It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
January 28, 2013 31 Comments
“It’s Monday! What are you reading?” is a weekly event hosted by Sheila at Bookjourney to share with others what we’ve read the past week and planning to read next.
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The week
This was another cold and snowy week, but yesterday it started to thaw and by Wednesday we should have some reasonable temperatures again. I much prefer warmer weather. My husband wants to send me off to a warm country for a week, which is very sweet, although I’m not sure I’d like to go on my own. Anyone wants to join me to the Canary Islands? 
I did some invigilating at my son’s school. There were exams for 16 and 17 year olds. The time crept but it was fun to see what sort of questions they had to answer (especially the Dutch literature exam was hard!).
Book group on Friday: we discussed Various Pets Alive and Dead by Marina Lewycka, although, to be honest, we spent most time talking about totally different things. It didn’t help that there wasn’t a reading group guide for the book… It was fun, though!
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Books I finished in the last week: 3
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. Non-fiction about how habits can make people and institutions behave bad or exceptionally good. 4 stars
Game by Anders de la Motte. A young man is drawn into a smartphone game that forces him to undertake criminal activities. But he fights back. 3.5 stars.
Rubbernecker by Belinda Bauer. Thriller about a young man with Asperger’s syndrome who finds something iffy about a corpse in his dissection class. 5 stars
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Books I’m reading and planning to read
I hope my copy of The Mad Scientist’s Daughter will live the week – I mean it’s an ARC from Netgalley and they do tend to expire (only it doesn’t say when!).
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Reviews
The Starboard Sea by Amber Dermont. Contemporary fiction, 4 stars.
The Orphan Master’s Son by Adam Johnson. Contemporary fiction, 3 stars.
Uit naam van de aartsengel [In the Name of the Archangel] by Olaf J. de Landell [Dutch] Historical fiction, 4 stars.
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Other news
New books on the shelves: New Arrivals!
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That’s it!
What are you reading this week?
izzledin abuelaish book, kofi annan interventions and life of pi.
Three books on the go, Sofiasay? I often have more than one book going too. Are you reading Life of Pi because of the movie? I haven’t read or seen it yet.
I’m on vacation, just finished exams so i plan on reading a lot! as for the life of pi i haven’t seen the movie but i alwyas like watching the movie after having read the book it was based on otherwise i can’t really get into the book without seeing the movie playing in my head…
That’s really nice, Sofia. Hope you have a great vacation, relaxing after the exams.
I also don’t like to see the movie first because then you’re stuck with the images of the movie when you read the book.
Rubbernecker by Belinda Bauer looks good to me. Enjoy your week!
Belle, *Rubbernecker* was really very good! I can recommend it if you like thrillers.
It was in the 70′s all last week during the day. Quite lovely. Come join the Snowbirds for the winter down here in Texas!
My It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?! is here. Hope you will stop by!
Oh, great weather, Debnance. I want it too!
The Mad Scientist’s Daughter sounds like fun!
Fran, if the book doesn’t expire in the next few days I’ll dive into it. It sounds fun indeed.
I’ll join you on that summer week. As it draws closer to March (even if that doesn’t always mean spring) I’m getting more excited, had enough of winter! I think there’s a way to find out expiry dates of the files, but it would be useful if those dates were added to the book page before you request, even if you can redownload.
Same here, Charlie. I’ve had it with winter.
I used to be able to see the expiry dates but I now download via a different way and that way it seems not to “know” these dates. I’m reading it now and hope it won’t disappear from my reader before I’m finished.
Vanity Fare is on my list! Enjoy your books….and here’s MY MONDAY MEMES POST
I’m looking forward to *Vanity Fare*, Laurel-Rain. Doesn’t it look/sound good?
The power of habit sounds like it would be interesting!
It was interesting, Sheila.
I would love to go to a warmer climate for a week, but we are in the middle of wedding plans, which helps beat the winter blues. Have a great week.
Wedding plans are a great way to take your mind off other things, Nise’. Good luck!
You’ve been busy as per usual, myself I’ve read a bit but really have been playing on my nexus7. At the moment I’m reading Telegraph Avenue by Michael Chabon.
Ah, gadgets, Gary! Lovely. I’ll look forward to your review on *Telegraph Avenue*. Not sure yet I’d like it.
Good luck with your books. Hope your copy of The Mad Scientist’s Daughter is still available
I’m reading it now, Ciska. Let’s hope it doesn’t expire mid-read!
Mad Scientist’s Daughter sounds good. Hope it lasts another week for you. And that way I can read a review of it. Are the netgalley books renewable or re-requestable? I just got signed up with them so it’s all new to me.
Canary Islands sounds wonderful. Are you going?
My husband is trying to send me to Arizona for a week which is much, much warmer than Chicago. We are having a burst of spring weather for a few days, which is nice, but the deep freeze is on it’s way back.
I’ve started in *The Mad Scientist’s Daughter*, but I’m thinking of giving up, Leslie. It does not grab me at all. Such a pity!
Sometimes you can re-download a Netgalley title (I believe, have never done so) but in this case the whole book has already disappeared off Netgalley’s shelves so I don’t have that option.
Oh, Arizona would be nice!! We have great husbands, don’t we?
I do like the idea of going, but am not so keen to go alone. Someone I could meet up with at dinnertime or take an excursion out with would be nicer.
Alone wouldn’t be so much fun… although it would be great for reading. I have family in AZ and so does my husband, so I would have things to do and people to see.
I read Rubbernecker through netgalley too and I thought it was a brilliant read, so glad to read that you loved it too. I am reading The Starboard Sea at the moment. Finding it engaging although I know nothing about sailing.
Lindsay, I think you mentioned on Twitter that you loved *Rubbernecker* and I agree: brilliant read. *The Starboard Sea* is a quiet story but very engaging.
What an amazing gift from your husband! Sounds like you/me have found good men
Did you get to see the questions in the exam?
Hope you are having a great week!
I’m still not sure I want to go, Mari, but the idea is nice. Yes, I saw the exam questions because I had a few copies left over after handing them out to the students. I was glad I didn’t have to take the exam (of course I hadn’t studied 19th Century Dutch literature (etc.) for a few years… 30 or so!).
Sorry I am so late in stopping by – trying to catch up after my weekend away! I hope you have been enjoying your reads! If you check your shelf in Netgalley it will give you an archive date – which is the same as the expiry date.
Shelleyrae @ Book’d Out
Thanks, Shelleyrae. I’ve checked the archive dates for the books that I still need to read and it looks like I won’t be able to read another book because of it (I meanwhile DNF the other book). I should keep a better eye out for those dates. But I prefer to read books close to thei publishing date…