So Proud of My Little Reader!

It has been my hope since before she was born that my little girl would have a love for reading as strong as mine. I know how valuable the skill  of reading is in every aspect of life. I also recently learned that statistics show that kids who read for pleasure do better in every subject in school!

I found a flier at her pre-k for a reading readiness program that a nearby university puts on. We signed her up for the summer reading program before she went into Kindergarten. More than anything, it helped teach me how to support her in how to learn how to read.

She did great in kindergarten and was already an accelerated reader. When we took the program again before going into first grade, she was promptly moved up to the second grade reading readiness program  because the first program was simply too easy for her!

I'm not bragging here. I know she will struggle in other subjects. I am relieved to know reading isn't one of them. I am thankful that at least this one area comes easy to her so far. Reading is such a passion of mine and I am so glad I can share it with her. Of course, I would read with her all the time and help with it no matter what!

As it turns out, she's loving science too! Awww, the kid really is a mini-me! Drama queen and all! She brings such joy to my life every day. Even when she's being "difficult," I know we have it relatively easy with her.

One of the books she brought home to read for homework is Caps for Sale, A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business, written and illustrated by Esphyr Slobodkina. It's one of the books from our first year in the Reading Readiness class. We enjoyed reading it together again.

Cover Reveal for Lost (Awaken Series Book #2) by Jaime Guerard

I am so excited...no, GIDDY to share this post today! Jaime is a friend of mine and author of a book I couldn't put down. It's one of those intense cliff hangers that  leave you ACHING for part two. Well, part two is nearing the finish line! I can't wait!

Since I message Jaime on Facebook every now and then and gently remind her how desperate I am to find out what happens to her characters, she let me be a part of her cover reveal and shared a blurb from Lost with me!

Title: Lost (Awaken Series Book #2)
Author: Jaime Guerard
Genre: YA Paranormal Romantic Thriller
Cover Designer: Kimberley Marsot (K-Design)

Lost Blurb:

One…Two…Three…Breathe

There is no other choice

You know what you have to do

Don’t think, Bre, just go

I begin to take my final step forward, feeling the urgency of what I know I should do, but I immediately think of who I will be leaving behind. If I go I won’t be able to say goodbye. I won’t be able to tell him that I love him. I want to tell him that I’m sorry for what’s going to happen to me, and beg him to forgive me for what I’m about to do.

Tears begin to filter from my eyes as I realize there is no other choice. Perhaps I will finally know why I have been given this gift of seeing into the future.

Accepting that this is my lot—my final end—I take a deep breath and run to the boy. As I do, I block out everything and everyone that I love far from my mind.

Time has run out for me.

Don’t think, Bre, just go.

Lost, the electrifying sequel to The Awaken series, will draw you deeper into the world that Bre is beginning to unfold. This riveting novel will prove that true love comes in many forms, that deception is all around us, that the secrets of our opposers are often hidden in plain sight, and that the world in which we dwell holds more than what we see on the surface.

Instagram / Twitter / Facebook / Website / Tumblr / Goodreads

LOST is the sequel to AWAKEN in the Awaken Series by Jaime Guerard! See what readers are saying about AWAKEN!

"Right when you think you have it all figured out, you are thrown in the opposite direction. The end of the book...my jaw was on the floor!" - Two Sassy Chicks Blog

"The story building was just plain amazing and super intense. When I got to the last page all I could think was, WOW." - Maria's Book Blog

"Awaken kept me at the edge of my seat, biting my nails and wondering what would happen next!" - Melanie Dawn, Author of So Much It Hurts

SIS: Shares In Squidoo - Best Book Lenses

Since this is my blog about books, I thought I would dedicate my first SIS: Shares in Squidoo to the best book related lenses I have spotted so far:

Alica H. (Lensmaster name: eclypsechic) wrote this Best Chick Lit lens, which I enjoyed. It grew my "books to read" list quite a bit! We like a lot of the same authors.

I'm a fan of Janet Evanovich's Plum series, so I must pay tribute here to audiobooks1, who produced this lens, Janet Evanovich Audiobooks. This lens inspired me to move outside of my Plum series comfort zone.

"Pretty Little Liars," the TV show, is one of my guilty pleasures. Imagine my delights when I found this lens with all of the original PTL books listed in order! Thanks, marciag!

I hope and pray my daughter grows up to love reading as much as I do. I learned a lot about the different awards granted to children's books and discovered some gems I would like to add to her bookshelf reading OneFootPutt's lens, Award Winning Children's Books - 2012.

I just realized I haven't posted a lens about books yet! Guess I better get to it!

Time to Catch Up!

I set myself a goal to read 40 books this year. I have read 8. Even with audio books I'm this far behind! In some ways I think it takes me longer to listen to audio books. I like to listen to them as I fall asleep. Then I have to "rewind" and try to find the last part I remembered listening to!

I'm actually considering reading the Twilight Series. Hubs watched one or more of the movies and said I might be surprised. I figure I might as well see what all the buzz is about. I read the Hunger Games, which is out of my reading comfort zone, and was glad I did, so here goes!

Check out the next 10 books on my To Read list:

 

I will be back soon to review "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and "The Girl Who Played With Fire," by Stieg Larsson.

Amy Einhorn Books Perpetual Challenge

So a tweet caught my interest today. It lead me to a blog with a book review about Defending Jacob, by William Landay. That post lead me to another post, which reminded me to come back and give my own book blog (you are HERE!) some attention! So, here I am!

The review of Defending Jacob really drew me in. I am sure it is going straight to my "to read" list on GoodReads, which I desperately need to prioritize!

As if I needed any more inspiration to read, Dawn's blog lead me to the Amy Einhorn Books Perpertual Challenge. I saw that The Help is on there, which I am already reading and enjoying. I figure this challenge will lead me to books I might not otherwise pick up.

When I finish The Help, I will post a review about it. I am trying to finish reading it this week.  I will be watching the movie with some other ladies on Saturday night.

Breaking Out of My Mold!

Wow! This isn't like me! I am totally stepping out of my reading comfort zone. I normally like light, funny stuff, and some suspense/thriller stuff. My usual rule of thumb is it has to be plausible, contemporary, real life stuff. No fantasy/sci-fi for me, thank you very much!

Well, that was before Hunger Games showed up 1. on sale on Amazon Kindle Store, 2. had great reviews, and 3. I downloaded the sample and got HOOKED!

So far, all I know is that it is about some futuristic town in North America. The Government has gone WAY off it's rocker and has an annual "festival." This festival is quite morbid...a child's name is drawn from each district and they go in a cage or something to fight to the death. CRAZY! I can't even IMAGINE. I know it seems odd that something so dark would draw me in, but it really has me curious about this bizarre society.

Stay tuned for a complete review when I'm finished. I guess if I'm willing to read the other two books in the series after this one, it must be pretty good! We shall see...

Life's Too Short to Read Bad Books

Amazon offers new books for free all the time. There are lots of blogs about the latest freebies. Ever since I got my Kindle, possibly even sooner since I have the Kindle app on my phone, I gobble up all the freebies that sound remotely interesting to me, or have a cute looking "cover."

I have since come to the conclusion that life's too short to read bad books. I simply don't have time. Now I take a few moments to read the reviews on Amazon before clicking the button to transfer the book to my Kindle.

I also joined GoodReads, an online book club of sorts. It's a social community for bibliophiles. Readers can create lists of books you've read and want to read. You can review books and read others' review of books you are considering.  Check it out!