Well, if this isn’t an overwhelming post then I don’t know what is!  I usually do these posts monthly but I never managed it all summer.  So this is  basically my what did I do over my summer vacation post!

And really, in all honesty the past three months have not been up to par.  I pretty much postponed all of my features and didn’t conduct a single author interview.  And you can see that I’m really behind on my book reviews.  I’d like to blame it all on the warm weather and vacations.  I’ve just been playing a lot more than I have been blogging.  I’d like to get back into the swing of things around here while trying to find a balance in my personal life.

As always, skim this post and see if you missed anything interesting and for me, it’s nice to do housekeeping every once in a while.

Summer Books Read & Reviewed

Fiction

• The Actor and the Housewife by Shannon Hale
• The Blue Notebook by James A. Levine
• A Disobedient Girl by Ru Freeman
• Wife of the Gods, An Inspector Darko Dawson Mystery by Kwei Quartey
• The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
• Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross Review
• Every Last Cuckoo by Kate Maloy
• Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea

Young Adult Fiction

• Because I Am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas
• Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
• Miracle’s Boys by Jacqueline Woodson
• Feathered by Laura Kasischke
• I Know It’s Over by C.K Kelly Martin
• Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (a preview of sorts and a gushing on release day)
• Everything is Fine by Ann Dee Ellis
• Gym Candy by Carl Deuker
• Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
• The Teashop Girls by Laura Schaefer
• Love, Lies, and Texas Dips by Susan McBride
• Love You, Hate You, Miss You by Elizabeth Scott

Middle Readers

• Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking and Other Natural Disasters by Lenore Look
• Dork Diaries: Tales from a NOT-SO-Fabulous Life by Rachel Renee Russell
• Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse
• Frankie Pickle and the Closet of Doom by Eric Wight
• Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
• My Teacher is an Alien by Bruce Coville
• Chess Rumble by G. Neri
• Charlotte’s Rose by A.E. Cannon
• Escape Under the Forever Sky by Eve Yohalem
• Anything but Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin
• Dessert First by Hallie Durand
• Long Shot by Mike Lupica

Picture Books

• Travels with Tarra and Just for Elephants by Carol Buckley
• 14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy in Collaboration with Wilson Kimeli Naiyomah, Illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez
• Unite or Die, How Thirteen States Became a Nation by Jacqueline Jules, Illustrated by Jef Czekaj
• Heroes by Ken Mochizuki, Illustrated by Dom Lee
• Freckleface Strawberry and the Dodgeball Bully by Julianne Moore, Illustrated by LeUyen Pham

Non-Fiction

• Zlata’s Diary, A Child’s Life in Sarajevo by Zlata Filipovic
• First Comes Loves, Then Comes Malaria by Eve Brown-Waite
• That Went Well, Adventures in Caring for My Sister by Terrell Harris Dougan
• Tone Deaf in Bangkok and Other Places by Janet Brown
• I Am a Star, Child of the Holocaust by Inge Auerbacher
• Picking Cotton, Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemption by Jennifer Thompson-Cannino and Ronald Cotton with Erin Torneo
• The Mistress’s Daughter by A.M. Holmes

Guest Posts

• Guest Post: Interview with Kaleb Nation, Author of Bran Hambric
• Guest Post from Hannah of WordLily: Author Recipe, Leslie Patricelli’s Espresso and Cardamom Rub
• Guest Post and Giveaway: On Quotes and Inspiration by Kathryn Fitzmaurice, Author of The Year the Swallows Came Early
• Guest Post, Carol Hampton Rasco: Parents and Youngsters Together for Stories, Songs, Rhymes, and More at RIF.org
• Guest Post: Marsha Jacobson on Reading With Feeling
• Guest Post: Thomas Fortenberry on Judging Literary Contests
• Guest Post: Book Chick City on Launching a Blog and Her Ever Increasing Obsession With Books

Vlogs

• Video Chat: Being Overtaken By the Number of Books Read But Not Yet Reviewed
• Why Read Book Blogs?  Three Book Bloggers Vlog the Answer
• The BookExpo America Box Arrival

