Sunday Post: August Wrap Up & September TBR List Poll

The Sunday Post is hosted by the wonderful Kimba, the Caffeinated Book Reviewer, and gives us all a chance to recap our week, talk about what we are reading, share any new books that have come our way, and whatever else we want to talk about. 

Happy September! I wish I could tell you the leaves are beginning to fall from the tree, but it's still pretty green. Autumn will be here in another two and a half weeks or so.

How are you this weekend? What are you up to? Did you have a good August? What was your favorite August read?

August Reading Wrap Up: 

Books Read in August:

• The Sixth Idea by P.J. Tracy
• When I Found You by Kate James
• The Ninja's Daughter by Susan Spann
• The Whiskey Sea by Ann Howard Creel
• Love Anthony by Lisa Genova
• Lost in Geeklandia by E.J. Russell

Favorite August Read: While Love Anthony came close, I have to go with The Whiskey Sea. 

Reading Challenges:

• COYER Summer Vacation - It was such a busy summer. I did not get to all the books I had hoped, and I definitely did not link them to the Challenge blog like I was supposed to. I also was unable to attend any of the Twitter chats. Oh well. I knew going in that was a possibility.
• What's In a Name Reading Challenge - I haven't made much progress on this one, having only read books in three of the six categories so far. I'm still in the running for this one, so don't give up on me yet!
• Nonfiction Challenge - I have managed to read one book for this challenge so far, which was within my goal of reading one to five books. I still plan to try to read more before the year is out.
• August Comment Challenge - This wonderful challenge was hosted by Lonna of FLYLēF and Alicia of A Kernel of Nonsense, having ended August 31st. I was lucky enough to be paired with Nina from By Page or By Plane, I had such fun visiting with Nina this past month. She's insightful, and witty and has good taste in books. If you haven't, I highly recommend you check out her blog. She's worth following and getting to know!

New to My Shelves:

September's My Lit Box subscription arrived in the mail Friday. I was delighted by what I found inside. I recently read When the Moon is Low by Nadia Hashimi, one of my favorite books read so far this year. And so when I discovered A House Without Windows inside, I may have let out a squeal. There's even a signed nameplate inside! The theme this month is Home. Home comes in all shapes and sizes, and not all are safe places. For Zeba, home has become a prison cell while she awaits trial. The postcard and notebook with images of cameras are a reflection on one of the things we treasure most in our homes--photographs of our loved ones. And a mug for that warm drink to enjoy at home. The Out of Print Banned Books mug in particular is a reminder that not everyone enjoys or has access to the privileges and liberties many of us in the world do.


What I Am Reading: I recently finished reading Blame It On a Cowboy by Delores Fossen, which I will be reviewing for a tour next month. I am now reading Fractured by Catherine McKenzie--from romantic suspense to a straight up thriller. I am excited about what September will bring book wise.

What I Am Watching: What haven't I watched? I was laid up sick for a couple of days this past week and caught up on the fifth season of Orange is the New Black and finally was able to see the last half of Stranger Things. I enjoyed both quite a bit. My daughter and I are continuing to enjoy watching Once Upon a Time together. I tried to talk her into watching Ever After, one of my favorite movies, but she hasn't taken the bait yet. I will keep working on her.

What's Going On Off the Blog: I am so glad the long weekend is finally here. Work has been extremely busy, and then I have been sick. I tried to work through it, but it got the better of me. I'm still fighting it, in fact. The summer is the worst time for the flu.

Mouse started Kindergarten this past week, and seems to really like it. My husband is finding drop-offs hard though. Mouse hasn't made it a day yet without tears. She seems to be settling well into her new routine otherwise. She's made friends and seems to really like her teacher.

My husband's cousin is still in the hospital after having a heart attack. His 14 year old son saved his life, performing CPR before the paramedics arrived. He is in a medical induced coma, his condition very serious. It comes hot on the heels of a death in the family, and so you can imagine it wasn't the best week.

This Past Week In Reading Mews:

• Sunday Post: New Books, Soccer & Busy Times
• From the Archives: A Blogging Retrospective - August 2006
• Where Is Your Bookmark: Including Mouse's Corner Edition of the Top Ten Tuesday List (Mostly)
• Shelf Control: Midnight Never Come by Marie Brennan

Every Friday Coffee Addicted Writer from Coffee Addicted Writer poses a question which participants respond on their own blogs within the week (Friday through Thursday). They then share their links at the main site and visit other participants blogs.

Do you have books stacked in every room of your house or are you strictly a believer that books belong on bookshelves? (submitted by Elizabeth) 

As I packed for our move six years ago, I had to let go of a lot of books. Over 500, several of which I had bought and lost interest in before I actually read them. I still ended up bringing 40 boxes of books with me. In our old house, I had books everywhere. Shelved. Stacked. Piled. Books were in every room. Our spare bedroom in particular was full of books. They covered the twin bed, every surface of the desk, inside the closet, on shelves, and covered the entire floor with the exception of a small spot I could sit down in if need be. The impending move proved a blessing in that it finally got me to go through those books more thoroughly and clear some space for my daughter as that was to be her room, even if only for a short time.

When we moved, I made a vow to myself that I would step back from book buying to both save money and not let my book collection overtake my house like it had at the old house. I have also tried to be better about giving books away after I read them unless I plan to read the book again, something that I find easier said than done sometimes. I love books. And I love being surrounded by books. But there is such a thing as too much. Last year I posted photos of my bookshelves; the only difference between then and now is that there are no empty spaces. We have bookshelves in just about every room, some double shelved. I have a few stacks here and there, but not too many.
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What about you? Do you keep your books on shelves or do they overflow into piles and stacks around the house?

Help me decide what book from my TBR collection I should read next:

My TBR List is a meme hosted by the awesome Michelle at Because Reading. It’s a fun way to choose a book from your TBR pile to read. The 1st Sunday of every month, I will list 3 books I am considering reading and take a poll as to which you think I should read. I will read the winner that month, and my review will follow. While I will attempt to post my review that same month, I make no promises--it may go up the following month. 

Can you guess the common theme in this month's three choices? All are books I am eager to read. So much so, I hate that I have to wait a week to see which one you vote for. The covers link back to Goodreads if you want to know more about each book.

The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman ~ The first in a series featuring a professional spy for the mysterious Library that collects fiction from different realities. Her latest assignment turns up missing before she can retrieve it.

Murder at the 42nd Street Library by Con Lehane ~ The first in a series featuring a librarian, or more specifically, a curator in the crime collection, who uncovers secrets within the old library and reluctantly ends up on the trail of a murderer.

Wishing Cross Station by February Grace ~ A young college library page looking into a mysterious donation travels in back in time, finding the unexpected, including possibly love.

Have you read any of these? If so, what did you think?

I will not be posting this week, but will be back next week. In the meantime, have a wonderful week!

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© 2016, Wendy Runyon of Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved. If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.