This week was a blog bust for me. I was busy all week and my regular blog schedule got interrupted, and by the time the craziness calmed, the week was over and all the stuff I had ready to go never went. I’m hoping to get back to a regular schedule this week now that things seems to be getting back to normal, or at least some semblance of normal around here. (My husband and I always joke that we don’t lead normal lives but we also sort of like it this way. We don’t get bored. :-))

I wanted to take a quick moment to talk about libraries. Many, probably most of us, are regular patrons and we love our local libraries that supply us with all the books we want to read. Libraries are places of wonder, education, and entertainment. And, unfortunately, many, if not all, are experiencing some sort of funding shortage. The American Library Association, which is holding its Annual Convention in Washington, DC this weekend will be hosting a rally on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, June 29th to bring needed attention to the problems libraries across the U.S. are facing. I won’t be able to attend the rally but I did want to mention it here. I will also probably be writing to my representative to remind her just how important it is to support local libraries. It’s not just about books, although I could probably make the argument on that alone, but libraries offer many free services and classes that help individuals in our communities get back on their feet and they provide children and adults with places to learn, escape, and be creative. I know for many people libraries are probably on the bottom of their lists, but we should all take a minute to make sure they don’t become extinct.

Last week, I had the opportunity to meet up with Carol Fitzgerald of The Book Reporter. I do reviews for The Book Reporter, which you’ve heard me talk about before, and since she was in town for the American Library Association Convention, we had the chance to meet up for dinner and talk about books and pretty much everything else. It was a great dinner and I’m glad the scheduling worked out for both of us. The reason I mention this is because Carol wrote a great piece on saving libraries on The Huffington Post that you should read. The full article is here.

Library lecture now over, thanks for listening. 🙂

So, to wrap this one up, I read:

The Divine Sacrifice by Tony Hays. I’m not a mystery person but I’m trying to read more of them. I liked it but I think my problem with mysteries is that I spend the whole time trying to figure out who did it that I forget to sometimes enjoy the trip.

Fire by Kristin Cashore. I didn’t enjoy it as much as Graceling but still very good. Cashore has an amazing ability to create brand new worlds that really do enchant.

This week I plan to post reviews of The Conquest by Elizabeth Chadwick and Benighted by Kit Whitfield and maybe one more if I find the time to write. I’ll be starting Deliver Us From Evil by David Baldacci today. A co-worker loaned it to me and while it’s not my normal reading, I’m looking forward to the change of pace.

Happy Sunday!