Ready for summer.

 
Does anything feel as great as walking out of a bookstore with your arms full of books?  (Actually, walking out of a library with my arms full of books is a close second.)  I've been burning the candle at both ends for a month now and treated myself to a few titles on my list.

I first heard about Room last fall on my favorite radio program, Midmorning, on Minnesota Public Radio.  (You can stream it online, or get the podcast, if you don't live in Minnesota.)  Then my mom told me she read it and recommended it.  Now, my mom and I do not have the same taste in books.  She is a very fast reader and I am a very slow reader.  I'm also just a teensy bit of a book snob.  So I have had this one on my list simply to find out how it could possibly please both my mom and Kerri Miller!

Cutting for Stone was suggested during my anniversary week.  I don't often buy a book when recommended by only one person -- especially one person I don't even know -- but I am intrigued by the author (and the weight of it).  I was also buoyed by the success of another suggestion from anniversary week:  The Cookbook Collector -- I had read several of Allegra Goodman's books already, loved one (Kaaterskill Falls), sort-of-liked another (Paradise Park), and was bored to the point of skimming with the last (Intuition). 

Two people I trust recommended The Elegance of the Hedgehog.  Honestly, I don't have any idea what it's even about.  I saw it, I added it to the stack.

The used bookstore was my first stop, and I came out with Deaf Sentence.  I discovered David Lodge when I studied in London for a semester in college (in the mid-80's, gasp).  He's a master of British farce and "the campus novel."  I think I'm drawn to books about academics as my way of living that other life.  (Another reason Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner is on my favorites list.)

I picked up Rick Riordan's Throne of Fire to read with the kids this summer.  I like to have one book just for the three of us who are home during the day, and last summer we read the first in the series.  They're thick enough to take up most of the summer and have enough action to keep us engaged despite gaps when we don't have time to read.  I'm so looking forward to those lazy summer mornings reading with the kids (even if I have to get up two hours earlier to work first).

As a family read-aloud, we are just finishing up The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma.  I love this series!  The writing is delicious, the characters are entertaining, the plots are compelling, and the lettering and illustrations for each chapter are absolutely lovely.  Now the problem becomes:  what on earth can we read next?  We've already read all the Narnia books, all the Harry Potter books (twice), the Prydain Chronicles, the Half Magic series, and a couple dozen other random titles (everything from The Wizard of Oz to Bridge to Terabithia).  Any suggestions for well-written, engaging books that appeal to kids and their grown-ups?

 

Comments

[chel]

Few things make me feel as full inside as a stack of books. I'm reading the second of two books on Bhutan and also an AMAZING book called "When Wanderers Cease to Roam" which is a mixture of an illustrated journal/travelogue/goings on of a small town.

[stephanie]

I have been told that if you love the Mysterious Benedict Society (which I did) that you will also love The Strictest School in the World series (3 books). I have them and yet to read them, but the person that rec'd them to me hasn't steered me wrong yet. : ) Andrew Peterson's Wingfeather Saga (3 books) is also excellent - I've read the first two and the third just came out. What about The Hobbit? Can't wait to read that with my girls. : )

[shana]

i'm reading cutting for stone right now, it's been recommended by many friends. i just started and it seems a bit tough to get into, but the warning is that once you really start and get into it you might not sleep for a couple days because you HAVE to finish it!
happy reading!
shana

[Susanna]

Gina -
Cutting for Stone is a MUST READ. My mother gave me this one and I too was skeptical reading a book my mom also enjoyed. :) But this one is the BEST story I've ever read. I was reading it while on an airplane and I had to close it up and put it away - I didn't want odd stares from people wondering why I was balling my eyes out!!! Awesome book.

[Kate O]

Hi Gina!

I'm getting caught up on your blog and love hearing what you're reading. My book group just read Room and it's pretty amazing - haunting. I also recently read Cutting for Stone and loved, loved it. I love books about medicine and Africa - this combines them both.

Will you give some tips on how to fit in family reading time? I love that idea, but I'm a bookworm and so is Maren and finding time to read another book together puzzles me. What's your advice?

Maren has consumed the Sisters Grimm series this year and now has me reading it. I just finished the first one (I think there's eight) and it was fun - smart girls, adventure, fairy tales - a cool combination.

Happy Reading!