Sunday, January 17, 2016

Sunday Post (37) / It's Monday What Are You Reading



The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. It's Monday, What Are You Reading is a fun weekly meme now hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, where we share what we've read and reviewed over the past week and what we plan to read next.

So snow finally arrived this past week and I ended up staying home from work on Tuesday. Thankfully it didn't stick around long and the roads were fine after that. This week it is supposed to be pretty cold (high of 12 F tomorrow). I am not looking forward to it!

This week our winter reading program kicks off at the library and I will be busy planning the adult summer reading program. It is normal to start planning big events this far in advance and performers often fill their schedules quickly. Usually I don't have outside performers come in but this year I am partnering with the Children's department to bring a penguin to the library (even though it has nothing to do with our theme of Exercise Your Mind!). Penguins are one of my favorite animals and what I like about this program is that patrons can actually pet the penguin. I was very happy that we were able to book the Newport Aquarium and now I need to figure out my other programs. One idea is to offer a one time ballroom dancing class if I can convince our local Center for the Arts to do it.



Sad to hear that Alan Rickman passed away. He was such a talented actor! I first saw him in Robin Hood as the villainous Sheriff of Nottingham and then in Sense and Sensibility as Colonel Brandon. I will always remember him for the way he brought the character of Severus Snape to life in the Harry Potter movies. I can't reread the books without picturing him as Snape.



#FitReaders Weekly Check In

#FitReaders is hosted by Felicia at The Geeky Blogger and Jen at That's What I'm Talking About

I was very happy that I reached my step goal every day this week though some days were definitely harder than others. Something that I struggle with is that my life is naturally sedentary and even at work I have a job that requires me to sit at a desk to answer phones or people's questions. I've been challenging myself to get up and move around more at work (though some days it just isn't possible) and to exercise every morning. Some days this week I exercised twice to make up for all the time I spent sitting at a computer. My hope is that when the warmer weather arrives this spring I can go for half hour walks outside on my lunch break.

Sunday--11,406 steps, exercised for 82 minutes
Monday--10,282 steps, exercised for 41 minutes
Tuesday--12,260 steps, exercised for 79 minutes
Wednesday--10,233 steps, exercised for 41 minutes
Thursday--10,557 steps, exercised for 35 minutes
Friday--11,017 steps, exercised for 51 minutes
Saturday--10,433 steps, exercised for 41 minutes


Last week on my blog:


A Step Toward Falling by Cammie McGovern


Books read:


The Things We Keep by Sally Hepworth

I liked this book though it didn't have the same emotional impact for me that Still Alice did. I liked the main characters and even the little girl Clem. I think that perhaps the way the story was told created some distance for me.


Dark Force Rising by Timothy Zahn (reread)


The Golden Son by Shilpi Somaya Gowda

I really liked this book and it surprised me when I expected the story to go in one direction and it went in another. The main character is Anil, a young Indian man who moves to Texas to study medicine and has to deal with the challenges of being a hospital intern and family matters back home. The other main character is Leena, his childhood friend and crush who has entered an arranged marriage and finds things to be very different from what she'd thought. Leena's story really touched me and made me angry for all she had to go through.


Currently reading:


The Last Command by Timothy Zahn (reread)

I'd forgotten some of the things that happen in this story so in a way it is like reading it for the first time. Once I finish this I'll need to think of what audio book to read next.


The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien (reread)

Right now I'm in Rivendell in the chapter "Many Meetings". This is one of the slower parts of the book but we are introduced to important characters. I've noticed before how Frodo and company will be in danger and then have a period of rest somewhere safe and then be in danger again and then have some rest and safety, etc. That seems to be the pattern for The Fellowship of the Ring but not the rest of the book as far as I can remember. 


What I might read next:



We will be reading this in my evening book group this month. I have had it on my TBR pile since last year since it is also a review book but I'm just now getting around to it.


The Impostor Queen by Sarah Fine

I keep hearing good things about this book. Hopefully the worldbuilding is good as that is something I'm picky about when it comes to fantasy.


New books received:


The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi (for review)

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi (for review)

Truthwitch by Susan Dennard (library book)

The Secret Life of Anna Blanc by Jennifer Kincheloe (library book)

The Seafront Tearoom by Vanessa Greene (library book)

22 comments:

  1. A penguin at the library! What fun! I hope you are able to arrange it. So sad about Alan Rickman. He was so talented. Congratulations on meeting your step goals this past week! I'm still trying to get back into the swing of things. I don't count steps, but am just trying to get in regular workouts. I am looking forward to reading The Golden Son. I am glad to see you liked it. Truthwitch is on my wish list as I've heard such good things about it. Love the cover for The Secret Life of Anna Blanc. It's one I haven't heard of before. I hope you have a great week!

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  2. I am a little intrigued with Things We Keep, Still Alice is still my favourite also. You need to find a Penguin book now, that sounds cool.

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  3. I love penguins...oh how I wish I lived near you as I would totally be there to pet that penguin!!!

    You did awesome with your steps this week!!! It's hard to get those steps in sometimes, especially when you have a sedentary job. When I was working at my last job, I would purposely park in the furthest parking spot I could find from the building, I would take the longest route to the bathroom, I would use a smaller water bottle so I would have to get up to refill it, etc - all things to make me get those steps in. Then on days when I was working at home, I would set the timer for every 45 minutes and get up and just walk around for at least 5 minutes. That seemed to help a little bit. But, it looks like you're doing a pretty good job!

