It's Monday, What Are You Reading? May 26, 2014

During the weekend of June 6, MotherReader will host the annual 48 Hour Book Challenge. This year the focus is #WeNeedDiverseBooks.  All books read during the event, whether middle grade, young adult, or adult, should have a diverse focus.
Due to graduation, and grad parties, and snow days, I won't be able to give this my full participation but I'm hoping to eek out 12 hours of reading! I'll post about the books I have on hand next week.  So now you gotta come back! ;)







What I Bought
Landline by Rainbow Rowell

What I Read
More Baths Less Talking by Nick Hornby
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by JK Rowling (audio)
Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson
Super Human by Michael Carroll
The Summer of Letting Go by Gae Polisner
Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince by JK Rowling (audio and print) 49%
Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst 45%

We are reading furiously to find our next One Book, One School selection. I'm lucky in that our Language Arts teachers choose great books to read and discuss with class and give students some choice also.  Students still look on this as "school reading" and, as such, our goal is to encourage students to read for fun. We have trivia contests, game shows, a book battle, art/writing/music contests, and this past year, a scavenger hunt. The contests are based on the reading, which we divide over a month, and they can win prizes. We use the power of everyone talking about the same book as a way to encourage students to read. In addition, everyone who works in the building gets the book.  We have a "formula" that we believe works, but we are also looking to branch out a bit. Hence, Super Human and Steelheart. I love superhero books. These also have great supervillians and focus on what is good and what is evil.  We are also looking at Harry Potter because we think this group of students we have may have missed out on the books.

I was lucky enough to meet Gae Polisner! Check out her Gae's facebook page for some great photos of the events she did for Reading For Life! I also got to meet Kelly Vorhis (@kelvorhis) and had a visit with the great, Sherry Gick (@libraryfanatic)! We had a great time at our own impromptu After Party!

Maria and I are doing something different for Batty About Books and so far, I don't like it! I miss her forcing me to check in partways through the book instead of waiting until the end!  Though, I think it's the type of book we are reading too. We read scifi or fantasy each time and mostly feel as if our arbitrary divisions hinder our enjoyment because we remove ourselves from the reading to make our posts.  I'm finding that the weekly breakdowns actually served to keep me vested when other chores were calling to me! Also, I miss the feeling of reading with Maria.  Things might change this week when we write about the book.  Can't wait.

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? May 12, 2014

I've been reading More Baths, Less Talking by Nick Hornby and I love the format of the book. It reminds me of the old In My Mailbox posts that used to be popular, combined with the IMWAYR posts.  Each chapter in the book lists what Hornby bought, what he read, including unfinished tomes, and then a narrative that talks about his reading and puts it into some sort of context. It's humorous and informative.  While I can't possibly be as erudite as Hornby, I decided I'd like to try that format to these posts. So, welcome.





What I Bought
Tankborn, Awakening, Rebellion (The Tankborn Trilogy) by Karen Sandler
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
The Great Greene Heist by Varian Johnson
Ruin and Rising (Grisha Trilogy) by Leah Bardugo
Sinner (Shiver Quarter??) by Maggie Stiefvater

What I'm Reading
Demons of the Oceans (The Vampirates, 1) by Justin Somper  (50%)
More Baths, Less Talking by Nick Hornby (84%)
Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix (50%) audio
Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson (33%)

I like to listen to books in my car or cleaning the house and when the library didn't have what I wanted, I started listening to the Harry Potter books.  I've read the first four several times but never got into the 5th, The Order of the Phoenix. This time though, I'm obsessed. Even knowing how the entire series ends, I just want to drop everything and pick this book up!  Not so much the Vampirates book. It started out strong but I'm pretty sure I'm going to give up soon. As a matter of fact, a student asked me to read Steelheart so we can discuss it, so I picked that one up instead of reading more of Demons of the Oceans.  So far, so good. At first, I didn't like it because, like this post, it's in first person. I didn't think I had a problem with those sorts of books but for this one, I did. Now, I can hardly put IT down. Which makes it hard to type as I have two books calling my name!

