TEASER TUESDAYS

Here we go again! Another Tuesday with still another teaser. Natalie, at THE BOOK INN hooked me with this challenge, one she caught over at Miz B's SHOULD BE READING.

This is how it works:

  Grab your current read, then open it up to a random page; pick out two sentences and insert them here, being careful not to include SPOILERS!

  Then let us know the author and title of the book, so we can add it to our TBR lists!

  Be sure to link to Miz B's post.

 Here's mine:

      Then he told her: "You might think looking at me that I'm some spoiled little boy from palm-tree land but I grew up in a neighborhood where you wouldn't last ten minutes even with your trail mix and your big old deer rifle over there."  This wasn't even remotely true but he had a feeling that Lorrie Sabo would buy the bluff.


From No Time to Wave Goodbye,
         by Jacquelyn Mitchard


Doesn't that tempt you to go out and grab this book?  LOL



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IT'S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING?

It's time for our Monday game again.  Be sure to stop in at J. Kaye's Book Blog, where it all began.

I just finished and posted a review of last week's read here on this blog—yesterday, in fact.  Now I am already captivated by "NO TIME TO WAVE GOODBYE."

A sequel to the Oprah pick "THE DEEP END OF THE OCEAN," we follow the Cappadoras as the family members are further pushed to the limits when their grown children participate in the oldest son's documentary film about abducted children.  Even as the film achieves success, events collide and draw the family back into the past, revisiting the worst moment in their lives.

Their loyalty and love will be tested and their endurance will be challenged.

Sounds great, doesn't it?  I was very surprised and pleased to discover this book, and can't wait to dive into it again today.

I'm sure I won't be feeling the blues...hey, my prescription for the blues is working!


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STEEL TUMBLEWEEDS -- A Review of "It's Not Your Mother's Bridge Club"

In the desert Southwest, eight suburban women gather regularly to play a game that they have dubbed The Snake Eyes Dice Club.  This tale is an inside glimpse into the lives of this group.

Theirs is not a card game, but a dice game known as Bunko.  A game that originated in the 1800s, it went through several transformations over the years.

We are introduced to the individuals when the story alternates between them, and snippets of the tale are revealed from each woman’s point of view.  We gradually come to know what each woman thinks, feels, and fears.  They all have issues, and despite the main rule of the dice club—no drink counters—alcohol plays a large role in each of their lives.

They are Shonah, a journalist; Tara, an artist, former beauty queen, and heavy drinker; Brandy, an outspoken member who often puts her foot in her mouth; Blanca, a model and single mother; Sylvia, with perfect presentation and regular Botox appointments; Amanda, a depressed woman whose only child has died; Tootsie, struggling to finally have a child; and Chloe, the least favorite member of the group, whose financial and scheduling difficulties define her.

As the weeks and months pass, we come to know each of these women and perhaps identify with some of their struggles.

Then one troubling night threatens everything in their world as one member puts everything at risk.

Pushing ahead to the conclusion, I watched these women come to terms with the events of one fateful night that ultimately creates an unbreakable bond and cements their relationships; they become a group whom Tara has come to name the “steel tumbleweeds.”






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MONDAY IS COMING!

With Monday on the horizon, I have to prepare for the week(s) ahead!  I do have my book to finish (It's Not Your Mother's Bridge Club), which I am sure to complete AND review for tomorrow's post.

And I had tentatively selected my next read, which I will write about on Monday.

But this one...I have had my eye on it for awhile.  Check out the product link to your right, and you can click on over to order it.

What brought it to mind again was an article in today's paper—in the Spotlight section—which reminded me that this is definitely a "must read."

If not this week, SOON!!

The Associated Press columnist begins his article with this gripping sentence:  "There is gallows humor, and then there is Margaret Atwood.  The masterful Canadian writer is emerging as literature's queen of the apocalypse.  And the dark visions Atwood again summons in 'The Year of the Flood' prove quite illuminating."

He then goes on to describe a previous novel "Oryx and Crate," which has created the landscape now revisited in her new novel.

That's my teaser for now.  But perhaps some of you will recall a previous work of hers, "The Handmaid's Tale."  Now that was apocalyptic!!

I'll leave you with the columnist's parting sentence:  "'Flood' emerges as a novel that is both gripping and scary, provocative and quite humorous."

