wasn't hard and only took about an hour to read. 

This book is well written and has a really good message. 

Fantastic book. 

5 stars *****

3. Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys

"Winter, 1945. Four teenagers. Four secrets.

Each one born of a different homeland; each one hunted, and haunted, by tragedy, lies…and war.

As thousands of desperate refugees flock to the coast in the midst of a Soviet advance, four paths converge, vying for passage aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff, a ship that promises safety and freedom.

Yet not all promises can be kept." (Goodreads)

I started listening to this book back in March and then finished it up in May. This book pulled at every heart string I have. I loved listening to the audible version as they had a different actor for each character and they had such distinctive voices that really fit the personality. 

I cried a lot during this book. Really. A lot. 

And I loved it. I have another one of Ruta's books on my shelf that I haven't read yet and after reading this I will be making it a priority in the near future. 

5 stars *****

4. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

"Mrs. Dalloway is a novel by Virginia Woolf that details a day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, a fictional high-society woman in post-World War I England. It is one of Woolf's best-known novels.

Created from two short stories, "Mrs Dalloway in Bond Street" and the unfinished "The Prime Minister," the novel addresses Clarissa's preparations for a party she will host that evening. With an interior perspective, the story travels forwards and back in time and in and out of the characters' minds to construct an image of Clarissa's life and of the inter-war social structure. In October 2005, Mrs. Dalloway was included on TIME magazine's list of the 100 best English-language novels written since 1923." (Goodreads)

I really enjoyed this book. It was my first Woolf. 

Full review on Scones and Crackers here. 

4 stars ****

5. The Autobiography of Mark Twain

"Mark Twain was a figure larger than life: massive in talent, eruptive in temperament, unpredictable in his actions. He crafted stories of heroism, adventure, tragedy, and comedy that reflected the changing America of the time, and he tells his own story--which includes sixteen pages of photos--with the same flair he brought to his fiction. Writing this autobiography on his deathbed, Twain vowed to he "free and frank and unembarrassed" in the recounting of his life and his experiences. Twain was more than a match for the expanding America of riverboats, gold rushes, and the vast westward movement, which provided the material for his novels and which served to inspire this beloved and uniquely American autobiography." (Goodreads)

I loved this book. 

It was very long and it did drag on in some points but overall it was such an interesting read. 

He is such a funny guy. He says at the beginning that he wrote this with the express purpose of it not being published until after he was dead so that he would be fully honest. 

He tells stories of his life and those all around him. 

It made me laugh, there were parts that made me a bit emotional, and mostly it gave me a good understanding of who he really was. 

When I was about a third of the way through the book I found out that I am related to him. 

That was amazing. It made the rest of the book mean so much more to me. 

I really want to go back and read his books now because I feel like they will mean so much more to me now that I know more about him and his life. 

4 stars ****

January Books

In January I read ten books. 

1. Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

I read this book because it was recommended by Goodreads and Amazon because of enjoying Mr. Lemoncello's Library. I thought this book was a lot of fun. It is middle grade. 

 "Twelve-year-old Emily is on the move again. Her family is relocating to San Francisco, home of her literary idol: Garrison Griswold, creator of the online sensation Book Scavenger, a game where books are hidden all over the country and clues to find them are revealed through puzzles. But Emily soon learns that Griswold has been attacked and is in a coma, and no one knows anything about the epic new game he had been poised to launch. Then Emily and her new friend James discover an odd book, which they come to believe is from Griswold and leads to a valuable prize. But there are others on the hunt for this book, and Emily and James must race to solve the puzzles Griswold left behind before Griswold's attackers make them their next target." (Goodreads)

As I read this book I knew that if I had read it when I was Abi's age (10) it would have been one of my very favorite books. The premise is really fun and as soon as I finished I looked it up online and found that there is a small scale book scavenger activity that goes with it. The girls and I immediately went looking for a few books but didn't find them. Abigail read it too and she loved it. 

4 stars **** 

2. Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

 This was a re-read for me as I read it for the first time a few years ago. 

I read it this time for my book club. 

"I have two weeks. You'll shoot me at the end no matter what I do.That's what you do to enemy agents. It's what we do to enemy agents. But I look at all the dark and twisted roads ahead and cooperation is the easy way out. Possibly the only way out for a girl caught red-handed doing dirty work like mine - and I will do anything, anything to avoid SS-Hauptsturmführer von Linden interrogating me again.
He has said that I can have as much paper as I need. All I have to do is cough up everything I can remember about the British War Effort. And I'm going to. But the story of how I came to be here starts with my friend Maddie. She is the pilot who flew me into France - an Allied Invasion of Two." (Goodreads)

 This book breaks my heart. I wondered if I would enjoy it as much the second time around and I really did. It is heartbreaking and hard to read at times and gives you a lot to think about. I have heard a few people say they didn't connect with the characters but I did not have that problem. I was all in. I also wondered if it would make me cry again even though I knew what was coming... well, it did. 

