Another two months have passed of the Little House Read-Along, so I figured it was about time to share my thoughts of those books. In June we read The Long Winter, and in July we read ​Little Town on the Prairie.

This past weekend was the 24 in 48 Readathon, where you attempt to read for 24 hours over the course of the 48-hour weekend. I got just over 13 hours read! But the end of the readathon (and the concept of this post being up on Monday) got derailed by my little guy getting sick for the first time. Not fun! Thankfully, he's feeling much better now, so life can get back to normal (and I can stop being a panicky first-time mom).

The Perfection of the Paper Clip by James Ward (Strangely satisfying, especially for a lover of school supplies.)
The Slightly True Story of Cedar B. Hartley, Who Planned to Live an Unusual Life by Martine Murray (Fun middle grade novel set in Australia)
A Tangle of Gold by Jaclyn Moriarty (LOVED this last book of the trilogy. Well, loved the whole trilogy, actually. You should read it!)
The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin (It took me awhile to get through this audiobook, but I really enjoyed learning about Anne Morrow Lindbergh in this way.)
The Mommy Group: Freaking Out, Finding Friends, and Surviving the Happiest Times of Our Lives by Elizabeth Isadora Gold (Perfect book for any new mommy! You are not alone!)

All the Birds, Singing by Evie Wyld (This is my book club book for the month. I have a feeling this is another one we're all going to end up disliking.)
Curtsies & Conspiracies by Gail Carriger (Really fun series and fabulous as an audiobook!)

The Missing Ink: The Lost Art of Handwriting by Philip Hensher (Random pick off the library shelves.)

The 24 in 48 Readathon is this weekend! This is my first time participating in this readathon, and I'm so excited. I have a feeling I won't get anywhere close to 24 hours, but I am going to ask (beg, plead) my husband to be on baby duty for awhile so I can get some dedicated reading time in. Most of my updates will probably be on Twitter (you can follow me at @SmilingShelves), but I'll pop in here every once in awhile with my progress.

Here is my stack. I know it's giant. That's because it's really just all the library books I have currently checked out. I'm in the middle of The Slightly True Story of Cedar B. Hartley right now, and then my plan is to read A Tangle of Gold by Jaclyn Moriarty. If I get done with those two, anything in the pile is up for grabs!

Time read: Nine hours and 10 minutes
Pages read: 557
Books read from/listened to: A Tangle of Gold by Jaclyn Moriarty; The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin (audiobook); The Mommy Group by Elizabeth Isadora Gold
Books finished: A Tangle of Gold by Jaclyn Moriarty (AMAZING!)

Time read: Thirteen hours and 6 minutes
Pages read: Lost track of this one. . . more than 557 is all I know
Books read from/listened to: All of the ones mentioned above, plus Curtsies & Conspiracies by Gail Carriger (audiobook)
Books finished: A Tangle of Gold by Jaclyn Moriarty & The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin

It's been a busy week here! I have a college friend visiting for a couple of days this week, which means that last week, I needed to clean the house. Have you ever tried to clean the house with a little baby? Especially one who naps in half hour increments? Turns out it's not so easy! Thankfully (and with a lot of help from my amazing husband), the house is clean and ready for company. Yay!

Make Me Read It Readathon Updates (This was an awesomely fun readathon!)
Recent Reads About Bookish Things

Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Definitely my favorite of the series so far.)
Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein (LOVED this book!)
The Midnight Rose by Lucinda Riley (She is fast becoming one of my favorite living authors.)

Mastering the Art of French Eating by Ann Mah (This book is making me hungry.)
The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin (I'm in the middle of the kidnapping part. Not such a fun read at the moment, but a good book overall so far!)

The Perfection of the Paper Clip: Curious Tales of Invention, Accidental Genius, and Stationery Obsession by James Ward (I love buying school supplies, so I figure I probably will love reading about the history of them!)

This is the sequel to Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library, which is one of my all-time favorite middle grade novels. Kyle Keeley and several of his classmates are locked in the brand-new library for the night, and they have to solve clues to escape. The first one out becomes the new face of the Lemoncello game company. In Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics, other middle school book lovers have demanded a rematch and a chance to participate. There are new characters from across the country, new games and clues to solve, and of course, more utter wackiness from Mr. Lemoncello. It's just as much fun as the first book in the series, as Kyle and his friends race to win the Library Olympics - and to save the library as well.