Each chapter in More Baths is a different month from a column in the magazine The Believer.  They are old posts. There was a spot a few chapters back where Hornby talked about books I actually read! He also bought Will Grayson, Will Grayson.  I may get the magazine to see if he ever read it. At one point he mentions sitting on the couch sandwiched between his two sons, each involved in his own activity.  It reminded me of me and the daughter because sometimes it's just nice to be in the same room, no matter what each person is doing.

More of what people have been reading can be found on TeachMentorTexts.

In My Mailbox (1)

Hello everybody, this is Aneeqah here! I'm going to be doing a few memes, and hopefully be keeping up with them throughout the year.

Anyways, In My Mailbox [IMM, for short!] is a meme hosted by The Story Siren, where you basically talk about books you've received. So let's get on with it!

For Review [e-copy]:

GoodReads Synopsis:
Vee Bell is certain of one irrefutable truth—her sister’s friend Sophie didn’t kill herself. She was murdered.

Vee knows this because she was there. Everyone believes Vee is narcoleptic, but she doesn’t actually fall asleep during these episodes: When she passes out, she slides into somebody else’s mind and experiences the world through that person’s eyes. She’s slid into her sister as she cheated on a math test, into a teacher sneaking a drink before class. She learned the worst about a supposed “friend” when she slid into her during a school dance. But nothing could have prepared Vee for what happens one October night when she slides into the mind of someone holding a bloody knife, standing over Sophie’s slashed body.

Vee desperately wishes she could share her secret, but who would believe her? It sounds so crazy that she can’t bring herself to tell her best friend, Rollins, let alone the police. Even if she could confide in Rollins, he has been acting off lately, more distant, especially now that she’s been spending more time with Zane.

Enmeshed in a terrifying web of secrets, lies, and danger and with no one to turn to, Vee must find a way to unmask the killer before he or she strikes again.

GoodReads Synopsis:
For seventeen years, Eloise Hart had no idea the world of Faery even existed. Now she has been abducted and trapped in the Rath of Lord Strahan, King of Faery. Strahan was only meant to rule for seven years, as Faery tradition dictates, and then give up his crown to another. But he won't comply, and now chaos threatens both worlds.


The only one who can break his stranglehold on the Faery court is his wife. . . Eloise's aunt Antonia. Using Eloise to lure Antonia, Strahan captures his wife, desperate to end the only threat to his reign. Now Eloise must become the rescuer. Together with her best friends Jo and Devin, she must forge alliances with other Fae, including a gorgeous protector named Lucas, and Strahan's mysterious son, Eldric-who may or may not betray them.

From Library:

GoodReads Synopsis:
To 17-year-old Leslie, the tattoo is a thing of indescribable beauty, a captivating mark that she must make her own. But this subtle web of eyes and wings brings with it a transformation that no sweet young girl would ever imagine or welcome. Like its predecessor, this stand-alone sequel to Wicked Lovely plunges its youthful heroine into a faery world of almost constant peril. A tantalizing urban fantasy that won't let go.

GoodReads Synopsis:
Tessa doesn't believe in magic. Or Fate. But there's something weird about the dusty unicorn tapestry she discovers in a box of old books. She finds the creature woven within it compelling and frightening. After the tapestry comes into her possession, Tessa experiences dreams of the past and scenes from a brutal hunt that she herself participated in. When she accidentally pulls a thread from the tapestry, Tessa releases a terrible centuries old secret. She also meets William de Chaucy, an irresistible 16th-century nobleman. His fate is as inextricably tied to the tapestry as Tessa's own. Together, they must correct the wrongs of the past. But then the Fates step in, making a tangled mess of Tessa's life. Now everyone she loves will be destroyed unless Tessa does their bidding and defeats a cruel and crafty ancient enemy.

Tweet

In My Mailbox - July 19, 2009

Welcome to In My Mailbox! I received some great books through buying, begging and borrowing!

Bought
When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead - read my Review of When You Reach Me. Wonderful book!

