It’s back-to-school week in the Riordan household. There was much groaning and grumbling as we filled up the backpacks, made lunches and found the school uniforms, but both boys had a good first day.
We got a lot of reading done this vacation. With two reluctant reader sons, it’s so nice to watch them just pick up a book, sit down, and get immersed in a story. It happens more and more frequently these days, thanks in part to a whole slew of good novels being published. Right now, Patrick is halfway through Skulduggery Pleasant. I’m reading parts of it with him, and it’s fun to revisit the novel again after two years. I love the dialogue between Stephanie and Skulduggery. Haley is reading the newest Warriors book. Thank goodness Erin Hunter is so prolific. Becky just finished Of All Sad Words, a mystery by our friend Bill Crider. He’s one of the authors whose books we always order as soon as they are published, and fortunately he keeps ’em coming. Becky was quite upset during the cruise when she left Bill’s book on the balcony and it got drenched in a sudden rainstorm. Fortunately it dried and she was able to finish it, though the book is now in pretty bad shape. As for me, I just finished a book “How Not to Die,” written by Jan Garavaglia, a medical examiner who formerly worked here in San Antonio. Not my usual fare, but a fascinating look at the sad and sometimes avoidable ways people die. The short version: Don’t drink, don’t smoke, wear your seatbelt, and if you’re having chest pains, don’t take Pepto-Bismol and assume you’ll be okay. Now I’m back into the Bone series by Jeff Smith. Books 4-8 arrived yesterday (hooray!) and I polished off #4 during the evening. By the way, I recently read the graphic novel The Watchmen (which I admit I had never heard of until the movie trailer came out). Wow! An absolutely stunning book. Very graphic and gritty. I would recommend it to high school and adult readers. I grew up reading my uncles’ comics from the 50s and 60s, and the Watchmen reminded me why I was so drawn to that medium. Older readers, definitely check this out before the movie, because (yeah, you know I’m gonna say it) the book is always better.
Have a good week, everyone, and keep reading!
