Well, here it is four months into the year and I figured I do a bit of a catch up post. I’ve read 31 books so far and there have been some real winners among them. One thing I’ve really happy about is that I’ve been exploring more short stories and I had been trying to read one week but some how have fallen out of that so I need to get back into that groove.

When it comes to challenges I started the year off doing quite well and making headway into my challenges but have sort of stalled now. As a matter of fact it’s now time to wrap up the Latin American Reading Challenge. I only finished one book out of the four. Oh well, the other three go back on the shelf until the mood strikes. Thank you Kristina for organizing the challenge.

As far as the others go, I have finished one book in the Once Upon a Time III Challenge, two books for What’s In a Name Challenge, and three books for the 9 for 09 Challenge. I still need to do some reviews so that’s why my sidebar isn’t updated.

This means I’ve yet to even cross off one book for Dewey’s Reading Challenge and the Art History Challenge. But I’m not giving up just yet on any of these. There’s still plenty of time and I am looking forward to all my reads.

So that’s the scoop for me. How about you? How’s your reading year shaping up? I’ve got a lot of running around planned this weekend but hopefully there’ll still be time for some reading. Hope you all have a great weekend!

I meant to post this last night but was having some internet issues. Bad internet. Anyway, as I mentioned earlier I finished two really good books lately and so here are the reviews.

First up is the advance reading copy I received for Sleepwalking In Daylight by Elizabeth Flock. This engaging story is about a wife and mother who feels lost in her life. That there is no more life plan for her but catering to her children’s needs. But it’s not just about her story it’s also about her teen daughter who is going through a difficult time as well.

“A day after the nothingness of our marriage is finally acknowledged, on Sunday night, I find myself in a bathroom stall at the deep-dish pizza place with my head against the cold metal stall, crying. Back outside, across from our table, there is a young couple trying bites of each other’s pizza and laughing at each other’s jokes and listening intently to the other’s stories. Did we used to be them? Now we are nothing, Bob and I.”

Don’t you just feel for her? I loved how the writer really brought Sam’s character to life. Sometimes she was rambling about thoughts and feelings and that just seemed very real to me. I really enjoyed this book and here’s my full review. I’d not read anything by Elizabeth Flock before but I’ll definitely be look for some of her other books. You can also find out more at the author’s website.

Next up is the advanced review copy I received of Somebody Else’s Daughter by Elizabeth Brundage. This novel centers on the lives of some women, the secrets they keep and the secrets that are kept from them. In particular, there is young Willa who was given up for adoption as an infant and is now finding out more about herself and her adoptive family.

“Nate Gallagher woke in his Brooklyn apartment, his bedsheets soaked with sweat. She had come to him again in a dream, cradling a swaddled infant in her arms. He went to work that morning in a fog, riding the subway with the detached preoccupation of a condemned man.”

As there are several characters who are key to the story, it does seem to take a while to fully get into the narrative but still each character is interesting and you can’t help but wonder how all the secrets are going to be divulged and how it’s all going to play out in the end. Making this quite a suspenseful read. Here’s my full review and you can also find out more at the author’s website.

Now, I’m getting quite into the life of another fascinating woman, Juana la loca, via the historical novel The Last Queen by C.W. Gortner.

How about you, read any good women’s fiction lately?

I’m borrowing this meme from Susan. I was just saying last month how I felt that my reading felt more inclusive but let’s see how well I’m doing with this meme first.

1. Name the last book by a female author that you’ve read. This is easy for me as I read a lot more books by women. Latest books I’ve finished are Sleepwalking in Daylight by Elizabeth Flock and Somebody Else’s Daughter by Elizabeth Brundage. Both were really good so stay tuned for a review.

2. Name the last book by an African or African-American author that you’ve read. It’s been a while but last Spring I read Half of a Yellow Sun by Nigerian Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

3. Name one from a Latino/a author. This year I’ve read Portrait in Sepia by Isabel Allende and am dipping here and there into The Captain’s Verses by Pabulo Neruda.

4. How about one from an Asian country or Asian-American? Started off the year with Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto which is one of my favorite reads so far this year.

5. What about a GLBT writer? Thanks to the Slaves of Golconda I read Jeanette Winterson’s Sexing the Cherry in January.

6. Why not name an Israeli/Arab/Turk/Persian writer, if you’re feeling lucky? Last month I read Honeymoon in Tehran by Azadeh Moaveni.

7. Any other “marginalized” authors you’ve read lately? I can’t really think of anyone that would fit this question.

So actually not too shabby right? Let’s hope the rest of the year I continue to add books from various genres and from all across the globe. How about you, how diverse is your reading?