Yellow Wallpaper

Once again, this month I only read Whitney finalists except for one book for my book club. I read all the finalists in the adult fiction categories and I'm curious to see how the awards turn out this year. Tres Leches Cupcakes by Josi Kilpack I have really enjoyed reading Kilpack's culinary mysteries. Sadie is a fun character and Kilpack's writing is polished and engaging, making these the perfect books to curl up and escape with for a few hours. I didn't like this one as much as Banana Split because I felt like the mystery wasn't very clear for most of the book and I felt like Sadie didn't have a very clearly defined character arc. Code Word by Traci Hunter Abramson The Saint Squad books by Abramson are also great for a fun little escape for a few hours. The writing isn't unique in any way and I could guess the plot of this book from the first few pages, but it wasn't a bad read at all. Deadly Undertakings by Gregg Luke The best I can sa...

1. Disbelief A few weeks ago I decided to randomly look around at possible library jobs in my area. I do that sometimes; I have only been in my current job for a year and was planning on staying longer, but I am always curious about what is available out there. Weird, I know. I saw a job listed at the other university library (not the one I work at). It was in an area of the library that I had not ever worked in before and I wasn't sure if my experience would be applicable, but the pay scale was better and it looked like it was something that would be interesting and that I would be good at. I filled out the application online and then got called in for an interview the next week. I felt like the interview went well; I used to be pretty bad at interviews, but I have gotten a lot better as the years have gone by. It also helps that I have been doing some interviewing at my current job so now I have a better perspective on what works well and what doesn't. I interviewed on a ...

Last weekend we went down to Vegas to visit my parents for a few days. The kids had Spring Break, and since I had to take time off work to be with them anyway I thought a trip would be fun. It mostly went well; we listened to a  Harry Potter audiobook during the drive that kept everyone entertained. The weather was warm and sunny, but not horribly hot yet. Spending a few days in the warm sunshine was great for everyone, though it made the cold and snow here in Utah a bit more unbearable after we got back. Since this is a good time of year for being outside there, we took advantage and spent a lot of time doing nature-related activities. One day we went to Springs Preserve and spent hours in the museum there learning all about the history and ecology of the desert. It was a lot of fun; the kids could have spent all day in the museum I'm sure. The next day we drove out to Red Rocks and spent time at the visitor center learning even more about the desert, then did some hiking and...

Somehow I didn't get around to publishing my reading roundup in February on time, so I decided to save it and do both months together. Almost all of the books I've read during the last two months have been finalists for the Whitney Awards . I have a few more to read during the next month so you'll be seeing some more reviews of those next time. If I Lie  by Corrine Jackson This was an interesting book, even though I figured out the complication in the plot fairly early on during my reading. The main character was almost just a bit too unpleasant for me, but her prickliness was understandable given the circumstances. Mostly, I liked it and thought it was a good, quick YA read. Shadowed by Stephanie Black I thought I'd be proactive and read this before the Whitney finalists were announced, since Black has been a finalist for most of the last few years. Then after I read the book I realized that she wasn't eligible this year. Oops. I actually thought this book...

OK, folks, I've got a bad case of the tomorrows. Every day I think "tomorrow I will eat better" or "tomorrow I will start exercising" or "tomorrow I'll clean out the closets" or "tomorrow I'll write in my journal" or "tomorrow I'll teach the kids how to cook and create a chore chart" or "tomorrow I'll write a decent blog post." I have yet to figure out when tomorrow is coming, because it hasn't happened yet. Anyone got good ideas for getting out of a procrastination rut?