Abbie's Book Club Corner - What to Read This Weekend!

The Ladies Auxiliary by Tova Mirvis

Announcing... Abbie's Book Club Corner!!

City of Motherly Love'rs, I am proud and excited to announce a NEW ongoing series of posts on our site....

First, it is my honor to introduce the star of Abbie's Book Club Corner - my mom, Abbie!  As you can tell from some of my previous posts, I love to read, and I got that love of reading from my mom.  An amazing writer and voracious reader, my mom is the most well-read person I know.

She has an uncanny knack for discovering unique books that range from fiction to memoir, from funny to impactful, and back again.  After benefiting from years of my mom's unbelievable finds, I'm very happy to begin sharing them with you! 

So, if you're looking for a break from your norm, take a trip to Abbie's Book Club Corner!!

Our inaugural book club corner find is......

Part II - Sixteen Chapter Book Series Guaranteed to Get Your Elementary School Child Excited About Reading

In Part I of our series on how to get your elementary school child excited about reading, we talked about why and how Chapter Book series are great tools.  But what to read?  Here are SIXTEEN of our absolute favorite chapter book series, guaranteed to get those pages turning!

Part I: How to Get Your Child Excited to Read Using Chapter Books

My son has recently started to sit down with chapter books and read silently.  It warms this bookworm's heart.  Everyone's experiences with helping children to read are different, but I'd like to pass on a few ideas to jump start your child's interest in reading independently, using chapter books.

Why Chapter Books?

Blind Date with a Book - Would You?

I looooove to read.  It started at an early age, when I would bring books into school and read them under my desk, turning the pages as slowly and quietly as I could.  And now, I still love to read.  I admit, I'm too faithful to my old standby categories, and probably don't experiment as much as I should. 

My local library sent this in their latest e-newsletter, and it is such an intriguing idea to get readers into the library....

Looking for a date?

City of Motherly Love Book Club: Goodreads.com 2012 Book Awards

Welcome to the first meeting of the City of Motherly Love Book Club!  Like most moms, I love to read.  Also like most moms, reading comes at the expense of other things (like sleep!).  But, if the book is good, it's worth it!

Finding the books that will keep you turning pages all night (and feeling happy about it) can be tricky.  To help, Goodreads.com just announced the winners of their highly anticipated 2012 book awards, based on over 1,000,000 votes. 

To give you an idea of the power of Goodreads:  50 Shades of Grey became a cult favorite on Goodreads, which led it to winning best romance of the year, which led to a major publishing deal.  If not for Goodreads, the world may not have met Christian and Anastasia.  Okay, that might not be a bad thing.  But, you get the point! 

So, without further adieu, here are the big winners of this year's awards...  Several I have read, and my mini-reviews are as follows!


   
Fiction - The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling
As a Harry Potter fan, I gave this book a chance.  The writing was good and the characters were fully developed.  The story, however, was very dark and slow as molasses.  I kept waiting for the big pay-off and it didn't arrive!

Will The Casual Vacancy Keep You Up At Night Reading?  No!



Nonfiction - Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain
I didn't read this one, but it is all the buzz on the Business bestseller lists.  As someone who never stops talking, it makes me a little nervous.  






Mystery & Thriller - Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
I just saw that this is getting made into a movie with Reese Witherspoon as the star.  I'm not a huge mystery fan, because I can never figure out whodunnit.  However, if everyone is going to keep talking about this book, I might need to give it a try.




 
Paranormal Fantasy - Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness
This is the second book of the All Souls trilogy.  The series gives off a thinking woman's Twilight vibe.  Shadow of Night is quite lengthy, but the world that Harkness paints is very vivid. The heroine is strong-willed and intelligent, and doesn't grate on your nerves like another female lead in a certain vampire series (ahem... Bella).  Harkness is a historian, so at times Shadow of Night reads like a history lesson disguised as a romance at times.  But the medicine tastes good enough that you don't mind.
Will Shadow of Night Keep You Up At Night?  Yes.


