Here in the US, September 29th has been designated as National Coffee Day, and that sounds to me like reason to celebrate. You may be able to score a free or discounted cup of joe at your favorite coffee shop, and what’s better to go with it than a nice coffee-themed book…. (fewer calories than a nice chocolate-themed donut! 🙂 )
Ahoy Maties! Were you aware that September 19th has been designated International Talk Like a Pirate Day? Here’s some pirate (never pirated!) fiction to help get you in the mood…
I don’t know what the weather might be like where you live, but in the greater Chicagoland area, we are experiencing a heat wave. It’s much hotter, and more humid, than I am happy with! I can dream about going somewhere cooler, but I’ve about used up my vacation time for this summer. (Those of you who are regular readers might have noticed that I’ve been absent a lot over the past month or so.) I can read about someplace cooler though, and live vicariously through a story’s characters as they don their sweaters, add an extra blanket to the bed, or trudge through the snow. With that in mind, here are some cold-weather titles I’ve come up with. These are all new to me, so if you’ve read one, I’d love to hear your thoughts!
I don’t get to the cinema as often as I’d like, but I’ve noticed quite a few good book-to-movie adaptations out recently or coming soon. I’m always a little apprehensive about seeing a movie after having read the book, but there are a few that look promising, or that I haven’t read the corresponding book yet. Let me know if I’ve missed one you’re looking forward to – I can always use a good recommendation!
The BFG – coming 7/1/2016
Based on the book by Roald Dahl. My oldest daughter has made it quite clear that we’re not going to see this one. She says it is nothing like the book, and she is not happy about it! I think most people have felt this way about a movie adaptation of a favorite book at one time or another, and I can understand her feelings so I guess we will skip this one. For those who have not read the book, or who can think of it as a separate entity from the book however, it does look like it might be fun.
MIDDLE SCHOOL: The Worst Years of My Life – Coming in October
Based on the bestseller by James Patterson. Neither my daughter nor I have read this one yet. I love James Patterson’s mysteries, and my kids have enjoyed his I Funny series, so I think we’ll be able to agree on this one, described as “Ferris Bueller meets Home Alone”! 🙂
Me Before You – out now
Based on the JoJo Moyes novel. I’m not usually a fan of books or movies that can be described as tear-jerkers, but this one looks very sweet and I’ve heard so many good things about the book, that I may give it a shot.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – coming November 2016
Based on the JK Rowling book of the same name, and set in the Harry Potter universe. I will be first in line. Ok, maybe not first, but I will be there!!
The Girl on the Train – Coming October 2016
Based on Paula Hawkins’ book of the same name. I loved this book. (Hated most of the characters, but loved the book!) I am very anxious to see how it translates to the big screen. The kiddos are going to have to stay home for this one though… 🙂
Alice Through the Looking Glass – now showing
Somewhat “loosely” based on Lewis Carroll’s novel, the colors and characters alone make me want to go see this one.
I know there are a lot more out there, so tell me what you are looking forward to seeing!
Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday they post a new Top Ten list prompt. This week’s prompt is… Ten Reasons you love “X”. My “X” is Agatha Christie because her name was the first thing that popped into my head when I read this prompt. (That could be because I just watched a documentary chronicling her life over the weekend!) She’s been one of my favorite authors for as long as I can remember, so I should be able to come up with 10 reasons why, and I will do my best to keep it spoiler free. 🙂
Don’t forget to leave me a link to your own post in the comments, or just tell me what you’re loving this week, books or otherwise!
Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday they post a new Top Ten list prompt. This week’s prompt is… Ten Books To Make You Laugh. This one is a challenge for me! I don’t usually read humor. I just looked at my Goodreads shelves and there are a whopping 7 books classified as humor. And 2 of those are Grumpy cat books! 🙂 Well, let’s see what I can do…
Don’t forget to leave me a link to your own post in the comments, or suggest a humorous book that you’ve enjoyed.
10. The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins
Not at all a comedy (dark fantasy / horror), but there is a scene with Steve and the lions that had me laughing out loud…
Maybe they aren’t roll-on-the-floor hilarious, but they make me chuckle.
2. I Work Better With an Audience: Thoughts on Life, Love, Food and Jiggly Bits by Jennifer Inglis
A humorous collection of stories / essays. As the author says, “Come along for the ride. There will be snacks.”
1. Cake Wrecks by Jen Yates (Kindle Edition)
From the creator of cakewrecks.com – an ebook full of cakes that have gone terribly awry.
So, did I pull it off, or did you notice that my list goes from #10 straight to #4? That’s all I have for this week! I hope someone has some good humorous suggestions for me. 🙂
Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday they post a new Top Ten list prompt. This week’s prompt is… Top Ten Books Every (fill in the blank) should read. Since I’m in the mood for chocolate, I’ve decided to fill in the blank with chocoholics! The list is mostly fiction, but there are a few non-fiction titles I’ve enjoyed that are included here as well.
Don’t forget to leave me a link to your own post if you have one, or mention your own favorite chocolate-related title in the comments!
Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday they post a new Top Ten list prompt. This week’s prompt is… Ten Of The Best Books I’ve Read Recently. These are all 4 or 5 star books that I’ve read over the last several months. They’re in chronological order here – I read number ten in November of last year, and reviewed number one just today. Let me know what you thought if you’ve read any of them!
Be sure to leave me a link to your own post, or let me know what you’ve read recently that was good in the comments below.
10. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
8. Crimson Shore by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
6. Off the Books by Lucy Arlington
5. Death of a Nurse by M.C. Beaton
4. Try Not to Breathe by Holly Seddon
3. The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins
2. The Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum by Kirsten Weiss
1. Girl on the Run by Daryl Wood Gerber
Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday they post a new Top Ten list prompt. This week’s prompt is… Ten Books I Really Love But Feel Like I Haven’t Talked About Enough. I had a little trouble deciding how to tackle this one, so I’m just going to list the first ten books that pop into my head when I think of books I love that I haven’t recently reviewed. These won’t be in any particular order this week, and doing it this way made for an eclectic list!
Be sure to leave me a link to your own post or just tell me what some of your favorites are in the comments below.
Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday they post a new Top Ten list prompt. This week’s prompt is… Ten Books I Enjoyed Recently (last yearish) That Weren’t My Typical Genre/Type of Book. I’ve gone back through my list of books read on Goodreads, and apparently I wasn’t very adventurous last year. Sorry for the super-short list this week, but I only see 3 books that don’t fit into one of my preferred genres, which would include any type of mystery / thriller, historical fiction, sci-fi/fantasy (including cyberpunk), horror, romantic suspense, and young adult.
The Book's the Thing 