Begged
Hate List by Jennifer Brown - From Little, Brown School via Facebook
Crazy/Beautiful by Lauren Baratz-Logsted - for Sept rvw from Houghton, Mifflin via NetGalley
Fang Face by Norm Cowie - for rvw from Echelon Press
Everything Sucks!: Losing My Mind and Finding Myeself in a High school Quest for Cool by Hanna Friedman - for 8/13 Blog Tour from TLC Blog Tours.
Borrowed
We did a book trade last week and I got
Hang a Thousand Trees with Ribbon by Ann Rinaldi
Getting Lost With Boys by Hailey Abbott
The Diamonds by Ted Michael
The Write Stuff by Jahnna N. Malcolm

From the library I picked up
Operation Redwood by S. Terrell French - Mock Newbery club
Diego: Bigger Than Life by Carmen Bernier-Grand - Mock Newbery club

That's what's in my mailbox this week, what's in yours?

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. Head over there to see the wonderfulness she received!

In My Mailbox - July 12, 2009

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. Check out her website for additional books to add to your I Wanna Read it list! This week I bring you books from home and one day at The ALA (American Library Association) exhibits.

Bought
Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev - Word Ninja!
Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink - Word Ninja!
Crash Into Me by Albert Borris - Interview with Betty Borris about the author's recovery!

Begged
Red Glass by Laura Resau - won in twitter contest from @RobinBrande
The Treasure Map of Boys (ARC) by E. Lockhart - companion title to The Boyfriend List and The Boy Book
Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink (ARC) - Word Ninja giveaway in August!
Intertwined by Gena Showalter (ARC) - Harlequin TEEN! I cut my first reading teeth on Harlequin!!!
My Soul to Take by Rachel Vincent (ARC) - another Harlequin Teen debut!

ALA Exhibits
The publishers were really awesome! I must give special shout-outs to Candlewick, Knopf, and Penguin Young Readers. The lady at Penguin saw my 13yo, The Amazing Dancer, and then presented her with THREE must reads! Candlewick overhead us talking and gave us two amazing books.Knopf gave us any ARC we wanted that she had on display. Thank you wonderful people!
The Amazing Dancer's books

Fire by Kristin Cashore
Hold Still by Nina Lacour
Gone from These Woods by Donny Seagraves
Murder at Midnight by AVI
William S. and the Great Escape by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
After by Amy Efaw
The Goodbye Season by Marian Hale
The Good Neighbors by Holly Black (signed)
In the Path of Falling Objects by Andrew Smith
Goth Girl Rising by Barry Lyga
The Ask and The Answer by Patrick Ness
Invisible Lines by Mary Amato (signed)
Strange Angels by Lilith St. Crow
Little Black Lies by Tish Cohen
Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles (signed)

The Brain Lair's Books

Another Faust by Dina and Daniel Nayeri
The Mile Between by Mary E. Pearson
Front and Center by Caltherine Gilbert Murdock
Fat Cat by Robin Brande
Powerless by Matthew Cody
Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
The Island of the Blessed by Nancy Farmer
Invisible Lines by Mary Amato
Candor by Pam Bachorz
Blue Plate Special by Michelle D. Kwasney
Geektastic by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
The Sweetheart of Prosper County by Jill S. Alexander
Buck Fever by Cynthia Chapman Willis
Into the Wild Nerd Yonder by Julie Halpern

Can you say WOW!?? And we were only there for a few hours. I just want to thank the wonderful writers and publisher reps we had the pleasure of meeting. You made a long trip well worth it!

In My Mailbox - July 5, 2009

In My Mailbox is brought to you courtesy of The Story Siren. Each week I will let you know what new Young Adult (YA) or Middle Grades (MG) books made their way into my house. These are books I bought, begged for, or borrowed and will be happy to read some day!

Bought

I'm trying to cut back, again, on buying so many books. I did well this week!

Amazing Grace by Megan Shull - @ellenpotter tweeted that she'd read this book several times. 'Nuff said.

No Fear Shakespeare: Hamlet - for the Shakespearean Summer Challenge

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen - for the Everything Austen Challenge

Begged

The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Lyga - signed! Barry Lyga has is giving Free Books to Bloggers either to give to their readers or to keep for themselves! I've already given away one copy with a signed postcard. This one will go soon...