Romance - Fifty Shades Freed by E.L. James
I am a sucker for reading the pop culture juggernauts of the day, just so I can say I did.  This rationale only excuses me for reading the first installment of this series, but not the next two!  Did I stay up all night reading these?  Yes, I did.  Did I like myself for it?  No, I did not!  After the first book, I was skipping through the racy parts to get to the "story".  I know, I know... that wasn't what the author intended!  And, if you have kids of reading age in the house, HIDE THIS BOOK.
Will Fifty Shades Freed Keep You Up At Night?  Yes (but you won't feel good about it!)


Children’s Book - The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan
    And here's where things get embarrassing... A few years ago, a friend told me about a series he'd read called "Percy Jackson & The Olympians" on his various business trips and how much fun they were.  With a recent B&N gift certificate burning a hole in my wallet, I ordered the set of five books.  Let's just say I read them in about a week. Written in a breathless style and with plenty of wit, these tales are entertaining and mildly educational at the same time.  I haven't read Mark of Athena, the recent installment of a Percy Jackson spin-off series, but I have it on reserve at the library.  A caveat: these books all follow the same formula, kind of like General Hospital, complete with amnesia and love triangles.  But, just like General Hospital, you don't mind!
Will Mark of Athena Keep You Up At Night?  Yes!

If you're interested in the rest of the winners on the Goodreads list, head over to their awards list.  Some of them, I think I'll tackle.  Some of them, I'll leave on the shelf!  You can guess which :)   Happy reading!

Oh, and we want to hear from YOU!  Did you read any of the books on this list?  Did you love them?  Did you hate them?  Leave a comment below and let's get the conversation going!

Design on a Dime - Get the Most Out of Old Furniture, Part II

The Problem:  Under-utilized bottom half of kids' closet due to the those short, cute little clothes.
The Solution:  Use an old (or inexpensive new) bookshelf to create instant storage.

My son has tons of books (a great problem to have) and a nice-sized closet.  So, we went to Big Lots (one of my favorite stores) and got an inexpensive bookshelf for $20 to put underneath his clothes.  We use it for books, but you could use it for toys, shoes, etc.  We also have a nice, cozy chair right next to the closet, so the books are within easy reach!

If you like what you see on this site, make sure to Subscribe to City of Motherly Love by Email. You'll get great updates once a day!  

City of Motherly Love's First CONTEST - Great Chances of Winning!!!!!

As promised, it's time for our very first giveaway here at the City of Motherly Love!  One lucky winner will receive a new copy of "YOU: Raising Your Child.  The Owner's Manual from First Breath to First Grade", written by Michael F. Roizen and everyone's favorite doctor, Dr. Mehmet Oz. 



How to Submit Your Entry:  Just Subscribe to City of Motherly Love by Email and add a comment to this post saying that you subscribed. All entries must be received by 12/31/2012.  A winner will be chosen at random from the entrants.  Good luck!

More about "YOU: Raising Your Child" - There’s little doubt that parenting can be one of the most rewarding and satisfying experiences you’ll ever have. But it can be plenty tough, too: Around the clock, you’re working to keep your little one healthy, teach her the difference between right and wrong, and make sure none of her little fingers find their way to the electrical outlets, the dog’s nose, or grandpop’s cup of coffee. In YOU: Raising Your Child, Drs. Mehmet Oz and Michael Roizen, the New York Times #1 bestselling authors of the YOU health series, help you navigate the often tricky journey of parenting with the ultimate guide to raising a happy, healthy child.


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Looking for cheap books?

We are big readers in this house, and we love the library.  But, I also like to have a big, rainy-day stash in my cabinet.  What is a book stash?  Those are the books you keep around for whenever the new book that you're reading is simply unreadable and you have to bail!  A friend once told me that if a book doesn't get good by 50 pages in, it's time to abandon ship!  Life is too short to read bad books.

If you're looking for a cheap way to build up your stash, head to your local library's used book sales.  Not only do they have great books for adults at anywhere from $0.50 - $2.00 a book, they are perfect for kids' books, too.  When my son was younger, we would buy Clifford, George, and Bob books by the boatload.  Now that he's older, we pick up the Calendar Mysteries, Cam Jansen, and Magic Tree House for a song.  

To be honest, we are nearing the end of book sale season.  They are usually most prevalent in fall and spring, but there is a great, free e-newsletter you can sign up for that notifies you of upcoming book sales in your town.  

Check it our here:  Book Sale Finder

But, please don't blame me when you need a second house for all of your "new" books! :)