Sunday Post (46) / 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.

Happy first week of April! Here we have snow on the ground though it hopefully won't last long. It was a crazy day yesterday. It started off with sunshine then in the afternoon it rained and then in the early evening the rain mixed with snow and then by the night time there was snow on the ground. I didn't expect that! I spent the day running errands and going to another library's DIY festival. They had a 3-D printer there from the local university. It was really cool to see how 3-D printing worked. I'm hoping to have the presenter come to our library later this year or next year. I know some libraries own 3-D printers for the public to use but that is still outside our price range (though the 3-D pen might not be).

Last week I visited my parents for Easter and we received some good news about my mom. She does not have cancer and her latest lab results were really good so it looks like her bone marrow is producing blood cells again like it should. She has to get blood tests every two weeks to monitor it but that is really fantastic news!

This week I have my evening book group and I work on Saturday but other than that it will be pretty quiet. Next week is our edible book festival and so far the response has not been promising. Aside from library staff only two people have turned in entry forms. Next year I have decided to scrap the edible book festival (way too stressful) and try a Peeps diorama contest instead. I am using Peeps to make my entry for the edible book festival. Today I will be practicing turning a Twinkie into a car to go with Go, Dog. Go! by P.D. Eastman (my entry will be called Go, Peeps. Go!). 

#FitReaders Weekly Check In

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

I have decided to allow myself one day off a week from exercising and meeting my step goal (likely Sundays) but this past week I accidentally overslept on Wednesday so I didn't have time to work out. I also wasn't feeling that great so I sat a lot at work. I hope to do better this week! 

Sunday--5,015 steps
Monday--11,464 steps
Tuesday--10,753 steps
Wednesday--4,748 steps
Thursday--11,362 steps
Friday--11,334 steps
Saturday--11,215 steps

Last week on my blog:

Top Ten Five Star Reads (post)

The Shadow Queen by C.J. Redwine (review)

Books read:

A Window Opens by Elisabeth Egan

I liked this book more than I thought I would. The main character is a 30-something woman who loves her part time job at a magazine (it allows her to spend more time with the kids) but when her husband unexpectedly leaves his job to start his own law firm, she takes a full time job at Scroll, a trendy Amazon like company. The book looks at careers, the family/work balance, friendships and marriage relationships among other things.

The Breathtaker by Alice Blanchard

This is our evening book discussion book and I thought I'd like it but I really didn't. It features a killer who plots his gruesome murders around when tornadoes will strike. It was gritty and very detailed both in describing crime scenes and tornado chasing. I figured out who the killer was the moment he was introduced and I didn't really care for the characters. I am curious to see how the other group members felt about it.

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

I have mixed feelings about this book. I did think it was kind of fun to read a modern day version of Pride and Prejudice and I liked some of the new twists the author used. My issue was with the main Liz and Darcy romance which didn't quite work for me. I also thought some of the characters were less likable in this version and the story lacked the charm of the original. 

Books listened to:

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling (reread)

Currently reading:

The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien (reread)

Frodo and Sam are now following Gollum on safe paths through the marshes...

Currently listening to:

Emma by Jane Austen (reread)

I am listening to the version read by Juliet Stevenson (does not go with this paperback cover). Juliet Stevenson played the annoying Mrs. Elton in the Gwyneth Paltrow version of Emma from the 90s and I am enjoying her narration so far.

On my TBR pile:

Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse

I am planning to start this book today. My sister read an advance copy of it too and she loved it. The story is set in The Netherlands during WWII. The main character is a teen who helps her family by selling items on the black market. She is asked by one of her customers to look for a Jewish girl the customer had been hiding and through this she becomes involved with the resistance. Sounds good doesn't it?

Love, Lies and Spies by Cindy Anstey

This is a YA Regency historical romance with spies. It sounds like fun!

New books received:

The Winemakers by Jan Moran (for review)

Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly (for review)

Glory Over Everything by Kathleen Grissom (for review)

Before We Visit the Goddess by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (for review)

Forever and Forever by Josi S. Kilpack (for review)

A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner (library book)