Borrowed

Working in a library is dangerous and not because of the kooky patrons. I did better this week and only brought home two books.

Wings by E.D. Baker - I've read Wings by Jason Lethcoe, I'm reading Wings by Aprilynne Pike, this will complete the Wings Trifecta!

Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon - she is a Word Ninja!

Good week! I 3> reading! When I grow up, I want to get a job where they pay me to read books and talk about them...

So, what's in your mailbox?

New Book Arrived - Off Season by Anne Rivers Siddons

Off Season
Anne Rivers Siddon
Grand Central Publishing

From Hachette Book Group:
Acclaimed novelist Anne Rivers Siddons's new novel is a stunning tale of love and loss.

For as long as she can remember, they were Cam and Lilly--happily married, totally in love with each other, parents of a beautiful family, and partners in life. Then, after decades of marriage, it ended as every great love story does...in loss. After Cam's death, Lilly takes a lone road trip to her and Cam's favorite spot on the remote coast of Maine, the place where they fell in love over and over again, where their ghosts still dance. There, she looks hard to her past--to a first love that ended in tragedy; to falling in love with Cam; to a marriage filled with exuberance, sheer life, and safety-- to try to figure out her future.

It is a journey begun with tender memories and culminating in a revelation that will make Lilly re-evaluate everything she thought was true about her husband and her marriage.

I've decided to separate the "grown up" books I receive from the YA/MG books. I will list the adult titles as they come in and keep my IMM posts for the YA/MG crowd.

New Book Arrived - Austenland by Shannon Hale

Austenland
Shannon Hale
Bloomsbury

From Bloomsbury USA:

Jane Hayes is a seemingly normal young New Yorker, but she has a secret. Her obsession with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, is ruining her love life: no real man can compare. But when a wealthy relative bequeaths her a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-crazed women, Jane's fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become realer than she ever could have imagined.

Decked out in empire-waist gowns, Jane struggles to master Regency etiquette and flirts with gardeners and gentlemen-or maybe even, she suspects, with the actors who are playing them. It's all a game, Jane knows. And yet the longer she stays, the more her insecurities seem to fall away, and the more she wonders: Is she about to kick the Austen obsession for good, or could all her dreams actually culminate in a Mr. Darcy of her own?

The Amazing Dancer and I are both reading this for the Everything Austen Challenge!

In My Mailbox - June 29

I'm running three steps behind everyone this week. Need to take a breather! In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren. Each week I give you an extra special glimpse into what books have made their way into my house! We talk about books we bought, borrowed, or begged someone to send!

Bought
I had book lust this week and plunked down some cold hard cash for:

Sliding on the Edge by C. Lee McKenzie - Word Ninja Ink. author!
When the Black Girl Sings by Bil Wright - bought one for Color Online and got myself one too!
Nothing but Ghosts by Beth Kephart - to show that book bloggers can make a difference
Fairy Tale by Cyn Balog - another Word Ninja Ink. author!

Borrowed
When The Whistle Blows by Fran Cannon Slayton - great reviews and possible Newbery
The Girl Who Threw Butterflies by Mic Cochrane - possible Newbery
Dork Diaries by Rachel Renee Russell- looks fun

Begged
Smudge's Mark by Claudia Osmond - won on Twitter - great cover and summary
The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima - Wo0t!
Shelf Discovery by Lizzie Skurnick - won in contest
Zombie Love T-shirt - won in contest

Course, at this moment, I have no idea when I will get to these books! Check out It's Monday, What Are You Reading if you want to know what books I'm focusing on.

In My Mailbox - June 21

In My Mailbox attempts to give the reader a simple glimpse into the books that have made their way into our homes. Check out The Story Siren for information. Books we bought, borrowed, begged for, etc.

Bought
The books I bought were not for me but for Color Online. As part of my 48hbc I pledged a book for their book drive for every book I read. I finished with four books completed. They received:

Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith
Pemba's Song: A Ghost Story by Marilyn Nelson - here's a review from TheHappyNappyBookseller. I want to read it myself!
Forged by Fire by Sharon Draper - this is the second book in the Hazelwood High Trilogy. I've read this and Tears of a Tiger.

