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Welcome to my weekly update for March 7, 2021!
I disappeared for a few weeks while my husband was off of work but I should be back to my regular schedule now. I need to start building a bigger cushion of pre-scheduled posts! Scheduling one week ahead usually feels like an accomplishment to me. Lesson learned.
We visited White Sands National Park and Carlsbad Caverns National Park while he was off. White Sands was beautiful in a way that’s very different from what I’m used to, being from the lush southern Appalachian mountains. We do have caverns in the Appalachians and I’ve visited a few of them but they pale in comparison to Carlsbad Caverns. We spent hours drifting around, taking it all in. Unfortunately, we also had to wait over an hour and a half in line for the elevator, which was the only way out. No bueno.
Posted:
Nothing but I plan to get my groove back this week.
Read:
The Grand Tour: or The Purloined Coronation Regalia by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer
Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins
Only Time Will Tell by Jeffrey Archer, read by Roger Allam and Emilia Fox
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi
Currently Reading:
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South by Michael W. Twitty
Reading Challenge Update:
I’m including this in an effort to hold myself accountable. I’ll try to remember to update at the end of each month. Challenge title links go to my personal progress page and host links go to the relevant sign-up page.
- Books in Translation Reading Challenge (hosted here at Introverted Reader) Progress: 0/4
- Southern Literature Reading Challenge (hosted here at Introverted Reader) Progress: 3/7
- New (To You) Narrator Reading Challenge (hosted here at Introverted Reader) Progress: 3/6
- Uncorked Reading Challenge (hosted at The Uncorked Librarian) Progress: 2/12
- Nonfiction Reader Challenge (hosted at Book’d Out) Progress: 3/12
- Diversity Reading Challenge (hosted at Celebrity Readers) General Progress: 8/25; Monthly Progress: 3/12
- Audiobook Reading Challenge (hosted at Caffeinated Reviewer and That’s What I’m Talking About) Progress: 5/20
- Book Voyage: Read Around the World Challenge (hosted at The Book Girls’ Guide) Progress: 2/12
Up Next:
I’m not sure. I need a new audiobook this week and I also need a book set in eastern Europe for the Book Voyage challenge. I’d like to avoid WWII books since I’ve already read so many of those. Any suggestions?
What did your week look like?
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?
I have an affiliate relationship with Malaprop’s Bookstore/Cafe in beautiful Asheville, NC. I will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you if you purchase merchandise through links on my site.
8 Comments
Hope you enjoyed your break. I loved The Midnight Library by Matt Haig and hope you do as well.
We love traveling around the West, and we especially loved Carlsbad Caverns. We are eager to go on a rock hunt out west soon, but I’m not sure how long it will be before we actually are able to do so.
The audio of Ready Player Two is “ready” for me at the library, so that’s where I will go next with audios.
The Cooking Gene sounds intriguing. I’ll see if I can find it.
Glad you are back to blogging. It is hard to blog while you are traveling, I think.
I’m sorry about the long elevator wait, but the White Sands image you’ve put up is lovely. I can imagine it through your lens now, and glad your trip is going so well.
I don’t like the Throne of Glass series as much as the Court of Thorns series by Maas, but look forward to your review! Have forgotten many things about that series. And The Boy who Harnessed the Wind looks like a fun and inspiring read.
White Sands and Carlsbad Caverns look gorgeous and very different from what I’m used to as well. Both are on my places to visit some day list. Have a great week!
I remember going to Carlsbad Caverns when I was younger, it really is an amazing place. I remember noticing that there was only the elevator as a way out, but that’s about all I remember about that part of the experience. I think it would bother me a LOT more as an adult than it did when I was a kid.
I don’t think I’ve read any Eastern European books. I’ve been meaning to read more varied books, but it’s a slow process since I also want to read down my backlist (which isn’t necessarily as diverse as I would like). I hope you find something good for the challenge!
I would love to go to White Sands! Looks neat.
I’ve had A Very Large Expanse of Sea on my list. I’m glad you enjoyed it. I’ll have to bump it up on my TBR. Most of my audiobooks right now are memoirs and humorous essays. I just finished Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby. I’m also listening to Braiding Sweetgrass and it’s just lovely. How’s Throne of Glass? I’ve heard mixed reviews so I’ve avoided it.
The Cooking Gene was phenomenal on audiobook! But I did miss a lot of stuff I wanted to highlight because I didn’t have a physical book but I loved listening to it.
Those caverns look amazing. I’d love to make it down to southern Cal for stuff like that. But I’d be scared to have to wait such a long time to get out of those caverns. yikes! Enjoy your time and the blog and your readers will be waiting when you get back! I’ve tried to set up stuff in advance and it just never works…oh well. Such is life.
Enjoy your week!
I really liked A Very Large Expanse of Sea and The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind; such different, but good reads. The caverns look fun, but an hour and a half wait for the elevator sounds awful.