Library Time 17

I finally got around to counting up my book total for 2013. I was astounded that I read a whopping 90 books last year. I have to say that a lot of that is due to my Kindle. I can easily bring a book along in the car. I can read in the dark which increases my reading time. Reading while nursing my baby is easy because the Kindle is small, light and the "pages" are easy to turn. I really, really enjoy my Kindle.

My daughter recently bought The Book Thief and asked me to proofread it first. I just have to say there is a lot of swearing (which I'm whiting out). Other than that it's a good book so far even if it is narrated by Death. Different and a little eerie.

So what else has our family been reading?

My husband - The 4-Hour Chef: The Simple Path to Cooking Like a Pro, Learning Any Skill & Living the Good Life by Timothy Ferriss. He didn't read this word for word - it's huge. He skimmed through it and will definitely go back for various things that are explained. My husband also owns The 4-Hour Body and The 4-Hour Workweek by the same author.

 

15-year-old daughter - Harvest of Gold by Tessa Afshar. This is a really good Christian novel set in Bible times. It is the second in a two-volume set. The first is Harvest of Rubies.

13-year-old son - The Assault by Brian Falkner. This is sci-fi. He won this book through our library's reading club. It's pretty interesting. Earth has been taken over by aliens. Several teenagers in the free world train to be able to take down the headquarters of Earth's enemies. Not something I would want to read on a regular basis but as a once-a-year deal I enjoyed it.

 

11-year-old son - Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder

9-year-old daughter - Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder

8-year-old daughter - Peanuts - Who doesn't love the Peanuts gang? My favourite is Snoopy.

6-year-old son - Curious George

2-year-old son - anything Peter Rabbit. He has recently "discovered" the Beatrix Potter books and loves them. I think he enjoys their size. They fit him so nicely and it's easy to carry several at once. The Tale of Two Bad Mice was good for a few good giggles with a mouse named Hunca Munca.

 

What have you been reading?

Library Time 16

Early in December one of the bloggers I follow - The Humbled Homemaker - did a post on planning her reading for 2014. That inspired me to do the same. Last year I bought quite a few ebooks. I wrote out a list of what I wanted to read this year and came up with 53 titles! Some are quite short and could be read in an hour, a few are several hundred pages, some are devotional and are meant to be read one chapter at a time and not all in one sitting. The topics range from beauty to budgeting to health to special occasions to homemaking to marriage to parenting. I'll probably review some from time to time and keep you updated on my progress through them.

So what have I been reading in between finishing up gifts. I went back to my old standby Philip Oppenheim. This time I read The Double Four. Each chapter was actually it's own stand-alone adventure like the way Sherlock Holmes is written. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I also read Emily Foxe-Sexton Being "The Making of a Marchioness" and "The Methods of Lady Walderhurst". This was a great book. Emily Foxe-Sexton is a poor but genteel lady in her mid-30s and has given up hope of marriage. Then a marquis asks her to marry him and her life is turned upside dow n. After her marriage danger enters her life and threatens to kill (literally) all of her dreams. This is a wonderful feel-good book and even better you can get it free for your Kindle.

15-year-old daughter - The Captive of Raven Castle by Jessica Greyson

13-year-old son - Secret Weapons: Technology, Science and the Race to Win World War II by Brian Ford

11-year-old son - Eyewitness World War I by DK Publishers. If you have never read any of the "Eyewitness" books you are missing out on a treat. These are excellent books loaded with information and beautiful illustrations.

9-year-old daughter - Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink. Caddie is a young girl growing up in the wilds of 1860s Wisconsin, and to the despair of her very ladylike mother is a tomboy. The adventures are based on the life of the author's grandmother.

8-year-old daughter - Starlight and Candles by Fran Manushkin

5-year-old son - Curious George ☺ Always a favourite here.

2-year-old son - He recently received a small Richard Scarry pop-up book. We really like Richard Scarry. There is always a lot going on in the pictures making for fun discussions with your little one.

Back to school next week so less reading time, but knowing our family we'll still manage. What have read during the holidays?

Library Time 15

I'm still enjoying my Kindle. I truly did not think I would like reading books electronically, but I do. I still like my paper books, but I probably use my Kindle more. It is just so easy and convenient, and I can read in bed with the lights out...not that I often am awake long enough to do that. Anyway, I read a really great book this week that is only available on Kindle. The Last Heir by Shannon McDermott. It's a mix of sci-fi and political thriller. The author is young, but she manages to pull all of this together, and I really enjoyed the book. The start was a tad slow, but it didn't take long for me to be hooked.

The teaser from the Amazon page: " When loyalty meets ambition and power meets passion, and the prize is an empire ...

The emperor is dead and the last heir is a child, unable to exercise the power of his throne. Left without a ruler, the Empire's most powerful men struggle for control. Their long fight will spread from the halls of government to all the Empire, and its arena will be their own hearts and families. As the Empire divides against itself, everyone must choose who and what to be loyal to. Lines will grow hard and choices become clear, and the truth of who they are and what they fight for will be revealed." I'll just say it again - this book is worth the read.

 

15-year-old daughter - Ellen by Heidi Peterson. This is a book she's reviewing for someone.

13-year-old son -World Book Encyclopedia Volumes A and B. Still on the encyclopedia kick. ☺

11-year-old son - I Am Canada: Blood and Iron: Building the Railway, Lee Heen-gwong, British Columbia, 1882 by Paul Yee. My oldest son was given this book as a library prize a couple of summers ago. Since then the two oldest boys have almost memorized it they've read it so much. 

9-year-old daughter - Keeping Secrets by Maggie Dana. She's at the age for the horse craze. ☺

8-year-old daughter - The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain (Children's Illustrated Classics).

5-year-old son - Madeline by Ludwig Behelmans

2-year-old son - The King's Stilts by Dr. Seuss. This is one of my favourite Dr. Seuss books. The king works very hard and how does he like to relax? With stilts. Until someone steals them. The king can't work because he misses his beloved stilts. The kingdom will soon be destroyed. Where are the stilts?

 

So what books have you been enjoying this week?