I'd also ordered When the Black Girl Sings by Bill Wright but didn't receive it. I will find a replacement asap!

Borrowed
I really went crazy at the library this week! I see these books that I want and I just grab them - even though I don't have time to read them right now!

Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan - even though that cover is cheesy, the reviews have been encouraging! Check out this one from
Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, Schools and other Scary Things by Lenore Look - young girl came into library looking for books with Chinese characters, gave her Ruby Lu, Empress of Everything and grabbed this for myself both brought to my attention, again, by TheHappyNappyBookseller.
Models Don't Eat Chocolate Cookies by Erin Dionne - work assignment.
One Fat Summer by Robert Lipsyte - work assignment
Olympic Dream by Matt Christopher - work assignment
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han - couldn't resist the title!

Begged
Generation Dead by Daniel Waters- for a future Zombie blog tour
Owly by Andy Runton - from The Picnic Basket review for possible school purchase

Summer is usually my time of reading but with this internship, I'm falling behind. It's at least a month after I get a book before I can read it and that's just YA/MG stuff. The adult books are taking me even longer to start reading. I'm looking forward to a late July slowdown!

So, that's what I have. What's in your mailbox?

New Book Arrived - Along for The Ride by Sarah Dessen

Along for The Ride
Sarah Dessen
Viking/Penguin
pgs. 383

Yeah! It's finally here. This was one of my WoW posts back in February. I've enjoyed quite a few of @SarahDessen's books - Just Listen, Lock and Key, Someone Like You, Keeping The Moon, That Summer, This Lullaby and The Truth About Forever - and looked forward to this being released. And now it's here, and I can barely wait to dive into it!

In My Mailbox - June 15

This was a wonderful week for me. I received a lot of books I requested and bought a couple I had my eyes on! In My Mailbox is brought to you courtesy of The Story Siren.

Bought
I bought two books this week. I had a gift card and a coupon that were burning a hole in my pocket.

Prada and Prejudice by Mandy Hubbard - The Amazing Dancer thought the story sounded great and loved the cover so we got it.

The Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead - I've been hearing a lot about these books so I got the first one to read at the end of summer break.

Begged For
Hollywood is Like High School With Money by Zoey Dean - from Hachette

from Waterbrook/Multnomah
The Veil by Diane Noble
Tomorrow's Treasure by Linda Lee Chaikin

Kurt Wallander Mystery Series by Henry Mankell - from BookDivas

Freaked by JT Dutton - this is on my I Wanna Read It list and the author asked to send me one! How cool is that!

Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson - I'm a fan of Mistborn and the Alacatraz books so I put this on my list and received this beautiful book from Tor! Brandon Sanderson says:

The concept of color as life fascinated me. When something dies in our world, the color fades from it—green plants become brown and human bodies lose their color, becoming pale as the blood drains to the bottom of the corpse. In a lot of ways, color is a representation of life itself.

Viola in Reel Life by Adriana Trigiana - Thanks to J from Harper for this! Read it in one sitting and it was awesome. Look for my teaser next week and review closer to pub date. Picking up all of her books to read!

The Bystander by James Preller - Yeah! E from Feiwel and Friends sent us TEN copies! The teachers and I were so excited - Every copy is being read right now, except mine - I finished it -and it was even better than I thought it would be. Look for a review closer to pub date.

Borrowed
The Big Stone Gap series by Adriana Trigiana
Red Blazer Girls: The Ring of Rocamadour by Michael D. Beil - possible Newbery

Well - those are the great books I received this week. What did you receive?

In My Mailbox - June 7

Check out the picture of books that arrived at my house this week, either from stores, the library, or generous publishers and friends.

Library Loot!
It was a busy week at the library for me and I kept bringing books home. Not that I don't already have enough books in the house!

Stoneheart by Charlie Fletcher - patron told me this was a good series, thought I'd check it out see if I should get for school.

Baseball Great by Tim Green - a student told me I should have these in the library. I think Green has written three of them.

Return to Sender by Julia Alvarez - on my Are You My Newbery list.

Peace, Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson - on my Are You My Newbery list.

