Friday, August 22, 2014

Weekly Rewind 8.23.14

Friday, August 22, 2014 9:52 PM with 17 comments


Weekly Rewind
The new books on my shelves and my week in a nutshell.





Since I started this blog I've participated in Stacking the Shelves, which is a weekly feature hosted by Tyngas Reviews, and I'm going to continue linking to that meme. Throughout my student teaching semester I was using my weekend post as a way to let people know what's going on in my life, so I've decided to rename my weekend post because this feature is more personal than just what books I've received. The Weekly Rewind will be about what's going on with me and my blog, as well as about the books I've added to my shelves.

My Life and Blog

Life: SO glad it is the weekend. I was told over and over and over how hard it is to be a first year teacher, and it is no joke. Again, I'm in a good school/district, but I have one class that is 75% disruptive kids that just giggle and talk and make noises the moment I turn my back. I seriously just flat out asked them today: What can I do to make you behave in this class and learn? I want to talk about this with you! What can I do to make you want to behave appropriately in this class? Nothing. Total crickets. When I'm looking at them, total silent angels. The minute I turn my back to say, write on the board, they immediately begin talking and making noises again. I'm so glad my other 4 classes are not even close to that hard. It could be so much worse. They could all be like that, but they really aren't. In my other classes I don't have to act like Professor Umbrage. I feel like I'm actually teaching them something. I seriously don't even want to talk about this anymore. Like you guys are making me talk about it. Lol.

I am missing my husband like crazy. It is so hard to be away from him when I have bad days like the one I had today. It's hard to be away from my life in general. My husband, cats, and friends. The people and things that would make me feel better about myself when these kids are just chewing me up and spitting me out. That sounds melodramatic, I know, and it's not like every day is as bad as this one was, but it just makes the miles between us feel so much further. I have tickets to go home in mid September for a friend's wedding. I cannot freaking wait.

I'm slowly getting over my book slump. I started reading Anna for the billionth time last weekend before buying Isla--I'm almost done and definitely plan on spending my weekend with Isla and Josh. I'm also still listening to books on CD during my commute which is awesome. Like I said last week, I've only been listening to books I've already read, but I have a few books on order at the library that I've not read before.

New books: My September TBR pile is insanely out-of-control. I would literally have to read more than a book a day in order to read them all...and that just isn't going to happen in my current state of life. I'm truly excited about a lot of these, but I also know that most of them will have to wait. So without further adieu, I hope you are all having spectacular weekends!

Review Books

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Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas
So I have both Throne of Glass and Crown of Midnight, but haven't read them yet (I know. I know). I had every intention of getting through them before this one came out. I don't think its going to happen, but I do totally plan on binge reading this series in the very near future.
Girl Defective by Simone Howell
I've been wanting to read this Aussie book for forever. I'm so happy it's getting published over here!
Trial by Fire by Josphina Angelini
I always like the idea of witch books more than I actually like them. I've heard some positive buzzing about this although I haven't read any reviews yet. Fingers crossed.
The Dolls by Kiki Sullivan
The premise of this voodoo-y, witch-y, mean girl-y book sounds intriguing, but early star reviews are mediocre at best.
Mary: The Summoning by Hillary Monahan
I was so excited about this one--Bloody Mary!--until I found it was a series. I'm still excited to read it, but not nearly as much as I was.
100 Sideways Miles by Andrew Smith
I don't have a clue what this is about, but Winger was amazing so I have high hopes.
Starry Night by Isabel Gillies
I had no idea that this was written by the woman who wrote the memoir Happens Every Day which I quite liked. This is getting dismal star ratings, but so did that, so...
Zac and Mia by A.J. Betts
Billed as The Fault in Our Stars meets Eleanor & Park. That sounds like a tall order, but I've heard nothing but good things.
The Jewel by Amy Ewing
I'm not going to lie, sometimes I get grabby-hands when Harper does their EW dump. I'm not sure this is a book I'd really enjoy, but I'll give it a shot.
The Secret Place by Tana French
I know this is the fifth book in a series I've not read, but mystery series are usually ok to start in the middle since each mystery is its own. This one sounds amazing. I'm really excited to read this one.

What I Bought



Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins
Mine. All mine. *Pets*
Five Summers by Una LaMarche
I love books that focus on groups of friends and their separate POVs. The synopsis reminds me a bit of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants...if they stayed together at a summer camp all summer instead of getting separated. We'll see.

What I snagged from the library

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Gimme a Call by Sarah Mlynowski
I adore this book about a senior girl who drops a phone in a fountain who can suddenly call her freshman self and starts to try to change her entire high school existence. I've read it a few times and snagged the audio for my commute.
Second Chance Summer
I have to admit that I'm a bit weary of this one. It just sounds so sad. I'm not sure if it will happen right now or not. With all I have on my plate, I feel like I need to read happier books.

Well that's it for me this week. Feel free to leave a link to whatever weekend post you do (Stacking the Shelves, In My Mailbox, etc). I love to see what books people have recently snagged and especially enjoy hearing about my fellow bloggers' weeks. I hope you are all having a fabulous weekend!

