Well.
Hm.
I've discovered a strange phenomenon.
As soon as I say I'm going to get my Goodreads "to-read" shelf under 300 books, or that I'm going to get the hazardous, three-deep pile of books off my bedside table before one of the children is buried alive, the universe conspires against me. Friends and favorite authors publish wonderful books. Library holds I placed so long ago I had forgotten them suddenly come in. The next thing I know, I'm putting two books on the to-read list for every one I actually read. There's a terrible new thing on Facebook as well called the Booklist Challenge. Have you seen this? It's basically page after page of, well, book lists that you can check off and that gives you a score at the end. I'm a sucker for such things, and I have been shocked, SHOCKED at how poorly I rate on some of them. There was a list of the fifty books everyone reads in high school . . . turns out I've read about seven of them. I realized that I've had so many conversations about classics like Lord of the Flies or Catcher in the Rye that I've almost convinced myself that I really have read them. I bit the bullet and added a bunch of things to the list, just because I have decided that before I die, I probably should really read something by Agatha Christie (no, I'm not kidding: I have never read a book by Agatha Christie). I vaguely remember listening to the audiobook for Call of the Wild, but have never read anything by Jack London. No foolin' people. It's kind of embarrassing.
But I did read SOME books this summer. And this despite also having to WRITE a book this summer!
So yes, the next Castle Glower book in the hands of my editor. I'd say, Let's hope she's gentle with it, but that would be a lie. I'm well aware that my books (in general and this one in particular) need a good editing. So edit away, m'dear!
And now, the list in chronological order, of books from Memorial Day to Labor Day!
(Actually, I've decided to start with my vacation, which was the week BEFORE Memorial Day. Just because that was the start of the summer for me.)
TIMELESS by Gail Carriger
TOURIST SEASON by Carl Hiaasen
THE HERO AND THE CROWN by Robin McKinley (obviously a reread, in a shiny new cover)
LET'S EXPLORE DIABETES WITH OWLS by David Sedaris
CRUCIBLE OF GOLD by Naomi Novik
THE BLUE SWORD by Robin McKinley (another shiny new cover!)
THE HERO'S GUIDE TO SAVING YOUR KINGDOM by Christopher Healy
DEAD EVER AFTER by Charlaine Harris
ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL by James Herriot
THE SPINDLERS by Lauren Oliver
ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND by Lewis Carroll (aloud, to the kids)
FRAGMENTS by Dan Wells
STORK by Wendy Delsol
EIGHTH GRADE BITES by Heather Brewer
THE FIFTH WAVE by Rick Yancey
WARM BODIES by Isaac Marion
ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS by Stephanie Perkins
THROUGH THE LOOKING-GLASS by Lewis Carroll (aloud, to the kids)
A WALK IN THE WOODS by Bill Bryson
ALL THINGS BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL by James Herriot
AFTER by Amy Efaw
THE MONSTER IN THE MUDBALL by SP Gates
BLOOD MOON by Alyxandra Harvey
JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH by Roald Dahl (aloud to the kids)
THE CUCKOO'S CALLING by Robert Galbraith
LIFE AFTER LIFE by Kate Atkinson
THE CAT WHO WENT TO HEAVEN by Elizabeth Coatsworth (aloud to the kids)
DONNER DINNER PARTY by Nathan Hale
BLOOD PROPHECY by Alyxandra Harvey
HOW TO SURVIVE A GARDEN GNOME ATTACK by Chuck Sambuchino
THE LAST APPRENTICE: REVENGE OF THE WITCH by Joseph Delaney
THE SNOWMAN by Jo Nesbo
MRS. PIGGLE-WIGGLE by Betty MacDonald (aloud to the kids)
BABY MOUSE BURNS RUBBER by Jenni Holm
LOKI'S WOLVES by K. L. Armstrong and M. A. Marr
MESSENGER by Lois Lowry
THE DEATH OF SUPERMAN by Dan Jurgens
ALL THINGS WISE AND WONDERFUL by James Herriot
GOING DARK by Robison Wells
Thirty-nine books?! THIRTY. NINE. That's so annoying! Why not forty? Ugh.
