It’s Monday, and I am knee-deep in papers and work stuff. At least I get to research things I’m interested in! I’m writing one paper on family literacy programs and another on how to motivate children to read. Sensing a theme here? If I’m not talking about reading, I’m studying it.
Here are some non-bookish things that made me happy this month:
- Rob Thomas has a new show, iZombie, and it’s very Veronica Mars-ish. And that’s a good thing! The cheesy name almost scared me away – I would not have tuned in except for Rob Thomas, and I’m glad I did. It’s clever but also pretty light. So much TV seems really dark these days.
- Strange snack foods: this month I discovered crispy peas and chickpea snacks. Both sound pretty bad but are surprisingly tasty and healthy! Of course like any snack food you can’t eat the whole bag – even the peas. Hungry Girl recommends seaweed snacks too, but that may be a bridge too far for me.
- Speaking of which, Hungry Girl has a new cookbook coming out at the end of April! Okay, that’s bookish but I do love my Hungry Girl Diet Cookbook.
- Outlander starting up again April 4!
- My adorable husband turned a whopping 43 this week (I’m 9 months older). I’ve been kind of a bear lately and he’s been so supportive. He’s definitely my favorite non-bookish thing!
Here’s what I posted in March:
- The Knife of Never Letting Go
- Selfish, Shallow, and Self-Absorbed
- Stone Mattress
- Everything I Never Told You
- The Silkworm and Faceless Killers
- Healthy Slow Cooker Revolution
- Books on my Spring TBR List
Here’s what I read in March:
- The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri
- Dead Heat by Patricia Briggs
- Rubbernecker by Belinda Bauer
- Firefight by Brandon Sanderson
- Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat
- Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell
My favorite read this month? The Lowland was really good, and I expected no less from Jhumpa Lahiri. But the favorite definitely goes to Rubbernecker, an awesome story about a guy with Asperger’s Syndrome who solves a mystery when he dissects a cadaver in medical school.
The book I liked least? I wanted to be a lot more moved by Breath, Eyes, Memory, a story about a girl who goes from Haiti to the U.S. and back again.
Here are the books I read for challenges:
- TBR Pile: The Lowland and Breath, Eyes, Memory (6 of 12 books read already!)
- Foodie: Healthy Slow Cooker Revolution
- Around the World: The Lowland, Faceless Killers, and Breath Eyes Memory
What I’m reading now: Still working on The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James. It’s a bit of a slow read, and I’m taking my time. I’m also reading Uprooted, a review copy of the new Naomi Novik novel. I’m finding it kind of a slow read, as much as I love Novik. But then maybe I’m reading too much at one time.
So, happy Monday and happy spring! Hope it’s warmer where you are. What are you reading?