More Posts During June

• Do Some Picture Books Teach Our Children Irrational Fears and Behaviors?
• The Utah Book Bloggers Summer Social – Photos of a Few of Your Favorite Bloggers and Authors
• Book to Movie Trailers – Upcoming Releases I’m Excited About
• Technical Difficulties – I Might Be Back Up
• Frank McCourt, Pulitzer Prize Winning Author of Angela’s Ashes, Dies at Age 78
• On Book Borrowing: Do You Lend Out? I’ve Got Questions!
• Why Do I Own Books When I Rarely Reread?
• World War II Rationed Chocolate Cake from Mary Ann Rodman, Author of Jimmy’s Stars
• Nerds Heart YA Book Tournament: I Know It’s Over vs. Feathered
• Do Books Make You Cry? Or Am I the Only One With a Heart of Stone?
• Ten Reasons Why Book Blogger Appreciation Week is So Cool!
• Talking Library Fines – Somebody Please Make Me Feel Better
• The Nerds Heart YA Tournament = Awesomeness
• Twilight Fans! A Graphic Novel is On It’s Way!
• Tomato Aspic from Mary Ann Rodman’s, Jimmy’s Stars – Perhaps Our Nastiest Author Recipe to Date
• Catching Fire Preview
• New York Times Bestsellers – August 2nd
• New York Times Bestsellers – July 19th
• New York Times Bestsellers – June 14th
• New York Times Bestsellers – June 7th
• Reading and Blogging Review for April & May

Flashback:  The Maw Books Blog a Year Ago

What was I reviewing a year ago: So according to my monthly review report from last summer, I reviewed way to many books to list here.  But a few of that are worth highlighting are: Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler’s Shadow by Susan Campbell Bartoletti, We Are On Our Own: A Memoir by Miriam Katin, Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, The Bright Side of Disaster by Katherine Center, The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway, If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson, Not On Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond by Don Cheadle and John Prendergast,   Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson and Escape by Carolyn Jessop.  Last summer I interviewed Mary Ann Rodman, author of Jimmy’s Stars, Sara Zarr, author of Sweethearts and Story of a Girl, and J. Scott Savage, author of Far World, Water Keep.

Challenge Updates

I finished four challenges this summer:

I finished the Support Your Local Library Challenge hosted by J. Kaye by reading 51 out of 50 library books.  I should have signed up for a larger number.  LOL   I still have a stack of unreviewed library books as well.  Out of curiosity, I’m going to continue to list library books, just to see what I get too, but this one is officially finished.  Thanks J. Kaye for a great challenge!

1. Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking and Other Natural Disasters by Lenore Look
2. Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross (since purchased)
3. I Hadn’t Mean to Tell You This by Jacqueline Woodson
4. Because I Am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas
5. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
6. Feathered by Laura Kasischke
7. I Know It’s Over by C.K Kelly Martin
8. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (since purchased)
9. On the Wings of Heroes by Richard Peck
10. The Sisters Grimm, The Fairy Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley
11. Desert Flower: The Extraordinary Journey of a Desert Nomad by Waris Dirie and Cathleen Miller
12. Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
13. Always by Ann Stott, Illustrated by Matt Phelan (since received as gift)
14. There’s a Wolf at the Door: Five Classic Tales Retold by Zoe B. Alley, Illustrated by R.W. Alley
15. Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil by Deborah Rodriguez
16. Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by Hudson Talbot
17. Mermaids in the Basement by Michael Lee West
18. Shooting the Moon by Frances O’Roark Dowell
19. Alvin Ho:  Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look
20. Snow by Cynthia Rylant, Illustrated by Lauren Stringer
21. Sister Wife by Shelley Hrdlitschka
22. Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult
23. Emiko Superstar by Mariko Tamaki, Illustrated by Steve Rolston
24. Chiggers by Hope Larson
25. Fade by Lisa McMann
26. The Way He Lived by Emily Wing Smith
27. The Lightning Thief, Book One of Percy Jackson & The Olympians by Rick Riordan
28. Jellaby by Kean Soo
29. Peace, Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
30. Holbrook: A Lizards Tale by Bonny Becker
31. My Brother, The Robot by Bonny Becker
32. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
33. Mary Veronica’s Egg by Mary Nethery, Illustrated by Paul Yalowtiz
34. A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker, Illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton
35. An Ant’s Day Off by Bonny Becker, Illustrated by Nina Laden
36. The Christmas Crocodile by Bonny Becker, Illustrated by David Small
37. Ella the Elegant Elephant by Carmelia and Steven D’Amico
38. Ella Sets the Stage by Carmelia and Steven D’Amico
39. Ella Takes the Cake by Carmelia and Steven D’Amico
40. Ella Sets Sail by Carmelia and Steven D’Amico
41. Baseball Saved Us by Ken Mochizuki, Illustrated by Dom Lee
42. Henry’s Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine, Illustrations by Kadir Nelson
43. Be Water, My Friend: The Early Years of Bruce Lee by Ken Mochizuki, Illustrated by Dom Lee
44. Passage to Freedom, The Sugihara Story by Ken Mochizuki, Illustrated by Dom Lee
45. Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford, Illustrated by Kadir Nelson
46. The Voice That Challenged A Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights by Russell Freedman
47. The Story of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles, Illustrated by George Ford
48. Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope by Nikki Grime, Illustrated by Bryan Collier
49. Freedom Walkers, The Story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott by Russell Freedman
50. Through My Eyes by Ruby Bridges
51. Frogs by Nic Bishop

Themed Reading Challenge hosted by Wendy at Caribousmom wrapped up in July.  Dang.  I wish I had the full year for this one because I’m definitly not stopping especially considering that I still have 4 books in my to be reviewed pile that would count for the challenge and several more in my TBR.  My theme was to read books from my local Utah authors.  This challenge wrapped up with 5 out of the 4 required books reviewed.  So officially it’s completed but this will be an ongoing challenge for me.

1. The 13th Reality, The Hunt for Dark Infinity by James Dashner
2. The Way He Lived by Emily Wing Smith
3. The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams
4. That Went Well: Adventures for Caring for My Sister by Terrell Harris Dougan
5. The Actor and the Housewife by Shannon Hale

I also finished the Non-Fiction Five Challenge hosted by Trish at Trish’s Reading Nook which was to read five non-fiction books between May and September. Easy enough for me.  I’ve got at least that many sitting in my review pile.

1. That Went Well, Adventures in Caring for My Sister by Terrell Harris Dougan
2. Desert Flower: The Extraordinary Journey of a Desert Nomad by Waris Dirie and Cathleen Miller
3. First Comes Loves, Then Comes Malaria by Eve Brown-Waite
4. Zlata’s Diary, A Child’s Life in Sarajevo by Zlata Filipovic
5. Travels with Tarra and Just for Elephants by Carol Buckley

Susan at Color Online hosted the Color Me Brown Reading Challenge in August which encouraged participants to read and review POC books.  I was late to the game but thrilled with the challenge.  During August I reviewed three books which qualified for the challenge:

1. A Disobedient Girl by Ru Freeman
2. Wife of the Gods, An Inspector Darko Dawson Mystery by Kwei Quartey
3. 14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy in Collaboration with Wilson Kimeli Naiyomah, Illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez

This summer I hosted my very first challenge!!  The Bloggiesta wasn’t a reading challenge but rather a 48-hour blogging challenge and if I say so myself, I think it went fantastic!  Thank you to everybody who participated.  I’ll be doing it again.  If you missed it, you can check out the following links:

• Bloggiesta Wrap-Up
• Bloggiesta: The Finish Line!
• Bloggiesta Pinata Time!
• Bloggiesta: In Which I Reveal the Sad State of the Maw Books Blog
• Bloggiesta! Let’s Begin the Festivities!
• Bloggiesta! The Unveiling of a New Upcoming Blogging Event

And it now seems a distant memory but this summer I also participated in my first 48 Hour Book Challenge hosted by Pam at MotherReader. It was awesome and I can’t wait to do it again.

