It's Monday! What Are You Reading? - June 15

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 and comment, and er... add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.

Hard to believe how quickly June is passing. Only one more Monday to go before we head to North Carolina. I'm not sure what to expect when we get there, but they are more open than we are here.

I am deciding if I should bring my laptop or only my Chromebook. I've never been thrilled about not being able to save things on the Chromebook. A Google Doc just isn't the same as a Word Doc to me. Any advice would be appreciated.

I am trying the new Blogger, but it will take some getting used to. Has anyone else tried it? What do you like better--the new or the legacy version?

Last week turned out to be a good reading and writing week. My sister and I are in the middle of revamping our women's novel of three sisters, and I reviewed two books.

Review here

Review here

I am currently reading the next Tradd Street book by Karen White.

Here are the books I plan to take with me on vacation. I will also bring my Kindle Fire. I'm thinking of replacing my original Kindle Fire. I am thinking of going with the Fire 7. I don't really use it for anything other than reading. Any advice on this would be appreciated. 

How do you feel about planning a vacation this year? What is your favorite vacation spot? If you're not vacationing, what special plans do you have for the summer? 

Vacation Time Reading 2019

It is that time of year again--vacation time. Whether vacation is hanging out at home and not running the daily work rat race or going somewhere special, we all need the time to get away. We are leaving for the Outer Banks on Saturday after dance recital, so the week is going to be hectic. Not sure what I will get done before I leave, but my books are already packed. I went through them today and took a few out to lighten the load and added a couple I had just bought.

Here is what is making the trip:

What are some books you're looking forward to taking on vacation?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? - June 25

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 and comment, and er... add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.

Welcome back to Monday. It's my favorite Monday of the year--the one right before we leave on vacation. It's going to be hectic, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Pet sitters and house sitters are all set, so packing and getting ready--in between working--is what's on tap this week.

I'm finishing up this book due for review tomorrow.

Also occasionally dabbling in this one...

I really wanted to like it more, but it's just been okay for me. 

Not sure what I'll read on the drive down to North Carolina. Maybe I'll start this one first...

What are you reading now? Is there something I should be adding to my wish list? 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? - June 18

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 and comment, and er... add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.

Happy Monday! Always great to be able to connect with readers at the beginning of the week when we are all fresh. I finally made it out to the garden and got everything planted. Hopefully the animals don't eat it all.

I finished It's Messy: Essays on Boys, Boobs and Badass Women by Amanda de Cadenet last night. Can't say it was my cup of tea. She's done amazing things with her life and had to deal with some tough stuff, but who hasn't. Her ideas on how you feel after becoming a mom are fairly spot on, but I couldn't really connect with her other than that. This simply wasn't a book I felt was worth my time reading. It was for Amazon Vine, so I felt determined to make it as far as I could. Finally bailed at page 143. I'm sure if my feminist Lil' Diva read it she would love it from beginning to end. I'm simply past the time in my life where I feel I have to stand up and say, "I am woman. Hear me roar." I've experienced discrimination because of my gender, but that's the other person's problem. Not mine. The back cover of this book says it addresses "the issues, concerns, and experiences relevant to women today." That might be true for some women who read this book; just not me. I wanted to relate to the author's experiences, but found it a challenge.

I've begun packing up the paperbacks I'll take with me to North Carolina. I usually bring seven to ten, but this year I'm going with four and both of my devices. I'll have some books to read for upcoming reviews, so want to focus on the e-books this year. Here's my list of beach books:

There are eight new books that I added to my Kindle Fire since the end of May, so maybe I'll get a chance to read a few of those too. 

What have you been reading lately? What's up next for you? 

In My Suitcase

The family decided to take a short trip to a warmer place. While the house sitter is taking care of the kitties and the pet sitter is keeping an eye on the dog, I just might get some reading done. Here's what I hope to polish off while we are away...

Have you read any of these? Any of these seem like good additions to your wish list?

Vacation and Reading Time

We left home early this year and arrived in the Outer Banks on Friday morning, which allowed us to drive in a day before the new check-ins showed up. It's been a fun time so far and the dog is doing pretty well on his first family vacation.

My goal was to catch up on my reading this summer, so I brought both my devices and several paperbacks. Here's some of what made the trip down south...

What are you reading this summer?

Musing Mondays - July 13

Musing Mondays is a weekly meme sponsored by Jenn of A Daily Rhythm that asks you to choose one of the following prompts to answer:

• I’m currently reading…
• Up next I think I’ll read…
• I bought the following book(s) in the past week…
• I’m super excited to tell you about (book/author/bookish-news)…
• I’m really upset by (book/author/bookish-news)…
• I can’t wait to get a copy of…
• I wish I could read ___, but…
• I blogged about ____ this past week…

THIS WEEK’S RANDOM QUESTION:What book (or books) would you take with you on vacation? Why?

It's probably been about a month since I participated in Musing Mondays. I am feeling pretty good that I am at the point right now I can manage it. We just spent the past two weeks in North Carolina on vacation, so this week's question comes just when the topic is fresh in my mind.

The books I take on vacation are typically based upon what I have due for review. For the most part, this year was no exception. But, I did get a chance to read a few books from my overdue and humongous TBR pile.

From my TBR pile I read and reviewed:

• Dead Reckoning by Caitlin Rother
• The Minimum Wage Millionaire by Bill Edgar

I have also read the majority of Out of Control: Why Disciplining Your Child Doesn't Work and What Will by Shefali Tsabary, and finished My Spouse Wants More Sex Than Me: The 2-Minute Solution for a Happier Marriage by Dr. Ruxandra LeMay, which is coming up for review on Thursday.

Current reads include ’89 Walls by Katie Pierson and Guilt Free Motherhood: A 5-Step Guide to Reclaiming Your Time, Health & Well-Being by Amber Kahn, which are books I'm reviewing for virtual book tours.

As you can see, I slanted more toward non-fiction this summer. That also seems typical for me, as I really like to think about what I am reading if it's non-fiction, and I can't always do that when my mind has a bunch of work or home stresses vying for attention.

What are your typical vacation reads?