5 stars *****

3. Illuminae (The Illuminae Files #1) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

I got this book for Doug for Christmas because I was so curious about it after hearing about in all over the book community. 

 This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do.This afternoon, her planet was invaded. The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit. But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it's clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she'd never speak to again. Told through hacked documents—including emails, schematics, military files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping, high-octane trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes." (Goodreads)

This book was very interesting. I read it in only a couple of days. However it isn't as long as it looks because of some of the ways it is written... like this....

I rated this book five stars for presentation because it is an amazing looking book and so different from anything else I have read when it comes to the way it is told and the way they have created the book but only 3 stars for content as it was entertaining but not amazing. 

There were some really disturbing parts in the book as well as a lot of swearing. 

To be fair, every swear word is blocked out. BUT when I was reading it my mind would automatically fill in the swear word so it might as well have been there. Doug told me to start thinking "cuss" instead of the real word every time that happened but that didn't do much except make me laugh at parts that weren't necessarily funny. 

Still, I'm glad I read it but I don't know if I will finish the trilogy. 

 3 stars ***

4. Troublemaker, Surviving Hollywood and Scientology by Leah Remini

 

I have to say this was a fascinating read. 

" The outspoken actress, talk show host, and reality television star offers up a no-holds-barred memoir, including an eye-opening insider account of her tumultuous and heart-wrenching thirty-year-plus association with the Church of Scientology." (Goodreads)

I am very intrigued about religions and always wondered about Scientology and whether it was a cult or not. I am very hesitant to ever classify something as a cult when I don't know all the facts. But after reading this book I think I can safely classify it as such. 

She writes in a very personable and honest way and can be quite crass at times. 

After reading this I watched the documentary Going Clear and it really backed up a lot of the things she talked about in this book. 

Truly scary stuff. 

4 stars ****

5.  The Doldrums by Nicholas Gannon

Many of you may remember me mentioning this book a few months ago when I talked about my most beautiful books. I bought it because of the artwork which is so stunning. This month I finally got to read it!

 "Archer B. Helmsley has grown up in a house full of oddities and treasures collected by his grandparents, the famous explorers. He knows every nook and cranny. He knows them all too well. After all, ever since his grandparents went missing on an iceberg, his mother barely lets him leave the house. Archer longs for adventure. Grand adventures, with parachutes and exotic sunsets and interesting characters. But how can he have an adventure when he can’t leave his house?"
(Goodreads)

I really enjoyed this middle grade book. It was a fun adventure and there were actually some really beautiful passages hidden in there. I am hoping for more. 

4 stars****

6. How do I know if I know? by John Bythway

 

This was a really quick read. I try to read a religious book along with my scripture study in the morning and I picked this up because it was a John Bythway book I hadn't read yet. (I loved him when I was a teenager!) This book was good. It has some good info. Nothing ground breaking or mind blowing. But good. I think it would really help a lot of teenagers.

3.5-4 stars****

 7. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

I have been meaning to re-read the books in The Infernal Devices for so long. I got the third book right when it came out but somehow hadn't read it yet. It had been so long I knew I needed to read the rest of the books again before reading the last one. I enjoyed it so much! Such a fun series. 

 "In a time when Shadowhunters are barely winning the fight against the forces of darkness, one battle will change the course of history forever. Welcome to the Infernal Devices trilogy, a stunning and dangerous prequel to the New York Times bestselling Mortal Instruments series. The year is 1878. Tessa Gray descends into London’s dark supernatural underworld in search of her missing brother. She soon discovers that her only allies are the demon-slaying Shadowhunters—including Will and Jem, the mysterious boys she is attracted to. Soon they find themselves up against the Pandemonium Club, a secret organization of vampires, demons, warlocks, and humans."

(Goodreads)

  

4 stars ****

8. Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

 

This is a really good second book in the series. I won't go into the plot since it is just an extension of the first one but I really enjoyed it. 

4 stars ****

9. Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

 

This is the final installment in the Infernal Devices trilogy and I loved it. 

I was completely satisfied with the ending and it actually surprised me and even made me cry a bit. 

4 big old stars ****

10. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

 

As soon as I finished the Infernal Devices trilogy I wanted to get going on the re-read and finishing of the Mortal Instruments series. 

"When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder― much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing―not even a smear of blood―to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy? This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know... " (Goodreads)

I still really enjoyed this. It took me a little while to get into it as I was on kind of a book hangover from the last series but soon I was right back into this world and fully enjoying myself. 

4 stars****

It was a great reading month. I read a lot more books than I thought I was going to be able to. And they were all good, some of them great. 

I am really looking forward to Febrauary to be another really good month!

February's To Be Read: 

I am hoping that in February I will be able to finish the Mortal Instruments series. I have not read the last two books in it yet so I am really excited to be get to those. All of this is in prep for Lady Midnight, the next series set in this world coming out very soon. 