Anyway, as you can see, I got on a little James Herriot kick. I remember the stories vividly from audiobooks as a kid on long car rides, and picked up a copy of the first book this summer, got hooked, kept going. Also finished off The Parasol Protectorate (Farewell, Alexia!) and the Sookie Stackhouse books (sob) and The Drake Chronicles (I LOVE YOU ALL, DRAKE BOYS!). I also discovered an obscure new mystery writer by the name of Robert Galbraith I really recommend.
JUST KIDDING.
I mean, you all know that Robert Galbraith is J. K. Rowling, right? Well, it's true. And the book is WONDERFUL. But please realize that it is for adults. There is LANGUAGE and other grown up things. Not as much as in THE CASUAL VACANCY, but some.
To sum up: A good summer's worth of reading. Not as much as I would have liked, but I did have to do a little work here and there. Also, these children with their demands for food and attention! Sigh.
What did you guys read this summer? Anything exciting?
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Monday, June 10, 2013
Griffins Galore!
I dunno, that just felt like a good title.
You see, it's not so much griffins galore, it's mostly one griffin. One AWESOME griffin, one Rufus by name!
Since last I blogged, you see, some things have happened. WEDNESDAYS IN THE TOWER came out . . . and debuted at #10 on the New York Times Bestseller List! I was on a cruise at the time, and didn't get the news for a couple of days, and when I did, my arms went numb! It was quite weird. I was sitting in our cabin with my feet up, getting my email, and I saw that email and just . . . went numb. I sat there laugh-crying at my husband while he read the email, because I was too stunned to talk! It is still so surreal to me. Every so often it hits me that from now on, my books will all say, "New York Times Bestselling Author" across them, and I freak out a little all over again.
So, yes, I was on a cruise. I was also on a book tour, so the month of May was a little crazy. I lost track of how many flights I was on, now many times I got up at 4 am to get to the airport, and how many times I gave a school presentation. But it was fun, all of it! The schools were great, the bookstores were great, the cruise was great. All great all around! I highly recommend both cruises and book tours as vacation options in the future, if any of you are wondering. (Although in all honesty, swimming with dolphins in Cozumel was slightly better than giving three school assemblies in one day. Slightly.)
I also found out in May that TUESDAYS AT THE CASTLE is one of the Summer Reading books for Barnes & Noble, and I could not be more delighted. Kids who do their Summer Reading program and read 8 books this summer can pick a copy of of TUESDAYS as their free book! Yay!
Now that WEDNESDAYS is out there in the world, allow me to take this opportunity to apologize for the ending. It's not a bad ending . . . it's just a bit of a cliffhanger. But don't worry, I'm working hard on THURSDAYS IN THE SOMETHING SOMETHING, and soon all questions will be answered! (By soon, of course, I mean next spring. Sorry.)
And now on to Other People's Books.
You know what time of year it is? It's SUMMER READING TIME!
I am not even going to try and challenge myself to a certain number this year. I mean, on Goodreads I've challenged myself to read 160 books this year, and I'm falling a wee bit behind, but no specific number for the summer. I do have a large stack of books on the bedside table, as per usual. I probably have close to 50 other books in my house that I haven't read yet, but this is my method for this summer.
1. Find fun book.
2. Read fun book.
Basically, I've decided to choose my books this summer by whatever pops into my head as being the Most Fun This Second. Let's face it, we all have books we know we SHOULD read, like OUR MUTUAL FRIEND or EAST OF EDEN, but I'm putting those aside this summer. I took a look at my Goodreads to-read shelf last night, then I went onto my library website, and put the five books that jumped out at me on hold. I might reread a few things, I might very well decide to read OUR MUTUAL FRIEND, but I'm going to take it one book at a time. Right now I'm reading FRAGMENTS by Dan Wells (which is awesome). And I read some very fun things on my cruise and book tour (like TIMELESS, TOURIST SEASON, and CRUCIBLE OF GOLD), and so I think I will include those on my summer reading list. So let's say that Summer Reading this year starts on May 1st, shall we? And goes until September 3rd!
Which means that thus far I have read:
CATE OF THE LOST COLONY by Lisa Klein
NEED by Carrie Jones
TIMELESS by Gail Carriger
TOURIST SEASON by Carl Hiaasen
THE HERO AND THE CROWN by Robin McKinley (a reread, obviously)
LET'S EXPLORE DIABETES WITH OWLS by David Sedaris
CRUCIBLE OF GOLD by Naomi Novik
THE BLUE SWORD by Robin McKinley (reread)
THE HERO'S GUIDE TO SAVING YOUR KINGDOM by Christopher Healy
DEAD EVER AFTER by Charlaine Harris
ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL by James Herriot
THE SPINDLERS by Lauren Oliver
I have also read CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG and ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND aloud to the kids.
