Sunday, August 5, 2012

Sunday Salon: August 5, 2012

The Sunday Salon.com

It's been some time since I have done a Sunday Salon - my blog posting has taken second place to some major work commitments and it has been hard to keep up with reviews never mind Sunday Salon. I had a burst of productivity today and got some blog posts written so I decided to write a Sunday Salon to check in with everyone.


Despite all the craziness at work, this has been a good summer so far. Over July 4th, I went on an impromptu trip with a college friend to Mexico. It was wonderful to sit admiring the gorgeous water and to catch up on some excellent reading. While there I read Life's A Beach by Claire Cook (link to review), Bad Marie by Marcy Dermansky, The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker and Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead. Not bad for 4 days! My friend also read some great books - she especially liked The Red Book by Copaken Kogan. Sarah Laurence also recommended this one on her blog so I have put it on my list.  Beautiful views, great books, excellent company and good margaritas - what a recipe for a vacation!

Review posting has been slow but I have posted the following reviews since my last Sunday Salon (titles link to my reviews):

Recipes for a Perfect Marriage by Morag Prunty (which is a pen name for Kate Kerrigan) - my first Weekend Cooking post
The World We Found by Thrity Urmigar - recently out in paperback if you want to pick it up
And Laughter Fell From the Sky by Jyotsna Sreenivasan  - a great immigrant story!
Little Princes by Conor Grennan - an inspiring memoir
Whitethorn Woods by Maeve Binchy (audio) - the news of the beloved author's death this week was very sad - she will be missed
The Queen: A Life in Brief by Robert Lacey - this is surely Britain's year between the Jubilee and the Olympics



Speaking of the Olympics, I am obsessed with the coverage and it is eating into my reading and sleeping time!  I know Olympic competition is grueling for the athletes but it is not so easy on the spectators either!  Ha - just kidding  - I am so impressed by how much these athletes have accomplished and am loving watching them make history.

How has your summer been so far?  Are you watching the Olympics?  Any favorite reads from the summer?





14 comments:

  1. Sounds like you had a very relaxing vacation- good for you! I like your choice of summer reads too, I loved And Laughter Fell From the Sky, The World We Found, The Sandcastle Girls (Chris Bohjalian), Beautiful Ruins (Jess Walter) and Andy Cohen's memoir Most Talkative.
    I'm heading up to Central New York next week to see the family for the week, and I will be packing books.

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  2. Watching Olympics while browsing through blogs! No reading today!

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  3. Your vacation sounds marvelous! My summer has been tough since our dog has dementia - caring for her takes up a lot of my time.

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    1. Kathy, I am so sorry to hear about your dog.

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  4. We've been watching the Olympics like crazy too, but I have to admit that I am ready for it to be over. I'm not as eager to watch all of the track and field events, so I am hoping to get some sleep this week by going to bed early.

    Your vacation sounds wonderful! Margaritas, friends, beach and books? Could it get any better than that?

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  5. I've been totally sucked into the Olympics, too. In fact, I'm staying up too late watching them right now! It's sure not easy being a spectator. ;-)

    Much more of this and *I'm* going to need an impromptu escape to Mexico to catch up on my reading and rest. Yours sounds like it was excellent!

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  6. That Margarita looks awesome. Glad u have been having fun this summer.

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  7. Sounds like you are having a FUN summer! Love the sound of that trip to Mexico!

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  8. That's a tasty looking margarita! And your vacation was more productive than mine. I went on vacation for an entire week and only managed to finish one book.

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  9. Ah, now I was feeling all kinds of good about my vacation reading until I read this - I only finished 2 1/2 books! You've read a great variety of books this summer.

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  10. my summer has been crazy busy. i love your trip to mexico and i think bad marie is such a perfect book to bring on a trip like that! awesome.

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  11. How much fun to vacation in Mexico with a college friend and good books! I’ve recommended the Red Book to my college roommates too. I’m looking forward to your review.

    I’m just catching up after a week away. I haven’t watched much of the Olympics as I’ve been spending my free time outdoors or reading. Of the books I listed on that post that you linked to, my favorite was Code Name Verity. It might be packaged as YA, but it’s better for adults in my opinion.

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  12. Your vacation sounds like heaven … the beach, lots of reading and yummy drinks!

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  13. I'm way late to this post, but I totally agree with Jenners -- what a great vacation. That drink on top looks a-maz-ing.

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