Sara Reads Things

 IT'S TIME! Summer is here and I know all of you are ready for those summer reading challenges that are all over the internet. If you haven't picked a challenge yet, here is one that will keep you on your toes and plant your nose into all kinds of books. Make sure you check in to see what books I'm reading for the challenge. Enjoy! 1. True crime 2. A best seller from the year you graduated high school 3. A book by an author with the same first or last name as you 4. A book by a local author 5. A book that ties to your ancestry 6. Read a graphic novel or comic book 7. Read a book chosen by someone else 8. A book by an author of a different ethnicity than you 9. A book about a problem facing society today 10. Read a science fiction book 11. A book by two authors 12. A book with your favorite color in the title 13. A book about time travel 14. A book with a weather element in the title 15. A novel based on a real person 16. A book about a villain or anti-h...

Title: A Knight in Shining Armor By: Jude Deveraux Genre: Historical Fiction Pages: 480 Release Date: July 1989 Publisher:  Summary from Goodreads:  Once upon a time... ...as a fair maiden lay weeping upon a cold tombstone, her heartfelt desire was suddenly made real before her: tall, broad of shoulder, attired in gleaming silver and gold, her knight in shining armor had come to rescue his damsel in distress.... A Knight in Shining Armor Jude Deveraux's beloved bestseller has captivated readers the world over; now in a special edition featuring new material, this timeless love story greets a new generation. Abandoned by her lover, thoroughly modern Dougless Montgomery finds herself alone and brokenhearted in an old English church. She never dreamed that a love more powerful than time awaited her there...until Nicholas Stafford, Earl of Thornwyck, a sixteenth-century knight, appeared. Drawn to him by a bond so sudden and compelling that it defied reason...

Its always Monday. I feel like Monday is everyday now that the kids are out of school. Even my days off are Mondays. How has it come to this? Last Sunday I won the weekly drawing at my local library for the summer reading program. I won a coffee mug, a copy of the Fantastic Beast book and a $5 Dutch Bros gift card. I'm super stoked since I love all of the above... Except for the coffee. I don't drink coffee. Any who, I'm looking forward to winning again... If I win again... But with the amount of books I read per week, my odds are amazing. Stay tuned for more winning. This weeks book is going to be Crow Fall by Ed McDonald. Its the third installment in the Raven's Mark series and I have to say, this cover is absolutely stunning. I've been with this series since the beginning and I am excited to see what happens next. Who's with me? This week's menu is not going to disappoint. I really hope you enjoy! Monday - Miso Glazed Chicken Stir Fry T...

Title: The Secret Life of Bees By: Sue Monk Kidd Genre: Historical Fiction Pages: 302 Release Date: January 28th, 2003 Publisher:  Penguin Books Summary from Goodreads:  Set in South Carolina in 1964,  The Secret Life of Bees  tells the story of Lily Owens, whose life has been shaped around the blurred memory of the afternoon her mother was killed. When Lily's fierce-hearted black "stand-in mother," Rosaleen, insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily decides to spring them both free. They escape to Tiburon, South Carolina--a town that holds the secret to her mother's past. Taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters, Lily is introduced to their mesmerizing world of bees and honey, and the Black Madonna. This is a remarkable novel about divine female power, a story women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come. Add on Goodreads Review: When I first picked up this book is re...

Title: The Girl in Red By: Christina Henry Genre: Dystopian Pages: 304 Release Date: June 18th, 2019 Publisher:  Berkley Summary from Goodreads:  From the national bestselling author of  Alice  comes a postapocalyptic take on the perennial classic "Little Red Riding Hood"...about a woman who isn't as defenseless as she seems. It's not safe for anyone alone in the woods. There are predators that come out at night: critters and coyotes, snakes and wolves. But the woman in the red jacket has no choice. Not since the Crisis came, decimated the population, and sent those who survived fleeing into quarantine camps that serve as breeding grounds for death, destruction, and disease. She is just a woman trying not to get killed in a world that doesn't look anything like the one she grew up in, the one that was perfectly sane and normal and boring until three months ago. There are worse threats in the woods than the things that stalk the...

