Showing posts with label children's books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label children's books. Show all posts

Sunday, September 27, 2026

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? & Mailbox Monday - Sep 27



It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are, and are about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to that ever-growing TBR pile! So welcome, everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and was then taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. 

Happy Monday! Glad to have you here. Hope all is well. Can you believe that September is almost over?

I had a closing on Friday. Two closings are scheduled for Wednesday, and I just put a property under contract, which means I already have two closings scheduled for October. It is good to be blessed. 

I took part of Saturday and all of Sunday off because I am tired. The hubby has been sick, so I also wanted to keep him out of the rain and from walking the dog as much as possible. I made the mistake of going to the grocery store on Saturday and forgot how much the news scares everyone when bad weather is on the way. Granted, many areas of the Northeast were hit hard by this storm, but we live miles from the closest river. 

Here are some recent photos:


The Lil' Diva and the Lil' Princess at The Big E


My new book table from an estate sale


French toast with homemade
whipped cream and berries


Dwight boldly slept on Theo's bed


Theo and Paddy walking


Travis supervising me switching my
seasonal wardrobe

Lots going on in my reading world. 

I should be getting back to The Eyes of River soon. 


Finished Staged by Caitlin Rother. You can find my review here.


Finished Massawa by Pam Webber. Look for my review soon.


I enjoyed Cratchit: A Christmas Carol Continues by R.M. Bouknight much more than I thought I would when I started. Check out my review here.


Finished Beginner's Guide to Using an AI Assistant by Hank Quense. Look for my review soon.


I have also read the following children's books. Look for those reviews at The Children's and Teens' Book Connection over the next couple of weeks.


Luna and the Lost Cove by Aria Joy Prichard


Day in the Snow by Fiona Craig


Turkey's Fall Fumble by Wendi Silvano


Counting Winter by Nancy White Carlstrom



Upcoming Events

  • She Forgot She Was Free by Giselle Mascarenhas - Oct 14 (Review)
  • Still Wild: Poems from the Bear Shack by Suzanne Sunshower - Dec 14 (Review)
  • Starry-Eyed for Christmas by Sheila Roberts - Dec 16 (Review)
  • Sugar Sand Land by Patricia Leavy - Dec 17 (Spotlight & Giveaway)


Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books they added to their shelves the previous week. This weekly meme is now hosted by Vicki at I'd Rather Be At The Beach. 

I downloaded two books from NetGalley recently. 





I also received Still Wild: Poems from the Bear Shack by Suzanne Sunshower for review.






Christmas Year Round

Journey through Christmases Past dove into snowstorms that happened around Christmas. You can read that post here.


The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

Posted my review of The Boy Behind the Wardrobe by Suzanne Poulter Harris this weekend. You can read that here. Earlier in the week, I reviewed Evan's Stormy Voyage by Karen Charles. You can read that here.


Laura's Little Houses

This weekend, I posted the next chapter in my Season 9 rewrite of the first episode, "Times Are Changing." You can read that here if you are interested. 

Finally feeling like I am catching up. Remind me of that if you see me taking on too many more books to review. LOL! Looking forward to visiting your blogs today. 

Monday, July 20, 2026

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? & Mailbox Monday - Jul 20



It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are, and about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to that ever-growing TBR pile! So welcome, everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and was then taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. 

Happy Monday! Hope you all had a great week. I'm still playing catch-up because I was living in real estate hell last week. However, I did have two closings last week that went smoothly. I also managed to get to the lab on Friday for my bloodwork to see if they can figure out what is going on with me. 

Today, I will start the day by taking Theo to his least favorite place on Earth--the vet. He gets a monthly allergy shot. Then I have a meeting, and in the afternoon, I follow up with my doctor. I'm still working on an issue for work as well. 

Saw this old restaurant booth in a house last week. It is always cool to stumble upon these treasures. 



In my reading world, I wrote a review of Meditations for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman. I ordered a printed copy of this and Burkeman's first book, Four Thousand Weeks. You can find my review here.



Did not touch The Ladies Hall by Vanessa Miller, and I wonder if I will get to it. 


