My Book Retreat

Seven friends go on a camping trip in Canada. They decide to explore a cave, and after a strange light sweeps through the interior, they emerge from the cave in another time. They've traveled from the 21st century to the 18th century. They are alone in the wilderness and must work together to find their way in this new, old world.

Crossing the Rubicon by R.C. Richter is a fascinating story of modern-day teens trying to make it in colonial times. They head west to escape the coming winter, and end up traveling across many locations throughout America and beyond. While this is a fantasy/time travel novel, there are many aspects of historical fiction as well. Richter brings us into this primitive world, showing us the people and cultural norms of the time.

The story is told from the perspective of Trinity in the form of a journal. One of the issues I had with this format is that, while written as a journal with dates at the beginning of each entry, it isn't really written in a jo…

Welcome back to another weekly recap. Last week, I halfheartedly participated in the Winter's Respite Read-a-Thon at Seasons of Reading. I didn't do very well. I had hoped to read two 400+ page books but only got halfway through one of them. That's it. 2013 doesn't seem to be my year for reading! Oh well.

Recent Reviews and Other Posts
I didn't write any reviews last week but I did publish a couple other posts:
Virtual Book Club for Kids ~ My daughter became an artist for the day
Must Reads vs. Don't Bothers ~ I asked for advice on which books to read and which to give up on

The recap linky is open for just one more day for the Non-Fiction Non-Memoir Reading Challenge in 2012. If you participated in the challenge, be sure to link up so you can be entered to win an Amazon gift card!

What I'm Reading
I'm currently reading The Prophet by Ethan Cross. It's been a while since I read the first in this series, The Shepherd. I'm really enjoying this cree…

I am almost through my last few review books and will finally have time to tackle all of the books I've been accumulating over the years. So I'd like some help. Which of these books do you consider "Must Reads" and which would you recommend I just put on Paperback Swap and not waste my time?

Creep by Jennifer Hillier
Happy Accidents by Jane Lynch
Never Knowing by Chevy Stevens
Julie & Julia by Julie Powell
Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
The Thieves of Darkness by Richard Doetsch
Picking Bones from Ash by Marie Mutsuki Mockett
All Over But the Shoutin' by Rick Bragg
The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker
Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
Fathermucker by Greg Olear
Godmother by Carolyn Turgeon
Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Sweet Dates in Basra by Jessica Jiji
A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters
Fantasy in Death by J.D. Robb
Captivity by Deborah Noyes
The Mer…

M and I decided to participate in this month's Virtual Book Club for Kids. The highlighted author for January is David McPhail, an author we had not read previously. So we started out by going to the library and choosing a book. We decided to go with Drawing Lessons from a Bear.


This is a charming story about a bear who loves to draw. As his mom teaches him all the skills he needs to know to be a good bear, she also encourages his interest in drawing. He starts by drawing in the dirt but later searches for small scraps of paper to draw on. As he grows, he continues to draw while also staying true to himself and his life as a bear. He encourages all the children by saying they can be artists too if they want to be.

For the activity to go along with this book, M and I decided to be artists ourselves. We actually read a second book called Pablo the Artist by Satoshi Kitamur as well, and M drew a picture inspired by that book.


I think she did a wonderful job on this picture. It'…

Good evening! I'm a little late writing this since we were on the road today. We spent the weekend in Myrtle Beach, SC, visiting family. I'm very excited to say that I finally got some reading done in 2013! I finished the book I was reading last week, and I read an entire second book. Woohoo!

Recent Reviews and Other Posts
I finished reading Watering Heaven by Peter Tieryas Liu, and I wrote the review too!
I also posted an interview with author Steven Manchester.

The recap linky is still open for the Non-Fiction Non-Memoir Reading Challenge in 2012. If you participated in the challenge, be sure to link up so you can be entered to win an Amazon gift card!

What I'm Reading

In addition to finishing Watering Heaven, I also read Crossing the Rubicon by R.C. Richter. I hope to write the review later this week.

This week is the Winter's Respite Read-a-Thon at Seasons of Reading. It started today but I'll be starting up with it tomorrow.

Up Next for Me
I'll be picking…

Today, I'd like to welcome Steven Manchester, author of the recently published novel Goodnight, Brian.

Q. Thanks for visiting! Who or what inspired you to become an author?
A. I served in Operation Desert Storm and it was a brutal experience. I promised myself that if I made it home alive, I would pursue my dream of being a published author. I began writing in 1991—upon my safe return—and have been writing ever since.

Since then—and today—the thing that inspires me most is my children. I’ve always taught them that they should chase their dreams because dreams come true. However, we don’t get what we wish for; we get what we work for. Every time I put pen to paper and pursue my lifelong dream, I’m inspired to teach them to reach for the stars.
Q. Can you tell me a little about your most recently released book, Goodnight, Brian? A. Fate was working against little Brian Mauretti. The food that was meant to nourish him was poisoning him instead, and the doctors said the damage was dev…

A woman who has no reflection. Another who lays an egg every time she has sex! A man who refuses to kill the rats that take over his home. Another who completely changes his face. These are just a few of the uniquely creative characters featured in Watering Heaven, a collection of short stories by Peter Tieryas Liu.

I don't generally read short stories, as regular readers of this blog can attest. But I must say I really enjoyed this collection. Of course, there were some stories I liked better than others. But overall, this is an interesting assortment of outrageous yet often profound stories. I honestly feel that I need to reread some because I'm sure I'm missing some of the symbolism and messages Liu is putting forth.

This is a not a happy or joyful look at life; most of the stories are more reflective and don't always end well. But the creativity and literary style that Liu employs is quite enjoyable to read (if you like that sort of writing). Some of the themes I …

Good morning. I hope you're all doing well. I've been sick since before the new year began, and I'm sick of being sick! Unfortunately, being sick means I haven't felt like doing anything ~ even reading! I've read a total of 118 pages this year. That's it. I haven't even finished one book ~ and the book I started with is only about 150 pages!!! I'm so frustrated but know that once I feel better, I'll get back into reading.

Recent Reviews and Other Posts
I did put up a couple posts this past week:
Stages of Reading ~ a post for those of you with young kids
Interview with author Michelle Day

The recap linky is still open for the Non-Fiction Non-Memoir Reading Challenge in 2012. If you participated in the challenge, be sure to link up so you can be entered to win an Amazon gift card!



What I'm Reading
I'm still reading Watering Heaven by Peter Tieryas Liu. It's a very interesting and well-written set of short stories. I just can't seem to f…

Today I'd like to welcome Michelle Day, author of Prodigal Son, an adult romance novel.

Q. Thank you for stopping by! Who or what inspired you to become an author?

A. I never had any aspirations to become an author and didn’t overly enjoy essay writing at school. I am however, an avid people watcher, I like to observe and used to record these observations in a diary from time to time. From this, ideas began to form and eventually, a good twenty years later, those ideas became my first book.

Q. Can you tell me a little about Prodigal Son?

A. Prodigal Son is the first book of the Jensen family series with the main focus being on the youngest son Paul and his acerbic relationship with his father. It details his trials and tribulations throughout his early life and the reader comes to realise what a determined and charming young man he is.

Q. What are you working on now?

A. I am currently working on the second and third books in the series and hope to have them available this year with the …