Hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

First Among Sequels by Jasper Fforde – This is the fifth book in the Tuesday Next series. I found it at the dollar store and grabbed it because I love the series. I figured this would be a reread but I don’t think I read it before.

If you aren’t familiar with the series it takes place in England in an alternate reality where the Crimean War never ended, dirigibles rule the skies, and literary crime is rampant. Tuesday Next works for the Literary Crime branch of law enforcement. She is able to physically go into books and interact with the characters.

In this book Tuesday is juggling hopeless apprentices, trying to stop the Council of Genres from turning the works of Austin into reality shows, and brokering peace between Racy Novels and Feminist Works. (Racy Novels are threatening to detonate a ‘dirty bomb’ that inserts badly written sex scenes into Feminist Works and Ecclesiastical.) This isn’t my favorite of the series but I still laughed out loud at several times. These need to be read in order so you understand how the BookWorld works.

At Home: A Short History of Private Life by Bill Bryson – In this latest book he uses his house as a basis to discuss anything that catches his fancy. I can just imagine him wandering through a room and free associating on the objects in it. He discusses the history of hygiene in the bathroom chapter, sex in the bedroom, the phone in the hall, etc. The result is a hodgepodge of history and facts. When I was reading this at work I kept wanting to share random facts with people. There really isn’t a coherent story but it is interesting. This is an advanced reading copy from the library. It is due to be published in October. This is the book that the SO and I have been fighting over to see who got to read it when. I had to finish it quickly for peace to reign in our house again. LOL.

I am Najood, Age 10 and divorced by Najood Ali and Delphine Minoui – This is a very small book. It can be read in one sitting. Najood was married to a much older man when she was about 10. Her marriage contract specified that she wouldn’t be touched until puberty but he started raping and beating her immediately. She ran away to a court and begged a judge to give her a divorce. This set legal precedent in Yemen where now several other child brides have filed for divorce. The book is told from her point of view so the legal wranglings are only hinted at. It would be interesting to hear what really happened behind the scenes.