Centaurs, Readalongs, Books, Books, Books.

• In addition to not liking school, the Pirate is still struggling to find a book that he enjoys reading. The things he has interest in (Harry Potter, Percy Jackson) are just a bit too hard. He still scorns The Magic Treehouse and other books of the appropriate level. The one thing he is very into is an online game called Wizard 101. In Wizard 101 there are all these references to other characters from famous stories and myths. He is actually interested in reading Greek myths, but only the ones with fantastic creatures- centaurs, gorgons, satyrs. Last night I ordered a book of called What a Beast!: A Look-it-Up Guide to the Monsters and Mutants of Mythology (Mythlopedia). I hope it becomes something for him to pore over, and sparks his interest in more of the myths. It looks a little hard for him, but my fingers are crossed.
• This was a crazy busy week here. Mike was gone a couple of nights. I went to the History Book Club meeting. On Wednesday I had a job interview- it went well, but no decision for a while. It's not my dream job, but I could (and would) do it well.  I am still hoping to get into a position that is a bit more academic in nature- history, or books, or library related- but you don't turn down a job interview.
• I continue to be surprised when schools in the South cancel for bad weather 12 hours in advance of the weather happening. I understand that it's hard for them to drive on ice and snow, but at least wait for the ice and snow to start!
• I am considering the idea of a Laura Ingalls Wilder Readalong. There are Nine books in the series though, and I'm not sure if I'd want to do all of them. So a couple of questions- pick a few of the better known ones and just do those or make it more of a reading challenge to span the year and do all nine? Just pick one? The Long Winter ? Input?
• I am ahead of schedule on hexes! But I'm running out of paper pieces. I just discovered that Creative Memories made a paper punch the right size and I'm stalking them on Ebay. Sadly, they do not go for cheap, so unless I can snag one for under $20, it's not happening. 
• I made a list of due dates for non-renewable library books. I made a list of release dates for NetGalley books (once I figured out I could download them a second time when the first 55 days were up it changed the pressure.) I stopped putting library holds on books for myself. I got my library checkouts down to a mere 23 (for me, don't ask how many total we have. Let's just say that my family keeps circulation numbers up.) And then I went to that book club meeting, and had to request Free Land by Rose Wilder Lane, and then Gone Girl came in. (Tho after reading Andi's review, I'm thinking maybe I can put it off a bit longer?)  This seems doable. (I can hear you laughing!)

What I Read This Week:

• The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Of course I started it. You should see my thrift store copy, it is WELL loved. (I do have my own copies of the series, but they are, as you might guess, in storage.)
• Too Wicked to Wed by Cara Elliot. I like this one very much, but reading time has been scarce and I'm a bit bummed that the library's new Inter Library Loan policy means I might as well just buy the rest of the series.
• The Sea of Tranquility: A Novel by Katja Millay. This was on a lot of Best Of lists last year. I've barely started it and when I realized it didn't release for a few months yet I moved it on down the list to wait a while. It starts off well though!
• The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson. I follow @maurenjohnson on twitter, and absolutely had to read this one. She's a terrific example of how to market your own book. I have this in both e-book form and hard copy (both from the library). The e-book expires soon, so I swapped over to it. I have high hopes for this one. I'd LOVE to continue my streak of excellent books so far in 2013. (Wouldn't everyone?)