What I'm Reading Monday -

Having the financial literacy lessons (well, and end of the term stuff) threw a wrench in my reading this week, but I'll get over it. At least I finished two books this week!

School

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins - Having the financial literacy stuff last week didn't give me much reading time. I'm guessing this week I won't get much further. So I'll actually bring this one home over break so I can get it finished.

Home

The Bone Season - Goal for this week is to get it done because I am getting tired of typing its title.

Finished

The Fallout by SA Bodeen - This is the sequel to The Compound, and I don't want to give too much away about the book - which is why it was a different book talk in class. I liked it just as much as The Compound, and I thought it dealt with "the fallout" from that situation very well. The questions you were left with at the end of the first book do get answered - with a few twists thrown in there. I did realize I do have some issues with her writing style; I think there's some excessive details that I don't really need and slow down my reading flow. But, it still has a good overall story line.

Bossypants by Tina Fey - Tina Fey is hilarious. And smart. And geeky. And kinda my hero. I would say that this is more a collection of essays on her life than a true memoir. It was good, and it didn't take me long to read at all.

What's Next

I have big plans for break - not counting the trip to see family. But, I do plan on reading quite a bit. My Kindle is already loaded so when I go on vacation on Saturday, I am ready. 

What I Know Right Now

I know I'm stressed.

The end of the quarter/semester always does this to me. It puts me on edge. Makes me panic. I don't have enough time - and I worry that I won't get everything done on time.

Those essays are weighing on my mind. They need to get done - and done soon so revisions can be done on them. But when do I find the time?

And that semester test still needs to be written. I've got to get that done so there are actual copies of it for next Wednesday - and so I can make a review sheet.

I know I'm not at panic mode yet, but I also know it can be close. It can happen at any minute.

And, right now, that scares me.


I know I need to keep finding time to workout. But that stresses me out. It's the first thing that goes to the wayside when I get stressed. And, I know that's silly because that's the one easy thing to help reduce stress I also know this would be easier if I didn't have to go to the Y and I could just run outside.

I know that I haven't done much today, but I've done a good job of continously writing in my journal. Now I just need to make sure to condense it and put it on the blog. I know I need to do that more often, but, I'm not good at it is. IT is hard to find time to carve out 10 minutes for that because there are so many other things I could be doing.

I know I'm tired. I know this is my fault because I know I need to go to bed sooner. But when it's time to got to sleep, I'm wide awake. And, I know this adds to my stress.

What I'm Reading Monday - Not much has changed

My reading has dropped off significantly in the past week. It's a little embarrassing. But, that's what happens when I have more grading, watch rather important football games, and have to get ready for Christmas.

School

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins - Again a reread. I barely remember any of this book. The ending ticked me off too much and I blocked the rest of it out.

Home

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon - I realized why this book has taken me so long to get through. You get a lot of information dumped on you in the beginning without much explanation. Now that I've started using the glossary for all the words (made up for the book), it makes a little more sense. But, it's a lot of work, and I tend to not like books that are a lot of work. I read for enjoyment, not to make my head hurt.

Finished

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins - I liked this better the second time around. I think I wasn't reading as fast because if a book is fast-paced, I tend to read too fast and miss the small details that really bring out a  story. I didn't have to do that this time because I knew what was going to happen. I also thought the movie did a really good job with it and brought out a lot of those other little details.

Next up

I honestly don't know. I have the sequel to The Body of Christopher Creed, but there's several others I've got stacked up in various places I'd like to dig into. Christopher Rice's new book is at the top of that list, and I kinda went on a Kindle buying spree last week. I am a sucker for a book when they mark it down to $2. At least break is coming up soon, so I'll have more time to read. And with two 3-hour plane rides plus airport wait time, I'll have a lot of time.

What I'm Reading Monday - It's been a while

So, it has been three weeks since I've done a reading post. Oops. Probably because I was working on my word count (I didn't even come close to 50K words, but oh well). So, there's going to be plenty of books in this post.

School

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins: This is a reread. I realized when I was at the movie, I forgot most of what happened in the book. So, I started with The Hunger Games, and I'm going to re-read all three. Let's hope that this time I don't get as mad at Mockingjay.

Home

Still plugging away at The Bone Season. And by plugging away, I mean I've been lucky if I've read a chapter a week. I am a slacker.

Finished

The Hunger Games: Still liked it on the second read, and it still kept me on the edge of my seat. That's the real sign of a good book. This time, though, I had the movie characters pictured. I don't always like that.

Takedown Twenty by Janet Evanovich: If you can't tell by the title, this is the 20th book in the Stephanie Plum series. Evanovich's books always make me laugh. And this one was one different. I am getting tired of Stephanie not being able to pick between Ranger and Joe. 

The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider

This was the one I did a book talk on with the opening scene of the kid getting decapitated at Disneyland. It really was funny and I highly suggest it.

The Raft by S.A. Bodeen

I did a book talk on this one, too. She wrote The Compound. This one keeps you in the story just as much as The Compound did. However, I noticed that there are some holes in her writing. Nothing huge and nothing that would stop me from reading more of her stuff. But, enough that I noticed.

Soup by Jon Gordon

We read this as a staff book study book. A former student looked at it and said "Knipper, this is not a you book. Are you feeling OK?" It's pretty touchy feely, so I'll leave it at that.

Allegiant by Veronica Roth

I understand why so many people were in an uproar over the ending of this book. However, I felt it really worked and wrapped up the entire series. I get why people were upset, but we don't always get our way or wishes in a series (honestly, I was more upset about Hedwig dying. That still makes me mad). And it definitely wasn't anything that would urge me to send death threats (I didn't even send a strongly worded letter about Hedwig, so death threats are pretty much out of the question for about anything - especially if it is in a book.)