I also plan on reading The Fourteenth Goldfish for the library mother/ daughter book club, Ramona the Brave with the girls, 84, Charring Cross Road , and Nory Ryan's Song for book club. 

What books did you enjoy in January? 

What are you hoping to read in February?

Summer Reading

Summer is a great time for reading with your kids. 

In our family we make reading a priority. I have been an avid reader for as long as I can remember and it has brought me so much joy in life that it is really important to me that my kids are exposed to it as well. 

Both of my girls have learned to read young. Abi was three when she started and was proficient by four. Maddy wasn't as interested as Abi so we took it much slower and she has just finished her lessons last month. 

I have taught quite a few kids to read because I have worked as a nanny and a pre-school teacher. 

I have used so many of the programs that are available and none of them hold a candle to the one I found out about when Abi was young. 

I used this book with her and I used it with Maddy. 

It is Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons by Siegfried Engelmann. 

It is easy to do. You just sit down with your kids and read what it tells you to read, all in the one book. 

Anyone can use this with their kids. And by the time they are done with the entire book your kid will be on at least a second grade reading level. 

Now onto the fun!

Reading Program:

Every summer we get involved in the local library and Barnes and Noble reading programs to earn prizes. But we also do our own family reading program. 

One year, Abi had her timer bookmark and every time she got to ten hours of reading she got to have a special date with Doug or I. 

The next year she did a 100 book challenge. She picked out a toy she wanted and then after each book she read, she had to fill out a book journal with a summery of the book and a picture of something she liked from it. When she got to 100 books she got her prize. 

This year she asked to do the 100 books challenge again. 

She is working toward a Lego set that she picked out. 

With Maddy, however, we are doing a 40 hour challenge. We got her a timer bookmark of her very own to log her time reading. 

This way, it doesn't matter if she is reading a longer, chapter book or a smaller easy reader. She can read whatever she is interested in reading and just log the minutes. She is working toward a Shopkins toy. 

These challenges have really got them excited about reading. It is so fun to see them talk about the books they are reading and how far they are getting in their challenge. 

Bookworm Club:

To help them to love reading we also created the Bookworm Club. It is a mommy-daughter book club. We read for 30-60 minutes most evenings and then when we finish a book we have a Bookworm Club meeting with a treat and our Bookworm Reading Log. 

These have been so much fun! So far we have read Charlotte's Web, The Wizard of Oz, Ever After High #1, The Princess in Black, Princess Academy, and the first two Harry Potter books. 

We are currently reading the third one.

What if your kid doesn't enjoy reading?

Honestly, some won't. Or some won't right now.
But I think most kids can become readers by finding books about things they are interested in.
We go to the library a LOT. Sometimes they only pick out movies. Sometimes they just play on the computers. But sometimes they walk out with a bag of books because they have found something they are really interested in at that time. When they both were fascinated with dinosaurs I made sure that we had a lot of books about dinosaurs around for them to pick up.
Do not make the mistake of picking books based on their gender or age only. Again, every kid is different. Let them help you find what they like. Think outside the box and you will be more likely to find the right book!

My kids see me reading all of the time. So it is natural for them to pick up a book and come sit by me.

We also have family read-a-thons occasionally. We get treats and set up a fort in the family room and read for a few hours.

I had a friend that made her children's bedtime 7pm but they could stay up until 8pm if they were reading. We don't always do this, especially in the summer when schedules can get a bit crazy, but I think it is a great idea and we do try to use it during the school year.

 Get creative! 

Come up with your own program or use one that has already been made by someone else. I have a Pinterest board that I have been posting Summer reading programs to that you can go and have a look at. See it here. 

Most of all, have fun with it.
If your kids aren't ready to read or don't feel like it at the moment, don't force it. We want them to love reading, not feel like it is a chore!

Let me know in the comments if you have any other questions or advice!

Princess Academy

The day after school got out we went to BYU to see their play of Shannon Hale's Princess Academy. 

We had just finished reading it for our Bookworm Club so the girls were excited to see it. 

We were a little bit early so we walked around the campus bookstore for a few minutes. 

There we found Hagrid!

They were pretty excited about that since we had just started reading Harry Potter. 

I bought the cheapest tickets and just pushed 'best available' when I got them. 

It worked out well because we were almost center in the second row!

The set didn't change the entire play and it was a lot more low-budget than I assumed it would be but it was still pretty good. 

Most of the actors did well. 

The ones that played Miri and Gerti were especially good. 

It was a fun outing.

Bookworm Club

The girls and I read a lot of books together. 

Recently they told me they wanted to have a "book club" like I have with some family. 

I ordered this bookworm journal from Amazon for us to use. 

It is a special book diary that is made especially for parents and kids to fill out together. It is so fun. 

So we decided to name ourselves the Bookworm Club. 

Our first meeting after getting the book we discussed Princess Academy and ate some gummy worms. 

It was SO much fun!