In Training

Summer Reading

So... yeah.  I haven't really read anything unrelated to college work since January (ish).  Which is disappointing because I read 20 books in 2009 and wanted to double that in 2010!  Going to school and working full time just got out of control, reading for fun was not an option if I wanted to make straight 'A's and remain alert at work (both of which I accomplished, so fair trade!).

Well, my summer semester ended this week and I'm taking a break until the Fall!  No reading to report just yet, but here's my list:

The Hunt for Red October - Tom Clancy

Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton & the Marriage of the Century - Sam Kashner & Nancy Schoenberger

Spoken from the Heart - Laura Bush

Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson

Winston & Clementine: The Personal Letters of the Churchills - Mary Soames

Lady Chatterley's Lover - D.H. Lawrence

Vietnam: A History - Stanley Karnow

Lute! The Seasons of My Life - Lute Olson

Nicholas and Alexandra - Robert Massie

Patriot Games - Tom Clancy

10 to start!  What are y'all reading this summer?

January Reading

I read 20 books last year.  Had so much fun documenting it that I thought I'd do it again this year.  The goal is to double the total for 2010!

In January I read:

Sniper One: On Scope and Under Siege with a Sniper Team in Iraq by Sgt. Dan Mills.  Royal's job in the Royal Marines was Sniper, so I'm always interested in reading about Sniping.  This one is about a sniper platoon, led by Mills, in Al Amarah, Iraq in 2004.

The book was easy to read and understand. On occasion I find that technical military information takes me longer as I have to read and then reread it to keep up.  It's not my native language like it is for my husband. I found the book interesting, sometimes extremely exciting and several times I laughed out loud.  Didn't expect that.  Thought Sgt. Mills did a good job of setting the scene and showing what it was like for his team.  I would definitely recommend Sniper One.

Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers.  A retelling of the Bible Story of Hosea. 

I bought this months ago and couldn't bring myself to start it, not sure why.  Finally, I picked it up mid  month and could. not. put. it. down.  Read it in a matter of hours over two evenings.  Not only is it fantastically well written, but it left me with such a wonderful feeling of happiness afterward.  Even led to several in depth conversations with Royal about love and marriage (was much more fun then that sentence makes it sound!).

Sex with Kings: 500 Years of Adultery, Power, Rivalry and Revenge by Eleanor Herman.  The title pretty much says it all.  Book centers around the Royal Mistresses of the last 500 years.  Everyone from Agnes Sorel, Charles' (the VII of France) royal mistress to Camilla Parker-Bowles, who we all know could possibly become Queen of England thanks to her marriage to her Prince Charles. 

I love History.  Love it.  It's why I want to become a History Professor.  I'm infinitely more inclined to read what other people consider "boring" history books.  Sex with Kings is not a boring History book by any stretch of the imagination.  As the New York Times said, it's "Sexy, dishy, and funny."  I would recommend this book to anyone, history buff or not.  Plus, it introduced me to several historical figures I've added to my list of peeps to take a closer look at!

January: 3

Just for fun, I'll also be listing the Books/Chapters I read for university this year.

Chapters 1 - 3 of Texas Government Policy & Politics by Tannahill.

Chapters 6 - 8 of Nexos Spanish Textbook by Long, Carreira, Velasco & Swanson.

Chapters 16, 17 & 18 of America Past & Present by Divine, Breen, Fredrickson, Williams, Gross & Brands.

Off to just a fantastic start. 

Closing Out The Book Challenge '09

It's 2010 now, can hardly believe it.  I started The Book Challenge in January of 2009 thanks to Sarah from Trying to Grok. 

It didn't go quite as planned.  There was February, when I got sick and didn't read anything for a while.  Some people read when they're sick but I've found I can't concentrate worth a bean.  Then March, where Royal went into the hospital for a bit and apparently something else happened which I can't seem to remember (it's really freakin' me out, actually... what the heck happened in March?!).  I became extremely lazy in April & May and okay, June and July as well.

BUT, I do have an excellent excuse for August - December: college!  And working full time!  I read A TON, it's just that it was for school and you know you never really finish those big honkin' college textbooks. 

However, I did manage a few and here they are:

American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig Ferguson.  He's genuine, funny and Scottish so I enjoyed the book.  You really root for him.  Go Craig.

Bed Rest by Sarah Bilston.  I got this book in the $3.00 bin at the bookstore.  After completing, this made sense. The main character is on bed rest because there is a problem with her pregnancy.  I've never been pregnant, though I have been on bed rest.  I had a hard time getting into the book because of the main character.  I found her to be whiny with a huge sense of entitlement and ego.  Other than that, fairly easy read.

The last book I finished last year (yikes, last year) was Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher.  Also a comedic book and also a memoir of sorts, this book was much, much less fun and much, much less funny than Craig Ferguson's American on Purpose.  I hadn't read any of Carrie's other books, so I didn't know what to expect.  The front says, "funny as hell..." - Entertainment Weekly.  Yeah, not so much. 

