It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 4/25/16

It's Monday What Are You Reading is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. Share what you are reading, what you read recently or what you hope to get to in the coming week and then link up with Kathryn at Book Date. It is a great place to see what is going on in the blogosphere and to add to your reading lists.

Finished but no review yet:

It was pretty good, but lots of terms and sayings that were unfamiliar. Luckily it was on my kindle, so looking them up was easy. 

Over 1/2 way : 

I have been listening on my phone ( a new deal to me) and carrying it everywhere. 5 hours left and I have it on 1.5 speed. I am loving Wil Wheaton's narration!! 

If I finish this one, I am not sure what to start next. Maybe - 

 It is the May book for my book club:

 This has been on my Kindle for a long time:

 I love Kristin Hannah and this is one that I have been wanting to start!

I borrowed ( or just took with her permission) this from my youngest granddaughter. She could not finish it, and I have not started it. But I want to read it before seeing the movie. 

Any suggestions as to which one I should read next?  

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

I am prepping for a Quilt Retreat the first weekend in May. Plus DH has out patient surgery on the 4th. Hoping to get some reading time in. Wish me luck. 

Saturday Snapshots 4-23-16

Linking up with Melinda at West Metro Mommy Reads.  Join in the fun, share a photo taken by you or a family member or friend and link up at Melinda's blog. 

I am sharing photos today of some small boys in our family and their activities. Oh, and one of a recent activity of my own!

"Put me in Coach!"

 Little League has started!  My brother has been a Little League umpire since his boys were little. They are 35 and 24, and now the tradition continues with the grandchildren.

"You see a weed, he sees a wish!"

                                  This is my DIL's nephew. Isn't this just a precious photo.





                                                  "Sometimes you need to read the instructions.!"

And this precious boy is our son and DIL's grandson, our great- grandson. Gramma and pa sent him a kitchen, because boys need to learn to cook too. Our son is the cook in their family.



And finally, some cupcakes I made using an idea my SIL shared. My dear friend, Lynn in a quilter and an avid fly fisherwoman. I made these in honor of her birthday, yesterday. So easy, fish crackers, a pretzel stick and a squiggle of white icing on blue iced cupcakes.

She was tickled!

Stay Busy and Stay Happy

Wondrous Words Wednesday 4/20/16

Kathy at Bermuda Onion hosts Wondrous Words Wednesday. A chance to highlight words you find while reading or occasionally by listening. Share your words then link up with Kathy's blog so we can all learn a new wondrous word.


Again, a word from Bossypants by Tina Fey. 



carrageenan:   noun -   a colloid extracted from various red algae (as Irish moss) and used especially as a stabilizing or thickening agent


They have endless time to fill, but viewers get kind of "bummed out" if they supply actual information about wars and stuff, so "Media Portrayal of Sarah Palin" and SNL and I became the carrageenan in America's news nuggets for several weeks.



Then from The Chili Queen by Sandra Dallas


husbanded:  (husband as a verb)   to carefully use or manage something, as a resource

transitive verb: to manage prudently and economically,

"Afterward, he told her he wasn't looking for a place to stay at all, since he had little money and he husbanded it."


dishabille: noun

the state of being dressed in a casual or careless style
archiac:   negligee.

" She thought for a moment about remaining in dishabille for John's return, for she was curiously aroused."


Did you find any wondrous word this week?


Stay Busy and Stay Happy

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Diane at Bibliophile By the Sea hosts this Tuesday meme. It is a place to share the first paragraph in the first chapter of a book you are reading or hope to get to soon. It is a great place to see what others are reading and add to your ever growing list of title to explore. So let's share. Write a post and then go link up at Diane's blog.

Ready Player One
Ernest Cline
Read by Wil Wheaton
Crown Publishing 2011, trademark of Random House

Everyone my age remembers where they were and what they were doing when they heard first heard about the contest. I was sitting in my hideout watching cartoons when the news bulletin broke in on my video feed, announcing that James Halliday had died during the night. 

I'd heard of Halliday, of course. Everyone had. He was the videogame designer responsible for creating the OASIS, the massively multiplayer online game that had gradually evolved into the globally networked virtually reality most of humanity not used on a daily basis. The unprecedented success of the OASIS had made Halliday one of the  wealthiest people in the world.

Have you read this one. Would you give it a try. It is not my usual genre, but I have been a Star Trek fan for years and it is narrated by Wil Wheaton. What can I say?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 4/18/16

It's Monday What Are You Reading is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. Share what you are reading, what you read recently or what you hope to get to in the coming week and then link up with Kathryn at Book Date. It is a great place to see what is going on in the blogosphere and to add to your reading lists.


Listening to:

Goodreads Synopsis:
It's the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.

Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets.

And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune--and remarkable power--to whoever can unlock them.

For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday's riddles are based in the pop culture he loved--that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday's icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes's oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig.

And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle.

Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt--among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life--and love--in the real world he's always been so desperate to escape.

A world at stake.
A quest for the ultimate prize.
Are you ready? 

Normally I do not read or listen to fantasy/science fiction. I am a fan of science fiction movies however. And I am enjoying this audio of Ready Player One narrated by Wil Wheaton!!!  Wil Wheaton!!  (do I sound like Sheldon Cooper?). 

On my Kindle:

Goodreads Synopsis:

When the going gets tough...
Private investigator, Jill Gooder, has been hired to find a serial killer because, as usual, the police can't buy a clue. Jill, the not so proud owner of a crazy, one-eyed cat, probably can't expect too much help from her PA/Secretary, Mrs V, who spends all day knitting.
And just in case all of that wasn't bad enough, Jill's just about to discover she's a witch.
...break out the custard creams. 


I am anxious to get back to reading some cozy mysteries and this looks like it might be a good one. 





Stay Busy and Stay Happy

The Chili Queen by Sandra Dallas

The Chili Queen

Sandra Dallas

Addie French's life hasn't been easy. But when she meets Emma Roby on the train to Nalgitas NM, she can't help but take this poor unsuspecting woman under her wing. Emma is going to Nalgitas to marry a man she has only corresponded with.  Addie is sure that Emma needs her help, and when the prospective groom fails to pick Emma up at the train depot, Addie takes her in at The Chili Queen, her brothel.   As their friendship develops or at least changes, secrets and schemes come to light. Each woman learns something about the other and the plot thickens. I wasn't completely surprised at the ending, and I enjoyed Ms. Dallas' writing. Her descriptive words take you to the desert barrenness of New Mexico and to the mountain towns of Colorado.  Although, Margot of Joyfully Retired           (commenting on my First Chapter First Paragraph post) was correct, I did not like the characters, Dallas did an awesome job telling us about each of them.

I am linking this review to What's In A Name 2016 challenge and Kathryn's Women's Fiction Reading Challenge. 



Stay Busy and Stay Happy

Bossypants by Tina Fey What's In a Name 2016 challenge

Bossypants by Tina Fey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am a big Tina Fey fan. I have been wanting to read this book since it was published. I enjoyed it very much. You need to know that it is like reading SNL. Her sense of humor is what makes this book so good. You will learn a bit about her life, a bit about her husband and daughter, but mostly you will learn about her work.


View all my reviews