Melissa’s Comments (group member since Nov 28, 2016)

Melissa’s comments from the CPL's Book a Week Challenge group.

I'm not sure what to think so far. I believe I'm about halfway through the audiobook version. I am enjoying listening to the narrator since I wouldn't know how to pronounce many of the names otherwise. It is an older title, and even though the main character is a feminist, it is still very behind the times. This also could be a cultural difference as well. I need to see how it ends to decide whether or not I will read more books in the series.

I was a Theater and English double major in college, so I love to read plays. That was about 20 years ago, so I don't remember all of my favorites. My parents' just cleaned out their garage and gave me a whole box of books that contained many scripts. Your post has inspired me to go through that box. Now that my kids are getting older, I really should try and get back into local theater, too.

I wish it was available on one of the apps as an audiobook. I no longer own a CD player, so it makes it difficult to listen if we don't have it as a digital file on one of the three apps our library uses.

I grew up in a family of readers and became an elementary school teacher. That has kept me feeling the pulse of what books are popular. My brother works in the entertainment industry and he also helps keep me reading the coolest books. I always like to ask the Youth librarians, too, since Young Adult seems to be the place to be. I almost never watch the movies though because they are often disappointing, with Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings being some of the few exceptions. Recently, I finally read the first four books in the Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah Mass that the Greenbrier YFS staff had been recommending for years, so I guess I was late on that. However, now I wish I had waited until the whole series had come out. I am always game to talk about books, so it's always a party when you find a new person that likes your favorites or you convince a friend to read one of your favorites.

My to-read pile is always growing, but my most anticipated is Artemis because my husband already read it and is itching to discuss.

My favorite so far was Ready Player One because my non-reader husband read it after me in only 2 days! Getting to share my love of reading with him has improved my life. He's since then read 2 more books and seems to be making it a habit to carry a book with him. It was an amazing book though, but I still haven't watched the movie.

"Ewww!!!"

Night Family Strengthened

I signed up myself as well as my three daughters. We all are looking forward to the program starting since school has already been out for a couple of weeks.

I loved the book so far, but l've been listening to Wil Wheaton read it as an audiobook through one of the library apps. It's been very popular, so I have to wait to finish it. I was born in the 70's, so the cultural references in the book are great. It's been fun to reminisce with my dad and brother who happen to have just re-read the book before going to see the movie. I plan on seeing the movie after I finally finish listening to the audiobook, but I know not to expect it to be anything like the book.

What a wonderful choice! I listened to the audio version through one of the of the library's digital apps, and it was amazing.

I am enjoying the book so far, although there are definitely some scenes that I was glad I was wearing headphones to listen since my youngest daughter was in the room. I actually think that listening to the audiobook has helped me to be able to keep track of the places and names that are unfamiliar to me. I often choose the audiobook version for books that are from other cultures or countries. I was surprised that Millie wasn't upset about the childhood marriage, but after awhile I was able to put myself in her shoes and see just how different her upbringing was from my own experience. I look forward to finishing the story.

My goal this year is to read 52 books, not including the new picture books I'm always reading for work or with my own kids. I'm trying to re-read books from middle and high school and read newer books for that age group because I'm thinking about moving up to teaching middle school instead of elementary. I'm having a great time so far, but my to-read list just keeps getting longer.

I've been listening to the audiobook version. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the narrator was Neil Gaiman. He's amazing and makes the story come even more alive.

Here's my list for the August mini-challenge

1. Read a book with a black cover or spine The 15th Affair by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

2. Read a book with a cover similar to The Very Hungry Caterpillar or with the word caterpillar in the title The Girl With the Caterpillar Eyebrows by Lisa Ditchkoff

4. Read a book about a country being conquered by an evil villain Making Bombs for Hitler by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch

5. Read a book that reminds you of your childhood Sour Apples by Sheila Connolly

6. Read a book about being or cooking healthy Books for Living by Will Schwalbe

7. Read a book about someone overcoming an abusive relationship Dreamland by Sarah Dessen

I just finished The 15th Affair (Women's Murder Club) by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro and The Girl with the Caterpillar Eyebrows by Lisa Ditchkoff. Neither were what I was hoping them to be, but I finished them anyway. I'm listening to Dreamland by Sarah Dessen and reading one of the Battle of the Books titles, Making Bombs for Hitlar by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch. So far, both have strong characters and interesting plot lines.

I found a book on Hoopla called The Girl with the Caterpillar Eyebrows by Lisa Ditchkoff. I'm about halfway through, and I still haven't decided if I like it or not. I love the Eric Carle classic book, but it does seem that the books get beat up in circulation at the library. I'm taking that to mean that they are well loved.

We only have two books with the word caterpillar in the title that is not a children's book in the CPL collection when I searched, and neither of the descriptions made me want to put them on hold. Did you have any books in mind when you picked that category?

Here are the three I finished for this challenge in July.

3. Read a book with an orange cover. A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park

4. Read a book that you started but never finished. American Gods by Neil Gaiman (only took me months because I was listening to it through the library, but had to wait in between for other people to have turns )

5. Read a book told largely in part by letters. The letters can be to the main character, to other characters, or as diary entries. Darker Still by Leanna Renee Hieber

I got all excited because I thought the book I just finished would fit one of these...but, it's not a SINGLE digit number. It just goes to show I'm tired when I think 10 is a single digit number.