Reading Wrap-Up: April 2014

Is it really the end of April already? Where has the month gone? I didn't get quite as much reading done as I'd hoped mostly because I've been trying to get this blog and my travel blog underway. Since reading and traveling for me go hand-in-hand I thought I should really have a blog devoted to each to keep the topics separate for readers who might only be interested in on or the other, but still give me the pleasure of enjoying both!

The two really do overlap each other for me though all the time as most of my travels are inspired by books I have read or the books I read are inspired by my travels. You'll find I tend to pick books set in different countries or with themes (like WWI and II lately) that tie in to a trip. I love how these types of books let me travel and explore these new places without leaving home. I also really enjoy learning about different cultures and historical events tied to the places I'm going to visit. I find I appreciate everything so much more and am a little more observant when I know a little bit about what I'm going to see. I also get a little thrill when I've read a book in a certain location (like Julia Child's "My Life in France" when I was in France) and then every time I see that book I'm instantly taken back to that time and place. And then I just love reliving great memories of the places I've been when I read about one of those cities in a new novel. Especially London and Paris. I just can't get enough of either city.  

At the end of each month I think I'll do a wrap-up post of what I've been reading, progress on my reading challenges, and what I have on the TBR (To Be Read) pile.



So let's see what I have been up to for the month of April shall we?

Books I've Read 

(Click on the title if you'd like to read my review of the book) 

source: Goodreads

• Paris, My Sweet: A Year in the City of Light (and Dark Chocolate) by Amy Thomas
• The Art of French Kissing by Kristin Harmel
• Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage by Elizabeth Gilbert
• 175 Ways to Travel Today by Rebekah Voss (review pending)

Books In Progress

source:Goodreads

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling
• The House at Tyneford by Natasha Solomans (audiobook but I'm struggling to finish because I don't really care for the narrator)  
• The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows (audiobook for the car...wish I could stay in my car all the time. This is SO good)
• The New York Times. 36 Hours. 125 Weekends in Europe by Barbara Ireland (LOVE this book!)

Reading Challenge Progress 

• Audiobook Challenge: 1 of 10 books completed
• Books on France Challenge: 2 of 6 books completed
• British History Challenge: 0 of 3 books completed
• European Reading Challenge: 0 of 5 books completed
• Foodies Read Challenge: 1 of 3 books completed
• Harry Potter and the 2014 (re) Read: 0 of 7 books completed
• Historical Fiction Challenge: 0 of 5 books completed
• I Love Library Books Challenge: 0 of 36 books completed
• Non-Fiction Challenge: 2 of 10 books completed
• Read your Freebies: 1 of 12 books completed 

TBR

• Somewhere in France: A Novel of the Great War by Jennifer Robson
• All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
• The Norman Conquest of England by Janice Hamilton
• Park Lane by Frances Osborne 
• Mr Darcy's Guide to Courtship: The Secrets of Seduction from Jane Austen's Most Eligible Bachelor by Emily Brand
• ...something about the Mayan ruins we'll be visiting in June

"The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page."

~ Augustine of Hippo

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