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Goodreads Monday

Goodreads Monday comes courtesy once again of Lauren’s Page Turners. Every Monday I will randomly pick a book on my Goodreads to read shelf and pair it with the cover image and Goodreads description. This week I picked another favorite number of mine, 72, and went the book that was there.

Quick Goodreads Stats

354: To Read Shelf

62: Read Shelf

6: Read 2019 Shelf

My Pick This Week

Charter Storm by Mary Searcy Bixby & Tom R. Davis

Released: September 18, 2018

Current Goodreads Rating: 2.64 stars (25 ratings, 18 reviews)

Goodreads Summary

Public education in the United States faces an unprecedented crisis. The explosive growth of charter schools over the last two decades has shaken the status quo to its core. At stake are the future of public schools and how they will continue to educate our nation’s youth.
Clashes over money and ideologies have led to a struggle between the public education establishment and those at the forefront of educational reform. The conflict is being waged in the court of public opinion, as well as in courtrooms throughout the country. While the outcome is impossible to predict, both sides are preparing for a fight of David versus Goliath proportions. Collaboration is critical to the success of both.
Educational experts Dr. Tom R. Davis and Mary Searcy Bixby have spent their entire careers improving public education—Mary in charter schools and Tom in traditional public education. In Charter Storm, they use their combined knowledge and research of over 120 individual interviews over five years to teach you about—
• essential insights those new to the charter school movement need for their schools to survive and thrive
• how aggressive educational establishment pushback threatens to sweep away the most vulnerable
• key issues authorizers must know to effectively oversee their organizations
• the overwhelming challenges the educational establishment faces today and how it can effectively navigate the changing local and national educational landscape
• why active participation and support of charter school associations are essential to each charter school and the educational reform movement’s long-term success
• what every charter school parent needs to know to create and support an exceptional educational experience for his or her children

My Thoughts

I won this on Goodreads through a giveaway. The reviews have me a little skeptical on this one.

I plan on reading this book. We just put our children in a charter school this year and I am curious to see what this book as to say. I also won this book for free so, no harm, no foul. I am a public school teacher myself so I am curious to see the charter school realm explained in this book. I will let you all know what I think about this when I get around to it!

Goodreads Monday

Goodreads Monday comes courtesy once again of Lauren’s Page Turners. Every Monday I will randomly pick a book on my Goodreads to read shelf and pair it with the cover image and Goodreads description. This week I picked my favorite number, 54, and went the book that was there.

Quick Goodreads Stats

318: To Read Shelf

59: Read Shelf

3: Read 2019 Shelf

My Pick This Week

Stay Up With Hugo Best by Erin Somers

Expected Release: April 2, 2019

Current Goodreads Rating: 4.04 stars (68 ratings, 28 reviews)

Goodreads Summary

An incredibly timely, terrifically witty and moving debut about a young writer’s assistant on a late night comedy show and what transpires when she accepts an invitation from its enigmatic host to spend a long weekend at his mansion in Connecticut.

June Bloom is a broke, cynical twenty-nine-year-old writer’s assistant on the late-night comedy show, Stay Up with Hugo Best. Hugo Best is in his sixties, a beloved icon of TV and humor, and a notorious womanizer. After he unexpectedly retires and a party is held for his now unemployed staff, June ends up at a dive bar for an open-mic night and prepares for the sad return to the anonymous comedian lifestyle. What she’s not prepared for is a run-in with Hugo at that dive bar. Nor for the invitation that swiftly follows: Hugo asks June to come to his mansion in Greenwich for the long Memorial Day weekend. “No funny business,” he insists.

June, in need of a job and money, confident she can handle herself, but secretly harboring the remains of a childhood crush on the charming older comedian and former role model, accepts. The exact terms of the visit are never spelled out, but June is realistic and clear-eyed enough to guess. Even so, as the weekend unfolds and the enigmatic Hugo gradually reveals himself, their dynamic proves to be much more complicated and less predictable than she expected.