What if the Great Library of Alexandria never burned down? And what if it now controls the dissemination of information to the entire world? What if real, paper-and-ink books are only found on the black market? Jess' family's business is exactly that - black market trading of books. But his family wants him on the inside, so he is sent to be trained to work for the Library. It turns out working for the Library is a lot more dangerous and full of secrets than you would ever expect. Rachel Caine has created an interesting alternate history, full of mystery and suspense. My only complaint is that it seems too much like a set-up for the rest of the series. It suffers from "second book of a trilogy"-itis, except it's only the first book. Despite this, I was definitely drawn into the world she created, and I'm glad the second book was just published so I can continue to follow Jess' story!

Have you ever dreamed of owning a bookstore? I most certainly have! So did Wendy Welch and her husband Jack. When they moved to Big Stone Gap, Virginia, they found a beautiful house that would work perfectly for a bookstore, and they dived in with both feet. They soon discovered they were a little in over their heads, but that didn't stop them from giving everything they had to keep their little bookstore going. This is a delightful book. It is chock-full of funny anecdotes and book love and crazy customers. It also is an ode to the power of both books and community, as Jack and Wendy slowly find their place in a small town. Read this book curled up in a comfy chair, sipping a mug of tea, and prepare to fall in love with the little bookstore of Big Stone Gap.

This week is the Make Me Read It Readathon! That's the one where you voted on which books I would read, and the order I would read them in. Check out this post for the results of your voting and my updates throughout the week. I've already finished the first book on the list!

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo (A Newbery winner to go towards my Newbery Reading Challenge)
Krakens and Lies by Tui & Kari Sutherland (The last book in the Menagerie series, which is an awesome middle grade series full of mythical creatures.)
The King's Speech by Mark Logue (This is about King George VI and his speech therapist. There was a movie a few years ago, and I've been fascinated since then.)
Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George (A fairy tale retelling with polar bears, my favorite animal!!)

Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder (I think I like the books where Laura is older, rather than a young kid. She knows more what's going on with her family and the town.)
​The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin (My audiobook, about Charles Lindbergh's wife)

Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein (This is the next book off my Make Me Read It list. I have been dying to read this one since it came out, because I loved the first book so much!)

This readathon is hosted by Val at The Innocent Smiley and Ely at Tea & Titles.

After weeks of voting and anxiously checking the results, the Make Me Read It Readathon is finally here! Here are the books in the order I'll be reading them, thanks to your votes:​

1.  Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George
2. Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
​3. Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein
4. The Midnight Rose by Lucinda Riley
5. Mastering the Art of French Eating by Ann Mah
6. The Lost Girls: Three Friends, Four Continents, One Unconventional Detour Around the World by Jennifer Baggett
7. The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin (My library had this one as an audiobook, so I'll be listening to this one throughout the week.)

I know it's unrealistic to get through all seven in one week, but I'm going to give it my best try!

1. Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George - finished Saturday at 10:​12 p.m.

• Thoughts - A fairy tale retelling with polar bears, which just happen to be my favorite animal. The perfect read to start out this readathon!

2. Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder - finished Monday at 5:35 p.m.

• Thoughts - My favorite of the series so far. I enjoyed seeing the Ingalls family interact with so many other characters.

3. Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein - finished Tuesday at 3:27 p.m.

• Thoughts - This book is just as AMAZING as the first one. I loved it!!

4. The Midnight Rose by Lucinda Riley - finished Friday at 4:21 p.m.

• Thoughts - I couldn't put this book down. Such a good read!

5. Mastering the Art of French Eating by Ann Mah - on page 86 when the readathon ended.
​7. The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin - halfway through listening to this one when the readathon ended.

No, that's not a typo in my title. Yes, I made up a word. Thuersday is a combination of Tuesday and Thursday. You see, I'm only posting twice a week now, which means that a Top Ten Tuesday post actually on Tuesday isn't really feasible. But on Thursday? Perfect. And this week's topic was just too fun to pass up.

So here's my list of ten awesome books with under 2,000 ratings on Goodreads (just a couple of days late). They are ranked from most reviews to least.

Happy Fourth of July to any American visitors to Smiling Shelves! (Although technically it's July 4th everywhere, so happy fourth of July to everyone!) It's been a fun weekend of family and festivities. Highlights of my weekend included finally finishing cleaning out my classroom (although this was bittersweet), a picnic by the river, a family reunion, and the beginning of my bullet journal!

P.S. My poll for the Make Me Read It Readathon ends on Wednesday. Please vote for my readathon reads!

The Penguin Lessons by Tom Michell (This was a fun book. If you like penguins or exotic pets, this book is for you.)
Son by Lois Lowry (Interesting conclusion to the series.)
The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder (And I thought our winters here in Michigan were bad!)

The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley (I'm desperately trying to finish this chunkster before it's due at the library next week. Good thing it's such a good book!)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling (Another enjoyable audiobook!)

Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander (Thought I'd better read this, since there's a movie coming out and all. . .)