What a combination of descriptors!!

Now my only problem...how to keep my fingers from clicking on over to Amazon and ordering it!  Especially considering the state of my TBR stack.  Wonder what I'll do?

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WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE BOOK THIS WEEK?

From J. Kaye's Book Blog comes this delightful game for today's "meme."

I am currently reading a most enjoyable tale of women, living in the Southwest, who regularly meet at each other's homes and play a dice game. It's Not Your Mother's Bridge Club is about so much more. It delves into the lives of each woman, telling her back story, and gripping us with a well-known fact of life—nothing is ever what it appears to be on the surface!

By the weekend, I am sure that I will be finished, and will have a review posted here.

Meanwhile, check out J. Kaye's Blog and join in the fun!


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TEASER TUESDAYS -- And What Are You Reading Today?

Here we go again! Another Tuesday with still another teaser. Natalie, at THE BOOK INN hooked me with this challenge, one she caught over at Miz B's SHOULD BE READING.

This is how it works:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

SO HERE ARE MY TWO TEASERS:


"Rounding the last corner before heading down the dirt road to our place, I stretch my neck and am happy to see our rundown adobe blockhouse still standing—no fire trucks or child services vehicles. I turn off the ignition, relieved I've gotten away with my little motherly indiscretion."

From "It's Not Your Mother's Bridge Club," by Michele VanOrt Cozzens, p. 96.

So doesn't this make you want to run right out and grab this book?

I know I'm enjoying it!

More later, when I finish and review it here.


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CREATING STORIES AND DESTINIES -- A Review of "The Story Sisters"

"The Story Sisters" is a tale of family, secrets, betrayals, and forgiveness.

Coincidentally, it also reveals the world of sisters whose surname is "Story."

Elizabeth (Elv), Meg, and Claire—they all suffer in different ways when their family falls apart. Their father Alan leaves their mother Annie, and sometimes it seems as though he has left THEM. Adrift, abandoned, and alone in their own unique world—a world that Elv has created for them, the world of Arnelle, involving faeries, magic, and a language all its own, they discover a special connection.

But then everything changes. One day, something secret and frightening happens, and Elv and Claire are the only ones privy to the event. The details are hidden for many years.

But a chasm develops between the sisters—Claire and Elv on one side and Meg on the other.

The effects are so life-changing that Elv becomes a different person. Disappearing into the night, cutting herself, drug abuse, and trysts with strange boys...all add up to a deeper rift between the sisters. Until finally, even Claire has to choose to detach herself from Elv.

And then Annie, the mother, plagued by doubts and fears, makes a choice that will widen the gap between them all.

What will happen to the Story sisters when one of them is cast aside? Will they ever find their way back to each other? And what event on one cataclysmic day will forever alter their destinies?

This tale totally captured my attention, drawing me in, until finally I reached the satisfying conclusion.

Five stars for this story!


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"WHAT ARE YOU READING ON MONDAYS?" -- A Meme

Late last night, I finally finished LAST week's book, which I'll review a bit later.

Now I am ready to play this "meme" developed by J.Kaye's Book Blog, and I'm all set to begin this delightful looking romp, pictured on my left. The back cover text describes that approximately " 7 million people regularly play the dice game known as bunko... It's Not Your Mother's Bridge Club ...is an inside look at one such group, The Snake Eyes Dice Club, a spicy collection of middle-aged, middle-class women living in the desert Southwest and in the middle of each others lives. The characters are colorful and funny as they talk about their lives and their opinions of club members. You'll feel the group evolve over the course of one year as together they face both mundane and dramatic obstacles."

Doesn't this sound tempting? Michele Van Ort Cozzens writes a "warm-hearted, funny, and intimate portrayal of the women's gaming clubs springing up around the world."

So what am I still doing here? It's off to plunge into this tantalizing tome.


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WEEKEND READING

This is a book I began a couple of days ago, and with a few hours of concentrated reading, I should be able to finish it before Monday!

If I don't, I already have the next one picked out—to begin as soon as the last page is turned in this one.

You'll read all about it on my Monday post—the "Monday Meme" I enjoy from J. Kaye's Book Blog.

