half broke horses and other fine books

I've had another nice run of good books. Just raced through Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls for my adult bookgroup. Worth the effort! This is the same author of The Glass Castle, but instead of a personal memoir, it is a somewhat embellished account of her grandmother's life growing up in the dusty plains in the early 1900s. A spitfire and character she was! So many memorable stories and quotes and for me, far more enjoyable (and lighthearted) than The Glass Castle.

I am nearing the end of The Extraordinary Adventures of Ordinary Boy, a kids' book we're using for Battle of the Books. Clever and probably will be liked by kids (esp. boys) who like funny stories with comic book overtones. Thumbs up for Closed for the Season, another satisfactory mystery by Mary Downing Hahn. Finally, I read the first in the Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, called Eighth Grade Bites. It's about an 8th grade boy who is half-vampire, who was orphaned 3 years earlier, and is currently living with his aunt. Conveniently, she works as a nurse and can sneak out almost-expired blood bags, which he handily drinks like a typical juice box. ugh! The delivery of details like this was a bit distracting, as it sort of took away the vampirish mystique for me. But it got better as it went on, and I'd be interested in reading the next one in the series before deciding against it entirely.

Next up on the bookshelf: Leviathan, The Broken Bike Boy and the Queen of 33rd Street, and Very LeFreak. I also need to finish The Treasure Map of Boys and Solace of the Road, both of which I've just dipped my big toe into, but would venture in to the deep end to finish.