Sunday, June 21, 2009

Mondays: Musings/Mailbox/whereabouts

Musing Mondays (BIG)

Do you restrict yourself on how many books you take out from the library at a time? Do you borrow books if you already have some out? Do you always reborrow books you don’t get to?

Most of us would agree that there can't be too many books even if the TBR pile reaches the Moon! When I used to borrow books from the library, it was always 6 books at a time. That too because they didn't allow more than that. I used to finish those in a week and was back at the library much before the due date so that I could borrow another half a dozen.

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Monday Mailbox is hosted by Marcia, In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren and New Crayons is hosted by Color Online. Check all three which are related to books you receive in the past week.

Received the following:

The Girl Who Stopped Swimming by Joshilyn Jackson

Laurel, a high-end quilt maker, sees the ghost of a little girl in her bedroom one night. When it leads her to the backyard and a dead girl in the swimming pool, the life Laurel had hoped to build in her gated Florida neighborhood with her video-game designer husband, David, and their tween daughter, Shelby, starts to fall apart. Though the police clear the drowning as accidental, it soon appears that Shelby and her friend Bet may have been involved. Bet, who lives in DeLop, Laurel's impoverished hometown, was staying over the night of the drowning and plays an increasingly important role as the truth behind the drowning comes to light. Meanwhile, Laurel's sister, Thalia, whose unconventional ways are anathema to Laurel's staid existence, comes to stay with the family and helps sort things out.



The Texicans by Nina Vida

Vida's luminous, dramatic seventh novel finds Joseph Kimmel, a Missouri school teacher, heading to mid-19th-century Texas to claim his recently deceased brother's belongings; he's left for dead when his horse is stolen. Across the plains, after her Texas Ranger husband dies fighting Comanches, Aurelia Ruiz takes refuge at a Comanche camp and adopts their ways. Henry Castro, a Frenchman with dreams of creating an Alsatian-immigrant–populated town in his own name, not only rescues Kimmel but marries him off to Katrin, an unattached white émigré whom a Comanche leader had espied and wanted for his own. The newlyweds head off to create a distinctive ranch, one that welcomes members of the Tonkaway tribe, Mexicans, escaped slaves, free African-Americans and others in distress.



Best Intentions by Emily Listfield

After tossing and turning all night, thirty-nine-year-old Lisa Barkley wakes up well before her alarm sounds. With two daughters about to start another year at their elite Upper East Side private school and her own career hitting a wall, the effort of trying to stay afloat in that privileged world of six-story town houses and European jaunts has become increasingly difficult, especially as Manhattan descends into an economic freefall.


The Painter of Shanghai by Jennifer Cody Epstein

Epstein's sweeping debut novel, set in early 20th-century China, fictionalizes the life of Chinese painter Pan Yuliang. Born Xiuquing, she is orphaned at a young age and later sold into prostitution by her uncle, who needs the money to support his opium habit. Renamed Yuliang, she becomes the brothel's top girl and soon snags the attention of customs inspector Pan Zanhua, who makes her his concubine. Zanhua sets her up in Shanghai, where she enrolls in the Shanghai Art Academy and early on struggles with life study, unable to separate the nude's monetary value from its value in the currency of beauty. She eventually succeeds, winning a scholarship to study in Europe.


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It's Monday! What Are You Reading This Week? is a weekly event hosted by J. Kaye of J. Kaye's Book Blog, "to list the books completed last week, the books currently being read, and the books to be finish this week."

I finished the following:

Angel's Advocate by Mary Stanton
The Girl Who Stopped Swimming by Joshilyn Jackson
The Crying Tree by Naseem Rakha
The world I Never Made by James Lepore


I am in the midst of reading:

The Painter of Shanghai by Jennifer Cody Epstein
The Wolf's Head by Peter Unwin

Blasted by Kate Story
At the Threshold of Alchemy by John Amen

I posted reviews of:

Angel's Advocate by Mary Stanton
The Heretic Queen by Michelle Moran

34 comments:

bermudaonion said...

I'm just a little bit jealous of The Painter of Shanghai - I hope you enjoy it.

serendipity_viv said...

I have just bought The Girl Who Stopped Swimming and The Painter of Shanghai went on my TBr list last week. We have similar tastes.

I always take out the maximum books I can from the library - how bad is that. I have 20 books out.

caite said...

I have so many unread books, so no library visits for me...
but I can remember when I was a kid and went to the library with my mom, a big reader, that the librarian always let my mom take out more than the posted 'limit'.

Jessica ( frellathon ) said...

