It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? –From Picture Books to YA is a weekly meme started by Jen at Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee at Unleashing Readers. This is a chance for bloggers to recap their week of reading and share their plans for the next reading adventures they will take. Visit the host blogs for a list of great blogs participating in this meme and a whole bunch of titles to add to your to-read lists.
I don’t know exactly what is happening lately that made me miss out on this weekly blog post for two weeks in a row. I guess it was due to the busier Sundays in the last few weeks, which have actually felt like Spring (FINALLY).
This will be a little longer list than usual since I am writing about 3 weeks worth of books.
Books I Finished:
The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal was a Printz Honor book this year. While I recognized the literary value of this book, it took me a long time to get through it. I found myself not exactly avoiding reading, but not too excited to pick the book up again. It was an interesting premise, but I was not able to really like any of the characters and that made it difficult for me to enjoy. I would definitely still recommend this book, because it is a good story and well-written, it just wasn’t to my liking. (I think the Printz committee from this year and I have different tastes. This is the second Honor book that I did not really enjoy all that much).
I enjoyed Ruthless by Sara Shephard as much as I have enjoyed any of the other Pretty Little Liars books. It is fascinating to me how this author is able to keep the story going. I have fun with the twists and turns.
The Dead and The Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer was just as compelling as Life As We Knew It. I liked reading about Alex and his sisters and how they were trying to survive in Manhattan after the moon was pushed out of orbit. I read this book almost in one sitting. I highly recommend this series.
Heartbroken is a thriller by Lisa Unger. I enjoyed the mystery and how the stories of three women were woven together. It was definitely one that I had a hard time putting down towards the end of the book.
I was so excited on Tuesday when this book showed up in the mail. I thought it was coming out later in May so I was pleasantly surprised. Then, the power in my house went out on Wednesday about 10 minutes after I got home. All there was left to do was to read by flashlight all evening. I was almost finished by the time I went to bed. Then, I brought the book to school on Thursday. My students enjoyed watching my reactions to the events in the last 20 pages or so. I was happy to finish so soon so I could pass the book on to the student who I celebrated with when I received the book. I can’t wait to talk about it with her.
One of my students was really enjoying this series earlier this year. He was quite insistent that I should read the books when I had the chance. I did enjoy the story, but it is not really my cup of tea.
I liked how This World We Live In brought together the characters from Life As We Knew It and The Dead and The Gone. This series really has a bleak world, but the characters do their best to make the most of what they have. Post-apocalyptic books are so depressing, but I really enjoy the way Susan Beth Pfeffer imagines the scenarios that might happen.
Books I am Currently Reading:
I am still listening to Rotters. I will most likely finish this book this week. I also am reading Perdido Street Station by China Mieville and Ashes by Ilsa Bick.
What’s Next?
I will probably read The Shade of The Moon this week to finish the series. Then, I am not sure what I will pick up to read next.
Aren't the Pfeffer books great?! I've heard she's writing a 4th. SO EXCITING!
I don't know many of the other books, so I am going to go do more research–thank you for the introductions!
Happy reading this week! 🙂
One of my GatheringReaders book club participants is also very much into The Last Apprentice series, I promised her that I'd read it soon. I think I only have a few titles from the series, so that is a bit of a problem, but looking forward to knowing more of Delaney's writing.
I still haven't read the final Pfeffer book in the series. It's a good series of books to recommend for reluctant readers who just don't want longer books. I enjoyed the first ones very much. Thanks for sharing the others, too. My list grows longer!
I just got Kingdom of Little Wounds from the library and started it this past week. Not feeling very compelled to keep reading it–I don't find it very engaging so far. I also have it in ebook format, and reading a 500+page book in the digital format is a challenge for me. (I much prefer print!) Might be one I abandon. I really enjoyed Life As We Knew It but haven't continued with the series. Maybe this summer I'll get back to it, because survival in Manhattan sounds even more interesting to me!