a couple of books...

Some other photos I found while I was working on projects were some book photos...

The Ask and the Answer...
... by Patrick Ness

This is book two in the Chaos Walking series. Book one grabbed me and left with such a cliff hanger that I had to get book two as soon as I could. I flew through this one as well. Such a compelling story that you get so swept up in the excitement/chaos of it all. I will admit that some parts are tough. There is a character that I really don't like (it's not that he isn't well written, it's just that he's an evil man) and I get mad at him a lot (yes, I get mad at fictional characters) and have to stop reading. But then I *need* to know what happens next so I pick the book back up a few minutes later. I'm currently still reading book three... it's been a tough one for me, but I'll report back on that when I finish it.

A random library pick that I loved was...
Countdown by Deborah Wiles.

The book follows a 12 year old girl during the days leading up to and including the days of the Cuban Missile Crisis. I have read things and watched shows about the Cuban Missile Crisis, but they have all been from an adult perspective. This one really grabbed me, as it was written from the perspective of a girl.... a girl not much different in age from my kids. This book is an example of why I love historical fiction... it makes things real. It's not just some information in a history book, but something that happened (on some level) to everyone around at that time. Here is the story of a girl trying to balance friend troubles with the threat of nuclear war... it was heart wrenching at times. We bought copies as Christmas presents for both of our mothers. It's been interesting to hear their stories about where they were and what they felt during that time period. I think from what I can tell, this is the first in a series of books that the author is writing about the 60's... I look forward to reading more!