Monday! Its the first week of Summer break and the kids are already bored. Its going to be a long summer. I've been trying to get them more into reading when they are bored, or art or something other than vegging on the computer or tablets. We shall see how that goes. This weeks book is going to be My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix. I have to read a book that is set in the decade that I was born in for my summer reading challenge at the library and this book looked interesting. So far, I'm not disappointed. The kids just did some acid. One stripped naked and jumped into a half full lake, before getting lost in the forest all night (still naked I might add). When they found her, she was in a creepy abandoned building. I'm wondering if that is where she becomes possessed... If you know, don't tell me. What are you reading this week? Leave your comments below. This weeks menu is going to be delicious and easy, so enjoy! Monday -  Sausage and Pepper ...

Its been a while since I've had a Kids Corner post. I've recently started to read to my two youngest boys before bed time. At first, they were reluctant. It took us almost two weeks to get through our first 10 chapter book. But now, we read several chapters a night and have been blasting through books like a fire cracker. Its almost a book a night. I can't keep up. There is a stack of books in my house at all times for us to read. One of the boys favorite books was Super Turbo Saves The Day. It was a wonderful story about a classroom hamster who teams up with other classroom animals to chase off some rates who are trying to eat out of cafeteria. The boys loved it. They even helped me read and did the voices. There are a lot of characters that are fun and unique. If you have kids between the ages of 5 and 10, they will love this story!

Title: Finale By: Stephanie Garber Genre: Fantasy Pages: 496 Release Date: May 7th, 2019 Publisher:  Flatiron Books Summary from Goodreads:  Welcome, welcome to Finale, the third and final book in Stephanie Garber’s #1 New York Times bestselling Caraval series!  A love worth fighting for. A dream worth dying for. An ending worth waiting for. It’s been two months since the Fates were freed from a deck of cards, two months since Legend claimed the throne for his own, and two months since Tella discovered the boy she fell in love with doesn’t really exist. With lives, empires, and hearts hanging in the balance, Tella must decide if she’s going to trust Legend or a former enemy. After uncovering a secret that upends her life, Scarlett will need to do the impossible. And Legend has a choice to make that will forever change and define him. Caraval is over, but perhaps the greatest game of all has begun. There are no spectators this time: only those wh...

Monday! The last week of school. I can't believe it. Its been a long school year and there have been a lot of ups and downs, but we made it. I'm so proud of what the boys have accomplished. This weeks read is going to be A Knight in Shinning Armor by Jude Deveraux. I've started my summer reading challenge this week and this is one of the first books I picked up. This will take care of the time travel and my heritage books in one swoop. Score!! Here is this weeks menu, enjoy! Monday -  Cajun Chicken and Rice Bowl Tuesday -  Bacon Mac and Cheese Wednesday -  Korean Beef Bibimbop Thursday -  Chicken Pineapple Quesadilla   Friday - Sausage and Pepper Spaghetti   Saturday - Chicken Caesar Salad Sunday -  Leftovers Night

Today I have a delicious meal for you and a good read to go along with it. Try this Chicken with Pesto Thym Crema  with crispy onions and asparagus. It was delicious. And if you get gluten free crispy onions, which were actually easy to find, then its a 100% gluten free dish. Lots of protein and a little carb. Veggies are there. What more can you ask for? While you devour your delicious dinner, try reading If I Stay by Gayle Forman. This was a touching tale of one girl reason for survival and the choice to stay alive, when her parents and brother have tragically died in a car crash, or let go and die as well. What does she have to live for?... Only the boy she loves. Is that enough?  

Its June! The half way mark of the year and more wonderful reads that I am excited to share with you. What have you been reading this last month? Memoirs of a Geisha -  A literary sensation and runaway bestseller, this brilliant debut novel tells with seamless authenticity and exquisite lyricism the true confessions of one of Japan's most celebrated geisha. Speaking to us with the wisdom of age and in a voice at once haunting and startlingly immediate, Nitta Sayuri tells the story of her life as a geisha. It begins in a poor fishing village in 1929, when, as a nine-year-old girl with unusual blue-gray eyes, she is taken from her home and sold into slavery to a renowned geisha house. We witness her transformation as she learns the rigorous arts of the geisha: dance and music; wearing kimono, elaborate makeup, and hair; pouring sake to reveal just a touch of inner wrist; competing with a jealous rival for men's solicitude and the money that goes with it.  In...