Friday Reads

Hey everybody! Can you believe it is time for another fabulous Friday Reads? This weekend, I'm hoping to finally finish the Everlost trilogy. I'm feeling a bit more inspired since hearing Neal Schusterman, the author, speak yesterday, but I'm still needing a little push. Then, to balance out my YA love, I'm going to sit down and read Schindler's List, in order to finally finish the Back to the Classics Challenge that I started earlier this year. I'm still not really sure what I'm planning to do as far as reading challenges, but I will keep you posted.

Last week, I finished reading A Gate at the Stairs by one of my all time favorite authors, Lorrie Moore. True to form, Ms. Moore did NOT disappoint. Her writing, quite frankly, humbles me, and she manages to find the poetic in the mundane. I loved here characters in this book, and the story, about a college student the year after 911 struggling with personal and societal identity crisis, veered into wild turns. Initially, I thought the book would be just another nannying-for-rich-people-helps-student-find-herself tale, but this book was so much more. While reading, I was forced to confront my personal attitudes towards race, war, and stereotyping, and I'm still pondering many of the themes of the book. Although A Gate at the Stairs was published 10 years after Moore's last book, it was hands down worth the wait. If you are an aficionado of thoughtful prose, or a lover of a book with themes that run deep, this is for you. It is the perfect antidote to all of the YA reading I have been doing lately.

What are you reading this week? Be sure to share on twitter with the hashtag #FridayReads to participate in an amazing community!