So far, this book is an intriguing tale about the secrets, betrayals, and family dysfunction that take over a trio of sisters growing up "broken," following their father's departure and after a mysterious event that has emotionally crippled the oldest girl.

What actually happened is only hinted at, and will certainly be revealed before I reach the end of the book.

I love a book that peels the layers back slowly until the final reveal.

More later...after I finish!

Meanwhile, I'm watching a TV movie and writing posts. I'll read after my six-year-old grandson goes to sleep!

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A LIFE "MAKEOVER" YIELDS UNEXPECTED CONSEQUENCES -- A Review of "Everyone is Beautiful"

Lanie and Peter Coates have just uprooted their comfortable lives in Houston, Texas, to follow Peter's dream—which lands them in a tiny apartment in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

After fifteen years of marriage and with three children under four, Lanie has lost herself and whatever dreams she might have had. She flounders in this new life, overwhelmed with parenting in a small space, without the support of family and friends.

Then one day in the park, another woman's seemingly innocent remark ("when is your baby due?") sends the "not-pregnant but still carrying baby weight Lanie" into a tizzy.

She is determined to make herself over into the woman she once was. Joining a gym, which requires a lot of coordinating between the two parents, becomes a compulsion, soon to be followed by another—Lanie signs up for a photography class, which she sandwiches in between the gym, her children, and whatever life she and Peter still have (not so much!)—only to discover that she absolutely LOVES it! She had been an art major in college, but this photography obsession leads her down pathways she had never imagined.

Seemingly she is making herself over after all. But what happens to the Peter-and-Lanie connection? And will the newly recreated Lanie want other love connections along with her newly discovered self? Will Peter, who is soon off to a special project in LA, turn away from his first love?

What happens to formerly-committed partners and parents when they achieve the dreams they sought?

Finding out the answers to these questions, even while admiring the dedication each character has to his/her pursuits, kept me reading into the night. I also enjoyed the humorous glimpses into the day-to-day life of a young mother parenting feisty children who regularly "swing from the chandeliers," all in the name of "just being kids."

Everyone Is Beautiful: A Novel is a novel I'll think about often, which means it earned five stars in my book.

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TEASER TUESDAY!

Here we go again! Another Tuesday with still another teaser. Natalie, at THE BOOK INN hooked me with this challenge, one she caught over at Miz B's SHOULD BE READING.


This is how it works:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

SO HERE ARE MY TWO TEASERS:

"When Peter stood up, he was out of breath and his face was so contorted in rage and heartbreak that he did not even look like himself. He panted on the sidewalk, glaring at me for a minute, and then, without a word, went inside."

This is an excerpt from "Everyone is Beautiful," by Katherine Center.

Now, doesn't this make you want to go out and grab this book?

Have fun for the rest of Tuesday.



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IT'S MONDAY, WHAT ARE YOU READING?

This Monday "meme," which originated at J.Kaye's Book Blog, is a challenging exercise for me. I can apply some management skills to my TBR stack by planning out my week very carefully, with the book I'm currently reading, Everyone is Beautiful, to be followed by the very eagerly-anticipated The Story Sisters.

I may share a couple of sentences of my current read...but on Teaser Tuesday!

I'm already feeling energized for the week ahead, and I'm definitely not feeling any Monday blues!


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BOOK TALK MEME

From J.Kaye’s Book Blog, borrowed from Psychotic States, comes this "meme" that I enjoyed.

Hope you all will check it out and answer the questions for yourself.






1. What author do you own the most books by?
Joyce Maynard, with Barbara Taylor Bradford coming in to a close second.

2. What book do you own the most copies of?
I don’t think I own more than one copy of anything, except maybe a Meg Wolitzer book, “The Wife,” which I inadvertently ordered twice.

3. What fictional character are you secretly in love with?
Rhett Butler.

4. What book have you read more than any other?
That would be “Gone with the Wind.” I think I read it three times, in high school alone!

5. What was your favorite book when you were 10 years old?
Oh, that would be “Little Women.”

6. What is the worst book you've read in the past year?
That would be “Queen Takes King,” by Gigi Levangie Grazer.

7. What is the best book you've read in the past year?
That is a toss-up between Joyce Maynard’s “Labor Day” and Elizabeth Berg’s “Home Safe.”

8. If you could tell everyone you tagged to read one book, what would it be?
"Rebecca" by Daphne DuMaurier - - classic romance/goth/mystery.