Total for last half of August through December 31st: 3

Total for 2009: 20

Not near as many as Rove, Bush or Sarah, but I'm happy with it.  Plus, I didn't include the fluffy crime romances I read throughout the year, or the hundreds of pages of Art, Spanish and History textbooks. 

2010 WATCH out!!  I've already started in on a few...

What I've Been Reading - June - Mid August

AKA The Book Challenge.

Oh my goodness gracious!  I know the past few posts I've said the same thing... I'm not reading as much as usual!  Maybe this is the new usual.  Or maybe I read more in the winter!  Speaking of, I think I read more before I got married.  For example, instead of reading on Wednesday nights I now spend them watching Wednesday Night on the Range because hubby likes the company (and hey, I like his company!).

So, let's get down to it - June through August:

The Host by Stephenie Meyer.  I stayed away from this novel for the longest time because I loved the Twilight series and for whatever reason (fear, crippling fear) I didn't want to take the chance on her next non-Twilight book.  It might be horrible.  It wasn't just that, I read the description and I wasn't interested.  THEN I go to Britain for a quick visit and when I come back my Mom has bought it, read it and passed it to me.  I LOVED IT!  Really did.  She weaves a great story. 

Remember, Remember (the Fifth of November) - The History of Britain in Bite-Sized Chunks by Judy Parkinson.  This was one of many book purchases we made on our trip.  I really enjoyed her style and loved how quickly she summed up historic events.  Obviously not a great book for any in depth info, but a really fun, fast history read. 

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen & Seth Grahame-Smith.  "The Classic Regency Romance - Now with Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem!"  Like many , I ADORE Pride and Prejudice.  I own more than one copy of the book AND both the television miniseries (hello Colin Firth) and the new film (hello Keira Knightley, ha).  I purchased it because I thought combining Austen with Zombies was a clever idea.  The book itself dragged on.  And on.  And on.  Premise would be an excellent SNL skit, a book is way too much. 

That's it.  Just the three.

Total for June/July/ 1/2 August: 3
Total this year: 17

Now the fun part!  For whatever reason I got the urge this morning to take some photos of the books we have stacked various places - waiting, just waiting to be read!  We really need more space...



This stack contains several that we purchased in WHSmith on a whim. This is why I'm not allowed to enter bookstores...  The top five (underneath Warlord) were all $3.99 at the local bookstore - to be honest I barely even read the backs!  No clue what they are about or if they are supposed to be interesting or not.  Guess we'll see! 



I apologize for the blurry photograph.  I've actually read a couple from this stack already but the rest are ripe for the pickin'.



As you can see, I'm all about the used books.  I think it gives them character!

I've got my work cut out for me.  Love it. 

Previous: April/May

What I've Been Reading - April & May

AKA the Book Challenge.

Here we go!  Still a little behind schedule -- I'd love to say that I've read at least 10, but it's not the case.   Simply haven't made the time to do so. 

It's been a while and I can't remember exactly when I read what, so I'm mashing April and May together.  Hope you don't mind.

Marley and Me by John Grogan.  As a dog lover (and the proud owner of the most attractive Scottish yellow lab out there) I was very moved by this book.  Cliche as it is, you'll laugh and you'll cry... and thoroughly enjoy the book!

Into the Breach: A Year of Life and Death With EMS by J.A. Karam.  I started this book ages ago.  Way back in January.   I usually devour books but...  this one was tough to get through.  It is interesting learning about the EMS.  I'm always game for that, but I really didn't care for the writing.  Next time I'll try the same subject, different author. 

Forgotten Voices of the Great War by Max Arthur. This was a book I purchased at ASDA while living in Britain.  I was so in love with shopping for books while we were there!  All these British authors writing from the British point of view - not something I get a lot of in the one bookstore in my town back home.  It's a collection of stories from the real people (British, of course!) that were involved in World War I.  Absolutely fascinating.  My only complaint is that I wish there were more of it!  I also own Forgotten Voices of the Second World War and Forgotten Voices of the Holocaust. 

Total for April / May: 3
Total so far this year: 14

Month of January.
Month of March.

What I've Been Reading - March

AKA the Book Challenge.

Yikes, March was not my best reading month ever.  I'm okay with that though, because some things happened in March (one of which you can read about here, the other is very personal, sorry!) that kept me from spending lots of time alone with a book.  That being said, here is March!

There are some books on one of our bookshelves that are not ours.  They belong to my parents.  Even being the book lover that I am, I rarely look over these books because I have so many to get through myself.  One day in March, by chance, I was looking and found this amazing gem:

We Thought We Heard the Angels Sing by James C. Whittaker.

"The complete epic story of the ordeal and rescue of those who were with Eddie Rickenbacker on the plane lost in the Pacific" gives you a quick rundown of the content.  But it is so much more amazing than that!  This Wikipedia section gives a bit more detail.  Frankly, if you read that and don't want to read the book... I just don't know what to do with you.  While you're there, you might as well read the whole Rickenbacker entry because DAMN, that guy lived a life.  I enjoyed reading Whittaker's description of him in Angels so much that I immediately got on Amazon and purchased this book:
Eddie Rickenbacker, An Autobiography (1967)
It came quickly and in mint condition.  Haven't opened it yet, but I'm excited! 

