On My Bookshelf

The absolute only good thing about Kai's recent refusal to go to sleep on his own for naps and bedtime (and to take 30 minutes to an hour to fall asleep) is that this carves reading time into my daily schedule.  I've been reading about a book a week for a while now which is pretty darn good when you consider my current distractions.

Here's the latest four.

I cannot say enough good things about this book.  Stevenson is a lawyer who has spent the last 20 years working exclusively with prisoners on death row.  His stories of specific cases are thought provoking and provide real insight into the humanity of the people who are on death row.  I especially loved how he encourages us to ask the question if these people are really throw away people or not.  For us in Nebraska, this read is a timely one given that we have recently banned the death penalty.

Another WWII story but not just another WWII story.  Unusual setting and unusual main character .  Not my favorite Holocaust book but still interesting and engaging.

I really enjoy Dallas' storytelling.  That's really her style: storytelling.  Her latest book features a midwife accused of murdering an infant.  It wasn't my favorite book of hers but still enough intrigue and interest in the characters to pull you in.

Think National Treasure meets The West Wing.  I haven't read anything by Meltzer before.  This took a bit to get going but once it did, it was kind of a wild ride.  More of a thriller than I usually read.

The big kids and I have been continuing to read a chapter book together at night.  The most recent three were

For those who know me, it's no secret that I adore Harry Potter.  I've been debating about reading this because I wasn't sure if my anxiety kiddo could handle it.  I talked myself into after reviewing it and thinking that the book really only had scary parts at the end, where Harry and friends really learn that Voldemart, the evil guy, is back.  However, just the knowledge that Voldemart was really too much for my one kiddo.  We ended up not reading the last 3 chapters together because of that.  All three loved the magic though.  Nothing sweeter than coming out in the morning and see your kids with blankets over their shoulders, arguing over who gets the broom, and trying to play Quidditch.

This isn't the exact one we read but we just picked an abridged version from the library.  No real reason other than the big kids were getting theater tickets to The Wizard of Oz for Christmas so I wanted to make sure they knew the story.   They especially liked the twist of the story which was that we don't need someone to make us a certain way, that often we already have inside of us the things we need.

We actually have on chapter left of this.  I loved hearing Zeke beg me to take it with us to Grandma's for Christmas so we could finish the book.  If you have never read Homer Price, it's kind of a hidden gem.  Homespun adventures mixed with some witty humor like a pet skunk who helps corner some crooks and a giant ball of string contest that involves a clever woman.