Hello, August!

• Here in Texas, it's a given that summer will be hot. But, we have now had 30 consecutive days of triple-digit temperatures - we may hit 107 later this week - and it is HOT. I would like nothing more than to hide in my air-conditioned house and read all day.
• I am so excited for The Help to come out this month! Are you planning to see it?

• I decided sometime last month to re-read all the Harry Potter books this summer (and read the last one for the first time). Summer is slowly ticking along, and ummm....I haven't started yet. But, I convinced a friend to re-read them, too, so she's supposed to keep me on top of this project. It's not that I'm not excited by this, it's just I have so many other things I want to read as well. My new plan is to get all the books read, watch the first part of the last movie, and see the second part while it is still in theaters. We'll see...
• I'm currently reading Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury...so good! I was hooked from the very beginning, when the book opens with:

"Put the book down, darling," my mother said from her chair beside the mirror. "The chapter's end is only a short way off," I replied, reaching out with my other hand to flip the page. Despite the ache in my shoulder from holding the book at arm's length so the dressmakers could work on my gown, I didn't want to give it up. (p. 3)

Agnes Wilkins, an avid reader and huge fan of Mansfield Park and Pride and Prejudice, is getting ready for her debut. One of the first events of the season is a party in which a mummy is unwrapped! Guests take turns cutting the wrapping, and anything they find - trinkets, jewels, etc. that were wrapped with the mummy - they get to keep. Only it turns it this mummy might be cursed. I'm loving this!