4 Stars. I miss Obama in the White House, I really do. Reading his thoughts and decision-making processes, his deliberations, his efforts to reflect many voices from many backgrounds in his policies--I just miss that stability and thoughtfulness. That said, I'll start with my one complaint. At 703 pages (751 with the index), the [...]
Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl invited us to share the "top ten books I hope Santa brings." Well. That's a bit difficult. My husband and I are currently living in our RV while we travel with his job so we don't have much room for anything other than essentials. I check the vast, vast majority of my books out from the library. We'll see how I adapt this. My Bookish Wish List Literary Listography: My Reading Life in Lists--I stumbled on this diary/journal when I was shopping for stocking stuffers at World Market and added it to my own wish list. I obviously love lists so this is perfect for me. Each page has a prompt like "Favorite Reading Spots" or "Authors to Explore." It looked like so much fun for reflecting on or tracking your books. Travel Listography: Exploring the World in Lists--Reading and traveling sort of sum my life up right now so I added this journal to my wish list as well. The Child "Read: It Is The Way" T-Shirt. I saw this a month or so ago and immediately added it to my list! I squeal like a tween when I see Baby Yoda so pairing him with a book = must have for me. Books Currently on Hold at My Library That's really all the bookish stuff I've asked for. I'll continue with books I've requested from the library. Goldie Vance: Volume Three by Hope Larson Almost American Girl by Robin Ha (Link to the review at BookWyrm Knits that prompted me to request it) The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen (Link to the review at BookWyrm Knits that prompted me to request it) Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife by Mary Roach The Little Book of Hygge:…
Welcome to my weekly update for December 20, 2020! I hope all who celebrate have a merry Christmas and happy holidays! My husband and I went to a Christmas drive-through light show on Friday night. It was a lot of fun! They even blew soap bubble "snow" on our car as we reached the end. Posted: Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy, read by Val Toomey, George Newbern, Marin Ireland, and Joel Froomkin--4.5 Stars Goldie Vance by Hope Larson, illustrated by Brittney Williams--5 Stars Top Ten Winter Book Covers Read: A Promised Land by Barack Obama Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy, read by Val Toomey, George Newbern, Marin Ireland, and Joel Froomkin Around the World: Three Remarkable Journeys by Matt Phelan Alaskan Holiday by Debbie Macomber, read by Laurel Rankin and Luke Daniels Currently Reading: The Mean Seasons: Fables Volume 5 by Bill Willingham The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee, read by Christian Coulson Fathoms: The World in the Whale by Rebecca Giggs Reading Challenges: I announced 2021 sign ups for several challenges I hosted prior to my long blogging break. I hope you'll join me! Books in Translation Reading Challenge Southern Literature Reading Challenge New (To You) Narrator Reading Challenge I also signed up for several other challenges. I may not complete them all but at least they're nudging me in new directions. The buttons above and the links below take you to the information page for each challenge if you'd like to know more and/or sign up. Uncorked Reading Challenge Nonfiction Reader Challenge Diversity Reading Challenge Audiobook Reading Challenge Watching: Jingle Jangle (Netflix)--We really enjoyed this movie featuring catchy songs, colorful costumes, steampunky toys, and a whole lot of holiday magic. Up Next: I have a big pile of graphic novels to read so I'll be working…
5 Stars. Oh my goodness! This is so stinking cute and smart! I was never a big mystery reader as a kid. I could never guess "whodunnit" and that irritated me. Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys were practically nonstarters for me. I wish Goldie Vance had been around back in the day because she would have turned me into a mystery reader for sure! [...]
Holy cow. I've been looking for a book with a great twist for years (since reading Shutter Island back in 2010) and been consistently disappointed. This book didn't just twist, it corkscrewed! Repeatedly! I literally gasped at the end of each part. I am not a fan of the "Girl" or "Woman" psychological thriller craze. I gave both [...]
