Sunday Salon :
Hello fellow readers and bloggers!
Hopefully you had a great week! Time really is spinning and, in barely over a month, Christmas will be here. I know we’re supposed to start decorating our place for the holidays this weekend, and I can’t wait! I find Christmas Trees to be one of the prettiest things.
How many of you are Christmas freaks too? Have you start decorating your house?
As for reading :
Books read this week :
- Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
- Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin
Books reviewed this week :
- Too Good to be True by Kristan Higgins
- Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
- Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
I have to admit that after reading The Chosen One, Thirteen Reasons Why and Wintergirls all in the space of two weeks, I felt emotionally emptied. They were good though, but a little intense. I was ready for some humor and romance and silliness, anything that doesn’t involve psychological violence. The Guinae Pig Diaries was a good relief after these, it’s non fiction but not too serious, and really interesting. I’m almost done with this one too, and I have no idea what I’ll finish next. Soulless? Iron Kissed?
So, my reading week has been a little slower this time, with no read-a-thon included and more work for school. I guess it will slowly slow down as we near the end of the semester, and I can’t wait for December 21st, at 4pm, when I’ll be done with my last test! I already made reading plans for the holidays (which will probably change once I’m there, but we can dream, can’t we?). Other than the holiday books for the holiday challenge (see my selection here), here’s what I planned :
- Under the Dome by Stephen King : Because this book is huge. Over 1000 pages, to be precise, so not something I can carry around at school, but perfect for sitting on a snowy day with a hot chocolate cup (or many!). I have a love/hate relationship with Stephen King, so I’m really curious to see where I’ll stand with this one.
- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen : I started the book months ago, but haven’t read any of it in weeks now. Which is sad, since I’m actually getting used to the language. But I really enjoyed what I read so far, and want to finish it. Then maybe start another one.
- The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson : I have read book one too long ago already, and it was excellent. I really need to get into book two now!
- Graceling and Fire by Kristin Cashore : Because I feel like everyone has read those but me! They do look good, too, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I’ll enjoy them as most people seem to do.
What about you? Do you have special reading plans for the holiday season? Books you haven’t had the chance to read during the year, or maybe books that feel more “christmas-y”?
I joined Nely’s Holiday Reading Challenge. I usually like to dedicate Thanksgiving (US) through New Year’s Day to holiday books. Light reading during a busy season.
I’m doing the Holiday Reading Challenge and plan to read several Christmas books. They always put me in the Christmas spirit. We won’t decorate for a few weeks yet.
I’m not really one for “holiday fiction”, but I do look forward to the holidays! I think Christmas is my favourite one, for sure, especially because everything looks so pretty when covered in snow, and I do love Christmas tv specials and Christmas carols.
But despite my love for the holidays, I find I never get much reading done during them! I think it’s because it’s one of the few times each year we actually get to see family and friends from back home, so we spend so much time socializing that reading winds up on the backburner. For me the past few weeks have been so busy that my reading has really slowed, and I think it might not improve until 2010!
I have a big pile of books to read over break — all the books that I’d grab over the semester and think ‘This is the book I’m going to read next” and then not get to read next. It’s about 10 books tall, which I hope will be do able.
I don’t have any tests, but I cannot wait until all my final projects are turned in and I think not thinking about school for an entire month! Good luck with your end of the semester 🙂
I need to read those Kristin Cashore books, too. I haven’t, and I’ve heard they’re so good.
I’m hoping to re-read the HP books this christmas, and maybe a christmas book or two 🙂
I think the weekend reading will be fun especially because I don’t want to be out with the Black Friday mob scene!!! King’s new book is 1000+…egads!! Have fun reading that one!!
I’ve been fighting the urge to put up Christmas decorations for two weeks. I refuse to decorate before Thanksgiving, but it’s been hard to remember that this year. 🙂
Every year around Christmas I want to read Harry Potter books. I rarely find the time, but I think I’ll give it a go this year. Again.
I *love* Christmas. I haven’t started decorating yet, but I’m sure that will happen soon. This week, maybe?
Today I finished Ex-mas for the Holiday Challenge. It was just what I need after slogging through two chunkers. It was a fun, quick read.
Oh you should start Pride & Prejudice now you know. That a thousand paged book is interesting. I will be waiting for your review. xx
King’s newest book is more than 1,000 pages long?! Oh my goodness! I can’t imagine what sort of things he has to say for 1,000 pages. Seriously. But I’ll be interested to hear what you think later! 🙂
I’m feeling very un-Christmasy so far: I was talking to a friend last night and we were both realizing that it’s been a VERY stressful year. Her husband was diagnosed with cancer in March, and that’s right around the time my mother-in-law’s health started declining. (She died in September — 97, so she had a good long life, but still…) Anyway, hopefully I’ll get into it soon! I put up Thsnkgiving things, and one of my girls came home Saturday and the other college girl comes home tomorrow, so all 3 girls will be under one roof, which is nice.
Current reading: Robert Parker’s latest. Listening to a Death on Demand mystery (and I got new headphones, so I can actually HEAR now! – old ones fritzed out) by Carolyn Hart. And for non-fiction, I just read a great book on progressive education, “Lives of Passion, School of Hope,”by Rick Posner. After struggling with ADD (not the h — so of course the school didn’t catch it, even when I asked, TWICE) issues with my youngest, I’m up for reading about ways schools reach kinds and help them thrive. This is about one of those places, in Colorado. A place where personal growth comes first? What a concept. The book follows alums who, guess what, have turned out to be productive adults. And they didn’t get taught to the test.
Cute christmasy
Under the Dome looks GOOOD! 😉
I’m looking forward to what you think of the Under the Dome. I’ve never read any of King’s fiction—as you may know. Aw, snow and hot choc, sound cozy!