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Welcome to my weekly update for January 12, 2025!
I hope any of you who are in the Los Angeles area (or your friends and families) are safe and well. Fires are so terrifying. My thoughts are with all those who’ve been affected.
Despite my best intentions, I missed posting last week. I admire those of you make time to stick to a consistent blogging schedule.
We went for a hike last Sunday on the Boulder Canyon trail. It was gorgeous! My favorite hikes are those with big views from ridgetops and that’s exactly what we got. The air was a bit smoky for some reason here in the Phoenix area (this was before the fires started in LA, so it wasn’t anything to do with that) but we could still see far enough to love the views.
Slideshow:
All images © Jennifer G. at Introverted Reader 2025
- The viewpoint we hiked out to. The very oddly shaped peak in the far distance is called Weavers Needle.
- We liked that winding road below us and the view before us. After we finished the hike, we drove a little farther out that road to the tiny town of Tortilla Flat (As far as I can tell, this town has nothing to do with the Steinbeck novel, which is set near Monterey Bay, California).
- I always love rocky outcroppings like these.
- We started the hike at Canyon Lake, which you can see in the distance here. I like seeing the saguaros against bodies of water. It’s not something that I, as an East coaster, expect to see.
Posted:
Of Time and Turtles: Mending the World, Shell by Shattered Shell by Sy Montgomery: Book Review–3 Stars
Wild Maps for Curious Minds: 100 New Ways to See the Natural World by Mike Higgins, illustrated by Manuel Bortoletti: Book Review–4 Stars
Read:
Over the past two weeks, I’ve read all of these. Several are graphic novels and there’s one book of maps.
Hogfather (Discworld #20) by Terry Pratchett–4 Stars
Mooncakes by Suzanne Walker, illustrated by Wendy Xu–3.5 Stars
Wild Maps for Curious Minds: 100 New Ways to See the Natural World by Mike Higgins, illustrated by Manuel Bortoletti–4 Stars
Lumberjanes, Vol. 4: Out of Time by N. D. Stevenson, Grace Ellis, and Shannon Watters, illustrated by Gus A. Allen–4 Stars
We Are Here to Stay: Voices of Undocumented Young Adults by Susan Kuklin–4 Stars
March: Book Three by John Lewis with Andrew Aydin, illustrated by Nate Powell–4.5 Stars
Seeing a Large Cat (Amelia Peabody #9) by Elizabeth Peters–4 Stars
Run: Book One by John Lewis with Andrew Aydin, illustrated by Nate Powell and L. Fury–4 Stars
Currently Reading:
What You Are Looking for is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama, translated by Alison Watts
Euphoria by Lily King, read by Simon Vance and Xe Sands
Pleased to Meet Me: Genes, Germs, and the Curious Forces That Make Us Who We Are by Bill Sullivan
Noir (Noir Chronicles #1) by Christopher Moore, read by Johnny Heller (My husband and I listen to this together on road trips so it’s on hold until our next foray.)
Up Next:
I’m almost finished with What You Are Looking For Is in the Library but I don’t know what I’ll read next.
What did your week look like?
Hosts:
Deb Nance at Readerbuzz hosts The Sunday Salon and Kimberly at Caffeinated Book Reviewer hosts Sunday Post. Kathryn at Book Date hosts It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
28 Comments
What a spectacular hike!
You have also read some spectacular books. I love Terry Pratchett! I read and enjoyed all the March books, but still haven’t gotten to Run. Of Time and Turtles is on my to read list, but after reading your remarks here, I won’t rush to get to it.
Your best intentions got you posting this weekend, so that’s something! I didn’t even get organized enough to make resolutions or set intentions for 2025.
I’m glad you’re listening to the audiobook of Euphoria! Isn’t it good? I never listened past book #1 of Discworld. I think the number of books in the series is just too daunting.
Great pictures from your trip! I have to go check out your Best Books of 2024 post now!
I am enjoying Euphoria so far. The narrators are fantastic!
I’ve only read a handful of Discworld books because I agree that the number of books is intimidating. I saw that most people think Hogfather can be read as a standalone so I decided to give it a go. I missed some backstory but nothing that seemed essential.
