Visit My Goodreads Profile at:
http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/4675745-kevin

Well, I did come full circle as I mentioned in my last newsletter – I even managed to get pneumonia again. Perhaps I shouldn’t haven’t mentioned that – but that’s the way it goes I guess. I am well on the road to recovery now and in fact I feel really quite healthy, apart from being really tired, which is probably a hangover from the illness. I am however only one day delayed from my ‘hoped for’ posting of my latest update ‘From My Armchair,’ so that isn’t too bad all things considered. I did take a break from my other Blogs in recent days, but didn’t from ‘At the BookShelf‘ and ‘The Book Stand,’ though I did lessen the number of posts.

I have done a lot of reading in the last 7-10 days and by a lot I mean I have probably read well in excess of 1000 pages and probably closer to 1500 pages. So plenty of reading going on here. I have enjoyed all of it and look forward to the next bit of reading over the next 7-10 days. I don’t think I’ll get anywhere near as much reading done in that time though, as I doubt I’ll be taking as much time off work sick as I did in the last little while – certainly I don’t plan to anyhow.

Social Networks, Web Applications & Other Tools

I have been adding books to my Goodreads profile and into my Access database, which continues to be a very slow process. I don’t think I’ll ever complete this project, especially with the number of ebooks that I keep adding to my collection. I really would like to get my entire library, both taditional and digital, into some form of manageable and useful order. It is very difficult to know just what I have in my ebooks collection – I pretty much know my tradional library like the back of my hand. It really is the digital library that is proving quite the handful, in a virtual sense of course. Perhaps I need to look into Calibre a bit more than I have. I can’t say that I am too familiar with Calibre. I think I just really need to speed up my cataloguing activities and focus on those ebooks that really are going to be of use to me first and foremost.

I did post a quote to Goodreads as an experiment and will need to post a few more before I am convinced either way as to the usefulness of the quotation section of the Goodreads experience. The quotation section of Goodreads is probably more geared towards the social sharing side of things rather than personal curation for latter use in research, writing, etc. So it will certainly have its purpose in my overall curation plan for quotes, but may not answer entirely to my requirements. Perhaps I will have to settle for my WordPress-Evernote solution that I have been thinking about for some time, as mentioned in the previous newsletter/update.

Currently Reading:

I have a number of books that I am currently reading. I post progress updates to Goodreads, so that will provide a way to see my current progress at any particular time. So I should probably have a link to my Goodreads profile here somewhere each newsletter. I have just added that to the top of the newsletter and it will be able to be found there in each newsletter.

So what am I currently reading:

Born Digital – Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives, by John Palfrey and Urs Gasser

I am current 42% through this one, which is all about the first generation of people born into the digital age. It is a bit dated now, but none-the-less a very worthwhile read and I would say a useful one for children and parents alike. I should be well and truly finished this book by the time of the next update judging by my current progress.

The Tin Ticket – The Heroic Journey of Australia’s Convict Women, by Deborah J. Swiss

I am currently about 15% (Kindle) through this one. I originally purchased this in paperback for my mother as a birthday gift and then purchased a Kindle copy for myself a couple of weeks ago. It’s a good, nonfiction read.

I have been blogging my way through this book and you can follow my posts (in order of appearance) at:

– Book Review: Beginning
– Book Review: Chapter 1 
– Book Review: Chapter 2

The One Year Bible – KJV

I am currently about 23% through The One Year Bible (on the Kindle), which means I’m a long way from where I should be. I am making up for lost time though by reading two days worth of readings a day until I catch up. There are portions of the Bible to read each day, divided over the course of the year. I am enjoying reading the portions and will hopefully be up to date in about a month or so.

21 Ways to Improve Your Camping Lifestyle, by W. V. Revill

I am about 20% through this book (on the Kindle), which means I need to be reading more of it (same as last week). I guess the other books are proving far more interesting.

Finished Reading:

I have finished reading a two books since the last newsletter. In the 2013 Goodreads Reading Challenge that I set myself I have marked 25 books to read for this year – I have so far completed 7, which according to the widget at Goodreads has me currently 10% behind schedule, which is 2 books. However, those two books are covered in the two I am currently reading, so no real troubles there. I actually expect to read far more than the 25 I have marked as hoping to read for the year. So I have improved since the last update and will more-than-likely do so again by the time of the next update.