At once hilarious and poignant, brilliantly incisive and terrifically propulsive, Stay Up with Hugo Best is an incredibly timely exploration of sexual politics in the #MeToo age, and the unforgettable story of one young woman’s poignant stumbling into adulthood.

My Thoughts

Well hey there! This book sounds AWESOME! I just added it to my Amazon Wish List and I am looking forward to this book being released in a few months. At first I glance at the cover and I thought, why would I have added this book to my want to read shelf…really? Then I read the description and I thought…THAT’S WHY!

I think this is semi-backfiring on me. It is supposed to get you excited for reads and all this is going is adding more books to my already long, long list! YIKES! Since last Monday my Want To Read shelf has increased by 13 books. I was hoping I would randomly pick some books and be like, nawh, taking this off my life. Maybe next week that will happen, haha. Feel free to pick a number between 1 and 318 and I’ll choose that book for next Monday! Happy reading!

Book Review: An Anonymous Girl

This review was previous published over at Book In The Bag Blog where I guest write a review every Thursday! I wanted to start 2019 off with a bang and what better way than with my review of An Anonymous Girl??

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this advance copy in exchange for my honest review! This book officially comes out on January 8, 2019, pre-order it today!

As soon as I heard Hendricks and Pekkanen were penning another novel I could not wait to get my hands on it. The Wife Between Us blew me away (by the way, go get that book NOW if you haven’t read it) and I could not wait to see what else could come out of their 2 minds. I was not let down.

The story is about a young woman who ends up in a research study to make some extra money. The research is all about morals and ethics and is put together by a professor at a local, well known university, who should probably have her own morals and ethics checked out.

This psychological thriller is told by Jessica, the young woman, and Dr. Shields, the professor. They alternate chapters so it gives us a unique perspective and keeps up guessing throughout the novel. Just when you think this is going to be a predictable read, it’s not. There are not many twists and turns but enough to keep you interested. As we get further in to the book the characters grow and show us sides to them you just cannot predict to see. The book really picks up in the second half after the stage has been fully set.

I will say I was a little let down with the ending. I expected it to end with some big bang and it just fell flat for me. It felt rushed at the end and it just, ended. I did not get the closure I would have liked; however, it does let you know what happens with the relationship Jessica and Dr. Shields have. I would have like just a little bit more at the end to satisfy myself.

I am giving this book 4 stars. It keeps you going and guessing. I did think I had the book figured out before I got to the halfway point. That’s where the book really picks up and has left you with enough little pieces you have to read to see how they all fit together. I will say, Greer and Pekkanen sure do have some twisted minds! I hope they collaborate yet again, these ladies know how to throw you for a loop! Have you read either of their books?? Let me know if you’ve read either book or if you’re looking forward to this one!

Title: An Anonymous Girl

Author: Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Release Date: January 8, 2019

ISBN: 1250133734

Quick Link To Amazon Here

The Journey Begins

Thanks for joining me! I recently decided to start my own personal reading blog. I have found myself reading just TOO much and I need to get what I am reading out and into your world’s faster than I was previously able to! So, here I am!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton

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I’m keeping that cheesy WordPress quote a picture, I’m digging it! But, I want to discuss the start of my journey on this blog so I am going to do something I have NEVER done before; commit to a reading challenge!

Commit with me!

I have decided to go ahead and do the 2019 Popsugar Reading Challenge! Interested? Here’s what it entails (and no, I’m not doing the advanced part):

PS18_2019_ReadingChallenge_Pinterest

You can find more of the details here: https://www.popsugar.com/entertainment/Reading-Challenge-2019-45450968

You can get yourself a printable copy of this list at the link I shared above. I already have one book in my possession ready to go and that’s a book being turned into a movie. For that I will be reading The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah. I snagged a copy when Amazon had a flash sale going on! Please send me your recommendations on what I should read and accept this challenge with me! It will be FUN! Comment to let me know you’re in and what we should read, maybe we can even start a buddy read! I can’t wait!

-Donna