“Weaver’s Needle” sounds like something straight out of LOTR books, or maybe it’s just me watching Rings of Power.
And I hope Noir turns out to be fun!
You’re right about Weaver’s Needle! 🙂 And you’ve reminded me that we need to watch the second season of Rings of Power.
Oh, I liked What You Are Looking For, I wonder what you’ll think of it.
The hike looks wonderful, the desert can be so stunning.
I’ve already finished and loved What You Are Looking For! I suspect it will be on my top ten list for the year but it’s very early days yet.
Lovely photos. How neat that you had a chance to go. You’ve done a lot of reading as well. Lumberjanes sounds good. Love the cover of What You Are Looking for is in the Library. Hope you enjoy your week.
https://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2025/01/its-monday-what-are-you-reading-jan-13.html
Thank you!
Looks like a gorgeous place to hike! I’m impressed by your very long reading list.
best… mae at maefood.blogspot.com
It was! My husband kept saying, “This might be one of my favorite hikes in the country! But do I say that about every hike we do?” and the answer is yes. He sees the beauty in every hike we go on. Just one of the many reasons I love him.
Not sure how far it is from where you were hiking, but there’s a fire (Horton fire) in the Tonto National Forest, which is NE of Phoenix near Payson. They may have caused the smoke in the air. Gorgeous views, nonetheless!!
I’ll be interested to hear your thoughts on Euphoria. A friend recommended it several years ago, but I couldn’t get interested.
That may have been it. We saw a lot of smoke as we drove through the Tonto NF on our way back from Petrified Forest NP a few weeks ago but I didn’t see anything about it when I did a quick search for fires in the Phoenix area.
I like the narrators of Euphoria but I keep waiting for things to get started. I don’t feel like a whole lot has happened yet and I’m halfway through.
Wow, yes the photos are showing amazing views, to walk among it all just breath taking I would think. You will certainly know so many good spots in the USA by time you have travelled around. Enjoy your reading when you can take your eyes off the views.
We are very fortunate to be able to travel across this big beautiful country. But we’d like to visit New Zealand someday too! You have your own spectacular scenery!
It’s been cold and rainy here, so I haven’t even gotten out to walk or to ride my bike. Thank you for sharing these photos of your hike. I like the contrast of the cactus with the water.
I want to look for the Wild Maps book. I think you often find such great nonfiction books.
I think we have similar tastes in nonfiction books because I think you find interesting titles too.
Those views are stunning! No surprise you traded blogging for those 🙂
Wishing you a happy reading week
I couldn’t feel guilty about not blogging with views like those before me.
Loving the book haul and reads. The hiking views look lovely.
It was a gorgeous hike.
Yay to reading Hogfather!
And great photos!
Have a great week!
I read it after you mentioned it on your blog. Thanks for the heads up! I enjoyed it!
Thank you for your thoughtfulness regarding the Los Angeles fires…such devastation! Consistent blogging can be difficult. I love your photos! We pass through Tucson and Phoenix very often when we drive to Diego. Whilst reading The Booklover’s Library, Martin mentioned so many classics – to include Anne of Green Gables!
I loved Aoyama’s book and hoping she publishes again soon!
We very often seem to be crossing the country in the winter so we drive I-10 and I-8 to avoid any possible snow further north. My husband has wanted to work in southern Arizona in the winter for years now and this was the year we finally made it happen.
I’ve finished What You Are Looking For and loved it! I hope she continues writing and that they’re translated for us too.
I’m so pleased you enjoyed Hogfather so much – it’s one of my favourite Discworld books:). And the views on that hike are simply stunning! I hope the coming week is a good one, Jen.
I’ve only read a few Discworld books (there are so many, the series intimidates me, as do all the myriad reading orders people suggest), but I’ve really liked the ones I’ve read!
I’m aware there are a fair few Discworld novels out there. A huge number of them can be read more or less as standalones. It’s just the ones involving the witches and the guards that it’s ideal to read in the right order – and even then, it’s not a dealbreaker if you don’t. Pratchett was far too good a writer to let his readers flounder if they crashed midway into his world:).