Books I Read
In August, I read 13 books. Here are the highlights:
If I Stay by Gayle Forman (4 stars)
Powerful and beautiful. I took a star off, though, because of this sentence said by a character with no recognition of its offensiveness: "Maybe this retarded plan of yours would work better if we could actually see what we're doing." Argh! Really Gayle Forman?!?
The Fourteenth Goldfish by Jennifer Holm (3.5 stars)
Lauded by teachers and book nerds everywhere, I actually found it quite disappointing... My review explains why.
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein (4 stars)
I read this terrific WW2 story in June, but I loved it so much that I decided to reread it. It was cool to experience all the clues set out by the author that I had missed the first time around.
The Mark of the Dragonfly by Jaleigh Johnson (4 stars)
A great fantasy for upper-middle grades readers. A really cool world with strong female protagonists.
Amulet 6: Escape From Lucien by Kazu Kibuishi (4 stars)
This one felt like a stepping stone to the big climax. There was definitely action and lots of character development, but like many Amulet books, there was no conclusion - only a relentless drive toward the next installment.
Sisters by Raina Telgemair (5 stars)
This sequel to her outstanding graphic novel, Smile, was fun, well-paced, and a perfect portrait of sisterhood.
Obsessions I Acquired
We adopted a puppy this month! His name is Boomer and he has a beautiful story -
* A stranger saw movement in a trash pile next to a gas station dumpster.
* He discovered a tiny, hairless, scab-covered puppy and called the local shelter.
* The shelter picked him up. The on-call doc declared him covered in mange and fire ant bites. He was extremely malnourished and given a slim chance of survival.
* My aunt fosters 1 dog at a time and had an opening. She and her family took him in and nursed him.
* One month later, he stayed in a kennel while his foster family was on vacation. They accidentally gave him a massive overdose of his mange medicine. He was rushed to the hospital and had his stomach pumped.
* At 3 months old, Boomer finally has hair and has started playing.
* We fall in love and adopt him.
Here's our sweet puppy. He is a mastiff/labrador mix with a beautiful brindle coat.
* A stranger saw movement in a trash pile next to a gas station dumpster.
* He discovered a tiny, hairless, scab-covered puppy and called the local shelter.
* The shelter picked him up. The on-call doc declared him covered in mange and fire ant bites. He was extremely malnourished and given a slim chance of survival.
* My aunt fosters 1 dog at a time and had an opening. She and her family took him in and nursed him.
* One month later, he stayed in a kennel while his foster family was on vacation. They accidentally gave him a massive overdose of his mange medicine. He was rushed to the hospital and had his stomach pumped.
* At 3 months old, Boomer finally has hair and has started playing.
* We fall in love and adopt him.
Here's our sweet puppy. He is a mastiff/labrador mix with a beautiful brindle coat.
Activities Documented
Thanks to my Vivofit I have some data for you. This month I walked 351,123 steps - that's a new monthly record! I am most proud that my daily average increased from 10,700 to 11,095 steps.
I earned several fun badges as well,
Aww, Boomer is super cute. :) That's awful that he had to go through all of that, though. I could never imagine our sweet little puppy having to endure something that horrible.
ReplyDeleteCode Name Verity is on my TBR list! :) It seems like everyone's been talking about it recently. I might take it to the beach with me this year.
The Code Name Verity audiobook is exceptional! Do it!
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