Those are great books. I myself have two at the moment just took one back yesterday that I had just finished. I'm trying to figure out what would be best to read next which is why my numbers are less then normal. The librarian said to me the other day it's so strange to see you without a big giant stack. So I guess I may have to get a ton of books to keep her happy but what I am feeling like is reading some of the great books I've won in giveaways. Or go to the library and get some more off the 1001 books to read before you die list. My numbers there aren't bad but need to improve. So many books so little time. I do so love the library though. I'd move in if they let me and the librarians are awesome.

Briana said...

I love the cover for The Girl Who Stopped Swimming!

Happy Reading!

-Briana

Rebecca said...

Great books you got this week, The Girl Who Stopped Swimming looks good. Enjoy.

Melody said...

I haven't been to the library for a long, long time! The last time I visited we are allowed to borrow 4 books, but I think they've increased the number now.

Brooke from The Bluestocking Guide said...

I stopped going to the library. Here is mine

Here is my Mailbox

And here is my What are you reading on Mondays

Jacqueline C. said...

I recently won The Girl Who Stopped Swimming too and I'm looking forward to reading it. The Listfield and Epstein novels look good!

Anonymous said...

I usually restrain myself from taking books out of the library, one because I don't even end up reading them and two, because I have so many books at home to read. But I do volunteer at my school library so I do sometimes take out books over the minimum limit. Happy reading!

Nise' said...

You are so right..one can't have too many books! I'm waiting for The Texicans to arrive.

Debbie's World of Books said...

Wow, I'm impressed first off that you can limit yourself to 6 books and then that you can finish those in a week! I wish I was able to do that. My musing monday is up Debbie's World of Books

The Social Frog said...

I used to borrow from the library.

The Book Resort said...

6 books @ a time... I'd go nuts! lol.

http://thebookresort.blogspot.com/2009/06/musing-mondays.html

BooksPlease said...

Lots of new books there!

I borrow lots of books - the maximum allowed is 15, but I can use my husband's ticket too!

Yvonne said...

I buy books, too! I rarely take anything out from the library anymore.

I read The Girl Who Stopped Swimming. It was a good one. Enjoy!

Teddyree said...

Great list of books. I've seen The Painter of Shanghai on quite a few blogs. Have a great reading week!

Cheryl Pitt said...

Thanks for stopping by! The Painter of Shanghai looks phenomenal!

Kristen said...

I really enjoyed The Painter of Shanghai and hope you do too. I have quite a few of your others sitting here waiting to be read as well. :-)

My mailbox is here: http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2009/06/monday-mailbox_22.html

Sharon said...

I go to the library all the time. I always have at least 1 audio from the library to listen to in the car. I usually come away with 3 or 4 books.

The Girl Who Stopped Swimming is going on my wish list.

Happy reading!

Serena said...

nice list from the mailbox. I am reading the Painter from Shanghai now and it is fantastic!

Maree said...

No such thing as too many books. Happy reading! :)

Alice said...

Everywhere I look, people are reading The Painter From Shanghai!

Sherrie said...

Hi!
My library gives you 2 weeks to keep books. Have a great day!!

Sherrie
http://sherriesbooks.blogspot.com/2009/06/musing-mondays.html

Sunny said...

If I were a faster reader I might check out more books, but as it is I only get 2-3 at a time. If you can read 6 in a week, then you go for it!! Too bad you can't get more than that at a time.

Carrie K. said...

I just found out that I won Best Intentions in a blog giveaway - I can't wait to read it!

Julie J. said...

Best Intentions sounds really good! I hardly ever make it to the library due to my schedule not jiving with them. I buy a lot of books and I'm running out of book space!!

Toni C. Gomez said...

Oooh. I'd love to reader The Painter of Shanghai. Enjoy your books!!

Lisa (Southern Girl Reads) said...

My library lets you check out up to 15, but I only get 3 or 4 at a time, but I usually always finish them before they're due.

Anonymous said...

What did you think of Joshilyn Jackson's book?

Mari - Escape In A Book said...

You got a lot of reading done last week, I'm heading over to read your review of Angel's Advocate.

Some great books you got in your mailbox as well. I loved the cover of The Painter of Shanghai.

Mary (Bookfan) said...

The Painter of Shanghai is on my TBR list.

Have a good week!

Nan said...

I have The Girl Who Stopped Swimming in my TBR pile. I'm looking forward to reading it.

Happy reading this week!

Diane said...

I'm looking forward to The Crying Tree. The Painter of Shanghai looks good too.