9. What is the most difficult book you've ever read?
Probably one of the Russian novels, because the names were so hard to remember.

10. Do you prefer the French or the Russians?
I actually went through a “Russian” phase in college, reading Dostoevsky until I could no longer stand the names or remember them!

11. Shakespeare, Milton or Chaucer?
Not crazy about any of them! Maybe Shakespeare, because I read several works of his in high school and college.

12. Austen or Eliot?
AUSTEN!!

13. What is the biggest or most embarrassing gap in your reading?
When I was working on my master’s degree, I didn’t pick up one single novel during that three-year period!

14. What is your favorite novel?
“A Woman of Substance,” by Barbara Taylor Bradford.

15. What is your favorite play?
I had to put this question on hold, and now that I’ve come back to it….I guess one of Shakespeare’s. I went to Shakespeare in the park in Ashland, Oregon. I also saw “The Man of La Mancha” in Sacramento’s theatre in the round in the sixties.

16. Poem?
I don't read a lot of poetry - - but I've always liked Emily Dickinson and Elizabeth Barrett Browning. And Robert Frost.

17. Essay?
Don't have the first clue.

18. Short Story?
Oh, yes, Edgar Allen Poe, definitely…“The Raven.”

19. Nonfiction?
Books by Dominick Dunne or Ann Rule.

20. Graphic Novel?
No answer. Don't read them.

21. Science Fiction?
Not something I ever pick.

22. Who is your favorite writer?
Probably Jodi Picoult and/or Joyce Maynard and Marge Piercy.

23. Who is the most overrated writer alive today?
Danielle Steel. I would have to agree with J. Kaye on this one! Like she said…formulaic writing with regurgitated plots and even sentences.

24. What are you reading right now?
“Everyone is Beautiful,” by Katherine Center.

25. Best memoir?
Joyce Maynard’s “At Home in the World.”

26. Best history?
Can’t think of anything off hand.

27. Best mystery or noir?
Okay, I’m a sucker for Sue Grafton’s alphabet series. But I also love Sara Paretsky’s stuff. I'm also a fan of Jonathan Kellerman's psychological murder mysteries.


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FINISHED ONE, MOVING ON TO THE NEXT! -- Or How to Plan Ahead for Monday

A Review of "A Change in Altitude."




Newlyweds Patrick and Margaret travel to Kenya, planning on staying a year. Patrick is a young doctor, working on special projects, while Margaret flounders, trying to find her own way in this new life and this new country.

They mingle with other expatriates, and one night, someone decides that they all should climb Mt. Kenya. Margaret is reluctant, even fearful, but agrees anyway.

What begins as a challenging adventure turns into a nightmare, with disastrous consequences, not only for the newlyweds, but for others as well.

Then the challenge becomes hanging on to the fragile connections they shared. Margaret spreads her wings, turning to her budding photography, and takes a job on a newspaper.

As the two move further apart, the cultural milieu they have each chosen forms a web around them, encasing them in their separate destinies.

At the end of the year, someone proposes that they try again to climb Mt. Kenya. Margaret feels more confident now, so they agree, but with different partners on the quest. At this point, reaching the summit becomes like a metaphor for their lives, their marriage, and their futures.

The author gifts us with a beautifully wrought adventure of life, its challenges, and the relationships we forge and keep along the way.

I wasn’t sure that I would like “A Change in Altitude,” once I realized that it took place in Kenya and included physical challenges, not thinking that I could really relate to these experiences. But the author surprised me with her ability to pull me right in…but then again, Anita Shreve has always managed to captivate her readers.

Definitely five stars!

And, to ward off those Monday blues, I have already plunged into the delightful book you see on your right..."Everyone is Beautiful," from the author who gave us "The Bright Side of Disaster."




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NEW CONTEST WINNERS!!

ANNOUNCING NEW WINNERS OF MY LATEST CONTESTS!!




Natalie, over at THE BOOK INN, has won a copy of "An Accidental Life," from my RAINY, SNOWY DAY site, and

Keta, from KETA'S KEEP, HAS WON A COPY OF "Embrace the Whirlwind," from my blog site: EMBRACE THE WHIRLWIND WITH LAUREL-RAIN SNOW.


