The Week in Review: 03.17.2017
Between the Covers
Finished last week:
Oh how I loved THE IMPOSSIBLE FORTRESS by Jason Rekulak! It’s the story of three 14 year old friends – Billy, Alf, and Clark – who will do anything, and I do mean anything, to get a copy of the Playboy Magazine with Vanna White on the cover. Set in 1987 and told from Billy’s point of view, this story is full of pop culture references and humor. There’s also a little mystery, a little romance, and just enough tension to keep the story moving at a fast clip. I couldn’t get enough of Billy and his friends and kind of hated for the book to be over, even though I thought the ending was great. I loved this book and highly recommend it – I have a feeling it will be one of my favorites of the year. (Review copy provided by Simon & Schuster.)
I listened to I SEE YOU by Clare Mackintosh. After women are featured in classified ads, they’re victims of violent crimes. Zoe notices her photo in an ad and, when she realizes what’s happened to the other women, she becomes frightened and wonders about everyone person she encounters. Can she figure out what’s going on before it’s too late? The audio version of this book is narrated by British actress Rachel Atkins. I probably should have quit listening as soon as I heard her accent. I’m sure she did a fine job but I struggle with British narrators – I’m not sure why, but I find my mind wandering when I listen to them. I think I would have enjoyed this more in print. (Review copy provided by Penguin Random House.)
If you’re planning a trip to our nation’s capital with a young child, you’ll want to grab a copy of MY WASHINGTON, DC by Kathy Jakobsen before you go. This book gives an overview of some of our history and features many of the sites to see in the city. It also contains some fun facts – for instance, the Washington National Monument Society asked each state to contribute a stone and every state complied. There are wonderful illustrations throughout the book and readers can hunt for stars, eagles and Speedy the cat. The back of the book contains more fun facts and lists a few websites to explore. I thought MY WASHINGTON, DC was terrific! (Review copy provided by Little, Brown.)
Currently reading:
- JAKE THE FAKE KEEPS IT REAL by Craig Robinson and Adam Mansbach
- MIDNIGHT IN BROAD DAYLIGHT by Pamela Rotner Sakamoto
- THE HANDMAID’S TALE by Margaret Atwood
On the Screen
Not much of anything. I was hoping to watch some basketball but didn’t see enough to make it worth mentioning.
Off the blog
- We thought we were going to sneak by with very little winter this year but Mother Nature had something else in mind. It turned cold this week – probably the coldest it’s been all winter – and we even saw a few flakes of the white stuff early Sunday morning.
- I took and passed the exam to become a Cicerone® Certified Beer Server.
- My friends and I played trivia this week and came in second.
- We walked three miles every morning (even when it was 20º F) and I averaged close to 14, 250 Fitbit steps a day.
I guess those flakes wont be around for long
The Impossible Fortress sounds good!
I think a light dusting of snow can be so pretty with the contrast of early spring green. and Congrats on the Cicerone® Certified Beer Server! Woo hoo
Fortress sounds like such a fun read. I have it on my kindle, so I’m excited to read it 🙂 Congrats on all the steps in such freezing cold weather. Love to see the snow dusting the ground and flowers – so pretty. Sounds you have had a great week. And, Congrats on passing the exam to become a Cicerone® Certified Beer Server – that’s awesome! Have a great weekend!!
I keep seeing I See You all over the blogiverse. It definitely piques my interest. But I have never read an Atwood. Maybe some day (but probably not).
Congrats on your certification!
I’ve been reading about a lot of folks having snow and cold weather now. Yikes! I had to use my air conditioner this week.
I enjoyed I See You, but my version was a print book.
Audio wouldn’t work for me, as I am easily distracted when the words aren’t in front of me. LOL.
Enjoy your week!
Kathy,
Congratulations on your certification! You had a very good week! Enjoy the weekend.
The Impossible Fortress sounds like it would be a fun read. I like the picture of snow on the flowers – so pretty. Congratulations on your certification. Have a good weekend.
The Impossible Fortress is moving higher and higher up my TBR list! And I loved The Handmaid’s Tale…hope you’re enjoying it!
Nice post and week for you.
I SEE YOU was difficult to follow in print, but it was good. Sorry about the British narrator.
Thanks for sharing your week.
Have a great weekend.
Elizabeth
Congratulations on your certification! And for keeping up with your walking in freezing cold weather.
The Impossible Fortress looks great! I’m glad you liked it. I need to get out and walk more, but it’s just way too cold for me to handle and I keep getting sick with head stuff so I’m thinking it’s not really worth chancing.
-Lauren
http://www.shootingstarsmag.blogspot.com
We have so many people asking us for The Handmaid’s Tale, I must read this.
The D.C. book looks great! And congrats about the beer serving! You know so much about beer; I’d have been shocked if you didn’t pass!
I love your Friday blogs! I feel all caught up with you!
I have I SEE YOU in my stack. I’m going with the high school band and choir kids to DC in June. I bet this book would be interesting and helpful to me! I could read it on the long bus ride!
Our book club read A Handmaid’s Tale last year – I’m eager to learn what you think of it! I find myself thinking about the story quite often. And somehow, Margaret Atwood, as wonderful as she is, totally intimidates me!
The Impossible Fortess with it 80s setting sounds really good! Funny that you dislike British narrator because I love them.
I like the sound of both The Impossible Fortress and I See You. I have I See You in print, and so imagine I will get to it at some point. I hope you have a great week, Kathy!
Ugh snow on the spring flowers is not good! I hope things didn’t die. I definitely will put a hold on The Impossible Fortress. It sounds funny — and I could use something humorous right about now. thanks.
Oh! I am so happy to know that you loved The Impossible Fortress! It was such a fun book!
I actually have read/seen all three of these books. THE IMPOSSIBLE FORTRESS was terrific, wasn’t it?
Congrats on the new certification! I really want to check out My Washington, DC
I need to get my hands on The Impossible Fortress since I’m a kid of the 80’s and you loved it so much! 20 degrees is pretty cold for down there so I’m glad you survived 🙂 I’m pretty excited because it might get up to 60 here tomorrow!
That is high praise indeed for The Impossible Fortress! I must get that one this month!