• 48 Hour Book Challenge – It is Finished!
• 48 Hour Book Challenge – 12 Hours to Go
• 48 Hour Book Challenge, Hour 21-ish Update
• The 48 Hour Book Challenge – And It Begins

Still plugging away on the following challenges.   Click to be taken to my list and then to be taken to challenge blog.  So far I have resisted from signing up for anything else.

• A-Z Author & Title Challenge – Runs all of 2009.  11 of 52 books completed. Must read faster!
• Dewey’s Books Reading Challenge – Runs all of 2009.  1 of 5 books completed.
• New Author Challenge – Runs all of 2009.  70 out of 75 books completed.
• Read Your Own Books Challenge – Runs all of 2009.  22 completed – open ended.
• War Through the Generations Challenge – Runs all of 2009.   6 out of 5 completed.  Not willing to wrap this up yet.
• Diversity Rocks! Challenge – Runs all of 2009.  23 out of 40 completed.

Awards

Thanks everybody!  As many of you know (or may not know) I don’t pass on awards (the pressure!) but I like to give you recognition in return for your thoughtfulness and kind words.  Do check these kind bloggers out!

• Mari from Bookworm with a View passed on the Kreative blogger award.  Her latest review of Love, Greg and Lauren makes me wanting to go out and pick it up.

• Mark from Absorbed in Words also passed on the Kreative blogger award.  Although it seems like I should totally know about this challenge, but Mark pointed me to the China Reading Challenge which is one that I just might not be able to resist.

• Tif from Tif Talks Books also passed the Kreative Blogger Award.  Tif just changed her blog design after some discussion about it on Twitter.  Go check it out and tell her what you think!

• Tam from Bailey’s and Books passed on the Let’s Be Friends Award.  Tam has been blogging for three months now (really? seems like you’ve always been on my radar!) and I highly recommend that you check her out.  Plus, she’s a freelance photographer.  Double p0ints!

• Emily from Emily’s Reading Room and Sheila from One Person’s Journey Through a World Of Books both passed on the Humane Award which recognizes bloggers who are kindhearted.  I could say the same thing about both of these awesome bloggers.  I’ve been able to meet Emily as she lives locally to me and she’s just as cool in person on her blog as she is on her blog.  Sheila has hit the blogging world with a whirlwind.  I don’t know how she does it.  Everywhere I go, she seems to be one step ahead of me.

• Amy from Park-Avenue Princess passed on the Humane Award as well.  If you are not following Amy, you are missing out on one of the most inspiring bloggers ever.  Her enthusiasm is amazing and I get a little thrill every time she comments on my blog.  Love ya Amy!

• Melanie from Melanie’s Musings passed on the Promixidade award.  Melanie’s a teen in Florida and she has a horse!  Sorry, I think that is pretty darn cool!  Melanie has been blogging since May and to tell you the truth, blogging teens are pretty awesome.

• Desert Rose Booklogue passed on the Literary Blogger Award which recognizes blogs who energize and inspire blogs by going the extra mile.  What a hard month over at the Desert Rose blog, as she’s recently lost both her father and her father-in-law.  Go pay her a visit and check out the great books she’s reading.

• Grace from Books Like Breathing (love the name of that blog!) passed on the infamous Zombie Chicken Award which still makes me giggle.  Grace’s favorite author is Jane Austen and she has over a hundred of Austen books and its sequels.  Hmm . . . this is making me wonder if I should pick up an Austen book.  I haven’t since high school.

• Jenny from Take Me Away awarded the Bookin with Bingo.  Seriously, just look at Jenny’s about page.  I have no clue how she even manages to read and blog.

• Natalie from The Book Inn passed on the Humane Award.  Natalie’s family just got a puppy.  Need I say more?

Carnivals

Send me your book review links! I’m hosting!

