Friday Update

Hello, fun seekers! I was socked out with some sort of nasty bug last weekend, but I'm feeling much better now and am having a good week. I hope you are, too.

I went to the library yesterday to return some books and somehow found myself in the Friends' of the Library bookstore. Weird, huh? I browsed for a bit, and pulled down The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson to possibly buy. To my surprise, the gentleman standing next to me looked at me, looked at the book, and told me that he was a high school librarian, reading it right now, and finding it hard to get through. The story is good, he said, but it's written in period language and he thought it was kind of a slog to read. Not having much interest in slogging through reading for pleasure, I thanked him for his advice and put it back on the shelf. (Anyone read this one and want to weigh in? Is it worth reading? Is it a slog?)

A few minutes later, as I was thinking about leaving the store without buying anything (a horrifying thought, I know), he tapped me on the shoulder and handed me The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer. It's great, he said, and if you are looking for some interesting YA, this was one of the best he'd read recently. Then we had a conversation about YA dystopian fiction - how much of it there seems to be right now, and I recommended he read The Hunger Games. You just have to love conversations with random strangers about good books to read! Especially when it's two adults talking about the best young adult books out right now.

In other fun news, Things from Another World has some deals now I thought I'd share with you.

Free Domestic Shipping on $30+ IN-STOCK ORDERS
Coupon Code: DOGDAYS
Ends 08/31/09

10% Off IN-STOCK ORDERS Over $50
Coupon Code: SCORCHER
Ends 08/31/09

Personally, I have my eye on the Serenity: Those Left Behind Trade Paperback. I suggest we all stock up on some comic books to read during August. Have a great weekend!