Now for the really cool part... The copy I read of Angels is signed by the author!  It says:

To my friend, ________ ________ with my every best wish. 
Sincerely,
Lt. James C. Whittaker
April 10 1947

AWESOME.

What I've Been Reading - February

AKA The Book Challenge. 
February was a slow reading month for me.  Partly due to being sick for two weeks and mostly just sleeping and eating, (and no baths, my prime reading time) and partly because I felt lazy this month anyway. 

I'd finished books 5-7 of the Sookie Stackhouse series by February 5th.  I had said in my January post that I wasn't that impressed by the series up to book 4.  Books 5-7 didn't change my mind exactly, but I did enjoy the relationships between the characters much more.  There is one more book out right now, but our local store doesn't have it in stock so I have not started it yet.  Apparently the 9th book comes out this May. 

I then got sick and didn't read anything until I picked up Ender's Game (which the lovely Patriot Xeno recommended in the January comments - thanks man).  I really enjoyed this book.  Great science fiction and I loved the characters ... well, the characters you are supposed to love!  The ending was a bit odd - I won't give it away - but I could invest in it anyway because of the author's writing style and my love of Ender and Valentine.  Even if you don't read sci-fi, I would tell you to give this one a try.  There are several more books in this series as well that I'm hoping to read this year.

My total is 4 for February.
Total so far this year: 9

Not great but I know I'll get it going here in March.  I have a few to finish and a few I'm extremely excited about.  As before, please leave any recommendations or comments in the uh... comments.

Month of January. 

What I've Been Reading - OR - The Book Challenge

I read frequently.  Books, magazines, blogs, you name it.  A week ago I read this post by Sarah at Trying to Grok which links this article written by Karl Rove on what an avid reader our 43rd President is.  The President and Mr. Rove competed every year, three years in a row, to see who would read the most books in that time.  Apparently Mr. Rove won every year but only because The President had "been busy as the Leader of the Free World.  I decided it would be fun to keep track of the books I read this year.  Please consider this the January update!

I read the forth book in the Twilight series, Breaking Dawn.  I've already read this book but wanted to reread the series after I'd seen the movie and had many a discussion with my family and friends who had read the books and seen the movie. Obviously I recommend the Twilight series.

It's a vampire kinda month because I also read the first four books in the Sookie Stackhouse series.  It's a seven eight part (so far) series and I'm on the fifth book now.  I picked up the books because I knew the HBO series True Blood (Which I haven't seen, don't have HBO.  Thought I might pick up the first season on DVD when it came out if I liked the books.  Always read the book before seeing the movie/t.v. show!) was based on them and I'd enjoyed Twilight so...
I don't know how I feel about this series yet.  There is so much negativity present, I don't feel happy while reading.  I don't like that feeling.  It seems that there are very few people with redeeming qualities, everyone seems to be looking out for themselves (except the main character, Sookie, who tries to help others).  Even though I'm not sure if I like it yet, it's a series and I'm going to stick it out!

My total is five for January! 

I am currently halfway through Into the Breach: A Year of Life and Death with EMS.  I picked up this book for my husband who said he might be interested in a career with EMS in the future and wanted to learn more about it.  He hasn't read it yet, but I am enjoying it and learning a lot I didn't know.  I don't particularly care for her writing style, but I look past it because I'm interested in the subject matter.  More on the book when I finish and update February! 

I welcome you guys to comment on books you are reading, books I'm reading or any recommendations!

Month of February.

Twilight

I love to read. Usually it's from the history, biography, or military history section of the bookstore, but occasionally it's a light romance or something popular from the teen section (if that's what it's called... not sure actually!).

Twilight had been on the extreme fringe of my radar until a co-worker suggested - several times - that I read it. Finally she gave up asking and thrust the book into my hands. This was last Friday afternoon. I thought, well, I might take a look at it tomorrow at the hotel (Royal and I were going out of town for two days).
Fast forward to 1:00am Sunday morning: I'm halfway through the darn thing! Could. Not. Put. It. Down. I think that if my poor husband hadn't have been there I would have fallen asleep face-in-book.

The next day on our way back home we stopped at a bookstore so that I could buy my own copy... and of course the next book in the series (there are four total).

I finished all four books in one week, Saturday to Saturday. Now, I've always been pretty proud of my reading speed and comprehension, but this has put a smile on my face for the last few days! Obviously I would recommend them, though the second and third books, like most series' I've read, were not quite as much fun as the first and last.

I haven't become one of those obsessed, screaming fans (no offense to them though, been there done that in my past I admit!) but I am excited to see the movie that comes out in November -- see, I told you I was late coming to all of this! You can see the preview at the site, guess we all know where I'll be next month.