17 comments:

  1. I used to tutor 2nd-4th grade kids, and it was always the same...there were good groups who paid attention and wanted to learn the stuff so they could get outta there, and then there were the disruptive kids who gave me crap the whole time. I'm not sure I ever figured out how to wrangle those kids in and get the job done. :( I know that doesn't help you, lol. I'm sure you'll hit your stride and get that other class to bend to your will. :) Sorry you're on your own right now, but the time will fly by.

    My September TBR pretty much means I'd need to read more than a book per day, too, and that's just not going to happen. April and I did some delegating, and the pile's a bit more manageable now. :) (I told her she could review The Jewel because she's still excited about it and I don't think it's going to be my kind of thing, either.) I'm really excited about Girl Defective, too! Love those Aussies. I'm reading Zac & Mia right now and it's pretty cute. I love how self-deprecating Zac is. Bummed to hear that Mary is a series, though. Why does everything have to be a series? Oh, and ISLA! So much adorable! Second Chance Summer IS sad but also hopeful. I didn't think I'd like it as much as I did.

    Anyway, hope you have a great weekend and that the kids take it easy on you next week. :D

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  2. Second Chance Summer is on my TBR list too! :) And I've heard about ISLA and tha happily ever after and I plan to add it as well :)

    Here's my STS

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  3. Yay for Isla!! I'll probably wait until my library gets it, but still. ;) Sooo excited! I'm very curious about The Dolls, so I'll be keeping a watch out in case you review it. I haven't even read Girl Defective yet, although I keep seeing it at the library. And Zac and Mia! I'm hearing about that a fair bit over the blogging world lately. ;) I always get nervous when books are pitched against such BIG NAME ones though. Big shoes to fill right?!
    My Stacking the Shelves!

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  4. Oh my gosh! I'm not alone. I too haven't read Sarah Maas' books yet. Everybody keeps shoving it at me though. Another confession, Ive never read a single S.Perkins book! I wil, I will just not anytime soon. I mean, I will knock them off my TBR eventually, right? ;)

    Enjoy your new books!

    My haul

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  5. We all have weeks like that. It will get better. Plus, you have such a pretty book haul! I want to get all grabby hands on The Dolls lol

    Our STS @ Lazy Book Lovers!

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  6. SO MANY GOOD BOOKS! You're going to LOVE the ToG series so GET READING GIRL! :) I am excited to read Zac & Mia, The Jewel, Isla and Five Summers (this last one's been on my shelf for forever - whoops!) and I am definitely curious about Starry Night and Trial by Fire. I hope they are all great!

    Happy Reading!
    Nicole @ The Quiet Concert

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  7. Great books! Have a great weekend!
    Diane @ Diane's Book Blog

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  8. I'm so sorry that class is so hard for you! It must be so frustrating! On a happier note I hope you enjoy your new books this week.

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  9. One of my friends is doing teaching, and it's hard. I hope it'll get better for you as you build a rapport with the class.

    I'm curious about Girl Defective, and I really need to get round to reading Tana French's work.

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  10. I hope teaching gets easier for you. I'm in school for teaching right now and I dread the moment I first have to teach, haha. I'm SUPER jealous of The Dolls, but I did snag Trial by Fire and Mary. Enjoy them!

    My STS.

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  11. You don't sound over-dramatic at all! It would be so hard to have bad days and not be able to come home to your husband. Hope your problem class gets better with time. Kids like that are exactly why I decided I never could teach!

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  12. I just read THE SECRET PLACE and I loved it, just like I've enjoyed every other book in the series. Although the stories/characters are all inter-connected, you can definitely read French's novels as standalones. I'd recommend reading them all, though!

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  13. Sorry to hear the teaching has been tough…I have such respect for teachers!! Teaching would be great if it weren't for the students. :)

    Isla and Josh!!!! I have to say, my favorite book of the three and my favorite couple. Love them to death. That book made me smile and laugh so much…the perfect book for you to read right now.

    So many great review books…Heir of Fire, I can't wait for that one. Trial by Fire…I've been reading great reviews so I'm excited about it.

    I hadn't even heard of Gimme a Call, but it sounds so cute that I just requested it from the library.

    Hope you have a great week! ~Pam

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  14. oh my gosh, lots of great books! Lovely haul, I LOVED Heir of Fire and still must read The Jewel and Trial By Fire.

    Here's my STS

    Rachel @ A Perfection Called Books

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  15. I hope your week gets better with that class! It sucks that there's always a group of them that just needs to make things more difficult than required :P

    And great book haul this week! I really need to pick up Isla soon! Hope you enjoy the Throne of Glass series! The first book wasn't super fantastic for me, but than the rest of the series really picked up! Hope you have an awesome week.

    Here's my SP and STS (:

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  16. I'm so excited for Mary Summoning, but I'll probably save it for a Halloween read! Trial by Fire looks awesome---although I only read the first book in Angelini's debut series, I loved it! So I can't wait to see how this one is. Have a great week, Natalie!

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  17. Man those are so freaking beautiful! Can I come live with you? lol

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Hello, there! Thanks for taking the time to comment. I read each and every one and will do my best to respond--usually on your blog instead of on mine. I will, however, always answer direct questions. Due to serious time restraints, this blog is now an award free zone, but I appreciate the thought!