CONGRATULATIONS TO BOTH!


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9-9-09 -- WHAT ARE YOU DOING??

In response to a game from FUEL MY BLOG, and borrowed from THE BOOK INN, I have decided to FACE the challenge.

Despite the earliness of the hour, I am here, doing it, and posting the results!

Of course, I've been up since 5:30 a.m., and not because I am virtuous or even overly-eager, but because that is the coolest part of the day here!

So, as you will note in the photos I am posting of "what I am doing at 9 a.m. on 9-9-09," I am toasting all of you with a Mimosa.

Behind me (and the Mimosa), note the computer, set to blog some more! Always blogging, FOREVER blogging...

You may also notice the TBR stack of books beneath the old VW bug paperweight. And to the left, the message board noting the date and time.



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TEASER TUESDAYS

THE BOOK INN blog, by Natalie, challenged me to do this teaser, originated by Miz B over at SHOULD BE READING.

This is how it works:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

SO HERE ARE MY TWO TEASERS:

"Margaret found Rafiq's behavior odd and yet not. It was as if he planned to announce to the paper and to the world (and thus to her) that he would be professional on any occasion during which he and she had to stay overnight together."

This is from "A Change in Altitude," by Anita Shreve.


Hope you'll join us in this fun meme.


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WHAT ARE YOU READING MONDAY?

I just came from Sheila's JOURNEY THROUGH BOOKS, where she had joined this great meme, originated over at J. KAYE'S BOOK BLOG.

As for what I'm reading today, I started off the day finishing up the great read AFTER YOU, which I've reviewed here.

So now that I have finished this one, I have plunged right into reading the next one on my list, which is shown above center. Anita Shreve's A CHANGE IN ALTITUDE.

So far, it's great. But because I believe in always having books handy, just in case I finish one and need another one quickly, I've already decided what my next one will be...there you see it on the far left. EVERYONE IS BEAUTIFUL.

So it will be a great week, I am very sure!










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AFTER LOSS: A STORY OF REDEMPTION AND HOPE -- Review of "After You"

It is a story about the bonds that connect and sustain us. In the beginning moments, we meet Ellie, after the death of her best friend Lucy, when she goes to London for the funeral and then stays to take care of eight-year-old Sophie, who witnessed her mother's murder. And who has stopped talking.

We follow their journey to healing, one plodding step at a time, and are gifted with the pain; and then the slowly returning moments of pleasure as the two read "The Secret Garden" together; we follow them as Sophie's language returns, as she verbalizes her feelings and reaches out to those around her.

But back in Boston, in the home Ellie shared with Phillip, a marriage is disintegrating.

It began when the couple lost their own baby—stillborn at eight months gestation—when they could not or would not share their grief.

What will happen now? To Sophie, whose retreat from language masked a larger issue; to Ellie, who is discovering that her best friend Lucy had many secrets...secrets that would have damaged the lives of those around her.

Can Ellie's marriage outlast the damage she and Phillip have created?

Finding out the answers to these questions kept me swiftly turning pages, reveling in the beautiful story and its satisfying conclusion.

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MONDAY LOOMS....

As Monday approaches, I am turning the final pages on this wonderful book, AFTER YOU, which I will review within an hour or so of completion. I like to finish a review before really delving into the next book on my stack.


My next treasure is one I've been eagerly awaiting, and know that it will sustain me through the rest of Monday...and perhaps beyond, depending on what else I have to do for the day. On your right, you will see it...A CHANGE IN ALTITUDE.

In preparation for the new week, and getting a head start on the Mondays to come, I decided to tackle a chore that I've been dreading.

I'd been reading some posts from people who describe their systems for keeping track of their TBR books...and even document from whom they received the books. Some of them actually utilize spreadsheets in this venture! I don't even know HOW to use one, although I did find one on my computer.

Well, I don't need a system that complex, since I only ever receive books from Amazon Vine and the occasional contest. So my primary task was to actually get "down and dirty"—on the floor, I mean!—and confront the stacks that are actually fairly neatly arranged. But alas, I have no idea how many books there are, or the exact titles of all of them!

It is so bad that I have actually purchased duplicates on occasion, because I didn't realize that I already had the book. Now that is very sad!