This week I'm sharing my top ten winter book covers and linking up to Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl. The actual prompt is "Books on Your Winter TBR" but I'm a mood reader and don't plan my reading like that. I do hope to finally read The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey this winter though. That aside, here are my top ten winter book covers! The True Story of Hansel and Gretel by Louise Murphy--Somehow the cold, desolate photograph on the cover looks even harsher when you know that this book is about two Jewish children trying to survive the WWII alone. The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen--This is the least wintry cover I chose, but I love it so much, I included it. I believe the girl is crouching in the snow but peppermint candy also equals winter to me so I went with it. The book takes place in a North Carolina town (As a NC girl, I assume it's Boone under a different name) during the winter ski season. Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman--Somehow even the animals on the cover signal that this is a winter's tale. And what can be more wintry than a story involving the Norse gods? Blankets by Craig Thompson--This autobiographical graphic novel is just as beautiful on the inside as it is on the outside. It's set in the cold Wisconsin winter and illustrated exclusively in the same colors seen on the cover. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater--The wolf peeking out from behind the mostly-bare branches and the spot of blood that makes the dot in the i have long made this one of my favorite book covers. The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden--This cover is absolutely perfect for a Russian fairy tale that takes place…
Welcome to my weekly update for December 13, 2020! I believe I finished my Christmas shopping last week! Yay! Now I just hope everything gets delivered on time. Posted: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia--4 Stars My Top Ten Christmas Books Read: I've been trying to focus exclusively on A Promised Land (see below) but I mentally had to take a break and read a few of the graphic novels I checked out from the library. Goldie Vance by Hope Larson, illustrated by Brittney Williams Kim Reaper: Grim Beginnings by Sarah Graley Wires and Nerve by Marissa Meyer, illustrated by Douglas Holgate and Stephen Gilpin Currently Reading: A Promised Land by Barack Obama (54% complete as I write this on Friday) Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy, read by Val Toomey, George Newbern, Marin Ireland, and Joel Froomkin Reading Challenges I Host: I announced 2021 sign ups for several challenges I hosted prior to my long blogging break. I hope you'll join me! 2021 Books in Translation Reading Challenge 2021 Southern Literature Reading Challenge 2021 New (To You) Narrator Reading Challenge (which dovetails nicely with Caffeinated Book Reviewer's yearly Audiobook Challenge) Speaking of reading challenges, I used to follow A Novel Challenge to find my yearly reading challenges. Since it looks like that site is on hold, Susan at Bloggin' 'Bout Books started a new aggregator for reading challenges called Ready for a Reading Challenge? Head over to share a challenge you're hosting or find a challenge to participate in! Watching: The Great British Baking Show: Holidays. Yes, we discovered the joy of this show that we've heard so much about and we've been binging the holiday episodes. Up Next: I will be very surprised if I finish either of the books I'm currently reading. I will probably take another brief break from…
4 Stars. Full disclosure: I requested Mexican Gothic from the library back in September or October, which is practically the only time of year that I seek out horror and/or Gothic reads. When my turn finally came up in November, I wasn't necessarily in the mood for this kind of book but I decided to read it anyway and see what all the [...]
Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl gave us a holiday/seasonal freebie for Top Ten Tuesday this week. I decided to list my top ten Christmas books. I'm not a huge fan of Christmas books for adults. They're usually too syrupy for my taste. But I do love Christmas books for children and I have quite a collection at home. They're in storage while we're traveling with my husband's job, but I usually have them on coffee tables and side tables throughout the house as part of my holiday decorations. Without further ado, here's my top ten Christmas books, mostly children's books with a few adult titles thrown in for variety. Jingle Bear by Stephen Cosgrove, Illustrated by Robin James--I received my first Serendipity book when I was in kindergarten from a book fair grab bag and I've collected them ever since. Who can resist the doe-eyed animals and the gentle morality tales? I believe this is the only Christmas book in the series. The Night before Christmas by Clement Moore--I own and love a lot of Christmas-y Little Golden Books but I had to choose the classic for this post. The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter, the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry--I listened to this short story (read by the author) last year. I think I even listened to it a couple of times. It was the perfect mix of hilarious mishap and genuine Christmas spirit for me. The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror by Christopher Moore--The title says it all. I wrote in my review: "If you’re feeling a little overly-sugar-and-spiced, pick this book up for a nice change of pace." The Littlest Angel by Charles Tazewell--I think this is my very oldest book. In fact, I think I'm the one who uploaded the cover…
Welcome to my weekly update for December 6, 2020! Southern California has a stay-at-home order that goes into place tonight (December 6) at midnight and will last for at least three weeks, taking us past Christmas. Ugh. At least it should keep hospitals from being overwhelmed. We experienced our first California earthquake on Friday night! Californians will probably laugh at me since it was just a magnitude 3.7 but we felt the shake so we feel like we've been initiated. I have experienced one other little earthquake several years ago back home in NC. It just felt like my office chair dipped a little bit and that was it. But since I was in a 7-story brick hospital building that proceeded to get noisy as it settled afterward, that one actually scared me more than this one. We did get our tiny little Christmas tree decorated on Wednesday (For those who don't know, we live in our RV while we travel with my husband's job). We also went to see the California Center for the Arts' Northern Lights display on Thursday, so I'm starting to get a little Christmas spirit! I still need to do lots of Christmas shopping though. Between warm, sunny weather and my general 2020 malaise, I haven't really gotten started yet. Posted: Review--Brave Chef Brianna by Sam Sykes, illustrated by Selina Espiritu--4 Stars Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret to The Wind in the Willows--6 Degrees of Separation Post Also three reading challenge sign-up posts (See below) Read: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline, read by Wil Wheaton Currently Reading:  A Promised Land by Barack Obama Reading Challenges I Host: I announced 2021 sign ups for several challenges I hosted prior to my long blogging break. I hope you'll join me! 2021 Books…