Horrid Henry by Francesca Simon - received an email about these. Wanted to see what they were about before committing to anything.

Blog Tours:
These tours help me stay connected to the rest of the cool book bloggers out there as well as find authors whose work I may not come across. Here are two new July ones -

The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand
The Brain Lair Tour Date: July 9
Tour Dates: July 6 - July 10

Greg and Tess MacAvoy are one of four prominent Nantucket couples who count each other as best friends. As pillars of their close-knit community, the MacAvoys, Kapenashes, Drakes, and Wheelers are important to their friends and neighbors, and especially to each other. But just before the beginning of another idyllic summer, Greg and Tess are killed when their boat capsizes during an anniversary sail. As the warm weather approaches and the island mourns their loss, nothing can prepare the MacAvoy's closest friends for what will be revealed. Once again, Hilderbrand masterfully weaves an intense tale of love and loyalty set against the backdrop of endless summer island life.

Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev
Monday Giveaways
Month of July

This one's gonna be huge! There will be celebrations and giveaways throughout the YA blogosphere. We will kick off this event with a Twitter Party!! Mark your calendars boys and girls - let's see how many times @lisamantchev gets kicked off for too many tweets. Can she beat @SarahOckler's 5? You won't know unless you sign up and show up!

• Friday, July 10^th, from 4pm to 7pm (PST)


• Prizes given for best Opening Night outfit (black tie or ball gown/prom dress, accessories like tiara and opera gloves OR dressing as a character from the book.) Pictures will be compiled into a gallery for the Théâtre Illuminata website.


• Must be a follower of @lisamantchev or @TheCallBoard to win

I'll have a variety of fun filled activities here including Contest Mondays!

That's what I have - what about you? Have a great week and hope to see you on Monday! IMM is brought to you courtesy of The Story Siren, head on over if you want to sign up.

In My Mailbox - June 1

This week's book's I've received, aka In My Mailbox, is brought to you courtesy of The Story Siren - check out her new blog design. Somehow this moved to Sunday night without me noticing...will take care of next week. Let's get right to books I bought, begged for, and books I'll tour.

Bought: I know I promised not buy so many books, but sometimes it's the only way to get what you want!

Looking for Alibrandri by Melina Marchetta
Boy Toy by Barry Lyga
My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger



Hero Type by Barry Lyga
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shafer
Once Dead, Twice Shy by Kim Harrison




Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler - Lots of fun activities coming up with this title. Today was the official release day and I'll be posting about a Twitter Party and other activities later today - stay tuned! It will be a blast! We'll be featuring activities throughout the month of June to celebrate!

Begged For:

School of Fear by Gitty Daneshvari
Knowing I couldn't go to BEA I was afraid I wouldn't get this book - but Little, Brown tweeted about it and sent it to me! It releases September 1st and I am psyched to read it. It has a different phobia listed before each chapter. Great formatting. It's also a middle-grades novel which I'm looking to add to our collection.

The Actor and The Housewife by Shannon Hale
I received this one from Bloomsbury. I've already read it and it was fantastic. Sometimes I laughed out-loud, in public places! I cried quite a few times. Shannon's writing made me feel like I was the housewife going through this. Look for my review later this week.


Blog Tours:

The Vanishing Sculptor by Danita K. Paul
The Vanishing Sculptor releases June 2, 2009. I'll be touring June 22 - June 26, please stop by to hear more about this new fantasy for middle grades. I'll be giving away two copies of this book!


Ghostgirl:Homecoming by Tanya Hurley
Ghostgirl: homecoming releases July 1, 2009 and I get to interview Tonya Hurley!! I have two copies of ghostgirl and two copies of ghostgirl:homecoming to give away! Love the coffin books!


Well, those are the books in my mailbox. I'm thinking of doing all blog tour books separately...I'm going to have to get my calendar together so I keep track of everything! Some fun reading coming up as soon as I'm completely done with work!

What's in your mailbox?

In My Mailbox - May 25

In My Mailbox is brought to you courtesy of The Story Siren. Check out all the wonderful books she's received!