So I did it! I itemized the list, handwritten in a notebook, by title and author. There are one-hundred-and-fifty of the little treasures! I had estimated that there were at least one-hundred, so I wasn't too far out of touch.

Now, there may be some odd stacks here and there that I have missed. I will pursue that information in the daylight of a Labor Day Monday. After all, I couldn't be so disorganized as to not know where all the stacks are, could I? LOL.

Oops, I see a stack over there on the coffee table (in my office). Now there are ten more books to add to the list!

Wish me luck!

Have a great Monday!!


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"SHOW ME SATURDAY" GAME

Alipet, over at THAT'S A NOVEL IDEA started a Saturday Meme for bloggers.

Here are the questions and answers to the challenge:

1. Book: "Moon Music," by Faye Kellerman.

2. Words: Murder, mysticism.

3. Settings/Characters: Romulus Poe, Alison Jensen, Rukmani.

4. Likes/Dislikes: Liked the intrigue; enjoyed the descriptions; liked that the author compelled me to keep reading; enjoyed the occasional mysticism.

5. Stars or Less: Four stars. Kellerman has several other books that I enjoyed a lot more.





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MURDER, MAYHEM, & MYSTICISM -- A Review of "Moon Music"

I finished this book late yesterday. I expected to breeze right through it, but then LIFE got in the way, preventing nonstop reading (like I had during my vacation!).

It wasn't as compelling as some of Kellerman's other books, but still worth reading.

I reviewed it on my EXPLORATIONS blog.

Please check it out, and if you hear things howling at the moon, you'll know that the book really got to you!!


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ABC MEME -- WORDLESS WEDNESDAY -- Or How to Make it through Hump Day!

NATALIE, OF THE BOOK INN, TAGGED ME:



Here are the rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you
2. Share your ABC’s
3. Tag three people at the end by linking to their blogs
4. Let the three tagged people know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website
5. Do not tag the same person repeatedly but try to tag different people, so there is a big network of bloggers doing this tag

Available or single? Neither
Best Friend? My daughter
Cake or Pie? Definitely pie!
Drink of choice? Coffee or wine
Essential item for every day use? COMPUTER! Without it, I go through serious withdrawal!
Favorite color? Red
Google? Definitely!
Hometown? Fresno (for now!)
Indulgences? Books, movies and ice cream!
January or February? That’s difficult…I have grandchildren born in both months!
Kids and their names? Craig, Brett, Christopher, Heather
Life is incomplete without…? My family
Marriage date? Which time?? lol
Number of siblings? 3
Oranges or apples? Apples
Phobias and fears? Bats and mice!!
Quote for the day? "These woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep."
.....Robert Frost
Reason to smile? Holding a newborn baby
Season? Fall baby!!

Tag 3 people...

SHEILA’S BOOK JOURNEY

TAKE ME AWAY

AT HOME WITH BOOKS


And anyone else who would like to play!

Unknown fact about me? I'm a soap opera addict!!
Vegetable you hate? Okra!
Worst habit? Avoiding the gym...
X-rays you’ve had? Back, chest, and numerous ultrasounds over the years
Your fave food? Ice Cream!
Zodiac sign? Scorpio!


Thanks for the meme, it was fun!

AFTER MONDAY: TUESDAY IS FOR WISHING...

I just entered a contest for this delightful book, which you'll notice on your left. The cover alone was enough to draw me in, and then the review I read on the blog TAKE ME AWAY completely captivated me. So, of course, I had to put it on my wish list!

It seems as though I've spent the morning WISHING! And adding books to my various pages, just so I can put them all in some kind of manageable form.

You see, my TBR stack is totally out-of-control.

My only form of organization is that I don't put them on my regular shelves until I've read them. Instead, they sit, just to the left of my bed, on some "temporary shelves" and, sadly, on the floor! But they are arranged in a pleasing pattern, if I do say so myself! But because they are not even alphabetical, I sometimes forget which books I have.

Not a good plan! So my next task is to place them in some kind of order—perhaps alphabetically would be a good start—and then to prioritize them.

Meanwhile, I continue to add books to my wish list. Which is probably better than adding more to the TBR stack!!

Here's another one I want...Notice it in the top right. Now isn't that a tempting cover?

If anyone has some great ideas for how I can better manage my TBR stacks, I welcome them!!


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