Hello, Readers!

I’ve been busy this week, especially today, because our little chickens arrived at 6:30am! May I present Snickerdoodle, Oreo, Sugar, and Chip! They are happily snuggled up under their heater, and they seem to understand how to eat and drink, so yay for them! I’ve read that as adults this breed sounds like a 50-year-old woman who smokes 2 packs a day, so that’ll be interesting. Hubby and I have already been impersonating what we expect them to sound like. 😀

But enough about chickens.

This blog is about writing (and reading!), so let me get back on track here. Last week I asked you to send me your suggestions for fiction reading in the Middle Grade and Young Adult genres, and you didn’t disappoint! The book I’ve decided to read for May/June is The Boy Who Knew Everything, by Victoria Forester. I read the first book in her series, The Girl Who Could Fly, a couple years back and loved it, so I’m excited to dive back into this ongoing story!

And below, check out my reading list for the next 12 months! 

July:
100 Cupboards Book 1
N. D. Wilson

August:
The Boy on the Bridge
M. R. Carey

September:
Myst: The Book of Atrus
Rand Miller

October:
The Bottoms
Joe R. Lansdale

November:
Outlaws of Time: The Legend of Sam Miracle
N. D. Wilson

December:
Keeper of the Lost Cities
Shannon Messenger

January:
Mistborn
Brandon Sanderson

February:
The Graveyard Book
Neil Gaiman

March:
1984
George Orwell
(It’s been a LOOOOONG time)

April:
The Fifth Season
N. K. Jemisin

May:
Lord Foul’s Bane (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant)
Stephen R. Donaldson

This last one is a series I read many times when I was a young adult, but that was ages ago, and I’d like to revisit it. I’m putting it last on the list because I know that as soon as I start, I’ll be sucked back into the 6 (I think there are more now, actually) book series!

The How

How am I supposed to homeschool two kids, write a (long) novel, and find time to read? I’ve found that, despite getting up early each day, I am the least productive in the morning, so I’ve decided to make part of my morning my reading time. Looking forward to starting … TOMORROW! Stay tuned for book reviews as I go!

Progress on The Guardian

In other news, The fifth and final book in the Lens series,The Guardian, is moving along swimmingly. I did go ahead and extend the release date by one month; you can expect it now on July 16, 2020. Sorry for the delay. I was stuck in the news cycle for a few weeks there and just fell behind. The good news is that I’m back on track now and enjoying it! 

Thanks for all the feedback last week, folks. Any books that are important to you that I missed on this list? Send ‘em along by replying to this email. 

Until next time …

Happy Reading!

Jen