It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date, and adapted by Kellee at Unleashing Readers and Jen at Teach Mentor Texts with a children’s/YA focus. This weekly roundup is a great way to discover new blogs and bloggers, share recommended (or not so recommended….) titles, and add to your ever-growing to-read list.
Title: Sphere
Author: Michael Crichton
I went through a bit of a reading slump for a few weeks – my brain was all scrambled and reading just seemed too much work. I read picture books for work, but for entertainment I found myself drawn more to the TV than my bookshelf. Out of desperation I decided to give an old favourite another go, and boy am I glad I did, because this baby blew my reading slump right out of the park.
This novel is fantastic. Edge-of-your-scene suspense, a thrilling, breakneck pace, interesting characters and perspectives, and enough science, math and psychology that you actually feel better educated having read it. Crichton was undoubtedly a brilliant man and he knew how to write a novel that really read like a movie in your mind. Gripping, thought-provoking, and lots of fun.
Title: Death Comes as the End
Author: Agatha Christie
Having destroyed my reading slump I was eager to devour more books. The next title I finished this week was a great historical mystery from the mistress of the classic who-dunnit, Agatha Christie. I read my way through her Poirot and Miss Marple novels, and I read a few of the Tommy and Tuppence stories, but this was an entirely new title to me (hurray for shelf-reading!).
This murder mystery is set in ancient Egypt, which makes for a refreshing and unusual setting. I really enjoyed the story, the storytelling and the characters, and there’s even a romantic subplot that I actually enjoyed (I’m not usually a fan of romantic plot lines). If you like classic murder mysteries, definitely give this lesser-known title a try.
Title: George and Martha
Author: James Marshall
This wry, witty, understated children’s classic features dear friends and hippopotamuses George and Martha. The text is spare, the illustrations are muted, but the results are brilliant. “The Tub” is my favourite of the five short stories in this collection. A pretty wonderful children’s classic worth seeking it if you aren’t familiar with it yet.
It feels like I’m finally back in the reading game! What have you been reading this week?
Raincity Librarian 
I’ve read a couple of Michael Crichton novels. Love edge of your seat suspense. May check this one out. Love George and Martha!
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Perfect books for reading on a long commute – the time just seems to fly by! 🙂
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I loved George and Martha when I was little. I will have to look out for it for my kiddos next time we go to the library!
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I love rediscovering classic books that I haven’t thought about in years – it’s easy to get caught up in all the shiny new books and forget about the old favourites hiding away in the shelves. 🙂
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I love George And Martha…I have not read a Michael Crichton boom in a long long time,
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Whenever I’m in a bit of a reading slump, I can always count on Michael Crichton to wake things up and snap me out of my slump!
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Love Christie and also Tuppence and Tommy Beresford! 🙂
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It’s so exciting to discover a new-to-you title from a favourite author. 🙂
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Hmmm…I think I’ll try another Crichton novel the next time I’m in a reading slump. I haven’t read Sphere, but have enjoyed others. I love Agatha Christie! Either I missed this one when I read down the shelf in my library during my teens, or else I’ve forgotten it.
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I’d never seen the Christie title before either, and I used to read her books heavily when I was a teen as well. It’s exciting when you find something new from an author you thought you’d read out!
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I just started reading the George and Martha books to my youngest granddaughter, 4, & she loves them. They are so sweet. Crichton and Christie are certainly two authors to bring you out of the slump! Thanks for sharing those, too.
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Sometimes, when all else fails, you just have to go back to basics and reread a much beloved book!
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George and Martha brings me back to when I taught first grade. Such a classic story of friendship. Thanks for sharing!
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Sometimes it’s the simplest stories that have the most impact. It would be so easy to overlook these stories because they aren’t as flashy as some of the more recent children’s books, but you’d certainly be missing out!
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Looks like you needed some specific titles to get you hooked on books again! Happy reading this spring!
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Yes – sometimes you just have to get back to basics to shake things up a bit. 🙂
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Glad the slump is over! I get in a reading rut sometimes too – It’s a hazard of reading so much I think. Your brain just stops!
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So true! Everything just sort of blends together, and you need a bit of a jolt, something a bit different, to snap you out of it!
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I’m glad your back into a good reading groove. 🙂
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Me too, it feels good to be back in the swing of things! 🙂
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