I only received one book this week. Just one. Everyone who entered this contest at Goodreads received a copy of the book! One of my teacher friends love Emily Giffin's books so I thought I'd start reading them if I won the contest.

This is the first one in a series. I look forward to reading this sometime this summer hopefully!

Well, that's all for me. Short and sweet.

What's in your mailbox?

In My Mailbox - May 17

IMM is brought to you courtesy of The Story Siren. Check out her blog as she will have Mr. Linky as well as ways you can try for more books!

I've been doing pretty well not buying books since I've been interning at the public library! Wo0t! Here's what I received:

For Review
Leftovers by Heather Waldorf
I got this from LibraryThing Early Reviewers. I request all of their young adult titles. Mostly I've seen ones from Orca Press. They make good books for reluctant readers. They aren't too long and they aren't formulaic.

Love the cover of this one. 15 y.o. Sarah's father died last year but she is still reeling from his abuse.

Neil Armstrong is My Uncle & Other Lies Muscle Man McGinty Told Me by Nan Marino
I requested this ARE from Roaring Book Press through Shelf Awareness. Sometimes I request Young Adult books but I've also requested adult ones too.

From the back:
Muscle Man McGinty is a squirrelly runt, a lying snake, and a pitiful excuse for a ten-year-old. The problem is that no one on Ramble Street knows it, but me.

Well, those have been added to my tottering pile of books to be read. Don't look for reviews too soon, but they will be coming!

What did you get?

In My Mailbox - May 10

IMM is brought to you courtesy of The Story Siren, take a look at her blog for more books for your TBR pile! This is where I list the books I've received in the past week - bought, borrowed, begged, or otherwise!

Random House UK
My Dating Disasters Diary by Liz Rettig
I received a slew of books from Kids at Random House UK! I posted about 10! of them here because I couldn't wait to let you know. I forgot to mention this Liz Rettig book. I've heard nothing but good about it and look forward to reading it for summer book club. Check out Liz's website, she's funny!

Tor/Tom Doherty



Children of the Dawnland by Kathleen and W. Michael Gear
Never Slow Dance with a Zombie by E. Van Lowe
City of Fire by Laurence Yep

KD over at Tor Teens sent these three books as choices for my fantasy book club. All three release this fall! When I review these, they will include student comments/reviews! Never Slow Dance has a great post on how they decided on the cover and E. Van Lowe has a blog you can follow.



Blog Tour - June 8 through June 12


Sisterchicks in Wooden Shoes by Robin Gunn - will be hosted on my Blog during the week of June 8 - June 12. Click the cover for more info on book.

@littlebrown Twitter contest

Exit Music by Ian Rankin - on Mr. Rankin's birthday, Little, Brown and Company hosted a giveaway if you tweeted him birthday wishes! Yet another reason I love twitter!

Pretty great week. I have lots of reading to catch up on!

What's in your mailbox?

In My Mailbox - May 4

I know, I wasn't going to do this anymore but I can't help it. This week I received some cool books! Thanks to The Story Siren for hosting this great feature!

J. Kaye twitter contest
@J. Kaye had a contest she ran only on Twitter but you had to visit her website too. The prize was an ARC of Patrick Carman's Skeleton Creek. This book is almost as big as The 39 Clues in terms of tie-ins. You have the websites, SarahFincher.com where you can watch messages between the characters, and The Skeleton Creek site. The book looks like it was handwritten by the main character, Ryan. You have to read the book and watch the videos to get the complete story. There are some students that I think will go crazy for this and the 7th graders do a mystery unit, this might be a good addition to our school library. This is bk 1 and bk 2 is out in October. I also liked the label she put inside!

Dial Books for Young Readers (div of Penguin Young Readers Group)

Jessica at DBYR saw that Storm: The Infinity Code is on my Wanna Read list and she offered to send me one! But she didn't just send me one- She sent the first 3 books in the series!!! I am so psyched! The cool thing about the Storm series, and why I want it, is the author is a science journalist and she actually based the technology on things that are real or in development! Boys and techno geeks (like myself!) will flip for these, I just know it. I love the simplicity of the covers. There's a great website like all good books have! I took the quiz and I'm a mastermind, of course!

