Let's talk about books!

Today I'm linking up with Booking Through Thursday, a weekly meme about books and reading. You can find out more here.

Today's question is a simple one: What are you reading right now?

As usual, I have a couple of books going. The first is Ted Kooser's Pulitzer Prize-winning Delights & Shadows. If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know that Kooser, a former U.S. Poet Laureate, is my favorite poet. He writes what many people describe as "accessible" verse, always finding new and creative ways to look at the ordinary, simple things in life. I've read this book before—it's a wonderful collection—and my favorite poem in it is one I've mentioned before, "Tattoo."

I also enjoy this one, "A Room in the Past," which is found in Kooser's One World at a Time. Here he is reading it:



If you're interested in reading some poetry, Delights & Shadows is wonderful—although in my opinion, you can't go wrong with any of Kooser's books.

Another book I'm reading right now is the irreverently titled Sh*tty Mom by Laurie Kilmartin, Karen Moline, Alicia Ybarbo, and Mary Ann Zoellner. It's a somewhat funny (in my opinion), tongue-in-cheek parenting guide. My local library was featuring it, so I thought I'd give it a shot. Would I recommend it? Eh...I'm not sure. There have been moments when I've laughed out loud while reading it, but overall, I think it's just mildly amusing.

A book I do recommend, however, is a young adult novel I finished earlier this week: Every Day by David Levithan. It's about a person who wakes up each morning in the body of someone else, which, because it's the only life the character has every known, seems to work out fine—until, that is, love becomes a factor. The tagline says it all, I think: "Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every day in love with the same girl." It's not my usual genre, but I found this book to be moving and well-written, and I definitely recommend it.

So that's what I've been reading lately. What are you reading? What do you recommend?


Wishing you a wonderful Thursday!

Location, location, location!

Happy Thursday!

Today I'm participating in the Booking Through Thursday meme hosted by Deb. Click the button below if you'd like to play along.

Here's today's question:

What’s your favorite place to read? Do you have more than one? Can you read anywhere, or do you need things to be “just right?” Bonus points for sharing a photo of your favorite spot.

I can—and do—read just about anywhere: in the car, in bed, in the bathtub, while lying on the couch or sitting on a hard bench at story time as someone else entertains my kids. I read while I brush my teeth and when I cook dinner. I read at the computer and outside at the patio table and during commercials when I'm watching TV. When I was a kid, I even read during church. I know, I know... ☺

My kitchen table, a few of my current reads, and my favorite
mug. (Yes, it's a Santa mug, but I use it year-round!) Behind
the mug is a pine tree branch that my son found and asked me
to put in water. What we won't do for our kids! ☺

My favorite place to read right now, though, is at the kitchen table, early in the morning before anyone else is awake. I get up at around 5:30 each weekday, pack my son's lunch, and then sit down with a cup of coffee and a book for a few peaceful minutes before I need to rush on to the next thing on my to-do list. I love easing into my day by immersing myself in someone else's story.



What about you? What's your favorite place to read?