Scholastic Loves Me, This I Know ...

My Facebook status for Tuesday read: Scholastic loves me, this I know, for the brand-new, free copy of Mockingjay sitting on my doorstep tells me so! You can imagine how many jealous comments I got, which is exactly why I posted it, of course :) I was thrilled to get the book, especially since so many people didn't receive their copies that day due to shortages. So, a huge shout out to Scholastic. They've always been incredibly generous to me and this just proves what a rocking company they are. Woot!

Considering I've had the book since Tuesday, you'd think I'd have burned through it by now. I tried. I read a few pages before I realized just how forgetful I'm getting in my old age - I could hardly remember the who's who and what's what of Panem. So, in order to do justice to Mockingjay, I'm re-reading the first two books so I can really enjoy the third. It's a testament to the awesomeness of The Hunger Games (and to the lousiness of my memory) that although I've already read it, I still can't wait to see what happens next!

Anyway, the point of all this rambling is to let you know that I may be MIA for the next few days while I concentrate on the Hunger Games trilogy. I'm avoiding all reviews of Mockingjay as well because I don't want any hints about what's going to happen. I'll post my review as soon as I can. Then, you can bet I'll be eager to discuss it.

In the meantime, I leave you with a few morsels to chew on until I get back:

- Don't forget to enter the two contests I have running - one is for an ARC of Paranormalcy by Kiersten White (click here), the other is for an ARC of Firelight by Sophie Jordan (click here). You can enter both and both are open internationally. They end on Monday, August 30 (my wedding anniversay - 13 years!). Good luck!

- Speaking of Facebook, check out that fancy badge on my left sidebar. I really only use Facebook to keep in touch with family and IRL friends, but I'd love if you became a fan of my BBB page. Now that I have the page, I'm not exactly sure what to do with it. Advice?

- My sister is hosting a book giveaway over at her homemaking blog, Martha-wannabe. The titles up for grabs are Once A Month Cooking and Once A Month Cooking Family Favorites. She hasn't had too many entrants, so the odds of winning are very good. While you're over there, give her some love - her birthday's on the 2nd, and her husband will be leaving soon for a long deployment in Afghanistan. Follow her, enter her contest, give a supportive Navy wife some encouraging words. Love ya, Pee Wee!

- Speaking of my sister, her good friend just started a book blog called Book Loving Mommy. Jessica was kind enough to give me the One Lovely Blog award. Thanks! Click on over to her blog and show her some love as well.

- It's been a few weeks since I participated in the Book Blogger Hop. Shame on me! Join in the fun over at Crazy for Books. The question of the week has to do with rating books. As you can see, I "grade" the books I read according the American grading system. It's sometimes hard to determine if a book deserves an A, B, C, D or F, but I try to be fair. I think it works pretty well. What do you think?

If you're here for the first time because of the Hop (or for any other reason), welcome! I'm always excited to hear from new readers and to discover new book blogs. Have a wonderful weekend, everybody.