Shaking things up here at Bookshelf Fantasies! Don’t worry, I’m not getting too crazy — but I am reintroducing my regular Monday feature with a new name and slightly different focus. When I started blogging, I created a weekly Monday feature with a “back to the workweek” theme, and cutely (or not) called it The Monday Agenda. You know, setting out the agenda for my reading week… identifying the 3 or 4 books I planned to read each week, and then giving an update the following Monday on how far I’d come with my previous week’s agenda.

Lately, though, I’ve been trying to move away from over-planning, and want to continue working on not getting ahead of myself when it comes to deciding what to read. So,with my shiny new title, The Monday Check-In, I’m resetting my course. And – ta da! – here’s my new weekly feature, with thanks to all who offered me their opinions on what to call the darn thing.

The Monday Check-in:  My Monday tradition, including a look back and a look ahead — what I read last week, what new books came my way, and what books are keeping me busy right now. Plus a smattering of other stuff too.

What did I read last week?

Jinn and Juice by Nicole Peeler: So much fun. My review is here.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer: And now I’m hooked. My review is here.

Pop culture goodness:

I saw The Hobbit with the fam this weekend. Um, it was long? The super-special high-def made me feel like I was watching my son play video games, and I was amused by how long the battle was, when it gets only five pages in the book. Oh well. New Zealand did look spectacular, didn’t it? I did love the Billy Boyd song at the end, and overall, having seen all three Hobbit movies makes me yearn even more for a LOTR movie marathon.

Fresh Catch:

New this week:

One hard copy of a book I’ve wanted for a few months now… plus, did you see all the Kindle price-drop madness over on Amazon this past week? I went a little bit crazy, snatching up copies of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, two Patrick Rothfuss books, the Mistborn trilogy, and a whole bunch more.

What will I be reading during the coming week?

Currently in my hands:

Continuing onward with The Lunar Chronicles — I’m about halfway through Scarlet, and have a copy of Cress ready to go.

Meanwhile, I was about 35 pages into Glory O’Brien’s History of the Future when I got sucked into the Lunar world… and I hope to get back to it this week, because I really liked what I’d read so far!

Now playing via audiobook:

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey: I loved this book when I read it last year. I bought a copy of the sequel, The Infinite Sea, but I’ve been holding off on starting it until I could squeeze in a re-read. A refresher via audio seems like the way to go!

Reading with my kiddo:

Talking to Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles #4) by Patricia C. Wrede: Still slogging our way through this one. What with all the holiday excitement and general busy-ness, we’ve barely made any progress this past week. Still pressing forward!

Book club reading:

Fields & Fantasies Book Club pick for December: Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh. We’ll have discussion posts up at the very end of the month, and you’re welcome to join in! Post your own piece about the book, or just come share your thoughts here. The more, the merrier!

Classic read: The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy. (One chapter per week)

A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon: Reading and discussing two chapters per week, from now through the end of 2015!

Want to join any of the group reads? Let me know and I’ll provide the links!

So many book, so little time…

My Monday tradition, including a look back and a look ahead — what I read last week, what new books came my way, and what books are keeping me busy right now. Plus everything else I’m hoping to squeeze in among the nooks and crannies.*

*I’m thinking of changing the theme/title of these Monday posts. Please take my poll — see below!

How did I do with last week’s reading agenda?

The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion: Done! My review is here.

The Perfect Mother by Nina Darnton: I’d have to classify this one as an “it was fine” book. I read it; I wanted to see it through to the end; I finished it. But I never got particularly involved with the characters, I found the writing style inconsistent, and I didn’t feel any sense of suspense while reading it. And when I sat down to write a review, I just couldn’t find enough of interest to actually say. So, yeah: Fine.

Ms. Marvel by G. Willow Wilson:  Loved it! I’m by no means an expert on the Marvel universe, but this is one comic series that I’ll want to stick with.

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand: One word response? Magnificent. You can read my reaction here.

Fresh Catch:

New this week:

What’s on my reading agenda for the coming week?

I’m changing my approach for this section of my Monday Agenda posts. Up to now, I’ve been listing the 2 – 4 books that I’ve been intending to read next. The problem is, it often feels like unwanted pressure to keep on track. One of my new goals is to read according to my mood, not according to a list or schedule. With that in mind, I’m going to start focusing on one book at a time — so my reading agenda for the week will show what’s current, but not what’s on tap for later in the week. Here we go…

Currently in my hands:

I’ve just started Jinn and Juice, the first book in a new urban fantasy series by Nicole Peeler.

Now playing via audiobook:

Cinder by Marissa Meyer: After hearing so much about this series (from so many fans!), I decided to finally give it a try.

Reading with my kiddo:

Talking to Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles #4) by Patricia C. Wrede: My son and I are enjoying the final installment in this series, although I’m not crazy yet about the new main character and wish we’d spend more time with characters from the previous installments. But we’ve only read about a quarter of the book so far, so there’s still hope!

Book club reading:

Classic read: The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy. (One chapter per week)

A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon: Reading and discussing two chapters per week, from now through the end of 2015!

Landline by Rainbow Rowell: Outlander Book Club’s book-of-the-month for December.

Want to join any of the group reads? Let me know and I’ll provide the links!

POLL: Share your thoughts!

I’m not sure that I love the “agenda” concept any more, since I want to shift my focus a bit. As I mentioned above, I’m trying to do more of my reading to suit my mood, book by book, rather than planning the next several books in advance. I think these posts will become more of an update/review, rather than setting a course for the coming week. With that in mind, what do you think of my title options?

So many book, so little time…

That’s my agenda. What’s yours? Add your comments to share your bookish agenda for the week.

Happy reading!

Not a lofty, ambitious to-be-read list consisting of 100+ book titles. Just a simple plan for the upcoming week — what I’m reading now, what I plan to read next, and what I’m hoping to squeeze in among the nooks and crannies.

How did I do with last week’s agenda?

The Last Letter From Your Lover by Jojo Moyes: Done! My review is here.

The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion: I’ve read about 25% so far. It’s great to hang out with Don and Rosie again!

The Boy Who Drew Monsters by Keith Donohue: DNF – for now. My ARC was so badly formatted that I had to put it down. I’d still like to read this, but I’ll wait for my library to get a copy.

Fresh Catch:

Two of my library requests just came in!

What’s on my reading agenda for the coming week?

I should be done with The Rosie Effect in the next couple of days. After that, I’m looking forward to:

First Impressions by Charlie Lovett

The Perfect Mother by Nina Darnton

(This is assuming that I can resist my library books… which is highly doubtful.)

Ongoing reads:

Shared with the kiddo:

Calling on Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles #3) by Patricia C. Wrede: Finished! After a shaky start (involving way too many talking animals), Calling on Dragons turned into a good magical quest filled with a great mixture of adventure and humor. My son and I both enjoyed it, and he insists on starting #4 immediately – so onward we go, starting Talking to Dragons!

Now playing via audiobook:

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand is just taking my breath away, it’s so good. I have about three hours to go… and I keep looking for excuses to go for long walks or drives so I have time to listen! Such an incredibly powerful book.

Book club reading:

Classic read: The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy. (One chapter per week)

A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon: Reading and discussing two chapters per week, from now through the end of 2015!

Landline by Rainbow Rowell: Outlander Book Club’s book-of-the-month for December.

Want to join any of the group reads? Let me know and I’ll provide the links!

So many book, so little time…

That’s my agenda. What’s yours? Add your comments to share your bookish agenda for the week.

Happy reading!