The Sunday Post #147

My mountain conquerors
Dakota: 10/26/03 - 9/11/15
Cheyenne: 10/31/06 - 5/10/18 

The Sunday Post is hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to recap the past week, talk about next week, and share news. It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Book Date. I get to tell you what I’ve read recently.

Public Service Announcement

A lot of you have probably seen photos of my dog, Cheyenne, on social media in the past few weeks. I posted about her a lot because she was sick. I’m sorry to report that she died from cancer on May 10. I miss her. I have another dog, but the house feels quiet and empty without Cheyenne. Thank you to everyone who sent me emails or messages about her.

Cheyenne and Dakota conquering a hill. They REALLY liked climbing stuff.

Cheyenne, Butch-Kiera, Dakota

On The Blog In The Last Two Weeks

• I showed off blue-tiful book photos.
• I pondered the accuracy of Amazon recommendations.
• I reviewed my favorite book of the year (so far), The Smell of Other People’s Houses by Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock.
• I made a giant list of books I didn’t like but don’t regret reading.
• I mini-reviewed some Newbery winners.
• I mini-reviewed two books about the issues along the US/Mexico border. 

On The Blog This Week

• On Tuesday I mini-review Tin Man by Sarah Winman and Some Possible Solutions: Stories by Helen Phillips.
• On Thursday I share ten profound thoughts I had while binge-watching Outlander.
• On Saturday I answer some bookish questions.

In My Reading Life

I caught up on my Goodreads challenge! I spent all of April and the first few weeks of May falling way behind on it. I refused to lower my goal, so I’ve been reading as much as humanly possible lately. I have a lot to talk about, so brace yourself. I’ll try to make this quick.

I finished A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay. This is a black sheep opinion, but I didn’t like it. I appreciate that the author is trying to tell a unique exorcist story, but there is too much focus on the narrator’s tedious daily life. The twists at the end didn’t make logical sense to me.

Then I read Grief is the Thing with Feathers by Max Porter. I love the poems written from the father and sons’ points-of-view, but I think a lot of the book went over my head.

I read three Newbery winners: The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman, Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson, and Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse. I liked all three of them. They’re some of the better Newbery winners I’ve read so far.

The best book I read in the past weeks is Refugee by Alan Gratz. It made me sad and angry, and it was amazing. I’m going to be reviewing it with Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction, so stay tuned for that.

Finally, (deep breath, we’re almost done) I read The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami. I know there are a lot of rabid Murakami fans in the book world, but I don’t think I “get” him. Some of the stories in this collection are brilliant, but most of them drag on too long.

Right now, I’m reading another Newbery winner, Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary. 

In My Internet Stalking Life

• Looking for something to read this summer? Sarah @ Sarah's Book Shelves has recommendations.
• Marie @ Drizzle & Hurricane Books wants to know if you have to review books to be a book blogger, and discusses why feeling validated matters.
• Wendy @ Falconer's Library wrote a poem about women's names.
• Do you need help with #Bookstagram? Olivia @ Olivia's Catastrophe has tips.
• It's mental health awareness month! Daniela Ark @ Nocturnal Devices talks about which mental health books to read and which to avoid.
• Ash @ JennRenee Read interviews everybody's favorite person: Me! 

In The Rest Of My Life

Five things that made me happy in the last two weeks:

1. Cheyenne. She was mine for 11 years.
2. I still have Butch-Kiera, my black dog. I think I need dogs to survive. They’re like oxygen. Or nachos.
3. Wildflowers are blooming.
4. It took a massive effort, but I caught up on my Goodreads challenge.
5. I think I’ve also caught up on sleep? I’m less tired than I have been in a long time.

Let’s Be Friends?

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Take care of yourselves and be kind to each other! See you around the blogosphere!