    I have The Things We Keep coming up in my pile soon and I'm really looking forward to reading it.

    Hope you have a great week!

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  4. I would totally be at your library program to pet the penguin and do a ball room dancing class. You organise the best events ... wish we had someone like you at our local library :)
    Yay, look at you go ... awesome job on steps this week!!

    Nice line-up of books. I agree with you about The Things We Keep, I loved it and was surprised at the light and humour (not that that's a bad thing) but I bawled like a baby in Still Alice. Hope you enjoy The Seafront Tearoom.

    The Golden Son is on my wishlist and I'll keep an eye out for your thoughts on The Impostor Queen. Have a great week and happy reading :)

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  5. I would love to come to the penguin program! I am sure it will be very successful. Congrats on meeting your fitness goals! I see quite a few book I want to read in your upcoming books. Have a great week.

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  6. Love the idea of the penguin. Not so into ballroom dancing though! I have yet to decide whether I will read Still Alice, need my courage to dive in I guess. I liked The Things We Keep though, so like a warmer upper!

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  7. We have also been having alot of cold weather. We have over 2 1/2 feet of snow on the ground. I know I'm sure ready for spring.

    Theresa (The Truth About Books)
    Here is my Monday read

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  8. I mostly remember Alan Rickman from Sense and Sensibility as well!

    I also love the idea of a penguin. Perhaps he can be like those in Happy Feet and dance - that's exercise! :-)

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  9. The snow and the cold have finally arrived here too. Your library plans sound fun... a penguin! Awesome! You guys do some neat stuff there. And ballroom dancing? I think that would be fun too.

    Such a shame about Rickman. I loved him in Robin Hood (I still love that line where he talks about being "forced to hurt the people"- he cracked me up in that movie so much). And I liked him in Sense and Sensibility so much too.

    I've never read the Zahn Star Wars books but they look good, and I've heard good things. And the Rivendell chapter in Fellowship is one of my faves- I like the Council and all the backstory we get. Like a fascinating history lesson. I guess nowadays it would be an infodump maybe, but I still like it. :)

    I should try to get Truthwitch from the library...

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  10. Such lovely books and ooooh, you got Star Touched Queen! :D Oh, I was so sad about Alan Rickman. He's been a favorite actor of mine since he played the villian in the first Die Hard movie!

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  11. I can't wait to read Truthwitch. I hope you have a great time reading this week!


    My It's Monday! What Are You Reading? post

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  12. Great books!!I wrote a small tribute to Alan Rickman on my blog, he will be greatly missed. I hope you enjoy your books!!
    http://thebestbasicblogger.blogspot.com/2016/01/mailbox-monday-2-and-its-monday-what.html

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  13. The penguin idea is brilliant! We always do the summer reading program at the library, and it's always kicked off with a carnival at the library. Usually a local petting zoo comes in and brings some of their animals, last year they had a pot belly pig that did tricks lol.

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  14. I've been reading so many great things about Truthwitch, and it seems like a very popular read among teenagers. And wow, I admire you for reading all the Star Wars novelization - that takes commitment! :)

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  15. Have a great time planning the summer program....much better than dealing with snow! We haven't had a significant snow fall yet, but I hear one is coming on Friday. I read A Fireproof Home for the Bride last year...a decent read. I think you'll enjoy it overall. Can't wait to hear your thoughts on Imposter Queen and I also want to read Truthwitch. I still have to pick up a copy. Enjoy your books!

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  16. I love the idea of a penguin at the library!! How fun is that!! I am all for snow but I hate this super cold. :(

    A Fireproof Home for the Bride sounds good!!! I will have to watch for your review. And for Truthwitch, which sounds intriguing as well.

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  17. Oh, you got The Impostor Queen! I hope you'll enjoy it, Christina!

    And it's nice that you can plan the summer program, maybe it will help you keep warm?

    Have a wonderful week and happy reading.

    Lexxie @ (un)Conventional Bookviews

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  18. OMGoodness, adults and children will be so thrilled to see a penguin so up close. That is terrific you can arrange such an event. I like how there is an adult summer reading program. I've never see it in our libraries; there is usually book clubs for children only.

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  19. My step total this week was pathetic. It didn't help that my fitbit quit registering steps one day and I didn't notice until noon the next day. Resetting it took care of the problem but nothing could recover the steps that didn't get counted. I enjoyed The Impostor Queen and didn't see major problems with the world building. I hope you enjoy it too. Here is what I read last week. Happy reading!

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  20. A penguin, in the library?!? I can't wait to see pictures of that! There are heaps of fun books you can tie in with that, too. As for 12 degrees....brrrr.....We use Celsius in Canada, so when I first read that I thought, "12 degrees isn't that cold!"....then I remembered that 32F is the freezing point of water.....brrrr......

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  21. Good job on your step counts!

    I have "The Seafront Tearoom" on my wishlist...hoping I'll get to it soon!

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  22. I read The Things We Keep also. It was good and well researched, but isn't going to be a favorite. Very emotional for me.

    I hope you are having a good week. Looks like it should be with your lineup.

    Elizabeth
    Silver's Reviews
    My It's Monday, What Are You Reading

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