Go forth and read! And if you feel like picking up some copies of WEDNESDAYS IN THE TOWER for your friends and family, I'm not gonna object.
You see, it's not so much griffins galore, it's mostly one griffin. One AWESOME griffin, one Rufus by name!
Since last I blogged, you see, some things have happened. WEDNESDAYS IN THE TOWER came out . . . and debuted at #10 on the New York Times Bestseller List! I was on a cruise at the time, and didn't get the news for a couple of days, and when I did, my arms went numb! It was quite weird. I was sitting in our cabin with my feet up, getting my email, and I saw that email and just . . . went numb. I sat there laugh-crying at my husband while he read the email, because I was too stunned to talk! It is still so surreal to me. Every so often it hits me that from now on, my books will all say, "New York Times Bestselling Author" across them, and I freak out a little all over again.
So, yes, I was on a cruise. I was also on a book tour, so the month of May was a little crazy. I lost track of how many flights I was on, now many times I got up at 4 am to get to the airport, and how many times I gave a school presentation. But it was fun, all of it! The schools were great, the bookstores were great, the cruise was great. All great all around! I highly recommend both cruises and book tours as vacation options in the future, if any of you are wondering. (Although in all honesty, swimming with dolphins in Cozumel was slightly better than giving three school assemblies in one day. Slightly.)
I also found out in May that TUESDAYS AT THE CASTLE is one of the Summer Reading books for Barnes & Noble, and I could not be more delighted. Kids who do their Summer Reading program and read 8 books this summer can pick a copy of of TUESDAYS as their free book! Yay!
Now that WEDNESDAYS is out there in the world, allow me to take this opportunity to apologize for the ending. It's not a bad ending . . . it's just a bit of a cliffhanger. But don't worry, I'm working hard on THURSDAYS IN THE SOMETHING SOMETHING, and soon all questions will be answered! (By soon, of course, I mean next spring. Sorry.)
And now on to Other People's Books.
You know what time of year it is? It's SUMMER READING TIME!
I am not even going to try and challenge myself to a certain number this year. I mean, on Goodreads I've challenged myself to read 160 books this year, and I'm falling a wee bit behind, but no specific number for the summer. I do have a large stack of books on the bedside table, as per usual. I probably have close to 50 other books in my house that I haven't read yet, but this is my method for this summer.
1. Find fun book.
2. Read fun book.
Basically, I've decided to choose my books this summer by whatever pops into my head as being the Most Fun This Second. Let's face it, we all have books we know we SHOULD read, like OUR MUTUAL FRIEND or EAST OF EDEN, but I'm putting those aside this summer. I took a look at my Goodreads to-read shelf last night, then I went onto my library website, and put the five books that jumped out at me on hold. I might reread a few things, I might very well decide to read OUR MUTUAL FRIEND, but I'm going to take it one book at a time. Right now I'm reading FRAGMENTS by Dan Wells (which is awesome). And I read some very fun things on my cruise and book tour (like TIMELESS, TOURIST SEASON, and CRUCIBLE OF GOLD), and so I think I will include those on my summer reading list. So let's say that Summer Reading this year starts on May 1st, shall we? And goes until September 3rd!
Which means that thus far I have read:
CATE OF THE LOST COLONY by Lisa Klein
NEED by Carrie Jones
TIMELESS by Gail Carriger
TOURIST SEASON by Carl Hiaasen
THE HERO AND THE CROWN by Robin McKinley (a reread, obviously)
LET'S EXPLORE DIABETES WITH OWLS by David Sedaris
CRUCIBLE OF GOLD by Naomi Novik
THE BLUE SWORD by Robin McKinley (reread)
THE HERO'S GUIDE TO SAVING YOUR KINGDOM by Christopher Healy
DEAD EVER AFTER by Charlaine Harris
ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL by James Herriot
THE SPINDLERS by Lauren Oliver
I have also read CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG and ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND aloud to the kids.
Go forth and read! And if you feel like picking up some copies of WEDNESDAYS IN THE TOWER for your friends and family, I'm not gonna object.
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