summer reading :: new addiction

Both Banks and Mary Reese have "required" summer reading.  If Banks reads 30 hours, he will be registered to win a Kindle.  He is about halfway done.  Mary Reese just has to read 2-3 books a week.  She easily reads that in a day.  She is going to be my "reader".

One of our favorite summer activities is walking to the library in search of new books.





Even Owen loves taking his stack to the check out counter and walking out with them...



It makes him feel big.  Sometimes he allows one of his siblings to reading them to him.  Sometimes he wants to do it himself and no one is allowed to even touch his books.

We have found some great summer reads...



Banks has really enjoyed books by Andrew Clements and Roald Dahl.  He is also doing a book study in a few weeks on The Secret of the Lonely Grave or Wait till Helen Comes.  We are about halfway through The Secret of the Lonely Grave.  I have to admit, I am into it as much as he is.  It is a great read!  A group is going to meet at the school for 2 mornings.  They are going to discuss the book, walk to the neighboring cemetery and do a podcast about the books.

Mary Reese has read about every Henry and Mudge she can get her hands on.  She is also enjoying the Hello Reader series.

I tend to read way more in the summer.  Not sure why?  Maybe it is because most of the TV shows are reruns.  I have also checked out a few good reads.  I have read Emily Griffin's Baby Proof, Jennifer Weiner's Best Friends Forever and James Patterson's Tick Tock.  On our last visit, I picked up Alicia Bessette's Simply from Scratch.  I haven't started it yet because I have found a new addiction...



I discovered our library is apart of this online system on one of our visits this summer. I LOVE it! Using by library card number, I can check out ebooks and audiobooks. They have adults as well as kid books. It is fabulous! I prefer to read rather than be read to...so I download the ebooks to my iPad.

You can search or browse the over 1600 ebooks and 200 audiobooks. You can create a wish list of books you want to read.

It will only allow you to check it 5 books at a time and only if there is a license available.  If a license is available, you can put them in your cart and download them to your device. You are allowed to keep them for 14 days and it will automatically check them back in after 14 days just incase you forget! How cool is that...no more late charges if you forget to return them on time!

If the books are not available, you can put them on hold [you can also see how many people are in front of you]. When the license becomes available, you get an email and have 2 days to download it.




All I had to do was to download the free Overdrive app on my iPad and I was ready to go!  I have read Sophie Kinsella Mini Shopaholic, Joanne Fluke's Cream Puff Murder and Louis Sachar's Holes.  I am about halfway through William P. Young's The Shack.



I have another Joanne Fluke book and Hailey Abbott's Boy Crazy waiting on my bookshelf.




What has been your favorite summer read?  I have heard Heaven is for Real is a good one...just haven't gotten to it yet.