I am done with The Ledger by Steven Manchester, a companion to his novel The Menu. Look for my review soon. 


I didn't pick up The Eyes of River last week. 


I read some of Love on the Shelf by Sheila Roberts. 



I wrote a First Chapter Review of Staged by Caitlin Rother, which is the sequel to Hooked. You can read that review here.



Massawa by Pam Weber is a book I have not yet started.


I reviewed Max and Her Stacks by Joyce McCullough at The Children's and Teens' Book Connection. Look for my review link below. 


Photo credit: Freepik


Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books they added to their shelves the previous week. This weekly meme is now hosted by Vicki at I'd Rather Be At The Beach. 

I was approved for these two books by publishers on NetGalley:


25 Advent Reflections from Charles Dickens's Beloved Classic
by Rachel Dodge


The Christmas Yes List by Melissa Ferguson

Hank also sent me his newest beginner's guide for writers to review:


by Hank Quense

Upcoming Events

The Ledger by Steven Manchester - TBD (Review)
Staged by Caitlin Rother - TBD (Review)
Massawa by Pam Weber - TBD (Review)
Love on the Shelf by Sheila Roberts - TBD (Review)




Christmas Year Round

This week's Journey through Christmases Past post isn't up yet. Hopefully, tomorrow. 


The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

At The Children's and Teens' Book Connection, we celebrated 17 years of blogging. I also posted a review of Max and Her Stacks by Joyce McCullough. You can read that review here.


Laura's Little Houses

Still nothing new here. Maybe Wednesday. Depends on how this week turns out.

It's nice to see some books come off my list. I'm tired of sharing the same ones week after week. Looking forward to reading your posts. 

Sunday, July 12, 2026

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? & Mailbox Monday - July 13



It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are, and about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to that ever-growing TBR pile! So welcome, everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and was then taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. 

We are back! Our family arrived home early from vacation, which allowed us to see the Lil' Princess, who drove down from Maine. Over the weekend, I celebrated my 58th birthday with all the kids here. Now, I am back to work. Today will be filled with appointments. 


Happy birthday to me!




Hanging at the OBX house




Fireworks in Manteo




Mural at The Dunes 




I didn't read half as much as expected on vacation. Partially because we were dealing with some nonsense in getting the Lil' Princess' car picked up and dropped off in Maine, and also because I had an unexpected medical issue while there. Nothing too serious (I hope), but I will head to my primary care next week after some tests are done this week. 

I have less than an hour left with Meditations for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman. Loving so much about it.



I  have not picked up The Ladies Hall by Vanessa Miller while here, because other books need to be read first. 


I am done with The Ledger by Steven Manchester, a companion to his novel The Menu. Look for my review soon. 


I didn't pick up The Eyes of River last week. 


I read some of Love on the Shelf by Sheila Roberts. 



Staged by Caitlin Rother, which is the sequel to Hooked. I need to get back to this one. 


My review of the second book of The Old Cranberry Ladies Garden Club, The Widow Murderess, appears here. 


Book three is The Sparrow and the Crow. I posted a First Chapter Review of this one on July 10. You can read it here.


Massawa by Pam Weber is a book I have not yet started.


Joyce McCullough sent me a copy of Max and Her Stacks to review. 


Photo credit: Freepik


Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books they added to their shelves the previous week. This weekly meme is now hosted by Vicki at I'd Rather Be At The Beach. 

Got this great book that I saw in Downtown Books in Manteo for my birthday. I have already opened Andy Griffith's Manteo: His Real Mayberry by John Railey. 



Upcoming Events

The Ledger by Steven Manchester - TBD (Review)
Staged by Caitlin Rother - TBD (Review)
Massawa by Pam Weber - July (Review)
Love on the Shelf by Sheila Roberts - TBD (Review)




Christmas Year Round

Journey through Christmases Past talks about the origins of Christmas in July. You can find that post here.


The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

Nothing new. This blog celebrates its 17th anniversary on July 14. 


Laura's Little Houses

Nothing new, but I did watch the first episode in the Netflix adaptation of Little House on the Prairie. My thoughts will be coming soon.