Humble Orthodoxy – Holding the Truth High Without Putting People Down, by Joshua Harris

I really enjoyed this book. Read my Review at:
Book Review: Humble Orthodoxy

Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Downfall of Prussia 1600-1947, by Christopher Clark

I also really enjoyed this book. Read my review at:
Book Review: Iron Kingdom

Purchased & Added to Library: NEW

I have added quite a number of ebooks to my collection since my last update. These are listed below:

– Russians in the Past War, by Gennady Kuznetsov
– Proverbs for Kids – A Family Devotional Guide, by JoHannah Reardon
– Elly’s Ghost, by John R. Kess
– The American, by Cezar Giosan
– Warrior Prince: The Life of Owain Glyndwr, by Ian Skidmore
– A Gift for Mommy, by Robin Dawn
– A View from the Hole, by M. Larry Thornton, Dennis A. Hooker
– The Complete Guide to Home Freezing and The Amazingly Delicious Home Freezing Recipes Cookbook, by Polly Ann Lewis
– Humble Orthodoxy – Holding the Truth Without Putting People Down, by Joshua Harris and J. D. Greear
– God Knows My Name – Never Forgotten, Forever Loved, by Beth Redman
– Memory Makers for the Family – Creating Unforgettable Moments, by Cinder Sanders
– The Brotherhood of the Red Niles, A Terrorist Perspective, by Dan Perkins
– The Tin Ticket – The Heroic Journey of Australia’s Convict Women, by Deborah J. Swiss
– A Final Reckoning – A Tale of Bush Life in Australia (Illustrated), by G. A. Henty
– Little Buggies – A Rhyming Guessing Book for Little Ones (Baby – Age 5), by Cindy Bracken
– Journey Across the Four Seas – A Chinese Woman’s Search for Home, by Veronica Li
– Spring is Here! A Children’s Picture Book About Spring, by Heidi Pross Gray
– The MacArthur Bible Commentary, by John MacArthur
– The MacArthur Study Bible (NKJV), by John MacArthur
– The Holy Bible – English Standard Version (with Cross-References)
– Secrets of the Big Data Revolution, by Jason Kolb and Jeremy Kolb
– 60 Things God Said About Sex, by Lester Sumrall
– Family Deceptions, by Loretta Giacoletto
– Quest for the Lost Treasure (Interactive Pirate Adventure in a Beautifully Illustrated Picture Book for Ages 3-8), by Gerry Gaston and Laura Livi
– Section 132, by Helga Zeiner
– Vietnam Veteran Memoirs, by Mack Payne
– Impact My Life – Biblical Mentoring Simplified, by Elisa Pulliam
– Impact My Life Study Guide – Biblical Mentoring Simplified, by Elisa Pulliam
– Heroes and Monsters: An Honest Look at the Struggle Within All of Us, by Josh James Riebock
– The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur, by Mike Michalowicz
– Darc Murders Collection, by Carolyn McCray and Ben Hopkin
– Plain Jane – A Mystery/Thriller Not for the Faint of Heart (Harbinger Murder Mystery Series), by Carolyn McCray
– Trophy Child – Saving Parents from Performance, Preparing Children for Something Greater Than Themselves, by Ted Cunningham
– Jesus Killed My Church, by Randy Bohlender
– Hangings, Sinkings and Trust in God – Life and Death Onboard British Warships During the 1700’s and 1800’s, by Peter Brent and George Shirley

The Book Stand

I have all manner of Blogs and websites at different places on the web. I have three Blogs at tumblr and one of those is a site for ebooks that are currently available for free or are on special. Most of the ebooks highlighted on the Blog are for the Kindle, but there are other selections from time to time. The site is simply called ‘The Book Stand.’

Visit The Book Stand at:
http://bookstand.tumblr.com/

I generally download all of the books highlighted on the site, which is why I have some ebooks you may be surprised at in the list of recently purchased/added books above. If they are free, I might as well download them.

Particular Baptist Reading Group

I have recently started a reading group over at Goodreads called the ‘Particular Baptist Reading Group.’ The group is for Particular and Reformed Baptists in particular, though other Christians are still welcome and will find the reading material of great value. Anyone can join and all are welcome – just keep in mind that it is a moderated, Christian reading group.

The idea is that a chapter/portion of a book will be posted once a week, with discussions concerning the chapter/portion taking place within the group at Goodreads. I haven’t completed the necessary web infrastructure at this stage, but hope to have it all up and running by the end of May 2013, when the first section of the book, ‘The Attraction of the Cross’ by Gardiner Spring will be made available.

Visit and Sign up at:
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/101137-particular-baptist-reading-group