Sunday Salon - August 7, 2011

I’m back! No, really. This time for sure. :)

I feel as if I’ve found my blogging mojo and have been composing posts in my head while walking on my treadmill. It’s been far too hot & humid to walk outside, so I’ve opted for the treadmill. Nothing like a lot of summer traveling (read: overindulgence) to motivate one to get back into exercising! Forget swimsuit season. I need to fit in my work clothes!






In addition to working off several quarts of the world’s best clam chowder, along with margaritas, guacamole, thirst-quenching beer, Papa Bill's delicious ebelskivers, and ice cream...lots of ice cream...I’ve managed to catch up on all my favorite blogs. I love my iPad! I prop it up on the treadmill tray and spend an hour reading all your interesting posts while walking the pounds away.




Every. Day.

After spending a full day at work.

On my feet.

See how much I love you guys? Now if only I could figure out a way to type while walking. That way I wouldn’t have to wait until later in the evening to re-visit those posts and leave my comments.

One decision I made while I was catching up on all the latest in the book world, is to join in on the Sunday Salon chatter. It seems like a good way to share what I’m reading, which books I’m looking forward to, what I’ve ditched and just say hi. Good idea, eh? Especially since I’m so far behind with my reviews (which, by the way, I do intend to write in spite of the fact that the oldest is overdue by more than a month!).

So on to the books…

I decided I wanted to read something that had been on my shelves for a few years, as well as a book with a beach or summer theme, and settled on Brian Groh’s Summer People (love the cover!). Unfortunately, after close to 50 pages I decided to call it quits. I’ll write a short synopsis later, but suffice it to say this is a case of being swayed by an attractive cover.



Wanting to keep with the summer/beach theme, I picked up Sea Escape by Lynne Griffin. I’ve had the ARC for over a year and found notations that both Bellezza and Wendy (Caribousmom) read it last July. So far, I’m completely engrossed and anxious to get back to reading more later this afternoon.



As I mentioned, I have several reviews to write. Perhaps a list would help keep me organized:

Think of a Number by John Verdon (thrilling)
Before I Go To Sleep by S. J. Watson (a nail-biter!)*
Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante (excellent!)
Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok (nice audio)
One Summer by David Baldacci (ugh)
Awakening by S.J. Bolton (good new series—to me)*
Summer People by Brian Groh (blech)







*What are the odds that I’d read two books in one month by authors who have the same initials, S.J.?!

Of all of those books, my favorite is Turn of Mind. What a great read! It’s definitely going on my 2011 Top Ten list.

When I’m at work (before the store opens), I use my Nano to listen to audio books. It’s a great way to get a big chunk of listening in (almost 2 hours) and the time passes quickly. Right now, I’m listening to The Mapping of Love and Death by Jacqueline Winspear. I accidentally downloaded and started listening to this before I realized it’s #7 in the Maisie Dobbs’ series. I haven’t read #6, but I’m not going to worry about it. I’ve already discovered one spoiler, but I’ve gotten to know these characters so well that it really doesn’t bother me to learn something out of order.



I rarely read more than one book at a time, but I’ve been scheduled to man the Nook Desk at work quite a bit this past month and have started reading Zeitoun by David Eggers. This is one of the One Book, One Lincoln nominations and so far, it’s fantastic! I really should just buy a copy so I can read more than a few pages at a time. If Eggers’ What Is the What is half as good as Zeitoun, I’ll have to get a copy of that, as well.



So, that’s all the book news for now. In other news, last night I dreamt I was walking down my street and the sidewalk was covered with leaves, the tree branches bare. Yes, this past week has been a little bit cooler, relatively speaking, but it certainly hasn’t felt like autumn. A 20 degree temperature drop from 104 does not a fall make. However, we had a nice drenching rain on Friday, followed by a terrific storm last night (winds clocked at 65 mph!), so I happily crossed watering off my weekend to-do list.

Now to catch up on emails, comment on some blogs, work on my vacation photos and run a few errands. I really want to spend some time relaxing on the front porch, reading more from Sea Escape, so I'd better get moving!

I hope everyone’s having a good weekend. For those of you in Lincoln, I hope everyone survived last night’s storm!

Links to the books mentioned in this post can be found by clicking on the cover art in my sidebar.