For those of you who may not be familiar with carnivals, a carnival is a blog event where a host collects links from participating blogs and then rounds them up on their blog.  If you are a blogger, carnivals are open to anybody to submit their links and if you are a reader, carnivals are a great source to find great new blogs and book reviews.

Narineh at The Novel World will be hosting the the next Bookworms Carnival which will focus on banned books.  I neglected to send in a link of my own but I love the theme (I plan on reading banned books later this month), I recommend that you check it out as soon as it’s posted.

I’m thrilled to let you know that I will be hosting the next edition of the Bookworms Carnival!! The theme is book reviews about Africa, set in Africa or with an African theme (not books simply written by an African American though).  So if you review books and you have a review that fits that criteria please send them to me by September 25th!  After that come back here for a great round up of book reviews!

Other Items of Note

• Book Giveaways. Lots of books were given away over the summer!  And yes, many of them are still sitting here, so if you have not received them yet, don’t lament.  I’m just lame.  And slow.  Congrats to Melissa at The  Betty and Boo Chronicles, Janssen at Everyday Reading, Melissa at One Librarian’s Book Reviews, Haley, couchpotato, Carol M., Hannah at Word Lily, Nicole at Books and Bards, Nicole from Linus’s Blanket, Melanie from Melanie’s Musings, Nan from Nan’s Corner of the Web, Avis from She Reads and Reads, Kristen from Bookworming in the 21st Century, Drea from Book Blather, Cindy from Cindy’s Love of Books, Melissa from One Librarian’s Book Reviews, J.C. from The Biblio Blogazine, Pam from MotherReader, Joanne from The Book Zombie, Amy from Haiku Amy, Liyana from Liyanaland, Sheila from One Person’s Journey Through a World of Books, Jennie from Biblio File, and Jacqueline from The Undercover Book Lover who all won something over the summer.

• Blogging Tips Group on the Book Blogs Ning. So if you are new around here (or not) I wanted to remind you about the Blogging Tips group that I moderate over at the Book Blogs Ning.  I know a lot of people have been frustruated from the spam but I wanted to ensure you that I’ve got our group under control.  Visit often for great blogging tips from getting advice about your theme, putting buttons on your blog, or how to best conduct an author interview.  I want the forum to benefit everybody so feel free to contribute!

• Utah Book Bloggers Summer Social One of the highlights of the summer was the social that the Utah Book Bloggers had with many of our local Utah authors.  I’m very fortunate to live in a location with such a strong literary presence.  Check out this post for all the details and links to all the Utah book bloggers.

• Not subscribed at all? As you can see from this recap, there is always something going on.  Although I admit that it’s usually more.  Don’t miss any of it by receiving updates via email or through your favorite reader.  Also follow me on Twitter.

Book Blogger Appreciation Week (BBAW)

Tomorrow is the kick off of Book Bloggers Appreciation Week (BBAW) which is an annual celebration to recognize the hard work and contribution of book bloggers to the promotion and preservation of a literate culture actively engaged in discussing books, authors, and a lifestyle of reading. The week spotlights and celebrates the work of active book bloggers through guest posts, awards, giveaways, and community activities. The theme for the week is Celebrate Books!  It all starts right now and everybody, bloggers and non-bloggers alike, are encouraged to participate.

During this next week, I will be supporting BBAW through daily themed posts on my blog, perhaps a giveaway, visiting and discovering new bloggers, and writing a guest post for the BBAW blog about the awesome community of Utah bloggers.  On Wednesday I’m really excited to be contributing to a special Blog Talk Radio hosted by Miriam Parker of Hachette with Amy from My Friend Amy, Kathy of Bermuda Onion, Kate of Babbling About Books and More, and Adam of Letters on Pages!  I’ve never done anything like this before so be sure to check in on Wednesday at 9pm EST on the Blog Talk Radio site or check back here where I’ll post the recording the next day.

I’m sure I’m forgetting something but as it’s the middle of the month already and I wanted this posted on the 1st, I’m going to hit the publish button.

Let the madness begin!

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