So, now you see why I couldn't resist??!! I've got the goods! So, what's in your mailbox?

In My Mailbox - April 26

Hello! This is my last official IMM! I'm going to start doing Library Loot and just putting in any other books as I receive them. I'm hoping this will cut down on the time I'm doing these types of posts and increase the time to do actual reviews!!!

So here's where I share what I bought, borrowed, begged for, or other ways I was able to get my grubby little hands on books!!! If you want some more titles to add to your to 2 read list, check out the Story Siren, she's the one that interested me in this.

Bought
It was a bad week for me. I bought books at Barnes and Noble, both online and in the store, Amazon, and Powell's. The good part of this is that I'd won a gift card at Amazon - so I only spent abt 2 bucks. The Powell's haven't come in yet - but I used virtual credit for those!!


Vamped by Lucienne Diver - this is for my daughter Jess. She loved the cover.

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - read this in Sept., lent my copy to a student and haven't received it back yet. Need to read for last 8th grade book discussion group.

Heartbreakers by Pamela Wells - one of my favorite students recommended I read this.

Far From You by Lisa Schroeder - read I Heart You, I Haunt You and wanted to read this one plus the cover rocks.

Death By Bikini by Linda Gerber - great title and for some reason I already bought Death by Latte so I needed to get this, it's the first book.

Initiation by Susan Fine - first, the cover attracted me, then it reminds me of Spud and Catcher in the Rye because it's about boys at all boy schools but is written by a woman...that's intriguing! Susan Fine is doing this cool 44 goals things at her blog. Sounds like a neat idea.

Lesson Learned by Earl Sewell - bought this for J because she liked The Kayla Chronicles. Also, it's a guy writing about girls. And he's from South Holland, Il - that's a hop skip and a jump from Chicago! Also, Mr. Sewell is on Twitter! Follow him here. According to his website, he'll be in Chicago in June so I will try to have this read by then so that I can go and meet him.

Borrowed
I have way too many books from the library (19!) with 5 more on the hold list! So I did not even go to the library this week! Even though Very Valentine by Adriana Trigiani is in. I'm sure I will go later now that I think about it! Plus, Ms. Trigiani has a YA book coming out in Sept called Viola in Reel Life that looks pretty good!

Begged for
Sleepaway Girls by Jen Calonita
I got this one from Book Divas on Twitter. Ms. Calonita is going to be on their blog from May 4 - May 8. You can go there and put questions in for Ms. Calonita to answer when she is there!! The Book Divas has lots of information on authors and writing as well as cool contests. Please check them out.



Well, hope you found something to add to your TBR pile!! And don't forget to tell me What's In Your Mailbox!

iN mY mAILBOX - April 12, 2009

This was a good week for me mailbox wise. If you need more information on the idea behind this - check out The Story Siren, plus there will be many more books to add to your TBR pile!

Bought:
I actually "bought" these with some of my virtual credit from Powell's Bookstore. I traded in over 60 bks and they gave me over $100 in credit! You can take cash but I know I will want to buy books so I took the credit. 3 of these are on my Books I Want to Read list!

Anybody Out There by Marian Keyes
The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
Fool by Christopher Moore
Three Girls and Their Brother by Theresa Rebeck

Borrowed:
I placed some orders at my favorite library and these came in. They are both on my Books I Want to Read list!

Broken Soup by Jenny Valentine

My Life in Pink and Green by Lisa Greenwald

Begged:
I'm trying to review more YA books this year as part of my blog focus. Many of the books will be read by my YA summer book club and/or booktalked for 8th graders. Here are some ARCs I received from HarperTeen. I hope to do well with these so that I can receive more!

Radiant Darkness by Emily Whitman (5/09)
The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong (5/09) W00t! And I just bought the first book!
Love You, Hate You, Miss You by Elizabeth Scott (6/09)
Broken Soup by Jenny Valentine (4/09) Just got this from library - Now I own it!!!!

This was a very awesome week for me! I really feel like my blog is starting to come into focus!! To see my reading schedule, check out It's Monday, What Are You Reading over at Book Blather!

So, what's in your mailbox?