It's Monday 4/18! What Are You Reading?

Happy Monday!

I have two boys home sick today.  Just a flare-up of their chronic illness, the result of too much fun this weekend.  Jamie went to his prom Friday night and stayed out until 2 am, and Craig had a sleepover at a friend's house Saturday night.  Hopefully, they will both recover quickly.

Another busy week coming up - lots of work to do, plus spring break preparations.  Good thing we have lots of good books to read as well:

• I finished The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton but not in time for my book group!  That was OK since I was almost finished and had already figured out the ending.  Everyone in my book group loved this novel that is part mystery and part family epic.
• Next, I finished a book I'd started last week and had to set aside to read my book group book:  The Kind of Friends We Used To Be, a middle-grade novel by Frances O'Roark Dowell.  I enjoyed this book very much, even though it's a sequel and I hadn't read the first book, The Secret Language of Girls.
• Now, I am reading Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese.  This one has been sitting on my shelf for awhile, and I thought it would be a good one to bring along for spring break, since it's so long.  I'm finding it a bit slow to start, but I've heard so many great things about this novel, I'm sure it will pick up soon.
• On my iPod, I am listening to Blood, Bones and Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef by Gabrielle Hamilton.  I'd heard a wonderful review of this memoir on my favorite podcast, Books on the Nightstand.  It's excellent so far.
• My husband, Ken, finished Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand and enjoyed it.  He says he learned a lot about Japan's role in World War II (me, too).
• I grabbed some more books for Ken off the new release shelf at the library, plus a stack of used paperbacks they were selling.  He's now reading one of the new releases, Eyes of the Innocent by Brad Parks.  The inside flap describes it as "an engaging mix between Harlan Coben and Janet Evanovich" and Ken agrees.  We're both Stephanie Plum fans, and Ken says he sees why this new thriller author is being compared to Janet Evanovich.
• Jamie, 16, is continuing his Orson Scott Card marathon.  He finished reading Ender's Shadow, and we were both excited to hear that there is a parallel series about Bean with three more books, so I requested the next one from the library for him.
• Meanwhile, he reread Ender's Game and is now moving onto the rest of the series.  He's on the couch reading Speaker for the Dead now.
• Jamie is also reading The Scarlet Letter for his American Lit class.  
• Craig, 13, is still reading Tom Sawyer for his English class, but - miracle of miracles - this morning he decided to read a book just for fun!  It's been a while since he's done that, so I am thrilled.  He said he was in the mood for a mystery like The Hardy Boys, so of course, I jumped up and found him a half dozen choices (I've been waiting years for him to ask me for reading suggestions!).  He has settled on The Slave-Girl From Jerusalem, from The Roman Mysteries series by Caroline Lawrence.  Since these wonderful books are like Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys in ancient Rome, I've been trying to get him to try them for years.  Though he's fallen asleep in the recliner right now (again!), I know he'll enjoy this book.

I didn't have a chance to post any reviews last week, but I did have fun putting together two lists of Top Ten Books I'd Like to See Made Into Movies, both here and at Book By Book.

What are you and your family reading this week?

(What are you reading Monday is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.)